As your friends get sucked into Spike's Power Ponies comic, you have a run-in with an enchanted object of your own. ...Where, exactly, is Maretime Bay?
Part of the "Royal-Tea" series. While renovating the Castle of the Two Sisters, your friends task you with searching for any suspicious objects in the castle's many rooms and corridors. Unfortunately for you, a suspicious object is exactly what you find, and after a mysterious flash of light, you find yourself in a strange place with some strange ponies. Where is Maretime Bay? What is a Unity Crystal? And how are you going to get back home?
You begin to wheeze as a cloud of dust fills your nostrils. You swat at the air with your free hand, clutching the pair of books that you just removed from the long-neglected shelf in the other. The covers are pretty much completely illegible, having long worn off after thousands of years. The room is musty and generally unpleasant to be in. You turn around and start making your way towards a table a ways away from you.
You are currently in the Castle of the Two Sisters, an old dilapidated castle that was occupied by... well, the royal sisters. Many, many moons ago, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna built and lived in this very castle in the Everfree Forest. This changed after Luna's transformation into Nightmare Moon and her subsequent banishment to the moon. According to Tia, she couldn't stand to live in a castle that constantly reminded her of her greatest regret, so she moved into the Canterlot Castle. Of course, Luna has since returned and Tia is in a much better mental state (at least in part thanks to you), but with Canterlot firmly established as Equestria's capital, it makes little sense to move back here. However, this castle still holds untold amounts of Equestrian history, so you and your friends decided to repair it. Or, at the very least, make it structurally sound. The castle is already riddled with traps and secret passages, so making it feel a bit more "lived in" should do wonders for future endeavors here.
Most of your friends are working in the main hall. You, on the other hand, were asked to scout the nearby rooms and corridors and report anything suspicious to Twilight. You found this small study, containing a couple of small bookshelves, some desks, some chairs, and little else. You imagine it would likely be pretty cozy all things considered, at least without all of the dust. And you obviously aren't the only one who thinks so, as on the other side of the room, your dear young dragon friend Spike is invested in an issue of his favorite comic book series, the Power Ponies. He occasionally mumbles to himself and periodically asks if you need a hand (hoof? claw?), but otherwise the two of you aren't talking much. You don't want to interrupt his reading, and you have currently tasked yourself with checking out the books throughout the room. If there is one thing pop culture back in your original home taught you, it's that books in long-forgotten locations like this usually contain a lot of incredible information. Or curses. Thankfully you aren't oblivious enough to open up any evil-looking books that you stumble upon.
These books in particular caught your attention, as the castle does have a fully-stocked library elsewhere. The existence of this study makes you think that the contents of these books might be especially worthwhile, so you figured that a quick search through them would either confirm your suspicions that this room holds great secrets, or prove that it's completely harmless and ready to be cleaned. It's a win-win, albeit a bit of a boring one.
So far you have yet to find anything particularly interesting. Granted, you don't really understand a lot of the contents of these books (you still haven't mastered the art of Old Ponish), but as far as you can tell, there aren't any world-shattering revelations or devious spells to be found yet. Oh, well. You can't expect ALL of your endeavors in magical talking pony land to be fantastical.
...Ah. Speak of the devil.
Upon removing another couple of books, you notice something a bit off about the bookshelf. In the space behind where the books once sat, there appears to be some kind of inlet. You aren't about to stick your hand into a mysterious dark hole behind a bookshelf in an abandoned castle full of traps unprepared, so you cast a minor illumination spell and glance inside. Within the stone wall is what seems to be a metal box of some kind. That... definitely qualifies as suspicious. Though, lately, Twilight has been teaching you how to become more in-tune with magic, and you're starting to get better at recognizing when something has magical properties. As far as your less-than-professional eyes can tell, this box isn't magical whatsoever. You figure it should be safe to at least remove the box.
The box is much heavier than you imagined. It's about the size of a gallon of milk, and though you can tell it's definitely made of metal, you're having a hard time identifying what kind. You place the box on top of a nearby stool and wipe at the beads of sweat beginning to form on your brow. You turn around to see if Spike is paying attention. He seems to be looking at the pages of his comic with a confused look on his face, and you decide once more to not interrupt him. Your attention back on the box, you notice a lock holding the top in place. A quick poke at it causes the box to open. Hundreds of years of rust does that, you suppose. Glancing inside the now-open box, you aren't quite sure what to think. Resting in a velvet interior is some kind of glass object, about the size of a football, glowing a dull blue color. Very slowly and with all the care that you can muster, you very cautiously remove the item and place it on the nearby table. While the box may not have set off any red flags, this thing DEFINITELY does. As far as you can tell, it's some kind of hourglass. The hourglass appears to be... well, glass. The sand, however, is what catches your attention. The blue glow is definitely coming from whatever substance is resting within the hourglass, and there isn't a doubt in your mind that it's magical.
You aren't a fool. A mysterious, magical hourglass hidden away in an abandoned castle? This thing probably stops time or something when inverted. Leaving it alone is absolutely your best option right now, and fetching Twilight doesn't seem like a bad idea either. Unfortunately for you, your thoughts on the object kept your attention from the scene unfolding behind you. As you decided to make your way to the door, you finally took notice of the yelling that had been coming from right behind you. The comic book that Spike was reading was resting on the podium in the center of the room, and it was glowing. On top of that, it just so happened to be sucking your friends into its pages. Suddenly realizing that your friends are in danger, you attempted to reach out and grab the mares, but you were just a moment too late. A popping noise is heard as you watch them fall into the comic, the pages slamming shut immediately after. You find yourself in shock.
What just happened?
Bad turns to worse as your attention is once more forcibly pulled in a different direction. A strange feeling wells up within your chest. A feeling of dread. It feels... familiar, somehow. Suddenly, a flash of bright white light floods the room, forcing you to shut your eyes for a moment. When you open them, you notice the table shaking violently. Of course, this also causes the objects on top of the table to shake in turn, and a certain hourglass just so happens to teeter over the edge. You don't even have a moment to react before it hits the floor, conveniently in an inverted position. That can't be good.
As soon as the hourglass hits the floor, the ground in its vicinity is filled with runes. A circle of green glowing runes seemed to dance around the hourglass before suddenly shooting a line of equally green runes across the floor to your feet, encircling you as well. You attempt to leap out of the way, hoping to avoid whatever is about to happen. You dive towards the entrance of the room, but rather than hitting the hard floor, you hit... nothing.
You're falling. All around you, a bright green expanse of magic extends in all directions. You attempt to look upwards at where you just came from, but you're falling extremely fast, and the forces at play make it difficult to turn your head. You fall for five seconds... ten seconds... fifteen seconds...
Suddenly, the magic surrounding you gives way to sunshine. Below you lies a beautiful expanse of blue. That's definitely a body of water. In front of you, there seems to be a landmass, harboring verdant green fields and rolling hills. Along the coast lies some kind of settlement, built around the sandy beach that meets the water. It would be an extraordinary view if it weren't for the fact that you were rapidly falling to what could be your imminent demise.
You attempt to use Twilight's breathing technique to calm yourself down. It... is very hard to breathe right now. Okay, just try to think. How do you stop yourself from smacking against the water at terminal velocity? For a normal human, it would be pretty hard without some kind of parachute, but you have magic! What spells can get you out of this?
Well, let's see. You aren't skilled enough to levitate yet. You still haven't been able to replicate those mysterious wings that appeared when you helped save Ponyville from the Everfree Forest. You COULD use the extremely simple spell to warp to the teleportation circle outside of Tia's room, but unfortunately momentum carries when you teleport. You would likely be little more than a fine paste on the ground if you tried THAT idea. And... that's about it.
Now might be a wonderful time to panic.
With how high up you are, you estimate that you'll hit the water in about a minute. Seeing as how you don't know a levitation spell and the third option results in your immediate death, you figure option two is about all you can try. You just have to conjure up a pair of wings in less than a minute. Easy, right?
You close your eyes and try to remember that day in Ponyville. The vine ball was coming towards you. You attempted to catch it before it could destroy the town. You prepared your body. You thought of yourself, of your friends, of Tia. You caught the ball using a spell you still don't recognize. You pushed to the rhythm of your heartbeat for what felt like days.
Okay. It's now or never.
Your thoughts begin to wander. Are you going to be okay? Are your friends going to be okay? What will happen if you don't get out of this? Your friends... well, they can probably get themselves out of any mess that is thrown at them. What about Tia? She's an extremely capable mare, but lately you've become her emotional anchor. And frankly, she has become yours as well. What you would give to have her around right now...
You begin to feel it. A familiar feeling of strength permeates through your body. You begin to feel magic coursing through you. You try to shut out the sound of the wind rushing past you... There it is. The beating of your heart, possibly amplified by the magic filling your being (and certainly sped up by your fear of slamming into the water), becomes audible. You begin to focus on it. Push. Push. Push. Push.
A familiar force makes itself known on your back, doing everything it can to push against gravity. You have no idea how well it is working. You refuse to open your eyes. Right now, all you can do is focus and continue pushing. Is the air flying past you getting weaker, or are you just optimistic? You couldn't get this to work previously, after all, even if you did try to replicate the same method.
Even without vision, your instincts tell you that impact is coming. You remember hearing on some survival show that you want to hit the water straight up and down, like a diver. So, you do your best to clutch your arms and legs together and allow your feet to hit the water first with whatever force you still carry. You continue to push until finally, you briefly feel a splash.
Your first instinct is to begin coughing violently. The result is a load of seawater gushing up your throat, causing you to upchuck quite a bit of fluid. You attempt to open your eyes, but they burn when you try to do so. Okay, let's try to get a grasp of the situation you're in.
Well, you're still coughing, but you're breathing, so at least you're alive. Actually, your breath feels a bit stifled... oh! You're face down on something. You attempt to grasp at the ground to pull yourself up. You do succeed in sitting upright, but the ground gave way a bit. You rub at your eyes before trying to open them again, only to find that your eyes were full of sand. Okay, now where are you?
Sure enough, sand. You seem to have washed up on a beach. And your body really hurts right now. You stretch a little bit before standing up. The beach isn't actually that big. Behind you is the ocean that you presumably fell into before losing consciousness. In front of you is a stone wall, topped with a railing. If you had to guess, you'd say this is that settlement you thought you saw while falling. You hear voices coming from above the wall, so that seems to support your theory at least. Alright, well, there's not much use in sticking around here. You attempt to cast the spell to teleport to the teleportation circle outside of Tia's room, but for some reason, your magic simply dissipates. You then try a simple illumination spell, but that one works just fine. Okay, so for whatever reason, you can't warp to the teleportation circle. Odd. Taking a look around, you don't see a staircase or anything near you, and to your right the beach comes to a rocky end, so you should probably start heading the other way down the beach.
After walking a short distance you see a crowd of ponies. Most are earth ponies, though there are a few scattered pegasi and a unicorn or two. Most of them are foals and fillies playing in the sand and in the shallow water. As you approach, one colt notices you coming and his eyes grow wide. He begins to scream, attracting the attention of everypony else present. Upon seeing you, they react in an equally terrified manner.
"Uh, hello! Can anypony tell me where I am?"
In response, the entire crowd flees as quickly as they can. The pegasi simply fly off, but the rest sprint up a nearby staircase that presumably leads into town. That was certainly not the reaction you were expecting. It actually feels a bit like when you first arrived in Ponyville. Still, your presence has since been made known to most of Equestria. This must be some sort of out-of-the-way community that isn't as "in-the-know" as you're used to. Or, maybe you're just scary. Either way, you probably have some explaining to do. You ascend the staircase, seeing as there is no longer anypony on the beach to help you.
You arrive on what seems to be a wide street. A few carts and vendors line the road, and there are tons of shops and homes on the opposite side. Behind them stretch dozens upon dozens of what look to be well-crafted buildings. A few archways stretch over the road, and you can't help but notice that the flora around here seems very well taken care of. However, what most catches your attention looks to be coming from far away. Behind many of the buildings, there seems to be a rainbow stretching endlessly into the sky. Now, you're still fairly new to Equestria, but you're confident that you are familiar with most of the major locations within its borders. You've not seen nor heard of such a rainbow.
Of course, your questions will have to remain unanswered, as the panic seems to have spread to this road. You see a few stray ponies running away from you, but otherwise the area seems pretty much deserted. You see a mare staring at you through a window of a nearby shop before gasping and closing the curtain upon meeting your gaze. Whoever these ponies are, your first impression isn't going well.
Suddenly, a siren begins to sound. You don't see anything change and you can't locate the exact source of the sound, but you know that sirens never mean anything good. Given the situation, it seems likely that those sirens are ringing because of, well, you. You understand that these ponies are probably just scared by the tall furless ape in their midst, and you really don't want to get into any legal trouble. If nothing else, it would make Tia look bad. So, despite the lack of any authorities, you decide to place your hands behind your head and stay right where you are. You need to make sure these ponies have no reason to believe that you are a threat. A few moments later, you hear the sound of somepony sprinting in your direction. They seem to be coming from farther in town, but given the lack of any movement on the street, you could probably hear a pin drop, making their approach more noticeable. Finally, the source of the noise makes itself known to you.
Before you stands a young stallion. He has an orange-brown coat with a blue mane, and he is wearing some sort of strap with a star-shaped badge affixed to it. His cutie mark looks like some kind of shield adorned with a horseshoe. If you had to bet, you'd wager that this guy is a sheriff of some kind. Unfortunately, his demeanor doesn't befit someone of such a title. He seems winded from running to you, and after getting a look at you, he seems pretty darn anxious too.
"Alright, you m-m-monster, s-stay where you are!"
...Monster? Are you really that frightening?
"I'm not going anywhere, sir. I think I'm a bit lost. Where are w-"
"Hush! I'll be the one asking the q-questions around here!"
He's trying really hard to seem tough, but his buckling knees are betraying him. Luckily for him, you hear a few more ponies approaching. From down the road you see a group of four mares quickly making their way to you.
"Ah, Sunny, everyone! Stay back! We don't know that this THING is capable of!"
"If it makes you feel any better, I don't think I'm capable of much."
He jumps every time you talk. The mares finally reach the two of you, all but one breathing heavily. The first is a tall, thin pegasus with a bright white coat. Her mane is quite striking, appearing mostly pink with some blue streaking through it. Her wings look strong, and they're tipped with purple and blue feathers. Her cutie mark is a crown-tipped lightning bolt, and it reminds you quite a bit of Rainbow Dash's. She's the only one that doesn't seem winded by the apparently sudden trip here. Next to her is another pegasus. This one is very short, and a bit pudgy. She has a pink coat with a well-kept purple mane. Her head is adorned with a tiara, and her wings look very poofy. Her cutie mark looks like a musical note containing a crown. In contrast to her thin pegasus compatriot, she seems the most out of breath from the trip here. The next mare is the only unicorn of the group. She has a light purple coat with a soft-looking blue mane. She wears an adorable little bracelet on her left forehoof, and her cutie mark looks like some kind of pincushion. Not counting the stallion, she has the largest overall build of the group. Unlike the other mares, there isn't an ounce of worry on her face. In fact, she seems really excited. Finally, the last pony is a bright-orange-coated mare. She wears a blue saddlebag, and her cutie mark looks like a shooting star. Her mane is mostly purple, though it has streaks of blue, yellow, and orange flowing through it. It reminds you of Twilight somewhat. Actually, you could say that about her whole demeanor. While her gaze isn't completely worry-free, she does appear more quizzical than anything. However, her attention seems split between you and the stallion, made more clear when she finally speaks up.
"Hitch, is this the 'emergency' that has everypony in Maretime Bay all freaked out?"
"Why yes Sunny, I would say that a monster emerging out of the ocean and attacking beachgoers is an emergency! A monster that, might I remind you, is standing right there!"
He gestures toward you. Your hands are still behind your head, but you give the mares a little wave.
"Hello. I'm a human, just so you know."
"Sunny" seems a bit surprised, but she gives you a small smile.
"Uh, hello. My name is Sunny Starscout. I'm sorry about all this, but do you mind explaining why a 'human' came out of the ocean and attacked a bunch of innocent ponies?"
"Well to start, I didn't attack anypony. I walked up to some beachgoers and they all fled in terror before I could say anything at all."
Before she could respond, the small pink mare excitedly interrupts.
"OH. MY. HOOFNESS. Are you all seeing this, Pippsqueaks?! We're face-to-face with a real life sea monster!" She seems to be ignoring the conversation you're having as she... wait...
"Uhh, is that smartphone?"
"Huh?" She lowers the device to look directly at you, a bit surprised by your question. "Well, yeah."
A smartphone? No, that can't be right. Ponies don't have smartphones. They don't even have computers! Or televisions! It was a bigger adjustment than you thought it would be while adapting to Equestrian life, but over time you found that you didn't miss them one bit. Everything feels, ironically, more connected without them. Plus, there's no stress of notifications, no obligation to keep up with everyone all of the time... In all honesty, seeing a smartphone leaves a bit of a sour taste in your mouth. Where did she get it?
"Look, I'm sorry that I'm a big scary sea monster to you all, but can somepony please tell me where I am?"
The taller pegaus responds. "You're in Maretime Bay. I mean, where else would you be, considering you emerged from the ocean?"
Maretime Bay? You've definitely never heard of it. "Yeah, I have no idea where that is. Also, I didn't 'emerge from the ocean,' I think I washed up here."
"Do you 'wash up' places often?"
"No, there was an accident involving some kind of magical artifact and I- hold on. What happened to my friends?"
Last you saw of them, they were getting pulled into Spike's comic. Before you could help them, you got sent here. Or, more accurately, the sky miles above here. The orange mare seems particularly invested after that comment.
"Oh no, you lost your friends? Are they 'humans' like you?"
"No, no. I'm the only human in Equestria. They're six mares, all pretty different from one another. Oh, and Spike. Love that little dude."
Hitch spoke up once more. He seems a lot calmer now that his friends are with him. "Look, whoever you are, I sympathize with wanting to help your friends, I really do. But we still don't know anything about you! And even if we did try to help, we would need a bit more to go off of than that. Oh, what am I saying? We can save this conversation for later! For now, just who are you, and why are you here?"
Sunny seems aggravated at his comment. "Hitch! Haven't we learned by now not to judge others based on appearances? This whole freakout was unnecessary! Look at them! They're clearly just as confused as we are!"
"But if they're actually attacking ponies, I can't just let them go!" He turns to look at you. "Why did you attack those kids on the beach?"
"I already told you, I didn't attack anypony!" This is going to take a while.
It has been about twenty minutes. By now the sirens have long since stopped. Ponies have returned to the street, but most are keeping their distance from you. Some stop briefly to take your picture with their phones (still not used to that), but none dare speak to you. You and the five ponies you've just met are sitting at a few nearby benches. You already learned Hitch and Sunny's names, but you were also formally introduced to Izzy Moonbow (the unicorn), Pipp Petals (the shorter pegasus), and Zephyrina "Zipp" Storm (the taller pegasus). Since then, they've been quietly listening to you tell your story, from you and your friends' attempts at restoring the Castle of the Two Sisters to your strange appearance here in Maretime Bay. You figure everything prior to that, like you being the only human in Equestria, would just complicate things. The lot of you sit in awkward silence for a few moments after you finish your tale until Sunny starts to speak.
"I will admit, that story is a tough pill to swallow. I mean, I want to believe you, but... where in Equestria is the Castle of the Two Sisters? Last I checked, Equestria doesn't have any monarchs anymore other than the ones in Zephyr Heights. Two of which are sitting right there."
Hitch spoke up after Sunny. "I have to agree with Sunny, but after listening to you, I do feel that you're telling the truth. That story was a bit too intricate to be a lie, and you just don't seem the deceitful type. That said, how do you think you ended up here? And what are you going to do now?"
"I... don't really know. To both questions, I mean. That strange magical artifact is most likely the reason why I'm here, but as for what it is and what it does, well, I have no idea. As for my plans... I need to get home."
"What about your friends?"
"If I know them, they'll be able to handle themselves just fine. Besides, I feel like what happened to them and what happened to me are two completely separate things. I should probably focus on getting back to the Castle of the Two Sisters, and hopefully we'll meet up there."
"Do you know how to get there? Because we've never heard of it."
"Well, is there a map anywhere nearby?"
Sunny speaks up again. "Oh, we have one back at the Crystal Brighthouse!"
Zipp followed up, a noticeable excitement in her voice. She seems to have taken an interest in your dilemma. "We can show you around Maretime Bay on the way there! It's a bit of a walk, but there's plenty to see if you've never been here!"
Sure, why not? You feel confident that your friends will be fine, and this place does seem strange. Why haven't you heard of it? And why do these ponies seem so... different?
The tour answers none of your questions, though Maretime Bay is a nice place. A beautiful town square, well-built infrastructure, a factory that was once used to produce anti-pegasus and anti-unicorn technology? You also pass by the police department where Hitch works as the sheriff (and only peacekeeper in the city) and Mane Melody, a salon run by Pipp. Finally, you all start walking towards the strange looking lighthouse, which you can now clearly see is the source of the mysterious rainbow you saw earlier.
"Hey, what exactly is that?"
Sunny responds with infectious excitement in her voice. "That's the Crystal Brighthouse! That's where Zipp, Pipp, Izzy, and I live!"
"No, I mean the rainbow shooting out of it."
"That rainbow represents the magic of the Unity Crystals! The five of us were able to collect all three of the crystals, and once we combined them and reunited the three ponykinds, that rainbow was the result! And with it, magic returned to Equestria."
"You mentioned that before. What do you mean it 'returned?' I don't recall magic ever disappearing, and this is the first I've ever heard of these 'Unity Crystals.' Plus, I thought ponies have been united since the first Hearth's Warming."
Zipp responded. "Without magic, unicorns can't use their levitation, and pegasi can't fly. There hasn't been magic in Equestria for hundreds, if not thousands, of moons, at least until a couple of months ago. Though, we didn't really know about the Unity Crystals either until Sunny and Izzy started their adventure to make friends with different kinds of ponies."
You look back at her quizzically. You shrug and wave your hand in a small circular motion, casting a simple spell to summon a little ball of magical energy. You twirl it between your fingers as you speak. "Well, I've been in Equestria for more than a couple of months, and magic has always been here."
The ponies gasp and stop in their tracks, their eyes trained on the ball.
"Uh, you guys okay?"
Izzy, almost shouting, says "What is THAT?!" Her eyes glimmer with excitement.
"It's a ball of magical energy. You... don't know this spell? I thought it was pretty simple."
"What do you mean SPELL? There's more than levitation?!"
What? "What?" What? "Of course there are. Levitation is the easiest spell there is, but there are thousands of other spells, and more are being discovered all the time."
"You aren't even a unicorn! This is so cool!"
You give a little laugh, still confused about the whole scenario.
"What else can you do?"
You laugh a bit harder, and you enjoy the chance to show off some of the easier spells Twilight taught you. Short-range teleportation, illumination, a magical beam. You decide to be a bit gutsy and attempt to summon a vine, like the ones you used to help fight off the Everfree Forest, and sure enough, a green, grape-covered fine sprouts from the ground and gives a wave before sinking back beneath the soil.
Sunny looks both amused and surprised. "Hey, that's just like earth pony magic!" She stomps her front hooves on the ground and a small clump of flowers immediately blooms. This time, you're the one caught off guard. You knew earth pony magic allowed them to be more in-tune with nature, but not like that! There are a lot of inconsistencies between here and the Equestria you were in just hours prior. Where exactly did that artifact take you?
"I think I'd like to take a look at those Unity Crystals."
Those Unity Crystals sure are... crystals. They're just kinda floating there, being all magic-y. Sunny, Izzy, Zipp, and Pipp accompanied you as you all made your way to the top of the Crystal Brighthouse while Hitch went digging for the map of Equestria. When it comes to the crystals, Sunny has been doing most of the talking.
"Well, the five of us were able to unite the three ponykinds while on our search for these crystals. After we all came together and combined them, the result is what you see in front of you. Plus, it gave unicorns and pegasi their magic back, and later on, earth ponies got magic too!"
You've managed to deduce by now that you're in some kind of alternate world or timeline or something. That magical artifact is obviously to blame, and everything seems to work differently here. Last you checked, magic is in everything. Your magic pool feels the same as it did before, and your spells seem just as effective as before (besides your teleportation circle spell). No matter what the circumstances are, you're completely certain that magic does not rely on these Unity Crystals back home. So, the question remains: Where are you, exactly? At the very least, you're in good company. These five ponies have been nothing but friendly (at least after you explained yourself) and Maretime Bay doesn't seem like a bad place. You still aren't used to the more "modern" technology that these ponies have, but at least friendship is still magic.
"I've been trying to work out how they function," Zipp adds, "but so far I haven't gotten many leads."
You give her a smile. She sounds like Twilight, or maybe Rarity when she gets really into her mystery novels.
"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll be able to figure it out. Try to be careful though, in my experience, magical artifacts can be unpredictable. At least they make a really neat landmark!"
Your group laughs at the remark before Sunny starts walking towards the way you came.
"Come on everypony, let's see if Hitch has found that map yet."
You all descend into the mares' bedrooms. Well, bedroom is more like it. It's just one big room divided into sections for Sunny, Izzy, Pipp, and Zipp. As they explained earlier to you, Hitch has his own home closer to the police station. Each of their bedroom section thingies is immediately recognizable as theirs. Zipp has her detective equipment, Pipp has a noticeable pink vanity and a desk for her laptop, Izzy's space is a complete mess, and Sunny's is...
Wait.
You stop dead in your tracks. On your way to the crystals, you didn't notice it before, and at a glance, it would be pretty inconspicuous. There, next to Sunny's bed, was a little shelf hanging on the wall. On top of that shelf were six figurines, seemingly made out of wood. A pink earth pony. A rainbow-maned pegasus. A unicorn with a stylish mane. A timid-looking pegasus. An orange earth pony wearing a rustic hat. And there, in the middle of them all, stood a purple alicorn.
Shock takes control of you. If you have something you want to say, you can't quite find the words. You take a slow step forward, then another. You reach out and pick up the alicorn figurine. The horn, the wings, the mane, even the cutie mark. If you had any doubts, you certainly don't now.
"What's wrong?"
You hear Sunny's words, but you fail to register anything. Why does Sunny have these? Why do they look so old? Who made them? The figurine even has her wings, and she only just got those a few weeks ago.
"Hello? Are you okay?"
That time you realized that your new friends are trying to get your attention. You turn to face them, the figurine still in your hands.
"Where did you get these?"
"Oh, my dad gave them to me. Those are the ponies of legend, the 'Mane Six!' There's Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, Applejack, and-"
"Twilight Sparkle," you say in unison.
"Yes! You've actually heard of her? I've never met another creature who's studied up on ancient Equestrian history!"
Ancient Equestrian history? You feel a weight form deep in your stomach. You're a bit afraid to continue this conversation any further, if only because you're afraid you're right about the conclusion you just came to.
"I've done more than hear of her, Sunny. I know her. She's my best friend."
"WHAT?!" Everypony in attendance goes wide-eyed, though Sunny herself seems hardly capable of containing her excitement.
"HOW? WHERE? WHEN? TELL ME EVERYTHING!"
"Hey, hey, slow down there. And maybe back up a little bit?" Sunny is 100% up in your personal space after that.
"Hey, I heard a commotion up here. What's going on?" Hitch enters the room with what appears to be a rolled-up map.
"Our new friend here claims to have MET Princess Twilight Sparkle!"
"Whaaaaat? Nah, there's no way. She hasn't been around for hundreds of moons!"
"Yeah, and apparently, I haven't either..." you mumble.
Hitch puts the map down as you take a seat on the end of Sunny's bed.
"You know those friends I mentioned earlier? Well," you say as you gesture to the toys on Sunny's shelf, "these are them. The Elements of Harmony. My closest friends."
You explain everything, from the magical surge that brought you to Equestria to your defeat of Shadowmere to your discovery of magic and eventually to Twilight's ascension to princesshood. Your audience is very attentive, and they seem to hang on your every word. Sunny especially, who occasionally lets out an adorable-sounding squee. Your story finally reaches your group arriving at the Castle of the Two Sisters, and you end your tale with an awkward cough. You were never good at presentations. Thankfully, Sunny takes over in the talking department.
"You know, when you told us your name, I thought it sounded familiar. When you called yourself a 'human,' I got a bit suspicious. The term 'Castle of the Two Sisters' kept nagging at me too, but after hearing your story, I think it's safe to say that my assumptions were right. You really are the famous human of legend. You're the Hero of Equestria! There's even a story about when you accidentally got transported through time! What are the odds that you got transported HERE?! This is so, so cool! It's like I'm talking to history itself! Right here! In my bedroom!"
Yup, your suspicions were right. That artifact sent you far, far into the future. Wait, "Hero of Equestria?"
"I'm a hero? I mean, I guess I helped take care of Shadowmere, and I did also help protect Ponyville during the Everfree Forest's invasion, but I don't think I'm some big shot worthy of a title like that."
"Wh- Shadowmere? The Everfree Forest? I mean, those stories ARE out there, but those weren't what gave you your title. They were just ploys from... hold on. Do you know what caused those incidents to happen?"
"Uhh, Shadowmere broke out of Tartarus, and the Everfree Forest had some tricks up its sleeve when it started spreading without the Tree of Harmony to contain it?"
"Oh, so you're at THAT part of the timeline. Good to know."
"Wait, you can't just say that. What happens?"
It was Izzy who responded that statement, surprisingly.
"Sorry, chief, but that information is STRICTLY confidential! We can't go ruining the surprise, or else it won't happen!"
She... has a point. Upon further thought, you probably don't want to know about your future. It would just lead to untold amounts of stress in the long run. Sunny continued her thoughts.
"Still, I have so many questions! Do you think you could maybe stay a while?"
"I don't know, I'm sure my friends are fine but I don't want them to worry about me. Speaking of, did you find that map, Hitch?"
"Sure did. Come take a look."
You all make your way to Pipp's desk (it was the nearest flat surface to lay the map out on). The map is a bit crude, but still functional. You recognize the geography of the landscape, but the cities shown on it are completely foreign to you.
"So Maretime Bay is near the North Luna Ocean, near where Vanhoover is. Is Vanhoover still a thing?"
"No, Vanhoover fell into disarray many moons ago and was abandoned," Sunny says.
"Well, in either case, The Castle of the Two Sisters is, or was, in the center of the Everfree Forest, which is about halfway across Equestria. I guess if I wanted to go, I could theoretically make it just fine, but that's a very, very long journey."
"Do you even have a plan? Let's say you got there, and let's say that, miraculously, it's still standing. What would you do?"
"I guess I would try to find the artifact that sent me here and... undo it, I suppose?"
"You don't know how it works, plus you don't even know if it's still there," Zipp added, "especially after this long."
"That's true, but what other options do I have?"
Sunny took the opportunity to speak again. "Well, I may be able to do some research on your little 'artifact.' If I'm right, it's a powerful relic even more ancient than the royal sisters called the Time Tuner. Maybe I can find out what happened to it!"
The Time Tuner, huh? Good job. You messed with a strange artifact in a creepy hole in the wall in an abandoned, trap-filled castle, and got sent through time for it. Real good judgement call there, bud.
"Yeah, that would be great Sunny, thank you."
"It's really no problem! I can't believe I get to help the Hero! Um, as your friend, I know that I shouldn't ask for anything in return, but do you think you could maybe stay a little longer and tell me more about ancient Equestria?"
You glance outside a nearby window. It's dark out, indicating that it's getting pretty late. Wait, how do day and night work without Tia and Luna?
"Isn't it getting a bit late for that?"
"Well, research takes time, so I'm sorry to say that my research will most likely take a few days. You know what, don't worry about it, I don't want to bother you or anything..."
Her ears drooped to the sides of her head. Darn it, you hate it when these confounding ponies do that. How are you supposed to say no to that? You really do want to get home as soon as possible, but at least your time here should be pleasant.
"Fine, I'll do it. I'm not sure how interesting I'll be though, haha."
Sunny gives you a very wide grin. For a split second, you feel like you see a bit of Twilight in that grin. This girl is a mystery, you'll give her that. Still, it seems as though you've found the truth. You've been sent into the far future, a future where your friends are gone and ponies drifted apart only to come back together again thanks to these new friends you've made (seriously, how do you keep accidentally making friends with super important ponies). You need to find the Time Tuner to get back home, but to do so, you're gonna be stuck here for at least a few days. You have to admit that you're more than a little anxious, but who knows? Maybe this whole ordeal will be fun. Welcome to Maretime Bay.
You'll admit it: This isn't quite how you expected today to go. You're up to your elbows in old, dusty tomes with two new pegasi friends by your side. Zipp is attentively scanning the cover of each book before sorting each one into one of two piles. Pipp, meanwhile, is doing the same, but noticeably slower. Ordinarily this might be a little aggravating, but her slower pace is due not to a lack of effort, but due to her attention being divided, for as she works, she is singing a lovely tune. Pop music was never quite your forte, but with the spontaneous musical numbers that ponies seem so fond of (many of which you have joined in on, willingly or otherwise) you've grown accustomed to it. And as today taught you, Pipp really is an incredible singer.
During your time in Maretime Bay, you are staying in a guest bedroom at Hitch's place. There isn't anywhere for you in the Brighthouse and you don't have any money on you (though, surprisingly, they still take bits) so you can't stay in a hotel, but thankfully Hitch had both the space and the willingness to let you stay with him until you can return home. His strange baby dragon was admittedly extremely distracting, though. Unlike Spike, who is often referred to as a "baby dragon" but is actually in what you would equate to his late teens, Sparky Sparkeroni (seriously Hitch, why did you name it that) is only a few months old. Still, your stay was comfortable, and despite his protests, you can't help but feel indebted to Hitch.
You had thought that after waking up and starting your day, you and Sunny would be digging through books in the Crystal Brighthouse. Unfortunately, the majority of her books were apparently destroyed by an altercation with a stallion named Sprout right before the Unity Crystals were brought together. So, you would have to rely on what information was available at the library. As you found out, this was more challenging than you had anticipated. During the period where the three ponykinds split apart, much of history was forgotten or rewritten. Texts containing true information about "your" time were few and far between, which admittedly raised several questions among you and Sunny as to why. Ultimately though, the end result was that Sunny only had about a dozen books to look through, most of which were very unlikely to contain any information about the Time Tuner. That was when Zipp proposed an idea.
"Hey Sunny, remember that station that I showed you and Izzy back in Zephyr Heights? It's actually connected to the old royal library. My great-grandmother built a new one during her reign and filled it with modern books of all sorts, but the original one shouldn't have been touched. Do you think we might be able to find something there?"
"Zipp, that's genius! The royal library would have been restricted even when it was in use, so books wouldn't have had any need to be thrown out or censored!"
"Now hold on Zipp," Pipp added, "not even we are allowed to just go in there as we please. Only mom can."
"And? I don't see why she wouldn't give us permission."
"Because she's really protective of great-grandma's stuff, duh! Besides, you know as well as I do that that library is NOT structurally sound. We can't just cart dozens of books out of there!"
The two of them continued to argue for some time. You and Sunny exchanged a glance before taking a seat at a nearby table. Sunny laughed and told you that they would probably be at it for a while, and to just leave them be for now. In the meantime, the two of you shared a pleasant conversation about your experiences in Equestria. Of course, it mostly boiled down to Sunny fangirling over your existence and bombarding you with questions (once again reminding you a lot of Twilight), but it was nice to receive the positive attention, you supposed. After about half an hour, the pegasi returned. Pipp looked like she had just gotten off of the phone with somepony and filled you in on their discussion.
"Okay, here's the 411. Mom says that we can use the library, but on two conditions. One, other than Zipp and I, only one other pony can go inside. Two, we can take no more than ten books. Also, it's not really a condition, but she can't send anypony to pick us up, so we have to go there on hoof."
Sunny's next words surprised you. "Why don't you go?"
She wants YOU to go? You asked her why.
"Well, one of us needs to stay here and look through the books we already have. This way, we can be as efficient as possible. Besides, you've never seen Zephyr Heights! It's a beautiful place, and it'd be a shame not to see it before you go home!"
That... actually sounds enticing. As much as you want to go home, you already decided that you should enjoy the time you DO have here, and some sightseeing shouldn't be too bad. On top of that, you would likely get to learn more about Zipp and Pipp. While you don't necessarily have a vested interest in them or anything, you figure that following Twilight's teachings on making friends should come in handy, especially since the concept of friendship being magic seems like a fairly recent thing for these ponies.
What you didn't realize was that the trip to Zephyr Heights would take all day. Under most circumstances, a pegasus could fly from Zephyr Heights to Maretime Bay in an hour or two, but there's one major hiccup: You can't fly. At least, not fully. Not yet. Hey, you're allowed to be optimistic, darn it.
So, the three of you walked. Zipp, who is clearly the better flier of the two, wasn't too keen on the idea, but never complained. Pipp, meanwhile, seemed much more content not having to fly all afternoon. That said, she still refused to quicken her pace any more than a gentle trot. This meant that you, with your comparably long legs (especially for her, why is this poor gal so smol), had to walk at an uncomfortably slow pace.
Zipp made little effort to talk. It wasn't that she didn't want to, you just got the impression that compared to her friends, she wasn't the talkative type. Pipp, meanwhile, talked quite a bit. That said, most of it wasn't directed towards you. It seemed like every two minutes she had her cell phone in her hoof again, recording a video for her "Pippsqueaks" about any given thing that caught her attention. Many times, the subject was you. At first, you felt pretty embarrassed. Back in your original world, you were never too active on social media. You weren't all that popular in person, and you didn't feel any validation from getting attention from strangers. You were also never that great at having a lot of eyes on you, so Pipp's videos and streams unnverved you. At least, they did for a while. As the day went on, you started to feel less uncomfortable around the camera. Pipp's seemingly boundless energy helped with that at least, and by the time you were halfway to Zephyr Heights, you were striking poses with the best of them (the best of them being Pipp).
At one point along the way, Pipp starting singing. The camera was not on, and as you had learned through the course of the day, Pipp has a habit of singing unprompted, even in the middle of otherwise regular sentences, to add emphasis to things she's saying or doing. This, however, seemed to be a complete song. A pop song, of course, but one that would fit right in with the bestsellers of your homeworld. You had felt a bit of a bond forming between the two of you between the recordings and light conversation you made as you continued on the path to the pegasi's hometown, and with that bond you began to feel much more at home with them. Ponies are pretty good at that, it seems, and it was thanks to that comfort that you didn't hesitate to start putting some swagger into your stride. One leg in front of the other, a shuffle here, a twirl there. Oh yeah. You're schmoovin'. Zipp laughs at that and decides to join you, adding a lot of twirls and curls into a slow-paced flight pattern above you. Pipp smiled through her singing, and you could tell by the look on her face that she was legitimately delighted by the sight in front of her. The three of you continued like that for quite a while, and even when the singing stopped, the synergy between your little trio never faded.
"You know, I'm glad you ended up here. You're fun to be around, you know that? I know I have my Pippsqueaks, but not many would be willing to just... have fun like that around 'Princess Pipp Petals.'"
"Trust me Pipp, titles like that have pretty much lost all meaning to me by now. So long as you're a good person- er, pony, then there's no issue. And you're great to be around!" You look up at Zipp, who is flying maybe seven feet above you. "You too, Zipp. Your flying reminds me a lot of a friend of mine back home."
"Oh yeah? What's she like?"
"Hmhm. Well, she's brash, she's impatient, and she tends not to think things through all that often."
"Hey!"
"But, she's also confident. Passionate. The most loyal friend you could ask for. Plus, she's the best flier in Equestria. Maybe ever."
"Wait, are you talking about Rainbow Dash?!"
"Yes, actually. You know her?"
"Of course I know her! She was a Wonderbolt, the legendary band of fliers that dominated Equestria's skies hundreds of moons ago! Not just that, she was the greatest among them! Do I really fly like her?!"
There was a sparkle in her eyes. Dash isn't actually a Wonderbolt yet in your time, but it's good to know she makes it. Not that you had any doubt she would, by the by.
"I hate to break it to you Zipp, but I meant more in your mannerisms. There is a sort of confidence and swagger to your flying that you don't see in many pegasi. I... really wouldn't recommend trying to fly like her, especially if you've only just learned how to fly a few months ago. She was capable of breaking the sound barrier, which could be... we'll just say not good for the body, if performed incorrectly."
"Huh. Well, I guess that makes sense. Still, I'm flattered!"
Frankly you expected her to be like "Nu-uh, I can totally do that too!" But, she showed a surprising amount of maturity and understanding of herself and her limitations. Consider yourself impressed.
Eventually, though, you made it to Zephyr Heights. Sunny wasn't lying. The city was grand, built into a series of mountaintops. It was very modern looking, with a lot of technology and new-looking buildings all around you. Make no mistake, this place is beautiful. That said, the mood was a bit lessened by every other pegasus jumping or freaking out when they passed by you. Thankfully your friendly neighborhood influencer, Pipp, had made much of the population aware of your existence and of your harmlessness prior to your arrival, so you faced little resistance as the three of you made your way to the old royal library.
Once you arrived, you found that the queen was right. This place is old, dusty, and not all that structurally sound. Not unlike the Castle of the Two Sisters, actually. That said, the three of you maintained the energy that had carried you all the way to Zephyr Heights, and you got to work looking through the books. You had decided to sort them into two categories: history and non-history. Once that was done, you could further sort the history books into ones that might have information on old magical artifacts and those that likely don't. Along the way, Pipp started singing again, and you and Zipp felt yourselves bobbing to the rhythm as you dug through the old bookshelves.
Let's see here... "Ballroom Flying," "Of Mice and Mares," "Make Him Fall For You In A Fortnight?" These are most definitely not the type of books you're looking for. Your compatriots took it upon themselves to search the higher shelves, as this library was very obviously made with flying in mind, while you took care of the shelves closer to the ground. Suddenly, the singing comes to an abrupt stop.
"W-woaaaahhh!"
You look up to see Pipp tumbling backwards away from the bookshelf, a tome in each hoof. Unfortunately for her, her little stumble left her positioned upside-down, and you've figured out by now that she isn't all that great of a flier. You hear Zipp call out in worry from the other side of the library. Without a moment's hesitation, you sprint to where Pipp is about to make a hard landing. It's going to be really close. You dive for her...
A perfect catch! It helps that ponies are the perfect size for holding.
"Woah, thanks! That could have really hurt!"
You let Pipp down and ask what happened to her. Zipp lands next to the two of you as she begins explaining.
"Well, I thought I saw some books worth grabbing, but they were really stuck in there. Take a look at these!"
She held out the two books, and you took them off of her hooves. Both were leather bound, and they appeared extremely worn-out. That said, they were still legible. One read, in plain lettering, "Equestrian Enchantments." The other appeared much more elegant, with what was once likely a white binding with gold-colored trim, and through the fancy lettering you could make out "The Rise of the Two Sisters." While the former is more likely to hold the information you're looking for, the latter has stolen your attention. "The Rise of the Two Sisters?" When was this written?
"You said you activated some sort of magical artifact, right? That sounds like an enchantment to me! And I don't know as much about Equestrian history as Sunny, but if you found the artifact at this 'Castle of the Two Sisters,' I figured that 'The Rise of the Two Sisters' may say something about it."
"Yeah, you may be right about that. Let's add these to the 'keep' pile. I'm interesting in seeing what they have to say."
The rest of the search was fairly uneventful. Zipp took quite a bit of time deciding which books among the "keep" pile to actually take back with you, but once you finished rounding up your ten books of choice, you picked up the mess you made to the best of your ability and departed from the library. The sun was setting at this point, so Zipp and Pipp invited you to stay with them at the castle overnight. You were formally introduced to Queen Haven, and both she and the princesses were impressed by your show of proper etiquette in front of royalty. What can you say? You've had a lot of practice. As a result, she seemed to approve of you, and you were cleared to stay in a guest bedroom in the castle. It was cozy, not quite as grand as those back in Canterlot, but still nice. Right before you got settled in, there was a knock at your door, which turned out to be Pipp.
"Hey, sorry to bother you. I just figured I'd give you this before I forget about it."
She reaches a hoof into her saddlebag and pulls out what looks to be a smartphone, one that is noticeably different than the one you've seen her carrying around.
"This is one of my old ones. Still works just fine, though! I thought you might want it in case something happens while you're here."
"Oh wow, uh, thank you Pipp." You have to admit, you kind of don't want it, but it would be rude to turn her down. You look down at the phone and tap it. Sure enough, it turns right on, no password necessary. There aren't many apps on it or anything, and you certainly don't recognize any of them (many questions would be raised if you did), though it seems that the universal symbol for "phone call" is still the same here.
"You said you had these back in your human world, right? Do you need any help with it?"
"Um, I don't think so. Thank you again Pipp, this is very thoughtful."
"Consider us even for the library. I already put all of our phone numbers in there, so you shouldn't have much issue if something comes up. Well, goodnight!"
"'Night, Pipp."
With any luck, you won't have to use this thing too often. Still, curiosity gets the better of you. With muscle memory that still hasn't fully gone away since your days in your original world, you skim through the contents of the phone. It's a bit uncanny, actually. For all intents and purposes it is extremely similar to human smartphones, but it's tailor-made for ponies. Well, duh. Everything on the screen is much... bigger. The buttons are larger, the keypad is admittedly less intuitive, and most actions are done with less precise taps. You suppose that's because it's much harder to be precise with your taps when you have hooves.
The phone has little more than the basics. The actual phone app, a texting app, a camera, a flashlight, a clock, an internet browser (something deep inside of you tells you not to listen to your curiosity and stay away from that one), a music app, and what seems to be an app that lets you make video calls and also stream said call at the same time. Odd, but not out of place for a phone once owned by an influencer. For now you decide to just leave it in your pocket and head to sleep.
Your trip home the next day is uneventful. The three of you split the ten books evenly, so while you were moving at a slower pace, none of you were particularly encumbered by the added weight. You finally arrived back in Maretime Bay at around mid-afternoon. Nopony was at the Brighthouse when you got there. While Sunny was committed to helping you find a way back home, she (as well as the rest of your new friends) still has a job she has to go to. On that note, Pipp waved goodbye and headed to Mane Melody, leaving you and Zipp to start digging through the books you had retrieved. Your curiosity finally getting the better of you, you jump straight into "The Rise of the Two Sisters."
...Huh?
The more you read, the more a deep feeling of unease builds up within you. You feel yourself breaking into a cold sweat.
What is this?
You are far from an expert on this subject, but you haven't read a text like this since you were back in your human world. And even then, this book just fills you with a sense of dread like no other book has before. You realized it from the first sentence, which took up the entirety of the cover page. A sentence that you've heard before, and that you were not expecting to hear again. Not like this.
"With every story comes an end. With every birth, there is death. With every rise, there is fall. With every ruler, there is a replacement. Only the First is eternally the First."
This is a bible. A bible that details the first alicorn. A bible that tells the story of the first alicorn "graciously" giving up her physical form and bestowing great magic upon two mares, leading them in their rise to power, their defeat of Discord, and their founding of what would become known as Equestria.
Tia talked with you about this before. Even she knows very little about the First. She was granted power she never asked for and told directions every so often, but given the circumstances every time the First made an appearance, she could never refuse. Everything always turned out okay, but that feeling of being little more than another's puppet is a sensation you would never wish upon anyone. And wouldn't you know it? In spite of the title, throughout the book, Celestia and Luna are never once given any credit. In fact, they aren't even given any traits as living beings at all. They are treated as mere extensions of the First, like a tool to be used. Reading it makes your skin crawl, both out of anger and out of fear.
Is this what they read at that church back in Canterlot? Who wrote it? How did they get this information, which Tia had told you in complete confidence was a secret?
The book is not actually that long, only around fifty pages or so, and none of it is information that Tia hasn't told you before (though in a much different manner, of course). Upon finishing it, you gently close it and place it down on the table, still trying to process what you just read.
"That was fast. What's up? You look like you've seen a ghost."
Zipp was staring at you from across the table, still only a few pages into her book.
"Uh, nothing. Just a bit rusty on my Old Ponish, that's all. Nothing of use in that one, so we can cross it off the list, haha."
You aren't convincing anypony. Your voice is shaky and that was quite possibly the weakest "nonchalant" laugh you've ever heard. Thankfully, after narrowing her eyes at you, Zipp just went back to reading rather than asking you anything. You're definitely going to need to talk to Tia about that book when you get home. You definitely feel uneasy, but for now, though, you suppose you should just get back to your research. Between the books you just got and the ones Sunny acquired around Maretime Bay...
You grunted as you attempted to pull the hairbrush out of Izzy's tangled mane. You were making a lot of progress, but this is certainly a project.
Yesterday's research took the entire evening, and you only managed to get through about half of the books you had acquired. You started the day ready to dive back into it, but rather than a pile of books greeting you at the Crystal Brighthouse, you were met with Izzy excitedly bounding towards you the moment you opened the door. She had insisted that you accompany her on one of her "dives." Poor, innocent you thought "yeah, why not?" Had you known that she was referring to digging through literal garbage for hours on end, you might have reconsidered.
Still, though. It is very hard to stay mad at that mare. She's just so... bubbly. Your first thought was that she was similar to Pinkie Pie, but after getting to spend a bit more time with her, you found that she's actually a lot more down-to-earth, so to speak. She was just as full of energy, just as quick to get around, and just as full of non sequiturs, but she was also a lot easier to just... talk to (not that you have any issues with Pinkie, of course). You found yourselves being engaged in many conversations as you worked, from "unicycling" ideas to your experiences with magic, and you were both having a great time.
Your fun came to a fairly quick end when Izzy decided to dive into the wrong pile of trash. You had ultimately decided that you didn't want to dumpster dive with the same ferocity that she did, but you still dug through your fair share of rubbish whenever another pile would catch her eye in search of unicycling materials. This pile, however, was not as it seemed. It was full of trash bags, the contents of which could not be deduced from a simple glance. That, of course, did not stop Izzy from jumping right in, only to find that the bags were filled with cockleburs. Apparently the owner of said trash was an earth pony that was still working on their magic. Izzy's fun stopped pretty much immediately as you heard her cry out in pain. This poor mare doesn't deserve that.
So, you took the bur-covered mare back to the Brighthouse. Zipp was still avidly reading (you made sure to get her permission before joining Izzy on her excursion) but took a break to ensure her friend's well-being. You brought Izzy to the bathroom and started cleaning her off as best you could. She had picked the majority of the burs out of her coat already, and her telekinesis helped with that quite a bit, though she didn't have the best view of her back. After getting her coat cleaned up, all that remained was her mane, which was a sight to behold. Normally, Izzy's mane is very pretty. The bright blue color seems to glow in sunlight, and it always looks silky smooth and soft. Now that you have the opportunity to touch it, you can confirm that this is indeed the case. Granted, it's full of prickly cockleburs right now, but still.
So, here you are, brushing Izzy's mane to the best of your ability in an attempt to get dozens of burs out of the tangled mess. Izzy seems to appreciate your help, even if you aren't doing the best job in the world. Ironically you've only brushed a mare with a mane that's consistently flowing, so dealing with one that is stationary is throwing you off.
Eventually, you get her all cleaned up, and she jumps off of the stool with as much energy as when you first met up this morning.
"Thank you for all of your help today! I know it didn't end well, but we got so many useful materials! I have so many great ideas for Izzy Does It!"
"Well, thank you for having me! I had a great time, Izzy. That said, why did you invite me at all? I didn't really do much."
"Aw, come on, silly! It wasn't about the job! It was about getting to know you!"
"Oh! Well, I'm flattered. Did you learn everything you wanted to?"
"All that and more! You had a bunch of great unicycling suggestions, you don't like digging through trash, your 'finger' thingies are really useful for handling stuff, and you tell the best jokes!" You don't remember telling all that many jokes, but at least she's happy. "Anyway, why don't we see what Zipp is up to? Maybe she's figured out where your Time thingy is!"
Perhaps so. You make your way back to the table where Zipp was reading previously. She is still there, reading intently.
...Really intently. Does she need her face that close to the book to read it? Oh, never mind. She's asleep. You glance at the nearby clock. It is a lot later in the day than you thought. Izzy spoke up, though much quieter than before.
"Do you mind if I read some of these? I know I'm not Sunny or Zipp, but I want to help you out, too!"
"Go ahead. Maybe you'll find something we couldn't." You were probably whispering a bit quieter than you needed to, but oh well. You get the feeling that Zipp is the cranky type when she wakes up.
So, the two of you dug through even more of the books from the pile. After a bit, Sunny and Pipp returned to the Brighthouse as well. Sunny gladly joined the two of you while Pipp decided to retire early for the night, dragging (with great difficulty) her unconscious sister with her. Sunny, Izzy, and yourself engaged in light conversation as you read, either about the material you were reading or about you. Sunny loved hearing your personal accounts of your friends, whom she had looked up to all throughout her life, and Izzy enjoyed hearing about the many antics you all got up to on an almost daily basis. As you continued to turn the pages, the words seemed to blend together into a collage of nothingness. Sentences started to lose their meaning, either because you were getting really bored, or because you were losing focus. It seemed as though Sunny was feeling the same thing, though Izzy never seemed to lose her pace. You and Sunny realized this at about the same time, and you set aside your books in favor of just talking to each other.
You have a lot in common with Sunny and Izzy. You also have a similar feeling about Zipp, Pipp, and Hitch. They were all just... pleasant to be around. It's a very familiar feeling to what it's like to live in Ponyville. You know you need to leave. When you do, you'll likely never see these ponies again. But whether it's Twilight's influence or your own intuition, you feel like the bonds you've created with them will transcend time. You hear the two mares laugh at a well timed joke on your part.
The more time you spend with these ponies, the less of a rush you feel to get back home. Well, sort of. You really miss Tia. What you wouldn't give to be able to send her a letter letting her know you're okay. Maybe you could tell her about a friendship lesson these future ponies have taught you or something, haha.
"Hey, did you already look at this one? It has your signature on it." You look at Izzy quizzically, and Sunny does the same. "...What? It's right here."
She slides the book to you. You glance at the cover. It reads "Journal of Friendship." Wait... you've seen this before. Not too long ago, Twilight made this. Whenever you or any of your friends learned a friendship lesson, you were supposed to record it in the journal for future reference. Except... you haven't written in it yet.
You look back at the open page Izzy was reading. Yeah, that's definitely your handwriting. Actually, it's dated the day after you got sent here.
"Dear Diary,
Friends really can be found anywhere. No matter how far from home you wander, hold your head high! There will always be someone willing to help you, and there is always hope that you will find your way back. And who knows? These new friends may have even more in common with you than anyone you've ever met."
Yup, that's definitely your signature. It makes sense, you suppose. That is indeed a friendship lesson you've learned while being here. What's this about having something in common with them, though? You already surmised that you do have things in common with them, but you can't imagine pointing that out specifically in the journal when you got home.
Wait. There's something else written at the bottom of the page. Those are some really small letters, but it still looks like your handwriting.
"PS. If I'm reading this, the thing I'm looking for is at my friend's house. Just make sure she doesn't unicycle it."
Huh? "If I'm reading this?" What does that mean? Well, you ARE the author, and you are also the one reading it. You are looking for the Time Tuner, yes? And your friend's house? Other than Hitch, they all live here, right? And this last part? Make sure she doesn't unicycle it? ...Hold on!
"Izzy!"
"Woah!" Oops, you might have said that louder than you meant to.
"Do you have a house that isn't this one?"
"Of course I do! Where do you think I lived before moving here? I've got a house over in Bridlewood!"
Sunny spoke up. "It's a lovely home, but what does that have to do with anything?"
"I think that's where the Time Tuner is!"
"Huh?" The mares tilted their heads in unison. You explained the Journal of Friendship to them.
"So, you think that you left, or I guess, 'leave,' that message for yourself when you get back home, and you do so to tell your past, or, 'present,' self how to find the Time Tuner?"
"Yeah, I think so."
Izzy starting beaming. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get you home!"
You glance out the window. The sun is setting, and beyond that, Zipp and Pipp are in bed already.
"Why don't we head there tomorrow?"
Sunny was getting excited, too. "I'll go too! I can close my stand for the day. I really want to see you off, and I can take care of the Time Tuner after you're gone."
"Alright, it sounds like a plan!"
You neatly put away the books you had piling up around you and said your goodnights before heading back to Hitch's place. Tomorrow, you're finally going to be able to go home. In truth, you're actually a bit sad to leave. A mixture of excitement and anxiety fills you as you do your best to drift to sleep.
The walk to Bridlewood was pleasant. It is a very nice day, with only the occasional cloud dotting an otherwise spotless sky. A bit on the warm side but with a soothing breeze. This is fortunate, as Bridlewood is much farther away from Maretime Bay than you would have liked. Of course, your five new friends made the journey much more fun to be on. Between Pipp's singing, Zipp's flying, Hitch's fascination with the local wildlife, Sunny's optimism, and Izzy's... Izzy-ness, it's hard to find a dull moment with this crew.
Eventually, you arrived at Bridlewood. It is definitely a sight. Many homes are built into trees and the surrounding areas. The population naturally consists mostly of unicorns, but there is the occasional earth pony or pegasus walking around. Apparently it was a lot more dreary before the magic returned, but right now it looks about as bright and colorful as you'd expect a magical forest town full of unicorns to be. Seeing as Izzy's house is one of the first buildings one comes across after entering Bridlewood, Izzy took the time to show you around the town first. Admittedly, there isn't actually that much to be shown. The tree buildings are fascinating, and there are many beautiful crystals jutting out of the ground, but there aren't that many shops or landmarks apart from the Crystal Tearoom. Your group sat there for a spell listening to some slam poetry and sipping at tea.
...Nope, not as good as Tia's.
After completing your tour, you arrive at Izzy's abode. It's an adorable home on the outside, while the inside is pretty much exactly what you expected. Which is to say that it is extremely messy and filled with unicycling projects, both finished and otherwise.
"Welcome, one and all, once more or for the first time, to La Villa Izzy!"
"This really is a nice place you have here, Izz." You honestly are impressed, mess aside.
"Thanks! Now, where's this Timer Tune thingy you're looking for?"
You have no idea. Your group begins looking around Izzy's home. This turns out to be difficult for two reasons. For one thing, she has a LOT of unfinished unicycling projects, and none of them are organized. The second issue is the stuff that IS done. None of you want to be the one who accidentally breaks one of her unicycling projects, so you are all taking extra care to be extremely gentle with everything you touch. And there is a lot to touch.
After a couple of hours, you finally notice it. Nestled on the floor between a few broken crystal chunks and a small pile of books was a small metal box. It hardly takes more than a glance for you to recognize it as the box you found at the Castle of the Two Sisters. You gingerly pick it up. The top is sealed once more, though the lock appears to be completely different. Rather than an old hunk of rust, the lock appears to be made out of a high quality metal similar to the rest of the box, and it is adorned with two alicorns. Interestingly, there is no key hole. Sunny, who was searching next to you at the time, takes a look at it as well.
"Whoa. Is that it?" she asks.
"Well, it certainly looks like the box I found it in, but the lock is totally different. Is it even inside?" You pick up the box. There is a noticeable weight to it, extremely comparable to when you first found the box. "Yeah, I think it is."
The rest of your friends, having heard the conversation, approach and look over your shoulders at it.
"Uhh, Izzy? Where did you get this thing?" Hitch asked.
"Hmm." Izzy tapped a hoof to her chin. "I think I found it at a yard sale when I was a filly. I thought the lock design was pretty, so I bought it."
"Who's to say how it got here from your time, though? There are countless things that could have occurred between now and then." Sunny added.
"Right, but to be completely honest, I don't really care how it got here. I'm mostly thankful that Izzy didn't accidentally activate it. I guess the question now is, how do we get it out?"
"Wait, you don't know? I thought you opened it already?" Zipp asked.
"No, this lock must have been added after the fact." You take a closer look at the lock. The design is very similar to old depictions of Celestia and Luna, with two alicorns locking horns in the center of the design. However, as you already pointed out, there is no keyhole on this lock or anything. Putting two and two together... "I think it has to be opened with magic."
"No problem!" Izzy excitedly prepared her horn. She levitated the box towards her horn and... focused, or something? You can't really tell what she's trying to do. "Ugh, it's no use! My magic isn't working."
"Here, let me take a look at it." Sunny took the box from Izzy before closely inspecting the design. "Now, I imagine you would know more about this than me, but do you think it's possible this design is asking us to get an alicorn to open this box?"
You had a feeling she was going to say that. "Yeah, I suppose it could. But, uh, how are we going to do that? I have a few alicorn associates, but apparently they're little more than ancient history to you guys."
Everypony laughed at that. What's so funny? Sunny answers your question before you can ask it.
"Sorry, I just realized I completely forgot to tell you. I'm an alicorn! Well, sorta. I think. It's complicated."
Seriously? How many alicorn friends are you going to make? "Wait, where are your horn and wings?"
"They aren't always 'out' per se. Here, I'm getting better at doing this willingly. Let's see."
Sunny appeared to concentrate for a moment before a small burst of light seemed to shoot out from her body. You shielded your eyes for just a moment, and when you turned back, you saw her smiling at you. There, on her head, was a magical, ethereal horn. A pair of similar-looking wings protruded from her back. Your jaw dropped. That's definitely something you've seen before. Only, you can't control it quite yet.
"Pretty cool, right?"
"I... yeah. You... I... where did you learn to do that?"
"Oh, this just sort of happened after we got the magic back. I couldn't really control it then, but I've since realized that it's tied to my emotions and my desire to do something. I'm still not perfect at it, but I can at least consistently get them to come out."
Emotions and her desire to do something? Well, you did manage to do it when you thought about saving Tia. Possibly both times, but you didn't actually confirm if you got those wings to work when you first fell into Maretime Bay. You decide to put that to the test.
You close your eyes. Once more, your thoughts drift to Celestia. You've been here for a while now. You really want to see her again. You imagine your friends in Ponyville. You imagine Twilight getting used to her wings, Rainbow Dash showing her the ropes, Applejack preparing to catch her. Thinking about them, your chest starts to feel warm and full. A smile creeps to your face. You want to see them again. You want to go home.
You hear several gasps. You open your eyes, and your friends are staring at you, their mouths agape. It's barely within your peripheral vision, but you can barely see a magical horn protruding from your forehead. You reach for your back. Yup, those are wings. You give Sunny a smile.
"I guess you figured out how to do it on command before me, huh?"
"You... you're an alicorn?"
"Well, maybe? I don't really think I CAN be an alicorn considering I'm a human. They also aren't permanent, so I don't know. Maybe I'm like a half-alicorn or something?"
"A half-alicorn, huh? Is that what I am, too?"
"Well, I have no idea about that one. I don't know how or why I can do this, you know? It just kind of... happened, while I was trying to stop the Everfree Forest from destroying Ponyville."
Sunny had a mixture of joy and relief on her face. "It's actually really comforting to know I'm not alone. There isn't a huge downside to being a 'half-alicorn' exactly, but it does feel sort of isolating to think you're the only one of your kind."
"Hey, I'm the only human in Equestria. Trust me, I know how that feels. But that's what friends are for, right? They don't care what you are so much as who you are." Zipp, Pipp, Izzy, and Hitch seemed to agree and both you and Sunny found yourselves getting pulled into a group hug. It is very soft, very heartfelt, and admittedly a little uncomfortable. "Now, how about we get that box open?"
You all look down at the still-closed box. If you were right about needing to use alicorn magic, then you should probably focus your efforts on the alicorn design, right? You look over at Sunny, who meets your gaze and looks a bit concerned.
"I understand that we're trying our alicorn magic, but to be honest, I don't really know how to do that."
"It's okay, I'm not exactly an expert either. Just follow my lead."
You reach out your arm as you usually do when casting a spell. You can feel your magic gathering within your horn and slowly spreading through your chest and towards your fingertips. A magical release is incredibly simple, and you just need to concentrate a gentle beam of it towards that lock. A familiar tingling feeling wells up within you as a light-green magical energy shoots from your hand a bit more violently than you were hoping. You all recoil after the sudden burst of magic, and you hesitantly take a glance at the lock. Thankfully, it seems to be completely undamaged.
"Maybe wait until I get this down first before following my lead, haha..."
You feel a blush reach across your face as you trail off. You clear your throat and start trying again. If you were being gentle before, you were barely doing anything at all this time. Slowly, and with a bit more warning this time, you feel a steady stream of magic release from your hand. This time, it remains small and steady, and your aim is perfect. Your magic is hitting the lock exactly, and the lock seems as though it is absorbing it. If you were to look closer, you would see that one of the two alicorns on the design is beginning to glow. Sunny watched you closely, first with wonder, then with determination. You watch as her horn begins to glow brighter. Zipp, Pipp, Izzy, and Hitch all take a few steps back, just in case. Sure enough, Sunny's first try is similar to yours, with way too much magic being released. Your own spell wavers a bit as she does so, but you barely manage to keep it going. She looks at you with a nervous expression, and you give her your best comforting smile.
"It's okay, you can do this. Take it nice and slow. Breathe."
You watch Sunny do a deep inhale, much like the breathing technique Twilight taught you. Her horn once again begins to glow, though not quite as bright. Slowly but surely, an orb of magic begins to form at the tip of her horn before a beam of magic, similar to yours but orange in color, shoots out of it. It would be really cool if she didn't miss the box entirely. Out of instinct she drops concentration on the spell and looks at you again. You just give her a small laugh, and she seems to relax a bit. She plants herself as best she can and begins the spell one more time. This time, her aim is perfect. Your spells intersect in the very center of the lock, and the whole design begins to glow a brilliant yellow color. Suddenly, there is a loud "click" sound. The two of you drop your spells and exchange a glance before looking down at the box.
It's wide open. Your spells worked.
You both let out an excited gasp before sharing a quick hug. Your friends once more stepped forward, and Hitch slowly reached into the box. You all held your breath as he retracted his hoof. The light hits the box just right, and the object in his grip seems to shimmer. There is no doubt about it. That's the Time Tuner, just as pristine as you left it.
"That's it, all right. That's the thing that brought me here in the first place."
"That's all well and good, but do you know how to make it send you back?" Hitch asked quizzically.
"Well, uh, no. No I don't."
You beckoned for Hitch to hand the artifact to you. You were much more nervous back in the Castle of the Two Sisters and you failed to inspect it as closely as you could now. You didn't dare invert it, but you could make out a few more details about it. Ultimately, it was still just an hourglass made out of what looked like glass and filled with a "sand" that glowed a magical blue color. However, when you first saw it, you failed to notice a ring of runes lining the top and bottom in a circular pattern. You... can't read runes. Like, at all. You memorized the ones needed for Tia's teleportation circle, but you have no idea what they mean.
"Hey, I know a bit about runes! Mind if I take a look?" Ah, Sunny. Always the history nerd.
She gently takes the Time Tuner from your hands. Her horn and wings have already dissipated, and you notice that yours have, too. She looks closely at the runes, and very slowly rotates the object to read them better all the way around.
"Well, I think it roughly translates to 'Time will bend, but will never break. Invert once more to return to your fate.' Well, that's... shockingly helpful, actually."
"Invert once more? Wait, so it has been flipped over for all of these years? There's no way!" Pipp exclaims. You have to agree with her on that one. What are the odds of that? Your attention is suddenly pulled from Pipp as you hear Izzy fiddling with the now-empty box.
"I think this box is made of something funky. My magic doesn't really seem to work on the inside." She was clearly using with her magic on the box, but she seemed to be having difficulty doing so. "Maybe it can't invert so long as it's in here?"
That's a reasonable deduction. That would explain how it has remained untouched for all of this time, and why it was stored in that box in the first place.
"Well, are you ready?" Sunny looks at you expectantly. Her eyes are wide, and she seems... sad.
You look at the rest of your new friends. Izzy has put the box down and is now looking straight at you, a frown starting to creep across her face. Hitch and Zipp were keeping straight faces, but they were obviously upset as well. Pipp was the most obvious, as tears starting filling her eyes before she spoke up.
"I'm sorry. This is a good thing! I just wish... we could have hung out a bit more." She gives a sad chuckle before wiping at her eyes. At that, Izzy, Sunny, and Hitch started crying a bit too. Zipp was holding it together fairly well, though. You feel yourself starting to get emotional, too. You've only been here for about a week, but it sure has been fun.
"Sunny, Hitch, Pipp, Zipp, Izzy. You've all been too good to me. As soon as you heard my story you leaped right into helping me. I offered nothing in return, heck, I still have nothing to offer. Yet, you've gone to a lot of lengths for me. And, you know what? This has been one of the most fun weeks of my life."
You found yourself nearly tackled by Izzy, who was wrapping her forelegs around your stomach so hard that it was difficult to breathe. Pipp and Hitch joined her, and now you're on the floor. The fall kind of hurt, but you aren't really thinking about that right now. You return the hug with just as much strength as you feel Sunny and Zipp join you on the floor.
You all stayed there for what had to be a couple of hours, enjoying what were likely the last moments you would ever have together. It's strange. What made these ponies so fun to be around? And what made them want to be around you so much? You really don't feel like you deserve all the love that you receive, but you aren't about to refuse it. No matter what happens, no matter how brief your time with them was, these ponies will always be your friends.
You stood up and began saying your goodbyes. Once more, you all found yourselves crying. Even Zipp this time. One by one, they all shared their final thoughts with you.
"I'm sorry for calling you a monster! You'll always be welcome at Maretime Bay!" Hitch choked out.
"I have so many unicycling projects you've inspired me to do! Watch, somehow, I'll find a way to show them to you!" Izzy was never one to focus on the bad for long, and she looks to be energized once more.
"Even if you never see it, I'll get better at flying and detective work! I'll be a legendary pegasus in my own right! Bet on it!" Zipp gave you an enthusiastic wink.
"From one 'half-alicorn' to another, I am truly glad to have met you. And, thanks for talking with me, and understanding me! I'll make sure history remembers you!" Sunny's smile is infectious.
"Hey, come here! One more pic for the road!" Pipp pulled you all close and snapped a photo. You smiled as best you could, but you weren't really expecting it. "Don't worry, I'm not going to post it. I think that one is a personal keeper." Pipp is still misty-eyed as you pat her head.
Finally, you step towards the Time Tuner. You turn around for one last look at your friends. Standing in a row, they all gave you a warm smile. A smile you can't help but return.
"Goodbye, everypony."
You flip the Time Tuner over. The runes inscribed into it glow a bright green, and you find that similar runes appear along the ground and encircle you. In a motion that is extremely familiar to you, the ground seems to disappear, and you find yourself falling into an endless void of green.
You open your eyes. Your feet are on solid ground. It's a bit chilly. Around you are stone walls, some tables, a bookshelf. On the floor, underneath a nearby table, rests the Time Tuner. Right where it was when you got sent to Maretime Bay. You walk towards it. It is still inverted. You gingerly pick it up off of the ground and place it back into the box. You look behind you once more. This is definitely the Castle of the Two Sisters.
You're home.
Interesting that the Time Tuner didn't go with you, though. Something about paradoxes, probably. You take a deep breath. As fun as it was meeting your new friends in the future, you can't pretend like you weren't stressed about whether or not you'd be able to get back home. You glance at the nearby stained-glass window. Light was pouring through it, so it must still be day. That said, how much time has passed here since you disappeared? Has it been a week here, like it was from your perspective? Just as you think that, you notice a flash come from the podium in the center of the room. You had failed to notice that Spike's Power Ponies comic was still sitting there. The comic suddenly seemed to jump into the air, and you watch your friends get launched across the room. They all started cheering, something about super powers or something? Then Twilight and Spike started having a conversation about what it means to be helpful? It seems they had an adventure all their own. It also seems as though you haven't been gone for very long. They all begin walking out of the room before Twilight notices you sheepishly standing in the corner.
"Oh, hey! You would not BELIEVE the adventure we just had."
"Trust me, I think I can believe it just fine."
"What do you have there?" She gestures towards the box sitting behind you that holds the Time Tuner.
"Something really important. If it's all the same, I'd like to bring it to Princess Celestia myself."
"Wait, it's that important? What did you find?"
"Well, uh, let's walk and talk, shall we?" You grab the box before the two of you walk out of the room, catching up to the rest of your friends. You regale them with the events of the past week (technically the events of the past, like, ten minutes) as you all make your way back to Ponyville. They, in turn, excitedly tell you of their adventures as superheroes in Spike's enchanted comic. It seems you all had a busy day. Twilight had a lot of questions about the future, but you ultimately decided to be vague about the details. Just as Izzy had said, "spoilers." You probably know more than you should, and you shouldn't talk about it too much. Still, that didn't stop you from talking about your friends. Perhaps too much, as you were still talking by the time you all returned to Ponyville. Everypony said their goodbyes and went their separate ways. It is still midday, but you've all been in that castle for a fair deal longer than that and you're pretty tired.
Twilight, Spike, and yourself return to the library. You still carried the Time Tuner in its box as you made your way to your basement bedroom. You set the box down on the floor (it can't fall off of the floor) before taking a shower and changing your clothes. You'd been wearing the same thing for about a week, and it was certainly getting noticeable. As you do so, you feel something heavy in one of your pockets. Reaching inside, you pull out the smartphone that Pipp had given you. Wait, objects can travel through time, too? You turn it on. It still works, though there is obviously no service considering your time doesn't have smartphones. That said, you can't help but be curious. You chuckle to yourself as you attempt to call Pipp.
Ring ring. Ring ring.
"Hello!?"
What?
"Pipp? Is that you?"
"Wait, how are you doing this? How are you calling me? Did you make it back home? What's happening?" The video feed suddenly turns on. Sure enough, there stands Pipp, making herself comfortable in a makeshift bed in what looks like Izzy's house. You fiddle with the phone for a moment before turning your own camera feed on, and Pipp lets out an excited gasp.
"Let's see. One, all I did was call you. Two, I have no idea. Three, yes I did! And four, once again, I have no idea!"
Behind Pipp you could see Sunny, Izzy, Zipp, and Hitch squeeze into frame. Sunny excitedly called out your name.
"This is so cool, but like, also makes no sense? How does a phone work through time?" You can't help but laugh in disbelief.
"I have no idea, but I'm not complaining!"
You all start laughing harder. There is little you can do BUT laugh. How does this work? WHY does this work? You don't really care. It may just be through this phone, but you can see your friends again. The thought alone fills you with an indescribable joy. You all talk for a good half hour before Pipp lets out an obnoxious yawn. It must be later there than it is here. You all say your goodbyes once more and hang up. This makes your adventure's end a little less bittersweet and a little more... sweet. You recline on your bed and rest the phone on your stomach. Staring up the ceiling, you can't stop smiling. It's a good day.
That said, it will be better once you talk to Tia. After resting for a bit longer, you check the time. It's a little past sunset, so she should be getting to her quarters about now. You have a lot to talk to her about. You stand up, pick up the box, close your eyes, and cast the teleportation circle spell. When your eyes open back up, you are greeted with the familiar sight of Tia's balcony and the wonderful view of the Canterlot evening it provides. Still carrying the box, you knock on the door to Tia's room. You hear some shuffling before the door gives off a magical yellow glow and opens for you. Tia is inside, sitting at her vanity and smiling at you through her reflection.
"There's my little human. A wonderful evening, is it not?"
"Well, it is now that I get to see you." The two of you share a chuckle.
"Alright, what's going on? That's the look you get when there's something on your mind." Dang, she can read you like a book. Well, to be fair, you can read her just as well.
You sit down on the end of her bed. After she finishes removing her regalia and makeup, she sits next to you and wraps a wing around you. It's very soft and comforting. You take a deep breath, and slowly explain the events that transpired after you first entered the Castle of the Two Sisters. Unlike with Twilight, you spared no details.
After you finish, the two of you sit in a moment of quiet contemplation. There is a lot to unpack in your story. On the surface, your story is pretty cut-and-dry. You accidentally activated an ancient artifact, got sent through time, made some friends, and got their help to return to your original time. Look under the surface, though, and there is much more to consider. What was the flash of light that made the Time Tuner fall over in the first place? What led to the three ponykinds separating? What happened to the princesses, who are supposed to be immortal? You imagine that these questions are just as prominent in Tia's mind as they are yours, if not more. Unlike you, she is the ruler of Equestria. Its future is largely in her hooves. Surprisingly, though, she begins to laugh.
"What's so funny? I figured you would be worried or upset or something."
"Trust me, dear, I learned a long time ago to stop worrying about the future. You think Twilight is the only one who messed with a time travel spell in her day?" She gives you a playful wink. "Besides, it sounds like your new friends are very kind. That is my main concern. So long as Equestria's citizens still hold on to the magic of friendship, I don't doubt that everything will be okay." You breathe a sigh of relief. The last thing you want to do is stress Tia out even more, but she's taking this really well. That said...
"What about that book that talks about the First?"
"What about it?"
"Well, doesn't that bother you?"
"Not really. We have that book here too, you know. You can easily get a copy at the church here in Canterlot. And before you say anything, no, the contents do not upset me. That book has been around for a long time, and the information in it is pretty natural."
"But you and Luna aren't given any credit at all! That doesn't seem fair. The book treats you two like... like puppets for the First to use as she pleases!"
"Is it wrong?" She looks at you with complete seriousness in her eyes. Not a shadow of doubt, no fear, no worry, no anger. "I'm telling you, whatever you found in that book is completely natural. There's no need to worry about it, okay?" She tilts her head at you and gives you a small smile. It's adorable, but you still feel worried. "Let's change the subject, shall we?"
Easy for her to say. Why is she okay with this? What does she mean it's "completely natural?" Is that really how she sees herself? You haven't broken eye contact with her. She once more has a completely serious look on her face. It doesn't take a genius to know that she is telling you to "drop it," and you don't dare argue with her. She can be very... convincing. As much as you don't want to, you decide to change the subject.
"So, about this box." You gesture towards the box still resting in your lap. You have an obligation to fulfill. "Do you think you could outfit it with a new lock?"
The two of you discuss the strange alicorn lock that the box had in the future. She assures you that it can easily be done by an enchanter friend of hers, and she also promises to keep both the box and the Time Tuner safe. You figure that the box will naturally fall into Izzy's possession at some point in the future. After finishing that, the two of you are left sitting in silence once more. The discussion with the First worried you, but it's hard to stay stressed in Tia's presence. She gives you a look that you're familiar enough with by now to know is an invitation to stay the night, and you have no intention of refusing.
The evening was pleasant. It always is with her. As is practically routine by now, you found yourself waking up first, and you had the difficult job of getting her out of bed so that the sun may rise. She gets ready for her long day of princess duties while you wave goodbye and use the teleportation circle to return to Ponyville. You don't have work today, so you simply return to the library. Twilight and Spike are out doing who knows what by the time you get there, but you can't help but notice the Journal of Friendship sitting on a nearby table. Oh, right. You have one more job to do.
Your thoughts are filled with visions of Maretime Bay. You'll probably call your friends again later today. Once more, you have gotten out of a grand adventure not only unscathed, but arguably better than when you started. As you think about your friends from the future, you feel magical energy course through your body and towards your head and your back. ...Yup, there are your horn and wings. Now that you think about it, you forgot to show Tia yesterday night. Oh well, there's always later. You grab a nearby quill and start a new entry in the journal. You give a warm smile to no one in particular as you write.
"Dear Diary,
Friends really can be found anywhere. No matter how far from home you wander, hold your head high! There will always be someone willing to help you, and there is always hope that you will find your way back. And who knows? These new friends may have even more in common with you than anyone you've ever met.
PS. If I'm reading this, the thing I'm looking for is at my friend's house. Just make sure she doesn't unicycle it."
