The seventh installment of a What If series that involves the rewriting of episodes. This one includes four redos of earlier rewritten episodes, and then eight Season 7 episodes. (Warning!: Rewrites based on personal opinion. Please respect it!)
Seven full seasons of episodes, seven volumes, seven rounds of rewriting. Once again it's that series which seeks to answer the question "What if that episode had been written differently?"
This volume will be the most ambitious yet, four episodes previously rewritten are up for a redo to try and address some of the bigger problems that the first one either did not address or did not dwell on. One will even shift the focus to a different cast of characters. And then we have eight rewrites from Season 7 (as Season 8 is still ongoing at the moment), including two episodes being expanded into two parters, another episode being split into three stand alone episodes with a tying theme, and then one standard rewrite.
By now it probably goes without saying, but the episodes rewritten are based on my personal opinion so please respect it. Don't get offended if an episode you liked is on the list here, or an episode you didn't like isn't. I'll gladly respect your opinions if you respect mine.
And of course, I mean no disrespect to Hasbro, the DHX writing and editing staff, or anyone who likes the episodes that appear here. The intent of this fic, like all of its predecessors, is for entertainment purposes only.
Follow the links in the previous volume to find Volumes 1-5 if you want to see what other episodes have already been tackled.
Sweetie Belle was pacing about in the park in the middle of Ponyville, where could her friends and fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders be? They'd all agreed to meet here almost half an hour ago and neither Apple Bloom or Scootaloo had shown up. As the unicorn wandered in circles her eyes occasionally glanced up at the sky, the local pegasi were bringing in thick, dark grey storm clouds for some reason that had completely escaped her mind at the moment.
"Where is everypony? Is this all some kind of elaborate prank or something?" Sweetie thought to herself. "I thought that when Scootaloo and I agreed to become the Cutie Mark Crusaders, we were going to meet up every day after school if possible."
Just then who should come running into the park but a very familiar light-green bordering on yellow coated earth pony filly with a distinctive pink bow to define her? Sweetie recognized a pony like that in an instant, her friend Apple Bloom (good friend was a bit of a stretch at the moment as she didn't know the farm filly as well or as long as she did Scootaloo, the two of them went way back). With a broad smile on her face she cheerfully greeted. "Apple Bloom! Oh I'm so glad you finally made it!"
But Apple Bloom was anything but cheerful, her expression was one of seriousness that seemed to be bordering on impatience and frustration. "I've been tryin' to find ya all afternoon, Sweetie Belle!"
"What do you mean, Apple Bloom? And where's Scootaloo, how come she isn't with you?" Sweetie Belle questioned.
Apple Bloom groaned. "Don't tell me you've forgotten again! Scootaloo's folks are out of town and they took her with her, somethin' 'bout not bein' able to find a good foalsitter. Our meetin''s been cancelled."
"Then why did you come here?" Sweetie pondered. "And how come the sky's getting so dark?"
The farm filly groaned again. "Weren't you payin' any attention durin' class today? Miss. Cheerilee specifically told us."
"I think I was a bit late to class this morning," Sweetie sheepishly admitted. "A bit of a challenge to walk halfway across town, that's usually why I stay at Rarity's during the week."
With a sigh, Apple Bloom explained. "The local pegasi are bringin' a storm through town this evenin'. Apparently they've been havin' trouble with their cloud machine or whatever Miss. Cheerilee called that darn thing. So now that they've finally got it workin' they've gotta bring a doozy of a downpour in to make up for all the scheduled showers they missed," And then she added. "I came here to make sure you weren't still waitin' in the park, everypony's either helpin' to prepare for the storm or they're inside and preparin' for the worst. And I reckon it's time we did the same."
At that moment there came a flash of lightning followed by a clap of thunder, the clouds burst open as though the rain water was tear drops they were shedding and the wind suddenly turned from a faint breeze into a roaring gust! Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle began running at a breakneck pace, they knew only that a park full of trees was the last place anypony should be in a storm. But where they would go for shelter, they had no idea!
The two fillies rushed into town, looking desperately for anywhere that they could stay! The storm only continued to grow in intensity as the wind blew harder and the rain poured down even faster! if they didn't find shelter soon they feared they might not survive until morning.
Then suddenly from out of the blue they swore they heard a voice shouting! "You two! Come inside, quickly!" The voice sounded vaguely familiar for some reason but neither Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle cared enough to dwell on it, all that mattered at the moment was getting out of the rain and wind.
It was not until they had followed the voice to its source that they realized who it was that was calling out to them. It was Silver Spoon, her unmistakeable grey coat and purple eyes made her easily identifiable to the two fillies. Apple Bloom understandably hesitated as the two fillies glanced upon the vast structure that was Silver's house (mansion was probably a better term for it though). "Wait just an apple pickin' minute here!" She protested. "I don't care how desperate we are, Sweetie Belle, we ain't settin' hoof into the home of our sworn enemy."
"But Apple Bloom what choice do we have?" Sweetie Belle replied as she trotted towards the front door. "If we stay out here much longer we'll catch a cold. Rarity would throw a fit if that happened, and I'm pretty sure your family wouldn't be any happier. If it means having to tolerate a pony like Silver Spoon, I'm willing to get out of the rain. So are you gonna do the same, or do you wanna stay out here in the wind and the rain?"
Apple Bloom let out a groan, realizing that she was probably outvoted on this situation (if one took into account Silver Spoon's opinion). "Alright, alright, I guess we can stay." She reluctantly consented.
"Yay!" Sweetie happily beamed and pranced along towards the door.
"But only 'til this whooper of a storm passes, then we're goin' our separate ways," The farm filly insisted. "And nothin' you say is changin' my mind."
"Oh come on, blank flanks," Silver Spoon commented as she invited her two guests inside. "Just because I hang out with Diamond Tiara doesn't mean I have it out for you. Even Di wouldn't leave you two out in this kind of weather, she's not that kind of pony."
"Somehow I doubt that very much." Apple Bloom muttered under her breath.
Silver Spoon merely threw up a hoof and pointed at the two fillies. "Ah ah, before you set hoof inside the Spoon family estate you have to wipe off your hooves. Mother doesn't want anypony dragging mud and dirt into the house, Celestia knows the butlers and nannies work hard enough as it is just to keep this place looking nice."
And the two fillies could see that such was not an exaggeration. The house was a sight to behold, it had beautiful walls made of marble and tiled floors that looked like they had been imported at great expense. To say nothing of the busts of ponies long past and the picture frames depicting ponies that looked to varying degrees like Silver Spoon. Even the welcome mat on which they currently stood looked nice, about as nice as a welcome mat could be anyway. It had silver lining around it and the words "There's no place like home" appeared to be spelled out in gold letters.
Sweetie obliged her hostess' request without trouble. When one lived so often with a big sister that detested anything she labeled as "uncouth" (whatever that meant), wiping one's hooves when entering was routine and necessary (as were such things as proper table manners and staying out of Rarity's workshop).
Apple Bloom was much more hesitant even as she looked down at her hooves. "They don't seem so dirty to me." She grumbled but still obeyed. Despite living on a farm the filly did have manners and cleaning up after chores was always a requirement.
Silver Spoon then began grinning from ear to ear and bouncing up and down in excitement! "Oh this is so incredible! I'm finally gonna get to have a proper sleepover with actual ponies!" She cheered!
"What the hay are you talkin' 'bout? You mean to tell me you've never hosted a sleepover before?" The farm filly questioned her rich hostess.
Silver confirmed with a nod even as she continued to bounce in a manner that could've been mistaken for Pinkie Pie herself. "Oh yes! I've been invited to plenty of sleepovers since I met Diamond Tiara last year, but never have I had the courage to actually host my own before. Until now, that is!"
"Then how come you invited us and not her? I thought you two were inseparable." Sweetie questioned.
Silver's happy mood faded and her bouncing ceased, the very mention of Diamond Tiara appeared to suddenly make her stop right in he tracks. She seemed in short to become an entirely different filly as she shyly admitted. "Diamond couldn't make it, she's out of town all weekend with her father. It's supposed to be for a business trip, but I get the feeling the real purpose is for the two to spend some Father/Daughter time together," A sigh of longing escaped her lips. "I wish my dad and I were that close, aside from the birthday or occasional holiday it seems like he only ever has time for that restaurant of his in Canterlot. But my mom and my big sister Octavia prefer the peace and quiet of Ponyville, Mom always says 'Canterlot is no place to raise a filly'."
"Wait, your big sister is Octavia Melody, the famous cello performer?!" Apple Bloom exclaimed! "I've heard of her, she's supposed to be performin' at this year's Grand Gallopin' Gala!"
"Never heard of her myself, but Rarity has spoken fondly of her music." Sweetie added.
Silver smiled. "She's only the most awesome big sister in the history of big sisters, she taught me almost everything I know. One of these days you must see her when she comes home. It's because of her that I even worked up the courage to have this sleepover in the first place."
"Um, not to be rude but... how exactly can you have a sleepover if you've never hosted one before?" Sweetie questioned the grey coated filly. "I mean, Scootaloo's attended a lot of sleepovers at my place but that wouldn't mean she would know how to run one."
"Why, with this of course!" Silver proudly proclaimed as she shoved a huge book in front of her two guests. The cover read: Slumber 101: All You Ever Wanted to Know About Slumber Parties but Were Afraid to Ask in bold letters. "I checked it out from the library this morning, before I learned Di was gonna be out of town and big sis wasn't coming home," And she then beamed anew. "This is gonna be great! We can stay up late putting on mud masks, doing each others manes, having pillow fights, making delicious smores, telling scary ghost stories and even doing a little bit of truth or dare. It'll be the best sleepover ever!"
But Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle weren't so sure. The two of them had only known each other for the better half of a month now and they had never really interacted without Scootaloo despite the fact that their older siblings knew each other. To say nothing of the fact that they were spending the night in the home of a pony they'd considered their sworn enemy. But a sleepover was a sleepover, so for better or for worse the two decided they would try their best to make things work.
Silver Spoon led her guests up a winding staircase and past rows of doors painted a dazzling red in color with polished brass door knobs. She soon stopped at a door on the right hoof end of a long hallway and pushed it open. Her guests could hardly believe the sight that awaited them on the other side.
A bed fit for a princess rested in the center of the room with room enough for two, no three ponies of medium size. Various stuffed animals and highly decorative pillows adorned the gorgeous, snow white bed sheets with gold silk trim. A small table set with plastic tea cups and plates sat in one corner of the room complete with chairs for up to five guests. On the other side was a closet big enough to walk into and probably get lost in. And not far from that, directly across from the bed was a small fireplace, though the fire had currently been put out.
"Well, what do you think? Go ahead, admit it, you know you're jealous." Silver teased as she couldn't resist flaunting her wealth just a little, she wasn't friends with Diamond Tiara for nothing after all.
"It's... um... lovely, I think." Sweetie commented, unsure of what else to say.
Apple Bloom barely resisted the urge to gag. "Sheesh, ever heard of overdoin' it? Are all them fancy props and accessories really necessary?" She remarked. "My bedroom doesn't have any of those things and ya don't hear me complainin'."
A slight "humph" escaped the grey earth pony filly's lips as she snorted. "I would've expected nothing less from a filly raised on a farm."
"And I'm darn proud of it too!" Apple Bloom retorted. "All this stuff, it ain't practical. It's just a waste of money, right, Sweetie Belle?"
But Sweetie Belle was too in awe of the magnificent bedroom to take notice of what Apple Bloom had said. The unicorn replied in blissful unawareness. "This is lovely. It's like Rarity's place, except a lot fancier. I wish my bedroom had even half the stuff you have. That old hoof me down bed barely even fits me anymore."
"Well I'm glad somepony appreciates the finer things in life," Silver not so subtly jabbed at the lone dissenter. "But whatever, we're not here to make fashion statements. We're here to have the most awesome, incredible, super-spectacular sleepover in the history of all sleepovers! And with this book and the tips I picked up from my sister, we'll have a truly out of this world experience! Tonight will be a night we'll look back on and talk fondly about for years and years to come!"
"Yay?" Apple Bloom half cheered.
Sweetie just beamed. "So what should we do first, Silver Spoon? You are the hostess, and Rarity always says that when somepony invites you over you are to let the host or hostess go first."
"How about we start something even an uncultured filly like Apple Bloom could appreciate? Mud masks!" Silver suggested in eagerness as she scanned through the book. "I'll go get the gel and the cucumbers, it'll be just like a trip to the spa!" She returned in mere moments with a bowl containing some kind of green substance, and a plate containing freshly cut cucumbers. "Since Mother would throw a hissy fit if I brought actual mud into the house, we'll substitute this special bathing gel. I'm sure she won't miss it, after all her bathroom is full of bathing and beauty products like these. Me personally, I prefer scented shampoos."
"What's with the cucumbers? Why in the hay would anypony put veggies on their face?" Apple Bloom questioned as Silver Spoon dipped a hoof into the bowl and began to smear the gel all over her face.
"They're to reduce puffiness around the eyes. At least, that's what Mother always says," Silver Spoon explained. "And it says to do it in the book, so it must be right."
"Apple Bloom," Sweetie grumbled. "Stop making such a fuss and just relax. Think of this as a trip to the spa, just like the time we had to have that herbal bath from Zecora."
The farm filly shook her head. "And that's gonna be the only time I ever set hoof in that spa if I can help it. I'd much rather just hose off or take a quick shower or bubble bath," She protested. "What's the point of gettin' all prettied up if you're just gonna go and get dirty again anyway?"
"Oh for goodness sake, will you stop it already?" Silver snorted as she stomped a hoof down. "I'm trying to do you a favor, blank flank, and offer you a place to stay for the night. All I want in return is a little cooperation for my first ever sleepover. You don't wanna ruin it, do you?"
"Well... when you put it like that..." Apple Bloom trailed off.
Silver smiled and started to rub the gel in Apple Bloom's face. "Good, no grumbling. Because otherwise you can just walk home in the wind and the rain all by yourself."
"Come on, Apple Bloom," Sweetie encouraged with a smile. "Lighten up a little and enjoy yourself. Haven't you ever had a sleepover before?"
"Do campouts with your family count?" The farm filly questioned. Silver Spoon rolled her eyes and put the cucumbers on.
"Now the book says to keep them on for a few minutes and let the cucumbers work their magic." Silver explained.
But Apple Bloom only retorted. "Nah, ya just eat 'em," And she proceeded to use her tongue to grab the cucumbers and swallow them. "See?"
After that "display" Silver Spoon reluctantly crossed off Mud Masks from the list of things to do. "Well, since a certain somepony already ate I guess there's no point in making the smores right now."
"The cucumbers were delicious though," Sweetie commented as she licked her lips. When Silver Spoon glared at her she innocently retorted. "I couldn't help it. I thought since we were done with the mud masks, the least I could was enjoy the cucumbers. They were probably gonna get thrown out anyway."
"Whatever," Silver sighed and scanned the book. "I guess we can move on to the next activity, pillow fight."
Apple Bloom grinned from ear to ear. "Finally, somethin' I can get behind! I used to have pillow fights with Applejack and Big Mac all the time!"
"And I'll bet they whooped your sorry flank every single time too." Sweetie taunted with a snicker.
"Puh-lease!" Silver sarcastically retorted. "As if anypony could beat me, the princess of pillow fighting!" But mere seconds after she had spoken that statement, a pillow sailed through the air and hit her square in the muzzle. "What?! Who DARES strike at me?!"
"Gotcha!" Sweetie giggled. "Guess you're not the princess of pillow fighting anymore. But I'm the queen."
"Not if I beat you!" Apple Bloom taunted and chased after Sweetie, hurling a pillow in her general direction.
The pillow whizzed past Sweetie's ears and hit the bedroom wall with a thud. The unicorn filly was not deterred even the slightest though, she just stuck out her tongue. "Is that the best you can do, Apple Bloom?"
"Not even close! I'm just gettin' warmed up!" Apple Bloom shouted in reply as she readied another pillow. "I won't miss this time!"
Pillows soon started to fly through the air in an all out battle between three very energetic fillies, none of which could remain fixated on a single target for very long. They traded pillow fire repeatedly, never managing to score a direct hit.
But Silver Spoon did have one objection as the pillow fight grew in intensity. "Be careful, blank flanks!" She shouted a warning! "These pillows can pack a wallop! Don't throw them where they'll break something, I don't wanna get in trouble!"
Apple Bloom skidded to a halt, dropping the pillow she'd intended for Sweetie Belle. She couldn't be sure she would hit her target and considering she was facing in the direction of the table and tea seat, the farm filly didn't want to run the risk she might accidentally knock it over.
Sweetie knew no such restraint. Without warning she sneaked up behind Silver Spoon and whacked her over the head with her pillow. "Take that!" She eagerly declared. But her celebration proved to be premature as the pillow ripped its seam and feathers and stuffing flew everywhere. Her pristine white coat couldn't contain the bright red blush that formed on her cheeks as a result, and she squeaked quite audibly.
"How dare you!" Silver growled as she surveyed the damage. "That was my favorite pillow you just busted! Have you any idea how many sewing needles Mother will have to go through to make the repairs in time for bed? In case you weren't aware, these aren't the kind of pillows you can just buy in a store."
"Uh, I'm sorry?" Sweetie apologized as sincerely as she could.
"Sorry's not gonna fix this," Silver complained. "The pillow fight is over, I need to get my pillow fixed asap! Without it I don't think I'll be able to sleep, and it's not a sleepover if you can't sleep."
"But Applejack always says nopony ever sleeps at sleepovers." Apple Bloom protested.
Silver only groaned and rolled her eyes. "She was just messing with you, just because she's the Element of Honesty it doesn't mean she always tells the whole truth. I mean, if she told you to jump off a cliff and you'd be safe, would you believe her?"
"Worked for Twilight, apparently. I've heard the story about how she, Applejack, and her friends all defeated the evil Nightmare Moon." Apple Bloom proudly proclaimed.
"Nice ghost story," Silver scoffed as she scooped up her damaged pillow. "Save it for the actual ghost story part of the sleepover. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to track down Mother and give her the bad news."
The instant Silver Spoon left the room, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle exchanged glances of confusion. Nightmare Moon was real. They distinctly remembered huddling in fright from her (though because they were so frightened they hadn't taken notice of who else was cowering with them in their location). So where did ponies like Silver Spoon get the idea that Nightmare Moon was nothing but a ghost story or an old mare's tail?
Well that was a question for another day. And ghost story or not it was not enough to dampen their excitement for next Nightmare Night, it promised to be a real treat.
When Silver Spoon came back several minutes later she appeared to be just the slightest bit more cheerful. "Well, it took a lot of pleading but I was able to talk Mother into stitching my pillow back together in time for bed," She informed her guests. "She also said she'll send a maid up here soon to start the fire so we can have smores."
"Great, I'm lookin' forward to that!" Apple Bloom eagerly licked her lips. "Whenever my family has camp outs, we always have smores."
"But what are we gonna do in the meantime?" Sweetie Belle asked her hostess.
"Hold on, let me check the book," Silver replied and dashed over to where she had last left the book, resting atop her bed. Skimming through the pages she soon declared. "Hm, how about a little bit of truth or dare?"
"Great idea!" Apple Bloom declared. "How 'bout I start things off?"
Suspecting nothing, Silver Spoon agreed. "Okay then, Apple Bloom. You pick first."
Apple Bloom pretended to think it over, she already knew who she wanted to target. "How about... Sweetie Belle?" She suggested.
Sweetie stepped back a bit as she asked. "Uh, what do I do exactly? Scootaloo and I never play truth or dare at our sleepovers. Hard to do it when there's only two ponies."
"The book says you either have to give an honest answer to any question, or do whatever another pony dares to you to do," Silver explained. "So, Sweetie Belle, truth or dare?"
"Um..." Sweetie trailed off, deep in thought. "How about... dare?"
Apple Bloom grinned and rubbed her hooves together. "Okay, Sweetie Belle. I dare you to go run your head under the bathroom sink and get all nice and wet."
"What?!" Sweetie squeaked. "But my mane will get all wet, and I brushed it just this morning. I wanna look nice, just like my big sister, Rarity."
"You can't back out," Silver protested with a shake of her head. "If you do you forfeit the game, and that means Apple Bloom wins."
The unicorn filly pouted. "That's so not fair. Can't I just do truth instead?"
"It doesn't say anything about changing your mind in the book," The grey coated filly answered. "So I'm gonna say, no. Either do the dare, or forfeit."
The little unicorn with a coat of pristine white let out a long sigh. It seemed a dare was a dare. She reluctantly trotted out of the bedroom and to the bathroom. Turning on the faucet, she stuck her head under the stream after making sure the water wasn't too hot or too cold. For how long she kept it under she was not aware, but at last she lifted her head. Her mane was dripping wet and hung limply against her face.
She trotted back into Silver's bedroom as Apple Bloom and Silver Spoon both chuckled at her appearance. The filly growled. "Alright, my turn, right?" When Silver nodded she immediately turned to Apple Bloom. "Okay, Apple Bloom. Truth or dare?"
"Dare of course! Do your worst!" Apple Bloom boldly declared. She didn't seem to suspect Sweetie could do anything to her.
The farm filly turned out to be mistaken. "I dare you to go into Silver Spoon's closet and put on the most frilly and lavish dress you can possibly find," Sweetie dared her friend. "Think you can manage that, or do you wanna quit now?"
Apple Bloom cursed under her breath as she trotted over the closet. "Y'all will regret this," She vowed and then shut the closet door once she was inside it. It was still possible to hear her voice, even as it was muffled by the door and the walls. "No, no, not in a million years, I wouldn't be caught dead wearin' that, is there anythin' in here that ain't gonna make me keel over from embarrassment?"
At last the filly emerged from the closet and Sweetie Belle could barely contain her laughter. Apple Bloom wore a long, light blue flowing dress, matching shining slippers, and a tall hat of similar blue color. "Ya happy now, Sweetie Belle?" She complained. "This suit is so itchy, and it covers up my bow."
"So? It's just a bow, don't you have more of 'em back home?" Sweetie innocently questioned.
"Well, yeah, but the one I usually wear was a gift from my parents. It's all I have to remember 'em by," Apple Bloom explained. "Applejack feels the same way 'bout that stetson she likes to wear, even though she's got a dozen or so just like it that she won at state fairs."
"Ahem!" Silver cleared her throat, drawing attention to herself. "If you fillies wouldn't mind, we've still got a game to play. Now then, Apple Bloom, it's your turn. But the rules say you can't target the same pony twice in a row. So go ahead, ask me the question."
The truth or dare session went on for a considerable length of time, but Silver Spoon couldn't help but be bothered at the fact that every other time it came to Apple Bloom or Sweetie Belle they would target each other with dares. The only pony who ever chose truth was Silver herself, but much to the disappointment of the blank flanks she didn't appear to have any embarrassing secrets she wanted to keep hidden.
Eventually the session drew to a close as there came a knock at the door and a stuffy voice called out. "Mistress Silver? It is I, Feather Duster. Mrs. Spoon has sent me up to start the fire and bring the ingredients for the smores."
"You may enter, Feather Duster." Silver Spoon instructed and turned the door knob.
Feather Duster was a pegasus mare of considerable age, she looked only slightly younger than Granny Smith. Her coat was a dull brown in color and her mane and tail were noticeably grey. She had faded blue eyes, wore a black maid's outfit with white trim, and had a cutie mark depicting a broom sweeping away dust. Tucked safely into the pocket of her dress was a box of match sticks, and on her snout she balanced a tray holding graham crackers, a pack of marshmallows, and chocolate candy bars.
After instructing her charges to stand far away from the fire place, the maid set the smores ingredients on the nearby table and took the box of match sticks out of her pocket. She removed one from the package, ran it across the designated flint part of the box, and then carefully moved the lit match to the wood to start the fire. Once the fire began to crackle to life she blew out the match stick. "There we go, my fillies," She bowed her head. "I trust you will be careful around an open flame. Only roast marshmallows and be sure to put out the fire when you're done. If you need me, just call." And the maid departed the bedroom.
"Well then, shall we begin to make the smores?" Silver Spoon offered to her guests. "You do know how to make them, right?"
"'Course I do!" Apple Bloom boasted. "You set out the graham crackers on a plate, break them apart, and set the chocolate bars on top of them. Then ya roast the marshmallows til they're nice and gooey, but not too much or they'll catch on fire. And then you sandwich the marshmallow between the chocolate bars and the crackers, and ya eat it. They taste so good, y'all will want some more."
"Oh, I get it," Sweetie realized. "That's why they're called 'smores'."
Silver nodded. "Exactly. Now let's stop talking and start roasting. That fire won't stay lit for long."
The three fillies proceeded to take turns roasting their marshmallows over the fire and prepare the graham crackers and chocolate bars to sandwich the marshmallows in between. Soon they had three plates of smores, one for each of them.
But both Sweetie and Silver quickly became appalled at Apple Bloom's apparent lack of table manners, she even chewed with her mouth open. "These smores are delish!" The farm filly declared. "I reckon they taste as good as the ones my family always makes durin' our camp outs."
"Apple Bloom, do you mind not talking with your mouth open?!" Sweetie complained.
"Sorry," Apple Bloom apologized as she swallowed her tasty snack. "Couldn't help it, these are some of the best smores I've ever had." And then she let out a huge belch.
"You're supposed to say 'Excuse me'." Sweetie glared at her friend.
Apple Bloom glared back. "Well I was, but ya interrupted. Pardon."
"Close enough." Silver sighed.
With belies full of smores the fillies watched carefully as Feather Duster extinguished the fire and put up a barrier to keep the soot out of the bedroom.
"Smores, check. This sleepover is proceeding relatively smoothly, all things considered," Silver Spoon declared as she held the book aloft. "Ooh, and now it's time for ghost stories. Too bad Diamond Tiara isn't here, she always tells the best ghost stories."
"Well how 'bout I tell one first?" Apple Bloom suggested. "My family's got tons of old ghost stories they've passed down from generation to generation. But this one's extra special, it's about this prissy ghost who was obsessed with neatness to a degree that was downright frigthenin'."
Sweetie arched an eyebrow upward at Apple Bloom's statement. "You're just making this up to mock me, aren't you?"
"They're ghost stories, they're always made up," Apple Bloom protested. "Besides, I never mentioned names, did I? Anyway, this ghost drove the other ghosts crazy with her constant desire for neatness and so they cast her out. But the ghost decided to get her revenge, and so she cast a spell on the other ghosts that doomed them to constantly change their ways to be more prim and proper for all eternity. Ooooh."
The unicorn filly simply scoffed at her farm friend's "story". "Not bad, Apple Bloom, but I'll tell you a much better story. It's about this ghost who was always rude and impolite, she never did things the way she was supposed to. The other ghosts got fed up with her constant insistence to do things her way and they cast her out for it. But the ghost, out of spite, put a spell on them all that forced them to act like her forever. Oooh. How's that?"
The farm filly simply retorted. "Really? That's the best ghost story you could come up with?"
"That's nothing," Sweetie shrugged off the complaint. "You should hear Scootaloo's ghost stories, they're so boring they'll put you to sleep."
Just then there was a clap of thunder and the lights switched off! "Hey, who turned out the lights?!" Apple Bloom all but screamed.
Silver Spoon just grinned as she held out a lantern. "Don't worry, I'll put them back on in a minute. I just wanted to set the atmosphere for this next story. It's a real ghost story, one that will really scare you," Motioning for her guests to gather round, she sat down on the floor near her bed and began to narrate. "It all started on a night, just like this one. And three little ponies were having a sleepover, just like this one."
As the story progressed both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle found themselves growing more and more anxious, they almost didn't want to hear how the story ended.
"And then, just when the last pony thought she was safe..." Silver Spoon went on. "There, standing just inches behind her, ready to strike, was none other than... The Headless Horse!" In another flash of lightning, the glasses wearing filly seemed to vanish and a pony without a head appeared in her place, waving her hooves in the air!
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle screamed and grabbed hold of each other!
"Gotcha!" Silver Spoon giggled, removing a blanket that she'd thrown over her head to reveal that it had been her as the headless horse all along. She then flicked on the light and went to check off ghost story from the list.
Meanwhile, her two guests took notice of what they'd just done and immediately threw themselves out of the embrace. "This never happened!" Apple Bloom protested. "Right, Sweetie Belle?"
"What happened?" Sweetie Belle appeared to question in response.
Apple Bloom gave a knowing wink. "Exactly."
Just a moment later the doorknob unexpectedly turned, and into the room trotted not Feather Duster but a plump and smartly dressed earth pony mare of medium height. She sported a dazzling silver coat with golden locks in her mane and tail, and wore a red velvet dress with purple trim that matched her sparkling ruby eyes. The dress did not conceal her cutie mark though, which depicted three small jewels spaced apart enough to form a triangle if one wanted to draw lines.
The mare clapped her hooves and cleared her throat, her voice sounding elegant but also quite stern. "Alright, my little ponies. It's getting quite late and therefore it is time for all good little fillies to go to bed."
Silver Spoon looked at the mare and whined to her. "Aw but Mom, we're not tired. We haven't even done make-overs yet. Besides, I can't sleep without my pillow."
"Not to worry," Mrs. Spoon chuckled as she presented the newly repaired pillow to her daughter. "Here it is, good as new. I even washed it so it's all nice and clean."
"Can't we just stay up for a little bit longer, Mrs. Spoon?" Sweetie Belle pleaded. "I promise we won't make a mess."
Mrs. Spoon only laughed and shook her head. "I think not. This is a sleepover, and that means ponies must sleep. No ifs, ands, or buts. All growing fillies need their beauty sleep after all."
And that was that, Mrs. Spoon ushered her daughter and her guests to bed, tucked them in, and then turned out the light. But at some point after Mrs. Spoon's departure an argument started to break out between Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle.
"Hey! Quit hoggin' all the covers, Sweetie Belle!" Apple Bloom protested in a whisper as she dragged more of the covers over to her side of the bed.
"I'm not the covers hogger, you are!" Sweetie Belle protested back and yanked the covers to her side of the bed.
"No, you are!" Apple Bloom insisted and pulled the covers back over to her.
"No, you!" Sweetie yelled back as she yanked the covers toward her.
This back and forth, unofficial tug of war between the two fillies over the sheets went on for some time, neither one willing to yield even an inch. But at last, Silver Spoon (resting between the two quarreling fillies) sat up in her bed and complained. "Oh for goodness sake! Look at you two!" With a growl she added. "It says in the book that the most important thing to do at a slumber party is have fun! And now, thanks to you, I can't check that off! I do a nice thing for you blank flanks and this is how you repay me?!"
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle suddenly ceased their fighting and refused to say a word, they felt quite ashamed.
"I mean honestly, even with all that you were doing during the mud masks and the pillow fighting and the truth or dare and the smores, and even the ghost stories, I thought things were going well and that you two could get along for an evening," Silver went on to complain. "But I guess I was wrong. Dare I ask what else could possibly go wrong?"
Just then there was a loud clap of thunder followed by what sounded like a crash downstairs!
"Hey, what was that?!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed in fright.
"I... don't know..." Apple Bloom nervously commented and looked across to Silver Spoon. "Was this part of your slumber party?"
The glasses wearing filly shook her head. "No, I never planned for... whatever that was."
"D-do you t-think it's a... m-monster?" Sweetie shuddered and shivered, as though a cold wind had just blown past her.
"Oh please, everypony knows there's no such thing as monsters." Silver scoffed, before there came the sound of rattling and growling from downstairs. The noise didn't sound like anything that could be produced by a pony.
"Then what's all that, huh?" The farm filly questioned.
"I don't know," Silver replied as she jumped down from her bed and adjusted her glasses. "But I'm going to find out!" She ran out of the bedroom a moment later, leaving her two guests alone.
"Well?" Sweetie commented to Apple Bloom.
"Well what? I ain't talkin' to you, remember?" Apple Bloom folded her hooves across her chest.
Sweetie just sighed and shook her head. "Apple Bloom, we can't just let Silver Spoon take on that monster all by herself."
Apple Bloom just pouted. "Why not? She's the one who says there's no such thing as monsters and likes to think she knows everythin'. Besides, she's pals with Diamond Tiara, have you forgotten that? If not for this storm I wouldn't be willin' to set one hoof in this gosh darn place."
"Regardless of how you may feel about her, the fact remains that she let us spend the night here," Sweetie encouraged. "She can't be all bad if she's willing to do something like that. And if something bad happens to her because of that monster and you weren't there to help her, you'd never be able to live with yourself."
"Really? How do you know that's how I'd feel? Do you even know me?" Apple Bloom humphed.
"I know you're an Apple, and an Apple never turns its back on a pony in need. After all, your big sister befriended Twilight when almost everypony else thought she was a spy." Sweetie explained.
With a reluctant sigh, the farm filly appeared to concede to her friend's pleas. "Alright, alright, I guess just this once we can help Silver Spoon out."
"Excellent!" Sweetie smiled. "Now come on, we'd better hurry before that monster sinks its claws into Silver Spoon!"
The two managed to catch up with their hostess at the bottom of the stairs leading down to the first floor. Although she was trying her best not to show it, it was clear that the grey coated filly was shaken to the bone with fright.
"So, what's the plan?" Apple Bloom whispered.
"There isn't one," Silver Spoon whispered back. "We just need to catch the monster by surprise, tackle it, and make it go away."
"And if that fails?" Sweetie nervously asked.
Silver didn't answer, she didn't even want to think about that possibility. She just motioned for the blank flanks to follow her lead as she tailed the source of the noise.
Suddenly, as they rounded a bend the fillies spotted the faint outline of the monster. In the darkness it was impossible to determine what it was or what it was doing. But it didn't seem to be aware of their presence just yet.
"Okay, when I say three we're gonna pounce that monster!" Silver instructed. "Ready?"
"N-not really." Sweetie gulped.
"Ya sure this is the right idea? M-maybe we could just pretend we didn't see it and hope it goes away?" Apple Bloom suggested.
But Silver would hear of no such alternatives, instead she simply began to count. "One, two, three, NOW!"
The monster barely had time to react after Silver's "NOW!" reached its ears! Just as it turned to look it was suddenly bombarded by three fillies that charged into and forced it to the floor.
"Hahaha!" Silver Spoon boasted! "We have you now, monster! No one creeps about the Spoon family estate and gets away with it! Not on my watch! Now what do you have to say for yourself?"
But much to the surprise of Silver Spoon (and her guests) the monster cried out in a familiar elegant but stern tone of voice. "Oh for Celestia's sake! What are you fillies doing out of bed?!"
"Mom?!" Silver gasped as her purple eyes suddenly grew wide with realization.
The "monster" gently rolled the fillies off of it, stood up, and turned on the hallway light. When the lights flickered on the three fillies saw that their monster was none other than Mrs. Spoon. And judging by the scowl on her face she was anything but happy.
"But... but... the loud crash, and the growling, and the weird noises..." Sweetie stuttered. "It was really you all along, Mrs. Spoon?"
Mrs. Spoon nodded. "Yes, it most certainly was. I was simply fixing myself a little bedtime snack and checking to make sure all the windows were closed. I misjudged my step though and stumbled, ended up breaking some of the dishes. And I certainly couldn't ask Feather Duster to clean that up, the poor mare works hard enough just to keeping this place spic and span," Then she questioned. "Did you fillies actually believe there was a monster roaming around the house? Don't think I would know if that was the case?"
The three fillies all hung their heads in shame. "We're sorry, Mrs. Spoon." They apologized.
The mare simply dusted herself off and shook her head. "It's quite alright, at least nopony got hurt. But when I say it is time for bed then it is time for bed," Then she sighed. "Now come on, you've had quite enough excitement for one evening. As have I."
Next morning the storm had cleared and Celestia's sun shone upon the rain soaked land, drying up the puddles that had been left behind. A few ponies were hard at work clearing away leaves, twigs and branches that had been blown around and scattered by the strong winds. But most were simply marveling at the peace and calm of a new day, far removed from the dreadful noise of last night's storm.
Inside the Spoon family estate, the new day seemed to bring with it a change in mood for the fillies that had last night been acquaintances at best. They were now enjoying themselves enormously as they did each other's manes up in all sorts of silly styles, pretending to be running their own barbershop.
Even Mrs. Spoon noticed a change for the better in her daughter's behavior. It certainly warmed her heart to see her little filly making friends with ponies besides Diamond Tiara (Diamond's family certainly had connections but Diamond's personality gave Mrs. Spoon cause for concern, it was the same kind of behavior she detested in Canterlot ponies even though she knew better than to make such grievances public).
"Well, aside from a few 'hiccups', I am proud to declare my first ever sleepover as a hostess instead of a guest, a smashing success!" Silver Spoon happily beamed as she checked off makeovers from the list.
"Ya know, it's funny," Apple Bloom commented. "Yesterday if ya told I'd come to like sleepin' over at the home of one of the ponies who mocks me for bein' a blank flank, I'd have said you were crazy. But now, I reckon you ain't so bad a pony after all, Silver Spoon."
"Yeah, it's really too bad we're not friends, Silver Spoon," Sweetie Belle added. "I know Scootaloo would take a lot of convincing but I think in time maybe the three of us and you could become friends. Maybe we could even bury the hatchet with Diamond Tiara."
All three fillies shook their heads and said "Nah." at that statement, before they laughed. As much as they might want to believe they could befriend Diamond Tiara as easily as the three of them had bonded, they knew deep down that the divide between blank flanks and cutie marked ponies would not be so easily mended.
"Ya know, I think we learned somethin' in all of this, Sweetie Belle," Apple Bloom commented. "I think we've learned that even if we have our differences with other ponies, that doesn't mean we can never be friends. It just takes a little understandin' and acceptance."
"A very interesting lesson to have learned," Silver Spoon observed. "I'll have to mention it to Twilight when I go to drop off this book later today. Heck, why don't you two come with me? I'm sure there are some books there that you'll find interesting. After all, who doesn't love a good book?"
On a field outside Ponyville, Twilight was busy testing out a magic spell that involved a rock. And as it just so happened, the spell was for Spike. The intent was to transform the rock into a top hat for him to wear.
"Okay, Spike, remember what we discussed," Twilight cautioned the little dragon. "Hold still, please. This is gonna take a great deal of concentration."
Spike was, needless to say, a little concerned about having a rock levitated over his head even if it would be transformed. "Are you sure this is a good idea, Twilight? I mean, why don't we just get Rarity to make me something for the gala? I'm sure she won't mind." He advised.
But the unicorn only shook her head. "Spike, you know as well as I do that Rarity is swamped just trying to complete all those extra orders for Hoity Toity. This is her chance to get her hoof in the door with the fashion world and make her name known," And then she added. "What are you worried about? Just hold still and this won't hurt."
Reluctantly, Spike obeyed even though the little dragon would've rather run for the hills. He watched as the light purple glow of Twilight's magic surrounded the rock while also giving him a black tuxedo jacket and tie, as well as a cane. The rock was slowly lifted above his head as it transformed into a black top hat, and was lowered onto him.
Suddenly, there came a giggle and Twilight's concentration was broken. The spell ceased and the top hat reverted back to its original rock form. Poor Spike had only seconds to react before he was hit on the head with it. Fortunately, his thick scales protected him, but it still hurt.
Twilight let out a groan of frustration. "Spike, I thought I specifically said not to interrupt me during the spell. I need to concentrate."
"It wasn't me, Twilight, I swear." Spike protested as he rubbed the sore spot on his forehead.
"Oh really? Well if you didn't giggle, who did?" Twilight asked. Just then there came another giggle. "Like that." She pointed out.
"Don't know but it wasn't me." Spike insisted.
Suddenly, who should come darting past but Pinkie Pie herself? For some strange reason she had a rainbow colored umbrella hat on her head and was darting about from place to place while eyeing the sky.
"What the heck is she doing?" Spike wondered.
Twilight only shook her head and sighed. "With Pinkie Pie it's anypony's guess. She does things that shouldn't be possible, especially for an earth pony."
"Well there's only one way to find out for sure. Let's just hope she's in one of her 'straight answer' moods," The dragon suggested. "I'm in no mood for a game of fifty questions."
So Twilight and Spike approached Pinkie Pie, who was examining her tail as it appeared to be twitch inexplicably. "Hm. Twitchy twitcha twitcha twitch." She muttered to herself as if she knew that signaled something.
"Pinkie, what are you doing? And why are you staring at your tail like that?" Twilight questioned her friend. "You're acting like you expect it to fall off or something."
Pinkie only replied. "My tail's not gonna fall off, silly. But my tail is twitching, and that means my 'Pinkie Sense' is telling me that something is gonna fall."
"Oh really?" Twilight arched an eyebrow upward. "What sort of something? And just how do you know your tail twitching means that? Maybe you just have a flea problem or something."
Pinkie snorted. "Were you not paying attention, Twilight? I just told you, my 'Pinkie Sense' is how I know. Whenever my tail starts twitching, that means that something is gonna fall. I don't know exactly what, but something always ends up falling. And usually it's from the sky."
Twilight looked up at the sky. "I don't see anything, there's not even a cloud in the sky today," She remarked. "No offense, Pinkie, but I'm getting the feeling your 'Pinkie Sense' is just something you made up. After all, this is the first time I've ever heard about it. And I don't see how something can fall from the sky if there's nothing in it."
But that at moment something did fall, namely a frog. It landed right on Twilight's nose and let out a croak.
"Uh, Twilight, you've got a little something on your face there." Pinkie observed.
The unicorn with a coat of purple simply commented in reply. "Oh really, did your 'Pinkie Sense' tell you that?"
The pink coated earth pony only giggled. "No, silly, I can see it with my own eyes. The 'Pinkie Sense' doesn't tell me the present, it only predicts the future," Then the frog croaked again. "Oh and by the way, he just said 'Nice catch.' in frog."
Twilight only groaned in annoyance. "Is this some kind of joke?" She thought to herself, not suspecting that the 'Pinkie Sense' was something far more than just a random phrase. It was a fact she was about to learn the hard way.
"Oh my goodness, I'm so sorry, Twilight!" Fluttershy apologized. She was currently hooked up to a cart full of frogs. "I didn't even see you there!"
"Hiya, Fluttershy," Pinkie cheerfully greeted. "Whatcha doin' with all those frogs?"
Fluttershy gave a warm smile as the pegasus with a coat of butter yellow explained. "A lot of frogs have been born recently and the local pond is getting too full. I'm taking some of the older ones to Froggy Bottom Bog, Zecora told me all about it."
"But isn't there where hydras dwell?" Pinkie questioned.
Fluttershy only laughed. "Everypony knows there's no such thing as hydras, those are just myths. Don't you think Zecora would've told me about them if there were?"
"Not if she's never seen them before," Pinkie cautioned. "You be careful, Fluttershy. My 'Pinkie Sense' hasn't detected any danger there, yet. But you never know."
The pegasus mare simply nodded. "I will be, thank you for the warning, Pinkie Pie." She then scooped up the frog that had landed on Twilight's face, placed it back in the wagon, and took off with a flap of her wings.
Spike, for his part, was filled with amazement. "Did you see that, Twilight?!" He exclaimed as his eyes grew wide! "That was unbelievable! Pinkie said something was gonna fall and it did! I guess her 'Pinkie Sense' really can predict the future after all."
Twilight was anything but convinced she only laughed off the suggestion. "Spike, haven't I taught you that one random coincidence doesn't prove a connection? For all you know Pinkie just made a lucky guess. She might have had advanced knowledge about Fluttershy and her overflowing cart of frogs. It would not be unreasonable in that case to predict that one of them might fall out and thus descend from the sky," She shook her head. "Besides, if this 'Pinkie Sense' can really do all of that then why am I only now hearing about?"
The pink party pony paused and shot a puzzled look at her unicorn friend. "Huh, I was so sure I told you. Maybe I told somepony who looks just like you but really isn't you? Or maybe I thought I told you but I actually didn't tell you? Or maybe I did and you just forgot?"
The unicorn let out a sigh. "Just tell it to me straight, Pinkie. What is this so called 'Pinkie Sense' of yours and how does it work?"
Pinkie chuckled. "Oh that's easy, Twilight. And here I thought you were gonna ask a hard question," She cleared her throat and explained. "It's quite simply, really. We Pies have always had a sixth sense for certain things and they all manifest themselves in different ways. For me, my sense lets me predict when things are gonna happen and sometimes even who they're gonna happen to. You already know a twitchy tail means that something is gonna fall, but there are all sorts of other signs I'll get. I've got a whole list of 'em."
"If you can predict the future then would you by any chance know if things are gonna work out between Rarity and I?" Spike questioned. "I mean... not that I really want to know or anything... j-just curious is all."
But the pink coated mare only replied. "My 'Pinkie Sense' doesn't work like that, Spike. It's only good for the immediate future, like say minutes or seconds before something happens. Maybe sometimes I'll get an hour or two of warning if I'm lucky."
Twilight groaned. "Sounds to me like you're making this up. It all feels like a stretch."
"So, there are lots of things you unicorns can do that earth ponies would find weird. Like magic for example." Pinkie explained.
Twilight shook her head. "Pinkie, we've been through this already. Everypony has magic, earth ponies have magic tied to the soil and to the ground, pegasi have magic tied to the weather, and unicorns have magic in the traditional sense. Heck, even alicorns have magic that's all their own. And there are plenty of things that can be explained that are not the result of magic."
Pinkie didn't appear to hear any of it, she was too busy looking at her tail which appeared to be twitching again. Then suddenly she came rushing up to Twilight and shouted! "Twilight, not another step! My tail's twitching again, that means something else is gonna fall!"
"Nice try, Pinkie, but I'm not gonna fall for that again," Twilight brushed off her friend's concern and continued trotting along. "I don't suppose your 'Pinkie Sense' predicted what's gonna fall this time, did it?"
But a gulp escaped the earth pony's lips as she ominously warned. "A-actually it's not a what, it's a who. It says it's gonna happen to you."
"Twilight, maybe you oughta take Pinkie's advice before something bad happens to you," Spike advised. "Let's just go back to the library and do some light reading, you'll like that."
The unicorn with a purple coat refused to listen to the little dragon. "Spike, you really need to stop putting so much stock into this 'Pinkie Sense' when we just found out about it. I assure you that nothing bad is gonna happen to meeeeeeee!" Just as she finished saying that Twilight fell into a ditch.
"Twilight!" Spike cried as he rushed towards the ditch. "Are you okay?!" A response came in the form of a groan. Twilight was not badly hurt so that was a good sign, but there was still one thing that bothered the little dragon. "Is it safe to help Twilight out, Pinkie?" He asked her. "Nothing else is gonna fall, right?"
Pinkie nodded. "My tail's not twitching anymore. Go help her out."
Applejack came on the scene just as Spike was helping Twilight out of the ditch. "What in the hay's all this?" She questioned. "What in tarnation were you doin' in that there ditch, Twilight?"
Twilight could only groan, still smarting from the fall. Fortunately for her, Spike was more than willing to explain to Applejack what had just transpired. "Pinkie's tail was twitching, that's all."
Upon hearing the words "tail" and "twitching" the farm mare was stricken with a sense of sudden dread and let out a gasp! "Gah! Duck and cover!" She screamed and dove underneath a nearby stand. "Why didn't you say that in the first place, Spike?! What's gonna fall?!"
"It's okay, Applejack," Spike reassured the frightened earth pony. "Nothing is gonna fall, something already did. Or I should say someone." He pointed a claw at Twilight.
"Oh, is that so? Well ya could've mentioned that sooner." Applejack declared and breathed a sigh of relief, before she crawled out from under the colorful (but also abandoned) stand she'd hidden underneath. She proceeded to dust off her stetson before putting it back atop her head.
Finally able to do something other than groan, the frustrated unicorn with a pink skunk stripe in her mane approached her orange coated friend and complained. "Don't tell me you believe in the 'Pinkie Sense' too, Applejack? Am I the ONLY pony around here who questions it?!"
"Don't take it too personally, sugarcube," Applejack reassured her troubled friend. "I know it's a hard sell, especially for an intelligent pony like you. I tried my hardest to understand that darn 'Pinkie Sense' for years but no matter how hard I tried I could never deduce a connection. Eventually I decided the risk wasn't worth the reward, I was gettin' nowhere in a hurry and just was spinnin' my wheels. So I've made peace with the fact that the 'Pinkie Sense' makes sense. After all, there are some things in life that defy explanation, even if you try your hardest to give 'em one."
Twilight only shook her head. "It's ridiculous. Two times in a row Pinkie happened to make a lucky, perhaps even educated guess. I wasn't watching where I was going, so of course you could predict I would fall into that ditch," And then she added in frustration. "I fail to see how a twitchy tail could at all predict that things are gonna fall, it could all just be coincidence."
But Pinkie and Applejack shared a laugh, which only served to further fluster the unicorn. "Mind telling me what's so funny?!" She growled as steam escaped her nostrils.
"Ya wanna tell her or should I?" Applejack asked her fellow earth pony.
But Applejack needn't have asked, because Pinkie proceeded to explain to Twilight. "It's not just a twitchy tail, Twilight. My 'Pinkie Sense' can predict other things as well."
"Such as?" Twilight pondered.
Just then Pinkie's started doing what could only be described as a flopping motion. "Well, right now my ears are flopping," She explained. "And that means somepony's gonna need a bath. I better go start one." And she bounced away without another word.
"Whoa! The 'Pinkie Sense' can predict all kinds of things, can't it?!" Spike wondered aloud.
Applejack laughed. "You'll have to ask Pinkie Pie about that, she knows more 'bout her 'Pinkie Sense' than anypony else. Even the Cakes don't understand it as well as she does."
"So who do you think Pinkie was referring to when she predicted somepony would need a bath?" Spike questioned. "And how does she know it's not gonna be her?"
"Maybe it's a self fulfillin' prophecy or somethin'," Applejack suggested. "Ya know, Pinkie's 'Pinkie Sense' predicts she'll need a bath and tells her to go prepare one, so then she's all ready to get cleaned up. But I get the feelin' it's gonna be poor Twilight that'll be the one needin' a bath. Or maybe it'll even be me, I might slip and fall in the pigpen. Wouldn't be the first time it happened."
Spike gagged. "Gross! Keep that to yourself!"
Meanwhile Twilight was only shaking her head. "Just because the 'Pinkie Sense' was right twice in one day doesn't mean it's gonna be right three times in a row. No one's that lucky or unlucky."
"Luck has nothing to do with it, Twilight." The little dragon answered.
"I believe in luck, Spike. Sometimes there's no better explanation for how somepony defies the odds," Twilight answered. "What I don't believe in is a random sense I've only just now heard about. There is no way Pinkie could know somepony will need a bath, let alone that I'm the one who will need it."
But just then a cart came rushing past and inadvertently splashed Twilight with mud from a puddle. Her beautiful purple coat and lavender mane and tail with a pink skunk strap were now covered with thick, brown mud. She didn't look like a splendid sight at all. "Don't you dare say a word about any of this." She muttered under her breath to both Spike and Applejack, before she reluctantly trotted off to Sugarcube Corner where she knew a bath awaited her.
"I should've guessed my 'Pinkie Sense' was warning me about you," Pinkie commented to Twilight as the unicorn soaked in the bubble bath Pinkie had prepared for her. The Cakes had thankfully not questioned her muddy state of appearance and simply directed her up the stairs to Pinkie's bathroom. "Seriously, three times in one day. What are the odds?"
"Are you absolutely sure you're not making up this 'Pinkie Sense' just to target me for some reason?" Twilight complained.
Pinkie innocently shook her head. "I swear I don't know why you've been the target of all three warnings of my 'Pinkie Sense' today, this has almost never happened before."
Twilight simply sighed and sank further into the warm bath waters as the mud rinsed off her coat. "Okay, so let me see if I get this straight so far. Your 'Pinkie Sense' gives you vague warnings about immediate future events, and they manifest themselves as inexplicable body quirks like a twitchy tail or floppy ears?"
"Yesarooni!" Pinkie cheered. "Now you're starting to get it, Twilight! But there are plenty of other warnings I get via my 'Pinkie Sense'. For example, whenever my back is itchy that means it's my lucky day. And whenever my knee gets pinchy that means something scary is about to happen.'
A gulp escaped the unicorn's lips upon hearing that and she couldn't resist asking. "Uh your knee isn't pinchy now by any chance, is it?"
"Nope," The party pony sincerely smiled. "But my shoulder is achy."
"And that means?" The unicorn mare pondered.
"That there's an alligator in the tub of course!" Pinkie cheerfully explained. Then she stuck her head into the bubbly waters and pulled out a small alligator with her teeth.
Twilight yelped, leaped out of the bath waters and stood on the edge of the tub! "Why didn't you warn me about that before?! Heck, why didn't your knee get pinchy over that?! That's not just scary, that's downright dangerous!" She shouted in fright!
The pink party pony simply giggled. "Oh don't be silly, Twilight. This is my pet baby alligator, Gummy. He doesn't have any teeth, see?" Gummy proceeded to nibble on Pinkie's leg, her snout, her mane, and then her tail. But just as his master had said he had no teeth and Pinkie didn't feel a thing. "That's just his way of saying how much he loves me," She explained. "Now say hello to Twilight, Gummy."
Gummy looked at Twilight and just blinked his big purple eyes, shooting her a blank stare.
"How does a pony like you obtain a baby alligator in the first place?" Twilight questioned. "I hope you didn't steal him from an alligator's nest."
"Of course not, Twilight, what kind of pony do you think I am?" Pinkie retorted with a huff. "Fluttershy gave him to me. She's always taking care of baby or stray animals. She found Gummy one day down by the pond, but she couldn't find any alligators' nests anywhere. I always wanted a pet but my parents never let me have one, they said I wasn't responsible enough. So Fluttershy was kind enough to give me Gummy, and so long as I keep him away from the customers Mr. and Mrs. Cake don't mind."
Twilight eyed the baby alligator with suspicion. "You're absolutely sure he doesn't have teeth?"
Pinkie nodded firmly. "If he did do you think I'd be allowed to keep him?" Twilight said nothing more on the subject.
After her bubble bath Twilight decided to head back to the Golden Oak Library just as Spike had suggested earlier. Maybe some reading would help to take her mind off of Pinkie Pie's 'Pinkie Sense' and how little sense it seemed to make to her.
"I still don't know what to make of that 'Pinkie Sense', Pinkie," Twilight grumbled as she trotted along the path leading toward the library. "It seems to just be a bunch of random feelings that come and go, there's no connection."
Pinkie replied to Twilight's inquiry by saying. "Well actually it's not always just one feeling, sometimes it's a whole bunch of different feelings one right after the other. I call 'em 'combos'."
"'Combos'?" Twilight questioned.
"Yes, 'combos'," The party pony nodded in response. "I learned what each sign meant from repeated experience, it took years and years to realize what each sign and each combo meant. Here's a good example of a combo and one that was pretty easy for me to figure out: Ear-flop, then knee twitch and then eye flutter in that order."
"And what does that mean, exactly?" The unicorn with a now pristine coat of purple questioned her pink coated friend.
"That the sky is about to be graced with a beautiful rainbow of course!" Pinkie proudly declared. "Although I don't think there's gonna be rainbows anytime soon. Rainbow Dash is busy training for some upcoming competition."
Twilight couldn't help but comment. "When does she ever find the time to train? Seems like whenever I bump into her she's either hard at work or lounging about on a cloud."
The party pony just giggled. "You'd be amazed at how much downtime a pegasus like her can have, Twilight."
The unicorn simply sighed. "Well, whatever. I guess today has been... interesting to say the least, Pinkie. But if you'll excuse me I have some good books to read and other things to hopefully dwell on. Not to mention wondering just what I'm going to write to Princess Celestia for my next friendship lesson. I seem to be drawing a blank."
But just as Twilight trotted off, it happened. Pinkie began to receive a series of random signals. "Ear flop, then eye flutter, and then knee twitch," She said to herself and then gasped when she realized what that specific sequence warned of! "Twilight, watch out!" She shouted!
But it was too late, before Twilight had a chance to react she suddenly found herself being flatted by a door as it swung open! And out came Spike, walking backwards and making strange noises as he carried a huge stack of books in his arms. "Heavy load coming through, make way." He barked out as though he were a construction forestallion giving order to his workers.
Pinkie immediately rushed to the scene! "Twilight?! Twilight! Are you okay?! Please, speak to me!"
Dazed and battered (but thankfully not seriously harmed) the unicorn straightened herself out and shook her head. She had heard Pinkie's comments earlier and groaned. "I thought you said that combo meant the sky was about to be graced with a beautiful rainbow. Now I know you're just making this up to mess with me."
"What?! No, no, no! You've got it all wrong!" The pink party pony protested! "The combo for a rainbow is: Ear-flop, then knee twitch and then eye flutter. Not: Ear flop, then eye flutter, and then knee twitch. That's the combo that means: Beware of opening doors."
Upon hearing that explanation, a rather sinister (not to mention creepy) grin formed on Twilight's face. "Well that's good to know, because now I think there's a way we can finally put the mystery behind the 'Pinkie Sense' to rest once and for all."
Pinkie couldn't help but let out a gulp, Twilight's expression was creeping her out quite considerably. "Twilight, are you sure you're feeling okay?"
"Never better, Pinkie," The unicorn replied with a creepy giggle. "Say, how would you like to help me out with a little science experiment? I have a hypothesis I'd like to test."
The party pony started to back away slowly and nervously. "Gee I... I'd love to, Twilight, really. But uh... I... think I left the stove on and I should probably go turn it off before it starts a fire." She weakly replied.
"Oh come now, Pinkie. There's nothing to be scared of," Twilight attempted to reassure her frightened friend. "I won't hurt you. And don't friends do favors for friends from time to time?"
Pinkie gulped again. "Well... when you put it like that..."
Twilight didn't bother to wait for a proper reply. "Excellent! I knew you'd see it my way, Pinkie! Don't worry, this won't take more than a few minutes. Thank you in advance for your cooperation."
Twilight led Pinkie down to the basement of the library where no natural light could shine through, the only source of light were the electrical ones hooked up to switches. All sorts of strange machines and beakers of unknown substances cluttered up the room at the bottom of a winding staircase, giving off the vibe of a mad scientist's lair. None of which did anything to ease Pinkie's nerves.
The party pony quickly had her front hooves strapped into one of the devices, preventing her from moving as a giant metal helmet with blinking lights all around it was placed atop her head. Attached to the helmet and the metal cuffs was a huge machine that gave off an audible beep every few seconds to pierce the silence, and a slot of some sort appeared at the bottom.
Twilight switched on the device and it whirred to life with an eerie hum. "Comfortable?" She asked her friend.
"Sort of I guess," Pinkie answered. "W-what are you gonna do to me?"
The unicorn only laughed, though the laugh did little to alleviate her friend's worries. "Relax, Pinkie, I'm not going to do anything to you. This is simply an observation," And she proceeded to explain. "I have a hypothesis that your 'Pinkie Sense' is a traceable thing, something that has an explanation beyond random body quirks. So to test my hypothesis, I'm going to use that combo you just revealed to me a short while ago. You know, the one about opening doors?"
Pinkie gulped. "And what's gonna happen when you test that?"
"Why, this very machine here will record all sorts of scientific data on the reaction of course," Twilight proudly explained. "And then I'll look over the data and see if it matches my prediction. Ready?"
"Uh... I think so..." Pinkie trailed off in uncertainty. The helmet felt very funny around her head, almost tingly you might say.
"Good," The unicorn smiled and then she called up. "Okay, Spike, you know what to do!"
"You got it!" Spike declared. He rushed to the basement door and flung it open. Twilight observed Pinkie's reaction, watching as just like last time the party pony's ears began to flop, then her eyes started to flutter, and finally her knees began to twitch. The reaction lasted less than a minute, but the few seconds for which it did last was more than enough time for the machine to document and record it. The results were then printed out on a sheet of paper from the slot at the bottom of the machine.
Spike came rushing down to join Twilight as he asked. "So, did you manage to find anything out, Twilight? Anything that might be helpful?"
Twilight didn't say anything for a moment for she was far too busy looking over the printed data. But at last she threw the sheets aside and groaned! "Urgh! I don't believe it! The data is completely indecipherable! The reaction was so quick the machine barely even noticed it! I'd have to run the test over and over again all day long just to try and see if there was anything close to a pattern! It could take weeks, maybe even months or years before I could even begin to piece together the 'Pinkie Sense' and form a valid hypothesis!"
"So I'm guessing that's a no then?" Spike couldn't help but question.
A painful, longing sigh forced its way out of Twilight's lips. "I'm afraid so, Spike. It seems for now that my attempts to understand the 'Pinkie Sense' have hit a dead end."
"Does this mean the experiment's over and I can take off this helmet?" Pinkie questioned. "My head's starting to get all itchy from wearing it."
"Yes, you can take off the helmet, Pinkie," Twilight reluctantly replied. "In fact you can do whatever it is you feel like doing. Just leave me alone with my thoughts, okay?"
"Okie dokie lokie, Twilight!" The pink party pony nodded her head. She proceeded to remove the helmet as her hooves were freed from the cuffs, and she then bounced up the stairs and out of the basement lab. Soon she was completely out of sight.
Spike, meanwhile, decided to turn his attention towards Twilight. He had seldom seen her this upset before, and never over something she couldn't understand. "Are you okay, Twilight? You just let Pinkie go, just like that. You could've tried to experiment on her more with other things, maybe test out some other combos." He advised.
Twilight shook her head. "Pinkie wouldn't like being caged up like some wild creature at the zoo. I have no right to demand that she be kept here against her will," Another sigh left her lips. "I just don't know what else there is to do. I had hoped that if I could get some actual recorded data when a reaction occurred, I could at least form a hypothesis and start working on testing in the field. But now I'm right back to square one with no explanation and no clue what to do."
"So that's it? You're just gonna throw in the towel like that?" Spike remarked. "The Twilight Sparkle I know would NEVER give up that easily!"
"I don't want to give up, Spike. I want to understand the 'Pinkie Sense'," Twilight explained as a hint of sadness creeped into her tone of voice. "But what can I do that isn't crossing some kind of line with Pinkie? She's my friend first and foremost, I don't want to lose her friendship for the sake of my scientific pursuit. Especially when I'm the only one who seems to want to understand the 'Pinkie Sense' more in depth."
But the little dragon simply replied to Twilight. "Whoever says you have to study Pinkie in some lab? Maybe if you studied the 'Pinkie Sense' when it occurs in the real world, you'd get real data and a real hypothesis to test."
"But if Pinkie Pie finds out I'm stalking her, she's sure to take it the wrong way." The unicorn protested.
"Not if she doesn't know you're there." Spike suggested.
And so it was that, taking Spike's advice, Twilight attempted to conduct studies of Pinkie's 'Pinkie Sense' in the real world. To that end she pursued her friend from afar as Pinkie wandered about Ponyville, enjoying the lovely day the pegasi had brought forth.
However the subject (dubbed "Pinkieus Pieacus" by Twilight) proved to be difficult to study. The 'Pinkie Sense' elicted plenty of different warning signs, but all of them seemed to target Twilight before she had a chance to determine what they warned of. For example when Pinkie suddenly stopped rolling in the grass and dove for cover near the school house, poor Twilight barely had time to react before a swarm of angry bees surrounded her and stung her. And when Pinkie got the combo of ear flop, then eye flutter, and then knee twitch, poor Twilight tumbled down a flight of stairs and ended up in Applejack's cider cellar. And lastly, while in a wheel-chair and after noticing Pinkie's tail stared twitching, Twilight was struck by a flower pot, an anvil, and then a piano in that order.
All the while the unicorn could never draw anywhere close enough to extract a strand of Pinkie's hair. For she hoped that studying such a DNA sample might offer hints as to the true nature of the 'Pinkie Sense' and whether there was something in her pink coated friend's genetic make-up that allowed the warning signs to manifest themselves in the way they did.
Sometime later, Applejack came trotting past with a bucket full of apples and happened to spot Pinkie as she was just humming a tune to herself. "Howdy there, Pinkie Pie. How goes it?"
"Oh, just takin' some apples to my family's new cider cellar of course," Applejack explained to her friend. "Makes for a pretty nifty storeage space if I do say so myself. What have you been up to?"
Pinkie giggled in response. "Just letting Twilight follow me around is all."
"What?!" A very angry Twilight snorted as she came trotting up to the pink coated earth pony. The unicorn was covered from head to hooves in bandages. "You mean to tell me that you've been letting me tail you this whole time?!"
"Duh," Pinkie retorted. "I made sure you weren't hurt, though. Who do you think bandaged you up after all those bee stings, or when you fell into Applejack's cider cellar, not to mention when all those heavy objects fell on top of you?"
The bandaged unicorn only groaned. "I suppose I should be grateful for that much, Pinkie. But believe it or not, despite your 'Pinkie Sense' seeming to target only me I was able to collect some valuable field data."
"And what did you manage to find out?" The party pony innocently questioned.
To the surprise of all gathered Twilight seemed to pause as though unsure of herself, even though just a moment earlier she had been the very model of self-confidence. "Well..." She stuttered and spoke in a tone of voice so soft it could give Fluttershy a run for her money. "You're not going to like it, Pinkie. From what I was able to uncover, there is no 'Pinkie Sense'. Those warnings you receive via your body quirks may simply be a byproduct of similar warnings on a much smaller scale, too small to be seen by the naked eye. Your 'Pinkie Sense' was simply your attempt at explaining these events in a way that you could understand."
Those words were slow to sink in, but when they did Pinkie felt like she had been stabbed by a dagger. All the joy in her body left her and her overall presence started to become slouchy and sulky. "You really think so?" She glumly asked Twilight.
"I wish it wasn't so, Pinkie, but it's the only conclusion I can come to at the moment," Twilight explained. "It wouldn't surprise me if that sixth sense you mentioned your family sharing, all fell into the same category as your 'Pinkie Sense'. A manifestation and attempted explanation of events that couldn't otherwise be explained by the naked eye."
"But... but... it can't be..." The pink party pony stuttered. "My 'Pinkie Sense' can't be a ruse."
"If it makes you feel any better, Pinkie, it's not a one hundred percent guaranteed thing," Twilight attempted to reassure her friend. "It could take years for my hypothesis to be proven true."
But Pinkie only shook her head and wandered off. "Thanks, Twilight, but you don't have to lie to me to make me feel better. I suppose it was silly of me to believe that things like a twitchy tail held any kind of significance. Guess that's what I get for believing in things without ready proof."
"Pinkie..." Twilight sighed.
"You can leave now, Twilight. You've gotten the answers you wanted so badly," Pinkie interrupted. "I'll be okay, I promise." And she trotted away until she was once again out of sight.
Applejack, meanwhile, glared firmly at Twilight. "How could you do such a thing to Pinkie? Believin' in that there 'Pinkie Sense' wasn't doin' anypony any harm at all."
"I just wanted to try and understand it, Applejack. To do what you and everypony else couldn't," Twilight defended. "When I couldn't prove my initial hypothesis I thought for sure I'd hit the same dead end that you must've run into. But tailing Pinkie all afternoon, I saw things that nopony else had seen before. Suddenly it all seemed to make sense."
"But did you ever stop to think that maybe it was you who was makin' guesses and stakin' claims without ready proof?" Applejack protested with a shake of her head. "Ya said it yourself, you're not one hundred percent sure your little claim is actually true. So why not keep it to yourself until you knew one way or the other? Imagine how foolish you're gonna feel if it turns out you were wrong, that even this hypothawhatever isn't valid."
The unicorn hung her head in shame. "I suppose you're right, Applejack. I shouldn't have made such a claim when I was the only one who'd made the hypothesis and nopony else had tested it," Then she sighed. "And now, because of my short sighted pursuit of knowledge, I may have just cost myself the first friend I ever made here in Ponyville."
But just then who should come running up to the two ponies (as well as Spike who remained silent) but Pinkie Pie herself?! Her entire body seemed to be shaking like crazy.
"What's the meaning of this, Pinkie?!" Spike exclaimed with worry! "Are you okay?!"
"I... don't know..." Pinkie commented between shakes. "This has never happened to me before! I don't know if it's 'Pinkie Sense' or something else, but it just suddenly flared up and now it won't stop!" She began to shake so much that she appeared to lift off of the ground.
But then, as mysteriously as the shaking had started it stopped. Pinkie breathed a momentary sigh of relief. "Whatever that was just now, it was quite a doozy," She commented. "And it sounds like whatever the doozy involves is gonna go down at Froggy Bottom Bog!"
Twilight, Applejack, and Spike all collectively gasped together! "But that's where Fluttershy is!" They realized!
"Then we've got no time to waste!" Applejack insisted! "Fluttershy might be in danger! We need to get Froggy Bottom Bog and warn her before it's too late!"
"I know the way, follow me!" Pinkie shouted, and Applejack, Spike, and Twilight all tailed her as they made a mad dash for Froggy Bottom Bog!
At the bog itself Fluttershy was letting the frogs out of the cart, having set it down near some lileypads. She did not seem to be aware that lurking behind her was a massive figure, one that set its sights on her.
The journey to the bog did not pass in complete silence for the rag tag group of friends. Spike couldn't help but ask Applejack. "What do you suppose might have happened to Fluttershy, Applejack?"
"Honestly, Spike, I don't know and I'm tryin' my hardest not to think about it," Applejack replied. "And I reckon you ought to as well."
"W-well yeah, obviously I've been trying to do that," Spike retorted. "But uh... I'm still thinking about it anyway."
Applejack sighed. "I'm probably gonna regret askin', but what do you think might have happened to her, Spike?"
"I... actually hadn't considered that, I was kind of hoping you might answer..." Spike explained and then he paused. "Hm... well, what if... she exploded?!"
Twilight tried her hardest not to roll her eyes at the dragon's statement. "Really, Spike? Just exploded? For no reason at all?"
Spike reluctantly nodded his head. "Um, yes. I know it doesn't make much sense but you never know. It could happen."
Then Pinkie let out a gasp! "What if... she exploded, and then exploded again?!"
"Can you do that?! Can you actually explode twice?!" Spike exclaimed with worry!
"Oh for goodness sake, Spike!" Twilight scolded. "Ponies don't just explode for no reason, and they most certainly do not explode twice. I understand you're worried about Fluttershy, but that's no reason to let your fears get the best of you. Let's just get to Froggy Bottom Bog and make sure she's okay."
The group reached the clearing leading to said bog just a moment later. There was Fluttershy looking perfectly fine and in no sign of imminent danger. At least, she didn't appear to be in danger.
Spike still couldn't resist running up to the pegasus with a coat of butter yellow and hugging her tightly! "Fluttershy! Oh thank the stars you're alright!"
Fluttershy smiled and returned the hug. "Well it's good to see you too, Spike. But what are you talking about?"
"Pinkie Pie's 'Pinkie Sense' got a doozy," Spike explained. "It said it was gonna happen at Froggy Bottom Bog. We thought you might be in danger."
"Oh my," Fluttershy blushed. "Well as you can see that is clearly not the case, I'm absolutely fine. But thanks for coming to check up on me, it does get a little lonely out here in the bog."
"You're sure you haven't seen anythin' out of the ordinary 'round here?" Applejack questioned her animal loving friend. "Anythin' at all?"
The pegasus shook her head. "Not since I arrived here. If there was, I think I would've noticed it."
Twilight, for her part, found herself at a near loss for words! "I don't believe it!" She exclaimed in a tone that sounded almost like she was boasting! "Pinkie was actually wrong for a change!" As she went on she did not seem to be aware of a looming, snake like figure slithering up behind her. "I do hope this experience has taught us all to be more careful about putting stock into things that appear to lack explanation."
"Uh, Twilight?" Spike gulped.
"What is it, Spike?" Twilight innocently asked as she noticed the worried expression plastered on his face. It was the same expression that Pinkie, Applejack, and Fluttershy all seemed to be wearing for some reason.
"S-see w-what's b-behind you!" Spike stuttered out the explanation!
"Don't tell me," The unicorn gulped. "There's something big and scary standing right behind me, isn't there?" And when she spun around to look, her worst fears were realized! Starring down at her was a three headed snake like creature, which she recognized at once as a fearsome hydra! "I see it... but I don't believe it!"
The hydra let out a fierce roar!
"Run for your lives!" Pinkie squealed at the top of her lungs! And that was the only motivation the friends needed to take off at a break neck speed!
Despite having three legs and a massive body, the hydra proved to be a very fast mover on both land and water. It easily kept pace with the fleeing ponies and dragons (though it thankfully paid no attention to the frogs, it didn't think they were worth the lack of effort).
On at least two occasions Twilight had to stop and go back to help Spike (who got stuck in the bog and began to sink) and Pinkie (whose twitching body made it difficult for her to keep moving at a constant rate of speed).
But the delay only caused the hydra to draw closer. Too close for Twilight's taste, she did not like how little distance there was between her, her friends, and the three headed monstrosity that was chasing them. So she skidded to a halt even as her friends continued to run.
"Twilight, what in tarnation are you doin'?!" Applejack cried! "Come on, we need to get to safety!"
"The hydra's getting too close, we'll never make it if we keep going like this!" Twilight protested back! "Get the others to safety, I'll see if I can't slow this three headed beast down!"
"Are you nuts?! You won't survive!" The farm mare bellowed at the top of her lungs!
Twilight shook her head. "I'll be fine, my brother serves in the royal guard and I've learned a few tricks from him! I won't be long! Now go, quickly!"
"Alright, but if I can help it I'm comin' back for ya! I ain't leavin' ya behind like this!" The earth pony mare insisted and then she grabbed Pinkie and Spike, and rushed up to some nearby cliffs. As luck would have it a series of pillars were spaced out across a pit, giving the ponies just enough space to leap across to the other cliff and to safety.
As her friends all leaped to safety one by one, the unicorn turned back to the hydra as it drew close. A sudden sense of dread started to fill her but she knew it was too late to change her mind. "Oh, what would a brave pony like Rainbow Dash do in this situation?" She wondered aloud.
A moment later, Twilight came charging into the hydra's path, screaming out a war cry! But she didn't stop when she was almost face to face with the beast, she continued to run right past it as one of its heads tried to chase after her. Then she turned around and ran back towards the hydra again, as a second head tried to chase her. The resulting confusion gave her enough of an opening to light up her horn and topple the three headed creature so that it now rested on its heads.
Twilight came rushing back up to the cliffs, preparing to make the leap to safety! But suddenly the third hydra head swung at her from out of the blue! She dodged the blow but the resulting impact from the hydra head knocked away the cliff side, now cutting off her only escape route. "Oh no!" Twilight gasped and started to panic! She tried to light up her horn for a teleport, but it phased out. "Not good! I used up too much magic trying to take down that hydra!" She realized! "What am I gonna do?! What am I gonna do?!"
From the other side of the cliff Pinkie's voice cried out. "Twilight! Y-you have to jump!"
"Are you crazy?!" Twilight shouted back! "It's too far! I'll never make it!"
"It's your only h-hope!" Pinkie insisted. "Jump and I promise you'll be safe!"
"I will not!" The unicorn mare protested! "I'll fall into the pit and go splat!"
But then Pinkie explained. "Twilight, look down at the pit. Do you see those bubbles?"
"Bubbles?!" Twilight exclaimed before her roving eyes happened to notice various giant bubbles rising up from the pit below.
"Bounce on them and you can make it across!" The party pony explained! "But you've got to time it right!"
Timing was a luxury that the unicorn mare did not have, however. The hydra was closing in and preparing to lunge at her once again. So after backing up as best she could, she leaped off the cliff and into the air, flailing her hooves as she began to descend! "Oh no! No no no!" She cried and shut her eyes, waiting to hit the bottom.
But the unicorn mare never did. Instead a huge bubble caught her and bounced her up. She then continued to bounce from pillar to pillar and didn't stop until she smacked into a rock wall on the other cliff. Luckily she was dazed but otherwise unharmed.
"Twilight! You're okay!" Spike happily exclaimed and threw his claws around her.
Twilight shook off her dazed state and brushed off the dust she'd collected from her impact. "Yes, Spike. Thanks to Pinkie Pie and her wonderful 'Pinkie Sense'," And she breathed a sigh of relief. "I don't know why you bothered to help me after I earlier discredited your 'Pinkie Sense' for the time being."
Pinkie just laughed. "Oh Twilight, I know you meant well. I could never hold a grudge against you. And even if I could, I certainly wasn't going to leave you to become a hydra snack. But it wasn't really my 'Pinkie Sense' that told me to tell you about the bubbles," And she explained. "That was something I noticed while jumping across the pillars. I was gonna try it out but Applejack wouldn't let me."
The mare with a coat of now dusty and bruised purple simply said in response. "Well 'Pinkie Sense' or not you said there'd be a doozy at Froggy Bottom Bog and there sure was. That hydra was quite the doozy alright."
But just then Pinkie's entire body began to shake again even though the hydra had long since left. "No, wait, there it is again," She commented. "Whatever the doozy was, it still hasn't happened yet."
At that Twilight felt something inside her snap. She'd been through a lot already today and that little detail was enough to set her off. "Huh... but I... what?!" She angrily remarked as she felt one of her eyes start to twitch! "You mean the hydra wasn't the doozy?! How could it NOT be the doozy?! What could possibly be more of a doozy than that?!"
"Don't know but the hydra just wasn't it I'm afraid." Was all Pinkie had to say in reply.
Growling and gritting her teeth, Twilight felt her anger boil over. She leaped into the air as her entire body started to burn brightly, as though she'd been lit on fire. This continued for several minutes, much to the alarm of her friends. But then, covered in soot and ash she weakly proclaimed. "Oh, I give up. I've tried and I've tried, but it seems the answers are beyond my reach no matter what I do. I don't know how or why but Pinkie Pie's 'Pinkie Sense' somehow just makes sense, even to me."
"Twilight, are you saying you believe in my 'Pinkie Sense' now?" Pinkie asked Twilight, who nodded in confirmation. That caused Pinkie's shaking to increase rapidly! After a very unusual display in which Pinkie Pie's body blew up like a balloon and then deflated, Pinkie Pie stop shaking. "That's it! THAT'S the doozy!" She proudly exclaimed as she twirled Twilight around! "You believing in the 'Pinkie Sense'! Ooh, and what a doozy of a doozy it was!" Then she and Twilight shared a laugh.
"All the same, don't think I'm gonna completely give up the search," Twilight cautioned to Pinkie. "I'm gonna keep trying to figure out how that 'Pinkie Sense' of yours works. I'm just not going to pursue it so obsessively."
"I had a feeling you'd say that, Twilight." Pinkie commented.
Later that day, after coming home from Froggy Bottom Bog, Twilight decided to invite Pinkie over to the Golden Oak Library. And when Spike entered, he was surprised at what he saw.
"Ah, good, you're here, Spike," Twilight cheerfully greeted. "Take a letter please, I now know what I want to send to Princess Celestia."
Spike didn't say anything.
"What's wrong, Spike?" The unicorn mare giggled. "Never expected to see me wearing an umbrella hat like Pinkie's? Well Pinkie's tail is twitching, so what else can I do? I invited her over for a few mores studies on the 'Pinkie Sense' and it looks like I know what reaction I want to explore next."
"Alright, ready when you are." Spike declared as he grabbed a scroll and a quill.
Twilight cleared her throat and began to dictate her letter, and this is how it went:
Dear Princess Celestia,
There's nothing wrong with wanting to know how or why something works, there are things in life that remain unanswered and they'll likely stay that way until somepony is willing to devote themselves to asking the right questions.
But curiosity can be a curse as much as it is a blessing, it can lead to obsession and that can lead to all kinds of terrible things. So if someone close to you tells you to step back and think about what you're doing, you should listen.
It's important to get all the facts before you draw a conclusion, and sometimes you'll have to accept that your initial idea or your initial thought about how something worked didn't turn out to be true. Like with friendships, it's important that you keep on trying even if you don't get it right the first time.
Also it is important to realize when you and your friend see the world differently, and how important it is to accept that your views may not change. Just because you don't believe in another way of thinking doesn't automatically mean others are wrong for thinking it. Understanding other view points is a key part of any good friendship.
Your fateful student,
Twilight Sparkle.
P.S.: Pinkie says 'Honk!'
Twilight and Pinkie then made their way down to the basement as Twilight wondered. "So what do you think is gonna fall this time, Pinkie?"
"Don't know, the 'Pinkie Sense' doesn't predict those kinds of things," Pinkie answered. "But whatever is at least we know it's not a doozy."
Meanwhile, Spike went up to the balcony to send the letter to Princess Celestia, only to be surprised when the mighty alicorn herself landed on the balcony with a smile. "Hello, Spike," She greeted as she took notice of the dragon's surprised look, and let out a giggle. "Don't worry, I'm just here for the friendship letter. Be sure to tell Twilight I said hello." And with that she took the scroll into her magic and then flew off, leaving a speechless Spike to wonder what had just transpired.
Inside one of the cars on the last train to Canterlot for the day, Spike was trying to catch up on some of his favorite comics. A task that was easier said than done considering how excitedly Twilight was prancing, like one of Santa Hooves' reindeer. The little dragon slammed his comic shut and let out a growl. "Twilight, do you mind? Some of us are trying to get a little quality reading time in!"
"Sorry, Spike," Twilight apologized with a bright smile on her face. "But just think about it, we're going to spend Hearth's Warming with my parents up at their house! It'll be just like old times, even Shining Armor's coming home for the holiday! Ooh, just wait until they all see how big you're getting!" She proceeded to lift Spike with her magic.
"It hasn't been that long since we left for Ponyville, you know," The little dragon quipped. "Even Shining Armor was there to see us off. I'm sure he hasn't forgotten what I look like."
Twilight continued to smile as she glanced out the train car's windows, delighting in the fresh snow that was falling from the clouds. It truly helped to bring out the best at this special holiday time. "Still, it'll be nice to see everypony again. Mom will probably bake her famous homemade Hearth's Warming Cookies, Dad will have a fresh pine tree ready for decorating, and of course we can't forget the Hearth's Warming dolls for you and Shining," She said to Spike and then ribbed him ever so slightly. "Maybe if you ask him nicely, he'll let you open one present from him early like I do."
Spike shook his head. "I doubt it. Even as a colt he was always a stickler for the rules. I can see why he joined the royal guard and became their captain."
"Well that's Shining Armor for you, always trying to set a good example for others," Twilight fondly sighed. "And he was always looking out for me too. It'll be so lovely to see him, Mom, and Dad again."
"Are you sure you don't want Princess Celestia to be there too?" Spike teased. "I know how much you look up to her, she was practically your mother when you lived in the castle."
A noticeable blush formed on Twilight's cheeks in response to that comment. "That was a long time ago, Spike, when i was just a filly. Obviously I've moved on from it now."
Under his breath Spike couldn't help but mutter. "Uh-huh, sure. Whatever you say, Mom."
Just then the train pulled into the station and the car doors swung open, it was time for all onboard to depart. The unicorn mare waited until Spike was firmly on her back, before she picked up all the suitcases for her and the little dragon she considered a son, all fully stocked for a fun holiday with the Sparkle family.
But instead of a nice warm welcome from her parents as she had been expecting, Twilight was surprised to find the train station nearly empty of ponies. And she soon found out why.
"I'm afraid I've got some bad news, miss," The station master informed her. "Canterlot's been shut down due to this unexpected snow storm. Nothing can get in or out. And everypony's been advised to stay indoors until further notice. The trains won't run in this kind of weather, the locomotives will be moved to the shed for safe keeping. I'm sorry, there's nothing I can do I'm afraid. Since it's Hearth's Warming Eve most of the pegasi that would normally be available aren't on duty, and even the ones that are aren't expected to be here 'til late tonight at the earliest."
Twilight suddenly found herself stricken with a sense of dread. "This was not how I envisioned my Hearth's Warming at all," She commented. "What are we gonna do, Spike? We're stuck here in Canterlot in the middle of a blizzard!"
The unicorn mare began to pace back and forth nervously in the train station, a sharp contrast to the happy prancing she had done in the train car just moments earlier. Spike, for his part, just focused on his comics. He knew that whenever Twilight got into one of these moods it usually took quite a while for her to snap out of it.
"Oh, why did this have to happen on Hearth's Warming Eve of all days?" The mare paused briefly in her pacing. "Why couldn't it have held off tomorrow, or the day after that?"
The little dragon simply replied. "Well I suppose there's only one thing we can do, Twilight. We'll just have to spend the night here and make the most of it."
Twilight shook her head in protest. "Out of the question, Spike. We are NOT missing out on Hearth's Warming traditions because of a little bad weather!"
"Twilight, you heard what the station master said," Spike groaned as he put down his comic and looked the unicorn firmly in the eyes. "The entire city of Canterlot has been shut down. There's no way we're gonna be able to make it to your parents' house in this kind of weather. We'll freeze for sure."
"We'll just have to dress for the occasion, Spike," Twilight firmly insisted. "Good thing I thought ahead and packed boots, scarfs, hats, and winter jackets. They were supposed to be for the sleigh ride tomorrow, but I suppose they'll have to do for the trek across town."
Spike let out a gulp, for he did not like where Twilight's train of thought was going. "Twilight, your parents will understand that we couldn't make it," He pleaded with her. "We'll still have Hearth's Warming Day to spend with them. One whole day is better than nothing, right?"
"Well... yes..." Twilight appeared to concede. But mere seconds later she added. "But if we could spend even just a little of today with my parents, isn't it worth the risk?"
Spike still refused to agree. "We'll get lost for sure, Twilight! Just look out the window, nothing but snow as far as the eye can see!"
But Twilight only replied with a laugh. "Spike, I know my way around this city like the back of my hoof. We won't get lost. At worst it might take us a while to fight our way through the snow, but we'll be fine," And with that she used her magic to put on the same scarf, boots, and ear muffs that she had worn for Winter Wrap-Up in Ponyville the previous winter. She also donned a blueish-green winter coat and matching puff ball hat. Then she dressed Spike in his winter attire. "Now come on, Spike, let's get going. The sooner we leave the sooner we can be at my parents' house, laughing and chatting by the fireplace."
Reluctantly, Spike found himself accompanying the pony he'd come to see as a mother out the door of the train station and into the howling winds and blinding snow of the blizzard. "I guess this is what those ancient founders of Equestria must've had to endure all those eons ago." The little dragon thought to himself and he began to flash back to the story he'd heard many times in the years since Twilight had hatched him.
Long long ago, before the days of Celestia and Luna, the land of Equestria did not exist. Alicorns did not either for they were thought to be a myth. But the three pony tribes did not know peace or friendship, they were divided not by a foreign power or an ineffective government but by simple hatred and distrust of each other. An uneasy alliance had been forged between the earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns, but it was always teetering on the brink of collapse.
Under this system the earth ponies tended to the soil, the pegasi handled the weather, and the unicorns controlled the sun and the moon. The earth ponies grew the crops to give to the pegasi in exchange for good weather and to give to the unicorns in exchange for ensuring the sun and the moon rose and set as necessary. Earth ponies often complained of pegasi and unicorns greedily demanding more crops than seemed necessary, with the threat of bad weather and no sun or no moon if they were not satisfied.
Even so the three tribes managed to hold together decently for many years. But then one day a huge blizzard surfaced from seemingly out of nowhere. The harsh winds, bitter snow and frost, and icy cold temperatures chilled the land. Earth ponies found it difficult to grow any crops, and the pegasi and unicorns began to complain of food shortages and starvation among their kind. The source of the blizzard could not be determined and it seemed to only grow in intensity as the tensions between the three tribes worsened.
As a desperate last resort to avoid war each of the tribes agreed to an emergency summit between their leaders. It was hoped that common sense would prevail and the wisdom of the leaders would lead to everlasting peace.
The pegasi chose their fearless leader, the battle hardened Commander Hurricane. His dark grey coat was adorned with scars from countless battles and his jet black mane and tail hung loose. His stern blue eyes reflected back a look of seriousness and it was well known that the commander had a very short fuse, it did not take much to set him off. His cutie mark depicted a swirling circle of clouds with an eye in the center, a reflection of his unrivaled speed and strength that even among pegasi was legendary.
The unicorns had planned to send their king, King Gemstone. But at the last minute his daughter, Princess Platinum, decided to take her ailing father's place. Having only recently been involved in the daily affairs of her father's kingdom she did not boast much experience. But her appearance made her a sight to behold. Her beautiful silver coat glistened as she strode into the room, decked out in a white and purple robe and a matching crown. Her powder white mane and tail were styled into a lovely set of curls and she had beautiful ruby red eyes. Her cutie mark, fittingly, depicted a platinum crown.
And the earth ponies chose from among their many representatives, the eccentric Chancellor Puddinghead (so named because of the bowl of pudding he wore for a hat). He had a dark brown coat, and a pink mane and tail that for a stallion looked most unusual, to say nothing of his green eyes that seemed to convey he was not all there. The only thing that made even remote sense about the chancellor, was his cutie mark that depicted a long scroll. Despite some allegations, he'd managed to win election in his own right.
The three leaders took their respective seats at a table in the middle of the meeting hall, a sturdy brick and stone building that was reserved for special occasions such as this. Various earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns were all seated in the balcony to watch the proceedings. All of them had high hopes for this summit. Said hopes were soon dashed as the leaders devolved into shouting and bickering at each other!
"Chancellor, I will only say this once," Hurricane warned Puddinghead. "Stop hoarding all the crops and give back what you owe us pegasi!"
Puddinghead snapped back! "We are not hoarding food, you brutish oaf! How many times must you be told that it is impossible for us earth ponies to grow anything in this unending blizzard?! You pegasi are supposed to control the weather, so why haven't you ended this cold snap like you're payed to do?!"
Hurricane growled. "We've been trying to do so, Puddinghead! Or should I say, Dunderhead?! This blizzard is something that defies even our attempts to combat it, though if you ask me I would say that some of my tribe are simply invoking that as an excuse for laziness," Then he accusingly pointed a hoof at Princess Platinum. "You're barking up the wrong tree, Chancellor! It's the unicorns who should have the power to end this blizzard, since they control the sun and the moon!"
Princess Platinum retorted with a huff. "It takes many of our own just to raise the sun and the moon each day, and doing so drains all of them of their magic. Only our Starswirl the Bearded seems to ever be able to hold onto his magic. To even begin to attempt what you've suggested, would be to drain the magical capabilities of our entire kingdom."
Puddinghead angrily pounded his hooves on the table. "Lies if I ever heard them! You know not what you speak of, Princess! I expected a meeting with your father, yet I find he sends his inexperienced daughter to take his place!" With a snort he added. "Disgraceful! Had I known this is what awaited me I would've sent Smart Cookie to stand in for me and gone back to more important needs."
Princess Platinum scoffed. "Chancellor, you have some nerve! I've sat in on my father's court for many months now, and I am the heir to his throne. I may have respect for the way you earth ponies govern yourselves, but I have no such respect for a scatterbrained leader such as you," She then added. "I am a lady, and I wish to be addressed as such. I won't stay here to be insulted."
"Looks like we finally agree on something, your 'highness'," Hurricane mockingly jeered. "This summit was a waste of my time. I'm leaving!"
"Not if I leave first!" Puddinghead declared.
All three leaders made a mad dash for the door as the ponies in the gallery could only look on in shame and in horror. The last attempt to avoid war had failed.
With the summit abruptly cancelled there was nothing left for the three leaders to do except go home to lick their wounds, and mostly to complain.
Commander Hurricane returned to Cloudsdale to find everything in disorder. It seemed that his fellow pegasi had all but stopped working in his absence. And that was something the commander would not tolerate in the slightest. He gave a whistle and bellowed out. "Private Pansy! Front and center, this instant!"
Out trotted a pegasus mare considerably younger than the battle hardened commander. Her coat was a gentle pink in color and she sported a yellowish-green mane and tail that hung down at her sides. Her eyes were a gentle sea-green in color and her cutie mark depicted a budding flower. "C-Commander Hurricane, sir!" She saluted to her superior.
"Private Pansy, what be the meaning of this?! I thought I entrusted you to hold down the fort while I was gone!" Commander Hurricane growled. "Yet I return to find my fellow pegasi lounging about and doing nothing productive!"
"Commander, our forces are growing tired and hungry. They lack the strength to do much of anything," Pansy explained. "I've had to instate mandatory rest breaks so they can conserve their energy," And then she asked. "So how was the summit, Commander? Did the earth ponies and the unicorns agree to work with us to stop the blizzard?"
Hurricane shook his head and growled. "Those other tribes care not of our plight even though we are the ones who control the weather. They seem to blame the likes of us for this blizzard and have sentenced us to starve."
Pansy gulped. "Really? I was so sure the three tribes could find some common ground. I happen to know a lot of earth ponies and unicorns, and they're very nice."
"Well I'm afraid the majority of them or at the least ones leading them do not return the feeling," Hurricane coldly protested. "That is why I'm the leader and you are not. So I suggest you keep such opinions to yourself from now on, Private, or else I will terminate your rank and have you dismissed. Do I make myself clear?"
"Y-yes sir, Commander," Pansy stuttered. "So what are we to do now?" She reluctantly asked.
"Why there's only one thing we can do, Private," Hurricane replied. "We must strike out on our own and find a new land. Let the earth ponies and the unicorns try to function without us, see how long they last."
At the same time that Hurricane was busy talking to Private Pansy, Princess Platinum was tending to her own grievances in the safety of her father's kingdom. "Clover the Clever, come here! I need your assistance!" She cried out.
In a moment a tall and lanky unicorn stallion with a dark blue coat appeared at the weary princess' side. He wore a simple brown robe, had a two shaded purple mane and tail that was cut short, violet-red eyes, and a cutie mark depicting a four leaf clover. "I'm here, your highness," He greeted with a bow as he shut the door. "So how was the summit? Did the three tribes see reason as I predicted?"
Platinum only shook her head in protest. "Your visions must've been all wrong, Clover. There's no finding common ground with such uncouth leaders as the likes of that brutish commander and that scatterbrained chancellor. I am glad my father didn't have to bother with the likes of them, neither of them could hold a candle to his brilliance. Speaking of my father, how is he?"
In a somber tone of voice Clover informed the princess. "Not very well, I'm afraid. His condition continues to worsen despite the efforts of our best doctors. I fear he is not long for this world."
Platinum let out a somber sigh upon hearing the news. "I see," She realized. "Well then I'm afraid there is but one option that remains. One that I doubt even your mentor, Starswirl the Bearded, would willingly sign off on."
"My services are first and foremost to you, Princess Platinum," Clover bowed. "Whatever you do, I shall support you as best I can. For that is a promise I made to your father, and it is a promise I intend to keep. So, what do you propose we do?"
"Assemble a scouting party at once," Platinum instructed to Clover. "The time has come for us to strike out on our own without the aid of the pegasi or the earth ponies."
"Are you sure that's wise, Princess?" Clover asked. "M-maybe we could still work things out here?"
But Platinum would hear none of such an idea. "Do as I command, Clover, or I'll find someone who will! Let the other tribes try to survive without the sun and the moon, we the unicorns shall survive on our own!"
And at the same time as Platinum and Hurricane were preparing to strike out on their own and find new land, Chancellor Puddinghead was himself visiting with his trusty adviser to discuss the meeting.
"Greetings, Smarty Cookie," The chancellor cheerfully spoke as he descended from a chimney and brushed the soot off his coat. "I trust you'll want to know how the summit went?"
Smart Cookie was a plump earth pony mare with a light brown coat and a black mane and tail done up in the style of a swirl. She sported black eyes, a simple tunic and hat, and a cutie mark depicting books in the shape of a circle (a cookie you might say). "You'll tell me even if I say no, won't you?" She sighed.
Puddinghead simply nodded and then complained. "Those greedy pegasi and those nasty unicorns didn't even wanna discuss solutions, they had the gal to accuse us of hoarding food! Never mind the fact that I told them we actually can't grow crops in these frigid conditions!" He grumbled. "They're just jealous because I worked hard to earn my title, whereas they got in through connections, family, prestiege, or any combination of the above."
"Ya know, I could've gone to that summit in your place, Chancellor," Smart Cookie suggested. "Perhaps if I had gone they would've had more reason to listen. No offense, sir, but your reputation most certainly preceeds you in many circles. And the rumors about some of your more 'out there' plans certainly haven't helped."
But Puddinghead simply scoffed at the notion. "Smart Cookie you are but a humble secretary to yours truly, you don't make decisions. I ask you for advice when I see it fit. As Chancellor I can think outside the box, which also means," He stuck his head into the chimney as he added. "I can also think inside of the chimney. Can you think inside the chimney?"
"...No sir." Smart Cookie reluctantly answered.
"'No sir' indeed," Puddinghead laughed and stuck his head out of the chimney. Then as he brushed the soot from his clothes his eyes grew wide and he exclaimed! "Oh my gosh! Hold onto your hooves, Smart Cookie, because I am just about to be brilliant!"
Smart Cookie sighed. "Dare I ask what 'genius' plan you've devised now, oh Chancellor?"
Puddinghead laughed. "I think it's one you'll quite agree with. Since this land is too snow covered and frozen to be any of use to us, we'll just have to move on and find greener pastures. Fertile land on which we can thrive and grow our crops, while getting away from those ungrateful pegasi and unicorns that have extorted us for far too long."
And so it was that the three tribes each decided to strike out on their own in search of new land. None of them seemed to suspect the true nature of the blizzard, or that it would follow them to the new land they would seek.
"Just because those tribe leaders decided to strike out for themselves doesn't mean we should follow their example and make our way through Canterlot in the middle of a blizzard!" Spike thought to himself as he held onto Twilight for warmth, and to keep from being blown away by the wind gusts that whipped up snow into a blinding frenzy.
Twilight, for her part, just kept focusing on what was in front of her and looked for any landmarks to signify where she and Spike were. "An eight foot candy cane!" She exclaimed as her eyes fell upon the huge, abandoned decoration. "They always put that out in the middle of town! We're already halfway there, Spike!"
"Yeah!" Spike shouted back over the roar of the winds. "And it only took us an entire hour and a half of wandering in circles! At this rate we'll be there in time for the Hearth's Warming Eve dinner!"
"You always did love the food Mom and Dad prepared!" Twilight teased her baby dragon. "I remember the first time I brought you home and you got into the cookie batter. I thought you'd never be clean. I'll bet Mom still has the pictures."
Spike blushed bright red. "Y-yeah well she also has your baby pictures," He teased back. "And since I'm technically your son now, that makes me your mom's grandson. And you know how grandmares love to tell embarrassing stories to the grandkids!"
"She could always share some about Shining Armor!" Twilight suggested even as she began to blush red ever so slightly. "Did I ever tell you about what he did on his first birthday? He sure gave Mom and Dad a 'surprise' they'll never forget!"
The little dragon couldn't help but chuckle a bit at that statement, before the wind picked up and he had to cling harder to the pony he'd come to know as a mother. At least she was able to keep her body warm with her magic, so that he could draw on it to stay warm himself. Even his thick dragon scales offered little protection from such frigid and frosty temperatures. "I suppose it's too late for us to turn back?" He suggested to Twilight.
The mare shook her head. "We've come this far, Spike. We might as well see our journey through to the end." And the two began to venture further into the blinding snow. As they did, Spike started to recall the next part of the story. About what happened after the founders reached their new home land.
The scouting party led by Commander Hurricane and Private Pansy flew for many, many miles. But at last they settled on a patch of clouds overlooking beautiful mountains and a lush green valley. "Ah yes," Commander Hurricane smiled. "These clouds will make an excellent home for us pegasi. And the best part is, no other tribes can get to us without us knowing about it. We'll control the skies."
"And these clouds are so soft, we can use them for all sorts of things," Private Pansy added. "We can finally start on those construction projects we always talked about."
Hurricane planted the flag of his scouting party into a cloud, ensuring that it stuck rather than sinking through. "I hereby claim this land for all pegasi!" He proudly declared. "Hence forth it shall be known as: Pegasopolis!"
Meanwhile, the unicorns led by Princess Platinum and Clover the Clever found their way towards some mountains and a vast set of caves. Princess Platinum smiled as her reflection shone in all the gemstones. "My, just look all these fine jewels," She declared. "They'll do wonders for our royal treasury."
"And these caves will be the perfect place to hone our skills and perfect new spells," Clover the Clever proudly added. "My mentor, Starswirl, will be up to his beard in new students."
Planting a flag into a patch of dirt near the cave entrance, Platinum said with a smile on her face. "I claim this land for the unicorns in the name of my father, King Gemstone! And all shall know it as: Unicornia!"
And on fields of green grass and freshly planted soil, Chancellor Puddinghead marveled at the fine sights that greeted his eyes. "Ah, the fresh air, the lush grass, the dirt. It's the dirtiest dirt I've ever seen and I love it!"
Smart Cookie beamed with pride. "Guess I shouldn't have been so quick to doubt you, Chancellor. This soil is nice and rich, just the thing for us to plant a new herd of crops."
Sticking a flag into one of the dirt mounds, Puddinghead announced. "As Chancellor, I claim all this new land for the earth ponies. And I will call it... Dirtville."
"Uh, how 'bout 'Earth' instead? You know, after the land?" Smart Cookie suggested.
"Earth works too!" Puddinghead giggled.
But just then the three leaders happened to look out and notice that, by some unbelievable stroke of bad luck they had all laid claim to the same area. Each of them had in fact staked claims that shared borders with one another. And naturally it didn't take long for tempers to flare up again.
"What are you confused lowlifes doing on the sovereign territory of Pegasopolis?!" Commander Hurricane demanded! "You're trespassing!"
"On the contrary, Commander!" Princess Platinum corrected. "It is you who are trespassing, you are on the territory that rightfully belongs to Unicornia!"
"You're both wrong!" Chancellor Puddinghead hissed as he stomped his hooves down and stuck out his tongue! "You side winding double crossers are on my territory! Get off of Earth right now, or you'll answer to Smart Cookie!"
Smart Cookie backed away nervously. "N-now hold on just a minute there, Chancellor!" She advised. "W-who said anything about fighting?! I want no part of it!"
"You don't have a choice in the matter, Smart Cookie! As my secretary you will do as you're told!" Chancellor Puddinghead bellowed as steam blew out of his nostrils. "Come here and help me defend!"
"If it's a fight you want it's a fight you shall get, Chancellor!" Commander Hurricane roared in defiance! "Private Pansy, ready our forces! If the earth ponies and unicorns won't willingly leave our land, we have no choice but to make them leave by any means necessary!"
Private Pansy shook her head. "Commander, please, must we fight?! We're all ponies, we should be working together!"
"That sounds like traitor talk to me, Pansy!" Hurricane growled as his eyes narrowed. "I oughta have you court martialed for such behavior!"
"Clover the Clever, you know what I expect!" Princess Platinum advised. "We're not going anywhere, and if the other tribes have a problem with that they'll just have to go through us!"
"But your majesty, we have no real army!" Clover the Clever protested. "Please, be sensible about this!"
"The time for rational thought is over, Clover!" Princess Platinum declared as she adjusted her crown. "One must be prepared to fight for what one holds dear!" Mere moments later she was pelted with a snowball. "Hey, who threw that?!"
"Gotcha!" Puddinghead laughed! "You made yourself an easy target, Princess!"
But Smart Cookie was concerned and a sense of dread creeped into her voice as she asked. "Where'd you get the snowball, Chancellor?"
Suddenly the tribes looked around and with horror they realized that the harsh wintery conditions they'd attempted to flee, had followed them all the way to their new home land. All immediately ran for the nearest shelter they could find, a large cavern near the flag for the unicorn kingdom (which was blown away by the biting winds).
Oh what Spike would give to have a nice warm cave to take shelter in on a day like this. It sure beat having to constantly cling to Twilight for warmth and security (even if it felt kind of nice). "How much further, Twilight?!" He called out above the roar of the wind!
"We're almost there, Spike! Just a few more blocks and we'll be at my parents' house!" Twilight called back! "We're going to make it!"
But just then Spike's green eyes happened to notice the familiar outline of a very familiar building, Donut Joe's Donut Emporium. Now that he thought about it, the little dragon hadn't had a bite to eat since this morning and he had not filled up like he usually did because he had not been expecting such a long journey. His stomach was beginning to remind him of its presence with audible rumbles.
"Uh, Twilight," The little dragon pointed out. "I suppose now would be a bad time to mention I'm getting hungry."
"There's nowhere we can stop, Spike!" Twilight protested. "We'll just have to keep going."
"But Donut Joe's is right over there, we could practically walk up to the door!" The little dragon insisted. "It wouldn't hurt to go inside just for a little bit and warm up."
Twilight froze in her tracks, considering what Spike had just said. Much as she wouldn't admit it the unicorn had to admit that she was getting cold, even in spite of all the gear she was wearing. And with Spike depending on her for warmth, it was imperative that she kept her body temperature at a reliably warm rate. Plus the idea of a few donuts was far too tempting of a treat for her to pass up.
"Oh alright, just for a few minutes though, Spike." The mare told the dragon, and they then trotted up to the door and to their surprise found it open.
Donut Joe was there to greet them, currently in the middle of wiping down his counter. "Well well well, Twilight Sparkle and her baby dragon and number one assistant." He greeted as warmly as his place felt to the two after they'd been out in the snow and the wind.
"And honorary son!" Spike added. "It's not official yet, but Twilight considers me part of her family! And one of these days she says she's gonna speak with Mayor Mare and make it official."
Donut Joe smiled. "Of course, I haven't forgotten. Always nice to see some friendly faces in my shop," Then he added. "You're pretty lucky, you know. I was just about to close up shop, reckoned nopony was gonna be out for donuts in a storm like this. So go ahead, order whatever you want. After I've served you two I reckon I'll have to call it a day and stay here 'til this whole blizzard blows over."
Twilight and Spike were soon seated at a booth and looked over the menus provided for but a moment before they placed an order. A few curlers, two powdered donuts, and one jelly-filled one for Spike. Donut Joe brought the sweets out to the two mere moments later and as they dug in Spike couldn't help but think back once again to the founders' frosty peril. Unlike him they were not so lucky as to have a donut shop they could take shelter in.
Forced into a cave as the blizzard continued to rage seemingly out of control, the leaders of the three tribes only grew more and more hostile to one another. It didn't help that in their haste to seek shelter they had left most of their provisions behind, only a small portion of rations remained.
With tempers running high and stomachs grumbling loudly, the three leaders all began to bicker and argue anew. Even going so far as to draw lines in the cave marking their territories.
All of a sudden, however, the argument ceased as Clover the Clever exclaimed! "Look! The cave entrance!" All turned to see that the cave entrance was freezing shut as ice started to encroach on the leaders, trapping them inside!'
"This is all your faults!" Commander Hurricane bellowed as the ice started to encase the leaders. "You rotten unicorns and earth ponies just couldn't leave well enough alone!"
"It was you pegasi who failed to prevent this blizzard from occurring! And it was you Earth Ponies who blamed us unicorns for things beyond our control!" Princess Platinum hissed.
"Both of you have taken advantage of the earth ponies!" Chancellor Puddinghead retorted. "Had you simply left us to have this land, none of this would've happened in the first place!"
"You're a numbskull, Chancellor Puddinghead!" Commander Hurricane growled and it was the last thing he said before he was completely encased in ice.
The last words to be heard from Princess Platinum were. "Commander Hurricane, you're nothing but a fiendish brute!"
And Chancellor Puddinghead was heard to say. "You and your father are royal snobs, Princess Platinum!"
And just like that the three leaders were frozen solid, leaving only their subordinates in the cave that continued to be coated with encroaching ice. It was of little surprise when the three bumped into each other and they were, understandably, quite worried.
But it was Clover the Clever who broke the silence as he spoke gently. "I must apologize for the actions of her highness. I could never hate pegasi or earth ponies the way she does. There are so many things you can do that we unicorns cannot."
Private Pansy nodded. "I've always appreciated earth ponies and unicorns, life in the clouds can get kind of boring."
"And I've always wondered what it would be like to be a unicorn or a pegasus, even just for a day," Smart Cookie nodded. "But how could this all have happened? How could the very conditions we sought to avoid have followed us here?"
Clover happened to look up toward the ceiling of the cave at that very moment and he let out a gulp as he pointed a hoof. "Because of those!" He motioned towards what appeared to be ghostly like horses with empty white eyes.
Private Pansy gulped. "W-what are those things?!"
"Those are windigos!" Clover explained to the frightened ponies. "My mentor, Starswirl the Bearded, taught me about them. But I always thought they were just a myth, there was never any documented proof of their existence. I should have known though, known that there were supernatural forces at work in this unstoppable snowstorm."
"What exactly do windigos do?" Smart Cookie questioned Clover.
In an ominous tone of voice, Clover answered. "They thrive off of conflict and hatred, turning the land as cold as the hearts of the ponies in whom they sense the hatred."
"So then... this was all our fault, we three tribes caused this," Smart Cookie realized. "And now our bodies will become as cold as our hearts, all because we were foolish enough to hate."
Private Pansy couldn't help but snicker, even as the ice started to encase her, Smart Cookie, and Clover the Clever. "If there was anyone I truly hated, it would be Commander Hurricane. And in fact I don't hate him so much as I simply really really REALLY dislike him."
"Well I don't hate you guys either," Smart Cookie nodded. "Whatever our fate may be, we'll all face it together as ponies."
"And as friends!" Clover firmly declared. "Even if it's only for a moment, I'm glad to have considered you as something beyond mere acquaintances."
All three ponies huddled together in the center of the cave as their bodies began to freeze just as the leaders' bodies had. But when the ice reached the tip of Clover's horn something most unexpected and truly wonderful happened! All of a sudden a roaring fire seeped out of his horn, morphing into the shape of a heart! The intense magical power and heat drove the windigos back and melted the body of the three subordinates and friends.
Smart Cookie and Private Pansy were most amazed and were rendered speechless! They'd never seen anything like it in all their lives! Clover's horn stopped glowing a moment later but the heart shaped fire continued to burn, the heat not fading even the slightest.
"How did you do that, Clover?" Smart Cookie asked her new friend.
"I'm not sure," Clover answered. "But it couldn't have come from me, never in all my years could I have pulled off something so powerful by myself. It must've come from each of us, united as one in friendship."
"You think that's what that glowing, burning heart is meant to symbolize?" Pansy inquired.
Clover nodded. "It would appear to be so, and I have the feeling that it shall continue to burn inside us all even long after the fire we see now is extinguished."
And so it was that, all through the night and into the next day the three friends kept a vigil by the glowing fire as it began to slowly melt the ice. The songs they sang became many of the carols now known to pony kind today. As for the leaders, as the fire melted their icy prisons it also melted their icy hearts. And they realized then how short sighted and foolish their hatred had been, as all hatred shall ever be. Not only is life too short to truly hate anyone or anything, but it shall always pale in comparison to the overwhelming joy and warmness of friendship.
When the blizzard retreated and the land thawed out, the three tribes agreed to merge together as one kingdom. And they dubbed the new land on which they had settled "Equestria". In time the kingdom elected its first rulers and built its first castle, cities and towns. And for centuries all was well, until the day a crafty and sinister spirit of chaos appeared and took over. But that's another story.
Just as Spike had finished retelling the story in his mind, he was snapped back to reality when Twilight skidded to a halt. "What is it, Twilight?" The baby dragon asked. "Are we lost again?"
But Twilight happily shook her head and told him. "No, Spike, we've finally made it! We're home!" And she was right, Spike recognized the sight before him at once as the house in which Twilight had lived during her filly years in Canterlot (and still frequented many times even after she moved into the castle as Princess Celestia's student).
And standing in the doorway, all bundled up in hats, scarfs, and boots, were two very familiar unicorns. A mare with a coat so light gray it could be mistaken for white, a mane and tail in stripes of the same light gray color as well as a purple only slightly lighter than Twilight's, eyes a sweet arctic blue in color, and a cutie mark depicting three blue stars. And a stallion with a coat the same blue as the night sky, a mane and tail considerably darker blue in color, eyes a lovely shade of moderate amber, and a cutie mark depicting a yellow, waxing crescent moon with a smaller, white waning crescent moon inside. They were instantly recognizable as Twilight Velvet and Night Light.
Twilight eagerly ran up to her parents and embraced the both of them in a hug! "Mom! Dad!" She happily exclaimed!
Velvet was the first one to speak up. "Oh honey, we're so glad you could make it. Your father and I were worried that with this huge snowstorm, you'd be lost or stranded somewhere."
Twilight shook her head. "Nothing could keep me from my family! I've missed you both so much in the time since I moved to Ponyville!"
"Oh we've known all about it," Night Light chuckled. "Princess Celestia kept us informed of your exploits, and we couldn't be happier that you've made friends. You can tell us all about them later, but for now we'd better get inside before we all freeze our rumps off."
Twilight and Spike followed Velvet and Night Light inside and Velvet used her magic to shut the door. The warmth of the house felt so nice to Twilight and Spike after they'd been out in the cold all day.
"You're just in time for dinner," Velvet cooed to her daughter. "I was just about to start baking the cookies for dessert. Do you and Spike wanna help me? It'll be just like old times."
Twilight beamed a happy smile. "I'd love that very much," She informed her mother. "But first, I have something I wanna share with both of you. You know Spike, right? My baby dragon and number one assistant?"
Night Light nodded. "We sure do, and I must say he's still just as adorable as he was the last time we saw him. I still remember how excited you were when you first brought him home."
"Well," The mare cleared her throat and informed her parents. "You'll be pleased to know that I now consider Spike my son, and sometime in the near future I plan on making it official. I really can't imagine what my life would be like without him. In a way he was like the first friend I ever had."
Night Light and Twilight Velvet both cooed and awwed. "That's so sweet, we always did consider Spike to be our grandson," Velvet commented and then added. "Gosh, I feel old."
"Oh what are you talking about, dear?" Night Light teased. "You still look as beautiful as you did the day I first met you."
"Oh stop it, you!" Velvet teased back. "Not in front of the little one!"
Spike snorted. "Hey, I'm not that young you know!"
Velvet patted Spike's scales with a hoof. "Of course you aren't, Spike. But you're still just so adorable!"
Twilight intervened to change the subject, coughing into a hoof. "Where's Shining Armor? I thought he'd be with you."
Velvet and Night Light exchanged nervous glances. "He said he'd be here today but he never specified when," Night Light answered with concern. "It's getting quite late though, I'm not sure if he'll able to make it. This weather did pop up unexpectedly after all."
But just then there came a knock at the door. "It's open, come in!" Velvet gingerly called.
The door knob turned and a moment later who should come trotting into the room but a unicorn stallion with a majestic white coat, dressed in a red wool jacket and matching hat? Removing his hat, the stallion revealed a moderate sapphire blue mane and tail with shades of darker and lighter blue in waves, which matched his moderate cerulean eyes to a t. His cutie mark was a purple shield that had a pink six pointed star on it and three smaller, light blue stars above it. Twilight recognized said stallion at once as Shining Armor, her older brother! "B.B.B.F.F!" She happily exclaimed (that was short for Big Brother, Best Friend Forever) and embraced him in a hug!
Shining Armor smiled, returning the hug. "Yup, it's me, Twily!" He greeted and then he spoke to Velvet and Night Light. "Sorry I'm late, this weather has made getting just about anywhere near impossible to do. But I wasn't gonna miss Hearth's Warming for the world, especially after I couldn't be there for my sister's birthday party."
"Speaking of family," Spike interrupted. "Guess what, Shining Armor? I'm now Twilight's son, and that makes you Uncle Shiny."
Shining couldn't help but chuckle. "Aren't you a little too young to be a mother, Twily?" He teased. "You still sleep with Smarty Pants last time I checked."
"I do not!" Twilight blushed and playfully whined. "Besides, the love I have for Spike has always felt like something beyond simple friendship. I hatched him and helped to raise him, it's only fitting I'm kind of his mother."
"Well if you think that's impressive, just wait until you hear about my big news." Shining spoke up.
"Well that can wait until later, Shining," Velvet declared. "For right now, we've got a Hearth's Warming dinner to prepare and then Hearth's Warming dolls to hang over the fireplace. And remember, no peaking at your presents early."
"That goes for you too, Spike," Twilight cautioned. "Just because I let you open one present early when we're alone, doesn't mean you can do it here. This is Mom's house, so Mom's rules go."
Spike folded his arms across his chest. "Aw, that's not fair." He grumbled.
The day started with no indication that it would be at all unusual, everypony in Ponyville was going about their business as usual. The weather was as it should be for this time of year, warm and sunny but not too hot.
Not far from town hall, Fluttershy was helping Pinkie Pie move party supplies across town. They were needed for a celebration that the party pony had not yet elaborated on. "Come on, Fluttershy!" Pinkie called to her pegasus friend as she floated along with a bunch of balloons. "The party can't start until all the supplies get there!"
Fluttershy struggled to move under the weight of boxes worth of party decorations. She was starting to regret having volunteered to help her friend without asking what she needed help with. "I'm doing my best, Pinkie," She said with a groan. "But um, do you think that maybe next time you could not bring so many boxes over at once? Or maybe put them on some kind of cart?"
"Sorry, Fluttershy, but you can't help it when a party needs planning on such short notice," Pinkie apologized. "Don't you worry, we're almost there. And soon I'll know just what this party is, so I won't have to rely on my 'Pinkie Sense' to tell me when it'll happen again."
"What do you mean by that, Pinkie?" Fluttershy questioned. "Do you have some kind of system that keeps track of every kind of cause for celebration in Ponyville? Maybe that book on organization that Twilight lent you gave you some ideas?"
Before Pinkie could answer a purple blur of motion came rushing past at a tremendous rate of speed! If not for the color of the coat that briefly flashed past, Fluttershy would've assumed it was Pinkie Pie herself. As it was the pegasus with a coat of yellow barely had time to think of anything or do anything else. She was swept aside and knocked down, the boxes of party supplies bursting open as streamers, party hats, and party favors rained down from above. "Did anypony get the license number of that cart?" She muttered to herself as her eyes spun around.
"Beats me," Pinkie answered. "I couldn't see who it was. But whoever they were, they were sure in a hurry. Something must be up that even my 'Pinkie Sense' doesn't know about."
Just then the blur began to slow and as it stood on the bridge it revealed itself as the very familiar figure of Twilight Sparkle. She panted, clearly out of breath. But she was now overlooking the very center of Ponyville, the perfect place to broadcast her message. "Listen up, everypony!" She urgently cried out! "What I'm about to say is extremely important!" Everyone stopped what they had been doing and all turned to look and listen to Twilight. The unicorn cleared her throat and explained. "I've just received an important message from my future self, warning me of an impending disaster that will happen sometime before next Tuesday morning."
At that everyone burst into fits of hysterical laughter and one stallion was even heard to say. "That's ridiculous, time travel is a scientific impossibility! I should know, I've been experimenting with the very idea ever since a traumatic experience as a foal."
"But I'm being serious!" Twilight whined and pouted. "Why won't anypony listen to me?! I'm trying to change the future and prevent disaster!" But the laughs just continued to pour in. No one seemed willing to take her seriously.
The laughing went on for some time much to poor Twilight's embarrassment, she wished nothing more than for it to stop.
She was indeed being serious, she really had received a visit from her future self and she could still remember the entire ordeal. It had happened just mere moments ago after all:
Twilight had stayed up late to plan out her schedule for the next month, like she always did at the end of a month. But she'd run into a small snag in that she had accidentally not left time in her current schedule to plan out next month's schedule. It took a sleepless night of planning and debating, but she'd finally worked out a solution. "If I move lunch with Pinkie Pie to this coming Thursday and then re-arrange Spike's check-up to fill that gap on Tuesday, I'll have just enough time now to work out my schedule for the next month!"
But just as she was preparing to go upstairs and get what little sleep she still could, the unicorn was shocked and surprised to bear witness to a most unusual scene.
A strange roaring sound was heard and the papers on her desk began to rustle, as though being compelled to move. The unicorn with a coat of purple turned to look and much to her surprise a glowing white bubble appeared in the middle of the room! There was a dazzling flash and for a moment she could not see anything.
When the flash had faded there stood another Twilight Sparkle! But she looked noticeably different. She wore a tattered, torn, and ripped black suit riddled with holes. A white cloth not unlike a bandage was wrapped around her forehead, no doubt due to some horrible head trauma that had yet to heal. Her mane and tail looked like they had been exposed to electricity, because they stood up in straight bangs. And most telling of all, over her right eye was an eye-patch. Sparks of electricity flowed out of her as this alternative Twilight stood up.
"Who are you?" The present Twilight inquired. "And why do you look like me?"
"Because I am you!" The other Twilight answered and then frantically pleaded. "I'm you from the future, and you have to listen to me!"
But the present Twilight only commented. "Wow! Time travel is a possibility! How did you, I mean I pull it off?"
"The time travel spells are in the Starswirl the Bearded section of the Canterlot archives, but that's not important!" Future Twilight protested. "What is important is that-"
Present Twilight interrupted. "Gosh, you look terrible. Is there some kind of horrible pony war in the distant future or something?"
"Actually, I'm from next Tuesday morning," Future Twilight explained. "But what you need to know is-"
"Does time travel hurt? Is it really okay to meet with your past self? Ooh, I have so many questions!" Present Twilight beamed! "I could write a whole paper on this!"
But Future Twilight inserted a hoof into present Twilight's mouth to silence her. As she spoke her body started to glow bright white. "Just listen to me, I don't have much time!" She protested. "What I'm about to tell you is very important! Whatever you do, don't..." But she never finished her sentence because at that moment she faded away entirely, as if she'd never existed in the first place.
Of course, present Twilight knew better. Nothing else could explain the huge crater that had been left by her future self, it had to be time travel. "What was my future self trying to warn me about?" She thought to herself. "Oh, if only I'd listened to her and not asked so many questions! Whatever it was it must be something really bad if my future self looked so messed up! I have to warn everypony before whatever's supposed to happen happens!"
And it was with that train of thought that the unicorn had made an uncharacteristically fast paced sprint out of her library and out into Ponyville. All she could think about was warning the town in the hopes of preventing whatever unknown disaster her future self had traveled back in time to warn her about.
Yet not a single pony would believe her, they were all laughing at her if she'd made the whole thing. But it had been real, as real as real can be! Why wouldn't anypony take her seriously?
"What's all this commotion about?" Applejack inquired as she, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash all arrived on the scene.
"Twilight says she received a visit from her future self warning about some kind of disaster," Fluttershy explained. "But it sounds just a little ridiculous."
"How about completely ridiculous?" Rainbow Dash laughed. "I think Twilight's been reading too many Daring Do books, she's starting to think the impossible is possible!"
Rarity couldn't help but quiver a little. "But what if she really is serious? What if there's some horrible, unspeakable disaster that will happen in the future?"
"Wouldn't Pinkie's 'Pinkie Sense' tell us about before it happened?" Rainbow inquired. "It predicts the future, after all."
But Pinkie shook her head. "Don't be silly, Dashie, my 'Pinkie Sense' is not like fortune telling. It's only for the immediate future, like seconds or minutes in advance. It can't tell what'll happen days ahead of time."
"What exactly should we do?" Fluttershy pondered. "Twilight clearly believes her future self was warning her about some sort of disaster. But then again Spike did mention she's been up late the past few nights."
Applejack let out a sigh. "I don't know what to think, y'all, but I do know one thing. This is not unlike the time we saw Twilight lookin' all messed up, and when we learned she was upset about not findin' a friendship lesson to report to Princess Celestia, we all brushed her off and told her it was no big deal."
A guilty looked cross Rainbow's face and she covered her violet eyes with a wing. "Don't remind me. I feel ashamed just thinking about that whole ordeal."
"And let's not forget about the whole 'enchanted doll' thing. Poor Sweetie Belle and her friends were upset about it for weeks." Rarity commented.
"So I reckon if we don't want a similar incident on our here hooves this time, it's best if we take Twilight's concerns seriously. When next Tuesday mornin' comes and go with no sign of trouble, we can all breath a little easier," Applejack suggested. "How's that sound?" The remaining ponies nodded in confirmation, and Applejack took that a sign that they were all onboard. The farm mare then trotted up to her unicorn friend and told her. "We believe ya, Twilight. And we wanna help in any way we can. What can we do to help prevent... whatever it is that's supposed to happen?"
Twilight flashed a bright smile. It felt so nice to know that she had friends who were willing to listen to her, even if at times her worries could seem silly. "I'm very glad you asked, Applejack," And she cleared her throat. "Spike? The checklist, if you please."
"Yes ma'am!" Spike saluted in reply as he took out a huge scroll and unfurled it.
Twilight explained to her friends as they examined the long parchment. "I assembled a list of various things that might cause a disaster on any sort of level. If the whole town pitches in and helps out, we should have everything done in less than a day's time."
Pinkie eyed the scroll, soon taking notice of one of the items listed on it. "Wait a second! Get my bangs cut?! Twilight, what possible harm could there be in that?!"
The unicorn simply replied. "If they grow too long they could weigh down your hair and cause you to trip, and then who knows what could happen. I'm not taking any chances, Pinkie," And she instructed. "Rarity, you can take Pinkie down to the spa for a mane cut, right?"
The pink party pony protested. "But I like my mane this way, it's been that way for a long time. You saw what happened the last time I tried to style it."
But Rarity simply replied to Pinkie. "So, it can't hurt to try again. And even if your mane goes back to normal, cutting the bangs will make it look even prettier," And then she added. "Besides, you wouldn't Mr. and Mrs. Cake to worry about loose hair from your bangs getting into the sweets now would you?"
"Well... when you put it like that..." Pinkie began.
Rarity interrupted and began to push Pinkie along the path towards the spa. "I knew you'd see it my way, Pinkie Pie, darling!" And she gave Twilight a wink to let her know the situation was under control.
"Okay, that's one problem we can cross off the list," Twilight proudly declared. "Now, what else should we start with?"
Twilight's "proposals" as she put it were soon put into action. Many of the towns folk didn't really believe or care about Twilight's statement about a visit from her future self, but they had to admit there were things that needed to be done that they likely would've kept putting off had such a situation as this not arisen.
Ponies worked together to do things such as fill up the water tower, loosen and then tighten the bolts on the bridges, and even fill in cracks on some of the roads.
"Pinkie's bangs are under control!" Rarity proudly reported to Twilight a short time later.
"Great," Twilight smiled and turned to Fluttershy. "How are things on your end? Any creature problems?"
Fluttershy shook her head. "Zecora says the forest is as quiet as can be."
Rainbow Dash swooped down and added. "And the weather team just gave the all clear from Baltimare to Las Pegasus."
"You can relax now, Twilight," Spike assured the still troubled unicorn. "You warned the town and they listened. Everything is one hundred percent under control now."
"Maybe," Twilight sighed as she trotted around town, observing the last few proposals as work was finishing up. "But I can't help but feel like maybe we should be worried about far more than just loose bolts and out of control manes. Future Twilight looked terrible. Whatever the disaster was that she traveled back in time to warn me about has to be something very serious."
"Like what, exactly?" Spike questioned.
But just then a three headed, black furred dog with a spiky collar emerged and let out a ferocious roar!
"Okay, everypony, follow my lead," Pinkie instructed and then after clearing her throat, she began to scream out! "Aagh! Run for your lives!"
"Oh my stars!" Rarity dramatically exclaimed! "What in the world is that thing?!"
"That's Cerberus," Twilight explained. "We studied him in Princess Celestia's school. He's supposed to be guarding the gates of Tartarus. You know, the place where they keep the worst criminals, the ones convicted of crimes against Equestria."
Rarity let out a gulp. "What's he doing here, then?! Looking for an escaped convict or something?!"
Twilight shook her head. "Not likely, Princess Celestia or the royal guard would've sent a note if that was the case. I don't think they're even aware Cerberus isn't at his post," Then she gasped as a realization struck the mare. "Of course! This must've been what my future self was trying to warn me about! If Cerberus isn't guarding the gates of Tartarus, who knows what kind of dangerous criminals will slip away and roam free?! She wanted me to be ready for him, so I could catch him and return him to Tartarus before that can happen!"
"B-but, how are you gonna take on that three headed beast? You'll be Cerberus' new chew toy!" Spike nervously stuttered and a cold sweat began to work its way down his body.
"Whoever said anything about taking him on?" Twilight commented with a wink and then gave a whistle. "Fluttershy, you know what to do!"
Fluttershy came swooping in and stared down Cerberus for but a moment, before she then leaped at him and tackled him into a great big hug. "Aw, who's a good boy? Who's a good boy?" She cooed. "You are, Cerberus. Yes you are. Yes you are." And she proceeded to give him a belly rub, which caused the dog to roll over and start shaking its hind paws.
"It's okay, everypony," Twilight called out. "Cerberus has been tamed. You can all stop panicking now," And then with a determined look on her face she declared. "I've got to get him back to Tartarus and do a head count! Princess Celestia and Princess Luna will need to know if any prisoners escaped."
But Spike immediately clung to Twilight's leg upon hearing such a thing, and he refused to let go of it. "Twilight, you can't go!" He pleaded! "Something bad could happen to you! And.. and if it does, I don't know what I'll do! Please, don't go, Mommy!"
Twilight felt her heart sink just a little as Spike began to tear up. How could she have forgotten how much she meant to Spike? She still needed to schedule that meeting with Mayor Mare to fill out the paperwork making Spike her official adopted son. Ever since she'd confessed how she felt about him during the Owlowiscious incident, they'd never truly been apart. Even on the occasions where Spike went to Canterlot to check in with Princess Celestia, he always took comfort in the knowledge that Twilight was a simple letter away.
That would not be the case here, a trip to Tartarus could take all day or maybe even longer. And regardless of how old he was in pony years, the unicorn had remember that he was still technically a baby dragon. But there were some things she could to help alleviate his concerns. "Tell you what, Spike?" She offered. "Send a letter to Princess Celestia informing her that Cerberus is here in Ponyville, and have her send whatever royal guards not currently on duty here to help me escort him back to Tartarus."
"Will do," Spike obliged. He quickly wrote down the letter and sent it with his fire breath. The reply was belched out moments later. "The guards are on their way."
"Excellent," Twilight smiled and then she turned to Rarity. "Rarity, I hate to ask such an important responsibility of you on such short notice, but..."
But the fashionista simply threw up a hoof in protest. "Say no more, darling, I know what you're about to ask. Of course I'll watch over little Spikey-Wikey for you while you're gone."
"Really? You'd do that even on top of your responsibilities as a fashion designer and big sister?" Twilight commented in surprise. "You don't have to do this, Rarity. I could easily get Fluttershy or Applejack to be with him until I get back."
Rarity shook her head. "I never turn my back on a friend in need, and you and Spike are most certainly in need," She firmly declared. "Whatever you need, I'll do my best to provide it. If it means babysitting Spike at the library, so be it. I don't have major fashion projects to work on at the moment anyway, just a few small projects I can easily shelve."
Spike, sensing an opportunity to be closer to his not so secret crush, quickly nodded his head in agreement. "Rarity's totally okay with me, Twilight. We'll be just fine."
"Are you sure, my son?" Twilight questioned. "I want to make sure I'm leaving you in capable hooves."
Spike nodded his head again. "Come on, Twilight. You wouldn't have asked Rarity if you didn't think she could handle it. I promise I won't try to stay up past my bedtime or weasel my way out of my chores while you're gone. I'll be on my best behavior."
Before Twilight could protest, a trio of royal guards descended and touched down in front of her. One removed his helmet and cleared his throat as he spoke. "Twilight Sparkle, Princess Celestia sends us with her highest regard. If you're ready we shall depart at once for Tartarus."
Reluctantly, Twilight consented to Spike's agreement. Though not before blowing him a kiss. "Take care, my son. I'll be back as soon as I can." She promised, and Spike and all of her friends waved until she and the royal guards were out of sight.
Twilight was gone for the rest of the day and into the night. Rarity did her best to provide for Spike and just in general to be there for him when he most needed a shoulder for emotional support.
When night time came and the clock struck the hour, Rarity gently tucked Spike into his basket in spite of the little dragon's protests. "Bed time is bed time, my precious little Spikey-Wikey," She softly cooed. "And you want to grow up to be big and strong, don't you?"
"But I'm not tired." Spike yawned. Yet somehow he found himself unable to keep from falling asleep. And in fact he slept soundly that night even though he expected to have nightmares about Twilight. He suspected that Princess Luna had a role to play in that but he couldn't be sure.
When Spike woke up the next morning he was both surprised and relieved to see that Twilight had already come back. "Good morning, Spike," She cheerfully greeted. "You'll be happy to know that with my help, the royal guards were able to put Cerberus back at his post before any criminals could escape. They're conducting a head count as we speak but they don't expect to find any prisoners missing."
Spike let out a yawn and stretched his claws. "I'm just glad you're okay," He said to the pony he'd come to consider his mother. "Don't ever run off on your adventures like that again. I really thought for sure something terrible was going to happen to you."
"I'll do my best to keep that in mind, Spike," Twilight reassured the little dragon. "But I hope you understand I won't be around forever. Someday we'll be apart, and you'll have to be able to go on without me."
"And I hope that 'someday' is far, far away." Spike declared.
Twilight nodded and decided to change the subject. "Okay," She happily smiled. "Now why don't I make you some breakfast and then-" But at that very moment the unicorn happened to pass by a mirror and got a good look at herself, namely her face. What she saw caused her to gasp! "Oh no!"
Filled with dread and worry, Spike clambered out of his basket and rushed to Twilight's location! "What is it, Twilight?!" He exclaimed with noticeable worry. "Are you hurt?!"
"No, it's worse!" Twilight answered as she looked at herself in the mirror. "Do you see this cut?"
"You mean the one on your left cheek?" Spike questioned, pointing a claw to the aforementioned red mark.
The unicorn began to complain. "Don't you see, Spike?! It's in the same place as the cut Future Twilight had on her face!"
"So, just put a bandage on it or something." Spike grumbled.
"That's not what's important, Spike!" Twilight protested as she continued to point at the cut. "This means the future didn't change! Whatever Future Twilight was trying to warn me about, it's still going to happen! I haven't prevented it all!"
Spike just sighed and put a claw to his face. "Twilight, you're perfectly fine. You probably just got that cut while tending to Cerberus. It doesn't mean anything."
"Then why is it in the exact same spot as Future Twilight's scar?!" Twilight audibly complained! "It surely can't be coincidence!"
Some time passed and Twilight continued to worry. In fact it was all she did. "How could this have happened? Why did this happen?" She could be heard saying. "I did everything I possibly could've to prevent disaster, the future should have changed."
Spike couldn't help but giggle. "Well I don't know much about the future but all your pacing is wearing a huge groove in the floor. We'll have to replace the floor boards."
Twilight didn't appear to acknowledge Spike's snarky comment even though the groove was there for all to see. "Spike, I don't have time for one of your lectures," She simply said in reply. "This is serious!"
"I know, you're gonna wear your way all the way into the ground if you keep this up!" Spike teased.
"You're supposed to be helping me, Spike!" The unicorn growled. "Come on, help a pony out here," But then a sudden burst of realization struck her. "Wait a minute, Future Twilight's last words said 'Whatever you do, don't-'. I thought she meant don't let something happen. But maybe she meant don't do something because it will cause a disaster to happen."
"You mean besides the huge groove in the floor?" Spike quipped with a raised eyebrow. "Seriously, Twilight, just put a bandage on the cut and stop worrying."
But Twilight shook her head. "I'm not putting a bandage on a small cut, I'll look silly! And it won't change what it means. However, I know now how I can prevent that terrible future from happening," And she proudly declared. "Maybe it's not what I do but what I don't do. If I just stand here and don't move a muscle until next Tuesday morning, I won't be able to do whatever it is Future Twilight was about to warn me not to do."
"Seriously? You're just gonna stand there and do NOTHING?" The little dragon questioned. "You're not gonna move at all?" When the pony he was so closely attached to nodded he decided to tease. "Really? Not even to get something to eat? Or go to sleep? Or use the bathroom?"
"Okay, okay, so maybe I won't stand completely still until next Tuesday morning but you know what I meant," The unicorn angrily remarked. "And you can just explain that to anypony who stops by to see me."
Spike, however, being the naughty dragon that he was sensed an opportunity for mischief. A chance to have a little fun at Twilight's expense and do things he knew she would never let him do. He hoped that perhaps he might anger her enough to move and put a stop to his behavior, and then she'd realize just how silly it was to fret about this whole Future Twilight thing.
To that end the little dragon went into the kitchen and returned shortly with an entire carton of ice cream and a spoon. He held them in front of Twilight, trying his hardest not to laugh at hard she was already sweating (as a result of resisting the urge to move). "So aside from the things you mentioned earlier, you're not gonna move at all? Not even if I were to... say... eat this entire carton of ice cream?" He proceeded to use his claws to open the lid and then dig his spoon into the delicious, frozen treat.
True to her word, Twilight didn't budge. But she did mouth out in protest. "Spike... stop... think of the tummy ache you'll get."
But Spike simply laughed and went on eating while saying. "That's Future Spike's problem, and boy do I pity him," In between spoonfuls of ice cream he taunted. "You know there's only one way to stop me."
"I'm not moving, Spike! Not even if you wanna stuff your face full of ice cream!" Twilight protested. "Eat all you want, you'll be sorry! And I'll just say 'I told you so.'"
"Whatever, your loss." Spike shrugged and went back to eating.
Sometime later the front door of the Golden Oak Library swung open, and who should come trotting in but Rainbow Dash? "Hey, Twilight," She called, the pegasus was unaware of what Twilight was up to (or Spike for that matter). "Haven't heard from you since you got back from Tartarus, Applejack was getting worried. So I thought I'd stop by and-" The brash speedster with a coat of pale, light grayish cerulean paused as her moderate violet eyes beheld a most unusual sight.
Twilight stood in the middle of a huge groove near the wooden horse head in the center of the library, sweating considerably but refusing to move. And Spike was eating an entire carton of ice cream.
"Uh, Twilight, not that I mean to question your parenting skills but why are you letting Spike eat ice cream?" Rainbow questioned. "I'm pretty sure that's gonna lead to a stomach ache."
But Spike laughed and explained. "Twilight's not moving a muscle, aside from eating, sleeping, and using the bathroom. She thinks it's gonna prevent that horrible disaster Future Twilight was trying to warn her about. As long as I get all the ice cream I can eat out of it, I don't really care."
The pegasus snickered as word of this desperate plot reached her ears. "Oh this is too rich!" And she immediately pointed a hoof and shouted! "Twilight, quick, look behind you! A giant spider!" And then she burst into fits of laughter as her eyes watered.
Spike was giggling too. "Wait, wait," He said between chuckles. "I have a better idea." He proceeded to grab a feather from a nearby shelf and started to tickle Twilight all over.
"That is pure evil, Spike!" Rainbow taunted.
"Well, Twilight can make it stop at any time," Spike pointed out as he continued to tickle. "All she has to do is move."
But Twilight refused. The unicorn was still very much insistent on not moving in the hopes that doing so would prevent that horrible future Future Twilight had tried to warn her about. She had to admit it was getting harder and harder not to move though, between Rainbow's snickers and Spike's tickles (not to mention her own achy and twitchy muscles) her laser like focus was start to crack. Not moving at all was harder than it looked.
All of a sudden Twilight's horn seemed to develop a mind all its own! The reddish-violet glow of her magic enveloped Spike and tossed him! In the heat of the moment Spike let out a huge belch and he gasped as his flame breath rushed toward Twilight! Poor Twilight barely had time to throw up a protective shield before the blast hit her and she let out a scream of pain!
Spike was horrified and so was Rainbow Dash! "Oh no!" Spike exclaimed as he held his face with his claws!
"What?" Twilight questioned in a tone of voice that sounded more like a growl. "What happened, Spike?"
"I am SO sorry, Twilight, really!" The little dragon apologized. And he showed Twilight what she looked like in a mirror. Her mane and tail were singed slightly around the edges and now stood straight up. In short, they looked just the same way they had appeared on Future Twilight.
Upon seeing this Twilight let out a scream! "This can't be! Doing things didn't work, and now not doing things didn't work! How can this be?!"
"I don't know," Rainbow answered as sympathetically as she could. "But if your mane style's the problem just go brush it or something, then you won't look like Future Twilight anymore."
"I guess it couldn't hurt to try." The unicorn replied and teleported to her bathroom to do just that. Rainbow decided that there was nothing more she could do in the library and left to inform Applejack.
Twilight teleported back to the center of the library a short time later, displaying to Spike a very worn out and battered brush! "Urgh!" She groaned as she tossed the brush aside! "I tried and tried and TRIED but that mane refused to be tamed! It's stuck like this, and that means I'm one step closer to that horrible future my future self was trying to prevent! Is there anything I can or can't do to prevent it?!"
After that no one saw Twilight for several days. She did not venture outside the library (or if she did no one ever saw her) and the few who tried to access the library to find out what was going on were all turned away.
Most ponies in Ponyville were convinced that the entire ordeal was over, Twilight had stopped obsessing over that future self and was no doubt wrapped up in some other pursuit.
Applejack knew better. "I don't like it, not one bit," She spoke to her friends at an urgent meeting held at Sweet Apple Acres. "Twilight's been too quiet."
"Are we sure she hasn't simply given up and was too ashamed to admit she made a big ordeal out of nothing?" Rarity pondered.
"Seems like an awfully long time to stay quiet if that's the case," Fluttershy nervously commented. "But how do we find out what she's been up to, and more importantly how do we get her to come to her senses? Whatever bad thing happens next Tuesday morning, it couldn't have that bad."
"What makes you say that, Fluttershy?" Rainbow questioned her fellow pegasus. "Twilight's completely off her rocker here."
Fluttershy simply explained. "Don't any of you think that if whatever happens by next Tuesday morning is so important that Future Twilight wants the outcome changed, she would've traveled back in time again to send a proper warning?"
"She has a point there." Pinkie nodded her head in agreement.
Applejack was not convinced. "Maybe so but this is Twilight we're talkin' about here. After what happened with that 'Want It Need It Spell' fiasco, I'd rather not take chances," And with that she declared. "Somepony here is gonna have to go over and check on Twilight."
Pinkie Pie quickly volunteered, Twilight may not have been her closest friend but the party pony still felt a special attachment to her due to the fact that Pinkie had been the first friend Twilight had made in Ponyville. Besides, it always seemed like something was going on and Twilight usually knew it was or what could be done about it.
Rapping a hoof against the door, Pinkie wasn't sure whether to expect a reply. She got one when the door swung open and to her surprise she discovered a huge assortment of maps, charts, graphs, and big telescopes. Something was most definitely up with Twilight, the only question now was what.
"Oh good, you're here!" Twilight fondly exclaimed to Pinkie (the party pony found it hard not to notice her friend's bloodshot and beady eyes, and the bandage wrapped around her head). "I already know your 'Pinkie Sense' can't tell me what's going to happen on Tuesday morning, but that got to me thinking, Pinkie: Doing things didn't work, not doing things didn't work, and I know I had no way to predict the future. So that left me with but one option. Monitor everything, and I DO mean everything!"
"O...kay?" Pinkie nervously and uncertainly replied. "So... uh... Twilight, when was the last time you slept?"
The unicorn gave off a goofy laugh. "You're so silly, Pinkie! I haven't slept a wink since Future Twilight showed up! Far too much to worry about to get any rest! Believe me, I've tried!"
Spike, meanwhile, simply commented. "Don't mind what Twilight says, she hasn't been herself since a flower pot hit her on the head yesterday. Nurse Redheart examined her and said she should be fine, but it was best if Twilight kept the bandage on until after Tuesday," And then he added. "She's been obsessed with all sorts of 'signs', but me, all I care about is how much ice cream I can eat before this all has to end."
"You're just in time to help me check my work, Pinkie!" Twilight laughed. "After all, there's only three days left until Tuesday morning! And then I can sleep all I want!"
Now it was the pink party pony's turn to laugh. "Twilight, you silly filly. Spike was right, you're not yourself. Tuesday isn't three days away, it's tomorrow."
Twilight's blood-shot blue eyes widened in realization of this fact! "What?! How come no one told me sooner?!" She frantically exclaimed as she teleported over to one of her giant telescopes. "Have you recalibrated and readjusted the telescope observing the dark side of the sun?"
"I have no idea." Pinkie innocently and honestly answered.
"Thanks for nothing," The unicorn grumbled and began to move the telescope. But she ended up looking into as it was aimed directly at the sun! The glare struck her eye and she let out a cry! "Gah, my eye!"
Pinkie quickly leaped into action! "D-don't worry, Twilight!" She quickly called, pulling an eye-patch out from the fireplace! "I have eye-patches stashed all over Ponyville, in case of eye-patch emergencies," Placing it over her friend's right eye, the party pony then brought over a mirror to show the unicorn what she looked like. "There. Now you look like a pirate," She commented in the hopes of cheering up her injured friend. "A really sleepy pirate with a messed up mane and a head bandage."
But all Twilight saw was more similarities between herself and her bad future counterpart. "Oh no, more signs! Even monitoring everything is not enough," She ominously declared. "I hate to do this but I have no other choice if I want to prevent whatever horrible thing happens next morning. I'll just have to-" She paused for but a moment before she added. "Stop time!"
"Is that even possible?" Spike wondered aloud.
"Of course it's possible!" Twilight firmly replied. "My future self mentioned that the time travel spells are kept in the Starswirl the Bearded wing of the Canterlot Archives. But at night the entire archives are locked up and guarded. They'll never just let us in."
"Not even if we say 'Pretty please with a hot fudge sundae and cherry on top?'" Pinkie questioned.
Twilight shook her head. "Not even that. There's only one way we're gonna be able to get inside without drawing attention."
Late that night the entire city of Canterlot was asleep, no lights shone in the buildings and the city street lights were the only source of illumination. But no one would've thought anything of a train pulling into the station. If they had been looking though, they might have seen three figures cloaked in black, flexible stealth suits depart.
Said figures were Twilight, Spike, and Pinkie (who was mostly along for the fun though she also hoped to maybe reign Twilight in if she went too far). Spike was complaining. "I don't see what the point of these stealth suits are, Twilight. I mean, it's not illegal to sneak around Canterlot after dark. This isn't prison."
"I thought we were wearing them just for the fun of it." Pinkie commented.
"There's nothing fun about this," Twilight snapped back in protest. "Now be quiet or you'll give us away. Sneaking into the Canterlot archives may not exactly be breaking any laws, but stealing a time travel spell from it certainly is."
The three made their way through Canterlot in silence, but Twilight kept insisting on weaving through branches and bushes to avoid being spotted by any stray guards. Before long they were able to reach the archives only to find the front door guarded, two pegasi clad in dark blue armor and with spears at the ready barred the way. It didn't seem like they would budge.
So instead the trio snuck in through an open window. "This is fun!" Pinkie briefly exclaimed before she remembered she was supposed to be quiet and whispered. "Can we climb in through the window again, Twilight?"
"Not now, Pinkie!" Twilight harshly whispered back. "You've gotta help me find the Starswirl the Bearded section! Quickly, time is running out! Tuesday morning will be upon us soon and I must find a time travel spell before then!"
But Pinkie laughed. "Oh Twilight, you silly filly, there's no need to look for it. It's right there, just across the hallway. Haven't you ever been here before?"
"Yeah, once or twice when I was a filly," Twilight acknowledged. "But I never ventured far. I didn't even know Starswirl the Bearded had a wing to himself. Shouldn't have surprised me though, Starswirl just about did every magical feat under the sun. I find it odd Princess Celestia doesn't talk about him more even though she was one of his many students."
But just then Spike pointed a claw down the hallway and nervously commented. "Uh, Twilight, we've got company!"
The unicorn mare began to panic! "Oh no, a guard!" She gasped in fright! "And there's nowhere to hide! We're trapped!"
The beam of light that had caught Spike's (and Twilight's) attention soon manifested its source in the form of a unicorn stallion with a very recognizable white coat. He had a moderate sapphire blue mane and tail with shades of darker and lighter blue in waves, not to mention moderate cerulean eyes and a cutie mark consisting of a purple shield that had a pink six pointed star on it and three smaller, light blue stars above it. Compared to the guards from earlier, he wore a purple helmet and a matching purple colored set of armor. It was Shining Armor, Twilight's older brother!
Shining was surprised but also amused to see his little sister in the Canterlot archives, adorned in a torn (and rather tacky looking) black stealth suit, an eye-patch, a head bandage, and a mane and tail that looked like they'd gone days without a proper brushing. "Twily?" He innocently inquired.
"B.B.B.F.F?" Twilight nervously replied, worried that her brother might rat her out.
A dopey grin formed on Shining's face as he snickered. "Sneaking into the archives after dark again, huh? I see old habits die hard. Don't worry, I won't tell anypony."
"Oh thank you, B.B.B.F.F! You really ARE the best big brother ever!" Twilight happily exclaimed as she embraced her older brother in a hug. But then a fierce blush formed on her cheeks as she added. "Uh, I hate to ask, but could you do me just a teeny tiny little favor?"
"I don't see why not. What can I do for my favorite little filly?" Shining declared in his best big brother tone possible.
His little sister quickly replied. "Do you think you could... maybe open up the Starswirl the Bearded wing for me? I uh... just wanna take a peak inside."
Shining stepped back in uncertainty. "I don't know, Twily," He stroked his chin with a hoof. "I could get into a lot of trouble if Princess Celestia or anypony else finds out about this."
"Don't worry, I can keep an secret too you know," Twilight said with a wink. "Please, big brother? I promise I won't be long."
For several long minutes Shining was silent and he spoke not a word. He just pondered his dilemma while he continued to stroke his chin with a hoof. But at last he reluctantly commented. "Well... I... suppose it wouldn't hurt to look the other way... just this once. But you have to promise you won't take anything from it, and that you'll put everything back the way it was before you leave," He then levitated out a set of keys, walked over to the locked door of the Starswirl the Bearded wing, and inserted the key into the lock. With a click the door opened. The stallion quickly returned the set of keys to the pocket from which he'd pulled it. "Remember, nopony must know about this, or we'll both be in a lot of trouble." He again advised his sister.
"Don't worry, B.B.B.F.F," Twilight nodded. "Your secret's safe with me." And then she, Spike, and Pinkie Pie all rushed inside the now opened wing.
"Wait, Twily! Before you go, there's something important I need to tell you!" Shining called but it was too late, his sister was gone. The stallion just sighed to himself and hung his head. "That's twice now I missed my chance. I sure hope I'll get another opportunity before the big day arrives." And then he departed, resuming his nightly patrols.
Once inside the wing, Twilight happened to pass by a mirror and finally saw for herself that she looked just like Future Twilight. "Oh no, this is terrible! It's like I've become Future Twilight herself!" She nervously commented with worry.
"And that's bad, right?" Pinkie asked even though she knew the answer.
Twilight just nodded in response. "Come on, there's not much time left until it's Tuesday morning! We need to find a time travel spell that'll let me stop time until I can prevent whatever's about to happen!"
The three searched high and low throughout the archives, pulling out scrolls of all sorts. But none held the solution Twilight needed.
At last time ran out, in the distance came the faint but familiar rays of Celestia's sun! "No no no no no!" Twilight nervously pranced back and forth. "It's Tuesday morning, and I haven't prevented whatever I was supposed to prevent! It's over, we're done for! Incoming!" The unicorn dove to the floor as Celestia's sun began to rise, waiting for whatever big disaster was about to unfold.
Moments passed but nothing happened. Twilight slowly and reluctantly raised her head. "That's weird," She commented to herself. "Did I somehow change the future after all? Did something I did or didn't do prevent whatever Future Twilight was trying to warn me about?"
"Or maybe there never was a horrible future," Spike suggested. "Maybe you just imagined the whole thing from stress."
"But it had to be real! How else could I have known about the Starswirl the Bearded section or the time travel spells?" Twilight protested. "If it was all an illusion, how would I have known to come here?"
Just then Princess Celestia came trotting past and cheerfully called to her student. "Good morning, Twilight. Love the new mane style."
Twilight jumped and flinched! "P-Princess Celestia!" She stuttered! "I know you what think but this isn't what it looks like! I was just... just..." She trailed off, unable to finish her sentence.
"Sneaking into the Starswirl the Bearded section after dark?" Celestia teased. "You always were a curious one, and you're certainly not the first student of mine to seek out exclusive knowledge."
"You're... not mad at me?" Twilight pondered in confusion. Celestia's tone didn't sound at all like strict or stern, it sounded rather warm and even kind of playful.
Celestia laughed as she threw back her head. "Of course I'm not mad with you, Twilight, you silly filly. I know you well enough to know you wouldn't think of taking anything from this section," In a more serious tone of voice she added. "If the spells here ever fell into the wrong hooves, talons, or other extremities, we'd all be in serious trouble. That's why knowledge of this section is on a strict, need-to-know basis. I'll overlook your trespassing in here, seeing as you were just being curious. But next time I expect a heads up before you go snooping around the archives. Just because you're my student doesn't mean you can do whatever you want. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, Princess Celestia," Twilight bowed. "I'm sorry. I should've asked you for permission."
"May I ask what brought this on? You do know it's not Nightmare Night, right?" The sun princesses commented as she raised an eyebrow. Her student was quick to reply. "It's a long story, but I do know one thing. I look completely ridiculous."
Just then Spike let out a huge groan and clutched his stomach. "Oh!" He complained as he lay on the floor. "I thought the side effects of all that ice cream was Future Spike's problem. But now I am Future Spike! Ugh, I don't feel so good!" Then all of a sudden, without warning, the little dragon let out a tremendous belch! A belch so strong and so powerful, it shook the ground not unlike a small earthquake! The vibrations were enough to cause several scrolls on the shelves to fall down and scatter on the floor!
In the process, one of the scrolls landed at Pinkie's hooves. She took one look at it and her eyes lit up! Tossing said scroll to Twilight she explained. "I think I've found what you're looking for! It doesn't stop time but it does let you go back in time! It says it's only good for one trip and it only lasts a few minutes."
"Pinkie, you're a genius!" Twilight happily beamed as she took the scroll into her magical embrace. "Now I can go back in time and prevent any of this from ever happening! Wish me luck!" And then lighting up her horn, she disappeared in a blinding flash of white light!
Now in the same place that Future Twilight had occupied, the present Twilight shook her head and looked at Past Twilight.
"Who are you?" Past Twilight asked. "And why do you look like me?"
"Because I am you!" The present Twilight answered and then frantically pleaded. "I'm you from the future, and you have to listen to me!"
But Past Twilight only commented. "Wow! Time travel is a possibility! How did you, I mean I pull it off?"
"The time travel spells are in the Starswirl the Bearded section of the Canterlot archives, but that's not important!" Present Twilight protested. "What is important is that-"
Past Twilight interrupted. "Gosh, you look terrible. Is there some kind of horrible pony war in the distant future or something?"
"Actually, I'm from next Tuesday morning," Present Twilight explained. "But what you need to know is-"
"Does time travel hurt? Is it really okay to meet with your past self? Ooh, I have so many questions!" Past Twilight beamed! "I could write a whole paper on this!"
But the present Twilight inserted a hoof into Past Twilight's mouth to silence her. As she spoke her body started to glow bright white. "Just listen to me, I don't have much time!" She protested. "What I'm about to tell you is very important! Whatever you do, don't..."
Unfortunately at that very moment the spell wore off and present Twilight returned to the current Tuesday morning. Unaware of this she briefly shouted. "...Let Spike eat all the ice cream, he'll get sick and make a mess and..." But then she realized it was too late, her warning had been cut off. "Ugh! Great!" She complained. "Now my past self is gonna worry herself sick all week about next Tuesday morning and the disaster that's never going to come!"
"But if you went back to warn your past self and changed the future in the process, wouldn't we cease to exist?" Pinkie questioned. "Isn't that how time travel works?"
"That's one school of theory, Pinkie," Twilight began to explain. "But the thing is, by me traveling back in time to warn my past self I led to the circumstances that caused myself to believe future me was from a bad timeline and that some kind of disaster was going to happen by next Tuesday morning. And then my past self became my future self and my future self became my present self, and then..." She groaned. "Urgh, thinking is making my brain hurt! And now I've gone all cross-eyed!"
"Now do you understand why the time travel spells are so heavily guarded and explicitly forbidden to use?" Princess Celestia commented to Twilight. "Trying to mess with the flow of time can produce all kinds of ripple effects. It can be possible in some cases to create entirely different timelines."
Spike, meanwhile, just continued to groan. "Future self, past self, I don't care. All I care about is getting home! I think I'm gonna be sick for a whole week!"
"Well it would serve you right for eating all that ice cream, my son," Twilight motherly teased. "I told you you'd be sorry," And she then lifted the little dragon onto her back. "Come on, let's get you home and into bed. And from now on, let's both agree not to worry so much about the future. It's more important to focus on the present."
Spike knocked a claw on the door to Starlight Glimmer's bedroom, his goal was to both check up on her and to distract her while Twilight surveyed her student's room.
"Hey, Starlight," Spike greeted to the unicorn he'd come to see as something of a big sister. "It's almost time for the ceremony, you ready?"
"Yeah, I mean more or less," Starlight answered. "I still can't believe my friends and I are getting rewarded with Pink Hearts."
"Well it's not everyday you team up with a bunch of random characters, rescue a princess, and defeat a certain no good queen," Spike chuckled. "And it certainly helps that thanks to you, Thorax is now King Thorax and the changelings are now Equestria's allies."
Starlight nodded. "Yeah but that was at least partially your doing, Spike. You were the first one to befriend Thorax after all."
"Right," Spike acknowledged. Then he decided to ask Starlight. "So uh... what are you gonna wear to the ceremony?"
The unicorn shot Spike a puzzled look. "Not sure, really. Why do you ask? Am I supposed to dress up or something?"
"No, er... I mean you could," Spike quickly replied. "It's like Rarity always says," He proceeded to pull back his scales so they looked like Rarity's curly mane, and he even threw his voice to try and sound like hers. "There's no such thing as overdressed, darling. Why, you're just the best looking pony in the room." He proceeded to give a nervous laugh as the impression wore off.
"You've really been hanging around Rarity too much, you sounded just like her," Starlight commented. "But I think I'll just go as I am, something tells me Discord and Trixie won't be dressing up for the ceremony. And I don't even know if changelings ever wear clothes. Sunburst has his cape, but then he always seems to wear that." She then prepared to turn and go back into her room.
But Twilight hadn't finished surveying the room just yet and Spike knew it! If Starlight entered her room now she would see her teacher and the whole surprise would be ruined! So there was only one thing the little dragon could think of to stall for time. "No, don't look!" He protested and pulled Starlight close, so close that he could've been mistaken for trying to kiss her.
Starlight naturally did not take well to being pulled so close. "What is going on?" She complained to Spike as she brushed him off with a hoof.
"S-sorry," Spike nervously answered. "There was... a bug on your face. But... uh... it's totally gone now."
"Rrrrrrrrright," Starlight slowly answered in reply. "Well if you've nothing left to say, you can tell Twilight I won't be long. Let me know when she needs me to come out." She entered her bedroom just moments after Twilight had teleported away.
Spike quickly took off and ran back to Twilight's bedroom to meet up with her. "How'd it go?" Twilight questioned.
"Haha, she had no idea," Spike proudly replied. "We're a good team, Sparkle."
"'Sparkle'?" Twilight asked and then chuckled. "Yeah we are," And then she changed the subject. "Everything is ready, Starlight's gonna be in for a very big surprise."
"I thought you were getting her a mirror, like yours?" The little dragon questioned as he pointed a claw to said mirror. It depicted various photos of Twilight and her friends, some with her in them and some without her.
"Oh I am! It's the perfect graduation present!" The young alicorn happily beamed.
"Oh," Spike commented in reply. "Well, maybe you should just get her a card or something, because I don't think a mirror will say all that. But I do think she'll like it."
Twilight proudly nodded. "You bet she'll like it! It's just what her room needs. The first thing she'll see every morning when she wakes up is herself, surrounded by all her friends. I plan on giving it to her after the award ceremony."
"Didn't you say you had a big announcement you were going to make during the ceremony?" Spike questioned. "Something that will change Starlight's life forever."
Twilight's happy mood suddenly faded, replaced by one of noticeable sorrow. "Yes, Spike," She answered. "But believe me, the time has come. Even if I wish it hadn't. It's just like what Princess Celestia did for me."
Sensing it might be best to change the subject, the little dragon questioned. "Right, I see. Well in any case, shouldn't you be getting the party set up? The guests will be here soon."
But Twilight just laughed. "Oh Spike, Pinkie Pie's taking care of that. You know nopony can best her when it comes to party planning."
True to form Pinkie was working on the party set-up. She made sure no one was else around to watch, and then she pulled on a rope. In a shower of confetti several decorated tables, a stand, and streamers of all colors descended from above. The party pony surveyed her work and wiped the sweat from her brows, everything was ready. "Phew!" She declared, party planning was hard work.
The award ceremony kicked off a short time later and everyone was there to celebrate. Thorax had even brought along some of the changelings from the hive he now lead (though he'd only really been king for the better half of two to three months at best).
Since the ceremony was held in Twilight's castle and Starlight was her student, she was the first to speak up. "Starlight, Trixie, Thorax, Sunburst, Discord and of course Spike were all brave in the face of danger. They were resourceful when things got challenging, and proved that the bonds of friendship, no matter how unlikely, are stronger than any adversity," She spoke with practiced precision. "And by stopping Queen Chrysalis, not only did they save Equestria; they also set the changelings free from her reign."
"And that's why we're proud and honored to give them the Equestrian Pink Hearts of Courage!" Princess Celestia added. "To commemorate and to honor their great deeds!"
The medals were bestowed upon the four one by one, starting with Starlight, then Trixie and Sunburst, followed by Spike, then Discord and finally, Thorax. But Princess Luna found it rather difficult to fit the pink heart for Thorax around the changeling leader's big antlers, she at last managed to fit it on with a pop but the strain on her face spoke volumes about her struggle.
As the rescue group posed for a picture, Princess Celestia trotted over to Twilight and not so subtly commented. "It's a wonderful feeling, isn't it, Twilight? Watching your student shine the way you always knew they could. It's one of the greatest feelings a teacher could ever experience."
Twilight wanted to nod in confirmation but a more pressing concern took priority as she replied. "My cheeks are sore! I don't think I've ever smiled this much in my life!" A nervous chuckle escaped her lips as she spoke.
Celestia simply ribbed back. "I can only imagine what that feels like," And then she commented. "So, exactly what's next for your student? I assume you don't intend to keep having her learn the basics now that she's demonstrated how far beyond that level she is."
Twilight's happy mood faded when Celestia made the comment, replaced by one of noticeable sadness as a profound frown formed on her face. "You'll find out very soon, Princess Celestia. I've been stewing over that dilemma ever since Starlight and I got back to Ponyville after Chrysalis' defeat. The solution I've come to is not one I imagined I would ever have to take."
"You must do what you think is best for your student, Twilight," Princess Celestia advised. "I feel it is not my place to tell you how to manage your student, especially not when you have clearly not had a need to call on my experiences."
"I actually tried very hard to teach Starlight the same way you taught me," Twilight replied to her former mentor. "I know I'm not really your student anymore, but a part of me has always had a special place in my heart for your wisdom and guidance."
"It warms my heart to know you think that way, Twilight," The sun princess cheerfully smiled. "But even I don't hold all the answers. I look forward to your big announcement all the same, though."
And a short time later with the celebration in full swing, Twilight tapped a spoon to her glass that held some punch. All gathered in the room stopped to look at her. Clearing her throat she uneasily began. "Sorry to interrupt the festivities, but I have a very important message to deliver. It's one involving my student, Starlight Glimmer."
The crowd's attention turned to Starlight, who suddenly felt like a bug under a microscope. She had no idea what Twilight was doing but she did not like where the overall mood was going. Still, she joined her teacher on stage, suspecting nothing.
Twilight paused for a moment, as if to collect her thoughts. And then she said. "With every teacher, there is always a point where the student surpasses the master and no longer needs lessons. Part of me always knew this day might come, but I convinced myself it would not be for years and years. But the events in the changeling hive have opened my eyes to a starting reality," Turning to the unicorn that stood behind her she declared. "Starlight Glimmer. It is with great pride that I hereby declare you to have officially graduated from friendship lessons! From today onwards, you are no longer my student."
"Way to go, Starlight!" Trixie and Sunburst clapped and cheered together. Even Discord could be celebrating in his own Discord way (turning his entire body in a gigantic noise maker).
But the five ponies who had gotten to know Starlight as a friend, and the rest of the gathered crowd of ponies and changelings did not celebrate. The news took them by surprise and they could only respond with gasps!
"M-me?! Graduate?!" Starlight stuttered and stumbled back in shock. "... I don't believe it! I don't know what to say!"
"It's alright," Twilight replied even as tears started to form in her eyes. "It's a lot to take in. But I couldn't keep pretending things would be the same even when they're not."
Starlight continued to stutter nervously about. "But... but... where will I go from here? What will I do?"
"I... don't know!" Twilight choked out and ran off as the tears started to run down her cheeks without stopping!
"Twilight!" Starlight cried out for her teacher and friend. The entire room fell into a state of shock!
Even Discord could be heard to say. "Well now... I wasn't expecting that at all."
Twilight retreated to the throne room of her castle, far removed from the celebration that had been abruptly interrupted by her shock announcement. Where better to go to ensure that no one could see or hear her crying?
But the young alicorn was not alone for very long before she felt something brush up against her backside, namely a wing. Lifting her head Twilight found herself face to face with none other than Princess Celestia herself, and hidden just out of sight behind her wings was Spike. "It appears you need my help again, Twilight," Princess Celestia spoke in that warm, motherly tone of voice that Twilight had heard so often as a filly. "I'm happy to offer my services and experience."
"It's nothing, Princess Celestia. I didn't mean to bother you with it." Twilight apologized between sobs.
But Princess Celestia knew from experience when Twilight was lying. Heck, she'd come to learn whenever somepony was not being honest with her. It was a process she had developed over years of ruling and teaching. "Twilight, it's perfectly okay to cry. Even princesses cry sometimes." She reassured her troubled fellow alicorn as she draped a wing over her.
Twilight just shook her head and continued to sob. "It's completely ridiculous. My student, Starlight Glimmer has finally graduated. I should be happy for her, but I'm not," And then she added. "I'm supposed to have a plan for her, to be able to guide her and know where to send her. But I don't have either of those."
"Twilight, whoever says you need to have one?" Spike commented as he emerged from behind Celestia's wings. "You never had a big plan for Starlight. Remember how after Flurry Heart's crystalling we both agreed it was best to give Starlight space to be herself, and let her learn lessons on her own?"
"And that led to her trying to do five friendship problems all at once, magically cloning herself to do so," Twilight retorted. "And when my student most needed me, I was off getting captured by Queen Chrysalis. You, Sunburst, Trixie and Discord were there for her, I wasn't."
"Because you trusted her enough to make friends on her own," Spike explained. "Besides, you think you're the only one upset about Starlight leaving? Don't you think I'm torn up at the fact that the pony I've come to know as a big sister is going to be leaving the nest, possibly forever?"
"That's different, Spike." Twilight replied in between sniffles.
Spike only glared at Twilight and shook his head. "No it's not, you of all ponies taught me that it doesn't matter what anyone else says. It's no different to me or to you or to anyone else, it's only different if you let be," But then he lowered his voice and in a more soothing tone he added. "You can always take on another student after Starlight leaves. There's plenty of candidates. What about Diamond Tiara? Or even Trixie or Discord? Any one of them would make fine students."
"I don't want Starlight to feel like I'm replacing her!" Twilight retorted. "We were more than just teacher and student, we were friends! You saw how the girls accepted her and got along so well with her. If I got someone else it wouldn't be the same, it would only make things worse."
Princess Celestia put a hoof to her chin as she pondered. "It sounds to me like you're more worried about not having a plan for Starlight's future than you are about having to let her go and live her life. I know how difficult it can be to decide, how you want to find the perfect place for them to define themselves," And she then offered. "Perhaps you can tell me what you've considered, where you think Starlight belongs. And if you ask, I'll be glad to offer my suggestions."
Twilight's sniffles and sobs slowly ceased. It was just like Princess Celestia to know how to make her feel better, it was the kind of thing that made it easier for her to see why the sun princess was so strongly attached to Twilight. "That would be lovely." She agreed with a nod.
Meanwhile, the ceremony more or less resumed in Twilight's absence. But the attention now shifted towards Twilight's surprise announcement and what it would mean for Starlight.
"So, Starlight Glimmer?" Discord asked while posing as a newspaper reporter (complete with cameras and a microphone). "You've officially graduated from being the princess of friendship's star pupil. Most ponies might wonder what it feels like. But what I wanna know is, what are you gonna do next?"
Starlight let out a nervous gulp as she answered. "That's the thing, I don't know. I never even knew Twilight was planning to end my tutorship. I kind of expected to keep being her student for years."
Discord growled in frustration and changed back to normal. "You were supposed to say 'I'm going to Whinyland!' Starlight!" He remarked. "Honestly, you're more of a buzzkill than Trixie."
"I heard that, Discord!" Trixie snapped back. "The Great and Powerful Trixie is trying her hardest to be on her best behavior today, and she would appreciate it if a certain draconequus would stop trying to get on her nerves."
"Oh, you're no fun," Discord commented. "Where's your sense of humor? You and Starlight wouldn't know a good joke if it bit you in the butt."
Starlight loudly cleared her throat and changed the subject, the last thing she wanted was to see two of her friends fight. "I'm sorry I didn't play along with your games, Discord. Normally I find them very funny. But this isn't a joking matter, this is serious. For the first time in my life, I'm at a loss to as what to do."
"Whatever do you mean, Starlight?" Rarity pondered. "You always seemed to have a plan before. Even when facing down Queen Chrysalis you were at least capable of winging it."
The grayish-purple coated unicorn was quick to reply. "There's a first for everything, Rarity. Deep down a part of me always felt like I threw Twilight a curveball, like she didn't know what to do with me and only took me on to keep me out of the dungeons. And now, just when I was finally getting used to the idea of being her student and having to learn more about friendship, Twilight goes and says there's nothing left for me to learn. That I'm no longer her student."
"Does this mean I'll have to throw you a going away party?" Pinkie questioned. "It feels like we were all just getting to know the real you, Starlight. When you first came to Ponyville you seemed so tense and unsure of yourself, like making a friend was a foreign concept. I still remember how reluctant you were to go with me to Baltimare for P.S.S.S.D. with Marble."
"Let's not forget about that surprise Ogres and Oubliettes session with Spike, Big Mac, and Discord," Fluttershy added. "Even if you ended up being the damsel in distress. From what Spike tells me, you started to gain a new appreciation for it and it became your second favorite game behind Dragon Pit, whatever that is."
Applejack chuckled. "I still remember the time you made Big Mac talk more than he was used to talkin' 'round strangers. Don't ever tell him I said this but I think that experience ended up doin' him a favor, he's a lot more sociable now. He's even sneakin' off by himself from time to time, though he still won't say what it's for."
"And now you don't just know the Captain of the Wonderbolts, you know the whole team," Rainbow Dash proclaimed. "If you could make friends with them it's no wonder Twilight thinks you're ready to graduate. Heck, the whole flight back from the academy with her, she wouldn't stop talking about how far you've come in such a short amount of time!"
But Sunburst knew from the memories he had of him and Starlight as little ponies, that all that praise meant very little to Starlight. He could remember how self conscious she was about things like magic, especially in the absence of her parents (he couldn't remember a time where he'd ever seen Starlight's mother and had only faint memories of her father, whose name escaped him at the moment).
So the pony who'd once pretended to be a big, important wizard asked his friend. "You doubt yourself, don't you, Starlight?" When Starlight nodded he replied with a sigh. "If anypony knows what that feels like it's me. When I entered Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns I thought I knew everything, but I soon found that even though I could talk the talk I couldn't walk the walk. And when magic school didn't pan out, I was of course too ashamed to come back home," He then offered. "If you need a place to stay while you think about what to do with your life, I could make arrangements. It's a little drafty in the Crystal Empire but you'll get used to it."
"Or you could stay with Trixie and be her Great and Powerful assistant," Trixie proclaimed. "Together, we'd be able to tour all over Equestria and perform tricks the likes of which nopony has ever seen before!"
Discord just slyly commented. "If you're really feeling up to it and want to continue being a student, I'd be happy to take you under my wing in my dimension. I'll even leave you a map and a key so you won't get lost. You've displayed a good deal of chaos unintentionally, but you've only scratched the surface on what chaos can do. And besides," He added under his breath. "Much as I don't like to admit it I could really use a roommate. The Smooze isn't bad but he's so hard to get a hold of."
With all eyes now at the table now fixated solely on her, Starlight stared them down and reluctantly sighed. "Thank you, all of you. Your offers are all generous but I'm not sure I could decide on any of them at the moment. I'm confident Twilight wouldn't have made that announcement if she didn't know where she wanted me to go. She just probably forgot because she was so choked up."
"Good point," Rainbow nodded her head in agreement. "Since when has Twilight not had a plan?"
Back in the throne room Twilight was now going over the few "plans" she had thought of when she'd decided Starlight was ready to graduate from friendship lessons. Even though her only audience was Princess Celestia and Spike, the studious alicorn still couldn't help but feel nervous.
"Okay, here's what I've got so far. I've narrowed my choices down to a few locations," Twilight explained. "Maybe I could send Starlight to the new changeling hive. You know, to help ease the transition and teach the changelings all about friendship. Thorax would be glad to have her."
Spike was surprised to see himself, Princess Celestia, and even Twilight be transported into a projection of sorts for the changeling hive. They could not interact with the surroundings at all, they could only watch. So watch they did, they watched as Starlight and Thorax stood on a small ridge overlooking the hive.
"Okay, Friendship 101. Today, Thorax and I are going to show you how to compromise." The vision Starlight declared.
The vision Thorax then spoke in a noticeably stilted tone of voice. "I want to have honeysuckle nectar for lunch."
"And I would like a peanut butter sandwich," The vision Starlight replied in an equally stilted voice. "Oh, no. What should we do?"
"Attack! The winner gets to choose!" A sea-green colored changeling shouted and various changelings all nodded in agreement.
But the vision Starlight instead answered. "Or... Thorax and I can talk about it and come up with a solution that works for everyone."
The vision Thorax proceeded to ask (still in his stilted tone of voice). "Starlight, how do you feel about honeysuckle and peanut butter sandwiches?"
The vision Starlight nodded even as she spoke in her stilted tone of voice. "Why, that sounds simply dee-licious!" And she and the vision Thorax then said together. "Compromise." And the rest of the changelings seemed to more or less nod their heads in agreement.
Having observed the entire scenario as it played out Spike couldn't help but comment. "Uh, this doesn't seem like something Starlight and Thorax would do. I should know, I've been around them both long enough."
But Princess Celestia corrected Spike. "Normally you'd be right, Spike. But this is Twilight's fantasy of what could happen. There is no wrong way to fantasize," Then she turned to Twilight and proudly and honestly declared. "You've certainly chosen wisely, Twilight. This seems like a wonderful path for Starlight to take in life. The changelings have so much to learn about how to enjoy love through friendships. Starlight would be busy for a very long time, but her work there would be very rewarding."
"And dangerous," Twilight commented with sudden worry. "Thorax says not all changelings have embraced the new direction for the hive. All it would take is one changeling holding a grudge against Starlight to undo everything."
The vision changed to reflect Twilight's concerns. She, Spike, and Princess Celestia watched as a changeling pretended to be Starlight and with an evil grin she approached the reformed changelings. Her Starlight voice sounded noticeably exaggerated, but the changelings didn't seem to suspect anything as the fake Starlight spoke. "Hi, I'm Starlight Glimmer! What's your name?"
A lime green changeling answered in an uncertain tone. "Uh, it's Cornicle?"
The fake Starlight laughed. "What kind of a name is that?" Then she used her magic to gaze at the glossy wings of the changelings. "Ah, your wings are so, um... see-through. I'm so glad I'm a pony. Are you, like, bugs, or what?" She proceeded to use her magic to create a giant fly swatter and smack the changelings around for a bit. Then she left just as the real Starlight was trotting up on the scene, completely unaware of what had transpired.
"There she is! Get her!" The changeling who'd identified as Cornicle shouted! And seconds later the changelings all swarmed the real Starlight and the vision ended!
"Uh, Twilight, that probably won't happen." Spike protested.
"But it could," Twilight answered with a shake of her head. "I've got to be more careful. I can't just send my first ever student off to Celestia-knows-where without thinking it through!"
At that Celestia couldn't help but adopt the most amused and yet perplexed look on her face. "Hm, I was not aware that I was an expression," She commented. "A fitting one, though, for even I don't have the answer. If you believe Starlight's talents are better suited elsewhere, that is for you to decide and not I."
"Right," The alicorn with a coat of purple replied and went back to racking her brain. "Where else could I send her?"
"Uh, may I offer a suggestion, Mom?" Spike asked as he raised a claw. "Why not send her to the dragon lands? I'm sure Ember wouldn't mind."
Twilight's eyes lit up like the star on a Hearth's Warming tree! "Spike, you're a genius! Why didn't I think of it before?! The dragon lands would be perfect for Starlight, she was out of town when you got called by the dragon lord! This would be the perfect opportunity to cement the dragon lands as an ally of Equestria and have them learn more about friendship!"
With a pop of magic the throne room changed into a projection of the dragon lands, right down to Ember sitting on a rock overlooking a pit of lava. "Ember!" Starlight declared as she appeared in the lands with the familiar zap of a teleportation spell.
"Starlight!" Ember happily replied as she swooped down and shared a belly bump with Starlight. "You ready to do some death-defying dragon stuff?"
In a noticeably more energetic and gruff tone of voice than she had ever displayed before, Starlight proudly declared. "Oh yeah, totally!"
"Okay, I know that's not how Ember or Starlight would sound." Spike raised an eyebrow.
"How would you know, Spike?" Twilight corrected. "They've never met before, who knows what their dynamic would be like?" And she watched as the vision Starlight and vision Ember took turns hurling rocks and shattering them with magic or flame breath.
"Freaky." Was all Spike could bring himself to say.
The young princess of friendship nodded. "In her letters, Ember says that dragons do a lot of fun things. The Feast of Fire, the Dragon Bowl, Claw-chella, and that's just to name a few," But as she watched Starlight having fun in the vision worry began to creep its way into her mind and she added. "Starlight could be there for a really long time. But then again, not all dragons like ponies as much as Ember does."
And just after Twilight had spoken those words Garble appeared in the vision. Upon seeing Starlight he scowled and stuck out his tongue. "Hey, Twinkle Star!"
"It's Starlight Glimmer, just so you know." Starlight not so politely corrected.
"Yeah yeah yeah, whatever," Garble retorted with fake concern. "Far as I'm concerned you ponies all sound and look the same, but I guess no one really cares. So, you wanna hang with us?"
"No thank you," The vision Starlight replied but it was as if Garble didn't hear what she said. He just swooped her up and rushed up a short cliff. "Uh, what are we diving into?" His prisoner asked.
"Lava!" Garble said with a laugh. "Don't worry, it's not so hot once you get used to it!"
"What?!" Starlight screamed and the vision ended as she and Garble appeared to dive into the lava headfirst!
Spike tried his hardest not to put a claw to his face at Twilight's vision. "You really worry too much, Mom. Starlight can more than take care of herself, she's not a baby."
"I guess you're right, Spike. But still..." Twilight paused as she sighed. "It's an awfully long journey to the dragon lands. What if she got lost or attacked along the way? I don't think I could live with myself if that happened. I just need to think of someplace safe to send her!" She paced back and forth while pondering to herself. "Think, think, think. Someplace safe... someplace safe..." Then a sudden bolt of realization struck her! "That's it! I should've just thought of this from the beginning!" She said with a laugh. "I could send her to the Crystal Empire to continue her magical studies with Sunburst! She'd love that! And the best part is, with the Crystal Empire being a train ride away, we could go to see her whenever we wanted! It'd be like she never even left!"
Spike put his claws together and clapped as the vision came into focus. "Now that's the Twilight Sparkle I know and love!"
The vision Starlight and Sunburst were seen being hard at work in the Crystal Empire's library, looking over various books. "It'll be perfect! Sunburst's knowledge of magic is only matched by Starlight's abilities. And together, they could challenge each other into becoming the most talented unicorns Equestria's ever seen!" Twilight proudly declared.
Meanwhile, the vision Sunburst was saying to the vision Starlight. "I've got it! Try placing your horn directly on the potion, and picture the clock you wish to make."
Starlight aimed her horn at the bubbling potion on the desk and with a puff of magic, it transformed into a fully constructed (and functional) cuckoo clock. Instead of a tweety bird, however, when the clock struck the hour a miniature Flurry Heart popped out. A detail that even Princess Celestia found to be rather adorable.
"We did it, Sunburst!" Starlight cheered! "What's next?!"
The scene transitioned to Sunburst's house as Twilight commented. "Of course, the study of magic is a lifelong pursuit, and Starlight could be there for a while, especially once they start attempting the really complicated stuff!"
Sensing where Twilight's thoughts were going Spike simply counted aloud. "Three, two, one..."
Right on cue the alicorn adopted a look of noticeable worry and she gulped as she commented. "What if they become too ambitious?! What if they try to do something nopony's ever done before?!"
The vision showed the two unicorns drawing chalk lines in the center of Sunburst's house and Starlight could be heard proudly declaring. "I never would've thought to combine Star Swirl's apparition spell with Spacium Flexibus! But what would happen if we added Somnambula's Tempus Objectus to the mix?"
"It's risky," Sunburst briefly commented in worry before his face lit up and he proudly declared. "But if we do it just right, it should allow us to materialize an object that was lost in the past."
In vain Twilight cried out to the unicorns in the vision. "No! Don't do it if you wish to survive!"
But with crackling and sparking horns the unicorns did it anyway. Twilight could only watch in horror as a massive black hole formed in the center of the drawing, and grew only bigger and bigger with each passing second! With a scream, Starlight was sucked into the hole and vanished! "Starlight, noooooo!"
Just like that the vision ended, and Twilight was panting heavily, shaken with fright! A cold sweat worked its way down her body. "Twilight?! Twilight! Are you okay?!" Spike pleaded. "It was just an illusion, it wasn't real! It would never happen! Sunburst studied under Princess Celestia, he knows what it means to have restraint."
But Twilight only shook her head. "You saw how little it took for Starlight to start experimenting with spells, Spike. And the last time it happened I wasn't there to stop her before she cast them," She unhappily sighed and hung her head. "Oh, I just don't think I can send her anywhere, Spike."
"Twilight..." Princess Celestia commented with concern. She hated to see her former student so upset.
"Oh, what I am gonna do? Some teacher I turned out to be." The alicorn thought as her overall posture became slouchy and gloomy.
All of a sudden, however, the somber mood was broken unexpectedly by Princess Celestia. At first it was a faint, suppressed snicker. But it quickly grew into an uncontrollable giggle and then a full on, hearty laugh.
Twilight spun around in shock! "Y-you're laughing at me?!" She remarked to her mentor, as if this was all a bad dream.
Princess Celestia was indeed laughing. She continued to laugh and laugh in a way that Twilight had never heard before in her life. To say she was confused would be an understatement. "I can't believe you're actually laughing at me." She commented in noticeable sorrow. To have the pony she looked up and trusted ever since she was a filly laughing at her, it really stung.
But as the sun princess finally managed to regain her composure she was able to explain. "Oh, Twilight, I'm not. Please forgive me, I just couldn't contain myself," And then she added. "I was laughing because I once had the same exact worries you're now having. The parallels were just too funny to ignore."
"Princess... are you saying what I think you're trying to say?" Twilight asked as she looked up at the elder alicorn.
Celestia nodded. "I am," She motioned for Twilight and Spike to sit down on the floor and when they did, she too sat down. "Let me tell you a little story," She began. But she had only just begun when she suddenly stopped and added. "Actually, perhaps it would be better if you could see it." Her horn began to glow and in the blink of an eye she transported herself, Twilight, and Spike to what appeared to be a past projection of one of her classrooms in Canterlot.
Princess Celestia proceeded to narrate. "Once upon a time, there was a talented little filly. She was truly one of my best and brightest students," As she narrated Twilight and Spike could see that her vision was focused on a young Twilight Sparkle, to the point where the remaining students were blurry outlines (though Twilight could still make out the identities of some of them. Her old classmates: Minuette, Twinkleshine, Lemon Hearts, Lyra Heartstrings, and of course Moondancer).
Spike looked up. "Uh, you’re talking about Twilight, right?"
Celestia chuckled and nuzzled Spike’s head. "Yes, Spike."
The unicorn filly was following the instructions in the classroom textbook and produced a colorful, blooming plant. As she had no friends to share in the great accomplishment she simply high-hoofed one of the plant's leaves. "Oh how I loved to see her excel, never had I seen a pony learn so much so quickly," Celestia continued before her mood started to change from happy to somber. "But I realized that her pursuit of academia was keeping her from reaching her true potential. Keeping her isolated and alone."
The scene transitioned to the sun princess overlooking Canterlot and lowering the sun to make way for the coming night as the present Celestia's narration went on. "I had a decision to make," A sigh escaped her lips. "Oh, but it wasn't easy."
The past Celestia appeared to be debating to herself about something of great importance, even though no one was around to hear her. "Maybe I could close the library for a day, or even throw a party in the castle. Oh yes, that will work!" She told herself. "She'd have to talk to other ponies then! She'd finally have somepony besides her family, Spike, and my adopted niece that she could chat with."
But then the princess looked up at the moon, namely to the pony like shape reflected on its surface. In an instant a wave of regret washed over her as she recalled what had happened all those years ago. "You're right, Luna," She said with an unhappy sigh, tears welling up in her eyes. "That's not what Twilight needs, I can't force her to make friends. I must send her away, let her make friends on her time and terms."
The present Celestia continued to narrate as she explained. "You know of my visions, how I am able to see the future. And because of that I knew where I had to send you. In Ponyville I knew there was a special group of ponies that would help you understand the magic of friendship. I even visited there once to make the arrangements. But even after that, I kept inventing all kinds of reasons as to why I shouldn't send you."
In the throne room the past Celestia could be seeing pacing back and forth while nervously talking to herself. "Ponyville is quite dangerous, it's not too far from the Everfree Forest. What if she runs into a manticore? Or what if she somehow gets pulled into Tartarus? Or worst of all," She gulped and bit her hoof. "What if she doesn't get along with anypony?!"
"Uh, are we supposed to say something?" One of the royal guards whispered to another.
The other guard whispered back. "I don't think so, Captain Armor would say we're not paid for this. We're just paid to stand here and protect the princess."
"I kept you in Canterlot far longer than I should have," The present Celestia confessed to Twilight as the vision showed the past version of Twilight leaving Canterlot in a carriage pulled by two of the guards. "But when the 1,000th Summer Sun Celebration drew near, I knew I couldn't delay the inevitable any longer. To keep you in Canterlot would be to doom my sister and all of Equestria. Eventually I realized that all the worries and fears I felt, were all because I didn't want you to leave."
The vision drew to a close and all three returned to Twilight's throne room as Princess Celestia tearfully confessed to her former student. "I am embarrassed to admit it but..." She paused as her lips trembled. The next words were slow to leave her mouth. "I feared that... if you made friends... you wouldn't need me anymore. That you'd forget all about me."
Twilight immediately leaped to her hooves and embraced her fellow alicorn in a hug! "Oh Princess Celestia, that is so not true! I will always need you! Ever since I was a filly I've looked up to you and admired you, you'll always have a special place in my heart! And just because I stopped being your student doesn't mean I stopped thinking about you. I wanted to write to you everyday for advice, but so many other things kept popping up."
"I think Starlight might feel the same way, if that is what you're truly worried about," Celestia advised. "Though if it's teaching you need help with, you could always ask Cheerilee. She may not be a teacher on the same level as me, but she has been at it for longer than anypony I've known since Starswirl the Bearded himself."
At that the princess of friendship became intrigued. "Didn't you say you and Luna used to be his students?" She questioned. "I've always wondered what Starswirl was like, I've read so much about his accomplishments but never anything about his teaching years."
"And I've always wondered about some of your other students," Spike added. "I know you briefly mentored Sunburst, and another one of your students was Sunset Shimmer, the one who ran away to that other world. But since you've lived for over a thousand years, you have to have had more students than just those three."
And together Twilight and Spike pleaded. "Please, can you tell us more?"
Celestia hesitated and seemed to look briefly toward the throne room doors. But she took one look at Twilight and Spike's pleading faces and her will to resist drained away completely. "Oh alright," The sun princess consented. "But I must warn you that what you're about to hear is something I have never shared with anyone else. Even my dear sister Luna does not know everything I will say to you. If I tell you I want you both to promise, just a regular promise, that you won't tell anyone."
"We promise, Princess Celestia." Twilight and Spike nodded in agreement.
"Very well then," Celestia agreed as she drew a deep breath. "We'll start with Twilight's question first, about Starswirl the Bearded."
Meanwhile, Starlight Glimmer was making up her mind about a very important matter. And she told her friends. "I know this is going to sound crazy, but I fear I may have to run away again."
"What?!" Her friends all collectively gasped together! "Run away?!"
Starlight reluctantly nodded. "Ponyville is my home and it pains me greatly to have to leave it, but I was terrible at goodbyes when Sunburst left and who knows what I'll do if I have to do it for all of you? I may have no other choice."
When last we left Twilight Sparkle and pals they were adjusting to some very big changes in their lives. Starlight Glimmer, along with Trixie, Sunburst, Spike, Discord and even Thorax were being honored for defeating the evil Queen Chrysalis and freeing the changeling hive from her rule.
"I still can't believe my friends and I are getting rewarded with Pink Hearts." Starlight had commented.
The award ceremony itself went smoothly for the most part even as Princess Luna struggled to fit Thorax's pink heart around his big antlers.
But that had all been abruptly upended when Twilight took the stage in the middle of the celebration and declared. "Part of me always knew this day might come, but I convinced myself it would not be for years and years. Starlight Glimmer. It is with great pride that I hereby declare you to have officially graduated from friendship lessons!"
"What are you gonna do next?" Discord had questioned Starlight after the shock announcement (as Twilight had run off to be by herself).
"I don't know. I never even knew Twilight was planning to end my tutorship." Starlight had confessed.
Meanwhile Twilight was facing her own dilemma. "I'm supposed to have a plan for her, to be able to guide her and know where to send her," She'd tearfully confessed to Princess Celestia and Spike. "I just don't think I can send her anywhere, Spike." And the only ideas she'd gotten she had dismissed out of hoof due to various concerns about what might happen.
At that Princess Celestia had unexpectedly laughed. Fortunately she was quick to explain to a very surprised Twilight. "I was laughing because I once had the same exact worries you're now having." And she'd proceeded to share her own vision of the past that had showed much she struggled to let Twilight Sparkle go to Ponyville and make friends on her own.
All of this was because of a confession that Celestia made to Twilight. "I feared that... if you made friends... you wouldn't need me anymore."
And Twilight had replied by embracing the sun princess in a hug and telling her. "That is so not true! I will always need you!"
Soon afterward the conversation had switched to teaching and at that Twilight and Spike had questioned Celestia about her years as Starswirl's student, and then becoming a teacher in her own right. "I must warn you that what you're about to hear is something I have never shared with anyone else." She'd warned the two, before she proceeded to begin recalling her experiences with Starswirl the Bearded.
Unbeknownst to the three, Starlight was making up her own plan for what to do. "I fear I may have to run away again," She'd told all her gathered friends. "I was terrible at goodbyes when Sunburst left and who knows what I'll do if I have to do it for all of you? I may have no other choice." She'd warned.
And so it was that Twilight and Starlight were going to have the answers to their problems, but not in a way either of them would suspect.
"Starlight, you can't run away!" Rainbow Dash protested. "Where would you even go?"
The unicorn sighed as she admitted. "I don't know. If I'm being honest, I never really had a home prior to coming to Ponyville."
"What about that village?" Fluttershy pondered.
"Or your childhood home Twilight says she saw?" Rarity added. "Surely either of those would count as a home, no?"
Starlight only shook her head in protest. "What few memories I have of my childhood home revolve around Sunburst and being with his family. I don't really remember my mother, and my father was always away. After Sunburst left there was nothing that really tied me to that town," And then her lips quivered. "As for my old village, the only thing I could think about the whole time I was running it, was how evil cutie marks were and how great Equestria would be without them. And we all know how that turned out. After I was beaten and revenge consumed my every thought, I never stayed in one place for long. When I first came here after Twilight showed me the error of my ways, I never thought I'd be able to get used to how crazy this town was. But now..."
"Now you've come to embrace the chaos, just as I've come to embrace friendship," Discord realized. "Trust me, the adjustment process for yours truly was difficult. Not being able to do whatever I wanted anymore took a lot of getting used to. But now I can't imagine how I could've ever lived without friends."
"Which is why I don't want to have to leave them all behind," Starlight unhappily sobbed. "It isn't fair! I was just getting used to finally having true friends and now they're all going to be taken away from me again!"
Sunburst reached out a hoof to try and console Starlight. "There there, Starlight," He spoke with practiced precision (months of off and on tending to Flurry Heart had given him a lot of experience, along with more than a few sleepless nights). "I'm sure Twilight's not gonna send you away forever. She'll probably just send you someplace like the Crystal Empire or Manehattan for a while." Deep down the stallion knew he couldn't be sure of that statement, but he was determined to console and reassure his friend all the same.
Meanwhile in the throne room of Twilight's castle, Princess Celestia was preparing to share with Twilight and Spike information that she had kept largely to herself up to this point. "You really want to know about Starswirl and about my own teaching experiences?" She said with a heavy sigh. "Well, I suppose there's no point denying the request. I'll start with Starswirl the Bearded himself."
Twilight's wings eagerly fluttered open in excitement! "Ooh, I can't wait! I've always wanted to know more about him, and now I'm finally going to get the answers!"
Celestia couldn't help but giggle. "I wish I could say Luna and I were as excited as you are now when we learned Starswirl would be our teacher. But in actuality we were anything but, we thought we knew all there was to know. And we didn't need some cranky old wizard teaching us. Oh how we were quickly proven wrong."
A vision began to overtake the three, as they suddenly found themselves overlooking a classroom in Canterlot. And there stood a familiar elderly unicorn stallion with a flowing white beard. Atop his head was adorned a dark blue wizard's hat with jingling bells and a robe of matching color draped across his body. Two wooden desks and a chalkboard were the only decorations in this makeshift classroom.
And as if on cue into the room strode two giggling alicorn fillies that were instantly recognizable to Twilight. "Are they-"
"-Yes. That's Luna and I when we were younger," Celestia confirmed with a nod. "And this is where Luna and I spent most of our fillyhood. While our parents were busy running the kingdom, Starswirl the Bearded was tasked with being our teacher. Not only in magic but in many other things. He was the only tutor available after Luna and I sort of scared away all other contenders," A blush formed on the sun princess' face. "I'm ashamed to admit that in my youth I was quite a troublemaker, nothing like the pony you know now."
"You still have a sense of humor." Spike commented.
"Yes, Spike," The sun princess nodded. "But it has been tempered by over a century of experience and wisdom. As a filly I was far less restrained, and often pulled pranks. Case in point."
The vision Starswirl stroked his beard as he looked over the two fillies in his care and spoke to them. "Alright, young fillies. You both know why it is you're here, to learn from the very master of magic himself. I am Starswirl the Bearded, though you've probably already heard of me." That was right before he was struck in the face by a water balloon.
"Gotcha!" The filly Celestia laughed and stuck out her tongue. "Get this through your head, you old coot, Luna and I don't need to learn! We know everything."
The filly Luna nodded. "What Tia said! What makes you think you'll be any more successful than the last hundred or so ponies who tried to teach us?"
"Well if you think you're so smart then all by means, prove it!" Starswirl declared as he adjusted his robe and removed his hat. "Let's see if the two of you can best me in combat. I'll give you a sporting chance, I won't use more than half of my magic."
The filly Celestia just laughed. "You'll regret that decision, grandpa!"
At that Starswirl appeared to become ever so slightly enraged. "Young filly, you will respect your elders on my watch," He sternly declared. "I am not that old. On the contrary I am quite young for a pony of my considerable stature."
"Then why the long beard?" Filly Luna snickered. "It makes you look ancient."
"That beard is a fashion statement!" Starswirl snapped! "All the wisest scholars wear them! But enough talk, we're not here to play dress up. You're here to learn, and this shall be your first lesson. One in humility."
The two alicorn fillies fired off magic blasts from their horns, noticeably straining themselves in the process. But Starswirl appeared to not even be breaking a sweat. He effortlessly repelled the twin beams and knocked the fillies back.
"No fair! You cheated!" Filly Celestia complained as she and Luna rose to their hooves.
Starswirl only shook his head in disappointment. "You're both quite lucky. Had I been using my full power far worse would've awaited you than a wounded pride," He proceeded to write one word on the board: Humility. "Humility is an important value to learn, young princesses," He cautioned them. "For one day you shall be running the kingdom instead of your parents, and you'd be wise to remember that there will always be someone better than you. The moment you become careless and complacent, is the day that someone whips you and whips you good. There is ALWAYS room for improvement!"
"Wow!" Twilight commented as she watched the vision Starswirl. "I never imagined he could be such a harsh taskmaster."
"As harsh as he may have been he must've had saint like patience to not quit after the first day," Celestia commented as the vision changed. "Luna and I constantly drove him crazy, pulling all sorts of pranks on him. Sticking his hoof in warm water, making the books in his study float by themselves so he'd think it was haunted, once we even attempted to trim his signature beard. And we learned a painful lesson, you do not mess with Starswirl the Bearded's beard. I thought my ears would never stop ringing after the lecture he gave us."
"Bet you're glad Starlight never pulled anything like that on you." Spike commented to Twilight.
Twilight just eyed Spike and giggled. "Don't get any ideas, mister. I hatched and raised you since the day you were given to me as an egg, I know all your little tricks. And don't think that just because you hang out with the master of chaos, your methods have suddenly changed."
Spike rolled his eyes. "Oh you're no fun. Sometimes it feels like I'm more of a student than a son."
"Who says you can't be both?" Twilight corrected. "Besides, you being my son is a learning experience for the both of us. Nothing could've prepared me for motherhood, and that was when I had nannies, my parents, Princess Celestia, and Princess Cadence to help me out. I've got the pictures to prove it."
The little dragon blushed bright red. "Not in front of the princess!" He pouted.
Princess Celestia just smiled. "It's funny you should mention family," She commented. "Because as time went on and Luna and I stopped being so hard on him, we came to see Starswirl the Bearded as family. He was like a father to us, at times he was the only family we knew."
A new vision suddenly popped up, showing Starswirl alone in his study one evening, getting some light reading done by the comfort of the fireplace. Suddenly he heard a knock at the door, and with his curiosity naturally aroused the unicorn rose to answer it. "Yes?" He called as he stuck his bearded face out into the cold of the night. Bending down he happened to notice a strangely wrapped present in pink and blue wrapping paper.
When the elderly stallion picked it up and opened it, he nearly fell back in surprise when he heard a pair of voices yell! "Surprise!" It was none other than Celestia and Luna!
It took a few moments for Starswirl to regain his composure. "What in blazes are you two young ladies doing here?" He remarked. "I thought I told you that I don't like to be disturbed."
"It was Tia's idea!" Luna accusingly pointed a hoof. "She was the one who said we should surprise you tonight."
"You were in on it too, Lulu!" Celestia shouted back. "You were the one who wanted to do something special for Starswirl's birthday."
Starswirl's green eyes happened to wander off to the calendar that hung on a nearby wall of his study. Today's date in particular had been circled. How could he have forgotten that today was his birthday? "Oh hush now," He advised his two young charges and pulled them into a hug. "I'm simply glad you remembered. I thought you didn't care at all about me, except for when you were trying to drive me up a wall."
But Celestia protested in reply. "We used to do that a lot and Luna and I are sorry."
"You're a lot like our father, only older and cooler!" Luna explained. "Who ever knew old ponies could be so fascinating?"
At that the wizard chuckled. "Well I always did want foals of my own someday, but being the wizard that I am I could never find the time to settle down and raise them. But I've always felt my true calling was in teaching," And at that he smiled. "It delights me to know that I've left such an impression on the two of you. Though I wouldn't go around repeating that to your parents, I don't need them thinking that I'm trying to take their place in your lives. I am your teacher first and foremost."
A happy sigh escaped the elder alicorn's lips as the vision faded away. "Those were truly the good old days," She commented with a noticeable hint of longing. "But all good things must come to an end eventually. One day, Starswirl got called away for an urgent matter, and that was the last time Luna and I ever saw him."
"Did he die?!" Spike gasped in horror.
"What? Oh no no no, nothing of the sort," Celestia shook her head. "He simply vanished without a trace. To this day, nopony knows what became of him or where he went. Even his works left no clue as to where he went. But Luna and I kept up hope that he would someday come back and all would be right again," Then her lips quivered and she hung her head. "Alas, it was not to be. You know what happened next, Luna fell to the darkness and I was left with no choice but to banish her. To this day I'm not sure I was able to survive those thousand years of loneliness. I suspect it was Kibitz and his family that were responsible."
At the mention of Kibitz Spike began to scratch his head with a claw, before suddenly he remembered. "Oh yeah, Kibitz! The royal schedule advisor!"
"I think I remember seeing him once or twice while I lived in the castle," Twilight nodded. "He always seemed to know just what to do to get everything under control."
"Advisors like him as well as the royal guard, they are likely what kept motivating me to get out of bed each morning and perform my royal duties," Celestia went on in noticeable sorrow. "Eventually they proposed a radical idea to snap me out of my sorrow, to help me cope and move on. With the Elements of Harmony rendered useless to me, it would fall to a new generation to wield their powers and free my sister from her own dark manifestation."
"That's when you started taking on a student, isn't it?" Twilight guessed, to which her former mentor nodded in approval.
Spike couldn't help but ponder. "So who was your first student, princess?"
"A unicorn stallion named Dusk Shine," Celestia explained. "At the time I doubted I was truly ready to be teaching again, let alone take on a student. But all around me agreed that it was necessary to snap me out of my depressed state. Dusk Shine was not much older than Sunburst when I took him on. He showed potential, but ultimately he sensed his true talents lay elsewhere and we drifted apart. I blame myself partially for that, I was so distant and so detached. But only in hindsight has that become apparent. It would take the fall of another student of mine before I would see the error of my ways."
"And that's when Sunset Shimmer came along!" Twilight realized.
Princess Celestia nodded in confirmation. "The very same Sunset who I understand now resides in another world all together, similar to ours in many ways yet different in many others. It pains me that I have not been able to keep in contact with her."
"Well you'll be happy to know she's doing fantastic!" Twilight proudly beamed. "I've seen her growth for myself and you would never believe she used to a power hungry bully. In fact, in a way she's become a teacher in her own right. And I think you'd be very proud of her."
"I'm sure I would," The elder alicorn agreed. "But even to this day what happened between Sunset and I remains perhaps my second greatest failure. Some might even say it was worse than Luna's banishment."
The scene changed and Twilight and Spike (along with the present Princess Celestia) found themselves deep in the Canterlot library, rows upon rows of books lined the pathways. But only a few faint and flickering lights illuminated the building, indicating that it was after hours and the library was supposed to be closed.
A pony instantly recognizable to all lay in the center of the library, pouring through books as her moderate cyan eyes scanned the pages and soaked up the knowledge contained within like a sponge. Her brilliant amber coat and two toned red and light green mane and tail perfectly complimented her red and yellow shimmering sun. The pony was Sunset Shimmer.
All of a sudden Sunset felt the book she'd been reading be yanked out of her hooves by the familiar golden glow of Celestia's magic. "Sunset Shimmer," The sun princess' stern face spoke volumes as she disapprovingly looked down at her student. "This is the forbidden section of the Canterlot library, I specifically told you that nopony was allowed to enter it. Let alone read the books contained within it."
Sunset Shimmer just stood up and coldly hissed. "You've been keeping secrets from me, princess! You don't trust me!"
"Trust is earned, Sunset! And you have just broken the trust I placed in you!" Celestia scolded. "The knowledge contained here is forbidden for a good reason! With that kind of power a pony could be corrupted forever, and all of Equestria would suffer!"
But Sunset snapped and stomped her hooves down in protest. "That's just what you want me to think, Princess Celestia! I saw in that mirror what I could be! A princess just as great as you are!" She snarled. "I've more than proved I'm ready. I've aced every test on magic theory and magical practice, all my classmates agree they've never seen anypony as powerful as I am!"
Princess Celestia only protested with a shake of her head. "Sunset, I showed you that mirror in the hopes that you would recognize what you still lack. There's one lesson you still haven't even begun to master, and until you learn what it is you will never receive your wings!" In a low, hurt voice she added. "I'm very disappointed in you, I thought you of all ponies would know better. But you leave no other choice, now that you know what you know I'm afraid I must terminate your lessons. Guards, take Sunset Shimmer to pack up her things!"
Before anypony could do anything to Sunset, however, she growled at the top of her lungs and ran off! "You'll regret this, Princess Celestia! One of these days you'll see that I was right and you were wrong! All I ever wanted was to be your student, to be your equal. But nothing was ever good enough for you!" And before she could be stopped she managed to slip through the mirror and disappear into the world that rested on the other side of it.
"She's gone, your majesty!" One of the royal guards reported. "Forgive us, we were outsmarted."
Another guard then offered. "Shall we dismantle the mirror before anypony else attempts to misuse its power?"
Celestia took one look at the mirror, its smooth, shimmering surface taunting her with its perfection. It remained her of a similar mirror she'd once used long ago to see a different alternative world, before Kibitz had found out and ordered it destroyed. Having been denied contact or closure with those in that alternative world, she could not bring herself to do the same to this mirror. "No," She protested with a heavy sigh. "Move it to my castle and leave it there. Perhaps one day, Sunset will return to apologize and seek forgiveness."
"Understood, your majesty." The guard saluted.
"For weeks after Sunset's abrupt departure I locked myself in a room and wouldn't come out no matter what," Celestia tearfully confessed as the vision ended. "The one question I kept asking myself was 'Why?'. Eventually I started to realize what had to led the events. I had been too distant, too detached. I was growing desperate as the 1,000th Summer Sun Celebration drew near and I still hadn't found the one who would make the friends needed to unlock the Elements of Harmony again and free my sister. When I discovered Sunset Shimmer I thought I had finally found the solution," And she proceeded to add. "I convinced myself that it didn't matter that her cutie mark was not the one engraved in the Tree of Harmony, that could change. But I trusted Sunset to see what I could see, and that blinded me to what she was becoming. Her raw power and talent was so unmatched that she felt she had no time for friendship, that it was just a distraction and a waste of time. I had hoped showing her the mirror would spark a realization, but it had the opposite effect."
"Why'd you move it to the Crystal Empire after it returned?" Twilight questioned.
Celestia's lips quivered once again. "Because... I convinced myself that Sunset was never coming back. I think seeing you in her place when she snuck back through the mirror, it made her feel like I had replaced her with you. Had I left the mirror in Canterlot, who knows how the events would've played out?"
But Twilight immediately approached Celestia and told her. "On the positive side, Sunset is a changed person... er I mean pony now. It still amazes me that her message of help reached my castle right when it was needed most."
The sun princess only gave a wink as she replied. "It wasn't luck, I had the old journal sent to you. When you came back through the mirror the first time, I sensed that Sunset trusted you more than she did me or she would've come back to Equestria with you."
Spike added. "You really should come and see her one of these days, princess. I'm sure Twilight could take your place for a day or two, now that she's got the portal working all the time."
"Perhaps, but the last time I abandoned my duties to see somepony I cared about, the results weren't pretty to say the least." Celestia firmly shook her head at the idea.
"Didn't your mirror self nearly destroy the entire multiverse?" Spike pondered. "Everything happened so fast during that time, it felt like a blur."
"I prefer not to dwell on the past too much, Spike," Princess Celestia interrupted as she cleared her throat. "Too much regret for my own actions and lack of responsibility. Anyway, after Sunset I realized that I needed to be more open, to show more of myself to my students. I tried with Sunburst while he was briefly working directly under me, but eventually he dropped out of magic school as he could not keep up. I was on the verge of giving up on having a student all together, facing the reality that I might have to make the ultimate sacrifice to save Equestria. And that's when I met Twilight and everything changed."
Twilight smiled in confirmation. "In more ways than one, Princess Celestia. If not for your guidance I never would've been able to embrace the magic of friendship, let alone understand how it works. I'd have probably become a shut in like Moondancer," A pang of guilt escaped her as the alicorn sighed. "It still pains me to know I treated her and my other classmates in Canterlot so poorly."
"Part of life involves making mistakes, and everypony has things that they regret," Celestia cautioned. "If you refer to Moondancer's party in the castle, by not going to that party you inadvertently were able to save all of Equestria from eternal night and being starved into submission. Though you did not know it at the time, not going to the party was ultimately for the greater good. Besides, haven't you and Moondancer made amends by now?"
Spike nodded. "Just last month, Twilight invited Moondancer over for her first sleepover. It's so amazing to see how much Moondancer has changed. She even mentioned that she's actually planning to leave Canterlot when she's done with her studie. She's going to see the world."
"In a way it's like everything has come full circle. Funny how these things work out," Twilight giggled. "I guess maybe if you never truly had a plan for all of your students, it's okay if I haven't completely figured out what to do with Starlight. As a teacher I can be there to guide her, but everypony has to decide for themselves what they want to do with their life."
Celestia nodded and then she happily declared. "Here we are, Twilight, after all these years. And just look at us. We're living proof that the bond between a teacher and her students doesn't have to end when the student graduates. Proof that letting someone spread their wings doesn't mean you no longer have a place for them in your heart," To emphasize her point she proceeded to wrap a wing around both Twilight and Spike and pull them in for a hug. "And if you're still worried, you can always make your student write you letters." She teased. But Twilight and Spike were too busy enjoying the radiating warmth of the hug to be worried.
After what felt like an eternity of contemplation and reassurance, Twilight finally returned to the celebration that had now become one to mark Starlight's official graduation.
Upon reaching the podium where she'd made her earlier announcement, the alicorn was most surprised to be lightly bumped on the forehead by a microphone. She tried her hardest not to glare.
"Terribly sorry about that, princess," Discord apologized. "I may have gone around talking it up just a little bit, but we're all excited to hear what you've cooked up," Then after tapping the microphone he instructed. "Go ahead, we're all ears. Tell us what you've decided and don't hold back on the details," Then snapping his talons, the witty spirit morphed into a reporter with a sketch pad and a pencil. "Ooh, this is gonna be the scoop of the century! It'll be in all the papers!" He could be heard saying to himself.
"Thank you, Discord," Twilight spoke with practiced precision. "I apologize for the abruptness of my announcement earlier and perhaps my timing should've been better. But this was not an easy decision for me to make, it was one I had to think over for a considerable amount of time. However, after some helpful advice from a pony I can always turn to in a moment of need, I can safely that Starlight's future..." She paused and took a deep breath before she added. "Is not for me to decide."
Everyone in the room gasped for the second time that day!
"Wait?! What?! Whoa, whoa, whoa! Stop the presses!" Discord could be heard muttering as the pencil slipped from his grasp.
But none were as shocked as Starlight, who could barely believe it when Twilight called her up to the podium. "Twilight... look..." She said with a deep breath. "I appreciate you trying to spare my feelings but whatever you've really planned... I'll be okay with it. Running away wouldn't solve anything, it'd just make me feel empty and make everypony else said that they never got to say goodbye to me."
But Twilight shook her head. "You misunderstand, Starlight. I'm not sending you anywhere. You're staying right here in Ponyville, where you belong."
"What?!" Starlight gasped! "Are you for real?! Thorax, is this you trying to fill in for Twilight?! Because believe me when i say, you're not doing a very good job at it!"
"Um, I'm over here, Starlight." Thorax waved a hoof, and Starlight saw that he was nowhere near the podium. He couldn't be standing in for Twilight. This Twilight was the real deal.
The alicorn just smiled as she looked at her former student. "The lessons may be over but our friendship is just getting started. Since coming to Ponyville you've made so friendships and do so many incredible things, I can't uproot all of that for the sake of some 'plan'," Then with a wink she added. "Besides, I'm going to need your help more than ever with what I do have planned."
"R-really?" The unicorn with a coat of light grayish-purple nearly jumped back in surprise. "What is it?"
"It has come to my attention that Diamond Tiara is still struggling with the magic of friendship," Twilight explained with a smile. "She's making progress to be sure, but I think she could benefit from some direct intervention from two of the ponies who know more than anything what friendship means. It won't be all the time, she's already got her regular studies to keep her busy and I'll have to talk things over with her parents first. But once that's been taken care of, will you be by my side to help my newest student?"
Starlight smiled back. "Of course, Twilight! It would be an honor!"
"Good! Because I'm not ready for you to leave just yet!" Twilight declared with tears in her eyes and then pushed a box close to Starlight. "Here. I was going to give this to you as a going away present. But it can be a 'So glad you're staying' present. It's just what your room needs."
Upon opening the box Starlight could feel her heart skip a beat! It was a mirror similar to the one that hung in Twilight's room, but this one contained photos of the various friendships Starlight had made. Photos of her with Trixie, Discord, Thorax, and Sunburst to name a few, all decorated the mirror in various spots. She gave her former teacher a big hug, wrapping her hooves around the alicorn. "Oh thank you, Twilight! It's the best gift I could've asked for! I'm proud to have been your student!"
"And I'm proud to have been your teacher." Twilight happily replied.
The ceremony went on for a few more hours but eventually it was time for everyone gathered to leave, and for the rescuers to go their separate ways. Discord of course departed abruptly without a word, never really one to just say goodbye. And Thorax left with the changelings that had accompanied him.
But Starlight was surprised to see Trixie heading for the castle's front gates and called out to the magician before she had a chance to leave as well. "Trixie, wait!" Starlight cried as she run up to her friend. "Aren't you gonna stay in Ponyville now?"
Trixie shook her head. "As much as the Great and Powerful Trixie would love to she cannot. There are still parts of Equestria that have not been graced with her Great and Powerful Repentance Tour, and she must keep the promise she made to her nephews Tom and Nolan," And then, after briefly glancing around to be sure the castle hallways were empty she added in a whisper. "Plus it has become clear to Trixie that the gap between her and Twilight Sparkle may never truly be closed. That there are areas in which we will never be equals. It is a fact that is hard to accept."
"At the least will you promise to write to me from time to time?" Starlight suggested. "I'd be more than happy to teach you what I know about magic, especially when it comes to what powers them: my emotions."
Trixie took off her hat and bowed her head as she nodded. "For you, Starlight, Trixie shall be more than happy to keep in touch by any means necessary. She owes to her Great and Powerful Best Friend."
"Good, I look forward to hearing from you, Trixie!" Starlight smiled and then the unicorn encouraged. "Now don't let me stop you. Get out there and show the world what you can do!"
"With pleasure!" Trixie grinned and with that she departed.
Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie was surveying what remained of the room in which the celebration had been held just hours earlier. Namely all the tables, chairs, plates, and streamers that needed to be cleaned up.
But the party pony just took one look around to ensure no one was watching, and then she wheeled in a vacuum that had a smiling face on it. With the push of a button the vacuum whirred to life, sucking up everything. The room was spotless and the vacuum bulged outward as its face became distorted.
"Phee-yew!" Pinkie declared with relief, wiping the sweat from her brows. The only thing that was more difficult than planning a party was cleaning up after it.
In the throne room of Canterlot Castle, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna were more than a little surprised to be informed by Kibitz about a visitor. "It's Princess Twilight Sparkle," The stallion informed them as he adjusted his monocle. "She says she's here because the map in her castle called her here. Shall I tell her you're busy preparing for the Summer Solstice and Summer Sun Celebration, and thus cannot be disturbed?"
The two royal sisters looked across to one another, trying their best to look friendly to each other. If Kibitz knew what was really going on between them, he wouldn't rest until they had sorted it out regardless of whether they wanted his help. And the last thing they wanted during this crucial time was to have him breathing down their necks.
"Oh no, Kibitz, that won't be necessary at all," Princess Celestia waved a hoof. "You know we always have time for a fellow princess. Send her in."
"And tell her that she has free reign of the castle, and is welcome to stay for however long it takes her to sort out the friendship problem she's been tasked with solving." Princess Luna added with the best forced smile she could muster up (which has hard to do. Unlike her sister she had little experience with smiling and waving like she meant it. Being imprisoned in the moon for a thousand years would do that to you).
If Kibitz at all suspected the princesses weren't being truthful with him, he didn't show it. It was not his place to question their judgement after all. He was the royal advisor and schedule keeper, not their superior. He just smiled. "As you wish, your majesties."
Twilight came strolling in to the throne room a moment later. "Sorry to trouble you so soon before the solstice," She apologized. "But as I've always said: 'You can't control the map, the map controls you.'"
"Nonsense, Twilight," Princess Celestia replied. "You know Luna and I always have time for you."
"It is most imperative you find and resolve that friendship problem as soon as possible," Princess Luna added while trying her hardest not to look at her sister. "The last thing any of us need at this important time, is for silly arguments to hold up progress and slow things to a crawl. Right, sister of mine?"
"Oh yes indeed," Celestia slowly nodded. "We can't have that."
"Uh, is there something going on between you two?" Twilight questioned her fellow princesses. "I mean, it's totally okay if there is. I won't judge. I'm sure you two know what happened the last time you got in a fight."
"You must be imagining things, Twilight Sparkle," Luna reassured the young alicorn. "My sister and I are simply busy making sure the solstice goes off without a hitch. Any signs of tension or conflict between us are, I assure you, greatly exaggerated." And she and her sister seemed to nod in agreement.
With that Twilight reluctantly departed the throne room and settled into one of the guest bedrooms in the castle. Once she was certain the coast was clear and no one was around to see her, she took out a small locket that been tucked away in her saddle bags. Opening it up, the locket reflected a picture of the inside of her castle, namely the throne room. And Starlight, Spike, and Diamond Tiara were all huddled around the thrones (Starlight occupied Twilight's usual spot and Diamond sat in Rarity's throne). They were alerted to Twilight's presence when she cleared her throat.
"So how are things in Canterlot?" Starlight asked her former teacher.
With a gulp Twilight declared. "They're worse than I thought. It seems my cover story about a friendship problem was more accurate than I might have anticipated." And she would turn out to be right in ways she never could've imagined.
Spike gulped in reply. "W-what are you talking about, Twilight? I thought Kibitz had everything under control."
Twilight shook her head. "I thought so too, Spike. I thought he was just calling me to Canterlot as a precaution. But it looks like there really is a friendship problem here in Canterlot. I can't believe it."
"W-well maybe it's not so bad?" Starlight suggested. "I mean obviously they're sisters and they're gonna get on each others' nerves from time to time, but the princesses would know better than to let silly arguments come between them. Right? I mean, they're the rulers of Equestria, they should be above such things."
But Diamond Tiara shook her head. "I thought the same way all the time when I was younger. I kept convincing myself that what I thought I saw going on between Mother and Father wasn't really there," And then she let out a sigh of regret. "Of course we all know how that turned out. Now my parents hardly ever talk to each other, and when they do it's never on good terms. I still can't believe Dad's gonna try to buy Mom flowers for Mares' Day, if I were him, I wouldn't bother."
Twilight sighed too. "I'm not sure how bad it is, but I'm confident it at least won't be as bad as the last time they fought. When that happened, Princess Luna turned into Nightmare Moon and Princess Celestia had to banish her. That can't happen again!"
"You're sure you don't want me, or Starlight, or any of our friends to come and help you out?" Spike offered. "Maybe I could get in touch with Princess Cadence and you and her could take over until Celestia and Luna sort things out."
"No, my son," Twilight firmly protested. "I don't want to make things worse by implying the princesses can't settle a dispute between themselves without others getting involved. If things were really bad, I have the feeling Kibitz wouldn't tell me to invent the cover story of a map mission."
"I always wondered what that huge thing and all these thrones were for," Diamond commented in amazement. "What I wouldn't give to be able to live here more often. I wouldn't have to put up with my quarreling parents all the time."
Starlight just giggled as she trotted over to the pink coated filly. "Alright, that's quite enough of that, young filly. It's getting late, and weekend or not you still need your beauty sleep," Then to Twilight she spoke. "You do whatever you think is necessary, Twilight. Spike and I have everything under control here. Just please promise that if things get really bad, you'll call for help. I know you and Princess Celestia are close, but even the princesses aren't perfect."
The alicorn couldn't help but let out a gasp in reply! "Sorry," She apologized. "It's still a hard concept for me to adjust to, knowing that the princesses aren't the best. But I'll try my hardest to keep that in mind. Be sure to tell Spike I love him and miss him."
"Will do." Starlight saluted and left the room.
Closing the locket and storing it away safely in a nearby drawer, Twilight then said to herself. "Don't you worry, Princess Celestia. Whatever's come between you and Princess Luna, I'm gonna help you get through it. Maybe you two just need a reminder of how much you need each other." Then with a yawn, she climbed into bed and went to sleep. She'd have a big day ahead of her tomorrow.
Next morning, Twilight went down to the dining room and was most surprised to be greeted by the sight of Princess Celestia, as the alicorn with a majestic white coat was flipping some pancakes onto a plate. She'd even made a face out of strawberries, blueberries, and whipped cream.
Needless to say, her fellow alicorn was quite surprised. "Wow!" She commented in amazement. "I never knew you cook breakfast by yourself, Princess Celestia. I always thought that's why you had all those personal chefs around."
Celestia simply laughed in protest. "Twilight, even a princess has to know how to cook her own meals from time to time. Why else do you think I had you take all those cooking lessons while you were with me?"
"I always loved baking with you, Princess Celestia. It reminded me of the times Mom or Cadence and I would bake cookies together," Twilight fondly recalled before she dug into her pancakes. "Mmm, they're delicious!" She happily exclaimed.
The sun princess smiled. "Well it's just my way of saying 'I care.'"
Just then a very weary Princess Luna strolled into the dining room, and as could be seen by the bags under her eyes, she had not slept well. That fact was made clear when she let out a huge yawn. "Morning, everypony." She commented. Her tone of voice sounded like she would fall asleep again at a moment's notice.
"Good morning, sister!" Celestia greeted in chipper cheerfulness. "Care to join us for breakfast? Twilight's going to be staying here for the next few days. You know, while she works on finding that friendship problem."
"O-oh yes, of course," Twilight quickly replied. "And I was just wondering if you two noticed any of the castle staff having disagreements or anything of the sort."
Luna just yawned again. "I would love to help, really. But I'm much too tired," Rather than eat the pancakes however, she used her magic to grab a pineapple and took a bite out of it instead. "Please excuse me." And with that she departed, the doors slamming shut behind her.
"Wow, last night must've been really hard on her." Twilight commented in observation.
Celestia just sighed. "I'm afraid she has been like this for over a week now. With the solstice and the Summer Sun Celebration on the horizon we've both been very busy," As she deposited the un-eaten pancakes in a trash bin she added. "This is the first year since her return that Luna's taking a part in helping with the solstice and the Summer Sun Celebration. And it's going to take place in Manehattan, the biggest of all the big cities. Even I have had more than a few restless nights."
Twilight said nothing but in her mind she was thinking. "That's not a good sign. Princess Celestia mentioned the last time Luna wasn't sleeping, but that was because of the Tantabus. Something tells me that's not what's happening this time!"
That evening, Princess Celestia was busy tending to delegates from across Equestria like she always did. Princess Luna, meanwhile, strolled around the halls with a wagon full of baskets containing lavender flowers.
"Lavender is known to emit a pleasing scent that aids dreamers in achieving a restful sleep," The night princess explained. "Ever since the Tantabus incident, I have viewed it as a necessary precaution to ensure such an event never happens again. And of course, I often patrol the dream realm, which only I can enter. My sister chose to relinquish that power long ago."
Just then the throne room doors swung open and one of the delegates could be heard commenting in a rather snobbish tone of voice. "And I said: 'Touring? More like boring!'" And she and the other delegates laughed, Princess Celestia seemed to do the same.
Luna frowned at the sight, especially when her sister strolled past the hanging baskets of lavender without ever seeming to acknowledge them. "Unfortunately, it would seem my sister has more 'important' things to occupy her time." She commented in a tone of voice that sounded almost like a snarl.
"Princess Luna, you know that Princess Celestia cares deeply about what you do," Twilight cautioned. "The two of you complement each other so well, if one or the other were to disappear again I don't think Equestria could survive."
Luna just sighed. "Perhaps you're right, Twilight. And yet it seems my sister and I have been growing more and more apart these past few weeks. Maybe once the solstice and Summer Sun Celebration have come and gone, things will be back to normal."
"Maybe it would help if you both got the opportunity to walk a mile in each other's horseshoes, so to speak," The young alicorn suggested. "It would sure make finding the friendship problem a lot easier, because then I wouldn't be so distracted by the little quarrel you and Celestia have going on." She tried her best to keep a straight face and hoped that Luna would buy it.
Fortunately, Kibitz intervened before Luna had a chance to pry. "It is time to raise the moon, your majesty," He bowed to Princess Luna. "Your sister has already called court for the day, you have only your dream realm duties to tend to tonight."
Luna nodded. "Thank you for informing me, Kibitz. Tell my sister she can rest well, for as always I shall keep watch over Equestria until morning." She trotted down the hallway and was soon out of sight.
Kibitz gave Twilight a knowing wink. "You must be more careful, Princess Twilight," He cautioned. "You nearly exposed our secret. If the princesses were to know how much we worry, they would go on pretending to get along just to please us. It's imperative that they work out their differences without feeling pressured."
"Yes, Kibitz, I understand," Twilight nodded firmly in reply. And then she yawned. "Make sure to tell the guards not to disturb me. I have to check in on things in Ponyville and make sure my son and my new student haven't turned the castle upside down in my absence. I can't help but worry about them."
Kibitz only laughed in reply. "If anypony knows what that's like it would be me. The maker only knows how much I worry whenever something pops up concerning the princesses behavior," Adjusting his monocle he firmly promised. "You have my word, the guards shall not pry."
Twilight quickly made her way to her bedroom and made sure to take out the locket from its hiding place inside the drawer. Upon opening it she was relieved to see Spike, Starlight, and Diamond Tiara sitting around the throne room again.
"So how are things in Canterlot?" Spike immediately inquired. "Please tell me they're not as bad as yesterday." The little dragon appeared to be very shaken up if the look on his face was any indication.
"Something wrong, my son?" Twilight inquired with motherly worry.
Starlight stroked Spike's back with a hoof to calm him down as she explained. "He had a bad dream last night, something about the princesses fighting each other and everything falling apart because of it."
"He's not the only one, I had kind of the same dream myself," Diamond Tiara sheepishly admitted. "I just... didn't wanna say anything because I didn't want you or Miss. Starlight to worry."
"Diamond, you don't have to call me 'Miss. Starlight'," Starlight advised. "I'm your friend, and you call me Starlight or Starlight Glimmer. Just as I call you Diamond or Diamond Tiara," Then she spoke to Twilight. "I guess I had sort of the same dream too. Did you?"
"Strangely enough, yes. Had I known we'd all had a shared dream like that, I would've brought it up with Princess Luna," Twilight answered. "Unfortunately, it seems the problem really is the princesses. I can't imagine what could ever cause them to fight. You'd think that the events of a thousand years ago would still be fresh in their minds."
Starlight looked into the locket and said to her former teacher. "You're totally going to confront them over this, right? They need to know that their quarreling is making others worry, including your own son."
"It seems I don't have a choice," The alicorn with a coat of light purple reluctantly conceded. "I'll have to do that first thing tomorrow. There's no other time where they're both guaranteed to be in the same place at the same time."
Spike looked at Twilight with wide eyes and nervously he pleaded with her. "Please be safe, Mom. I don't like the idea of you getting mixed up in all this. I just want it to be over and everything to be as it should."
Twilight gave a motherly smile in response and softly reassured the frightened little dragon. "Don't worry, Spike. I promise I'll be careful. Hopefully, by this time next week, this will indeed all be over."
Twilight woke up the next morning feeling quite refreshed. But one look at her locket reminded her of the important talk she'd shared with Spike, Starlight and Diamond the night before. She needed to confront the princesses about it, they needed to know how much their not so subtle sibling quarrel was making others worry.
The only problem the princess of friendship now faced was how to best break the news to the two sisters. "Can I even say that they're causing a problem?" She pondered as she made her way to the dining room for breakfast. "Will they even listen to me? Maybe I should call for backup?" Twilight shook her head at the suggestion. "No! I can't back down now! The princesses need me, and I don't plan to disappoint them! I'm sure I can easily help them work this out, and we can all have a good laugh about it."
But upon entering the dining room and sitting down at the table, Twilight noticed that Princess Celestia wasn't at her usual spot. And neither was there any sign of Princess Luna or pancakes. Something was most definitely not right. It wasn't like the princesses to skip breakfast, especially not when Celestia clearly enjoyed making it every morning. Had they already worked out their differences on their own? Maybe Kibitz had confessed how much he was worried about their behavior.
Rising from her seat at the dining room table, Twilight reluctantly left and trotted to the only location she could think of that the two sisters would both be in at this time of day, the throne room. As she approached the throne room doors she could swear she heard voices yelling and arguing with each other. Then there came two brilliant and blinding flashes, one after the other. And then silence.
The princess burst through the doors and into the throne room, fearing the worst! "W-what's going on here?!" She exclaimed with fright! Her eyes fell upon the two princesses as they appeared to be recovering from something, maybe whatever had caused those flashes of light?
"Oh, Twilight," Princess Celestia greeted as she waved a hoof and flashed a nervous smile. "How... unexpected. Luna and I were just sorting out our differences about things like pancakes and lavender. Isn't that right, dear sister?"
Princess Luna nodded and also flashed a nervous smile. "I assure you, everything is under control. My sister and I decided to take up your advice from the night before. You know, about 'a mile in each other's horseshoes.' To that end we are officially swapping duties for today and tonight only."
At that Twilight finally got a good look at the two princesses flanks, and what she saw nearly made her faint from shock! Princess Celestia's flank bore Luna's cutie mark of a silver crescent moon and the black patch that surrounded it. And Princess Luna's flank bore Celestia's cutie mark of a glowing red and orange sun and the white patch that surrounded it. Even their magical glows had switched, Luna's was now the bright golden yellow Celestia's always was, and Celestia's had taken on Luna's soft blue tone.
"But... but... how... I mean..." Twilight stuttered.
Kibitz glanced at Twilight and bowed to her. "My apologizes, Princess Twilight. It was my suggestion that the two of them be here today. I had hoped to have them sort out their differences in a civil manner, but it seems they would rather go for the dramatic," Then to the royal sisters he spoke. "I take it I will need to do a fair bit of rescheduling to adjust to this unexpected development?"
"Oh, that won't be necessary, Kibitz," Celestia said with a laugh. "I'm sure Luna and I can manage a typical day and night's workload for each other. After all, it isn't the first time Luna has filled in for me on the day court. I'll mostly definitely appreciate the opportunity to sleep in, something I haven't had time for in ages."
Luna simply retorted. "I sure hope you don't think my duties will be any easier, sister. You haven't been in the dream realm for anywhere near as long as I have. And I won't be able to help you, you forget your magic doesn't work at all in the dream realm," And then she said to Kibitz. "Give me the full day's workload, and my sister shall manage the entire night shift. When the sun comes up tomorrow all will be back to normal, and we'll see who truly has it easier."
"I accept your challenge, Luna!" Celestia firmly declared with a fiery glare.
"And may the best princess win!" Luna declared in reply as the two sisters shook hooves, thus committing themselves to the conditions.
Kibitz could only gulp as he looked over the schedules with his monocle. "May the creator have mercy on us all." He was heard to say.
Meanwhile, Twilight ran out of the throne room and rushed back to her bedroom! She was on the brink of completely losing it, and only those reflected in the locket could keep her in check (along with the deep breathing exercises she'd remembered from Cadence. They sure came in handy in a time like this)!
Diamond Tiara, Starlight, and Spike took the news surprisingly well as far as Twilight was concerned. None of them fainted. All just looked at her with eyes widened and mouths hanging open in shock.
"They actually did that?! They really swapped cutie marks?!" Spike was the first to speak up. "B-but h-how... w-why... I mean..."
Diamond Tiara interrupted as Spike trailed off. "-How in Equestria do they think this is going to solve anything? They're treating the whole thing like a competition. That's even worse than when my parents pretend they're not speaking to each other, and they've been doing that a lot lately."
"It sounds like things are really getting out of hoof," Starlight commented to Twilight. "This is serious. I'm coming up there! Somepony has to put a stop to all of this before it gets any worse!"
But Twilight shook her head in firm protest. "No, it's too risky right now for any of you to be here! Even Kibitz looks like he's about to lose it," And the alicorn insisted. "Please, for now just let this day and night pass. If things are not better by tomorrow, then you can come."
"Twilight, don't take this the wrong way but I think you might be biased! I know you and Princess Celestia have always been close, but you're letting that cloud your judgement," Starlight pleaded to her former teacher. "This isn't like when most siblings quarrel. If the princesses can't get along then all of Equestria could suffer. The nightmares came back again last night, and they were even worse!"
"How so?" The princess of friendship reluctantly inquired.
Diamond was the one who found the courage to speak up, swallowing a lump in her throat as she did so. "I saw something! Something horrible!" She confessed. "I couldn't make out what it was but... it looked like Princess Celestia mixed with Nightmare Moon. And she was fighting Nightmare Moon."
"But that's impossible!" Twilight insisted. "Princess Celestia can't have a dark side, she's above that!"
With a gulp Starlight asked. "Are you absolutely sure? Even she must have her inner demons."
"I know it looks bad but you have to trust me!" Twilight desperately pleaded to Starlight. "Give me a chance to sort this out on my own. The map hasn't called you, me or anypony else yet. Things can't be that bad."
A reluctant sigh escaped the unicorn's lips and she seemed to reluctantly fold. "Fine. But one day and that's it. If things are still bad next morning, I'm coming up there and there's not a thing you can do to stop me."
"I'll keep that in mind. Now I best be going, don't want the guards thinking I'm going crazy. Take care, everyone." The alicorn answered and then closed up the locket. Even as she put away, however, she was thinking to herself. "What have I gotten myself into? I've really done it this time."
Twilight left her bedroom and returned to the throne room just as Princess Luna had finished looking over the list of royal duties Princess Celestia was to perform that day. The list seemed to stretch out for the entire length of the throne room itself, but Luna was not deterred. "So the workload is a fair deal larger than it was when last I held day court," She commented to herself. "No big deal, I shall manage. I simply hope Tiberus will not miss me too much today."
"Not to worry, your majesty," Kibitz bowed to the night princess. "All arrangements have been made to take care of any and all obligations you would otherwise have today had you and your sister not swapped cutie marks. Now then," Clearing his throat the stallion informed. "It is time to open court for the day."
"I am ready." Luna nodded and the throne room doors swung open.
All sorts of ponies strolled in and were surprised to see Princess Luna there to greet them, with Princess Celestia's cutie mark no less. Luna quickly rose to greet them and address their worries. "Greetings my fair subjects," She spoke in a calm tone. "Don't be alarmed, my sister and I have agreed to swap duties for today. So I shall be taking my sister's place at all proceedings until sunset this evening. Treat me no differently than you would my sister, for like her I am here to help." As she finished her sentence she hoped nopony noticed the yawn that had escaped her lips. "I hope there's time in the schedule for a nap." She thought to herself.
The day court lasted for a considerable length of time and Luna did her best to stay attentive and alert while her subjects brought forth various matters to discuss. Even so she was not used to operating on such little sleep, and at times it took everything she had not to nod off. Doing so in the middle of day court would cause the press to have a field day.
At last, after what felt like ages, day court was officially adjourned and Luna breathed a sigh of relief. "It'll take far more than that to break me, sister," She taunted. "If this is how difficult your duties are, I shall manage with no trouble. Now, Kibitz, what's next for me to do?"
"A couple of various ceremonies and contests to preside over," Kibitz answered as he held up the schedule. "And then shortly before lunch, you have a photo op with some school children from Las Pegasus. It's for a fundraiser for their next class field trip. Remember to smile and wave."
And smile and wave Luna did. She smiled as best she could as she rode out into Canterlot in her sister's chariot. Lots of ponies gathered round, eager to see the night princess in broad daylight for a change.
The crowds only continued to grow as Luna bounced from ceremony to ceremony and contest to contest. Various reporters and photographers all gathered and seemed to document her every move. The royal guards did their best to keep gawkers at bay, but there was only so much they could do, especially when many of the ponies most interested in seeing the princess were children. And Luna just never had the heart to turn children away, she always felt a strong connection to them.
At last the noon hour approached, much to Luna's great relief. The day was half over and so far she had managed despite her lack of sleep.
However, the constant smiling and waving was starting to take its toll on the exhausted night princess. Much as she didn't want to admit it, the alicorn was starting to gain just the slightest bit of appreciation for her elder sister for being able to endure an entire day of smiling and waving.
"Just one quick photo with the Las Pegasus children and then I can have a break," Luna mentally pep talked to herself as she reached the sight for the photo shoot. "Just have to keep smiling and waving until then. Oh, my aching cheeks!"
Luna was soon seated near a unicorn filly with a coat the same color as the fuzz on a peach. She sported an orange mane and tail styled up in a beautiful ponytail with a blue ribbon. And her ruby red eyes looked so gentle.
But some of the other colts and fillies could be heard chanting over and over again. "That smile's too wide. It's obviously a lie." The chant echoed in the princess' ears but she willed herself not to react, to just keep smiling even as her lips quivered and her cheeks begged for her to stop.
Seconds passed agonizingly slow for the alicorn with a coat of dark blue as the photographer pony kept making motions with his hooves, as if he could not find a suitable position for everypony that needed to be in the photo. All the while Luna kept smiling even though her lips could be seen shaking, and her smile had long since stopped looking anything but artificial.
At last there came the flash of the camera and the photo shoot was done. A weary Princess Luna finally relaxed her jaw muscles and her big smile contorted into a pronounced frown. Fortunately, it seemed that nopony took any notice, not even the children. They were too busy chanting and repeating. "That smile's too wide. It's obviously a lie."
Whatever hopes Luna had for a peaceful and uneventful lunch were interrupted when, mere seconds after she had sat down, Kibitz came bursting in and slammed down a copy of the Canterlot Times onto the kitchen table! Plastered on the front page was a picture of Luna with her ridiculously big smile, and several of the school ponies looking quite disturbed.
"Princess Luna, what is the meaning of this?!" Kibitz demanded. "You're lucky I was able to get my hooves on this copy before it hit the streets!"
Luna read the headline and felt her heart sink: "Princess Disapproves of School Fundraiser". Immediately she apologized. "I-I'm sorry, Kibitz! I was simply smiling and waving like you told me to! My cheeks were killing me, but I didn't wanna relax them or the photographer would've snapped a picture of me frowning!"
Twilight sighed and shook her head. "Princess Luna, you didn't have to constantly smile and wave everywhere you went. Nopony expects that 24/7."
"I wish you had told me that sooner," Luna groaned as she put her head down on the table. "Now, thanks to me, those children will surely have nightmares. To say nothing of their field trip, which I'm sure isn't going to happen now."
"Now now, princess, let's not jump to conclusions," Kibitz cautioned as he threw up a hoof. "I'll talk with the teachers and see about arranging a re-do photo shoot tomorrow when you're well rested."
The night princess breathed a much needed sigh of relief. "Good," She declared and the groaned. "The day's half over and I feel like I'm ready to collapse already. How did my sister manage all of this as well as my responsibilities during my thousand years of imprisonment?"
"You'll have to ask her yourself," Twilight answered in reply. "But we can't worry about that now, you've still got plenty of other royal duties that still need tending to."
"What?! How much?!" Luna gasped! She proceed to snatch up the schedule and scrolled down through the list of duties that had been checked off! She wasn't even half done yet! At that the alicorn felt light headed. "B...but that's impossible! How can I..." Before she could finish she felt herself pass out, her chin slamming into the table with an audible thud!
"Princess Luna!" Twilight gasped, rushing to the princess' side! "This is all my fault!" She thought. "I'm in way over my head!"
As Twilight tried to revive a fainted Princess Luna, she was thinking back to what had brought on this series of events. Namely why Luna was doing all of the things that her sister usually did during the day.
It had all started when Twilight arrived in Canterlot, under the guise of looking for a friendship problem.
"The last thing any of us need at this important time, is for silly arguments to hold up progress and slow things to a crawl. Right, sister of mine?" Luna had questioned Celestia.
Celestia had not so subtly replied. "Oh yes indeed. We can't have that."
With the use of a locket Twilight communicated with Spike, Starlight, and Diamond Tiara back in Ponyville, informing them of her findings. "It seems my cover story about a friendship problem was more accurate than I might have anticipated."
Twilight had spent an entire day studying the royal sisters, who were busy preparing for the Summer Solstice and Summer Sun Celebration that was to take place in Manehattan. And she'd discovered that the two princess' quarrel was much worse than first impressions had given. Unknowingly she'd given the advice. "Maybe it would help if you both got the opportunity to walk a mile in each other's horseshoes, so to speak."
And that's exactly what the two sisters had done. They'd swapped cutie marks and responsibilities!
"When the sun comes up tomorrow all will be back to normal, and we'll see who truly has it easier." Luna had declared and thus threw down the gauntlet.
"I accept your challenge, Luna!" Celestia had firmly replied.
Luna then went about doing Celestia's duties for the day, starting with hosting day court. All went well until it was time for a photo shoot with some children from Las Pegasus. The princess had been smiling and waving so much that her cheeks hurt, and her big smile quickly drew attention for all the wrong reasons.
"That smile's too wide! It's obviously a lie!" The school children had chanted. And to make matters worse that image was what had graced the front page of the Canterlot Times.
Soon afterward, when Luna saw that she still had over half a list of responsibilities left to perform, she'd grown light headed and ultimately fainted!
All the while, Twilight had insisted on letting the princesses work things out and had refused any help. But she was starting to regret her decision. The young alicorn could only hope that Luna would survive until the end of the day, and that somehow all of this would help her and Celestia to resolve their differences.
"...Luna?!... Princess Luna?!" A faint but growing voice could be heard ringing in the night princess' ears. Slowly she began to stumble awake, lifting her head from its resting spot atop the dining room table.
"Huh? O-oh... I'm awake! I'm awake!" Luna called out as her eyes opened and she saw the worried form of Twilight Sparkle standing over her. "Oh I've just had the craziest dream," The princess mumbled. "I dreamt that my sister and I swapped cutie marks and roles to see who had it easier."
A nervous laugh escaped Twilight's lips as she confessed. "That... wasn't a dream. It actually happened. You passed out."
Luna felt the urge to slam her head down on the table again. "Then the children... and... and the photo, all of it was real?" When Twilight nodded in confirmation, Luna groaned anew. "Ugh. Can't we just cancel the rest of my sister's duties until nightfall? I can't go on like this. Those children were depending on me and I let them down."
"You sound just like Spike when he was dealing with the fact that he didn't light the torch at the Equestria Games," Twilight commented to the night princess. "But you're a princess, you have royal responsibilities. You can't just run and hide because of one mistake, no matter how big it might be," In a more gentle, reassuring tone of voice she added. "Kibitz is working as we speak to reschedule the photo shoot and give the kids another chance. The best you can do now is try to move on."
"Do I really have to do all these things on the list?" Luna complained. "How long have I been out?"
The young alicorn answered. "Not more than a few minutes, thankfully. Lunch is almost over though, so better grab something to eat while you still can."
"O...kay." Luna reluctantly consented. She quickly helped her to some stale pizza and a few cups of coffee (thankfully decaf), then she took a quick cold shower to snap her back to her senses. She could not afford to nod off or faint again. She'd already given the papers a story to spin out of proportion, she wasn't about to let them have another if she could help it. Her reputation wouldn't survive.
Kibitz returned just as Luna was seated in the throne room, trying her best to sit up straight and appear to be at attention. "Ah, Princess Luna. Good to see you've recovered from your fainting spell," He commented. "I take it you're ready to start hosting delegates again?"
"Have they been briefed on the arrangement between my sister and I?" The alicorn with a coat of dark blue inquired of her royal advisor.
Kibitz nodded. "They will not act with alarm and have been instructed to treat you no differently than they would your sister."
"Excellent," Luna appeared to smile and clapped her hooves. "Alright, let's get it over with. Bring in the delegates."
"Very well," Kibitz obliged and motioned for the guards to open up the throne room doors. He also took the opportunity to mention to the alicorn. "You'll be pleased to know I was able to convince the school to come back for a do over on the photo shoot. The fundraiser deadline isn't until the end of this week, so a proper photo and smile should be enough to erase the damage done by the earlier attempt."
At that Luna breathed a much needed sigh of relief. "Thank goodness. The first good news I've had all day."
"Hope you don't mind, princess," Twilight spoke up as she trotted up to Luna. "After what happened this morning I think it's best if I sit in on these meetings and help you out. I've dealt with delegates before."
"Funny," Luna smirked as she put a hoof to her face to suppress the giggles. "From what Cadence tells me it was your son, Spike, who tended to the delegates last time. You were busy resting for the ceremony and were already half asleep by the time Cadence brought you back to your room."
"Well you would've been so proud to see him then," Twilight beamed happily. "He managed better than I could've ever expected. He even turned down an offer from Fancy Pants to be Canterlot's delegate for all future meetings."
"No kidding?!" The night princess exclaimed. "My, it seems he has really grown a lot these past few years. I still remember the first time you agreed to let me dragonsit him. I wasn't sure he'd ever get to sleep, he kept talking about you and how much he worried about you."
Twilight continued to beam. "That's my son for you. He's even managed to make friends out of the likes of the dragons and the changelings, both of which are now valuable allies to Equestria."
"I'm well aware of that. I've made sure to monitor his dreams from time to time." Luna commented.
Twilight was about to ask Luna if the night princess had been monitoring Spike's dreams the past two nights, but was interrupted by the opening of the throne room doors. And in trotted a whole herd of delegates from all over Equestria, from big cities like Canterlot and Manehattan, to small towns like Ponyville and Appleloosa.
"Greetings, delegates," The night alicorn rose to greet the gathered crowd. "Please do not be alarmed by the presence of myself in my sister's place, and Twilight Sparkle in Kibitz's place. You have all surely been briefed by now on the situation, and rest assured that all is well."
"You're certain you can manage, princess?" Fancy Pants inquired. "We understand today has already been an exhausting day for you, many of us would be glad to wait until tomorrow and let you get some rest."
Luna shook her head firmly in protest. "Tomorrow my sister will be just as tired as I am today, better if we get it over with now rather than add more to my sister's already overwhelming plate of responsibilities," And she then insisted. "I can manage just fine. Now whatever you wish to discuss, please get in line. I intend to run things the way my sister does with you delegates. And she always starts by organizing a line."
The delegates formed a line with little hesitation and one by one they approached Princess Luna with their problems that they hoped she could solve.
Luna, for her part, did her best to concentrate and pay attention. But every so often her mind would still drift back to those school children from Las Pegasus. No matter how hard she tried she could not stop thinking about them. How despite what everyone else said she had let them down.
More than once she became so focused and fixated on them, that she lost track of whatever else was being discussed and had to be reminded. Each time she did so she could hear the hushed whispers of the delegates as they talked amongst themselves. It was hard not to pry and what she heard only further filled her heart with worry.
"She seems really out of it." One delegate whispered.
"Are we sure the princesses haven't secretly been replaced with changelings?" Another delegate murmured. "That would certainly explain their strange behavior the past few days."
A third delegate could be heard whispering. "I told you we shouldn't bother the princesses at this time of year. They're far too busy with the solstice and the Summer Sun Celebration to pay any attention to our needs."
"I think we'll just have to come back tomorrow or the next day," A fourth delegate softly suggested. "This seems to have been a mistake on our part. Princess Luna is clearly too tired to manage for an entire day."
Luna immediately shouted in protest. "No!" A little too loudly, as all the delegates in the room suddenly swung round to look at her! She attempted to cover her outburst as she coughed into a hoof and said. "Er I mean, there's no need to fret. Everything is under control. I'm wide awake and ready to listen!"
"You're absolutely sure?" One of the delegates commented. "We really don't want to be a burden to you, your majesty. Our needs aren't that important."
"Speak for yourself!" A Trottingham delegate rudely snapped. "I for one want to hear it straight from the princess' mouth that there are no timberwolves in the Whitetail Woods! And I'm not going anywhere until I hear exactly that!"
"Oh, is that all?" The night alicorn chuckled briefly to herself. "Well I can safely assure you THERE ARE NO TIMBERWOLVES IN THE WHITETAIL WOODS!" Then she let out a gasp and covered her mouth as she realized that she'd unintentionally slipped into her "Royal Canterlot Voice".
The Trottingham delegate blinked and rubbed his eyes, feeling around for the thick black glasses that had been blown off his face when Luna had spoken just a minute ago. At last, he found them and used his magic to place them firmly back on his face. "Er, I'm sorry, your majesty," He spoke. "I thought you were saying something, but I couldn't quite make it out. Felt like something blew right past just as you spoke. Could you maybe repeat that?"
"Y-yes yes, of course," Luna nodded. But she seemed to briefly hesitate, as though afraid to speak. At last, in a more normal tone she declared. "There are no timberwolves in the Whitetail Woods. You can tell the good citizens of Trottingham not to worry. Any reports of timberwolves in the vicinity of the surrounding wilderness are naught but unfounded rumors."
"T-thank you, princess... I think." The Trottingham delegate blinked and departed without saying a word.
The alicorn with a coat of dark blue sank deep in her sister's throne, wishing nothing more than to be able to turn invisible. By chance her eyes happened to glance up at a small clock that rested out of sight of wandering eyes. It seemed like the clock had barely moved at all since she'd gotten here. But that couldn't be! Time HAD to have passed!
"Maker have mercy. This is going to be a long day." Luna thought to herself as she reluctantly returned her attention to the delegates.
Hours ticked by agonizingly slowly for the exhausted Princess Luna. No amount of decaf in the world could compensate for her lack of sleep and overall boredom. She tried her hardest to pay attention to the delegates, to listen to what they had to say. But this wasn't like that one time she'd briefly held day court for her sister, back then she'd been given the freedom to manage on her own and do things the way she wanted. Now she was hamstrung by the fact that it was expected of her to do things the way her sister would.
And try as she might, Luna knew she was no Celestia. If this was the kind of stuff her sister had to put up with on a daily basis, maybe she could be forgiven for overlooking a few flower arrangements that were admittedly hung in hard to notice spots. A small pang of guilt began to work its way into the younger sister's conscience. Despite putting up with all these things and probably more, her elder sister still found the time every morning to make breakfast. And what had Luna done to show appreciation for that? She'd just ignored it and gone back to bed, or tended to something that was nowhere near as important.
Well the first thing tomorrow, when everything was back to normal, Luna made it a mental vow to apologize to Celestia.
At last, evening came and the delegates all dispersed, many of them feeling chipper and cheerful. "My, that didn't take long at all." One delegate was heard to be saying to himself.
"I know, right?" Another delegate laughed. "Things have never been so eventful with Princess Celestia, she's way too serious. Princess Luna seems to be much more lively. A shame she doesn't seem to be around during the day as often."
But for Princess Luna, the day had not at all gone by quickly. It had ticked by agonizingly slow from one hour to another. Never in all her life had she felt so utterly exhausted. Still, she managed to somehow will herself to lower the sun when the time came. But when she returned from the balcony overlooking Canterlot, it was easy to see the bags under her eyes as she yawned. "If you'll excuse me, I think I'm gonna call it an early night," She spoke to Twilight. "But tell my sister, if she thinks my nightly duties will be any easier for her than what I've had to put up with today, she's sorely mistaken. And of course, I trust she knows I can't help her."
Twilight nodded. "Of course she knows. And I'm sure Princess Celestia will not underestimate the weight of your responsibilities," She reassured Luna. "Should I tell her what happened today?"
Luna shook her head in protest. "I'd rather not give my sister any more reason to mock me, I imagine she'll be rightfully ribbing me about all of this for the next week and a half," And she yawned again. "Be sure to tell Spike his dragonsitter says hello. Feels like it's been ages since I last saw him." And with that, the night alicorn departed to her bed chambers in the hopes of getting a good night's sleep.
Princess Celestia came trotting out not even a moment after Luna had retired for the night. Compared to her sister, she looked noticeably more lively and energetic (helped by having an entire day to sleep in). "Ah," She faintly yawned and shook the last of sleep from her system. "Refreshed and wide awake. Where's Luna?"
"Probably asleep. She's had a very rough day." Twilight explained to Celestia.
"Oh dear," Celestia briefly commented with concern, but then she found herself snickering. "Well I guess my royal duties were a little more than she could handle. Oh well, I tried to warn her. But a deal's a deal, I'll manage her chores for tonight and then tomorrow she can go back to doing what she does best."
In no time at all the moon was raised into the night sky, casting its soft and beautiful glow on the landscape below. Celestia smiled. "Moon raised right on schedule," She told herself and then turned to Twilight. "Now then, Twilight, why don't you and I..."
But Twilight had fallen asleep on the balcony next to Princess Celestia, her snores registering quite audibly in her former mentor's ears. The sun princess let out a sigh. "Oh, Twilight. I was hoping you'd stay up for a little longer. There was so much I wanted to talk to you about. But then again you never were much of a night pony, except for when you had a nightmare or storms were passing through."
The sun princess lit up her horn and effortlessly lifted her exhausted fellow alicorn, depositing her gently on the bed that Celestia usually occupied. She made sure to tuck her former student in nice and comfortably, ensuring that the sheets weren't wrinkled. It really felt like old times, the princess recalling many fond memories of her student as a filly. She'd always insist "I can stay up late, princess.", only to doze off right at Celestia's hooves before the first hour of night had passed.
Celestia wished nothing more than to just be by her sleeping former student's side and watch over her, but alas she had to tend to Luna's royal duties and thus had to leave her former prized pupil to get a good night's sleep.
Before Celestia left her bedroom though, she made sure to re-examine the checklist Kibitz had given her. "Okay, all I have to do now is watch over the dream realm and protect ponies in their sleep," She noticed and then tossed the list aside as she boasted. "Ha! My list was three times as long! This'll be a piece of cake." Had anyone been watching they might have seen the mighty alicorn lick her lips, but if you'd asked her she would've denied ever doing such a thing. Her fondness for cake was something she didn't like to admit to.
Stepping out onto the balcony that overlooked the city below, Celestia took notice of the fact that all the lights in the houses below were switching off. "Alright, everypony's asleep," She said out loud and soon took notice of that fact. "Oh, you're talking to yourself, princess. But... there's no one else to talk to out here!" Biting her hoof the sun princess briefly worried about how she was going to survive a night of solitude with no one to confide in, before she remembered a very important detail. "Duh, you're so silly sometimes, Celestia. I can talk to ponies in their dreams. If Luna can do it then so can I!"
Lighting up her horn with the greatest of ease, Princess Celestia left the waking world behind and quickly entered into the dream realm. All around her various bubbles whooshed past, each representing the dream of a different pony. A few in particular caught her eye: Applejack was dreaming of herself as a foal, being held in the loving embrace of her parents. Discord (surprisingly enough) was dreaming about having a pillow fight with The Smooze in a noticeably normal fashion. Either Princess Cadence or Flurry Heart herself dreamt of the infant alicorn being a DJ, decked out in shades and sitting atop a turntable as Cadence bobbed her head to the beat of the music. And Gummy appeared to be dreaming of himself as a king, perched atop a pile of gold and holding a royal scepter in his mouth.
Even though it had been decades since she'd last visited the dream realm the sun princess felt right at home in it. And she smiled as she observed countless dreams fly past her. "This is great! Now I just need to help ponies with their nightmares. And they're not actually real so that shouldn't be a problem!" She boasted before noticing. "Oh, you're talking to yourself again, princess. You really must curb that bad habit of yours or ponies will start to think you're crazy."
Suddenly, a scream of fright reached the alicorn's ears and she knew what that meant! Somewhere out there, somepony was having a terrible dream! And since she was the only one who could access the dream realm it was her responsibility to help the pony in it. Without even a second's hesitation, the princess leaped into action, zeroing in on the source of the scream. She was prepared for anything!
The pony suffering the bad dream was none other than Twilight, who was screaming as she appeared to be falling down an endless hole of some sort. All the while pancake faces not unlike the ones Princess Celestia had made yesterday were staring at her, repeating over and over again, "I care." in a way that sounded more menacing in the dream than it had ever sounded in the waking world. She continued to fall for what seemed like forever, until at last she landed on a bed of lavender flowers. But the world around her suddenly flipped on its side, and poor Twilight fell through the flowers as if they were the surface of a pond or a lake.
When at last she stopped falling, Twilight found herself staring at a huge golden locket, unable to move or look away. The locket opened up and inside it were the worried faces of Diamond Tiara, Starlight Glimmer, and Spike. "Help us, Twilight!" They all cried at once! But when Twilight reached out a hoof the locket suddenly slammed shut and disappeared! "No!" Twilight gasped! "My student! My former student! My son! They can't be... there's no way they could be..." Her words trailed off as the princess of friendship was reduced to tears, sobbing into the empty darkness.
Princess Celestia had seen enough! She entered the dream and landed in front of Twilight, seemingly unaware that the environment had changed to resemble the throne room of Canterlot. "Twilight!" She exclaimed with noticeable worry. "It's okay, I'm here! You're just having a bad dream!"
But Twilight just continued to sob as she looked up at Princess Celestia. "No, t-this can't be! My suggestion was meant to help you two come together and find common ground, not drive you further apart! Starlight was right, I needed her help! Oh, why didn't I listen?! Why did I let myself be blinded by how much I looked up to you?!"
"Twilight, what are you talking about?!" Celestia nervously inquired. "None of this is real, it's all a bad dream! Any minute now, you're going to wake up in your bed and you'll see that everything is just fine!"
Twilight didn't appear to be listening, her sobs only grew louder. To her it was as if Princess Celestia didn't even exist outside the dream. "If you and Princess Luna can't see why you need each other then..." She gulped, trailing off.
"Then I am back!" A familiar wicked voice cackled as a brilliant cyan with light violet sparks colored aura suddenly ripped a hole through the dream. And from it emerged an instantly recognizable pony, one that Celestia had hoped never to see again! It was a tall and slender very dark cornflower blue coated alicorn (almost as black as the night itself) with a flowing mane and tail a two shaded blue that resembled the night sky, moderate cyan eyes coldly shaded by moderate blue violet eyebrows, and sharp fangs. "At last, free again!"
Celestia threw up a wing to shield Twilight. "Stay back, Twilight!" She cautioned to her former student. "I know how to handle the likes of Nightmare Moon! I've defeated her once and I will defeat her again!"
But just then a voice that sounded like an evil version of Celestia's called out. "So you say, but can you handle the likes of me?!" And from the shadows emerged a version of Princess Celestia that looked like a copy of Nightmare Moon, except her colors consisted of whites, reds, and oranges, and her mane and tail looked like fire.
Princess Celestia jumped back in surprise and a look of horror crossed her eyes! "No, it can't be!" She shuddered.
The evil Celestia just cackled as she approached her good counterpart. "Oh come now, don't act so surprised. Even you have a dark side, princess," She taunted. "Deep down you know that if Princess Luna can turn into Nightmare Moon, you can most certainly turn into me, Daybreaker. The better, stronger, and if I'm being completely honest, much prettier version of you."
"This can't be!" The good Celestia remarked. "You were just a figment of my imagination!"
Daybreaker cackled with fiendish glee. "Oh please, why do you delude yourself so? You rule over your subjects so kindly when you have the power to rule them by force. You don't need Luna or anypony else. All you have to do is get rid of anyone who stands in your way," And with that she turned her attention to Nightmare Moon. "I never should've banished you, oh sister of mine. I should've destroyed you when I had the chance!"
"Then destroy me if you can!" Nightmare Moon taunted. "But I sure hope you don't plan on smiling me into submission! You may look like me, but I know you're nothing but a pale imitation! You're hardly even worthy of being my equal! I have no clue why you would choose to imitate me, sister. Is it because you fear my power? Or maybe you're secretly jealous of my natural good looks?" Then she began to charge up her horn, a sickly black surge of magic began to appear. "This time it is you who will be defeated! And I who shall reign triumphant!"
Daybreaker merely rolled her eyes as Nightmare Moon began to charge up power. "Ugh, so much black. We get it, you're upset," She sarcastically teased. "You know what I think, I think you could really use some SUN! Here, have some!" And she proceeded to effortlessly fire off a magic blast of her own to counter Nightmare Moon's! Surprisingly, the two proved to be evenly matched.
Princess Celestia tried in vain to break up the fight between the two evil alicorns. In fact it seemed that, much like Twilight they didn't even acknowledge her. Were they just figments of the dream? Manifestations of Twilight's guilt? Or were they real?
Well the sun princess didn't know, but what she did know was that she could not dispel this nightmare alone. "I hare to admit it but I need help," She said to herself. "And there's only one pony who can help me now."
Inside her own dream Princess Luna found herself posing and smiling in front of a mirror. But every time she did so it was the same big smile she'd given for the photo shoot with the Las Pegasus children. And they would always appear behind her, pointing a hoof and taunting over and over again. "That smile's too wide. It's obviously a lie."
When at last Luna was able to turn around she found herself face to face with the children, all of them looking at her with the saddest set of eyes the night princess had ever seen. The filly Luna had sat next to even asked in a sad tone of voice. "Princess, why don't you want us to go on our field trip? Don't you want us to be happy?"
"I don't!" Luna protested and then gasped in horror as she saw two of her front teeth fall out! She quickly corrected herself even as more teeth start to fall out one by one! "I mean, I do! Believe me, children, I do want you to be happy!"
But the children didn't appear to be convinced for they just encircled and surrounded Luna, drawing closer as they continued to chant. "That smile's too wide. It's obviously a lie."
Suddenly, from the mirror who should emerge but Princess Celestia in all her glory?! Luna forgot all about their quarrel as she hugged her sister and exclaimed! "Celestia, I'm so glad you're here!" She almost didn't notice when she was pulled through the mirror and into Twilight's dream (regaining all of her teeth in the process). It took her but a minute to see the ongoing fight between Nightmare Moon and Daybreaker, and when she did she let out an audible gasp! "Is this Twilight's dream?!"
Celestia nodded. "This is what she fears most right now, what she fears will happen if we can't put aside our differences. But try as I might I can't seem to dispel any part of this dream or get her to wake up."
"She's far too deeply embedded in the dream to be talked out of it or woken up," Luna observed with worry. "If you don't dispel the dream soon though, it could have an irreversible effect on Twilight's psyche. This puts anything I've seen in Spike's dreams to shame."
"I can't do it, Luna! Try as I might I don't have the same touch that you do when it comes to dreams! That's why I gave up on entering the dream realm after you were banished!" Celestia tearfully confessed. "I was wrong, sister! Your job is so much harder than mine! You have to face nightmares and all sorts of horror every night, and you have to do it all alone!"
"Your duties are hardly any easier," Luna confessed in reply. "I greatly admire your ability not to crack under the sheer weight of all that you must do," Then she changed the subject. "But I can't help you here, this isn't like me filling in for you on day court. Remember, I still have your magic. It won't work in the dream realm. You must be the one to end this nightmare."
"I already said I can't do it!" The sun princess cried in defeat.
The night princess shook her head and pressed a hoof to her sister's chest. "I know you can do it, sister. You must simply believe in yourself, like I believe in you. Look inside yourself and I know you'll find the strength and courage you need," She then observed as Daybreaker appeared to land a crippling blow to Nightmare Moon, leaving the evil dark coated alicorn on the floor and struggling just to get to her hooves. "You'd better hurry. It seems things are about to take a turn for the worse!"
"This is the end of the road, ex-sister!" Daybreaker coldly taunted to Nightmare Moon. "Nothing will save you from oblivion!"
But just as Daybreaker fired off a blast of magic and Nightmare Moon countered with a blast of her own, Celestia stepped between the two and used her wings to block the powerful beams! "That's enough!" She bellowed! "Both of you are out of line and must be punished! Be gone from this dream and never show your faces in my presence again!"
Daybreaker defiantly snapped back. "You're a fool, Celestia! You can't destroy me! I'm everything you've ever wanted to be!"
"No, you are NOT me, Daybreaker!" Celestia defiantly roared at her evil counterpart. "And you will never exist again!" At that she used her wings to push the magic blasts back towards their respective senders, dispelling both Nightmare Moon and Daybreaker in the blink of an eye.
Exhausted but triumphant, the sun princess collapsed on the floor of the dream throne room. Her younger sister smiled and cheered. "Well done, sister! I must say, for somepony who hasn't been in the dream realm for almost a thousand years, you handled that situation like a pro."
"Only because you were here to help me, Luna," The day alicorn sighed. "I really don't know how you manage it night after night, and make it look so easy."
Luna just winked. "I have my ways," And then she asked. "So, did you... talk to yourself?"
Celestia tried in vain not to blush as she admitted. "Yes... But you do it too, I'll bet."
"Guilty as charged." Luna chuckled.
Meanwhile Twilight finally lifted her head and her eyes fell upon the two sisters hugging each other warmly. "Is this... real?" She pondered aloud. "Or is this all a dream?"
The two sisters turned to the one whose dream they were still in. Luna was the first to speak. "This is indeed a dream, Twilight Sparkle. Those you care about are still alive and well, waiting for you to come back. But the bond you are witnessing between my sister and I, it's as real as real can be."
Celestia then added. "But why didn't you say something sooner, Twilight? Then all of this could've been avoided. Had you just mentioned why you were really here, Luna and I would've gladly listened to your advice and tried to work to sort out our differences. And we wouldn't have had to swap places and duties to do so after you unknowingly planted the idea in our head."
Ashamed, Twilight looked down at the ground. "I'm so sorry, I never thought any of this would ever happen, honest!" She profusely apologized. "But Princess Celestia," Gulping and swallowing a huge lump in her throat the young alicorn reluctantly confessed. "Ever since I was a filly I've looked up to you, you were my idol and my inspiration. Even Starswirl the Bearded never topped the admiration I had for you. And that's something that never changed. I let that blind me, I convinced myself that you were aware of what happened the last time you and Luna fought so fiercely. And then I convinced myself that I could just help the two of you get through this day, and you would understand how much you need each other. I let things get out of control."
"Twilight," Celestia softly but sternly sighed. "You may have had good intentions, but even if you believed what you believed you should know that a princess can't make such rash judgements. It's dangerous to ever put anypony on a pedestal, because even I am not perfect. My sister and I can fight sometimes, even if we may not realize or want to admit to it. But fight we do, and it's important for ponies like you to be honest with us when that's happening. That way, we can correct it before it gets to this point."
Twilight sniffled a tiny bit. "Believe me, princess. I know that now more than ever. Please forgive me for being so blind. I didn't mean to make you and Princess Luna have to confront dark versions of yourself. That was never my intention."
"It's quite alright, Twilight," Luna gently reassured the troubled alicorn. "Now we all know for next time what not to do in a situation like this. But for now it's getting late, the sun will need to rise soon. We must all return to the waking world at once."
In a flash of light Princess Celestia found herself back in the real world, feeling rather groggy and exhausted. "My kingdom for a coffee." She thought to herself.
A cheerful Princess Luna was the first sight that greeted the sun princess as she came to her senses. "Welcome back, dear sister," She smiled. "I know you had a long night, so I thought I'd return the favor and make breakfast for you to enjoy." She then offered up a plate of rather stale and crusty looking pancakes.
Celestia reluctantly took a bite from the stack as it was offered to her. The pancakes tasted awful, but she forced herself to swallow them and smile as she told her sister. "They're... delicious."
Luna saw through the ruse immediately and laughed. "I know that face. What did you just get through telling Twilight about not keeping the truth hidden?" And then she added. "They're not delicious at all, are they? I know you have to put on a face and pretend to be interested in what those stuffy delegates have to say day in and day out, but you don't have to do it for me."
The sun princess smiled. "In that case, these are terrible," She tossed the bad pancakes over the balcony, plate and all. "I'm signing you up for cooking lessons first thing tomorrow, sister," She said firmly. "I can't believe it's been over a thousand years, and you still don't know how to cook."
"Never found the time. But I suppose I can make room in my schedule to learn," The alicorn with a coat of dark blue replied and then yawned. "But for now I really must be going. I need to get some rest before that do over photo shoot with the Las Pegasus children. They'll be expecting me, and you know I never disappoint children." She flew off just seconds after she and Celestia had their cuties marks return to normal.
An exhausted Princess Celestia just groaned. "I'm going to need more coffee," She said to herself. "A lot more coffee! Honestly, how can anypony survive on so few hours of sleep?"
S7 E16: Strongest of the Apples (Campfire Tales, Part 1 - What If?)
With the ringing of the school bell came the end of another day of school for all the colts and fillies. But before classes could be dismissed for the day, there was an important announcement that needed to be presented. Cheerilee drew the attention of her students by tapping a ruler against her desk. The teacher smiled. "Thank you, everypony. This won't take more than a few minutes," She beamed and cleared her throat. "We're about to start covering pony myths and legends, and I always believe that students learn better when they have a personal connection to the lessons I'm about to teach. Therefore, I'm officially giving you all the following assignment, due a week from today's time."
Some of the colts and fillies whined. "Do we really have to do the assignment, Miss. Cheerilee?" Snips pleaded. "Some of us don't really care for old legends."
"Which is exactly why I want to give you all a chance to take a personal interest in the course content," Cheerilee replied and passed out several sheets of paper. "I want each of you to pick one legend from the following list and do a report on them. I want to know why you chose that particular legend and what you've learned from him or her. The more details you can provide, the better."
A few colts and fillies whined, while others (like Silver Spoon) could be heard commenting on how hard it was to choose from Cheerilee's broad list. There were all sorts of legendary ponies to choose from: including Starswirl the Bearded himself.
"Remember, everypony," Cheerilee called as her students put the assignment away in various saddle bags. "You need to personalize it, think about how the legend inspires you. Anypony can copy words from a book, the key to learning is finding that angle or avenue that appeals to you as an individual."
With that the children all departed, some heading straight home to get to work on the assignment and some heading for Twilight's castle (which had become the stand in library for the town after the old one had been unfortunately destroyed about two to three years ago), hoping to find a legend that appealed to them for the sake of the report.
"Well I know who I'm doing my report on!" Scootaloo proudly boasted to her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders.
"Rainbow Dash doesn't count, she's not an ancient pony legend, Scootaloo." Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes.
Scootaloo groaned. "Don't you think I know that? I'm talking about the second most awesome pony of all time, a pony that even Rainbow Dash admires! Flash Magnus!" Buzzing her wings in excitement the filly proclaimed. "If he's good enough for Rainbow Dash he's good enough for me! I just need to ask Rainbow Dash for a few more details on him."
"I think I'm gonna do my report on Mistmane. Rarity talks about her all the time," Sweetie Belle declared. "What about you, Apple Bloom?"
Apple Bloom grinned. "There's one legend even my family has heard about! A pony who stopped his home town from bein' engulfed by lava with only his bare hooves and his trusty shovel!"
"Who is that?" Both Scootaloo and Sweetie wondered.
"None other than the mighty Rockhoof himself!" Apple Bloom declared before her happy mood became replaced by one of worry. "I'm just not sure how I can relate to him. I know my family's talked about him and I've heard the legend multiple times. But I don't think that's what Miss. Cheerilee's lookin' for in a report. I think Big Mac told it to her more than a few times."
"Well I'm sure you'll think of something," Sweetie encouraged. "After all, you have a week to think of it."
"Yeah, a whole week to come up with somethin' that'll impress Miss. Cheerilee," Apple Bloom commented. "In case you haven't noticed, I ain't exactly been doin' great on these past few lessons. If I don't get my grades up soon I'm gonna end up grounded. That means no Cutie Mark Crusadin', and no helpin' other ponies with their cutie mark problems. Nothin' but chores and chores as far as the eye can see."
The farm filly strolled back home to Sweet Apple Acres, still trying to think of how she could relate to a pony like Rockhoof. All she had to go on was the fact that it was her sister and her brother's favorite legend, their equivalent of Starswirl the Bearded, and the fact that he was an earth pony. But that alone wouldn't be anywhere near enough to write a report, let alone one with a passing grade.
So what was she going to do? What could she do? There had to be something she just wasn't thinking of.
Applejack was the first one to greet Apple Bloom when she came inside. "Hey there, Apple Bloom," She smiled before taking notice of her little sister's frowning face. "What's with the long face, sugarcube? Somethin' got you all saddle sore?"
"It's nothin' you need to worry about," Apple Bloom groaned. "I just gotta figure out how I'm supposed to come up with a convincin' report on Rockhoof in a week's worth of time."
"What's the matter with that? Don't you like Rockhoof? You've heard about him so many times." Applejack commented with concern.
Apple Bloom shook her head. "It ain't got anythin' to do with Rockhoof, aside from the fact that I can't think of a reason why I could relate to him. I like him 'cause you and Big Mac always talk fondly 'bout him, and I like how he was strong enough to stop an entire volcano's worth of lava with only a shovel. But Miss. Cheerilee's probably heard all about that stuff from Big Mac. I gotta come up with somethin' she ain't heard before."
At that Applejack threw back her head and began to laugh. "Oh, is that really all there is to it, Apple Bloom? I reckon there's a lot of things you could relate to from Rockhoof," And she adjusted the stetson atop her head. "Big Mac appreciates him 'cause Rockhoof always believed actions speak louder than words. Granny Smith likes how he made friends into family durin' his time in the Mighty Helm. And me, well there's all sorts of reasons why I like him. He was strong, honest, gentle, carin', determined, I reckon there aren't enough words to describe what kind of a pony he was."
"Well why do you like him so much? And how's any of that supposed to help me?" Apple Bloom pondered. "Sounds like you like him just 'cause he was so strong."
"Oh he was strong alright," Applejack answered. "Stronger in more ways than one. It took me a long time to learn that. When I was your age I just admired Rockhoof 'cause he was so powerful, made even the greatest of physical things look like child's play. And there was a time where I wished more than anythin' I could have his physical strength."
"You about to tell me another of them stories? Like about how you came to value honesty so much?" Apple Bloom questioned her sister.
The earth pony with a coat of orange nodded. "It's more than just a story, Apple Bloom. It's a life lesson, one I took to heart. And it was years and years ago, before you were ever born. A way back!" And this is how Applejack's story went:
It happened many years ago, when Applejack was still a filly. In fact it was just after she'd gotten her cutie mark and come to realize that her place was in Ponyville on the farm at Sweet Apple Acres.
"Ow! Easy there, Ma, you know that's a delicate area." Bright Mac groaned as he lay on his stomach, his massive form splayed out across the family coach.
Meanwhile, Granny Smith was busy removing small chunks of wood from her son's back and frowning. "Oh quit actin' like such a foal, Bright Mac!" She scolded. "You're supposed to set an example for your children."
"That's exactly what I was tryin' to do, Ma, honest!" Bright Mac shot back the most innocent smile he could. "Wasn't my fault that old tree couldn't handle a swift buck. It ain't like I broke somethin'."
"You really don't know your own strength, do you?" Granny Smith continued to frown. "You're just lucky Buttercup wasn't here to see this, she would've fainted to see her lovin' husband in such a mess," And then she sighed. "I reckon it's time you started lettin' the little ones help you out around the farm. They ain't little foals anymore you know, and I ain't exactly gettin' any faster in my age."
Big Mac grinned in a rather giddy appearance. "I'll help you out, Pa!" He proudly proclaimed and puffed out his chest. "Ma says I'm a chip off my old stallion, right down to the hooves. Reckon between the two of us, the apples would be harvested in half the time. Heck, I could probably buck the whole orchard by myself and not be winded."
Bright Mac laughed. "And what would your mother say if I let you do that? She'd have a heart attack or take it out on me. And y'all know your ma's scary when she's angry," Then the stallion stretched out his hooves as his eyes focused on his son. "Still, I suppose the time has come to start teachin' ya the ins and outs of managin' Sweet Apple Acres. After all it'll all be yours, someday."
"What about me, Pa?" Applejack asked as she shuffled into the living room. "I wanna help too, especially since Mother's still gettin' over that cold of hers. I'm just as strong as my brother!"
"No you ain't! Y'all couldn't even beat Cousin Braeburn in a hoof wrestlin' contest, and he was distracted the entire time!" Big Mac protested. "You're too little to be of any help, sis. Besides, you just got back from Manehattan two weeks ago. You're still gettin' used to bein' a country pony again."
But Bright Mac stood up, adjusting his signature stetson that he loved to wear so much. "Now Big Mac, you be nice to your little sister. Nopony is too little to make a difference. Your mother's always fond of sayin': 'Even a little Apple can make a big difference in the world.' Applejack's not much younger than you are now, only 'bout two and a half years or so off. If Ma thinks she's ready to start helpin' out 'round here, I'm inclined to believe her. After all, my mother is always right."
"You're darn tootin'!" Granny Smith declared. "But the both of ya better be careful and listen to your father. Last thing I need is your mother worryin' herself sick all over again."
The next day (after his back had healed) Bright Mac led his two children out to the orchard, all the while he was explaining at length about the different chores his son and daughter would soon take on. Neither little pony paid much attention to any of it for they were too busy focusing on the task they'd seen their father do many times. Something he made look so easy: Apple bucking.
Eventually the tall stallion with a coat of very light green approached the apple trees, filled with lush red apples that rested firmly on its many branches. He could tell just by looking at Big Mac and Applejack how eager they were to learn. He could remember his mother showing him how to apple buck when he was about their age (though he'd been slightly older than Big Mac). "And now we come to one of the most important jobs on the whole farm," He explained in his usual laid back tone. "I know I make apple buckin' look as easy as apple pie, and once you get the hang of it it really is. However it's also very dangerous. You gotta the buckin' process just right or else you could get really messed up. First time your mom tried it, she almost threw her back out. Don't tell her I told you though, or she'll make me sleep on the couch all week."
Big Mac and Applejack chuckled at the image, their father could barely fit on that old couch without sitting up.
"Now then, watch what I do," Bright Mac instructed to his two children. "First ya gotta give the tree a good tap with your hoof, so you can feel how deep the wood runs and know how much strength to use. Too little and ya won't knock anythin' done, but too much and you could bring more than just apples down. I should know, I've accidentally felled a few trees before their time," He proceeded to tap one of his front hooves against the trunk of the tree, getting a good feeling for just how sturdy it really was. Then he turned around so that his back hooves were facing toward the tree.
"When you're ready it's a simple matter of linin' up your hooves just right and kickin'! If you feel like you need more power you can run up to the tree and turn around right at the trunk. All that matters is that you put as much effort as you can. Do that all just right, and the apples will fall," Bright Mac proceeded to effortlessly kick the tree and knock the apples down where they landed in several wooden buckets. "Apple buckin' doesn't just happen whenever you want it to happen," The stallion was quick to add. "The apples need time to ripen, which is why we have specific buckin' times."
"That's easy! A mere child could do all of that in a heart beat!" Big Macintosh boasted.
"Yeah, I reckon Big Mac and I could buck just as many trees as you can, Pa." Applejack smiled even though deep down she was not so sure of her own strength. Granny Smith said it had taken her longer than most foals to start walking on her own power. But nopony ever said that had anything to do with apple bucking.
Bright Macintosh looked at his children, ruffling their manes with a hoof. "Well then, how's about you both try it out for yourselves? Don't worry, it's okay if you don't get it right away. Took me months before I could even come close to considerin' myself an expert on apple buckin'. So who'd like to go first?"
Big Mac raised a hoof. "Me, me!" He declared.
The elder Mac nodded, he'd always noted how similar his son was to him. There was a reason why they'd called him Big Macintosh after all. "Okay, Big Mac. You can go first. Don't be shy, just give it your best shot."
Big Mac seemed to suddenly grow ever so slightly nervous. He usually didn't ever admit to it, especially not within ear shot of his sister. His father seemed to know what his son was thinking without him even needing to say, he was good in that fatherly sort of way. "It's okay, son. It's a first attempt, nopony expects you to be perfect."
The not so little colt with a coat of red, feeling boosted by his father's words, repeated the steps he'd seen his father make just moments earlier. Planting his hooves firmly against the tree trunk he gave it a good, swift kick. The trunk shook in response and a couple of apples managed to fall into the buckets.
Bright Mac clapped his hooves as Big Mac swelled with pride anew, and Applejack found herself struggling to keep from getting flustered. Why did her brother have to always be so good at everything? Just once could she be better at something than him?
Well she was about to find out. Now it was her turn to attempt apple bucking. The filly tried her best to concentrate on what she'd already seen her father and her brother do. "I've gotta be strong, just like Rockhoof!" She thought to herself. "They say Rockhoof was as strong as ten regular stallions and mares combined! And he used to be a scrawny little colt. If he could become even stronger than my dad, a pony like me should be able to buck a few apples from a tree."
In her mind the filly imagined herself not unlike Rockhoof when he was staring down that angry volcano threatening to engulf his beloved village in molten lava. The mighty stallion had shown no fear on that day, he'd simply let out a roar and proclaimed for all to hear. "I shall defend my village to the very end if I must! For that is a part of my creed!" And in the end, armed with nothing but his trusty shovel, he had managed to dig a deep enough trench for the lava to harmlessly flow away.
"Applejack, I already know the story of Rockhoof. You've told me to a hundred thousand times already," Apple Bloom protested as she interrupted the story. "And Miss. Cheerilee ain't gonna be interested in hearin' it again. I thought you were gonna tell me how you came to appreciate Rockhoof so much and how he wasn't just strong in a physical sense."
Present Applejack sighed. "I know, sugarcube, I know," She motioned with her hooves. "It's just... what comes next... it ain't somethin' I like talkin' bout or even thinkin' about."
Apple Bloom just scoffed at her big sister's worries. "Oh come on now, it can't be any worse than when your lies almost cost ya your friendship with Rarity."
But Applejack shook her head in shame and covered her raging blush with her stetson. "Oh it was worse than that, alright. Least when that happened I could honestly say that nopony got hurt. But if I said the same about my first apple buckin' attempt in front of Pa and Big Mac, I'd be lyin' through my teeth."
"Really? How bad was it?" The farm filly questioned her elder sister with a curious look on her face.
"Bad enough to put me in the hospital. I thought for sure I'd busted my legs up so much that I wouldn't be able to buck again." Applejack shamefully confessed.
In Applejack's flashback her story picked up from that point, many painful days of laying in a hospital bed with her back hooves in tightly wrapped casts. At one point all of her family was by her bed side, looking over her with varying displays of worry.
Through it all her father never left her, not even once. He seemed to blame himself for what had happened.
A young Nurse Redheart simply tsked as she changed the bandages on Applejack's hooves for what felt like the hundredth time. "You're lucky you only sprained your hooves, young missy. I've seen ponies your ages with far worse injuries, some of whom have never recovered," In a softer and gentler tone of voice she then added. "So long as you stay off those hooves and don't try anything too stressful, you can go home tomorrow."
"I take it she won't be doin' any applebuckin' anytime soon?" Bright Mac questioned the nurse as the casts were done up with fresh bandages.
Nurse Redheart shook her head. "I most certainly think not. Doctor's orders are for her to stay away from anything that taxing on her hooves for the better half of a month, maybe even longer," And she frowned. "In fact I'd say her hooves aren't strong enough for applebucking and won't be for at least another two years."
"What?! Two years?!" Applejack and Bright Mac both exclaimed together!
"Yes, two years," The nurse firmly replied. "Any premature applebucking runs the risk of permanently damaging her hooves to a point where it'll be far worse than a sprain."
"Can't you just cast spells that'll make my back hooves stronger?" Applejack pleaded. "I wanna be as strong as my brother."
But Nurse Redheart protested quite firmly. "You probably never will be. Your brother's as strong as any earth pony since your father was his age. Your strength isn't anywhere near the same level, it's not likely to be much higher than it is now. Besides, your father is still in the prime of his youth, I reckon he's got several years worth of applebucking left in him. There's bound to be other chores you can do around your family farm." And with that she departed, leaving a disappointed and dissatisfied Applejack to sulk and stew in her hospital bed.
The farm filly let out a groan. "It's not fair! Why does my brother have to be so much stronger than I am?! I wanna be as strong as Rockhoof, Pa! I wanna be able to buck just as many trees as you can!" Then she unhappily sighed, it was a long, drawn out sigh too. "But I couldn't even buck one measly tree. I'll bet even Granny Smith can buck better than I can. Why can't I be as strong as Rockhoof? He was never weak, he could handle a tree like that no problem."
At that Bright Mac looked down at his daughter and his face morphed into a rare frown. Applejack could seldom remember a time when she'd seen her father not looking chipper and upbeat. "Applejack, there's a whole lot more to a pony than just physical strength. Rockhoof was admired not just because he was strong, but because he had a big heart," Bright Mac told his daughter. "Even when he was just a scrawny little colt though, there was one thing he had that others had never seen before. Courage. Courage that guided him even when he was afraid."
"You mean, like when he saved his village with only his trusty shovel?" Applejack asked.
"Eeyup," Bright Mac nodded. "But that courage came in handy for more than just facin' down an angry volcano. Did I ever tell you the story of how Rockhoof joined the Mighty Helm in the first place?"
"I... don't believe you did." Applejack realized.
Bright Mac laughed and then adjusted his stetson. "Well of course I haven't. I reckon though that the time has come for you to hear it. It's quite the tale."
Long ago in a village that sat alone on a volcanic island, a scrawny young colt by the name of Rockhoof became fascinated by the guardians who watched over his village like a hawk protecting its nest: The Mighty Helm.
Led by their fierce captain, the Mighty Helm trained hard everyday not far from where Rockhoof lived. He would often sneak away to watch them practice, his eyes lighting up like a little kid on Hearth's Warming Day as he observed all the ins and outs of their movements.
At last he became old enough to enlist in the helm itself. The very day he was able to meet the age requirements, the colt marched himself over to the helm and announced his intent to join them.
But the members of the Mighty Helm all laughed at him, for his body had not kept up with his age and he remained as scrawny as he had ever been. "You could barely even lift ten pounds, kid," A helm member snickered. "You'd have to be able to manage at least ten times that weight to join."
"Tell you what," Another helm member taunted and threw a shovel at the colt's hooves. "Why don't you use that and knock yourself out? It'll be good practice for lifting swords and spears."
Rockhoof ignored all the taunts and jeers the helm members threw at him and he accepted the shovel without hesitation. It took every ounce of strength he currently had just to be able to lift it.
Not one to give up when the going got rough, Rockhoof dedicated himself to growing and building up his strength. "I'll show them all. If my size is the problem then I'll just have to beef myself up until I can prove to them I'm every bit as strong as they are!" He declared.
Day in and day out from that point forward, Rockhoof trained hard. With the shovel in his teeth or his hooves he would dig holes until his body ached. He also ran laps all around his village until he had no more breath, and set up a make-shift obstacle course to push every part of his body and mind to its absolute limit.
The training was intense and most ponies would've likely called it quits from day one. But Rockhoof would never give up, days stretched into weeks, weeks into months, and months into years. All the while those who were close to Rockhoof became amazed at the transformation he underwent. In the blink of an eye he seemed to go from being that scrawny little colt to being a towering giant. Before long he was digging mile wide trenches with the greatest of ease and could even lift boulders with his shovel, which never left his side.
In fact he was heard to say. "My shovel and I, we make a fine pair. I'd sooner die than part with it."
At last the stallion felt that he had pushed himself as far as he could go, and there was only one thing left for him to do. Marching up to the Mighty Helm one day, all were amazed to see just what had become of the little colt they had dismissed all those years ago. "I hope you lads have saved a spot for me on the helm," Rockhoof declared to them. "Because my shovel and I aren't taking no for an answer. We're ready to serve."
The helm's captain, Steela Oresdotter stepped forward to greet Rockhoof and extended her hoof towards him. "And serve you shall, Rockhoof. From this day onward, the Mighty Helm is your family. And you will know me not only as your captain, but as your best friend."
Rockhoof beamed with delight and shook Steela's hoof, surprising everyone with how firm his hoofshake was. "A thousand pardons, Captain," He said with a blush. "It seems I will have to learn to control my strength. After all, I wouldn't wanna send my new family members to the hospital." And at that everyone had a good laugh.
"So do you see now, Applejack?" Bright Mac inquired of his daughter. "True strength isn't about bein' the best at somethin' or bein' able to bend trees to your will with one kick. True strength comes from within and takes on many different forms. True strength can be doin' what you know is right even when it costs you personally. True strength can be standin' up for what you believe in. And it can even be simply the act of gettin' back up and tryin' again when you fall down . To be strong is not to be without equal, to be strong is to work hard, to do better than what you could do before."
"So you mean, if I really work hard enough, I could one day buck apples like you and Big Mac?" Applejack questioned in reply.
Bright Mac laughed anew. "Probably, I reckon. But for now you heard what the nurse said, best if you stay away from the buckin' and let those hooves rest," When his daughter frowned and let out a sigh he quickly added. "Oh, don't look so down in the dumps there, sugarcube. There's plenty of other chores you can do to help out around the farm, and all of 'em are just as if not more important than applebuckin'."
Applejack was released from the hospital the very next day and for a couple of days she had to walk around on crutches so as to take pressure off of her hooves. Once they had recovered and the casts came off, she started pitching in with some of the household chores. Things like washing the dishes, sorting out the laundry (as well as putting stuff out to dry or bringing it in from the clothes line), sewing, and preparing the meals.
Eventually when her hooves had fully recovered, she started doing some of the outside chores. Granny Smith taught her how to milk the cows and feed the pigs, and she was even allowed to bring in the buckets full of apples when her father and brother were done applebucking.
But the farm filly never gave up on her hope that she could one day applebuck just as well as her brother and father. Day after day when her chores were done, she would practice the procedure over and over again until she was confident she had the kicks just right. She built up her strength by kicking small rocks across the pond where she and her family would often go swimming on hot Summer days.
At last Applejack felt that she was ready, at least a year and a half had passed since her disastorus first attempt at applebucking. The doctors had said at least another half a year would be necessary, but what did they know? "As long as I'm careful I shouldn't have any trouble. I've been practicing extra hard. If Rockhoof could build himself up from a scrawny little colt with just a shovel, I should be able to buck a few apples out of a tree." She thought to herself.
It was nearly sundown and the orchard was empty, Applejack knew there wouldn't be another opportunity like this for quite a while. It was now or never! Approaching the first unoccupied tree she could lay eyes on, the filly with a coat the same orange as the sky itself at this time of evening began to repeat the process she had rehearsed numerous times before in her head. Slowly and carefully she lined up her hooves with the trunk of the tree. Any doubts she may have had about the strength of her hooves was gone, replaced by a determination to do it.
The young earth pony proceeded to charge up to the tree trunk and at the last minute she turned around and planted her back hooves firmly against the trunk, kicking hard! Nothing happened, the tree didn't even shake. Applejack felt her heart sink. This couldn't be it, after all her efforts she was still not strong enough?!
But the filly's thoughts of depression were interrupted when something suddenly struck her on the forehead. Looking up her green eyes fell upon a lush, red, apple that now rested atop her forehead! Looking down at the ground she saw that several other apples had fallen as well, bruised but otherwise unharmed. Applejack jumped for joy and let out a hearty "Yeehaw!" She then rushed back to the farm house, eager to tell everypony about her first successful applebuck!
"I'd never felt as proud as I had in that moment," Applejack narrated to Apple Bloom. "Ma and Pa could hardly believe it, and Big Mac was so impressed he was speechless for the first time in his entire life! Pa was still quite reluctant to let me applebuck after that, but eventually I won him over. I still loved to hear about Rockhoof, but I came to realize that I'd been lookin' up to him for all the wrong reasons. I admired him solely because he had power, and I failed to see that he was strong in more ways than one. All the physical strength in the world is meaningless if you don't have the emotional strength to carry on, and to keep tryin' even when you stumble. After Ma and Pa passed, that emotional strength was at times all that I had that kept me goin'."
Apple Bloom found herself stricken with amazement. "Wow! I never knew about any of that before! I knew Rockhoof wasn't just strong in a physical sense, but I never knew he felt that strongly 'bout them Mighty Helm Ponies!" And then she realized. "It's just like that lesson you learned about how friends can be like family."
Applejack nodded and then winked. "I reckon you can finally write that there report now, Apple Bloom. After all, Granny Smith says it won't be long now before you're buckin' entire orchards."
"Especially since Big Mac's got that special somepony of his he keeps sneakin' off to see." Apple Bloom teased.
"Y'all talkin' 'bout me?" Big Mac asked as he entered the room. "I thought heard ponies talkin' 'bout Rockhoof? Now that there is a pony who knew how to get a lot done while sayin' so little."
"It's for a report for Miss. Cheerilee's class," Apple Bloom explained as she trotted out of the kitchen. "And if I don't write it down soon I'm probably gonna forget about all about!" She skipped up to her bedroom and could be heard shouting. "This'll be the easiest A I ever earned!"
Big Macintosh looked across to Applejack and gave a wink. "You told her 'bout how you came to admire Rockhoof, but you never mentioned how I was the one who helped you practice applebuckin', did you?"
Applejack tried to keep a straight face. "Must've slipped my mind."
Big Mac lightly ribbed his sister. "It's alright, I don't blame ya. But next time it's my turn to tell Apple Bloom a story. There's a lot she doesn't know about me."
"Like about your whole 'Cousin Orchard Blossom' routine?" Applejack teased.
"You would've done the same thing if you were me," Big Mac defended. "And it worked, didn't it?"
"A little too well from what Granny Smith told me," Applejack giggled. "Now, about that special somepony of yours..."
Big Macintosh suddenly started to break out in a cold sweat. "Oh gee, would you look at the time? Really must be goin', I got things to do and places to be." And he left the kitchen without saying another word. Applejack just gave a knowing wink. "Oh Big Mac, there's no need to hide it. Everypony knows." She thought to herself.
S7 E17: It Isn't the Mane Thing About You (Campfire Tales, Part 2 - What If?)
"Rarity?" Diamond Tiara called as the head gear wearing filly gently pushed open the door to Carousel Boutique, the familiar jingling of the bell announcing her arrival.
There was no reply. The filly grew worried. Rarity hadn't been seen for several days and her friends were starting to grow worried. Diamond Tiara had volunteered to go check up on her, seeing as the filly had worked with the fashionista before. There were rumors that something had happened to her mane, but none could confirm it since the unicorn hadn't been seen in public.
Again the pink coated filly called out. "Rarity? It's me, Diamond Tiara. Twilight's part-time student?" But still there was no answer.
Reluctantly, Diamond made her way into the boutique, taking notice of the fact that the lights didn't seem to be on. That was not a good sign, Rarity wouldn't leave the lights off if she were home. But there were no signs of a break in and it wasn't like the fashionista to just leave her boutique unattended.
"Rarity? Are you there? Hello?" Tiara called out. "If you're hiding because your mane's messed up, it's okay. I'm not here to laugh at you. It can't be any worse than my bad mane days, and boy do I have bad mane day horror stories to tell."
Just then the lights flickered on as if by magic! The ground floor of the boutique was flooded with light and the filly had to adjust her cornflower blue eyes to the sudden change.
A familiar voice called out to the filly. "Diamond Tiara? My goodness, what a lovely surprise. I haven't seen you for ages. Twilight tells me your friendship studies are coming along nicely."
As Diamond's eyes finally adjusted to the light, they beheld a most unusual sight. One that made her blink and rub her eyes.
There stood the familiar figure of Rarity. But two noticeable things were different about her. One was the dark purple jacket with a spiky collar that she proudly wore. And the other was a mane that looked like more like seaweed than an actual mane, and sported odd punk like shades of green, yellow, and purple.
"Rarity, is that you?" Tiara questioned.
"Why yes it is," Rarity proudly declared. "Shocked?"
Diamond could barely believe her eyes and was rendered speechless. To see Rarity in such a state was not just surprising, it was earth shattering. Was this really the same pony or was she secretly a changeling doing a very poor job at imitating the pony she'd replaced?
Rarity just approached the speechless filly with a giggle. "I know my appearance right now must be a lot for you to take in, darling," She spoke in a gentle tone of voice. "I know what you must be thinking but I assure you that I am the real Rarity."
"How do I know for sure?" Tiara questioned. "And how do I know this isn't all some weird dream or something?"
"Why if it was a dream, would you be able to feel this?" Rarity inquired and lightly tapped the filly on the shoulder.
Diamond swished her tail in surprise, she'd most definitely felt that. "So maybe this isn't a dream, maybe this is all real. But why in the world are you dressed like that, and why is your mane all punk like? I thought a pony like you wouldn't be caught dead in such attire."
At that Rarity frowned and stumbled back, her confidence appeared to falter very briefly. Her lips quivered as she seemed to become unsure of herself. "I... don't exactly like to remember it. It was quite an unfortunate set of circumstances."
"Was it really that bad?" Tiara innocently inquired of the unicorn. "Nopony's seen you for almost a week now, some were beginning to think you'd dropped off the face of the world or something."
"Well as you can see, they were wrong," Rarity chuckled before her tone of voice became noticeably more somber. "But my mane... well I decided it best to spare everyone the misfortune of having to see my mane in its atrocious state, what was left of it anyway." And at that she began to recall the series of rather unfortunate events that had ultimately led to her current punk like appearance.
After a full day of going around town and helping other ponies sort out their problems, Rarity decided to stop by Sugarcube Corner for a well deserved sweet treat. She had another reason for being there though, a rather urgent one at that. Because normally she would've stopped back at her boutique to make sure there were no outstanding orders to fill, and that her help wasn't needed at either of her other shops.
"Pinkie!" Rarity had cheerfully called as she entered the shop. "I hope you're not busy, because I could most certainly use your assistance. Photo Finish will be here later this week to do a photo shoot for Vanity Magazine's 'Most Beautiful Manes' edition, naturally my mane's going to be in the pages. But since she's coming all this way to Ponyville, I was hoping you'd know what her favorite treat is. After all you've got files on just about everyone from what I hear."
Pinkie was indeed in the shop, but not behind the counter like she normally was. No, today was a special occasion and her skills as a party pony had been needed. So she was currently on the floor with the twins, Pound and Pumpkin Cake, the both of them smiling up at her as she had placed two cupcakes on matching plates in front of them. Both of which had a candle in the shape of the number one.
Rarity put her hooves to her mouth in realization. "Oh, am I interrupting something important? I can probably come back later." She apologized to her friend. She prepared to leave when Pinkie pulled her close to the twins.
"Oh no no, silly filly," Pinkie said with a giggle. "In fact you're just in time for the celebration!"
"And just what are we celebrating today?" Rarity questioned her party planning friend.
Pinkie beamed with pride and proudly declared. "Why, the first anniversary of the twins' first major sneeze of course. And goodness, what a sneeze was." She cooed as she lightly ruffled both Pound and Pumpkin's manes and the twins happily gurgled back at her.
"Really? I thought it was for something else." The fashionista pondered in confusion. The one downside to having a party planning friend is that when she held celebrations and parties every day or every other day, they had a tendency to start blending together.
"Oh, you're thinking of the anniversary of them starting potty training," The pink party pony realized and then giggled anew. "Silly Rarity, that's not for another week. Mr. and Mrs. Cake are already planning something big for that. Trust me."
"So, if we're not celebrating that then why exactly are we celebrating the sneeze?" Rarity inquired.
"Because no milestone is too insignificant to be celebrated, no matter how small! That's what it means to be a party pony!" Pinkie declared. Then she grabbed an accordion and a harmonica, and began to sing a little song. And went it something like this:
Just about a year ago,
There was a great big tickle in your nose.
You snorted it throughout the nursery,
Happy Sneeze-iversary!
Achoo! Achoo! Aaaaa-choo!
At that Pinkie proceeded to squirt out an entire can worth of party string. It squirted all over the place and unfortunately some of it got onto Rarity's mane, much to the unicorn's horror. Still, she tried her best not to let it show. "Congratulations, Pinkie. You've really outdone yourself." She remarked in a noticeable deadpan tone.
"Woopsie, sorry!" Pinkie apologized. "I forgot that wasn't party string. It's super-sticky celebration string!" When Rarity growled at her (the twins meanwhile blew out the candles on their cupcakes) she added with a shrug. "I guess my sneeze-versary was a little too sneeze-abratory."
"Oh well," Rarity sighed as she looked around at the mess the string had caused. "I'm sure we can find a way to clean this up, and get this string out of my mane."
"If only we had some kind of super-sudsy mane conditioning shampoo for you and a magical cleaning remover potion for me." Pinkie suggested.
And at that the unicorn's eyes lit up as an idea came to her! "Of course, that's it! You're a genius, Pinkie!" She proceeded to happily explain. "We'll pay a visit to Zecora! She's a wonder with that cauldron of hers. I'm sure she can mix up a fix for both of us. Provided we make it through the Everfree Forest in one piece that is."
"That's why we'll go together," The pink coated earth pony declared. "It'll be just like our world saving adventures! Besides, I need to get this string out of the baked goods and at this rate I don't think my usual methods will work."
" I... think you may still have some baking to do," Rarity couldn't help but comment. "And keep that string away from the twins, or you'll have even more of a mess to clean up."
"It was all supposed to be a simple fix," Rarity explained to Diamond Tiara as she sat on the couch that usually doubled as her fainting couch. "Just a quick visit to Zecora's for something to wash the sticky string out of my mane. But..." She paused as her lips quivered and she trailed off.
Diamond tried not to gulp. "I'm guessing things didn't go so well?" She guessed.
"You are correct, Diamond," The fashionista replied. "Though in my defense Zecora really should label her potions better. Anyway, I took what I thought was the shampoo back home and rinsed with it. And you can probably guess what happened next." She then began to flash back to that fateful moment just days ago. Despite the passage of time she remembered it clear as day.
Rarity was enjoying a hot shower in the privacy of her bathroom, the bottle containing what she believed to be the mane shampoo rested near the faucet. "Ah," She spoke as she cheerfully hummed a little tune to herself. "Just what I need. A relaxing shower really gives you the chance to unwind after a long day, and focus on the fabulousity of your mane. Alright, my mane's nice and wet. Time for the shampoo," Taking up the bottle with her magic the fashionista caught a whiff of the scent contained within it. It certainly didn't smell like shampoo, but then again it wasn't a store or spa brand shampoo so who was she to judge? "Not the most pleasant scent I've ever inhaled, but if gets the job done I can't complain." She proceeded to squirt the bottle's contents into her mane and scrubbed with her hooves.
Once done the young fashionista turned off the shower head and wrapped herself in a towel as she stepped out of her tub. Steam covered her bathroom mirror so she couldn't see the condition of her mane just yet. But something felt off to her, something that the unicorn couldn't quite put her hoof on. "How very strange, my mane feels lighter alread-" She spoke as she cleared away the steam from her mirror. When she did she finally got a good look at herself, and screamed at what she saw! Her beautiful curly mane had been reduced to a small stub! It didn't take a genius to figure out what must've happened.
A short time later, with a hat to cover what remained of her mane, Rarity approached Sugarcube Corner and was nearly overwhelmed by a massive wave of suds and soap bubbles. Pinkie had definitely used the shampoo. "Hey, Rarity!" Pinkie greeted in her usual chipper tone. "That's the strangest remover potion I've ever taken, our manes are all so bouncy and soft. Not to mention they smell like they just came out of a washing machine."
"That's because you accidentally took the shampoo meant for me," Rarity answered. At that she noticed Pinkie adopt a rather guilty expression and the unicorn was quick to reassure her friend. "It's alright, I don't blame you. The bottles looked incredibly similar, we really should've asked Zecora for a label."
"Yeah, but just look all the sticky string that's still stuck to everything," Pinkie glumly replied. "That shampoo didn't do anything to it."
Rarity gave her best smile. "Not to worry, I'll simply fetch the rest of that remover potion and help you clean up. It'll be easier with four hooves instead of two," And then she cooed as she looked down at the twins. "Besides, I think these little ones are overdue for a visit from their Auntie Rarity." The twins cooed back at her in response.
"Great!" Pinkie beamed and then she added. "Say, is there something different about you, Rarity?"
"Huh? Oh no no no, darling!" Rarity dismissively waved a hoof. "You must be imaging things. Now I've got to go and fetch that remover potion, see you soon!"
"I wasn't about to let Pinkie see my mane in such a sorry state," Rarity explained to Diamond Tiara as her story ended. "It took longer than I thought to get rid of all the sticky string, by the time it was all over I decided it was best to just move the shoot to Canterlot. I recommended that Photo Finish took some pictures of Sassy's mane instead, and I'd imagine that's what they're doing right now."
Tiara looked across to the fashionista, her cornflower blue eyes still reflecting a clear look of confusion. "O-kay, but that still doesn't explain why you've done your mane up in that really out there style, or why you're wearing those punk like clothes. Unless they're part of some secret fashion trend I was not aware of."
At that the unicorn with a coat of pristine white shook her head. "The inspiration for my current attire was a spur of the moment thing, I decided to make the most of a bad situation and it just came to me," She then answered. "Though I was also partially motivated by the story of Mistmane, and how she gave up her own beauty to restore it to her native land. Have you heard the story?"
"I... think Miss. Cheerilee briefly talked about it last week when we started learning about ancient pony legends," Tiara answered as she massaged the back of her neck with a hoof to try and remember more details. "But maybe you could tell me more about it on the way to Twilight's castle. Your friends are all starting to worry about you, they were afraid something awful had happened to you."
Rarity seemed to nod in agreement with her young guest's suggestion. "I suppose there's no harm in going out like this. Today is far too nice a day to stay cooped up indoors. Besides, there are some orders I need to check up on."
A short time later mare and filly were out in Ponyville, and it did not take long for ponies to notice Rarity. Not just the fact that it was the first time they had seen her in almost a week, but also because they were seeing her in a state that they never expected to see her in. Her punk like appearance was unexpected and a little unsettling. If not for the cutie mark most ponies would've never believed that it was actually Rarity.
Rarity, for her part, did her best to ignore the stares and the hushed whispers that were being directed at her. "Now I know how Mistmane must've felt when she returned to her old village after years of studying abroad." She thought to herself.
Hoping to take Rarity's mind off her troubles, Diamond decided to ask. "So, about Mistmane? Exactly what does she have to do with all of this?"
"Why, Mistmane is one of my biggest inspirations of all time! She has everything to do with things like this!" Rarity firmly declared in response. "Mistmane was always a believer that true beauty can be found in everything. Even in the village in Eastern Equestria in which she grew up. In fact some were heard to say that she was not unlike a lone flower in the desert, a shining beacon of beauty."
"But didn't she also give it up and turn all wrinkly and old?" Tiara questioned. "I seem to remember that being how her story ended."
With a nod the fashionista answered. "It is true that Mistmane gave up her own beauty, but that is not even half of the whole story. There is so much more to it than that. It all started when Mistmane returned to her village after having spent years studying at the finest school abroad. Her beauty was matched only by her magical display. But when she returned, she found her village had fallen into disarray and decay."
Mistmane could hardly believe her eyes as she set hoof on the grounds of her village. Everything looked dried up and drab, as though all the beauty had been drained away. "What has become of my home land? How could it have ended up like this?" The young unicorn thought to herself. "Something horrible must've happened. But what? And why?"
Trotting through the village Mistmane looked through house after house, but no one in the village seemed willing to talk to her. A few could be heard whispering. "Is that Mistmane? But I thought they said she'd disappeared. She must be a ghost."
At that the unicorn stepped back in surprise. "A ghost? Me?" She said aloud. "Have I truly been gone that long? Have all records and knowledge of my existence vanished? No, it can't be so! Whoever or whatever is responsible for all of this must've tried to erase the fact that I was ever around. But why? Who or what would do such a thing? I've never intentionally wronged anyone."
The village itself offered no clues, no hints as to the source of Mistmane's questions and concerns. But luckily she did not have to look very far to find the answers she was seeking. As luck would have it she passed by a random villager, a stallion with a coat the same color as sand and worn blue eyes that looked like they had experienced much sorrow. "Excuse me, sir," Mistmane called to the stallion. "Would you happen to know why everything in this village is so bleak and unhappy? I believe it wasn't always like this."
The stallion let out a sigh and told Mistmane. "I do not know who you are, stranger. But you look vaguely familiar somehow," Then he added. "Still if it's information you seek, it is my duty to inform you. This village is under the control of her highness, Empress Sable Spirit I. Per her order, all things beautiful have been removed."
At that Mistmane stumbled back in shock and let out a gasp "Sable Spirit?! No, it cannot be!" The young mare could remember that she and Sable Spirit had been close friends as fillies, and Sable Spirit had been there to see her off when Mistmane left to study abroad. Sure she'd offhoofedly mentioned that she was planning to become a ruler, but the Sable Spirit Mistmane had known would never become a cold hearted empress. Especially not one that would take away the beauty of the land around her.
There had to be some kind of mistake, it couldn't be the same Sable Spirit. But there was only one way to find out for sure. "How do I go about getting a meeting with the empress?" Mistmane questioned the villager. "Please, I must know."
"You cannot simply see the empress, she is far too busy to be bothered with common tourists." The stallion protested.
And that was when Mistmane decided. "Then I don't need an appointment, I'll confront her myself. One way or another, I'll make her see what she's done to this land!"
"Ah, we're here!" Rarity called out, interrupting her story. She stopped right in her tracks as her eyes fell upon the familiar humble building of Sofas and Quills (which as Spike would attest, also stocked a fine selection of beds).
"Wait, why are we stopping here exactly?" Tiara questioned. "And what about the story? Who was the empress that Mistmane met with?"
Rarity patted Diamond on the forehead with a hoof. "Patience, Diamond Tiara, patience. All in good time. For now though I need to check up on a delivery of a certain sofa that was supposed to be delivered to me three days ago."
The two made their way inside the shop, a wide variety of sofas and quill sets rested on the many isles and were there to greet them. Towards the very back of the shop near a window rested a display of various beds in all sorts of sizes, from little baskets to princess sized mattresses.
An earth pony clerk clad in a dark blue uniform that matched his tan brown coat suddenly stepped forward. "Ah, Miss. Rarity, Diamond Tiara. To what do I owe the pleasure? Is there something I can help you with?"
"Yes, there most certainly is," Rarity spoke as she cleared her throat. "If you'll remember, about a week ago I was in here suggesting a fine yellow sofa. And I announced my intention to purchase it and to have it delivered to my boutique. But here I am almost a week later, and that sofa hasn't arrived."
At that the clerk stepped back and gulped a little. "Ah yes, about that. Terribly sorry, Miss. Rarity, but when you didn't show up to purchase it on the designated day we here at Sofas and Quills all assumed you'd changed your mind. Nopony knew where you'd disappeared to or how to get in touch with you. So we..."
"-So you did what, exactly?" The fashionista questioned.
"I think it was Berry Punch who offered to buy it from us for the same price," The clerk explained. "So we decided to sell it to her. I'm terribly sorry, ma'am. If it's any consolation, you're free to take home any of the finest sofas we stock here at no cost."
But the unicorn shook her head and sighed. "No no, darling, that's quite alright. It's really my fault. I was too busy feeling sorry about my mane to realize I had other obligations to take care of. I wasn't there to pick it up, so naturally it went to the customer who was there and could afford it. I'm sure Berry Punch will put it to good use. I'll be on my way now, thank you."
"Well, that took less time than I anticipated. I suppose I should've realized that was the answer though," Rarity frowned. "It is what it is though."
Diamond couldn't help but notice the odd glances Rarity was still getting as she trotted through Ponyville in her current punk like appearance. More than a few ponies still seemed unsure just what to make of her in this state. "Well one thing's for sure, your new punk look is gonna be the talk of the town for quite a while." The filly commented.
"I would expect nothing less. It isn't everyday a pony like yours truly changes her appearance so radically," Rarity commented in reply. "But ponies can change in more ways than one."
Tiara nodded. "I know that all too well. It's actually surprising ponies were willing to believe my change of heart after all the horrible things I'd say and did," A sigh of longing escaped her lips as she added. "Now if only my mother could be the same."
Rarity reached out a hoof to her troubled companion. "You were quite young, and you had friends willing to help you see the error of your ways before it was too late. Your mother, I'm afraid, isn't as lucky. I'm not sure what exactly could prompt a pony like her to be such a... well I guess 'witch' will suffice, even if it's nowhere near Nightmare Night yet."
At that Tiara let out a giggle. "That's my mom for you," But then her happy mood faded. "It's just... I want to believe she wasn't always so mean and heartless. I really want a mother who cares for me and loves me for who I am, not a pony who only sees me as a way to further her own social standing. I suspect that if it weren't for my father's money, she wouldn't hang around anymore or even pretend to tolerate my change in behavior."
"Mistmane felt the same way you feel now, when a pony very near and dear to her heart changed for the worse," Rarity explained. "I think it's time you heard the next part of Mistmane's story, the part where things truly take a turn."
It took a great deal of running around and talking to various villagers, but at last Mistmane was able to get an appointment with Empress Sable Spirit the I. As she made her way up the palace steps and into the throne room the young unicorn was thinking to herself. "Please let it be somepony else. Please! I need it to be somepony else!"
But when Mistmane entered the throne room and her eyes fell upon the pony resting atop the throne, her heart sank. There was no mistaking the mare who rose to greet her. It was indeed the same Sable Spirit that Mistmane had called a friend in her childhood.
"Well well, if it isn't Mistmane," Sable Spirit coldly greeted as she rose from her throne, a hiss working its way into her tone of voice. "I didn't expect to see you back here so soon, old friend. I thought you'd forgotten all about me and this little village."
Mistmane shook her head firmly in protest. "You know that's not true. This village is my home."
"Yet you gladly left it for Canterlot so you could live the greater life," Sable Spirit retorted. "And you left me to pick up the pieces."
"Sable Spirit, please!" Mistmane pleaded with her old friend. "I don't know what's gotten into you or why you're so mad with me, but this isn't the time. Look around you. Surely you've noticed that this village has been robbed of its beauty and natural grace."
Sable Spirit coldly laughed. "Oh it's no coincidence, Mistmane. I know full well the true cause of this village's drabness. A small price to pay to ensure my subjects learn their lesson," And she proceeded to explain. "There's no such thing as true beauty, anything beautiful cannot long survive in this cruel and heartless world. Surely you've seen it for yourself, how ponies will trample on nature and beauty in the name of progress. How to them looks are all that matters. It's what those hoity toity folks in Canterlot believe."
"No, Sable Spirit, you have it all wrong!" Mistmane retorted. "In all the time we spent together, I thought you understood that true beauty comes from within."
Sable Spirit simply replied. "You say that and yet look at what happened to me when I tried to bring said inner beauty forward," Lifting up her veil the unicorn revealed a noticeably aged face that was wrinkly and ragged. "Everypony always said you were the prettier one, they never stopped gushing about you. So I thought if I could give them a real beauty, they'd finally know their place and be content with my rule! But that spell did nothing except take away my youth, take away my inner beauty."
At that Mistmane snapped. "So you became a tyrant?!"
"Tyrant is such an ugly term, Mistmane. I simply felt that my subjects should share in my suffering is all," Sable Spirit answered. "I would've expected you of all ponies to understand what I suffer, to sympathize with me."
But Mistmane shook her head. "That spell did more than take away your beauty, Sable Spirit, it took away your compassion! The Sable Spirit I know would never do such a thing to anypony!"
"Well I've got news for you, Mistmane," Sable Spirit hissed anew. "The Sable Spirit that you knew is gone, and she's never coming back! So you can either stand with me, or you can get out of my sight! If these villagers care only about beauty on the outside, I'll see to it that they never again know anything beautiful! Then all will see it my way, see the world for what it truly is!"
"I can't let you do that, I'm afraid," Mistmane declared in reply. "I won't allow you to defile this village just so you can feel better about yourself."
Sable Spirit laughed and threw back her head. "Oh really? You think you can stop me? Your funeral, Mistmane. I will crush you, just as I will anyone who gets in my way!" Her horn started to ominously crackle as she used her magic to bring forth a gigantic dragon made entirely out of pure energy. Mistmane stepped back in shock! "You were a fool to challenge me, ex-friend of mine," The empress taunted. "I didn't become ruler of this village by being weak and defenseless. But if you're thinking of surrendering it's far too late for that, prepare to be pulverized into oblivion!"
But Mistmane countered with a magic spell from her own horn, creating a powerful and majestic phoenix. For a while the magical creatures clashed with neither side appearing to gain even an inch. Mistmane seemed to visibly strain herself just to maintain her phoenix, while Sable Spirit didn't appear to be breaking a sweat at all.
All of a sudden though, Mistmane's phoenix began to glow! It quickly wrapped itself around the dragon and in a blinding flash of white light both creatures vanished! "What?! But?! How?! There's no way you could've..." Sable Spirit growled.
"You left me no other choice, my old friend," Mistmane sadly declared. "My time in Canterlot allowed me to hone my magical skills. But my greatest teacher of all was nature itself, and the very same beauty you robbed from this village, shall now be what brings you down!"
As Mistmane spoke a series of vines suddenly sprouted up from the ground. Sable Spirit tried to blast them but to no avail, as they simply shrugged off her attacks and continued to encroach on her without hesitation. The vines grabbed ahold of the empress and held her aloft, preventing her from doing anything. Sable Spirit I had been dethroned.
"Now you shall atone for your crimes, empress," Mistmane replied to her former friend. "And I shall do what I can to undo your actions. This village shall again know beauty and peace."
"But Mistmane's story doesn't end there," Rarity cautioned to Diamond Tiara. "Not every tale ends splendidly for the hero I'm afraid."
"What do you mean, Rarity? Did Mistmane die?" Diamond asked with a gulp.
Rarity shook her head. "Oh no no no, of course not, darling. Like all the great legends of old Mistmane didn't die," The fashionista decided to leave out the part about Mistmane mysteriously disappearing without a trace and no clue as to her whereabouts. "But there was a price to pay to bring back the beauty that her village had lost."
Tiara gulped anew, Rarity's tone of voice filling her entire body with dread. "So what exactly happened to Mistmane, Rarity? If she didn't die, what did she do?"
Before the fashionista had a chance to explain and continue her story, a very frantic Filthy Rich came rushing up to the flower stand run by Lily, Daisy, and Roseluck, holding a huge bouquet of flowers in all sorts of different colors. He appeared to be out of breath if the heavy pants he was giving off were any indication. "Please," He pleaded with the trio of flower ponies. "Ya gotta take all these back. I should've known not to buy Spoiled flowers without askin' her what she likes. I thought I'd do somethin' nice and surprise her. Guess I should've known she doesn't like surprises."
"W-well we'd be glad to take back your flowers, Fil... er I mean Mr. Rich," Daisy nervously replied. "But uh... what kind of flowers does Spoiled want exactly?"
At that Filthy gulped. "That's the thing, I don't know. I didn't have time to ask. Spoiled just yelled at me and told me to take back the flowers."
"Well we can't help you if we don't know what your wife's looking for," Lily nervously protested. "Mare's Day is just around the corner, we have a very limited stock at the moment."
Having seen the whole display unfold before her cornflower blue eyes, Diamond rolled her eyes. "Well I can safely say nothing's changed between my parents," She commented to Rarity. "Somehow I don't think a talk about 'inner beauty' and things like that would get my mom to see sense. She's as self-centered as that Sable Spirit pony."
"Maybe so," Rarity nodded in agreement. "But that still doesn't mean we can just ignore a pony in need. Wait right here, Diamond, this won't take long," Then the fashionista trotted up to Filthy Rich with a smile on her face. "Excuse me, Mr. Rich," She politely greeted. "You seem to be having some relationship troubles. I don't suppose I could offer my suggestions?"
Filthy all but threw himself at Rarity's hooves. "Please, ya gotta help me! I didn't mean to make Spoiled all upset with me! I want her to be happy, to feel like she means somethin' to me!"
"Well never fear, darling," The fashionista declared. "Because lucky for you, I have the perfect solution in mind. I always find it helps to get flowers that match a pony's mane or eyes, and it helps if that's their favorite color. Instead of a whole rainbow of colors, just pick one matching set and go with it. You can do more with less."
"Oh, you're a lifesaver, Rarity!" Filthy proudly exclaimed. "Just name your price, 'cause I know I owe you big time for this!"
But Rarity waved a hoof. "Nonsense, Mr. Rich, this favor won't cost you a thing. I'm just happy to help."
"And help you have!" Filthy beamed! Then he rushed to go purchase flowers that matched Spoiled's mane (and just to be safe he bought a second set that matched her eyes).
"You think that'll work?" Diamond commented. "I mean this is my mom we're talking about here."
But Rarity smiled in response. "I've never met a pony yet who's said no to flowers that match their mane or their eyes. I'm sure even Spoiled can't say no to that. And if she does, well she can take it up with me."
"Yeah, well anyway," Tiara spoke up, eager to change the subject. "What exactly happened to Mistmane after she defeated that empress? You said she didn't die."
"And I was telling the truth," Rarity replied with a sigh. "But I was also right when I said that not all stories end splendidly. Mistmane's tale has a rather somber conclusion to it." And she proceeded to conclude her story as she and Diamond trotted back to Carousel Boutique together.
True to her word Mistmane set about trying to restore the natural beauty of the landscape, and make her village as beautiful as she had remembered it being.
But even with her incredible magical abilities, Mistmane found it next to impossible to get anything to grow in the soil. It seemed to be void of life entirely. Whatever Sable Spirit had done to the land it became clear to Mistmane that it would take decades for the soil to recover.
That didn't seem fair at all. Just because Sable Spirit had become obsessed with destroying beauty did not mean the village should have to continue to suffer. And so it was that she made a fateful decision, one that would forever come to define her and cement her status as a legend.
Mistmane, a pony with beauty that none could hope to rival, gave up her beauty in order to restore life to the world around her. As she did so her body noticeably aged, becoming saggy and wrinkly. Her overall appearance changed too, becoming more slouchy as her back seemed to curve and bend.
Even Sable Spirit was shocked when her friend visited her in jail a short time after the transformation. "You didn't have to do that, Mistmane," She protested. "Why must you give up your own good looks just to save a few plants?"
Mistmane shook her head, and as she spoke her voice sounded noticeably aged. "You still don't get it, do you, Sable Spirit? I always said that true beauty comes from within, but there is also a saying that goes 'Beauty is only fur deep'. There's more to life than looking pretty. It doesn't matter if you're the most beautiful pony in all of Equestria, without plants no village can long survive. For no plants means no food, and no food means no civilization. Maybe someday you'll come to understand, that if all you ever care about is looks you'll never make it far in this world."
Sable Spirit growled. "You're a fool! You could've had it all and you've foolishly thrown it all away!"
Mistmane only sighed and sadly turned away, leaving the jail. "It seems you are lost, my old friend. I don't know whether this all stems from your jealousy towards me at being accepted to study in Canterlot, or if something else has led you astray. Perhaps, one day, you'll see the error of your ways and make amends. Until then though, I'm afraid there isn't much I have to say to you other than goodbye."
From her jail cell Sable Spirit watched as her aged former friend trotted off, disappearing into the distance like a ghost. She would never go on to hear about all the wonderful things Mistmane would do for others. But Mistmane's status as a legend would only continue to grow, and before long ponies from far and near came flocking to the village she'd grown up in. All of them eager to hear the stories of how Mistmane had come to be, and of how she had sacrificed so much to bring beauty back to her own home land.
"Wow, that was... surprisingly unhappy for a story about a legendary pony." Diamond commented to Rarity as they entered Carousel Boutique and Rarity sat down to rest on her fainting couch.
"Indeed it is, but it serves as a reminder of the price we all pay if we focus too much on beauty and lose sight of other things that are just as important," Rarity cautioned. "It's why Mistmane remains my favorite legend, like Starswirl the Bearded for Twilight or Rockhoof for Applejack."
Tiara nodded. "I can see why ponies are so attracted to those old legends, and why Miss. Cheerilee wants us all to study them. Maybe if I'd learned about them sooner, I could've become a nicer pony a lot sooner than I did."
Rarity just replied. "Well you've certainly come a long way in such a short amount of time. I can hardly believe you're the same filly who used to give Sweetie Belle and her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders so much grief back in the day. It's funny what a difference time can make."
"So, is your mane going to stay like that forever, Rarity?" The pink coated filly questioned.
At that the fashionista firmly shook her head. "No. I went to see Zecora after the mix-up, and she told me in her own way that in time my mane would grow back, although she didn't say when," She just sighed. "It's a shame I had to give up on my dream of being in Vanity Magazine's 'Most Beautiful Manes' edition because of that. But on the bright side it gave me a chance to dabble in this new punk attire, I hear it's all the rage with more than a few ponies these days."
Diamond couldn't help but giggle. "I know that if I ever showed up at home looking like that, Mother would faint right on the spot and Father would be wondering where he went wrong. Then I'd probably have the look scrubbed out of me."
"Speaking of home, it does seem to be getting quite late," Rarity observed. "You should probably run on home now, I wouldn't want you getting into trouble with your parents because of me. And be sure to let my friends know that I'm a-okay when you get a chance."
"Will do, Rarity," Tiara saluted and then ran off. "See you around! And thanks for everything!"
One week later, as Rarity was still waiting for her mane to return to its natural curly state, she was most surprised to receive a visitor. Said visitor quickly revealing itself as none other than Diamond Tiara.
"Rarity! Rarity! Guess what?!" The pink coated filly proudly declared! "The latest edition of Vanity Magazine's 'Most Beautiful Manes' just hit the stands today! And you're never going to believe who's on the front cover!"
Rarity just laughed. "I'm sure it's Sassy Saddles, Diamond Tiara. After all, I told you I was having her host Photo Finish instead of me. Sassy's mane is every bit as fashionable as mine, and Canterlot Carousel could use the free publicity. Besides, for me it doesn't really matter who's on the cover. My scheduled appearing on it was just a happy coincidence."
But Tiara just shoved the magazine into Rarity's face and told her. "You must read it!"
"Oh, alright, I'll play along with your little game," Rarity giggled as she ruffled Diamond's mane with a hoof. With her magic she picked up the magazine and held it in front of her eyes. But when she took one look at the cover she gasped, she could hardly believe her eyes! "I don't believe it! It's... me!" She exclaimed! "But how?! I cancelled the shoot and told Photo Finish to do one with Sassy instead."
Then the fashionista noticed a note sticking out of her copy of the magazine. Her curiosity attracted to the small slip of paper, she grabbed it with her magic and carefully unfolded it. The note read as follows:
Dear Rarity,
We heard about what happened with your mane and how you cancelled your dream shoot because of it.
We decided that you needed a little reminder of how beautiful you are both inside and out, so we pulled a few favors and arranged for Photo Finish to do a private shoot of you shining on the inside, doing what you do best.
By now copies of this magazine will be on every newsstand across Equestria, and your punk mane will surely be the newest fashion trend.
But we hope that you won't forget that you're beautiful no matter what you wear and no matter what you look like.
Sincerely,
Hondo "Magnum" Flanks and Cookie "Pearl" Crumbles
Rarity's lips started to quiver ever so slightly and she found herself at a loss for words. "This is... incredible!" She exclaimed! "Oh Mother, Father, thank you!" And she held the cover depicting her in her punk mane tightly. For her it had just become her newest prized possession.
S7 E18: The Brave Little Wonderbolt (Campfire Tales, Part 3 - What If?)
Despite being the newest member of the Wonderbolts, Thunderlane thought nothing was out of the ordinary when he was called into Spitfire's office one day. She probably just wanted to discuss something with him, perhaps a message about staying focused on his training and not on his little brother, Rumble.
It really worried Thunderlane that Rumble was so obsessed with being like his brother, an obsession that had been consuming him ever since his big brother had joined the ranks to fill the spot left vacant by Cool Breeze's retirement.
"If only Rumble understood, he can't possibly be a Wonderbolt at his age," Thunderlane thought to himself. "That is, unless he'd like to be the team mascot. Although come to think of it, that wouldn't be so bad. We could dress him up in all sorts of cute outfits and take him along to press conferences and photo shoots. I could keep an eye on him without having to hire a foalsitter."
Shaking his head the stallion turned his thoughts back to the reasons behind his captain calling him into her office. He really needed to focus on that. As a Wonderbolt he was first and foremost required to focus on the team.
Lightly rapping a hoof against the door of Spitfire's office, Thunderlane soon heard the response. "Come in, Thunderlane."
Trotting into the room, Thunderlane carefully closed the door behind him and locked eyes with Captain Spitfire. It still amazed him how a pony like her could be captain at such a young age, and keep that look. The pegasus stallion was so sure that if it were him in the position of captain, he'd have a mane consisting entirely of grey locks by now.
"Ah, Thunderlane, so glad you come," Spitfire smiled. "Don't worry, you're not in any trouble. In fact, you're just the sort of pony I wanted to see. I have a special job for you today."
"R-really, for me?" Thunderlane did his best to maintain a straight face. He didn't want to seem too excited before he knew what his assignment was (though hopefully it wasn't cleaning the entire compound, that was a task he hated getting stuck with). "Captain, you shouldn't have."
But Spitfire simply replied. "But I did. You've been working so hard since you joined our ranks a short time ago, Thunderlane. I daresay I haven't seen a newbie with so much potential since Rainbow Dash, and I see a lot of myself in her. Anyway, I called you here today, because I want to officially place you in charge of managing the cadets' annual retreat to Baltimare."
"What?! A retreat?! Me?!" Thunderlane exclaimed.
Spitfire nodded. "You heard right, Thunderlane. This is a big honor for you, you should feel privileged."
"Oh I am, but why me exactly? Shouldn't you be running something like this?" Thunderlane pondered.
The young captain replied to the newbie. "Normally I would be, but unfortunately this year the cadets' retreat also falls on the same day as the start of trials week here at the academy. And after what happened last time, I think it's abundantly clear that I can't forsake my duties to the new recruits. I may be hard on them, but I always see potential in every single one of 'em."
"Rainbow Dash was right," Thunderlane teased with a snicker. "You really do have a soft spot."
At that Spitfire tried her hardest to suppress some giggles as she rose from her seat. "It's funny you should mention, Rainbow Dash, Thunderlane. Because that brings me to my next announcement."
"And that would be?" Thunderlane questioned.
But just then the door knob turned, and into the room trotted Rainbow Dash all decked out in full Wonderbolts attire. "Hey, Captain," She greeted to Spitfire. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything but I was just wondering if..." But then her wandering eyes fell upon Thunderlane.
Thunderlane was equally rendered speechless. Spitfire just looked at the two and said to them. "Well, like it or not you two are officially partners on this."
Thunderlane was the first one to speak up after a long silence. "Captain, why exactly is Rainbow Dash here? I thought I was the one taking the cadets on their retreat."
"Well it's a big job, Thunderlane," Spitfire explained in reply. "Far too big for one pony to do the job alone. Since Soarin and Fleetfoot share the role of second in command, and Misty Fly is busy with other things, Rainbow Dash decided to volunteer before I could pick names out of a hat. But you two should work fine together."
Rainbow beamed. "This is a big honor, Thunderlane! I hope you're not gonna turn it down! The cadets will be gushing about you for months to come," And then she added. "This is our chance to really leave a lasting impression on the next crop of future Wonderbolts."
Thunderlane nervously retorted. "I don't know, Rainbow Dash. I've only been a Wonderbolt for the better half of five months now," With a gulp he added. "I've never even been to Baltimare. Heck, I've only just gotten used to flying to and from Ponyville and Cloudsdale."
"Ah, what's the matter, Thunderlane?" Rainbow teased as she trotted over. "Don't tell me you're afraid of a little responsibility. I've heard how well you manage with Rumble."
"S-so what? T-that's different," Thunderlane retorted. "Rumble's just one pony. I couldn't possibly manage an entire group of them, especially when I'm supposed to take them somewhere I've never been to before."
Rainbow just continued to tease Thunderlane with a fiendish grin on her face, locking eyes with him as she said to the stallion. "Come now, Thunderlane, it's just a couple of cadets. You were a cadet once too. Besides, you've got me to help you," And then she added. "What would Rumble say if he found out his big brother was trying to get out of his big pony responsibilities? He'd never let you hear the end of it, and you know how much you try to set a good example for him to follow."
At that the pegasus stallion began to growl ever so lightly. "If you're trying to get under my fur, Rainbow Dash, it's working."
"Good, I hope it is," The cyan coated speedster retorted. "Come on, Thunderlane, this'll be fun. It beats having to clean the compound after flight practice, right?"
"You're not going to let up until I say 'yes' aren't you?" Thunderlane arched an eyebrow upward. "Fine, I guess I'll go along with you and take the cadets on their retreat. But it's only this one time."
Rainbow grinned from ear to ear. "I knew you'd come around eventually, Thunderlane. Trust me, Baltimare is lovely this time of year. The fresh air, the sparkling blue waters, and the sounds of the sea. It's like being on a vacation."
"When you put it like that, I suppose it's not all bad." The stallion commented as he put a hoof to his chin.
"Exactly!" Rainbow proudly declared as she put a hoof around her fellow Wonderbolt. "Now come on! We'd probably already be on our way if you weren't so worried."
"Not so fast you two," Spitfire cautioned to the newest members of the team. "Baltimare isn't all fun and games, you know. Lately there have been reported sightings of the dreaded griffon pirate Captain Hook."
Rainbow waved a hoof in a dismissive fashion. "Oh please, everypony knows Captain Hook is an just old pony's tale. There have been rumored sightings of him dating back to before Luna got back from the moon, nopony's ever actually seen him. He's just something the locals made up to attract tourists."
Spitfire shook her head. "Even so I don't want to take any chances. I'm ordering you two to stay away from him at all costs. Don't even look at him if you should happen to spot his ship," And she then added. "If he's out there and he spots you, he's sure to think you've been sent by the princess to bring him in and he'll take it as a sign of war. So under no circumstances should you make any attempt to engage him."
"Aw come on, can't I at least get a good look at him?" Rainbow pleaded.
"No, you cannot get a look at him!" Spitfire retorted. "Please, you two, I want you to promise me right here, right now. Promise me that no matter what, you'll stay away from that pirate captain and let him go about his business. If anything happens to the cadets because of him, I won't hesitate to kick you two out of the Wonderbolts. Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, Captain." Rainbow and Thunderlane both said at once.
The young captain smiled and leaned back in her chair. "Good, just making sure we're on the same page. I don't think you'll actually run into Captain Hook though, so long as you stay close to the shore line that is. The sightings of Hook have only been on the open seas."
"Don't worry, Captain," Thunderlane saluted. "The cadets will be safe with us, you have our word. And if Rainbow even thinks of trying anything, I'll be there to reign her in."
"Excellent," Spitfire nodded. "Now you two had better get going, the cadets are sure to be growing restless. See you in a week."
"Same to you, Captain," Rainbow replied. "And try not to have too much with the new recruits. You know you have a tendency to overdo."
"No promises." The captain teased. And she waved a hoof as the two newest members of her team left her office. "Well, now I can rest easy," She thought to herself. "I just hope Misty Fly can keep the peace between Soarin and Fleetfoot by herself for the week."
Among the cadets that were waiting for Rainbow Dash and Thunderlane at the edge of the academy runway, were some familiar faces such as Angel Wings, Sky Stinger, and Vapor Trail. Though they were familiar with Rainbow they were quite surprised to see Thunderlane with her.
"Alright, cadets! Who's ready for a week of fun in the sun at Baltimare?!" Rainbow eagerly questioned. The cadets all replied by stomping their hooves in excitement!
"Okay then, everypony, let's get going," Thunderlane ordered. "But remember, we work as a team. So no going off by yourself and no unnecessary risks. Break the rules and you'll be sent home early." Then after slipping on his flight goggles (and Rainbow did the same) he took off with the cadets following close behind in single file fashion.
Before long, with Rainbow and Thunderlane leading the pack, the pegasi had left Cloudsdale and were flying out to Baltimare on Equestria's east coast. The trip passed largely in silence, as the newest Wonderbolts did not know what to say and just glanced back at the cadets from time to time to make sure no one had broken off from the formation.
Soon they reached their destination, the familiar sea breezes and call of the seagulls left no mistake as to the location. But when the group arrived, they soon took notice of a very puzzling and troubling matter. Namely the fact that all the shops and stands seemed to be closed, and all the houses boarded up as doors were shut tight and windows locked. It seemed like the entire town was afraid of something, or someone.
Only a few Baltimare residents were out on the docks, and they seemed to moving fast to haul up their cargo and leave. No one seemed willing to go out to sea despite the fact that there was not a cloud in sight, and the sea was so calm and smooth it was like a mirror.
Something was definitely not right here, Baltimare was a peaceful town. It wasn't like Ponyville where there was always the threat of something coming out of the Everfree Forest, or like Manehattan or Fillydelphia were there were dark alleys that housed all sorts of evil doers waiting to pounce on unexpecting victims.
So why was the entire city on edge and boarded up like it expected to be hit by a bad storm at any moment? There had to be a reason.
Sensing that the only way to get information was to ask somepony, Rainbow decided to approach an earth pony stallion who busy unloading the last few crates from his ship. His coat was a chestnut brown in color and his mane and tail were the same sea-green color as foam from the waves. He sported black eyes and a cutie mark depicting an anchor, and was currently clad in a white sailor's hat.
"Excuse me, sir," Rainbow inquired as she lightly tapped the stallion with a hoof. "You mind telling me what's going on? Why is everypony here acting so afraid?"
"You mean you haven't heard?" The sailor stallion replied as his eyes reflected a look of great concern, bordering on outright terror. "He has returned."
"Who's he?" Rainbow questioned before a sudden realization struck her! "Wait, you don't mean-"
The sailor nodded quickly in confirmation. "The dreaded Captain Hook lay anchor here just yesterday! He and his crew pillaged and looted whatever they could get their claws on. Nothing was too insignificant to pass up. And he promised he'd be back again to collect more loot," His lips began to quiver as he added. "That Captain Hook is a monster, he cares not for anyone but himself. And that hook claw of his, I pray you never have to know what it's like to have it be wrapped around your neck."
At that Rainbow felt a great anger start to boil up inside her. It started down low, but it quickly spread upward and began to consume her every thought. Soon she was blowing steam out of her nostrils and her face was burning bright red in fury.
The cadets began to worry, some even started whispering to themselves. "Um, should we be concerned?" Vapor Trail asked.
"I don't know, but I do know that Rainbow is scary when she's angry," Sky Stinger commented. "Probably best if we all just stand back and don't provoke her. I know the look of a peeved off pony when I see it, pardon my language."
Thunderlane approached Rainbow, hoping to calm her down. Despite not knowing her nearly well as her friends or fellow Wonderbolts, he still knew that Rainbow had quite the reputation. And that whenever she got really mad she was prone to making rash decisions that didn't always end well for her. Her temper may have gotten longer since joining the Wonderbolts, but some habits were hard to change.
Rainbow immediately spun around and glared at Thunderlane. "Don't try to talk me out of this, Thunderlane. That Captain Hook has quite the nerve to pick on defenseless ponies like that," Bringing her front hooves together she declared. "It's time somepony taught him a lesson he'll never forget!"
"Let it go, Rainbow!" Thunderlane cautioned. "Let's just send a report to the royal guard and let them handle it. This is the kind of situation that calls for their specific skills."
"No, Thunderlane! By the time the royal guard got here Captain Hook will have pillaged this town dry!" The brash speedster angrily retorted as she brought her hooves together again. "We have a chance to act! We have a chance to stop him from terrorizing this town again!"
"But Spitfire specifically warned us not to go near him!" Thunderlane protested. "She said he'd take it as an act of war!"
At that Rainbow snapped back! "Far as I'm concerned he fired the first shot when he chose to attack a town that's never done anything to him! It's time he learned that he can't just do what he wants and get away with it! I'll make him see sense one way or another!"
"And if the cadets get captured or worse, what will you do then?" Thunderlane questioned. "Spitfire will have our heads for this."
"Which is why I will be going alone," The cyan coated pegasus mare answered as she began to flap her wings. "You can stay behind to watch the cadets and make sure they're safe. What good is it for me to be a Wonderbolt if I can't help those who need it? I want to be as brave and noble as Flash Magnus, and if he were here he wouldn't turn tail and run, he'd stand and fight!" Then she added. "This won't take long! I've dealt with threats far worse than just pirate captain. Captain Hook will be mere child's play for me." And before anyone could even hope to stop her, she flapped her wings and took off in a blinding blur.
Thunderlane shook his head and sighed. "Some things never change," He thought to himself. "I can't let her tackle this on her own, she's in way over her head. But first I need to take care of the cadets and make sure they're out of harm's way." So he gave a whistle and instructed. "Okay, everypony, follow me. I know a place where we can be safe."
"But what about Rainbow Dash? Is she gonna be alright?" Vapor Trail asked with worry.
"Just leave her to me," Thunderlane cautioned to the recruits. "I'll see to it that she comes back safe and sound."
Rainbow was soon flying high in the sky over Baltimare, heading out towards the open sea in search of any ships that might resemble a pirate's ship. "I'll make you wish you'd never even considered this town, Captain Hook," She mentally vowed. "When I am through with you, you'll be dreading the day you ever heard the name 'Rainbow Dash'!"
Just then, however, the speedster's ears perked up as she heard a familiar voice calling out to her. "Rainbow Dash? Rainbow Dash!" Slowing halting in midair and turning around, Rainbow's eyes fell upon the fast approaching form of Thunderlane.
"Thunderlane? What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be watching the cadets?" Rainbow questioned her fellow pegasus with noticeable concern.
"Don't worry..." Thunderlane panted. "I left them at a hotel on the mainland... told them to stay there no matter what.... Couldn't leave you to take on Captain Hook alone."
"Thunderlane, I appreciate your concern but I know what I'm doing," Rainbow retorted. "You haven't been a Wonderbolt for as long as I have, or been on the kind of world saving adventures my friends and I have embarked on! I'm used to putting myself out there to defend others and pushing myself to the limit."
"You also have friends and family who care about you, as do I," Thunderlane replied quite firmly. "This isn't like those Daring Do adventures, this is real! If we're not careful, we may not make it out of this in one piece."
The cyan coated mare snorted in response. "I know the risks, Thunderlane. This is just like Flash Magnus when he joined the royal legion. He knew there would be risks. He knew there was always a chance he might not come back from whatever mission he embarked on. But he went out there anyway, he put himself on the line to protect and defend others. And even when he was afraid he never showed it!"
"But we aren't like Flash Magnus!" Thunderlane protested in response. "Please, Rainbow Dash, think about what you're doing! If Captain Hook was able to make Spitfire worry enough for her to specifically warn us about him, then he must be dangerous!"
"Then why did you come back for me?" Rainbow questioned. "I'll be just fine on my own!"
"Will you just listen?! We're both way out of our league here, Rainbow Dash!" Thunderlane desperately pleaded. "I know you think you're being brave and maybe you are to some extent! But if we don't get out of here soon, there's no telling what that Captain Hook will do to us! Please, let's leave this to ponies who are better equipped to handle this situation!"
But just then a loud boom split the air, and mere seconds later a cannonball came whizzing past! Both pegasi turned to look, and their worst fears were realized! A massive pirate ship floated alone on the briny blue, a black flag with a skull and crossbones flapped in the breeze, leaving little doubt as to the nature of the crew onboard.
"Evasive maneuvers!" Rainbow barked out as the two pegasi began to fly around in circles, trying desperately to dodge the bombardment of cannonballs that came flying past at a tremendous rate of speed!
"Harder, men! Give 'em a taste of hot iron!" One griffon pirate barked out! "Show them no mercy! They will soon learn what happens to those foolish enough to cross the Jolly Roger and her crew. The captain won't even need to get involved."
The aerial bombardment of cannonballs continued, and the two Wonderbolts ducked and weaved around them as best they could. Neither of them wanted to admit that they were fighting a losing battle. There seemed to be no end to the cannonballs, and the crazy aerial maneuvers the two pegasi were forced to take to avoid being hit were rapidly exhausting them.
"This isn't good! They're never gonna run out of cannonballs!" Thunderlane panted. "What are we going to do, Rainbow Dash?!"
"The only thing we can do!" Rainbow proclaimed. "We'll dive bomb the ship and knock the crew overboard. They won't know what hit 'em! Then we can deal with the captain himself."
Thunderlane gulped. "You sure that's a good idea? What if they catch onto our plan?"
"Would you rather stay up here and get knocked out of the sky?" Rainbow retorted.
Thunderlane reluctantly couldn't argue with that. But even so he couldn't help but think to himself. "I've got a very bad feeling about this." Still he forced himself to get into position with Rainbow, and the two then swooped low and charged at the ship!
Most of the crew were indeed knocked over aboard, taken by surprise. They quickly scrambled for any floating objects they could grab hold of and clung to them for dear life, bobbing up and down in the water like corks.
Unfortunately, however, as the two pegasi landed to catch their breath, the door to the captain's quarter flung open! Stumbling out in a rage was a griffon with feathers as black as an unlit cave (or the sky on a starless night), his right eye was covered by an eye-patch but his left eye was a cold and unforgiving gold in color. He had a long beard of equally dark black, and on his right claw, where the index claw should be, was a long metal hook.
"Well blow me down!" The pirate captain bellowed as he starred down the two trouble makers. "I might have known those pesky ponies would send someone after me and me crew! You scurvy-ridden sidewinders should've stayed away! I have no forgiveness for those who dare to stay in my way!"
"So you're the dreaded Captain Hook who's been terrorizing Baltimare!" Rainbow realized. "Well the jig is up, you've got no crew and soon you're going to have no ship! Now give back all the loot you stole from the good ponies of Baltimare, before I make you put it back!"
But Captain Hook only taunted and jeered! "You'll never get your grubby hooves on me plunder! Not so long as I draw breath! I would sooner be run through with my own sword than give up what is rightfully mine! These treasures will fetch a fine price on the markets, and the riches will allow me to retire in splendor! I'll go down in history as the king of all pirates!" He then stuck out his hook claw! "You pesky ponies shall rue the day you thought you could fight old Captain Hook face to face and get away with it!"
"Oh yeah?!" Rainbow taunted. "You and what army?! There's two of us, and only one of you!"
"That's where you're wrong, I know better than to leave me entire crew at the mercy of the open seas!" Captain Hook bellowed. "Smee, tie up these landlubbers and throw 'em in the cargo hold! They'll make a fine bargining tool!"
"Smee? Who's Smee?" Thunderlane wondered.
Just then a high pitched voice shouted. "Aye aye, captain, as you command!" And the next thing Rainbow and Thunderlane knew, they were enveloped by thick nets! They struggled in vain to break free, as they found themselves face to face with a much smaller griffon that sported white feathers, blue eyes, and a red cap. "Stop struggling, wastes of fur!" The griffon taunted. "You should be lucky the captain lets you live! Normally we just toss our captives overboard and send 'em to Davy Jones' locker!"
"You're making a mistake, whoever you are!" Rainbow growled. "We're Wonderbolts! If you do anything to us the rest of our teammates will surely come to avenge us!"
Captain Hook just laughed. "Let them try! Many a fool have thought they could best me in me element, and have payed the price for it! I shall enjoy making an example out of you two. It's just too bad you'll never again see your precious Equestria." And he stuck out his tongue in a taunting fashion as the two Wonderbolts were hurled into the cargo hold at the bottom of the ship, the hatch slamming shut and leaving them amidst the barrels, crates, and chests that rocked back and forth with the waves.
Now alone in the cargo hold as the ship sailed across the waters, Thunderlane looked across to his fellow Wonderbolt with his eyes narrowed in anger. "This is a fine mess you've gotten us into, Rainbow Dash. Now we're stuck here, prisoners of a pirate captain Spitfire specifically warned us not to cross paths with. And all because you wanted to play hero."
"I wasn't playing anything, Thunderlane!" Rainbow retorted. "Somepony had to put a stop to Captain Hook's plundering ways! We almost had him and his crew!"
"Almost isn't good enough!" Thunderlane growled. "Just what did you expect to happen?! Now, thanks to you, we're prisoners! And the cadets are probably running around doing Celestia knows what!"
But the brash speedster simply replied. "I know things look bad, Thunderlane. But just like Flash Magnus, we can't give up just because we're in a tight spot. Flash never gave up no matter what the odds, he was brave in that way."
"Just why do you look up to that Flash Magnus pony anyway?" Thunderlane pondered. "What is it about him that has you so impressed? I only remember briefly studying him, and the best I remember was that he served in the royal legion."
With a grin Rainbow replied. "Well, Thunderlane, I think it's time you heard the tale. The tale of how Flash Magnus proved his worth and saved his entire squadron from dragons," With a slight chuckle she added. "It might help to pass the time, seeing as we're not gonna be going anywhere anytime soon."
"Well, why not? At this point anything that could take my mind off my troubles is a good thing as far as I'm concerned." The Wonderbolt stallion answered with a sigh.
"Excellent," Rainbow happily replied. "It all started a long time ago, like before you or I were ever born."
Flash Magnus and Commander Ironhead had embarked on a mission to disputed territory near the dragon lands, and had taken along some of the most promising pegasi that the royal legion had to offer. Their goal was not to serve as instigators or aggressors, but rather peacekeepers. Commander Ironhead in particular had to caution the troops serving under him. "We're not here to start a war, take no weapons with you. Under no circumstances are you to engage the enemy in combat."
The territory through which they flew was far from welcoming, as it was close to the dragon lands it consisted of firey volcanoes, sharp rocks, and billowing smoke and ash clouds (not to mention sweltering heat). As a result it was difficult to see ahead, and thus it was not of particular worry to the elderly Ironhead when some of his troops lagged behind and got separated. "Keep a cool head about you, ponies," He advised. "Just follow the sound of my voice and we shall meet up again. I know this terrain like the back of my hoof, for I have flown back and forth over it many times since I was but a lowly rookie."
Flash Magnus followed his commander closely, dodging lava blasts and ducking under rock pillars in narrow canyons. "Commander, how much further is it to the rendezvous point?" He questioned. "It seems like we've been flying in circles."
"Patience, young Flash," Commander Ironhead politely replied in his low, gravely voice. "Not much further remains. I assure you I know the way well, we're not lost."
"But what about the others? We haven't heard from them in a while," Flash protested. "They might be in danger! I say we turn back now and go to find them!"
"That's a negatory, Flash Magnus!" Commander Ironhead barked out. "I won't risk you getting lost too! We will go out to look for them in due time, but for now we must make it to the designated rendezvous point. We'll be of much better use once we're well rested."
"But I thought the royal legion never leaves a pony behind!" Flash commented to his superior. "Please, Commander, let me go back! I want to make sure they're okay! If I was in danger, I know I'd want them to come to my aid! I couldn't call myself a member of the royal legion if I weren't willing to do the same."
At that Commander Ironhead stopped in his tracks, his eyes firmly locking onto Flash Magnus'. The old stallion could see a firey determination reflected in the young one's eyes, a determination that seemed unlikely to yield. Reluctantly, he sighed and conceded. "Alright, young Flash. If you truly wish to go out there, I won't stand in your way. But don't take all day, I can't risk losing you too."
"Don't worry, Commander!" Flash Magnus saluted with a hoof. "They don't call me Flash for nothing! I'll be back before you can count to ten, and with my fellow pegasi safely in tow to boot!"
"Well if you're going to go out there and risk your neck, you'll need this," Ironhead declared as he pulled out a shield that glistened in the sunlight. "This old shield has been passed down from commander to commander, waiting for the right pony to wield it. It is said it can only be properly used by a pony with a courageous determination that can't be broken. I believe you are the pony to which the legends speak of."
Flash accepted the shield, clutching it firmly in his hooves and holding it close to his chest. "Thank you for your generous gift, Commander. I'll cherish it to my dying day!" He vowed. "You head to the rendezvous point, and the rest of the troop and I shall meet you there."
"Just promise me you'll be safe, Flash," Ironhead cautioned to the young pegasus. "That shield will offer you more protection, but it won't make you invincible. You can't outfight or outfly dragons."
Flash Magnus grinned. "True, but you can outsmart them." And with that, with the shield in tow, he took off with a flap of his wings.
Commander Ironhead just sighed. "I hope I'm making the right decision on this one." He said to himself.
Flash flew back along the dangerous path through which he and Commander Ironhead had flown earlier, taking great care to avoid the rocks and lava geysers. All the while he made sure to keep the shield resting firmly on his back, but within easy reach of his hooves so that he could grab it at a moment's notice.
Suddenly, as he rounded a bend, the young stallion saw a sight that nearly stopped his heart! The three missing recruits (including his good friend Grimhoof) were locked inside a make-shift cage made of rocks, the jagged pillars serving as bars. And guarding the cage were a trio of ferocious dragons with scales that looked like they could break diamonds.
Still, the pegasus put on the bravest face he could muster up as he flew towards the tallest of the dragons, who sported a coat of organeish-yellow, eyes a ruby red, and dark brown scales. "Excuse me, Mister Dragon." He politely but firmly greeted.
"What do you want, little pony?" The dragon growled in response, smoke billowing out of his mouth.
Waving a hoof to fan the smoke away from him, Flash coughed for a bit before he regained his composure. "I've come to ask that you release my comrades from their stone prison! They're of no harm to you! We of the royal legion come in peace!"
The dragon simply roared in reply. "Peace?! Is that why you carry that huge shield on your back?! Is that why you ponies come dressed in full military attire?! I am not easily fooled! You ponies want these disputed lands for yourself even when they rightfully belong to the dragons!"
"What?! No, no, no! That's not what I mean at all!" Flash pleaded in protest. "Please, I don't want any trouble."
"Well too bad, because you just found it!" The dragon roared again! "When I'm through with you, you'll be joining your fellow legion members in that prison, and only when your commander agrees to surrender these lands to us will we be willing to let you go!" He proceeded to take a deep breath and inhale!
Thinking quickly, Flash drew his shield and held it out in front of him! It was a life saving decision, it protected him from the dragon's fire breath! He began to buzz all around the dragons as fast as he could, using his shield as necessary to block the fire breath attacks!
At last, seeing an opening, Flash swooped low! As the dragons tried in vain to claw at him, he managed to free his fellow pegasi and the three followed him out of the cave! All four pegasi flapping their wings as fast as they could, as one of the dragons knocked loose some rocks, and the cave collapsed, trapping the dragons inside!
Commander Ironhead was relieved to see the members of his squad safe and sound at the rendezvous point a short time later. And looking at Flash Magnus he said to him. "Well Flash, it seems even in my old age there is much still for me to learn. That was an excellent display of bravery and skill. I'd be honored to have you serve directly under me from now on!"
"Thank you, Commander!" Flash bowed to the elderly stallion.
"Well, that's quite an impressive story there, Rainbow Dash," Thunderlane commented. "I can see why you like Flash Magnus so much. But the difference is, he wasn't foolish enough to charge headlong into a losing battle. And he was smart enough to have a back-up plan. We don't have that," But when the pegasus stallion looked across to where his fellow Wonderbolt should be, he saw only an empty net. "Rainbow Dash?" He called out, before he suddenly felt his net be loosened and a pair of hooves snatch him up.
Rainbow immediately threw her hooves around Thunderlane to shush him. "Not so loud, Thunderlane," She whispered. "You're gonna give us away!"
"But, how did you escape?" Thunderlane wondered in a whisper. "Those nets are stronger than they look. I should know, I couldn't rip them apart with my teeth."
"A trick knife from Scootaloo's filly guide tool kit," Rainbow explained. "Her aunts were kind enough to give it to me, they said it was best if I held onto it instead of Scootaloo. Long story actually."
Thunderlane decided not to question his fellow pegasus. "Okay. So now that we're out of the nets, how are we gonna get off this ship?"
"The same way we got on," The speedster replied with a grin. "But first we've got to take care of that Smee griffon and the rest of the stragglers. Then we can give that mean old Hook a taste of his own medicine."
"And how are we going to do that?" The newest member of the Wonderbolts questioned.
"I have a plan. It's a long shot, but it should work so long as we move fast," Rainbow whispered the details to Thunderlane. "Think you can manage?"
Thunderlane gulped. "I'll... I'll try. But I hope you know what you're doing."
"Our prisoners have been awfully quiet since we threw 'em down into the cargo hold a while back, Smee," Captain Hook commented as he stroked his beard with his hook. "Reckon it might be best to ensure the scurvy landlubbers ain't thinkin' to be rebelling or anything like that."
"You want me to check the cargo hold, Captain?" Smee asked. "I don't think that's really necessary. We'll be back in international waters soon. Then we can dock at the nearest port and sell off our booty to live like kings."
At that Captain Hook pointed his hook claw at Smee and told his fellow griffon. "Perhaps I wasn't clear before, Smee, I expect you to do as you're told and not to talk back. Now get down there and be sure everything is as still as these waters, or else you'll be walking the plank!"
Smee gulped. "Aye aye, Captain!" He saluted. Reluctantly the griffon stormed his way down into the cargo hold while grumbling. "Why's he got it out for me? I'm not the one who wanted to add kidnapping to our long list of crimes. Sinking ships and pillaging towns was one thing, holding ponies captive was another," Looking around the cargo hold his wandering blue eyes noticed two empty nets. With a growl he gave a whistle, shouting to what few griffons remained onboard the ship after the earlier assault. "Hey, our stowaways have escaped! Get down here and help me search!"
A modest sized group of griffons soon descended on the cargo hold, searching every nook and cranny for any leads as to the whereabouts of their captives.
In doing so they unknowingly played right into the waiting hooves of Rainbow Dash and Thunderlane, using a set of ropes and nets they snatched up the pirates one or two at a time and tied them to chests and barrels, preventing them from calling for help.
When Smee was the only remaining griffon left, the two Wonderbolts emerged from hiding and threw a life-preserver over him, wedging it down so tightly that it was impossible for him to move. They then tied up his claws with ropes, tying them around a barrel.
"For pirates you sure aren't too bright," Thunderlane teased with a snicker. "You should've flown the coop when you had the chance. Now you'll meet the same fate as your captain."
"Arr, you be bluffing, matey!" Smee sneered and snarled. "Captain Hook won't be bested by a pair of landlubbers like you!"
"Indeed he shall not," A familiar scraggly voice taunted, soon revealing itself as none other than the fearsome Captain Hook himself. In his left claw he now clutched a sword. "You two ponies may have bested me crew but you shall find me a far more formidable opponent. But in keeping with the pirate's code of honor, I shall grant you the privilege of one final showdown to determine your fates."
Captain Hook flew up and out of the cargo hatch and Rainbow Dash and Thunderlane followed him. Soon they were all standing in the crow's nest as it rocked back and forth with the motion of the ship, a faint sea breeze whistling past.
"Normally I'd hold it on the deck, but since we all can fly I reckon there's no harm in rising the stakes a little!" Hook taunted. "Grab your swords and put up your dukes, we shall duel to the finish! Best me in fencing and you landlubbers are free to go. Lose, however, and the only place you'll go is straight to Davy Jone's Locker, where you can sleep with the fishes!" He then tossed two swords to his opponents. "It's only fair to warn you, not an enemy yet has bested me at fencing. You'll see why I've earned my reputation as the most feared pirate captain of the sea!"
"Enough talk! Have at you, you scurvy ridden seadog!" Rainbow jeered. "There's two of us against one of you! You won't win!"
"Yeah, the odds are against you!" Thunderlane replied as he clutched his sword with his hooves. "I'd give up right now if I were you."
Captain Hook just growled, swinging his sword at the two ponies. "Nonsense, Captain Hook is no quitter! That you shall soon learn!"
Rainbow swung her sword to counter Hook's and Thunderlane did the same, but Hook proved to be quite the swordsgriffon. With the greatest of ease he seemed to be able to force his opponents out of the crow's nest and onto the surrounding beams. And the breeze and the rocking of the ship did not help matters, it made balancing all the more difficult.
"I did warn you, me harties," Hook taunted as he pointed his sword at the two pegasi as they stood at the edge of the beam near the sails. "Looks like you're out of ideas. Any final words?"
"How about, who's steering your ship?" Thunderlane questioned. "Think about it: You're here, dueling us. And the rest of your crew is tied up in the cargo hold. Your ship is drifting aimlessly, I'd say it's a miracle it hasn't crashed or run aground yet."
"What?!" Hook growled and then he gasped! "Oh no!" He threw down his sword and swooped down to the deck to try and grasp the steering wheel. But it was too late, with a sickening scraping noise the ship's hull began to drag along the sandy shores of Baltimare's beach and at that it grounded to a halt.
Rainbow just grinned. "While you were busy rambling on, Hook, I took the liberty of re-directing your ship's course. You're now officially in Equestria's domain, and you know what that means."
Hook's eyes grew wide with horror and he gasped anew! "No! NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! It can't be! This isn't how it should end!"
Baltimare authorities quickly raided the ship, rounded up Hook and his crew, and returned all the cargo he had stolen from the residents of Baltimare. The rest of his cargo was left on the ship until it could be determined how to best return all the stolen goods to their rightful owners.
The cadets were quite surprised to see Rainbow and Thunderlane return to the hotel that night, exhausted and ready to collapse. But they both insisted it was for an unrelated reason, and cautioned the cadets not to say a word.
When the retreat was over, Rainbow and Thunderlane began the fly back to Cloudsdale. And Rainbow took the time to comment. "You know something, Thunderlane? We make a pretty good team."
"We sure do, Rainbow Dash. But I hope this will be my last big adventure for the time being," Thunderlane replied. "One is enough for my lifetime, thank you."
"Well that's too bad," Rainbow playfully ribbed. "Still, I'll respect your decision. But if you ever change your mind, just let me know."
"Very funny, Rainbow Dash," Thunderlane retorted. "Just remember, we both agreed not to say a word about any of this."
"Who would believe me if I told them," Rainbow gave a knowing wink. "I'm just glad that now I'll have several weeks off to rest. I hear Scootaloo and her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders are planning this interesting daycamp for blank flanks."
At that Thunderlane's ears perked up. "A daycamp for blank flanks you say? That sounds like it would be right up Rumble's alley. He could use some friends at his age."
"And I'm sure Scootaloo and the Crusaders will be glad to have him," Rainbow replied. "You should totally pick up a flyer the next time you get a chance."
For the first time in the entire history of his long existence, Discord was facing down an experience he had never encountered before: Boredom. The spirit let out a yawn as he surveyed the usual chaos of his house in his own dimension. Stairs leading to nowhere, upside down furniture, dishes in need of dirtying, you name it.
But for a spirit that thrived on chaos all of this was nothing new, he'd long since gotten used to it. And he complained about it even though he knew there was no one around to hear him do so. "My word, it's far too quiet around these parts. I can actually hear myself think," The spirit said aloud. "It's been almost three months now since I nearly lost my powers for good and Pinkie Pie came and rearranged everything. I should be able to do so much more now, instead of just sitting here and twiddling my thumbs or talking to myself."
"Hey!" Another version of Discord retorted. "I'm right here you know! I don't appreciate being talked to like I don't exist!"
"Oh for goodness sake, why do you always hang around?!" The first Discord snapped back and made the other version of him disappear in a flash of light. Then he yawned again. "Seriously though, it's getting old just having myself to mess around with. Even the mail pony no longer gets lost trying to send mail to me. What does a spirit have to do to have a little bit of fun?"
But as he went about doing his usual chaotic things to liven up his house, the spirit thought out loud to himself. "The trouble is, it's not like I can just go ahead and mess with ponies for the heck of it all. I'm one of the..." He paused and gagged briefly. "'Good guys' now. Why I even have the medal to prove it. Really tied the room together it did," His eyes rolled all the way into the back of his head and gazed upon his Equestrian pink heart that rested in its case, as gleaming and polished as it was the day he'd received it. "But there must be some way I can still cause a little bit of... 'good natured' chaos. Something that'll give my friends something to talk about. But what? And how?"
Just then there came the sound of a crash, almost like something thudding into the front door. "Oh, is it mail time already?" Discord pondered to himself. "I really must get a watch or something to keep better track of the time."
Making his way to the front door, Discord opened it and the familiar form of the mail pony sprawled out on his living room floor. "H-here's your mail, M-Mr. Discord, sir," The stallion greeted. "S-sorry 'bout the door."
"Oh you couldn't help it, that last turn is quite the doozy after all," Discord replied as he helped the mail pony to his hooves. He quickly scooped up the mail sack and sorted out his letters, then he returned the remaining ones to the sack and placed it on the stallion's back, offering him a pile of bits. "Here, keep the change. You need it more than I do, trust me."
"A-are you sure?" The mail stallion stuttered.
"Just go ahead and go, I wouldn't want to hold you up on your more important deliveries," Discord shooed the mail pony away. "If you wanna stop by and chat after your shift... well, you just let me know. Take care now," After sending the mail pony on his way, Discord shut the door of his house and snapped his talons as he sat in one of his upside down tables to sort out his mail. A few envelopes passed by him uneventfully, before his eyes suddenly fell upon a flyer for Sugarcube Corner. At that the spirit's eyes lit up! "Ooh! Why didn't I think of it before?!" He commented. "You're a genius, Discord! There's only one thing to do! Pinkie Pie and the Cakes will surely thank me for this!" And his chaotic mind began to scheme.
Pinkie Pie was humming a cheerful little tune to herself as several balloons lifted her into the sky. She found it quite odd that Rainbow Dash would place an order for several pies, especially ones with rainbow colored crusting. Come to think of it, there had been a lot of strange and unusual orders for pies lately.
But pies were pies regardless of who ordered them, and Pinkie was never one to deny someone a pie, regardless of who they were.
Touching down lightly on the grounds of Wonderbolts Academy, Pinkie carefully removed the pie from its box and clutched it firmly in her hooves. She paused at the edge of the runway, her blue eyes scanning left and right to ensure there were no oncoming Wonderbolts. When the party pony was sure the coast was clear, she sprinted across the runway with the rainbow crusted pie in tow.
Rainbow Dash had just finished changing out of her flight suit in the academy locker rooms when she found herself nose to nose with the cheerful face of Pinkie Pie. "Hey, Pinkie Pie," She innocently greeted, as though completely unaware of the reason for her friend's visit. "If you're here to cheer me on at practice, you're a little late, we just wrapped up for the day."
"Oh I know all about that, Dashie," Pinkie replied in a chipper tone of voice. "I know your practice routines like the back of my hoof. I'm just here to deliver the pie you ordered. And how fitting, it's your one hundred and sixty nine thousandth, four hundredth and seventy third practice since becoming a Wonderbolt to boot! Pretty soon I'm gonna have to start planning something for your one hundred and seventy thousandth practice, I'm thinking maybe a cake."
But Rainbow scratched her head in confusion and looked at her party planning friend with the most perplexed look on her face. "What are you talking about, Pinkie? I didn't order any pie."
"What do you mean? Oh, I get it!" Pinkie giggled. "Nice try, Rainbow, but it's not opposite day! That's not until next week, silly."
"Pinkie, I'm being serious! I didn't order any pie," Rainbow protested. "I'm not even that crazy for pie if I'm being honest. I mean yeah, every now and then I'll help myself to one if I'm in the mood, but I'm not much of a pie mare. I kind of prefer cakes and cupcakes," Then she suggested. "Maybe you got the order mixed up or something, that pie's probably for another Wonderbolt. You know how much Soarin likes pie."
The pink party pony carefully set the pie down on a nearby bench and pulled out the order receipt, she scanned it and re-scanned it carefully, checking for any signs of smudging or bunched together letters. There were none. "No, it specifically says your name, Rainbow Dash."
"Well I don't know what to tell you, Pinkie," The young Wonderbolt replied. "All I know is, I didn't order that pie. I've been at the academy all week, how could I have sent that order?"
"Well the receipt did list Wonderbolts Academy on the sending address," Pinkie explained. "But the one who placed the order never came in, they just sent the request by mail. And you know Sugarcube Corner is the only bakery in town right now. It's the only place to go to satisfy your sweet tooth."
Rainbow just shrugged her shoulders. "I wish I had time to help you on this, Pinkie, but it's almost meal time. Thunderlane's cooking today, and you know his cooking is second to none. One of these days I need to ask him if he'll give me lessons. See you later." She zoomed away in a blur of motion a second later.
Pinkie just sighed. "Oh well, whoever ordered that pie must've gotten the wrong address or something. They have been ordering a lot of different pies for different locations lately. At this rate, the Cakes are gonna have to start an express delivery service."
But when the party pony turned back to the bench, she saw that the pie was gone! Pie tin and everything had vanished in the blink of an eye, and there was not a single crumb to be seen anywhere!
"A pie snatcher!" Pinkie thought to herself! "Someone's playing a very unfunny prank around here, sending me on a wild pie chase and then snatching the pie before I can give it to the right pony. Well whoever it is is gonna be sorry!" She dashed away in the blink of an eye, and returned a moment later dressed up in the same detective hat and bubble pipe she'd worn when investigating the mysterious devouring of desserts on the Friendship Express.
"Mark my words, pie snatcher!" Pinkie said to herself as she took the bubble pipe out of her mouth. "You can run but you can't hide! Detective Pinkie Pie is on the case, and I won't rest until I've cracked this case of your crazy, wild pie chase!"
Sometime later, all of the Wonderbolts were surprised to be called into the main hallway of the compound. And they were even more surprised when Pinkie appeared before them in her detective hat, bubbles blowing out of the pipe in her mouth, while her tail firmly clutched a notepad and a pencil.
"I suppose you're wondering why I called you all here today," Pinkie spoke to the Wonderbolts as she took the pipe out of her mouth. "Well that's because, there's a pie snatcher on the loose! Yes, you heard me, a pie snatcher!"
The Wonderbolts all exchanged various glances of worry, but also confusion. Even Rainbow Dash seemed to be scratching her head.
"Uh, what exactly is a pie snatcher?" Soarin questioned. "Is all of this really necessary? Maybe you just misplaced your pie or something."
Pinkie shook her head at the very notion. "I know for a fact that I set that pie down on a bench in the locker rooms, and didn't touch it again after that. I also know that somepony wanted me to come all this way out here, somepony who specifically sought to distract me by having me give the pie to Rainbow Dash, knowing that she doesn't really care for pie. Somepony in this very academy, I suspect."
"But we were just about to have dinner," Spitfire protested. "All of us were heading to the mess hall, and Thunderlane was in the kitchen."
"Are you absolutely positutely sure about that, Spitfire?" Pinkie questioned the young captain. "Did you conduct a roll call?"
"N-no," Spitfire gulped. "But... I didn't think there was a need for one, I wasn't expecting to be caught up in an investigation."
Soarin gulped as well. "This is bringing back memories of the last time an investigation was being conducted among our ranks. And that was when we nearly kicked Rainbow Dash out for a crime she didn't commit."
Pinkie now eyed Soarin. "What's with the gulp, Soarin? You got something to hide? Rainbow Dash always says you're a sucker for pie," As she glared at the Wonderbolt co-captain she questioned. "How do I know you didn't steal that pie away while I was busy talking to Rainbow? You could've easily swiped it and devoured it, then cleaned off your face before anypony was any the wiser."
"But I didn't even know there'd be a pie here today!" Soarin protested. "Yeah, maybe I'm a bit of a sucker for apple pies.. and pies in general. But I'd never steal a pie that belonged to somepony else, especially when I didn't know there'd be one on academy grounds."
"Oh really? Then where were you right before dinner?" The party pony questioned.
At that Fleetfoot spoke up. "He was with me, we kind of got into an argument. All I did was make one off-hoof comment about his flying."
"I heard the whole thing going down from across the hallway," High Winds nodded in agreement. "And I know Blaze and Surprise heard it too. Normally we don't like to look when our own teammates start quarreling, but we were kind of bored and had nothing better to do."
"And you can ask anypony where I was, and they'll all tell you I was in the kitchen preparing the meal," Thunderlane chimed in. "I wouldn't have stolen any pie, and even if I did I never would've eaten it. No sense in spoiling my appetite."
Pinkie trotted past all the Wonderbolts until she stopped in front of Misty Fly, who seemed to suddenly shrink and shiver like a bug under a microscope. "So it all comes down to you, Misty Fly. You're the only Wonderbolt who hasn't spoken up yet about where you were before dinner. And nopony has said anything about seeing you. So, what's your story?"
"I was... just taking a shower," Misty Fly protested even as her teeth began to chatter. "A full day of training can leave you awfully sweaty. I wanted to rinse off before the line got too crowded, like it always does after practice."
"And can anypony back up that claim?" Pinkie questioned. "You're looking awfully frightened. You sure you don't have something you're trying to hide?"
Misty Fly gulped. "I don't do well under this kind of pressure, I don't like ponies pressing in on me," Then she blurted out. "A-alright, alright, so maybe I did sneak a glance at that pie. I was tempted for a moment, I thought maybe I'd take a bite. But I wanted to wait until after I took my shower, and when I came back the pie was gone. I didn't take it, I swear."
"Ah, so that's where you disappeared to on such short notice," Spitfire realized. "I thought it was odd when I saw you wandering the compound earlier, Misty Fly. But I didn't want to intrude."
"Did you happen to see anypony who maybe shouldn't have been here?" Pinkie questioned Misty Fly. "Anypony at all out of the ordinary?"
"Aside from you, no," Misty Fly protested with a shake of her head. "I swear, it's like that pie just vanished into thin air."
Pinkie giggled. "That's just silly, pies can't just vanish. Somepony or maybe even someone had to have taken it. They probably were just really good at not being seen," She jotted down all the information she'd been given by the Wonderbolts and then smiled. "Well I can safely that not one of you is the pie snatcher, and none of you ordered that pie in the first place. Whoever is behind this diabolic dessert disappearance is still at large, or small, or whatever size they come in."
"Well if you need a lead, Pinkie, I think I have something," Rainbow realized as she put a hoof to her chin. "I seem to remember Scootaloo saying something about a class hamster getting sick the other day. Maybe Cheerilee will know who's behind all of this."
"What a great idea!" The party pony beamed. "I'll be sure to ask her."
And that's just what Pinkie did the next day. As it was a weekend, school was not in session and so Cheerilee didn't have to worry about her usual workload. "Hello, Pinkie Pie," She cheerfully greeted as she finished stacking some books. "What's with the detective outfit? I thought Nightmare Night wasn't for several weeks still."
"It isn't, Cheerilee," Pinkie firmly replied. "Sorry to trouble you like this but there's a pie snatcher on the loose, and he or she must be stopped!"
"Goodness," Cheerilee exclaimed with exaggerated worry. "A pie snatcher? I know the Cakes have been getting mysterious pie orders lately, but I always assumed the pies made it to whoever they were intended for."
Pinkie shook her head. "Not anymore, I'm afraid. And that's why I need your help," Pulling out her notebook the party pony questioned the teacher. "I hear there's been problems with the class hamster lately, care to elaborate?"
The earth pony mare nodded. "It's nothing too serious, thankfully. Dr. Fauna says the little guy should be back on his paw in no time," Then she explained. "I've had to explain to my students not to share their food with the class hamster all the time. Animals can't digest food the same way we ponies can. And a few days ago, somepony thought it would be a good idea to feed a few chunks of pie to Hector. But when I questioned my students they wouldn't say where they got the pie from. I may have to start checking my students lunches though, because I keep seeming to find random pieces of pie all over the school house for some reason."
"And nopony has mentioned anything about the pies at all?" Pinkie asked.
Cheerilee shook her head. "No, nothing. I do know this though, none of them are apple pies, so they can't be coming from Sweet Apple Acres."
"I see," Pinkie commented as she wrote down the information. "Anything else? Anything at all? Even the smallest clue might be helpful."
"Sadly, no," The teacher replied with an unhappy sigh. "Whoever is responsible for the abundance of pies seems to be very good at covering their tracks. And I don't wanna have to make the school a no-pie zone. Sorry I can't be of more help, Pinkie. I'll try to keep a closer eye on things from now on."
"That's alright, Cheerilee," Pinkie replied. "But this mystery keeps getting more and more mysterious by the day. It's a real doozy, even more so than the case of the disappearing desserts that I cracked with Twilight's help."
Deciding it best to think things over again, Pinkie retreated to her party planning cave beneath Sugarcube Corner. Normally she would go there whenever she needed to check up on some files or consult them to plan a party. But today her focus on was finding the pie snatcher, so she tacked her notes and what few pieces of information she had onto a board, and examined it carefully.
"Hm, now that I look more closely, I'm starting to see a picture. But the picture isn't pretty," Pinkie said to herself as she eyed the board again. "This all started with a whole bunch of mysterious orders for mysterious and unusual pies. Then somepony pretended to be Rainbow Dash and ordered a pie, knowing I'd take it to the Wonderbolts Academy. While at the academy the pie goes missing, but none of the Wonderbolts are involved. Rainbow mentions that Scootaloo mentioned the class hamster getting sick, and Cheerilee reveals that her students keep getting pieces of pies. There must be a connection, Gummy."
Gummy just blinked and looked back at Pinkie.
"Pies, Wonderbolts, School," The party pony pondered as she paced back and forth, thinking through the current clues over and over again. "Come on, Pinkie. Think, think, think," Then all of a sudden, like a bolt of lightning a realization seemed to strike her! "That's it! Why didn't I think of it sooner?! The one thing all these clues have in common, they're all connected to Scootaloo!" And then she exclaimed! "Of course, it all makes sense now! She's been ordering pies under different names to keep her parents from finding out, and she's been sneaking pies to give to other ponies! Well, her little secret pie giving spree is about to come to an end."
And with that Pinkie jumped onto a nearby slide and made her way back up to her room. From there she trotted down the steps and out the front door of Sugarcube Corner, prepared to confront Scootaloo and bring this mystery to its proper conclusion.
As she bounced along the path to Scootaloo's house, Pinkie began rehearsing to herself what she would say when she crossed paths with Scootaloo and exposed her pie smuggling scheme.
At last the party pony reached her destination, lightly rapping a hoof against the front door. "This is it! The moment of truth!" She thought to herself.
The door was answered by an earth pony mare of medium build, her coat was a beautiful green in color and it neatly complimented her blonde mane and tail that had been styled up all nice and pretty. Her red eyes matched her cutie mark of a red ribbon perfectly, and she wore a lovely orange scarf around her neck. "Why hello there, Pinkie Pie," The earth pony greeted in a chipper tone of voice. "What brings you here on this day? I know it's not Scootaloo's birthday, I would know if that was the case."
"I need to talk to Scootaloo, it's urgent!" Pinkie explained. "We need to have a little talk about stealing pies and giving them to creatures that can't properly digest them. All the clues point to her."
"Well, Scootaloo isn't here right now I'm afraid," The earth pony answered. "I reckon she and her Crusader friends are off doing what they usually do on a day like this. But do you mind telling me why you think a filly like her is up to no good? I know she has a tendency to get into trouble, but I would think I raised her to be better than a thief."
Just then a sturdy pegasus mare came trotting down from upstairs. Her coat was a lovely cream yellow, not unlike Bon-Bon's. She had a wavy mane and tail in alternate shades of pink and purple, purple eyes, and a cutie mark depicting two purple puffs and two pink balls of yarn. She wore a lovely purple scarf. "What is it, Holiday, my dear? I heard Scootaloo's name be mentioned. What has that filly gotten herself into this time?"
Pinkie huffed and hmphed! "Why, she's poisoned the class hamster and stolen pies of course. And all because she's been trying to cover her tracks so nopony suspects she's the secret pie giver."
Lofty let out a gasp! "Goodness! That is quite serious! But why, pray tell, do you believe Scootaloo would do any of that?"
"I was just about to ask the same thing myself, Lofty," Holiday commented as she looked across to the sturdy pegasus and then back to Pinkie. "I've been teaching Scootaloo the importance of managing your money, and I assure you that if she were spending her money on such things as pies, either Lofty, myself, or her parents would know about it."
At that the pink party pony stumbled back. "But, Rainbow Dash mentioned her when the pie disappeared up at Wonderbolts Academy. And it was rainbow colored."
"And when did that all go down, Pinkie?" Holiday questioned.
"Just yesterday. And I know it can't be Rainbow Dash or any of the Wonderbolts, I questioned every last one of 'em. Not a single one knew about the pie or where it had gone," Pinkie explained. "So that means somepony else had to have ordered the pie and then stolen it when they thought nopony was looking. Who else could have a motive and the opportunity? Scootaloo's been at the academy before."
Lofty shook her head. "I'm afraid it couldn't have been her, Pinkie. Scootaloo was spending all of yesterday up at Rainbow Dash's parents' place. She actually stayed out past her curfew even though I specifically told her not to," A sigh escaped the mare's lips. "Honestly, that filly makes me worry so much it's a miracle I haven't grown a full mane of grey hairs yet."
Holiday giggled. "And you'd look just as beautiful even with grey hair, Lofty."
Just then who should come trotting up on the scene but Scootaloo herself? "Hey Aunt Holiday, hey Auntie Lofty," She greeted, before her eyes happened to notice Pinkie. "Oh, I'm sorry. Were you planning some kind of surprise party for me or something?"
"No, no, no, nothing of the sort, slugger," Lofty replied. "It seems that Pinkie Pie here thought you might be guilty of pie snatching and trying to hide pies by giving them to others. Including the class hamster."
"Now why in Equestria would I ever do something like that?" Scootaloo innocently replied. "I didn't even know the class hamster was sick until Diamond Tiara told me about it. And if I really wanted to give pies to my classmates, I wouldn't need to hide the fact."
At that Pinkie felt all her enthusiasm drain away, and her mane and tail start to deflate ever so slightly. "Guess it's back to square one, with no leads and no clues." She sighed to herself.
"Maybe you should ask Diamond Tiara," Scootaloo suggested to Pinkie. "She was the one who spread the word about the class hamster, she might at least know something about who this pie sender and snatcher really is."
Pinkie perked up at the suggestion. "What a great idea, Scootaloo. If there's anypony who'd have a reason to hide something, it would be her. And even if she's not the thief, she'll surely know a thing or two about who is," Lightly stroking the filly's mane she added. "You'd make a fine assistant detective." And she bounced away without another word.
Scootaloo watched the pink party pony disappear into the distance, and she couldn't help but wonder. "Just what is she on about? I don't see what the big deal is about mysterious pie orders and disappearances. Then again, I've heard of sillier things to investigate," And then she thought. "Which reminds me, I still need to apologize to Ambermoon for the whole Olden Pony incident."
It was quite a hike from Scootaloo's house to the Rich family mansion, but Pinkie bounced along the path and reached her destination in no time at all.
When she knocked a hoof on the mansion's front door a few seconds later, Pinkie was greeted by the sight of Randolph, the trusty butler and housekeeper who'd served the Rich family faithfully for years and years.
The old butler politely bowed his head to his guest. "Ah, Miss. Pie, welcome," He greeted. "To what does the Rich family owe the pleasure?"
"A matter of life and pie, naturally," Pinkie firmly replied. "Is Diamond Tiara home? I need to speak to her at once."
Randolph shook his head. "I'm afraid Mistress Diamond is currently unavailable, attending one of her many private tutoring sessions with Princess Twilight and her student. I do not believe she'll be back anytime soon," Then he suggested. "But if the young mistress' behavior is what you wish to discuss, feel free to come in. I'm certain either Master Filthy or," He paused and tried not to shiver. "Mistress Spoiled would be willing to entertain you for a while. Though if you should chat with Mistress Spoiled, please try not to get her angry again. She'll surely take it out on me, and my paycheck's already been docked five times this year. If not for the smile on Mistress Diamond's face, I'm not sure I'd have a reason to stick around. These old bones have seen more than their fair share of wear and tear I'm afraid."
"Don't worry, Randolph, this won't take long," Pinkie reassured the old butler as she made her way inside. "I just need to ask a few questions. Heck, maybe you could help me out by answering them yourself. They do involve Diamond Tiara after all."
Before Randolph had a chance to speak up and offer his services, a familiar stern and snooty voice called out. "If it involves my daughter I'd best not be kept in the dark. If my Diamond has gotten herself into trouble, I should be the first to know," Before long the familiar upturned snout of Spoiled Rich appeared in the front doorway and her strong, opal eyes gazed deep into Pinkie's. "If you have something you wish to say about my daughter, say it to my face," Then clapping her hooves together, she commanded. "Randolph, why don't you make yourself useful and go make sure my husband hasn't fallen asleep in his study again. This shouldn't take long, and I doubt he would want to be disturbed with such trivial affairs."
"Y-yes ma'am, Mistress Spoiled. I'll get right on that!" Randolph saluted and zipped away without another word. He'd learned long ago that Spoiled was a pony you didn't talk back to or argue with. You were better off just shrugging your shoulders and giving her a wide berth.
Spoiled then led Pinkie to the living room, motioning for her guest to sit down on the fine leather sofa. Neither seemed to be aware that a pair of eyes was watching them from afar, and that the owner of said eyes was thinking to themselves. "This may have worked a little too well. I certainly didn't expect Pinkie to have to cross paths with Spoiled Rich. But what can I do? I don't wanna expose myself just yet, it'd ruin all the fun. And after I worked so hard to set up this little mystery too."
The pair of eyes continued to watch as Spoiled occupied herself with preparing tea for her guest. Even Pinkie was more than a little surprised by this seemingly generous act of hospitality. "Despite what you may think of me from my daughter's many stories, I am a mare of merit and fine taste," Spoiled explained. "Besides, your skills as a party planner are... adequate I suppose. I won't deny that you made my daughter's cute-ceañera a celebration without equal," After a few moments of letting the tea boil and allowing her guest to drink it, the rich mare asked. "Now then, you wished to ask me something about my daughter?"
"Well it's about pies," Pinkie told Spoiled. "Namely the fact that somepony or someone keeps ordering mysterious pies, and then somepony pretended to be Rainbow Dash and sent me on a wild pie chase. Then they swiped said pie at the Wonderbolts Academy while I was distracted. And apparently, somepony's been smuggling pies into school and feeding them to the class hamster to cover their tracks."
Spoiled immediately deduced the line of logic Pinkie was getting at, and her face morphed into a pronounced frown. "So you think my daughter is really no better than a common thief and a scoundrel? Frankly, I'm disappointed and ashamed that you would ever think such a thing, Miss. Pie," With a hmph she declared. "Don't you think I would know if my own daughter was doing such things behind my back? Even before her 'change of heart' I was quite insistent on teaching Diamond the importance of an allowance, and not spending all your money on pointless pursuits. And since she started changing her ways, I've maintained a tight grip on her little purse strings. I assure you, she wouldn't be able to buy even one pie, let alone enough to feed an entire school."
"You sure she hasn't secretly been hoarding all her money?" Pinkie questioned. "She could be saving up her allowance to spend it all at once."
Spoiled shook her head. "I'd still know if she were smuggling pies. I run a tight ship around this house. Not a thing goes on within these walls that I don't know about. So before you go spouting these outlandish accusations, I suggest you gather far more proof beyond wild speculations." She stomped her hoof down in frustration and snorted as steam escaped her nostrils.
The pink party pony stumbled back. "But... I thought..."
"-Well you thought wrong I'm afraid," Spoiled growled. "Now kindly get out of my house! I won't stand here and let you insult my teachings! No one but me has the right to be critical of my daughter, do I make myself clear?!"
With a gulp Pinkie nodded. "Y-yes ma'am, Spoiled. I'm... so sorry to bother you."
The rich mare grumbled. "As you should be. And you call yourself a detective?" She then stood up and motioned for the door, making it clear what she expected of her guest. Pinkie obeyed without hesitation.
"What am I doing wrong?" Pinkie wondered out loud as she trotted through town. "It seems like the more I investigate the more dead ends I turn up. First I thought for sure it was Rainbow Dash, then I was certain Scootaloo was the culprit, but now not even Diamond Tiara could've done it," She paused to look at her reflection in the fountain in the center of town, Spoiled's words still stinging and ringing in her ears. "Am I not good enough? Maybe I'm really not cut out to be a detective after all."
But much to the pink party pony's surprise her reflection suddenly seemed to take on a mind of its own as it looked at her and told her quite firmly. "Don't let the naysayers get you down, Pinkie. Just because you haven't found the culprit yet doesn't mean you can give up."
"But what am I supposed to do? I have no leads, no clues, not even a hunch as to who could've do doned it." Pinkie protested.
Pinkie's reflection just shook her head. "Then perhaps it's time to consider other options. There are plenty of ponies who could help you out. Any of your friends would surely be willing to lend their services if you just asked."
Pinkie gasped as her eyes lit up with a renewed vigor! "Of course! The answer is obvious! All this time I've been trying to solve the mystery on my own, when what I really needed to do was get my friends involved," She beamed happily at her reflection. "Oh, thank you, me! I guess sometimes you just need to look at yourself to find the answers you're seeking."
The reflection just winked and replied. "Glad to be of service, Pinkie Pie. Now you know what you must do."
"Exactly!" Pinkie beamed! "This is a mystery that's far too big for one pony to solve all by herself! I'll go get Twilight, this kind of mystery should be right up her alley!" And without a second's hesitation she bounced away, her sights set firmly on Twilight's castle.
If Pinkie had turned around she have briefly noticed her reflection whisper to itself, "Works every time." before it seemed to vanish into thin air.
With a renewed sense of determination and a newfound spring in her step, Pinkie cheerfully hummed a tune to herself as she excitedly pranced along to Twilight's castle. "This'll be just like old times, even if Twilight and I only solved one mystery together." She thought to herself.
Before long she was at the castle's front door and knocking it rather energetically with a hoof. She could barely contain her excitement and was already rehearsing what she would say to Twilight to recruit her services.
But instead of Twilight, or even Starlight, the door was answered by Spike. "Hey, Pinkie, what's up?" He greeted as he opened the door and let Pinkie inside.
"No time to explain, Spike!" Pinkie eagerly replied! "I need to see Twilight, now! It's urgent!"
"She's busy tutoring Diamond Tiara on friendship, and Starlight's helping her," Spike said in response. "I could pass word along if you'd like, but these tutoring sessions go on for quite a while."
At that Pinkie began to pace back and forth in an impatient manner. "But I need to see her right away, Spike! I really need her help!" And she began to explain! "There's this mystery involving secrets and pies and stuff like that, and I've tried to solve it on my own and I can't, so my reflection told me I need to get my friends involved..."
"-And you figured Twilight was the best option?" Spike guessed. By now he had more or less become an expert on translating what Pinkie was trying to say when she got into one of her fast speaking moods.
The pink party nodded in confirmation. "Yeah, how did you know?"
The little dragon simply replied. "More of a guess, really. But you said your reflection talked to you, correct?"
"Yeah, thought that was kind of weird to be honest. But then, there's a lot of things I do that everyone else thinks is weird." Pinkie confirmed.
"And you said this was all about pies?" Spike added.
"Yesarooni, Spike! And that's why I really need Twilight's help!" Pinkie pleaded. "I've tried to find the answers on my own, but every single time I think I've found a lead, it just loops right back around and leaves me where I started. The only clues I have are the mysterious pie orders, the disappearing pie, and the abundance of pies at school."
At that Spike paused, putting a claw to his chin as he began to ponder. "Wait a minute, Pinkie! Mysterious pie orders and a disappearing pie?"
"Yeah, and everypony I've asked has no clue about either of them. It's like they just happened." The party pony replied.
"And your reflection... What if it wasn't actually your reflection talking to you, but rather someone pretending to be your reflection, in order to put you on the right track?" Spike suggested.
"But, how could that be? Nopony could pose as my reflection!" Pinkie protested.
At that Spike went on to emphasize. "Nopony. Now think for a moment: Who do we know that isn't a pony, and can do things that shouldn't be possible?"
Pinkie and Spike both said at the same time! "Discord!"
Pinkie then stumbled back in surprise! "No way! You think Discord is behind all of this?"
"It would make perfect sense, Pinkie," The little dragon nodded. "The mysterious orders are because nopony truly knows how to get into or out of his dimension, except for Fluttershy and you ever since you accidentally stumbled into it a while back. And only Discord could make a pie vanish into thin air, or cause pies to suddenly appear from not of nowhere."
"But, why would he do such things? And more importantly, how do we tell him to stop doing it?" Pinkie asked.
At that Spike grinned. "It's simple, we go right to the source and confront the very draconequus himself. I've always wanted to see what his house looks like."
"But how are we supposed to get into his dimension? It's not like we can just teleport to there." Pinkie protested.
"You've been there once, Pinkie. And that was when you weren't trying to find it," Spike explained. "It should work the same way again. If we walk around together for a while with no particular goal in mind, eventually we should get to where we need to go."
"I don't know, Spike," Pinkie nervously pondered. "What would Twilight say if she found out about this unauthorized trip? I wouldn't want her to get mad at me."
Spike just waved a claw. "Ah, what Twilight doesn't know won't hurt her. If we get going now, we can probably be back before she even realizes we were gone."
In his own dimension, in the comfort and security of his house, Discord was relaxing on his upside down sofa and complementing himself. "Well, Discord, you certainly know how to create one heck of a mystery. You really haven't lost your chaotic touch."
"You do realize that by putting Pinkie back on the right track, you're encouraging her to come here and look for you, right?" The other Discord protested. "And the mystery isn't quite done yet, you were supposed to start swapping pies from Sweet Apple Acres with those at Sugarcube Corner."
Discord waved a paw. "Oh relax, me, you worry too much. I simply wanted to make sure Pinkie didn't give up the game too early," Then he added. "Besides, if Pinkie was going to accuse me she'd have to find me first. And I've covered my tracks really well, she won't find out in a million years that I'm the mastermind behind this great pie mystery."
But just then there came a rather urgent knock at the front door, and an energetic voice urgently called out. "Discord? I know you're in there. Come out and talk to me, the jig is up."
The other Discord simply said to his counterpart. "You're on your own for this one, my friend. It was nice knowing you, tata." And he disappeared with a snap of his paws.
"Oh you're no fun," Discord sighed. "If only you could be as helpful as my good friend, Fluttershy, or even Twilight Sparkle. She would stick up for me."
Reluctantly, the spirit rose from his upside down sofa and planted his feet firmly on the ground. He then walked across his living room and to the front door, opening it. There stood Pinkie Pie, with Spike seated comfortably and firmly on her back.
The chaos maker did his best to feign ignorance as he adopted the most innocent voice and said. "Oh my, company. How... unexpected."
"You might as well drop the act, Discord," Spike rolled his eyes. "Pinkie knows everything, and so do I."
Discord gulped and swallowed hard. "You mean, she actually..."
"-I do, Discord!" Pinkie said seriously. "Just what kind of stunt are you trying to pull? First you start placing mysterious pie orders to confuse the Cakes. Then you use Rainbow Dash's name to send me on a wild pie chase, only to make the pie disappear. And then you have going all over town and chasing after suspects that aren't actually suspects, all the while I hear about a class hamster getting sick."
"To be fair, that last part was never my intention at all," Discord defended. "Obviously I'd draw the line at letting creatures get sick. Who do you think tipped off Diamond Tiara that something was wrong? I guess I should've done my research on hamsters."
Spike just narrowed his eyes. "So why would you do all of this, Discord? You and I both know you're not crazy about pie. You said it yourself when Big Mac brought that apple pie to our last Guy's Night Ogres and Oubliettes session."
"What?! You don't like pie?! Blasphemy!" Pinkie gasped as she looked at Discord. "How, how, how can you not like pie?!"
Discord threw up his paws in protest. "I never said I don't like pie, I just don't particularly care for it is all. I do occasionally like a slice when I'm really hungry," And then to Pinkie he explained. "But I know how much pie means to you and to the Cakes. I just thought maybe there was a way for us all to get what we wanted. I was feeling bored and I wanted to do something chaotic."
"And you thought a pie mystery was the answer?" Pinkie questioned.
The spirit nodded. "It was all supposed to just be harmless fun. The Cakes would have a ton of business, you'd have a fun mystery to try and solve, and I'd get to watch all the chaos unfold as you traveled all over town. I even made sure to pay the Cakes for the orders, under aliases of course. If they knew it was really me, that would've spoiled all the fun," But then he added. "I never expected you to go so far as to confront Spoiled Rich though, even for a spirit like me a pony like her gives me the creeps."
"Welcome to my world," Spike commented. "I am so glad I don't have a mother like Spoiled."
"Anyway," The chaos maker coughed into a paw. "When that happened, I knew I had to do something to get you back on the right track, Pinkie. Posing as your reflection was the only thing I could think of on such short notice. It seems it worked a little too well though."
"Discord," Pinkie said in a serious tone of voice. "You didn't have to do all of this just because you were bored. There are plenty of other ways to have some good natured, chaotic fun. Heck, if you'd wanted to set up a mystery for me to solve all you had to do was ask, I would've said yes."
"Or you could've let her join Guy's Night like she did when she came back from that trip to Yakyakistan," Spike added. "You saw how well she took to our game."
Discord let out a sigh. "I suppose you have a point," He considered. "All I could think about was what I could do to cause some chaos. Now I guess I have to accept my well deserved slice of humble pie."
At that Pinkie chuckled. "Yeah, all one hundred and twenty slices of it! But don't worry, there'll be plenty of chaos in trying to determine the different flavors."
Sometime later Pinkie and Spike leaped out of a portal, waving goodbye to Discord as he zipped it shut behind them. Then the two friends parted ways, taking notice of the fact that Celestia's sun was beginning to set.
When Spike got back to Twilight's castle, he found not only Twilight but also Starlight waiting for him. And the two of them were looking at him with various glances of worry and concern as they ran up and embraced him.
Twilight was the first to speak up. "There you are, Spike! Where have you been all day?"
"Do you have any idea how worried Twilight and I were about you?" Starlight added. "I don't think I've ever seen Twilight this worked up before."
"Sorry to make you both worry so much," Spike apologized. "But you'll never guess where I went, or what I did."
"Oh really?" Twilight questioned. "By all means, try me. I've heard plenty of stories before."
Spike laughed. "Oh-ho ho it's no story, Twilight. It actually happened. And it all starts with a spirit of chaos who was bored out of his ever loving mind."
