My Little Pony : Spirits of Harmony

Chapters

Prologue
Ch1: Spirits of Harmony - Part 1
Ch2: Spirits of Harmony - Part 2
Ch3: Night at the Museum
Ch4: Just Wing It

Prologue

Princess Twilight sat upon her throne as three acclaimed scholars entered her throne room. Though Canterlot scholars typically remained in the Canterlot School for Gifted Unicorns, Princess Twilight required their help to observe a matter of grave importance. Three weeks ago, she sent them on a mission to observe natural irregularities within their assigned region of Equestria. Now that they had returned from their assignments, Professor Polaris, Professor Karat, and Professor Jones bowed before the princess, each of them eager to present their findings.

While the scholars' lowered their gaze, Princess Twilight's eyebrows furrowed with worry. She had assigned four unicorns to this task, but the fourth scholar, Professor Bayleaf, was not present. The professor's absence was upsetting; however, she set aside her concern and braced herself for whatever news she would be hearing.

With a nod, she commanded, "Please, begin.”

“Yes, Your Highness,” Professor Polaris said. He stood upright and adjusted his glasses. “My observations of the night sky: week three, concerning the stars. The stars surrounding the moon have nearly doubled in apparent magnitude over the last three weeks. My second observation, concerning the moon. Deviations in the moon's orbit are becoming more extreme with each passing day. Forgive me, princess, but I believe that the moon could shift into a completely different orbit if you allow this abnormality to persist." He gave another low bow. “That is all.”

Professor Karat stepped forward and presented a stack of research papers with a photograph of a small black crystal placed on top. Pointing at the picture, she said, “As you know, Your Majesty, I reported the appearance of these strange black crystals at the base of the northern mountains bordering the Crystal Empire. More of these crystals are showing up every week, yet given their individual growth rate, I estimate that it will be a few months before they reach a notable size - the size of a colt, that is to say. They seem to be harmless, and they have little effect on the ecosystem. I recommend that you ask the Crystal Empire to keep an eye on them, but I do not believe they are worth too much of your attention for the time being.”

She gave a quick bow and looked to the pony standing beside her.

Professor Jones stood upright, but before he could report his findings the throne room doors burst open. Everyone jumped, looked back, and saw Professor Bayleaf standing in the doorway. Her mane was scruffy and crumpled notes stuck out of her saddle bag. Tardy and unsightly, she ran down the red carpet and fell down before the throne in contrition.

“Forgive me, princess!” she pleaded.

“It’s alright, professor,” Princess Twilight said compassionately, but she did not conceal the urgency in her tone. “Tell me what you know.”

Remaining on the floor, she looked up at the princess and said, “I have distressing news regarding the Everfree Forest, the lands you instructed me to observe!”

“Yes?” Her eyes widened.

“I-I was testing the credibility of local rumors regarding the sudden outbreak of irregular plant life within the forest. Well, there's no doubt that strange magic is having its way with that land! Vines unlike any I have ever seen or read about are growing in the forest at an astonishing rate! Last I checked, they were growing thirty-six inches per minute, and who knows how fast it's growing now! I strongly urge you to evacuate Ponyville and nearby communities before these vines overrun the region!”

Princess Twilight took a deep breath, placed her hoof on her chest, and exhaled before opening her eyes and looking down at Professor Bayleaf. In a calm, reassuring voice, she said, “Thank you, professor."

Professor Bayleaf looked up at the princess quizzically, and the other scholars murmured amongst themselves, confused by the princess's sudden serenity.

"Thank you, all," the princess continued, looking to the other three scholars. "You have gathered invaluable information with commendable diligence. I hereby discontinue your tasks, and you may return to your normal schedules.”

The scholars left the room packing up their notes. Three of them exited proudly, despite the confusion they felt from the abrupt termination of their respective mission. However, Professor Jones’s head hung low as he stuffed his lengthy observations back into his bag.

As soon as Twilight was alone, she projected a magical screen from her horn. She closed her eyes and pictured a specific pony in her mind, a unicorn with a bright yellow coat and a light orange mane tied into a ponytail with a burgundy bow. When she opened her eyes, the pony appeared on the screen. At this very moment, the pony was meticulously securing priceless historical artifacts on white pedestals and covering them with glass casings. Twilight smiled; she sent this pony to Ponyville three weeks ago - her prized pupil, Celestial Sky.

Twilight stood and the screen disappeared as she stepped down from her throne. She made her way out of the castle thinking about Celestial Sky with every step. Despite living in Ponyville for the past three weeks, Celestial Sky was showing no signs of making any friends, and this deeply troubled Twilight. She had been watching Sky from Canterlot hoping things would unfold accordingly, but she couldn’t afford to wait any longer - she had to intervene. For unbeknownst to her four scholars, particularly Professor Bayleaf, Twilight had set things in motion that only Sky could fix. It was critical that her student complete the task she had given her – the fate of Equestria depended on it.

Ch1: Spirits of Harmony - Part 1

“Once upon a time in the magical land of Equestria, a regal pony spread harmony and friendship throughout the land. But as time went on, the rulers from surrounding kingdoms grew jealous of the happiness and prosperity in Equestria. For years they watched ponies flock to her beautiful lands, and their anger and jealousy transformed them into wicked beasts of darkness, and their kingdoms were brought to ruin. One fateful day, the four dark rulers united in hopes of conquering Equestria and shrouding the land in eternal darkness. Fearing for the well-being of her subjects, the regal pony used the most powerful magic known to ponydom: the Elements of Harmony. Using their power, she vanquished the wicked ponies and banished them within the kingdoms from whence they came. With harmony restored to Equestria, the kingdom continued to thrive and the magic of friendship has reigned throughout the land ever since.”

Breathing a sigh of nostalgia, Celestial Sky turned away from the gigantic tapestry that hung on the wall, and she looked up at her mentor. “That was one of my favorite stories when I was a filly. Hanging up this tapestry took a lot of work, but it was worth it!”

“Yes, I find it quite interesting myself,” Princess Twilight Sparkle said while staring up at the woven image that depicted the fillies story, "Dawn of Harmony." Looking away from the tapestry, she scanned the room and smiled. “You did a fantastic job setting up this museum. It certainly brings back many memories for me, and for that I thank you.”

“It was my pleasure, princess,” Sky said.

Walking out of the tapestry hall, Princess Twilight said, “I trust you are ready for your next assignment?”

“Oh!” She trotted after the princess and made a quill and a roll of parchment snap out of thin air with a spark from her horn. “A new assignment? Yes!” She positioned her quill and looked up from the parchment with an eager smile. “Ready!”

“As you know, this museum is opening tonight. Although you were originally supposed to return to Canterlot after setting things up, I would like you to stay here and host the grand opening.”

Sky stopped writing abruptly and looked up from the parchment again, suddenly feeling overwhelmed by the mere thought of accepting such a task. “But, Your Highness, I’ve never even hosted a birthday party, let alone a museum opening.”

Princess Twilight laughed, “I am aware of that, but after all the hard work you have put into this place, I think no pony deserves the honor of hosting the grand opening more than you.”

Sky blushed and smiled upon hearing Princess Twilight praise her efforts. Not a smile of arrogance, but a smile of happiness because she pleased her mentor, and there wasn’t anything in Sky’s world that could make her happier.

“By the way,” she continued, “I trust you are making some friends.”

“Excuse me?” she said as she put away her writing materials.

“Make some friends…” she said, the way a mother gently reminds a child of a forgotten chore or a misplaced toy. Sky, however, felt as if she had received a rock from her special somepony on Hearts and Hooves Day.

“That was an assignment?” she mumbled.

“Well, I wouldn’t call it an assignment.” Princess Twilight shrugged. “But yes, if that is what you would like to call it.”

Sky stood before her mentor and bit her lips as she tried coming up with a reasonable excuse that would justify her negligence while simultaneously preserving her reputation. When nothing came to mind, she lowered her head and sighed.

“I’m sorry, princess,” she confessed, “I’ve been really busy with the museum, and when I'm finished with work I’m too exhausted to go out and meet ponies. But I promise, after tonight I will make some friends!”

“I trust that you will. But just to be sure that you don’t put this off any longer, I would like you to write a report about your new friend. I will be expecting you to present it to me tonight after the grand opening, understood?”

“But, what about the museum?" Sky objected. "I still have a lot to do! I don't think I'll have enough time to write a-"

"Tonight, Sky," she insisted.

Bowing immediately, she said, "Yes, Your Highness."

“Good. Before I leave, let me introduce you to your new assistant, Angel Eye. She will be assisting you with museum security tonight, and I’m sure she’s more than willing to offer you a helping hoof in the meantime.” She looked toward the doorway leading into the next room.

As if she had been waiting for her cue, a pegasus with a lavender coat and a long flowing yellow mane emerged from around the corner. She gave her princess a slow bow before smiling timidly at Sky. Unsure of how to react to such a withdrawn smile, Sky simply smiled back and tried her best to avoid looking uncomfortable.

Princess Twilight walked toward the museum entrance, breaking the silence. “Now, I have some last minute things to attend to before the grand opening tonight, and when I return I trust that everything will be in order.”

“Oh, yes, princess. Of course!” Sky said, grateful for an excuse to break eye contact with the strange pegasus. She followed the princess to her royal chariot while listing off minor tasks that she would be completing during the afternoon, hoping to assure her mentor that she had everything under control.

“Now, Sky,” Princess Twilight interrupted her ramblings. “You will complete the task I gave you, yes?” she asked as she climbed onto her golden chariot.

Sky stared up at her with a blank expression, but when she recalled the bizarre assignment that she was given three weeks ago, she mumbled, “Y-yes: make some friends...oh, and have a report ready after the grand opening.”

“Very good. I will return when the sun sets at seven o’clock.”

“Yes, princess,” she said and bowed.

Her guards stomped their hoofs, signaling that they were ready for flight. With a few trots, the pegasi lifted the princess’s chariot off the ground and flew toward Canterlot. As Princess Twilight flew over the small town, she sat up straight with her chin raised like the Equestrian ruler she was, her glittering mane flowing elegantly through the wind.

Once the princess was out of sight, Sky bolted back into the museum thinking of all the things that she had to do before the fast approaching evening. There was still polishing, mopping, and aligning that had to be done. She entered the nearest hall, featuring Ponyvillian art, and worked furiously on every little detail she could find, inwardly praising herself for the proactivity that she demonstrated throughout the week. Were it not for her initiative, she was convinced that there would have been no hope for the grand opening.

Before turning her attention to the complementary food table, which only needed to be assembled because the caterer had delivered the food that morning, she trotted through the museum one last time to make sure there wasn’t a single mislabeled artifact or lopsided display. When she entered the jewelry hall, she was so glad that double-checking was a habit because she found a pedestal that wasn’t exactly ninety degrees adjacent to both the wall and the pedestals beside it.

With her eyes locked on the implied square occupying the floor, she carefully reached out her hooves and proceeded to adjust it with extreme precision. Just as she was about to get it into a perfect position, an unfamiliar voice broke the silence.

“Um…excuse me?”

Yanked out of intense focus, Sky shrieked and bumped the pedestal, sending the glass showcase falling to the floor. An explosion of pure terror ignited within her. Before she could even attempt to save the museum from an unsalvageable catastrophe that would shatter the very foundations of Equestria, the lavender pony pushed her aside, slid into a low squat with an outstretched wing, and caught the glass case just before it smashed into pieces.

Though Sky laid on the floor feeling relieved, shocked, amazed, and grateful all at the same time, she only managed to shout, “Don’t scare me like that!”

The lavender pony stood up with the artifact and slide it back on the pedestal with her wing. While she aligned the artifact with the pedestal, she said, “Sorry.”

This pony, who had just demonstrated remarkable speed and reaction time, had the gentlest voice Sky had ever heard. Judging from the way this pony spoke and the smile she gave her when they were first introduced, Sky deduced that she was a shy pony, or perhaps an introverted one, and seeing these seemingly opposing qualities was uncanny to say the least. She got up from the floor and composed herself. “No, I'm sorry. Thank you so much! I guess the princess was right to bring you here.”

“Don’t mention it.” She turned away from the artifact, which was now perfectly aligned – pedestal and all. “But I can help you, Celestial Sky. That's why I was sent here.”

Sky critiqued the pony’s work a final time, and when she was pleased with what she saw, she turned to her and said, “I see…” Although her work was passable, she still wasn’t one hundred percent convinced that this pony was capable of being her assistant. “Well…the food table is next. I guess you can get started with that…um…”

She gave her that withdrawn smile again and answered, “Angel Eye.”

“Angel Eye,” she repeated. “Yeah…just get the food set up in the lobby, and try to make it as neat as possible. I mean, like Grand Galloping Gala buffet table neat!”

Without saying a word, Angel Eye walked past Sky and returned to the lobby, leaving Sky alone to finish her inspection.

For the next hour, Sky double checked the rest of the museum for any misplaced information panels and spot-cleaned the rooms she feared she may have overlooked. As she made her way toward the lobby, she readied herself for the results of Angel Eye’s food preparation. When she stepped in the lobby, her eyes widened with astonishment. Not only was the food table set up, the red carpet was laid out and all the lobby decorations were set up exactly the way she had envisioned. Sky ran to the window and looked at the sun, which was still well above the horizon.

“How did I do?” Angel Eye sat on the floor and crossed her front legs.

“This is great!” she exclaimed. “How did you know what to do?”

“I arranged the food the best I could, like you told me. As for the decorations, well, I found the instructions that came with them.”

With an impressed chuckle, Sky smiled proudly. “Then I guess it’s a good thing that I drew out my decorations plans the night before; who knows how things might have turned out otherwise!” she said as she trotted to the food table.

“Um…thanks?”

When Sky finished evaluating the the food table, she stood upright, spun around, and faced Angel Eye. “And now, my final assignment,” she declared, and then she trotted to one of the lobby benches cushioned with red velvet. “Come, sit.” She patted her hoof on the seat next to her.

“Ok…” She plodded toward the couch in hesitation.

Sky conjured her parchment and quill for her essay, confident this would be her easiest assignment ever! After all, how does one fail an assignment that might as well be the equivalent of a What-I-did-This-Summer elementary school paper? She cleared her throat and said, “So tell me about yourself, Angel Eye. What is your favorite color? What are your hobbies? Do you, a pegasus living here in Ponyville, prefer to trot or fly? Tell me about your family, friends, and acquaintances. Are they all-”

“Excuse me, Ms. Celestial Sky?” she barely raised her hoof over her head like an intimidated student.

“Yes?” She beamed with an eager twinkle in her eye.

Angel snapped her hoof back to her side, startled by Sky's eagerness. “Oh, it's just…what are you doing?”

“Becoming your friend,” she answered as she wrote, ‘Angel Eye is inquisitive, an admirable trait in any pony.’ She looked up from her parchment. “What do you think I’m doing? Now, let’s stay focused here, Angel Eye, I have to get this done before the princess arrives.”

“Begging your pardon, but don’t you have any friends?”

“Friends?” she repeated, barely listening to her. “Of course I do. What pony doesn’t?”

“But are you their friend?”

Sky looked up again and narrowed her eyes, and her quill flopped in her invisible grasp. “I don’t understand,” she replied.

Angel Eye got up from the bench. “You want to get a bite to eat?”

“Not really,” she replied rather bluntly, “I’d like to finish this first.”

“Well, I’m getting hungry, and I know another pony who can probably help you with your assignment a lot better than I can…if that’s ok with you.”

Sky let out an exasperated sigh and put away her quill and parchment. “Very well then.” She stood from the bench and proceeded to lock up the museum. “I suppose it’s better that we eat something now than run the risk of picking food off the tables later.”

Once the museum was locked up, Sky created a makeshift ‘Out to Lunch’ sign and hung it on the door. Though she didn’t like the idea of leaving the museum unattended in the middle of the day, fearing that something might go wrong or that Princess Twilight might return unexpectedly, she knew she had to finish her assignment, and obviously this socially inept pony wasn’t going to get her anywhere. So she followed Angel Eye and tried her best to conceal her impatience.

“So who's this friend of yours?” Sky asked, hoping this new pony wouldn’t turn out to be just like Angel Eye. After all, Sky knew that friends typically bond through a common personality or mutual interests.

“I’ve known her since I was a filly. She's nice.”

Hearing the way Angel Eye spoke, Sky began to notice that there was a genuine kindness and an alluring gentleness within Angel Eye; however, it didn’t change the fact that Sky could only grin awkwardly as she tried thinking of ways to maintain a flowing conversation. When nothing came to mind, she chose to walk in silence until she met this other pony who might actually do her some good.

Angel Eye led Sky to a simple white framed house on the outskirts of Ponyville. There were rows of cherry trees, strawberry bushes, and a variety of berry bushes next to the house. They walked onto the porch, complete with a porch swing and a rocking chair, and Angel Eye tapped on a screen door. Within seconds they were greeted by a pink pony with blue eyes and a white mane. Sky couldn't stop staring at the curls in this pony’s mane, which almost looked like picture perfect whipped cream.

“Hey, Angel! What brings you here?”

“This is my new co-worker – she’s new to Ponyville. And maybe we could get some cake…if you’re not busy right now.”

‘Sheesh, she's even timid around her friends,’ Sky thought.

“Well, come on in!” the pony said. When Sky approached the doorway, the pink pony shook her hoof and said, “Hello there! My name is Strawberry Shortcake, and what’s your name?”

Having become accustomed to Angel Eye’s soft voice and withdrawn approach, Sky was confounded by this pony’s forceful, energetic greeting. “I-I’m Celestial Sky. Uh...your friend said that you might be able to help me with an assignment.”

“Did she now?” Strawberry Shortcake looked back at Angel Eye and grinned. “What kind of assignment is it?” she said as she closed the door behind her.

“I need to make a friend,” Sky declared boldly while she conjured up her quill and parchment again. “So tell me about yourself, Strawberry Shortcake. What is your favorite color? What are your hobbies? Do you, a pegasus living here in Ponyville prefer to-”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” she interrupted. “Slow down, now! Take a saddle off and come on over here and have a piece of cake.”

Sky stared at the two ponies in bewilderment as they started cutting up a fresh blueberry cake that had been cooling on the kitchen counter; it was as if they were completely oblivious of her extremely important assignment. With a low grumble, she put away her quill and parchment for the second time today without any progress, and she reluctantly sat with them.

“How big would you like your piece to be?” Strawberry Shortcake asked, holding a knife over the cake.

“I don't know. Surprise me,” Sky grumbled, feeling certain that she would never finish her assignment on time.

“So, Celestial Sky, where are you from? What brings you out here to Ponyville?”

Like a Canterlot messenger declaring a royal degree, Sky sat up straight and raised her head so that her chin was parallel to the floor. “Princess Twilight personally sent me from Canterlot with the task of assembling the Ponyville Museum.”

“Ah, you mean the one in that big old tree palace thing?”

“Yes, and-”

“I was wondering if that place would ever be used for anything. It’s been off limits for Twilight knows how long!

“Me too,” Angel Eye said.

“Yep, I've heard it's been empty for decades,” she said to Angel Eye. She turned to Sky. “But we’re not the ones who should be talking about that. We are pegasi who moved here, you know.” She reached across the table and bumped hooves with Angel Eye. After their odd gesture of friendship, she continued, “But what I do know is that the folks around here sure are excited about this. Ever since the day those royal carriages showed up and started moving stuff in there, everypony has been talking about it! If I may, I'd like to thank you for coming here and doing all this. I’m sure they have plenty of fancy historical museums up there in Canterlot. Hay, even Cloudsdale has stuff like that. So you can imagine how much it means to the ponies around here to have a place that represents their history.”

“Uh huh, don't mention it…” Sky said before taking a bite of cake. Her patience was wearing thin, but she did her best to control herself. She swallowed and said, “I don’t mean to be rude Strawberry Shortcake, but-”

“Call me Berry,” she inserted. “I’ve learned that Strawberry Shortcake is a bit much to say.”

“Ok then…Berry, I have an assignment to complete before the princess returns for the museum’s opening tonight so let’s try this again.” She brought out her writing materials again. “What is your favorite color? What are your-”

“Oh, this again?” Berry interrupted. “Miss Sky, you can’t go around like you’re setting everypony up for an interview. I ain’t applying to be your friend, you know,” she teased.

Sky sighed. “Well, would you mind humoring me just this once?" she snapped, and her tone gradually became harsher as she continued to speak. "I have to finish this report by sundown, so I don’t have time to build a friendship by initiating multiple encounters in hopes of progressing from courteous small talk to intimate conversation. I don’t know if you Ponyville types understand this, but when the Princess of Equestria requires something from you, you do it. And if circumstances or social customs need to be adjusted, so be it. So unless you have a more efficient way of making friends in a matter of hours, which I highly doubt, I’ll happily take your advice.

She waited for a reply she knew that she wouldn’t get.

“No?" She held eye contact with both of them for a brief moment. "Alright then. Now please, just answer my questions and this will be nice and quick for all of us.”

Sky closed her eyes and forcefully placed the tip of her quill on the parchment. When she opened her eyes, Angel Eye quickly looked away from her, and though Sky didn’t want to admit it, the awkward silence made her realize that she had been harsh - too harsh. Before she could apologize, Strawberry Shortcake stood up and glared intensely at her.

“You listen here, Celestial Sky! I don’t know who you are or who you think are - you can be the princess’s right hand pony for all I care, but you will not talk to me or my friends that way.”

“Um…berry.” Angel Eye started to say, but Strawberry Shortcake cut her off.

“And truth be told: I think the princess would be ashamed of the the way you’re handling this assignment. It goes against everything she has ever taught about friendship!”

“Berry, please…”

Sky was so taken aback by Strawberry Shortcake's response that her magic ceased to flow from her horn, causing her writing materials fall to the floor. Was this pony right? Had she inadvertently overstepped a line of decency in her attempts to complete an assignment? Surely the princess would understand that that wasn't her intention. Unsure of what this conversation could potentially amount to, she stood up, put away her quill and parchment, and ran out the door.

“Sky?” Angel Eye pleaded.

“Miss Sky!” Strawberry Shortcake called out to her, but she was already out of earshot.

She ran from the farm and back into Ponyville, so flustered that she tripped on a vine growing out of a crack in the road. Without a coherent thought in her head, she paid no mind to the onlooking ponies and continued to run toward the museum. When she was about two hundred yards away from the museum, she heard another set of hoofsteps rapidly approaching her from behind. Just as she was about to look back, an orange earth pony entered into her view, her multicolored mane and tail of red, green, black, yellow, and blue whipping in the wind.

“You like running too?” the pony asked as she matched her pace with Sky. “Let’s race to that big tree!”

Anypony could see that this earth pony wasn’t running as fast as she could, and though it was bizarre, Sky continued running even though she was getting tired at this point. There was something about the way this pony’s face lit up while she ran that made Sky forget her misstep with Strawberry Shortcake. As odd as it was for her, all she wanted to do in this moment was run with this stranger.

They drew closer and closer to the tree, and since this pony had been adjusting her speed, Sky assumed she would allow her win or at least come close to winning. But when they were within fifty yards of the door, she lowered her head like a trained athlete and sprinted to the museum entrance at a remarkable speed.

The pony skidded to a stop and flicked her bangs off her face. “Ha! Looks like I win! That was fun!”

While Sky struggled to catch her breath, she noticed that this pony remained unfazed thought she had been running much longer and faster than her. It was then that Sky noticed the satchel that she was wearing, which was filled with letters and small parcels - a mail pony.

“Yeah, that was kinda fun. Thanks.” Sky agreed. Though she didn’t want to admit it, she knew that this pony had provided the release she needed. “I’m Celestial Sky, by the way. Sorry if I kept you from your job.”

“The name’s Wind Sprint, and I’m the fastest runner in Ponyville so don’t even worry about it! Besides, I challenged you, remember? I never turn down a race, even when I’m on the job. I can run from Ponyville to Bitberg in five minutes flat! So what's a slight detour to this earth pony!” she said and then posed like a star athlete.

“For some reason, I believe you.” Sky chuckled.

“And so you should!” She flicked her bangs again. “So why were you running? It looked like something was bothering you.”

Wind Sprint’s question suddenly reminded her of how rude she had been to Angel Eye and Strawberry Shortcake. Feeling that there was no need to bore Wind Sprint with that story, she shrugged and said, “No reason, it was just something I felt that I needed to do. Get the blood flowing...and stuff...you know...”

Wind Sprint grinned. “I like you, Celestial Sky. I’m sure we could be good friends. We should race again sometime.”

“I don’t see the point. I’ve never seen a pony run as fast as you!”

“Hey, a race is a race, and I’m looking forward to our next one already. I would love to do one right now, but I’ve gotta get this mail delivered before sundown if I want to be back on time for the museum’s grand opening.”

“You’re coming to the grand opening?” Sky said. Realizing that Wind Sprint had no idea why Sky would care, she added, “I’m the curator! Of the museum, I mean.”

“Really? That’s cool! So I guess I’ll see you tonight!”

“Yeah, I'm looking forward to it. Thanks again for the race!”

“No problem! Welcome to Ponyville, Celestial Sky!” she said before running off into the distance.

As the sound of Wind Sprint’s hoofs faded, Sky heard yet another set of hoofs approaching from behind her. Feeling as if everypony was going to approach her this way for the rest of the day, she spun around and saw Angel Eye, and though she was a familiar pony she wasn’t exactly thrilled to see her.

“Ms. Sky!” she called out.

She gulped. “Hi, Angel Eye.”

“Please don’t be angry. She really is a nice pony, honest! She’s just a little blunt when she feels she needs to be. She wanted to apologize, but you ran out of there so quickly she didn’t have the chance. And she told me to tell you that she’ll finish up her work at the farm as fast as she can and then come over to the museum so she can make it up to you. So are you still mad? Please don’t be mad.”

“I’m not mad, Angel Eye. She was right; I needed to hear that. The princess wouldn’t approve of my behavior. I just hope Strawberry Shortcake isn't still mad at me.”

“She isn't. Really,” she said.

“I hope so.” Sky sighed. “Anyway, let’s get back in the museum and finish things up before we do anything else. Don’t worry, I’m sure things will be fine when Strawberry Shortcake shows up tonight.”

“Good,” she said, sounding relieved. “But remember Ms. Sky, she prefers to be called Berry.”

Sky smiled as they walked into the museum together. “Right, and you can call me Sky," she said, feeling much better than she did a moment ago.

Roughly three hours later, Sky stepped out of the museum and looked at the clock tower that towered over the buildings of Ponyville. Just as Angel Eye said, Strawberry Shortcake showed up about an hour before the opening and lent her hoof for any last minute help. At first Sky thought things would be very uncomfortable, but they made amends with ease. Unfortunately, despite everything that happened, she still couldn't find time to write an essay about a friend. She came to terms with her situation and assured herself it wouldn’t be the end of the world. But this was the first time she was unable to fulfill a command from the princess, so she didn’t know what to expect. She could only hope that the princess would understand.

But that matter was the last thing on her mind as she watched the sun sink into the horizon. Though the evening was beautiful, she couldn’t shake off the panic swelling inside her. She started pacing with a small piece of parchment and read:

Artifacts organized and presentable – check.

Decorations for the museum – check.

Food for the guests – check.

Red carpet laid out for the princess – check.

Checklist of Honored Guests – check

Everything was in place, and the clock tower read five minutes to seven…so where was everypony?

“Um…Sky?” Angel Eye said with concern.

Sky heard her, but she was too lost in her worries to respond. Maybe the ponies of Ponyville were busy with a community event that the princess didn’t account for, or perhaps the entire town didn’t care for history and museum pieces. Social apathy toward museums was not uncommon, even among the most refined ponies of Canterlot. But where was the princess? As the minute hand of the clock tower inched closer to seven, the further she felt from her sanity.

The clock tower rang - still no guests, still no princess.

Sky felt like a helpless filly. But not just any filly, a filly that had been accidentally locked inside a old building that was being demolished that very day, never to be heard from again.

“Don’t worry, Sky,” Strawberry Shortcake said, “I’m sure the princess is just running a little late.”

“The princess? Running late? Psht, right..."

Angel Eye and Berry looked at each other uncomfortably, silently fearing for their well-being.

"Ok, ok, so she may be a little late, but what about everypony else? Highly respected royals from Canterlot are supposed to make an appearance tonight – not just the princess! And you said that ponies around here are excited for this grand opening, so where are they? Huh? What about them?!”

Just as Sky finished speaking, two ponies walked into the museum side by side. One pony had a white coat and black mane while the other had a blue coat and a bright orange mane. Of the two ponies, Sky was most intrigued by the black and white pony, who carried herself in a way that reminded her of the ladies from Canterlot. However, it was not the pony's demeanor that fascinated Sky: it was her color. Ponies with a neutral color scheme was a rarity, making her a unique sight to behold. The black and white pony’s friend quickly drew Sky's attention the instant her gaping green eyes beheld the artifacts in the museum. Leaving her friend’s side, she darted to the closest showcase in the room.

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!” The blue pony squealed with delight. “Woodwind, Woodwind! C’mere! C’mere!” she said, and she pressed her face against a glass case that contained an amulet from first-century Ponyville.

“Look, look, look, look!” She bounced when her friend got closer to her. “Isn’t this exciting?”

Angel Eye stayed true to her duty and approached the blue pony. “Hey, Pair, keep your face off the glass, please?” she said.

“Oh, right.” She immediately complied. “Sorry, but this is just so exciting!”

Sky approached the two guests and asked, “You know about this stuff?”

“Are you kidding me? Who wouldn’t want to know about all of this stuff?! Just think of all the things that were inspired from history: the stories, the games, the costumes!” She squealed. “And now that this museum is open, I can get direct inspiration for my own games! No more train rides to Canterlot for me!” She jumped up and squealed again before running off to another artifact.

Though Sky’s evening was utterly destroyed at this point, she was uplifted by the pony who was so enamored with a simple amulet (historical value aside). Even if this pony was the only pony that would appreciate the value of the museum this night, that was enough for Sky.

The black and white pony stayed behind and looked at Sky with an embarrassed smile. She closed her eyes and cleared her throat. “Pardon her, she gets very…eccentric when it comes to games and such frivolity. She owns a game shop in town, you see. My name is Woodwind and that was Pair A. Dice - Pair for short.”

“I’m Celestial Sky, and I am the curator of this museum.”

“Are you?” She pulled out a sack filled with bits from her side bag. “Then will you please accept my donation to this museum?”

Sky took the bag and marveled at its contents: fifty bits.

“Wow...” Sky said, flabbergasted. “Most museums are lucky if they can get any pony to donate a bit or two, and it usually only happens when a filly wants to put a coin into one of those gimmicky donation receptacles.”

“Yes, well, this museum means a lot to Pair, so it would be a shame if it were to shut down due to financial reasons. I also believe that hard work should be rewarded. I have seen you working on this museum over the past few weeks, and I must say that you have put together quite the grand opening.”

Woodwind looked around the room as if she was analyzing her work. With a disappointed sigh, she said, “But I must admit, it is not as…grand as I was expecting. Oh! No offense to your efforts, I assure you! It is just that I was expecting more extravagance and glamour as far as your…guest list is concerned.”

“It was supposed to be.” Sky’s heart sank.

“No matter, silly Pair was just thrilled to come into the museum, and you can imagine the look on her face when she saw that the place was practically empty. But I wanted to see the princess and the royals from Canterlot. Do you know when she will be making her appearance?”

Every section of her brain resisted her will to utter the one word she needed to say. With grueling mental strain, she swallowed her pride and managed to say, “No.”

"No?!" Woodwind exclaimed.

Suddenly, the museum doors swung open and slammed on the wall, startling every pony. Being the security pony, Angel Eye instantly shifted into an offensive stance, ready to take on whatever might burst into the room. Standing in the doorway was a familiar orange pony: Wind Sprint. This time she was not the carefree athlete that Sky met earlier; this time her face was full of fear and confusion.

“Wind Sprint?” Angel Eye said, resuming her normal stance.

“What’s going on?” Woodwind said.

“I don’t know." Wind Sprint panted. "There’s something freaky going on in town! Come look!”

Sky wasn’t sure whether Wind Sprint had included her. All the other ponies knew each other so it didn’t feel right for her to assume that she could join them. Unable to stifle her curiosity, she lingered at the entrance and watched them run away together. Just when she was about to turn back into the museum, they called out, “Come on, Sky!”

Their call surprised her, but when it registered that they really wanted her to join them, she locked up the museum in what had to be a record time and followed them. Within a few blocks, she could tell that something was indeed strange. Not only was the town eerily silent, but there were unusual vines growing out of cracks in the ground that had wrapped themselves around everything from buildings to abandoned troughs.

“Oh no…” Pair’s ears drooped. “I hope this didn’t come from that weird board game I found the other day.”

“Not now, Pair!” Woodwind snapped.

“What in the hay is going on here?!” Strawberry Shortcake said. She ran to a familiar house on the block and pounded on the door. “Lily? Lily?! Open up!”

Wind Sprint let out an exasperated sigh and cried, “Incoming!”

Strawberry Shortcake and Angel Eye turned around and just barely dodged before Wind Sprint smashed down the door and charged into the house.

“Oh my goodness!” Woodwind said and placed her hoof over her chest.

“Wind Sprint!” Strawberry Shortcake shouted without hiding her disapproval. What makes you think you can just break into somepony’s house?”

“Berry…” Wind Sprint said, almost like a whimper.

“I mean, we don’t even know what’s going on here!”

“Berry!” she yelled.

Sky entered the house and found the five ponies staring into the living room in silence. She followed their line of sight and instantly understood why they were at a loss for words. The house was completely covered in vines and other greenery that seemed to be growing out of the house itself. At first Sky tried to rationalize the situation with the idea that the pony who lived here just happened to like greenhouses or something, but the thought was eradicated when her eyes met the figure in the center of the room. While the other ponies were paralyzed with fear and lost in bewilderment, Sky approached the figure with great caution.

Wrapped in a net of vines that pulsated with a dull green glow was a pony who Sky assumed was Lily. Upon observing the vines, she knew this was a form of magic, and a mysterious one at that. Aside from the obviously magical glow, the vines were not wrapped around her but rather as if they had grown into her flesh. She carefully removed one vine from the pony's skin, and when she saw that nothing detrimental occurred, she proceeded to tear off every vine. The other ponies snapped out of their daze upon seeing Sky’s actions and ran to their friend.

“Lily? Are you alright?” Strawberry Shortcake asked.

“Say something!” Wind Sprint pleaded.

Words were not necessary to determine that something was very wrong. Sky had seen this pony every now and then while walking through town, and the last time she saw her she had light yellow hair, a white coat, and a single lily for a Cutie Mark. But the pony before her had a dull brown coat and mane, and her Cutie Mark was nowhere to be found. Lily responded to the cries of her friends, but her gaze met their eyes with a disturbing emptiness. She stared at them for a moment, and then she turned away with a snort and stooped down to a patch of grass growing out of the floor. With only a moment of hesitation, she devoured the grass like a mindless beast, an act that even the most uncivilized folks in Ponyville would deem uncouth.

“Sky! What happened to her?” Angel Eye asked.

“I don’t know…” she replied. Only the Princess or the high unicorns of Canterlot would have any idea about the magic taking place. Though her immediate thoughts wanted to turn to them for help, she felt as if the town had been cast into an abyss completely disconnected from all of Equestria, and all tangible hope seemed to be worlds away.

“I don’t know,” she repeated, mostly to herself.

Suddenly, ghostly howls pierced the silent night.

“Timberwolves!” Strawberry Shortcake said.

They ran out of the house and into the road where they were immediately surrounded by six timberwolves – three on one end of the road and three on the other. Sky had heard of timberwolves before, but until now she always thought they were merely creatures of ponytales, and she wished they had stayed that way. Giant wolves made entirely of rotting wood and broken branches stared at her with menacing yellow eyes that almost reduced Sky to the whimpers of a foal. Her nostrils burned from the stink of their foul breath as their predators closed in on them. The largest wolf lifted its head and howled. As if this was a command, the other timberwolves lunged at them with their mouths open and their claws bared.

Strawberry Shortcake and Wind Sprint at charged the oncoming timberwolves. They jumped up and pounded their front hooves on their heads. When they landed, they bucked them one by one while Angel Eye and Pair. A Dice watched their backs. Woodwind and Sky used their magic to repel the wolves from themselves and their friends.

Just when Sky thought that they had a chance of escaping, the earth beneath their hooves split open and thick, glowing vines slithered out of the ground and swiped at each pony’s legs. Strawberry Shortcake and Wind Sprint, who were occupied with the timberwolves, were snared by the vines and dragged toward the Everfree Forest. Woodwind and Pair A. Dice were snatched away soon after. Even Angel Eye’s wings could not save her, for the vines whipped up into the air, snagged her leg, and slammed her on the ground, and the vine dragged her from Ponyville as she screamed helplessly.

Sky cut the vines with her magic, but for every vine that she cut there seemed to be a dozen more ready to take its place. When she was certain she couldn’t fight them off anymore, a violent sunbeam illuminated the night.

The sunbeam struck the ground and scorched the earth with a deafening rumble, leaving a deep ditch of charred earth in its wake. The vines burst into flames and the timberwolves were reduced to piles of ash upon a mere touch of the intense, fiery light. Sky looked for the source of the magic and she saw Princess Twilight flying above her, blazing like sun in the sky.

Sky stood up and winced due to an agonizing headache that only came whenever she used too much magic. She ignored the pain and did her best not to expose her discomfort to the princess. When Princess Twilight landed on the ground, an army of palace guards followed after her and dispersed throughout the town. They broke into every building in sight and dragged out any pony they could find. Lily was not the only pony who suffered from the effects of the mysterious vines. The once bright and colorful citizens of Ponyville were reduced to dull colors varying from brown to grey, which matched their vacant and downtrodden countenance.

“Princess…what’s happening?” Sky said as if she was on the verge of tears.

“This is an ancient magic. But I must be sure it is the one I fear.” Princess Twilight stood and pondered the situation before her. She prodded a limp vine with her hoof, and after exhausting her mind with every possible option, she stood upright and bellowed, “Discord!”

The second Sky heard that name she inched closer to the princess. Though Discord was mostly a jovial character, who was a significant aid to the kingdom and an interesting creature to socialize with, Sky could never get over his bizarre, serpentine body, which seemed to have been pieced together by some sadistic collector of animal body parts. In a flash of light, the renowned spirit of chaos appeared and gave the princess a dramatically low bow.

“You summoned me, Princess Twilight?” Discord said.

“Thank you for your promptness, Discord. I believe an old threat has returned to Equestria. Look at these vines. Is this not the work of Princess Gardenia?” she asked.

“Hmm…” He rubbed his chin. “Let’s take a good look here, shall we?” He observed the vines from every absurd angle possible and took a few glances around the town. When he came to his conclusion, he turned to the princess and said, “Your majesty, I don’t see why you bothered summoning me at all - not that it is a burden, mind you.”

Princess Twilight narrowed her eyes. “I can’t afford to jump to conclusions when it involves Princess Gardenia, you know that. If any of my subjects set hoof in the Everfree Forest upon my command, the seal I created to contain her magic will be broken.”

“Of course, of course,” he said as he let his head slump back lazily. “But there’s really no other candidate for such masterful gardening skills. I mean, look around you: glowing vines, a pack of timberwolves, a herd of ponies who look like they’ve just been told that friendship isn’t magic…”

“Discord!” she scolded.

He bent over laughing, arms wrapped around his slender belly. “Oh, lighten up, princess. I couldn’t resist that one." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, yes: there is no denying that this is the work of Princess Gardenia," he stated robatically. "There, are you satisfied?”

“Thank you, my friend,” she said, accepting the situation that was before her. “You may go.”

“And thank you.” He bowed again and leaned his head toward her. “And as always, if you need me, I’m just a call away.” He winked and then disappeared as quickly as he came.

“Celestial Sky,” Princess Twilight said, looking down at her gravely. “Things are as bad as I thought. Immediate action must be taken; otherwise, all the good ponies of Ponyville will be lost.”

“What’s going on? Who is this Princess Gardenia?”

“Princess Gardenia was one of the five sister rulers of ancient Equestria. I assume you have read about them.

“Yes, I have.” Sky replied. “But I don’t recall a 'Princess Gardenia.' In fact, I don’t think any of them were ever named, unless there’s a book on them that I’ve never read.”

“No, there isn’t. The details of these rulers are preserved and passed down through Canterlot royalty. The story goes that a sisterhood of ponies founded Equestria. But as you know, without the Elements of Harmony to unite and guide the rulers, each of them fell into disharmony and their portion of the kingdom degenerated along with them. Princess Gardenia was the princess of the nature. Instead of using her magic to make the plants grow in harmony with the other four rulers, she attempted to create a new form of nature, a world without magic. To keep her from infecting all of Equestia, she was sealed away in what is now known as the Everfree forest. So long as no pony enters the forest upon royal command, her power will be contained for as long as the Elements of Harmony endure.”

Sky absorbed everything she heard, and though the world around her seemed to be falling apart, understanding what caused it gave her mind some sense of stability amongst all the confusion. As she looked down at a vine on the ground, she said, “But that still doesn’t explain why this is happening. If you didn't send send pony into the Everfree Forest, that can only mean that there's a problem with the Elements of Harmony. The Elements of Harmony are still working, right?” She looked up at her hopefully.

Princess Twilight responded to her worried expression with a reassuring smile. “Of course. All I need to do is go to the Elemental Palace deep in the Everfree Forest. I’ll try to reason with her, but if that fails I will need to use the Elements of Harmony.”

“The Elemental Palace?”

“Yes. It was the palace where the five pony sisters ruled, the very first palace of royalty in Equestrian history. And in its halls, the Elements of Harmony were born. Now while I am gone I have a task for you, Sky. I need you to use this spell on every citizen in Ponyville.”

She stood directly in front of Sky and lowered her head. At first, Sky though that she was bending down to give her a hug, but instead she placed the tip of her horn on Sky’s head, which sparkled brilliantly with an aura of purple light, and taught her a new spell. Having completed the spell, Princess Twilight backed backed away from Sky, who felt as if her mind had been relieved of every grievance she had ever experienced.

"Got it." Sky nodded. "But what does this spell do?"

Before Princess Twilight could say a word, another slew of vines erupted from the ground and snared her. Unlike the vines that took away Angel Eye, Strawberry Shortcake, Wind Sprint, Pair A. Dice, and Woodwind, the ones that bound the princess glowed green like the vines that held Lily.

“Sky!” she shouted as she struggled against the writhing vines. “Go! Go to the Elemental Palace!” The vines bound her legs, and then another wave of vines slithered around her body and began piercing each segment of her spine. A thick, glowing vine pierced the back of her neck, and her eyes widened as a pulse of magic surged through her body. Sedated, her eyes closed, her body went limp, and she fell. When she hit the ground, her crown tumbled off her head and landed on a mound of overturned dirt.

“PRINCESS!” Sky cried.

Sky wanted to run to the princess's aid, but a gaseous silhouette of an alicorn seeped out of the earth and loomed over the fallen princess. Within the green magical mist, bright yellow eyes strikingly similar to that of a timberwolf stared down at the princess. As a gesture of triumph, the dark alicorn reared and a geyser of vines spewed from the earth and engulfed everything in Ponyville, even Princess Twilight's royal guards.

Vine after vine came after Sky from all directions, but she managed to dodge them as she raced out of town. Though she feared for her fallen mentor, she made her way out of Ponyville, now a living jungle, and ran to the Everfree Forest, struggling to ignoring the helpless cries of Princess Twilight's soldiers as they either attempted to fight or escape the onslaught of magical vines. She didn’t know how to get to this Elemental Palace or how she would undo this disaster, but she knew what had to done. Her princess needed her.

~~~~~~~~~~

Twilight opened her eyes and tore away the vines that bound her. The vines attempted to seize her again, but with a powerful flap of her wings she ascended above the town, safe from the chaos below. She reluctantly turned a sorrowful eye away from her suffering subjects in Ponyville and focused on Sky, who she saw running toward the Everfree Forest.

A loud crack sounded and Discord appeared by her side. “Stellar performance, princess.” Discord said while holding a smiling thespian mask over his face.

“Discord, please.” She rolled her eyes.

“Now that I can speak freely, I have a fun question, Your Highness,” Discord said as he slithered around her. “Didn’t you cause this by sending Professor Bayleaf into the Everfree Forest the other day?”

Sky closed her eyes. “Yes,” she admitted.

He tossed the thespian mask to the side, which disappeared into thin air, and stroked his chin inquisitively. “Fascinating leadership, if I do say so myself. Why are you allowing this to happen to your beloved Ponyville and your dearest student?”

“Because she needs to be pushed,” she said. “Besides, it was only a matter of time before the seal on Princess Gardenia finally broke. I can only hope that Sky made some friends. I will intervene if necessary, but it is imperative that she discovers the magic of friendship, as I once did.”

Discord flew in front of Twilight and looked into her eyes teasingly, “Well, look at you! Manipulating circumstances for the greater good, just like the great princess before you.”

Twilight looked down and smiled to herself as a rush a memories came to mind. She recalled the days when she couldn’t fathom the idea of even remotely measuring up to the great spell casters of Canterlot, let alone her old mentor. Back then there were many things her mentor did that Twilight didn’t understand. But now, as she watched her own pupil, she felt a new appreciation for her old mentor in a way that she never experienced until now.

Twilight snapped out of her sentiments, and she turned to Discord. “Circle the town and keep any travelers away from Ponyville.”

“Yes, your majesty.” He circled around her once and flew toward the outskirts of Ponyville. “And what will you be doing?” he turned around and asked.

“Watching over Sky,” she replied with her eyes locked on the earth below. She flapped her wings and flew toward the Everfree Forest, keeping her fierce gaze fixed on her beloved pupil.

Ch2: Spirits of Harmony - Part 2

Sky ran through the Everfree Forest, unsure of whether she was running in the right direction. All she could do was follow the magical vines, which had engulfed the forest along with Ponyville, and hope that they were leading her to the Elemental Palace that Princess Twilight had spoken of.

Though Sky had never seen much outside of Canterlot and, until recently, the Ponyville Museum, she could sense that her surroundings were becoming strange as she ran deeper into the forest. Even though she hadn't been in Ponyville for long, she had picked up on the rumors surrounding the foreboding forest: plants grow by themselves, dark magic lives in the trees, and many other outlandish tales that would trouble even the bravest ponies. Sky, determining to remain rational, had never taken them seriously, but now that she was in the forest she couldn't deny the paranoia pricking at her brain and the fear enveloping her heart. The trees seemed to be forming frightening faces, lit by a dim, ominous red glow that seemed to be emanating from within the trees, and malicious specters seemed to be hiding in every shadow and crevice, clawing out of the darkness and threatening to drag her into the depths of Tartarus wherever her back was turned.

'No!' Sky thought to herself. Those were just old pony tales. The ideas implanted in her mind were skewing her perception, and she wasn’t about to let some paranoid ponies stop her from reaching the Elemental Palace.

After trekking through thick shrubbery and swimming across a tumultuous river, she emerged from the forest and found herself at the edge of a gorge filled with a river of billowing fog that shrouded the forest clearing. Sky peered into the fog and saw a faint silhouette of a castle-like structure, the Elemental Palace. As Sky suspected, the magical vines that had swarmed Ponyville converged from the palace, the source of the strange magic. Taking a moment to observe the palace, she was surprised to see that the palace wasn’t much of a palace at all, but ancient ruins that could easily pass as a haunted castle floating in a sea of fog. And seeing the magical vines pulsate with its dull, green light from within the castle, the thought of confronting whatever was waiting for her in there, filled her with dread.

Sky took one deep breath, accepting the situation before her, and inched to the edge of the cliff, looking for a way to cross the gorge.

The gorge seemed impassable, but Sky spotted the crumbled remains of two stone pillars her side of the cliff. Following an imaginary line to the other side of the gorge, she an old bridge dangling from two more stone pillars. Casting a levitation spell, she lowered her horn and focused on the bridge.

It slowly emerged from the fog, but the rotten rope was not long enough to reach the other side. She dug her hooves into the dirt and stretched out the bridge as much as she could. When its weight started dragging her toward the edge, she leaped off the cliff and reached for the bridge. Midair, she fumbled for a plank of wood and seized it like a life ring just as her magic fizzled out, and then she swung through the air and slammed on the rocky wall.

She clenched her teeth and stifled a cry of pain as she clung to the ancient bridge. Though every part of her body screamed in pain, she clung to the wooden plank. Grabbing a moldy rope with her teeth, she pulled herself up and started climbing. She took it one plank at a time, deliberately banishing her fears with every careful step. At any moment the rope could snap, her hoof could slip, a plank could break; any of these things would send her plummeting to her death. But she pressed on, and she poured all of her strength into climbing the bridge.

When she finally reached the top, she dragged her belly over the edge as she pulled herself to safety, panting and trembling. Feeling like she was about to cry, she buried her face in the grass and took deep, reassuring breaths as she felt and listened to her pounding heart. Once she recovered, she slowly stood on her hooves and faced the ruins. Though her muscles were still quivering and sweat was still fresh on her brow, she pushed open the door and entered the Elemental Palace, hoping she could find the five ponies without making her presence known.

She found herself in the palace antechamber, and though she expected the palace to be ruined from what she saw outside, she wasn’t expecting to find it in such a dismal condition. The ceiling had completely collapsed, exposing the night sky and shattering the tiled floor when it had fallen, and its remains littered the room with moss-covered bricks and gravel. Ornate carvings, statues, and palace structures, ravaged by time, were nothing more disfigured lumps of stone mounted on discolored pedestals. And yet, despite the palace's grotesque state, she could tell that the palace could have rivaled the majesty of the Canterlot Castle back in its time.

At the end of the antechamber, a large stone door depicted five spheres, each with a geometrical shapes carved into them. But the sixth one, which was centered on the door, was blank. Sky opened the door and stood before a great stairway covered in vines. At first she thought nature had had its way with this particular room, but the vines closely resembled the ones that overwhelmed Ponyville. Sensing what awaited her in the next room, she ran up the stairs, ready to face her foe.

Sky skidded to a stop when she found, not Princess Gardenia, but a type of altar composed of five smaller pillars surrounding a larger, slightly elevated pillar. Atop each of the smaller pillars were Angel Eye, Strawberry Shortcake, Wind Sprint, Woodwind, and Pair A. Dice. Like Lily, the pony they tried to rescue earlier, they slept as the color drained from their coats.

She ran to them, but a net of vines sprang up from the cracks in the floor and wrapped around her legs. The vines dragged her into midst of the other ponies, and Sky thrashed and struggled as they pulled her onto the center pillar. She rolled onto her back, pointed her horn at her hind legs, and sliced the vines with a flick of magic, leaving shallow cuts on her own legs. Before the vines could snare her again, she scrambled to her hooves, climbed onto Angel Eye’s pillar, and tore the vines off of her as fast as she could.

Suddenly, Sky felt her body freeze. Although her body would not respond to any of her mental commands, she was still able to move her eyes. Her eyes darted around room, searching for the source of the magic that seized her.

“Stop, Celestial Sky,” a voice said.

Sky’s body, controlled by magic, turned around, and she saw her: Princess Gardenia.

Her height towered over that of an average pony, much like Princess Twilight. But unlike Princess Twilight's benevolent demeanor, Princess Gardenia’s dark green coat, cold yellow eyes, and frightening apparel exuded subjugation. A thick royal horse collar made entirely of thorns was strapped to her neck, elegant stockings of poison ivy wrapped around her front legs, and she wore spiked slippers that appeared to be fashioned with severed venus fly trap heads. Sky always thought that Princess Twilight’s majestic mane was incomparable to any other, yet Princess Gardenia’s mane put the great Equestrian ruler’s mane to shame. Her green, mystical hair, adorned with a sparkling mist, seemed to fill the entire room as it cascaded from her head and rippled through the air, flowing down into the magical vines at her hooves.

“Our magic has nearly completed its work, and your interruption would be most upsetting,” she said as she lowered her head. Her horn glowed green, and another onslaught of vines sprang up and yanked Sky away from Angel Eye.

“Now rest among your peers and dismiss any thoughts of resistance.”

Although Princess Gardenia spoke in a flat, almost monotone, voice, there was something compelling and engaging about it (perhaps due to her use of the Old Equestrian dialect). Whatever it was, were it not for her aggressive actions, Sky would have thought that she was a ruler devoid of emotion.

“Let me go!” Sky screamed as she struggled. “What are you doing to my friends?!”

“Do not judge us so harshly, for all that has befallen you and your friends is necessary if we are to expand our kingdom and establish order. If it eases your mind, you can rest knowing that we have sealed away the consciousness of your friends within their happiest memory. The last thing we want is for our subjects to be miserable, and soon, you will join them.”

“What kingdom? A bunch of trees?!”

Princess Gardenia's expression did not falter upon hearing Sky’s remark; she simply stared at Sky while she continued to struggle. Without saying a word, she turned away, walked to a window, and gazed upon the vastness of the Everfree Forest.

“Is that truly all you see, ‘a bunch of trees?’” she said.

She paused.

Continuing to stare out the window, she said, “Even after thousands of years, the Everfree Forest still thrives. Now that the seal that confined us is broken, we can finally free Equestria from your kind. Nature was never meant to be shackled and tamed by the reigns of ponies. While Equestria rests upon a despicable cornerstone of magic, our forest -our kingdom- endures. Is that not a power worthy of Equestria's throne?” She turned away from the window and faced Sky, holding out a hoof to the forest. “Is this not true order?”

She brought her hoof down gracefully and sneered, “Like dogs pampered by the scraps of their masters, Equestian ponies trample the earth with their spell and incantations, but when our work is complete, magic will lose its standing and nature will reign supreme.”

With another flash of Gardenia’s horn, Sky felt the vines slide up her legs and wrap around her rib cage. The magical vines, which pulsated with magic, pierced her spine from her flank all the way up to the nape of her neck.

Princess Gardenia smiled plainly upon hearing Sky's cries. “Be not distressed, young one. Soon everypony in Ponyville will fall prostrate before our power. We will extend our reach from this little town that borders our domain, and we will consume everything until Equestria is ours.” She stepped closer to Sky and stared at her with a vacant yet somehow menacing expression. “Even if you managed to escape us, soon every pony you ever knew: the friends of your youth, your academic acquaintances, and even your most distant kin will be gone from this world, leaving you to roam these lands with no pony for comfort. In time, you would have begged us to relieve you from desolation. Now, Celestial Sky...sleep.”

A pulse of magic surged through Sky’s body and an overwhelming drowsiness followed soon after. Her eyes became heavy, and just before her eyes closed, she looked down at herself and saw the color draining from her body. Part of Sky wanted to panic and fight back, but another more powerful force resigned her to the idea that Princess Gardenia was right. Besides, how terrible could an eternal, blissful sleep be?

Sky opened her eyes and found herself suspended in the midst of an ethereal void with hundreds of gelatinous forms floating throughout a green, glittering mist that resembled Gardenia’s mane. For a moment, Sky took in the beauty of the surreal world, but then she remembered Princess Gardenia's words. She had never seen this place before, and though it was indeed beautiful, she couldn’t see how this was her happiest memory…unless Gardenia’s magic failed to affect her.

Realizing that something must have gone wrong, she reached for a ground she wasn't sure was there, and her hoof met an invisible floor. The instant she put weight on her leg, a network of light that resembled roots revealed itself with a soft green glow. She walked forward, and as she drew nearer to the amoebic forms she thought she could hear voices. At first she convinced herself that they were her own thoughts, amplified by the silence of the mysterious realm; but eventually she started picking up words that she knew were not her own. When Sky gave the gelatinous forms a second look, she saw ponies suspended within each of them. Each pony slept with a peaceful smile upon his face while ghostly voices echoed around them.

‘So her spell didn’t work on me.’ Sky thought as she watched a sleeping pony swirling around as if he was sluggishly falling through space.

Once she realized what she had to do, she ran through the mist searching frantically for her friends. The search seemed futile, for there were hundreds of ponies to search through. But rather than wasting time running around aimlessly in the seemingly endless void, she stopped and observed the ponies floating around her. Nothing in particular separated one pony from the other except for a dim aura that shined from their bodies. With this in mind, she peered through the mist and noticed five lights that shined brighter than all the others. The pink light seemed to be the closest to her so she ran toward it as fast as she could.

When she reached the light, she found that it was coming from Angel Eye, confirming her outlandish hunch. She tried using the spell she learned from Princess Twilight, but when she approached the plasmic membrane, a startling force seemed to draw her in like a vacuum. The spell would only work by touching Angel Eye’s forehead so Sky jumped into the membrane. She instantly felt as if her body was catapulting through the air, and Gardenia’s world disappeared in a blur.

As Sky started slowing down, a new world came into focus around her, and she found herself standing beside a crude race track. It was as if somepony came along and pounded on the ground and decided to call it a race track. She peered across the track and saw two fillies racing each other – one was orange and one was lavender. They came around the bend, and Sky saw that it was Wind Sprint and Angel Eye!

She wanted to jump in front of them and attempt to communicate with Angel Eye, but they dashed across the finish line and skidded to stop, leaving a trail of dust behind them. Both ponies were much younger than the ones she met earlier that day. Angel Eye had her shield Cutie Mark, but Wind Sprint’s flank was still blank.

“Good…race…” Angel Eye panted.

“Back…’atcha…” Wind Sprint smiled. “You sure can run…for a pegasus.”

They continued to complement each other and talk about racing, and then a group of pegasi in racing gear descended from above with disapproving looks on their faces.

“Angel Eye,” one female pegusi said. “Why are you racing with Wingless over there?”

“Oh…I’m sorry, Featherfrost…I was just-”

“Yeah!” A male pegasi joined in. “You’ll never become a fast flier that way.”

Sky saw that Angel Eye’s timid nature was no different now than when she was a filly. The group of pegasi belittled and insulted her for racing with an earth pony, and just when she started backing away, Wind Sprint stepped in front of her.

“HEY!!!”

The bullies were instantly silenced.

“This is my friend! And I’d bet my lucky horseshoe that she’s faster than all of you on hoof!”

“Psht, yeah, on hoof,” Featherfrost retorted.

“You wanna race right now? Huh? Do ya!” Wind Sprint started bouncing around in a racing pose. “I’ll take on all of you! One by one if I have to! Come on!”

Featherfrost narrowed her eyes and proceeded to lift herself off the ground, spreading her wings gaudily with every flap. With a smirk on her face, she said, “That’s cute, Wingless. Call me up for a race when you get some wings.”

She spun around and flew back to the clouds, and the rest of the pegasi followed her and gave their final insults to Wind Sprint and Angel as they left, directly and indirectly. But Wind Sprint stood her ground, glaring up at the ponies until they were out of earshot. She stood upright and turned to Angel Eye.

“You ok?” she said.

Angel Eye nodded slightly.

“Don’t listen to those fillies. In my book, you’re the awesomest pegasus in all of Equestria. The name’s Wind Sprint. Yours?” She held her hoof out to her.

Fear vanished from Angel Eye’s face and a smile took its place. “Angel Eye,” she replied, and they bumped hooves.

When her hoof touched Wind Sprint, she shut her eyes and her happiest memory disintegrated into clouds of green mist. The only thing that did not disappear was Angel Eye, who was sitting peacefully amongst the chaos. Out of the green mist, a ghostly apparition of a yellow pegasus with flowing pink hair appeared around Angel Eye’s body. For a second, Sky though that her eyes were playing tricks on her, yet the unfamiliar Pegasus remained. She didn’t know who it was or what it meant, but she couldn’t pull her eyes away from it. When the mist solidified and reshaped the world around her, the yellow Pegasus disappeared and Angel Eye took its place.

Once again, Angel Eye and Wind Sprint stood together exactly the way they were before. Sky looked up and saw the group of pegasi coming down from the clouds, just like before.

“Good…race…” Angel Eye panted.

“Back…’atcha…” Wind Sprint smiled. “You sure can run…for a pegasus.”

Before they could continue, Sky ran to them. “Angel Eye!”

Angel Eye and Wind Sprint were startled as if Sky suddenly appeared from nowhere. “Um…yes? Is something wrong?”

“Princess Gardenia has trapped you in a memory, and I need to get you out of here so that we can save the others!” She charged up Princess Twilight’s spell and stooped down to Angel Eye’s forehead.

While Angel Eye was overwhelmed with confusion, there was a flash of green in Wind Sprint’s eyes. She stepped between them and glared at Sky. “Get outta here now!” She headbutted Sky in her chest with a surprising amount of force. It was then that the world around them started to undulate and distort, fighting to retain its form.

“Stop it, Wind Sprint!” she cried. “I need to get her out of here!”

“She’s not going anywhere!” a familiar voice said from above.

Suddenly, Featherfrost and her fellow racers landed in front of Sky with a loud thud. Like Wind Sprint, they crouched low to the ground with narrowed eyes. Their venomous glares frightened her almost as much as her first encounter with the timberwolves. Six ponies, including Wind Sprint, unified in her elimination versus one unicorn who wasn’t acquainted with fighting or magical combat. The odds didn’t seem favorable, but Sky knew she had to get to Angel Eye. She charged at the ponies, and they charged in response. Knowing that she couldn’t take them on by herself, she readied a ball of light and let it explode when they were within a few feet from her. The ponies were dazed and tumbled to the ground. Sky maneuvered around them as they fell and sprinted to Angel Eye, who was lying on the ground holding her head as if she was having an intense migraine.

“Angel Eye!” Sky said, keeping a worried eye on the ponies behind her.

“No…no…” she whimpered. “My friend…Wind…Wind S-…”

Sky looked behind her again and saw that the ponies had regained their senses, and they were making their way towards her. She lowered her horn, activated the spell, and Angel Eye's eyes widened as if a great epiphany had come upon her. The projections of her memory cried out in agony as they disappeared along with very ground on which they stood. When Sky finished her spell, she opened her eyes and saw Angel Eye the way she remembered.

All traces of Angel Eye’s memory lifted, and Sky found herself back in Gardenia’s ethereal void, but Angel Eye was nowhere to be found. She looked around frantically for a moment, but the remaining four lights, shining like beacons in the mist, beckoned her. At this point, she couldn’t waste time worrying about Angel Eye’s well being. Right now, she had to rescue the others. As she ran toward the orange light, she realized that it was coming from Strawberry Shortcake and leapt into her memory, full of determination.

A world unlike any other she had ever seen came into view. There wasn’t a patch of earth to be found and everything from the buildings to the ground seemed to me made of clouds. When she saw a small crowd of strictly pegasi, she realized that she was standing in a cloud city - Cloudsdale perhaps.

Suddenly, the door to the weather factory swung open and a little Strawberry Shortcake came running out carrying several sacks on her back. Sky intended to charge at her and activate the spell, but curiosity got the better of her as she watched Strawberry Shortcake run through the cloud city and enter her home.

She followed Strawberry Shortcake into her house and found her setting her sacks on the kitchen counter. First, she scooped up some cloud and mixed it with a cup of liquid lighting and a dash of rainbow, creating a type of batter. She poured her concoction into a circular pan, and while it was baking she mixed cloud and snowflakes to make a fluffy icing. Once it had baked and cooled, she frosted it and dotted it with hail for a decorative touch.

Strawberry Shortcake’s face lit up with delight as she beheld her personal masterpiece. At that moment an elderly pegasus walked into the kitchen.

“Granny!” Strawberry Shortcake zipped over to her. “Isn’t it pretty?”

“You’ve made yourself one fine cake.e How about you go ahead and cut me a piece?”

Strawberry Shortcake’s excitement left her face. She lowered her head and looked at the cake timidly.

“What’s wrong, sugar cube?” she asked.

“I… don’t eat my cakes,” she mumbled.

“Really?! Oh, come now, Berry. Then what’s the point of makin’ a cake?”

She slid her hoof on the ground nervously. When she couldn’t think of an adequate response, she confessed, “What if it tastes bad?”

“Then you’ll make sure it tastes better the next time,” she replied. “Now come on, gimme a piece. I’m sure it’s delicious!”

Strawberry Shortcake stalled as long as she could by scuffling around the kitchen and cutting the cake with absurd precision. With trembling hooves, she served a slice to her grandma and held her breath as she took a bite.

Though a filly wouldn’t notice her grandma’s reaction, Sky saw a brief flash of disgust in her face.

“So…how is it?”

Granny Cake swallowed and then said, “Well, why don’t you try some for yourself?”

She frantically cut a sliver of cake and wolfed it down. With one chew, she ran to the sink and spit it out. “I knew it! It’s terrible!”She wiped her mouth with the kitchen towel, and said, “I’m never baking again!”

“Berry!” She stood up. “You made a wonderful cake out of what you could get your hooves on. Yes, this one doesn’t taste all that great, but I bet if you had the right ingredients you’d have the finest cake in Cloudsdale!”

“What do you mean?”

“Come with me. I’ll show you.”

Sky followed them to the edge of Cloudsdale. Granny Cake spread her wings and flew down to the ground. Strawberry Shortcake followed after her, but Sky remained on the edge of the city looking down at the ground far below. She felt her pulse quicken at the thought of falling from such a great height, and vivid flashbacks of her bridge fiasco was not helping her nerves at all. But she remembered that she was in a memory, and memories couldn’t be all that different from dreams. After all, being a unicorn, she shouldn’t be able to stand on clouds in the first place. She closed her eyes and reached out her hoof, ready to zip back onto the safety of the cloud if she started to fall. Her first step didn’t betray her so she took another step, and another, and another. She opened her eyes and found herself standing in the air.

‘So this is what it’s like to have wings,’ she thought gleefully as she willed herself into a freefall and pursued Strawberry Shortcake down to a patch of berry bushes.

“Now, you stay here and pick some of these berries for your cake.” Granny Cake said as she started walking away. “I’ll go into town and get you some other supplies. I’ll meet you here in twenty minutes, alright?”

Granny Cake was going to wait for a sign of confirmation, but after seeing her granddaughter’s reaction to this new world, she smiled and headed on her way. Strawberry Shortcake rolled in the grass, smelled the flora surrounding her, and rummaged through the berry bushes with more happiness than Sky had ever seen on a pony’s face. Sky wanted to watch more of her memory, because the sheer joy and excitement on Berry’s face made Sky feel a happiness that she couldn’t express. But Strawberry was alone now, making this Sky’s best chance.

“Strawberry Shortcake?” Sky said.

She looked up from a berry bush, startled by Sky’s sudden appearance. “Oh, hi there. How do you know my name?”

“Your, uh…granny told me about you. She said you’re picking some berries for a cake. May I help?”

Her face lit up again. “Yeah! Granny says I’m gonna make my first real cake! I think I’m gonna add some creamy strawberry stuff in the middle, and I think I’ll use some of these blue and red berries on my snowflake frosting! Oh! And I’ll use these squishy ones to make some jam!”

She adored hearing the way the little pony rambled on and on about the masterpiece of a cake that she would be making – the very cake that would soon define her as a pony. It almost felt criminal for Sky to pull her out of this memory, for it too was filling her own heart with joy. She set aside her feelings and turned away from the berry bushes, reminding herself that everything down to the twinkle in Berry’s eyes was just a shadow of what had been. She charged at Berry with magic sparks already trickling from her horn.

Berry reacted to Sky and dodged her just in time. She dropped her berries and ran away crying out for her grandma. The instant she turned away from the bushes and dropped her berries, the world started to distort and fade the way it did in Angel Eye’s memory. Sky chased after Berry, wishing the pony would stop shouting for help.

She levitated Berry off the ground with her magic, pulling her towards her, and all the while Berry helplessly hooved at the air in a futile attempt to flee.

“Berry, it’s ok! It’s me, Sky!”

“Granny! Granny! Help me!” she wept.

Without waiting another second, she lowered her horn to Berry’s head and activated her spell. Like Angel Eye before her, her eyes widened and her body returned to its present day proportions. Though Berry’s memories gave Sky a moment of happiness, it did not compare to what she felt when she saw the smile of release and gratitude on the face of Berry’s true self.

Moments before she disappeared with her memories, however, another ghostly apparition appeared. Instead of the yellow pegasus, an orange earth pony with blonde hair lingered on her body like a spirit until Sky found herself back in Gardenia’s void.

Setting aside her confusion regarding these spirit-like entities, Sky ran to the purple light wondering which pony would be next. Pair A. Dice? Woodwind? Or Wind Sprint? Despite the peril of the situation she was in, she couldn’t help feeling a slight thrill of sorts while wondering who she would be meeting. She reached the next pony, and this time she jumped in without even bothering to see whose memory it was.

Sky appeared in front Ponyville Elementary School. Several fillies were playing on the playground and some were leaving the building, leading Sky to presume that they had just been released. Out of all the ponies that she could see, none of them resembled any of her friends.

‘Of all times to be spontaneous…’ Sky scolded herself.

After observing every pony, she was certain that one of her friends wasn’t among the fillies lingering on the playground. So she turned her gaze toward a grassy area beside the school and saw a lone filly sitting underneath a tree on top of the hill. The second Sky saw her, she knew exactly whose memory she was in: Woodwind, a black and white pony who stood out amongst all ponies.

Sky approached Woodwind and saw that she was ruffling through sheets of music. Finding a piece she wanted to play, she picked up a blue sweet potato shaped flute and started playing a mellow melody. However, Sky didn’t need Woodwind’s music to tell her that she was sad, for there were tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

“Hey! ” somepony said just when Sky had considered consoling her.

Sky turned around and saw a young Pair A. Dice.

“Whoa!” Pair A. Dice exclaimed and sat down right in front of Woodwind. “What a neat instrument!”

She gawked at the flute with her nose just inches away from it, resulting in her face being inches away from Woodwind’s face. Woodwind backed up against the tree, obviously discomforted by the intrusion of her personal space, and awkwardly held out the instrument for the pony to take.

Pair took the instrument and inspected every inch of it. As she held it up and looked into the mouthpiece, she said, “You know, I should use this in a game sometime. Ooh! Maybe I’ll make it control time or something!”

Woodwind discreetly wiped away the tears from her eyes. She cleared her throat and took back her instrument with her dignity restored. “It’s just an ocarina.”

“What? Too much? Hmm, I guess that is a bit silly.” She pouted. “But it looks and sounds really cool! It’s so beautiful that it’s even making you cry!” She laughed.

Her head shot upright, and she cleared her throat again and frantically gathered her music together. “I wasn’t crying,” she snapped. “You’re right. My music is just that amazing.”

Pair’s ears drooped, and she realized Woodwind’s sadness was greater than she thought. She sat down next to her and said sincerely, “I’m sorry. Why were you crying?”

“What does it matter to you?” She shut her music binder and stood up to walk away.

“Because of rule number two,” she proclaimed.

“Rule number two?” She stopped and looked back at her.

“Uh huh! Of gaming,” she replied. “’Never leave your buddy hanging.’”

Curiosity got the better of Woodwind, so she hesitantly sat down next to her. When she got comfortable, she asked, “And what’s the first rule?”

She smiled. “Utterly destroy your opponent,” she stated plainly. “But I don’t think that would be the best advice for you right now, especially if some other pony made you cry.”

Woodwind laughed. “I guess you’re right.”

“Yeah.” She nodded. Suddenly, as if an extreme emotion exploded from within her, she said in a squeal of delight, “Hey! I have an idea! Play this game with me!” Pair reached into her saddle bag and pulled out a game. “It’s called Wings and Wagons!”

“I dunno…” she said with shifting eyes. “I should go.”

“Please!” she begged. “It’ll make you feel better. I promise! And I have most of it set up here too! Come on, don’t leave me hanging.”

Pair chose to disregard Woodwind’s reluctance to play, so she continued to set up the game as if she had already agreed. Woodwind set down her bag and laid on the grass, unable to find it in her heart to disappoint the unusually cheery pony.

As soon as they started playing, Sky understood why Pair had chosen this game for the disheartened Woodwind. They were pretending to be ponies they weren’t – roleplaying, she believed it was called. Pair was the solemn and wise unicorn sage while Woodwind was the quirky dragon tamer, and as the game went on Woodwind’s gloomy aura gradually dissipated. They came up with some fun scenarios, some silly and serious, and they laughed together all the while.

“So why were you crying?” Pair asked again when they finished their game.

Woodwind frowned again. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

She stuffed her game back into her bag and gave a sympathetic yet urging smile.

Woodwind sighed and paused a moment to gain her confidence. She took a deep breath, shut her eyes as if she was preparing to take a punch. After a long moment of silence, she held out her white hooves and ran them through her black hair. She quickly turned her head to the side and hid her face, which was starting to turn bright pink.

“They…laughed when acted like a mime?”

“I…I...” She gulped. “I don’t have color!” She turned away again.

“You don’t have color? Sure you do! You’re black and white!”

Woodwind looked confused by Pair’s reaction. “Well…y-yeah, but it's not like you or any other pony - every pony knows it!

Pair snickered, "Then those ponies need to retake first grade Art."

Her face started turning pink again, but it wasn't out of embarrassment this time. Frustrated that Pair wasn't grasping what she was feeling or the weight of the insults she had endured, she said, "How would you like it if somepony said that your hair looks like a fuzzy peach!”

Pair stared at Woodwind with a wide-eyed expression. Sky thought that Pair was going to cry, run away, get angry, or all the above; instead, she burst out laughing.

“My hair?” She laughed. “Looks like a fuzzy peach?!” She laughed so hard that she fell back and rolled on the grass clutching her belly.

“You’re…you’re laughing?” Woodwind’s mouth hung open.

“I never would have thought of that! A peach? Haha! On my head? Haha! That’s so funny!”

Woodwind ran her hoof through her mane again and looked to the side, recalling all the times she was teased by colorful ponies. “So…if you had my color, how would you laugh about it?” she asked out of a curiosity that she didn’t want to admit, even to herself.

“Me?” She stopped rolling and rested her chin on her hooves. She pursed her lips and thought about it. “Well, you were playing that ocarina, and it sounded really, really nice. So I would say I can use myself as a sheet of music.” She giggled.

She grinned, trying to contain a laugh. “I…I never would have thought of that.”

A sudden realization came over Woodwind. There was a gleam in her eyes that affected her appearance almost instantly. Her eyes were shifting less, she held her head slightly higher, and she looked happier. Though these changes in her mannerisms were small at this point in her life, Sky could see how they would grow and shape her into the pony she would become.

“I have to go.” She adjusted the straps on her saddle bag, attempting to conceal her discomfort to this strange feeling of self-confidence. “Thanks for the game, Pair A. Dice.”

“Call me Pair!” she called out. “Hey! We should play again sometime!”

As she finished speaking, the world of Woodwind’s memory started falling apart and resetting itself. Before the memory reset itself completely, Sky focused on Woodwind, and sure enough, another pony apparition appeared. She was a white unicorn with curled violet hair. Sky desperately wanted to know why these unknown ponies were appearing around her friends, but she could only watch her disappear with the rest of Woodwind’s memory.

Sky stood beside the tree where Woodwind was playing her ocarina once again. She looked toward the school and saw Pair walking toward them. In order to avoid an unnecessary conflict, she jumped on woodwind and pinned her hooves to the ground. Like the others, she struggled with all her might, but the instant Sky’s horn touched her head, reality rushed back into her eyes and she disappeared in peace.

‘Two more to go,’ she thought as she raced to the sky blue light.

This time, Sky found herself in a room filled with boxes and unassembled shelving units. Pair A. Dice pushed more boxes from a moving carriage outside the building and into the room. This projection of her was older than all the other ponies, but she was still slightly younger than the Pair that Sky knew.

Woodwind followed her into the room and gasped. “Oh my!” she exclaimed. “This place is far bigger than I imagined! So Pair, how does it feel to have your very own game shop?”

“I’m so excited!” she said while unboxing new board games. “I’ve never been so excited!”

“You have been talking about this for so long. It’s so great to see it finally become a reality.” She started choking up, but she cleared her throat and took a deep breath. “So when is the big day?” she asked.

Pair looked up from her box. “What day?”

“The opening, of course!”

“Oh?” Her face went blank as if it was a thought that never occurred to her. “Today.”

Woodwind’s eyes widened. “Come again?”

“It’s today!” she squealed and resumed digging through her boxes, completely oblivious to Woodwind’s shock.

“B-b-but Pair! You haven’t even built your shelves yet!”

“Oh don’t worry, there’s plenty of time!” She waved her off.

Woodwind zipped to the entrance and pointed at the clock tower. “It is past three o’clock, Pair!”

“Is it?” She pursed her lips. “I knew I shouldn't have trusted that mail pony. But it’s no big deal; we’ll have fun either way! And hey, we can make a game out of setting up the shop! I’m sure that will attract the truest gamers!”

Woodwind looked as if somepony had just told her that pranksters had filled her house to the brim with fertilizer. When she realized that Pair was incapable of seeing the impractically of her plans, she put on a look of determination and stomped her hoof.

“Stand back!” she declared, and her horn illuminated with a silver glow.

Sky watched Woodwind set up shelves, tables, posters, and other gaming items around the store. Pair watched in amazement for a few seconds, but Woodwind ordered her to set up the cash counter. With a wave of her horn, Woodwind opened a large box containing new board games and started shelving them in alphabetical order. Sky was so impressed by her organization and her eye for interior design she wished that she had her help in the museum.

Every game was organized. Every table, chair, and decoration was aesthetically placed. Woodwind cut off her magic and collapsed onto a circular rug that she placed in the doorway. Although she only used a simple levitation spell, Sky was amazed that this pony was able to work her magic for as long as she did, and with such precision and speed too.

“We’ll…have to…deal with inventory…later.” She panted.

“Thanks, Woodwind!” Pair said as she beheld her shop. “This is great!”

“Just remember to write down everything that you sell! Everything!” she emphasized in hopes of getting it through Pair’s bubbly head.

After some last minute preparations, Pair A. Dice walked to the entrance and looked back at Woodwind for a final sign of encouragement. Woodwind responded with an excited nod from behind the store counter; and with that, Pair opened the door to her new game shop.

Ponies started pouring in within minutes. Some bought games, and some just watched Pair as she taught them how to play different games with their friends and family. Everypony beamed with happiness, but none more so than Pair.

Sky was happy to see that Pair was happy, but this time she found herself fixating on Woodwind, who sitting in the back of the store, watching Pair with an exhausted yet satisfied smile. She didn’t know what it was, but something about Woodwind’s actions made Sky feel as if there was an aspect of the memories she had been overlooking. But she didn’t have time to dwell on it, for she was so close to escaping Gardenia’s magic.

Because the room was full of ponies, Sky waited until Pair’s memory reset. As she expected, another ghostly pink pony appeared around Pair. Once the mist settled, Pair started pushing boxes into her store again. Tackling Pair to the floor, she tried touching her horn to her forehead. It was harder for Sky to reach Pair’s forehead because she was bigger and stronger than the other memory ponies. Unfortunately, this gave Woodwind time to come and attack Sky from behind.

“GET AWAY FROM HER!” a green-eyed Woodwind bellowed. She jumped on Sky’s back and attempted to wrestle her off of Pair.

“Let me go!” Sky wriggled and bucked her hind legs as hard as she could. She felt her hooves hit something, and Woodwind’s body dropped to the floor.

Pair stopped struggling, and she started weeping on the floor when she saw Woodwind.

“No…no…” she cried.

Gathering all the willpower Sky possessed, she kept her eyes away from Woodwind and the damaged she inflicted. Before the guilt could overcome her, she lowered her horn to Pair’s head, and this time, she couldn’t have been happier that her friend’s memory was disappearing. As she was enveloped in the green mist, she closed her eyes and tried forgetting that she had just hurt somepony, for even though it was a mere projection of Woodwind, it still looked like her.

Sky returned to the ethereal void, and after what happened with Pair and Woodwind, she hoped it would be her last. She raced to the final red light, which she knew contained Wind Sprint. Though all of her friends would be freed soon, Sky didn’t know how she would escape Gardenia’s world. Nevertheless, she ignored the daunting thought and leapt into Wind Sprint’s memory.

Sky appeared on a race track up in the clouds. The course was surrounded by a ring of cloud bleachers, and a small crowd cheered for a line of fillies who were approaching the starting line. Wind Sprint was an earth pony, so there was no way she could be here unless she had assistance. For the first time since Sky started traveling through these memories, she couldn’t make sense of what was happening. This was supposed to be Wind Sprint’s memory, and yet there was Angel Eye crouching at the starting line. At the crack of the referee’s gun, Angel Eye and the other racers bolted past Sky.

Until Sky could make sense of things, she decided to sit back and enjoy the race. On the third lap, Angel Eye dived beneath the track and headed towards the ground. The other racers looked down at her in confusion while they continued racing; even the cheering and applause from the crowd faded as they watched her descend to the earth below. Sky, however, responded immediately and jumped off her cloud to pursue Angel Eye.

As Sky fell, she saw an orange pony running on a dirt track mirroring the Cloudsdale track above it. It was Wind Sprint! She was looking upward at the racing pegasi while she ran. Beads of sweat rolled down her face as she struggled to compete with the unmatchable speed of racing pegasi. When Angel Eye came into Wind Sprint’s view, she avoided looking at her and continued running.

As Angel Eye hovered above her, she attempted to lift Wind Sprint off the ground.

Shaking her off violently, she protested, “NO! This is my race!” pushing herself harder in an attempt to outrun Angel Eye.

“Come on, come race with us.” Angel Eye said, somehow able to have a gentle sounding voice even though she was yelling over the rushing wind.

“NO!”

Angel Eye was torn over the lone pony and the race she was supposed to be participating in. She furrowed her eyebrows, and then she lowered herself to the ground like a graceful chariot. She tucked her wings as she landed, broke into a run, and raced alongside Wind Sprint.

“Then I’ll race with you!” she declared and inched ahead of her.

Wind Sprint was baffled by Angel Eye’s actions. Although she appeared to be a little insulted initially, she smiled and pushed herself to regain the few inches that were taken from her. They both raced hard, and Angel Eye kept herself grounded the entire time.

It was then that Sky recognized this memory. She looked up to clouds as if it was a reflex, realizing that the bullies in Angel Eye’s memory were the ponies that she was racing with only moments ago. When the race concluded up in the sky, Angel Eye and Wind Sprint finished their final lap with everything they had.

“Good…race…” Angel Eye panted as the dust settled around her.

“Back…’atcha…” Wind Sprint smiled. “You sure can run…for a pegasus.”

Like before, they complemented each other and talked about racing. But this time Sky noticed something about Wind Sprint’s memory: the expressions on the two pony’s faces were notably different than the ones in Angel Eye’s memory. Rather than the confident, spunky demeanor that Angel Eye remembered about her, Wind Sprint’s face was beaming with appreciation. And Angel Eye, rather than having a timid persona, exuded the presence of that of an angelic, kindhearted pony.

Memories are unchangeable events from the past – Sky was certain of that much. But after dwelling on all the memories she had seen, she realized that she overlooked something: perspective. In a way, each memory was not created by the actual pony, but rather the pony that they were with at the time. Each pony, whether they realized it or not, gave the other pony her happiest memory.

From that point on, the rest of the memory played out exactly the way it did in Angel Eye’s memory. Once the two ponies hoof-bumped, confirming their new friendship with one another, the memory would start resetting itself. But before that could happen, Sky ran to Wind Sprint, who was shrouded in the image of a sky blue pegasus with a rainbow colored mane. With her horn already shining with magic, she touched her on the forehead and Wind Sprint’s memory vanished into thin air, bringing Sky back into Gardenia’s void.

The moment she had been dreading arrived, and she had no idea what to do about it. All five ponies were free from their memories, but how she would get herself out eluded her. Was she supposed to free every single pony in Ponyville? The very idea made her feel like curling up into a ball and crying.

Just when she was about to lose hope, the five lights from each pony blazed in front of her, causing her to shield her eyes. Once her eyes adjusted, she saw each light form into the image of a pony. She had seen these ponies in each memory, but this time their forms were more defined. They each wore a necklace with a symbol that matched their Cutie Marks: a red apple, a purple diamond, a red lightning bolt, a blue balloon, and a pink butterfly. Although she didn’t recognize any of them, their presence felt familiar, and seeing them warmed her heart.

Like masters filled with pride for their apprentice, they smiled and gave a low bow. Sky stepped back, but before she could say anything, they parted and let another pony pass by them. The sixth pony, whom she had not seen until now, was a purple unicorn who wore a crown with a six pointed star. Standing in front of Sky, she looked upon her with a proud smile like the other five ponies. She closed her eyes, lifted the crown from her head with magic, and placed it upon Sky’s head.

When the crown touched Sky’s brow, a ray of green magic shot out of the mist, blasted through the purple unicorn, and struck Sky on the chest. Sky fell to the ground and the purple unicorn disappeared. Princess Gardenia entered her realm with five stone spheres circling her.

“The time has finally come,” she said.

A powerful magnetic force erupted from horn and the ghostly apparitions of the five spirit ponies started to dissolve into a magical vapor. As they disappeared, Angel Eye, Strawberry Shortcake, Woodwind, Pair A. Dice, and Wind Sprint emerged from within them and stood in their place. Despite Princess Gardenia’s presence and the threat of her magic, she was happy to see them, and within her a spark of joy ignited, a joy that surpassed the comfort and happiness she felt around the spirit ponies.

Princess Gardenia drew the gaseous remains of the pony spirits toward her and guided them into their respective spheres. The stones flashed and spirits’ Cutie Marks appeared on them. All the while, Princess Gardenia stared down at Sky stoically.

“The Elements of Harmony is ours to control! You will never know its power!” Princess Gardenia proclaimed. “In the world you know, you are now simple ponies like the rest of our subjects – the way you were meant to be.”

“Stop this, Gardenia!” Sky bellowed.

The other five ponies shouted up at Princess Gardenia in an agreement.

She sighed. “It is only natural for commoners to resist the powers that be; however, we are not at fault for the consequences you will endure. Did we not give your friends the opportunity to live in eternal bliss? It was you, and only you, Celestial Sky, who deliberately robbed them that. Now enjoy your eternity living with that guilt.”

“The world you’re creating is a pony tale, Gardenia! A fantasy!” Sky refuted.

“Nevertheless, the Elements of Harmony belong to us, and its magic will never bind these lands again! And as for you, our disobedient foals, you will be scattered across this realm, doomed wander for the rest of your days in absolute solitude.”

Sky looked down hopelessly, but she listened to the other ponies protesting Princess Gardenia. They stood by her, challenging the princess without reserve.

“But I won’t be alone,” Sky said as tears formed in her eyes. “And you have no power over us, Gardenia. You think you can suppress the Elements of Harmony and lock them away in few pieces of stone? Well, you’re wrong! Because the Elements of Harmony exist within all of us!”

A sudden surge of magic pulsated from within Sky, causing all six of them to rise a few inches off the ground. Sky wasn’t sure what was going on, and for the first time in her life, she was okay with that. The magic felt so natural; it was as if she had known this magic her entire life. So she relinquished herself to its power and allowed it to flow through her.

She declared:

“Wind Sprint, who stood by Angel Eye’s side in the face of adversity, represents the spirit of Loyalty!

“Strawberry Shortcake, who grew in her talent upon the guiding wisdom of her family, represents the element of Honesty!

“Pair A. Dice, who befriended Woodwind in a time of sorrow and comforted her through a simple game, represents the spirit of Laughter!

“Woodwind, who gave of herself to see Pair’s dream become a reality, represents the spirit of Generosity!

“And Angel Eye, who descended from on high to race with Wind Sprint, represents the element of Kindness!”

As Sky declared the Elements of Harmony, they rose higher and higher until they were level with Princess Gardenia, who was on the verge of trembling. Her stoic expression faltered as the stone spheres circling around her started crumbling into dust.

“No!” Princess Gardenia shrieked. “The Elements!

“Was never something you could contain, Gardenia!” she said as necklaces started forming out of the light that radiated from within each pony. “It is a spark, a spark that exists in everypony!” She turned around and faced her friends. “I didn’t realize it when I first met all of you, but you shared the spark that you felt in your memories with me, even though I didn’t want it. And by seeing your memories, I have realized that all of you, from the moment I met you, you treated me like I was your friend.”

She turned back towards Princess Gardenia. “So thank you, princess. Thank you for showing me that when these elements combine they create Magic!”

Princess Gardenia looked at Sky and then down at the piles of dust that were her Elements of Harmony. She clenched her teeth in an attempt to stifle her rage. But she couldn’t contain her fury any longer. She reared and screamed at the top of her lungs, and the dark shadows surrounding her body exploded and shrouded the astral plane, transforming her dream world into a hellish maelstrom. The shadows engulfed the ponies of Ponyville and seeped into their amoebic prisons, bathing them in dark energy. When the ponies were completely swallowed up in darkness, they awoke and tore through the membrane and emerged as dark ponies with glowing yellow eyes.

Sky couldn’t comprehend how magic was capable of making a pony look so detestable. Along with their yellow eyes, their hair was replaced with a grotesque blend of moss and rotten vines, their bodies were black like soil, and menacing thorns stuck out of their joints to create a form of battle armor. Seeing one of them emerge from a cocoon was frightening enough; seeing hundreds of them look up at her with malicious snarls and venom-soaked teeth made her feel like she was in a nightmare that she couldn’t escape.

Upon seeing Gardenia’s horn shine like a beacon, the ground beneath her army gave way, suspending them in space. They charged up towards Sky and her friends growling and snarling viciously.

As far as Sky knew, no magic could fend off that many ponies, especially when aided with dark magic. To make things worse, Princess Gardenia screamed again and a wave of thorny vines erupted from her horse collar and launched toward Sky and her friends. And yet, among all the chaos that surrounded them, the six ponies drew close to one another in the light of their friendship. Tears rolled down Sky’s face when she felt their embrace. Though she saw thorns, claws, and teeth closing in from all directions, she closed her eyes knowing that no matter what fate fell upon her things would be alright, because she had friends.

Moments before the thorny vines and dark ponies reached them, Sky felt an awesome power surge from within her. Her eyes opened on their own accord, shining with the light of a miraculous star. Another burst of magic surged through Sky, and its power exploded from the six ponies in the form of a rainbow ring. Its light tore through the darkness and repelled Gardenia’s vines and the army she commanded. Not only did the magic disperse the ominous gale, it shed the darkness that enslaved the ponies of Ponyville.

When the rainbow struck Princess Gardenia, her shadows disappeared, and she transformed into an alicorn more suited for a noble ruler of Equestria. Her mane remained the same, but her coat changed from an ominous dark green to a gentle light green, and her horse collar and slippers fashioned themselves into elegant apparel that resembled leaves.

Every other pony, which returned to their normal form, fell through space. Sky and her friends remained floating in the air, and they watched their fellow ponies fade away into light, sparkling vapor.

“What’s happening to them?” Angel Eye asked.

“They’re going home.” Sky replied.

“Hey!” Pair said, pointing to the necklace around Woodwind’s neck. “It looks just like your Cutie Mark!”

They looked at each other’s necklaces and then down at their own, trying to make sense of the magical jewelry hanging around their necks. While they continued comparing their necklaces to their Cutie Marks, a gentle ray of light tore through the astral plane. The light materialized and Princess Twilight appeared with her head held high.

“Princess!” Sky exclaimed, and then she ran to hug her. “You’re alright!”

“Of course I am, thanks to you.”

“No, princess,” Sky looked back at her friends and smiled. “Thanks to them.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, I couldn’t have done it without them.”

Princess Twilight nodded proudly. “Now you see, my faithful student, there was a reason I told you to make friends when I sent you to Ponyville. It was only a matter of time until Princess Gardenia broke free to unleash her magic upon these lands. When I chose you to be my protégé, I knew that you had the power within you to harness the Elements of Harmony. However, in order for that to happen, you had to let friendship into your heart.”

“I understand.” She bowed her head again, but this time out of repentance for her stubbornness.

Princess Twilight walked past Sky and approached a single nebula that shined alone in the astral void. With a solemn expression, she looked upon the memories that shone on the walls of Princess Gardenia’s prison.

“For without true friendship,” she continued with an ache in her voice, “all the power in the world amounts to nothing.”

Sky joined the princess and watched a young Princess Gardenia sitting within a vast forest, teeming with all forms of trees, flowers, and shrubbery. Although it was clear that she was happy tending to her plants, she was still alone. Now that Sky knew what friendship could be, she wanted to reach through the nebulous membrane and be a friend to the lone princess.

“Do not mourn for her,” Princess Twilight said. “The great princess of the Everfree forest has fallen under the very magic she used to seize Ponyville. Though I believe this is a state that no pony should live in, at least she is happy.”

“Can’t we set her free?” Sky suggested.

“I wish I could, but only you, the new wielder of the Elements of Harmony, have the power to do it. I'm sure she will be released someday, but for now let us allow the Elements of Harmony to do its work in her. Who know? Maybe a day will come when she will find a desire for friendship in her loneliness.”

Princess Twilight spread her wings and rose above them. “Come, it is time to leave this place.”

“But princess, what happens to me now? What about Ponyville? What about the museum? The opening was a failure!”

“Do not worry. You have fulfilled your duty with exceptional fortitude. The life you know is back in Canterlot, and I can imagine that you miss it terribly. If returning to your studies in Canterlot is what you desire, then I can arrange for another to take your place. But if you wish to remain in Ponyville, then I task you with studying friendship, the magic you have come to discover. In addition to your duties as Ponyville Museum’s curator, you will report your findings to me.”

She flapped her wings and the light surrounding her intensified. As she melded into the light, she said, “The choice I leave to you.”

The six ponies were bathed in the magnificent light from Princess Twilight. Sky basked in its warmth as she contemplated what she had been offered: a choice. She knew her Princess ruled with a love for her subjects, for all of her commands were laced with gentleness. But never before had she been presented with a choice. The decision that would most please her mentor, she wasn’t sure. Though the thought of displeasing her gnawed at Sky. She knew what she wanted, and as her body disappeared from the ethereal void, she was confident that Princess Twilight would approve.

Sky woke up in the Elemental Palace, and though vines were still wrapped around her, she found that they were brittle, snapping like twigs at the slightest pressure. She removed the vines, looked around, and saw her friends restored to their original forms. The morning sunlight filled the room, causing their restored color to shine brilliantly.

“Ugh, it’s going to take forever to get all this filth out of my mane!” Woodwind whined.

“Just be thankful you can wash it now," Berry replied. "Ah, I can see it now: you eating grass for the rest of your life!"

"Ugh!" she squirmed. "Do not even say such things!"

"And it’s all thanks to you, Sky.” Angel said.

“No.” She turned to her. “Like I told the princess: thanks to all of us. Now I understand what she had been teaching me, along with all of her subjects. I’m sure there won’t always be a magic rainbow to fix the problems we face, but there will always be a magic within us when we are united by the Elements of Harmony.”

“So what will happen to them now?” Wind Sprint said as she fiddled with her necklace.

“I’m sure a time will come when we will be required of the Elements of Harmony, but for now I will watch over them in the Ponyville Museum. No pony would ever suspect that these necklaces are far more than old antiques.”

“So you’re staying in Ponyville?!” Pair said as her smile widened to almost frightening proportions.

“How could I leave you after all of this?”

The five ponies cheered and embraced Sky. They walked out of the Elemental Sanctuary, and all the while Pair babbled on and on about all the fun things they could do together in Ponyville. Sky walked away from the ruins, but she looked back one last time to reflect. It was humbling to think that a few hours ago she never dreamed something like this would happen. After all, how many ponies in Equestria could say they experienced anything remotely comparable to what she experienced in a single night?

“Oh, Sky! A little help, please!” Woodwind called. She stood on the edge of the cliff using her magic to stabilize the broken bridge. While she held the rope, Angel Eye and Berry picked up the dangling end of the bridge and secured it on the other side of the gorge.

“I’m coming!” Sky said, and she ran to her friends and helped them in whatever way she could.

~~~~~~~~~~

Twilight stood in the empty chamber of the Elemental Palace taking in everything that her senses could perceive in an attempt to relive a distance memory. The scent of the room, the sound of her hooves as they touched the stone floor, the sight of time’s unrelenting effects on the building. She could not believe how much time had passed since she ran through these very halls.

She conjured parchment and a quill. Normally, writing was a task she left for her scribes, but these letters were very special to her. She lowered her quill and wrote,

Dear Princess Celestia,

It’s hard to believe that even after hundreds of years I am still learning the magic of friendship. Today I experienced the joy of watching my dear student grow with the help of her new friends. At first I was worried her admirable determination would prevent her from opening her heart to potential friendships, so I took matters into my own hooves. But now I understand that friendship will have its way with all of us when the time is right. Sometimes, though personal experience may tell you otherwise, it is best to step back and let every pony discover The Spark on their own. And even after the passing of time, though all that we know changes or comes to an end, the magic of friendship will continue to live on.

Your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle

Twilight rolled up the letter and walked over to the very window where her mentor appeared to her after her confrontation with Nightmare Moon all those years ago. She looked down at the foot of the palace and saw Sky and her friends crossing an old bridge they fixed together. She looked toward the rising sun, confident in her prized pupil and what was in store for her. With a breath of magic, Twilight sent off her letter and watched as its magical essence wisped through the air and trailed toward the sun.

Twilight closed her eyes, feeling the sun’s warmth on her smiling face. As if speaking to a long-time friend, she said, “Yes, everything is going to be just fine.”

Ch3: Night at the Museum

Celestial Sky trotted through the museum, inspecting the halls for cleanliness and order. Because most of the artifacts hadn’t been touched since the first grand opening, it was quick and easy work, practically an unnecessary chore. Or it would have been, if this wasn’t her third inspection that day. Even though everything looked great the first time, she thought multiple inspections would be best – out of principle, if for no other reason.

As she turned into the garment hall, a thought came into her mind for the fifth time that day. Perhaps she wasn’t doing extra work out of principle, but rather to suppress her fear that last week’s events or something equally disastrous would return to torment her. Although Princess Gardenia’s attack on Ponyville ultimately resulted in something good, namely gaining five new friends, she would rather not endure another failed grand opening. And she wouldn’t, so long as another calamity didn’t befall Ponyville and she did her job to the best of her ability. With that in mind, she left the garment hall, leaving behind her troubled thoughts.

After completing her third and final inspection, Sky entered the lobby, where Strawberry Shortcake was filling the complementary snack table with baked goods.

“How is the food coming, Berry?” Sky asked.

“It’s coming along just fine!” she replied, giving Sky a reassuring smile while arranging her freshly prepared cakes on silver platters. “You’ve got nothing to worry about here; you can go ahead and check me off that fancy list of yours.”

Sky jokingly shook her head, got out her list, and wrote a big check mark next to a sketch of Berry’s face. As she put her list away, she scanned the desserts to make sure they were presentable, but her eyes stopped when she saw a peculiar dessert. Aside from the white paper cups that contained them, this dessert looked like bits of cloud that had been scooped from the sky with an ice cream scooper. Sky had never seen such a treat, but she trusted that Berry was serving her best.

Noticing that Sky was eying the food, Berry said, “You wanna try one?”

“No, I’m ok.” She held up her hoof. “I’ve never been a fan of sweets.”

“Oh, Sky, that’s the silliest thing I’ve ever heard! Whoever heard of a pony who doesn’t like sweets? And besides, how will you know whether it tastes good or not? C’mon, try one, Miss Curator!”

Sky couldn’t help grinning as she recalled that familiar question from Berry’s childhood. However, the museum was opening soon and now was not the time to be unprofessional. She stifled her smile, shook her head, and firmly said, “No, thank you, Berry. Put it back. We are opening in thirty minutes, and we can’t afford to mess up your arrangement.” Before Berry could insist, Sky turned away and left Berry with her work.

Just when Sky left the food table, Woodwind entered the museum with five of her music students following close behind her. Two students carried their own violin, one carried a viola, another carried a cello, and the last student pushed a cart of music stands.

“Oh good, Woodwind! You’re here!” Sky exclaimed.

“I said that I would come, did I not?” she replied playfully.

“True. I’m just glad you’re here now because our time is short.”

She led Woodwind to the window on the left side of the lobby. A few days ago, upon hearing Woodwind’s offer to provide music for the grand opening, Sky tried explaining that the museum did not have a designated area for musical ensembles. But Woodwind insisted that chamber music would add elegance to the grand opening, and the only decent spot for an ensemble was by one of the lobby windows.

“Will this spot work?” Sky asked. “It isn’t exactly a stage or a concert hall or anything, but it will have to do.”

“This is perfect, Sky. Chamber music does not need to be showy. It is merely a classy means of entertaining, nothing more.”

“Ok then,” she said and then pointed to a cart of chairs that she had moved from the basement, “your chairs are right over there. Set them up however you see fit. And if you need more, there should be extras in the basement. I don’t mean to rush you, but we have to hurry. We open in less than thirty minutes so-”

Before Sky could finish, Woodwind’s students rushed to the chairs and unloaded them from the cart. While half of the students arranged the chairs in a semi-circle, the other half unloaded music stands from their cart and placed one at every seat. Sky was taken aback by their promptness, but Woodwind looked upon her students with a proud smile.

With a smug grin, she looked at Sky and said, “We have plenty of time.”

“Oh…great!” she replied. “You seem to have everything under control here, but before I go, is there anything else that you need?”

She thought for a moment and then shook her head. “No. Once everything is set up, we just have to warm up and tune, and then we will be ready to go! Now go on with your business - nothing to worry about here.”

“Excellent!” Sky breathed a sigh of relief and left Woodwind with her students.

While making her way toward Pair A. Dice and her friends, a knock came from the front door. Sky rushed to the door intending to shoo away any early arrivals. But she opened the door and found Wind Sprint standing outside wearing her empty mail satchel.

“Wind Sprint!” She let her in and shut the door behind her. “I’m so glad you made it!”

“Oh yeah! I wouldn’t miss this! I ran extra hard today to make sure that I would finish my route early, and here I am!” She rubbed her chin and then said to herself, “Hmm, I wonder if I came close to my record time.”

“Well, now that you’re here, you can clean yourself up and get ready to work.” Sky beamed.

Wind Sprint stepped back, looking at Sky as if she had said something absurd. “Work? Nah!” She walked to a lobby bench, put her hooves behind her head, and fell onto the cushions with a plop. She closed her eyes and smiled, saying, “I just ran thirty miles, so I think I’m gonna sit back and enjoy the show.”

“Excuse me?”

“You’re excused.” She waved her off. Peeking through one eye, she looked at the food table and called, “Hey, Berry! Toss me a pegasi puff!”

Sky stepped between them and said, “Oh no, no, no. I let you in early. That privilege is reserved for employees. Right, Berry?”

“Yes, ma’am!” Berry replied while pouring juice into a punch bowl.

“Contributing to Sky’s first proper grand opening won’t kill you, Wind Sprint,” Woodwind added from across the room.

Wind Sprint’s eyes popped open and she gave Berry and Woodwind an irritated look. But she simply smiled again and said, “But I am contributing!” She raised her hoof as if she was cheering. “I’m providing moral support. Whoot. Whoot. You’ve got this, Sky!” She held out her hoof, waiting for Sky to bump it.

Instead, Sky grabbed her hoof and pulled her up. “As much as I value your moral support, Wind Sprint, perhaps you would like to channel it into the fillies’ room.”

“The what?” she said, reluctantly getting up from the couch.

“I’ll show you. It’s a bright and colorful section of the museum designed to provide a fun yet educational experience for fillies and those who are young at heart.”

For a moment, Wind Sprint was cintrigued by this “bright and colorful” area, and when she got there she was not disappointed. The room was filled with vibrant, filly-friendly displays, featuring simplified highlights from elementary Equestrian history and artifacts that would appeal to fillies. But most intriguing of all was a huge, rectangular sandbox that occupied a majority of the floor. Other than the sandbox’s abnormally large size, it was different from regular playground sandboxes because multiple archeology brushes were spaced evenly along the sandbox walls.

“What is this?” Wind Sprint said, bumping her hoof on the side of the sandbox.

“This is a fun, interactive activity that shows fillies what it is like to be an archeologist.”

“How…exactly?”

“You see,” she continued and started acting out what the fillies would be doing, “all the fillies have to do is sit right here outside the sandbox, pick up the brush, and gently brush away the sand and discover their very own fossil! Isn’t it great?”

Wind Sprint stared at Sky blankly.

“It seems a little simplistic, I know. But trust me, they’ll love it! And who knows? Maybe this experience will cause somepony get his or her Cutie Mark tonight!”

“Yeah, the lame ones,” Wind Sprint said under her breath.

“Huh?”

“Nothing,” she snapped.

“Alright then,” she stood and pointed down at the sandbox, “that is what they will be doing, and all you will have to do is monitor the room. Just make sure that the fillies don’t ruin the displays or start throwing sand at each other. Oh, and you’ll have to re-spread the sand once all the fossils have been uncovered. Easy, right?” She started walking away from Wind Sprint and asked, “Now, why don’t you go get yourself cleaned up. We open in twenty minutes. Do you have any questions for me before I leave you to it?”

“No…but, Sky…I don’t want to foalsit a herd of fillies!”

“It’ll be fine, and you’ll have fun.” Before leaving, she raised her hoof encouragingly and said, “You have my moral support!”

Now that the filly room was covered, Sky returned to the lobby and checked on Woodwind and Berry, who had just finished their final preparations. Everything was ready, and Angel Eye stood by the entrance, waiting for Sky’s permission to open the doors. But before the night could begin, Sky needed to make sure that Pair and her friends were ready to begin.

Since Woodwind and Berry had offered to contribute to the grand opening, Pair practically demanded to contribute as well. Pair had asked to be a tour guide, and though Sky didn’t plan on having tour guides, a mishap that she had with Pair caused her to reconsider:

The morning that Sky and her friends returned from the Everfree Forest, Pair threw a mild fit because she didn’t have enough time to see everything in the museum the night before. Feeling sorry for Pair, Sky decided to let her into the museum; besides, it wasn’t Pair’s fault that Princess Gardenia’s schemes cut the grand opening tragically short. But Pair, in her haste, zipped through the museum at an unbelievable speed, leaving behind a trail of blue light, and sent the information cards flying off of their pedestals.

Sky stood frozen in shock while Woodwind, Berry, and Angel Eye scurried to fix Pair’s mess. The cards were so scattered that they couldn’t figure out where each label was supposed to go. And just when Sky was about to intercede, Pair zipped back into the hall and realized that she had made a mess. After giving a quick apology, she scooped up the scattered cards and started placing them back on their respective pedestals quickly and accurately, mumbling history trivia to herself the entire time.

After witnessing that, Sky had no doubt that Pair could be a competent tour guide: it was her explosive enthusiasm that concerned Sky. But she chose to trust that Pair would rise to the occasion. After all, she couldn’t imagine anypony willingly volunteering to be a tour guide unless they were absolutely sure that they could do the job well. But for good measure, Sky prepared a cheat-sheet last night, should Pair’s memory fail during a tour.

Sky heard Pair talking from around the corner. After taking a deep, reassuring breath, she entered the hall and found Pair standing before a line of five ponies. Pair wore a fierce expression as she paced in front of her friends, who stood with their chests out and their eyes locked in a firm, militaristic gaze.

“Uh…Pair?” Sky said.

Pair ignored Sky and continued pacing with a dramatic look of determination. When she finally stopped, she faced her friends and proclaimed, “Ponies of Equestria! Of Ponyville! My fellow gamers! I see in your eyes the same fear that would take the heart of me!”

“Pair, what are you-”

“SHH!!!”

Sky backed off, and once Pair was sure that Sky would allow her to finish her speech, she continued, “The day may come when the skills of gamers fail! When we forsake our fun and break all bonds of friendship! But it is not this day! An hour of timberwolves and forsaken game shops, when the age of ponies comes crashing down. But it is not this day! This day we teach! By all the trinkets that you hold dear on your nightstand, I bid you teach, gamers of Ponyville!”

The five ponies cheered and dispersed to their designated area.

Now that Pair had finished, Sky said, “Pair, you know that you’re not going off to war, right? You’re just giving tours of the museum.”

“Oh, Sky,” she said, shaking her head and placing her hoof on Sky’s shoulder. “No matter the terrain, no matter the facility, no matter the game board – everywhere is a battleground!”

“Fine, if that’s the way you want to look at it, go for it.” Sky laughed under her breath and rolled her eyes. As she walked away she said, “But I expect you to take this job seriously, and I better not catch you using the ancient armor as costumes!”

“Yes, ma’am!” She saluted even though Sky’s back was turned to her.

Sky returned to the entrance and stood next to Angel Eye. She took a moment to compose herself, and then she gave Angel Eye a nod, signaling for her to open the door.

The doors opened and Sky met a ripple of applause from the ponies of Ponyville. Dozens of ponies surrounded the red carpet that had been laid out for the princess. Though Sky knew that most of these ponies only showed up to see the princess, she stood before her audience as the hostess she was expected to be.

“Fillies and gentlecolts, thank you for coming to the grand opening of the Ponyville Historical Museum. Though Ponyville is considered a small town in Equestria, it is not without its share of significance in our great country’s history. I would like to personally thank you, the good citizens of Ponyville, for your warm hospitality and generous contributions. Without it, this project would not have been possible. Now without further adieu, let us welcome the Ruler Equestria, the Sustainer of Harmony: Princess Twilight Sparkle!”

Suddenly, Princess Twilight’s chariot descended from the sky and landed gracefully in front of the museum, and the crowd erupted into applause. Ponies craned their necks to get a look at the princess, cheering and applauding as she stepped onto the red carpet. She gracefully waved at the crowd and then proceeded to walk toward the museum; however, the procession did not end with her. A line of chariots carrying Canterlot nobles followed and they too proceeded down the red carpet with their noses in the air. The Ponyville folks stood by and gawked at their gaudy attire, embellished with all manner of jewels and fashionable accessories.

Sky stepped aside, bowed before her princess and mentor, and let her enter first. She watched her mentor gaze upon the museum, and though Sky wasn’t certain, she thought that her mentor’s smile seemed to be one of reminiscence.

But Sky didn’t have time to ask or ponder on such things; right now she had to welcome the Canterlot nobles. Standing by her mentor’s side, she shook hooves and exchanged brief pleasantries, watching intently and judging their reactions as they entered the museum. From what Sky could tell, they looked mildly impressed. She bit her lip and started wondering if she had done something wrong – maybe the room wasn’t pristine enough; maybe she overlooked something…

“Well done, Celestial Sky.” Princess Twilight said, bringing Sky out of her scare.

Sky looked up and saw her mentor smiling down at her, and she smiled back, feeling pleased that all her hard work had pleased her mentor. And as long as she had her mentor’s praise, she knew that this was going to be her best night ever, no matter what was in store for her.

~~~~~~~~~~

Berry carefully arranged another batch of fresh pegasi puffs on a silver platter. She meticulously set each puff half an inch apart from each other, ensuring that the platter could be worthy of a spot behind the windows of one of those high-rolling bakeries up in Canterlot – just as Sky would want. Presentation was always important to Berry, but five minutes of working with Sky was enough to tell her that she needed to be especially precise. Because before today, Berry didn’t think it was possible for anypony to stare at a pedestal with such intensity. Regardless of Sky’s extreme way of handling business, Berry knew that this job was worthy of her absolute best hoof. After all, it’s not every day a Cake gets to provide food for nobility.

Only one more row of pegasi puffs to go and another platter would be ready. When she was halfway done with the row, Sky entered the room and looked down at the platter.

“Hey there, Sky! What’s going on?” Berry asked.

She looked back at the door from which she came and then looked down at the platter of pegasi puffs again. She frowned and said, “I noticed that there is an empty platter on the food table. Do you have more coming?”

“Right here! Fresh pegasi puffs coming right up! Don’t you worry, they’ll be out there in a jiffy.”

“Do you need help? I can send somepony back here.”

“No, no. I’ve got everything covered. It’s just that these pegasi puffs are going fast! I think they’re a hit!” She smiled widely and set down the last puff.

“Ok, if you’re sure…” she said, looking somewhat relieved. “Just make sure that you always have food on the table. No empty trays from now on, ok? I don’t want the guests thinking that we can’t keep up with our services. Nobles aren’t used to shortage of any kind, do you understand?”

“I hear you,” she said as she loaded the platter onto a cart. “Don’t sweat it, I’ve got this!”

“Thanks, Berry.” Sky said, and she left the room.

While Berry pushed the cart out to the food table, she thought about Sky’s warning. It had never occurred to her that nobles have probably never seen an empty plate in their lives. With that in mind, she appreciated Sky’s warning. And if picking up the pace was what it would take to please the fancy folk, then that’s what she would do. She quickly swapped the empty platter with the loaded one, but before she could dart back into her makeshift kitchen, a stallion called out,

“Excuse me, ma’am!”

Berry gulped upon recognizing the gentlecolt’s high rolling accent. And during the few seconds that she stood mildly paralyzed with fear, she feared that Sky’s warning hadn’t come soon enough. She slowly turned around and faced a pony wearing a blue suit with the chain of a golden pocket-watch hanging from his vest.

“Uh…yes?” she said timidly.

“Tell me, what is this delectable confection?” He held up a half-consumed pegasi puff before tossing the rest of it in his mouth. Still chewing, he said, “That was my fourth one! Forgive me for eating so many, but these are simply divine!”

“Oh, thank you, sir! I call them pegasi puffs – light as a feather, fluffy as a cloud. And have as many as you like! We have plenty!”

“Well, if you insist!” he said, brushing powdered sugar from his lips. He reached for another and devoured it in a manner that was almost rude for a noble. “You are doing a marvelous job! Keep up the good work!”

Berry couldn’t hold back the smile that was forcing its way onto her face. She turned away from the gentlecolt awkwardly, almost as if she was a nervous filly. After composing herself, she said again, “Thank you very much, sir.”

Feeling encouraged by the gentlecolt’s compliment, a compliment that any baker would love to hear, Berry returned to the kitchen and started preparing another batch of pegasi puffs with renewed vigor. She prepped and baked the treats faster than ever, and she even found time to prepare more of the less popular treats, completely dispelling her fear that she would not be able to fulfill Sky’s request.

As the night carried on, Berry relaxed and mingled with familiar townsfolk as well as Canterlot nobles. Not only did she socialize with ponies, she continued to receive praise for her food, especially her pegasi puffs. They praised her work, asked for recipes, and made conversation around her food. Berry was careful to not let the shower of compliments get to her head, but she couldn’t deny that she enjoyed being praised for doing what she loved most. Although it became difficult to balance the kitchen and interacting with guests, seeing everypony reach for her food with unrestrained excitement made it all worthwhile.

~~~~~~~~~~

Woodwind led her band through “Octavia’s Canon,” a timeless Equestrian melody. Oh, how she wanted to jump away from the ensemble –gracefully, of course – and meet every single noble in the room. It wasn’t everyday that a simple Ponyvillian lady had the opportunity to mingle with nobles, and in such close quarters too! Naturally, meeting a pony from the Canterlot Symphony would be most thrilling and advantageous. But considering that this was a historical museum, she knew the odds of that happening were slim. Oh well, a pony could dream, couldn’t she?

Bringing “Octavia’s Canon” to a close, she held up her baton for the fermata, sneaked a glance at the nobles closest to her, and dramatically flicked her baton to the side, silencing the ensemble.

While her students prepared for the next piece, she scanned the crowd for anypony showing interest in her marvelous conducting or her students’ performance. None of the ponies seeming to be paying attention to the music, which was understandable because chamber music wasn’t meant to demand attention, but receiving a little praise would be nice. She only wished that the noble’s extravagant attire didn’t cover their Cutie Marks! That way she could easily single out the musically inclined ponies.

Once her students were ready to play, she resumed the evening music. When she concluded an excerpt from Trotkovsky’s “Dragon Lake,” which her students performed beautifully, a mare cleared her throat behind Woodwind.

Woodwind spun around and nearly screamed, “Yes?!”

The mare jumped, she but laughed it off, cleared her throat and said, “The museum curator tells me that you are a music teacher here in Ponyville. Did I hear correctly?”

Woodwind felt her heart begin to race within her chest. But before making conversation with the pony who sought her attention, she leaned toward her students and hissed, “‘Flight of the Breezy,’ now! You! Lead the band!” she said, pointing at the first chair violinist.

Her students were confused at first, but they quickly realized that they were on their own and started gathering their music for the next song. The first violinist tapped her hoof and nodded rhythmically, establishing the tempo for the other players, and they started the playing the song.

After making sure her students started the song well, Woodwind turned back to the noble. “Pardon me, ma’am,” she said.

“Quite alright.” She waved her hoof. “Conducting is far from easy business. As I was saying, my name is Pecunia Musica, and you are the music teacher here in Ponyville, yes?”

“Yes! Yes, I am! My name is Woodwind. I teach strings and woodwinds to anypony who wants to learn.”

“Well, as a fellow musician, I must say that you have a splendid class. Most small town school bands only seem to be comprised of banjo-playing country ponies who barely know the difference between treble and bass clef.”

“Why, thank you, ma’am. But I must admit that this isn’t my class. I give each of these talented ponies’ private lessons. Teaching a class would be wonderful, but unfortunately the Ponyville Schoolhouse does not have a music program.”

“No? What a shame. But do not get discouraged, my friend. Ivory Key was telling me the other day that she flourished as musician when she started taking private lessons in her youth. So you never know, you could be teaching the next Octavia.”

“Ivory Keys?” She paused for a moment. “You know Ivory Keys?!!”

“Yes, indeed. The Piano Princess herself,” she said, raising her chin. “I had tea with her the other day. Say, would you like to meet her? I’m sure she’d be delighted to meet such an exceptional small-town musician.”

“Would I?!”

She chuckled. “I’m sure you would. If you are ever planning to visit Canterlot, let me know and perhaps I can introduce you to her. I mean, a pony who can make fillies proficient enough to play music for Princess Twilight’s festivities deserves some recognition, don’t you agree?”

Years of discipline and self-control went into stopping Woodwind from squealing at the top of her lungs. But no matter how hard she bit her bottom lip to suppress squeals of joy, she could not hold back a stupid grin that was forcing its way onto her face. But how could she stop smiling?! Ivory Keys was only the most esteemed pianist in all of Equestria, composer of many piano virtuosic pieces, several of which have been performed before the princess herself, and renowned writer of Bridleway scores.

“T-that would be an honor! That would be the experience of a-”

“Excuse, Ms. Musica,” Sky said from behind Woodwind. “Do you mind if I have a word with Woodwind for a moment?”

“Not at all dear!” she replied.

Sky thanked Pucunia Musica and pulled Woodwind aside. She glanced over her shoulder to make sure no one was paying attention to their conversation.

“What are you doing?” Sky hissed.

“Whatever do you mean?” Woodwind asked.

“I mean, why did you step away from your students?”

“Oh. Ms. Musica wanted to talk to me. And oh my goodness, Sky!” she squealed, and she grabbed Sky’s shoulders. “You’re not going to believe it! She wants to introduce me to Ivory Keys! Ivory Keys!!! Do you know what this means?!!” She began jumping up and down, finally taking the opportunity to release some of the excitement that she had been struggling to contain.

“Woodwind…” She grabbed Woodwind’s hooves and slowly lowered them from her shoulders. “I know you are excited to be around Canterlot nobles, but could you please try and stay focused on your music. As a conductor, don’t you think it’s unprofessional to mingle with guests? I mean, look at your violinist!”

They looked at the first chair violinist. As far as Woodwind could tell, her student was doing just fine; in fact, she seemed more into the music and less nervous than when she first started playing.

Woodwind shook her head. “Psht! Sky, dear, please. She is a perfectly capable musician for her age, I assure you. I should know, I did an excellent job teaching her,” she said and proudly placed her hoof on her chest, thinking of the compliment she had received.

“But still, Woodwind, try and stay near your students. For me?” Sky pleaded.

Woodwind sighed. “Oh alright…but I’m finishing up my conversation with Ms. Pecunia, and neither you nor the princess of Equestria will stop me!” she declared, not noticing that Princess Twilight was standing next to her when she turned around and dashed away.

Screeching to a stop in front of Pecunia Musica, Woodwind said, “I’m here, I’m here!”

Ms. Pecunia reached into her breast pocket, handed Woodwind a business card, and said, “I can see that you’re busy, and I don’t wish to disturb you or your friend’s evening. However, my offer still stands. Have a pleasant evening, Ms. Woodwind, and I look forward to seeing you again. Give your students my compliments.” She nodded respectfully and went on her way.

Woodwind stood staring at the card in her hoof, practically drooling over it, and tried to digest what had just happened to her. Her student’s concluded yet another song, but this time they awaited Woodwind’s instructions. The first violinist asked, “Ms. Woodwind?”

“Oh! Excuse me!” she said, stuffing the business card in her pocket.

Though Woodwind resumed her duties as Sky had requested, she could not stop thinking about the business card in her pocket. What she had expected to be an ordinary night of music turned into a night of wonders, and she could not stop herself from grinning and giggling while she waved her baton to the music.

~~~~~~~~~~

Pair led her third group into the hall of Ponyvillian art. So far things were going great; the fillies seemed interested and the adults were somewhat engaged. Ultimately, she was happy that her audience wasn’t bored. Had they been uninterested or halfheartedly engaged, Pair doubted that she would have been able to keep up her energy.

Standing at the end of the tapestry that depicted the Battle of Four Kingdoms, she declared in a dramatic voice, “And here, my fellow adventurers, is the Art Hall, featuring art that dates all the way back to the end of the First Era.”

First, she explained the origins of the tapestry, listed the notable locations it had been displayed, and expounded upon the background of the legend that it depicted. As usual, she informed, joked, and acted silly all at the same time. When she was nearly finished presenting the tapestry, Pair noticed that Sky had slipped into the back of the group, checking to see if she was doing a good job, no doubt.

Before Pair could move on to other art periods, Sky motioned for Pair to come to her.

Pair skipped away from the group saying, “Fear not, ponies! Your fearless leader shall return. Until then, be wowed and captivated by these beautiful paintings!”

Now that her group was occupied and she was alone with Sky, she said with a big smile, “So? How am I doing?”

“Well…you see…” Sky said uncomfortably.

Her ears drooped. “Am I not giving the right information? I promise I’m using your note cards whenever I need them!”

“Pair…” She took a deep breath, gathering up the courage speak. She put on a stern face and whispered through her teeth, “What are you doing? This isn’t a game! Don’t you know who these ponies are?”

A wave of relief came over Pair’s face and her ears popped back up. “Of course I know who these ponies are! They are poor, helpless, uneducated ponies who have sought my help in their honorable quest for knowledge! And I, the Master Sage of Ponyville, will gladly bestow my golden nuggets of trivia upon them! It is my duty!”

“First of all,” she said while adjusting Pair’s name tag and blazer, “you are not the Master Sage of Ponyville – that would be my title. And as your ‘Master Sage,’ I’m ordering you to take this job more seriously! Should that order escape you again, just remind yourself that these are anything but poor, helpless, uneducated ponies. They are nobles, and they are well educated and respected ponies. Remember that! ”

Pair’s ears drooped again, and she looked down and nodded. “Yes, o wise one,” she mumbled.

“Thank you. I really, really appreciate it.” Sky said and patted her on the shoulder before leaving the hall.

With ears still drooping, Pair returned to her group. She sighed, thinking about the obliteration of ideas that would have made Ponyvillian art fun and engaging. The art hall, once a never ending source of fun, became a dark, daunting tunnel with no light at the end. But Sky was the curator – no, the true Master Sage of Ponyville – and she was duty-bound to honor her command. She set aside the enthusiastic, adventurous character in her mind and she replaced it with a character resembling the citizens of Canterlot, which required her to stand up straight and wear a posh expression.

“As I was saying,” she said in a normal, drawling voice, “at the beginning of the Second Era, Equestria was under the rule of four princesses. The dispersed leadership caused a wide range of art to emerge from the provinces. This period became known as the Angevin Period. Now, if you look at the paintings on your left, you can see that Ponyvillian artists favored using landscapes and everyday-life as their subjects. This is probably due to-”

“Excuse me, Pair A. Dice,” a noble couple interrupted.

Pair turned away from the painting and saw fillies tugging on their mother’s dresses and their father’s pant legs.

“I apologize for questioning your presentation, but where is the delightful pony who we were with a few moments ago.”

“Uh…I…” Pair gawked.

“Yes,” a lady inserted, “my fillies were having such a good time. And I must confess that I was enjoying myself as well.”

Everyone in the group nodded and voiced their agreement.

“You…” She paused, trying to process what was happening. Sky had said Canterlot ponies want everything to be serious, so why were they asking her to not be serious? After some strenuous thought, she finally brought herself to say, “You…like the way that I was tour guiding before?”

“Of course!” another pony replied. “When you pulled out that fake beard and staff when you brought us to the unicorn cloaks from the First Era: how comical!”

Pair sat on the floor, pulled out her fake bread, and looked at the strands of artificial hair that dangled from her hoof. She stroked the silver hair, thinking of what Sky had said. Yes, Sky was the Master Sage, but Sky also wanted to please the nobles, and the nobles were asking Pair to act silly, but Pair also wanted to honor Sky’s command, but if she honored Sky’s command then the nobles would get mad, and if the nobles got mad then the grand opening would be a failure, and if the grand opening was a failure then Sky would get mad. ‘That’s it!’ Pair thought to herself and triumphantly clenched the beard in her hoof.

As if the beard had suddenly transformed into a sacred veil spun from gold, Pair slowly lifted it to her face. She closed her eyes as the material touched her face, wrapped around her jaw line, and was secured behind her head. Slowly opening her eyes, she looked upon the waiting ponies. Some things were more important than honor; she just hoped that Sky would understand.

Once again, Pair stood like an adventurer of Equestria and resumed her quest to educate the ponies of Canterlot. She had been enjoying her evening before this point, but now that she knew her group liked her fun-filled presentation, she enjoyed it even more, and she could not wait to guide the next group.

~~~~~~~~~~

“WIND SPRINT!!!” Sky shouted.

Wind Sprint looked up and saw Sky standing in the doorway with her eyes and mouth hanging wide open. Until now, Wind Sprint enjoyed entertaining the fillies. But the longer she looked at Sky’s horrified expression, the more she realized that allowing the fillies to play in the fossil bin probably wasn’t the best idea that she has ever had.

Like a wary traveler facing a dangerous creature within the Everfree Forest, she held her gaze with Sky and took quiet, shallow breaths as she cautiously inched toward the edge of the sandbox. She climbed out and carefully shook the sand from her hooves. Despite her attempts to keep the sand within the sandbox, each step shook sand from her coat and dirtied the floor.

Upon seeing this, Sky’s face turned a bright shade of red and she ran from the room. From around the corner, Wind Sprint heard Sky shout to somepony, “Take care of this!”

Wind Sprint ran after Sky, but Angel Eye appeared in the doorway, blocking her path.

“Oh my…” Angel Eye exclaimed when she saw the fillies, who had continued playing in the sandbox after Sky left. “No wonder she’s so upset. What were you thinking?”

“It…it seemed like a good idea at the time,” she said, rubbing her neck in embarrassment. “But I didn’t know what else to do! They came in here all staring at me with their freakishly big eyes as if they were saying, ‘Pweeeease don’t be boring.’ And then one filly climbed into the box, and then the other fillies started to join her, and they seemed to be having a good time so I didn’t say anything. And then one of them asked me to join them, and then Sky came along and now everything is a big mess!”

“I wouldn’t say that it’s a big mess. A little bit of sand is nothing a broom can’t handle,” she said as she grabbed a broom from a corner of the room and started sweeping. “But I will say that you will have to answer to Sky. Don’t worry, once she calms down I’m sure she’ll understand.”

Wind Sprint helped Angel Eye sweep up sand that had strayed from the box. While she swept, she couldn’t stop thinking about what was going through Sky’s mind. Although she felt bad about upsetting Sky, she couldn’t deny that she was having a great time with the fillies. And even after Angel Eye left to resume her patrol, Wind Sprint was happy to watch over them, even though she couldn’t bring herself to jump back into the sandbox in good conscience. Who would have thought that she would enjoy an evening surrounded by fillies? And with that thought, she crossed her arms, leaned against a wall, and gladly watched the fillies come and go.

~~~~~~~~~~

Sky stood by the entrance, watching ponies leave the museum with hoovefuls of Berry’s pegasi puffs and their dusty fillies. She had been standing there since Princess Twilight left for Canterlot, and though she could breathe easier now that she wasn’t under Princess Twilight’s watchful eye, she could only find solace in knowing that the museum was closing soon. In the meantime, she said good night to the departing guests. Pair and Woodwind said good night to the guests as well, but Sky turned a blind eye to Pair’s blue-grey cloak, pointed hat, grey beard, and wooden staff.

Once every pony, except her friends, had left the building, Sky closed the museum and then rested her head on the door, reflecting on what had transpired that evening. She heard her friend’s hoofsteps as they entered the lobby, and when they stopped walking the museum plunged into silence.

“Sky?” Angel Eye asked, breaking the silence.

Her head remained on the door.

“Are you ok?” She waited, as if testing whether or not it was safe to ask too many questions. “Sky…” she whispered.

As if coming out of a daze, she lifted her head and said, “Am I…ok?” After giving the question some thought, she turned from the door and faced Angel Eye. “No…I am not ok.”

“But why? It was-”

“Where do I even begin?! This night was a disaster! I mean, could it have gone more wrong?!”

“But Sky, the opening was-”

Sky bypassed Angel Eye and directed her attention to her other friends. She glared at Berry as she walked passed her and went to the food table.

“What is this?!” She pointed at empty to half-empty food trays. “This is not a house party! I told you, Berry. I told you to make sure that food is always on the table. Food should be presentable from the time we are open to the minute we are closed! I’m sorry, but this is not acceptable!”

“Hey now…” Berry started to object.

“And musicians,” she said, turning to Woodwind. “All musicians, especially young ones, need a conductor. Without one it just looks unprofessional!”

“Actually, Sky,” Woodwind said, “bands don’t always need-”

“And tour guides!” She turned to Pair. “Tour guides are supposed to be poised and professional. Your friend, Joy Stick! She was great! But this?!” she pointed at Pair’s outfit, “I’m sorry, Pair, but beards and staffs and costumes are for Nightmare Night! Not for events promoted by the princess!”

Pair, without saying a word or moving any part of her head, slowly reached up, pulled off her fake beard, and hid it under her hoof.

“And don’t even get me started on the fossil pit!” She said without looking at Wind Sprint, fearing that she might explode if she did.

“Excuse me?” Wind Sprint narrowed her eyes.

“I said at the beginning – I emphasized it again and again – that we are dealing with the nobility of Equestria. Not farmers. Not merchants. Nobles! Royalty! And from what I’m seeing, there is no way we measured up to their standards tonight. I’ll be the luckiest pony in Equestria if the princess trusts me with something this huge again!” She turned back to Angel Eye and said, “So I ask again, could tonight have gone more wrong?”

“Hey!” Wind Sprint shouted and stepped into Sky’s line of sight. “I didn’t ask to help out tonight!”

“But you did!”

“And we all did our best.” Berry stepped in, gently patting Wind Sprint’s shoulder. “Everything was fine, Sky!”

“No, no, no!” Sky fumed. “Everything was not fine! You see? You’re not listening! I know how things work in Canterlot, and if all of you had just listened to me then maybe this night would have gone better!”

Upon saying this, Wind Sprint started yelling at Sky, defending herself and reminding Sky that she was forced to do her job. Berry tried calming Wind Sprint down, but Wind Sprint’s shouts overpowered her. As their arguments carried on, they started fighting each other, throwing blame and accusations back and forth at one another. Eventually, no pony was truly listening to anypony else. But from out of their bickering came a deafening scream and the sound of hooves slamming on the floor.

“SKY!!!”

The fighting ceased, and they all turned toward source of the scream. To Sky’s surprise, every other pony was looking at Angel Eye, who was standing by the window. There was no way a scream that loud could have come from her. And yet there they were, looking at Angel Eye as if she had screamed this loud before and not giving her your undivided attention wasn’t an option.

Now that the room was quite, Angel Eye said in her normal voice, “It was a success.”

“What?” she asked with genuine consideration, mostly because she was still stunned by Angel Eye’s surprisingly loud scream.

“The grand opening, it was a success.” She paused. “Everypony is talking about how much they enjoyed the museum.”

Sky took a deep breath, trying not to snap again, for she realized she had spoken carelessly once again. “Angel Eye," she said, consciously keeping her voice calm and even, "you have to understand that nobles typically formulate and alter their opinions based the opinions of other ponies of a more prestigious name than themselves. All it takes is one negative comment from a well-to-do pony and my reputation with the princess is destroyed.”

“But Sky, look.” She motioned for her to come to the window.

Angel Eye pulled back the curtain, and Sky looked and saw a crowd of ponies, adults and fillies, lingering in Ponyville. Several nobles and common ponies passed pegasi puffs to each other, smiles beaming through their stuffed, powdery faces. While their parents socialized, a group of fillies broke branches off of a nearby tree, pretending that they were staffs, and used their coats as capes. If Sky was interpreting their game correctly, they were reenacting a notable unicorn duel from Equestrian antiquity: Starswirl the Bearded versus Galexia the Luminous. And in the distance, she spotted Woodwind’s students talking with nobles. It seemed that the nobles had stopped them on their way home to shake their hooves, present them with flowers, or give them other small tokens of praise.

“You see?” Angel Eye said after long period of silence. “Everything turned out all right!”

No matter how many times Sky scanned the crowd, she couldn’t think of anything to say. Though everything in her mind and checklist indicated otherwise, she could not deny that everypony looked happy. Despite the fact that she realized and accepted that the grand opening was indeed successful, she was afraid to turn away from the window, afraid to turn around and face her friends.

Knowing that it had to be done, she forced herself to look away from the window.

“I…I don’t know what to say,” Sky said, trying her best to look into her friend’s eyes. In the moment that she looked down at the floor, she spotted the checklist that she had dropped during their quarrel, and she sighed when she saw that it was almost entirely black with wasted ink. “I’m…I’m sorry.”

There was an awkward silence, and no pony knew how to break it. But Sky, acknowledging that she was the one who caused the tension, took upon herself and said, “So it really was good, huh?”

“Yeah,” Wind Sprint immediately responded, “I was having a great time until you went all crazy just now!”

The other four ponies gave Wind Sprint a disapproving glare, but she shrugged it off as if it was a harmless joke.

“It’s ok, sugar cube,” Berry interceded, “you were just stressed is all. We wanted to do our part and help you, but you have to trust that we can help you.”

“Yeah.” Sky nodded. “Well, since I missed out on the fun, why don’t you tell me about it?”

Angel immediately spoke up, quoting the many positive remarks that she had heard throughout the evening. With each comment that applied to them, Berry, Woodwind, and Wind Sprint talked about how much fun they had and the good things that had happened to them. Before they knew it, they were relaxing in the museum lobby, sitting on the cushioned benches exchanging hilarious and engaging stories.

During Woodwind’s story about her encounter with Pecunia Musica, Sky excused herself and went to her room. At her desk, she pulled out a sheet of parchment and her quill. Princess Twilight had instructed her to report her findings on friendship, and if this wasn’t worth writing about she didn’t know what was. She lowered her quill to the parchment and wrote,

Dear Princess Twilight,

As you know, I hosted the grand opening today, and now I realize that it was grander than I had led myself to believe. I tried managing every little detail in hopes of making the most perfect evening possible for you and the nobles, but I discovered that while everypony else was having a great time I was alone in my frustration and anxiety. Though one might feel that she is the only one who is good enough to execute her plans, I learned that you need to trust your friends when they offer you a helping hoof. We can’t always control everything on our own, but you can trust that your friends will be there for you when you need them. And as they say, “six ponies are better one.”

Your faithful student,

Celestial Sky

Sky rolled up the letter, and with a spark from her horn the letter dissolved into a magical mist and trailed out the window. With that taken care of, she returned to her friends in the lobby.

While she was gone, Berry had brought out a tray of leftover pegasi puffs. When Sky looked at the treats, her mouth watered and she realized that she hadn’t eaten anything since lunch. Suddenly, her stomach growled and her friends looked at her with surprised expressions.

“Goodness, Sky,” Woodwind exclaimed, “was that you?”

“No wonder you were all stressed,” Berry said and immediately piled a pegasi puffs onto a dessert plate. “I’d be plum-tuckered out too if I was that hungry. Here, your first pegasi puff!”

Sky thanked Berry and took the plate. She bit into the treat and closed her eyes as she savored the fluffy vanilla pastry and its rich whipped cream. Sky wasn’t lying when she had said that she didn’t care for sweets, but it was as delicious as the guests made them out to be. She sat next to Berry and grabbed another pegasi puff, and she listened happily as her friend continued to swap stories late into the night.

Ch4: Just Wing It

Wind Sprint ran through Bitburg, a town three miles south of Ponyville, nearing the end of her Monday delivery route. With her mail satchel slung over her shoulder, she ran to a bulletin by the town hall and skidded to a stop. She reached into her satchel and tacked a promotional flyer onto the board. Thankfully, Bitburg was the last town on her route and this was the last flyer that she had to post for the day. With a relieved sigh, she held up the flyer and tacked it onto the board. She huffed and closed her satchel, and she turned away from the board and ran home.

After a long week of work, Wind Sprint finished her Friday mail route, and she lumbered back to Ponyville. She headed toward Strawberry Shortcake’s shop, Berry Café. After a full week of seeing those dreadful flyers, all she wanted to do was sit back and stuff her face with a dozen delicious blueberry muffins, preferably with ones coated with extra sugar crumbs.

When she saw Berry Café, she picked up her pace slightly. Despite the weariness in her legs, she fixed her eyes on the rustic, circular building with outdoor seating surrounded by decorative berry bushes. Though a Closed sign hung on the front door, she entered the café. When she didn’t see Berry in the store, she knocked on the register counter twice.

“Berry? You in here?” she called.

Within seconds, Berry emerged from a door that led to the kitchen. “Hi, Wind Sprint!” she said with a welcoming smile. She washed her hooves in a small sink concealed beneath the counter. While she dried her hooves, she asked, "Here for your after-work snack?”

“Yep,” she replied lazily and tossed five bits next to the register, “make it a big one. And get one with the biggest sugar crumbs.”

Berry stopped and looked at Wind Sprint with concern. “Everything ok?” she asked as she pulled a muffin out of the pastry display case.

Wind Sprint groaned, took off her mail satchel, and tossed it on the nearest table. She sat down and rubbed her forehead with her hooves. “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s been a long week is all.”

“I see,” she replied. She walked around the counter carrying one large sugar-topped blueberry muffin centered on a simple circular, white coffee plate. “This’ll cheer you right up.”

“Thanks.” Wind Sprint sat up, looked down at her muffin, and licked her lips. As always, she picked off the biggest sugar crumbs and set them aside so that she could save the sugary goodness for last. When she finishing stripping the top of her muffin, she reached down and took a large bite, savoring the perfect blend of warm, fluffy bread, crispy sugar crumbs, and sweet blueberries.

While Wind Sprint ate, Berry dumped the leftover pastries in the trashcan, and then she removed the empty trays from the display case and proceeded to wipe the counters and clean the bakery display case. Moving on to the pastry trays, she cleaned them with a damp, soapy rag and stacked them in piles of five. Once all the trays were clean, she reached underneath the counter, pulled out a stepping stool, and slid it to a spot on the floor in front of the cupboards.

Distracted by the stool’s dull rattle whenBerry shoved it across the floor, Wind Sprint looked up from her muffin. She watched Berry step onto the stool, pick up a stack of trays, stand on the tip of her hooves, and slide them on top of the cupboards. When she put away the last stack of trays, she hopped off the stool and kicked it back underneath the counter. Wind Sprint realized that she had stopped eating her muffin, but she continued watching Berry anyway.

Despite Wind Sprint’s unsettling stare, Berry started sweeping the floor as if she was alone in her café. However, she didn’t like the idea of somepony staring at her while she worked, so she looked at Wind Sprint with an awkward smile and said, “What?”

Scoffing under her breath and shaking her head slightly, Wind Sprint replied, “Nothing.” She took a small nibble of her muffin; then she scowled. Unable to restrain herself any longer, she said, “Berry, why don’t you use your wings?”

“What’s that now?” she said while sweeping.

She closed her eyes and forced out the question again. “Why don’t you use your wings?”

Berry stopped sweeping and stared at the collected pile of dust and crumbs on floor, unsure if she should feel confused or not. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“Your wings, why don’t you use them? Like just now, why didn’t you just fly to the top of the cupboard?”

“Oh…I – um…” She propped the broom against the counter. “I…I don’t know. I guess I don’t really need to use them.”

Wind Sprint sat up straight, unaware that she was glaring at Berry. “But why? You have wings…” she said, finishing the last words like a whimper.

“But I bake for a living. We bakers generally don’t care for racing and high speed and all that.”

“But you have wings!” she shouted.

Stepping back, Berry grabbed her broom, held it across her chest, and fiddled with it in her hoof. “Why are you being like this, Wind Sprint?”

“Why are you being like this?” she snapped. She snatched her mail satchel off the table and threw the strap over her head. “You have wings, so why don’t you use them already!” she said as she stormed out of Berry’s café, leaving her alone and confused.

Wind Sprint wandered aimlessly around Ponyville, mumbling to herself. She thought about going home, but she found catharsis in kicking pebbles while she walked. Once her anger wore off, she felt somewhat silly for getting so upset. It wasn’t as if Berry’s flightless existence was breaking news to her. Regardless, there were days when merely seeing a flying pegasus filled her with indignation, even though she had accepted her role in life long ago.

When she heard somepony running towards her from her left, she snapped out of her musings and saw her friend, Celestial Sky.

Sky awkwardly stumbled to a stop in front of Wind Sprint. “Aww,” she said with a playful pout, “I was going to challenge you to a race.”

Wind Sprint laughed, thinking back to when she first introduced herself to Sky by challenging her to a race. Although she knew a quick, friendly race would make her feel better, she shook her head and replied, “Nah, I’m good.”

Surprised by Wind Sprint’s answer, she exclaimed, “You don’t want to race?!”

She shook her head.

“What’s wrong? Did your mail route tire you out?”

“Psht, are you kidding me? I run that route five times a week. That stopped wearing me out ages ago.”

“Oh…of course. So is something bothering you?”

“Eh…” Wind Sprint shrugged and started walking with Sky. “It’s Berry. She – well, she didn’t…I kinda…ugh, it was about her wings.”

Raising an eyebrow, Sky said, “Her wings?”

“It’s not as stupid as it sounds,” she said defensively. “That pony has wings and all she wants to do is pick berries and bake cakes all day. Imagine if a unicorn only used her magic to read books.

“Yes…how horrible…” she said, giving Wind Sprint a look of mild scorn.

“You’re telling me.” She nodded then sighed, oblivious to Sky’s resentment. “But yeah, the whole thing came up because of those flyers.” She pointed at the Ponyville bulletin board.

Wind Sprint avoided looking at the board, but Sky stopped and read the flyer that Wind Sprint had been distributing all week.

Aerial Racing Competition of Equestria

Soar to the Top

Sign-up Location: Cloudsdale Stadium

Sign-up Deadline: Saturday, April 23 at 10 AM*Must be 13 or older

*Identification and 20 bit application fee required

Sky was familiar with this competition, and though she never attended one, she knew that this competition, the Arc Races as most ponies called it, was popular during the spring. Ever since cloud cities capitalized on cloud-walking spells and gondolas for the earth ponies and unicorns, allowing them to temporarily ascend up to cloud cities for the competition, popularity for aerial racing increased annually.

Realizing that Wind Sprint had left her by the bulletin, Sky caught up with Wind Sprint and said, “So, you’re saying that you want to race in that competition?”

“Of course! ...if I had wings. I’ve been wanting to race in that competition since I was old enough to register."

“But Wind Sprint, you’re the fastest runner I’ve ever met. You don’t have to be a flier to-”

“You don’t understand, Sky,” Wind Sprint said. Recalling her fight with Berry, she stopped and took a deep breath, determining that she didn’t want to quarrel with Sky too. “Running is great and all, but that’s only because hooves are all I have. But what I wouldn’t give to have my own wings.” Once again, Wind Sprint continued trudging along without Sky.

Sky stopped and rubbed her chin, furrowing her eyebrows as she recalled spell books that she had read. When a specific spell book came to mind, she called out, “Hey, Wind Sprint! I think that I can get you some wings.”

In the Ponyville museum, Sky led Wind Sprint up the stair tower leading to her apartment. Wind Sprint entered Sky’s room, and she saw a rectangular wooden desk, a bookcase, a window that overlooked Ponyville, and a door that led to what Wind Sprint assumed was Sky’s bedroom. To Wind Sprint’s surprise, books were wedged into her bookshelf and a variety of stationary and alchemic compounds were scattered across her desk. Based on what she saw in the museum, she assumed that Sky’s room would be equally pristine.

Sky rushed to her bookshelf, and despite the disorder, she ran her hoof over the book spines and pulled a book from the shelf within seconds. “Here it is!” Sky proclaimed as she carried it to her desk.

Stepping closer to the desk, Wind Sprint looked down at the book and read, “The Equine: A Guide to Transubstantial Anatomy?”

“Yes indeed!” Sky grinned, and then she opened the book and flipped through its pages.

“That sounds um…complicated.”

“Oh, it is extremely complicated!” Sky’s smile widened with glee. “This is a popular textbook in medical schools all over Equestria!”

“Medical schools? Like, magic for doctors?”

“The same! And inquisitive unicorns such as myself.”

Wind Sprint’s eyes widened. “But you’re not a doctor.”

“Nope.” Sky shook her head once.

Rubbing her neck, she laughed nervously and said, “Um, Sky? I don’t mean anything by this, but are you sure that you can handle this kind of magic?”

Sky stopped flipping through the pages, flattened them with her hooves, and then looked up at her, still smiling. “Wind Sprint, please,” she said, and then she closed her eyes and placed her hoof over her chest, “I’m Princess Twilight’s private student. Any spell can be conjured after a bit of intense reading. You know, magic is magic, right?”

“If you say so… You’re the unicorn,” she replied with an anxious grin.

“Ok, let’s see here…” she muttered to herself, burying her face in the book. “Um…uh…ah ha! Here it is: Artificial Appendages! Ok, ok, ok…” She ran her hoof over the section headings. “Legs...no…hooves…uh, amputa – oh no, no, no! Ok, um…lemme see…ok, here we are! Artificial Wings!”

Wind Sprint leaned forward eagerly. “What’s it say?”

“Everything you’d expect. A brief history of the study…notable spells…hmm, it talks about wings of gossamer and morning dew, but that sounds a bit fragile. I don’t know what kind of crazy pony would trust those wings for flying.”

“Yeah, hardly sounds like racing wings,” she said, and her face fell.

Sky continued reading in silence, her head lowering closer and closer to the pages the longer she read. Wind Sprint stood by the desk, shuffling her hooves and glancing aimlessly around the room, resisting the urge to fill the silence or express her boredom and impatience.

“Ok, you have two options here,” Sky finally said, “the gossamer wings, though a rudimentary spell, will allow you to have wings indefinitely.”

“But you already said that they’re too-”

“I know, I know, let me finish." She held up her hoof in front of Wind's Sprint's face, startling her. "However, this modern spell, transmutated wings, will give you actual pegasus wings, but it can last anywhere from eighteen hours to three days.

“Eighteen hours to three days?”

“Yeah…and apparently that’s a generous estimation. It’s a highly unstable spell, which means that its duration can vary depending on the pony, external factors, and a number of other variables.” She flipped through the chapter again, making sure that she didn’t overlook anything. “On the bright side, research is being done to increase and stabilize the spell’s duration. Be happy that we’re not living in the twelve century when it was first created. At that time, it only lasted two to three minutes!”

“So these wings are my only option?”

“I’m afraid so,” she said and sighed. “Do you still want to do this?”

Looking down at the book, Wind Sprint observed the anatomical diagrams of a pegasus and an earth pony. The thought of having wings grow out of her back was frightening, but she knew that transmuted wings were the only way she could compete in the Arc Races. She had been waiting for an opportunity such as this since she was a filly, and a unicorn finally stood before her with a spell that would give her what she always yearned for.

With a determined smile, she said, “Yeah, let’s do it.”

Sky nodded and stepped away from her desk. With the textbook levitating in front of her, she said, “All we need now is a pegasus feather.”

“Great! You have one, right?”

After scanning her desk, she nibbled on her bottom lip and said, “Huh…I do not.”

Excitement vanished from Wind Sprint’s face. “What?” she said, appearing to be on the verge of tears.

As if from nowhere, a voice in room said, “You can have one of mine.”

“Gah!” Wind Sprint and Sky jumped. They faced the corner from which the sound came and saw Angel Eye.

“What are you doing here?!” Wind Sprint shouted.

Stoic and unflinching, Angel Eye emerged from her inconspicuous spot in the corner and said, “Um, I work here.”

“But how long were you standing there?” Sky asked.

“Only for a little bit. I came up here to ask about a minor situation in the art gallery, and I overheard that you need a pegasus feather. Sorry for listening in, but you can have one of mine if you’d like.”

“Oh – uh, yeah!” she replied, still flustered. “That’d be great! Thank you, Angel Eye.”

“No problem,” she said, and then she plucked a lavender feather from her left wing and held it out to Sky.

Lowering her horn, Sky levitated Angel Eye’s feather from her hoof and suspended it in front of Wind Sprint’s chest. Sky closed her eyes and pictured Wind Sprint’s spine in her mind as the book instructed. Magic collected into her horn, and she felt energy draining from her body. She struggled to remain on her hooves as a wave of white light flowed out of her horn and wrapped around Wind Sprint. With all the strength she had, she reared and slammed her hooves on the floor, blasting the spell at Wind Sprint’s chest. The room filled with a blinding light, and Sky collapsed on the floor.

When the spell struck her chest, Wind Sprint lifted off the floor and writhed into a fetal position, holding in screams of agony. Though she tensed her muscles, her body shook violently as the magic churned within her body. Eventually, the magic concentrated at two spots on her back, and she felt as if somepony was pressing two smoldering branding irons on her back. From those two spots, she felt her skin and bones stretching away of her body until it felt like the skin on her back had torn open.

At last, the magic ceased. She fell on the floor and stayed still. Her body trembled and her back ached, and all she could think about doing was waiting for the pain to pass. But then, she felt a unfamiliar twitch. Alarmed by this new feeling, she lifted her head and her eyes widened. She held her breath and looked at her back.

Attached to her back was a pair of orange wings identical to the color of her coat. They were tucked against her ribs, folded together like a neatly wrapped package. With a shaky breath, she willed movement into the new appendages on her back – the wings extended slightly. Like opening a freshly printed book, the feathers rustled as they spread apart. Laughing and smiling, she looked at Sky and spread her wings.

Angel Eye gasped.

“It worked?” Sky panted.

“It worked!” Wind Sprint looked back at her wings again, and she repeatedly retracted and extended them as if she was revving a new vehicle. “Oh my gosh! This is – this is awesome! Thank you, Sky! Thank you so, so, so much!”

Sky stood up and breathing heavily she said, “You’re welcome, but thank Angel Eye. We’d be searching for a pegasus feather right now if it wasn’t for her.”

“Don’t even go there, Sky. This is amazing,” Angel Eye said, gazing upon Wind Sprint’s wings, amazed by Sky’s ability to produce such a spell.

“But be careful, Wind Sprint,” Sky continued, “I know you’re excited, but your body is not used to having wings so don’t overexert yourself!”

“I know, I know. But they feel amazing!” Wind Sprint flapped her wings and lifted off the floor.

“Hey, I said to take it slow!”

“Don’t worry! You did a great job!” She flew to ceiling, swooped down, and made a loop. “They work fine!”

“Wind Sprint!” Sky scolded. She lowered her horn and attempted to grab Wind Sprint with her magic; however, Wind Sprint easily slipped out of Sky’s feeble magical grip, expended by the transmutation spell.

Deafened by excitement, Wind Sprint flew out of Sky’s room and called out, “Thanks again! I owe you two big time!”

She spiraled down the stair tower, dashed through the museum lobby, pushed the front doors open, and flew into open skies. Taking a moment to look at the ground, she felt an exhilaration that she had never felt before. No longer chained to a horizontal plane of existence, she looked skyward and saw a cumulus cloud drifting above Ponyville, and with a daring grin she soared high into the sky and pierced the cloud.

Leaving a wispy trail of vapor behind her, she arced backwards and fell back among the clouds. She flipped over and weaved through the clouds, occasionally grazing them with her hoof. When she had her fun, she flew as high as she could, and at the height of her ascent she spread her legs and wings as if she were raising the sun.

Taking deep, satisfied breaths, she flew in place and wiped the sweat from her forehead, looking down at Equestria far below her. She could see so much: the endless expanse of billowing clouds that blanketed the land, the vast plains of Equestria that stretched beyond the horizon, and everything that inhabited them. Closing one eye, she pretended to cradle her hometown in her hooves, amazed that it looked so small. Upon seeing the world from above, she could not comprehend how she had been able to remain content as an earth pony for years – and for that matter, ponies, unicorns, and any other non-winged creatures.

North of Ponyville, she saw her birth home, Cloudsdale. Up in the sky, she could actually see the cloud buildings, the grand staircases winding through the layers of the city, and the rivers of rainbow and water vapor cascading over the clouds. Turning away from Ponyville, she flew towards Cloudsdale.

She approached the edge of the city and hesitated when she reached the nearest cloud, realizing that she didn’t know if her new wings had granted her the ability to walk on clouds. Though she knew her wings would catch her if she fell through the clouds, she extending her right hoof as if she were about to step onto a thin sheet of ice. She lowered herself onto the cloud and put weight on her hoof, and instead of falling through the cloud her hoof met a fluffy yet firm surface. Laughing, she hopped onto the cloud and jumped up and down as she ran into the city.

She ran through the town square, ignoring the buildings, ornate columns, and city fixtures, all of them made entirely of clouds. Rather than marvel at the city’s well known structures such as the Cloudsdale Weather Factory or the prized Hurricane Amphitheater, her eyes darted back and forth at the pegasi flying above her and the pegasi walking on the clouds with her. For the first time in her life, she was surrounded by pegasi, and her heart fluttered for joy as she ran to the east side of Cloudsdale.

After climbing a wide staircase that led to a housing cloud, she approached a house on the edge of the cloud that overlooked Cloudsdale – her throat suddenly became dry. She forced herself to salivate and cleared her throat, and then she raised her hoof and knocked.

The door opened, and a female pony peeked out of the house, a pony with an orange coat slightly lighter than Wind Sprint’s coat and a multicolored mane of red, blue, and green tied up in a ponytail.

“Wind Sprint!” the pony said.

“Hi mom.” Biting her bottom lip, she waited.

Her mother, confused by Wind Sprint’s presence in the clouds, looked at Wind Sprint’s hooves and back to her excited face. Eventually, she looked at Wind Sprint’s side and gasped. “Wind Sprint?!” she exclaimed, and she scrambled out of the house. “You’re – are you? You –”

“Yep, I have wings!” she replied as she embraced her mother. When she released her mother, she asked, “Where’s dad?”

“He’s inside.” She let Wind Sprint into the house and quickly closed the door behind her.

Wind Sprint trotted through the entrance hall, passed the staircase that led to the second floor bedrooms, and entered a circular living room. Crescent couches lined a circular depression in the center of the room, which was occupied by a round glass coffee table. There was an open kitchen to her left and a sliding door that lead to a small patio that overlooked Cloudsdale.

Jet Sprint, Wind Sprint’s father, was sitting on the couch fiddling with a camera, the object of his leisure time. His mane was jet-black and combed to the side, his coat was cool-blue, and his eyes were deep green, like Wind Sprint’s. When he saw Wind Sprint standing with her mother, he stood up, set down his camera, and a flash of excitement came over his face, but he did a double-take when he saw her wings.

Staring at her wings inquisitively, he cocked his head to the side, and said, “Wow…this is a surprise.”

“My friend made them for me just a bit ago! Aren’t they cool? Now you don’t have to fly down to Ponyville to visit me anymore! Isn’t that awesome?”

“Yes. Yes, it is,” he replied through an obviously forced smile. “But Wind Sprint, you do realize that you will need to have that spell reapplied soon, right?”

“Yeah, yeah. I can have my friend do it again later. I have up to three days; it’s not a big deal.” She waved him off, wanting to maintain the excitement in the room.

Her father furrowed his eyebrows and asked, “Wait, how long are you planning to have those?”

Wind Sprint stopped pacing and her smile faltered, unsettled by her father’s uninterested tone. “Just today and tomorrow for now,” she answered. “I’m going to compete in the Arc Races!”

“The Arc Races?!” Her father exclaimed. “You mean the Aerial Racing Competition of Equestria? That one?” Her father exclaimed.

“Yep!” Wind Sprint beamed.

“But Wind Sprint!” Her mother scurried to her side. “Didn’t you say that you got those wings today? And isn’t this your first time with wings?”

“Yeah, so?” she said with a shrug. “I flew all the way up here, didn’t I?”

“But dear, you-”

“No, Wind Sprint,” Her father interjected, shaking his head. “I don’t want you racing with those!”

“What? Why not?!” Wind Sprint looked at her mother, hoping for support, then back to her father.

“You’re going to hurt yourself!”

Wind Sprint’s cheeks flushed. “I can fly just fine! I already told you I flew up here!”

“Yes, but that was just one-”

"And I didn’t do it all tired and wimpy and stuff either!”

“No, Wind Sprint, no! You can’t just jump into a serious race without-”

“I’ll be fine, ok!” she shouted. “You’re my parents! There’s pegasus in me! I can do it!”

“But you’re not a pegasus!” Her father yelled, overpowering her voice.

Wind Sprint choked. She felt as if her father had grabbed her neck and slammed her onto the floor, her excitement trampled and ground into unsalvageable rubble. The wings that she had been flapping with unbridled ecstasy were now rigid and tense, pressing into her sides as if that would somehow conceal them from view.

“What…what are you saying?” she asked, struggling to keep her voice steady.

Her father looked at the floor, considering his words carefully. After some thought, he said, “It’s great to see you up here, walking on clouds and all. But you don’t have to get that spell just to come up here to visit us. As for the competition, we just don’t want you to get hurt. Aren’t there races for you down in Ponyville?”

“But…” Wind Sprint’s lips started quivering. “I have wings…”

“But for how long? You could start sinking into these clouds at any moment,” he said, pointing at Wind Sprint’s dirt stained hooves.

“I-I should still have a few hours at least…” she replied feebly.

He scowled. “That not the point-”

“Dear…” Her mother set her hoof on his shoulder.

Wind Sprint was not listening anymore, for her mind was lost in deafening thoughts. Her parents were talking to her, but Wind Sprint could only look down with an empty stare. Knowing that she couldn’t maintain her composure much longer, she faced the front door.

“I have to go,” she said.

“Wind Sprint,” her mother pleaded.

“Registration ends soon. I don’t wanna miss it. See you later.”

Speed walking, she left the house.

Once she closed the door, she kicked off the clouds and flew away from Cloudsdale. Suspended in silence, she gazed down at Cloudsdale and the land far below. Fighting the ache in her chest, she closed her eyes and cried silently. As the ache in her chest eased, she shook her head and rubbed her eyes.

She didn’t lie; she really did have to register soon. But for some reason, resulting from a childhood delusion or otherwise, Wind Sprint thought that she would be registering alongside her parents. Not even an hour ago, she saw it all – her, walking on clouds by her parents’ side, registering for her first race as a pegasus. And afterward, if time allowed, they would have a celebratory dinner at whatever decent restaurant Cloudsdale had to offer. But she wouldn’t know where to find a decent meal in Cloudsdale. Cloudsdale was her parents’ home, not hers. Maybe her father was right; maybe she should fly back to Ponyville, wait for the spell to wear off, and then continue her life on the ground as if this day had never happened.

Narrowing her eyes defiantly, she sniffled and rubbed her nose. No. When she flew for the first time, she knew that she could never be content with life on the ground ever again. She was meant to be a pegasus, and Cloudsdale was her home – she just had to prove it.

With one powerful flap of her wings, Wind Sprint dived toward the heart of Cloudsdale. She streaked through the air, diving faster and faster. Bracing herself, she slammed into the cloud road, spraying cloud chunks on unsuspecting pegasi. Her impact formed a crater, but Wind Sprint walked out of it as if nothing happened, ignoring the startled pegasi that were staring at her.

She approached an all too familiar flyer tacked onto the local bulletin. After taking note of the information that she needed, she ran to the Cloudsdale Stadium wearing a face of fiery determination.

The next day, Wind Sprint stood among a large group of pegasi, each wearing a numbered piece of cloth on their rump. Looking at her number again, thirteen, she grinned and suppressed an excited giggle. She couldn’t believe that she was about to race with wings. Last night, when she registered for the competition, she was worried that she would be denied because her wings were artificial; however, after a doctor examined her wings for performance enhancers, the registrant signed her up along with everypony else.

Now that she was standing in the Cloudsdale Stadium, old memories, partly fond and partly foul, came over her as she beheld the racetrack. Scooting to the edge of the cloud, peering down at the ground beneath the track, she remembered all the times that she raced underneath racetracks. Lost in her memories, she could’ve sworn that she saw a young, orange earth pony preparing to race with the pegasi flying above her.

As she craned her head farther over the edge, a hoof touched her shoulder. Startled, she gasped and jumped away from the edge.

“Wind Sprint?” a female racer said.

Wind Sprint turned around and saw a sky-blue pony. Her mane was light silver with streaks of royal-blue highlights, and Wind Sprint didn’t recognize her at first. But when Wind Sprint saw her Cutie Mark, a snowflake blowing in an icy gust of wind, she looked into the pony’s eyes with dread.

“Yeah…” The pony’s eyes lit up. “Yeah! Wind Sprint!” When Wind Sprint didn’t respond, she continued, “It’s me, Featherfrost.”

After taking a deep, steady breath, she replied, “Yeah, I know who you are.”

“I thought I saw you this morning, but then I thought, ‘Wait, no, Wind Sprint’s an earth pony.’ But I wanted checked just to be sure, and here you are! It’s been so long! What are you doing here, and where did these come from? When did you decide to get this done?” She pointed at Wind Sprint’s wings.

Wind Sprint’s pulse quickened and her mind flooded with angry, spiteful thoughts. Despite what she was feeling, she deliberately kept her tone even and her expression blank. “Yesterday,” she answered.

“Wow!” she exclaimed. With genuine concern, she asked, “Are you sure you can race?”

“Yeah, I can race.”

“Well, just make sure you don’t hurt yourself-”

“Don’t!” she snapped. “I’ll be fine!”

Featherfrost backed away. “Ok…if you’re sure. My heat is starting soon, but Wind Sprint, if you’re free after your race maybe we could – um, get a bite to eat or something. It’s been so long, and I know that I wasn’t exactly the best-”

“No, I’m busy. Good luck with your race, Featherfrost.” She turned around started stretching her hindquarters.

She stretched her legs and stared at the floor, wondering if Featherfrost was still standing behind her. Fighting the urge to look behind her, she wondered if she had been too harsh. However, she recalled all of Featherfrost’s taunting and teasing when she was a filly, and the more her mind replayed her brief reunion with Featherfrost, the angrier she became. That pony had the audacity to approach her before the most important moment of her life, the same pony who gave her the childhood nickname Wingless. To make it worse, Featherfrost invited her to eat after the race as if they were good childhood friends. Wind Sprint scoffed and shook her head. She would not be fooled; she knew that the same bully from her childhood was still lurking behind Featherfrost’s pleasant smile.

The announcer called the seventh wave of competitors from the waiting room out to the starting cloud, a lone cloud on the racetrack that marked the starting and finish line. Wind Sprint was next. Eager to race, she went through another full-body stretch and trotted in place.

Within ten minutes the seventh race concluded and preparations for the eighth and final race were made, and the announcer blared, “Numbers seventy-one through eighty, report to the starting line! Numbers seventy-one through eighty, report to the starting line!”

Wind Sprint, on the tip of her hooves in excitement, leaped out of the stadium waiting room first and flew out to the racetrack. After reporting to the clerk of the course beside the racetrack, where she stated her name and confirmed her racing number, she went to her assigned lane on the starting cloud. She crouched at the starting line, grinding her hooves into the cloud. She couldn’t believe this was happening, a chance to prove that she wasn’t just a wingless pony.

The referee flew onto the starting cloud and approached the start line.

“On your mark…” he bellowed.

Wind Sprint squatted, took a deep breath, and tensed her muscles.

“Get set…”

She exhaled.

Bang! And Wind Sprint charged off the cloud. She flapped her wings and sped through the air. Approaching the first turn in the track, she leaned to the side and drifted through it. At the second turn, she dashed through it with greater speed and completed her first lap. Until the halfway point in the race, Wind Sprint kept up with the other racers, but as the race progressed she fell behind.

Five more laps to go. The muscles in her wings burned, but she kept pushing.

On the final lap, she felt as if her wings were about to snap off her back. There were four racers ahead of her, and this was her last chance. On the first turn, she swerved around the bend and sped past two racers – third place. She maintained her speed throughout the straight stretch of the track. Approaching the second turn, she swerved into the inner lane, slipping in front of the racer who was in second place.

She swooped into the final length of the track. Everything in Wind Sprint’s mind and body wanted to stop. But she kept pushing. She clenched her teeth and flew with everything that she had. Without bothering to look at the last racer in front of her, she closed her eyes and reached for the finish line.

As soon as she crossed the finish line, she tumbled onto the starting cloud, all her energy spent. The stadium roared with applause. She wasn’t sure if the crowd was cheering for her or other racers as they crossed the finish line, but whether there was applause or silence, she had never been more relieved to finish a race in her life. Even the thought of twitching one of her wings seemed to induce physical pain.

She lifted her head from the soft cushion of the clouds and looked at the black scoreboard on the opposite end of the stadium. Results flashed onto the screen. After waiting a brief moment, Wind Sprint appeared in the first place slot, beating Thunderbuck by 0.21 seconds.
Another wave of applause surged from the crowd. Flabbergasted, Wind Sprint laughed. She knew that friends and families were probably cheering for racers that they knew; nevertheless, for this brief moment, she stood up, legs wobbling, and pretended that they were all cheering for her.

As Wind Sprint decided to try flying off the field, Featherfrost flew to the starting cloud from the waiting room. “Wind Sprint,” Featherfrost called out, “that was ama-!”

“I’m fine!” she sneered and shook out her wings. “I’m just stretching. Don’t wanna get sore, you know.”

To avoid Featherfrost, Wind Sprint jumped off the starting cloud and flew to the first cloud that she saw, the muscles in her wings and back nearly cramping as she flew. She landed on the cloud with the water table. To keep herself from looking back or even slightly to the side, she snatched up a cup of water and chugged it.

“Would you like more?” a smiling water-filly said, sliding another cup toward Wind Sprint.

“I’m good, thanks,” Wind Sprint replied icily.

She slammed her paper cup on the table, crushing it beneath her hoof, startling the young filly, and she left the table. Nopony would bring her down, especially not Featherfrost. All she had to do was win the final race.

Outside the stadium, Wind Sprint stood alone, banishing all the naysayers from her mind. They didn’t matter anyway; after all, she proved herself today.

“Wind Sprint!” Pair A. Dice called.

Recognizing that overly bubbly voice, Wind Sprint turned and saw Pair running towards her. She couldn’t help but smile when she saw not only Pair running to meet her on the clouds, but Sky, Angel Eye, Berry, and Woodwind as well.

“You? You came?” Wind Sprint said, welling up with joy.

“Of course we came!” Pair squealed.

“Oh, but not just us.” Woodwind said, shaking her head. “You’re the talk of the town! Ponies all over Ponyville saw you fly out of the museum. Nopony could beli- I couldn’t believe it!” She placed her hoof on her chest. “Naturally, all of Ponyville came up here to see you race!”

“Yeah, Sky told us everything.” Berry said.

Out of all Wind Sprint's friends, Berry looked the least enthusiastic. Though she smiled, she scanned Wind Sprint continually as if there was a repulsive leech or an unsightly tick on her coat.

“We watched your race!” Sky said. “It was incredible! I can’t believe you were able to exert that must stress on your wings so soon.”

“Yeah,” Pair said and nudged Sky, “you should’ve seen Sky while you were racing! I thought for sure she’d be hoofless by the time the race was over!”

Wind Sprint couldn’t help but grin, and she looked back at her wings and flipped her bangs proudly. “Yep! I guess I’m meant to have wings after all. Speaking of which, Sky, I’m probably going to need another spell soon. It’s been a little more than a day now.”

Taken aback by her sudden request, Sky mumbled, “Um…Well…You see…I don’t know, Wind Sprint. I’m still recovering from the spell last night. I’m…I’m not sure that I can do another just yet.” She rubbed her temple, avoiding eye contact with Wind Sprint.

“But you’ve gotta try. The big race starts at six o’clock tonight. I’ve gotta make sure that I have wings.”

Sky gave her friends pleading looks, hoping that one of them would change the subject or defend her. When no one spoke up, Sky looked at Woodwind and remembered how she had exhausted herself when Pair needed help setting up her game store. Wanting to do the same for her friend, Sky looked back at Wind Sprint with an anxious chuckle. “Ok then…here it goes. Berry? Angel Eye? Could one of you lend me a feather?”

Berry shrugged apathetically, so Angel Eye rolled her eyes and plucked another feather from her wing, and she held it out for Sky.

Planting her hooves and lowering her head, Sky pointed her horn at Wind Sprint’s chest. Like last time, Sky levitated the feather from Angel Eye’s hoof and suspended it in front of Wind Sprint. White sparks sputtered from Sky’s glowing horn, and her forehead beaded with sweat. She grunted and strained, but she could only conjure feeble sparks that fizzled out before they even touched the clouds.

“Come on!” Wind Sprint shouted.

Distracted, Sky lost focus and concentrated magic exploded from her horn. Her friends were blasted off their hooves, and Sky blacked out and collapsed.

Once the bright blotches of light faded from Wind Sprint’s vision, she rolled back onto her hooves and ran to Sky. “Are you ok?” she asked.

Rubbing her forehead, Sky replied, “I…I think so…” She slowly opened her eyes as if she had an intense migraine. Closing her eyes again, she barely nodded and said, “Yeah, I’ll be fine.”

Angel Eye, Berry, Woodwind, and Pair, now on their hooves, helped Sky stand up while Wind Sprint stood by assessing Sky’s condition. While her friends asked Sky how she felt and offered comforting words, Wind Sprint remained silent, holding back the question that she wanted – no, needed to ask. Once Sky seemed to be talking and moving normally, Wind Sprint could not restrain herself any longer.

“Do you think you can try again?”

Berry, Angel Eye, Woodwind, and Pair looked at Wind Sprint as if she had committed a crime. Sky looked down at her hooves, and Wind sprint couldn’t tell if Sky was ashamed for not being able to help her friend or because she had failed to cast the spell.

“Goodness, no!” Woodwind exclaimed. “She is not doing that again.”

Regretting that she had asked, Wind Sprint nodded immediately. “Ok, ok, I'm sorry. But I just need to get-”

“No, that’s enough.” Berry stepped forward, confrontation emanating from her eyes.

Though Berry caught Wind Sprint off guard, she stood her ground, glad to have a reason to lash out at Berry for staring at her with disdain since she arrived. “Do you have something to say to me, Berry?”

“As a matter of fact, I do. You need to give up those wings there.” Berry declared.

“Oh, really?” Wind Sprint narrowed her eyes.

Berry sighed and attempted to sound more rational. “Wind Sprint, a day ago you never would’ve asked one of your friends to do something like this. Ever since you came to my bakery yesterday, you haven’t been yourself.”

She rolled her eyes. “Whatever, I’m fine.”

“Don’t give me that,” she scolded, “I saw you looking all high and mighty after your race, like you’re too good to talk to that one pony.”

Upon hearing that, Wind Sprint wanted to buck Berry where she stood. Clenched her hooves and gritting her teeth, she seethed, “I am too good to talk to that pony. You don’t know who she is or what she did!”

“Berry,” Angel Eye interjected, “that was Featherfrost, and she wasn’t very nice to Wind Sprint when-”

“That’s not the point!” Berry shouted over Angel Eye’s voice. “You’re not acting like you – that’s what I’m getting at! They’re not natural, those wings; they’re messing with your head. I say get rid of them if you know what’s good for you!”

Stepping forward threateningly, Wind Sprint said, “Not natural, huh? Then why don’t you take your own advice and get your head out of berry bushes and live up in the clouds where you belong.”

Sky, Pair, Angel Eye, and Woodwind gasped.

Berry stood still though Wind Sprint’s face was inches away from her. “I made my choice, but at least I’m not-”

Wind Sprint scoffed and mockingly said, “Don’ give me dat! Hai, I’m Strawberr'eh Shortcake, and everypon’eh should be like me cuz I’ve got everythang figured out! Here, eat sum pie!’”

Stepping between them, Sky said, “Wind Sprint, calm down! She just wants you to be happy!”

“If you want me to be happy," she said to Sky, "then get her out of my face!” She gave Berry a hateful look.

Wind Sprint expected one of her friends to back her up, but they didn’t respond.

“Fine!” She stomped away from them. “I don’t need you! Any of you! I can win this thing by myself!”

Sky, Angel Eye, Woodwind, and Pair chased after Wind Sprint, pleading for her to stay with them.

Without looking back, she shouted, “And don’t bother coming to the race!”

She tuned out whatever her friends were saying until she could not longer hear them. On her own, she looked down for something to kick, as she often did when she was frustrated on the ground. Seeing nothing but fluff, she scuffed her hooves on the clouds, and she scuffed again, and again, and again. Eventually, she kicked the clouds while she walked, making disheartened grunts with each kick.

Enduring her parent’s rejection was hard enough, but hearing her friends reject her wings was unbearable – well, hearing rejection from Berry at least. Wind Sprint readied her wings for flight, for the thrill of flying silenced all burdensome thoughts. But she sighed, tucked in her wings, and continued walking, unable to understand how the wings that gave her so much happiness and joy could also give her so much heartache.

She climbed down a cloud staircase connecting from Cloudsdale Stadium to the town center. Halfway down the staircase, she felt as if she had started walking on an overly soft mattress. At first she ignored it, dismissing the sensation as an odd patch of cloud, but the feeling did not go away. Soon it felt as if the clouds beneath her hooves were thinning into quicksand.

Looking at her wings and down at her hooves, she realized that she was sinking into the clouds. She looked at the ground miles below, and her heart started pounding in her chest. Hyperventilating, she sprinted down the stairs.

In the town center, she frantically searched for a hospital. She scanned the town several times, and in her panic she did not see the hospital at first. When she finally saw it, she made a beeline toward the building.

Within fifty yards of the hospital, she was up to her knees in the clouds. She waded through the clouds, clawing at them for something – anything that could hold her weight. As she ran, she noticed shriveled, orange feathers falling through the clouds. With a look of horror, she looked back at her wings again and saw that most of her feathers were gone. The limbs were retracting back into her body, leaving behind decaying skin that vaporized into glowing white embers of dying magic.

Realizing her dire situation, through fearful tears, Wind Sprint cried, “Help!”

She cried for help again and again. She was twenty yards away from the hospital, and she was up to her neck in the clouds. Like a swimmer shackled in irons, she could not keep herself up no matter how much she swiped at the clouds. Although she knew this, she did not stop struggling.

As the clouds reached her chin, she saw pegasi rushing out of the hospital. Wind Sprint reached out for the nearest pegasus, the receptionist, and clung to her the moment their hooves met. At that moment, her hooves lost all grip on the clouds, and she felt Sky’s magic depart from her.

“How’d you end up like this?!” the receptionist asked while other nurses helped lift Wind Sprint above the clouds.

Wind Sprint didn’t respond. Burying her face in the arms of the receptionist, she hid her face and cried. She didn’t know if she was crying from intense fear, frustration, or whatever, but all she did know was that her life was in the hooves of a group of strangers.

As Wind Sprint’s world faded into darkness, she heard a nurse call, “Get a stretcher out here!”

Wind Sprint woke and found herself laying in a hospital bed. She rolled onto her side and saw that she had a fresh pair of wings protruding from her back. Seeing her wings again, Wind Sprint exhaled with relief.

“Oh, good! You’re awake!” said a female doctor checking up on a patient in the bed next to Wind Sprint. “You must’ve had a pretty good scare. I know I would’ve.”

“You could say that,” Wind Sprint replied and grunted as she rolled onto her back. Realizing that she had blacked out, she sat up abruptly and asked, “How long was I out? What day is it? Hey, doc, how long was I out!”

The doctor walked to her bed and pulled out Wind Sprint’s clipboard, and she said with a raised hoof. “Take it easy, now. You were only out for a little over four hours.” Reading from the clipboard, she said, “So, the transmutated wings spell, was it?”

Wind Sprint nodded.

“You should’ve known better than to walk on clouds alone with that spell. It’s still a very unpredictable, unperfected spell,” he said, her tone gentle.

With her arms crossed, she rolled her eyes, thinking of Sky. “Yeah…I know,” she said.

“Luckily for you, we had a unicorn doctor with us today for the Arc Races.”

“Yeah. Sure.” Wind Sprint said, recalling the doctor at registration who had examined her wings for performance enhancers. She scanned the room for a clock and found on the wall to the left of her bed. It read 4:30, which meant that she had thirty minutes to report to the stadium. “Thanks for the help, doc. Just give me what I need so I can get out of here.”

“What’s the hurry? Just take it easy. Do you have someplace to be?”

“Yeah, I do.” She threw off her blanket and hopped onto the cloud floor, which felt refreshingly firm again.

Wind Sprint checked out of the hospital with the receptionist. Recognizing her, Wind Sprint thanked the receptionist for catching her while she signed her release forms. The receptionist and passing nurses asked Wind Sprint how she had found herself in that situation, but Wind Sprint avoided their questions, only giving them vague answers. The last thing she need was a herd of doctors lecturing her for racing with transmutated wings – there were more pressing matters on her mind.

Once she checked out of the hospital, Wind Sprint tested her new wings by stretching her wings. They felt the same as the ones that she had before, and knowing that, she flew toward the stadium.

When she reached the stadium, she joined the finalists in the waiting room and received a new racing number from the clerk of the course, number eight, for she won the eighth and final heat. The eight preliminary races that occurred earlier had been building up to this final race, the race that all of Cloudsdale came out to see. If she won this race, she would move on to Nationals, where she would compete with racers who won the Arc Races in their respective area of Equestria. Though she was so close to that reality, she felt as if she was in a dream. But this was it, the race that would define her as a pegasi. She would not lose.

While waiting for the race to start, she watched the other competitors prepare for the race. Featherfrost was among them. Wind Sprint did everything that she could to avoid her; however, she often glanced at Featherfrost from the corner of her eye, telling herself repeatedly that she could beat her. After waiting for what felt like hours, the racers were called into the stadium. Many of them dashed out of the waiting room, performing loops and twirls for the cheering audience. Wind Sprint, however, casually flew out and marveled at the stadium that surrounded her.

Blinding spotlights illuminated the track, synchronized colored lights flashed at the rim of the track, a pep band played from a small section in stands, and the scoreboard featured each racer's stats. Amazed, she took in everything that her senses could perceive, determining that this would be an event that she’d never forget.

One by the one the racers reported to their assigned lane on the starting cloud, and Wind Sprint stood on the number eight imprinted on the cloud. She tuned out the crowd, determined to remain focused, and she shuffled her hooves.

A male announcer’s voice blared throughout the stadium. He rambled on about the Arc Races, what will happen to winner, and other exciting things about the competition that excited the crowd. When the announcer concluded his speech and a brief introduction of each racer, the referee approached the starting line. He lifted his hoof over the horn and said, “On your mark…get set…”

Wind Sprint crouched down – ready.

The horn blared and Wind Sprint soared off the starting cloud with the other seven racers.

Twenty laps, that’s all she had to do. Much more familiar with flying, Wind Sprint maneuvered around the track and the other racers with ease. She swerved through the turns and streamlined her body on the straight stretches.

Though she was racing better than before, she was also racing against better fliers. Like her last race, Wind Sprint was able to keep up with the other fliers for half of the race. But as the race went on, she struggled to keep up. Sweat poured down her face, but she swallowed the pain, allowing it to fuel her.

Three laps to go. She lingered in fifth place since the thirteenth lap – but this wasn’t good enough! She pressed harder and harder, ignoring the painful feeling in her gut that seemed to be tearing apart her innards with each passing second. She passed another racer – fourth place.

Two laps to go. She flapped faster and faster. Coming up on the next racer, she zipped through the turn and passed him – third place.

Final lap. Two more fliers stood in her way of first place, and one of them was her, Featherfrost. She would not lose to her. Giving everything she had, Wind Sprint stretched and flapped until it felt as if all her limbs, both real and artificial, would pop out of their sockets. She took deep breaths through clenched teeth. Thrusting her weight forward, she streamlined her body. She was inches behind Featherfrost’s hooves now – she just had to give a little more! Giving it her all, she streaked past the finish line.

The crowd thundered with applause.

Wind Sprint, sprawled on the starting cloud, immediately looked up at the scoreboard. Her name appeared in the third place, mere milliseconds after Cirrus, who placed second after Featherfrost.

Winds Sprint’s head fell, resting on the clouds in defeat. She failed, and if what her friends said was true, all of Ponyville and Cloudsdale saw it. Feeling as if all of Princess Twilight had sentenced her to public humiliation, she was called out to the winner’s platform with Featherfrost and Cirrus. Begrudgingly, she climbed onto the lowest platform and was presented a bronze medal. Though she knew that she should be pleased with third place, she couldn’t convince herself that it was good enough. She accepted the medal, sure, but merely looking at it filled her with disdain.

The moment the ceremony and honorary speeches finally ended, she climbed down from the platform and headed out of the stadium.

“Wind Sprint!” Featherfrost called from behind her. “You were amazing!”

Attempting to maintain her pride, Wind Sprint turned around, stood up straight, and said, “Yeah, I know. I’m an earth pony and I almost beat you. I’m not so Wingless now, huh, Featherfrost?”

Ashamed, Featherfrost lowered her eyes. “No…I guess not. Look, Wind Sprint, I’m sor-”

“That’s right, I’m not!” she snapped. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have friends who want to see my awesome medal!”

She turned around and walked away from Featherfrost taking quick, sharp breaths through her nose. Though she may have lost to Featherfrost, Wind Sprint had the satisfaction of knowing that Featherfrost would be ashamed for nearly losing to an earth pony who only had wings for two days, and she wanted to keep it that way.

As she stepped out of Cloudsdale Stadium, another pony called, “Wind Sprint.”

Recognizing the voice, she turned and saw her father, the last pony she expected to see. “Dad?” She almost smiled. “Where’s mom?”

“She’s still in there.” He nodded his head back toward the stadium. “I wanted to talk to you.”

“Really?” Wind Sprint said, looking down at her medal, unsure of whether she should flaunt it or hide it.

Her father smiled. “Let me see.” He reached out and grabbed Wind Sprint’s medal. “I can’t believe you placed third. Really, I can’t.”

“You’re not upset?” she asked.

“No, of course not!” her father said. “Wind Sprint, I’m proud of you, so very proud of you! It’s just…I thought you already knew that.”

She huffed. “Of course you’d say that. What kind of parent wouldn’t?”

“Wind Sprint, listen,” he said, and he guided her to a bench and sat down with her. “When you were born, I won’t deny that we were shocked. We were. Completely! I mean, two pegasus parents having an earth pony filly? What’re the odds, you know? The doctors said that they could give you wings such as the ones that you have right now.”

“Then why didn’t you? And why didn’t you ever tell me about this spell when I was little?” she snapped.

“Because you were our Wind Sprint,” he replied calmly. “You were and still are our precious little filly, and we didn’t need to give you wings to make you any better than what you are. On top of that, we didn’t want you to have to the spell reapplied day after day. I just don’t know how you would’ve handled that as a filly. And what if something went wrong? What if the spell gave out while you were walking home from school? We couldn’t bear the thought… So your mother and I chose to leave Cloudsdale and start a life in Ponyville so that you could grow up and become the pony that you were meant to be.”

He reached for Wind Sprint’s medal again and admired it in his hooves, staring at the #3 engraved onto the metal. He sighed with a smile and said, “I’m so proud of you – I really am. You’ve only had those wings for – what – a few days, yet you beat dozens of other pegasi who’ve had their wings since birth? That is amazing…no, incredible!”

He let go of the medal and looked into Wind Sprint’s eyes. “My speedy little Wind Sprint would run all across Equestria simply because she loved speed so much. That is the true pegasi within you, and it will always be there whether you have wings or not.”

“So you want me to get rid of my wings? Is that what you’re saying?” Wind Sprint said.

“Not at all. Yes, I don’t think you need wings, but you are your own pony now. If you truly love having wings, then keep them. Just know that I love you for what you are, no matter what.”

Understanding that Wind Sprint needed a moment alone, her gave her a hug and stood from the bench. “Now, I’m going to go find your mother. See you later.”

Wind Sprint sat on the bench contemplating what she had heard. She loved having wings, but she could no longer deny that they were not nearly as fulfilling as she thought they would be. Her friends love her as an earth pony, and her father loves her as an earth pony. But the decision wasn’t about them, it was about what she wanted. She sat in silence, weighing the pros and cons of being an earth pony and being a pegasus.

She heard a group of ponies approaching her, and she saw Sky, Angel Eye, Berry, Woodwind, and Pair standing in front of her.

“We thought that was you,” Sky said. “We looked for you after the race. What're you doing out here by yourself?”

“Just thinking,” she replied.

“Ooooh, thinking!” Pair said, rubbing her hooves together mischievously.

"About what?" Woodwind asked.

Though she was still replaying the conversation that she had with her father in her head, she shrugged and said, “Nothing much.”

“You were outstanding, Wind Sprint. You defied textbooks today. You should be proud,” Sky praised.

“Yeah…proud.” She crossed her front legs.

“Everything ok, Wind Sprint?” Woodwind asked.

“Don’t worry. I’m fine.”

Sensing that something was troubling Wind Sprint, the five ponies looked at each other with confused looks, unsure of what to do next.

“Well…” Sky said, “we’re going to catch the next gondola. It’ll be heading back to Ponyville soon, so that’s where we’ll be if you want to meet up with us. Good job on your race.”

Angel Eye, Berry, Woodwind, and Pair congratulated Wind Sprint as well, and they left Wind Sprint alone on the bench.

Wind Sprint watched her friends walk away, and then she made her choice. They hadn’t even taken ten steps when Wind Sprint called, “Sky!”

All her friends turned around, and Sky said, “Yes?”

“Take them,” she forced herself to say.

“Take what? Your medal? But you won that fair and –”

“No.” She paused. “My wings. Take my wings.”

“What?!” her friends said in unison.

“But Wind Sprint...” Sky said.

“What happened? Did someone say something unkind about them?” Woodwind asked.

“Not really,” she said, picturing her parents’ faces. “It’s just…” She shrugged again but she smiled. “I just don’t want them. Now get these things off of me!” She shut her eyes tightly.

“But Wind Sprint, you know that they will fade away, right?”

“I know,” she snapped, keeping her eyes shut. “Just do it now!”

There was a few moments of silence, and then Wind Sprint heard magic charging in Sky’s horn. The next thing Wind Sprint knew, a swirl of magic encased her body in a cocoon of light and her body levitated a few feet off the ground, just as it had before. She felt a similar burning sensation in her wings, but this time the sensation was almost pleasant. Her artificial bones shriveled into what felt like brittle twigs. Sapped of their magic, her wings disappeared.

Before she dropped, she remembered that she wouldn’t be able to walk on clouds anymore. Just as she was about to cry for help, four hooves wrapped securely around her chest, the hooves of Angel Eye and Berry.

`She looked up at them with a grateful smile and said, “Thanks.”

They pulled Wind Sprint up and carried her above the clouds.

Wasting no time, Sky, Pair, and Woodwind returned to the gondola that descended to Ponyville. Angel Eye and Berry followed them, lowering Wind Sprint back to Ponyville alongside the gondola. Back on the ground, Sky, Pair, and Woodwind hopped out of the gondola, the cloud-walking spell dissipating from their hooves, and met up with Angel Eye, Berry, and Wind Sprint.

“So, do you think you’ll miss your wings?” Angel Eye said.

She shrugged and nodded indecisively. “Yeah, I’m sure. But I think I’m going to stick with being an earth pony. I know for a fact that I’m the fastest runner in Equestria, after all! And hey, if I really want to take a day to fly, you can hit me up with another spell, eh, Sky.” She nudged Sky’s shoulder.

“There’s the Wind Sprint I know!” Berry said.

Wind Sprint turned to Berry, remembering the last conversation that they had. Gratefully and apologetically, she said, “Thanks for what you said before. I didn’t want to hear it, but it was the truth.”

“Uh huh, uh huh. Keep going!” she joked, inching closer to her.

“Oh, hush!” She said, teasing her accent in good spirit, and she shoved Berry playfully.

Woodwind stepped forward and said, “What do you say we go to Berry’s place for some muffins and tea! Let’s celebrate Wind Sprint’s phenomenal performance.”

“Ooh, that sounds great!” Pair said.

“Sounds good to me!” Wind Sprint agreed. “I’ll race you there! Loser has to pay!” She dashed toward Berry Café, laughing at the cries of protest from her friends.

Running felt refreshing to Wind Sprint, like returning to an abandoned hobby – unfamiliar yet natural. Flying was great, one of the most thrilling experiences of her life, and she would never forget it. But, on this night, the excitement that came from flapping wings, tremendous heights, and speeding through vast skies could not compare to the excitement that she felt with each powerful stride of her legs. With joy, she ran.

~~~~~~~~~~

After hanging out at Berry Café for several hours, spending the time talking about the past two days, Wind Sprint, Angel Eye, Woodwind, and Pair left Berry’s café for the night. Sky, however, stayed behind while Berry cleaned up their mess. Dipping her quill in ink, she wrote,

Dear Princess Twilight,

Today I gave my good friend Wind Sprint a pair of wings. Though she only had them for two days, she did things that I never thought possible. She was so natural with wings that you’d think she was meant to be a pegasus, but that wasn’t true. After placing third in the Arc Races in Cloudsdale, Wind Sprint realized that the only reason she felt that she needed wings was because she wasn’t happy with herself. Now that she loves and accepts what she is and the gifts that she has been given, she is happier than I have ever seen her before. So whether a pony is a unicorn, a pegasus, or an earth pony, each of us is born with something special. There will always be things that we want to change about ourselves, and sometimes there are things that we need to change, but nothing feels better than embracing the things that makes you special.

Your faithful student,

Celestial Sky