Theory & Practice

by LonelyBrony42

Chapters

Part 1: Theory
Part 2: Coaptation
Part 3: Practice
Part 4: Denouement

Part 1: Theory

Theory & Practice

By LonelyBrony42 (a.k.a. Necrobrony)

Preread by Featherprop

Cover Art by cold revenge

Part 1: Theory

She sat in the darkness, alone. It wasn’t what she preferred, but it would have to do. Far safer at night when prying eyes were less likely, she figured. A light, delicate yawn bubbled up from her lungs as she shifted in her chair to a comfortable reading position.

Without a thought, she lit the candle before her and it illuminated her reading desk. On it lay a quill and inkwell, a small stack of blank paper for notes, and an ominous black book, very old, with a unknown marking of some sort. Twilight found it fascinating to stare at and guess its meaning. What little research she had done into the matter revealed next to nothing. Nevertheless, she liked the mystery of the symbol; it represented that nostalgic feeling of the unknown every foal feels when learning something new.

She chose that evening in particular to read the book. Spike was gone, away visiting Canterlot for a few days.

She had found the book in the Royal Canterlot Library, far in the back among the older, less-modern spell books. At first, she couldn’t believe her luck; having found such an ancient tome in readable condition and after a cursory glance through its pages, she knew she had discovered something special, something dark, and something forbidden.

“Necromancy…” she whispered under her breath, as if the very word itself was dangerous.

Granted, most of the darker magics were illegal to perform, and when it came to such texts, Twilight only heard: “you really shouldn’t read things like this, my dear, nothing good can come from it,” or whatever it was her mother had once said.

How had this book managed to slip by the librarian? How long had it gone unnoticed? Did anypony know what was sitting on that bookshelf for so long? Twilight’s mind speculated how the book could have ended up in general circulation.

Her curiosity trumping her better judgment, Twilight managed to check out the book without drawing suspicion.

“Thank Celestia for apathetic librarians,” she said aloud with a chuckle.

The moment of reverie passed and Twilight focused her attention back on the book. She had waited so long to read it, and finally she had the opportunity to do what she had been dying to do for three weeks. And now it was time.

With utmost care, she opened the book, its bindings audibly flexing due to age. She took a deep breath; she loved the smell of old books. The first page bore the same marking as the one on the cover, and Twilight still didn’t really know what it meant. Carefully, she turned the page to find a crude table of contents, which lacked page numbers, to her disappointment.

The book was written in Old Equestrian, so it must have dated at least a thousand years, before the time of Princess Luna’s banishment.

Nothing I can’t handle, she thought with a smirk.

She turned past the table of contents, and began reading the book proper. Her eyes growing wider and wider the deeper into the book she delved. After only a few pages, she felt a chill run down her spine; she explained it away as nervous anticipation.

An hour later, the candle had burned down low enough that Twilight had to replace it. As she got up from her chair, she felt just how badly she was in need of stretching her legs, and decided to take a quick walk downstairs to do just that.

Some coffee wouldn’t be so bad either. She was already able to smell the roasted beans and creamer.

Twilight was trotting down the stairs to her kitchen when she heard what she at first thought was a sigh. She froze in place for a moment, before shrugging it off and continuing on her way.

“The book must be getting to me,” she jested, rolling her eyes. She wasn’t sure if she truly believed everything in the book—it was written at least a thousand years ago and was rife with superstition.

But what if it were actually possible to… Her thoughts trailed off as she entered the kitchen and shifted her mind to the task at hoof, namely, fixing a nice, warm pot of coffee.

As she went about her perfectly memorized steps to the art of coffee making, Twilight’s mind couldn’t help but wander back to her beliefs regarding such things as necromancy. She had known there were darker sides to unicorn magic, but also that virtually nopony practiced such things. Those terribly few who did were normally isolated and far away from any governing powers. But conjuring the dead… she wasn’t sure if it was even possible.

“There is one way to know for sure…” Twilight immediately cut herself off. “No. I’m legitimately researching an historical topic,” she reminded herself. Besides, if necromancy were possible, why wouldn’t the Princesses make use of it for the betterment of ponykind? This thought puzzled Twilight as she finished pouring her fresh coffee into her favorite mug.

Just as she began cantering back to the stairs, there was a knock on her door.

Now who could that be?

For a split second, she wanted to just pretend she was already asleep, so she could go back to reading in peace. But that would be dishonest and unbecoming of a bearer of an Element of Harmony, she figured.

Passing a clock on her way to the front door, Twilight noticed it was only 9:00 PM. Not quite late enough for a friend’s visit to be deemed unusual.

The knocking increased in intensity.

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” she called out as she half set-half dropped her cup of coffee on an end table. Having approached the door, Twilight stopped a moment to put a stray strand of hair back in place.

She pulled open the door with her magic, and behind it were a pair of rose-colored eyes, darting to and fro nervously.

“Hi Twilight!” said Rainbow Dash, a little too loudly for that time of night.

“Good evening, Rainbow. What brings you here at this hour?” inquired Twilight, trying her best to be sound as polite as possible, despite her frustration.

“Nothing,” Rainbow answered with a shrug, “I just wanted to drop by and say ‘hi.’”

Twilight could tell that wasn’t the real reason Rainbow was here; Rainbow was only marginally a better liar than Applejack. She wanted something, and this irked Twilight, as she wanted nothing more than to just get back to her reading. However, she would never turn away a friend in need.

“I’ve just made a pot of coffee, would you like to come in for a few minutes?” offered Twilight.

“Well I don’t want to intrude, but if you insist…”

Mentally, Twilight sighed and almost visibly rolled her eyes.

“I insist, Rainbow.”

“Cool!” said an obviously relieved Rainbow Dash.

Twilight led her winged friend to the kitchen, where a freshly brewed pot of coffee eagerly awaited. After pouring Rainbow a cup, and topping off her own, Twilight decided it was time to see what was troubling her friend.

“So… how was your day?” Twilight probed.

“Fine.”

“Anything on your mind?”

Rainbow stopped froze mid-sip, and then set her cup back down. Her eyes would not leave her cup.

“Well… I’m really nervous about tomorrow’s storm. There’s already a big one building up over the Everfree and I don’t know if I can handle it on top of the storm that’s already been scheduled. I mean, what if it blows over Ponyville while we’re still working on the other one…

“I’m sure you’ll do fine, Rainbow,” Twilight cut in, already having figured out that all Rainbow needed was a small confidence boost. “And I’m confident that you and the weather team can handle anything the Everfree can throw at you.”

“You really think so?” Rainbow brought her eyes up to meet her friend’s, the worried look on her face already beginning to dissipate.

“I know so,” said Twilight with a strong, emphatic nod.

Rainbow smiled, and finished the rest of her coffee in a three sloppy gulps.

“Thanks, Twilight, that means a lot.”

“Anytime.”

“I need to head on home and get to bed, tomorrow’s gonna be a rough day, after all,” said Rainbow as she lifted herself from her chair with her wings and began to hover in place.

“I hope you get a good night’s rest, Rainbow.”

Twilight followed her friend to the door, and Rainbow left without another word. Sighing, Twilight shut the door and turned her thoughts again to the book. With a good downpour scheduled for tomorrow, she’d have an excuse to read all day after she attended to her daily duties.

Perfect.

She returned to the kitchen to put away the dishes, and poured herself the last of the coffee. A moment later, she was already back in front the book, reading away the night.

The next morning was hazy. Twilight groaned softly and rubbed her head while feeling around for her alarm clock. Twilight rubbed her hooves over her face as she tried to recall when exactly she had finally gone to bed. She could not, and could only conclude that she needed one thing: coffee.

She begrudgingly left the warm comfort of her bed to head to the kitchen. Even through her morning haze, she still glanced at the book she had spent most of the night reading as she passed it by. A small part of her hated the book for keeping her up so late. At least she had little to do today.

With her chores finished, and the rainsquall already well underway, Twilight prepared to continue her investigation into the ancient art of Necromancy. She carefully picked up the book with her magic, and went downstairs to read more comfortably in her den. She figured nopony would be out in this weather anyways.

Just as she set the book down, a thought crossed her mind. What would she do if somepony decided to show up? Part of her wanted to return to her room, where nopony would see the book if they came to the library for whatever reason. Her train of thought spiraled downward as Twilight began worrying about the legality of her even being in possession of the book. She began sweating. What if somepony caught her? What if the Royal Canterlot Library finds out what the book truly is? What if Royal Guards show up to take her away? What would Princess Celestia think of all this? Would she banish her?

Before she knew it, Twilight found herself curled up and lying on one side on the floor of her den, stroking her tail repeatedly.

“It’ll be fine, it’ll all be fine…”she reassured herself. “ I’ll finish the book this afternoon, and then return it to Canterlot tomorrow when I go to get Spike… it’ll all be fine.”

Taking a deep, calming breath, Twilight composed herself and settled into a comfortable position on her couch in front of the fireplace. The fire had gone down since earlier that afternoon, but Twilight was too engrossed in her reading to pay heed to it.

The sun had set, and night overtook day as Twilight approached the end of the book. She had learned much, and at the same time, very little. Superstition aside, there were some valid spells, but actually attempting any of them didn’t immediately cross her mind. Those thoughts would come later.

It was well into the night, when Twilight was up late, lying in her bed and staring at the ceiling debating what to do, if anything, with the information she had accrued.

“Should I go to the Princess and tell her everything?” she thought aloud. She managed to wrench her train of thought back on track before she had a repeat of earlier that day.

“I’m fairly certain it isn’t illegal…”

Immediately, more thoughts rushed into her already chaotic mind: plans, ideas, schemes; she knew she could pull it off in secret if she truly wanted to.

But what of my responsibilities as a Bearer of an Element of Harmony? She was torn. On one side, her sense of duty and responsibility. On the other, her insatiable curiosity.

She threw her hooves onto her head in frustration, and let out an exasperated sigh. Deep down, she knew her curiosity would drive her insane if she didn’t at least try some of the spells the book described. Though the spells were different in nature from typical unicorn magic—being almost exclusively ritualistic—Twilight was confident she could pull them off relatively easily. If the spells even did anything, that is.

She tried in vain to think of anything else, but every thought strayed back to her dilemma. After almost an hour internal debate, Twilight finally yielded to her curiosity, and cut a deal with her divided mind: she’d return the book, but keep her notes.

The following morning, Twilight finished the last of the book, and hastily recorded as much information into her notes as she could, as this was the day she planned to return it. Spike would be waiting for her outside the castle, so stopping by the library beforehand would be no problem, in theory. And as she would learn over the next few days, theory and practice can be radically different.

Part 2: Coaptation

Rolling hills passed by speedily to the tune of the “clickety-clack” of the railroad tracks. Twilight had boarded the train just before noon, narrowly boarding it in time.

She sighed as her stomach growled. In her haste to record as much out of the book as she could, she worked through her usual lunchtime.

“I’ll just get a meal with Spike, I’d bet he’d like that after having been away,” she mused as she stared out the window. She kept her saddlebags close by, not wanting a stray glance from a passenger to catch a glimpse at what they hid.

“Though I’m sure nopony would even recognize it,” she reassured herself.

“Hm? Recognize what, darling?” asked a kindly older mare in the seat behind her. Twilight froze. Had she just said that aloud?

“Nothing, ma’am. Just thinking out loud,” she replied. Twilight immediately turned her face back to the window, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. She made sure to keep extra silent for the rest of the trip. At least her stomach helped keep her distracted.

“Twilight!” Spike exclaimed as he barreled towards his mother figure, embracing her.

“I missed you so much,” said Twilight as she returned the hug with full force. Spike was waiting for her just outside the train station, next to two clearly annoyed Royal Guards. As soon as Twilight arrived, they nodded towards her and left in a hurry.

Twilight’s stomach growled again.

“Would you like to get lunch here in Canterlot before we head back to Ponyville?” asked Twilight.

“Boy, would I!” Spike replied. Twilight headed towards a favorite restaurant of hers, with Spike on her back. Spike’s recantation of all that he did while at the castle was drowned out by her own thoughts. She needed to get to the library, but without drawing suspicion. Perhaps she could…

“Twilight, are you even listening?”

“Of course I am, Spike.”

“Well then… what did I just say?”

Twilight’s eyes darted back and forth, as she searched futilely for an answer.

“I… I don’t know. I’m really sorry, Spike. I just have a lot on my mind, I guess.”

“Oh! Well, do you wanna talk about it?”

“No!” Twilight immediately knew she responded to quickly. Spike gave her a skeptical look, but seemingly decided not to pry for the time being.

“I’m sorry, please go on,” Twilight said, in as motherly a way as possible. Spike happily continued his tale of his “deeds” of the past week.

But once more, Twilight found herself swimming in her thoughts, trying to think up a way to return a book she knew she wasn’t supposed to have checked out.

Eventually, they arrived at the outdoor restaurant. Twilight managed to push her thoughts away to focus on curing her hunger, and listening to Spike’s adorable ramblings.

“Come on, Twilight, we’re going to miss the train,” said Spike.

“We won’t; I’ve calculated exactly how much time we have, and how long it will take to return the book. If we maintain a pace of approximately…”

“Twilight!” scolded Spike, interrupting her.

“Sorry, Spike,” offered Twilight, acknowledging her acute addiction to detail. They continued in silence for a few minutes.

“So… what’s this book you borrowed? Why don’t we have it at our library?” inquired Spike.

“Well, you see…” Twilight was trying to think up something, “…it’s a very old history book.”

“Oh,” said Spike, sounding bored already. “Wait… I thought they don’t let anypony check those out…” Twilight did her best to ignore that point and hoped he wouldn’t press further.

“Well, whatever. I just can’t wait to get back home. I’m pooped,” said Spike with a yawn.

“We’ll be home in no time,” Twilight said a she nuzzled her little dragon, before he jerked back in exaggerated disgust. Twilight simply rolled her eyes.

Only a few minutes later, they arrived at the Canterlot Library. Twilight was fidgeting, and she had no idea how Spike didn’t pick up on it. She decided not to question it as she made her way to the front desk.

“Excuse me, I would like to-“ began Twilight, before cutting herself off. Three Royal Guards approached the librarian she had just started talking to. What if they were looking for the book? Did the library know it was missing?

Twilight started to panic a little.

“We’re looking for a book that’s missing from the Royal Archives,” said the first guard.

“A very old one,” the second added, earning himself a hard look from the first guard. The third guard simply grunted in agreement.

Twilight started to panic a lot. That was all she needed to turn tail and leave the library.

“What if they know what the book is? What if they know I checked it out? What if they arrest me? Oh, what will the Princess think?” Twilight rambled aloud unknowingly.

“Uh… Twilight? What are you going on about? I thought you needed to return a-“

“No I don’t!” said Twilight, cutting off Spike. Twilight swallowed. She knew she responded too quickly.

“There’s something wrong, Twilight. You sure you won’t tell me about it?” asked Spike, in a concerned tone.

“No, no. It’s nothing. It’s fine, it’ll all be fine,” answered Twilight, regaining some composure.

“I’m really worried about you, Twilight.”

“That’s very sweet of you, Spike. But really, I’m fine. I just had a rough night’s sleep, that’s all.” Spike gave her a very skeptical look, but said no more.

After several minutes of painful silence, Twilight struck up a conversation by asking Spike to recount his visit again, and he began listing off his favorite parts of his trip.

Soon enough, they reached the train station, and two tickets later, they were on their way back to Ponyville, all the while the book weighed heavily on Twilight’s mind. She knew, well, she was sure she knew, that the Canterlot Library now knew the book was missing, and that she couldn’t safely return it now without drawing suspicion. She spent the majority of the train ride in silence, with her mind torn asunder. Part of her wanted to just contact the Princess and confess everything, but her fear of disappointing the greatest pony in the land terrified her.

The sun was setting as Spike and Twilight stepped off the train. Shortly thereafter, they arrived back at the library they called home.

“I’ve already taken care of the chores, so you can have the evening off,” stated Twilight.

“Awesome! Thanks Twilight,” Spike replied.

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be in my room.” Twilight didn’t even wait to hear Spike’s response. She galloped up the stairs and quickly shut her door, locking it without even thinking about it. She threw down her saddlebags in desperate frustration.

“What am I supposed to do!?” she growled under her breath. She sat with a huff, and out of the corner of her eye she glimpsed the book, partially fallen out of its bag. She glared at it, blaming it for her troubles

“If only I hadn’t found you,” she said quietly but angrily, while slowly approaching the book, “then maybe I wouldn’t be under so much stress.” Twilight stopped short of where the book lay, and continued glaring at it. Her eyes shifted to the lone symbol, the only thing adorning its otherwise featureless cover. It only angered her further. She still didn’t know what it meant, and that fact still taunted her to no end. She gave it a long hard stare, but eventually relented and turned away knowing it was futile; she’d never understand it, and she chose to accept that.

She took a deep breath, using Cadance’s technique, and found herself feeling a little better. She was still worried sick, but at least she could think a little more clearly.

Determined to come to a resolution, Twilight resolved to remain right where she was standing until she could decide the best course of action.

Over an hour later, after agonizingly scrutinizing every possible decision and the most likely outcomes, Twilight decided to simply give the book to Celestia and hope for the best. She wasn’t thrilled with her decision, and she certainly didn’t feel any better. Although she didhave the weak consolation that she made the right choice.

“But I wonder…” she began, before a knock on her door interrupted her thought.

“Twilight? Are you okay?” asked an obviously concerned Spike on the other side of the door.

“Of course, Spike. Why do you ask?” Twilight asked as she opened the door, her mane messy and her eye still twitching every now and then.

“Whoa…”

“What?”

“You don’t look so good, are you absolutely, positively sure that you’re okay?” Twilight wasn’t confident that she could press her luck and get out of this a third time.

“Yes, I’m sure, Spike. I’m just working on a detailed history report for the Princess.” She hoped that sounded boring enough.

“You should get some rest. Please, Twilight, you’ve been acting weird all day.”

“I know, Spike. I’m sorry. I’ll get to bed early tonight.” Twilight leaned down to give him a hug, and he left shortly after. Twilight sighed, and closed her door. She headed over to her bed, too tired to prepare for bed properly, and tried to sleep.

After two hours of tossing and turning, Twilight realized trying to sleep was hopeless. One thing relentlessly occupied her mind: would it work? She was agonizing over whether or not the spells would even work. If they didn’t, there would be no need to feel threatened, and she could even confirm for the Princess that necromancy doesn’t work! But if it worked, if she could actually conjure the dead… then what? Would Celestia ever forgive her? …would she ever even find out?

Eventually, all her thoughts collapsed into single statement, repeating over and over: “I have to know… I have to know… I have to know…”

Just as in the Canterlot library only two days ago, her curiosity trumped her better judgment. She would try it. She would try to conjure the dead.

Part 3: Practice

It took her only a few moments to gather everything she would need. Notes? Check. Candles? Check. Chalk? Check. A knife… Twilight shuddered. That was the one part of the ritual she certainly wasn’t looking forward to. She decided to grab one from the kitchen on her way out. She hoped against hope that Spike was asleep, so that she wouldn’t have to think up an excuse and have to lie to him yet again.

She delicately stepped past Spike’s basket without waking him, and safely made it downstairs. Twilight stopped by the kitchen, grabbing a small, recently washed utility knife with her magic and quickly tucked it away with the rest of her things. With a shaky sigh to calm her nerves, Twilight left her home and stepped out into a streetlamp-lit Ponyville.

She kept her head down, hoping against hope she wouldn’t encounter somepony on her way to the Everfree Forest. She had settled for the outskirts of the Everfree as the location to test the spell, as it was far enough away from the town to be safe from prying eyes, but not deep enough in the forest to be dangerous, or so she figured.

“Almost there…” she whispered victoriously, as she saw the Everfree come into view, well lit under the radiance of a full moon. She managed to keep Fluttershy’s cottage in view just long enough to make it safely to the edge of the forest. However, she hesitated, and stopped to look back.

She paused and took in the cool night air. She closed her eyes and listened to the sound of the wind. In it, she could almost hear the voice of her mother, and her warnings of dabbling in darker magics. Twilight frowned.

“I’m not a little filly anymore,” she whispered defiantly as she turned to face the dark forest before her. But she did not move. Something deep inside was telling her that there would be no going back; that there is a world of difference between theory and practice.

“But I have to know… I have to know,” she reminded herself. She steeled herself and entered the forest, knowing that there would be no turning back now.

Minutes ticked by as Twilight went over the steps to the ritual in her mind. She stuck to the path that led to Zecora’s hut for a short while, before branching off once she deemed she was deep enough in the forest to be free from any interruption.

After several minutes of meandering, Twilight halted. In her mind, it was the perfect place to stop. She didn’t want to get too close to Zecora. Better safe than sorry, Twilight figured.

She had come to a small clearing and decided to do it there. Carefully, she set down her saddlebags and began brushing leaves away to make a small patch of earth available. She then took out her notes, and went over them one more time, if only for the sake of redundancy.

The wind was howling as it tore through the trees of the Everfree, putting Twilight on edge. She knew she wasn’t deep enough in the forest to have to worry about any monsters, and was comforted by the fact that she was but a minute’s sprint to the edge of the forest if anything awful did happen.

She stopped as her ears picked up on something. There was something else in the wind, something like a whisper that she couldn’t quite hear, that she couldn’t quite understand. She chose to ignore it, thinking, “I’ve wasted enough time as it is.”

Twilight magicked her supplies out of her bags and set them before her. She would do this as methodically and as scientifically as possible. Without any more procrastination, she began the ritual.

She drew an unfamiliar star-like shape in the dirt, and then encircled it with two concurrent lines. She found herself humming a tune she didn’t know she knew as she finished out the shape. Once it was completed, she set out tea lights at each of the five points on the poorly drawn star, and lit them each one at a time, counter-clockwise.

She stopped for a moment to survey her handiwork. She found it unsatisfying, and desperately wanted to erase it and try again; her OCD would not tolerate an imperfect circle or uneven lines. However, she also knew that if she began over again, she’d never draw it satisfactorily before dawn. Twilight ground her teeth and chose to go on instead, imperfections and all.

Now for the part she wasn’t looking forward to… She nervously sighed as she picked up the knife. The book never mentioned precisely how much blood was needed; only that pony’s blood was necessary for the spell to work. Twilight couldn’t imagine intentionally cutting herself, but she had come this far…

“It’ll be over quickly,” she reassured herself. She levitated the knife over to her left hoof. “Here goes…”

She shut her eyes and bit her lower lip as the knife blade slowly sliced through her skin and into the capillaries below. Once she felt the knife finish it’s painfully slow caress, she immediately dropped it and inhaled sharply.

“Celestia, that hurt!” she whispered loudly. “And I thought paper cuts were painful-“

She interrupted herself as she felt the first drop of blood run down her leg. She hastily stepped over to her diagram on three legs, and let the blood fall onto it. After eight or nine drops, the bleeding stopped.

“I hope that was enough…” Twilight wondered aloud. She quickly put the knife back into her bag, tempted to leave it behind so she wouldn’t be reminded of all this every time she saw it. She applied a bandage to her leg after sterilizing it with a basic medical spell, and then turned her attention once more to the task before her.

With the blood part finally out of the way, a relieved Twilight sat down in front of her circle in the dirt, and began the final few steps in the ritual. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, before reciting the poorly translated words she had practiced in her mind over and over and over again:

“Spirit black,

Void and cold,

From below in Darkness’ hold;

Come back to light,

Rise again,

To the land from which you came.

By darkest night,

And Shadow’s lies,

I command you to rise!”

Nothing. After several seconds in sickening anticipation, Twilight began to believe that the spell didn’t work, or that she had done something wrong. Just as she gave up and was about to open her eyes, she heard something.

“I… arise…” a soft but pained voice whispered.

Her shot open. There was nothing before her but her diagram and the candles. She froze, thinking perhaps that what she heard was but a figment of her imagination.

“Why…”

It was like distant whispering, and she could not pinpoint where it was coming from. If she didn’t know any better, she’d say it was coming from… around her.

“H-hello?” Twilight called out.

Silence.

“Perhaps I am just imagining things again,” she uttered quietly as she stood up and turned to pack her things.

“…did you summon me?!” An ethereal voice called out suddenly. Twilight was frozen with fear. Did she really do it? Did she really just call up a spirit of the dead? She very slowly turned around, back to her diagram in the dirt. She saw… nothing.

“Hello?” Twilight called out a bit louder, growing extremely nervous as her mind raced.

There was a sound like a long, pained sigh.

“I’m sorry-“Twilight began, before being interrupted by a scream.

She threw her hooves to her ears in a desperate attempt to lessen the sound that was assaulting her. It passed as quickly as it had come, and Twilight was left shaking and hyperventilating in the darkness, the scream having somehow extinguished the candles.

She tried in vain to fight through the haze of fear that gripped her mind. She had to move, she had to do something!

“Why did you awaken me…?” the voice asked, returning to a whisper, and much clearer, as if its source were nearby.

“I… I…” Twilight stammered, still unable to move.

“I…” the voice repeated, growing angry.

Twilight was dumbfounded; the icy grip of fear held her in place like a vice.

One moment, she was standing there in the Everfree, alone with a spirit she had summoned. In another, she was bolting towards the edge of the forest, instinct finally having taken over.

Her heart beat rapidly, threatening to burst from her chest. Just as the field was coming into view, she tripped on a root and was sent sprawling. Her momentum dragged her a few feet across the forest floor.

She rolled onto her back, and came face to face with whatever it was she had summoned. The look of anguish and hatred on the pale eyeless face was indescribable, and the image was seared into her mind. She tried to look away, but the same icy fear came over her once more. She blinked, and the spirit was gone.

Twilight sat up, panting heavily. Maybe it was over?

Without warning, she felt something. Something strange. Something entering her very being. It took a full four and a half seconds before it clicked in Twilight’s mind: she was being possessed.

Panicking, she tried to stand up, but found that she couldn’t. She turned her head and caught a glimpse of the field surrounding the Everfree Forest. She was so close. If only…

All thoughts ceased as endless screams flooded her mind. She tried to grab her head, but found that she no longer had control of her hooves. She fell backwards, writhing on the forest floor. She could feel the darkness closing in, and in the bleakness of her folly, she resigned herself to her fate and began sobbing.

“Twilight Sparkle!” a loud and commanding voice called out. In the haze of shadow, Twilight tried in vain to turn to the louder voice calling her name. Something about it sounded familiar.

“Twilight Sparkle!” a different voice called out. Twilight wanted desperately to respond, but could do no more than to continue writhing on the ground.

“Sister, I have found her!” the first voice shouted.

Twilight heard something, or thought she did. Like the sound of a Pegasus landing, but heavier. However, deep in the black void of her mind, she was unsure of everything. Was she even real anymore? Was she ever real?

“Oh, Twilight…” the second voice said softly, like a mix of pity and disappointment.

Twilight heard the voices being drowned out as she was pulled deeper and deeper into her mind until she could no longer think, feel, or be. Whether she was in that state for a minute, or a millennia, she could not tell.

Suddenly, a warm light pierced the blackness. Twilight thought she heard screams. But then again, she wasn’t sure that she was awake, let alone real. Then came the pain. Every possible nerve ending was fired. Twilight began screaming alongside the vicious screams that had begun fading. Then finally, everything ceased. There was silence, and nothing else. Twilight let go and fell into unconsciousness.

Part 4: Denouement

A stray beam of sunlight landed on Twilight’s eyes, and caused her to squeeze them shut tighter. She felt her warm cozy covers, and relished the feeling in her state of half-sleep.

“Are you awake, my faithful student?” a familiar voice asked in a stern but motherly tone.

Twilight mumbled something and pulled the covers over her head. It took almost a minute before she realized there was only one pony who called her “faithful student.” Her eyes shot open.

“Princess Celestia?!” Twilight threw up her covers and bolted out of bed, to find the Princess herself sitting by her bed.

“What are you doing here,” Twilight quickly added, “your majesty?”

“I wanted to make sure you were safe, my dear Twilight,” the Princess responded.

“Safe… safe from what?”

“Twilight. Do you know what you did?” asked Celestia.

“Princess… is everything okay?” Twilight asked, getting nervous and approaching her mentor.

“What do you remember?” Celestia probed, remaining at hoof’s length.

“I… I was having a nightmare…?” Twilight answered unsurely.

Celestia sighed. “No, my faithful student. It was no nightmare.”

“Then… what happened?”

“You attempted necromancy, and unfortunately… you succeeded.”

“Oh my… I… I…” Twilight stammered.

“You must realize the gravity of what you’ve done,” the Princess said, visually restraining herself. Twilight felt a shiver run down her spine. Celestia wasn’t happy.

“Princess, I’m sorry, please don’t hate me, I-” Twilight started, before being cut off by her mentor.

“Twilight. I am deadly serious.” Twilight’s ears went back as she swallowed hard. She wasn’t going to get off the hook easily this time…

“H-how did you find me? And how did you know to look for me?” a confused and overwhelmed Twilight asked.

“Spike sent me a letter. He heard you leave and saw the book in your room. Realizing what it was, and thinking it was why you were acting strange, he sent me a letter asking for advice. He… believed you were going to attempt necromancy. The moment I was notified, I chose to intervene.”

Twilight was ashamed. She blushed and tried to hide her face, but Celestia caught it and turned her face back to hers.

“You must realize the severity of what you did,” Celestia paused for a moment before continuing, “Luna and I found you in the process of being possessed by… whatever it was you summoned. You… you were almost at the point we could not have saved you very easily.”

Tears welled up in Twilight’s eyes. She knew trying the spell would’ve been a mistake, but her accursed curiosity clouded her judgment.

“I’m sorry… I’m just so sorry…” Twilight sputtered, but the levee broke and she began sobbing.

Celestia let go of Twilight’s face and let her cry her emotions out for a moment. Twilight pulled herself together after a minute or two, and Celestia continued.

“I cannot simply let this matter go. You violated one of the most sacred oaths of Unicornian Magic by dabbling in dangerous and forbidden magics. You knew what you about to do.”

Twilight felt the words of her mother figure hit her like a sledgehammer. Pangs of guilt washed over her as the sobs threatened to return.

“And you did it anyways. I know your curiosity got the better of you, my faithful student, but with such power comes great temptation to use that power for selfish purposes. You must realize this danger and always be on guard for it. I thought you understood this already,” lectured Celestia.

After a breath, she resumed.

“Now, as for your punishment-“

“Please don’t let them take me away!” Twilight cried out, lunging at her mentor and embracing her in the desperate hug of a frightened foal.

“Hush, it’s all right, Twilight,” Celestia cooed as she ran her hoof down her student’s mane.

“I’m so sorry… please don’t hate me,” Twilight choked between sobs.

“Of course I don’t hate you, my faithful student, and of course I forgive you. I understand what it is like...” Celestia held her student close. They embraced each other until Twilight stopped crying.

Twilight stood back up, wiped her face with her hooves, and tried to straighten her unruly mane. Celestia grinned and fixed Twilight’s mane for her. They both smiled, but the Princess quickly returned to a more royal demeanor.

“I sent the book back to the Canterlot Archives where it belongs, safe and out of circulation. I also took the liberty of letting Spike burn your notes. There’ll be no more of this, do you understand me?” asked Celestia in a strict, but loving manner.

Twilight shrank back a little, and hung her head.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Now, in regards to your punishment: you will write me a report listing every reason why such magics are forbidden, your royal allowance will be docked for one month, and your privilege of visiting the Royal Canterlot Library unsupervised has been revoked until further notice.”

That last one stung Twilight to the core. Reports she could handle. She had enough bits in her savings to get by for over a month, and Celestia knew this.

The first two “punishments” were for show; something to be put on Twilight’s permanent record to prove she was punished. But the third one Celestia knew would pain her beloved pupil, and that fact broke Celestia’s heart. Hopefully it would be enough to make Twilight understand how dangerous it is to let one’s curiosity out of check.

Twilight sniffled, holding back tears. She knew she lost her mentor’s trust, and as she thought over the events of the past few days, she couldn’t help but weep. She felt like a shamed and scolded foal back in magic kindergarten. Then it dawned on Twilight: she had failed the Princess of Equestria. How could she ever recover from this?

Celestia raised Twilight’s chin up with her hoof, and looked her in the eyes, sensing what Twilight was thinking.

“There is nothing you can do to make me no longer love you, my dearest Twilight. I am deeply disappointed, but I love you no less. I believe you have learned your lesson.”

Twilight nodded. She didn’t really feel any better about it, but she was glad that Celestia had truly forgiven her.

“Thank you,” Twilight offered meekly, but quickly added, “Where is Princess Luna? She helped save me as well, right?”

“My sister returned to Canterlot after you were brought here, to attend to royal matters in my absence. I… didn’t know how long you would be asleep. But I will extend your thanks to her personally. You’re a good pony, Twilight,” added Celestia with a reassuring wink.

A smile crept onto Twilight’s sticky, tear-stained face.

“Now, I must return to my official duties,” said Celestia. “Goodbye, my faithful student.”

“Goodbye, Princess.”

With Celestia gone, Twilight sat in her room and reflected on the past few days. Mistakes were made, and lessons were learned. She was given another chance; one that she did not deserve for her folly. The image of that baleful face would never leave her, and perhaps that was penance enough. That, and her mentor’s trust which she had foolishly lost. Neither of these ghosts would fade for a terribly long time.

Her ears pricked up at the sound of Spike awaking. Twilight shook her head to clear her mind and opened her door. Then she left her room, a sadder and a wiser mare.