Crazy, Clever and Cunning

Chapters

Ponyville Panic
Giggling Doesn't Help
Kitchen Implements and Magic Studies
More Studying and Thievery
Change of Plans
Minor Cleanup
Zebra Boutique
Swarms and befriending the unknown
Prank Wars
Zombie Nightmares
New look around town
Magical Mishaps
Deepening Mysteries
Private Investigations
Changing Seasons
Hide from the Vamponies
Observing Sunny Town
Dog Gone It
A little bit of Chaos can go a long way
Cider and a new home
Filly Panic and Nightmare Returns
Revelations
Hospital Interrogation
Road to Recovery
Not so Sunny Discoveries
Winter and Exploration
Road to a Wedding Gala
Invasions and Galas
Lunas and Rubys
Crystal Trix
A Sunny End
Last of the Blanks
Discordant Tests
Secrets Revealed
The Day After and a Party
Teaching Sweetie
Forest Jaunt to Trouble
Trip Home from Trouble
Mystery of a Magical Nature
Secret in the Everfree
Change of Pace
Invasion Take Two
Hospitals and Summaries
Tirek
Crusaders and the Panicked Alicorn
All Good Things Must Come to an End
Mareless Moon Rises
I Ain't Afraid of No Ghost
Accidents Happen and a show of trust
Author's notes

Ponyville Panic

“Just how long can three ponies panic for?” I mumble to myself as I see the pink furred, blonde maned pony run by again. Her along with a light cream furred, magenta maned one, and a pink furred, green maned one have been constantly running around since I had arrived. “Probably related or close friends judging from them all having some sort of flower mark.”

Turning towards the surrounding buildings I see that most of them are still closed up, though there are some that look to be open but they aren’t the kind of store I’m looking for. Seeing little choice for now I head towards the crowd I had spotted earlier in hopes of hearing something about what is going on now.

As I get closer I can see and more mature looking beige pony with grey mane. She seems to be trying to keep the others calm though seems to be only partially successful. Moving along the edge of the crowd I can pick up mentions of a “Nightmare Moon” and “Night time forever” from those in the crowd. A few of them glance oddly towards me, their eyes seemingly drawn to the sunstone about my neck. Hmm, either they don’t use enchanted gems at all, or it’s just very uncommon I think to myself while keeping an eye and ear out.

While not catching much else from the crowd that makes any sense to me, I do finally spot a shop over the top of the crowd that looks to deal in gems, and looks to possibly be open or at least occupied. It takes a while to make my way around the group in front of me though as I decide to circle around it instead of trying to push through.

Entering into the light of the lanterns around the shop the stone around my neck begins to dim until only the softest of glows can be seen from it as if reflecting the light around it. Making my way into the store I notice nobody around the front area, though I do hear some noise in the back. They must of heard the sound of my hooves on the wooden floor though as I hear a “Be with you in a minute,” come from somewhere in the back.

Taking my time I examine the various displays around the store, noticing the decent quality of much of, and take note of the prices that seem to be used. I recognize a few of the gems and stones used in some of the pieces, though some are unfamiliar to me. Luckily a few of the gems I have don’t seem to be in use in any of the items I see, and few seem to give off any sort of magic so even my poor skills at enchantments can bring in more to the bargaining table.

Hearing steps coming closer from the back I turn to see a pink mare, Really, what’s with all the pink mares I’ve been seeing lately, with a platinum colored mane exit the back room. Adorning her flank is a diamond ring, “Sorry for the wait, I didn’t expect anyone to actually show up what with the, situation right now. I am Diamond Band, proprietor of Diamond’s Jewelry how may I help you?” She says while examining my dusty appearance with a wary eye.

“Yes, I’ve heard bits about what is going on, but not the full story though I’m sure it’s only temporary. My name is Flarenza, and I recently arrived in town and needed to obtain some funds for lodgings. I have come across some various gems and stones in my travels I wish to sell and hoped that this would be a place to do so,” I reply trying to be polite though a bit ashamed as I only now notice my appearance could be better.

The mare raises an eyebrow at this as she doesn’t seem to be expecting much from me. “Well we do buy from independent groups on occasion, we usually get all we need from our usual sources,” she says while eyeing me, “But seeing as you are new in town I guess I could take a look,” she finally concedes while bringing out a few tools from behind her counter.

I breathe a small sigh of relief in response to this and advance to the counter while bringing out two pouches, one blue and one red, from my packs with my magic, making sure to leave the special one inside my bags. Placing them on the counter I careful remove from the blue pouch two sets of three gems of two types, one type a pale white stone and the other a very light blue, and place them atop the bag. From the other pouch I do the same, but the time with the stones being a pale orange color, and the other a blazing orange and red. All of them have been polished into an oval shape, and the mare’s eyes widen at the sight of them.

“I was definitely not expecting pieces of this quality,” she states, “I’m not even sure if we’ve even had these kinds of gems come through here before,” she seems a bit breathless at seeing something beyond what she normally gets, while carefully examining them all from different angles. When her hoof comes into contact with one of the blue stones she shivers a bit as her eyes widen even more.

“As you probably have noticed, yes they all have a type of enchantment on them, though it is weak,” I say to her, grinning a little. “While not great, they each are still useful enough. The moonstones,” I gesture to the white ones, “give off a soft glow that is gentle on the eyes while the sunstone,” pointing to the pale orange ones, “Give off a brighter, warmer light. Both of them only work in the dark to conserve energy.” I demonstrate this by covering all but one of the gems while dousing the lanterns in the place with a twitch of magic before relighting them all.

“The turquoise as you have felt gives off a cooling sensation and is useful during warmer weather, though it does work to cool hot objects as well, it drains them faster than it can recharge. The last gems are fire opals,” pointing to the last, “and work in the opposite way by giving off gentle warmth. These ones aren’t strong enough to really heat anything, though they can still bring things up from colder temperature if needed.”

Her eyes have left the stones at all during my explanation, probably in shock that someone in my state would have things like these in their possession. Eventually she shakes herself out of her stupor to ask, “Where did you find these at? The gems alone don’t show up around here much, but the enchantments on them even of this level are almost impossible to acquire.”

“Well the gems weren’t that hard as I traveled through areas where they were more common, the enchantments though,” I pause considering if I should admit the next part, “Well those I was able to do myself, they aren’t anywhere near what my teacher could do, but I can get it to work a bit if I can match the spell to the stones.” This last bit causes her eyes to widen again and then she gets a look on her face as if she is reassessing her opinions.

After a few minutes she sighs and seems to come to a decision and names a price, one higher than what I expected. I guess even that little amount of magic I could put in the gems isn’t a common skill here. I take a moment to think the offer over and decide to not push things by haggling, reasoning that if I can seem reasonable I may be able to do some more work of the likes without having to search hard for a job. At my nod at this her eyes light up a bit, probably expecting me to haggle for a much higher price.

As we conclude our business and she hands over a pouch of coins, called bits apparently, and I head out of the store pausing to wave a hoof back to her as I pass the threshold, glad to see a smile on her face unlike her expression on first meeting her.

As I get outside the crowd seems to have mostly dispersed, though there are still a few ponies here and there talking in hushed tones. Looking around I notice a large board next to the building I assume is the town hall, as everyone was gathered around it, and head over to see what is on it.

Nearing it I can see it is filled with various flyers of differing sorts, and on closer inspection they seem to be of various things, from job postings, to missing objects, to even a few items for sale. I peruse those last ones and am happy to notice that there are a few homes for sale or rent among them, though many priced a bit higher than I would like, or of a size smaller than I’d look for.

As I am about to turn away and look elsewhere a fluttering of a slightly discolored flyer catches my attention. It is mostly covered up by the others so it takes a bit of work to get it out, but when I do I am surprised to find that it is for an old place out near the Everfree Forest. Judging from the description it’s not the cottage as that wasn’t large enough, but the size is much larger than I could ever need. What catches my eyes though is the price.

“Something has to be wrong with this place, whoever owns it is selling it for barely a quarter of the price of a place half its size. Maybe it’s the proximity to the forest, other than the cottage everything seems to be well away from it?” I ponder through this as I look for whom to contact about this and notice that the place of sale is the Town Hall itself. Glancing up at the building next to me I shrug at my luck and head inside.

On entering I notice that the place is a bit of a mess, as if they were having some sort of celebration recently, though there are a few ponies cleaning things up. I notice a desk with a darker mare behind it and head over assuming they can point me in the right direction. As I near the desk she glances up with a look of annoyance on her face.

“I’m Dusky Script, blah blah blah, what do you want?” she says in a bored tone without looking up from her work. I raise an eyebrow at this as I haven’t seen this type of attitude on a pony yet, odd looks and skittish behavior sure, but not outright rudeness.

Deciding to stick with politeness I bring up the flyer, “Well I was looking at the board outside and found this flyer for a home; I was wondering if it was still up for sale and where if so where I need to go here.” The mare sighs audibly at the fact that she may have to do something to help me, though when she catches sight of the flyer her eyes widen as she breaks into a chuckling grin.

“You want to know about THAT place? You definitely must be new here; nobody has asked about that place in so long I’d thought everyone heard about it. Yeah it’s still up for sale, if you actually want it.” The look on her face makes me rethink on the wisdom of this place, but seeing as I have limited resources right now and the place is probably out of the way of others this is probably my best bet.

“Yes this place should do nicely for my needs, it can’t be all bad as the forest doesn’t bother me much, and judging from what I’ve seen I won’t have to worry about bugging any neighbors with my… experiments.” I state to her confidently. She just shakes her head, laughing at me as she digs in her desk for paperwork that I assume is regarding to the house.

“Well whatever seems to suit you, but don’t come running back complaining if you can’t handle the place.” She lays out the forms for not only the house, but what looks like a census form as well. That makes sense as I will be living in the area now and governments like to keep track of that. Filling out the forms is easy enough, though I have to pause at the spots marked Family and Previous Home as they hit me a bit hard as I am forced to mark None to both.

Returning both completed forms, as well as a stack of bits for the full payment of the house she only nods as she passes over the deed and keys to the place, along with a simple list of directions. She does raise an eyebrow at the census forms as she looked it over, but just shrugs and mutters, “None of my business,” and files them away. She then proceeds to go back to ignoring me so I take that as a sign that business here is concluded and make my way outside again.

As I head out I have to shade my eyes a bit as the sun is now shining again, and I can see what looks like a small procession heading along the path from the Everfree Forest. Taking a moment to stow the sunstone around my neck back in my bags, I curiously head towards a good view point to get a better view of the approaching group. I’m not the only one with this idea as what looks like the whole town is out for this.

Trying not to jostle anypony around me, I find myself a spot in a nearby alley atop a close barrel which I pushed out towards the street a bit. I can hear murmurs of the others nearby of what sounds like “Princess Celestia” and “long-lost sister” among other comments. My ears perk up a bit at this as this seems to be an unusual place for royalty to show up at. I decide to keep an eye on this as I probably won’t have a chance to see them again.

It takes a while, but the procession eventually arrives to this point of town, and I am surprised to see the six mares I saw head into the forest as part of it. Each of them seems to be having a different reaction to being in the spotlight of the town. The orange pony and purple unicorn are calmly waving to everyone, while the cyan pegasus and white unicorn seem to be basking in the attention. The overly pink pony is bouncing around all over the place waves to and talking to everyone, though a couple times it looks like she was in multiple places at once. Behind them all though I see the buttery pegasus, Fluttershy, trying to hide from all the attention, guess it’s not just a name.

Behind the six I spot what I assume is the Princess and I stare in shock at her appearance. She easily towers over all the others around her, and not only has a horn but wings as well. Her fur is a pristine white color, while her main is a flowing prism of colors that seems unreal. Emblazoned on her flank is an image of the sun which brings up stories I’ve heard of her actually controlling the sun. My eyes shift a bit to the form next to her next, which causes a shock, but to a much lesser extent.

I assume that this must be the “long-lost sister” I heard mention of as she also possesses wings and a horn. She is of a dark blue color though with a mane of a slightly lighter blue. She has a symbol of a crescent moon on her flank and as her sister possibly controls the sun, this must mean she controls the moon. I wonder if she had something to do with the incident causing the longer night I ponder as I watch the procession.

As it nears the street outside of where I am I hop down and prepare to leave, but I my eyes catch sight of the older sister suddenly raising her head high and look around with a frown. I wonder at this odd behavior as she looks around then shakes her head and goes back to her smiling countenance. Did she sense something off in the area? Could she have maybe felt something about what I was? I panic at this a bit and slowly back down the alley making note to try not to get in close proximity to her again just to be safe.

Once I exit the alley I pull out the directions to my new home and start heading towards it to get an idea of what I may need to do with it. I make sure to avoid the procession from then on, which isn’t hard as it was heading deeper into town while I was heading away from it. Soon enough I reach the edge of the town and an open field that is between it and the forest, I can spot a building that is near the edge of the forest a decent distance away, and assume that it is my destination.

The walk there is uneventful though relaxing after my recent scare, and I also take time to go over the deed to the house. “Huh, looks like there is a fair bit of land around it that is part of the property, though looks like part of it extends into the forest. That seems odd as from what I’ve seen most of these ponies seem to avoid it completely.” It takes about fifteen minutes to get to the house at a walking pace, and I am surprised at what I find.

“This place is much bigger than I expected. I know it says it has six bedrooms, but they must be pretty big ones for a place of this size,” I stare at the multi-storied building in wonder as I note that it even seems to be in one piece still with little damage. Going around the outside of it there seems to be no damage to the place, though the flower beds and gardens are a complete mess which is easy to fix. All the windows seem to be in good condition as well which is odd for a building abandoned for any length of time.

“I really wonder what is wrong with this place now, as from here I see nothing that would explain the price. Must be something terrible about the inside that will need to be fixed,” I consider various problems there could be as I make my way to the front door which is on the side facing the town. The door is in good condition and unlocks with no problem as I slide the key into it. Once I enter though I get an odd feeling going up my spine though.

Shuddering at the feeling I start to explore the lower floor of the place which seems to be in decent condition, if a bit dusty. The entryway contains stairs that lead up to the next floor, with doors on both the left and right side of it. The right leads to a living area that contains a fireplace, and another door into a study with empty bookshelves. The left door heads to a kitchen with a large pantry, as well as stairs into the basement which is empty beyond a few tables against the walls. Every room seems to be fully furnished and even the cupboards in the kitchen are fully stocked as well as working plumbing.

Heading out I notice a door under the stairs which upon opening leads to a bathroom area which also has everything working. I decide to head upstairs to check out that level as a feeling of worry continues to grow. “This place is too good to be true, there has to be something about this place that I haven’t been told,” I mutter to myself while keeping an eye and ear out everywhere.

Reaching the top of the stairs I ponder where to start and decide to go with the master bedroom which is right at the top. Inside is a large bed that could easily fit six ponies at once, as well as other furnishings commonly used by mares and stallions. In the far corner I find a door leading to a walk-in closet of considerable size which I have some ideas for. In the other corner of the room is a door leading into a luxurious sized bathing area which has both a shower and a large spa sized tub. Leaving the room I head down the hall to the left of the stairs and check out the individual rooms.

Each of them is decently sized with bed and dresser, as well as a simple bathroom with toilet and shower for privacy. Each of them are largely the same, though the feeling of unease continues to grow as I head down the hall to the other end of the building. As I reach the final door my unease is at its highest and I start to pick up an odd scent.

Steeling myself for whatever is behind the door I open the door to have my nose assaulted by a strong odor that I now recognize… Blood. Within the center of the room is a pale pony that on closer inspection I can partially see through. As the door hits the point on being fully open the figure turns towards me and I can see black hollows where its eyes should be. “Frig… This place is haunted,” escapes my mouth as the figure’s mouth opens up into a frightening scream as it glides across the floor towards me.

Author's Note

Well there is the second chapter. Things advance a bit, find out a few things about the character, and now some real fun begins soon. As always, any comments good or bad are accepted. Depending on the content it can help me improve your reading experience beyond what I may have to offer now.

Giggling Doesn't Help

Why does it always have to be undead was the first thought that came to my mind while staring at the creature. It even has to be of a type the fire won’t work on. It’s just not fair I think as the thing approaches the doorway. As it hits the threshold of the door it vanishes leaving a blast of cold to surround me with clattering sounds sounding throughout the house.

Closing the door I turn towards the hallway and bolt towards the master bedroom, glad that I hadn’t left my packs anywhere. Upon arriving I enter and slam the door closed before digging into my packs for the special bag of gemstones I have hidden in it. Quickly digging it out I dump the bag onto the bed and unwrap and rewrap the individual stones until I find the one I am looking for.

When the chosen stone, a moonstone, falls from its wrapping it shines out into the room and brings with it a sense of peace. At that feeling I give a sigh of relief even as pounding starts to sound at the doorway to the room. “Glad I still have mother’s stones. I never could get the protection charm to work right on this kind of stone,” I say as I levitate the gem up to the chandelier in the center of the room and attach it to the base of it.

Once the gem is set I head over and open the other two doors in the room to let the light flow into them as well, expanding the protection to this area until I can find a way to deal with the ghost in the rest of the place. “The one house that catches my eye and it has to be haunted, I knew my luck was too good to be true,” I say as I move towards the window and look outside towards the forest. “I’d rather handle the creatures out there than have to deal with undead again.”

While observing the forest I notice the light is starting to fade, that combined with how long I’ve been going tiredness has started to set in. Yawning as I open the window I levitate over the covers of the bed and flap them out the window, removing all the dust that had built up over the years. Returning them to the bed, I remove the last of the food I had stored in my packs and finish it all off, while getting water from the bathroom sink to wash it down.

Exploring the bathroom I find that it is currently empty of any supplies, but luckily the plumbing still is in working order. Starting up a warm bath I head back to my bags to retrieve my towel, Glad to think I always keep one of these around at all times traveling, and bring it into the bathroom with me. I slowly climb into the large tub and relax as for a while as I let the heat soak in regardless of the noisy ghost outside.

“First thing I need to do tomorrow is stock up on a bit of food for a few days. Then I need to figure out what type of ghost that is and how to get rid of it, hopefully there is a good book shop or library in town,” I plan out while using my magic to brush out the dirt from my hide as well as possible. “If those options fail I’ll need to find somewhere that can get me the information I need, that castle in the forest looked old, even if it’s abandoned it may have something I can use If all else fails. Between all that I need to get that garden cleared out for use so I can get some of my seeds planted and growing. I really hope that ghost isn’t a complicated one though, the more that they are the harder they are to remove.”

Sighing I pull the drain on the tub and levitate over my towel to dry off as I get out of the tub. Heading back into the main room I climb up onto my bed and bring over my packs for a quick inventory. After this latest trip on the road there isn’t much left in it that doesn’t need to be replaced or refilled in some way. Other than the special bag, I have one other pouch of unenchanted gemstones to work with, as well as some chalks to assist in the matter. A dozen empty padded vials lay next to the one with the flower I retrieved from the forest, as well as a few various collection tools gathering samples of larger items. Those along with the remains of waxed wrappings are all that are left in the one bag.

The other bag contains a few of my more important items and is therefore better padded. The crystal I use for predictions and minor locator spells is safe in its box container, alongside my new bag of bits, containing eight hundred bits after the five hundred for the manor, as well as the map I used to get to where I am. The last and most important items though are my personal journal that I use to note down the spells and tricks that I have learned, as well as a stone plate engraved with my family emblem. Embedded in the cover of the book are various gem fragments, each with a minor enchantment on them to protect the book from damage. The plate though is naturally resistant to damage and has the ability to store magic in it for the purpose of maintaining a single spell.

Sighing at how few items I have on me, I store them all back into the packs before I set it down at the foot of the bed and crawl under the covers. Through all of this the ghost is still making a racket, likely in anger at being blocked out, which is starting to annoy me. Sighing I rest my head on the pillows and drift off to a restless sleep.

<><><><><><><><>

Awakening the next morning I grumble at the doorway as that blasted ghost is still at it. The night was not very restful with that thing causing all that racket constantly and it is starting to make me think it wants me gone. Stretching as I leave the bed I gather my packs for another trip into town to gather a few things I need.

I get an idea on a way to get out without it having to go by the thing after I fasten my packs securely. “If that thing is bound to the inside of this place then the window might be the best way to enter and exit. I’ll need to pick up a ladder for getting back in though.” Heading over to the window I open it and look down along the wall noticing that it is clear before setting my hooves on the window’s edge.

Concentrating I cast a light version of a glue spell on my front hooves and bring one around to the wall on the outside of the window before sticking it to it. I then swing out and latch my other hoof to just below the window and hang there a second as I close the window. I then proceed to alternate dispelling and reapplying the spell to my hooves as I climb down the wall until I reach the ground.

“I love how versatile this spell is, I wonder if I can find a way to make it even better,” I ponder as I make my way around my home and off towards the town. Judging by the sun it is still early morning so while most places may still be closed at least there should be something for food.

As I enter the town I spot a few ponies going about their business doing whatever they do around here. Passing a flower shop I notice two of the three I saw running around panicking yesterday, so my hunch at them being close in some way looks right. Passing the shop I keep an eye out for some sort of eatery that is open right now. The first I spot seems to be some sort of bakery judging by the smells, but its odd appearance makes me wary of it for now. Instead I find a café that is open a few blocks away that is just outside what appears to be a market area.

Taking a seat at an open table I am soon greeted by a waitress who leaves a menu for me to peruse. Taking note of what the place offers, I am pleased to note that, while most fruits, grains and other plant matter, there appears to be fish as an option during later hours. Making note of this to check why, I order a simple meal of oatcakes with a strawberry topping, and a glass of water.

The meal passes quickly and is better than I expected. Standing I pull out the cost of the meal from my pouch plus a little extra and set it on the table before heading into the market. Making note of a few things to look at later I first stop at a nearby book store I spot.

After browsing and questioning the person working inside, I am disappointed to find that the closest thing to what I am looking for they have is a book on ghost stories. A quick glance into it proves that it is a simple entertainment type book, though I do happen to get directions to the library which should be of more use.

Exiting the store I decide to hit some of the nearby stalls for a couple days’ worth of food so I don’t have to constantly eat at restaurants. Glancing around I am surprised to see the orange mare from yesterday running an apple stall. Getting a better look this time I make note of her hat and blonde mane as well as the three apples for a mark on her flank before heading over cautiously. Seeing as apples can last a while I decide to cautiously approach the apple stall.

As I near the stall I am greeted by the mare, “Well, howdy there. Ah don’t think ah’ve seen ya around these parts before.” I raise an eyebrow at the strange accent, but reply, “Yeah, I arrived in town yesterday and am in the progress of cleaning out my new place. Unfortunately I have a bit of a pest problem keeping me from using my pantry so I’m running around for a few things to last until I can clear it out.” I glance over the price list and hand over enough bits for a half dozen apples.

“Well glad ta hear about someone new in town, what kind of pest problem is it? Ah may be able to point you ta the right pony for the job,” the mare replies while gathering up some up the produce. “I’d appreciate the help, but I doubt there is anyone in town skilled at clearing out a ghostly pest problem,” at this statement the mare stumbles and would have dropped my purchases if I hadn’t caught them in time, “Wait, YOU’RE the mare who bought the Old Bloody Manor? Ya are either the craziest mare ah know or the bravest.”

My ears perk up at this, “Old Bloody Manor? I didn’t know the place even had a name, let alone a ghost that causes a large enough racket to keep me away most of the night.” The mare brings a hoof up to rub her chin, “Well the thing is that nopony knows what happened there, just that one day the owner up and vanished leaving a room covered in blood and the ghost appearing as we… Wait. You actually STAYED there all night? Nopony has been able ta do that before, how’d ya manage that?”

“Not easily. After finding the ghost I ran to the master bedroom and locked myself in. I was lucky enough to have a gem with a protection spell on it that I could keep in the room keeping it out of there and the adjoining rooms,” I respond to her question causing her jaw to drop at the mention of the gems. “Those must be some strong gems to be able ta do that, guess ah should let the betting pool know the results and that Twilight won, though not because of the lack of ghosts.”

The unfamiliar name and mention of a betting pool catch my attention, “Betting Pool? And who would this Twilight be?” I ask. “Well every time that house sells bets go out on how long they last in there, not one has lasted overnight ‘til now. Also that mare would be Twilight Sparkle, the current librarian in town that moved in the day before you arrived. Speaking of which, my name is Applejack, part of the resident Apple family and owner of Sweet Apple Acres,” she reaches a hoof out to shake which I accept.

“I’m Flarenza, random traveler and I guess current new pony in town.” The mare vigorously shakes my hoof almost causing me to fall over at her strength, afterwards I realize part of what she said, “Did you say librarian? I was meaning to head to the library once I gathered a few things. I was hoping to find something on ghosts there but judging from what you said asking for help finding it might not be a good idea.”

“Well Twilight is of good sorts and well-read, she does tend ta block out certain things. Best ta ask her assistant for help if ya need it.” I ponder this for a second and nod to the mare, “Well thanks for the advice, I need to make a few other stops before I head over there, especially for a ladder to get back in my home,” I wave to her as I head off. “Not a problem, and don’t be a stranger, especially livings all the way out there,” she calls as she waves back.

I stop at a couple other stalls to pick up some bread loaf and cheeses as I head through the market. While going through it I stop by a store called Sofas and Quills, seriously who thought that was a good combination, and pick up some quills and ink before finding a hardware store. There I was able to pick up a ladder that, while longer than needed, still fits the purpose I needed it for. Deciding to not carry all this stuff around I carry it all back to my home and set up the ladder for entry into the bedroom window.

Once I stash most of the food in a drawer, with a turquoise stone to keep them cool, I climb back out while ignoring all the pounding and wailing. Once down I examine the ladder and use a glue spell on all four legs of it to make sure it stays in place for now before heading off to the library. As it seems to be around midday I also chew on one of the apples I kept with me, “Huh, this thing is pretty good.”

Finishing off the apple, core and all, I make my way back into town. Finding the library was easier than I thought, though I thought the book store owner was joking about it being in the tree. Heading to the front I look at the sign and see that it is called the Golden Oaks Library and seems to take up a few levels, yet somehow the tree is still alive. “I’m going to have to figure out how that was done some time.”

Approaching the door I notice the handle turning and dodge to the side as a purple unicorn streaks on by from inside of it. Turning back to the library I see Applejack coming out of the place, followed by a baby dragon to which cause a raised eyebrow as, while having seen a few, aren’t overly common in non-dragon areas. “I’m guessing that was the Twilight Sparkle you mentioned before,” I mention to Applejack to which she nods then motions to the dragon. “Yep that was, and this is her assistant I mentioned, Spike. Spike this is the new owner of that manor ah mentioned Flarenza.”

We both greet each other and then head inside the library. “So I hear that you are the one to see for help on finding information on my little pest problem,” I say to him. “Yeah, Twilight doesn’t believe in those things, which makes it a wonder that she won that bet,” he states while looking through the shelves. “Don’t know how much help I’ll be though, haven’t seen anything yet that could help, though I’ve only been here a couple days.” I nod to him and start looking through the shelves on the opposite side for anything that may help.

Over the next hour we find a few possible books, like Ghosts and Ghoulies of the World, and Undead Abominations and You but nothing on how to remove them. They do at least help narrow down what exactly caused the ghost, but even then the results are not promising.

“So the best case scenario, the ghost is just some restless spirit that has a nasty grudge. At worst it is either guarding something voluntarily to prevent others from getting to it, or involuntarily bound there through creepy magic. The first and third will try to kill, while the second only to scare away though the first is easiest to deal with but with no mention of how,” I plant my head into the table trying to wrap my head around this.

“Well at least you know a bit more about it and if you do find a solution you can tell what would work best on which type of ghost,” Spike says as the library door starts to open. “Spike I thought I told you there are no such things as gh- Oh hello, I didn’t know we had visitors,” I hear from the doorway. Looking up I see the purple unicorn has returned from where she went, her bags looking a bit heavier.

“Yes, I’m Flarenza, owner of the building containing the transparent nothing that kept me up all night,” I say half sarcastically to her, “Also the one that seems to have won you a good amount of bits I hear, assuming you are the Twilight Sparkle I’ve heard about.” My second comment interrupts her train of thought from my original response causing her to blush at that. “Well did get a little something, but what do you mean by transparent nothing? Do you mean to tell me you actually saw something in there?”

“Yeah, even heard the scream it made too. I was a pale white form of a pony that I could slightly see through, yet where its eyes should have been were just black holes,” the description causes her jaw to drop, then she pauses and brings her hoof up to rub her chin. “This is the first sighting I’ve heard of directly from a witness, whatever it is I want to check it out,” she nods and starts gathering things into her saddlebags while I just stare at her.

As she rushes out the door she stops for a second to turn and ask, “Are you coming?” I turn to Spike who just shrugs and shakes his head at this to which I just sigh and join in on the head shaking, “If you insist, but I hope you are ready for this crazy thing.” I stand and proceed to follow her out while waving to the dragon. Turning to Twilight she seems to be a bit too excited about this as she trots along the path leading to the side of town the manor is on.

I only half listen to what she is saying as I think on what to do when we get there, not wanting to be caught unprepared. The number of spells I know that can help in this situation are limited and I make note to research some new ones for later use, if there is a later. As we near the manor she rushes ahead to the door but is stalled as it is still locked from when I was last here. I motion around towards the back, “the keys are still up in the bedroom, I had to make… alternate plans for entry for now,” I explain. She shrugs and trots around to the back ahead of me while I follow after, noticing how quiet it is right now.

As I round the building I find her prodding at the base of the ladder trying to move it yet failing due to the spell still on it. “What is holding the ladder down, I don’t recognize this spell,” she questions while examining it. “It’s nothing much, just a simple timed glue spell I made. I just apply it to one surface then it sticks to whatever touches it. I’ve been meaning to try and modify the limits on it a bit to stick only to things I want it to,” I respond. Her eyebrows rise at this and she goes into her thinking pose again.

Just shaking my head at her I pass her and climb up the ladder and into my bedroom again. Soon afterwards she finally makes her way up through the window, looking around curiously. “Sorry about the mess, but I haven’t had a chance to clean up what with that crazy thing in the house,” I mention as I head over and unlock the door before peering out.

The hallway is clear, yet I still can feel the sense of unease from last time I was here. I turn towards Twilight to ask, “So do you want to lead the search for it or should I?” She ponders this and responds, “It’s probably best that you do so seeing as you’ve seen it before.” She pulls out a quill and parchment and starts jotting things down as we walk out into the hall.

I decide to start with the room I found it in originally, but unfortunately it seems to have moved elsewhere. None of the other rooms on the top floor yield any results either and the look on Twilight’s face suggests she is getting a tad annoyed. Heading downstairs we start with the living room and study and find nothing as well and I reluctantly head towards the room a dread we will find it.

“Well obviously there is nothing here and this is a waste of time. As I’ve been saying there are no such things as ghosts and there is nothing wrong with this house. There is no way anything like that can exist and cause the problems you have claimed,” she rants as I open the door to the kitchen and freeze.

“Um, Twilight?” I say gesturing her towards the ghost in the kitchen. She peers in as it starts to turn its eyeless face towards us along with all the drawers in the kitchen opening with every sharp implement contained in them floating out of them. I turn towards her with wide eyes as she looks at me and I say one word before the ghost shrieks, “Run…”

Author's Note

Well chapter three is up and now the fun can really begin. Comments, complaints and whatnot still heavily encouraged, though at this point just a couple readers will do <.< Sorry if I mangled the AJ accent, but I'm not very good at it so am trying a minimalist approach to it. Also 10k word mark, yay. I really feel envious of those that can pump out that per chapter now as even with the amount I do it feels like I'm dragging on. Though I guess that's to be expected during the early chapters of building things up.

Kitchen Implements and Magic Studies

“Run…”

Being the first thing that comes to mind to say at this situation, it is pretty appropriate as the ghost shrieks at us while being surrounded by sharp kitchen implements. Before anything else can happen I shove Twilight to the side as I attempt to slam the door shut again. This mostly works as it gets the purple unicorn out of the open door and behind cover, but the door only blocks most of the flying utensils with a couple sneaking by and grazing my flank.

Yelping at the pain from the minor cuts, I quickly bolt towards the stairs with Twilight right behind me. Without us noticing when we were looking into the kitchen the furniture in the entryway was also floating into the air while we were distracted. Between the two of us though, me with levitation and Twilight with her shields, we were able to deflect most of it away from us though it blocked the front doorway.

We quickly raced up the stairs as the kitchen door slammed open behind us with the ghost and flying implements gliding through it. “I hate undead, I hate undead, I hate hate hate HATE undead!” are the only things coming out of my mouth as we dodge our way towards the open bedroom, while all I hear from Twilight is heavy breathing.

With a few more close scrapes to me, and none to Twilight thanks to that purple shield of hers, we finally manage to dive into the bedroom to safety. As the door closes we hear the sound of all the remaining tools slamming into it, followed by the angered shrieks of the ghost controlling them.

It takes us a while to calm down and catch our breaths from the close encounter, and the first thing I can think of to say is, “I guess that rules out option two of it being a friendly ghost trying to scare people.” Twilight just stares at me, her eyes shrunken down to pinpricks still.

“That was a ghost, ghosts should not exist, how is there a ghost here, why is there a ghost running around your house?” tumbles out of her mouth when she finally is able to speak again. As her eyes go back to normal she enters her thinking pose, “And how is it that it can’t seem to come into this room but has free access everywhere else?”

“To your first question, I have no idea. That’s why I was at the library; I was trying to find answers on why it was there, what kind it was and how to get rid of it. Unfortunately I only found possibilities on the what. Your second question is much more easily answered though,” at this I levitate the moonstone down from the chandelier to in front of her. She stares at it oddly for a second and asks a question I wasn’t expecting.

“How did you bring this down here?” she questions while bringing out a quill and parchment from her packs, both surrounded in her magenta aura. Glancing between that and the lack of aura around the stone a couple times I finally grasp what she is asking, “Ah, that… I’ve actually had to learn how to suppress my aura for a couple reasons, mainly for safety and to conserve energy,” I explain, “If you look closely you can still see lights waves of it still, and it also shows up if I am focusing hard enough or am strained.”

Twilight nods absently at this while examining that as well as the stone while writing down something on her parchment. This goes on for a bit as she examines the stone, occasionally with her horn growing brighter, with a deepening frown growing on her face. “That’s interesting about the aura, I’ve read about it before, but it’s extremely rare. This stone on the other hand I can’t quite grasp what is on it or how it’s stopping that creature like you said,” se comments while obviously avoiding the ‘G’ word now.

I set the stone on the ground so that my magic no longer interferes with her observations and start to explain, “Well the important thing is that it is enchanted in a way to provide both light similar to moonlight as well as an effect that protects the area from magical influences. It being a moonstone causes it to resonate especially well with those kinds of spells.” At this explanation she turns to look at me with a raised eyebrow while still writing.

“That’s a rather powerful enchantment to be in a gemstone, there aren’t many that have the ability to do things of that level. Where did you get something like this from?” she asks, not knowing the effect it would have on me. I wince at the question, though briefly tensely, “My mother… WAS able to do enchantments of this quality, she taught me what she could but I’m not anywhere near as good as her.”

She pauses in her writing as she catches my tone and tries to apologize, “I’m sorry, I didn’t know that was a touchy subject with you.” I shake my head a bit trying to clear my mood, “It’s fine, I try not to think about it too much as it’s been a few years now. That and all my traveling I haven’t had time to get ahold of all my feelings on it.” She looks at me with an odd look in her eyes before shaking her head and looking at her parchment.

“Well anyways enchanted gemstones are pretty rare, especially of this level. Even those that can do minor ones are well sought after,” she pauses as she considers this, “If you wouldn’t mind I would love to see how you do it since we are safe for now.” I ponder this for a second, grateful for the topic change, and slowly nod to her. “I guess I can show you, though I may only have enough power for a single gem right now. I need a space on the floor cleared of dust though if you can do that.” As she seems to be done with it for now I send the moonstone back up to its place on the chandelier before bring out the unenchanted gem bag from my pack.

Looking through the bag while she clears off a space I consider which one I should show her. Noting that I still have a good number of them, I retrieve a turquoise from the pouch and return the rest to their place. Setting the stone in the space cleared off I then pull out my journal as well as a piece of chalk, both of which Twilight looks at oddly. Turning to the appropriate page, I start to draw out the diagram of a simple focusing circle around the gem.

The circle is a simple five pointed star, surrounded by two circles. Between the two circles at each point of the star I draw a symbol corresponding with the five natural elements; earth, fire, wind, water, and magic with the last being at the top point. Through all this Twilight is still writing notes, already on her third page now. I then leaf through my journal to the page containing the cooling spell I know of as a reference.

Making sure that the stone is perfectly centered while I am at the section opposite of the magic point I place my front hooves on opposite sides of the circle, just barely touching it. Glancing one more time in my journal I proceed to channel the spell from the five points of the circle and directed into the gem. It takes a couple minutes and most of my remaining magic, but the gem eventually gives off a light glow before settling back down to normal.

As I catch my breath Twilight lifts the gem up in her magic and examines it from different angles, occasionally poking it with her hoof feeling the effects it causes. “Fascinating, I’ve never watched somepony enchant anything before and even of those that I have read about none have used magic circles before,” she says while writing still.

I ponder her statement and wonder how best to respond to this, “Well I’m not sure about others that can do this, but I use them along with one of my magic affinities to place the spell on the gemstones.” Her ears perk up as I mention affinities, “What do you mean by magic affinities? I’ve never heard of that term being used when somepony describes their magic before.”

Why do I feel that we are going to be here the rest of the day if I keep describing magic I think to myself before responding, “Well in my travels I’ve noticed that when somepony uses magic it tends to work best if it follows a certain element or type. Those aligned to fire are good with fire spells, or those with an affinity to levitation can lift either great weights or a large number of objects, things of that type. I have found that there are two types I know of that I work well with. The first involves enhancing the nature of an object or, in the case of gemstones, what it represents to various extents; I’ve labeled this affinity Order for lack of a better term. The other one I haven’t fully grasped what it is, but it seems to involve breaking rules of things, such as that glue spell you saw it’s really just enhancing the tendency of the object to stick to other things.”

Throughout this she is scribbling furiously, going through a couple parchments which Is odd as it seems to be more than what I’ve mentioned, most likely other notes as well. “This is fascinating,” she says distractedly, “I haven’t heard of anypony looking at magic in this way before, but it makes sense when you think about it. It even can explain a bit on the reasoning for why certain cutie marks are the way they are,” I wonder what she means by cutie marks when she stops for a second and point towards my flank with her quill, “Speaking of which, do you mind if I ask what yours represents? I haven’t seen anything like that before and I’ve been curious about it.”

I turn my head to look where she is pointing and notice she is referring to the mark I put there. Oh, that I think while rapidly trying to come up with a story for it. Examining the symbol I take in the fox head in the center and the wreath of tails surrounding it before an idea comes to mind from a word in her question.

“Well there are a few things that it relates to, but it boils down to three things mainly. First is for my cleverness in putting ideas together, which led me to using the circles for enchanting. Second is for curiosity and how I research into things that catch my attention. Third would be a bit for craziness, as why else would I be trying to live in a haunted house,” I laugh a bit at the laugh though the joke is ruined by the howling outside the door.

Twilight looks thoughtful about this before going back to her notes and examining the gem. Thinking on this I come up with an idea, “You know you can keep that to study later if you want as thanks for trying to help out here. Also hopefully you could lend me a book with that shield spell you used; I could really use that if I have to face the ghost again.” She brightens up at the offer though winces at the use of the word ghost again.

“Um, sure, I can find you a copy of that at the library if you think you can handle it,” she replies looking out the window. “It’s getting pretty late, so we should probably do that now if you want it done today,” she starts to pack away the notes she has taken at this and we both head over to the window. We both climb down the ladder, with Twilight pausing to examine the glue spell again, and make our way back to the library.

As we make our way through town I notice a few ponies giving me odd looks and I start to wonder why. As we enter the library I find out why pretty quickly as Spike greets us, “Hey, welcome ba- Whoa! What happened to you out there?” he exclaims while pointing at me. Glancing at where he pointed I realize that I had forgotten about the cuts I had received from the ghost, “Ahh, I forgot about those. I kind of got nicked a few times by flying knives the ghost was hurling at us. I was distracted by all the magic talk and enchanting.”

Twilight blushes at this and sends Spike off for a med kit while she looked through the books before pulling one down. “This one has one of the more basic spells for shielding, it’s probably best to start with this one,” she says while setting the book on a nearby table while bringing out the turquoise and sitting at another with her quill out again. Taking a seat on a cushion at the book she set down I bring out my journal to take notes.

I get absorbed in taking down notes on the spell that I don’t even notice Spike return to treat my wounds. Even the pain of whatever he put on them doesn’t distract me, and neither does his attempts at conversation. He soon gives up and gets Twilight’s attention to find out what happened as he finishes bandaging me up.

The spell is relatively simple as, once you get around most of the technical speak, it is basically a hardening of magical energies into the shape you wish. While figuring out the notes I come up with a few other applications that this can be used for as well, such as an impromptu ramp or projectile, which I add to the notes as well. Pondering testing the spell, I give up on the idea as I hadn’t recovered from making that gem yet, but add a few more notes on the spell that I find elsewhere in the book.

As I finish filling up the page and use a tiny bit of magic to finish drying the ink I look up to notice that Twilight is nearby looking over my shoulder, causing me to jump. “Wow you weren’t kidding when you mentioned you curiosity and cleverness. Once you got going I don’t even think the library falling down on you would have interrupted you, and some of those uses for the same spell are rather ingenious,” she mentions causing me to blush a bit.

“Err yeah; I do tend to have a bad habit of losing track of everything when I start taking notes in my journal. It’s gotten me into a trouble a few times as well and I’ve been meaning to try and fix that a bit,” I reply while noticing that my wounds are also cleaned and bandaged. Digging into my pack I pull out a fire opal and get Spike’s attention, “Sorry about ignoring you, take this as an apology and thanks for helping me.” I toss the gem to him, knowing dragons collect and eat the things, and he catches it before examining it, “Whoa, a fire opal, don’t see many of these come through here,” he then stashes it away for whatever he has planned for it.

Looking at him a bit longer, I ponder what would happen if a dragon eats an enchanted gem. I file this thought away for later and turn back to Twilight, “Since you had no idea about ghosts being a real thing, I’m guessing you have no ideas on how to deal with that thing.” Seeing her flinch at the ghost word is starting to get amusing though her response is as expected, “Unfortunately no. Even researching it will take a while as I have no idea where to even look for something like this. This type of thing just doesn’t happen often enough to have many books dealing with how to deal with them.”

I nod at this while glancing through the book still on the table in front of me, “Yeah, I thought that might be the case. Undead creatures aren’t a common occurrence, and even if they were there are still so many factors to take into account; such as type, numbers, composition, what made it, and a slew of other problems.” She looks at me oddly at the list I spew out, “That’s a rather comprehensive list for something you say is uncommon.”

I look back over my shoulder at her and comment, “When you travel around to enough places you start to see uncommon things more often than normal, like baby dragons, and even some rarer ones as well. Remind me to tell you about that friendly zombie I found sometime.” This brings about the expected response of, “There’s no such thing as zombies,” though Spike’s “Z-z-z-zombies!” is a bit entertaining.

Shaking my head I turn back to the book and notice it stopped on a locater spell. This catches my interest as I flip my journal to the one I know and compare the two. They are very similar, though the one I find has more detail to it that I didn’t know of before. I add those extra details and one jumps out at me that causes me to wonder on a potential use for this. If this can be used on words in books, I stop and turn back to Twilight sheepishly and see the miffed look on her face.

“Sorry about that, it happened again,” I then close the book as she just shakes her head and heads back to her podium. I glance outside and notice that it is starting to get dark out there. “I probably should head back for the night, hopefully the fun from earlier will cause that thing to be quieter tonight.” I turn towards Twilight, “Thanks for the attempted help with it though, I have a couple ideas to look into tomorrow, but if you find anything do you think you can let me know?”

Twilight looks up at this, “Sure, whatever that was I want to know more about it. Something that dangerous should have more information about it somewhere and I’d rather not have something like that this close in the first place. The Everfree Forest is a big enough threat as it is.” I chuckle at the comment about the forest as it didn’t seem to be that bad a place, “Thanks, I’d like to actually be able to use the home I bought sometime without worrying about flying kitchenware.”

Waving to the unicorn and dragon as I exit the library, I make my way back towards the manor. Thinking about the name of it I realize I should really come up with a better name for it, especially once I clear out the pest problem. Speaking of that, “Where can I go for more information on that thing? The princesses I saw would probably have a library where they are with information on it, but the information I’d need would probably be in a guarded section, not to mention I’d like to avoid them if possible.”

Glancing towards the forest as I round my house an idea starts to form. “Hmm, there was that castle I passed in there. Even if it is an old ruin that doesn’t mean it’s empty, and there is probably a chance that there are books in there not found anywhere else.” I ponder this idea as I climb the ladder into my room and close the window.

The ghost seems to have quieted down for now, and the room also seems to still be protected as well. I set my packs down and pull out and apple, as well as some of the bread and cheese from the drawer for a dinner meal. “I have too many things I need to do to this place still; it would be so much easier if I didn’t have that pest out there so I can inventory what I have.”

Finishing my meal I crawl into bed for some sleep, hoping to get some before the racket starts up again. Before drifting off to sleep something occurs to me, Where DID those six mares go to in the Everfree Forest anyways? Other than the castle was there anything else out there, also why did they need to go out in the first place…

Author's Note

Well another chapter up, though not as much happened as I thought I would have. Next chapter though I may have a surprise or two ready, though none of the three remaining mane 6 planned to show up yet. As usual comments, good or bad are encouraged. Starting to feel ignored here by the lack of them ;.;

More Studying and Thievery

There are many pleasant way to be woken up in the morning, unfortunately the screaming of rampaging ghost are not included on that list I think to myself as I crawl my way out from under the covers. Looking towards the window I can tell it’s still early due to the lack of light, but with the ghost active again sleep will be impossible. Sighing at this I make my way to the bathroom to clean up for the day.

After a long soak in the tub I return to the bedroom to plan out the day. Seeing as one avenue of inquiry has led to a dead end, though with potential help looking into other things on that end, I ponder the risks of a jaunt into the forest again. Pulling out an apple from my pack, I chew on it absently while packing the rest of my food into the bags for the trip out.

“Not having any non-magical means of stopping things is going to bug me. Trying to quickly pull out my magic often causes more problems than I need,” I note while putting my packs on and heading to the window. “Maybe the fact of the path being there means it is mostly safe as something has to be using it for it to be there.”

Climbing outside I observe the sky for a second and guess that dawn is still an hour or so away, this is perfect as to avoid others seeing me go into the forest which they seem to avoid. Making my way along the edge of the forest I observe it as I plod along and note the lack of any visible way in other than the path I arrived on. Maybe I should make a new path in by the manor next chance I get to make it easier to sneak in I consider.

It doesn’t take long to get to the entrance, and the owner of the cottage still seems to be asleep though there seems to be some of the night time critters crawling into various burrows and holes around the area for the morning. Making note to find out about the owner of this strange place later I head around to the forest path and make my way in.

As soon as I pass into the darkness of the trees I set all my senses to a higher state of watchfulness in reaction to entering a less safe environment. I also pick up my pace, wincing at the sound from my hooves on the terrain, wondering if I should shift back. Deciding against wasting magic on this I instead turn my thoughts towards what I may find.

If the castle is inhabited then it shouldn’t be that hard to get access to it and any books that may be inside. Even if the occupant is a loner they’d often take stories of the outside world as payment for little things, as long as you left them alone afterwards, and that’s as long as they are friendly. Hostile hosts tend to take a bit more work to deal with, yet too often that ends with sneaking around or fighting them.

If the castle is unoccupied though then things could get a bit messier. Creatures often make their homes in places like that, and they often end up being the worst of the worst kinds. Even after getting around them anything found in there is usually in a poor condition unless there are spells keeping them together. Sighing at these thoughts I try to plan out what to do as I swim the river while levitating my bags.

Once I finish crossing I shake myself out of my thoughts, realizing how far I’ve already come, and stop for a drink. I can see the sky lightening up as dawn approaches, which is a good thing as it’ll send most of the predators to sleep as the worst ones are nocturnal. Turning back to the path I continue along towards the castle.

Eventually I arrive at the bridge across the gorge, and examine it with a dubious eye. It really isn’t in that good of a state and looks to be about to fall at any time. Seeing no other way across though, I decide to use a bit of magic to hopefully stabilize it a bit. Focusing on the ropes and planks, I try to will some energy into them strengthening the order of bonds in them. Not knowing for sure if it worked though, I carefully make my way across testing each plank before putting my weight on it.

I safely make it across without incident, though there are a few places missing boards showing that others may not have been as lucky. Leaving the bridge behind I make my way up the path and to the entrance of the castle. It doesn’t take long to get to it, and judging by the state of things it seems to be abandoned if the wall damage and fallen gates say anything about it. Passing through the gates I keep a wary eye out, though a strange sensation rolls through me as I go through them.

Wondering at that feeling I keep an eye out for anything dangerous, yet despite the place being abandoned there doesn’t seem to be any sign of anything. Not even the usual hints of wildlife or monsters seem to be present in the courtyard which is distinctly odd. Making my way in further I come to what seems to be the throne room of the castle, at which I stare in awe at.

All around the hall are damaged tapestries and statues, but what is still identifiable of them all are the representations of beings like the princesses I saw. Trying to take in all of it, as well as the feeling of emptiness of the place I start to get an idea of why I haven’t seen anything. “Something must be keeping creatures out of this place, either basic fear or some sort of spell. If it’s a spell it must have been a powerful one to have lasted this long though,” I consider this while looking at the doors around the place.

Choosing a path at random I head deeper into the castle looking for where they would have stored the books here. While exploring I come across many interesting rooms, though none containing what I am looking for. From a room containing a working organ, to another with some weird stand with a white orb in the center, there are many things of interest. I even come across a kitchen which still contains some of the tools of the trade, albeit most in rather poor condition though still potentially usable if repaired.

Throughout all this though I can’t seem to shake the feeling of being watched, but from where or when it started I am unsure of. Eventually I come across a set of large doors that seem promising, what with the scrolls and other designs on it, and proceed to push them open. As I enter the room I let out an appreciative whistle at what I find… Books, lots of books. All of them seem to be in a very good condition as well, suggesting more magic coming into play, though there is a layer of dust over everything.

Heading over to a table that seems to be in good condition still I clean off an area of it to work with before setting my packs down to the side of it. “Now how am I going to find what I need in here? I was hoping to find a library of some sort, but I didn’t expect anything of this level,” I ponder all this while looking at my packs. As my eyes travel over my journal the inkling of an idea comes to mind and I swiftly pull it up onto the table, “This would be the perfect time to try out that idea with the locater spell, now let’s see…”

I turn to the correct page and try to figure out the best way to do this. After a couple minutes I decide to make my first attempt at the spell, “Okay, focus on what I need, focus on the words and charge the spell and-“ what happens next causes me to black out as I all of a sudden get a sense of the location of every book in the room, as well as some in other parts of the castle.

<><><><><><><>

I’m not sure how long I was out, but when I came to it was with one of the largest headaches I’ve ever had. Right, specifics, keep forgetting that generalizations in a new spell are bad are the first things coming to mind remembering that last time I made that mistake. Lifting my head I jerk in surprise, causing more pain to shoot through my head, as I hear something gasp, followed by the clatter of what sounds like tiny hooves.

Turning my head to the sound I open my eyes to see a blue blur dart out the door. Trying to clear my eyes and find out what happened I notice that my packs have been knocked over while I was out. Once I can fully see I head over to look inside them and am surprised at what I find, “Was I just robbed?” Going through it all I find that this is indeed the case, though the only things missing are my food supply except for a solitary apple.

Wondering on what it was that was just here I shake my head once again at my foolishness and sigh as I realize I’ll have to head back earlier today to get dinner in town. Sighing at this I turn back to my journal and jot down a couple more notes to remind me of this situation and prepare to try again. The next attempt is much less violent, though still disorienting as it tries to pull my thought to various parts of the library.

“This is going to take a while to get this to work right, but at least this is some progress. I might as well see what it’s leading me to though to see how well it worked,” shaking off some of the disorientation I head over towards the nearest mark just to find it, and the others near it, are part of a collection of scary stories to tell during social gatherings. Frowning at this I realize another factor of the spell I need to figure out is how to cancel out the ones found from the spell to lessen the distraction.

Eventually after many false leads and even a few odd ones, seriously what kind of romance book has ghosts in it? I find a section that holds some possibilities. The books are similar to what I found at the library in town, yet judging from these those ones have been censored in some ways. These ones have a few terms that weren’t in them, one which catches my eye… ‘Necromancy.’

Pondering what that word could mean I look through some of the other nearby books for the term and find it in them as well. “I haven’t heard of this before but it seems to be some branch of magic dealing with undead,” I consider this and decide to follow up on this lead as it is more than I had before. Canceling the previous spell and starting up a new one for this word I am surprised to find that the number of locations for this target is much smaller.

Barring the books in front of me and a few other random ones scattered around the place there seems to be a small mass of them further back. Making my way towards them while keeping an eye on the surrounding books I start to notice that the books in this area seem more focused on the arcane arts more than other topics. Taking heart at this I speed up as I near my target, until I suddenly come to the end and a blank wall.

“This is odd, the books should be behind this, but I don’t see any way around it,” I mutter while examining the wall and surrounding shelves. Looking in to the adjacent areas I notice something odd though, “Why does it look like these other rows go back further?” I head back to the offending wall and start to examine it in more detail. I notice quickly that some of the shelves by it seem to extend into it a bit, suggesting that the wall wasn’t originally here.

“Why hide books in a way like this? I know how bad the undead can be, but is that word that much worse than it that they’d hide the books on it?” I ponder this as I reach out with my magic to examine the area in finer detail. Eventually I am able to find two switches on opposite ends of the wall, and I carefully press them both at once. Doing so causes the wall to rise into the ceiling, revealing another shelf containing six books.

Examining the books they seem to give off a different aura than the rest of the library. Being very careful with them I tentatively levitate them off the shelf one at a time to test for anything. Not finding anything I pull them all off and carry them to the table up front. Arriving there I sat all of them on it and observe them all with a critical eye. “I’m not sure what to think of these books; it’s not often that the cover of a book is blank. I’m not even sure what material they are made of either which is even odder.”

Not noticing anything to differentiate one from the other, or even any way to tell the age of them I sigh as I restack them and pull one out at random. Opening it and turning to the first page I begin reading, my brow furrowing the further I get into it. What the book describes is disturbing and unsettling to say the least; rituals involving blood, removing skeletons from live subjects, and worse. It doesn’t take me long to close the book with a noxious feeling in my stomach, “These are much worse than I expected. I already dislike having to deal with undead, but if this is how they are made? It’s just vile and shouldn’t be allowed to exist,” I start to feel a bit of pity for the creature inhabiting my home if this is what was used to create it.

Turning back to the book and flipping through it and browsing instead of reading it now I look for anything that could be of use. The first one has nothing I want to consider, and neither do the second or third. The fourth one though, “’Flesh crafting,’ huh? ‘Molding flesh to any form that is desired by the caster.’ This… could be useful, though I’d want to look into it more an-“ I glance down at my side at the scrapes I had picked up yesterday and ponder.

Carefully I remove one of the bandages from a smaller cut and set it aside while I read through the spell. Looking between the partially healed scratch and the book I start to charge the spell up and focus on the wound. While the spell works as intended, the feelings giving off by it are not pleasant, “Yowch, if that’s what it feels like on a small injury I don’t want to try it on anything bigger. Maybe if I find some way to kill the pain in the area first it will work better though.”

Realizing the possibilities I note down the spell in my journal, but make sure at the start to underline the words, ‘Use Pain Killers,’ a couple times to highlight the importance. Going back to the other book I flip through it but don’t find anything else of use so I set it aside and turn to the fifth.

This one seems to deal more with the type of undead spells I am looking for. Going through it I find a few spells that are useful; detecting undead, speaking with the dead, as well as one that catches my eye. “’Banishing Unwanted Spirits’?! This could actually be what I need to deal with that thing,” I read through the specifics of the spell and frown at the limits to it, specifically the ones pertaining to bound spirits. “’While useful for those wanting to pass on, and those that don’t though a bit harder to banish, Bound Spirits though are unaffected by this spell and are in fact more enraged from its use. The only way to remove these spirits is to destroy the focal object that is binding them and then using this spell.’ I really hope this isn’t the kind of spirit in there,” I mutter while inscribing the specifics into my journal.

Setting the book down I prepare to pack up and leave seeing as I found what I came for, yet the sixth book seems to pull at my curiosity. Bringing it over and paging through it I stare in confusion at much of what is contained in it. I barely understand a thing in it and some of the words seem to shift in strange ways. Many of the pages even contain spell circles of various kinds and complexity showing that this is a high-level book. About to give up on the book my attention is caught by a spell in the back of it.

“’Staving Off Death?’” I say in wonder, “’Use of this spell should only be used by those of the highest levels of casters due to the effects. Results of those without the correct requirements is immediate death.’” My eyes shoot up at that wondering why anyone would use a spell to stop death if it could kill them, yet I continue reading, “’The requirements of this spell are as follows: the subject must not have been dead for over an hour; the subject must be in a mostly healthy state, barring the injuries causing said death; the subject must be in the center of the diagram on the following page, along with the appropriate elements at each corner; and lastly a diamond of a clarity appropriate to the purity of the subject must be supplied as a container for the bargain with the gatekeeper.’”

Flipping to the diagram I boggle at the complexity of it though the elements needed are relatively simple and can be varied it seems. Turning back to the previous page I read through it all again before shrugging and decide to copy it all down in my journal as a curiosity. It takes I while but I manage to perfectly copy down the diagram into on the opposite page, not only double checking but triple checking that every symbol is in the correct place. Finishing that I close the book and look around, before my rumbling stomach interrupts me.

Pulling out the apple that the little thief missed I start to pack everything into my bags, including the books for closer research. As I finish this I head towards the castle exit, my mind on what I’ve learned as well as the thief. Judging from what little I could see it seemed relatively small, and the sounds were close to what a pony of smaller size would be. Wonder what a foal, I believe they are called, would be out in this place for. I ponder this as I exit the castle, again shivering at the odd sensation, and head back to town.

The way back is uneventful, though I notice the cottage resident is around judging by the smoke from the chimney, and I get back to my home unscathed. Heading in I stash the books in a bookcase for later review and head on out to town. I make note to check with Twilight later to see if she found anything as I make my way towards the café I tried last time, seeing as the market area seems to be closing up.

Heading through the town I still notice a few odd looks from the ponies around, though not as many as the last times. I guess they must be getting a little used to seeing me, though they probably wonder who I am. Still, this is a nice town, though that building that looks like it’s made of candy is odd, it might be nice to get to know of those that live h… Why in the world did everything just turn pink?

Author's Note

Well another chapter, another day. Wonder how long I can keep up this pace until I hit a wall now. As always comments and complaints are encouraged as I have little clue at what I'm doing. Also may have lost something as I tapped the 'back' button on accident, so probably more errors than normal.

Change of Plans

Never in my life have I seen anything so pink, not only that it’s the pinkest pink I’ve ever seen. If I was told I would see this much pink at one time I wouldn’t have believed it, and is where is that cotton candy smell coming from? This is all interrupted as a pair of blue eyes enter my vision and I realize this wall of pink as actually a pony.

“Hi I’m Pinkie Pie you must be new in town because I haven’t seen you before because if I had seen you before then I would know you and if I knew you then you wouldn’t be new in town and…” she breaks off into mumbling for a few more minutes as one of my hooves reflexively travels to her mouth. I sit there and wonder at her talking abilities and wonder why my hoof is now in her mouth as I don’t remember putting it there. I swiftly remove it once I realize that she has stopped talking and try to come up with a way to respond.

“Um yes, I just moved into town a couple days ago, my name is Flarenza and I am the new owner of the, err, haunted manor outside of town,” I pause near the end as I almost say the one name I heard for the place, realizing I still need to change it. “Ooh the place with the funny ghostie in it? I tried to cheer it up with a party once but it was all screamie and meanie and stuff and threw all my party stuff out,” she pauses a second and lets out a large gasp, “I had a great idea, I need to throw you a ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party since you are new here, and since you are new here yo-“

Once again my hoof enters her mouth as I calmly say, “No, no parties please, I have enough of a headache dealing with that ghost without having to worry about something like that.” This was obviously the wrong thing to say as she gets a really sad look on her face and her hair deflates that can’t be a good thing. “No party? But everypony loves my parties, why don’t you want one.”

A feeling of dread starts to come over me though I don’t know what is causing it though it seems best to try and pacify her somehow, “Look, it’s not you it’s me. I have issues being the focus of large groups of those I don’t know and I don’t know you well,” she still looks sad yet her eyes do look a bit brighter, “How about this, let’s have a bit of a guessing game. I’ll let you have one guess a week and if you are correct it means we know each other well enough and you can throw the party then,” I hope this is enough as she seems to be thinking about the idea when her hair pops up again.

“Ooh that sounds like fun I love guessing games and it’ll give me more time to plan the party so what are we gonna guess on huh huh huh?” She is really starting to creep me out a bit with her hyperness and mood swings, “Well this should be a good one as I have never told anyone, ‘What is my favorite flavor of cake?’” She listens carefully as I explain and then starts bouncing around in place.

“Ooh I love cake I work at Sugarcube Corner and make cakes and cupcakes and other fun stuff everyday so I’m an expert at cakes the kind you eat and not my bosses and I know all kinds of cakes…” I just tone her out at this point waiting for her to answer as I’m starting to get more of a headache than normal. Eventually she seems to calm down and enters what I assume is a thinking position.

“Hmm, how about, no that isn’t it, maybe, nah that’s mine, oh I know, CHOCOLATE!” A few nearby ponies look at her oddly before shaking their heads seeing who it was. “Unfortunately that’s not it,” she start to deflate again at this so I try to head off her mood, “But at least you can try again next week, and just think, this gives you enough time to plan and make it the best party ever.” I say this in a bit of a panic trying to guess on her views and hope I get it right, which I fortunately seem to be.

“You’re right,” she rebounds back to her original attitude, “This is perfect I ran out of balloons at my last part so I wouldn’t have them for this one and I can get my party cannon out of the shop for this and try out all those new things I wanted and…” Once again I am forced to tone her out for the sake of my head at trying to keep up with her. How can anyone talk so much without breathing? Eventually she stops her train of thought that is spewing from her mouth though.

“Well it was nice to meet you Flarie but I have plans to get ready for so see you later,” at this she then dives behind a nearby tree… and pops up out of a chimney down the road? “What the?” I boggle at that happening for a second and I thought breaking rules was how MY magic worked, that’s just ridiculous. Also what was it she just called me? I just shake my head at this and decide to find out more about this… later. For now my rumbling stomach points out that food should be the main priority.

Dinner is a simple affair with a nice salad and fruit drink on the side. Finishing my meal, I head out towards the library to see if Twilight found anything and to let her know my results. Seeing as it is getting a tad late and the sky is starting to darken a bit I start to wonder if it can wait until tomorrow. As I near the library from the side I notice the door open and a bunch of mares leaving, Twilight among them, all carrying golden tickets. I realize they are all the ones from the forest, though only three of them I haven’t officially met.

As I get closer most of them have parted ways and look to be heading back to their homes so I try to get Twilight’s attention. It looks like it takes her a second to realize I am waving to her and then she seems to look apologetic. “I’m so sorry; I haven’t had a chance to look into your problem yet. I had promised to help Applejack on her farm today, and then with the incident with the ticket I haven’t been able to look into it yet,” I get an odd look on my face when she mentions a ticket.

“A ticket? What kind of ticket can cause an incident that takes up a whole day?” I ask her out of curiosity. “Well I got a pair of tickets to the Grand Galloping Gala and everypony wanted the extra one. It was only just now that I could get one for all my friends,” she seems to notice that the look on my face hasn’t changed and looks at me curiously. “Aaand the Grand Galloping Gala would be what, exactly?”

At this her look turns to one of shock, “What do you mean what is it? It’s just the most prestigious event that happens every couple years. Tickets for it are very hard to acquire, and just about everypony wants one. How in Equestria have you not heard of it before?” At this I just give her a look and respond, “Well it’s not that hard to have not heard about it when traveling all over the place, many of the locations not being in Equestria.” At this she seems to look a bit sheepish and shuffles her front hoof a bit, “Oh, right…”

Taking a bit of pity on her I decide to change the subject, “Well anyways, while you may not have had a chance to turn anything up, I did find some information that is useful as well as a couple spells.” She perks up at this and starts looking a bit excited at the mention of new spells, “Really? You already found something? That’s amazing! I thought it would take weeks if not months to find information on the spells, let alone actual spells themselves. Do you have them with you?”

Chuckling at her over eagerness I just pull out my journal as flip to the correct pages and levitate it to where she can see. “Well there were two useful ones that I hope can help solve the problem and a third one to at least locate it. As you can see one of them is a spell that I can use to find where it is hidden, so no more running into it unawares. Next is one to communicate with it, though I think there is more to that spell than just doing that. It’s this third one that is the real issue,” I turn to the page with the banishment spell, including all the notes which she reads.

“These spells are amazing, I with how few books I know of on the subject just seeing spells of this type is amazing. I’m not seeing the problem you are talking about with this banishment spell though; everything looks like it should actually do something, most likely what it says it should.” I just sigh and point a hoof at the warning, “It’s this part here that worries me. If it’s a general ghost then it should be fine, but if it’s a bound one then there could be problems. It already seems to be angry, I don’t even want to know what it will be like if it gets even worse.”

Having seen the creature once already her eyes narrow to pinpricks at the thought of it getting worse, “Um, yes I guess I can see the problem, he he.” We head inside the library for a bit so she can get her own copies of the spells and notes before I goodbye to her and head home. I think on how to deal with the ghost with these spells as well as the best way to do so.

“Definitely waiting until tomorrow to do anything. Maybe I should practice that shield spell before I sleep tonight as a precaution, as well as make sure I fully grasp the others,” I continue this line of thinking as I climb into the room and get everything settled. I spend the next couple hours practicing what I can, eventually getting up a stable shield for minutes at a time, before eventually crawling into bed for the night.

<><><><><><><>

The next morning starts off much like the last, with a lot of screaming and banging from the ghost. “I really hope I can get rid of that thing today, this is getting ridiculous.” I keep up a list of complaints as I get ready for another trip to town for breakfast, as well as some other necessities. Before heading out though I test out the detection spell again to find the ghost streaking around various rooms of the house, trying to enter into this area.

Interestingly enough it doesn’t seem to try from above at all which causes me to stop at the base of the ladder and look at the building. “Isn’t there an attic in this place? It looks like there is enough space for one, so why haven’t I seen a way up there?” Pondering this I make my way into town and to the café I have been using.

After a simple meal there I see that the market is starting to fill up again and make my way over to it. Once again I see Applejack there selling apples from her stall so I head over to pick up some more. “Well howdy there,” she greets me as I approach, “Good ta see ya alive and kicking still after being in that place these last few days.” I nod to her pulling out a handful of bits for another six apples, “Yeah, had a small issue when Twilight came over to see it, though she seems to still refuse to use the word ghost for it. I have a couple things to try today to get rid of it though, hopefully they work otherwise I’m afraid that the problem is worse than I thought.”

She passes over the apples which I pack away, “That bad, huh? Well try not to take any unnecessary risks out there. That thing has been around a while now and ya wouldn’t be the first one ta try and get rid of it, them other folk didn’t come out too pretty in the end.” I wince at this though I am still confident, “Well I doubt the others were quite as prepared though. I’ve already upset a betting pool that always went through, surviving this thing would fit along the same lines.”

Finishing with that topic, I ask her for advice on a few other things I need to pick up and where to get them. With her directions in mind I wave to Applejack as I head off on my rounds of the market. It takes a while to get to the various places, but in the end I come out better supplied than before with a bit more food than last time, as well as some bathroom necessities and some cleaning supplies.

While doing all this I catch the occasional flash of pink out of the corner of my eye and suspect Pinkie Pie is spying on me trying to figure out what to guess next. I chuckle a bit at some of the things she pops out of and wonder once again how she does that. Shaking my head at that I head on back towards my home, distracted only a moment as a grey pegasus in a blue uniform drifts on by before crashing into a wagon of carrots causing me to wince.

Eventually the pink pony seems to have given up and make my way back into my bedroom. Taking a moment to put my purchases away I prepare for the coming struggle. Preparing myself I go over the spells in my journal, including the shield spell before closing it and cast the detection spell, finding it in the bedroom I first found it in.

Having noted that there seems to have been no specifics on the communication spell, I make myself comfortable on my bed before I start to cast it. As I feel the spell begin linking to the ghost I can tell that it is working. Unfortunately the ghost also feels it and I am given a headache beyond headaches as the feeling of it screaming through the connection causes me to hastily cut contact with it. “Great, I don’t think there is any intelligence left in it. That’ll make it harder as it seems to just be reacting at random with no plan.”

I rest my head down as I nurse the headache down while contemplating my next course of action. “The banishment spell is going to be a bit harder, but still doable with my current levels. I just hope that it isn’t a bound spirit otherwise I’ll probably have to get rid of it if I ever want to sleep again. I better make sure I take precautions just in case though,” at this I bring out the pouch of special stones and search until I find the one I’m looking for. On seeing the flash of green I rewrap it and set it on the small table by the bed.

Checking one more time that the ghost is still where I found it, I make my way into the hall while starting to charge the spell. I quietly make my way down to the end of the hallway and stand by the door while I finish getting a full charge, “I sure hope this works, the alternative would not be pretty.” Taking a deep breath I yank open the door and focus on the ghost.

As it starts to turn towards me I let loose with the charged spell and strike it directly on its side, knocking it back across the room. I continue to channel more power into the spell as I keep it pinned to the wall, it struggling the entire time. After a short time though I start to begin sweating, not from the pressure of the spell, but from the fact that it doesn’t seem to be doing anything, “Frig, I think it is a bound spirit.”

I start to panic and begin to back away through the door while keeping the spell up. Once I am out I take another breath and simultaneously cancel the spell and slam the door shut before making a break for my safe haven. Not even a second later I hear the ghost scream at a volume many times louder than normal. I react to this by attempting to throw up a shield around me, even with my low amount of practice. Luckily it works though as the door behind me is ripped off its hinges and flung down the hall at me.

The shield shatters at the impact, but is enough to deflect the door away from me. This also buys me enough time to dive into the bedroom and slam the door closed again. I can tell the ghost is enraged now as it seems to be causing much more damage than normal in an effort to get to me. I sit in the room shaking in terror for over an hour before it seems to give up for now, though the damage has been done.

With my legs shaking, I get back onto my hooves and move to the center of the room and look up at the moonstone. While it is still glowing, I can see that it isn’t as strong as it was, and using my magic I can tell that assault nearly drained it completely. “If that thing tried a bit harder or for longer I think it may have actually shattered it,” I stammer out in fear, not having seen a single being take so much out of the enchantment.

Taking a few deep breaths to calm myself, I focus the remains of my magic into the moonstone, bolstering its energy by a small amount, but still enough to hold off at least one more assault. “I’ll only have one more chance at removing that thing, and as I have the last hint at what it is I’ll need a good plan ready… and possibly some help as well,” I pause considering all this. “There’s really only one pony I know to ask for help from, hope she has an idea of how to deal with this.”

At that I sigh and climb outside yet again, after grabbing my packs, and head to town. After a brief stop at the café for lunch I head in the direction of the library. Along the way I spot Applejack again who makes some gestures towards me to which I respond with a headshake causing her to frown. Soon I reach the library and head on in to a scene of controlled chaos.

Books are flying all over the place as they are pulled out from their shelves to fly over towards Twilight before being sent elsewhere in the library. As each one comes by she writes down something on the parchment in front of her. At the same Spike is reshelving stacks of books on the now empty side of the library after looking at each title.

“Spike, have you found anything over there yet?” comes from Twilight whose eyes don’t leave the books passing by her. “Not yet,” come from Spike, “Almost thought I had something with a book called Supernaturals, but that wasn’t about ghosts at all.” I take all this in before making my way over towards an open cushion that is out of the way and flop down onto it, drawing some attention from half the duo.

“Oh hey Flarenza,” comes from Spike, “Didn’t see you come in here, how’d your ghost-busting attempts go?” At his question Twilight notices that I had entered and pauses in her work to take note of my answer. “Well I have good news and bad news. The good news is I now know what type of being it is and the spells also work as described.” Twilight seems to brighten up at this but frowns a second later, “What would the bad news be then if the spells worked?”

I turn to look her in the eye before stating, “The bad news is also because I found out what kind of ghost it is. It’s a bound spirit and the spell only enraged it so much it almost shattered the spell around my room.” The news causes Twilight’s eyes to widen at this and she promptly sends all the books back to their shelves, “That’s bad, really bad. Examining the gem you gave me I could tell how well the spell was set and it would last for years given the energy. You said the other one was of a much higher caliber, but for it to almost shatter? That is definitely bad news.”

I sigh at this, a bit surprised at the praise though knowing the latter part to be true, “I’ve almost run out of options, and seeing as it is a bound spirit then that means the object it is attached to must be destroyed before it can be banished. Unfortunately I don’t know where or what the object is, though I may have an idea of where.” Twilight brightens up at that, “Where do you think it is? When we last went over the house before there was no sign of an object that could have been used as a binding point.”

“Well I was able to explore the entire place when I first arrived. Most of the house looked ordinary, and the basement was empty. The only place I haven’t found yet is the attic, and I suspect it’s somewhere around the room I first found the ghost as it keeps lingering there,” I explain, causing Twilight to look thoughtful. “There should be blueprints of the manor somewhere, most likely here or at the Town Hall. If you check there I can look around here,” she reasons out.

I brighten at this as it is a good idea, but grimace as I remember the mare running the desk there, “Sounds like a plan, it shouldn’t take too long to find it I hope. I’ll be back here again if I find it or even if I don’t.” I nod to Twilight as I head out again and trot off towards the Town Hall. It doesn’t take long to get there, and although Dusky Script still seems to my running the desk, she just simply points the way towards the records area as she decides it’s the fastest way to get rid of me.

Once there, with the help of a clerk, I am able to find a copy of the blueprints for the manor and, after thanking him for the help, head back to the library. I notice that a couple hours have passed since I went into the Town Hall and decide to stop by the café. Deciding to be quick about it, I ask for a few salads to go as well as drinks. Carrying them all in my levitation I make my way back to the library.

Once inside I notice that the two are surrounded by various scrolls and blueprints, as well as boxes of many more. “Well I guess you two haven’t found anything in the library. Luckily there was a copy at the Town Hall; also I brought dinner since I didn’t know if you ate yet.” Twilight sighs and starts packing everything away again, “Thanks, while there is a lot of interesting diagrams in here, the blueprint wasn’t one of them.”

Once the table is cleared I pass out the food, setting the blueprints to the side, we all dig in, though Spike with a bit more relish than necessary. Once finished, with Spike chewing on a gem he pulled from somewhere, I pull out the house plans and unroll them on the table. “As I thought, the attic entrance is located at that end of the hallway,” I say pointing a hoof at the entrance. “Unfortunately it looks like to open it you have to go into the room you said the creature frequents,” the purple unicorn responds with.

I sigh as I contemplate my options, “That is the difficult part. Strangely enough I don’t think that thing can go up there either. That or it doesn’t know about it for some reason. While I was tracking it around last night I noticed it roaming around all sides of the master bedroom except for two areas, the outside and the attic. If I can get up there I think it won’t be able to follow. I’d rather not assume this though since I don’t know and who knows what is even up there.”

I turn to Twilight before settling on something, “I really hate to ask this, but I don’t think I can get rid of this thing alone, do you think you can lend me a hoof with this problem?” Twilight seems a bit surprised at this and considers, “I’d be glad to help, I’m curious as to what may be up there now as well. But do you think just the two enough will be enough? I might be able to get my friends to help as well.”

I ponder this offer but shake my head, “If they are the ones I saw last night I’m not sure if most of them would be able to help. With what we will have to face in there, physical abilities won’t help at all. Though granted one of your friends was a unicorn, and the pink one seems to do the impossible, there isn’t much room to move around so the fewer the better.” Twilight considers this a bit, but nods while looking unsure.

Thinking on it a bit more, “To be on the safe side though you probably should at least let them know about what is going on so that if it takes too long they know what is happening.” This causes her to brighten up a bit and start to head outside before noticing how dark it has gotten, “We should wait until tomorrow before going through with this, it’s late and stumbling through the place at night wouldn’t be wise.” I nod at this before realizing another problem.

“I don’t think it would be safe for me to stay the night there again, especially since it almost broke in. I hate to impose but would you mind if I borrow your couch for tonight?” I ask this a bit fearfully as I truly don’t want to be there again without being sure of being safe. Twilight seems to sense this and agrees to this. We decide to wrap things up here for now and get things ready for when we head out tomorrow. Having done that, I say goodnight to her and Spike as they head upstairs, and flop down on the couch while trying to brush off my misgivings for tomorrow before I finally fall asleep.

Author's Note

Well a bit longer than the last, but finally almost resolved this mini-arc. Also set into motion some more plans for the future, as well as showing the completion of another episode. As always comments and complaints are encouraged. Please complain at me, I need it to live.

Minor Cleanup

“And that’s the last of that,” I say to myself while giving the table a final swipe with a cleaning rag. It had taken a little over week and a half, but the attic was finally emptied of the remnants of the magic used by the previous owner and creator of the ghost that had once haunted the manor. While the time spent on cleaning the attic wasn’t non-stop, having cleaned out my chosen bedroom, bathroom and the pantry first, I had decided that removing the taint of the precious workings done in it to be of a high priority.

Granted cleaning the place wasn’t the only thing I did over that period. Every couple days I made another trip out to the abandoned castle and roamed the library at random, examining the various books there. Of course after the experiences the first time there I made sure to bring extra food as a precaution which served to be a good idea as the thief was still there and still just as good at evading my notice.

Turning my attention back to the now cleared room I ponder what to do with it now that its previous purpose has been erased. I head over to the window I had uncovered during the cleaning effort, having been buried behind bones, grime and, other unidentifiable substances, and leaned out it observing the fields between Ponyville and the Everfree forest which it faced.

“I could really get used to living in this place. It’s so quiet and peaceful, especially compared to some of the places I’ve been. Maybe I can actually stay here for a few years, maybe actually make it a true home like Mother would have wanted,” I sigh at this as memories of a happier time come to mind, times when I had a family to share the days with. I shake myself out of my reminiscing before I start to get into a real funk and turn back to the room.

“I guess I can use this room in a similar way to what it was before and turn it into a room for some of my magical efforts. It probably would even help clear out the remnants of the damage caused by the previous spells here as well.” I ponder this as I head downstairs to store the cleaning supplies for whichever room I decide to clean up next. Returning to my room I look around at my few possessions I have and contemplate the large circular stone I had carried with me.

I thought back onto what my mother had taught me about this object. She had called it a Stone of the Hearth, and it was able to store large amounts of magic for large periods of time. It used the magic to subtly influence the place it was buried as well as a good distance around it to turn it into an area that increased the influence of those who placed the stone as well as those they allowed. The size of the area could be limited with carefully placed runestones so that it didn’t expand out of control. I thought on this as I lifted the stone, “I think this might be the perfect place to use this finally, and with the manor being the center of the property it will be easy to hide it.”

I head down to the basement of the manor and find a spot that looks to be in about the exact center of it. Carefully removing a part of the stone ground, I dig out a bit of the dirt under it before placing the hearth stone and carefully replaced everything. Once I had done that I began to channel my magic down into the stone, hoping that this would work. After I had spent most of my energy in the transfer, I stopped and observed the area carefully.

While I couldn’t see anything different, I could definitely feel something coming from an area around where the stone was. Waving a hoof through it I could actually feel the area that had been encompassed by the stones power, “It really worked,” I whisper to myself, “It’s not very big though, but given time I hope it can cover the entire property around the manor. For once though I think I may actually be able to call somewhere home,” I smile as I begin to head back up to the rest of the house, hearing a knock at the door as I head up.

Thinking on who it could be I realize that it’s probably that time again. Sighing I head towards the front door, dodging through the clutter left by the ghost that I make note to clean out next, and open it to find nobody is out there. I roll my eyes at this having gone through the same routine last week I simply say, “Yes, Pinkie?” before I turn around to look at the pink mare, starting to regret that bet a little.

“Heya Flarie I just remembered that it’s that time of the week again for our guessing game and I have a really good guess this week that I know will be your favorite and…” I once again zone out a bit at her rambling as it goes off on some random tangent while only catching a word here and there. Like last week she somehow got into the house behind without me noticing. I tried asking her but I couldn’t understand a word of it though most of that was from how she just jumped through various topics.

While last week the only thing I caught mention of was some mention of Applejack having troubles until she finally asked for help, this time involved some story about a gryphon that was being mean to everyone that she couldn’t make friends with. Eventually she gets to the point of the visit though and I force myself back to paying attention again, “and that’s why this week is gonna be a good guess and it’s going to be LEMON CAKE!”

I just shake my head at her, “Just like last week where you guessed Vanilla, this week you are also wrong. Better luck next week Pinkie,” Pinkie seems to deflate at this as she heads on out back to town. I can hear her mumbling a bit before she gets out of sight, “That’s three times now I’ve been wrong; I’ve never been that bad at guessing games.” I shake my head at this and wonder if I should tell her the answer, though decide not to as she does seem to be so enthusiastic while trying to guess.

Turning back to my house and the disaster that is still there I decide that a break is in order. After heading up to my room to clean up a bit I come back down the stairs with my packs and head out the door towards town. As I arrive I notice that somepony seems to have put flyers up all over the place so I decide to take a closer look.

“Hmm, The Great and Powerful Trixie, yadda yadda yadda, show today in the square at… Huh, that’s not too long from now. I guess I could check it out since I had nothing really planned anyways.” Getting my bearing I head towards the town square, noticing that there already seems to be quite a crowd gathered already.

I arrived there just in time to see the start of the show. The fireworks were rather impressive and I started to wonder if they were magical or alchemical in nature. I made note to see if I could find out from the mare later, yet considered not even bothering after what happened next.

What I had expected to be a magic show turned out to just be bullying and humiliation of others. Trixie had called for volunteers and the first up was Applejack who showed off impressive tricks with a lasso, while Trixie’s response was just to use the rope to hogtie her and jam an apple in her mouth. Similar incidents happened with an egotistical cyan pegasus, whose ego wasn’t quite a match for Trixie’s it seems, as well as a white unicorn who ran off wailing about her now green hair.

Granted the spells used during the last two incidents were impressive, the way they were used was just mean and hurtful. The rest of the show didn’t improve much, mostly more boasting by Trixie with the occasional trick thrown in. The only thing that really impressed me was the fireworks which looked to take a lot of work to get right. Grumbling a little from the waste of time, I decided on doing a little trick myself with my magic.

As nobody was paying too much attention, and making sure to keep my casting unnoticed, I used a small amount of power to glue the front tip of Trixie’s hoof to the stage for a few seconds. Those few seconds were enough to send her sprawling onto her face, sending a wave of laughter through the audience. True to her showmareship skills though Trixie shrugged it off red-faced to continue her show.

Once the show ended I did toss a couple bits her way as there were some enjoyable parts, but the show could have been better. I then spent the rest of the day around town checking on various things and seeing what I would need for my home. As I was about to head home my interest was caught by a shop that was selling various instruments. While not a musician, I was able to play one instrument passably well so I went in to see if they had any.

Luckily they had one left in stock which I bought up right away. Deciding as I was finished in town for now I made my way back home, playing random tunes on my brand new harmonica the entire way. Some of the ponies I passed looked at me oddly as I was doing so, but there were a few appreciative nods from a few of them that seemed to enjoy the tunes.

Arriving at my front door I realized that there was one thing I had yet to do still to really make the manor my home. It needed a new name. Sitting outside the door I took some time to really think about if it truly needed one or not. Deciding it did considering it seems to already have one, a horrible one though; I took my time to come up with something fitting. Remembering a story from about an ancient king and queen my mind focuses on the name of the queen.

“Ogetsu Manor. That sounds like a good name,” I decide before opening my door feeling happier having settled the issue as well as the feeling of truly having a home. Once I had dropped off my things I made my way towards the pantry for a meal. Entering into it I shiver a bit, noting that the turquoise my mother made is still working to keep the place cool, and grab a few things to snack on while heading up to my room, “The kitchen is definitely the next place to clean up and put in order,” I say as I head up the stairs.

Finishing my meal I prepared to turn in early as a reward for finishing up in the attic. Crawling under the covers I turned my mind to the day and wonder how long that Trixie mare would be in town before eventually nodding off.

<><><><><><><>

I was awoken sometime during the night by an angry roar from the direction of the Everfree Forest. Leaping towards the window from my bed I was able to catch sight of something heading towards town through the forest though I couldn’t quite identify it, though it was big. Catching up my pack and gemstone I took off out of my house towards town, not knowing what I could do to help.

I arrived at the town to witness the end of the incident as what looked to be Twilight Sparkle putting the creature to sleep and sending it back towards its home in the forest. Slowing my pace I arrived just to catch the end of the conversation, as well as Trixie dropping something causing smoke to block the view of her before she took off out of town.

It didn’t take long to figure out what had happen, seeing as the two involved received an interesting punishment as well as being made to clean up the mess. Taking a look around the area I noticed that there wasn’t too much damage to the area, beyond the destroyed wagon that belonged to Trixie. I notice Twilight was over at it digging something out of it and as I approached her as she finally removes a badly damaged hat and cape from the wreckage.

“Well this looks to have been an interesting night. What’s going to be done with the remains of Trixie’s wagon?” I ask Twilight as she steps out from the destruction. “I don’t know, I mean sure she was bragging about how much better she was, but she didn’t deserve to have this happen. It really wasn’t even her fault the Ursa Minor came to town as she didn’t bring it here, that was all on those two colts.” I think on this as she scuffs a hoof through the edge of the devastated wagon.

“Why not have those two bring everything to my place, I have a bunch of room even though I’m still cleaning up a bit. Still there is a lot of empty space and seeing as the town probably isn’t too happy about her it’ll keep it all out of sight and with time maybe it can be fixed,” I offer to Twilight. “That’s not a bad idea, there isn’t room at the library for it, and my friends who do have room wouldn’t be too happy to help Trixie after what she did,” she sighs at this and heads off to inform the colts about the plans for the wagon.

Noting that everyone looks to be heading back to their homes I bid Twilight good night before heading back myself. Thinking on the issue I note that while I just added more work for me to do, at least something good may come from it all if there are some books left behind. Making my way back to bed I slowly fall asleep while thinking about Trixie’s fireworks.

<><><><><><><>

The following morning I took some time to clear out the dust and grime of one bedroom to store Trixie’s stuff in for now. Once that was finished I started to work on the kitchen area so that I could actually have some hot meals instead of what I had been getting. Around noon the two colts arrived with the first load and I directed them to the spare room I had cleaned out for what was in the wagon, while the actual wagon parts left outside in a pile for later.

After listening to them worry about why everything was brought here, I reassured them that it was only until Trixie returned to claim it all. They brightened up as I mentioned the possibility of fixing the wagon and they even offered to help, which I accepted as I had enough work to do for now.

After sending them on their way, with some snacks to tide them over, I noticed that there seemed to be a lot of smoke coming from the forest. Shrugging at this I head back in to finish up cleaning the kitchen and making sure everything works. It takes a while, but by the end of the day that place had been cleaned up except for the missing kitchen utensils still scattered around the place.

Checking on the fixtures of the kitchen though I noticed that, while the plumbing still worked, the stove and oven were damaged by the ghost. “Going to need to get those replaced, though I wonder if I can get something a bit different,” I ponder this while thinking on the fire opal made by my mother. Checking on my supply of bits I notice I’m starting to get a bit low, “I’m going to need to get some more gems ready to sell off I think, as well as get a source of new ones.”

I finish up for now and, after another cold meal, head up to clean up before bed. Once I had finished up and climbed into bed I remembered I had one last thing to do and went to the basement. Once there I charged the hearth stone some more before heading back upstairs, and wearily climbed into bed.

<><><><><><><>

The couple weeks were more of the same, cleaning up the manor with breaks for trips to the castle and occasionally Ponyville. The only things to break the monotony was a storm set up by the pegasi, which required the wagon pieces to be covered, and me actually taking the time to set-up some of the garden. While most of it is still empty I had planted some of the seeds I had collected over the years.

I decided to wait on the bigger plants, so instead I had planted a variety of pepper plants I had gathered, everything from ones with barely any spice to some that were actually dangerous. Using some tricks I learned it didn’t take long for them to grow enough to be picked and more to start growing.

I dried the strongest of them all and ground them up into powder, storing the results in a couple vials until I could package them later. I was very careful with them as even the slightest amount was enough to nearly blind something, and even being around them had my nose burning. The rest I had brought into town to check for interest, and actually found some in a surprising place with Pinkie Pie.

Shaking my head at her interest I set up a deal with her to handle most of the transport of the peppers, though one type I kept from her for other reasons. Those I also dried and ground up, making a fine red powder with them, and stored them in a dry place until I could find the right type of buyer.

During that period I was also able to set up a deal with the jeweler to supply them with enchanted gems when I could. They also gave me a lead to check on for acquiring more when I ran out, though they would pay less for the local gems than for the harder to reach ones.

<><><><><><><>

Yawning after finishing up clearing the last of the rooms in the house I decided to celebrate with a trip into town for lunch. Collecting my things I noticed that I was running out of some things, “I really need to get more vials as well as some better dry storage containers,” my eyes were drawn to the now dried flower in another,” I should also see what this things was, I remember that one book had something on it. Hmm, looks like there might be some seeds in this too, maybe I can grow some myself.”

I put it into my bag and head out towards town. When I arrive I am surprised to find the town is empty for some unexplainable reason. It doesn’t take me long to find out the reason as I see a figure covered in a long cloak. I can’t help but jump a little as she turns towards me, her eyes glowing golden.

Author's Note

Well another chapter down. A bit of time skipping for now as things settle down a bit. Updates will slow as classes are back again for me. Also bonus point for anyone that can guess which spice was made in the chapter :P

Zebra Boutique

The eyes really threw me off at first, but after taking a closer look I was able to notice stripes on the being in front of me. Huh, a zebra, didn’t expect to see one this far from their homelands. Calming myself after being startled, I continued on my way through town wondering where everypony was. I greeted the zebra as I neared, “Hello there, I haven’t seen a zebra around these parts before.”

She lowers her hood before she replied to me, “It is true that the features of my face are not a common sight seen around this place. Zecora be the sound of my name, would you do the honors of telling me the same?” The way she spoke threw me off a bit, but considering who lives in this town it’s not really that strange. “My name is Flarenza; I’m just in town to pick up a few things before I head back to my home near the Everfree. Especially as I finally cleared up the last of the mess from some haunting issues it had.”

My wording seems to have surprised the zebra, “A haunting issue you had you say? Those are things that aren’t easily driven away. What was the cause of such a feat, to cause this being’s end to meet?” It takes me a second to word this carefully, “Well it wasn’t all that easy. It took the actions of me and another unicorn to clear it out, the main reason as it was tied to an object. While I performed the spell to get rid of it, the other unicorn destroyed the object it was tied to.

She seems honestly surprised by this, “You seem like such a simple mare, but not if you use magic so rare.” I try to play it down a bit and turn the conversation to more mundane things, since I’m not sure how safe it is to divulge the origin of the spell. As we talk I find out that she actually lives inside the Everfree and is in town to get certain plants and herbs. Unfortunately everything seems to be closed whenever she arrives, which I find distinctly odd.

Seeing as she has no reason to be in town she prepares to head back to her home, but on a hunch I decide to ask her about the flower since she seems knowledgeable about plants. Her eyes widen at the sight of it, “This is a plant you should not provoke, for it goes by the name of Poison Joke. For this is not just a simple flower, it does odd things to those in its power. For within its form chaos it does conceal, to be unleashed on those that give a feel.”

She goes on to mention a cure for its effects, which interestingly enough are in that book I was planning on reading. Thanking her for the help, I decide to let her have one of the vials of the powder from the dangerous pepper plant. She takes it curiously, and only needs to remove the stopper to recognize the scent it gives off, causing her eyes to widen in surprise, “This gift is more valuable than you know, as the plant it’s from only grows in my home.”

I grin a little at this, “Normally that would be true, but I used to travel around a lot until I settled here. Your home was one place I passed through and I kept some seeds from my time there, as well as some powder which served me well in escaping various beasts.” She thanks me once again for such a precious, to her, gift and we then part ways. As I head further into town looking for somepony else to be around, I spot a young filly following after the zebra.

Wondering at how she is the only pony I’ve seen around I head in the direction of a store that deals in kitchen appliances and knock at the door. It takes a while, but the owner eventually peers outside to notice that only I am around and seems to breathe a sigh of relief before opening the door fully. I eye them oddly as I enter and just look around the place.

I look around the place and don’t notice what I am looking for and check with the owner to find out that it is an item they can get on order, but it usually takes a while due to the difficulty in getting the gems. When I let them know that I already have one that can be used they look surprised, but quote a much lower price than before and say they can get it there in a couple days. Concluding our business and paying them I head back outside to notice everything seems to be open again.

“Well this is odd, it looks like they were all avoiding Zecora for whatever reason,” I mumble to myself as I head towards the library. Luckily it is still open as Spike is there who greets me, “Hey there Flarenza, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you come here. Twilight isn’t around right now; her and her friends are busy chasing Applejack’s sister who followed after Zecora.”

“I think I saw her when Zecora was leaving, small yellow filly with red mane and a big red bow?” I ask. “Yep, that’s her. I hope nothing bad happens, especially with what everypony was saying about Zecora.” My ears perk up at that, “Huh, I thought it was odd that everything was closed when she was around, not sure why ponies would avoid a zebra. Not like there is much difference between them.”

This catches Spike’s attention, “Wait, you mean you knew she was a zebra as well? I thought Twilight was the only one who knew that.” I just give him a look that I gave to Twilight before, “Um yeah, pony that has traveled outside Equestria here.” I chuckle at the bashful look he gets at this, “Anyways, there’s a book I’ve been meaning to take a look at since I was here last. Even though Zecora confirmed what I was looking for it still has something I could use.”

“Oh sure, which book is it you need?” I let him know, and once he retrieves it I take a seat in a corner of the room and begin to read through it. It doesn’t take me long to find what I was looking for. “Huh, Poison Joke Antidote, so it’s basically just an herbal bath? Some of these ingredients might be hard to find, but considering the problems the plant can cause they would be useful to have on hand.”

I jot down the information on the page onto a spare scroll as I consider the implications of the plant. I get a bit of a mischievous feeling as I wonder what people would think of it outside my windows. Looking through the rest of the book I catch a few other useful cures in it that could come in handy. Returning the book to Spike I head back out towards the book store.

Looking through it I don’t find any copies there, but I find that I can order what they don’t have through him. I place an order for a copy of it, as well as a few on gemstones and other metals for reference later on. Finishing there I head back towards home and stop out in front.

Taking the vial with the poison joke in it I carefully extract the seeds from it and scatter them over the cleared area underneath the front windows. Then with a bit of magic I cause them to grow a bit so that they are just starting to form. Nodding at this I head inside and down to the basement to charge the hearth stone for the day.

After doing so I consider the size it is now, “I really need to get those runestones set up, it’s already covering the entire manor so it shouldn’t be too long for it to cover the entire property. Heading back outside I head to the nearest river or stream and round up a few round and smooth stones. “This shouldn’t be too hard, just need to carve the right symbols into them and put them at the correct locations.”

It takes a while, but eventually I have four stones of similar size each carved with a different symbol. Placing the first three is easy enough as they are just cardinal points around the manor at the edge of the property. It’s the fourth one that is a problem, “Now to get to the point in the Everfree, unfortunately there isn’t a path in that part of it.” I consider the problem for a while retrieving my scrying crystal.

“I guess I’ll just have to just be careful out there, I just hope nothing big is in that area.” I make my way towards the entrance of the Everfree quickly as there isn’t long before nightfall. As I pass the cottage I catch sight of Fluttershy at work around it. Huh, I guess that’s where she lives at. I still need to pay her back for the help, though I didn’t know I was passing by her place all the time.

She looks up and seems to look towards my direction. Seeing this I casually wave to her as I head into the forest, causing her to cringe away for some reason. Shrugging at this I pull out my crystal and have it point the way to where I need to go, all the while keeping track of everything around me.

This section of the forest seems odder than usual, probably as it is off of the usual path most being seem to go. I can’t help but feel like I am being watched as I move through the forest though. I try to figure out the direction it is coming from, but no matter how hard I try I can’t seem to find it.

This is really not the type of feeling to have in this place. Anything you can’t see, but can see you is bound to be dangerous. Though something is really starting to seem odd out here, I could almost swear I’m seeing paths through the trees, but nothing really comes out this way that would use them. Where would they even go to any-

I stop in my tracks as I catch a hint of motion out of the corner of my eye. Turning quickly I catch a glimpse of what looked like a grey filly with a blonde mane. The problem wasn’t that there was a filly though; the problem was the hint of transparency in the available light. And just when I thought my ghost problems are over.

Seeing this I decide to exchange speed for caution and pick up the pace to my destination. It doesn’t take long for my crystal to ping out the location I need and I quickly bury the stone. Looking around me I notice that the light is slowly fading, hinting that night isn’t far away now. As I turn to head back the way I came, I catch sight of something through the trees.

“Is that a town over there? I don’t remember any mention of one being there, and I don’t remember one being marked on the maps, as if anypony would be crazy enough to have a settlement out here.” Remembering the ghost I saw, as well as the rapidly approaching darkness, I decide to leave the place for investigation later, preferably with a nice fast path back home if needed.

Making record time back towards the entrance, I exit the forest in a bit of a lather. “There really needs to be a map of this place. Maybe I can work on that later if I get bored,” I mutter as I pass by Fluttershy’s cottage. Before too long I return home and, after a relaxing bath, turn in for the night while forgetting about the town out there.

<><><><><><><>

The next few days pass with little of interest, though with my gemstones dwindling I decide to head out and try to find a supplier or other way to obtain them. Seeing as dragons consume them as a part of their diet I decided to pay a visit to Spike at the library. Finding him was easy; getting him to talk was more of a problem for some reason.

“Equestria to Spike,” I say waving my hoof in front of the dragon for the third time today, unfortunately he seems to be completely lost in his daydreams this time. Sighing I head over to Twilight who seems to be studying something like usual, “Hey Twilight, I think Spike is broken. I keep asking him who I could talk to about finding some gems for my work, but he always seems to freeze up after mentioning somepony named Rarity.”

Twilight looks confused at first until I get to the name, “Ah yes, that. Let’s just say Spike has a little thing going on for her and leave it at that. She happens to be one of my friends and, while she works as a fashion designer, she is probably the best pony in town to talk to about the best places to acquire gems, in facts all the gems she uses she finds herself.” Thinking back on the friends I’ve seen her with, the only ones I don’t know the names of are the cyan pegasus and the white unicorn. Neither of them fully fits the description just provided though, the former being too rough looking to make dresses, and the latter too prissy looking to dig in the dirt.

“Well it sounds like a good place to start, where in town would I be able to find this Rarity?” The directions given by Twilight sound simple enough, in fact if I remember right they pass by the café I frequent in town near the end. Thanking her for the help I head out towards what she called Carousel Boutique.

Walking through the town I take in the sights more than I’ve done in the past, “I really should find out more about this town,” I mumble to myself as I wave to the passing gray mailmare, “Now that the manor is cleaned up I’ll have much more time to relax, so getting to know what’s around would be a good idea.” I wince at a crashing sound behind me, but my attention is then caught by a strange whistling sound.

Turning back to where I say the mailmare I see her stuck in a chimney, but there is nothing over there that indicates where the sound is coming from. Looking around I don’t see where it is coming from, but I do notice what I believe is the building I’m looking for, “What is it with this town and the way the design buildings? Even major cities don’t get this elaborate, and why am I hearing screaming n-“

I don’t know what just happened, all I know is that I’m now on my back and face first against the wall of the building I was walking to while in pain and dizzy. “Uh hey, are you okay there?” I hear from a gravelly voice somewhere above me. Removing my face from the wall and facing the voice and see naught but a prismatic blur. Shaking my head to clear it my eyes refocus on the form in front of me to see the cyan pegasus that seems to be part of Twilight’s little group of friends.

“What just hit me? First I was walking along towards this building, and the next moment I’m somehow making out with it.” My reply causes the mare to chuckle a bit, though it seems a bit forced, as she offers me a hoof up which I take. “Uh yeah, my fault there, trick didn’t quite work out,” I raise an eyebrow at this. “And why would you be doing tricks over the center of a populated area, in fact why would you be doing them in the first place?”

“Well where else will I find an audience to show how cool I am? Also I’m doing them so that I can show the Wonderbolts how awesome I am so they beg me to join them.” I draw a blank on the name she mentions, and speaking of names, “Who would these Wonderbolts be? And speaking of which, who are you anyways?” That was probably the wrong thing to say judging by how far the mares jaw dropped.

“How can you not have heard of the Wonderbolts!? They’re the best flying team in all of Equestria, everypony knows who they are. Also I’m Rainbow Dash, fastest flyer in all of Equestria and future member of the Wonderbolts!” I just look at her through her entire explanation; I really wonder how often I’ll have to explain the travelled outside Equestria bit. Though since she left me an opening…

I get a grin on my face at a chance of a little payback, “Well unfortunately I have been traveling outside of Equestria most of my life, and for you being the fastest flyer, you sure were the fastest at crashing into me. I would have expected that grey mailmare to be the fastest there but you sure beat her to that.” Once again she goes into a jaw dropping shock, but this time I’m actually laughing at it. Rainbow Dash looks to be about to try and make some sort of comeback, until we are both interrupted by an elegant voice from the building behind me.

“And just what is all this about racket out here? How can I concentrate on creating beauty if somepony keeps making so much noise?” Rainbow Dash looks towards the shop a bit warily before turning a glare to me as she just flies off, leaving me to clean up the mess. I turn towards the entrance of the building as it opens revealing the purple maned, white unicorn I’ve seen with Twilight.

Hoping to stall any further tirades and any potential problems I start apologizing, “I apologize for the disturbance Miss, while I was part of the noise you heard, a certain rainbow maned pegasus crashing into me and sending me into your fine establishment was what started it all. She left before you left the building in a bit of a bad mood.” The unicorn, who I’m guessing is Rarity, looks at me blankly for a second before she speaks, “Of course, Rainbow Dash. While she is a loyal friend, she does get a tad, reckless at times. Though why do you say she looked to be in a bad mood, darling?”

“Well that is partly my fault there,” I say with a bit of guilt, “When she was all bragging about being the fastest flyer around, I kind of mentioned how fast she was at crashing as she beat that gray mailmare at crashing into me. Really hope she’s okay now that I think about it, every time I saw her she ran into something.” Rarity’s eyes widen at this, though she thankfully chuckles after a moment.

“You compared her to Derpy of all ponies? While she is such a sweet mare, she does have a bit of an issue with crashing often, the poor thing. Don’t worry about Rainbow Dash being too mad about that though, she’ll probably just do her usual sulking until she can get back at you with one of her silly pranks.” I raise an eyebrow at this and wonder what I may have gotten myself into considering the ego on the cyan mare.

“Well I guess that’s not too bad of a punishment for that,” though she did run into me first I think instead of saying it. “Anyways I was on my way here anyways, if you are who I believe you are I was told you could assist me with something Miss…” This sets Rarity of into what seems to be a well-rehearsed speech. “Oh pardon me about that, I am Rarity, owner of Carousel Boutique, where every garment is chic, unique and magnifique. And who might you be, darling?”

“I am Flarenza, owner of the now renamed Ogetsu Manor,” I reply to her. She is thrown off by the new name a bit until she realizes where I’m talking about. “You mean you’re the brave soul who bought that place? It’s nice to finally meet the pony who cleaned up that eyesore of a place, but you mentioned you had business here? While I’d love to help you, I’m far too backed up on orders at this time. It would be at least a month before I’m open for any more dresses.”

I ponder what I would even need a dress for in the first place, and just shrug it off for later. “Well actually it’s not a dress that I am here to discuss, I was recommended to you for other talents that I’m told you possess.” Rarity raises an eyebrow at this warily, “Oh? And what talents would those be, darling?”

I turn to my pack and levitate out one of the enchanted gems I have on hand, “I’ve heard you were the best pony to talk to about locating gems in town. As you can see with this one I am able to imbue them with a certain level of enchantments. Unfortunately I am running out of the ones I brought with me from my travels and need to find a local source. Granted I’m not sure what I can do with the local ones until I have a chance to experiment on them a bit.”

Throughout my explanation Rarity was examining the gem with a critical eye, “This really is a nice quality gem, and I don’t see many of this type come through town either. And you say you did the enchantment yourself?” I nod at this as she continue, “I may need to see what else you can do, good quality enchanted gems aren’t easy to come by and I know I can use them in some of my outfits.” She finishes examining the gem and thinks for a bit.

“While I don’t have any gems to spare at this time, it really is no secret where my source is, darling. A decent trots distance out of town is an area where there are many pockets of gems. If you need I can pick up some extra my next trip out to save you the time.” I decline the offer and instead get directions to the field. Seeing as she was busy before crashing into her building I thank her for the help before bidding her goodbye.

Stopping by the café for a quick meal, I decide to just wander through the town and purchase things at random that catch my eye. Soon I had filled my bags and started to make my way home. Seeing as there was still plenty of time left in the day I decided to take a longer way home. As I passed by the area that led to the cabin and forest I spotted Fluttershy in the distance. I wave to her when I think I she notices me and I continue on my way, until I stop and do a quick double-take and peer at her in the distance.

“That blue thing in her hair, is that a…? Nah, couldn’t be…” I shake my head and continue home, though not without feeling a sense of dread.

Author's Note

Well another chapter down, with a few hints at some things I have planned in this one. While next up in series order would normally be the Winter Wrap Up episode, that part of the story will be delayed a bit as I will reorganize the next 4 episodes for this series. In fact it will be swapped for Suited for Success in the order, so that the fall episode falls before winter and not after since doing it the other way would just be silly.

Speaking of decisions though, I have a couple big ones to make with the series later on. One involves the Diamond Dogs, and the other Involves the CMC. The first one I'm not fully sure on what to do as I have a choice between some ordinary kind of event, or extraordinary which can have some big lore effects. For the CMC though, this will be a part of a pivotal event in the story and will single out one of them which will then change how the chapter will run slightly. If anyone has an opinion on which of the three to use I'd gladly consider it and maybe tally up the votes. That way I can blame what happens on the readers, hehehe. I hope I didn't say that last part out loud <.<

Swarms and befriending the unknown

“Replacing all those broken boors and furniture is going to be such a pain,” I mumble to myself as I go over the list of things that I need to find replacements for in the manor. “At least everything is cleaned up now; most of these things aren’t too big a deal, not like I have plans to have anyone over to need doors on the guest room.” Setting the list down nearby I turn my attention to the view outside.

It’s a rather nice day outside, with the sun shining over Ponyville on this late morning with only a few clouds about. Despite this an uneasy feeling had settled on me after what I thought I glimpsed the day before. “There’s no way that could have been one of those little beasts, surely somepony around here would know the dangers of it and warn her. Maybe I should go and check to make sure before…”

I stop and stare out in the direction of the Everfree entrance at an odd sight. Out of nowhere a tornado had appeared and it looks to be changing colors from a dust brown to a rainbow of colors, “What in the world is that?” Opening the window to try to get a better look I see that it is starting to wobble and break apart, “It looks like something is flying away from i-WOAH!” I duck as I see something whizzing right at me, barely avoiding it.

I hear whatever it was crash into the wall behind me with a metallic tone. I turn to find out what it was to find something I didn’t expect, “Why in the world were a pair of cymbals flying around at those speeds? Somepony could have, and almost had, gotten hurt by those things.” I close the window before prying them out of the wall to get a better look at them.

They still seemed to be in working shape even though the cord on them looked to have been broken for some reason. I carry them downstairs, wondering what to do with them, until I hear a frantic pounding at my front door. “Maybe that’s the owner of these things. I hope it is so I can find out what in the world is going on.” Heading to the door I open them and am surprised to find Pinkie Pie there.

“Hey Pinkie Pie, aren’t you a bit early for your weekly cake guess?” Pinkie Pie looks frantic for some reason which is worrying, “No time for that Flarie, this is an emergency! Did you see a pair of cymbals fly by here? It’s important that I find them or else the Ponyville is doomed!” I raise an eyebrow at this as I bring the found items into view which she frantically grabs.

“Um yeah, these came through my window not long ago, why do you need them and why did they almost take my head off?” She was about to rush off but pauses to answer my question, “We have a Parasprite problem but nopony is listening to me about how serious it is, they just ignore me and keep making the situation worse!”

At Pinkie’s short explanation I can feel myself get lightheaded at the one word I had been trying to avoid since yesterday. “Did you say Parasprites?! Right, thanks for the info but I think I’m going to be barricading everything so they don’t destroy this place. Oh and be sure to let them know not to try to use magic to make them stop eating, I’ve seen that before and it just makes things worse. So bye Pinkie, have fun trying to stop the unstoppable swarm of bugs and let me know how that goes,” I then slam the door as I rush into the basement in a panic.

“I knew I saw a parasprite yesterday, why didn’t I double check to stop things from getting this bad. I should have practiced in case something like this happened, but no I had other things to do and now I have to improvise.” I work myself into a panic as I head downstairs and make my way to the center of the basement. Planting my rump down near where the hearth stone is I focus on it and the task that I need to accomplish.

The first thing I do is attempt to focus on the area that is covered by the stone. I can feel that it has finally reached the runestones that I had planted. With a little effort I can feel everything that is moving within the area that is covered by it, though the only life forms I feel are myself, and what I believe is Pinkie Pie. “Good, it doesn’t look like any of those things have reached here yet. Now for the hard part,” I say as I start to focus my magic on the stone and attempt to meld it with the field it emits.

Over the next hour I try various things to get the spell to work. It’s only when I start feeling the creatures start entering the area that I finally get it right, and a wave of energy expands out from the manor to the edge of the property, flinging the beasts away. “Whew, finally got that barrier spell to work through it,” I say while wiping the sweat off my face with my foreleg. “Now that this place is protected, I need to find something to do until they go away.”

Seeing as it’s a nice day, I head outside and towards the edge of the property the leads to Ponyville. I lie down near the edge of the barrier and watch the parasprites as they try to push their way through the shield, wondering how the rest of the town is doing. “Pinkie Pie seemed to have some plan to get rid of those things; maybe she actually knows something that actually works. It wouldn’t surprise me, still haven’t found a way to explain some of what I’ve seen her do yet.”

I stare at he the edge of the barrier as the things are still trying to get in, “I guess I should take some time to practice my spells a bit, it could have been a disaster if I didn’t get his barrier up in time and I haven’t really taken the time to try new things out in a while either.” On making this decision I focus on my journal that is back in my room still.

Using the feelings I unlocked with the stone, I easily find it where I had left it. It takes a while, with a couple breaks to rest, but I eventually bring it out to where I am resting. After doing a quick run-through of the spells in it, making sure I can still do them all easily enough, I start to think of new ways to use them. Looking at the parasprites constantly bouncing off the shield I get an idea for one of my simplest ones.

Reaching out my senses into the barrier I get a feel of how it is made as well as the components of how it is kept active. Making sure not to touch the latter parts, I slowly tweak the former into what I intend. Occasionally I have to stop and knock a few sprites back outside the shield as I make a mistake, but eventually I succeed and I rest to examine my work.

“Well, combining it with a glue spell worked really well,” I say as I observe the parasprites getting stuck on the barrier surrounding my property. “I think I even figured out how to make it where only the things I want will stick to the spell now. That could come in handy sometime, though I’m not sure how though.”

I turn back to my journal and steadily go through the rest of the spells as I wait until word comes in from town. After a while I run out of ideas and just sit and play around with a smaller shield in front of my, contracting it while not letting any of the air escape, then releasing the spell to feel the air puff out and blow my mane around.

After a couple hours, part of which I observe a chariot enter and leave town, I spot a spot of pink heading towards me from town. It’s easy to see that it is Pinkie Pie as only she has that much pink around her. Standing up I head out to greet her, though she seems to be looking at the trapped parasprites in trepidation, “Don’t tell me I missed a few parasprites. Now I have to go gather up all those instruments again.”

I raise an eyebrow at the pink mare, “Wait, you mean you actually got rid of the ones in town? How did you do that, I haven’t seen anypony able to do that beyond just waiting them out.” Pinkie Pie then explains what happened since she left as well as the fact that she was too late to stop Twilight from casting the spell I warned about, causing me to apply hoof to face. Apparently parasprites are attracted to certain types of music and it is by using that that you drive them away with the least effort.

As she finishes her story she is about to rush back into town before I stop her, “Wait a second, the ones here shouldn’t be as difficult to get rid of now that they are all trapped.” She looks at me oddly as I turn my focus back to the barrier. Without dispelling it I gather the energy at the furthest edge and start to peel it around towards me. With a large amount of effort, with me almost passing out, I eventually drag it and all the contained parasprites into a ball that is now resting in front of us.

“That was a bit tougher than I thought it would be,” I pant out. I pour more energy into the barrier so that it starts to actually glow with my real aura color, appearing to be a ball of flame covering the mass of sprites. Once it is visible I turn to Pinkie Pie with a grin, “Think you can give this a good kick so that it flies far into the Everfree?” Pinkie Pie returns the grin and turns away from the ball before giving it a massive buck, sending it a decent distance into the forest causing me to let out a whistle.

“Wow, nice one there. Since that’s over I guess the next thing to worry about is cleanup since you said Twilight cast that spell. Since everything is clear here I guess I should head into town to help out.” With that Pinkie Pie and I make our way into town to help with the cleanup efforts.

<><><><><><><>

Cleaning up the town didn’t take all that long. Strangely enough it seemed like the ponies around here are used to problems like this happening. It’s easy to guess why though as I saw Derpy cause even more damage as she helped fix things, though the townsfolk seemed to just smile and laugh it off as if it was normal, which I’m starting to think it is.

The town had finished cleaning things up just in time for the start of fall. Not much interesting seems to be going on for a while, though Pinkie mentioned a party for some local filly, a cute-something-or-other, didn’t quite catch the term. Seeing as things have been settling down, I decided to take another trip out to the castle.

To prepare for the trip though, I decided to bring a bunch of extra things with me. While I am annoyed at having things stolen from me, the culprit seems to be a foal in need judging by the size. Having been alone and in dire situations myself before, I can’t help but feel sorry for him or her. I stopped by the market for various things that they would probably need, especially as the weather is starting to get colder in preparation for winter.

Blankets, various foods that last, and even the last of my extra enchanted fire opals all go into a small care package for the little one. I even find a little plush of a book character named Daring Do to finish up the little gift. “I really wonder why a foal would be alone in that castle, especially as I haven’t heard anything about anypony being missing while I’ve been here.”

Shrugging I levitate my bags into place and head out on this early morning for the castle. “I really should open up a path behind the manor now that I have time, that’ll be next on my list. I can probably use all the lumber for repairs inside as well; maybe I can find a spell to help with that at the castle.” On the way to the forest I spot Fluttershy who I wave to as I pass by her home. She does her usual cringing I’ve seen her do often enough, though this time she actually waves back.

The walk through the forest is actually a rather pleasant distraction from the rigors of having a stable home. While it is nice to finally have somewhere to lay down roots, I do kind of miss being out and about to see new places. “Maybe someday I’ll go back to traveling again. At least I’ll have a home to look forward to again instead of having only what I could carry.”

The castle is still as silent and empty as it had been the last few trips there. “There has to be some spell on it to keep the wildlife away. Whatever it is it has to have been pretty potent to last as long as this place looks to have been abandoned.” I keep an eye out for signs of anything out of place as I make my way to the library, but nothing seems obvious can be seen. The lack of dust is really odd as well, though from someone cleaning the place up or some other reason it’s hard to tell.

As I enter the library I look around the area where I had caught glimpses of the foal that was here. Unfortunately I don’t spot anything, so I just set the bundle of items down by the corner so they won’t have to reveal themselves if they don’t want to. I then head to my usual table and set my packs down before heading into the shelves.

After a while I lose myself in my research into various subjects, many of them spell based. “Hmm, gold for East, pearl for south, jade for west and a bloodstone for north. If I can use this arrangement and combine with this spell,” I mutter as I make notations in my journal. I am interrupted as I hear a noise from over near the corner and I turn to find the care package is now missing. I smile to myself as I go back to my research with a lighter heart.

The rest of my time there I find various spells to add to my journal, from a spell to lessen the spring curse, to a spell to deaden pain, to one that can actually be used to convert felled trees into usable lumber. None of them are terribly ground breaking, but each of them is useful in their own way to help me in the future.

As I am about to head out for the day I find one more book that I can’t reset going through, a book detailing various magic circles. “This is definitely a good find, I don’t remember finding anything this detailed in Twilight’s collection,” I comment as I page through jotting down ones that look useful. I return the book after scribing down a circle used as a permanent fixture that can be modified for various purposes. Making sure to note the location of the book for later I make my way to the castle entrance.

As I am heading out of the castle I pause as I hear a voice somewhere behind me. “Thank you,” calls the unknown figure with a soft but feminine voice. I turn around with a small smile on my face and just wave towards the castle hoping they can see me though I spot nothing. I then proceed to make my way along the path back to Ponyville, “Well at least I can assume it’s a she that is hiding in there, and that they seem to be willing to talk a little now.”

Deciding to reward myself for the small victory I detour through town to stop at the café for dinner. I decide to order one of the fish meals, to the odd looks of the waitress, and observe the ponies around the area as they finish up their day. I spot Applebloom running around with two other fillies that I haven’t seen before as they run off to do whatever it is they have planned. Interestingly enough all three of them seem to be lacking cutie marks, which I’ve noticed that only the youngest seem to lack.

Turning back to my table as my food arrives I dig in hungrily, not having had a good fish dish in months. As I finish up a catch the odd sound of thunder in my ears and look around for the source before I am drenched in a localized deluge. Laughter drifts from a nearby corner and I turn to spot both Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie rolling around.

Paying for my food and making my way wetly along the path towards my home I pass by the two and mutter darkly to them, “Of course you know, this means war.” This just causes them to laugh harder, though the cyan mare eventually responds, “Yeah right, you don’t look like you even know how to have fun, let alone pull off a good prank on the Prank Masters of Ponyville.”

I just smile and begin laughing in the most evil voice I can muster, and out of the corner of my eye I can see them glance at each other in worry.

Author's Note

Another day, another dollar. This chapter may be a tad worse than usual, was a bit tipsy during some of it. I'm starting to realize that the future chapters that go deeper into the characters past are going to be a bit larger than I expected, but at least that's still a ways away. At least things are sort of progressing at an ok pace, though next chapter it is pretty obvious not much big will happen beyond the obvious there. As always comments, complaints and flames are gladly accepted, especially if there is a vote up/down involved. Also if you haven't been able to tell by now, I suck at coming up with chapter titles.

Prank Wars

The first month of fall brought with it a storm of colors to the town of Ponyville. Unfortunately for the town it also brought in a storm of problems as well as the Prank Duo and I started our little war. “There they are, took them long enough to show up,” I mutter as I watch Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash walk down the street outside of Sugarcube Corner. “Let’s see how well they can handle being pranked back.”

I begin to levitate the bag next to me in their direction, making sure that they don’t see it. As I get it above them I lower it down between them and for a small barrier inside the center of it before using my magic to tap them both on the shoulders between them. Through all this nearby ponies look at the tableau, not sure what to make of it, though when the pink and cyan mares turn and see the bag floating between them they soon find out what is going on. As soon as the two are looking at the bag I rapidly expand the barrier inside of it, causing the bag to explode and coat the two with flour.

As soon as the cloud of flour clears, all everypony in the area can see are a white earth pony and pegasus just standing there blinking at each other. “Pinkie Pie, what just happened?” comes from the pegasus, who soon catches the sound of the laughter coming from me as I fall out of the doorway I’m hiding in. As soon as I catch her glaring at me I just blow her a kiss before taking off for home, my revenge complete.

The next day I catch the two trying to set up another prank outside of my home. I was able to catch them out though as I could sense them in the area through my link to the hearth stone. I climb out my window and up to the roof and carefully make my way over to above where they are hiding, waiting for me to exit. “Do you see her coming yet Pinkie?” I hear from Rainbow Dash as I peer over the edge of the roof. “Not yet Dashie, hurry up and get that bucket set up before she shows.” I can see the two are too focused on their prank to notice my decorations out front.

As Pinkie Pie is looking through my front windows she fails to notice the blue flowers that she is standing in. I chuckle at this, almost getting caught as Pinkie’s ear twitches causing her to look up at where I would be if I didn’t duck down. When she turns back to the window I float one of the flowers from the other window and slide it behind Rainbow Dash’s ear.

“Not a bad try you two,” I say causing the two to jump, which also distracts Rainbow Dash from the flower I put on her, “but seeing as I’m up here that bucket won’t do you much good above the door. Though from the looks of things I won’t even need to bother trying to prank you back either.” The looks on their faces is priceless as they start trying to make excuses, “Uh yeah… this was just… a gift, yeah that it,” comes from Rainbow, “I’ll just leave it here, I gotta go do some stuff at the place… see ya!” She then dashes off, followed by Pinkie Pie with a shout of, “Ditto!”

I catch the flower as it falls from Rainbow Dash’s mane, and climb down to see what they had in the bucket. “Really? Poison joke petals? Now that’s just ironic that they walk into the ones I had planted while trying to dump theirs on me.” I lift the bucket out from above my door and bring it into my house, “I guess I shouldn’t let a gift go to waste, I can probably find something to do with dried joke petals later.”

Later that day I made my way into town for a midday meal. I kept an eye out for the two, but couldn’t spot hide or mane of them, which should have been my first warning. Deciding on something sweet I made my way to Sugarcube Corner. Unfortunately as soon as I opened the door I was blinded by a face full of lemon pie.

I just stood there blinking as the pie tin falls away, revealing the two on the other side of the door. I just glare at them as they sit there laughing, before I close the door and head back home again to plan. “At least I got a free meal out of this,” I mutter as I lick off what I can with my tongue before I get home. Luckily it didn’t take too long to get an idea since they had already set up the prank already.

“Hehe, let’s see what they do when the only source of poison joke cure is in my possession.” I then head out and sneak back into town. From listening to Pinkie’s tales about their adventures, I knew that the spa and Zecora were the only places to get a ready sample of the cure. The spa was easy enough as they only keep a small amount on hand as it isn’t needed often. Buying the little they had left was easy enough.

Zecora’s supply was actually easier as she had run out of many of the key ingredients she needed. Luckily I brought some more pepper powder with me which I offered to persuade her to not gather what she needed for another couple days. I then let her know that I had a couple samples on hoof in case someone needed it. With that completed I just went home to wait for the two to arrive.

The next morning the two showed up around noon, with a large amount of noise as Rainbow Dash literally crashes through my front door. “Flarenza! Get your tail down here; we want a word with you!” I hear Rainbow Dash shout out to me while I am preparing some things in my attic. Heading downstairs I catch sight of them before starting to laugh, “Well it’s a good thing I didn’t replace anything yet, or else it would have been broken already, and I didn’t know it was possible for Pinkie Pie to be silent.”

I just sit there looking over the two, and also making note to never get hit by the stuff myself. Rainbow Dash looks to have had her wings flipped upside down, and because of this has no real control of her flying. Pinkie Pie on the other hand has had her tongue swell up enough that it prevents her from speaking. “Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. I wish I knew when you had the chance to pull this prank, there wasn’t a chance for you to pull it after that pie,” complains Rainbow Dash.

“That’s my secret to know, though you should really watch where you step when you spy on the inside of somepony’s home,” I brag to her. Pinkie Pie seems to catch my meaning though, and looks out my door to under the windows, spotting the flowers. She then starts to gesture towards them and makes noises at the pegasus until she looks at what she found. “Wait, you actually planted the stuff under your windows? What kind of crazy pony does that!?” exclaims Rainbow Dash.

I just laugh at this as I toss her a pouch of the cure, “Well since I moved into town I thought I need to do something to fit in. I have it on good authority that all the ponies in this town are crazy.” I smile at his, remembering some of the conversations I’ve had during some of my library trips, though the two in front of me don’t seem to get the joke. Shaking their heads they just head on back to town, though I can tell that this isn’t the last I’ve heard of them.

The rest of the month followed the same pattern, they’d prank me, and I’d prank them back. I made sure to not always catch them when they tried it at the manor, though I tended to avoid the messier pranks when they did do them, a few of the times I even turned the prank back on them. Strangely enough Pinkie Pie seemed to avoid the worst of my attempts as well; somehow she had some weird system of bodily twitches that could predict certain things. This led to me being very careful how I did certain pranks as some were easier for her to avoid than others.

Near the end of the month I was sitting under Rainbow Dash’s home, plotting on how I was going to get up there to put my current prank into effect. I had already switched out the shampoo in Pinkie Pie’s home for another with a small enchantment on it, so that just left the one for the cyan mare. “Why are you just sitting there staring at Rainbow Dash’s home?” The sound of the scratchy voice questioning me causes me to jump and turn to who snuck up on me.

Sitting behind me is Applebloom and the two fillies I saw her with about a month ago. All three of them just sit there staring at me, “Well?” This comes from the orange pegasus filly who spoke earlier. I contemplate how to answer them. “Who wants to know?” I ask trying to stall for time which fortunately works, though unfortunately for my ears. “I’m Scootaloo,” comes from her, “I’m Applebloom,” from the yellow earth pony, “And I’m Sweetie Belle,” from the white unicorn, “And together we are the CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS!” shout all three together, blasting my ears painfully.

Rubbing my ears I decide to go with the truth and see what goes from there, “Well the past month Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and I have been having a bit of a prank war. I have a good prank ready to go, but I’ve run into a bit of a snag. I didn’t think of how to get up to Rainbow Dash’s house to finish it though.” I start looking back at it again while they sit there, “You’re trying to prank Rainbow Dash? That’s not going to happen, she’s too awesome to fall for a prank from some random pony,” states Scootaloo. “Even if you did succeed she’d just get you back with a prank ten times better than yours,” she boasts.

Detecting a bit of hero worship from her, as well as noticing her wings tiny though they are, I wonder if I can trick her into helping me. “Well if she’s so awesome she should see through the prank before she falls for it then, though how to get her to prove this if I can’t get up there. I’d need someone brave and nearly as awesome as her to get up there for me.” I watch her out of the corner of my eye, trying to get her to take the bait.

“Of course, but good luck finding anypony like that,” she counters. I smile and try to push a bit more, “I’d think her biggest fan would have fit that description, but I guess I must have been wrong…” I trail off at this, though it looks like she fell for it, “Hey, of course that matches me; I AM her biggest fan after all.”

“So you’d go up there and do the simple thing I need so she can prove how awesome she is?” She wavers at this, “Well I don’t know, I mean I can’t fly yet and…” Hehe, hook, line and sinker, “I can get you up there easily, but if you aren’t brave enough to do it…” This sets her off for some reason, “Hey! I’m plenty brave enough, just tell me what you want done and I’ll do it.”

I hand her the bottle and give her instructions to switch it for the one in Rainbow Dash’s bathroom. I then conjure up a flat barrier with enough energy to show my flaming aura to show for her to ride up to the cloud. “Ooh pretty, how are you doing that?” comes from Sweetie Belle. I turn to her, wondering what she means, before I look back at the platform and realize what she means, “Oh that, it’s just how my magic appears when I focus on it, normally I keep it where you can’t see it, but it’s probably best that it’s visible now.”

Sweetie Belle gets a thoughtful look on her face, though doesn’t continue with the line of questions so I turn back to what I was doing. After I lift Scootaloo up to the cloud I turn to the remaining two fillies, “Is she always that easy to manipulate?” Applebloom just rolls her eyes at this before answering, “If it has anything to do with Rainbow Dash, then yep. Who are you anyways?”

“I’m Flarenza; I’m surprised your sister hasn’t mentioned me. Especially with all the troubles with the manor outside of town,” I respond to her while waiting for Scootaloo to return. Sweetie Belle lets out a squeak at the mention of the manor, “You live in that haunted place outside of town!?” “And how do you know who my sister is,” comes from Applebloom immediately after. “Well it’s not haunted anymore; Twilight and I took care of that problem a while ago. Also I’ve met Applejack a few times, and I found out you were sisters from Spike back when I caught sight of you chasing Zecora,” I reply to them both.

They both look to be pondering this and Applebloom nods while Sweetie Belle responds, “Well I guess we can take Cutie Mark Crusader Ghost Catchers of our list if the ghost is gone.” I just look at her wondering if she is serious, though I turn back to the cloud house when I hear a call. Seeing Scootaloo is back I send up the platform again and bring her back down. “What was in that bottle anyways?” she asks as she lands by her friends. “Well if it works you’ll see tomorrow, if not I’ll let you know later that day. Thanks for the help, I couldn’t do this without you,” I praise her which causes her to pose a bit, “So since I’m done here, how about joining me for a snack, I feel like trying out some of that ice cream I heard of.” This catches their attention so we head off to the place I saw selling it, and wave them off as I buy one for each of them.

Chuckling to myself at their antics as they head off I make a note to find out what their Crusader group does. I remember hearing something about a group like that recently, but it was linked to some sort of property damage so that couldn’t be them, could it? Shrugging I finish off my ice cream before heading off to other things now that the prank is done.

The next morning I set out early to Ponyville and took a seat where I could keep watch on Sugarcube Corner. It didn’t take long for me to spot Rainbow Dash streaking towards it from her house to meet the figure that leaves it bearing Pinkie Pie’s mark. As the two meet I get a good view of my handiwork, and even spot Scootaloo out of the corner of my eye with her mouth wide open.

If somepony wasn’t paying attention they wouldn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. Those that actually look closer would notice that the earth pony now has cyan fur and rainbow mane, while the pegasus possess a pink fur and mane color scheme. “She got you too Dashie? How did she get up to your cloud house?” comes from Pinkie Pie. “I don’t know Pinkie, but when I find her she is really going to get it,” at those words from Rainbow Dash I try to sneak away.

Scootaloo, looking a little downtrodden, had walked up to them as I made my way in the direction of the library. She appeared to be saying something to the two, until she looked up towards me and gasped. Seeing her point towards me, and the two look at me angrily, only one thing came to mind. “Oh crap.”

I take off running, laughing the entire way, as they start to chase after me. I almost lose them a couple times, but the pegasus’ ability of flight allows them to find me easily. Soon I catch sight of the door to the library, and try to make it to the safety of it. Unfortunately I misjudged how close the other two mares were to me as they caught up as soon as I opened the door, sending all three of us tumbling into the library to be buried under a pile of books.

“What in the world is going on in here?” shouts the voice of the familiar resident librarian in response to the crash and mess. Poking my head out from under the pile of books, along with the other two pranksters, I notice that somehow we managed to knock every book in the library off its shelf. Turning to look at the purple unicorn I can see that she is very angry, and that things might have gone a bit too far.

“Twilight! Look what she did to us!” shouts the now pink pegasus. Twilight looks the two over before commenting, “Well you three *snrk* have been pranking each other the entire month. How is this any different from the flood of custard you caused last week that they are still cleaning up?” Twilight is obviously trying to hold in her laughter at this, much to the other two mares’ dismay.

“Twilight, this is serious! This isn’t a simple die job, no matter how much I try I can’t get this color out!” This comes from Pinkie Pie who actually seems a bit distressed at this. Spike walks in at this time and just breaks out laughing at their predicament in his usual blunt manner. Twilight on the other hand, “Well what did she prank you with to cause this, if she made it this far it couldn’t have just been a simple spell.”

Rainbow Dash replies to this, “She switched out our shampoos for this, Scootaloo admitted to being a part of this thinking it wouldn’t word so explained everything she knew.” She then glares at me for getting the filly to help pull this off, though I try to look innocent. Well she does have a point there; I should have tried something else since I didn’t have a way up there.

I turn back to Twilight to see her rubbing her temples with her hooves and sighing, “Flarenza, how do you reverse this? They are going to be insufferable until you tell them.” Looking between her and the other two I can see she has a point, though that doesn’t mean I won’t have a little fun with it, “Well it’s a rather complicated process to swap everything back the way they were. First thing you need to do is wash up again with the same shampoo you used before. Once you finish with that come back and I’ll tell you the rest.”

The two just look at me in disbelief, “You better be telling the truth about this, because if you’re not,” threatens Rainbow Dash before the two head back to their homes. After they leave I start chuckling causing Twilight to look at me strangely, “And what is so funny now? You know things will get even worse if you are still pranking them over this.”

I levitate the books around me to the nearby shelves, with a quick glance to reorder them before answering. “Oh just the fact that I now have the time to run off again before they realize that doing what I said is all that they need to do. You were right earlier though, things have been getting a tad out of hand lately. Maybe a peace offering of cupcakes will help end things for now.”

Twilight looks confused at my response, “What do you mean using the shampoo again is all they need to do, why would the thing that caused the problem fix… Wait, you mean all this was, was a simple color swap spell? You could have just said so and I could have fixed it here.”

“Ah, but then I wouldn’t have had time to escape from them so they’d have a chance to cool off. Now when they bust in here after finding out they were tricked again somepony can calm them down and stop their end of things before they get worse.” Twilight just glares at me for dumping this on her causing me to sweat a little, “And of course I’ll bring along something for you as well for the inconvenience. Just let them know to meet at Sugarcube Corner tomorrow to finish things up.”

Twilight just shakes her head and sighs at this, “Fine, but you better make sure to show; a month of having to dodge pranks has been getting on pony’s nerves.” I nod at her before making my way back to the manor before the other two can return. I thankfully make it far enough away in time as I spot Rainbow Dash streaking towards the library as I get home. “Well I guess I have some baking to do, though Maybe with one last prank for the road.”

I spend the rest of the night preparing the offerings to the two mares, as well as the gift to Twilight for helping out. I decide to use an old recipe that was passed down to me, though I can’t help but tear up while curled up in my bed before finally falling asleep.

The next morning I prepare to head out to the meeting place, but as I was about to leave I was surprised to hear knocking at my door. Levitating the items I prepared onto my back as I head to the door to see who it was. Opening it I’m surprised to see Spike is there, “This is an odd time to show up, especially since you know that I would be meeting up with the others at Sugarcube Corner soon.” Spike just rubs the back of his head, “Yeah, well Twilight thought somepony might try skipping out, so she sent me to get you while she went to round up Rainbow Dash. Pinkie Pie lives and works there so she wouldn’t be a problem.”

I just shake my head at this, though not overly surprised after some of the things Twilight has pulled before over the months I’ve known her. “And does she have a checklist prepared for this as well? And how badly do you think it’ll be ruined?” Spike chuckles at this, “Yeah, with about fifty things on it, too. Knowing you three she’ll be pulling her mane out in the first ten minutes.”

“Well hopefully my gift to her will distract her from doing that, but I guess we should head out before she starts having a fit.” With this we head off towards town, while chatting about random topics. I try to steer clear of certain things though, as the last time zombies were mentioned Spike got a little overzealous.

As we arrive at Sugarcube Corner I notice that Twilight and Rainbow Dash haven’t arrived, so I take a seat in a corner to wait. After a short time I spot Twilight dragging the stubborn pegasus in, though her attitude changes after Pinkie Pie whispers something to her and they all head over, That was an odd attitude shift, I wonder…

A bit wary, I wait for the three to take a seat, and for Twilight to mark some things off her list, before speaking. “We all know why we’re here. It seems we may be getting a bit out of hand with the pranks, especially since others have been getting caught up in them. So I propose that we come to an agreement to end this before we go overboard. So to mark my end of the agreement I brought these,” I lift the cover on one of the trays, revealing two cupcakes done up in the colors of the two mares, and levitate them over to them.

As I set them down Pinkie Pie speaks up, “Twilight said you were going to make something so I decided to make something extra specially tasty for you as well.” Rainbow Dash nods at that, “Uh yeah, after this no more pranks, I guess.” I catch the odd way she phrased that and sigh as I look over the cupcake Pinkie Pie pushed over. Somehow in her usual way she decorated it in the same way I did theirs. Looking at the two looking at me with hopeful looking grins I just sigh.

I’ll probably regret doing this, but seeing as I planned to do the same to them as well. I lift up the cupcake and take the whole thing in one bite to get it over with. As I slowly chew I can start to feel my mouth starting to burn, as well as sweat forming on me. With tears in my eyes I just nod at the two, while Twilight looks on in confusion. It’s not until Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie burst out laughing that she gets what going on.

“I can’t believe you two! I thought you said you were going to stop with the pranks but then you go and pull this?” Rainbow Dash calms down first, “Lighten up Twilight, I did say that this would be the last one before she ate it.” She tosses back her cupcake as Pinkie Pie continues, “Yeah, no more pranks after this, I Pinkie Promise to that.” She then follows suit and starts in on her own treat.

I signal to Mrs. Cake to send over some milk, though send up a number with magic for three glasses. I turn back to Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie as their faces start to turn a shade of red. “Now what is wrong with you two?” comes from Twilight before she catches on, “Wait, don’t tell me you added something to the ones you made as well?! I can’t believe you three! I thought you wanted to stop the pranks, not do another one in front of me, ugh!” She really seems to be getting into it as she tears her checklist apart.

At this point Rainbow Dash is panting heavily from the heat, while Pinkie Pie literally has fire come out of her mouth from the heat of the peppers I had added. As the milk arrives they both start chugging glass after glass as I nurse the one I grabbed. “Well I guess great minds think alike, though I’m wondering if any of us meant to prank Twilight by ruining her checklist,” I comment with a chuckle, which is soon joined by the other two pranksters.

“Yeah, I guess you can say that. I didn’t expect you to have something this hot though, Pinkie Pie used the hottest ones she got from you but they were nothing like this,” comes from Rainbow Dash as she recovered first. Pinkie Pie looks too worn out to even try to talk, and is still drinking from her glass. “Yeah, I kept this one from her; it’s a bit too dangerous to mess with if you don’t know about it. Though I may have overestimated how well she could handle it. She got half of a pepper, yours only was only a bit of the tip.”

The eyes on all three mares widen at this information, “Wait, you used that little in there? Pinkie was just chowing down on the ones she used in yours with no problems; I would have thought you’d have used at least six of whatever you used.” Rainbow Dash and Twilight look a bit scared at this, “Why in the world do you even have something like that? Ponies could really get hurt if they ate those and you use them in a prank?!” Twilight just looks at me incredulously for taking such a risk.

“Well of course I made sure to only use a safe amount, wouldn’t want anypony to be injured, and trust me when I say that the burns from these are not fun to deal with. It was the last time I ever tried to eat them and I made sure to never give them out to others unless I was sure they knew the risks. Anyways I believe I owe you something as well Twilight, and no there is no prank involved in this.” I bring out the other tray and set it in front of Twilight before uncovering it.

All three mares and the dragon look at the simple dish that is layers of applesauce and crepes. “What is it?” asks Spike who had finally finished his laughing at the pranks. “This is a simple family recipe that I know of that I’ve called an applesauce crepe cake. The name pretty much describes exactly what it is, though it tastes better with some whipped cream added to it.” At this Pinkie Pie vanished under the table just to return a second later with a bowl of the mentioned topping.

Shaking her head at the antics Twilight sighs, “Yes Pinkie, I’ll share it with all of you, as long as the pranks have ended at least.” She stares at all of us sternly causing all of us to just smile and nod. Levitating out a knife she proceeded to cut the cake into five pieces and sent a slice over to each of us. While the others started in on their piece, I instead cover mine so that it can be carried elsewhere.

Pinkie Pie notices this and asks, “Why aren’t you eating it now? It’s really tasty and stuff.” I just smile at her, “Well I would, but there is somepony else that probably deserves it more.” Once the piece of cake is secure I float it over to Rainbow Dash, “Can you make sure Scootaloo gets this? She seems to think the world of you and this is my way of apologizing to her.”

She gets a thoughtful look at this, “Yeah, that’s not a bad idea. I haven’t spent enough time with the little squirt lately either.” Thanking her for doing that, I bid them all farewell as I head back to the manor for the rest of the day.

Author's Note

Ehh, not really too happy with the end, but nothing else was coming to mind. Expect some more time skippery until the RotL and Winter Wrap-up. Nothing planned to happen during the periods between those so might as well. Unlike the show there ARE periods of normalcy instead of 3 seasons being mashed into a single year. As usual complaints, comments and flames are being accepted.

Zombie Nightmares

Time seemed to fly by for the next couple months. Between the usual routine and preparing things for the coming winter there was little going on beyond the usual, though some plans were well on the way to completion. In this time I had cleared out enough trees to have my own personal entrance into the forest, and with the help of the spell I had found I had gained a usable supply of lumber. With that and the spare time I had I was able to at least get many of the doors and furnishings replaced in the manor.

Trixie’s wagon had also been repaired enough, with the help of the two colts that caused the disaster to befall it, that it was almost back to its original state. All that it needed to be completed were the spells and delicate parts to be replaced. Unfortunately the books left by the owner didn’t have instructions on those bits of it, though it did have a name of the type of wagon allowing me to get Twilight to order a copy for the library as it is a rarer one.

All that is left until the coming winter now are the final two holidays of the season, The Running of the Leaves, and Nightmare Night. The former is only a couple days away, and the latter the week afterwards. I had no plans for either of the days, so I just spent the time leading up to them getting to know more about Ponyville and the surrounding area. Of course the best place to find that stuff out is to either ask around, or go to the library.

“Huh, nothing in this book either. I can find plenty of things about Ponyville and other towns and cities that are around here, but nothing about a town inside the Everfree Forest.” I must have talked louder than I thought as Twilight spoke up just then, “What do you mean about a town inside the forest? From what I know there isn’t one in there, yet you are the second pony to say that there was one.”

My ears perk up at this, “Wait, second pony? You mean somepony else knows about that place? I only caught a glimpse of it myself, and with the lack of information in all these books I was starting to think I imagined it.” Twilight taps her chin as she digests this information, “Well Applebloom mentioned finding it a few days ago after she got separated from me when we were going out to Zecora’s place. She was talking about finding a town full of zombies after following a ghost to it. I didn’t believe her as zombies don’t exist, still can’t believe that ghosts do either, yet if you say you saw the town then maybe she did find something.”

I sit there for a while trying to comprehend that a filly not only found the town in such a dangerous place, but also escaped from it with it being the home of some form of undead. “I think I may have to ask her about what she found out there. The property of the manor extended into the forest and I saw the town from the edge of it.”

“What reason would you even have to go into the forest anyways?” Twilight asks. “Well this time was mostly curiosity. I was looking into why the property extended that far thinking there may have been something special about it. Unfortunately I didn’t find anything other than that town, which I guess was more special than I thought at first,” I reply with a touch of a lie to hide the real reason.

Twilight accepts it readily enough though, “But aren’t you afraid of meeting any of the monsters in there? The Everfree isn’t somewhere for anypony to travel alone, and even in groups it’s dangerous.” I just grin and pull out a vial of the pepper powder I used for that prank months back. She looks at it blankly for a second before recognizing it, “Ah, I forgot about that pepper you had. I guess that would be a good enough reason to feel somewhat safer in there, that stuff would probably drive away a hydra even.”

“Well I haven’t had a chance to test it on one; I’d rather not have the chance to find out. It is useful for the smaller creatures in there though, even a manticore has problems with this stuff.” She just shakes her head, probably wondering how or why I’d even know that. “I’d probably better go and find Applebloom to ask what she saw in there. You can never be too prepared when dealing with the unknown.”

“I don’t know why you’d even want to deal with it, but whatever. You’ll probably find her with her two friends causing havoc somewhere.” She heads back to what she was doing as I bid her farewell and head out to try and find the trio. Usually it would be easy to find them as they tend to leave a trail of destruction behind them. Today is relatively calm though so they may be doing something calmer today.

It turns out I was only half-right as I find them outside of town with the remnants of their latest fiasco. Somehow they had ended up being covered in tree sap while doing something with a catapult, where they even got it I don’t have a clue. “Well, looks like you three have been up to something interesting.” The three jump at the sound of my voice as I had come up behind them.

The three look tense as they turn to see who had snuck up on them, though they loosen up at seeing me. “Oh it’s you, what, get bored and need some pony to do your dirty work again?” ask Scootaloo a bit rudely. I just raise an eyebrow at this, “Hey, I sent you some cake delivered by Rainbow Dash as an apology. Besides, how many ponies can say they succeeded at pranking her without being retaliated on?” She looks a bit thoughtful at this, “Well it was pretty good cake, and you do make a good point there. Just don’t try to do that again and we’ll be fine.” She gives me another one of her glares as I nod to her.

“Anyways I was looking for you three as I heard Applebloom could help me out with something, and seeing the predicament you all are in I can loan you a place to wash up at and some lunch.” Applebloom seems surprised at this, “I can help you out with something? With what?”

“Well I’ve heard you had a little adventure out in the Everfree Forest recently and I am curious to hear about what happened.” Applebloom seems a bit downcast at this, “Oh that, well I guess I can tell you about that in exchange for some grub. You probably won’t believe me like every other pony I’ve told though.” I just chuckle a little at her look, “Don’t be too sure about that. Seeing as I know where the town is and am living in a once-haunted house I know better than to not believe. Since it’s nearing lunch time we should head over there now so that you can clean up while I get something ready.”

I start laughing as all three of them just stare at me with their mouth wide open and start walking towards my home. Soon enough all three of them shake off their shock and catch up to pester me with questions, though I just shake them off until they are cleaned up and the food is ready. Judging from the questions though, both Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were included in those that didn’t believe Applebloom’s tale.

While they cleaned up I prepared something quick and simple to eat for all of us. They finished faster than I could get it ready though, so I distracted them from helping with the cooking by having them sets the table. One of them helping probably wouldn’t be so bad, but put all three of them together and something always seems to go wrong. This was enough to give me time to finish cooking; though with some comments on how bad the table and chairs I had cobbled together looked from Applebloom. Hey, at least they are stable enough to hold somepony up.

Once they had settled down and cleared off their plates I turned to Applebloom, “Well now that you’ve finished eating, how about that story? You can skip most of the details if you want to make it go faster, just stick to the important bits.” Applebloom sits there with her chin on her hoof for a bit before nodding and starting her tale.

“Well it started when me and Twilight were coming...” she was interrupted by Sweetie Belle, “Twilight and I.” Everypony turned to look at her, Applebloom and Scootaloo with a bit of a scowl, causing her to squeak and shrink down. Applebloom continues, “Twilight and I were coming home from Zecora’s place. The path home was blocked by a fallen tree and I sorta wandered off while Twilight tried to clear it.”

She blushes a bit at this seeing as she shouldn’t have done that but she continues, “I heard something giggle at me and when I turned I saw a grey pony with blonde mane and golden glowing eyes. Well I followed after her for a while until I eventually came to the town.”

She pauses to shudder a bit at her memories before continuing, “Well the town seemed like a nice enough place, and all the ponies seemed kind though all of them were blank flanks. They called the place Sunny Town though it turned out to be anything but that. After searching through the town I found one that seemed a bit different from the others. She was also a grey pony but had a maroon colored mane and was named Mitta. I didn’t find out much from her, but afterwards I found another house which was where the terrible secret of the town was.”

Her voice starts to get real quiet at this point and she is shaking a bit, “Inside the fireplace of the house I found the bones of a pony. It was as if somepony tried to hide the fact that she was killed there. As I left the house night had fallen around the place and the true side of the town was shown. All the ponies there were some kind of zombie, and they wanted to make me one of them.”

The other two fillies notice how upset she is getting and they both move closer to her to provide what support they can. It does seem to help though as Applebloom seems to calm down some at their closeness. “I did my best to escape from the town, and I wouldn’t have if Mitta didn’t come and protect me from the others at one point. Soon after that I found the one who led me to the town. Her name was Ruby and she was the ghost of the pony I found in the fireplace. She apologized to me and helped me out in the end until Twilight could find me and we made our way home.”

I sit there and ponder the information that she had given me with her story. I hadn’t seen any sign of movement in the town when I saw it, though I believe the ghost I saw was the one she had met. “I believe I saw this Ruby you mentioned just before I spotted that town. I didn’t get any closer though as I wasn’t sure what she was at first, though I can say you got very lucky out there. Undead creatures are usually not very nice to deal with, and finding not one but two that would help you is almost unheard of.”

The three fillies look at me in awe. “You mean you actually believe me?” comes from Applebloom. “Of course, I’ve had some rather… personal experience with zombies and ghosts so I know a bit about them. Though I haven’t met this variety of them before, I can only assume that it’s some sort of spell or curse on the town, and a powerful one as well to have lasted long enough for the town to have been forgotten.”

The three start to rattle off questions at me, “You’ve seen zombies before? Did you have to fight them? Where was this at and how long ago?” I interrupt them before things get a bit overboard, “You’ll have to wait until later for stories about my dealings with them. Some of them are still a bit… painful to remember.” I pause a bit to fight down my rising emotions, “But how about this, I’ll have one of them ready to tell for Nightmare Night. What could be better for it than a ghost story about real ghost and zombies?”

This gets them excited and drags Applebloom the rest of the way out of her funk from telling the story. Once I get them all calmed down, after they extract a promise from me to tell the story during Nightmare Night, I send them on their way. Once they left I think a bit deeper on this Sunny Town.

“This is really complicated. Intelligent zombies are not easy to deal with, and having one of them actually being nice limits the options I could do. Throw in that ghost and things just get complicated. The biggest question I have though is what is keeping them in that state. Is the ghost the key to the curse, might as well call it that until I know more, or did somepony else cast it on them in retaliation for the murder.”

I just sigh at how complicated this has gotten, “For all I know the one who owned this manor did that to them since the lands border the town. I really doubt it though considering the nature of that book that was in the attic. The only ponies that would probably know the truth are the two that I’d rather not meet, the two princesses. I guess I’ll just observe the place and see what I can find out there, while doing what I can to help the two that helped Applebloom.”

With my plans tentatively in place, I head out to finish preparing a section of my garden for the coming winter.

<><><><><><><>

I didn’t have to worry about forgetting about the promise I made to the trio, as they all appeared at my doorstep on the day of Nightmare Night. They even brought in some help to make sure I showed up in the form of Pinkie Pie. I may have mostly given up on trying to figure her out by this time, but from what little I do know disappointing her often leads to bad things.

Still, them bringing her around did give me an idea to try for a costume, though since it is going to rely entirely on magic it is a bit lazy. The plus side it’ll let me hide out for most of the time in plain sight until it’s time for the story telling. None of the four are dressed up yet, apparently they had planned to meets up with a bunch of others to get ready at Twilight’s place. Apparently they are going to be dragging her out around town as well.

When we arrive at the library I find that all of Twilight’s friends except for Fluttershy are there. They had managed to get away from her books, but they hadn’t been able to convince her to actually go out. Since I really wasn’t prepared to go out either, even with the lame costume idea, I volunteered to stay with her to help out making snacks for later when they all returned to tell ghost stories.

After a bit of debate I eventually convinced them and they all left until later. Until then Twilight and I prepared things for later in her kitchen, with me doing anything that required any actual cooking as Spike warned me that Twilight isn’t all that good at it. While we did this we chatted about random topics, mostly involving her studies and how I’ve been doing at getting the manor fixed up. Eventually I guided the topic towards her missing friend.

“I’ve noticed that you usually hang around with the same five friends all the time, yet only four of them were here tonight. Is there something wrong with that yellow pegasus with the pink mane?” Twilight looks over from what she was doing before answering, “You mean Fluttershy? No, nothing is wrong with her, she just doesn’t really like Nightmare Night so she is currently hiding in her cottage. She is very easily frightened so a holiday all about being scared just isn’t for her.”

She frowns a little before continuing, “Granted she gets scared of a lot of things, but you won’t meet a kinder mare around, why do you ask though?” I finish up the last bit of cooking before answering, “Just curiosity mostly, I’ve managed to meet your other four friends, yet have only seen her from afar. Though I really should have gone and talked to her that time I thought I saw her with a parasprite. Doing that could have stopped the town from needing all those repairs.”

Twilight laughs a bit nervously as she remembers that day, “It probably wouldn’t have helped anyways, she would have been too scared to even listen. Like I said, she frightens very easily, and that includes meeting new ponies. If you can find a way to get her to open up though she gets over her fear easily, and those she thinks of as friends she’d go to any length for to protect them.”

“If she frightens so easily, why does she live right next to the entrance of the Everfree? Most ponies seem too scared to go near it, yet she is out there all alone,” I ask as it doesn’t seem to fit with her personality. “That is a good question, though most of it is because she takes care of and has befriended most of the animals in the area. She has the ability to understand them and prefers to be around them more than other ponies. So in a sense she really isn’t all alone out there, though she avoids actually going into the forest unless there is a need.”

We have to break off our conversation there as the others had started to get back for the stories and food. The crusader trio seem even more excited than before they left, probably from all the candy that they are now carrying. Twilight and I finish up the last few things before we start bringing it all out for everypony to snack on while they set up the area for the stories.

Once everypony had settled down a volunteer was asked for to start. Seeing as this was the reason why I was here, the Crusaders volunteered me to go first. “Flarenza said she has some stories about real ghosts and stuff, she should go tell us about that first,” calls out Applebloom, with the other two nodding along with her. “But we’ve already heard from Twilight about the incident at the manor and how they got rid of it, do we really need to hear it again?” This comes from Rainbow Dash in her usual aggressive manner.

I decide to speak up before an argument begins, which I had found happens a lot when it comes to her, “Well luckily for you that wasn’t the story I had in mind. Do you think I would have stayed in there with that as company if I didn’t know a bit about it already? Unfortunately I’ve seen too many things like that, and almost every time it led to problems in some way.” This quiets her down in surprise, so I take a second to compose myself before I begin.

“This happened about five years or so ago, and not long after I was out on my own. I had come upon a decent sized town out in the borderlands areas somewhere between the Gryphon Kingdom, Zebracan and Equestria. I was low on food so I was hoping to restock while I was there, but when I arrived the entire town was empty.”

“Nowadays I would have bypassed the town having found a situation like that, but being as young as I was and being in need of food I still made my way through it. Going through various buildings didn’t turn up anything, though I was able to find some food that was in good condition in some of the stores. That should have been my second clue to get out of town.” I pause a second to drink some punch that Pinkie Pie brought over before continuing.

“Once I had gathered everything I could carry I noticed that it was starting to get dark, so I decided to spend the night in one of the houses. I chose one of the upstairs corner rooms in the local inn to set up in as I hadn’t been in a bed in months. Unfortunately I only got a couple hours of sleep before I was woken up by the most horrid screaming.”

Everypony jerks upright in shock as somepony in the room starts screaming at that moment. We all turn and look at Pinkie Pie who just looks at us all innocently, “What? My bag of candy is empty; you would scream too if you ran out of snacks in the middle of a story.” We all just shake our heads at her, while I get back into telling my tale.

“Anyways, the sound was enough to wake me from what should have been the best night of sleep I’d had in a while. Looking out the window though, I found that it was in fact going to be one of my worst nights instead. I have no idea where they came from, but in the streets were the remains of the townsfolk. While they were obviously dead, they were still walking around the town, hunting for something.”

“Fortunately that thing at the time wasn’t me. It seems that sometime between when I had arrived at the inn, and when I was awoken a small caravan of merchants had made it into town. I could see the lead wagon from where I was, and the scene wasn’t pretty. The guards were doing what they could to keep the undead horde away from the wagons so the haulers could get them out of town, but they were quickly being overwhelmed.”

At this point I was interrupted again, but this time by Sweetie Belle, “What did you do? Did you do anything to help them out?” She shrinks down with a squeak as all eyes turn to her for her interrupting. I take another sip of punch in the following silence.

“Well as I was about to say, I could see that they had never faced creatures like this before as they were making the worst kinds of mistakes when facing undead. I quickly gathered my things, as I knew I wouldn’t be back here again, before heading leaving through the window onto the balcony outside of it.”

“Once I was out there I did what I could to draw the attention of the zombies away from the wagon and onto me. While I couldn’t draw the attention of the ones closest to the wagons, I did get the ones that were on the path in front of them. Some of those in the other group noticed this pretty quickly, as two of them went speeding by as soon as the road cleared up enough.”

“I’m not sure what happened with the other four, but I never saw them again after that. Of course now I had another problem. I was alone out on a balcony with the building steadily being flooded with undead and the building entirely surrounded, and me scared out of my mind.”

“I really didn’t think things through when I tried to help the caravan, and at this point I had pretty much stopped thinking and started reacting. That was when I learned a major lesson when dealing with zombies. While fire may fix many things, flaming zombies are much more dangerous until they finally collapse.”

Finishing off the rest of the cup of punch I took a moment to observe the others. Most of them winced at the last line, probably trying to imagine it, and interestingly enough Spike seemed to be taking notes without input from Twilight.

“Well in my panic I decided to just start lighting zombies on fire to try and clear a path out. This led me to being surrounded by flaming zombies while trapped on a building that was starting to go up in flames from those same zombies. Needless to say I was really in trouble at that time, and probably wouldn’t have made it if it wasn’t for one of those that had escaped with the wagons I saw go by.”

“It was a good thing that at that point I had nearly drained my magic reserves, as in the next moments I felt something grab me from behind and lift me into the air. One of the caravan guards was a griffon, and she was scouting out the town to see if any of the others had escaped. Me setting all the fires was enough to attract her attention, and seeing as it was the building that the distraction that allowed them to escape came from, she came down to help me out of there.”

“I never did find out her name, or any of the others that survived, but I thanked her for the help once we landed, and I gave them all the information I had on what they were facing. I left them the next morning, so what happened from then on I have no clue. Hopefully they got word to somepony that could handle things with the town and be better prepared as well.”

Finishing my story I look around at the others to see how they react. Rainbow Dash was rather predictable though, “Eh, that wasn’t all that scary.” I just give her a look, “Maybe not from your perspective in that you could just fly away, but imagine if the zombies could fly after you. Luckily that town didn’t have many griffons, and the ones they did have had their wings chewed off before they succumbed to whatever caused their affliction.”

Applejack interjects at that point, “What do ya mean by whatever caused their affliction?” I ponder this for a second, “Well even I’m not sure all the things that can cause the dead to rise. I’ve seen plagues, curses, and even random chance create different types of undead.” I just ignore Twilight’s mumbling as I say the word curse.

“Ooh, ooh, I have a question!” shouts out Pinkie Pie making me wonder what bit of silliness will result now. “You said this was about five years ago and you seem to be about the same age as us so you would be about thirteen or fourteen then but you said that wasn’t long after you were on your own but why were you all alone and not with your family?” Everypony just looks at her as this was not a question any of them expected from her, and it hits me especially hard.

“I’d… rather not talk about that…” I respond in a depressed manner and trying to stop my eyes from tearing up. I catch some movement on the edge of my vision as a purple-maned head whips back in my direction again. Thankfully Rarity takes this opportunity to interrupt, “Well I must say that was an interesting story. How about somepony else take a turn now?”

I mouth the words ‘thank you’ to her for diverting things, and try to calm down enough to enjoy the other stories. It takes a while but I am able to do so and enjoy the rest of the time there until everyone heads back to their various homes for the night. Rarity does pull me aside before I can leave for a quick word, “Darling, do you need somepony to talk with about… whatever happened?”

I consider this for a moment before responding, “Maybe someday, but just… not right now.” She nods at this and doesn’t try to push any further so we head off in opposite directions to our homes. I settle down in my bed and think over everything that happened, as well as what to do about the future until I finally fall into a dreamless slumber.

Author's Note

Another chapter up, I wonder how long I can keep a somewhat steady pace with this. Not much else to say right now,other than hurray for the first bit of backstory on Flarenza's personal adventures. As always accepting all flames, complaints and comments for consideration. Also all credit on Sunny Town and everything in it goes to the awesome creator of Story of the Blanks, Donitz. Who will probably never even read this story anyways. <.< Now I just have to figure out where I'm going with that. :P

New look around town

Winter was always my least favorite time of the year, though that could be because of me always waking up covered in snow when it started. Until now I never had a chance to relax and just watch the weather in a fire warmed room. So imagine my surprise when I wake up in the week after Nightmare Night to actual comfort on my least liked season. Looking out my bedroom window I actually take some time to appreciate the scene created by the freshly fallen snow, “Not being forced to be out in that weather is actually kind of nice for once.”

Stepping away from the window I look down at myself, “Though I guess being inside doesn’t change what usually happens to me this time of year. I wonder what the others in town will say when they see this change, bet Twilight will probably complain about it thinking it’s some prank.” I chuckle at the thought of how everypony will react to this as I prepare for the day.

I head up to the attic to put some finishing touches on the carving I had started on the floor. Using some of the information from the books in the castle, I was able to put together a design for a circle that could be used for almost anything I would need one for, with minor alterations each time. I planned to fill in everything I had carved out with silver to make it a permanent structure of the attic. Any changes I would need could be done with chalk or something similar.

After I finish carving in the last few marks, I head over to a nearby table to do a check on the gems and stones I had dug up over the past few months from the gem fields Rarity told me about. While I wasn’t that good at finding them even with my magic, though I had been getting better, I was able to gather a decent amount in enough of a variety that I was able to puzzle out what I could enchant on some of them.

On the rubies I was able to put a rudimentary barrier spell. While it would only stop one or two blows before needing to recharge I was able to keep it up longer if I manually charged it while in use. These I planned to try and supply directly to the equestrian military if I ever found a contact for that. Until then I just saved them until I needed them.

I got lucky in finding a bunch of rose quartz out there, especially as I was able to copy the heating spell on them, though it worked a bit differently than with fire agates. While the fire agates gave off a heat like being near a fire, with a rose quartz it gave off more of a calming type of warmth. It still kept away the cold of winter, but I couldn’t help but wonder about the difference.

Like with the turquoise I had before, I found that the aquamarine I had found worked well with the cooling spell. I probably wouldn’t sell many of these at this time, but when spring and summer came around again I’d have them ready.

Probably my greatest find was what I could get to work with opals. At first nothing I tried would seem to stick correctly on the stone, and I even had a few crumble into dust. Just as I was about to give up I found that it was able to hold a healing spell on it. At the time I was just throwing random things at it to try and get it to work, and I only tried the healing spell I was improving out of frustration. Depending on how well the enchanted gems work I may have found something to really keep me from worrying about needing bits again.

Setting the ones I had completed aside I turned to ponder the other stones. I hadn’t found anything that would work right with them yet, but I had plenty of time now with winter being here. Sorting them out into separate piles I looked at the emeralds, sapphires, amethysts, and the lone small diamond. “I may be able to get one of the spells I tried before to work on them, though that might be a waste if there is something different that would work on them. Though I’m not sure what I should try on the diamond, I don’t want to risk too much with it as I haven’t found many of them.”

Setting the gems back into their respective slots in the drawer I took them from, I slid them all back into place. Taking another look at the set of drawers I had built to store things in I thought back to Applebloom’s comment about my table and chairs. “I wonder if she knows anypony that could help me replace everything with better stuff sometime. Sure they work, but I still can’t help but flinch every time I look at them now.”

Setting the idea aside for later, I decided that I had wasted enough time around the house today and decided to head to town to see if I could surprise anypony. I pondered letting my mane out of its braid for this, and decided it to go with the idea. I combed it out and used a ribbon, containing my last weaker fire opal, to tie up my mane similar to how Applejack keeps hers.

I peer into the bathroom mirror to see how it looks and nod, “I really need to get a large mirror for the entryway again and in all the other bathrooms. It would be nice to not have to run up here every time I need to look at myself for something.” Putting everything away I head downstairs and out towards town.

Stepping outside I remembered one last thing I needed to do before I went into town. Heading around back I went over to my garden and levitated the cover off of the section I had prepared for the winter. Through my travels I had found that most places didn’t grow anything during the winter months, though I learned a few things that did well in the winter and in some cases had advantages. Throw in a couple of my warmth gems and a barrier tied to my hearth stone to keep out snow and that makes the conditions perfect. Not wasting any time with doing things the slower way I create a barrier to plow up the ground to plant a row of kale and sweet potatoes.

“I probably should have done this during the fall, but I really didn’t have time to spare until now. At least next year things will be easier as I’ll have things planned out better by then.” Finishing with preparing the two rows I turn to the third one that is a bit further away from the others. “These ones will definitely take more of my time to get them to grow up to a proper level. I hope to get them large enough to bear fruit around the middle of the second month.”

Sighing I begin setting up the third row, this time with a more exotic fruit I had found in my travels. “Considering where kumquats are normally grown, if I can get these to succeed here I could probably sell them to some fancy restaurant and use the bits from that to get cheaper foods.” Finishing up with the last of the quick gardening I decided that I could continue tomorrow to let the spells around the garden settle before adding more magic to the area.

Finishing up out in the garden I decided to ignore any more distractions and made my way into town. This brought up the worst part of being so far from town, “It’s going to get annoying if I have to clear a path every time they schedule some snow. Though I guess I won’t have to go out of my way to practice my spells if I do.” Forming a pair of barriers in front of me at angles, and set to only block snow, I push my way through the white powder towards town.

It takes about twice as long as it normally would, but eventually I get into town. Luckily I spot a few of the ponies I was meaning to surprise pretty quickly. I rest under a nearby tree to catch my breath as I watch Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie squaring off against the Cutie Mark Crusaders in a snowball fight. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to watch for long as one snowball thrown by Rainbow Dash hit the tree I was under, burying me in a wall of white.

How foolish of me thinking that I could get away with not being buried in snow on the first day of winter. While I was grumbling to myself under the snow I heard the sound of hooves crunching on snow as the combatants approached the snow pile. “I didn’t mean to bury the new pony in town Pinkie, honest.” “You better not have Dashie, how would I be able to throw them a party if you chase them away. Strange that my Pinkie Sense didn’t let me know a new pony was coming to town though.”

I soon feel the snow around me shifting away as they start to dig me out. Once my head is free and I can see Rainbow Dash I decide to forego the minor prank I planned. Using my magic I form four barriers around some snow before compacting them down and floating them around me in a threatening manner towards the cyan mare. “Rainbow Dash, do you really want to start something again considering what happened last time?”

All five ponies are surprised that the supposedly ‘new’ pony in town knows Rainbow Dash’s name and turn towards her wondering what I’m talking about. “Whoa, I don’t know who you are lady, though you do sound familiar, but I don’t remember doing anything-“ she breaks off as I shake off the rest of the snow around me to reveal my cute mark. “Wait, Flarenza!? What happened to you? Why are your colors backwards now?”

At her realization of who I am I now have the undivided attention of five confused ponies. At the looks on their faces I start chuckling at them before answering, “It’s nothing major, my colors just swap around during the winter time. Having grown up with it I kinda forgot that it’s not exactly a common thing.”

The five exchange glances with each other before Rainbow Dash responds again, “Flarenza, can you get any weirder? First the invisible magic, and now this?” I just let out another laugh at this, “Oh you have no idea.” This just confuses them more so I divert their attention away from the comment.

“Well since it was an accident I can forgive you this once. If it happens again then you better watch out where you take a nap.” She just tries to brush this off like she usually does before I continue, “Anyways seeing as none of you knew that this would happen to me I figured I would see how long it would take ponies to recognize me. Though I do wonder how Rarity would take it, she’s asked a few times if I wanted to get something made and this might really throw her off.”

This gets a chuckle out of them all. “I don’t think she’s ever had a customer change colors on her before. She’d most likely take this as a challenge to her skills,” mentions Sweetie Belle, who probably would know best how she’d react. After conversing with them all for a bit longer I decide to head over to the library to see how Twilight and Spike would react. After I arrive it looks like, as usual, Twilight is buried in a book while the dragon assistant is doing all the work.

Spike notices me after the door closes behind me, “Welcome to the library, just let me know if I can help you find anything.” He pauses for a second and takes a closer look at me, “Huh, do I know you from somewhere? You look familiar for some reason.” I just smile before replying, “I don’t know, do you?”

Twilight speaks up on hearing my voice, though without looking up, “Come on Spike, how could you have forgotten Flarenza already, she was just here last week.” Spike’s eyes widen in realization at this before responding to her, “Um Twilight, you might want to look up from your book.”

Twilight lets out a sigh of annoyance before doing so, and she gets a look of shock on her face as she notices me. I just burst out laughing at the look on her face until she is able to speak again, “Whuh, what happened to you? Was it Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie again? I thought you three said you were all done with the pranks, in fact you all promised and-“

I interrupt her at this point before she gets too bent out of shape, “No, nothing like that. It’s just an issue that I was born with. During winter time my colors tend to swap around on me, I guess it can get a bit confusing.” Twilight’s mouth starts moving as if she is trying to talk, though nothing is coming out. Spike on the other hand, “Flarenza, could you get any weirder?”

This snaps Twilight out of her daze long enough to shout, “Spike!? I just chuckle and respond, “Funny, Rainbow Dash asked the same thing.” At this point I have to start fending off Twilight as she want to start performing some ‘tests’ on me to find out why this happens. I probably should have expected this, but hopefully she forgets about doing them in a few days.

I quickly make my way out of there and back into town before she starts to try and drag me around magically to do her tests. Luckily Applejack arrives to stall her, though she doesn’t look overly surprised at my appearance. I quickly find out why after hearing her mutter, “Huh, I guess Rainbow Dash was telling the truth. Shoot, now I owe her ten bits.” Shaking my head at this, though I should have expected it knowing how competitive the two are, I make my way over to Rarity’s.

I am stopped a couple times on the way over by a few random ponies that I see around town often. Derpy even crashes into a snowbank as she loses control trying to gawk at my new look, she is helped out by a brown stallion with an hourglass cutie mark though so I figure she’ll be fine. Most of the ponies are just confused by the change, and a quick explanation sets them straight, though not without a few odd looks.

Arriving at the Boutique I decide to sneak in the front by using my magic to muffle the bell. Entering I find Rarity working on her latest dress with her back towards the door. I see Sweetie Belle in a corner watching her, and I make some shushing motions to her as she spots me. Rarity did feel the door’s opening though even though she didn’t hear it, “Sweetie dear, did you leave the door or a window open again? I can feel a cold breeze coming from somewhere.”

She doesn’t look up from her work, and Sweetie Belle is doing everything she can to keep from laughing at this so I step in, “She didn’t leave anything open, I just came by to see how you are doing.” Rarity doesn’t react much to this, “Ah Flarenza darling, I didn’t hear you come in, wha- ha ha HAA!” Sweetie Belle can’t contain herself anymore and bursts out laughing as her sister turns around and goes into shock at my new look.

Eventually she is able to shake off her shock and come up with a coherent response to it while flailing a hoof around, “Flarenza, what did you DO to yourself? I mean your colors were fine before so why would you do this?” I get a chuckle out of her antics and try to calm her down, “I didn’t do anything to myself Rarity. This is just a little quirk I’ve had to live with for as long as I can remember. Every winter my colors swap like this and then switch back in the spring.”

Rarity slowly calms down after I explain this to her, and eventually she starts getting into a thoughtful pose. “Hmm, well it still is strange, though now all those ideas I had for you before just won’t work with you like this. Though hmm…” She gets a thoughtful look and I notice a gleam start to show in her eyes before she shouts out, “Idea!” From there she is completely gone in her own little creative world.

“Well you lost her now. You won’t be able to get a thing out of her until she is done with what she has planned,” comes from Sweetie Belle. Agreeing with her I decide to head off having met all that I planned to see. Standing outside the shop I try to decide what else to do.

After a while of not coming up with anything, I decide to just stop by the jewelry shop with some of my latest work to see what I could get for them, and then head home for the rest of the day.

Author's Note

Shorter chapter this time, mostly just to get a few things out of the way so it doesn't feel like I'm pulling them from nothing later. Let me know what you think of the color swapping idea, never seen it used before and I thought it would be fun. Also I know the the winter grown produce are usually done in areas that don't get snow, but with a bit of magic that can be gotten around here. Anyways all flames, complaints and comments accepted to help me improve.

Magical Mishaps

After a month of snow I remembered the other reason why I disliked the winter. “I am so bored.” Staring out into the blizzard I find myself actually wanting the company of somepony to distract me. Even dealing with Pinkie Pie would be a welcome change of pace after being trapped inside for the last week. “Why did the weather team fall behind so much to require having to dump all this on the town?”

Sighing I turn back to what I was working on to pass the time. The silver had worked perfectly for the circle like I had planned and after running it through its paces I found that it worked even better than I had hoped. After a few tests I found that it had something to do with the silver that focused the spells I used in an unexpected manner. After some other tests I was able to find that different materials worked better for different spells, though silver seemed to amplify them and chalk was perfect for use in almost any kind of spell.

The latest tests I had been doing were adding more rings to the circle to see what effects it would have on the spells, as well as if I could predict what kinds of effects would happen while doing so. Unfortunately things hadn’t been working out as planned. I had found a few interesting patterns which I saved, like one that allowed me to teleport into it from an unsure distance as well as causing me to lose my lunch, but I hadn’t found any patterns to it yet.

“This makes no sense; none of these patterns are working out like I’d expect them to. I found a simpler teleport circle than the one I created, yet it allows outgoing travel and looks nothing like it. There should be some similarities at least for spells of similar types, but I can’t see anything alike on these.” I fume at what should have been the key to solving the problem, but is instead just giving me a headache.

Trying once again with a three-ringed pattern, a try and focus on getting it to work this time. Too late do I realize that the headache wasn’t from confusion alone, but also from my magic being overworked. I try to cancel the spell, but with that circle already half charged it still has an effect. In a bright explosion of flame colored energy I suddenly find myself falling in a world of white before finally passing out from the pain.

<><><><><><><>

I awaken sometime later with one of the worst headaches I’ve ever had before, as well as a rather curious sound. Trying to ignore the pain I try to get a feel for where I am before opening my eyes. Last thing I remember was being somewhere white after trying to abort that spell. Maybe it actually worked somehow and I ended up outside? If so, why do I feel warm instead of freezing.

I feel around me slowly and find that I am currently underneath some blankets, and that sound I was hearing becomes a bit clearer as the fuzziness starts to lift from my head and seems to be the sound of somepony humming. I guess somepony found me from wherever I ended up unconscious. That is probably a good thing if I was outside as I wouldn’t have lasted long in this blizzard.

Carefully opening my eyes I try to look around to see where it is I ended up. It takes a while for my eyes to clear up, but when they do I find that I am on a couch in a rather cozy looking home. From where I am I can see various things that look like they would be used as homes for birds, as well as a window with the blizzard still going strong.

I can’t see who the humming is coming from where I am, though it sounds like it is from somewhere outside of the room I am in. It sounds very feminine though and is actually quite pretty as well. Still feeling a bit drained from the accident I just lay there and enjoy the soothing sound as I let my mind wander back to what happened.

I was never able to get that circle fully powered, yet it still was able to teleport me to wherever I am now. Oddly enough no circle was even fully powered, only scattered parts of each of them. I need to get another look at it and compare it to my books; I think I may have accidentally found the key how the circles work.

I sit there trying to recall exactly what happened and comparing it to what I could remember from my books. I was interrupted from my thoughts though by a quiet gasp and the sound of something hitting the floor. Looking towards the end of the couch I spot a plate of food on the floor, with everything still on it, as well as a flash of pink mane sticking out from behind the arm of it.

I just stare at the other end of the couch, wondering what just happened, when I see whoever it is poke their head out cautiously from behind it. I am surprised to see the aquamarine eyes of Fluttershy that I remembered from those many months ago. She quickly pulls back behind the couch again when she notices me looking in her direction.

Wow, Twilight wasn’t kidding about how easily scared she can get. I haven’t even said anything and she’s already hiding. I try to think of something to say to her, but nothing is coming to mind especially as I’m not fully sure how I got here. I move my left hoof out from under the covers to wave at her, only to gasp in pain as I finally notice that I had other injuries from the accident I didn’t notice.

This is enough to get Fluttershy’s attention though as she springs out from behind the couch and to my side. “Oh dear! You shouldn’t be moving around so much with your legs like that,” at her words I could also feel that my hind legs were also hurting, the only one in a good condition right now seems to be my right foreleg. “How badly am I hurt?” I ask trying to judge how long I would be out, even with magic to heal the injuries.

“Well nothing I can tell is broken thankfully, but three of your legs, as well as the ribs on your lefts side are bruised up pretty badly. I’m not sure if anything is cracked though so you’ll need to take it easy until we can get you checked out at the hospital. But we can’t do that until the weather clears so I’ll take care of you until then,” her confidence seems to vanish at this point, “Um, if that’s all right with you I mean.”

I boggle at how widely her personality shifts, but remembering what Twilight said before I think I might be able to grasp a reason why, though it’s still just a guess. “Well I don’t think the hospital will be necessary Miss Fluttershy, I should be able to fix most of the problems once I get over the magical burnout. Unfortunately that’s the reason why I’m even injured in the first place.”

“Oh my, I didn’t even check to see if that was a problem or not. Is that why you suddenly crashed onto my roof and off in front of my window? It scared me so much that I almost didn’t check to see what happened.” It seems that I may have broken past her shyness on accident earlier by showing pain, this affirms my earlier guess that something that puts her in her ‘kindness’ mode makes her forget about being shy.

“Yeah, I was working longer than I thought on testing out some things with my magic. I didn’t realize how much I had been using until the last attempt. I only had enough strength to get the spell half charged, but it was enough to teleport me from my home to where you found me.” Fluttershy gets a stern look on her face as I mention how I had overworked myself to the point of this happening.

“You really should pace yourself better so that this doesn’t happen again. You can’t just go overworking yourself and expect things to turn out fine. What would have happened to you if nopony was around to drag you out of the weather?” I shrink down a bit at this, knowing she is right. Even though this time was an accident things could have been much worse if I didn’t happen to land on her home.

“Now you just sit there while I go and make you something to eat. If you overworked your magic then you really should be starving by now.” At her words my stomach decides to agree with her causing her to giggle a bit. As she heads of towards what I assume is her kitchen she pauses and shrinks down again. “Um, how did you know my name earlier? I don’t think I’ve ever met you before and I don’t remember telling it to you after you woke up.”

I realize that knowing her name without her knowledge of it could really set off her shyness again. I really can’t think of an excuse to use, so I just go with the more recent truth. “Well I’ve been spending a lot of time at the library where Twilight Sparkle lives. I saw you with her and her other friends one day and through her learned all your names over time. I’ve already met her other four friends and since you were the only one I hadn’t met it was easy to match the last name to you.”

She seems to calm down a bit when I mention her friends. “Oh, well if Twilight told you then I guess that’s okay. Though I was sure Twilight was always complaining about nopony using the library other than…” She pauses at this point as she seems to realize something. “Oh, you must be Flarenza then. Twilight mentioned you a few times, especially with how you’ve done some interesting things with magic and how you both dealt with that scary ghost.”

I nod to her, confirming her guess. “I’m surprised she actually admits that it was a ghost. She seemed completely against even using the word before, and she still refuses to believe in other things.” Fluttershy laughs a little at that. “Well she really can get set in her way of thinking and getting her to change her mind is really tough. Oh, but please don’t tell her I said that.” She cringes down at that, probably due to not wanting to say anything bad about her friends.

I nod and agree not to say anything. She then remembers what she was doing before and heads back into her kitchen area. I sit there and ponder the mare and her strange personality shifts. It’s really odd how she goes from really meek to confident and back again. From what I’ve heard from Twilight and what I’ve just seen she really has a strong protective instinct going for her but she almost seems scared to use it. There really is much more to her than meets the eye.

She eventually returns with some food and tea for me which she sets nearby. She then picks up what I assume was her own meal and takes a seat where she can keep an eye on me. I struggle a bit trying to eat though as I haven’t had much practice using hooves, having always relied on magic to move things. Eventually I find a way that works and finish the surprisingly tasty meal.

“Huh, that was really good. You’re a pretty good cook.” Fluttershy just blushes and ducks away from the compliment. “Oh, well I’m really not all that great. I just have a lot of practice from taking care of all the sick critters.” I just shake my head and chuckle a bit at her. She really has self-esteem issues if she can’t even take a compliment.

I let out a yawn and I notice that it is starting to get darker. Fluttershy also seems to realize that it is getting late as well. “Oh, I didn’t notice that it was getting so late already. I’ll go and prepare a bed for you so you’ll be more comfortable.” I quickly stop her before she runs off. “Actually I should be fine here for tonight. Your couch is actually pretty comfortable, and I don’t think moving any distance would be a good idea until these injuries are better.”

Fluttershy pauses as she realizes that I am right and looks apologetic for not realizing that moving me would probably be bad right now. She still doesn’t relent on the comfort part and I am soon inundated with extra pillows and something to drink within reach. She then heads upstairs to where I assume her own room is, shutting off most of the lights as she goes.

I don’t fall asleep right away as I lay there thinking about how the day went. While I have been meaning to meet Fluttershy face-to-face, I would have rather done it without having to be injured to do so. Granted things turned out better this way rather than trying to fumble my way through awkwardly in a different way, or trying to get one of her friends to introduce me to her. She probably wouldn’t have opened up nearly as fast those ways.

I really need to pay her back for this somehow, I wonder how she’d like some of the things growing out of my garden right now. It’s not much but it would be a start at least. I eventually fall asleep while thinking on ways to repay the shy pegasus.

<><><><><><><>

The next morning I wake up to the sound of Fluttershy’s humming in the kitchen again. I’m feeling a bit better as my magic has partially returned again, but it’s nowhere near full strength. It is however enough for me to do a simple scan to see how injured I really am. After a brief moment I am thankful to find that nothing is broken or even cracked. My muscles in the injured areas are really strained though and there is a lot of bruising.

Being careful to watch my magic usage, I do what I can to at least soothe my muscles and repair as much damage as I can. This leaves me mostly drained again, but I am able to at least fix enough damage that I can safely move around again, though still with a lot of aches and pains.

As I lean back after finishing with my work I realize another problem. Getting up as carefully as I can I make my way over towards the sound of my host’s voice. As I round a corner I see her working at a stove preparing what I assume is breakfast for us both. I wait until she isn’t handling anything that could cause her injury before I clear my throat.

This of course causes her to hide behind the nearest object, though she quickly recovers upon seeing me. “Oh dear, you really shouldn’t be up yet.” I know better than to try and pass things off as being nothing. “I know I should still be resting, but I got back enough magic to check things over and fix the worst of it. It still hurts a good bit, but I thought it might be a good idea to clean up a bit and take care of a few other issues.”

It takes her a moment to realize what I meant, but upon realizing it she directs me on where I need to go. After taking a quick shower and taking care of the other necessities, I return to my place on the couch. Shortly afterwards Fluttershy comes out of the kitchen with both of our meals on her back. Taking mine carefully I proceed to eat, only using my magic when absolutely necessary to avoid straining myself.

As we finish and the dishes are cleaned and put away we sit there in an awkward silence. Trying to come up with something to talk about I just grasp at the first thing I see, which is of course the blizzard outside. “How long is this weather supposed to last? I didn’t think to double check with the weather team but I don’t remember them saying it was going to last this long.”

Fluttershy looks towards the window with a frown on her face. “I’m not sure really. Rainbow Dash said that the blizzard was only going to last two days. Something had to have gone wrong for it to last this long; probably something came out of the Everfree when they couldn’t get out to stop it. Odd weather comes out of there from time to time, but they can usually drive it off.”

Huh, I didn’t realize that the Everfree Forest could cause issues with the weather as well as the usual creatures coming out of it. Of course with that answered we both settle back into silence yet again. Thinking about the forest did give me an idea though.

“So I hear that you are the resident caretaker for most of the animals in the area? Is there anything interesting about them you can tell me?” This was probably one of the best and worst things to ask her. She almost completely forgets about her shyness in her enthusiasm, but she is also nearing Pinkie Pie levels of excitement at the same time.

Eventually she does calm down enough that I can get a few words of my own in and eventually start telling her about some of my travels. I keep away from the scarier parts of it and focus mainly on the animals and other creatures that I had met in my journeys. Eventually we sit there trading stories back and forth and I find out a few interesting things about her.

Huh, she actually faced down a dragon and berated it into submission? Never would have expected her to be able to do something like that. Also she befriended that manticore I saw before I arrived in town? That could be some useful information in case I ever meet it on accident again.

Eventually we are interrupted by the sound of our stomachs growling and we realize that we had been talking the entire day and it was actually nearing dinner. I actually insist on helping her this time to prepare dinner and we quickly put something together. I even made up one of those crepe cakes for desert as partial thanks for her helping me. Eventually we finish eating and clean the place up before we both head off to sleep again.

<><><><><><><>

The next morning I feel much better and am able to heal away most of the pain, leaving just a few aches. Looking outside I notice that the blizzard seems to have finally passed on leaving a light layer of clouds with the sun peeking through in places. Fluttershy had just started to bring out breakfast when there was a loud knocking at her door. I catch up both plates inn my magic and set them down while she goes to see who is at the door.

I catch sight of a familiar rainbow mane over her shoulder as she opens it. “Oh Rainbow Dash, what are you doing here so early?” She lets the cyan mare in out of the cold. “Hey Flutters, I’m just doing my rounds and checking up on ponies. The Everfree sent out another blizzard after we started ours and we’re making sure that everypony made it through it okay.” She then notices me seated on the couch.

“Flarenza? What are you doing here? When did you and Fluttershy meet?” I take a small bite of food before answering. “We met a couple days ago after I had a small magical mishap. I ended up miscasting a spell at only half power and ended up teleporting somewhere over her home before I crashed into it and in front of her window. She helped me out for the last two days while I recovered.” She just stares for a second before she bursts out laughing.

“Wait, you mean to tell me that you, who is probably the second most egg-headed pony in town, screwed up so badly that you actually teleported out into the blizzard all the way across town?” She just breaks down even more as her laughing gets worse. I just shake my head at this but Fluttershy has other ideas on what to do. “Rainbow Dash! This is not a laughing matter. She could have actually been seriously hurt or even worse because of that. If she landed anywhere else who knows what would have happened.”

Both Rainbow Dash and I are taken aback at Fluttershy’s reaction. The cyan pegasus does start to look a bit sheepish though. “Yeah I guess you’re right, sorry about that Flarenza.” I’m actually shocked that she would actually apologize about something, but accept it anyways with a nod of my head. She finishes up with checking on Fluttershy and heads back out, leaving us to finish breakfast.

Soon after I convinced her that I was well enough to travel and bid her farewell, though not before giving her permission to check up on me later to make sure I was really doing better. I made my way back home, going the long way through town to see how everypony else was doing, and eventually make it there after an exhausting trip through the snow. Of course it’s only when I get home that I realize something.

“Frig, I could have used a couple barriers to make snowshoes or something and just walked on top of the snow.” I look back at the path I plowed through to get home before shaking my head. Heading inside I made my way towards the attic again to check up on what happened when I was last there. Arriving I notice that everything is still as I left it, though with a slight burnt spot in the center of the circle.

“Next time I should use an object other than myself to test it out. Though I guess things turned out well enough, now where’s that diagram.” Digging through the book I find the page I was looking for and start comparing it to what I had inscribed on the floor. It takes me a couple hours, but I start to notice a pattern that I missed on the previous times I looked at it.

“It almost looks as if the spell merged the different layers into a single one when the spell was cast. If I match up some of the runes that I remember being charged to what is here, then they actually match when the ones from different circles are merged.” I take another look at the circle from various angles.

“Could it really be that simple though? If it is then I could actually set up some permanent runes for things I would always want ready and just use the outer rings for when I need to write up something new. I could even have multiple patterns set up while only using a fraction of the space by setting it up so that the overlapping runes would fit multiple spells.”

I get to work on writing down what I had found out and even testing out a couple of the ideas just to verify that it works. Eventually I am forced to stop by the arrival of Fluttershy who proceeds to force me to put everything away and take a break for the night. She then heads off to her own home, but not before I grab a pair of saddlebags for her from the days pickings from my garden.

Author's Note

Yay, broke the 50k word mark. I planned on doing more this chapter but then I realized how long it was getting, so I guess that all can go to next chapter. Of course it was only after I was halfway through that I remembered a bit from another story I heard about, so no this blizzard has nothing to do with that one with Scootaloo. Though now that the whole mane 6 has met her I can focus a bit more on other ponies that I might use now. I actually didn't plan to have her meet up with Fluttershy this soon, but the opportunity came to mind during a break from writing the chapter, that and I really needed something else to happen during the winter months. All that's left now is one side thing I have planned, and Winter Wrap-up. As always all flames, comments and complaints are welcomed and encouraged.

Deepening Mysteries

You know that the winter months are getting boring when you find yourself wanting to do something you’d normally hate. I find myself in this exact situation as I joyfully prepare to go out to examine Sunny Town to try and find out what is keeping it there. “I never thought I’d see the day when I actually wanted to confront some undead monstrosity. This has been the most boring winter I’ve ever been through, though I guess it is more preferable than trying to constantly find ways of staying warm.”

I cinch up my packs after loading in the last few things I felt that I would need. Not knowing what to expect I packed a variety of things that I felt could come in handy in figuring out the town and its inhabitants. I took one more look through the things scattered around my attic until my eyes fell on my gem storage. On a whim I decide to add the diamond to my packs, just on the off-chance that I need it. “If that book is right then I should be able to put just about any kind of spell into this. Without a circle it would only be temporary, but it would at least last long enough for whatever I’d need it for.”

As a precaution I also grab one of each of the enchanted gems as well, though it is doubtful that I’d need an emerald enchanted to help things grow. Sliding them into the lighter pack I make my way downstairs to grab a couple food packs I keep prepared, and then head out into the cold. “I really should get another door put somewhere in the back of the place. It’s kind of annoying to have to go through the front to get to the back all the time. Though I guess with how the previous owner dabbled in dark necromancy, having to only defend one doorway would have come in handy.”

As I make my way around back I keep an eye out for any other ponies as I don’t want them to see what I am going to be doing this time. The field of white between here and the town is completely clear of any bright colors, and even the direction of Fluttershy’s cottage is empty. I look up to check for any flyers or low hanging clouds, having caught Rainbow Dash in them a couple times, before nodding to myself and heading towards my path to the Everfree.

I do take a small detour by my garden to check up on how things are there, and am happy to note that everything is growing well, even the kumquats plants are starting to bear fruit now. I snag a few of them, the first few to test the taste, and the rest to store in my pack, before making my way into the forest.

As soon as I am under the cover of the trees I make one more quick search around the area to be sure that I am alone. While I couldn’t feel anything nearby through my connection to the area, I felt it was better to be safe than sorry. Once I was sure I was alone I reverted back to my original form to better stay hidden in the snow, as well as not having to explain things if the townspeople spot me.

It doesn’t take long for me to reach where I found the town before as the snow hasn’t piled up as high inside the forest as it did outside. I keep an eye out for any tracks in the snow, but it is still completely untouched in this area. I soon get to the edge of the area designated as my property, and I search for the place that I saw the town from before.

It doesn’t take me long to find it as I had the area marked already the last time I was here. Looking towards the town I don’t see a sign of anything moving within it, and the eerie feeling I had the last time was missing as well. Being careful to be as quiet as possible, I slowly made my way from tree to tree towards the town. As I crept closer I couldn’t see anything moving within the town at all.

Taking a chance I sneak up to the closest building and begin to make my way around it to a nearby window. Peering inside it I can see the presence of some old furniture and a lot of dust, but nothing else. Moving around the building so that I can see into the town I also see that the outdoor area is completely empty as well. This is really strange, Applebloom was sure about what she saw here yet it feels completely empty now. Even that feeling from the time I was last here is gone as well.

Getting a little bolder, I make my way into the town in search of whatever I can find. Each building I look into after the first yields the same results though. Even the snow is completely undisturbed except for the tracks I left myself. Something is definitely not right in this town though. The fact it is still even standing inside of the forest is the biggest clue.

I eventually find one house that is different from all the rest. Making my way inside, I notice a slight chill in the air, as well as that eerie feeling that I remembered from the last time. Well this is definitely the center of whatever is causing things in this town to happen. I’m not sure what it is exactly, but I don’t think it will be as easy to fix like the problem my house had.

Inside I find that there are dark stains on parts of the floor, while the rest of the house is in various states of damage, as if something broke everything in here. Going off of a hunch I decide to check the fireplace and I find just what I expected. “So this is the house that Applebloom said that Ruby was killed in. It makes sense that whatever was done to the town originated from here.”

Deciding that without the townsfolk around that staying would be pointless, I make my way back to the center of the town. Once there I proceed to dig up a small area until I reveal a patch of dirt and even a bit into that. I then take the diamond from my pack and place it into the hole before I start to cast a spell on it. “I’m not sure why this place is empty, but there do seem to be times when there is something here. Since checking the place every day would be a pain, a simple motion tracking spell to warn me when something appears should work.”

After placing the spell on the gem I cover it up with the dirt and snow I had removed from the location. Once I was sure it was hidden well enough I made my way out of town again, but this time towards a new destination in the forest. Once I was far enough from the town I shifted back into pony form again just in case I was spotted.

Making my way through the forest I eventually end up at the castle. “I guess if I can’t do much in the town itself, I can just search the castle library. Though considering some of the information that I’ve found in here, I’m surprised that it hasn’t been raided by somepony else yet. I guess the threat of the forest itself is enough to keep most away from it, but me being here and the fact that some of those in Ponyville have been consistently entering the forest just shows that it isn’t enough.

I eventually arrive at the library and set one of the food packs in the usual place. While I make my way to the tables I grin as I already hear it being taken from behind me. She really is getting brave if she’s taking the risk that I’ll turn around and catch sight of her. Setting the rest of my stuff down I face the many bookshelves and start to cast the search spell while focusing on Sunny Town.

I start with the closest shelves and slowly shift the affected area back a row at a time. I start to frown as I near the back of the library without getting a single hit from my spell though. “This is strange, from what I understand the forest wasn’t always there so nothing was keeping ponies away from it before. Since this castle is so close to it I would have thought there would have been something in here about it, even if it’s just a map.”

As the spell reaches the back of the library without a single flicker I sit for a second on this outcome. “Something is definitely strange here. I would have thought that there would have been something here, even if it was a tax record or even a warning about the place. You don’t just ignore something like that and hope it goes away, leaving it alone is a recipe for disaster.”

Thinking back I remember the first time I cast the spell here and how I sensed more books elsewhere in the castle. Deciding to widen the area of the spell I cast it again in the hopes that one of those other books had the answer I was looking for. This time I was able to get a hit from a book in one of the upper rooms of the castle. I gather up my things and make my way through the castle trying to find the path to it.

I eventually reach the floor that the book is on, though I have trouble actually locating the room. I have been able to find two of the outside wall bordering where it is kept, but after a quick search there didn’t appear to be any secret panels located on those sides. Eventually I come across a room that appears to have been a room for one of the owners of the castle. I thought I heard something scuttling around when I entered, but with a quick look around and finding nothing I just ignore it.

This time I was able to find a panel on the wall that opened up a section of it leading to the room I was looking for. In it I find a single bookcase containing a variety of books, many of them giving off an odd aura of magic. Peering at the spines of the books I find that the titles on some of them seem to be penned by the same being. “Huh, this must have been the personal collection of the owner. Maybe they were also a writer of some sort as well?”

Performing a quick search I find that the book I am searching for is one of those same books that didn’t have an aura around them. Looking at the spine I find that it reads ‘Court’s Judgements’ on it. “Strange title for a book, though if it really is the owner writing these, then they must have also had some sort of control of the area as well.”

Flipping through the book I find that it is filled with a various number of dates, and under each is a name or town followed by a statement for each. Eventually I find the entry that pertains to what I was searching for. “I’m not sure what the date means, must be some outdated format or something. Anyways, ‘Sunny Town: Verdict: Guilty, Judgement: Enforced and Isolation Spell cast.’ Well that doesn’t tell me much more than what I already knew.”

Sighing, I put the book back into its place. “So I guess whatever it was that happened to Sunny Town was put into place by whoever once lived here. It’s something, but it still doesn’t tell me much beyond what I already knew.” I hear a gasp behind me, and I start to turn towards the sound but stop when I hear the voice of the filly that’s been living here.

“Sunny Town? Why would you want to know about a place like that? It’s a really bad town.” I’m surprised at first that she is actually talking to me, but I refrain from looking towards her just in case it would cause her to run. “Well I happen to live rather close to that place, and somepony I know found their way in there by accident and she almost didn’t make it out. I’m trying to find out what I can about the place and see if there is anything I can do to prevent anypony else from getting caught in that place.”

She sounds surprised as she responds, “But that place is supposed to be sealed off, nopony is supposed to even be able to find it.” She sounds a bit scared about something, though I wonder how she even knows this much about the place. “I’m not sure how you know this much about the place; I’ve only found a tiny entry that doesn’t explain anything about the town. Either way the town isn’t sealed anymore if it’s supposed to be; in fact I just went through it today though it was completely empty this time.”

“I’m… not sure how I know. I don’t remember much about myself but sometimes I just know things.” She sounds really sad and unsure about herself during this admission. “Don’t you have any family that could help you? I mean you couldn’t have always been out here alone, and I could try to get word to them if you want.” Her response to this is not what I expected.

“No! Please don’t tell them that I’m here. I don’t know why but I know that they hate me for some reason.” This surprises me, and I don’t think she is faking it as I can hear her hooves rattling on the ground as if she is shaking in fear. “Okay, I won’t tell them about you, though I’m sure you must be pretty lonely out here.”

It takes so long to answer that I was afraid that she ran off. “Well it has been pretty lonely. It’s been a bit better ever since you started coming here though. I’m sorry about stealing from you before but I was so hungry that I couldn’t help myself.” I had actually forgotten that she had been doing that until I started leaving food for her.

“I had actually forgotten that you did that those first few times. I remember seeing a bit of movement that first time though so I was guessing you were pretty young. While I was annoyed those first few times I do understand what it’s like to not have enough food, so I started leaving it out for you.” I start to feel even more sorry for her, not only was she alone, but also abandoned and starving without even the hope of being able to turn to someone.

“That really helped me a lot. All that other stuff you left was nice too; nopony had ever been that nice to me before. I’ve only ever been alone and hated by everypony I’ve ever known.” I really start to wonder what kind of monsters her family was to treat a filly like that. I start to wonder if there is anything else I can do to help her, though I really wonder who her family was so I can avoid them if possible.

I sit there in silence as I hear her start to cry, trying to resist the urge to go to her as it would probably scare her. This continues for a while until she eventually settles down into the occasional sniffle. I levitate a spare piece of cloth from my packs and levitate it back to her without looking and release it when I feel a tug. A moment later I can hear her clearing her nose with it so I decide to let her keep it. “Are you feeling a little better after that?”

It takes her a moment, but she eventually answers. “A little, I just wanted to be liked by somepony but nopony ever did. I don’t even know what I did to be hated so much either.” I don’t know how to answer to this, though I am reminded of my own situation. “Who knows, some ponies just seem to be like that. My mother told me about somepony pretty important that would hate me if they ever met me and may try to hurt me, yet I never knew the reason for why.”

We sit there in our respective silences for a while, thinking on what we’ve just said. Eventually I decide to ask the question that had been bugging me for a while. “This has been bugging me for a while. I can’t keep just thinking of you as ‘that filly’ all the time, do you think I could be allowed to know your name?”

She stays silent at this for so long that I believe she may have really left this time until I hear her voice say in a tone almost too quiet for me to understand. “I… don’t know my name…” This truly surprises me and tells me that something is seriously wrong with what happened to her. I wonder how to go about getting more information out of her until she interrupts my thoughts with a question of her own.

“You say that somepony really important hates you, who would hate you so much that they’d want to hurt you.” I wonder if I should really tell her, but with her being isolated out here there shouldn’t be too much harm in her knowing. “Well I guess it wouldn’t hurt to tell you, the pony’s name is Celestia, Princess Celestia in fact.” Her reaction to this isn’t surprising, what is though is what she says next.

“Why would my sister hate you that badly?” This literally floors me and it takes me a while to recover enough to get my hooves under me. “Um, are you alright?” can be heard from the filly before I respond. “Wait, you mean your family includes the Princesses Celestia and Luna? How is that possible?” Her response is along the same lines as her previous ones.

“I don’t know, but I know that they are my family.” She sounds a bit indignant at me not believing her, so I try to calm down. “I’m sorry; it’s just a lot to take in. The one pony I’m trying to avoid, yet I somehow stumble upon part of her family. Granted, being around a purple unicorn that is also her student would be just as bad but I still visit her.” Yet again she says something to surprise me.

“A purple unicorn? Did she have a sort of star pattern for a cutie mark and travels with five other friends?” I can hear the fear start to creep into her voice. “Wait, you’re afraid of them too? While I know a couple of them can be a bit abrasive I can’t believe they would do anything to harm a filly, two of them especially.” The thought of Pinkie Pie or Fluttershy doing anything of the sort is just impossible to comprehend.

“I’m not sure; I just remember seeing them with my sisters when they left me here all alone. Please don’t tell them that I’m still here.” I can hear the tears starting to come back in her voice, so I decide to comply with her wishes, for now. “Well if that’s what you want, though I think you might enjoy being around some of them.” I’m still going to talk to them about what happened here, but refrain from mentioning the filly in any way just to be safe.

“You still never told me why my sister would hate you though.” I contemplate trying to deny knowing why, even though I really don’t, but I do have some suspicions. “I’m not really sure myself, I can only guess it’s because of what I am. You see, I’m not really a pony, this is just a disguise I’ve been using since I came into this area.” She really seems curious about this as she tries to find out more. “Really? But you look like a pony, are you really a changeling then?”

I feel a tad insulted at being compared to one of those, granted I hadn’t met too many of them in person but the ones I did were rather unpleasant. “No, though I should have guessed that a comparison like that would come up. Give me a second to show you, just promise not to tell anyone, pony or not.” I slip back into my usual way of talking, though saying anypony instead of anyone had been starting to become a habit.

Focusing on myself I trigger the shift back into my real form. I can hear her gasp behind me, but it sounds more like surprise than fear. “What are you? I don’t think I’ve seen something like you before?” I wonder at this as she seems to have known other things that she shouldn’t have known. “Let’s just say I’m different and leave it at that. I haven’t met anyone else like me before since I lost my family. I’ve searched for a few years now and haven’t found anything, though if I wasn’t avoiding your sister she’d probably have an idea.”

I shift back into my pony shape again as well as the speech pattern to cover it. “I really should be heading back home for the night though. I have a lot of things to think about now. But before I go…” I levitate out the small fruits I had brought with, wrapped up in another cloth. “Here’s a small treat I was able to get growing recently in my garden. Take them and then let me know when you are hidden somewhere so I can head out. I know you don’t want me to see you for some reason and remember your promise to not tell anypony.”

I feel her take the fruit, followed by the sound of her rushing off. She soon calls out to me and I make my way out. Paying a little more attention than I was before I notice that they toy I gave her before is sitting on the bed by the pillows. Huh, I accidentally stumbled on to where she was sleeping this entire time.

I soon reach the exit of the castle and the path towards the forest exit. Luckily I don’t run into anything as my mind is definitely not on what is going on around me. I have no idea how to deal with all of this, but something doesn’t quite add up here. From what I can gather though, both of the Princesses and those six were somehow involved in all this, though the only time they were all together that I know of was…

I realize that this must all have been connected to the event that happened when I first arrived. The six entered the forest together, but when they came out it was with the Princesses, one of them who had been rumored to have been lost for a thousand years. When I have the chance I need to find out exactly what happened that night.

Author's Note

Hehe, well part of one mystery solved, while another one gets even more mysterious as well as adding another problem. I was almost tempted to end this chapter on a cliffhanger when I reveal who the filly is related to, but I decided to not go with that cliche route. Sunny Town isn't gone by any means though, there's just a secret behind it that has yet to be revealed. Now to come up with a good name to use later, I don't want to take someone else's idea, even though I do like the name they used. As always, comments, complaints and flames are always accepted and welcomed.

Edit: Sorry for the false notice on those that saw it. I had to fix a bit that I forgot to add.

Private Investigations

That night sleeping was nearly impossible as I thought through the implications of what I had found out. Finding out the relationship between the filly in the castle, and the Princesses of the kingdom was one thing, but that the kind ponies I had met may have had something to do with it as well was hard to handle. There is definitely more to this story, but I’m not sure if it’s because it was left out or if it was just something else she didn’t know. I actually hope it’s the latter as it would make things much easier to deal with since I’m pretty sure Fluttershy at least would do something to help if asked, though most of the others probably would as well if they could.

Thinking on this I decide that it would be best to keep this a secret, as Twilight would most likely let the Princess know due to an obligation to her teacher. The rest would probably be unable to hold the information from Twilight either because of their friendship. If any of them would be able to keep a secret though, it would be Pinkie Pie strangely enough as she seems good about keeping promises. That’s assuming if any of the others believe something so wild from her in the first place.

Eventually I was able to fall asleep, only noticing that I did because of seeing it dark outside one moment and light the next. Blinking at the sudden change I just start getting on with the day. Figuring that the situation is too complicated to solve quickly I decide to just wait and see what happens. Finishing the usual morning routines I head out to check on my garden.

Checking on things I am glad to find that the emeralds have been doing a decent job keeping the plants healthy. While the enchantment on them is nowhere near good enough to actually grow crops on their own, it is still strong enough to keep them healthier than usual, and probably could even help dying plants recover. Moving on to the small trees that the kumquats are growing on I notice something odd.

While most of the trees have a decent number of fruits on them I notice that one on the end is currently bare. Staring at it for about a minute I notice that it is also slightly rustling as if something is in it. It takes me a moment to notice that I can sense a pony in the area, though none entered the property recently which can mean only one thing I’ve found.

“Pinkie Pie, why are you raiding my garden?” At my words the pink party pony of Ponyville pops her primary protuberance out of the plant. She tries to say something, but it is garbled as she is still chewing on her ill-gotten fruits. I wait patiently for her to finish chewing before trying to get her to answer again.

“I couldn’t help myself I came by to visit yesterday and you weren’t home and when I checked back here I found these and I couldn’t help but try one as they looked tasty and I was right so I had another and another and I couldn’t stop myself and…” I sigh as I plant a hoof in her mouth to get her to stop her barrage of words. “I guess I should have expected that you’d be the first to find out about these, though maybe next time you should ask before raiding somepony else’s garden.”

I just look at her until she finally nods and I remove my hoof from her mouth. “Just limit yourself to this one tree at least if you are going to keep doing this.” Knowing that stopping her would be nearly impossible I decide that this would be the most I can get her to accept. “Sure thing Flarie, though how did you get all this to grow during the winter anyways? Nopony else ever grows anything outside this time of the year because of the cold and snow but you seem to be doing it without that being a problem.”

I had wondered why I never saw anypony else with a garden or even a greenhouse yet. “Well I picked up a few tricks and learned what kind of things still grew during the winter, though usually in areas with less snow during winter. So using that and some magic to keep the area clear of it as well as warm it up I could keep a few things growing. I guess a greenhouse would make things a bit easier, though.” Pinkie Pie just stares at me as I explain this, “Uh-huh… Okie Dokie Lokie.” She then proceeds to bounce her way back towards town carrying the few fruits she picked and didn’t eat.

Of course as soon as she was out of sight she somehow popped back up from out of another nearby plant. “Oh yeah, how about chocolate pineapple swirl?” I still wonder how she does that, even the link with the hearth stone doesn’t help figure that out. “No Pinkie, that’s not the correct flavor either.” She makes a snapping sound with something before vanishing back into the plant. “At least I can say nothing gets very boring with her around.”

Gathering up what is currently ready from the garden I pack up some of it for later meals, some for storage, and the rest as a gift later today. Picking up my packs from inside the house I head towards the town and try to decide who would be best to try and find out what happened that one day. I could have asked Pinkie Pie since she was here, though the chances of getting a sensible answer would have been low.

Suddenly an idea comes to mind, “Why ask them directly when I could go to a more talkative source that also won’t hold anything back? Spike probably knows most of what happened, and if I have to I can go to one of the others afterwards. Besides, knowing Twilight he could probably use a break around now.” With the plan in mind I make my way towards the library.

Like I expected Spike was busy cleaning the place up, though Twilight was nowhere around. Spike noticed me enter and paused in his work. “Hey Flarenza, Twilight’s busy down in her lab but if you need anything just let me know.” Huh, I wonder what kind of lab work she does down there, though that makes things a bit easier. “Actually I was hoping to talk with you about something I’ve been curious about.”

This surprises the young dragon, “Talk with me? About what?” I take a seat at one of the table scattered around the place and set out some things to snack on from my packs. “Well when I first arrived here in town I noticed a small parade coming from the Everfree Forest. In it were Twilight and her friends as well as the two Princesses. Yet I heard that the younger one had been missing for a long time so I’ve been curious about the story behind what happened.”

Spike rolls his eyes after I finished talking. “Oh that, a lot of ponies have asked about what happened out there. At least now we have an updated history book so I don’t have to keep explaining it.” I raise an eyebrow at his exasperated tone as he goes to find the book he was talking about. As he brings it over to me I toss him a couple small orange fruits in thanks before I start reading.

It doesn’t take me long to find what I was looking for as I had read the previous edition of the book. From it I learned a general example of what happened that day when I first arrived. From the arrival of Nightmare Moon, to Twilight and her friend’s trip to the castle where they found the Elements of Harmony, to the eventual defeat of Nightmare Moon and redeeming of Princess Luna it explained a few questions I had that night, though not the most important ones.

Nowhere is mentioned of the existence of another sister to the two Princesses. Looks like I may actually have to ask one of them about the full story of what happened there. I wonder what the Elements of Harmony are though, it sounds like it was something hidden at the castle that they found and it was used to defeat Nightmare Moon so the might have something to do with what happened. It’s also interesting that the castle was originally home to the two Princesses as well.

As I am about to call for Spike again I notice the door to what I assume is the basement open and a slightly smoking Twilight come through it. “Spiiike! If you need me I’ll be in the shower and- Oh Flarenza, when did you get here?” She stops as she notices me at the table. “I arrived not too long ago. I was looking up some things I had been wondering about for a while. What happened to you to leave your mane smoking?”

Twilight seems to get really nervous about this as she answers. “Well, uh I was working on some things in my lab, testing out a few spells actually and I kind of, blew up one of the gems you made, eh he.” I just stare at her blankly. “You blew up a gem? I’m assuming it was one of the heating ones considering the smoke.” She just nods at this while looking embarrassed. I shake my head at her and bring a hoof up to my face.

“I’ll probably regret this, but I’ll stay around to find out what you did after you get cleaned up.” She quickly makes her way out of the room as I sit there wondering what happened. She is probably the first pony I’ve seen to be able to somehow blow up one of the gems I made on accident. I better make sure to keep the stronger ones away from her; she’d probably take out part of the town if she tried whatever she did with those ones.

Spike comes out to see what Twilight wanted and I let him know. Seeing as it is nearing lunch and I might be there for a while I offer him some of the things I brought with me to work with which he graciously accepts and brings back into the kitchen. He’s a rather decent cook for being a dragon; though I guess with Twilight around he’d have to be. I chuckle at some of the things I’ve heard about her kitchen adventures while I wait.

Eventually she returns from cleaning up and Spike brings out lunch for the three of us. Twilight is surprised at the freshness of the kale and sweet potatoes. “Spike where did you get these from? I didn’t know we had anything this fresh still.” Spike just continues eating but points his fork at me causing her to roll her eyes. “I should have guessed you somehow keep surprising me with how creative you get with your spells. What is it this time, something to stop food from aging?”

I just chuckle at her before answering. “Nothing like that, it’s just fresh picked from my garden this morning, even though it was infested by pink ponies this morning.” Her jaw drops at this as she tries to process this information. I decide to answer the unasked question before she asks. “No it’s not anything too special, just a barrier to keep what I don’t want in it out and a few gems to regulate temperatures. This is temporary until I get a real greenhouse set up so I don’t have to expend so much energy on it.”

Twilight looks thoughtful at this, though it seems I forgot a question. “Well I guess that makes sense, though what do you mean by it being infested by pink ponies? What would Pinkie Pie be doing in your garden?” In answer I just toss her one a kumquat from out of my pack. Her eyes widen at the sight of it, “Wait, you are able to grow these out here? That’s incredible; normally the palace and other places in Canterlot have to import these from Zebrica. Last I saw they were selling for 2 bits per fruit and those didn’t look as fresh as these.”

My eyes widen at this as I didn’t expect them to be that expensive. “I didn’t realize that they’d be worth that much. I guess Pinkie Pie is lucky I didn’t know that or else I wouldn’t have given her free access to one of the trees.” I think that shocked Twilight into silence as we all finished up the meal silently from there. As Spike leaves with the dishes Twilight levitates over some notes on what she was doing downstairs in her lab.

“Well now that you’re cleaned and lunch is over, how about telling me how you managed to blow up one of those gems I made?” Twilight nods at this with a hint of a blush. “Well I was trying to figure out how you put the spells into place on it so that I could try and enhance the strength of it for other uses. I was able to find out the pattern that your spells set up inside the gem as well as how it links into its power storage.”

She pauses to see if I understand what she is saying and I nod. “Well seeing as it wasn’t something in any of my books I had to figure out how it all worked. I was able to drain the energy in the gem so that I could separate it from the rest of the spell and I worked outwards from there. I thought if I shrank the pattern down and then extended it out further that it would increase the power of the spell, which I guess it did, but it shouldn’t have been enough to cause it to blow up like it did when I recharged it.”

I look through her notes and immediately find what went wrong and I point it out. “I see where you made a mistake; you thought the pattern was all the same spell which it wasn’t.” Twilight is shocked by this and pulls out the drawing of the pattern she made. “There is actually a second effect that is caused by part of the pattern and that is to regulate the power use. When you shrank down the initial part you also reduced how well it could control the power, so when you recharged it…”

Twilight realizes what I’m getting at. “So when I recharged it instead of it using a small and steady flow like it was meant to it instead drew all the power out at once.” She brings a hoof up to her face at this. “That’s why I couldn’t find it; I was only looking for one spell, not two.” She starts to go through her notes while writing up a new page with these findings. I help out here and there as gets stuck, but eventually she runs out of steam on this and she remembers why I was originally there.

“So what were you looking for anyways?” She asks while looking at the history book that is still sitting nearby. “Well I was looking into some more recent history, specifically on what happened the day I arrived in town.” She looks confused at this for a moment before she realizes what I mean. “Oh, right. You arrived on the day of the Summer Sun Celebration when Nightmare Moon returned. So did you find what you were looking for?”

I wonder how to word this. “Well mostly, though I did have a few more questions come up about it as well. Especially since I doubt the book mentions everything about what happened during the events that you and your friends went through.” Luckily Twilight is happy to enlighten me on this, though she tries to downplay her importance in everything.

She does go on a few tangents throughout her story, but I decide to not interrupt her as it is all rather interesting. This is especially true as she goes into her explanation of the Elements of Harmony, which even includes some of her theories on what they are as well as what they had been used for. Like I was hoping there was no mention of the filly in any way, though I had one pony to check with just to be fully sure that they knew nothing about her.

I do manage to come up with a few more questions from her tale though. “So Princess Luna was Nightmare Moon, and she was extremely weakened after you used the Elements of Harmony, but what happened to all the power she had though? And what exactly was Nightmare Moon as from how you described it she was different from Luna but the same?”

Twilight takes a moment to consider these questions before answering. “I’m not really sure on what happened to her powers, they just seemed to vanish after we used the Elements. She was only about half the size as well than she was when she was Nightmare Moon and the armor she was wearing was scattered about. As for what exactly that was, I’m not really sure. She has all the memories of what she did as her though so I can only assume that it really was her but with something else as well.”

We both get quiet at this, though most likely for different reasons. There is really something strange about this situation in general, and I think the key lies with these Elements of Harmony. Unfortunately with how little information there is about them I really can’t figure out what. Figuring that there is nothing more to learn here with the little information I have, I decide to head out to my next destination.

Making my farewells to Twilight I leave the library in the direction of the Everfree. Along the way I spot a trio of familiar fillies and I wave to them as I pass. It doesn’t take me long to reach my destination where I proceed to knock on the door to Fluttershy’s abode. I hear a squeak of surprise from inside, so I know she is home, yet it takes a while before the door opens and I see the yellow pegasus peek through.

She opens the door wider when she notices who is out there. “Oh Flarenza, is something wrong? I didn’t expect anyone to show up today.” I smile at her as I bring out that package of things taken from my garden. “Well I thought that I’d visit you today as well as bring you a few more things from my garden.”

Fluttershy just ducks her head and tries to hide behind her mane at this. “Oh but you don’t need to bring me anything, I mean, if you don’t want to that is.” I just laugh as I levitate the stuff over to her and she invites me in. After the accident I had I had decided to visit her more often, even if we just sat in silence for long periods of time. I’m not sure how she really feels about it, but I like to think she actually enjoys the times I come over as she hasn’t been as shy as she normally would be when talking to me.

We spend a bit of time casually chatting over tea while I try to think of a way to ask her a question in a way to not give away why I’m asking. Soon our conversation ran down as we ran out of things to talk about. I knew I had to try and broach the subject somehow, I just wasn’t sure how best to do it. I guess starting at the beginning of it all would probably be best and look for a possible opening.

“I’ve been wondering about this since Twilight told me how you and your friends faced down Nightmare Moon. I’ve seen how you avoid fighting and always helped others when you could, but what did you think of Nightmare Moon when you saw her?” From the looks of it my question surprised her, enough that she almost looked like she was about to duck into hiding again, though something seemed to change her mind.

“Well I don’t really know exactly, I remember being terrified of her when she first appeared, yet there was something off about her. I don’t know what it was really, just a feeling really, but there seemed to be something sad about her eyes. There was the anger of course, yet when Twilight called out her name it looked like there was a flash of happiness in them as well.”

I lean forward slightly at her explanation. I’m not sure why but this does sound important to what I was trying to find out. “The second time I saw her, the look in her eyes was mostly the same, but that time I thought I saw something else behind it, something like a cry for help as if there were two ponies behind those eyes. I felt like I had to do something to help her, and that’s when the Elements went off.” I twitch a bit at her mention of two ponies as it seems to reinforce the feelings I had been having after talking with Twilight.

“When it was over and we found Luna once we had all recovered I could see a look of relief from her, as if being freed from a long nightmare, yet something seemed missing as well.” Fluttershy shakes her head after this before focusing on me again. “Oh, sorry for rambling on like that, I still feel strange when I think back to that day. Why were you asking about it though?”

I wonder at why that exact question came to mind myself, until I think back to that one moment in my past, back to those eyes that I will never be able to forget. “Once many years ago, I met a unicorn that did many horrible things.” I could barely hear my own voice as I tell this story, one that I never told before even in part like I am doing.

“Families, villages and anything else he touched he destroyed, nothing was safe from him. I still remember the look in his eyes the day I met him, there was nothing there. No remorse, no emotion to speak of at all, there was only emptiness.” I look up at Fluttershy as she cowers away at my description. She jumps a little in surprise when I look at her, and I can feel a wetness dripping down my face.

“I didn’t have any other way to stop him, yet even as he burned he still just stared at me with those empty eyes.” I completely break down at this point, not even trying to stop the tears. I can feel Fluttershy’s hooves around me as I just let everything go. I’m not sure how long we were both there, or even what she was saying to me through it all, but when I finally regain control of myself she began to talk.

“Sometimes there is nothing that you can do for some ponies out there, though I don’t like admitting it. When you’ve tried everything you can to help them and it’s still not enough then you sometimes have to make a hard choice. Nopony is perfect, even Princess Celestia had to banish her own sister for a thousand years before she could be helped, yet she regretted it every day. As long as you learn from your choices, and keep moving forward things will always get better.”

I look up at Fluttershy as she releases me to see her smiling sadly at me. I try to wipe my face before speaking again. “Sorry, I’ve just been haunted by that event so long that I had to tell somepony,” or at least a part of the story, “I’ve never actually told anypony about it before today.” I almost tell her about the filly as well, but hold off out of respect for her wishes.

“It’s alright Flarenza, sometimes a pony needs a shoulder to cry on and I’m happy to be there for a friend that needs one.” Those last words hit me harder than I would have expected. I had traveled so long that I never had time or even thought about making friends, yet here is somepony that doesn’t even know what I really am saying that I am one.

I smile at the pegasus, feeling much better than I was earlier as if a weight had been lifted from me. “Thank you; you have no idea how much better it makes me feel to hear you say that.” We just sit in silence from then on, just enjoying each other’s presence, before I decide to head back home. I felt that finding out if they knew about the filly in the castle was no longer important, as I knew that at least Fluttershy would definitely do anything in her power to help if she knew.

When I arrived home I put everything in its place before doing whatever last minute things needed doing before laying in my bed thinking about the last couple day’s events. “So one of the Princesses put that curse on the town, yet I wonder what it was supposed to accomplish. At least one innocent seems to be affected by it, possibly two if Ruby isn’t there voluntarily, yet with the power behind it I have no idea if I’d be able to fix anything. It’s not like I could go up to the rulers of the kingdom and ask about it.”

I sigh as even with this knowledge I’m not any closer to figuring the place out so instead I turn to the other problem. “That filly I may be able to help I think with enough time. If I’m correct then she really would technically be related to the princesses, though not in the way she thinks. The problem would be getting others to accept who she is and not what she possibly represents, and I think Fluttershy might be the only one who could help, though knowing Pinkie Pie she’d help as well but I’m not even going to bother trying to predict her actions.”

Seeing as the filly also seems to be scared of others I decide to take things slow and easy, not trying to push her into anything she isn’t ready for. Eventually I drift off to sleep, dreaming of what the future might bring though unlike usual I’m not alone.

Author's Note

Hope I didn't screw up too badly in representing certain characters. I decided to make Fluttershy a bit wiser to the world than most would normally do as she does deal with a lot of meat eating animals. Though it still might fit her anyways, let me know what you think. Next couple chapters should speed things up a bit, end of winter is definitely coming next though I bet nobody can guess where Flarie is going to be helping :P As usual all comments, flames, and complaints accepted.

Changing Seasons

The weeks following my little breakdown passed rather quickly. The diamond I had planted in Sunny Town reacted to something, yet the next day when I went the place was empty again. Knowing that it would take a while to figure out a pattern, if there was one, it didn’t bother me too much.

My trips to the castle were much more eventful though as the young filly had actually started talking to me more often now. I didn’t tell her much of what I learned beyond my belief that Twilight and her friends didn’t know about her at all. She still seemed scared of them so I mixed in stories about them with our other chat topics just to try and get her used to the idea of them.

I had even started exploring the town more as well as visiting some of the ponies I knew. I had forgotten about Rarity’s plans by this time so on the first occasion I visited her I was roped into trying on the dress she designed for me. While a hassle to do so, it was actually rather neat even though Rarity thought it still needed improvement. While I couldn’t begin to describe the design of it, the special function of it was of interest though.

It seems the white unicorn had the ability to not only create cloth, but even enchant them a bit for various colors. While it was normally relatively simple for her to do, according to her, she had somehow managed to imprint two different sets of colors in the dress she made for me. She stated that it took her a while to perfect it, and that each set of colors was for when my own colors changed, so basically one color set for winter and the other for the rest of the year. Needless to say I was impressed with her skills with fabrics.

My time with Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash often ended up more physical than anything else. While the pranks were still off we did tend to get into snowball fights often enough when I showed up in town. This usually pulled in a few others that happened to be in the area, most often the Cutie Mark Crusaders and even Applejack who I’ve noticed gets really competitive with the cyan pegasus over just about anything.

Beyond those little scuffles I really didn’t interact much with Applejack. We’d exchange the occasional word when we saw each other, but we really didn’t have much reason to seek each other out. She did get me into contact with a major local businesspony, so I could unload anything that wouldn’t sell well in town, by the name of Filthy Rich or Mr. Rich as he prefers.

While he was shrewd in his dealings, he was also fair as well. This is especially so when he works with those that provide services that are very hard to replace. His family worked with the Apple Family since the founding of the town, and he does most of the work getting their apples out and about the country. Since they trust him so much I allowed him to handle the sale of the food items I had been saving, the kumquats and paprika, as well as asked him to try and see if there was a market with the guard for the rubies I had enchanted.

My time with Twilight and Fluttershy involved much of the same as usual, though Twilight often found ways to surprise me with what she manages to do to the gems she gets from me. I’ve actually had to slip Spike one of the rubies to help protect him from some of her experiments, though it led me to find that the protection it game only worked for physical and not magical attacks.

Lately though things have been slowly moving towards the end of winter and a holiday the town calls Winter Wrap-up Day. I am talking with Twilight about this as she is reading everything about it and nearly reaching Pinkie Pie levels of excitement. “So they clean up everything and start spring without using unicorn magic? Since it sounds like they still use pegasus magic with the earth pony magic.” Twilight pauses at my reasoning before going back to her reading. “Well of course they still use that magic, clearing up the weather and getting the birds back wouldn’t be possible otherwise.”

I just shake my head at this since in my travels I’ve been through area that doesn’t do any of these things and the seasons go along fine. I decide not to press the issue as it is how things are done here apparently. Listening to how each of the teams are split up I don’t notice anywhere that I would be able to put any talents to use, though I do have an idea on something that may allow me to help out, without having to worry about all that.

Leaving Twilight to her studies I head over to Sugarcube Corner to find one of the Cakes. Luckily the place is pretty empty right now so I am able to talk with Mrs. Cake while Mr. Cake runs things for a bit. After asking and finding out that nopony actually does this I explain my idea to her.

“Since I don’t think there is anywhere that I’d be able to help out, I thought that I could help with making sure everypony else stays at their best throughout the entire event. Keeping snacks, food, and drinks ready and sent out where it’s needed as well as any medical help that might be required. With so many ponies everywhere there are bound to be a potential for injuries, and having an area to stop at to quickly refresh would cut down on wasted time. I need to check with the hospital on parts of my idea though.”

Mrs. Cake thinks on the idea and gives a suggestion. “Well dearie I think you do have the right idea, but you should also check with the Mayor on this as well. She’ll want to know that you have this planned and will be working on getting it going.” This sounds like a good idea so I thank her before going to do just that.

Getting in to see the mayor takes a while, seeing as she is busy trying to make sure everything is going smoothly for the event in two days. Once I get in and explain the idea she gives her approval as she notes that injuries have happened before, and this was after they had Derpy doing something out of the way. From there I head to the hospital to check with if they had any plans and how they handle injuries during that day.

Once there I am able to meet with a Nurse Redheart who is currently running the desk while another is doing rounds. From her I was able to find out that they usually would just bring those that were injured in until a doctor could be found to help them. They agree to lend one to my efforts that day to help with the food and drink service, as well as a nurse, and send them out to any problems as they come up.

Thanking her for her time, I head out to a couple places in town to make orders for food and drinks to be ready by that day, while letting them know of the idea in case there are any volunteers. I even stop by and talk with Cheerilee about it so she can mention it to her students, as some could help there as they would be in the way elsewhere. Doing another check of everything to see if I missed anything I make my way home to prepare for tomorrow.

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The next day was spent preparing a vast majority of foodstuffs I had left over from the winter. Having the garden had really extended how long my supplies lasted that there was more than I needed even with feeding the filly and the occasional donation to Fluttershy. It took most of the day to get everything ready, though I swear I saw Pinkie Pie helping once and a while as things seemed to pile up faster than I felt I was making them. I had everything ready for the next day and even had time to make sure the last minute orders from the places around town would be on time.

Setting everything up the next morning took a while, but with the help of Nurse Redheart and a Doctor Stable, as well as all the colts and fillies from the school, everything was prepared well before anypony needed us. So to make things easier, especially when I noticed the Crusaders arguing with a pink filly and a grey filly, I started setting up barrels of the various drinks at different points around town and stationed some of the schoolchildren at each of them. This allowed me to keep the problematic ones far apart, on opposite ends of town in fact.

Around lunch time ponies started filtering in to the area we had set up all the food so much of my time was spent making sure that they stayed stocked up as much as possible. Things would have been harder without the all the help, but was much easier with it. Every so often either I or one of the two from the hospital would do a check of the barrels to see if they needed topping off, as well as to keep an eye on everypony to make sure that they weren’t straining themselves.

We didn’t have any medical emergencies until sometime after lunch. Apparently Twilight had been trying too hard and had caused an avalanche of snow, catching a few other ponies in the mess. Luckily there was nothing more serious than some muscle damage which was easily fixed by either me or the doctor. Nurse Redheart helped out in diagnosing the issues ahead of us so that we could fix the problem and move on to the next.

We had everything running smoothly on our part, yet the same couldn’t be said for the teams doing the cleanup. Things were at a point where they all needed different things, yet one couldn’t be done without the other. The arguing got the attention of the mayor to try and sort things out, but it wasn’t until Twilight showed up with her signature checklists that things started to progress again.

Things went extremely smoothly from then on, enough that I noticed that as winter was steadily put away for spring that my coat was shifting back to my usual color scheme with it. I got a few odd looks at the patchwork of colors I was sporting, and I decided to avoid Rarity as she’d probably freak out at it.

While everypony had to work late into the night, everything was finished by the following morning. I spent my time gathering up all the empty barrels and returning them to the owners while everypony else went to the town gathering. It was only afterwards that I learned how Twilight had been given a brand new vest for her work. I didn’t mind not getting any recognition though, as the personal thanks from various ponies felt more fulfilling anyways. Even Cheerilee complimented me on the idea as it helped keep the foals out from underfoot as well as made them feel like they were helping.

I contemplated collapsing in my bed once I finished cleaning up, but I had one last thing to prepare before I could. I was happy to notice that somepony had at least cleared out the winter section except for the small trees, and even had the other sections plowed up as well. I made a note to find out who did that and thank them for cutting down my time on dealing with it all. I spent a little extra time going through what I wanted to plant, trying to think of what is easily accessible in the area.

“I don’t want to cause any issues by growing something somepony else handles, though I’ll probably plant a little of some things for personal use.” My eyes settle on one item that gives me pause. “Huh, forgot I had stuff for this, rather hard to kill this stuff off once planted, and I’ll have to make sure it’s not misused but I think this will be good.” Grabbing the things I need to do so I set up a large portion of the garden for growing rhubarb.

Once finished with that I plant a few other things for my personal use before moving the emeralds from the winter gardens over to the new section and heading inside to sleep.

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The next few weeks passed by relatively quickly with only a few notable events during it all. I had been able to get a second hit on activity in Sunny Town, unfortunately it was during Hearts and Hooves Day and I was too busy avoiding Pinkie Pie to actually check it out. It did give me something useful that may let me predict when things start happening there, but I still need to confirm it with a third day.

Rarity also held a fashion show during this period which felt like she was showing off somepony else’s designs. Checking with her later I found that is exactly what happened, and made note to be very careful about any criticism on anything I get from her.

On a more hilarious note was Twilight’s attempt at understanding Pinkie Pie, specifically her Pinkie Sense. I would have warned her about what to expect, but I had found that Twilight seems to ignore what others say unless they have proof. I kept an eye on how things went for much of that day, and boggled at all the mishaps that she walked right into. I did help her out though when Derpy accidentally lost a bunch of things being airlifted around town, though seriously, who sends a piano by air?

Probably the high point of it all though was an event that happened while they were at some sort of competition for Rainbow Dash at Cloudsdale. After various events there she was able to pull off what they called a Sonic Rainboom. This was even visible in Ponyville and it brought my thoughts back to the books left by Trixie and made me itch to go through them to look into her fireworks.

I was even to hear from the disaster trio about some of their adventures, specifically when they stayed with Fluttershy for the night as well as a talent show they took part in. I was able to see the comedy routine they put on, but hearing the story behind it I noticed that they didn’t play to their strengths. Their time with Fluttershy though told me something about the pegasus that I didn’t know about before, which explained how she was able to get that dragon to back off that she once faced.

Thinking back on all this I couldn’t help but wonder at how much happened over such a short period. I put it all down to how little could really be done during the winter and ponies are just playing catch-up. Looking around me I take in the state of my home. “I should look into getting more of this place fixed up. With what I hear Applebloom did for that clubhouse of hers I might see if I can get her to help me with some things here. Convincing her shouldn’t be that hard, those three seem to do just about anything for sweets or hinting at a possible cutie mark, though I’ll avoid the latter one with this.”

Heading into my kitchen I remember my latest projects I had going. “Speaking of sweets, the stuff for that pie should be just about ready. Wonder what those three and Pinkie Pie will think about a sweet pie made with a vegetable.” I chuckle at this as I make the finishing touches on a couple rhubarb pies and pack them up for a trip into town.

I then head over to the other project I had and observe how it is currently going. “It looks like these have soaked for long enough, I’ll take a sample to Twilight later to see if it worked right though. I’ve heard some of the ponies in town complaining about pest problems on the farms and in gardens, and I think even Applejack wouldn’t mind a natural remedy for getting rid of them.” I gather up some of the rhubarb leaf extract in a vial to drop off with Twilight later before gathering everything into my packs.

The trip towards town is pleasant now that I don’t have to plow through the snow constantly so I take my time. As soon as I get into town though I notice that something is off. “Why does it look like everypony is hiding inside their homes? This is just like that time when Zecora first-“ I stop as I notice a pony wandering through town while looking at all the building and I can immediately guess what is going on this morning.

My face is immediately filled with a hoof at this. “Again with this? Didn’t they learn from the last time this happened? Twilight is going to have fun having to lecture the town yet again about not judging by appearance.” This it really makes me wary about revealing my true form even more. Sighing I wave to the wandering pony and make my way over.

As I near the pony I not that the dark grey pony is in fact a mare with a dark pink colored mane and tail. The things that stand out the most, and are probably what is keeping the town in hiding, are her cat shaped eyes, bat wings, and exposed fangs. “It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen a thestral around, you here for a while or just passing through?”

Author's Note

And now winter is over and spring is here with a chance of bats. That was one thing that felt missing from the show and that's some sort of support group for Winter Wrap-up. With how many ponies there are moving all over the place, and all the heavy equipment there would bound to be a group ready to deal with fixing them up, and having everything stop just so ponies could go home to get food and drinks constantly would just be inefficient. Add in how underfoot the younger ones can get, especially the CMC, and it just makes having a support team being a good idea. That and we don't need two Twilights causing havoc with magic at the same time. Still accepting all complaints, comments and flames.

Hide from the Vamponies

“It’s been quite a while since I’ve seen a thestral around, you here for a while or just passing through?”

She stops in surprise at my words, something in them not being what she expected. “Huh, didn’t expect no fancy unicorn to know what I was, not many know of us as anything but bat ponies or, my personal favorite, vamponies. Oh and to your question I’m just looking for a place to sleep before continuing on tonight.” I once again facehoof as she mentions being labeled as a vampony.

“Ugh, that second one is probably why the town is hiding I’m guessing. Also seeing as I’m pretty much the resident undead expert nopony thought to stop me and let me know what was going on.” I think back to how Twilight’s friends stopped her from going to talk to Zecora when she first found out about her. “I can get you a place to sleep at my house if you want, as well as drag a couple ponies out to at least talk to you and stop this silliness. My name is Flarenza by the way, and if you are traveling on I’m assuming this is about the return of Princess Luna.”

I chuckle as I actually get a jaw drop out of her this time at my knowledge of her kind. “Right, you are definitely no ordinary unicorn if you know that about my kind, the name is Umbra Rose and you are right, I’m heading towards Canterlot to join her majesties Night Guard. I’ll also take you up on your offer of that room as well, later though since I want to see how you plan on getting these other ponies out here.” I catch a mischievous glint in her eye, and I ponder the wisdom of introducing her to Rainbow Dash as I can see her personality is similar. I also note how her name fits well with her cutie mark, that of a rose being embraced by what looks like shadows.

“Well the easy way would be to get what would probably be the only other pony in town to drag them all out here as this is the second time they’ve done this; first time was with a zebra.” She nods at this though frowns slightly. “The fun way on the other hoof,” she starts grinning at this as I raise my voice, “WOULD BE TO IMPLY THAT A CERTAIN RAINBOW MANED PEGASUS SHOULD REALLY GIVE UP ON THE WONDERBOLTS IF SHE CAN’T EVEN FACE A SINGLE PONY.”

This gets an instant reaction from a nearby building, which happens to be Sugarcube Corner, so I didn’t really need to yell. “What!” The cyan pegasus bursts out the front door of the building and is up in my face in less than ten seconds. “Rainbow Dash isn’t scared of anypony, how dare you say that I am!” I just look over her shoulder to Umbra Rose and raise an eyebrow at her. She smirks and taps Rainbow Dash on the shoulder who turns around to come face-to-face with the fanged face. “Boo.”

Rainbow Dash lets out one of the girliest shrieks I’ve ever heard from her before as she tries to flee back into the building. Unfortunately for her Applejack, hearing the shriek, was charging out at the same time causing the two to crash and collapse on the doorstep. Umbra Rose is laughing at the two while I just shake my head at how easily they were frightened, granted they haven’t seen some of the things that I had, but still.

I notice Applebloom sneak out while her sister is tangled up and she moves to the side of Umbra Rose to get a closer look at her. It figures that the filly would be the brave one yet again. I turn to the thestral to introduce the two. “Well if these two can ever get themselves together, the pegasus is Rainbow Dash while the other one is Applejack. Normally they are two of the braver ponies in town, yet throw something pony-shaped at them they don’t recognize and the bravest one in town turns out to be little Applebloom there.” I point her out to the thestral who seems surprised to see her so close.

“If things are like they were last time, there should at least be two or three more hiding in there. One definitely won’t come out unless she happens to be alone in the dark in there, but the other two are a bit easier.” She looks at me and cocks her head to the side. “Oh? And are they as entertaining as these two?” I just grin at her as I pull out one of the pies I had from my packs.

“Well it depends on what you mean by entertaining, though one is just as likely to give you a headache as be entertaining. The question with her is how long it takes her appetite for pie to get over her fear off-“ I stop there as I feel something wet slide over a large portion of my hoof holding the pie causing me to sigh. Umbra Rose’s jaw drops, so I assume that the pink terror did her usual appear out of the impossible place trick.

“Well as I was saying, the pink thing attached to my hoof would be Pinkie Pie, and will probably be your worst nightmare whenever she ends up at the palace.” Umbra Rose just nods at this, not taking her eyes off the pink pony. Pinkie Pie tries to say something in return, but her mouth is still filled with my hoof.

I was about to continue, but I finally hear a voice I had been waiting a while for. “What in Equestria is going on out here? Why is everypony hiding inside their homes and why are-“ She stops for some reason and I turn to see that her eyes have locked onto Umbra Rose. I recognize the glint in her eyes as she recognizes what she is looking at so I try to forestall her going into her research mode.

“Ahh Twilight, I was wondering when you would show up. This is Umbra Rose who is the reason why everypony is in hiding again, and yes she is a thestral. Umbra Rose, this is Twilight Sparkle, town librarian and student of Princess Celestia and probably the only other pony in town who knows anything about your kind.” The two nod to each other and Twilight is about to say something before she does a double take towards me. “Wait, what do you mean the reason why everypony is in hiding again?”

She glares at her three friends who are currently visible as I explain. “Well I don’t know the full story, but I’m guessing it’s just like what happened with Zecora.” She groans at this before copying my earlier facehoofs. Pinkie Pie finally releases my hoof, which I shake the drool off of, and finally speaks. “What’s a thestral? Isn’t she a vampony?” She points at Umbra Rose before realizing where she is and hides behind Twilight.

“Pinkie, there are no such things as vamponies,” she glares at me as I’m about to speak up causing me to just stick my tongue out at her, “make that there ‘might’ not be such a thing as vamponies. Even if she was one she wouldn’t be walking around outside in the sun! She is a thestral, one of the ponies descended from Princess Luna’s original Night Guard before she was banished.”

As Twilight continues her explanation I look towards Umbra Rose who had started answering questions that Applebloom had been asking her. The two look to be getting along, though the thestral was occasionally glancing towards the others and grinning so she is obviously enjoying the chaos she is causing. Yeah, definitely like Rainbow Dash in that regard.

I decide to interrupt everyone before things start to go all over the place. “Right, as nice a day as it is, I think we should move things to somewhere a bit more comfortable.” The rest nod at this and we all head inside Sugarcube Corner, me bringing up the rear with the still dazed ponies floating ahead of me. Inside we find Rarity and Fluttershy, as well as the remaining two Crusaders who are introduced to Umbra Rose by Twilight.

Rarity seems a bit wary at first, though soon forgets herself as her designer side comes to the fore. Fluttershy on the other hand is still just as scared so I get close enough to whisper to her. “Remember what you said about Nightmare Moon, but with the thestrals everypony fear and hates them just from how they look and what they were.” I catch her eyes widen at my words and I see her nod slightly to me before she actually relaxes a bit.

Seeing as Twilight is starting to monopolize the conversation I set a couple of my pies between everypony and pull Pinkie Pie to the side. “So Pinkie, what did you think about that pie you inhaled earlier?” I can partially guess as she whimpers as I pull her away from the ones one the table. Her expression goes back to normal when she turns towards me to answer.

“Oh it’s pretty tasty yet I can’t tell what you used to make it. You have to give me the recipe for it sometime so I can share it with the whole town.” She grins at me as she bounces up in down in excitement. I just shake my head at how she can just switch gears like that. “Well would you believe that I didn’t use any fruit in making that?”

I must have said that louder than I thought, as Pinkie Pie wasn’t the only one to react. “What!” bursts from the mouth of several of the gathered ponies at this admission. I just laugh as I pull out a stalk of rhubarb and levitate it onto the table near Twilight and Applejack who both look it over. On getting a good look at it Twilight quickly turns towards me.

“I really hope you know what you are doing with this since parts of it are poisonous.” The rest stop eating their pie at her words and they start looking at each other with wide eyes. “Pff, of course, only the leaf of it contains the poison, unless they happen to get affected by frost. That does bring me to the reason I was going to search for you later, I wanted you to check out something I was testing to see if it worked correctly.” The others go back to eating warily as I levitate the vial I filled to Twilight.

“This is something I made with the leaves. I’m hoping I made it correctly, it has been a while since I heard about how, because if I did then I can use it to keep many pests away from my garden.” Twilight takes the vial and examines it before putting it away to check later, Applejack on the other hand reacts differently to what I said. “You mean if that stuff works like ya want it can keep things away from yer crops?” She gets a thoughtful look on her face. “Huh, I may hafta get some of that from ya if it works. We’ve been having some problems with things damaging mah trees on the farm.”

It’s a bit earlier than I planned, but I was planning to go to her about this eventually. “I’d be happy to make some for you if it does work. You’ll need to be careful with it though, it probably isn’t a good idea to actually get it on anything that you plan to have eaten.” She nods at this while I turn towards Applebloom.

“Which reminds me, I was wondering if I could get some help from you sometime, Applebloom.” She jerks her hoof away from grabbing another slice of pie at my words before she turns to look at me. “You need mah help? What could I do that you’d need help with?” I carefully think about how to phrase this without giving away too much on the reason.

“Well I’ve heard how you fixed up that old club house that your sister gave you, and since you were criticizing all the work I did on the things I made I was wondering if you could help fix up the things that were broken at my house.” She looks at me as she considers my request, and I catch a glimpse of Applejack smirking at me, probably knowing why I’m asking her sister.

Eventually Applebloom responds, “Well I guess I could help you out with that, but you’ll have to do something for me as well.” I look at her, guessing where this is going. “Oh? And what would that be?” She just gives me a big grin before replying, “Get me some more of that pie!” All of the adults that were paying attention give out a chuckle at this as I levitate the last pie I had from my packs over to her and her friends.

Conversations continue on from there until Umbra Rose starts yawning and she excuses herself to go sleep. I lead her back to my place outside of town and, after some comments from her about the size, show her to one of the spare rooms. Having nothing else planned for the day I head up to the attic for a few experiments.

Having learned that the rubies only worked for blocking things of a physical nature I had been trying to reproduce a similar effect with magical based attacks. I had a hunch that I could get is to work with sapphires, both from information in my books as well as the color relation with rubies, and I was planning to get at least one finished today as proof.

It took a while but I was eventually able to get the spell to lock in correctly and I added the gem to my bags, having started a habit of keeping at least one of each ready gem in case I needed to show them off to prospective buyers. From then until nightfall I proceeded to check up on the rest of my house and made sure to Crusader-proof things as much as possible, seeing as I doubt Applebloom will show up alone with pie being a possible reward.

I eventually hear my visitor awaken from her sleep a bit after sunset. Seeing as it had been a while since I’ve met another thestral I cooked up something appropriate for her, which I afterwards remembered would be served by them before dawn and not after sunset. Shrugging I still bring the meal to the side room and invite her down when she is ready. She cocks her head at me oddly as she notices what I had made for her. “Yes I know this would be a normal dinner for you, I just forgot that I should have been serving you a breakfast now instead.”

She lets out a laugh at this before taking a seat, “Well the fact that you even know this much about thestrals is surprising enough, where did you learn about us anyways?” I think back to when I met one for the first time. “Well ironically enough, I first met a thestral not long after escaping from some vamponies; in fact he was hunting them down so me drawing them out like that helped him a lot.”

She looks at me as if asking if I’m joking before she bursts out laughing. “Dear Luna, that has to be one of the most hilarious ways to see the difference between us and those bloodsuckers. What were you doing in an area infested with them anyways?” I just shake my head before answering. “Just pure dumb luck. It was during the time when I traveled a lot and I just happened to choose a barn that was hiding their nest for the night. Of course setting the place on fire when they tried to attack me was probably a bad thing to do if I wanted them to leave me alone.”

She just laughs at me some more for that which gives me time to ask my own questions. “Well how about you though, I know that your main reason for traveling is to join the Night Guard, but is there any reason other than that?” It takes her a moment to calm down from her laughing to answer. “Well that’s actually rather easy to answer as it’s directly connected to what you already seem to know. Now that Princess Luna is back many thestrals are starting to head back into the country. I was sent ahead by my village to pave the way for the rest as well as to find out how ponies will react to us.”

I consider this as I think back on how she acted. “Well I don’t think you actually playing up the vampony rumors will help things much, you were lucky that there were ponies in town that knew better.” She focuses on her food as I say this before looking up with a grin. “Well if ponies are going to act like that anyways I might as well have a bit of fun with it, right?”

I just shake my head at her cocky grin and wonder how the ponies in Canterlot are going to react to her and her kind. Eventually she prepares to head out but I stop her as I get an idea. “Before you leave, I have a couple things to give you that might help you out with getting into the Night Guard.” I levitate out a ruby and the newly made sapphire and give them to her. She looks at them oddly as if wondering why they would help her before voicing the question. “Uh thanks, but how are a couple of fancy rocks going to help me out with that?”

In answer I just smirk before I fire a blast of force at her, catching her by surprise. After calming her down from her surprise I explain. “That would be how they will help, the blue one can block a small amount of magic until it needs to recharge for about an hour, while the red one can stop physical attacks of a certain force level before it needs the same recharge time.”

“Well couldn’t you have just told me instead of giving me a heart attack!? Where did you get something like this anyways and why give them to me as they are obviously worth a lot?” I chuckle as I lead her outside, “Well just explaining it wouldn’t have been as fun which I thought you liked and as for where I got them from, well I make these myself with the sapphire being my newest creation.”

I give her my one of my biggest grins possible before continuing. “As for why I’m giving them to you for free? Well if they catch enough attention from the other guards or even Princess Luna then I’ll have somepony at my door begging me for more, so consider yourself my walking advertisement for them.” I start laughing as she shakes her head with a grin at me before bidding me farewell and taking off towards Canterlot.

Author's Note

Took me a bit to come up with a decent name for the thestral there, so expect to see her again sometime. I stuck with thestral as batpony just doesn't feel right just like hornpony isn't as good as unicorn. Not much else to say about this chapter, though now I'm hungry for some rhubarb pie myself. As usual all comments, critiques and flames are accepted and encouraged.

Observing Sunny Town

“Fluttershy as a famous fashion model, how could Rarity have thought she enjoyed that?” After finding the magazine with her on it I immediately went to visit and find out what was going on. It seems that they both were hiding their feeling from each other while Twilight somehow was caught up in the middle of it all. This was following some sort of kidnapping fiasco involving Rarity and some diamond dogs.

“I do need to figure out what is going on with those diamond dogs sometime. I vaguely remember my mom saying something about them, but I just can’t remember what.” I take a look at my calendar and note that tomorrow is a day I had predicted for Sunny Town to go active again, so I marked a later period for to check out the gem fields. While looking at it I notice that Twilight and her friends were going to be gone the next few days as they deliver a tree to some of Applejack’s family.

I turn back towards the door of the study as I hear a loud crash come from somewhere else in the house causing me to sigh. “Even with everything breakable destroyed or put away they still find something to break.” I head out and try to corral the two idle Crusaders as Applebloom is busy writing down everything she feels needs fixing or replacing, as well as a list of items that will be needed.

“At least I have the attic and basements locked up. I definitely don’t want to think about what they’d do if they got into those areas.” Thinking about the basement I try to think of what should be done down there. “I probably should just use it for storage and dig out from it for some of my more dangerous things as well as an emergency exit.”

I gather up the three Crusaders for a meal to reduce the damage caused by the two, and find out what the third one needs. I go over the list while they are distracted by food and pie to see what I’ll need to get. Hmm, I still have some spare lumber from before, but I might need to get some more ready to be safe. Good thing she already has most of the tools so I only have to pay for the things from the blacksmith like the nails and hinges.

Going off of the estimates Applebloom put down I see that I have plenty of bits for everything she needs. As they finish up I hand her a spare key as well as a bag with more than enough bits for everything as well as for anything extra they might need later. “Now remember that you can take your time with this since you have other things to do. Don’t worry if I’m not here, but just make sure to lock up when you leave if I’m not around.”

Seeing as night is fast approaching the three head off to their homes as I get things prepared for the next day. I notice myself feeling a bit off, but I just brush it off as nerves as I clean up before bed. After another quick check of everything I crawl under the covers and drift off to sleep.

<><><><><><><>

The next morning I awaken to my body feeling warmer than usual and I quickly realize the problem. “Ugh, that time again? Glad I found a way to ignore it; those first few years were such a pain.” Heading upstairs I dig around in my jewels until I find the small piece of lapis lazuli I found and enchanted years ago. Taking a cord and putting the stone on I feel the heat fade and my concentration improve enough for me to ignore the feelings.

“I should see if I can find a gem that works better; in this town alone I’d be able to sell a lot.” With that problem taken care of I focus on the diamond and find that the town is currently active again. “So it looks like I was right, some reason it’s all tied to the new moon for some reason.” Getting my packs I prepare to head out, though not before leaving a note for Applebloom if she shows.

Making my way to the Everfree I keep an eye out again to make sure nopony is around. Once I am inside and in the clear I shift to my original form and make my way to the outskirts of Sunny Town. I can feel that odd feeling I’ve felt from the town as I near the borders of my land, though the feeling of being watched is still missing.

As I get closer I make sure that the sapphire and emerald with me are charged just as a precaution. Keeping out of sight I peer into the town and notice a few ponies roaming around, and like Applebloom said not a one has a cutie mark. Hopefully I’d be safer if they spot me in this form than in pony form. I observe them from where I am for a while and notice a couple peculiar things.

Is that one setting up for some sort of party? I remember mention of one doing that when the filly was there, so why would he still be doing that now? Deciding to take a bit of a risk I cast a spell to divert attention away from me. While not enough to hide me from something concentrating on finding me, it’ll keep casual glimpses from paying attention to me. I then sneak around until I find the house that Applebloom said she found Mitta in and notice that it is being guarded by a pony.

Going from the description I was given it looks to be the same one that was there before. As I get closer I can hear him muttering something about finding a gem he dropped. Now I know something is going on, Applebloom said she found that gem for him already and even where she found it. Checking out the place she found it I find it still to be there so I decide to grab it for a closer examination.

Taking a close look at it I find it to be no different from any other ruby I’ve seen before. Probing it with my magic I find that it gives off the same feeling as the rest of the town. Getting an idea I set the gem somewhere that is visible to the pony guarding the door before I examine the building itself. I take note of any other ways I could use to escape it if I need to, as well as hoping for an alternate entrance.

Finding a couple areas that look lose I make note of their positions so I can find them from the inside later. Getting into a good position I make sure that nopony else is visible, before using a touch of magic to cause a sparkle to emit from the gem. It takes a couple minutes, but eventually the pony catches sight of the gem, and he rushes over to it happily. As he goes off elsewhere I make note of the time and see that it is still before noon, so I don’t need to worry too much about night arriving unexpectedly.

Making sure once again that the coast is clear I sneak over to the door and quickly slip inside. I wait just inside so that my eyes can adjust to the dark, while I keep my ears open for any sounds. I can hear something breathing faintly somewhere in the dark, and I hope it’s who I think it is.

As soon as I can see well enough I slowly creep my way through the building in search of the breathing. I soon find the source which was a grey mare with a dark red mane. This is the same description that Applebloom gave of the one nice pony she met here, Mitta. I take a position that is visible to her but blocked off by the rest of the room before dropping the spell keeping attention off of me and I wait.

As I sit there I study her and note that she appears to be asleep; or at least sitting with her eyes closed. Her coat isn’t in very good shape, and there are tracks down her face showing the path of tears. Her physical age seems to be around the same age as Twilight and the others, or at least a year below it at the most.

She eventually lifts her head up and looks around everywhere but in my direction. It’s not until I twitch my tail that she catches the movement causing her to whip her head around in my direction. “Where did you come from little guy? I thought the spell was keeping things like you away from the town still even though it no longer stops ponies.” She seems saddened at the sight of me, probably fearing that the forest creatures are no longer protected from the town.

Her eyes get very wide and mouth drops open though when I start to speak. “Well I came in through the front door after getting the pony outside to leave, and I believe the spell over the town still keeps things away, just not those driven by intelligence instead of instinct.” I just sit there waiting for her to reply, but after a couple minutes of her being frozen in the same position I just sigh.

“You know it’s kind of awkward having you staring at me like that. What would Applebloom think if she saw you doing something so rude?” I decide to try dropping the fillies name to see if it helps snap her out of it. It seems to work to some extent as she attempts to put words together. “You? What? How? Wait, you know Applebloom!? How is she!? Did she get out of here safely that night? How do-“

I cut her off to try and calm her frantic questioning. “Calm down, my name is Flarenza and yes I know Applebloom, I live in the same town she does and learned everything she knew about this place so I know that you are Mitta the only sane pony in town. She is doing fine, though she worries about both you and Ruby and she escaped just fine with Ruby’s help.” She does a good impersonation of a fish as she tries to absorb all this information before she gives a sigh of relief.

“She actually made it, I’m glad I could at least protect one pony from this town. But what do you mean about Ruby helping her? She was killed by this town and that is why it is cursed.” I try to answer her the best I can. “Well according to Applebloom, Ruby is now a ghost or some other kind of spirit. I only caught a glimpse of her myself once so I can’t personally say.”

This news saddens her to the point where I can see some tears beginning to form. I just wait for her to recover before saying anything else. Eventually she gets a hold on her emotions and begins speaking again. “So if you know the story of this place then why are you here? For that matter, what are you and who are you really?” I would chuckle at the questions, yet after seeing this place with the curse in action I don’t feel much humor.

“Well the ‘what’ really doesn’t matter other than the fact that I get very concerned when anything involving undeath is involved. That and the fact that I now live on the land that borders the town makes me doubly concerned. Why I’m here though is to try and find out how the spell over this place works, and hopefully remove it in some way. This town should not exist as it should have been dead long ago and its very presence is a danger. Even though the spell was used as a punishment it has failed in doing so and only harms the innocent.”

She considers what I said for a bit before she replies. “If the spell that keeps ponies away is faded enough that it no longer works then you might be right. I’m not sure why you are talking to me about it though; I’m just another part of the problem here.” She looks downcast at this and I realize that she has little thought for her self-worth, even after saving another.

“You are probably the only one I can get any information about this place from. This town has been long forgotten by history and was only recently found again. The only beings I know that would possibly have any knowledge of it are the princesses and I can’t go to them to ask.” She considers my words before she eventually sighs.

“I don’t know much, but I’ll tell you what little I do know. Whatever the spell is, it forces the town to replay the same day over and over again. None of the other ponies seem to acknowledge that this is happening, and even if something changes they just forget about it the next day. Everything goes back to how it was, so anything that was moved goes back to where it was originally… and any wounds are erased as well.”

I catch the pause before the last bit and feel sympathy for what must have happened when she protected Applebloom. I think back on what I knew of the place for any questions that might help, even if she doesn’t know. “I was starting to suspect that was the case since things Applebloom said she did seem to have never happened at all. If you’ve been locked in here you probably don’t know much about where the spell was cast, but what about those ponies that aren’t zombies at night, the more skeletal ones, what is special about them?”

She considers this question and she gets a confused look on her face. “I don’t know… In fact I don’t even know who they are at all. Even at night I know the names of the other ponies in town, yet the ones like that I’ve seen I don’t know a thing about.” At this I can feel a chill go down my spine as I come up with an explanation that is not pleasant.

“If you don’t know them, then that could mean the spell around the town was never fully working or had been down for longer than I guessed. If my guess is right, they are the remains of ponies who found the town but weren’t able to escape before nightfall… if they even had the chance to if they were grown.” Her eyes widen at this and she starts to shiver as the weight of this possibility hits her.

“Y-y-you mean that there could have been more ponies killed by this town?” She starts to break down and I move to try and comfort her, wrapping my tail over her shoulders. “If it is true, then it is not your fault, you have been trapped in here every day since the curse was placed.” She still cries for a bit longer as I just sit there, being there for her like nobody ever was before. Eventually she seems to have run out of tears and I glance towards a window, noting that it is getting late.

“I have to leave now, it looks like there are only a couple hours until sunset and I’d rather not be in town by then. Before I go, just some words to think on. I suspect something happened to you after you protected Applebloom and helped her escape. If that happened then, think of what would have happened if you did try to do the same for Ruby.” I give her one last pat on the shoulder before making my way to the door and peer through the keyhole.

The coast still seems clear, so I put my spell back up to avoid attention and sneak out while barely opening the door. As I go I can hear a faint whisper of thanks behind me, and I give a small smile as I make my way out of town. I escape from there without any difficulty and get back onto the land protected by me. Once there I revert back into my pony shape and head home for dinner.

As I finish eating, and night starts to fall I head back out to the edge of the property bordering the town and hide within the boundaries. I spot movement around the town from where I am, and on careful inspection make out the forms of some of the skeletal ponies. Hmm, they don’t seem to notice me, I wonder if they can even see me through the aura of the place. Maybe they are fully limited by the borders of the curse, so once you get out of that you are safe?

I decide to test this by attempting to form an illusion of a pony next to me. Not having much practice at it causes me to take a good length of time to even get something to appear. Once I do I notice that it wouldn’t pass for a pony in any way except maybe on a quick glance. I sigh as I still move it to the outside of the protected area to see if it has any effect.

The effect is immediate as it crosses the bored as the heads of the distant figures home in on it and a few skeletal being erupt from the ground nearby. Upon me banishing the illusion the creatures seem to just forget that it was even there and go back into their previous state. It still gave me enough time to examine one of the closer ones, and I carefully probed it with my magic.

I can sense a subtle difference between it and the town, which points to it not being originally of that place. I may have actually been right about these not being ponies that originally lived in the town. From their looks they must not have been given the same protections the spell granted the others as a punishment, meaning they might be in even worse torment than Mitta is. I really hope the forgetfulness was passed on to them at the very least.

After a few minutes more of observation I make my way home with a heavy heart and head to sleep, hoping for the next day to cheer me up.

<><><><><><><>

I felt a bit better the next morning as I prepared for a trip to the gem fields. I had two goals in mind for today, restock on gems and maybe find a few I didn’t have, and find out about the diamond dogs in the area. I still couldn’t remember what I had been told about them, but I had a feeling that it was extremely important.

I pack only the essentials for the trip, as well as my usual selection of vials. Making sure that the pantry is stocked enough in case Applebloom shows with her friends I leave a note for her before I head out. I enjoy the cool morning on the way as I take the path out there, which takes me about half an hour at a walking pace.

Once I get there I observe the area from a higher point, but notice nothing moving in the areas I can see. There do seem to be scattered mounds of dirt around the place, hinting at the presence of diamond dogs being around at one point. Shrugging I pull out my crystal and start try to scry for the locations of gems.

I spend a large part of the day searching and digging up gems, with a break for lunch, but through it all I don’t find anything new. “I haven’t even seen anything move out here. I would have thought I’d see some birds or something by now, must not be much reason for them to come through here I guess.” I hadn’t noticed how empty this place was my last few trips, but then I wasn’t really paying attention then.

Finding an abnormally strong signal I put away my crystal and start digging. Even though this one is stronger than I’ve been getting I had to dig much deeper than I usually would to find the gems. I find out the reason as to why as I uncover a set of eyes and feel something grab my forelimbs and drag me into the hole and the darkness beyond.

Author's Note

Finally a bit more on Sunny Town, though no Ruby yet though I have some ideas to go with there. I wonder if it was wise to leave the CMC unattended in the home with all the pies just sitting in the pantry being available to them. Nothing can go wrong with that situation. Still accepting a gripes, groans and whines enthusiastically. Really I want more stuff to read <.<

Dog Gone It

I was blinded not only by the darkness, but also they spray of dirt as the diamond dog pulls me deep into the ground below. When we finally stop I get a chance to clear my vision and find us in a cave of glowing crystals. Looking around I see that the place is of a decent size, and looks to have been dug out by the diamond dogs if the claw marks around the place are any indication.

Turning to my supposed captor I notice that he had been joined by a couple others that look to be his superiors, as well as a bunch of brutes that are most likely guards. I can’t catch what they are saying, but while they are distracted I place a spell on my packs in a way to divert attention off of them. When they turn back to me I find out their plan as theu put some sort of ring on my horn as well as an old harness across my neck and shoulders.

“Pony work, pull many carts of gems for us, yes,” comes from what I believe is the leader of this group. I decide to play along for a while since it will give me the best chance to learn about them. At least they will be easier than undead to deal with when I decide to leave. They at least can feel fear and will run if that is their only reasonable choice. I wonder what that ring is for, I haven’t seen one used before, but considering my unicorn shape I bet it’s supposed to block magic channeled through it. Too bad for them, that’s not where my magic is channeled through so it shouldn’t work well if at all.

I silently follow their orders, all the while using my magic to move the cart behind me as well as try and get of feel of the place. I only see other diamond dogs down here, most of them either digging or as some sort of guard. This makes my plans later much easier as there are less to expose my secret to. I also note a few oddities as well.

While the diamond dogs seem to be of a more violent mentality, I spot little things that make me think that they may be a bit more. A carving here, a statue-shaped thing there, and even what I believe to be some sort of mural are scattered around the areas I am escorted through. It looks like there may be a few of an artistic bent around somewhere. The carving wasn’t that bad after all, and, while crude, the statue wouldn’t be out of place as a table decoration.

On one of the trips to where the store their gems I even spot a couple younglings and a couple females. This makes me think that this may be a more permanent settlement of diamond dogs, instead of just a random bunch out searching for food. Noticing a few of them eating gems I am glad that I hid my packs as eating enchanted gems often leads to interesting results.

Watching them effortlessly find and dig up gems I wonder what they even would need ponies for. Watching them I had noticed a few clamp their ears down to their heads when they first see me, so they certainly remember the fiasco with Rarity, yet still they risk kidnapping more. Thinking on this deeper I decide that they may not be actively hunting them down, as Rarity and I were only grabbed when we came into their territory. Of course greed had a part in it with her as well since her talent involves finding gems among other things.

It is hard to tell the passage of time while down here, but from my growling stomach I assume it is close to dinner. I think my captors may have heard it, because soon after I am led to another area and have a bowl of… something shoved in my direction. Looking at the unappealing slop I decide that I have learned enough for now and decide that it is time to leave.

I turn to the one that I believe to be the leader and notify him of this. “Well gentledogs, as much fun as this day has been I believe that I shall be going, so if one of you would kindly direct me to the exit then I shall get out of your hair.” They just turn and look at me as if I’m joking before bursting out into laughter. I just stare at them all calmly until the leader speaks up.

“Pony is being silly, pony be here for many days before we let you go. Not only do pony smell funny, but pony is funny too.” I wonder what he means by the smell, but ignore it as I just grin at him and starts channeling power, showing off my flaming aura. “Well of course I’m going now; I was just being nice and asking since you have no way of keeping me here anyways.” With that I grab all the sharp implements in the room and do my best impression of the ghost when Twilight and I found it in the kitchen.

The leader’s eyes widen as he sees me using my magic and he turns to strike at one of his nearby companions. “You idiot, you said ring would stop pony magic, why is pony still using magic if wearing ring!?” I decide to raise the stakes by going all out to truly terrify them. “Oh don’t blame him too badly; it isn’t his fault it didn’t work as he expected. The problem with it is that I am not really a pony at all.” With this I encase myself in the flaming aura and shift back into my real form, causing the ring to drop to the ground.

As I settle into my true form with a tooth-filled grin I get the reaction I expected as the eyes of all the diamond dogs in the room widen even further in fear. What happens next causes me to falter in surprise though as every diamond dog in the room, including the leader, drop to the floor completely prostrate before me. What just happened here? To go from near terror to this is definitely not what I expected from them.

I am further surprised as the lead dog begins to speak. “Please don’t hurt us High One, we didn’t know.” His words tickle at a memory somewhere in the back of my mind, but I can’t seem to recall it. “What do you mean by High One?” I try to keep my voice calm as I ask this, but something in it still causes him to flinch.

“High ones from old diamond dog legends. Back before High Ponies came they ruled over dog-kind until ponies come with High Ponies. High Alphas fought High Ponies but lost. They leave across big water and not be seen since leaving packs to scatter. Many packs forget them but we old pack, have storyteller to keep legends for pack to remember.” This surprises me as it is the first hint I have had of my kind in years.

“Legends say one day High Ones return to lead pack once more. Please say High Alphas returning to us again.” The way they all look at look at me with teary and hopeful eyes causes me to stop with my channeling, dropping all the weapons to the ground. This is much more than I expected to find here, in fact I was expecting to have to physically find them before finding anything about them.

As they continue to stare at me with those eyes I sigh and prepare to disappoint them. “I don’t know if these High Ones are returning or not, in fact I am searching for them myself.” At my words the diamond dogs in the room look so downcast that I can even feel the pressure of their sadness forcing me into what I say next. “But when I do find them, know that I will tell them that the packs still wait for them and remember. I don’t know how long it will be, or when I will even leave this place but eventually they will know.”

This seems to be the right thing to say as I can see a spark of hope in the eyes of some of the diamond dogs. The leader speaks up on another matter, “What about the punishment? We must be punished for treating you like pony.” I sigh and am about to forgive them this, until an idea comes to mind. “Very well, your punishment shall be in two parts, the first is you will send some dogs to my home on the other side of Ponyville to dig up some area below it for me to use to prepare for my future trip.”

The leader seems a bit relieved at such a light punishment, though is still wary. “And second punishment?” I wait trying to drag things out to emphasize the importance. “The second shall be that you will no longer capture ponies and force them to work or do anything to harm them. If you need something from them trade your skill or labor for it. This is to allow so no reason is given to the ponies to drive you away until the High Alphas return.”

He seems confused by this, but nods anyways. “Now I need an escort out, and above all, none of the ponies must know what I am. If they know I may not be able to find the High Alphas to let them know that you wait.” They eagerly nod at this and the leader chooses two of the biggest guards to show me the way out. As we travel I shift back into my pony form and consider what I learned.

So my kind used to rule over the diamond dogs at one point? That must be what I was trying to remember, or something of that nature. It does explain why I was warned away from Princess Celestia though, because if she was one of the High Ponies that were mentioned then she was in direct conflict with my kind once.

Eventually we reach the exit and I bid the guard farewell, wondering what kind of problems are going to be caused with them knowing of me now. If I knew about their legends I probably would have stayed hidden and just snuck out. Oh well, at least I’ll get that exit from my basement that I had planned done earlier than expected. I look myself over as I walk back towards Ponyville and notice that I am covered in dirt from my trip down there.

“Looks like I need to have a good cleaning before I eat. At least it isn’t as late as I thought it was, must be hungry from using my magic the entire time down there.” I look up and estimate that it is still mid-afternoon still, so there are a few hours until sunset. Entering town I get a few stares at my condition, though not as extreme as the one given by Rarity when I wave to her.

“Flarenza darling, what did you do to yourself!? You’re just positively covered in filth!” I chuckle a bit at her reaction before explaining, holding back some key points of course. “Nothing much really, I just had a little run-in with the diamond dogs while I was out gathering gems.” Her eyes narrow as I mention them as I continue, “I was able to ah… convince them to let me go and I think I was able to get them to stop bothering ponies like that again.”

“Well it sounds like you had quite an adventure, and I know how poorly those brutes can treat a mare. I know exactly what to do to make you forget completely about them darling.” From what I know of the white unicorn I can predict where this is going, “And what would that be Rarity.” She just gives me a large grin before saying in a singsong voice. “This calls for a spa trip.”

I just shake my head and agree to her suggestion, knowing that it is easier to just give in than fight her when she gets an idea in her head. I follow her to the building that I had only been in once but had never used for its intended purpose. Since I didn’t know how things worked here I let Rarity make all the decisions, trusting that she knows what is best here.

Starting with a shower, to remove all the dirt and grime, we then continue on to a mud bath, followed by a period in the sauna. While in there we chat a bit about some of her latest projects as well as how my enchanting and other business ventures have progressed. I eventually learn about much of the recent gossip around town from her, while I tell her of the things I’ve been planning and getting done.

As we finish in the sauna and move towards the massage area I mention what Applebloom had planned for the house, as well as how I left her a key so she could come and go at need with her friends until she finished. This gets her attention causing her to speak her mind about the idea. “Are you sure that it’s a good idea to leave those three unsupervised? We all know how good Applebloom is at building things, but when you add my sister and their friend to the mix things tend to get a bit… messy.”

I consider her words as she does have more experience with the three than me before answering. “I know they can be a bit… destructive about what they do with their Crusading around, but I made sure to lock up everything that I could find that they could get into trouble with. The worst of it is in my attic, and I made sure to conceal the switch that opens it as well as blocked it from working. I think they already managed to break anything I didn’t notice the first time they were there as well, not that there was much left to break anyways.”

Finishing with the massage we moved on to the hot tub to relax for the rest of our time there. We continued talking about various other topics, mainly about the trip out to Appleloosa and what happened there. I laughed at many of the things that happened, though I shook my head at Pinkie’s attempt at stopping the fight with a song. “I’m not sure if I’ve heard her sing yet, but from how you explain it I’m not sure I want to.” She laughs at my comment before waving it off. “Oh don’t worry, while that song was rather, ah… creative… she normally is much better at singing than that.”

As we dry off from the tub I find myself actually feeling better about this trip than I thought I would. Deciding to come here more often thank Rarity for taking me here before we depart and go our separate way. Seeing as they are all home I make a couple quick stops to see how things are going and to get any news before heading home. It was a good thing I did as Twilight was in a panic, and finding out that it was about a potential visit of the Princess I made plans to be in the Everfree and the castle for that entire day.

I sigh as I make my way down the slowly forming path towards my home as I try to imagine how I want the diamond dogs to dig out the areas I wanted. I have a few ideas in mind as I stride through the door to my home, just to be met with a scene of chaos.

Things were definitely not how I left the place as bits of wood are strewn across the floor, along with many half-finished projects. I can see that some of the things I had personally made were brought out into the entryway before being torn apart, as well as signs of help from the other two Crusaders that I didn’t ask to help. How in the world did they nail a table to the ceiling? And why are there hooftracks on the cieling?

I sigh as I shake my head at the chaos before I check out the damage everywhere. I start with upstairs as I check to make sure that they didn’t somehow get into the attic. Noticing that it is still closed, and after opening it to make sure, I am relieved that they didn’t get up there. I mentally add an idea to my list to conceal the switch for the entrance better as a precaution later.

I then check out my bedroom to find that it is also relatively untouched as well, though I find evidence that they did use the large tub in the bathroom as I find bits of sap around the place. Exploring the other rooms upstairs shows that they are also in decent condition still, though the doors have been removed from them all already and replaced. They are even still wet from the varnish used to coat them slightly still.

I nod at this, surprised at the progress already, as I head downstairs to check on the damage there. It isn’t as bad as I expected when I entered the house, but still worse than what I had planned for originally. I eventually find the three Crusaders still in my house as I enter the kitchen and I find out my biggest oversight.

The three are in various stages of unconsciousness as they are sleeping off a sugar coma that they are obviously in. I look at the stacks of pie pans and empty whipped cream jars that are on the table and wonder how they managed to finish off thirty of them like that. I shake my head at them as I hear a knock on the front door and I go over to see who it is.

I open it to find Applejack there, probably searching for her sister. She gets a good look inside and notices the mess. “Whoa nelly, I guess that answers the question of if ya had seen mah sister.” I nod to her and gesture towards the kitchen. “Yeah, her and her friends really did a bit more than I expected. I’m guessing they decided to dig into the pies I left for them before they started working… all thirty of them.”

Applejack’s jaw drops at this before she lets out a whistle. “Ah’m surprised the house is still standing after that. Ah can take Applebloom and Sweetie Belle home for you now if ya want.” I nod at this but think about Scootaloo. “What about Scootaloo? I don’t think I’ve met her parents yet. Won’t they be worrying about her as well?”

Applejack considers this thoughtfully before she answers. “Ya know, I don’t think ah’ve met them either. They never had any problems with her being out late or with one of the other two. It should be fine if ya lend her a room for the night though as she never seems to need to ask them to stay out.”

I consider this which seems to be what Applejack is doing as well. I nod to her as it seems acceptable and we go to collect the three. As she heads off to bring the two fillies home, I carry the third filly up to one of the spare rooms. Luckily the smell of varnish had faded in one of the far rooms so I tuck her in under the covers before I go to make myself some food and prepare for the visitors tonight.

Author's Note

Ok, this is definitely one of the parts I feel iffy about in my story. I wasn't sure exactly what to do with the Diamond Dogs at first when an idea came to me that I decided to run with. While I won't go into the full details as of now, I will say that there is a bit of method to my madness that will make more sense later on. Not much more will be done with them beyond inconsequential meetings, but it will play a big part later on in either the planned Book 2 or 3. As usual accepting all of you love-/hate-/blah-mails and texts below.

A little bit of Chaos can go a long way

It didn’t take long for the diamond dog to finish the emergency exit that I wanted built, as well as another room for my experiments that use more volatile ingredients. It was all finished within one night and all that is needed to finish it is to reinforce everything. With that out of the way they went back to their pack without notice by any of the ponies. I almost worried that they may have still been up to their old tricks when I found Scootaloo gone in the morning, but I saw her in town later that morning before I ran off to the castle before the Princess arrived.

I learned of the disasters that turned out during that event from Twilight the next day. Throughout the rest of spring I had little else to do so I spent my time on various tasks. The same couldn’t be said for Twilight and her friends though. I found that the Crusaders had been going around asking various ponies about their cutie marks and how they got them which had me go out of my way to try and avoid them more often though I disliked doing so.

I was even able to meet some of the pets that they all had, and was surprised at how helpful Twilight’s owl was, even though Spike reacted poorly to him. During those months I actually saw something scarier than most of the creatures I have faced in my life. It really makes me reconsider my deal with her as a depressed Pinkie Pie is one I never want to see again.

I did enjoy hearing about their adventures at the Gala event they went to, even though Spike had to explain many of the embarrassing parts of the story as the six mares were really hesitant about admitting that they had unrealistic expectations. Even with knowing them all for less than a year, Fluttershy for the shortest time of them, I could see them doing the things they did mostly. The only exception to this is how Fluttershy broke down like she did; it is something I would have never expected from her.

I do wonder about Princess Celestia as she invited the six of them to liven up the event, and was even happy that they pretty much ruined it. When I asked about Princess Luna none of them remembered hearing anything about her, but rumors say that she is still recovering from her ordeal and is trying to catch up with the times through study. After hearing the stories I get an idea and tease Rarity by tossing her a ruby and saying she could have used one of these with her.

After explaining how it is enchanted to block physical objects, and that it would have stopped the cake she immediately incorporated it into some future dress ideas to the laughter of the group. I did manage to cheer up Twilight a bit over what happened there by pointing out that, while she didn’t spend it how she wanted, she did get to spend some time with the Princess along with her friends for some friendly conversation at that donut place.

Things had been moving along smoothly since I had moved into Ponyville, and it made me realize that after next month with the summer solstice I would have been there for a full year. This is longer than I’ve been able to stay at any one location alone as something always managed to happen if I stopped too long. I really hope nothing goes wrong to force me to leave here; I haven’t been able to just stop and relax in so long even with the occasional problem that pops up.

Those thought turn out to be the wrong things to think as various clouds around the area turn pink and start raining some brown substance. It takes a while, but I manage to drag one low enough with my magic to examine. “Is that cotton candy?” I tentatively taste it to find that it is true as well as what the other thing is. “And chocolate milk? What is going on around here?”

I head back towards my house to consult the books there as well as my journal for spells, but not before spotting Pinkie Pie on the way. Seeing her dancing underneath one of the clouds with her mouth open just makes me shake my head. “Of course Pinkie Pie would do something like that in this situation, it almost seems like the weather is tailored to her.” I wonder if it has anything to do with her Pinkie Sense but brush it off as unlikely as it has never shown the ability of doing something like this.

Digging through the few books I have I find nothing, not that I expected to find anything in them really. My journal doesn’t help either as any spells I attempt just seem to bounce off of something. Deciding to at least prepare my home for whatever is happening I focus on the hearth stone and try to enhance its protections while feeling for any oddities in the area.

This yields nothing out of the ordinary, yet I feel something familiar as one of the clouds pass within range of the territory. I try to place where I’ve felt it before as I head back outside again. I find that things have gotten worse since going in as I know spot various buildings floating in the air, many of them not in the same shape as they should be. I climb up to my roof to try and get a better view, but with the distance I can’t make anything out beyond that. “One of the few times having a telescope would have come in handy; stargazing is Twilight’s hobby, not mine.”

At this time the sun and the moon start to randomly switch places turning things from night to day and back again. As I get down to the ground again I feel a shock of something entering the area covered by the stone. Focusing on it I can’t tell what or who it is, just that it is giving off a crazy sort of power that I can’t pin down. I worry that it is something created by whatever is causing all these strange events, so I use my magic to cloak myself in as many spells as I can think of before sneaking around to behind the creature.

The creature doesn’t seem to be paying much attention to its surroundings as I get pretty close behind it without it noticing me. It almost did sense me a couple times but I had enough warning to hide each time. Getting a good look at it I find myself more confused than ever. It is some sort of serpentine creature, but it is formed out of a variety of other creatures, with no two body parts matching.

It’s like some kind of chaotic amalgamation of whatever creature just happened to be nearby. I pause as the chaotic part sticks out at me, as that seems to be the central theme of whatever is going on. I hear it saying something, but I was too distracted at the moment to catch it, but I did feel some force start to build up from it though aimed towards my house. Sensing the same feeling from it that I got from the clouds I try to reach out with my magic and give it a little twist.

What happens next surprises not only me but the creature as well as he is buried under a deluge of some custard-like substance, and probably is custard considering what has been happening. I watch as he looks down at his fingers, and with him making various motions causes random things to appear around him. “Well that was odd, nothing went wrong that time. Oh well it must have been a random glitch in the system, never know when those will happen. Let’s try that again shall we.” I hear him say this in a melodic voice while he attempts to do something again.

This time I speak up while dropping all my concealment spells while performing that same twisting feeling I did before. “Hey! What do you think you are doing to my home, and who are you anyways!?” Me appearing behind him out from nowhere like that causes him to jump in surprise, and with his spell thrown off again it causes some weird structure with a roof to appear around him causing him to hit his head hard. When he lands I can actually see birds flying around his head which he soon swats away.

“All right you annoying things, get out of here. Really now, two glitches in the span of minutes? Well I guess you sneaking up like that can be blamed for the second.” He focuses on me as he says the last part, though when he sees me he squints as if trying to see something. “Odd, you look like a pony, but something about is off, speaking of off this whole place here seems a tad off as well. Ah excuse my manners, you asked who I am and what I was doing.”

He pulls a playing card out of somewhere before handing it to me revealing a joker on it with his features. “Oh wait, I don’t have a card, I got that one from a friend. Anyways I am Discord, God of Chaos and Disharmony at your service. Now if you’ll excuse me I have to get back to what I was doing, this house is just so awfully boring and I feel that it needs to be spruced up a bit.”

He turns back to my home yet again and charges up a third time, but this time with even more power than the last two attempts combined. Strangely enough my attempt at diverting it, which I assume is what I’ve been doing, is even easier than before, using less energy than I would have thought. The results though are still as spectacularly random as the before as he is suddenly hit by a flower pot, an anvil, and then a grand piano from above. Looking up expecting to see Derpy I notice that the skies are clear.

Shaking my head I just try to ignore whatever happens from now on. “No thank you, I prefer to change my home on my own time, there’s already enough chaos going on trying to do that as it is.” This time when Discord recovers he takes a closer look at me as if realizing something. “Once I could ignore, two times as well as it could be a coincidence, but three times my magic going haywire? No there is something about you, who are you?”

He starts to sound menacing as he says this so I try to play dumb. “What? The great God of Chaos is surprised when something chaotic happens so he blames somepony else?” He just glares at me as he raises one of his limbs to try and cast again causing me to sigh and grin as I give that twist again. This time the ground erupts under him in a torrent of water blasting him back towards town with one word trailing his launch. “FOUL!”

Watching him go I know that this isn’t the end so I refresh myself from the hearth stone and prepare to dig in. His title of God of Chaos isn’t for show as he tries to sneak into my territory in a variety of strange ways.

His first attempt it to be disguised as all three of the Cutie Mark Crusaders and being chased by a timberwolf. I recognize that it is him as soon as he enters my area and send him flying in a barrier surrounding him. I almost do the same to the real ones but I stop myself as soon as they cross the invisible line marking the edge. I send them into my house to hide after they tell me what is going on in town and how even the Elements have been affected by the chaos.

Discord next tries to sneak through as a swarm of gophers, but when he tries to magic up something to keep me from stopping him instead it gives me a can of gopher repellent. I’m not sure why it worked but it eventually sent them all away, even the one dressed as a funny little man.

Next attempt involves him burrowing under the ground which is easily stopped as the waterspout from earlier is still going. Using a barrier to create a temporary ‘pipe’ I just place it in his path to uncover and he is soon flushed away like a rat in a sewer.

By this point I am starting to enjoy myself even if I have to dip into the hearth stone’s reserves to recharge. His attempts start to get more and more elaborate and I find I can even do things to stuff he summons as well. I’m not sure where he got that giant metallic bipedal thing, but learning that my magic could do that allowed me to cause it to fall into five pieces that looked like some sort of feline before he ran off again.

By the end of the day I started to feel weary from trying to focus all that magic into stopping his various attempts, even if I was still full on the magic side. I soon noticed a rainbow rising up in the town before descending again and I wondered what he was up to now. I realized that this was something else as the town started going back to normal again. I sigh as I realize that somepony must have finally stopped him as I sent all the magic I could back to the stone again and called the three fillies out.

Escorting them back into town I find Twilight and her friends and learn what happened that day. Everything from how Discord had escaped, to his elaborate plan to cause them to give up, and finally his defeat. I facehoofed when they mentioned that he actually pulled out a target for them to hit in the end as it was just so… well… random.

The Crusaders then told them how they had gotten back home on the train to find everything in chaos and they eventually found that my home was the only place that didn’t seem changed so they ran over there to hide. They even described some of the things I did while they watched from an upper floor of the manor. After that they all turned towards me in surprise and Twilight was the first to speak up asking the question they all had.

“How in Equestria did you manage to do all that when even the Princesses couldn’t do anything?” I wonder at this myself as I had no idea what I was doing most of the time as he felt vastly stronger than anything I could pull off. “Honestly, I’m not even sure myself. I was mostly just acting on instinct most of the time. The odd thing is that I could somehow sense when he was about to do something and it felt oddly familiar. I was able to reach out to it and give a sort of magic twist to it and it would cause it to backfire on him.”

I think back on how things had escalated as well. “What is even stranger is that as he poured more power into doing something the easier it was to stop him as it took less power.” Most of the others just stand there open-mouthed through the explanation, yet Twilight seemed to be thinking hard about something. Eventually she starts to share what she was thinking about.

“Flarenza, remember how on the day we first met you were describing the types of magic you were good with, your affinities I believe you called it?” I nod at her, partially remembering that day, though mostly the fear of the ghost. “Well you said that you didn’t know what one of them was and you said it was related to, oh what was it, something about breaking rules? I think that had something to do with what you did today; it might not just be breaking rules but chaos magic in general.”

She seems to be both excited and wary about this at the same time. The excitement is probably from something new to study, yet wary from what just happened today. I consider what she said and try to compare my previous experiences with that magic and what happened today.

“You might actually be right yet it doesn’t change what I said about it. With his massive power he should have easily been able to just swat me aside like nothing, which would be the rule. Yet with just a tiny bit of power I was able to turn what he did against him.” Of course what I don’t mention is the home ground advantage that I had that Discord noticed but didn’t recognize.

Applejack regains her wits and gets a question of her own in before Twilight can get another one out. “So ya’ll are saying that ya could have faced down Discord and beat him alone? Why didn’t ya come and do that then instead of hiding in yer fancy house?” I just roll my eyes as she misses the obvious, to me at least, reason. “Well I didn’t know I could at the time, and if I went into town after him who would be there to protect your sister and her friends? Bringing them with would have put them in even more danger as I had little clue as to what I was doing.”

She looks a bit sheepish when I remind her that I was protecting her sister and friends from Discord the entire time. I noticed she even took a closer look at me as well before replying. “Sorry about that, I kinda forgot. Looking at ya I just noticed that ya look tuckered out as well.” At this the two unicorns take a closer look at me before looking at each other and coming to an agreement.

I look as they both go to different sides of me, and I look worriedly at between them. “Um, is something wrong?” I ask trying to see what they are up to; the others there look just as confused. Rarity speaks up first. “Oh it’s nothing much darling, just that Applejack is right and seeing as you got this way protecting my sister as well there is only one way to repay you.” Twilight speaks up as well. “And since you were using magic the entire time to cause this it means you are nearly burnt out magically as well as physically so there is only way to fix that.”

I look between the two in confusion before I notice the grin on Rarity’s face making me realize what they mean. I just sigh before answering tiredly them even though it’s not that big of a hassle. “Let me guess, a spa trip?” They just nod as the others laugh at my tone.

Author's Note

Stayed up a bit later than I should have to finish this chapter off, hope I don't disappoint to badly with Discord though. There was so much more I could have done but I decided to cut it a bit short as it would have ended up with me smashing in a ton of random references and would have just felt cluttered more than it already might be. Still was fun coming up with some ideas there, though I may redo his speech patterns if it doesn't fit well enough and what happened to him serves him right for being so predictable.

Either way welcome to Season 2 which will have some rearranging done to it like parts of the first. The Luna episode shall be pushed back a few to fit the months a bit, and the Flim Flam episode may be moved as well, depending on if I decide for spring or fall as cider season. Also as a note I am still looking for votes on which CMC to use for the character reveal chapter, current tally is only one vote for Scootaloo and none elsewhere. Really she would be the easiest to do anyways while Sweetie would make things a bit more difficult. As always please feed me with your words and thoughts on the story.

Cider and a new home

Just when you think you are getting to know another being they go and pull something that you would never have expected. Having missed Twilight’s birthday as she was in Canterlot during it I decided to try and visit during Spike’s to make up for it. Unfortunately I had arrived late and missed him as he went out. Things got a bit out of hand from there as he somehow triggered a massive growth spurt and damaged part of the town. Luckily Rarity was able to calm him down, which makes up for how insensitive I heard she was being during Twilight’s birthday party.

I helped out with the cleanup afterwards, and it was during that where I heard more bragging from how good the cider was during the upcoming cider season. She also mentioned that they also ran short all the time so she rarely even got to taste any. On hearing this I talked with Applejack and found out that you could reserve barrels a month out so that you were sure to get some. Normally only businesses like Mr. Rich’s did this, but seeing as it is supposed to be so good I reserved a barrel even though it did cost extra.

Over the month until then I kept my usual routine while also making the jeweled collar for the filly if she decides to come out to my home. I didn’t make any mention of it to her, though I did still visit her. She was relieved to find out that I wasn’t badly hurt from the incident, and was now actually coming out into the open to talk with me more often. She even seemed impressed by the map I made during that time, though she did point out that the risk wasn’t quite worth it, which I agreed with.

Rainbow Dash was also getting a bit annoying with her excitement for cider season. I didn’t make any mention that I reserved a barrel as I knew I wouldn’t hear the end of it from her, even though I planned to share it anyways whenever I decided to break it out. When the day arrived I made sure to get out there early to claim it, and while waiting I spent time chatting with Pinkie Pie who was camping out since she finished working at the bakery the day before.

Once Applejack and her family were ready I claimed my reservation along with the others who also planned ahead and made my way back to my home with it. I caught sight of Rainbow Dash a good ways in the back of the line, but she didn’t see me as she was too focused on the front where Pinkie Pie walked away carrying a small tower of mugs. I’d wonder if she was going to share that, but knowing Pinkie Pie it’s all for her.

It takes a while to carry the heavy barrel home as I have to stop and rest a couple times, but once it’s safely stowed away in the basement I decide to head back. Of course the trip back ends up being mostly a waste as I can hear Rainbow Dash lamenting the fact that they ran out right before she could get any. While this is going on I notice a mechanical contraption rolling its way up to the mass of ponies still in line.

It turns out that it is some sort of magic powered cider making machine run by a pair of brothers by the names Flim and Flam. Something seems off about them without even going into the connotations on their names, even if the musical number is catchy. I vaguely remember hearing something about a pair of trouble making unicorns during my travels, but they were only rumors with no specifics.

Well nothing comes of it that day, though the next day they are able to get a barrel made using apples from the farm. Of course Rainbow Dash is right there for the first sample before it gets knocked out of her hooves by Applejack. That seems a tad inconsiderate of her; she seems to be way too defensive of their family’s apples and cider.

Things just degrade from there as the groups go back and forth at each other until a bet is made over the ownership of the farm. I definitely notice the problem here though the rest seem completely oblivious to the scam being played on them. I consider doing something about it the next day, but things seem to turn around for them as Twilight and the rest of her friends join in to help.

When I hear them talking about how they are catching up and are going to win I notice the brothers increase the power of their machine which starts grabbing entire trees. I decide to just get in line at Applejack’s cider stand as I know that things have been decided. Of course the rest of the ponies don’t realize this as they think the brothers had won when the barrel count comes out in the end. I still don’t move from my place as the other ponies flock to get cider from them.

I notice the Apple family about to leave the farm for good, but I wink at Applejack causing her to give me an odd look. Of course the reason is obvious as everypony finds out that the stuff they were given is completely undrinkable due to all the wood, leaves and dirt in the top barrels. The two unicorns are soon fleeing from town because of their failure and the Apple’s cider stand reopens as they no longer have to leave.

Being first in line gives Applejack time to talk with me as the rest of her family gets things set up. “So what in the hay was that wink about back there?” I smile as a few barrels start rolling towards the stand. “Oh just that I knew things were going to be fine after seeing those two started to panic and were destroying trees to try and keep up with you all. Of course they left before paying for the damages, but at least they left a large number of barrels of good cider buried under all the ruined barrels.”

She just shakes her head at my logic, though now that I pointed it out she starts to get angry about the trees that they lost because of those two. She has her brother secure all the barrels though to go through to try and find the good ones to sell to pay for the replacements like I suggested though.

Once they had everything set up I decide to buy another entire barrel at the normal price as well as a mug to drink now. I then walk by Rainbow Dash while slowly raising it to my lips for a drink. I am pulled away from her glare though as the taste ends up being much better than I thought it would be. “Wow, you weren’t kidding at how good this stuff is Rainbow Dash, makes me sorry for teasing you with a full barrel but at least there is no way they’ll run out before you get any this time.”

She doesn’t say anything and just continues glaring until she gets to the front. I can tell she almost breaks down crying as the barrel they are currently using runs dry right as she gets there, but as I said there was still plenty more to go even though Pinkie Pie brought her a mug. I head home to stash the second barrel and wonder how long I could resist breaking one of them out considering how good the stuff was.

<><><><><><><>

A month after cider season I had finally finished enchanting the gems for the choker. It was probably the most complicated piece of work that I have had to do as I had to get three different spells working in concert with each other. I still had to provide the instructions for the illusion spell to get it to activate, but that could wait until seeing what the filly thought of the idea.

Just to be safe I decided to examine it all one more time to be sure that everything was correctly working. The illusion was an amalgamation of different spells to provide an effect similar to my own spell so that common spells wouldn’t be able to detect or disable it easily and even uncommon ones would likely fail as well. The spell even included a tactile component so that the changed parts really were gone on all accounts so accidents and injuries involving them didn’t happen.

Compared to that the other two spells were simple, the first being on to hide the collar as well as prevent removal except to those that know the trick to it. The second one was for allowing the two spells to work in conjunction, as well as to provide more power to them in emergencies. All in all I’m surprised it worked out as well as it did, though I believe the silver used in the collar may have had something to do with it. With it being so versatile in spell casting it probably was able to channel and improve the enchantments in some way.

I decided to bring the issue up with her later on today when I head out to the castle. Before I leave I make sure that the basement is sealed as I had caught a certain rainbow menace sneaking around the place. When she found out that I hadn’t drunk the cider yet she had started trying to sneak in to help herself to some. Needless to say I have had to toss her out a few times already and have even caught her late at night even.

Thankfully she didn’t seem to be around today, probably worried about the hints I’ve been dropping about getting Twilight to come up with a spell that could remove wings. I may have been a bit harsh with that as I know how she feels about being grounded after watching her get waylaid by Rarity to help with her dresses as well as her being in that exact situation when Discord was around. Making sure I have everything I head on out towards the castle.

As I walk I try and think of any arguments that she might use and try to come up with ways to reassure her that everything will be fine. I don’t want to force her, but staying where she is would be problematic in the long run as she could be discovered at any time and there wouldn’t be any help available at the castle. At least at my home they would have to get through me first, and if the disguise works well enough she could slowly get used to others again and hide in plain sight as nopony would expect the thing she might have been to live peacefully.

The biggest issue with being at my place is who would likely discover her there first. Pinkie Pie is of course the most likely to find out first but is probably the one most likely to keep it secret. Rainbow Dash at least is pretty obvious with her attempts so would easily be avoided. Which just leaves the Cutie Mark Crusaders, who may actually be good for her to meet as it would give her someone around her age to socialize with.

I am so caught up in my thoughts that I don’t even notice that I had arrived at the castle until I trip over the threshold. Picking myself up, I check that the things in my pack are still fine before searching for the filly. I eventually find her in a large room, which was probably used as a ballroom, where it looks like she is attempting to fly. I watch for a while until it looks like she is about to give up before I interrupt her, which surprises her into attempting to run before she sees that it is me.

After apologizing I move right into the issue I wanted to bring up while my thoughts are still fresh. “There is a reason I came looking for you today instead of waiting for you to find me like usual. I need to ask you something very important and I want you to think carefully about how you answer.” She looks at me warily as I normally wouldn’t be this serious. “I’ll try, I guess.”

I just nod before continuing. “The thing is I’ve been noticing how you’ve been living out here and I’ve been thinking that it might be best to move you somewhere safer as well as cleaner, specifically I want to invite you to take one of the spare rooms at my home.” As I finish I watch her to see what her reaction will be and I see many emotions flit past her face.

Fear at the prospect of leaving and possibly being discovered, embarrassment at her state of cleanliness, and even a few others that I can’t quite identify. Eventually she speaks up. “But why do you want me to leave the castle, I’ve been fine here up until now and wouldn’t I be found out if I move in with you?” I consider her questions and luckily I already had an answer ready.

“Well you actually have a higher chance of being found if you stay here, especially if I am followed out here which I’m surprised hasn’t happened yet. If you are found out here then you would have to hope it isn’t someone that would hurt you, at least at my place they would have to go through me first and I could protect you better there.” She seems a bit calmer with my answer, but still uncertain.

“But what about how others would react to my looks if they do see me? They would be sure to tell my sisters then.” I just smile as I pull out the jeweled collar I made. “That is actually the easy part since I made this. It’ll conceal either your wings or horn so that nopony has to know. It can even make other changes if necessary, but I don’t think they would be needed.” I hand the object to her to examine closely and she pokes at it for a bit before trying it on.

“Why isn’t it working?” She asks in confusion as nothing happens. “Well it still needs to be activated with the chosen form. I didn’t know what you would prefer so I left that part until you made a final decision.” She nods before taking it off and sets it aside for now. She sits there trying to decide, though I can’t tell which way she is leaning from her expressions.

“I’m not sure if I want to go or not. It’s lonely here and it would be nice to go somewhere else, but I’m scared of what others will think of me.” I set a hoof on her back to try and comfort her as I try to reassure her. “Everyone is scared of something, but if you let your fear control you nothing good will ever happen. I should know as I’ve had to deal with my own fears for years alone, and now I’ve met some wonderful ponies in Ponyville and my fears feel much more distant now.”

This seems to remind her of another problem with moving in with me. “I won’t have to meet them myself will I?” This is something I don’t have a good answer for so I just go with the truth. “Eventually you should meet them as they really are nice ponies. That can wait until you are ready to do so hopefully. A couple of them are a bit unpredictable with when they would show up, but the disguise should help.”

We just sit there in silence as she tries to come to a decision over this and it looks like she is thinking hard at that. Eventually she takes a deep breath before letting it out and putting the collar on. “So how do you get this to work so we can go?” I smile at her decision and go into the choices she has to make as well as the consequences of each. I find that she hasn’t really tried using her magic at all and it didn’t interest her too much so that was the thing to hide. Interestingly enough she actually took a liking an idea that came up regarding her wings.

It came up when I noticed her turquoise eyes and the cat eye shape they were. I mentioned how much they looked like the eyes of a thestral and she asked what they were. After explaining it she seemed to like the idea of them and wanted to know if I could make her wings like theirs as well. After considering this and realizing how well her colors would fit as one we finally settled on disguising her as one.

With that taken care of we went to her rooms and gathered up everything that she wanted to take with her into my packs. There wasn’t much beyond the few things I gave her so we were able to head out within the hour. I offered to let her ride there on my back, which she accepted as she didn’t know how far we were going. I decided to go at a brisk pace to lessen the chances of meeting anypony on the way, and we talked about what to expect on the way there.

As we came up to my house I decided to go in the back way so I had her hold on as I climbed up to my window with her clinging to my back. This made things easier as I dropped her off in the bathroom so she could clean up while I put her things in the room next door. I head back to assist her as she has nearly a year’s worth of dirt to clean off, as well as all the tangles she had acquired in her mane as well.

Once she had been cleaned and groomed I sat back to admire our work. Her coat was now a gleaming onyx color that shone under the light. Her mane and tail were just as spectacular as the colors blended together in a way that made me think of the beauty found only in sapphires. It gives me an idea as we head downstairs towards the couch in the sitting room.

“Well you really clean up well so I don’t think you need to worry about your looks. Now onto something really important, we really need to pick out a name for you.” I was about to offer her one that had come to mind but I was interrupted by a voice from behind us. “Ooh, I love guessing games! How about Pokey Smokes? No! Black Snooty! Black Snooty!”

This causes a duel reaction as the filly dives in terror under the couch and both of my hooves to meet my face.

Author's Note

If anyone didn't see that coming a mile away please raise their hands. Well I have a name picked out, it's nothing spectacular but I feel that it at least will fit to some extent. Sure it won't be as good as Nyx, but that's a tough act to match up to. Next chapter should finally be the Luna episode, though the two aren't going to be meeting just yet. If things end up being short enough though then it will also include the start of why I needed one of the CMC to be selected, just remember that the choice was out of my hands. <.< As usual accepting messages, texts and comments.

Filly Panic and Nightmare Returns

I just sit there with my face buried in my hooves as Pinkie Pie tries to interact with the filly I had brought home. Why did I think that I would have time to get her settled down before Pinkie showed up? I’ve seen how she just seems to know when something is going to happen and she just shows up unannounced, so why would this be any different. I sigh as I pull my head up and start dragging Pinkie away into another room while she still keeps babbling on at the filly.

I decide to not even bother trying to quiet the pink mare down, and instead just use my magic to clamp her mouth shut and turn her towards me. “Pinkie, I know how you usually do these things, but that filly is the last pony you want to be acting like your usual self with. She already has issues interacting with other ponies and for some reason she is terrified of you.” I keep my voice as calm as I can while I say this, but I think the seriousness in my tone affects her as her eyes widen as they dart between me and where the filly is hiding.

I notice that her mane is starting to straighten out, indicating she is getting what I’m saying so I continue. “She has been all alone for a long time and she doesn’t trust others easily, it took me a year to even get her show herself to me and that was only after hurting myself.” I try to think of a good way to make her understand then I realize she knows somepony that I can base things off of. “Try to think of her like Fluttershy, but like ten times worse when it comes to other ponies.”

Pinkie Pie’s eyes widen even more at this as her hair starts going back to normal, figuring that the worst is over I release her from my grip. “So she needs a super duper ‘Fluttershy Special’ party? But who can I invite to it if she is only good around you?” I consider this as I know denying her the chance to throw a party won’t help as she still hasn’t given up on throwing one for me yet. “It’ll have to wait until I get her used to a few others around town, and I know the perfect three that can help, though it’ll have to be done carefully.”

Pinkie Pie looks at me for a moment before she gives me a wink as I continue. “The thing is I need you to promise me not to tell anypony else about her being here until I say you can. I’m not sure how long it’ll take, but if things start to overwhelm her too much then she may run off and get hurt.” The pink mare tries to speak up, “But what if you-“ I cut her off and let her know how serious this is. “Pinkie, this is a ‘potentially lose a friend’ level of importance which is why I need your word.”

Pinkie’s eyes immediately contract to pinpoints at my words as she immediately replies with appropriate hoof gestures. “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. I won’t tell anypony else unless you say so.” I sigh and relax as she does this, having heard how Pinkie reacts to anypony even thinking of trying to break this type of promise. I set a hoof on her shoulder. “Thank you Pinkie, she really isn’t in any condition to be around others, and is also hiding from her family whom she says hate her. I don’t want any word to somehow get back to them until she is ready to face them herself. As soon as she is ready for one of your parties I’ll let you know.”

At this I lead Pinkie to the door so that I can get back to calming the filly down. Before she leaves she gives an apologetic look towards where the filly is still hiding before bouncing off towards town. I sigh as she heads off and head back to the couch where the filly is still hiding under.

“Are you okay under there?” I say after she quiets down a few minutes later. “I-i-i-is she gone yet?” I hear her stutter out after a few more minutes of silence. “Yes, she’s gone. She shouldn’t be back again until you are ready to see her, and I got her to promise not to tell anypony that you are here. I hear some noises from under the couch as she moves around, though she stays under for some reason. “You know you can come out from under there now?”

After a few more minutes of her moving around under there she finally replies. “U-um, I can’t get out. I think I’m stuck.” I just stare at the couch wondering how she even got under there in the first place if she can’t get back out. I can understand P-Okay I don’t understand Pinkie Pie, but she does that all the time. I really hope that she didn’t somehow teach her how to do the same thing on accident; one Pinkie is almost too many as it is.

Using my magic I lift the couch up so that she can crawl out from under it before I set it down again. Luckily the couch is still fairly new so it hasn’t had a chance to gather any dust under it. I lie down on part of the couch, and the filly hops up to join me, burrowing into my side. We just sit there for a while, with me trying to calm her down so that she forgets about Pinkie for now. Eventually she speaks up. “W-what were you saying about a name before?”

“Well you said you mentioned not having one, and I really can’t just keep thinking you of as ‘that filly’ all the time. With a name you also don’t have to wonder who you are anymore as you will now know.” She looks at me funny as if doubting what I said. “But I don’t know of any good names that I can use.” I look at her and wonder what would make a good name. I think back to where I believe she came from, and come up with something that could work.

“Well considering whom your sisters are, how about the name Selene.” She thinks about this for a while before, testing out the name a few times before nodding. “I don’t know why, but I kinda like it. It sounds familiar for some reason.” I just smile at her as a ruffle her mane wondering what she would do if she really knew the truth of her origins.

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The next month flew by as I tried to get Selene accustomed to being around other ponies. I decided to bring Applebloom in on this as she does seem to be the more responsible one of the trio as well as their leader. She started showing up a bit more often to finish building the last few things, as well as to help out a bit with my garden as an excuse to be around. She even brought over the occasional snack which I shared with Selene who seemed to really enjoy the apple flavored treats.

She started to sneak around to watch Applebloom like she did with me at the castle, and eventually started talking with her as well. I found her actually out in the open with her after I had finished setting up my now completed greenhouse for the winter. Applebloom had accidentally ran into her after heading back from the restroom while Selene was peeking into the kitchen, distracted by the pie I had cooking. Things went as expected at first, but having dealt with Fluttershy before she knew how to deal with her. She even got her to agree to meet with her other two friends a couple days later. I didn’t say anything to let Selene know that I had set her up a bit to meet the three, but I did give Applebloom a couple more pies to take home in thanks for the help.

After that she started to open up more and more, enough where Pinkie Pie was actually able to set up a small party for her and the three Crusaders. Pinkie Pie herself stayed hidden from her, yet I did catch sight of her occasionally as she snuck in refills for the food and drinks. I think Selene may have seen her a couple times as well, but other than her eyes widening she didn’t seem to react as badly as last time, though the cupcake with the big ‘I’m Sorry’ message on it might have helped as well.

Soon enough Nightmare Night had arrived again and, while the Crusaders did try, Selene still wasn’t ready to go out into the open quite yet. I did make sure she had plenty of things to do and eat in case they showed up later, but considering how late they plan to be out I really doubt it. I had my own plans for the night after having gone through the previous year so that this time I didn’t feel like the odd pony out. Of course the Crusaders were a bit disappointed not to be able to hear any stories from me again, but they understood my reasoning.

I head out towards my goal, after reassuring Selene again, and make it there a bit before nightfall. Knocking on the door I hear some soft sounds before a voice, almost too soft to hear, finally answers. “I’m sorry, but I don’t have any candy for anypony.” I just smile before I reply. “Well it’s a good thing I’m not here for that Fluttershy.” It doesn’t take long after that for her to open the door and peek out warily.

“Oh Flarenza, what are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be with the others getting ready for tonight?” I shake my head at her before replying. “Well after last year’s awkwardness I decided to try something a bit calmer this time. Since I heard that you don’t really like the holiday I thought it would be a good idea to keep you company so you aren’t alone.” She seems to calm down a bit from her earlier wariness and invites me inside.

We chat for a bit like we usually do, but as we run out of things to talk about we just sit there in silence while drinking tea. She seems to appreciate someone being with her as she looks much calmer than she did when I arrived. This all changes when she is surprised by another knock at the door much later. “GO AWAY! NO CANDY HERE! VISITORS NOT WELCOME ON NIGHTMARE NIGHT!”

Her yelling and switch from being calm to panicking throws me off a bit; though considering how the holiday is all about scaring ponies I can see why she may react like that. Luckily it turns out to just be Twilight, and apparently Nightmare Moon from her reaction. Wait, why would Selene be out here with Twilight? I start to panic a bit myself as Twilight enters wearing some sort of bearded wizard costume and drags Fluttershy outside, not seeming to notice me at all.

Huh? What is going on here? I sneak over to a window to peer out, but am forced to cover my ears as a loud voice blasts through the area. Looking outside I find that the pony she saw wasn’t Selene like I expected, but Princess Luna instead. Huh, she’s changed quite a bit since I last saw her. She doesn’t seem offended at being called Nightmare Moon though; I wonder what that could mean for Selene then if that’s the case.

I ponder this as I watch the scene outside unfold as Fluttershy seems to needlessly panic and lets her fears completely take over. It’s actually rather funny watching some of her reactions, yet it is also really sad how she is treating the Princess. It seems that she came here for help in trying to tone down her voice so that she can interact with others better. Things seem to be going well, until Pinkie Pie shows up and causes a panic along with all the colts and fillies with her. Now why would she come out here with all of them knowing that Fluttershy doesn’t like this holiday and won’t have any candy?

Eventually Twilight and the Princess both head back towards town, while I am forced to retrieve the yellow pegasus from her paralyzed state outside. Eventually Fluttershy recovers enough to talk again, though she still sits shivering against my side. “Now what was all that about anyways?” Well mostly recovered as all she can seem to get out right now is “Nightmare Moon.”

“I thought that was Princess Luna, you know the one you freed from the curse of being Nightmare Moon? The Princess that, from the looks of it, was trying to make up for her thousand years of banishment by trying to learn how to fit in again? The one you were acting completely terrified of even after the talk we once about you seeing something in her crying for help, yet when she comes looking for it you instead run from her?”

Fluttershy’s eyes widen at each point I make and when I get to the end I feel I may have gone to far as she starts to tear up and begin crying. I just sit there and hold her as she does this, feeling angry at myself for causing her to cry, even if she was being very unkind before. Luckily she doesn’t seem to be mad at what I said though.

“Y-y-you’re right, I was being a very bad pony there. I let my fears of Nightmare Night just take over and I didn’t even think about who she really was or why she was here.” I just sit there trying to comfort her. “Well you still have a chance to make up for it. She will probably be around all night and probably into the morning. You can go and apologize to her, as well as Twilight for embarrassing her, and let her know you didn’t mean what you did.”

Fluttershy just sniffs and nods to me as I pour her another cup of tea. Eventually she calms down enough that I feel safe to head back to my home and check on Selene. As I head off I notice the lights in her home go off one by one, as she heads off to her bedroom I assume. Once I get home I arrive to find Selene asleep in her room, but not alone. It seems that the three Crusaders had decided to make tonight a sleepover and had returned to share some of the candy they collected. I just smile as I make my way to my room and prepare myself for sleep.

<><><><><><><>

The second day after Nightmare night started off in a really strange way for me. I rarely got any mail beyond some business related stuff, so when Derpy arrived early in the morning with a letter from some Doctor I was really surprised. The message was short, and all it said was ‘carry your journal and circle supplies today.’ I wonder if this is some sort of joke, but turning to find Derpy I find that she had already left the area. Looking at the message again I just shrug at it. “Well I guess it couldn’t hurt to have everything today. Maybe Twilight would like to see some of the latest things I’ve come up with.”

I pack everything up and I make my way into town after letting Selene know where I am going. Things with her and the Crusaders have been going fine, though I wonder how they hide where they all are when they spend the night. Something had been bugging me for a while with them, and I tried to piece together what I knew as I walked to town.

I decide to visit Twilight around lunch when I knew she wouldn’t be buried in her books, so I spend some time looking around town. While it was a small town, I had found that there were things that would normally be found in the bigger cities if you knew where to look. I’ve heard some interesting music from a couple of the places on my way through town at night and had wanted to check them out, but never made the time.

Taking my time at a few of the shops I wondered what to do next for Selene now that she seemed more comfortable around others. Of course with her still being wary of Twilight and her friends, though Pinkie was still trying in ways more subtle than she usually would be with other ponies, there wasn’t much I could really do. As I pass by a larger red building I get an idea. If I can get her to agree to go to school it should really help her out more. Plus with her disguise and the Crusaders she should be safe from any chance of discovery.

As I try to plan out how best to do this I notice that it is getting to be around lunch time. Heading over to the café I enjoy I find that Twilight and Spike also seemed to be heading that way as well. We eventually join up at the same table and chat a bit about things, and I mention how I was planning to visit later with my enchanting things. This excites the purple unicorn as she had been bugging me for another demonstration for a while, but luckily our food arrived before she could enter her lecture mode.

While we are eating I wave to the Crusaders as they speed by in their wagon and scooter conveyance, most likely heading off to my place judging by their direction. As they get out of sight I turn back to Twilight, but then I hear a crashing sound, followed by a sickening cracking sound and a shout that frightens me.

“SCOOTALOO!”

Author's Note

Well I think that this would be a good place to take a month long hiatus, don't you? Hope those that had a chance to vote enjoy the outcome of it as next chapter will be a fun one. As always taking any comments, flames and complaints.

*No I really have no plans on a vacation that long*

Revelations

Author's Note

Just as a warning, this will be one of the few if only chapters that involves a POV switch, as it is a bit necessary here. Hope not too many are angry about where I left off last chapter though, but I'm still expecting a bunch of hate. Yes, feed me with all your hate and anger... oh and other comments too please.

Revelations

“SCOOTALOO!”

At the sound of that scream coming from two of the Crusader’s I freeze up in panic, dreading what may have just happened. Twilight and Spike on the other hand took off running as soon as they heard it, and there looked to be many others heading in that direction as well. Once I get control of myself again I rush after them, only to be blocked by a crowd of ponies in the way.

I struggle my way through the gathered crowd until I find myself at the grisly scene. There behind a cart with her ruined scooter lies Scootaloo. There she lay bleeding from various wounds, the worst of them being from the stump of her wing, the rest of it being a few feet away. Nearby I see the forms of Applebloom and Sweetie Belle being held by their sisters as they cry and try to reach their friend.

Taking in the rest of the scene I see Rainbow Dash being held back by both Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie as she tries to reach the young filly, while Twilight is casting spell after spell trying to save the young one. Hope rises within me as she looks to be putting everything she has into a final effort, but it is soon lost as she collapses without any visible effect. When the others see this they all realize what this means even without Twilight’s words. “She’s gone. I can’t do anything else for her.”

Seeing the hopelessness on all their faces snaps something inside of me as all the spells I know and learned run through my head in denial at this. I am about to give up myself until I remember one spell, a most dangerous spell, that I have that may be the only thing left to save her. The cost of using it however…

I push that thought away as I move forward and start pulling things out of my packs, thankful for whoever it was that left the message to bring everything. “Twilight, it’s not over yet. I have one spell that may help but I need you to move everypony and everything back so I have room to cast it. No time to explain, if it’s going to be done it needs to be started now.”

She looks as if she is about to argue with me, but seeing the look on my face seems to give her hope again and she starts doing as I say and organizing those that can to clear out the area for me. I bring out my journal and turn to the page I had the spell transcribed to and start reading through the requirements for it and stop when I realize I am missing a key part. I look up in panic until I notice Rarity across from me, still comforting her sister.

“Rarity! Do you have any diamonds around!? I need one of a good size and quality for this spell to work!” She just looks up at me with a shocked expression before stuttering. “I-i-i may have a few left over, but how will they help her out?” I just shake my head at her wasting time like this. “It’s the key part of this spell, if I don’t have it there is no chance of saving her, if you aren’t sure what to grab just bring them all!”

I turn to another nearby pegasus as Rainbow Dash is worthless right now and Fluttershy is keeping her calm. “You! I need you to bring me down a cloud and keep it nearby until I’m ready to use it.” Without checking to see if they went to do so I turn back to Scootaloo and begin my preparations.

I first gather all my chalk and crush into a fine powder with my magic and proceed to draw out the magic circle. I leave the five points open for now as I need to do something special for those later. I take my time to double and triple check every symbol that I have to write out as well as make sure not a speck of chalk is out of place. Once I finish that I pass the book over to Twilight so she can check over my work while I dig out a small groove for all the major points except the one for magic.

As soon as I finish that I fill each of the carved out sections with the appropriate substance while I quietly recite the instructions to myself. “For earth is the purest of salts drawn from the ground. For air is the clouds plucked from the very sky. For water is water drawn from a clean source. And for fire is a substance that can burn unassisted.” Luckily I had some salt and water on me, and any oil would work though I had some cooking oil with me for some reason. Those with the cloud I had ordered retrieved were all I needed for those points as the fifth would be where I would be standing as I cast the spell.

Soon enough all the preparations were ready except for the diamond I asked Rarity to get. It was a rough fifteen minutes since I sent her out and I knew time was slowly slipping away. As I was about to send Spike or somepony else to find her I spotted her racing her way back to us. When she arrived she thrust a good sized diamond at me before she collapsed next to her sister. Judging from the sweat and dirt covering her I assume she didn’t have any left at her place so had to hunt one down in the gem fields.

Now that everything was ready I took one final look at my journal before turning to Twilight to say one last thing. “I’m sorry.” With that I brought up a shield all around the circle while she just stared at me blankly. With her being drained from before I knew she would have no way to stop me so I turned my full attention to what I was doing. Levitating the diamond to above Scootaloo in the center I cast one spell that I swore never to do except in an emergency.

“Power that binds me, now be set free;
For this is the hour, to unleash my power;
And as I have sworn, to show my true form.”

At these words I feel the power that I swore to never use until I could control them return to me. I struggled to keep them from flowing out of control as the energy reacts to its sudden freedom by flaring higher than what it should have been. I only then realize that sealing off this power only made it come back stronger when I released it so I poured everything into the spell before I could lose control.

As I do this I am vaguely aware of Twilight and her friends pounding on the outside of my barrier, but soon this too was lost as everything except what is in the circle fades to white. Soon another figure starts to appear within the circle, and I am glad to see that I’m not too late. There sitting by her body is the spirit of Scootaloo crying at her misfortune. Knowing that my body is still bound to its position I move my own spirit over to comfort her.

When she feels me touch her she gasps and backs rapidly away, her eyes widening as she stares at me. “W-w-w-who are you? What’s going on?” I wonder at her first question, until I look down and see that I am back in my original form. “Oh right, you haven’t seen me like this yet, Selene being the only one who knows. I didn’t realize that my form would shift back to normal again after releasing my power.” I turn to look at my body and notice something else as well. Huh, so I actually earned my third one already. If only mother could see me now.

Sighing I turn back to Scootaloo who is now looking at me oddly. “Flarenza, is that really you?” I nod my head and her eyes widen before she rushes over and throws herself at me in a big hug as she starts crying in relief. I can’t make out what she is saying, but I can guess pretty well based on the situation. “Don’t worry Scootaloo; everything is going to be all right. There’s just one thing that needs to be done before we get you back.”

At this I turn to a figure who I had felt approaching in the distance and was now on the edge of the circle waiting. Turning to the figure I address them in as regal and ritualistic of a voice I can muster. “Angel of Death, Cu Sith, the Grim Reaper and the Shadow Lover; I have come to bargain so that the loss of this soul is delayed until such time that it passes again. As for the nature of the bargain, life for a life as is appropriate, will you accept these terms?”

I stare at the figure, trying to pierce the darkness of its hood while Scootaloo shivered against my side. After a long period of waiting the figure finally nods and I turn to the diamond still floating above the filly’s body. I then start channeling energy into the gem to the point where it starts to give off a glow. Once it is filled to its maximum I pass it across to the being who nods as they take it into their robes.

With the bargain completed Scootaloo starts being pulled back towards her body, and I let her go with my final words. “Take care of Selene for me.” At that the last thing I see are her eyes widening as she is sucked back into her body and everything around me fades to black.

<><><><><><><>

Twilight’s POV

Flarenza’s word through me off until I noticed her journal lying outside of the barrier she threw up around the circle. Reading through the spell I realize the reason for her words. “Girls! I don’t believe what I’m reading, but if what she wrote down in here his correct then this spell will kill her.” The others look at me in shock as I nod my head and start beating at the barrier with my hooves.

I see that Pinkie Pie, Applejack, and even Fluttershy have joined me in trying to break through and stop her. She doesn’t seem to see us though so I turn to my number one assistant. “Spike, I need you to take a letter for me, now!” I pace impatiently as he digs out a quill and parchment and I start dictating to him once he is ready.

“Dear Princess Celestia, things have gotten urgent in town to the point that my friend Flarenza has decided to cast a spell at the risk of her own life. She-“ I stop as her form starts to shimmer and it shifts into something different. Standing in her place is now a three-tailed fox with the same colors of her coat, but lacking any sort of mane. “What in the world is going on in there?”

Looking around I see that everypony else that is watching is also staring in shock at this transformation. Turning back to Spike I continue. “She just now turned into some sort of three-tailed fox that I really don’t know how to describe. The magic I sense from her has also jumped dramatically, so much that it is almost on par with my own. Whatever she is, she is casting some spell to try and save the life of a young filly, Scootaloo who was recently injured so bad that nothing I could do would save her, I was even about to declare her dead.” My voice cracks a bit at this before I compose myself enough to continue.

“I just don’t know what is going on or what to do and I need your help as soon as possible.” I finish there and have Spike send the letter as I turn back to the barrier. Inside I can see that little has changed and considering my magic is too low to do anything I can only wait.

Eventually things started to change as the strength of the magic emanating from the place started to fade. I thought that she had failed, until I saw that Scootaloo’s wing started to reattach itself and her wounds and bruises started clearing up. All of a sudden the diamond floating in the center began to glow brightly, along with one of the fox’s tails, before both shattered into a shower of sparkling dust taking with them any remaining magic in the area.

As soon as that happened I saw that the barrier was down as well so I rushed in to the side of the forms within. Rainbow Dash beat me to Scootaloo and cried out in joy at finding her alive and was soon joined by the fillies two friends. Flarenza on the other hand… “She's still alive, but she is going into shock from magical exhaustion. We need to get her to the hospital now, bring Scootaloo with so they can make sure she is fine as well.”

We all arrive at the hospital and explain what had just happened. They look at Flarenza’s new form in shock as they had never seen the like before. Nurse Redheart was the first to break out of it and start assisting us and personally led us to where they could try to help the two. Scootaloo they found was still in bad shape and would need a cast for her wing and ribs as they weren’t fully healed, but in time they would recover.

With Flarenza on the other hoof they had no clue what they were dealing with. They were able to treat the symptoms of magical exhaustion well enough, but they had no clue how effective the treatments would be or if anything else was wrong. They turned to Fluttershy to see if she knew anything since she had worked with foxes before, yet that knowledge didn’t help at all with our friend.

After they did everything they could they set her up in a room for observation, and from then on all we could do was wait. Soon Scootaloo woke up to her friends delight, yet she was still very weak and couldn’t shed much light on the situation, though she did ask about Flarenza but nopony was willing to answer.

I was pacing out in the waiting area when Princess Celestia arrived, reminding me that I had sent a letter to her. “Princess Celestia, I didn’t think you would be able to get here so fast.” I paused when I saw the look of anger on her face, one that I had never seen before. “Twilight, where is that creature you told me about?”

I am taken aback by how she said this, as well as how she labeled Flarenza. “She’s unconscious in a room here right now; the doctors don’t know when she will wake up.” The Princess nods to me as she passes by, followed by her sister. “Gather your friends then, we shall need to speak to her when she does awaken.” I get a bad feeling about this, especially when I notice the Princess carrying the case for the Elements with her.

Hospital Interrogation

I don’t know how long I floated in the darkness as time had no meaning. I thought I would have reached somewhere by now, yet I can’t see, feel or hear anything. Slowly though a sound started pulsing rhythmically through the black expanse around me, a steady beeping that was getting steadily louder. I then realized that my eyes were closed, yet opening them did nothing to pierce that darkness. I then realized that, other than my eyes, I couldn’t move anything and my other senses were gone as well.

Did I actually survive casting that spell? If I did it must have been a close thing as the last time I felt like this was… I cut off that train of thought there, though the situation is remarkably similar to the last time I used all of my magic up and even pushed myself further than I should have been able to. I just hope I am in a safer place than that time, if that time was any indication it’s already been a couple days, and I won’t be moving for a few more.

I just lay there with my eyes open, waiting for my other senses to start returning again. I wonder why the headache I experienced during the last incident hasn’t kicked in yet, but judging from the fuzziness starting to invade my thought I assume that some being gave me some kind of pain killers recently. Eventually I hear the sound of hoofsteps steadily approaching, followed by a door opening nearby.

From the sound of it the pony had entered my room, and out of reflex I tried to turn my head to the sound. While I still hadn’t regained control of my body, I did manage to cause my head to flop to the side from its previous position. The motion as well as my open eyes must have caught the unknown pony’s attention as I soon heard a gasp, followed by rapid hoofsteps heading back out of the room.

I just lay there after they leave, having nothing better to do until my senses return. After a while I start to regain some feeling in my extremities as well as my mouth. Feeling how dry it is I try to build up some saliva to moisten it and attempt to talk. Unfortunately I hadn’t recovered enough for that, and only unintelligible noises come out. I give up for now and just focus on what I do have working and eventually hear the sound of a large number of ponies approaching.

I hear them enter the room I am in and spread out somewhere on the other end of it. I still can’t see anything, though the darkness seems to be fading some. Of course with my senses recovering the painkillers also are starting to affect my mind more and more covering it in a blanket of fuzz. So by this time my mind was barely registering the ponies in the room as my thoughts just floated around to random things.

Eventually one of the ponies gets tired of waiting and finally speaks up in a voice I don’t recognize. “Why are you here?” With the daze I am in the question doesn’t fully reach me. “Oh I’m just laying here, recovering from something that should have killed me and waiting for the donut fairy to arrive.” My answer gets a chuckle out of a couple of the gathered ponies, one I recognize as Pinkie Pie but the other is unfamiliar. There is also another sound, that of a hoof hitting something soft.

The owner of the voice just seems to be annoyed by my answer though. “No, I mean why has your kind returned to Equestria from your banishment?” The meds are definitely kicking in now which is really hampering any control over my mouth. “Banishment? That’s the first I’ve heard of it. The ponies around here seem to nice to do something mean like that though, except for that mean Princess Sunbutt who supposedly hates me for some reason.”

This statement causes many of the ponies in the room to gasp, though two of them just start laughing even more. The one that isn’t Pinkie is laughing even harder than Pinkie is, and I hear the sound of something hitting the floor in that direction. The speaker though is really not amused and sounds like she is really holding something back. “Do you not know who you are speaking to? Are you really that much of a fool?”

“Of course I don’t know who you are; I can’t even see you right now what with the darkness and stuff. I’m glad someone gave me these painkillers though or else I would be blind with a blinding headache though at least I can taste rainbows now because of them.” There is silence from those in the room, excepting the two still laughing, as they process this. A voice I recognize as Twilight’s speaks up after a bit. “Um Princess, maybe we should come back again after those painkillers wear off. She normally is much more… less like Pinkie.”

I don’t hear a response though she must have agreed as I soon hear the room clearing out again. I do catch Twilight asking one more question before they get too far away. “What exactly is she anyways? You seem to recognize her species.” Celestia’s answer is the last thing I hear from them. “She’s a kitsune.” This just leaves me to my own thoughts and the donut fairy that finally arrived to send me off to sleep.

<><><><><><><>

I awoke an indeterminate time later to find that my vision had returned as well as some minimal movement. The drugs had worn off as well leaving me with a serious headache, as well as the memories of what happened before I fell asleep. Did I really say all that to Princess Celestia? I am so not getting out of here alive after that. I just sit there shivering in fear as I picture the things she is probably going to do to me after what I said. I let out a squeak and yank the covers over my head when the door opens. I eventually peek out to find that Nurse Redheart had entered to check up on me so I tried to calm down.

As she was about to leave I remembered the reason why I was here in the first place and spoke before she could leave. “Is Scootaloo all right?” She pauses, and gives me a small smile and nod before she closes the door again. I sigh at this and feel much calmer than I did before. Well at least no matter what happens it will be worth it to know that she survived.

As I suspect that I will be receiving visitors again soon, I decide to just wait for them to arrive. As I do so I try and figure out how much I had recovered from the backlash of overusing my magic. My basic senses seem to be fully recovered, but any attempts at anything related to my magic just increases my headache. I didn’t try actively casting, but just the act of feeling for my power was enough to trigger it. While I was going over myself I also noticed something else, I had lost the third tail that I had while casting the spell. I guess that was what allowed me to survive, but was also the price of saving Scootaloo instead of my life.

Eventually the expected visitors arrive but at least this time I can see them and am in better control of myself. The first to enter was Princess Celestia herself, and I can’t help but shudder a little in fear at the sight of her, followed by her sister Princess Luna. Twilight and her friends follow next, most of them looking unsure of why they are there, though Pinkie seems unfazed as usual. I wonder at why they are there, until I notice the jewelry that they are wearing. Did the princess really think I was a big enough threat to bring out the Elements of Harmony? What would they even do to me, and would they even do anything in the first place?

I actually forget why they are there as I ponder these questions until the Princess begins to speak again. “Now that you seem to have recovered from your little… incident before, maybe you can actually answer my questions.” I wince at the sound of the suppressed anger in her voice, as well as the feeling of my headache flaring up from the sound. I try to remember the questions she asked, as well as what I said before.

“I apologize for what I said before as I was a bit out of it from the painkillers. As for your questions, I will do my best to answer them though they won’t change much from what I said before. The only exception would be to why I was here, which would be because this was the first place I truly felt safe enough to stay for any length of time.” She narrows her eyes at me at this before continuing with her questions.

“You mean to say you know nothing of why your people were driven away to beyond the seas? The things they did to those not of their kind or one of those that served them? Even now after these many centuries there are still reports of them causing havoc in towns such as Featherhaven, Rocktalon Heights, Neigh Orleans…” She kept on with her rant but I had stopped at the second place she named as memories started flooding back to me.

I felt my vision narrow as the feeling of flames started flickering across my pelt. I could hear the screaming of the crowds as my breathing started to shorten and my heart beat erratically. I could feel myself shaking as I remember the sight of the blood, so much blood…

I snap out of it as I feel someone wrap their forelimbs around me and a song penetrates my thoughts. I can see yellow wings blocking my vision and I realize that Fluttershy must have seen me breaking down so she did what she does best. I just sit there in her embrace as I try to get back control of myself again, thankful that she cares enough to still help me. I can feel tears streaming down my face while I do so, completely out of my control.

Eventually I gain control of myself, yet I feel anger rising up within me as I turn me tear-soaked muzzle to the Princess. I notice that she and the rest seem surprised by what just happened, but she is further taken aback by the tone of my voice as I begin to speak in a low voice. “You know nothing of what happened in Rocktalon Heights, the horrors that were permitted to happen there by the town. Did you know that it was one of YOUR ponies that was the cause of the atrocities there, a unicorn performing necromantic rituals in fact?”

Princess Celestia looks shocked at this revelation, but I keep pushing. “Did you know that the townsfolk captured travelers for him so that they were spared? Do you know what it’s like to be chased by a mob and not know why? To have your mother stripped away from you as she hides you in a cave? TO FINALLY FIND HER TO SEE SHE WAS MURDERED JUST SO THE NECROMANCER COULD LIVE A FEW YEARS LONGER!?”

The eyes of all the ponies in the room were slowly widening as I was saying this, but at this last bit they all just stare in shock as I break down crying against Fluttershy. The pain of six long years of loneliness had finally caught up as I had admitted this. I don’t know how long I cried against Fluttershy, but not once did she make any motions as if to leave during it all. When I had finally cried myself out and looked up again I noticed the looks of pity on most of the mares’ faces, while Princess Celestia was completely unreadable.

I continue again, almost too quietly to be heard. “Yet after all of that, I still don’t blame your ponies for what happened, so much that I was willing to give my own life to bring a filly back from beyond the brink of death. But you still condemn me for what my kind supposedly did, something so long ago that it has little to do with me.” Celestia looks towards Twilight for confirmation on this, yet her sister’s eyes widen in shock at something I said.

Twilight carefully tells her mentor what happened. “The filly, Scootaloo, had injured herself so bad that we thought she was dead. None of the spells I cast were having any effect at all. Yet as I was about to give up Flarenza came and, using a complicated magic circle and spell, was able to save her. But I mentioned some of that in the letter I sent you Princess.” Celestia looks ashamed at this, but is interrupted by her sister before she can reply.

“Twilight, this spell you mention. Did it have any difficult to obtain items that were required in its casting?” I am surprised to recognize her voice as the one laughing along with Pinkie Pie at my drug induced antics before. “Why yes Princess Luna. Four of the five symbols needed certain reagents to represent the elements, while the big thing she called for was a large diamond, why do you ask.” Luna’s mouth drops open in shock at this admission and she seems to be trying to say something but no words emerge.

Eventually she regains her voice, though unfortunately for those in the room it was her Canterlot Voice. “HOW IS IT THAT THOU STILL BE ALIVE!?” Her sister stops her from going any further to the relief of my ears. “Sister, do you know what spell it was she cast to save the filly?” Luna nods, and responds in a calmer yet shakier voice. “Yes sister, it is a spell to communicate and bargain with the Pale Mare herself. If she accepts then the user gives up a large portion of their life, and for most beings that means all of it. It was one spell in-“ She pauses at this and narrows her eyes at me.

“Just where did you find this spell?” I can tell I may be in trouble for taking the books, but right now I am too weary to care much. “It was from one of six books I found at the castle in the Everfree. It was one of the few spells in them that I could even stand using, most being too horrific. They’ve been locked up since I found them and I haven’t read them since that first time. I’ll return them to you if that is what you wish.”

She continues to stare at me for a while longer while her sister watches on in confusion before she answers. “Yes we would very much appreciate having them returned. Some things in them better left untouched, that spell you used for one. You still have not explained how you are alive still.” Feeling a little safer talking with her than her sister I answer honestly. “I really am not sure, yet I believe it had something to do with the loss of my tail.” I wave around the two I still have at the gathered mares, most not yet having a good view of them.

Princess Luna falls into silence at this as she looks to be thinking hard about something which gives her sister the opportunity to guide the discussion again. Her attitude seems to have done a complete switch as well since I last looked at her. “I would like to apologize for what I said, I didn’t know you had such a hard life and you are right that I shouldn’t have judged you so unfairly. Even with what happened back with your kind and their leaders things could have changed.” I nod to her at this, too weary to even argue or comment.

As she continues her face becomes unreadable again. “Even so there are those that would question your being here so I would like you to swear that none in my kingdom shall come to harm by your actions.” I just look at her and wonder who would even know what I am if it was so long ago, but decide to just go along with it with a small twist while smiling at Pinkie Pie. “I’ll go a bit higher than swearing, I Pinkie Promise that I will not harm any in your kingdom except in defense of myself or others, cross my heart hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”

I get a raised eyebrow from her at this, though she eventually chuckles while Pinkie seems to be grinning wider than usual at this. Sure it feels a bit silly to promise like that, but you really can’t argue with the results after hearing what she is like to those that even think of breaking it.

Things seem to calm down from there, and I actually wonder how they would react to Selene now since they haven’t blasted me away yet and don’t seem to be planning to anymore. It does bring a question to mind though. “Why are the Elements of Harmony even here? From what I’ve heard of them they only were used against things that are out of balance somehow, so why bring them for me?”

From the looks of things I may not have been the only one wondering that as all six of the mares wearing a piece of it turn to the princess. She doesn’t give anything away as she answers. “Well I may have overreacted a bit there, when I read the letter from Twilight I immediately though of the rulers of your kind and how they acted and unfortunately I thought you were going to be like them.”

I shake my head at her admission and I grin as I realize that I had a way to possibly stop them if I had to. “Well even if they would have worked, I know a phrase that would have made them worthless anyways.” She raises her eyebrow at this before responding. “Oh? And what phrase would that be?” She sounds both amused and curious at this, though she obviously doesn’t believe me. I just smile and turn towards Pinkie Pie.

“Pinkie Pie, chocolate cherry cordial cake with chocolate frosting and cake sprinkles.” All the mares stare between me and Pinkie as I say this, wondering what in the world it is supposed to mean. Pinkie pie though gets one of the biggest grins I have ever seen on her before and I start to get a bit worried. Eventually, she just sort of fades out into while the rest of us stare at where she was. Applejack is the first to recover and voice the question they were all wondering.

“Uh, what in the hay was that phrase supposed to mean?” I shake my head to clear it, which aggravates the headache I had almost forgotten about. “Well you know I arrive over a year ago, but I didn’t get a Welcome to Ponyville party from Pinkie. Well I had prevented her from throwing one by challenging her to a guessing game where she had to guess my favorite cake before I would let her. Was that a bad thing to do?”

I can probably guess the answer as four hooves meet four faces, the exception being Fluttershy who seems to cower away a bit. Princess Celestia speaks up then. “So how was that supposed to stop the Elements of Harmony?” I just point at the five before answering. “Kind of hard to use them when one is missing isn’t it? Though I would think one of the Bearers not wanting to use it would work as well.” She just shakes her head at this with a chuckle before the conversation goes elsewhere.

Eventually the Princesses have to leave, with Princess Luna setting a time to collect the books, and a nurse arrives to check up on me. I was found to be in good enough condition to leave, though with a warning to not utilize any magic for a while but I decided on one stop before I left. Scootaloo was happy to see me as I find her room before I head out. I find it strange that only her two crusader friends are there with no sign of her family.

I start to put together the various clues I had picked up over time, and came to a conclusion that I’m surprised none of the others had yet. I would check with her when I could speak to her alone to be sure, but I had an idea ready if I was right. Heading towards the exit of the hospital I talked with Twilight and her friends and asked them what they felt about me now that they knew what I was.

Each of them had their own opinions, though after seeing the princess’ reaction to me they understood why I hid myself like I did. Applejack was a bit sore still as it felt to her like lying, and Rarity complained about how the outfit she made me no longer would work and a new one would have to be made, but in the end they were fine with it when I said I had no plans to hide myself to the town anymore.

As we exited the hospital as I wonder how the flower trio will react at the sight of me we are all brought up short by the sight of the town. Somehow Pinkie had turned the entire town into some sort of festival event complete with games, rides and even fireworks all for my Welcome to Ponyville party. I turn to look at the others to see them all staring in shock as even they didn’t expect this much. “Yeah, I guess giving her over a year to plan a party was a really bad idea.” I am soon dragged away to the center of the event by the pink wonder herself.

Author's Note

Well now things are on a roll and I can finally cut it with the everypony/anypony stuff, after potential joke or something with it next chapter. I'm not sure how people will feel about the Princesses as some of it is colored by my perceptions of them. Celestia always feels a bit incompetent to me as anything she does herself fails and someone else has to clean up the mess. Luna I think is so far behind the times, but she still knows how to have fun as she wasn't stuck with responsibilities alone for 1000 years. Ah well, another thing done, and a few plot lines are closer to being solved. Things may actually go to other places now that the main fear of the princesses is partially solved. As usual any comment, flames or complaints accepted to help improve the story.

PS: Staying up late to finish this was probably not a good idea so I'm expecting to hear about stupid errors I made

Road to Recovery

I still don’t know how she did it, but Pinkie Pie somehow turned the entire town into one massive party in the short time she was gone. She even was able to prepare the exact cake I mentioned for it even though the bakery never made this kind before. Even more amazing was how she was able to round up various ponies to run the various games and rides that were set up.

Of course not every pony in town was that happy about the party being thrown and the resulting mess left by it. When Mayor Mare found out that Pinkie was throwing the party for me and that I made her wait over a year to do so she started to glare at me every time she passed by. I think I even heard her mutter something about making it a law to not give Pinkie so much time again.

Still the town was taking my appearance relatively well considering their usual reactions to strange beings. The exception to that being the flower trio as they flew into a panic after I smiled at them, and I later found them hogtied in a tent which I assume was Applejack’s doing. A few others expressed their interest in what I was, most especially the ones that I had been working with. I think Mr. Rich had plans to use my looks as part of a sales pitch to probably drive up his profits a bit more.

I actually found myself enjoying the party after escaping from Pinkie’s clutches. While I do appreciate what she did, she does tend to get a bit overzealous about getting others to have fun in ways she considers fun. So after leaving her when she started dancing the Pony Polka I made my way to some of the other areas that had music playing. One area had a white unicorn wearing a pair of ruby shades playing some interesting music. I would have stayed there longer, but the volume was way too high for me while I was still recovering from a headache.

I did find another area that had a small group playing orchestral style music, which I sat in on to relax for a bit. It was a casual setup with two earth ponies on a cello and violin, and a unicorn on a lyre. The calming music they played actually helped my headache lessen a bit as I enjoyed their playing.

Eventually I decided to head home as I remembered that Selene had been alone for the last few days, probably scared and wondering where I was. I stopped by the food area to grab a few things for her, and was intercepted by Pinkie Pie again. She tried to drag me off somewhere else again until I reminded her of my houseguest. She let me know that the other two Crusaders had been over there taking care of her the last few days, but understood why I wanted to leave. Of course she somehow managed to pile more food into my bags than I would have managed, though where she pulled them from I have no idea.

As I was heading back I caught sight of the three Crusaders, Scootaloo I guess having been released after I left. I thank the other two for taking care of my place while I was down, though when they turned and noticed me they tackled me yelling their thanks for saving Scootaloo. The pegasus filly for her part just sat there looking embarrassed until I reached out with a tail to pull her into the hug with the other two.

I take this moment to whisper to her, making sure the others two don’t hear, as I may not see her again before the weather teams begin the first winter snow. “If you ever need somewhere to stay you know you can take one of the extra rooms I have. I don’t know what your situation is, but I think I can guess and you don’t want others to know.” I feel her stiffen up at my words, though she soon relaxes and nods her head as the three break from the hug.

I then mention where I was headed, while doing my best to ignore the tears they were all trying to hide, and they decided to join me after raiding the food tables again. They load up on many of the things I didn’t grab, and one of them even fills a couple thermoses with a few of the different drinks there. As we make our way back to my place they bombard me with questions about what I was and what I could do. There isn’t really much to tell them as I never really hid what I could do anyways beyond my real form, though I didn’t mention what all I could turn into as I knew they would want a demonstration which I couldn’t do while drained.

Soon enough we arrive at my home and head inside. I was about to call out for Selene, but I was interrupted by a small furry missile crashing into me from the side. Luckily I had already taken off my packs or else things could have been messy. Looking down I find Selene wrapped around my side with tears in her eyes so I move a tail over her to comfort her. The other three fillies also close in and join in another group hug, even Scootaloo after a moment’s hesitation.

We all just sit there comforting her for as long as she needs it, though I catch sight of Pinkie Pie holding up a sign. On it reads ‘Applejack and Rarity know their sisters are staying at Scootaloo’s place.’ I nod to her, and figure she probably knows about her situation already considering there seem to be no secrets in town from her. She soon vanishes back to wherever she came from, probably back to the party once again.

Eventually the pile moves over towards the couch and the food and drink is set out for everyone. Selene doesn’t leave my side through any of this, and eventually falls asleep there and is soon joined by her friends. I sigh as I realize I won’t be going anywhere tonight unless I want to wake them all up so I just settle down myself and fall asleep with a smile on my face.

<><><><><><><>

Over the next few days I had frequent visits by those that knew me best from around town. Twilight of course wanted to know more about me and my kind, but she was disappointed when I couldn’t tell her much as even I didn’t know. She did seem interested in what I had found out from the Diamond Dogs, as well as how I handled them. She had noticed a rapid decrease in incidents with them since the time I interacted with them, but thought it was more due to Rarity’s handling of them when she was there.

When I visited the library for the first time I found that nobody had told spike that I was out yet. This was rectified pretty quickly by my sneaking up on him and tapping him on the shoulder. I kept up a small shield as a precaution, which was a good thing as when he turned to see my sharp tooth-filled smile he accidentally let out a burst of his flames. Needless to say Twilight was not happy with my little prank as the book he was holding at the time was torched.

Rainbow Dash really didn’t change how she treated me all that much, though she really took advantage of the time that my magic was still recovering. As winter had started she always seemed to ‘accidentally’ send a snowball in my direction whenever I passed by. Of course I got her back for this when my magic had recovered sufficiently by bombarding her with dozens of snowballs at a time in retaliation. Needless to say Twilight was called out to end the impromptu snowball war that was caused that day.

Pinkie Pie remained completely unaffected by my new form, which really isn’t surprising for her. Strangely enough though she seemed to mellow out a bit whenever she came over now that she threw that party. I expect it was more for Selene’s benefit as she no longer fled in terror at the sight of her, but I was still happy to see her not being completely random at all times.

Applejack was probably the only one of them that had any real issues with me, but that was mainly due to my abilities. Hiding who I was for so long just rubbed her the wrong way as it was a form of lying, and with her being the Element of Honesty at really went against her values. Of course me keeping her sister out of trouble as well as helping her with some problems at her farm seemed to appease her.

Rarity and Fluttershy were the ones that really changed how they acted at my revelation, but not because of my form. They invited me to go to the spa with them during one of their usual days, and seeing as I could use the pampering to my fur coat I agreed. It started off well enough, but then the trip pretty much turned into a therapy session.

While we were in the sauna Rarity decided to broach the question first. “Flarenza, we’ve been wondering since that time in the hospital, but what you said about your mother…” She falters at this when she sees me freeze up, though Fluttershy’s touch calms me a bit as she continues the question. “What happened that night? We can see that it really hurt you and we would like to know so we can help you. If that’s okay with you I mean.”

I look between the two as we head towards the massage area, though I decide to skip right to the hot tub nearby. I wrestle with my emotions as I try to decide if I should tell them the entire story or not. I eventually came to a decision once they finished with their treatment and joined me in the hot water.

“It’s… really hard for me to think back on this. You see ever since I was a kit I was traveling with my mother. We had no home, no family but each other, and our only possessions were things that we could easily carry. I never knew why she started traveling, but my mother never really talked about where we came from or about any other family I might have had. This led to me completely relying on her for just about everything as I never had time to make any lasting friends with the traveling.”

I can tell from the looks on their faces that they already had some questions, but thankfully they withheld them. “Most of the towns we traveled through looked at us oddly, but didn’t really do much other than avoid us. At worst some of them chased us out of town in fear of not knowing what we were. Even so my mother was very skilled at finding ways to get enough for us to live on even with how we were treated.”

I take a deep breath to calm myself before continuing on to the part they wanted to know. “That all changed when we reached Rocktalon Heights. It was a good size town out on the griffon side of the Borderlands that had a large tower in its center. We were able to get into town just fine, but that was the trap with the place and we should have suspected something with how nice we were treated as it was out of character from anything we dealt with before.”

I close my eyes as it gets harder and harder to continue. “We were given some of the nicest rooms at an inn near the center of the city which came with a large spread of food. It was pure chance that I dug into it first while my mother took her time to rest before joining me. She only had one bite of it when she saw me collapse on my side, the food having been laced with something to cause paralysis.”

The eyes on the two widen at this, but I just push on in a monotone voice. “My mother didn’t get enough to be affected right away, so she snatched me up with all our things and tried to get out of the town. Unfortunately she was spotted quickly and soon the entire town started to rouse and chase us. While it wasn’t much, the amount my mother had ingested was enough to start slowing her down so when she found a hollow near the edge of town she hid me and all our stuff in it and concealed it with her magic.”

I can feel tears forming in my eyes as I can still clearly recall the last sight of her when she was alive. “She promised to lead the mob away and come back for me later, but she never did. It was sometime after midnight when I finally could move again, and I was in a panic over her not returning yet even though the town was quiet. I snuck out of where I was hidden and started searching for her until I heard some guards talking about them catching her and bringing her to the tower.”

I can feel the two mares drawing closer to me, but I am too caught up in the story now. “I’m still not sure how I wasn’t spotted by something, but I eventually found the entrance to the tower which was unguarded. Once inside I made my way up it trying to find where they were keeping her. I saw few guards in that place, but the ones I did see weren’t living anymore but fleshy imitations of what they used to be. I didn’t know at the time, but the owner of the tower was a necromancer, a user of one of the darkest branches of magic.”

I can feel the two shiver as they had gotten close enough to support me as I push on. “I eventually found my mother at the top of the tower, but it was too late. When I saw her form on the alter I rushed to her heedless of any dangers there were but stopped in shock at what I found. All that was left of her was a bloody mess as everything inside of her body was removed and set to the side, along with her fur. They had gutted and skinned her body for whatever ritual it was they performed.”

I vaguely hear the two gasp in horror at this yet I still continue on, heedless of the tears now flowing down my face. “I was in complete shock at the time, and likely would have died if the owner of the tower didn’t show himself in front of me to gloat. He was a dark colored unicorn and he was still dripping blood from his horn. What I still remember the most was the look in his eyes, there was nothing there, no emotions of any sort.”

I feel Fluttershy shift as I had already made mention of him to her before. “I’m not sure entirely what happened then, but with a combination of my fear, grief, and anger I completely lost control of my magic. Fires started to rage around me and spread through the entire room, incinerating everything that they touched. Even the necromancer wasn’t spared as he was consumed without even a chance to defend himself, yet through it all the look in his eyes never changed.”

“My memory gets hazy at this point, but I fled the tower trailing flames in my wake until I am outside in the town. Even then the buildings around me are engulfed as I flee towards the last place that I felt safe, the hollow I was left in. I don’t remember much after that, but I awoke a few days later in a situation similar to what put me in the hospital. I couldn’t move, see or hear for a long time, but when I came to I found the city in ruins, and myself in possession of my second tail. What should have been a happy day for me as I earned my mark of adulthood was instead the worst day of my life which left me alone for the next six years.”

At this point I am freely crying with the two holding my as I shudder from the pain of loss catching up to me again. They carry me out of the tub to another nearby room I hadn’t been in before. In it is a couch, which they bring me near, as well as many covered trays. They try to get me as comfortable as possible while they comfort me through the grief I had held in all these years.

I’m not sure how long we all sat there, but by the time I had finished crying I was stiffening up from the muscle spasms that accompanied it. “Feeling better, dear?” Rarity asks after a period of silence to which I nod. “A little, I haven’t thought back to that time in so long. Even the little I told Fluttershy before skipped most of it.” Fluttershy had been silent through most of this, but when she did speak up she brought over one of the covered trays.

“This may not help much, but I always found a small snack tasted better after a good cry.” As she lifts the cover on the tray I find that it is filled with a variety of sweets and other tidbits. It seems this room was set aside for those that were in need of a culinary style pampering. While she was right about it not helping much, I did feel a little better as I had built up an appetite while we were here and the taste helped calm me a bit more.

We talked a bit longer after that about other things, mostly things about them that they usually don’t tell others. When they felt I was recovered enough we went back out into the other areas of the spa and cleaned up the mess of my face and did a bit of after-spa grooming. When we left I felt and looked better than I ever had in years and was thankful to be able to call the two my friends.

Author's Note

Aaaand I got nothing, pretty much all the important backstory is finally there now.. Another chapter done and still watching for comments and flames.

Not so Sunny Discoveries

It was about a week after winter had begun that Princess Luna came to pick up the books I had retrieved from the castle. After letting Selene know of her coming visit we made plans to get her out of the place for much of that day, and the Crusaders volunteered to show her around a bit. She was a bit wary at first, but after seeing how much she would be covered up by the winter clothing she started looking forward to going out without being discovered.

Of course I made sure to give them a few bits to spend as well, and I guess that the most likely place for them to do that would be Sugarcube Corner. She had actually gotten used to Pinkie enough that she actually spoke to her occasionally, though the pink mare made sure to not get to overboard with her. Asking her to treat Selene as if she was worse off than Fluttershy was definitely the right thing to do.

The day Luna was scheduled to arrive they all went out early so they could get as much time to show Selene the town as possible. I wondered how she would react to going to school now that she was actually going outside now. Scootaloo moving into the room next to hers when winter began really did a lot to help her get used to the idea as she now had someone else getting her to open up more on a constant basis.

It was starting to get pretty late and I was beginning to wonder if the princess was actually going to show up. I was about to put away the snack and drinks I had prepared for her when I felt her and what I assume were her guards enter my territory. I went up front to open the door just as they landed, to the surprised looks of her guards at the timing one of which looked familiar.

I bowed to the princess as she walked forward and I invited her inside. I was a little unnerved at her size now that I was standing on my own and looking up at her. While I wasn’t much smaller than the other ponies, barring Big Mac, I felt tiny standing next to her. Showing her and her guards to the sitting room I offered her some of the snacks I had prepared as well as some tea suggested to me by Fluttershy.

After she took a sip of the tea she got down to why she was here. “We are here for those books you took from our old home. We would also appreciate it if you tell us what you learned from them as well.” I nod as I levitate the books from the nearby study and set them in front of her. I also bring out the book I had moved all the undead related spells I knew into. “All of the spells I felt I needed or would actually use I had copied into here. There weren’t many that I saw a use for or could even stand to look at, a couple of those books made me feel ill just reading.”

The princess paged through the book and examined each one in turn. She shuddered at the first page which is where I placed the spell I had saved Scootaloo with. She raised an eyebrow at the next one, which I remembered to be the flesh-sculpting spell with my own additions to it. “This is a rather ingenious use for what would normally be a most heinous spell. Normally we see it used for creating necromantic golems and other undead monstrosities instead of for healing like you seem to have done.”

I just smile as I remember the earlier issues I had with it. “Yes, I can see why as it isn’t a very pleasant feeling having it used on you while alive, I found that out firsthand after dealing with a few wounds caused by the previous tenant of this place. Bound spirits with a kitchen full of sharp objects do give you a good opportunity to test out spells like that.” She actually chuckles a bit at that. “Yes, I had heard about that from my sister when she brought that horrid tome you and her student to the castle.”

I wondered for a second what they did with that thing, hoping that they destroyed it as there couldn’t have been any good reason to keep it around. The princess didn’t react to any of the other spells in there, as they were mostly ways of finding and removing undead which were no threat at all. She returned the book, satisfied with what she found. She looked as if she was about to leave so I decided to ask her an important question.

“Princess Luna, if you don’t mind I have an important question to ask you about a nearby town that you might know something about.” She cocks an eyebrow before responding. “You may ask, though my sister or her student would most likely be able to tell you more as I have been away so long.” I shake my head before continuing. “Twilight knows almost nothing about this place as it seems to have been erased from history. It’s about Sunny Town.”

The Princess of the Night was definitely not expecting that name as she rose to her full height in surprise, her eyes wide and wings flared out as she responded in a low voice. “How do you know of that name? It should be lost to the memories of every being for as long as it takes for that place to repent.” She actually looks a bit scared that I know of the place so she probably won’t like what I say next.

“It’s because that place is on the edge of the land that came with this manor and I found it when I was setting up something out there. Not only that a local filly was almost killed by that place when she stumbled on it by accident. Whatever was done to that place is either wearing off or had a big weakness in the spell laid upon it, and yes I know the reason as to why it was put there if not how.” She looks as if she might be sick at this news and sends her guards out of the room before she responds quietly.

“I had hoped that the town would have learned to change their ways after all this time. To hear that it is still there, but is actually a threat to others is very disturbing and something must be done about it. Tell me everything that you know about that place.” I hear a hint of anger on the edge of her fear as I think through what I know and what I have been guessing at.

“I haven’t been able to study it as much as I want to as it only seems to appear on the day and night of the new moon. Since you placed the curse on them I assume this is because it is when your influence is at its weakest.” She gives a hesitant nod at this, probably not wanting that information widely known. “Strangely enough it is only at night when they look like undead, during the day they look completely normal. From talking to one of them I found that they are also trapped in a time loop repeating the same day over and over.”

Once again the princess is surprised into flaring her wings again. “You actually talked to one of those monsters!?” I shake my head at her reaction. “This one isn’t the monster you think she is; she actually grieves over what happened and actually hates herself for not protecting Ruby. Also if it wasn’t for her the filly from town would never have escaped.” I can see pain fill Luna’s eyes at the name of the murdered filly as well as regret at her reaction.

“There are really only two other things I know of the town, the first is that there seem to be two types of ponies trapped there. There are the townsfolk who at night appear as black-fleshed zombies.” I pause as I think of the other kind. “The other kind doesn’t seem to have a form during the day and at night appear as skeletons of which there are very many. They don’t seem to share the same feeling as the ones from the town do.”

I wait for Luna to reach the same conclusion that I did and her eyes shrink into pinpricks when she realizes what it could mean. “Oh please no.” I nod and continue. “Yes, I believe that those ones are the remains of ponies that found the place but were not able to escape its clutches.” I notice that the princess’s eyes start to tear up at this news as she never knew that those she had punished were able to continue hurting others.

“The last thing I know about the place I’m not sure what to make of. It seems that Ruby is still there.” Luna looks at me oddly when I say this. “What do you mean by Ruby is still there? Her murder was the reason for that place being cursed.” I can only shake my head in confusion. “I’m really not sure myself as I had only glimpsed her once. But according to the filly who met her she is currently a ghost, though she never said why she was still around.”

The princess sits there quietly as she takes in everything that I’ve said. I wonder what she will do with this information, especially as she is the one responsible for everything there in the first place. “We need time to consider what to do about Sunny Town. To find that not only has the town lasted this long, but is still hurting others is not what I wanted to happen.” I nod at this as it is a lot to take in, especially as she wasn’t expecting it.

“Yes, something needs to be done about that place, even though it is a bit safer as they don’t seem to be able to enter the area that is part of my home.” She looks at me oddly at this. “What do you mean by that? Why would your land be safe from them?” I wonder how much to reveal, but decide that hiding things from the princess is probably not a good idea.

“Well did you happen to notice anything strange when you approached my home? Something that felt different from what you would normally feel?” She nods at this so I continue. “Well I had a family relic that allows me to create what is basically a ‘home territory.’ I’m not sure all it can do, but I have found that I can draw stored power from it, and influence the strength of most magic forces within it, which came in handy when Discord showed up. Well it seems that the undead of that town can’t see into it. I’m not sure if it’s because of that, or if they are blind to things outside of a certain range of the town.”

She just shakes her head at this. “You’ll have to tell me about what happened with Discord sometime, but for now the town takes priority.” I nod and continue on what I was saying before. “Well as I see it there are two main things to accomplish, first is removing the threat of the town by either sealing it away again, or destroying it. I’d suggest the second as that kind of curse is an abomination.” The princess nods at this though doesn’t look as if she agrees.

“The second thing is to do something about the innocent beings that are connected to the town. What I don’t know as I don’t have enough information on what can be done.” She looks thoughtful at this, but also sad at the same time. “That may not be possible for them as there may not be anything left to help.” I sigh as I was thinking that as well.

“Yes, there seems to be nothing left of who they were with the skeletal ponies. For Mitta and Ruby though there may still be something that can be done. Mitta seems guilty only of not protecting Ruby even though she would have joined her if she did but she also saved others from the town and was punished for it. Ruby is still an unknown as well as I have yet to speak with her and find out more about her.”

We would have continued planning a bit longer, but fate decided that things had been too peaceful around here lately. For at that moment Selene and her friends decided to return and walked into the room. I wondered where Luna’s guards were at the time as they were obviously not outside of the room anymore. When Selene caught sight of Luna she froze in place and stared at her with her eyes wide and irises like pinpricks. Luna for her part just looked at her curiously, not expecting a filly to show up in my house.

Soon enough she takes off screaming out of the room and I can hear her hoofsteps heading upstairs before a door slams. I see Scootaloo peek in and I shake my head at her and gesture for her to go upstairs as well. Luna just turns towards my with a strange look on her face and I sigh again and explain. “I found her abandoned by her family a while back and have been taking care of her since then. She has problems being around others but she has gotten better recently; that was actually the worst reaction I’ve seen from her so far.”

I hold back on as much information as I can and just hope that Luna doesn’t notice. Her response dashes any hope of that. “She was an odd little filly, yet we feel as if we have seen her before. I was almost as if we were looking in a mirror when we saw her.” I raise a paw to my face as she says this and I just know she is about to make a connection that I don’t want her to make. She goes from looking in the direction she vanished to me as she does so.

“Who is she and where was it you found her, for if that was who we suspect…” She left the sentence hanging and I just sigh before I explain. “I didn’t think you or your sister would find out about her this soon, but it was inevitable that it would happen sometime. Firstly she isn’t who are what you think she is as that was all you and I’ve heard you accepted that.” I fix her with a glare which shocks her out of the anger that was rising a second ago.

“When I found her she had absolutely nothing. No name, no home, and nobody to take care of her. She didn’t even have any memory of anything before that day she found herself in the castle, yet she did have knowledge of some things that she shouldn’t have, Sunny Town for one thing.” Luna’s face is unreadable now as she processes everything I am saying.

“The worst thing is she has an instinctive fear of you, your sister, and the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. She doesn’t know why either, yet she has been able to handle being around Pinkie pie recently. What you saw wasn’t her true form, but an illusion to hide what she is in case she was discovered before she was ready. Also she has taken up a name of her own, so what you were thinking before isn’t her, she is now Selene.”

Luna winces at this as she realizes the implications of that name and obviously isn’t happy about it. “But why is she here even? If what you say is true then how did she come to be?” This is something I had been wondering myself, though I did have a guess. “I am not sure myself, but I’m pretty sure it has something to do with the Elements of Harmony. Without being able to study them, and testing them is right out anyways, I can only guess which is why I believe she is a completely different pony.”

“I only know of two instances of the Elements being used, on you and on Discord. With Discord it changed him from a being of complete chaos into an orderly statue, which in a ways brings balance to him. With you though it seemed to return you to what you were before you became Nightmare Moon, yet at a reduced size and drained of power.” I look to her for confirmation on this and she nods, seeming impatient for me to continue.

“Well if the Elements are supposed to bring harmony or balance to what they are used on, where did what they remove from you go? I think that they use the power and mass they removed from you to create Selene, which would be why she had some of your knowledge but not all of it. Essentially they took the corrupted parts of you and purified it while giving it form. In this way the damage caused to and wrought by you could be healed and given a chance to redeem itself.”

The look on Luna’s face would be hilarious if the situation was different. As it is it is something I would rather miss out on if it would spare me the drama that comes with this situation. I’m not sure how long I waited for her to respond, but the implications of what I said do make things complicated.

Eventually she recovers enough to speak again, though she seems to be channeling Fluttershy at the moment. “We think we need time to think on what you have said, this is just too much right now and we don’t know what to do.” I nod to her. “Take as much time as you need, remember that she is terrified of you right now and needs time to get over that fear.”

She starts to head out, but before leaving turns to one of her guards that had reappeared again from wherever they went. “Lieutenant Rose, you shall stay here and keep watch over the filly Selene until further notice. Keep watch and make sure no harm comes to her until we give you new orders.” With that she leaves with the other guard leaving the surprised guard that I thought looked familiar, as well as me having not expected that.

I break free of the shock first and shake my head in annoyance though it was better than what I was expecting to happen. “Well I guess I have to deal with having only two spare bedrooms now. I thought I recognized you earlier, and already a lieutenant?” I head upstairs to deal with the panicked filly, leaving the thestral guard just staring after the princess.

Author's Note

Well a solution to Sunny Town is slowly coming into sight, what better pony to fix it than the one that caused it. Also that first meeting between Princess Luna and her 'daughter' could have gone better. :P Wonder what the mane 6 will think when they find out that they are all fathers <.<

Winter and Exploration

After Luna left I spent the rest of the night trying to reassure Selene that the princess wasn’t going to hurt her, and if something did happen I would keep her safe. Scootaloo was confused as to why she was scared of the princess, but also did her best to cheer her up as well. Eventually she fell asleep allowing me to check in on the thestral who will now be staying with us.

I found her still in the entryway, but at least she had recovered enough to find out what was going on. After a short explanation, with the more delicate bits left out but still letting her know of Selene being an alicorn, she understood the importance of what she had been tasked to do. I didn’t think I needed to do so, but I still asked her to keep the information a secret, as things could get out of hand if certain ponies found out.

Things were a bit livelier around town for a while as Umbra got to know the townsfolk better since she was going to be around for a while. This was especially so as she started pranking Rainbow Dash after being hit by an errant snowball. While it didn’t escalate to the levels that it did when I was involved, it was still enough to get Twilight to step in quickly. Of course from that she learned why the thestral was here, and from that about Selene.

While she didn’t understand why Selene was scared of her and why I had kept her hidden so long, she did insist that I get her enrolled in the school. Since I had planned on doing that anyways, though preferably when the filly was ready, it wasn’t that big a deal. Enlisting the help of the Crusaders in getting her to go, as well as them promising to take care of her, quickly eroded any objections that she had.

Getting her supplied for going to classes was the easy part, getting her accepted by the rest of the class though was a bit harder. Cheerilee was actually very helpful in making her feel welcome and even I was feeling happier at her bright attitude, but the other students were another story.

Two colts, one short and chubby the other tall and gangly, started a bit of a panic with screams of vampony and other things related to her current looks, but they weren’t the worst. The worst offenders were another pair of fillies, one that I recognized as the daughter of Mr. Rich. They immediately started in on the verbal bullying regarding how different she was, though I wonder what their attitude would have been if they knew the truth about her.

I decided not to intervene for now, as the Crusaders were doing that without being asked, so I took my leave after letting her know I would pick her up when class was done. Having nothing else to do I wandered the town until school ended and found that, barring the bullying, she had actually enjoyed herself.

Winter passed slowly as things started to settle into a routine again. Seeing as I had so much free time I decided to work on a project I had planned a long time ago when Trixie came through town. I had long ago read through the books she had in her wagon, and found most of what I was looking for. I was still waiting on that book I ordered through Twilight so I could finish fixing the wagon, but until then I got a few books on fireworks along with what she had and started experimenting.

Needless to say things were not as easy as they looked, and my first few experiments end up as massive failures. While most just fizzled out and did nothing, a couple of them blew up in my face, making me glad that I kept myself shielded and had the area I was using dug out by the diamond dogs to the edge of my property away from town. Even then some of the ponies heard the noise from those failures and had Twilight over asking questions.

I didn’t keep any secrets about it, as I had taken it up mostly as a hobby to pass the time, but she still was a bit worried about the danger. She couldn’t fault the precautions that I took, but still cautioned against doing anything too dangerous just the same. I decided not to mention my plans for the smoke pellets at that time, as she already disliked the idea of me growing that one variety of peppers, and loading them into an easy-to-use container would have caused her to panic.

I also avoided telling her of my attempts to acquire some liquid rainbow through Rainbow Dash. After hearing about this substance from Pinkie Pie I had want to see what kind of things I could do with it. Unfortunately getting ahold of a sample of it is easier said than done as the weather pegasi are very touchy with letting any of it out of their control. Luckily the cyan mare’s weakness for cider made it rather easy to come up with a bribe for her to try and get me some.

Still beyond that things had been rather boring lately and with the upcoming Hearth’s Warming holiday coming up I was almost expecting Pinkie to try and drag me into something for it. Luckily they had been asked by Princess Celestia to perform in some play for it, and with her still being a bit wary of me it was best that I avoided it.

I did plan some things of my own though for Selene’s sake, and she actually enjoyed the games I got for her while Scootaloo was surprised when she was given a pair of tickets to an upcoming Wonderbolts show. When I suggested that she give the other one to Rainbow Dash her eyes really lit up with joy.

With that the last thing of winter to deal with was wrapping it up again. Of course this year things went much more smoothly with Twilight organizing everything. Of course she was thrown off a bit when she found out about the little support team I had set up the previous year and had to redo some of her plans at the last minute to accommodate for it. She seemed to be a tad put off about not noticing the group last year, even after I mentioned how it helped out during an accident she apparently caused.

With the warmer weather returned, as well as my normal fur colors, things started to pick up again. The school had set up an event for families, which also happened to coincide with some events dealing with special apples at Sweet Apple Acres. After remembering what happened with the cider I made sure to reserve a few jars of this Zap Apple Jam, though I was assured that there would be plenty of it to go around. Still, after seeing how many Mr. Rich ordered for his business I felt it was better to be safe than sorry.

Speaking of families it seems that another family in town had grown without me noticing. I found this out after hearing about Pinkie Pie’s little adventure into babysitting for the Cake family. While at first I may have agreed with their wariness at letting Pinkie watch their twins, after seeing how she dealt with Selene and knew when to calm down I thought she could use the experience.

Shortly after that I decided to actually start exploring more of the Everfree Forest with the help of my self-updating map. Over the many months I had it I took some time to learn what it would do as well as any limits I could find. One of the biggest problems I found was that it was locked into being centered on its location, yet I could zoom in and out from there to see the surrounding area. It also didn’t record changes to an area until it moved into range of it once again, a fact I found out when Derpy caused some major damage around town, especially to the town hall. Strangely enough I could have sworn I saw her chasing some weird creature around town with that brown stallion I often see her with.

Still once I packed a few essentials I let Selene and Umbra know that I would be gone a couple weeks as well as where I was going. They looked a bit worried about where I was going, but after showing them everything I had packed to deal with any problems they were a bit better about it. Umbra commented on the lack of maps of the place and having a reliable one could actually be very useful.

On my way by Sunny Town I wondered what progress Princess Luna had made in fixing that place as I had yet to hear back from her. I had let Mitta know about what was going on and the talk I had with Luna, which she had mixed results about. On one side she agreed that the town was too dangerous to be around, but she still felt that she didn’t deserve any help to which I stayed silent on.

Traveling through the forest was rather easy going at first, mostly as I mapped out the areas nearest the town first which were usually clearer of dangers. As I moved deeper I started to spot more and more denizens of the place which I avoided when possible. Of course there were times when I couldn’t avoid them, such as when I stumbled upon a group of timberwolves residing in a cave I decided to explore. A pepper smoke pellet allowed me to escape from them easily enough, though they were definitely not happy about it as I made note about the cave on my map.

That was another useful function I had found with the map, I could magically add notes to landmarks on the map which made it easier to identify dangers. Of course it only worked for specific objects so when I found a cockatrice nest out in the open I couldn’t do anything about it on the map. Of course that didn’t stop me from leaving a present for when the creature returns, and I hoped something else would end up taking care of it from there.

Things didn’t go completely smoothly out there though, my encounter with a hydra ended with me coated in some rather smelly mud and other substances. Apparently it was making its home in some kind of sulfur springs and I surprised it with my arrival. Not wanting to try and fight such a large creature I immediately took off running just for it to give chase. I had to double back a few times to confuse it and throw it off my trail before I took cover in what I thought was only mud, but I found that it also happened to be a pile of the hydras dung.

Needless to say I wasn’t happy when it finally fell asleep allowing me take sneak away from there. I almost got into a fight with a river dragon when I was cleaning the gunk off, but a quick apology and mentioning how familiar the purple bit of hair he had was things turned out for the better. It seems he had been helped in the past by Rarity and he kept the hair from her tail he was given as a memento. He hadn’t seen her in a long time and was happy to hear news of how she was doing and I made note to mention him to her later on.

Eventually I started to run low on supplies and made my way back home again. I decided to come out at the normal forest entrance as I could still smell the hydra all over me and the spa would have something to get the stench out, I hoped. I had actually managed to fill in a good portion of the map with the areas nearby to Ponyville, with details on a few cave systems I found. I wondered if the information I was gathering would be useful to anyone in the future at all.

As I passed Fluttershy’s cottage I noticed that she wasn’t around, which was probably a good thing given how I smelled. This was further reinforced by the looks of disgust and wrinkled noses of the ponies I passed on the way to the spa. Of course I just had to run into Rarity outside of the spa who I think was about to faint at the sight and smell of me.

“Darling what in the world happened to you!?” I shook my head at this and gave her a simple answer. “You don’t want to know Rarity, I’ve been traveling a bit the last couple weeks and some of the places I’ve been were not pretty. I just hope the spa has something to remove the smell.” She just nods at me while keeping a good distance, but still follows me inside. I find that Fluttershy was already in there and I realize this must have been their usual spa trip day.

The spa sister at the desk, I always forget who was Aloe and who was Lotus, looked at my appearance in shock and wasn’t surprised when I asked for their deepest cleaning service. I was quickly hustled into a side room, where I placed my packs, and was led to a small tub that was filled with some strong smelling soap. I quickly clambered into this one and worked even more shampoo into my fur, trying to remove all the grime and smell from it.

After almost an hour of work, and a couple refills of the tub, I finally couldn’t detect a hint of odor from my fur. The sister assisting me agreed that I got it all out and was led to the hot tub to relax for a while. Rarity and Fluttershy were both already there, though the former was much relieved at how much better I looked and smelled. I spent the time catching up with what has been happening around town lately, as well as telling them what I had been doing.

It seems that things had gotten a bit interesting while I was gone as Applejack decided to run away from town when she couldn’t fulfill on a promise to earn enough money to fix the town hall. This led to some interesting things happening, as well as me hearing about the dangers of Pinkie Pie. I was actually a little scared at what happens when someone breaks a Pinkie Promise and made sure to never do so. I also had a bit of a laugh at how they weaponized Pinkie Pie’s inane ramblings, though I felt sorry for Rarity who had to go through it when they got left behind.

Also while I was gone Twilight had somehow managed to get Rainbow Dash to start reading books. After she hurt her wing in an accident with a failed stunt she was stuck in the hospital for a while. With nothing else to do she actually looked in the book that was left for her by Twilight and the hospital staff. It seems that Rainbow Dash had enjoyed that Daring Do book so much that she actually tried to break into the hospital to finish reading it.

I remember seeing those books at the library before, and made a note to check them out to see what caught the athlete’s eye in them. Nothing else really happened around town, so I told them of what I was doing out in the Everfree. They were shocked that anyone would actually decide to explore the place, and were horrified at what I had to do to escape that hydra, especially Rarity who almost fainted. She perked up again when I mentioned the river dragon, having almost forgotten about him.

We left the spa soon after that and all went our separate ways from there. I made my way home and noticed that ponies were starting to put up decorations for the upcoming Hearts and Hooves Day. This reminded me about Pinkie Pie and I wondered if I should just give in to what is bound to happen eventually or try to avoid her again. Considering what happened the last time I stalled her from throwing a party it was probably a good idea just to get it over with.

I dropped my packs off at home, as well as some extra strong soap to clean them off with later. Selene looked to be out somewhere right now, and Umbra was nowhere to be found as well. There didn’t seem to be any notes or mail for me to deal with so I made my way out to Sugarcube Corner where I was most likely to find the pink party pony. I tried to convince myself of the wisdom of what I was going to do, especially in light of how crazy she would get if I waited to tell her and she decides to make up for lost time.

When I arrived at the bakery I found that it was in a state of madness. With all the planning and baking needed to be done for the upcoming holiday, as well as taking care of the twins that wouldn’t sit still, I found that Pinkie was actually starting to look worn down. I ordered a few chocolate cherry cordial cupcakes, which they selling after reactions to the cake, and took a seat waiting for a time where Pinkie had a break.

It actually took quite a while as more and more ponies kept coming in to place order. It took over an hour for her to actually get a short break to talk, and that was only because the Cake’s twins fell asleep. When she came over to where I was waiting she took a seat before flattening her face into the table. I almost thought she passed out, but a tap at her head caused her to groan.

“Wow Pinkie, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this worn out before. It makes me wonder if I should be sorry for keeping this a secret, or sorry for telling you it and making more work for you.” At this she lifts her head up to look at me with big teary eyes and a quivering lip. I almost feel sorry for her and just walk out, but this had to be done sometime and at least she would be ready for next time.

“Well since you seem to know the birthdays of everyone in town, yet you haven’t set up a party for mine I figured you just didn’t know when it was.” She looks surprised at this and I see a smile start to spread across her face, not knowing what was really coming. “Well to head off any problems like what happened with the last party you threw me by waiting, well it’s on Hearts and Hooves Day.” At this her smile fades and her eyes roll up into her head as she promptly faints.

Author's Note

Huh, I didn't notice that I had already passed 100k words last chapter. I really need to think of something to happen during the winter, but it really is the time of year when almost nothing happens. Still things are moving along and I'm almost up to the end of season 2 and the one bit of Pinkie level silliness I had planned since the start. Also if anyone notices any tags I should be using for the story, please let me know.

Road to a Wedding Gala

Well I can mark that down as an achievement that few had ever accomplished. Pinkie Pie was always a bit of a terror in Ponyville, but she was accepted despite the hassles she caused at times. To actually see her collapse due to exhaustion and stress when she is normally a font of infinite energy is pretty much unheard of. Of course with how busy things were in the bakery the Cake family wasn’t very happy with it happening now.

I spent the next few hours helping them out while Pinkie recovered since it was my fault that this happened. When Pinkie recovered she seemed to have more energy than before and was working even faster than when I first showed up so things still turned out for the best.

Of course it still wasn’t enough for her to get anything ready that was up to her usual standards when the day arrived. That was fine with me as it was on short notice and I hadn’t really paid attention to it in years anyways. She was still able to get a cake made for me even though she made mention of making up for it next year which worried me a bit.

Of course things had gotten out of control in town while I was relaxing at home. It seems the Crusaders had gotten ahold of a recipe for some sort of love poison and had used it on Big Mac and Cheerilee. Things had gotten so crazy that one pony had her home moved a few blocks away from where it was, and luckily they didn’t have a basement. Of course this made me double check the protection on anything dangerous I had as well as make sure to double check anything that I catch them doing.

Of course things got interesting again a few days later. It seems that there was a new resident in town that was able to resist Pinkie’s charms for a while, a donkey to be exact. With this I noticed a trend with Pinkie Pie’s Pinkie Sense in that it didn’t work as well as normal when only non-ponies were involved. With how things had ended up with Gilda, me, and now this Cranky fellow it showed a trend of her ability not working like normal. Of course if we tried anything to a pony that could set it off it worked just fine as shown by her ability to avoid most of my pranks before.

Of course letting Twilight know about this observation wasn’t the brightest idea as she wanted to start performing tests on Spike to verify this. Luckily my promise to Celestia was enough to get her to back off, as well as her friends talking her down. Even then Spike still avoided her for a while and threw me the occasional glare when I saw him. I made sure to give him a few gems in apology when I returned from my next trip to the gem fields.

Of course that wasn’t the oddest thing to happen, which I found out when the mail arrived one morning. Not only did I have some large orders for a few things I provided to a select few restaurants in Canterlot, for an upcoming wedding and the Gala, but I also received a ticket to the Gala as well. I was wondering what Celestia was thinking until I read the attached letter to find that it was Princess Luna that had sent it which explained things more.

It gave me an excuse to visit Rarity for a dress or something as she had been dropping hints that she had a few ideas she wanted to try out that would look good on me. I wondered if Luna knew that her sister always tried to find ways to ruin the Gala for the nobles in some way and if I should assist or not.

Of course Rarity was jumping with joy at the thought of finally making something for me in this form, and she even mentioned how she was going again this year with her friends, though with much lower expectations. “We talked about it when the tickets arrived and we all agreed to stick together this year. I was able to mend the dresses from last year as they really went through a lot. Of course this time they should be safe because of those beautiful gems you made for me.”

I laugh as I remember her story about the flying cake that Prince Blueblood used her as a shield to stop. “Well Rarity, this year if he does anything I can help you out and nobody will even notice as not even the princesses know how my magic is usually invisible.” She gives a strained laugh at this but just waves it off. “That shouldn’t be necessary dear. I think he learned his lesson after he did that.”

I still made a note to possibly mess with him just on the principle of him being unbearable. Of course Rarity’s sensitivity for etiquette and proper speech causes her to bring up something I had wondered if it would show up. “Why do you say things like nobody or anyone instead of nopony or anypony now? You used to do it all the time before that incident with Scootaloo.”

I smile as I expected this question a while ago, but from a different pony. “Well I thought that would be pretty obvious considering I’m not a pony. With how much I’ve traveled I found it silly just to stick with a single group for those words so I found something that was more neutral. I’m surprised it took this long for one of you to ask, though I would have expected Pinkie Pie to pop up out of nowhere to correct me every time I said one of those words.”

This draws a chuckle from her. “Yes I could see her doing something like that. What you say does make sense and I suppose it would be right to use those words when poor Spike is around.” She finished her measurements around then and she started making her plans. After what I heard the others did to her with their dresses I made sure to only request that it shows off my tails somehow as they are a bit of a status symbol.

Heading out I caught the strange sight of a minotaur roaming around town, as well as Fluttershy pushing other ponies around? I wasn’t sure if I was seeing this right, but there was no mistaking what was happening. I wasn’t sure what was going on here, and was considering going until Rarity came out to see what was happening and was joined by Pinkie Pie. I assumed everything was being taken care of by them so I made my way home again.

I found out that it took a bit longer than that later on and it was mostly the fault of that minotaur as well as a few others to a lesser extent. It seems that Fluttershy was pushed into doing his assertiveness lessons and took things too far. While I did think she could stand to be a little less passive, I knew that she would at least have not backed down with something truly important.

Of course I happened to be away for some of the more interesting magical events. Twilight had been visited by her future self and was warned about some event that would happen in a week’s time. Of course Twilight being Twilight she was too worried about how the effect was possible instead of paying attention to the actual message. I had returned after the fact to find her in panic mode as she tried to figure out what was going to happen.

I was drafted to fix a multitude of things around town, but I figured that if it was truly important enough to require a time travel spell then it wouldn’t be something easily found. I wonder why she would have even bothered to use the spell if she knew that she wasn’t going to get the message out in time anyways. I would have asked Twilight, but the arrival of a large three-headed dog drove the thought out of my head.

Seeing the issue taken care of swiftly by Fluttershy I just shook my head and went off elsewhere until everything blew over or the problem was revealed. Strangely enough I saw that stallion that was always with Derpy near the library muttering something about amateurs. I was tempted to see what he was going on about, but the same third sense that spoke up when Pinkie does something impossible kept me from doing so.

Eventually it came out that the reason for Twilight’s visit was to tell Twilight that nothing was going to happen and to not worry about it. I was the only one to take a more proactive approach to this information by launching a pillow at her in agitation. Of course with Pinkie around things dissolved into a small pillow war in the library which ended with the purple mare buried under all the pillows in the place.

At least with her making all these mistakes regarding magic allowed me to learn lessons that would have been potentially painful later on. It would be nice if her mistakes would stop including half the town in them as well. Still after what happened with some of her previous mistakes it is probably better to be there and monitor things instead of allowing her to run wild.

At least things at home had been going well for a change, especially in regards to Selene. She had been doing decently well at school in spite of the bullies, and was actually starting to overcome her fears of some of the other Element Bearers. After finding that Pinkie Pie wasn’t as bad as she thought at first, she started spending time around the two sisters of her friends. The results were pretty mixed at first, but with having to deal with Fluttershy they were able to recognize similar signs and other ponies and knew how to overcome them.

That made half of those she once feared being at least tolerable, though Rainbow Dash and Twilight would probably be the toughest ones for her to deal with as their social skills were a bit lacking. Of course I had a plan for Rainbow Dash as she always did seem to respect what Fluttershy said, being one of her foalhood friends. Of course getting them to meet would be a challenge in itself as I pretty much could guess what would happen.

I made plans to do this during an upcoming dragon migration event as I doubted she would take part in watching it even if all her friends were which is what it sounded like they had planned. I saw them attempt to drag her out there with them, but that ended with predictable results. Why they thought she could handle being around a swarm of adult dragons when a single on caused her to panic I had no idea.

Still it gave me the opportunity to bring Selene over there without much chance of being interrupted by any of the others. I don’t think she knew where we were going as there wouldn’t have been much reason for her to find out where Fluttershy lived, while Scootaloo would brag about Rainbow Dash constantly and I know I mentioned Twilight living in the library.

Knocking at her door did bring about a predictable response considering what I had witnessed. “Rainbow Dash I said NO!” This is followed by some locking sounds as I shake my head while making sure Selene doesn’t bolt now that she has heard the voice. “Fluttershy you know I wouldn’t force you to do something that I obviously know you would hate.” After a few seconds I hear the door unlock and open, allowing me to enter while levitating the struggling filly behind me.

On seeing the filly Fluttershy give me a strange look, but I wait until I am seated with Selene burrowed into my side. “Well I suppose you wonder who this is. Fluttershy I would like you to meet Selene, she has been staying with me for a while now after I found her all alone and as you can see has some problems when meeting certain ponies.” At this Fluttershy gets a soft look in her eyes and tries to coax the filly out of hiding.

“It’s all right little one; I’m not going to hurt… you…” When Selene looks up at Fluttershy I see the reaction I was expecting as the yellow pegasus’ eyes widen and irises shrink to pinpricks before she shrieks and bolts to the corner of the room. This sets off Selene who also starts panicking and retreats to the opposite corner from her. I just shake my head as I wait for things to settle down having known Fluttershy would react to the eyes having seen the same ones on Nightmare Moon.

Of course after five minutes things hadn’t changed and I decided to wait a bit longer. At ten minutes I was getting a bit irritated as they were still both shivering in their corners. At fifteen minutes I gave up on waiting and decided to try and speed things up as every time they looked as if they were calming, they’d look at the other and start all over again. “Really you two, I’m not sure if I should laugh or cry at you both being terrified of something that is terrified of you. Maybe I should go get the Cutie Mark Crusaders and see if they want to try for a cutie mark in driving away fear.”

This got a reaction other than complete terror as they both speak at the same time knowing what usually happens when those three and cutie marks become involved. “NO! DON’T!” I just look between the two before I burst out laughing at how alike the two are being right now. I hadn’t realized how close I was when I described Selene as being like Fluttershy, but I noticed that she was much braver when dealing with things she wasn’t terrified of.

The two just stare at me while I laugh, and eventually start looking annoyed as I continue for a while. I found this to be much better than the terror they were just in, but still worked on calming myself. “Well you two do have to admit, you both having the exact same reactions is funny in a way. Of course maybe now you can actually start talking instead of just hiding in a corner.”

The two hesitate for a bit, before they both head towards the couch, making sure that I remain between them. Of course neither of them wants to start the conversation, so it was up to me to give one of them a little push. I figured that Fluttershy would be the easiest as I had already talked to her about Selene even if she didn’t know that yet so I leaned over to whisper so Selene couldn’t hear. “Remember what we talked about those first few visits? I was referring to her mostly as she was alone with nothing but the feeling of everything hating her.”

It takes Fluttershy a second to process this before her eyes widen and the kind look she had before returned. She slowly made her way over to Selene, being very careful not to scare her off even with my paw on her back to reassure her. Eventually she got close enough and started to whisper to her in a voice too low for me to quite catch. They start conversing back and forth in quiet tones, and even if I couldn’t hear what was being said, I still counted this as progress.

Soon enough I saw Selene completely break down and throw herself into Fluttershy’s chest and started crying. Fluttershy instinctively wrapped her hooves around her when this happened and I could even see a few tears from in her eyes as well. I was glad I decided to set this up as Fluttershy would definitely be there for her now if anything did happen. It actually felt wrong to see Selene be terrified of Fluttershy as I had yet to see a kinder being around.

I stepped outside to let the two work out what they needed to now that the floodgates had opened. I found Umbra waiting at one of the windows and she gave me a nod before taking off to observe from somewhere else as the critical part had passed. I had warned her to be ready to step in if things got too far out of control, though I didn’t expect her to need to do so here, though Twilight and Rainbow Dash might need to be restrained when they meet Selene and find out her background.

I waited outside of the cottage for over an hour before Fluttershy appeared with Selene in tow. They were both smiling so I assumed that things had turned out for the best and they weren’t terribly angry about me forcing this on them. I nodded to Fluttershy as I lifted Selene to my back, as she looked as if she was about to collapse, and made my way back home.

I decided to wait on introducing her to the last two ponies of the group until a good occasion presented itself and she was better prepared for what they may do. Time passed by quickly as the Gala rapidly approached, with the wedding two days before it. It was interesting to hear about Spike’s adventure to find out about other dragons during that time as well as the little mystery that happened during the transfer of a special cake the Cakes made for some competition that was done by train.

Of course things got really tense between those two events as the town was slowly building into a major uproar over the schools newspaper. This Gabby Gums individual had been revealing information about various ponies around town which was rather private. Luckily Selene was spared from this, as whoever it was couldn’t find anything on her and definitely couldn’t see through her illusion. I started to suspect who it was though when I saw an article featuring me, even if it was tame in comparison to most of the other.

“Pff, ‘Meat Eating Nightmare?’ That’s the best she could come up with? I would have figured that the possibility of me eating meat was high considering my teeth, and I constantly order fish at the café, which many pegasi do as well.” I say this during breakfast while both Selene and Scootaloo are eating before heading to school while looking at the picture of me carrying and animal by its scruff, which I did to help Fluttershy recently.

“Of course the only other thing she could possibly write about would be my basement full of fireworks, or maybe secretly being Trixie as her wagon is still parked outside. But the first I haven’t told anyone and the second is obviously not possible as I was next to Twilight when Trixie ran off.” Scootaloo looks a bit too interested when I say this arousing my suspicions. “Really? You keep fireworks in the basement? Why haven’t you shown anypony yet?”

I just brush it off. “Oh they aren’t ready yet, I’m still trying things out and I doubt they will be ready any time soon.” I rush her off to school with Selene, and consider the article. It was later that day that it was found out that the Crusaders were really Gabby Gums as they made the mistake of using information only they could get ahold of. This was all done at the instigation of Diamond Tiara which I found surprising as listening to her would have been the last thing I’d expect them to do.

Well after being shunned by the town they eventually apologized for what they did, even though they had to make up for it over the next few weeks. Being given the jobs that the ones they reported on didn’t want to do really cut into the time that they could have spent doing other things. I took it easy on them and just ‘forced’ them to do things that Selene wanted to do which they were fine with.

Soon enough I went over to pick up the dress from Rarity as the time to head out to Canterlot for the wedding and Gala had arrived.

Author's Note

Well next chapter will be one I had been wanting to do. I'm not sure how long it will actually be, but I hope to have some real fun with it. This chapter may have felt a bit rushed but nothing important enough really happened anyways that needed to be dealt with. Of course I still need to figure out how to introduce Selene and to both Twilight and Rainbow Dash as they would be the difficult ones. Then of course there is the conversation that AJ and Rarity will probably want to have as well.

Invasions and Galas

Author's Note

Yay for a bit of silliness. Hopefully it doesn't turn anybody off too much though I tried to provide some appropriate music to listen to during the scene. I just hope I got it to imbed correctly into it as it is the first, and probably last, time that I do so. Also yes I meant to end it here I did as the next bit will fit better with the next chapter anyways.

Invasions and Galas

The dress that Rarity made for me for the Gala was a rather elegant affair. Where the ones she made for her friends were made to trail off the back, this one was made more to conform around the shape of my body. It was a deep red color, which went well with my coat, which shimmered from the multitude of ruby chips woven into the fabric. With it came a set of bows for both the base and tip of my tails, as well as some sort of paw covering all done up with ruby chips as well. She even managed to work a pair of gems into a neck clasp for it, one a ruby and the other a sapphire which were placed on opposite sides of it. That also was part of the hard work she put into it, as when I reversed the gemstones the entire outfit changed from red with rubies to blue with sapphires to fit my seasonal fur colors.

Needless to say I was impressed with what Rarity had done, both with the design as well as her talents with fashion. It was obviously not a simple spell to pull off and I wondered if it was only through hard work that she could do it, or if it was part of her talent. Either way I was more than happy with what she provided so I pawed over the enchanted gems that we agreed on for the price, as well as a small bag of bit. Of course I knew she would try to turn down the bits as it wasn’t part of the deal, but I was able to sneak it by her with her sister’s help.

I made sure to be very careful when packing it away with the things I was bringing with me to Canterlot. While I wasn’t invited to the wedding, I did want to show up before it to personally deliver the things ordered by the restaurants considering the size of the order. I had wanted to visit the city anyways, but never had a chance due to the threat of Celestia, which longer applies.

I made sure that Selene would be fine with me being gone and that Umbra Rose knew as well. I had everything at the train station ready to be loaded relatively early, and was surprised to find that Twilight and her friends were there waiting as well. Apparently one of the ones getting married was her brother, and Twilight wasn’t happy about being left in the dark about it only to be notified by a letter.

I almost decided to join them in the same train car they were in, but I decided to keep watch over what I brought as it was worth a considerable amount. This also ended up with me sitting in silence as the car I was in was relatively empty. Luckily I was able to keep myself entertained by listening to a mint green mare strumming away on her lyre. I remembered seeing her during my Pinkie Pie party and wondered if she was going to be part of the wedding or Gala.

It actually didn’t take as long as I would have thought to arrive at Canterlot. I had heard about there being a tunnel just prior to entering the city, but the wave of pink energy that passed through the train was a surprise. What surprised me even more was that I identified it as a very high level barrier, but it wasn’t from either of the Princesses. I wondered why it was needed in the first place as I hadn’t heard about any major troubles lately.

This worried me enough that I decided to shift back into my pony shape before leaving the train as I didn’t know what reactions my appearance would cause with this all going on. Exiting the train I found that there were a lot of guards all over the place checking over everything, and I even spotted Princess Celestia looking over the town with a telescope. Whatever was going on, it seemed to be serious and not any sort of drill.

I noticed Twilight talking with a guard in a differently styled outfit. With the look of annoyance on her face I assumed that it was probably the brother I had heard about. I turned back to the guard inspecting the barrels I had brought with me and sighed in annoyance at how long this was taking. Looking around again I noticed that the Princess seemed to be looking this way so I decided to wave at her and turned enough so she could see the cutie mark I was using.

She obviously recognized the description Twilight sent her before as she jerked away from the telescope before shaking her head and going back to her search. I chuckled quietly as I turned back to the guard who was finally finishing up with his search. Something about him felt off for some reason, but I just pushed the thought away as I was finally allowed to pass.

It took me a while to reach the first restaurant I dealt with as the streets were very crowded and it wasn’t easy to navigate through them. When I finally arrived I was ushered around to the back where the chef was eagerly waiting for me. From the sounds I heard inside things were terribly busy for them and with the chef out here was probably getting worse.

Exchanging the barrels they ordered for a bag of bits I looked at the instructions for where I was to go for the second, and larger, delivery. I actually back-tracked a few times and started over a few times before I realized that I had the directions correct, and the delivery was for the castle itself. I wondered how Mr. Rich had set that up as I went through another search by the guards before I was allowed to pass.

The feeling I had from that guard at the train station returned a few times as I passed a guard here and there, and even a couple servants. This really disturbed me a bit as I brought everything around to the back entrance to the castle kitchens. While I was dealing with the chef I caught sight of a pony that surprised me enough to say something that I shouldn’t have. “Huh, I didn’t know that there was a fourth one.”

I had to come up with a quick lie as the chef asked me what I meant, but it didn’t stop me from looking at the pink alicorn that was checking in on things. My business was finished pretty quickly though so I was escorted out again after receiving payment for the delivery. I paused a second before exiting as I thought I caught a glimpse of something flashing green, but couldn’t locate it again when I looked towards the unknown princess.

Since my work was completed I decided to explore the city as well as make sure that my room at the hotel I reserved was ready. I dropped off my packs at the hotel first, while tossing a few spells on them to keep them safe and hidden, and took my time seeing the sights.

Of course I decided to choose the wrong part of town as there were only homes for the wealthy in the area I went through. At least when I went back to the hotel I found an interesting little jewelry shop. I decided to look around a bit due to professional interest and was surprised to find that it was connected to the store in Ponyville. I even was able to spot a few things that included the gems I made myself. I never did have a chance to look at what they did with what I gave them, and I was pretty impressed with what they did with them.

The workers there didn’t seem to know me though so I assumed that their sources for gems are kept quiet. After thinking about it I realize how smart that is for them as it prevents others from trying to steal their supply chain. After some casual chatting with the mare at the counter about their products I made my way back to the hotel for the night.

The next morning things went much better in my exploration as I was able to catch a thestral guard as they were heading off duty. As I thought when I saw him I was correct in assuming that he would know about the more interesting parts of city since that would be where the most problems were. He tried to dissuade me at first, but dropping the name of Lieutenant Rose got him to open up pretty quickly.

His directions led me to the section of the city that looked a bit dirtier than the rest and was under the shadow of the mountain at this time. This made sense as I saw more thestrals roaming around this section of the city than the others as they are finishing up their nightly duties. I got a few odd looks as I waved to them as I passed, probably as it isn’t a reaction they weren’t used to.

Unfortunately this also meant that many of the interesting places in this area were also closing up at the same time. I did make note of a few places to check out later at night as they looked like they could be fun and I’d maybe attempt to drag Twilight and her friends along as well. It was nearing noon when things around the city started taking a turn for the worse as a large black shape appeared outside of the shield.

“What in the world is that?” I stand there and just stare as the mass seems to impact against the shield and I start seeing cracks develop in the barrier accompanied by flashes of green. “Well that definitely can’t be a good thing.” As the shield breaks open in that area the ponies around me start to panic and flee in various directions as the mass starts to spread over the city with parts breaking off from it.

Soon enough it got close enough for me to identify individual shapes in the mass and realize what they were. “Changelings? Here?” I had seen a few in my travels before, but never in such numbers. None of them were really talkative so I didn’t know much about them, but they didn’t seem to be the type to be so obvious. My thoughts were interrupted as they started to meteor down into street in front of me as they started to attack every pony they saw.

When I saw this I narrowed my eyes at them and threw up a shield around me and got in their path to divert their attention from the fleeing ponies. I was wondering where all the guards were during this situation but things had been boring and it had been a while since I could stretch out my abilities. I noticed that the one leading the group in this area had orange eyes while the others were either green or blue.

“Well you seem to know how to pick on defenseless ponies, but let’s see how you deal with someone that has more experience in combat.” I crack my neck as I glare at them as they watch me in confusion. They recover pretty quickly and start to ram into my shield which gave me an idea. Thinking back to when the parasprites were in Ponyville I cast the same spell which I had improved upon since then while allowing my fiery aura to be visible.

When next the orange-eyed one ran into my shield it became stuck to it and couldn’t break free causing the others to pause. “Well what are you all waiting for; get me off of this thing!” At his orders one of the other changelings grab ahold of him, at least his voice suggested a him, but it also became stuck and couldn’t remove its hoof from the other. “Well, well, well. I didn’t expect that to work so well but this is just perfect. Now we can really have some fun now.” At this I start laughing in a way that makes him very worried and his eyes widened dramatically when I shifted back into my kitsune form with full flame effects. “Wh-what are you? What do you mean by fun?”

I just give him the creepiest smile that I can as I raise the shield to be entirely above ground and I take a step back rocking it in that direction. When the changeling feels this, combined with my smile he starts to panic. “N-n-no… You wouldn’t!” I just keep smiling as I walk forward as his eyes just continue widening. And then the screaming begins.

The other changelings are frozen in place for a second before they all start to run away from me. That tiny delay was just long enough for me to build up the speed to catch up with the stragglers and add them to the growing mass around me. “Mwuahahahaha! Run! Run little changelings! Run from the Great Ball of Fire!”

I had never allowed myself to have this much fun in years, but having lived in Ponyville for nearly two years had changed me. I kept full control over my powers so that nothing was seriously hurt by my actions like I promised Celestia, but this situation was the first time I felt I could really go all out. The changelings on the other hand would argue with my definition of hurt as they were thrown into a panic as I rolled through their ranks.

Some of them tried to blast the shield down with magic, but by this time I had gathered a small layer of changelings as additional protection so they were hit more than my shield. Their chitin hide was enough to protect them from the blasts as their compatriots were holding back, which helped me conserve my own energies. I found that keeping them attached to the shield when I crashed into anything seemed to drain me more than usual, so I started letting them scatter off whenever I did to give me short rests as well as allow me to see where I was.

I did manage to keep the orange-eyed one with me since I started as he was rather entertaining. “You crazy mare let me off of this thing! Help me! Somepony help! Queen Chrysalis, the Royal Guards, Mommy!” I just kept laughing through all of this as I rolled through the city causing chaos in their ranks, though I sometimes distracted the guards as I rolled on through but luckily the changelings were too busy running and screaming.

I lost track of how many changelings I had rolled over as I traveled through the city. Unfortunately for Citrine Eyes, the orange-eyed changeling, I hadn’t found anyone more entertaining than him. I soon found myself rolling through the areas around the castle and I soon spotted some familiar figures.

Twilight and her friends were fighting their way through a large group of changelings themselves towards a large tower. Since I was here I decided to lend a paw and rolled on in their direction. “Heygirlsnicetoseeyousorrycan’tstaytotalkbutI’monarollhere!” I think I actually gave Pinkie Pie a run for her bits in talking speed there but I was moving too fast to really take my time. Glancing back I saw that my appearance had surprised four of them enough to cause jawdrops in them, while Pinkie was rolling around laughing and Twilight was facehoofing.

I just laughed even harder at their reaction as I rolled on through the area. I kept up spreading chaos among the changelings until I started to feel myself running a bit low on magic. I decided to take a break in a nearby building, but considering the door was closed I had to crash on through it.

Of course doing this drained me of the rest of the energy I had, collapsing the barrier around me and releasing all the trapped changelings that were still there. I was able to get at least one more chuckle out of Citrine Eyes at least as he took of screaming. “Freedom! I’m finally free!” He took off through the city screaming out things like that, though his path wasn’t very stable due to how dizzy he must have been by now.

Looking around the building I was surprised to see that I had crashed some sort of wedding. I noticed that the pink alicorn I had seen before was there, as well as Princess Celestia in a green cocoon and a really big female changeling. “Well fancy meeting you all here. You’re looking a little green there Princess Celestia. I’d stay to chat, but I think I need to head over there and collapse for a while.”

With that I wobbled over to a nearby corner and collapsed into it. I caught sight of Twilight in her friends being led in, but I was too tired to do anything and just fell asleep.

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I awake a couple days later to find myself in a rather fancy room and that someone had brought all my things to it, probably Pinkie. I still felt a bit drained, but it was nowhere near as bad as when I was in the hospital and I could feel that most of my magic was already back. Looking out the door I was surprised to find myself in the castle, and that there was a pair of guards at the door, though one left on seeing me.

It turns out that there was a standing request to notify Twilight when I awoke, as she soon arrived with her friends. They brought with them a few messages from the three alicorn princesses as well. The pink one who was named Cadence wanted to thank me for my efforts during the attack, as well as requested to meet with me at a later date. Luna and Celestia also sent messages of thanks, though the Princess of the Sun’s message made it as if she was still annoyed with me. They were all currently indisposed, Cadence for the obvious as it was her wedding, Celestia due to court matters, and Luna because she was still helping the guard which is where she was during the battle.

Once that was done with the six started asking me all manners of questions regarding what I was doing that day. As I told them I had them all going between various stages of amusement to horror at what I was doing. Of course as I hadn’t shown this much ability before, barring the time I saved Scootaloo, I was left with a threat from Twilight of an examination. I knew she didn’t mean it that way but she tends to go a bit overboard with any type of study.

After I had finished they finally told me their side of things which really told me how much of a threat the changelings could have been. If they could make themselves believable enough to fool not only the princesses, but to also force friends to turn against one that sees through the disguise then they weren’t to be trifled with. I wondered out loud if that odd feeling I got from a few guards when we arrived was linked to them, just to be pounced by Twilight as she had been trying to figure out future counter-measures to them.

She then proceeded to drag me off elsewhere to help out with what she was doing, but thankfully I was saved later on by Rarity as she retrieved the purple unicorn so she could sleep and get ready for the coming Gala. I was able to crawl into bed soon after making sure my things were prepared as well.

I awoke late the next day, as I had been kept up most of the night, by Rarity as she wanted to help me prepare for the event since it would be my first time at such a public event. While she helped prepare me for it she explained the plans that the six had made, and how they were going to stick together most of the night. I decided to do the same except for when I went to speak with Princess Luna.

While fiddling with the gem to switch the outfit colors she noticed that the sapphire design didn’t look as bad as she would have though with my current colors. She muttered something about how the near purple blue of the gem must help it out. Soon enough I head everything on and was waiting in the room for the other to finish their preparations before heading out. They were surprised that I had been invited by Luna, as neither I nor Rarity had told them yet, and were impressed by Rarity’s design for me.

When we arrived at the palace I noticed many of the ponies were giving me odd or fearful looks. I wasn’t sure if it was because word of me had spread, or the opposite but I was feeling a tad out of place. Luckily I wasn’t the only oddball around as Spike had also shown up for this as well.

Princess Celestia was surprised to see me there, since I guess her sister hadn’t said anything. S looked a bit annoyed, but she still greeted me with a message of not causing too much trouble while I was there. After hearing about what happened last time, as well as still being a bit tired from the invasion, I didn’t plan on doing much at all.

I was actually glad that the others were there as I quickly found the event to be rather boring. It was a good thing that they had some tasty food there, even if the portions were so small. I managed to empty a tray of egg halves, filled with some yellow filling that was then covered with the paprika I brought, with the help of Spike and Rainbow Dash. I was about to go off and track down Princess Luna to see why she wanted to see me, when a blond-maned white unicorn bumped into me from out of nowhere and just made a rude comment before continuing on.

I glared after him and noticed that Rarity was doing the same. I realized that this must be that Prince Blueblood she mentioned from her last time here and I couldn’t resist doing something as he still seemed to be as unbearable. I gave a wink to Rarity as I nodded towards the Prince as I cast a small spell on him that I had read about once. Her eyes widened as she realized I was planning something, but it looked like she couldn’t decide between smiling or frowning about it.

We followed after him at a safe distance as he found a group he was looking for and started talking with them. The effects of the spell quickly became apparent as they talked. “So do you have any plans for after the Gala, Prince Blueballs?” The pony slapped his hooves over his mouth as he said this and the area around went really quiet. Prince Blueblood responded angrily to this. “You dare call me Prince Blueballs? Me, Prince Blueballs nephew of…”

He stops when he realizes that he did it as well, and every time he tried to say his name that was all that would come out. Others tried to say it as well to the same effect. Soon enough laughter was rippling through the area at him as his face first went red and back to paler than before. He soon ran out of the ballroom being chased by the laughter of all the ponies around. Rarity did her best to keep from laughing as she said it wouldn’t be ladylike, but she was hard-pressed and still a titter or two escaped.

After reassuring her that it was only a temporary spell and should wear off in an hour I took my leave to try and find Princess Luna. Luckily one of her Night Guard was waiting outside of the ballroom and was about to come and find me so he led me to a private meeting room. I took a seat to wait for her to arrive and thought about why she wanted to see me tonight.

Lunas and Rubys

I had known that the Princess of the Night was having some issues with adapting to more modern times, but I never thought on what the effects of that change would do to her. So when she finally arrived and looked less like the confident mare I’d seen before, and instead looked incredibly unsure of herself which surprised me. I could guess why she wanted to speak with me now, but I waited patiently for her to begin. We sit in silence for a while until she finally lets out a sigh.

“We’ve been looking into what to do about Sunny Town, and we believe we found a way to remove the problem of it completely.” I raise an eyebrow at this as I was expecting her to talk about Selene. “When we are ready we would like you to help with the preparations for it. Unfortunately we have yet to find a way to solve the other issue you mentioned with that place and will need more information on this Ruby you spoke of.” I nod to her in agreement as she does seem to be an anomaly of the place.

I am surprised to see the princess wave me out with her wing, but I pause at the door to her speaking softly to me again. “What should I do?” I almost didn’t hear her, and probably wouldn’t have if I was in a pony body. I turn back to see her looking down at her desk with sadness written on her face. I don’t think she intended for me to hear her, but since I did I felt I had to answer especially since I knew what it was about.

“For now you should just wait.” She looks up at me in surprise not expecting me to have heard her and I continue before she can respond. “She doesn’t know anything of where she came from and her earliest memories are only of fear that she couldn’t understand. Right now she doesn’t trust many but I am working on both that and her fears. She thinks of you and Princess Celestia as sisters still though, so there is still a chance of helping her.” Princess Luna doesn’t look sure at how to respond to this. “But she is…”

I shake my head to try and interrupt that line of thinking. “It’s hard to describe what she is exactly beyond one thing; she is a scared little filly. Sure she may have been created from you somehow, and she may have some of the knowledge you did as Nightmare Moon, but she is just a filly now that thinks of you and Princess Celestia as her sisters that abandoned her and hate her for some reason and the same goes for the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony. I’m doing what I can to help her, and she is actually doing better with four of the six but it still is taking time.”

I look at the princess as she seems even more depressed than before and I get an idea that could help both her and Selene. “Though I do have an idea that you could do that could help a lot.” The princess perks up at this and leans forward eagerly. “While you may not be able to see her directly yet, I think if you get her used to you over time it may cure her of her fears. So why not write her letters every once and a while to try and get to know her. That way she actually gets to know you and not the idea she has of you.”

I’m not sure what she thinks of this idea, but she does seem to be considering it. “Yes, we can see the merits of this plan. We shall begin at once and thank you for your time.” With this she rushes out of the room and I shake my head as I also leave, heading back to the Gala. She really seems much easier to understand than her sister. I guess she didn’t have a chance to close up on herself after a thousand years alone with nobody to judge her.

I make my way back to the Gala as I ponder the differences between the two sisters. They truly are as the night and day on the surface, yet there is still a feeling of sameness to them. My thoughts are interrupted as I reach the ballroom which is in a bit of chaos, and this time not caused by the same group as last time. It seems someone forgot to make sure that Celestia’s pet phoenix was entertained so it decided to take matters into their own claws.

It was leading a bunch of Pegasus guards on a merry chase as it dove around all over the place causing ponies to scatter in panic. One statue already seemed to have been knocked over and I spotted Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash laughing over near the food with the others. I made my way over and found out that they were planning to leave as it seems that the Gala is probably about to end now. I decided to join them as well as I had to get things ready for the next new moon anyways, and I had left Selene and Umbra alone long enough.

The trip back was accomplished by a carriage lent by the princesses, and all of our things were already loaded up as well. There wasn’t much conversation on the way back as we were all pretty worn out by this time. I felt sorry for Spike as he helped carry Rarity’s things home for her as I made my way to my own. Things looked to be fine when I arrived, though Selene was asleep, so I let Umbra know about the potential plans with the princess before I headed off to sleep myself.

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I was mostly left alone to prepare for my next jaunt to Sunny Town as Twilight and crew were called away to help her new sister-in-law with something. They mentioned something about a kingdom appearing of some sort but couldn’t go much into it. This left it up to me and the rest of the Apple family to keep an eye on the Crusaders, though mostly me as they had a job to worker harder on with AJ gone.

Of course this made it a bit harder to get ready as they were constantly getting into trouble and needed help cleaning off the sap they accumulated. This included Selene as well as they had started to drag her around with them as well, but even with that I was glad to see her having fun. The first letter arrived for her from Princess Luna shortly after I had returned from the Gala, and she reacted in a predictable manner to it. She soon worked up the courage to read it, though she had yet to reply to it and I expected it to take a couple more before she does.

On the day of the new moon they happened to catch me as I was heading into the forest. “Hey Flarenza, why are you heading into the Everfree today?” I sigh at hearing Applebloom’s voice and I knew if I tried to drive them off they would just follow me. “I know you three will follow me if I try to stop you, but I don’t think you want to follow me to Sunny Town.” At those words Applebloom’s eyes contracted into pinpoints and she dove behind her two friends.

Unfortunately those two didn’t know the horrors of that place so they weren’t as intimidated. “We aren’t scared of anything, and you’ll be there to protect us if any of those creatures attack anyways.” I sigh at Scootaloo’s lack of a sense of danger, but she is right about me being able to protect them even if Applebloom isn’t much reassured. “All right but you had better listen to what I say exactly, and no running around like crazy like you did with Fluttershy and the cockatrice.

They blush a bit at that reminder, but still nod to me before forming up to follow me in. Applebloom stays closest to me as she takes my words to heart since she obviously doesn’t want to be out here. I lay a tail over her in reassurance as I hadn’t told them I wasn’t planning on going inside the town at all, just around the outside searching for that one key filly. I can tell that the town is active by the usual feeling coming off of it, but this time I feel a slight difference that I hadn’t felt in a while, the feeling of being watched.

What surprises me about this is that we hadn’t even left my territory yet, which hints at this being not being linked directly to the town. I halt as I look around trying to figure out where this feeling is coming from and to determine if it is a threat or not. All of us are surprised though when a voice speaks up from behind us. “Applebloom? Why have you come out into this place again?”

We all turn quickly to the sound of the voice, with the three Crusaders hiding behind me. At the sight of the grey filly I calm myself and let my hold on my magic fade. “I’m guessing you are that Ruby that I’ve heard about.” At that name Applebloom looks over in surprise and rushes over with a yell. While she can’t actually touch her she does do her best at greeting her in other was and introducing the other Crusaders to her.

I take lay down as they do this and catch up with each other again as I keep watch over them. Eventually I decide to break into the conversation as time may be important to the situation. “Well now that you have all caught up with each other, maybe we could get to why I was out here in the first place since she finally arrived.” All four of them turn towards me in surprise, having forgotten that I was there.

“Now not many know about this, but I have been watching this town for a while now and have recently gotten Princess Luna to help as well. She didn’t know what had been happening with Sunny Town until I told her, and she agreed that something needed to be done, and recently she was ready except for two major issues.” I turn to Ruby, who got a strange look on her face when I mentioned Luna. “You, Ruby, are the first one of those issues as what was done here shouldn’t have kept you here.”

The other three fillies turn towards Ruby at this, now wondering about why she was still around as well as a ghost. She seems to shrink under that eyes of us all, but she soon speaks. “There are those in that town that do deserve what happened to them, yet there is one that didn’t. She may not have stopped them, yet even if she tried she would have just joined me. She didn’t deserve this happening to her and it is for her that I stay, since she is my sister.” The three fillies whimper a bit at this, and there might be tears but I can’t tell from where I am sitting, and I know they would hug her if they could.

I ponder her words myself, and I know immediately who she is talking about. “You mean Mitta, the other important issue I was talking about.” Ruby turns to me in surprise when I mention the name. “Y-y-yes, but how did you know that? And why is she the other important issue?” I just give her a sad smile as she probably can’t see much in the town if she doesn’t know.

“It’s because I’ve been talking to her when I could and she mentioned the same things you did and feels guilty about not helping. Also if it wasn’t for her then Applebloom would have never escaped from the inside of the town when she was here. You can guess what problems that may have caused. She clearly doesn’t deserve it, and unless the solution involves something for her it isn’t one I would take.” I watch the look of surprise on Ruby’s face slowly change to joy at my words even with the tears in her eyes.

“If you can do that for her then I would finally be able to rest, I’ve never blamed her for what happened and only wanted her to move on. Please, save my sister.” She is now openly crying with the three fillies soon joining her. I move over to her as I cast a spell I had once found to touch the dead and bring a tail around her to comfort her. My touch surprises her, but when she looks up to see me nod she breaks down completely. This is the reason why I hate this type of spell, it doesn’t just punish the guilty, it also does terrible damage to the innocent.

I just sit there comforting the four fillies until the finally recover enough for their goodbyes. I then lead the three Crusaders back towards my home as we no longer need to go into the town. I warn the other two not to even think of going into that place alone, and Applebloom backed me up on it. Soon enough they take off to drag Selene somewhere as I put my things away and finish off any chores I had.

Since things had ended earlier than I planned I took some extra time for some experiments in my underground lab. I had finally gotten some liquid rainbow through Rainbow Dash, which I traded one of the barrels of cider for. I was careful with what I had since getting more wouldn’t be easy and the cider wasn’t cheap either.

I had an idea that had been on my mind for a while, but I was having trouble making it a reality. If I could pull it off though it would be the greatest thing ever and would probably even impress Rainbow Dash enough to actually admit it. Research into the idea didn’t bring up much usable information, but the little I could find helped immensely as it gave me a path to follow.

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A week later the girls finally returned from their trip to what was apparently called the Crystal Empire. It had been a lost country that Cadence was the heiress to and they were there to help clear a major problem from it. While what they went through was interesting, I was more interested in the crystals and what could be done with them. Luckily they brought a few things back with them, and I was allowed to have one from Twilight for some personal studies on them.

I was very careful with them as getting more wouldn’t be easy for a while but I was able to find out some interesting things about them. The biggest one is that they held enchantments much easier than gems and were even more flexible. I could see a use for them in a function over fashion role so my business wouldn’t suffer too much. If I could get ahold of a supply though I could expand what I offered to a wider group though since the gems were prohibitively expensive for trivial matters.

I was heading towards Twilight’s wondering if I should go in person or just send a message through her about it when I saw Pinkie Pie rushing around town. I wondered what she was doing as I passed a… flying orange? I stop and watch it until I see Twilight also rush by chasing it. “Well I guess that explains what happened there.” I grab the object in my magic before it gets out of range and bring it back to me, causing Twilight to trip as it flies back by her again.

I chuckle as she dusts herself off and walks up to me. “Thanks for that, it was a bit too fast for me to catch it.” I just shake my head at her as she turns it back into a bird again with a bit of strain on her face. “Well since you are here I don’t have to go to the library to find you.” Her ears perk up at this. “Oh? What did you need to see me about?”

“Well I’ve done a bit of research on those crystals I got from you and found some interesting things about them. It’s still incomplete but with what I’ve found I wanted to get a good supply of them as well as more information on them. Just with what I’ve found alone I can tell that your brother and sister-in-law will be keeping a close watch on them. What I was wondering if it would be best to go up there myself or through some other official means.” Twilight gets her usual look when I mention research but she then seriously considers what I said.

“Well they are still getting things resolved with the city being gone for so long, but if you say they should keep an eye on it then letting them know would be a good idea. If you could send over a copy of what you found I can let my brother and Cadence know about what you found as well as my own findings. I’ll be sure to order some extra books for you since I was planning on getting copies myself from there.” I thank her for this and decide to wait on the reply for further decisions and head back home.

A arrive to fine Selene outside talking to Umbra and I was about to see what they were talking about when I started to feel a bunch of ponies entering my territory. I warned them that we were about to have company as a felt a dozen of them approaching my home. When they came into view I froze up as I felt the end of the world was here and Selene hid behind me shivering.

“Flarenza, I’m scared. What’s going on?” I had no answer for her as I just watched the dozen Pinkie Pies bounce their way towards us.

Author's Note

Boom, another chapter. Soon another plotline will end, but which one will end first and how?

Crystal Trix

Too… much… pink… must… resist…

I had no idea how this could have happened, but when Pinkie Pie is involved it is usually best not to ask. Yet when there are a dozen of her bouncing around the place causing a mess while searching for fun, then asking is the only thing you can do. “What are you all doing here?”

One of them pauses long enough to answer, luckily the one trying to get inside after Selene and Umbra. “We’re looking for fun you know where we can find any and who are you?” I realize that these must not be the real Pinkie Pie if they don’t know me, and I come up with an idea I had want to try before, but I figured it was too cruel for Pinkie Pie. But since none of these are the real one and seem to be fakes of some kind I just start to grin wickedly.

“Oh I think I can find something fun for you all, but I need you to all sit in a group out here while I go get it.” This catches the attention of all of them who then line up in a semi-circle around me. As an extra precaution I make sure that they are literally glued to their seat with a spell as I go inside to fetch a book. I pause long enough to explain what little I know to two ponies inside as I pass.

“I have no idea what is going on, but those all seem to be fake Pinkie Pies. I’m not sure if it’s something Pinkie or Twilight did, seeing as Twilight would have the magic to do something like this, but I think I’m going to have a little fun with this.” The two look at each other and my wicked grin before backing off to find something in the house to do until it all blows over. As for me I quickly find the book I wanted and go outside to the waiting Pinkie Pies.

“So you all want something fun? Well this book is going to be a lot of fun to read, for me at least.” I chuckle at the gathered fakes who just continue to stare in glee, not realizing the horror they are about to go through. I clear my throat and begin to read. “Aardvark, a nocturnal mammal, Orycteropus afer, the sole member of its family ( Orycteropodidae) and order (Tubulidentata). It inhabits the grasslands of Zebrica, has long ears and snout, and feeds on termites.”

I continue on to the next word and the next as I watch the gathered Pinkies. They stare at me in confusion as I start and I watch as they slowly realize what I am reading. They attempt to run away but when they realize that they are stuck the whimpering begins. As I finish all the ‘A’ words and start on the ‘B’s some of them are already screaming. By the time I reach the ‘E’s one of them is trying to chew off their legs, while the others are in various stages of panic.

They breathe a sigh of a relief as I stop before the ‘F’ section and head back into the house. I can literally see the hope in their eyes shatter when I return with a pitcher of apple juice since my throat was getting dry. I glanced at the town and could see some sort of pink mist flying out of it and wondered if it had anything to do with what was going on. I continued my reading of the dictionary and was able to reach the ‘N’s when I saw Twilight and Rainbow Dash walking up, or in Rainbow’s case flying.

I wave to them as they look on in horror at the gathered Pinkie Pies in front of me. “There were still more of them? But I thought we rounded them all up and found the real Pinkie Pie already. Don’t tell me we left a fake back at Sugarcube Corner, and what in the world did you do to them?” Twilight looks as if she is about to break down into a panic attack as she says this and I just wave a paw at her.

“Oh don’t worry about any of these being the real one Twilight, none of them knew who I was so it’s obvious that they are all fakes. I have no idea where they came from and they just said they wanted some fun so I decided to have fun by reading this to them.” She calms down as I confirm that these can’t be the real one, but looks in askance at the book though Rainbow Dash beats her to responding.

“You were reading the dictionary to them? And I thought Twilight was the biggest egghead in town (Hey!) but that just takes the cake. I almost feel sorry for them now even if they aren’t the real Pinkie Pie.” She looks over at the gathered Pinkies and takes in their current condition. Not a single one of them seems to be able to do much beyond twitching, and a good many of them are drooling as well. I only now notice that the eyes of all of them have completely glazed over as well.

“Hmm, maybe I did go a bit too far, though I would have thought they could have lasted a bit longer than the start of ‘N.’” Rainbow Dash backs away in shock at this information while Twilight just brings a hoof to her face. I just laugh at their reactions as I turn the gathered Pinkie’s over to them. Soon enough Twilight had banished them away and I found out exactly what was going on.

Soon enough they left as they were checking on all the damage that was caused and I went back inside my home. I was surprised to see Selene in the window watching as they left, and wondered if she finally was over her fears.

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A few weeks alter I was on the train towards the Crystal Kingdom after receiving a letter from Princess Cadence. They had apparently been intrigued by what I had found and were interested in any help I could give them. I planned to be gone just long enough to set up a few things over there and find out what information they had as well. Applejack and Applebloom saw me off as they were waiting for a cousin of theirs to arrive in town at the same time.

The ride there was really boring as it took a few days to reach it. I was able to keep myself partially entertained by rotating multiple bubble-like shields around me as fast as I could to practice my fine control skills. It had been a while since I had practiced this, but I was surprised when I was able to reach two dozen of them without much strain at all. I wondered how many I could reach, but stopped at thirty as I started to lose control of them around there.

I think I may have scared a few of the other passengers with what I was doing, yet a couple foals seemed to think I was performing some sort of show. I decided to continue with that image by practicing some illusions I had learned from Trixie’s books. I was rather impressed by what I found in there when I was reading through them and wondered why she was wasting her talents by trying to outdo others so much.

I kept things mostly simple to entertain them, though I had been able to get some pretty lifelike images if I wanted to. After showing off with a mini-Rainbow Dash doing aerial stunts for a while the foals eventually fell asleep and were taken by their parents at their stop. Things from then on were quiet and boring as few were headed towards the Crystal Kingdom leading to many empty cars.

By the time the train reached the kingdom I was bored out of my mind and tempted to pull a few pranks. Luckily I didn’t even have to bother as my very presence was enough to allow for some entertainment. It seems that the crystal ponies have really been isolated for so long that they aren’t as used to the sight of beings that can eat meat other than fish. I just chuckle to myself as I wander through town towards the palace as ponies rush around me in panic.

Of course when I arrive at the palace gates it turns out to be a bit of a drawback as the guards enter a threatening posture. I wonder if Shining Armor had forgotten to let them know about my impending arrival as I show them the message I had received from them. I was made to wait outside as they sent a guard in to verify everything so I laid myself down to wait.

It took much longer than I expected for them to return and lead me to a waiting room inside. Luckily they provided a bowl of fruit which I made use of considering I probably would be able to taste delicacies like these outside of the kingdom. Eventually the door opened and Prince Shining Armor made his way over to the other side of the table where he took a seat with a sigh.

“You know how hard it is going to be to calm things down after your little jaunt through town? Couldn’t you been a little more cautious when you showed up like you were at Canterlot?” I just chuckle at his reaction before responding. “Well I didn’t expect things to be that bad here, and it’s probably better that they get used to the fact that non-ponies might be showing up more often than they are used to.”

He just shakes his head at this and sighs again. “Maybe you’re right, but I had hoped to ease them into the idea more instead of shoving it in their faces like you did. Either way let’s get down to the reason why you are here.” At this I pull out all the research, both mine and Twilight’s, that had been gathered so far. It seems that there weren’t any experts on this side as the crystals used to be completely under Sombra’s control.

He did have a few books that had been found in the library and there were potentially more to be found. Since they were still setting things up they didn’t have many ponies available to help out so I was given access to a room being repurposed as a lab until they could get a real one set up. There I was allowed full access to the crystals they had found as well as any information they had.

While the few assistants they did lend me weren’t very experienced, most of them did seem to have potential as they seemed to be talented in identifying and using the crystals. Over the next week we did a good many experiments and found that the crystals seemed to be able to hold almost any enchantment I could throw at them, as well as multiple enchantments at once if they were compatible.

The only snag we hit was that they had a tendency to not hold power as well as gemstones, and that the amount they could hold at once varied on the color of the crystal itself as well as the size. This led us to the finding that there were different qualities of power as well which fit the colors to different extents.

The pattern soon became pretty obvious as the colors and types of power matched based on color wavelengths. So the brighter colors worked better with more of a burst type powers and the darker ones with a steadier power type. This meant that darker colors were better for things that would use power over a longer period and the brighter ones for quick bursts of power.

The prince and princess were pleased with our findings and were trying to bring in more talent that could fully utilize all of the research. I soon prepared myself to head back to Ponyville, though they wouldn’t let me go without thanking me. It seems that I now had an account with the Equestrian banks were they would be putting a portion of any sales that came about based on the research. Granted I probably should start using a bank as I had a few too many bit bags around my home, but I wasn’t comfortable with this as Twilight had helped as well.

After mentioning that they also said they were doing the same for her, but weren’t telling her until it was too late for her to do anything about it. I just shook my head at the dealings of siblings and gave up on arguing. Of course just because I had it doesn’t mean I had to use it for myself.

The trip back towards Ponyville was just as bad as on the way out but in reverse. With them trying to get trade flowing though I figured that there would be more travelers sooner or later though. Still it gave me more time to practice even if the ponies that later got on the train looked at me warily.

As we near Ponyville I notice that something seems odd about the town as we approach. The train is forced to stop early as the entire town is entrapped within a giant glass dome for some reason, though my place is still outside of it, though not completely. Moving to that side of the barrier I was able to see that it hadn’t been able to come down on the very edge of it leaving a small opening.

I make my way into town, which is covered in dark clouds, to find Twilight and Trixie preparing for some sort of dual. Things seem to be going badly for Trixie throughout it all and I wonder why she doesn’t even use her best types of magic. Soon enough something weird happens as Trixie swipes some necklace that Twilight is wearing to replace her own which is snatched away by Rainbow Dash. From there things wrap down and I find out that Trixie had taken over the town using some cursed artifact.

I just shake my head and decide to keep an eye on Trixie for a while, until later that night during some event for Princess Celestia I see her apologizing to Twilight. Seeing as she may actually be tolerable I sneak a note into her cape and head home to prepare.

The next morning I awaken to a pounding on the front door and I smile as I set my plan into effect. I head downstairs, after making sure that the rest of the home is occupied, and open the door while remaining hidden. “Greetings Trixie Lulamoon, welcome to my humble abode.” The use of her last name, which I found in her books, as well as the complete darkness enshrouding the entryway serve to confuse her.

She soon recovers and I can see some of her arrogance returning, though it does seem to be less than normal. “Who are you and how do you know that name? Trixie hasn’t told anypony that name before. And where is that pony who challenged me?” I let out a chuckle as the door closes behind her while I stay hidden.

“Who I am and how I know are unimportant for now. As for the challenge it has already started, all you have to do is find your way out without giving up.” At this the door vanishes from behind her and I bring up a shield around her, without it being visible. As she moves it rotates with her giving the illusion of movement yet she is still in the same place but the darkness hides that information from her.

After finding nothing she starts throwing her magic around just for it to be blocked by the shield. This continues for a good long while until I tire of just waiting her out. “You know I figured you would have been a better challenge for being The Great and Powerful Trixie, you disappoint me.” This angers her enough to increase the force of her blasts. “Let Trixie out of here whoever you are, you will regret messing with Trixie like this.”

I just laugh as she says this and decide to bring about the finale. “Well if you want out then you just have to get by my little pet.” She scoffs at this but she soon freezes as my latest illusion appears before her, that of an Ursa Major. Luckily I only have to form the parts she can see as it would take too much power to form the entire thing. Trixie is soon curled up in a ball on the floor whimpering.

I approach her as she seems to be saying something which becomes clearer as I get close enough. “I give up… please don’t let it eat me…” She repeats this over and over causing me to sigh and banish all the illusions. “You know I would have thought the Great and Powerful Trixie would have recognized her own Great and Powerful illusions.” Hearing the sound of my voice right next to her causes Trixie to jump back with a yelp as her eyes dart all over the place.

Her eyes pass over me multiple times without seeing me, probably as she is looking for a pony. “Where are you!? Show yourself before Trixie so you can pay for humiliating her!” I let her survey the room for a few more minutes before I sigh. “Is it really that hard to see someone sitting right in front of you?” At my voice her eyes lock onto me and she backs away as they open wider.

“W-what are you? You aren’t a unicorn so how could you have done all that?” I shake my head at her. “Really? Do you really think only unicorns have the ability to use magic?” I demonstrate my words better by encasing myself in my fiery shield. Trixie just stares in awe before she remembers what happened.

“Wait, what do you mean Trixie couldn’t recognize Trixie’s illusions, I wasn’t doing any at all.” I just shake my head at her and pass her one of her old books. “Because they were spells you made yourself that I had been practicing for a while. With how good you seemed to be at them I would have thought you would see right through them, not to mention actually use them in a dual.”

Her eyes widen as she recognizes the book and grasps it close to her chest. I can see her façade is starting to slip. “Where do you get this from, I thought I had lost this a long time ago?” I just give her a smile as I lead her to the sitting room where I had some food and drinks ready. “What? You think that the stuff you left here was just going to be tossed away? Of course not, it all had to go somewhere and that place was here. Of course you can have it all back, but first we need to talk.”

She looks wary as I level a serious stare at her. “First you seem to be a bit lost in what you have been doing if your actions yesterday mean anything. I’ve heard how you’ve been having problems since your first visit here, but that’s because you aren’t doing what you are good at.” She tosses a glare back at me at that. “What are you talking about, Trixie is good at everything!”

I just shake my head at her. “Maybe if you had someone to teach you things you would be, there looks to be some potential there, but right now you are really only good at two things I’ve seen, your fireworks and your illusions. Your boasting needs some work as well.” She just grumbles at me about this, not having any arguments ready after having been beaten twice in as many days.

“Also with how your reputation has suffered you need to change your approach as well, you can’t pull the large crowds until you fix that. At least that will be the easy part since your attitude is the biggest issue. Sure you can go around boasting, but you need to be able to prove it as well as know when to stop.” I can see she is wavering a bit at my words, though she finally asks the important question.

“Why do you even care, and why would you even help me?” I levitate over to her a set of my notes on her fireworks. “Why I care is because I was interested a bit in you show when I first saw it. And why I would help you? That is mostly to repay you as I had been furthering my skills with your books, as well as learning about fireworks with them as well as a hobby.” As she reads through my notes I can see her eyes widen as she reaches parts not in her own books.

“Also I would like to sponsor you a bit so you can get started up again. I don’t see many entertainers come through so you have something not many others do, but you need to remember to entertain others and not boost your own ego.” She looks up in me at shock at this, and I knew it was because she had been doing everything alone. Having read her journal made this a bit unfair but keeping her off guard was the key.

“You want to sponsor ME! Who are you to be able to do this as I haven’t even heard of you before?” I chuckle as not many do know me though some of the nobles may know my work. “My name is Flarenza, and I dabble in a few different things right now. With my gem enchantments, exotic food sales, and now a deal with the Crystal Kingdom I have a few things to my name even if my name isn’t out there.”

The gem enchantments part probably catches her interest the most as she brings a hoof up to her cape’s clasp. It has been rather profitable for me so that I don’t even need the other things, but I still do them for variety. “Of course if you agree you will need a way to travel around again.” I lead her out to behind the building where I had stored her wagon which was covered with a large cloth.

“Of course since this is yours anyways you can take it even if you don’t accept my proposal.” With that I draw the cloth off of it revealing her fully repaired wagon. I had been able to get the enchantments on it put into place a few months back with Twilight’s help. At the site of her wagon being back together again and looking better than before Trixie faints on the spot. “I guess we’ll talk about it when you wake up again.”

Author's Note

You know you'd want to see what happens if that was done to Pinkie, but it would just be too cruel. Also as a note I believe I will be using the season 3 episodes with minor if any changes, but don't expect season 4 to be the same. I'm considering changing the finale a good bit as well as cutting out a bunch of the ones that don't make sense at all.

A Sunny End

When Trixie finally woke up she was very appreciative with what was done for her and she readily agreed to the deal I offered. As a test run, as well as to apologize to the town, I got her to do a couple small shows for the school and hospital to get her back into her work again. While they were very wary of her after what had just happened things turned out pretty well. Having Twilight along just to keep an eye on things helped put their minds at ease as well.

Soon she was on her was to attempt to make amends elsewhere and begin her whole new and improved show. I gave her a copy of all the notes I made on fireworks and even a couple new spells she could work into her show. To her surprise Twilight even had a book to help her increase her skills as well, to show that there were no hard feelings. Even though she denied it I saw a couple tears roll down Trixie’s cheek as she rolled off again in her wagon.

I really hoped that she would think more on what she had been doing as I wasn’t lying to her about the lack of entertainment. Most of anything that showed up in Ponyville was because of the six Element Bearers and their relationship with the Princess. Because of that she should actually be welcome more in the smaller towns and could even do other things as well, especially to towns not connected to the train network yet.

Still it would take time to see if she actually changes but seeing as she apologized without being made to there was some hope. She would be back sometime though as there couldn’t be many places that could fix her wagon, and the enchantments put into it aren’t easy ones to copy either. Of course if she does return she might have to worry about Pinkie Pie as I don’t think she was able to throw a party for her yet.

Cleanup around the recent fun was actually pretty minimal for what usually happens. Since I wasn’t needed to help I spent my time getting things prepared for Luna’s visit this next new moon. Apparently I received a letter from her while I was gone and we would be dealing with the town then, as well as the two innocents in it. I wasn’t sure what was going to happen to them exactly, but whatever it was I knew that at least Ruby would finally be able to rest as there was probably nothing that could help her other than helping her sister.

I asked Selene if she would want to see Luna when she arrived, but she still wasn’t ready for that, even though she did send off her first reply to her letters. I was glad to at least see her making progress and I considered introducing her to the last two of the six in town.

My preparations for Luna’s arrival were completed quickly as I mostly just had to refill what I ran out of while at the Crystal Empire. I wasn’t sure what I would need so I just packed everything since the town was so close. It would have been nice to have details on what we were going to do, but the princess must have reasons for not doing so.

I spent time talking with Selene about how she was doing around town while I was gone. She had been going out more often and was starting to meet others but she was still very shy. The Crusaders had tried to get her to go on a camping trip with them around the new moon, but since Rainbow Dash was going as well she declined. It wasn’t her fear that caused her to decline though, but I think more that she was still intimidated by what she saw of her and wanted me with when she meets her.

Soon enough the time came for the day of the Princess’s arrival. It was really early in the day when she showed up which hinted at things possibly taking a while. She nodded to me and looked towards my house before we took off towards Sunny Town. I looked back to see what she was looking for, but didn’t see anything until I caught site of Selene peeking out a window.

It actually felt weird walking with Princess Luna through the Everfree Forest. I didn’t see any guards arrive with her, but I was sure there were probably some around. Soon enough we reached the edge of my territory and came within sight of the town. I couldn’t sense Ruby anywhere nearby yet, but we still stopped before going any further.

“So what are we going to do out here, and how shall we go about it? This is the edge of where those in the town can reach on this side. Also I’m not sensing Ruby anywhere nearby and I assume you want to see her.” The princess looks down at me and nods before pulling out a pair of large bags from her saddlebags she was carrying. “Yes, I do want to speak with her before we go into town if possible. First we need to encircle the town with what is in these to keep the magic contained within the area. Then we will enter the town and deal with what comes as we go to this Mitta you told me of.”

I look into the bag she passes me and see that it is filled with a white substance I thought to be salt. I am surprised to find that it is really some kind of powdered gemstone instead making me wonder the cost of the bags. I just nod and start going clockwise around the town while she went in the other direction.

It took a while for us to meet on the other side of the town as it was much larger than I thought. I never thought to see how large the town was, but it seemed as if it was about a third of the size of Ponyville. Thinking over the issue it made some sense as there seemed to only be earth ponies in Sunny Town so there was a good portion of the Equestrian population not involved in the place.

As we approached the other end of the town I saw Luna walking along with Ruby at her side. They seemed to be talking quietly and I think I even saw what looked like tears in Luna’s eyes. I was able to stop a distance away as my bags had ran out of powder and allowed Luna to approach at a pace to allow her to get control of herself.

Soon enough Luna nodded to Ruby who took off towards the town while she approached me. The look on her face was back to what it was when we first arrived, yet I could see a hint of anger now. “There, now that we have done this we can enter the town and deal with things there. Lead me to where Mitta is being kept at once.” I’m not sure what she heard from Ruby, but I could tell it wasn’t good so I just nodded and did as she asked.

Since we were on the opposite end of town from where she was kept it means we had to pass a good many of the ponies living there. A few glanced at me and turned back to what they were doing as I looked mostly like a large fox, but when they saw Princess Luna their response was vastly different. Most of them just stared at her, but I saw a few run into their homes or break down whimpering.

I wonder why they are reacting like that to her. If they are locked in time like I was told they shouldn’t be like that, though I don’t know what Luna was like back then. Maybe she was lacking a cutie mark at the time or just never showed up in the town? I ponder this as we move through the town towards our destination.

Soon enough we arrive at the home that Mitta is locked in to see the pony that is guarding the place. Before I could say anything or go get the ruby Luna just grabbed him in her magic and tossed him to the side before blasting the door open. There are many gasps from the nearby ponies at her actions, yet none of them even think to try to challenge or stop her.

At this point Luna barges in ahead of me so I just turn to look at the ponies around the area. A mare looks to be helping the stallion that was thrown, though he looks a bit dazed after colliding with a wall. None of the others are approaching, though I can see anger in the eyes of one stallion, and from his colors I assume that this is Grey Hoof, who seems to be the leader of the town.

I was really wary of being in the town like this knowing that they are all really zombies, but at least they weren’t the worst kind I had seen. I turn and enter the building while throwing up a barrier as I pass the doorway. I find Luna and Mitta conversing with each other and at the sight of tears between them I decide to stay back to give them privacy.

Even from where I wait I catch the occasional word or two, and what little I hear makes me remember what I had guessed happened to Mitta hear. It sounded like they really did hurt her when she opposed the will of the town. I even catch a couple things that make me cringe and wonder how she could have lasted so long.

Soon enough they finish talking and Luna approaches me, followed closely by Mitta. “Now we head to where I first placed the curse upon this town, to where poor Ruby was killed and hidden.” I see Mitta shudder at this but she still follows along behind Luna as I lead the way. Unfortunately when the ponies see us accompanied by Mitta we are accosted by Grey Hoof.

“And where do you think you are taking that thing? Until she stops trying to subvert others in this town she is to be confined in her home.” I can see a hint of red in his eyes and at his words I realize that he probably also remembers what had been going on. Out of the corner of my eye I can see Luna about to respond but I decide to take matters into my own paws.

I bring up my tails and start charging the banishing spell between them causing the surrounding ponies to gasp at my display. His eyes widen at my display and he was about to run but I unleashed the spell before he could do anything. I knew it wouldn’t do much other than knock him away and piss him off, but the impact with a nearby wall did manage to knock him out.

I turn to Luna who was looking at me with a raised eyebrow. “What? I had wanted to do that for a while now and he pissed me off. Not like the spell was going to do anything to him anyways.” I think Luna was about to say something but she just shook her head before continuing on again. None of the other ponies wanted to interrupt us after that display, and their looks of fear were now on me instead of Luna which I was fine with.

We soon arrive at the rundown home where this entire situation began. Inside we found Ruby waiting who started bouncing at the sight of Mitta who was also surprised to see her sister. Mitta rushes past me and Luna, and I cast a spell on her when I realize what she is about. She soon grabs her sister up in a hug and begins crying and apologizing to her. Ruby looks surprised at the contact, but when she sees me wink at her she mouths a ‘thank you’ to me before embracing her sister.

Luna looks between the sisters and me with look of surprise as well as something else. “I see you know a few other tricks aside from what you found in my old books. Still we need to talk about what is to be done once the sun leaves the sky.” I nod as we move to the side of the room opposite the sisters and take a seat. “Of course, though if we have to wait that long then it’s probably a good thing I did what I did earlier. I believe that Grey Hoof, the one I blasted, know exactly what has happened to the town and would probably interfere if he knows what we are about.”

Luna’s eyes widen at this information before narrowing in anger. “If that is indeed so then your job is even more important. The spells I must cast will take all of my concentration and you will need to defend this house until I am finished. If you can’t hold them back then the spell on this town will completely collapse, leaving Equestria in danger of being attacked from it.”

My eyebrows rise at this as I had not realized how dangerous and complicated things would be. The curse was definitely not put into place well if attempting to remove it and failing was that dangerous. “Well it’s a good thing I brought my things with me then, though keeping them out shouldn’t be that hard as long as things don’t take too long. Too bad I can’t access my home from here or else I could hold them off for days.”

Luna seems surprised about this revelation but nods as she begins her preparations for nightfall. Luckily she just needs the area near the fireplace so I use the center of the building to draw out my own magic circle. I make it so that it amplifies my power as well as channels in a second spell into the first one I will be casting so that I am burdened only by casting one spell and providing power for the second instead of casting two with the power needed.

I even fortify the circle more with a few rubies and sapphires to channel their energy into the spell as well. I finish my work soon enough and take a short nap since there are still a few hours until night. I awaken to find Luna examining my work, though she seems to look more closely at the gems. “I had heard about these from Lieutenant Rose, but I didn’t realize how well made they were. If every guard had these in their armor they would be much safer.”

I chuckle at her which grabs diverts her attention back to me. “I was actually starting to wonder if she showed those off or not. I wasn’t willing to let them out of my paws to just anybody so I was hoping that you, your sister, or a high ranked guard would notice them. They work better with a unicorn to charge them, but even stopping a single blow or spell can save a life.”

She chuckles herself at this. “Yes, we had heard mention of what they could do but didn’t check closely enough about it. It does explain how she was able to win some of her practice bouts with other guards as the enchantments already on the armor wouldn’t have been strong enough. But come, night is almost upon us and we can discuss that another time.”

I look outside and see that the sky is darkening so I take my place in the center of my circle. After making sure that everything is prepared I wait for the signal from Luna on when to begin. She calls over both Ruby and Mitta to her side of the room and talks with them in a low voice. I can see them both nodding, but I can see tears on Mitta’s face and wonder what will be done about them.

Soon enough a horrid scream can be heard from the town and Luna nods to me. At this sign I activate the circle and throw up a barrier around the entire building, with a second one centered on the inside so that it covers just us on the inside. The barriers glow a different color than usual as I channel the banishment spell into it allowing the bell to repel or even destroy undead.

At my nod back to Luna she turns to Mitta who had changed from her normal form into her zombie form. In this form I could actually see some of the damage that was done to her as it seems to not heal as well as her normal form. I wince at how many of her bones look to be out of place and her jaw is entirely missing.

Luna starts her spell as I feel the impact of the first zombies from town hit my shield. I sense them being hurled back, but there was one that felt different from the others though I couldn’t move to see why. Of course after they were repelled the cries got even worse as the spell only angered them more. I just lay there and watch Luna as there wasn’t anything else to do other than channel my energy.

I notice that her first spell was directed at Mitta and my jaw dropped open as a ring of energy started traveling up one of her hind legs. Where it passed the zombie flesh dissolved to be replaced by the healthy look of her original form. The progress was slow, but after what felt like an hour she finally looked like a normal young earth pony again. She then collapses where she was standing into unconsciousness. I wanted to help her, but I never realized that this would be a possible result. If Luna is this strong a couple years after being drained of all power, what is her sister like?

I could start to feel a bit of strain from holding up the shield, and decided to drop the outer one as it was being hit from all sides and the smaller one would mean less space to attack. “I’m dropping the outer shield now, I can maybe get another hour with it up, but less can hit the smaller one so I can hold it longer.” Luna just nods at me as she starts in on her second spell of the night, looking wearied from the first. This one is directed at the bones in the fireplace where I thought the curse originated.

With the outer barrier gone the zombies and skeletons started swarming in through every opening they could. I was able to identify the strange feeling I had before as I felt it again when a skeletal pony rammed into the shield. When it came into contact it just collapsed into dust instead of being repelled. They must not be fully bound to this place so the spell can actually free them.

I actually take heart in that fact as I watch them try and break through. I just watch them all try to break through and I soon notice one with hate burning in its eyes. I assume that it was the one known as Grey Hoof so I let out a big yawn at him and try to look bored. I’m pretty sure I was right as he looks even angrier at that and starts throwing himself at the shield even harder than before.

Out of the corner of my eye I could see the bones Luna was casting on start to vanish one by one, until an hour later only the skull was left. At this point Grey Hoof started to look desperate as he began having the zombies try to collapse the building around us. I just watched, unimpressed, which really seemed to unnerve him. I had planned for this eventuality so I just waited for him to do all the work to save me energy that would have been used to try and stop him.

Soon enough the building started to fall apart and he looked triumphant until I just smiled at him. I then exerted my powers to rapidly expand my shield, knocking all the undead and the building away in a small explosion of force. Once I had done that I contracted it again and looked as the undead started picking themselves up again, though many had trouble due to injured limbs. The number skeletal ponies seemed to have plummeted as well from that.

Doing that had drained a good amount of my remaining power, and I was starting to wonder if I made a mistake until I saw the skull shatter and a ball of energy start to expand rapidly from where it was. Grey Hoof’s eyes widened at this, but before he could scream the ball expanded enough to engulf him and he dissolved into nothing. The same happened to all the other ponies that it hit, yet they looked more relieved than anything. Soon it covered the entire town before it finally shattered into nothingness, taking with it the remains of all those ponies as well as the buildings of the town.

Seeing as we had finally ended the curse I dropped my barrier and brought up a light so we could see. Luna had fallen to her knees as the spell had drained her, and even her mane seemed to not be as ethereal as before. “It is done, the town is finally gone, but what to do with what remains.” She turns to looks at Ruby and Mitta, and the former steps forward. “Thank you both for finally freeing my sister. She already knows that she won’t see me again since I can finally move on, but please find somewhere where she can start anew and find those she can love.”

Luna was about to answer but I interrupted with a flash of inspiration that came to me. “I think I know the perfect ponies that would take her in, and even if they don’t she can stay with me until she finds somewhere. I’m pretty sure they will agree though as they owe her a debt of gratitude and they will most likely treat her like family as well.” Luna looks at me oddly until her eyes widen in understanding and nods. “Yes, the Apple family probably would be a good place for her since she already knows one of them.”

Ruby just smiles and begins to fade away. “Thank you, and goodbye.” At this she fades completely from sight leaving nothing behind. I was about to ask Luna what we should do now, but am interrupted as a group of thestrals fly into the clearing we are now in. I recognize Umbra Rose, who currently is in armor, so I assume this is Luna’s guard contingent. They brought with them Luna’s chariot so we load Mitta on it and fly back to my home.

Once there we bring Mitta in and set her in a spare guest room so she can rest until tomorrow when we can talk. It would be a couple days, as Applejack was out, but once she returned I would escort her over. I left out a note for Pinkie Pie to find, as I knew she would show up sometime, so that she waited on the party until then. Once I had done that I brought out some drinks and snacks for Princess Luna and her guards, and we talked until they finally had to leave.

Author's Note

Finally the threat of Sunny Town is gone, but what to do with the lone survivor. I couldn't think of a good song for this chapter, so I threw something that at least partially fits. If anyone can think of a better one let me know and I'll check it out. Hmm, I really wonder how Mitta will react to Pinkie Pie since the Sunny Town party planner was pretty much running things there?

Last of the Blanks

The next morning I awoke to the sound of someone screaming letting me know that the latest visitor was probably awake. Leaving my room I found Umbra outside of where Mitta was left last night with her rubbing the back of her head looking a bit sheepish. I just sighed and entered the room to find Mitta hiding in a corner with all the covers from the bed. Suddenly I was glad to have a couple days before bringing her over to Sweet Apple Acres to meet Applejack.

I just sat down near Mitta and waited for her to calm down. Eventually she stopped shaking and peeked out from under the covers to see me waiting. “I-it’s really over isn’t it? This isn’t just some horrible nightmare?” She sounds really scared but I can sense a bit of hope in her tone as well. “Yes, the town is finally gone and you are free now thanks to Princess Luna.” At my words she breaks down again and grabs me up in a hug as she begins crying again. I just sit there and try to give her what comfort I can while I wave Umbra away and try to quietly ask her to get some food.

Hopefully she got the right message as she nodded to me and went off elsewhere. I sat there with the grey mare for a while until she finally couldn’t cry any more. I could tell she was still awake as she hadn’t let me go at all. “Come on, how about we get you some food, you probably haven’t had a good meal in a long time.” At my words her stomach let out a loud roar which caused her to jump in surprise. I just chuckle as she releases me so that I can lead her down to the kitchen.

She hides behind me when we reach it as both Selene and Umbra are already down there. Since the town was only filled with earth ponies she probably hasn’t seen many other types so two thestrals, though one is a fake, would be a real surprise for her. After introducing her to them she seemed to calm down a little when hearing that Umbra was one of Luna’s guards.

For the next couple days I worked with her to get her used to the idea of what Ponyville is like. She was a bit scared at how many ponies were in the town, but seemed to get used to the idea of there not being only earth ponies in it. I hoped that she wouldn’t react badly to Applejack over that fact, but Applebloom would be the best way to break that barrier if needed.

The note I left for Pinkie Pie vanished by the time I looked for it again, so I knew she got it. The question though was when and where she would throw the party even if I had a good guess. I just hope she didn’t scare Mitta too much when it did happen considering her role in town is the same that Grey Hoof’s was.

By the time Applejack and the others returned from their camping trip I was able to at least prepare her somewhat for what to expect. I led her the long way around town so she wasn’t forced to deal with a bunch of unfamiliar ponies all at once, and Selene actually decided to come with as well. She had helped a bit during the last few days as she had some knowledge of Sunny Town, and she seemed relieved to hear of its end.

When we arrived at the apple farm I had them wait behind me as I knocked on the front door to the Apple home. Luckily Applejack was there instead of out in the fields, probably recovering from the time out camping. “Well howdy Flarenza, what brings you around these here parts?” I wave a paw towards Mitta before responding. “Well I was hoping you could do something to help her, if you could call Applebloom out here you will see why.”

AJ just looks at me strangely as I say this but yells into the house for her sister to come down. Soon enough the filly comes down from upstairs to see what’s going on. “Hey sis, what did ya need me… for…?” She slows to a halt as I step to the side so she can see Mitta who was watching AJ warily. When she heard Applebloom’s voice she looked over at her with wide eyes. Applebloom had a much different reaction as she ran out to tackle her in a hug.

“Mitta! What… How are you even here? What happened with Sunny Town?” As the two catch up with each other I turn back to Applejack to explain since she looks confused. “She was the one to help your sister escape from Sunny Town that time she accidentally stumbled on it. Her sister was the one that was murdered which caused the place to be cursed and she was caught up with the rest of the town until, with Luna’s help, she was finally freed and the town destroyed. I was hoping you would be able to help her out with a place to live and to get her used to how things are now.”

Applejack looks surprised at much of this information but she soon looks at Mitta with pity and respect in her eyes. “Well shoot, ya don’t have to ask for something like that after she saved my sister. I always thought that she was fibbing about that place, but for you to say it really happened.” She shudders at the thought of the place being so close to Ponyville but soon gets a hard look in her eyes. “Anyways you can count on us to get her settled in; nopony should lose their family and not have anypony to fall back on.”

I nod in thanks to her as we watch the two as well as Selene talk together. I catch a flash of pink out near the barn which causes me to wince before turning back to Applejack. “Thanks for doing this; you are probably the best ones to help her out after what happened. I’m also sorry about what is probably about to happen with your barn since she is new around here.” She looks at me funny for a second before she realizes what I said and runs for the barn. I just let out a chuckle and get the other three to follow me over to it as well.

When we entered the barn and Pinkie sprung the surprise both Selene and Mitta hid behind me. Selene recovered a bit faster, and with Applebloom’s help were able to coax Mitta out from behind me. I wondered what the ponies thought about the banner Pinkie put up which read, ‘Welcome to Ponyville and Congratulations on not being a cursed zombie anymore.’ Most probably thought nothing of it and just chalked it up to Pinkie being Pinkie, but I knew of at least one that would know otherwise.

Letting Selene and Applebloom introduce Mitta around, with Pinkie’s help of course, I went over to talk with Twilight. Seeing that she was about to ask something I decided to just cut in quickly before she can get into her research mode. “Yes Twilight, she is the Mitta from Sunny Town which is no longer there. A couple nights ago Princess Luna showed up to take care of the place while I kept watch. At the same time she freed her from the curse which let her sister Ruby finally rest.”

She looks as if there was more she wanted to ask, but my guessing some of what she was going to ask threw her off. Soon she just shakes her head before turning to look at the young grey mare. “Well I guess it’s good that everything has been taken care of with that place. I still can’t believe it even existed in the first place. What is going to happen with her now though?”

I sigh as I can guess some of what she means. “Well Applejack agreed to take her in already, I figure that having lost her family and having saved Applebloom it would be the best place for her as they will treat her like family for that. While it was earth ponies that hurt her, she knows next to nothing about the other pony races so would feel uncomfortable around them as well. Also they live pretty simply out here, so she can get used to how times have changed at a slower pace with AJ and Applebloom without having to worry about any fancy stuff too quickly.”

Twilight ponders this for a second before nodding. “That makes a lot of sense, and with Big Mac and Cheerilee dating they can also get a bit of help from her as well.” I didn’t know about the last part, though I did hear about them interacting with each other during a Crusader fiasco a while back. I turn to look at the trio going around and see that Rainbow Dash is talking with them. I am about to go over myself, but am surprised to find that Selene is handling herself well enough, especially now that Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo have joined up with them all as well.

I spend much of the time at the party just keeping an eye on them to make sure that they are settling in well. I think Pinkie may also be doing the same thing as she spends more time around them than any of the other ponies, and seems to be a bit less random while with them as well. Soon enough the party starts to wind down and I see Applejack leading Mitta towards the house. Applebloom looks to be very excited about this as well as she wasn’t told until then that Mitta would be staying with them.

I collect Selene and we head back home while talking about the party. It seems that Rainbow Dash was more distracted by how cool Selene looked to actually find out anything about her. I realized that I was overthinking things a bit with her as Rainbow really wasn’t much of a thinker beyond the things that interested her or something that was overly odd. Enough thestrals had been through the town for them to not be as odd as before, and Umbra Rose being around helped as well since she often challenged the cyan mare occasionally.

Still that leaves just one more mare in town to introduce Selene to, and then the hardest part of getting her to talk with the two princesses. I wondered if getting Princess Cadence to help out on that end would be a good idea or not since with her talents she could get a better feel for Selene.

<><><><><><><>

The next few weeks were a bit hectic around town as the Apple family had a reunion coming up that they were planning for. Rainbow Dash also got a letter accepting her into the Wonderbolts Academy which helped keep things a bit more organized as she wasn’t around to get in the way with pranks or failed stunts.

After making sure that Selene was doing well enough for me to take off for a while I made another trip through the Everfree forest. Once I was prepared I made my way to the location of where Sunny Town used to be to check on the area and update my map. It felt odd to be in the area as it didn’t feel like the rest of the Everfree anymore, as if the chaotic magic there had been removed or something. I made a note to check more on this later before I continued on again.

For this trip I decided to check out more in the direction of the castle ruins as there should be something in that area since the castle was located there. Strangely enough I found a set of stairs near the bridge that I had missed every time I came by before, yet there wasn’t anything down in the gorge except for a cave with a strange old tree.

I climbed out of the gorge and chose a direction at random to start with. I soon found a river that I proceeded to follow to see where it would lead. Judging from the map the other direction should lead back towards the river that crosses the path to the castle so the other direction may lead to something interesting.

Along the way I found a couple things of interest until I settled down in a cave I found for the first night. For the next couple days I followed the river while checking out anything of interest I saw on the way. There were a few odd plants and fruit trees along the path that I took samples of to show Twilight once I returned for testing. I made sure to be careful with them as they were unfamiliar and with what poison joke could do I wouldn’t trust anything unknown in this forest.

Soon enough I reached a small lake with a waterfall that was feeding into the river. What was strange though was there was a waterwheel and lift assembly here that looked fairly new. I decided to be careful as nothing in the forest was to be taken for granted and climber the cliff a distance away from the waterfall. Once I made it to the top I was surprised to find a small village populated by what looked like ponies.

Right, after Sunny Town and the other dangers of the Everfree I am definitely not going to just waltz in there and see what’s going on. I hide myself, both physically and magically, and wait until nightfall. It’s a good thing I did as after it grew dark the streets of the town cleared and I could see flashes of a familiar emerald light from inside the houses. I’ve only seen that color one other time before, and that was during the wedding. I wonder…

Sneaking up to one of the homes I confirm my suspicions as I look through a window to find it inhabited by a changeling. I was about to turn away when I notice that this one looks familiar somehow, and I know why when I see the orange glow of his eyes. Hey, it’s good old Citrine Eyes again. I had wondered what happened to him when he ran off, maybe I should go in and say hello.

I chuckle to myself at the idea and mentally mark this home down to return to later. After searching through the rest of the town I find that all the inhabitants really are changelings and there didn’t seem to be any kind of prisoners in it. There weren’t many in it either, maybe about a hundred at the most, so I assume that it is just some sort of outpost or something instead of a regular home.

Sneaking back to Citrine’s home I find that he has fallen asleep by now and I sneak in through the front door. After a quick search of the place I find that he is here alone but there are no indications of why they are all here. Just knowing that they are here is enough for now though since I don’t feel like searching every building.

I sneak my way over to his room and crawl my way up onto it before standing above him. I then encase myself in a small barrier for safety and let it give off my fiery aura before I try to nudge him awake. As I see his eyes open and turn towards me in confusion I let out a laugh. “Well, well, well. Look at what I’ve found again. I’ve been wondering where you went, are you ready to go for another spin?” I give him a really big grin after that and his eyes widen in horror.

“N-n-no! Not you! Not again!” He then screams and bolts through his still closed window before running screaming out of town. I let my laughter rise to loud levels than can be heard echoing throughout the village before I vanish and sneak my way out again. The entire place is in panic after what I did and they all seem confused as to what is going on.

I decide that I had enough for this trip and decide to make my way back home again. I was able to swipe a small boat from the town before I left and I used it to just float most of the way back before disembarking at the path to the castle. I had been gone for a couple weeks by this time so I made my way back home so I can clean up before seeing what was happening in town. I was only delayed a bit by a Greater Timberwolf, which was easily driven off with the threat of fire and a pepper bomb.

Passing through the area that was Sunny Town I could tell that it felt even cleaner there than when I passed it before and made another note to not only look into it, but to get Luna’s and Twilight’s opinions as well.

As I entered my territory I felt that something was really off as there seemed to be a strangely familiar visitor in the area. I started moving cautiously towards my home now and at the edge of the forest took a careful look around. Everything seemed to be fine in the area and I couldn’t see anything wrong in town from there either. Quickly crossing to my home I climb up onto the roof and get a look at the other side.

There in front of my door I see a familiar serpentine figure which brings a grin to my face. Using a barrier to slide down behind him I quietly observed what he was doing before speaking up. “So you’re back again for some more embarrassment, huh?” I was impressed with the height he got on his startled leap, but that was to be expected from Discord.

Author's Note

Yay, time for some more fun with chaos again. From here on I'm not sure how often I will have Mitta show up again, though she does have at least one more planned bit for her. Things are going to get somewhat interesting now with good old Dissy back again, and with really only 2 more episodes to go(as two of them take place at the same time) from season 3 it could get wild.

Discordant Tests

I was surprised to see the god of chaos running around free again, especially with nothing going out of control in the area. Watching him slowly climb down from the roof after sneaking up on him again was fun though. I wondered how he was able to escape from his stony prison this time and how long it would be before he’s put back again.

“Really now I show up here again just for you to sneak up on me again? Can’t you think of something new to- Hello, this is definitely an unexpected occurrence.” His train of thought is interrupted as he turns around to see me sitting behind him in my kitsune form. He actually looks a bit frightened for some reason though it is quickly replaced by a cunning look.

“Well now I wondered why I had so much trouble around here when I last came a calling. I thought something felt off about you before, but for you to be one of that race of beings, well I wonder what dear old Celestia would say about you being here.” I just roll my eyes at him as he obviously doesn’t know that she has known for a while. “Well I’m not supposed to hurt any ponies anymore, but I can’t see her objecting to me removing a pest like you now can she?”

I narrow my eyes at him as he says this and I can feel him build up power like last time. He looks confused as I sigh and shake my head before twisting his powers against him once again. He realizes he made a mistake as his eyes open wide. “Oh snickerdoodles...” He is then flung off towards town as a square of ground under him launches out using a giant spring before returning to normal.

“I wonder when he will realize exactly what I’m doing. Of course I’m not even fully sure but at least him being around will let me practice it some more.” I head inside my home to find that everyone is still out so I head to my room to clean up. While not as luxurious as the spa, the tub in my room is still better than most, and using some bath mixtures from the spa improves it even further.

As I finish up I hear somebody knocking at my door so I head down, expecting Discord again. I’m surprised to find that it was Fluttershy that had arrived, and made note to keep better track of the area. “Oh Flarenza, I didn’t know you were back home again. Did you happen to see Discord wandering around here recently?” I raise an eyebrow at this as I would have thought that Fluttershy would have been hiding from him instead of searching for him.

“Well he was here earlier, but why would you be searching for him alone after what he did last time?” Fluttershy looks at me oddly before coming to a realization. “Oh that’s right, you haven’t heard yet.” I am then treated to an explanation about what went on while I was gone and how Discord is now ‘reformed.’ I catch a key word during the explanation that tells me a bit about his recent attempt to attack me.

“So he’s promised to use his powers only for good, did he? Well you might want to let him know about things he might know nothing about that causes him to do what he thinks is good but may not be.” Fluttershy just looks at me oddly after I say this and I just point towards the oncoming object Discord is riding. This time he is riding some giant machine with two giant cylindrical wheels that looks like it is made to flatten things.

Fluttershy just stares at it in shock while I just use a bit of energy to collapse a tunnel that is in the things path, causing it to crash into the resulting pit. “He seems to think that I am a threat that the princess doesn’t know about and is trying to remove me, though I suspect that there may be other reasons as well. Still, this is entertaining but it would get annoying to have to do this constantly.”

Discord slowly climbs out of the pit and marches his way over, looking a bit annoyed with me. “I had forgotten how annoying your kind was at stopping me, it was why I was happy to see Celestia drive you all out. I never could figure out how you always could stop my powers and it always annoyed me. Maybe I should just let Celly and her ponies know about you and let them deal with you again.” I just yawn at his little rant before pointing a paw towards Fluttershy who looks to be getting a bit angry.

Discord looks over to where I was pointing and begins to turn really pale at the sight. “Err, Fluttershy, how nice to see you again. What brings you out to this neck of the woods, eh he?” He looks back and forth between the two of us before his eyes widen in shock. “Oh, Celly already knows about you, doesn’t she?” I almost laugh at his disappointed tone before I just nod at him and Fluttershy flies up into his face and starts lecturing him.

I decide to head inside to give them a bit of privacy though I leave the door open for them for if they need me. I decide to prepare something for lunch while I wait and I chuckle at some of the things I hear float through the open doors. I finish preparing some food and tea and load them onto a tray as things finally quiet down outside. I find the two waiting inside the entryway and I just nod over to the sitting room as I head over with the tray floating behind me.

As we sit down I pass out a plate to everyone and interrupt Discord as he is about to say something. “Look, you don’t have to say anything as you didn’t know what was going on around here yet. You’re probably lucky this happened anyways as I have no idea how what I was doing was even working. Who knows what could have happened if things continued.” Discord just seems to scoff at the idea while Fluttershy looks a bit worried.

Soon enough Fluttershy remembers why she was looking for Discord and escorts him off to do whatever it was. As they leave I leave a message for the others stating that I am back and I head down into the basement towards my underground lab. My little trip out as well as the recent fun with Discord had given me a couple ideas I wanted to try with the fireworks. I made sure to lock and barrier every door to the room for safeties sake, as well as throw up a couple around me as well as have a couple shielded gems handy.

I first warmed up by trying to improve some of the things I learned out of Trixie’s books. It was nothing really major, just a shape here or a color there, until I started adding multiple colors and shapes to them. It worked relatively well with a few false starts, but in the end it would save bits spent on powder as I found ways to do more with less.

Once I had finished a few of those new fireworks and stored them in a safe area away from the lab I moved on to the big project I had been working on. This was going to be harder to do as it is something that hadn’t been done before or even tried so it was all work from scratch. Some of it was going to take a while to test as the preparations would take at least a day, but luckily there were a few things I wanted to try.

The quicker ideas turned out to be complete busts as the scale model tests didn’t give of the effect I was hoping for. So after setting up the concoctions I was planning to test tomorrow I made my way back to the manor. None of the other occupants had returned yet so I started working on a good sized dinner for when they returned. Luckily I made some extra as when they returned they also brought Applebloom and Sweetie Belle along.

Watching everyone at the table made me realize I had been ignoring Selene and Scootaloo a bit more than I should have. Sure I was mostly just giving them a place to stay and helped them out occasionally, but I probably could do more for them. I made note to try and fix that after I finished this latest experiment and just let things settle for a bit.

Dinner was a lively affair with all three Crusaders there, but I had come to expect that when seeing all of them around. I found out that they decided to have a slumber party at Scootaloo’s place tonight, without asking me not that I really minded, so I made sure to sound-proof my room before heading to bed that night.

<><><><><><><>

The next morning I decided to pass the time walking around town while my experiment was still in the waiting stages. While there I found that Discord may have given up on being really dangerous, but it didn’t stop him from trying to pull little pranks occasionally. He was surprised when he was able to hit me with a balloon full of cake, which was cleaned up with the help of Pinkie, but his next attempt backfired like usual.

It did give me a bit more insight into my abilities so I didn’t complain too much. Apparently I could still sense him doing things in a very tiny area around me while on neutral ground but beyond that I couldn’t prevent him from using his magic without a lot of luck. Seeing him about to start experimenting I decided to take cover in the library.

Twilight was surprised to see me as I hadn’t announced my return yet, though she did seem a bit pleased to see me. She rolled her eyes at my reasoning for being there so early in the day but took the opportunity to remind me of her wanting to perform a few exams on me. I agreed not seeing any problems with that, but I was starting to have second thoughts after being strapped into her chair in the basement with various wires attached to me.

“Is all of this really necessary for your tests, Twilight?” I watched her as she was fiddling with various nobs and dials wondering what all this equipment is supposed to accomplish. “Of course it will, how else am I going to find out how strong your magic is as well as what wavelengths it works on?” I just shake my head and hope that it doesn’t do something unexpected since I doubt she would notice right away with how focused she is.

I wonder how accurate her readings even would be as the equipment was meant for ponies, but I channel my magic into what would normally be over a horn when she asks me to. I sit there for a while wondering what she is getting from the machine, but Twilight just sits there scribbling down notes and not saying much. “Soooo what does it say?” I ask her after a couple minutes of her quill scratching on parchment.

“Hmm? Oh, well some of these reading are a bit odd and I need to cross-reference a few things to verify what they mean. Actually almost all of the readings seem off so I may need to recalibrate the machine to see if anything is wrong with it. It does state that your power range is about a 2.9 though which seems to be pretty accurate though.” I shake my head as that doesn’t really tell me much so I decide to go for the only part I would probably get an answer on.

“And is a 2.9 good or bad, and on what kind of scale?” Twilight pauses for a second as she considers how to explain this. “Well it is a 10 point scale, though anything above 10 is really difficult to get a real reading on. A 1 would be your average pony while a 2 relate to your average unicorn without anything affecting them. As an example the Princesses would be a 10, though I haven’t had the chance to test that, while I have recorded between a 4.5 and 5.5 depending on the circumstances. The one time Rarity let me test her she showed a 2.5 so a 2.9 isn’t too bad really.”

I try to process all of this as she continues. “Of course the score is really an average of a few different things as well. While I can do things that require much more power than Rarity, she does have me beat when it comes to how many things she can do at once.” She sounds a bit sheepish about this. “And of course you seem to have founds ways around certain limitations with those magic circles of yours. I heard about your teleporting accident you had before and usually it takes a pony of a 3 rating to successfully complete one of that distance.”

I sit there in silence as she continues taking notes as I think on what she had said. I had noticed it was easier to do many things using a circle than without one, though I could still do the same things with more effort. This got me thinking a bit more into it until I thought of something else that could be useful. “So if those numbers are just as an average, what would you say Rainbow Dash’s little Rainboom trick would require to pull off for power?”

This gets Twilight’s attention as she looks up and considers the question. “You know I’m really not sure about that since I can never get her to sit still long enough to get a regular reading on her. It’s not just power for that though as there seem to be other factors but I’d say she could probably hit a 2 or higher. I wonder if I could make a portable sensor for something like that.” From there she is completely lost in her thoughts and after a few more minutes of her rambling off topic I decide to sneak out.

I try to spend more time in town but with Discord being as annoying as he is I am forced to make my way back home. I do get a fair bit of revenge as turning his magic back on him when I enter my property starts him on fire, which oddly enough seems to be covering him in ice at the same time. Getting the last laugh I make my way into the manor and just sigh at the mess I find.

I had no idea what they were doing to cause these things to happen but from the results I bet the Crusaders could really give Discord competition in the chaos field. Shaking my head I work on getting the couch off of the ceiling and clean up the rest of the place. I make note to try and get him to agree to watch the three sometime and then supply them with coffee or mass quantities of sugar and see what happens.

Laughing at the absurd idea I finish cleaning things up and head down to check on my experiment. It isn’t quite where I want it to be yet so I decide to test out a couple more ideas I had gotten recently while I wait. I manage to get some small results through this before I decide that it had been waiting long enough.

Turning to the beakers containing everything I examine the solution one more time before I proceed. Having decided to see what kind of reaction I could get from adding powdered poison joke and liquid rainbows, as well as a couple other things, I found that it seemed to do make a rainbow powder once all the liquid had been removed from it. Adding fire to it didn’t do much beyond making a rainbow colored smoke, and while that was still progress it wasn’t what I wanted to achieve.

Fortifying my barriers around the place I decided to try a couple more things before quitting. Considering what I had found out today I figured that there is one thing that could potentially cause the reaction I was searching for. Separating enough to fill a vial I drew up a small focusing circle around it and started to concentrate.

I channel my magic into the vial at a steady rate and watch to see what results from this. Nothing happens at first and after a couple minutes I am about to give up until I see the mixture start to sparkle a bit. Taking this as a good sign I begin to increase the power I pour into it steadily as the sparkle turns into a shine, and then into a glow. I’m not sure if this is the reaction I want, but it is something new and I start to cheer to myself a bit until I notice the vial starting to shake.

My eyes widen at this and I cut off the power flow into it, but not before a crack appears in the vial. Seeing this I dive away and try to take cover before my entire world vanishes in a rainbow explosion of color.

Author's Note

Well it took a bit to finish this one. Sort of a combination of writers bleh, new game of Bound by Fire, and not quite knowing where to take certain things. While I may not be getting things out as rapidly as before I will still try to get something out weekly at least, even if I DO have 50+ stories in my read later list. Now if you'll excuse me I have an explosion to clean up after.

Secrets Revealed

Waking up to the sun blaring in my eyes is always an interesting experience, especially when I was supposed to be underground. Remembering what happened before I awoke I opened my eyes to take stock of my situation. Looking around I found myself still in my lab area, but it is no longer underground as the ceiling is no longer there, and everything had been colored in various shades of rainbow.

Turning my attention to myself I find myself relatively uninjured, yet largely drained physically. Surprisingly I wasn’t feeling any strain on my magic even after shielding myself from the blast so I start to slowly climb my way out as the doors are probably blocked. I almost fall a couple times as my control over my magic is strained due to my weariness but I eventually get near the top when I start hearing voices.

“Over hear girls, I can see where the explosion came from.” I recognize Twilight’s voice as I heave myself over the edge of the hole and start panting from my exertions. The gathered ponies gasp when they see crawl out of the pit and collapse onto my side. I can hear some of them approach me quickly so I say the first thing that comes to mind. “I need to try that again, but maybe with a little less kaboom.” I roll over so that I can see the approaching forms of Twilight and her five friends, as well as Selene and the Crusaders.

“Try that again? Are you crazy? What did you even do, the magic around here is going crazy?” Twilight seems to be a bit panicked about what happened though gets pushed aside by Rarity. “And what happened to your coat? And your tails?” I shake my head at her priorities but look to see what she was talking about. I chuckle wearily at the rainbow colors all over my fur but then do a double take when I see my tails.

“Huh, I got my third one again, must have happened during the explosion of concentrated magic. It would explain why I feel overly energized even after shielding myself from the blast. Oh and to answer your question Twilight, I was working on a new kind of firework when it accidentally went off.” All the ponies present just look at me like I’m crazy before Rainbow Dash speaks up. “Whoa whoa whoa, that light show was just from some fireworks? What in the world did you use to cause that much damage? I could feel the shockwave from it all the way over at Sweet Apple Acres.”

I see a couple of the others nod to confirm this as I glance around. “Well not much beyond some of the normal things in fireworks… and some liquid rainbow… and poison joke… and overloading it with magic.” I let out a little grin at them as I list off the last three things though Twilight brings a hoof up to her eyes at the third one before she comments. “Really? And you didn’t think overloading some unstable substances with magic would be a bad idea?”

I just snort at her comment about it being a bad idea. “No more than traveling through time to tell yourself not to panic, or enchanting a doll with forbidden magic. Besides how else would I find out if it’s a bad idea without blowing something up?” A couple of the other laugh as Twilight blushes at the incidents I mentioned while Applejack puts her two bits into the conversation.

“Well we really don’t need anypony else causing damage around here, we already have to worry about Rainbow Dash crashing into ponies after a failed trick, (Hey!) Derpy knocking buildings down, as well as these three causing trouble.” She points towards the Crusaders as the look down into the pit, oblivious to what is being said about them. “Well at least there is still less chance of me doing that much damage since I made sure that my lab here was as far from town as possible as well as sealed off so only I can get in. I really don’t want to see those three get ahold of a load of dangerous fireworks, they’d probably level half the town.”

This brings various responses to the gathered pony’s faces, from worried to amused, and I turn my attention to the three as I catch sight of something odd. I notice that as Sweetie Belle sits near the pit that her horn is starting to spark more and more and she rubs her head occasionally. I see Selene nearby as well, and thinking back to what Twilight said when they all arrived I realize that there might be a problem in the making. Before I can say anything though there is a loud popping sound from Selene, as of something breaking, and the illusion on her and her choker fade away, causing the gathered ponies to gasp at her appearance.

I sigh and shake my head at the situation and try to forestall any panic by first getting her out of the way so I can speak with the others. “Selene, why don’t you and the Crusaders head back to the manor and get out one of the pies from the pantry to share?” She looks at me oddly as she hasn’t noticed the illusion around her is gone yet but makes her way back to the house with the Crusaders following at a slower pace, their faces a mix between confusion on what happened and happiness at the thought of pie.

Twilight and her friends just watch the four leave in various states of shock, though I notice Fluttershy looks more to be confused and Pinkie is just being Pinkie. As I let out another sigh Twilight whips her head around to me and tries to say something yet she seems to be having trouble forming words in her confusion and surprise so I cut her off. “Well this wasn’t the way I wanted you all to find out about this but since it has I’ll explain over at the library. I will say two things before we head over there though; no she isn’t Nightmare Moon; and no Princess Celestia doesn’t know; and she doesn’t need to know until Selene is ready.”

At that I walk towards the library with the others following when they realize that I am ignoring any further questions. I can hear Twilight give a huff of annoyance when she notices this and I catch her glaring at me out of the corner of my eye. I could have said something more, but I was still tired from focusing so much magic at once that I was more focused on keeping upright.

Arriving at the library I make my way to a convenient cushion and flop down atop it and wait for everyone to settle down. This takes a while as Pinkie decided to raid the kitchen before I started with the help of Rainbow Dash. Once they brought the food and drinks out and found places to be seated I started in on the explanation.

“I guess I should start at the beginning of when I found out about Selene, and please try not to interrupt with random questions.” I say the last part while looking at Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash, the first trying to look innocent and the second looking a tad offended. “I first found her out in the old castle ruins in the Everfree Forest. I originally went there looking for something to help deal with that problem in the manor when I first arrived since there was no information to be found in this library.”

Twilight perks up a bit at this as she realizes what I mean. “Wait, you mean there is actually a library in the castle still?” I just nod to her and continue before she can sidetrack the story. “Yes, and with a few spells I was able to find what I needed. Of course the first time using the spell I knocked myself out and found that all the food I brought with me was stolen and I caught my first glimpse of Selene.”

There are various reactions to this part though I’d guess Twilight is focused more on the spell part. “Eventually she started to talk to me and I eventually learned how she was terrified of you six and the princesses, though she called them her sisters at first.” This gets a gasp out of all of them as it in a way would confirm who they thought she was.

“The thing is she had no memories of anything before the night you six were at the castle, even though she did have some knowledge of things she shouldn’t have had. Later on I stumbled onto where she was living at the time accidentally where I learned most of this about her. Over time she started to trust me more and more and eventually, after knocking myself out after casting another spell, she finally showed herself to me.”

Applejack speaks up at this point. “Ya really seem to knock yourself out often enough; maybe we should be worrying about ya more than what damage ya can do to the town.” This gets a laugh out of them all and even I join in as I had started noticing that trend with this story. “Yeah, well at least it’s usually only me getting hurt unlike when a certain pegasus flies around crashing into others (Hey!).” Once everyone calms down from another round of laughter I continue.

“Anyways once she revealed herself I eventually was able to talk her into moving in with me since it would be less likely for her to be found at the manor with someone to protect her than alone in the castle. Of course Pinkie Pie had to go and mess up those plans right away by scaring her half to death as soon as we got there.” I shoot a look at the pink party pony as she tries to look innocent when everyone turns to look at her.

“Wait, you mean Pinkie Pie knew about her since you brought her into your home and didn’t tell anyone or throw a party?” Twilight seems really surprised about this and considering the pony in question she would be. “Well I was able to convince her to hold off for a while, and Selene shivering in terror under my furniture also helped as well. She did eventually throw a small party for her and the Crusaders when she had settled in more.”

This earns a few headshakes as Pinkie Pie and small party usually don’t fit together that well. “Using the choker you saw on her when it broke I created an illusion to hide who she was while I worked on her fear of all of you. I’m pretty sure it overloaded after the accident I had out there since it flooded the area with magic I believe. Considering what Twilight sensed when it happened and Sweetie Belle’s reaction to being near the pit I’m pretty sure that is what happened at least.”

Rarity looks up at this with a worried look. “What do you mean Sweetie Belle’s reaction? What was happening to her?” She looks to be about to begin panicking before I reassure her. “Well she was rubbing her head as if she had a headache and her horn was shooting off sparks. I should have been completely drained of magic after shielding myself from the explosion but I had more energy when I woke up afterwards yet my physical strength was drained. With how young and untrained she was I think her body was overflowing with energy from the area and was leaking out. Getting her away from the area would have helped her there.”

Rarity looks relieved about this though I saw a look in Twilight’s eyes when I reminded her of the explosion. “I’m pretty sure she is fine around most of you now with her disguise as she wasn’t panicking when you all walked up; and she has actually been enjoying the letters she has been exchanging with Princess Luna lately so I’m hoping she can actually be herself around here soon.”

Twilight had been taking a drink at that moment and ended up spraying it all over the place. Once she caught her breathe and stopped talking she blurted out. “Wait, you mean Princess Luna already knew about her and hasn’t done anything?!” I laugh a bit at her reaction which earns me a dirty look. “Yes she has, since she came for those books after I woke up from saving Scootaloo. Selene returned earlier than expected that day and when she saw the princess ran screaming to hide in her room.”

There are a few odd looks at this while I continue. “At that point I told Princess Luna what I knew and suspected at the time. No she wasn’t Nightmare Moon as the princess had already accepted being her. Selene seems to have been formed from Princess Luna’s magic and whatever else the Elements of Harmony stripped from her and purified. It’s the only theory I have that fits since nobody knows what all the Elements can do, and the fact that Selene’s memories start at that point and why she has some of the knowledge she does. So really she is a completely new filly born from Princess Luna and the Elements and not Nightmare Moon.”

As I finish they all huddle up to converse as I rest my voice and snack on some of the nearby food. There seems to be a bit of arguing between them all, though they are quiet enough that I can’t quite make out what they are saying. Considering how long they had known II was pretty sure what side Pinkie and Fluttershy were on, but I was unclear on the others though I would be willing to bet that Twilight wanted to contact her teacher. Thinking over things I did get an idea that caused me to chuckle and I probably wouldn’t have a chance to use it again later.

“You know; if Selene knew the whole story I wonder if she would want to call all six of you Daddy.” The six mares freeze as I say this and slowly turn towards me with Applejack responding first. “What in tarnation is that supposed to mean?” I let out a chuckle at the looks on their faces which earns me a glare from the farmer.

“Well I did say that Selene was formed from Princess Luna’s body and magic, which technically makes her the mother. Since that is the case, wouldn’t the other part that created her be the father, meaning the Elements of Harmony and you six?” They all stare at me blankly until all of a sudden Rarity and Rainbow Dash both collapse as they faint. I just start laughing at all their reactions as Twilight looks to be going into panic mode, Pinkie is planning a party, and Fluttershy is taking care of the two collapsed ponies. Through all this Applejack just gives me such a look which causes me to laugh even harder as she shakes her head and tries to help her friends.

It takes a while for all of them to calm down from that as well as for me to stop laughing. Twilight is the first to come up with something to say. “Despite what you have told us you haven’t said why you didn’t want Princess Celestia to know about Selene.” I just give her a little look as I remember my first meeting with the princess. “Considering what happened when she first found out about me I think you could probably guess why. I’m hoping to set up a way to know Selene on what she is and not what she looks like and the letters she sent to Luna should help there, as well as any you may want to prepare that don’t mention what Selene is. Really your reaction to her doesn’t make much sense as it shows how little you trust the Elements of Harmony.”

The last bit seems to confuse her as well as most of the others. “What do you mean by that? Of course we trust them otherwise we wouldn’t be using them on the things we have before.” I just shake my head at them as I rise up and prepare to leave. “If you trust them that much, then why were you about to panic over Selene’s look as if she was a threat when the Elements should have already taken care of Nightmare Moon? Now excuse me but I should really go and check on Selene as she probably has noticed that the illusion over her is gone and is probably panicking again. That and the Crusaders are alone with her and probably stuck my furniture to the ceiling again.”

As I leave I hear the sound of the door upstairs opening and Spike’s voice. “So what did I miss?” I just shake my head at how he can sleep through anything as I make my way home, hoping that things aren’t too bad there.

As I near I see the Crusaders leaving with Selene waving them off, her choker still on at the time. The three seem to be in good cheer but I still whisper to them about keeping Selene’s look a secret as I head inside with her. Once the door is closed I turn to Selene and get a good look at her jewelry before I finally speak. “So, did you even notice that your choker broke while everyone was gathered earlier?”

Selene just cocks her head to the side at my words before her eyes widen in fear as she turns her head to look at her now feathered wings. Her breathing rapidly increases before her eyes roll up into her head as she collapses to the ground unconscious. I just shake my head as I carry her up to her room, wondering where Umbra took off to.

Author's Note

Well I really do seem to be slowing down a lot now. Partially from burnout so maybe only doing a chapter a week will be a good thing. Not much else to say right now so enjoy.

The Day After and a Party

I awoke the next morning feeling rather odd because of the strange dream I had and try to shake it off. “Now why would I dream of Discord and Pinkie Pie having a fight using custard pies a strawberry licorice whips?” As I prepare for the day while trying to erase those images I get a hunch that Pinkie Pie may actually have something that could help out with my plans. Knowing her she’d probably use what happened yesterday as an excuse to throw a party for Selene which could actually help the town get used to her faster.

I decide to make talking to her one of the things at the top of my list today, after visiting the diamond dogs for help fixing my lab and talking with Cheerilee. I come up with an idea to at least stall the Crusaders and Selene from finding out about it as well as getting them there at the same time. Heading to my walk-in closet I open it and search through the various bags of bits until I find one of about the right size. Looking at the piles of bags in my closet I only now notice how many are in there and make yet another note to bring them to the bank sometime since I actually have an account there.

Heading downstairs I prepare breakfast for the house after setting the bag on the table and placing a timed barrier over it. I finish as the three other occupants of the place make their way downstairs towards the smells from my cooking. I cock an eye at Umbra when I see that she is in her full Lunar Guard outfit and realize that the Princess must have agreed with my idea. Soon enough breakfast is served and devoured and I stop the two fillies before they can head anywhere just yet.

“Selene, Scootaloo, can you two wait a moment. I may need a bit of a head start to try and talk with a few ponies in town so I’d like you two to wait a bit before heading off anywhere.” Scootaloo groans a bit at this while Selene looks at me in confusion. “It’s not that bad Scootaloo, and it will give you a chance to finish your homework that you are probably waiting until the last minute to do.” I can tell I hit the nail on the head with that remark as she turns away and blushes a bit. “Why don’t you go get your other two friends to come over and all do it together, once you finish it should be around lunchtime so the barrier on this will be gone then.”

I gesture to the bit bag which I estimated to contain about a hundred bits. “You can take it and use it for whatever you need after having lunch at Sugarcube Corner.” Scootaloo’s jaw drops at that considering the size of the pouch. “Are you sure? There has to be like a hundred bits in there.” I chuckle at her reaction knowing that her attention would be grabbed by the idea. “Yes, I’m sure. I have a few too many bags sitting around so someone might as well make use of them. Just be sure to not go too overboard with what you spend it all on.” Scootaloo enthusiastically nods her head at me as she rushes off to gather the other two. Selene looks a bit unsure about all this as she goes and gets things ready for their arrival.

Umbra approaches me after they are both out of sight. “Well that was rather generous of you, though I’m guessing you know something considering what you suggested.” I just shake my head before I reply. “Not really, but knowing Pinkie Pie there’s a good chance of something happening anyways. I’m also guessing that the Princess thought my idea was a good one since you are in armor.” She nods at me while brushing off a bit of dust. “Yes, and it took a while to talk her down to just this. She wanted to drag Selene to Canterlot or send a whole squad of guards when she heard about what happened. Luckily asking her about how Princess Celestia would react to her reminded her that she hasn’t said anything to her sister yet.”

I nod as I finish grabbing the last few things I need before I head out. Doing a last few checks with her I make my way towards the gem fields and the diamond dog caves. That part of the day would probably be the easiest as they still practically worshipped my which I found a bit unnerving. Once I arranged for a team of them to fix up the damage I caused I made my way back into town and tried to find Cheerilee.

My first stop was the schoolhouse, but considering school was out today it was of course empty. After a bit of searching and asking a few ponies I soon found myself in front of her home. Grabbing a convenient hard object I use it to knock on the door while lamenting the lack of door knockers outside of high-class places. Soon enough the door opened revealing the magenta teacher who looked a bit surprised to see me.

“Oh Flarenza, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit to? There isn’t something wrong with Selene is there?” I kind of feel sorry for the poor mare if problems with students are the only reason ponies came to talk to her. “Well there is and there isn’t. It’s more of a complicated issue that you should know about than an actual problem.”

I take a quick look around and am glad to see that there is no one else around. Turning back to Cheerilee I can see that she is a bit confused about what I just said. “And what issue would that be? I haven’t heard of anything happening with her unless it had something to do with that big explosion yesterday.” I wince as that really was the start of all this. “Well in a way yes. You see Selene isn’t really a thestral, we were using an enchanted collar to hide her real form and something with that explosion overloaded it so she can’t hide what she is now.”

She looks even more confused at this point. “Why would she need to hide what she looks like, especially as something that stands out like a thestral?” I think back to that day and remember how excited she seemed about being able to choose that form. “Well given how she looks it actually worked to draw attention away from the important thing. You see she happens to be a relative of Princess Luna and combined with her looks you can probably guess what problems would arise.”

The teacher looks confused for a second and is about to say something when her pupils shrink to pinpricks as she realizes something. “Th-that is… How did I not notice that before? Is she dangerous?” I just give her a look which she shrinks back a bit from. “I don’t know why don’t you tell me? She has been in your class for over a year now.” At least she has the courtesy to look ashamed of herself for her reaction at my word.

“Sorry, I just didn’t expect something like this to just come out of nowhere.” I sigh and hope that this kind of reaction isn’t one to be repeated. “Well that reaction really is part of why she had the disguise. If it makes you feel any better Princess Luna already knows that she is here and has a guard stationed here, Lieutenant Umbra Rose.” Cheerilee looks a bit relieved at this information though her eyebrow does rise. “Huh, I had wondered why she was always hanging around the school. It also explains why I never heard about her having any sort of job around town as well.”

I nod and am thankful that she is at least somewhat easy to get through to compared to a few others I can think of in town. “Well I have a few others I need to talk to about Selene before she leaves the manor and is seen. Just please try not to treat her any differently than before as it is only her looks that are like Nightmare Moon. You’d think you ponies would remember that Princess Luna was Nightmare Moon, not some young filly.” She winces a bit at that little jab but doesn’t speak against it as I depart with a wave.

As I walk away I try to decide where to stop next and decide on seeing Pinkie Pie before going to Mayor Mare. I might as well see if there really is a party being set up somewhere and try to veto anything that might be a bit overboard. It’ll be bad enough with what needs to be told without adding some of the other craziness.

Looking up at the sky I note that it looks to be a couple hours before lunch still so Sugarcube Corner should still be relatively empty. Making my way there I find that I am correct as the place looks to be rather empty right now. Making my way inside I see one of the Cakes at the register, and after asking, am pointed towards the kitchen where Pinkie Pie is. I nod in thanks and make my way back there carefully as things often end up flying when Pinkie cooks.

Luckily things seem to be pretty calm in there right now, calm for Pinkie at least, and nothing seems to be airborne. Looking at her I notice an ear twitch and she looks over her shoulder at me. “Oh hey Flarie, just give me a moment to get these cupcakes in the oven.” Well things weren’t airborne until now; I think as I watch a few cupcake trays fly across the room and land in the oven before it closes and turns on. “So what can I do for you today?”

I notice that something seems a bit off about her today so I decide to get right to the point. “Well I’m just checking with you to see when and where the party today is.” When I see sweat starting to form on her brow I know something is up. “Party? What Party? I don’t know anything about a party.” As she tries to subtly nudge her party cannon out of sight I knew something was up. I then remember what has happened every time she tried to throw a party around me and I let out a chuckle.

“Pinkie Pie you don’t have to worry about me preventing another party, I really don’t want to cause the mayor to make another law about that, I just want to make sure you don’t mention a couple things.” I can actually see her mane inflate a bit as I say this and a grin grows on her face.

“OhI’msohappyyousaidthatbecauseIwasworriedIwouldhavetohidethepartyfromyoubutthenIcouldn’tinviteyouwhichwouldmakeyousadbeingleftoutandIwouldn’twanttomakeyousadsoIwouldhavehadtoinviteyoubutthenyouwouldhaveknownaboutitandtriedtostopitan-“ I just plant a paw over her mouth at this point as my head spins trying to keep up with what she was saying. “Yes Pinkie, I know I’ve been a bit unreasonable before but things have changed since then. I really just wanted to make sure you avoided saying anything about how Selene was born or anything about who her mother or fathers could be. Anything else should be fine, such as her being related to the Princesses. Oh and she should be around here around lunch time with her friends.”

Pinkie gets her familiar thinking look on her face as she rubs her chin with a hoof. “Okie dokie loki!” And with that she proceeds to bounce out of the kitchen with me shaking my head as she goes. I was glad that she really did have a party planned as that would probably do most of the work of getting the town used to how Selene really looked.

Leaving the bakery I decide that the mayor would probably be the best pony to see next since it isn’t often that she gets advanced warning of potential problems. I figure it would make up for the problems I’ve caused her in the past though she still probably wouldn’t be very happy with me anyways. Arriving at the town hall I am glad to find it mostly empty now and am quickly waved on through to the mayor’s office. I am surprised to see her actually looking happy as she always seems so stressed out. Of course when she spots me her happiness vanishes to be replaced with annoyance and something else I can’t identify.

She sighs before she speaks. “All right, now what problem are you bringing me this time?” Her reaction to seeing me here really isn’t surprising but I make a note to try and cause a few less problems for her in the future. “I guess I deserve that, but at least this time it shouldn’t be as bad as it usually is, I hope.” She doesn’t look reassured at my words and just continues to glare at me. “Well I’m taking care of the issues with that explosion yesterday, but something else came up you should know about before the town starts to panic.”

The mayor starts looking worried about what I am going to say as panic-causing issues have been hit the town a little too often lately. “Well you’ve probably seen that filly around town that looks like a thestral, but that isn’t what she really looks like. In fact she is a relative of Princess Luna and the item causing her disguise broke recently.” She just looks at me like I’m crazy now. “And just how is that a panic-causing issue? And why haven’t I heard about the Princesses having another relative before?”

I wonder how to explain this without making things worse but can’t think of anything. “Well the reason you haven’t heard is because it’s been a secret until now obviously.” She just rolls her eyes at me. “But the reason she may cause a panic is that she looks like a filly Nightmare Moon.” The mayor’s jaw drops open at this information and she buries her face in her hoof. “And assuming I believe you, what exactly do you think I am supposed to do about this?” I can tell she believes me but looks to be struggling at trying not to.

“Well I’m hoping you can at least keep ponies calm, especially that flower trio. I’m hoping Pinkie Pie’s party can resolve most of the problems and the presence of a Lieutenant of the Lunar Guard will at least reassure the town.” Her head jerks up at this news with her eyes wide. “Wait, you mean that the Princesses already know about her? And they have her out here with you instead of at Canterlot?”

Of course she would have to ask that question. I just hope she’ll accept a vague answer. “Well there was a bit of a family incident that they want to keep private. I’ve been taking care of her since I found her and have been working on getting them back together. In fact Princess Luna has been trading letters back and forth with each other lately.” Watching her I notice a look of relief start passing over her face. “So you are saying everything has pretty much been taken care of and I just have to keep the panic down? Well it should be much easier to deal with than what normally happens around you or a few other mares in town.”

She seems to remember something else and shakes her head with a sigh. “I thank you for the information; it’s nice to actually get some warning before something actually happens, especially a Pinkie Pie party. At least I can remind her to clean things up today instead of having to do so after the mess has been made. Now if you’ll excuse me I have to go find out where this is happening so that I can plan for any potential damage in the area.” She shoos me out the door so I head off towards my next destination.

I stop quickly by Fluttershy’s to see if she could potentially help with something later as well as to check with Rainbow Dash about it as well. Once done there I made my way towards Sweet Apple Acres. While the six did seem fine with what I said yesterday I felt that it would be best to check on them now that they had a night’s sleep to think things over. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy had known for a while and didn’t seem to have any major problems, but the others were a different story.

I soon found Applejack out in her orchard by following the sound of hooves meeting wood. She must have been thinking hard as she didn’t notice me approach until I cleared my throat. “Well you look like you are deep in thought about something.” Her head whips around in my direction in surprise before she calms down after seeing me. “Oh, it’s you. Well ah’ve just been thinking about yesterday. Ah’m not really sure what to think about what you’ve told us though ah don’t think I like how ya went about it all though.”

I should have guessed that it would be something related to honesty that would cause her to have issues. “Of course, I should have guessed it would be something like that. It needed to be done though, at least for a little while. You’ve seen what happens in this town when something different shows up, plus there was also her problems after she came to be because of the Elements.”

She just shakes her head as she takes a buck at the next tree. “Ah know that, but it still doesn’t sit well with me. It just feels too much like we’ve been lied to all this time.” There isn’t much I can say to that as she is correct in a way. “You’re right, in a way you were being lied to, yet the only thing was her appearance. It’s no different than when I showed up in town myself really. The only thing hidden was what we truly looked like; the important parts, what is inside, were all true though. In fact she would never have left my home if she didn’t have that disguise to protect her.”

She looks thoughtful for a moment before continuing her work once more. “Ah never thought about it like that before. So it’s more like a big secret than anything, really.” I think about that for a second and realize that it is a pretty good comparison. “You’re right about that, though I can guess part of why you dislike disguises though considering what happened at the wedding.” She shudders as I bring that day up though I did actually enjoy that day a bit.

“I’m just glad that you aren’t completely against the thought of what she is at least. I guessed that a few of you would be having doubts but I’m glad that you only cared about an issue outside of her. If any of you saw her before I brought her from the castle you’d probably be trying to protect her in my place, at least if you could look past her appearance.” She raises an eyebrow at this, seeming impressed by something. “Well that there is something ah can respect; not many would protect a filly that wasn’t of their own kind. Ah’ve come to follow mah sister’s judgment a bit more when it comes to things that are different. After the embarrassment of her showing me up with Zecora and that thestral ah’ve started to listen to her more often.”

I nod, a bit impressed that she is doing that more often as she always had a habit of ignoring her opinion due to her age. “Well I have to go if I want to get through talking with everyone I had planned before the Pinkie party.” AJ looks at me oddly for a second. “Pinkie party? What one is that?” I wonder if she is joking or not. “A big event happened last night with Selene and you don’t stop to think that Pinkie would throw a party over it? I asked that she try and not mention a couple things but I think it’ll be a good thing for her to be seen by the town with those the town trusts.”

AJ looks a bit worried and excuses herself to go and find Pinkie. I wonder about what she knew that I didn’t though things seemed to be working out well. I decide to find out later at the party and decide to make my way to my next stop. Rainbow Dash probably would come around later as she is affected more by actions than words so I decide to see Rarity next. I arrive at her boutique to find her pacing back and forth while deep in thought.

“Well I didn’t expect to find you in the same state that AJ was in, but I guess it’s better than the panicking that seems to be the usual way of this town.” I find myself two for two in sneaking up on thinking ponies as Rarity lets out a little yelp of surprise. “Flarenza?! When did you get here?” I shake my head and dread what it is going to be like at my last stop. “Just now. I’ve been checking in everyone that knows about Selene as well as letting a few others know. I’m hoping that with enough effort today stays a normal day that doesn’t involve pulling panicked ponies out of plants.”

She looks at me oddly for a moment before rolling her eyes at me. “Well this is a lot to take in, dear. I mean to think that all this time we had two princesses appearing that night but one of them was practically thrown away without anypony knowing. Sure she may look like that horrid Nightmare Moon, yet whenever she was here with Sweetie Belle she was as sweet as Fluttershy and just about as shy.” I really feel like I may have underestimated these ponies as I was expecting more panic than understanding.

“Well you’ve got the shy part right. You should have seen them both when I first brought her over to meet Fluttershy. They were both hiding in opposite corners of the room from each other for a long time.” Rarity’s eyes go a bit glassy at this and she lets out a laugh at the mental image she must have had. “Yes I can just picture that happening. I mean Selene always looked like she was about to take off running whenever she was here, the poor dear. Just remembering how she acted and then trying to picture her as Nightmare Moon; I just can’t picture the two being the same.”

I didn’t think that letting them get to know her while in disguise would help so much. “I’m actually surprised that you all have been taking all this so well especially considering what usually happens when a being that looks different shows up.” She looks a bit embarrassed when I point that out. “You do have a point there, but with Selene it is a bit different since we had time to get to know her before this all happened. Of course being able to design something for another member of royalty doesn’t hurt either.” She mutters that last bit almost too quiet for me to hear and I just roll my eyes. I was wondering when a typical Rarity response would come up.

“Well since things are fine here I should head towards the library now. While most of you did have time to get to know her, that isn’t as true with Twilight. I’m not even sure how much time they’ve spent around each other since they met.” She nods in understanding as she escorts me to the door. “Yes, well if you need any help with her in any way, be sure to let me know.” I give her a parting nod to her offer and make my way to the library hoping things are in as good of a condition as the rest of my stop.

Unfortunately things had been going too well and the sound of things crashing into walls and books flying by the windows shows that things will probably be difficult here. As I approach I see Spike storm out of the place with a very disheveled Twilight yelling after him from the door. “But what if I really do need you to send a letter?!” Spike doesn’t even look back as he responds. “Well if you do you can come and find me instead of calling me every five minutes just to decide not to send it.”

I realize that things may have been worse here than I thought if Twilight had a letter ready to send. Luckily there was something holding her back still but not by much it seems. I nod to Spike as we pass each other though he doesn’t seem to notice me. I notice that Twilight had gone back inside so I follow through the still open door.

Inside I find the place to be a complete mess with what looks like at least half the books just scattered all over the place. I find Twilight racing back and forth going from one book to another as she frantically looks for something. I sigh and close the door before I clear off a space on the couch before flopping down on it to watch the show. She is so focused on what she is doing that she doesn’t even register that I am there.

I notice a card on the table, and upon reading it, find that the party is around the time that Selene and the Crusaders should be reaching Sugarcube Corner. I can’t believe I forgot to ask for when it was going to be. She’s really good at distracting others. Of course what really catches my attention is it mentions a possible Princess attending which tells me part of why Twilight is in a panic.

I can probably guess which one it will be if she doesn’t mean Selene, but I doubt Twilight is thinking that. Soon enough, exactly five minutes after Spike left, Twilight’s head jerked towards the door and she started rushing towards it. Seeing this I just sigh and throw up a barrier outside of the door. As I predicted Twilight didn’t sense the energy as she threw open the door and tried to bolt out in search of Spike. It was almost comical the way her form flattened against the barrier as she ran full speed into it, and luckily I made it softer than normal or else she could have been hurt.

The impact seems to have shaken her out of her panic though as she rises and shakes her head. “Wh-What just happened?” Seeing as she actually seems to be somewhat lucid now I decide to make my presence known. “Well at least now you seem to be able to register things outside of whatever little world you were in.”

I laugh as Twilight is startled bad enough that she jumps and clings to the top of the open door. “Flarenza?! When did you-? How did-? Were you the one that put a barrier in front of me? I could have gotten hurt you know.” I manage to calm my laughter enough to reply as she climbs down from the door. “Well the fact that you were so far out of it that you didn’t notice it made it a good idea, and it was set to reduce impacts so you wouldn’t have gotten hurt. If anything you would have probably hurt others as you run right through them in your search for Spike considering how out of it you were.”

She looks a bit embarrassed about how out of it she was. “Well excuse me for worrying about what was going to happen. It’s not every day that the Princess is coming to town where she will find out that you’ve been hiding a pony that looks like another that was a threat to the kingdom!” I sigh as I guessed that it would be about something like this. “And how do you know that Princess Celestia is going to be coming?”

She just gives me a look as if I was crazy. “Well who else would it be? It’s not like she’s, I don’t know, the Princess?!” I can see that she’s starting to get worked up into her crazy mode again. “How about the fact that there are two other Princesses that are just as important as her? With Selene being a potential third depending on how the issues with her get sorted out?” She opens her mouth to reply but freezes when she realizes she kind of slighted both Luna and Cadence with her words. Unfortunately this realization just puts her into more of a panic.

“No! Nononono I didn’t mean it like that! Please don’t tell them I said that, they’d hate me forever an-“ From there Twilight’s rant starts to enter Pinkie Pie levels of nonsense so I do the only thing that comes to mind. Forming another barrier into a small rectangular shape I use it and firmly slap Twilight once on each side of her muzzle. This ends her little rant and she just stares at me wide-eyed; not believing that I actually did that. “Well it’s good to know that that one book was right about physical stimuli breaking being out of a panic. We really need to get you a book that has the words ‘Don’t Panic’ in big bold letters on the cover.”

She continues to just glare at me, not appreciating the humor. “Anyways you really should try to worry less about this as you can’t plan for everything. If Princess Celestia really does show up then we’ll just explain everything to her. It’s not like she needs to know about every little thing going on in the kingdom and I’m pretty sure she trusts her sister enough to handle any trouble she finds out about without needing her. Now would you like to calmly talk about this without going into ‘Crazy Twilight Mode’?”

Twilight looks like she is going to try to just keep glaring at me in silence so I just calmly return her gaze. I am impressed by how well she can pull of a glare similar to the Princesses but it still lacks the force of presence they have. Eventually she just lets out a large sigh before beginning to speak.

“Fine, I wrote a letter to the Princess listing all the good and bad things that have been going on surrounding Selene and your involvement in all of it. I also put down the theories you had as well as what I could find myself as well as any counter-measures I could think of in case she decides to do anything from take over Equestria to take over the school. Then I realized that there was more information I could add every time I called for Spike so I had to send him away and start again.”

I must have really annoyed her if she is keeping her explanation so brief and lacking in details. Still it gives me an idea of what she was doing, which was going overboard in researching things, and it also gives me an idea. “And what about the things that you can’t put down in a letter accurately? The things that someone has to personally see or feel to know what is going on? I don’t think a letter is really going to work when letting the Princess know about Selene, it has to be done directly or not at all otherwise she may come charging in with the wrong idea. Kind of like what happened when she came for me don’t you think?”

She doesn’t look any happier yet but she does get a thoughtful look on her face. As the seconds pass I can see the tension slowly drain from it until she eventually sighs. “I guess you’re right about that. But you know that she is probably isn’t going to be happy with you when she does find out about Selene.” Not like she is all that happy about me whenever she sees me anyways. “Well it’s better me than her since she hasn’t done anything wrong.”

I look over at the clock and see that it is almost time for the party, and glancing out the window I can see Selene and the Crusaders heading that way now. “Even if you sent the letter now it wouldn’t matter as it is almost time for the party anyways. If you want we can talk more about this afterwards and you can even check with whichever Princess it is that’s there for advice.” She sullenly nods in agreement and we are about to leave before I remember the other thing I needed to ask her about.

“Before we go though, do you happen to have any books on wing care buried in this mess of a library?” She looks around at the place, only now seeming to see the mess she had caused. “Um, I think so but I have no idea where it would be right now. Why do you need a book like that anyways?” I start casting my book searching spell while I explain. “Well I’ve noticed that Scootaloo’s wings have been getting bigger lately which I think were kept unnaturally small due to malnutrition. The thing is though is that they look to be rather messy when compared to Fluttershy’s or Rainbow Dash’s wings and Selene’s aren’t much better. I’ve already requested some help from Fluttershy about it and whoever sees Rainbow Dash first will ask her as well.”

She starts to nod but pauses when she realizes something. “What do you mean by malnutrition? Have Scootaloo’s parents been having trouble keeping her fed right?” I realize that I haven’t told any of the others about Scootaloo’s situation even though there were plenty of clues hinting at it. “Well she has been living with me since I saved her, and as far as I can tell she doesn’t have any parents as she hasn’t said anything about them and nobody has come in search of her.”

Twilight’s eye is has a little tick going before she throws her hooves up in frustration. “Ugh, and you’ve kept that a secret for this long as well? I’m starting to see why the Princess would get annoyed with you. Makes me wonder what else you haven’t told us.” I find the book I am looking for and decide to treat that as an actual request for information. “Oh, not much else really, other than the supply of fireworks I have in my basement. Or the fact that I am helping Trixie get her show up and going again. Or the time I set Discord on fire. Oh and there’s also the fact that the diamond dogs seem to worship me, which I find a tad creepy, and will do just about anything I say. Oh and let’s not forget about the time I helped Princess Luna destroy what remained of Sunny Town.”

Twilight’s eye tick keeps getting faster at every point I name off until I finally finish. She just gives me the same type of annoyed look I’ve gotten from the Princess before she finally responds. “It was supposed to be a rhetorical statement, and what do you mean by you set Discord on fire?” I just let out a laugh as I explain while heading out the door towards the party. By the time I finish she looks like she has a headache and probably wishes she didn’t ask.

When we arrive at Sugarcube Corner I can see that things seem to be in full swing. On entering the place though, we find that things are not going as well as expected. I can see Rainbow Dash huddled up in one corner of the place, with Selene over near the drinks looking rather sad. Near her is Pinkie Pie whose mane looks a bit too straight for my liking as she glares at the assembled ponies, who are all glancing fearfully at Selene. I can see the Crusaders trying to reassure the young alicorn, and I’m about to head over myself when I see Derpy and the brown stallion I’ve seen with her approach them.

Curious about what they are saying I make my way over to them and catch Derpy introducing the stallion. “And this is The Doctor.” Selene just tilts her head in confusion at her. “The Doctor? Doctor who?” The stallion just gives her a grin before replying. “Exactly!” Everyone that heard this exchange just looks at him oddly but all turn to Pinkie Pie who has burst out laughing as if she just heard some sort of great joke. Thankfully her mane has gone back to its usual curly state yet when everyone turns back the Doctor and Derpy had vanished.

Wherever they went I was thankful for what they did as it seems to have broken the fear holding down the party as a few other ponies started approaching Selene to talk with her. Seeing that she is going to be fine, even if she does look slightly uncomfortable at being the center of attention, I decide to go check on the shivering cyan pegasus.

“So, I’m guessing you were being mean to her and she took my advice.” This seems to snap her out of her daze and she looks up at me angrily. “You! I just knew you had something to do with that! Do you know how embarrassing that was to have her say that with that face?!” I just chuckle a bit as I knew exactly how it would affect her. “Well if she had to use my advice then it means you were looking like the bad filly bullying a little foal.” She just turns away and mutters something I don’t catch, but knowing her she is agreeing but not wanting to openly admit it.

“Anyways I was wondering if Fluttershy talked to you about what I requested of you two.” She seems appreciative of the topic change before things got worse for her. “Oh yeah, she did. I’m fine with the idea but why would you be asking for help for Scootaloo?” I start to wonder how oblivious they can get with what is in front of their faces. “Well I’ve been helping her out a lot and I saw how bad her wings have been looking. I picked up a book to help but there are things you can’t learn well from one that is better shown by others.”

Rainbow Dash looks over at the filly and her eyes widen at the sight that meets her. “Whoa, they really do look pretty bad. I can see why you wanted me to help, only the best for my little sister.” I just roll my eyes as her boastful attitude is returning again. “Well that and I’m obviously the worst choice for helping out. For one I don’t have wings, and secondly these would cause more problems than they’d help.” At this I give her a big grin revealing the rows of sharp teeth in my mouth which she looks at warily. “Uh yeah, those would be bad for her wings. Now can you stop that, it’s getting kinda creepy.”

I oblige and am about to say something else when I hear a gasp from the door. Turning that way I see that my earlier hunch was right as Princess Luna enters the building. Most of those in the building bow to her, the exception mostly being the foals that swarm up to her. I notice that Selene hasn’t spotted her yet, though the opposite isn’t true as she slowly approaches her. I keep a close eye on this as I’m not sure what will happen but trust that Pinkie Pie knew what she was doing.

Soon enough Luna is right next to Selene and she takes some time to examine her. When she says something I can see Selene freeze up and slowly turn her head towards her. I can’t hear what is being said from where I am, but I notice a look of fear on the filly’s face, but also a look of something like hope. Princess Luna continues to speak to her as she lowers herself down to the ground to seem less imposing, and from where I am it looks like it’s helping some.

I can see that those nearby have backed away a good distance from the two as this all happens, though the Crusaders look ready to jump in if needed. I notice Selene is starting to loosen up enough to actual reply to the Princess and the fear is slowly fading as well. Looking around I notice that everyone in the place has gone silent and is watching to see what is going to happen between the two. I don’t think any of them expected what did happen though as Selene rushed up to Luna who brought her wings and a foreleg around her in a hug.

This seems to have completely broken any bad feeling around the party as some cheering erupts from the watchers and those closest to the two advance. I notice that Twilight is hanging around the area hoping to talk with Luna, but for myself I decide to just enjoy the party and let things happen on their own now.

Author's Note

Well that chapter ended up long than I expected. Still that should be about the end of the lighter stuff with something different popping up in the next chapter. I've probably left out important information somewhere so if there are any questions, feel free to ask.

Teaching Sweetie

Things started to settle down after the party introducing Selene to the town. While not all the ponies in town fully accepted her; most were at least cordial with her especially after seeing Princess Luna’s reaction to her. Twilight also seemed to calm down after talking with Luna who must have told her just what she needed to know. Through it all I was able to relax as the problems I feared didn’t arise, even if there were some close calls.

Still I had one more pony to really convince and I had no clue what to do except try to get her in a good mood when she is told. Until that time I decided to spend more time around town with less time doing research and exploring the forest. Much of the time I would spend keeping track of Selene and the Crusaders, though I would have to get help from those that knew better about some things, like Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash for flying issues.

It was a few weeks before the start of winter when I was watching over the two without wings while Selene and Scootaloo were getting lessons from the older pegasi. To distract them I was showing them some of the rune magic that I used when I had time to draw them out. I figured that it would be useful in teaching Sweetie Belle how to better utilize her magic and maybe even teach her what she may have been doing wrong.

I had drawn out a simple array using the runes that would cast a levitation spell and was watching Sweetie Belle try to power it. Applebloom watched on in interest as there was anything else for her to do. “Okay Sweetie, just channel your magic into this circle and try to feel out how it shapes your energy.” I watched as she struggled to do as I said though I can tell she is having trouble. I’m not sure exactly how unicorns channel their magic through there horn so I make note to try to get Twilight or her sister to give her some advice. Probably both as there are probably a variety of ways for them to do it so her having a few ways to try would be useful.

Eventually I could see her horn slowly start to light up as she finally managed to gather her energy. Once she got that far she was actually able to direct it into the circle well enough to get the rock within it to shakily rise a few inches off the ground. I smiled as she was able to succeed though I notice she wasn’t watching though until Applebloom spoke up. “Look Sweetie Belle, you’re doing it!”

At this the white unicorn’s eyes shot open. “I am!?” She was able to see the rock floating for just a moment before her concentration faltered and it fell to the ground again. “Aww, it stopped. Stupid horn.” I shake my head at her disappointment and look at stone. “Well it just means you need to work on your concentration a bit more, and how you charged your horn could use a bit of work as well. Still, the fact you were able to lift it is a really good sign though.” I really was impressed as the rock was easily three times her size and I was more looking into testing how well her magic worked and not her actual abilities.

“Really Sweetie Belle, you usually have trouble with lifting a pencil and yet you picked that huge thing up like it was nothing.” Sweetie Belle blushed a bit at the praise from her fellow Crusader but still seemed a tad disappointed. “She is right Sweetie. To be truthful I wasn’t actually expecting you to be able to lift something of this size yet. I was planning to start with a large size and work down until we reached something that you actually could lift.”

This actually seemed to help her mood a bit as she looked a tad happier about this information. Applebloom moved closer to the unicorn and put her hoof on her shoulder. While they were preoccupied with each other I noticed the rock starting to wobble again, but without any action from Sweetie Belle. Wondering what was causing this I looked down at the circle in curiosity to notice the earth pony’s hoof in contact with it. It takes me a moment but my eyes widen in realization and I quickly wipe the main runes powering the circle. Right, I think I had better be more careful with what I teach them if any of the three can activate these circles. It sure explains why I haven’t been able to find many recent innovations regarding them.

Thinking back to the work I did for Cadence I made a note to send her a letter about this as it could help with the crystal research some more. Turning back to the two I decided that there was enough teaching for one day. “I’m not sure how to help with your issues, but I think your sister or Twilight could help you more as they know how your horns work. But for now we should probably get a meal ready for when the others come down.”

Sweetie Belle looks enthusiastic about this though Applebloom looks at her warily for a moment before nodding to me. I pause to consider why she reacted like that until I remember some of the stories Rarity told me about her sister. I almost change my mind until an idea comes to mind that could work. I set Applebloom on some of the simpler things and desserts while I set Sweetie on the stove with a cook book for some fish dishes. The young earth pony just gives me a look, probably wondering what I am thinking, before getting to work on her preparations.

I keep an eye on the two as they work on what they were set to as I do my own work. Applebloom flinches when the pan in front of Sweetie Belle bursts into flames and the unicorn nearly panics but calms down when I don’t move to stop anything and eventually the flames die down as they finish consuming the alcohol. She didn’t even realize what she was using to do the cooking as it was from unlabeled bottles that I kept in a sealed area. This happens a few more times with each one she prepares, but when I don’t do anything she steadily calms down until she doesn’t even flinch with the last one, yet Applebloom just continues to look at me as if I’m crazy.

I sneak a peek at the first one that Sweetie Belle made, and from what I could see it looked fine, though I couldn’t say much about the taste yet. Still I added a last few touches to them so that they look even more presentable. Once the two were done I sent them over to set the table as I finished up the last few things and brought everything over. Soon enough the four flyers came downstairs from their little wing lessons. Fluttershy pauses when she sees all the food laid out while Rainbow Dash rushes to a nearby chair.

“Oh Flarenza, you didn’t have to cook for us.” Fluttershy speaks first in her predictable manner when being offered kindness. “What are you talking about Fluttershy? She already cooked it so we might as well dig in.” I just chuckle at the banter between the two. “Well it’s the least I could do for you taking your time to help Selene and Scootaloo. Granted Rainbow Dash would have probably got around to it eventually, whenever she could clear her schedule of naps and reading.” The blue pegasus starts to nod before realizing what I just said. “Hey!” The rest of the ponies just laugh at this, except for Scootaloo who tries to defend her but is drowned out by the laughing.

Once everyone had calmed down I passed out the meal to everyone. The ones who hadn’t seen what was going on while we cooked looked impressed, though Applebloom refused the fish previously which was understandable as earth ponies didn’t need fish in their diet like pegasi or unicorns that were using magic often. Fluttershy slowly picked at hers, due to a combination of being disturbed about eating meat and the knowledge of needing it in her diet, while the rest dug in to their food. I was pleased that the taste came out better than I expected for the fish and was glad my idea actually worked.

Soon enough everyone was finished eating and the Crusaders and Selene started clearing the table while Rainbow Dash reclined a bit and patted her stomach. “That sure hit the spot. The fish may have looked fancier than I’m used to but it sure tasted good.” There were nods from the others agreeing with her which earned a blush of pleasure from Sweetie Belle and a jaw drop from Applebloom. “Well you can thank Sweetie Belle for that as she cooked all the fish herself, I just provided the instructions.” I burst out laughing at the looks on their faces as they couldn’t believe what I just said.

“How in the world did she manage that?! Everything she’s tried to cook before ends up burnt to a crisp, including orange juice!” This comes from Scootaloo which earns an indignant “Hey!” from the unicorn. I reply after I stop my laughter. “Well it really wasn’t that hard, I just had her cook something that was meant to be set on fire.” This earns a few wide-eyed stares from most of them, including Sweetie Belle, though Fluttershy looks thoughtful. “Oh, you mean like some sort of flambé?” The buttery pegasus shrinks down as the stares turn towards her, though I’m not too surprised she knows considering some of the other fancy things she’s known of before.

I nod in response to her question and Sweetie Belle perks up about something. “Hey, could it mean that…” She looks down at her flank and notices that there is still nothing there. “Aww, you mean that’s not my talent either?” This earns a few chuckles of sympathy, though I come up with something to cheer her up with. “Well it’s still something to be proud of. Not many can make something like that correctly on their first try. Maybe you should make some for Rarity when you ask her for some tips with your magic?” She brightens up at this as her sister has been a bit critical about her trying to help her.

She couldn’t wait to get back home at the information and practically bullied the others into letting her head out. She was so forceful that they couldn’t even attempt to convince her to stay any longer. She was soon speeding out the door at speeds that would rival Scootaloo on her scooter. “Well, I didn’t think that she would be that enthusiastic about it. Maybe Rarity has been ignoring her a tad bit too much.” The others just look at me before they shake their heads at this.

Soon enough Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash headed out while the three remaining fillies went off on their own together. This leaves me to myself so I decide to just do some basic work around my home. It was only a couple hours later while I was working in my garden when I sensed that someone was rushing towards the manor at a fast pace, and I could probably guess who it was. Finishing up the last little bit I made my way around to the front to find Rarity banging on my door and yelling.

I almost turn back around at this but she notices me as I come around the corner from the back. “YOU! What did you do to my sister?!” I wonder exactly what she is talking about so I decide to answer like I did Twilight before. “Not much really; helped teach her a bit about magic and a little bit of cooking.” She just stares at me with disbelief in her eyes while impersonating a goldfish. Eventually she gets her thoughts back together again, enough to respond.

“But how?! Everything that she’s made was a total disaster! But this! This was perfectly made! How?!” Ahh, now I understand a bit. She must have thought what I did is a miracle or something. “Well it wasn’t that hard after hearing some of the stories you’ve told me and how everything she cooks somehow ends up burned or on fire. So I just had her cook up something that is meant to be set on fire. She seemed rather excited to be able to do something for you; maybe you should spend a bit of time with her in thanks.”

Rarity just looks at me in shock at mentioning how the food was supposed to be set on fire as only high class places make dishes of that kind. Considering she looks to be in complete shock now and Sweetie Belle was obviously alone this time while cooking which gives me an idea take break her out of her shock.

“You know she had me watching her when I was teaching her how to make that. Was anyone keeping an eye on her in your kitchen when she was there?” Rarity seems to snap out of it a bit at my question as she looks at me oddly. Suddenly she seemed to get even paler as she took off running back to her place while being followed by my laughter.

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Things continued for the next few months at a casual pace. Trixie returned over the winter with stories of her travels and things seemed to be going well for her. While most of her shows were for children in hospitals and schools, she was able to get a few big ones together in a few towns. After word started to spread she was able to get a big one in a major city which helped repair her reputation again.

She had kept in touch with me through letters at every town she went through, letting me know how things were going. She decided to make Ponyville both her first and last stop of the years since she was staying with me during the winter. This allowed her time to practice new tricks for her shows as well as take time out to rest. While the others were still a tad wary, Twilight was actually enthusiastic about helping the blue mare with her magic and often joined me in research with her. Of course they still had the occasional magic dual, which I also joined periodically, but at least they were friendlier than they were the first couple times.

By the end of winter Trixie was at least on a speaking basis with the others, though she was rather friendly with Rarity and Fluttershy after a few trips to the spa. She was even able to relax enough with their help to finally drop the third-person speak while not performing around town. Soon enough winter ended and she performed her first show of the year before heading off once again.

Soon after Twilight and her friends had to go off to the Crystal Empire to do something related to some sort of Equestrian Games. I wasn’t sure what it was about but was able to find a bit about it in a couple books I borrowed from the library. Strangely enough Spike and the Crusaders vanished for a period while they were all gone, yet appeared again as soon as they returned. Wherever they were they weren’t missed by anyone other than Selene as she alone during that period.

In exchange for not mentioning anything to their sisters the Crusaders all agreed on a sleepover at my place while Twilight and the others went off to some border town. I didn’t catch where but AJ and Rarity seemed relieved at me agreeing to watch over the fillies. “So do you all have everything you need now?” Selene and the Crusaders nod at me. “We still have those bits you gave us before.” Selene seems has been speaking up more often since she had made up with Luna. I probably should talk with her again myself just to see what all was going on as well as if there was anything else I could do for her.

“Well if you need more you know where I keep the emergency stash. Also-“ I am interrupted by a knock at the door which surprised me as I wasn’t expecting anyone and wasn’t paying attention to what the hearth stone was telling me. “Now who could that be?”

Heading to the door I open it to find Spike waiting there with a bag of things. “Hey Spike, I didn’t expect to see you around. Any reason why?” He looks a tad uncomfortable as well as irritated at the same time. “Well Twilight didn’t want me to go with them and for some reason the Princess suggested sending me here if I didn’t go with.” I look at him oddly as this was rather unusual.

“Really? But you’ve always been fine taking care of things without anyone watching over you. Granted it probably gets pretty lonely unless you have ponies actually using the library.” He sighs before responding. “I know. Sure it will be nice to actually be able to talk with someone else, but I didn’t even have a choice about this. I don’t know why I couldn’t have gone with them to this Whinnysted place they were headed to.”

The name surprises me a bit as I actually know a bit about that place. “Really? I don’t see why they wouldn’t let you come with, it’s not like there is anything worse there than here.” Spike looks a bit excited for some reason. “You mean you’ve been there before? It’s not often you talk about the places you’ve been.” I realize that he’s right about that, though many places I’d rather not talk about.

“Well there isn’t much to say about the place. It’s a border town that also borders the Everfree Forest. It’s a good bit smaller than Ponyville and was actually the last place I went through before arriving here. There wasn’t really anything that stood out about the place other than the variety of races living there.” He seems a bit disappointed at how boring the place sounds but something is bothering me for some reason. My eyes widen as I remember one last thing about the place and I hope I’m not right about the reason why they are going there.

Spike looks a bit worried at the panic that crosses my face. “Flarenza, is there something wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” I just look at him and remember why he was sent here. “There was another thing that I remember about the town. As I was leaving I met a group of ponies just inside of the forest. The problem is that it was a group of thestrals.”

Author's Note

What a shock, Sweetie Belle actually succeeding at cooking something. It makes a bit of sense if you think about it though. Well things are about to get interesting again, and those paying attention can probably guess what to expect. Still if I forgot anything that you don't understand you can just ask. Maybe if I get enough questions I'll put together a q&a chapter or something.

Forest Jaunt to Trouble

My mind is running around frantically as I put together all the clues I have on the current situation but it always comes back to the same two answers. Either I’m wrong and Celestia just wanted Spike to not be alone while Twilight was gone; or I am right and should be really annoyed with her at trying to manipulating and Twilight and the others are heading into serious danger they aren’t prepared for. While I am trying to piece everything together Spike just looks at me strangely. “What’s so bad about seeing thestrals there? You said yourself that there is nothing wrong with them.”

My attention snaps back to the young dragon as an idea forms that could get me yelled at quite a bit. “The problem isn’t the thestrals, but the reason why they would be there in the first place. That town is nowhere near where they normally live and the only reason why they go any large distance away is to hunt.” He looks at me as if I was crazy until I finish what I was saying. “To be exact they hunt undead of the vampony variety.” At these words his eyes widen as he freezes up in shock.

Not having the time to waste calming him down I grab my packs and start rushing around the manor grabbing everything I think I will need. The first stop is to the attic to grab my mother’s gems, a few I made myself, as well as a good many raw ones. I also grab a few other random components I may need as a precaution and then raid the kitchen for supplies. Lastly I gather up a towel and my magic map as well as a normal one and start to plan my route.

Through all this the others in the place have been staring at me wondering what is going on as they had never seen me like this before. Since the six mares are taking the train to a town near that place before walking I find that the only way I could get there in time to assist them would be to travel through the Everfree Forest while using my magic as a booster and to assist with obstacles. Raising my head from the map I only now notice the others are staring at me.

“What in the hay is wrong with you Flarenza? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” I realize now that there could be a snag in my plan as the Crusaders would probably want to follow along if I tried to avoid their questions. I notice that Umbra is there and realize that I can get some confirmation on my fears. “Umbra, before Princess Luna returned what reasons were there for thestrals to be found outside of your home territories?” She looks at me oddly while Applebloom looks a bit annoyed at being ignored. “We never left those areas at all as we were in hiding from the rest of Equestria; well except for the Hunters at least. Why do you ask?”

I shiver a bit as my guess may actually be right. “Because the town that Twilight and the others are headed to was one I have been to before arriving in Ponyville. I also met a group of six thestrals there that didn’t tell me what they were there for.” Her eyes widen at the implications of this while Selene and the Crusaders just look confused. “I need you to keep an eye on everything while I’m gone, especially these four.” She nods while they start to look a bit defiant but I get an idea on how to get them to behave.

“You don’t want to follow me there as I’m expecting trouble that Twilight most likely won’t know how to handle. This is of the level of Sunny Town trouble and you know what that means Applebloom.” Her eyes shrink to pinpricks at the mention of that place even though it has been gone for a while now. “Um girls I think we had better leave everything to her. She knows best how to handle things like what happened there, right Flarenza?” She looks at me hopefully while the others seem a bit worried considering they heard about that place and their loved ones are heading to another place possibly like it.

“I won’t lie as I’m not sure if I can stop the thing I suspect is there. I hope I’m wrong and I just return after being embarrassed. If I am right though…” I use my magic to levitate the still catatonic dragon onto my back along with my packs. “…Then I will have Spike along to send a message to the Princesses to send help. Just like Twilight should have been ready for in the first place.” They look a bit relieved at this though the dragon snaps out of it at this. “Wait! What do you mean by thaaaaAAAH!”

His words rise into a yell as I rush out the door and into the Everfree at a rapid pace. I make sure he stays on with a simple application of a glue spell so I don’t have to worry about him falling off. His screams continue for a good while as I dash over roots and through the trees in the direction of Whinnysted. I have out a crystal with a compass spell cast on it so I don’t lose my way. About an hour in Spike finally stops screaming though he is still clinging to my back as I am moving at a pace faster than a pony could through this type of terrain.

Soon enough we reach the river and I pause for a second to double check the maps which gives Spike time to be heard. “Are you crazy?! Do you have any idea what Twilight is going to do when she finds out you just up and dragonnapped me for whatever it is you have planned?!” I just roll my eyes and start explaining. “Of course I know, but I rather she be alive and yelling at me than the alternative if my hunch is right.” I look back to him to see the disbelief on his face.

“And how do you even know that there are going to be problems there, especially ones involving vamponies, huh?” I sigh and hope that I just wasn’t overly paranoid. “Well considering that you are always left alone at the library and only now does the Princess suggest staying with someone else is a bit of a tipoff. Sure she may just want you to not be lonely but I would probably be the last one she suggests as she doesn’t seem to really like me much.” It’s my turn to receive an eye roll from him this time.

“Well if you are going to act like this she might have a point. It still doesn’t explain how you came to the conclusion of her wanting you to follow along with me.” I glance back at him one more time as I finish getting my bearing with the maps. “Well she has been tracking information about my kind and actually listed a bunch of the places I had been to when she found out about me. If she heard about me being in Whinnysted and there are now problems there then she could assume that I may have known something. It would have been nice to have her actually ask directly but that really doesn't seem to be her way.” Spike still looks a bit unsure and looks to be deep in thought now.

While he is distracted by his thoughts I make my way over the top of the river and through the trees on the far side. Time passes quickly as I race through the forest and I can steadily feel the drain on my magic reserves as I enhance my endurance as well as keep us both shielded as a precaution. Strangely enough none of the usual wildlife tries to challenge us, though I swear I catch a glimpse of glowing green eyes occasionally.

I try to keep an eye out for anything suspicious while Spike is lost in his thoughts. This changes when I spot a decently sized ravine coming up fast. Deciding that it would take too long to find an alternate way, I decide to just go right over it. This doesn’t sit well with Spike as he notices the large gap rapidly approaching with no sign of me slowing down. “Uh Flarenza, you do notice that big gaping hole up ahead right? Flarenza? FLARENZA?!”

I can feel him cringe back while covering his face as I make a large leap across the gap. When the falling sensation he was expecting doesn’t come he cracks open an eye to see me running across the sky. “Flarenza, since when could you fly?” He sounds a bit shaky and I chuckle and take pity on him while expending a bit of power to cause the barrier I am running on to become visible. “Huh, that’s kinda cool.” He still sounds a bit shaken, but a quick glance back has him watching in awe at the view.

Soon enough he starts to get a bit bored and I start to hear him snoring on my back. Having seen what happens when he usually, sleeps I throw up another shield to stop any drool from getting into my coat. After a while I see the sun starting to set so I begin looking for a place to rest for the night. I find a tree that looks promising and climb up to a branch that looks like it would be comfortable enough for the night. After setting a few wards for protection and grabbing a quick bite to eat I close my eyes and fall asleep for the night.

I am awoken the next morning by Spike poking me in the head with his claws. “Uh Flarenza, you might want to see what’s keeping us company down below.” I release a large yawn as I look down to see a pack of timberwolves surrounding the base of the tree. Something seems off though as I notice that they are all facing away from the tree for some reason. “Huh, that’s rather odd.” As I speak one of the wooden constructs looks up to notice me awake and then growls at the others, driving them off into the forest and out of sight.

Turning to look at Spike I give him a look of confusion which he also returns. “That was really strange behavior for timberwolves. Oddly enough I had been seeing less and less of them as I explored the Everfree but they always attacked on sight still.” He shrugs and answers in his usual oblivious way. “Well at least they seem to be leaving us alone. Bad enough being dragged out here without being attacked by something.”

I just shake my head and decide to think on things later as I pull breakfast out of my bags. Spike seems to cheer up a bit at this and even more when I pass over a bunch of gems as well. “Well you have a point about them not attacking making things a bit easier no matter what is going on with them. I think they may have been following us as well though and possibly driving off the other creatures of the forest. I’m pretty sure I saw them watching us a few times as we traveled.”

He seems a bit unnerved at the news of them following us but continues to munch on his gems. Climbing down from the tree I start to stretch a bit to get a feel of my condition while pulling out my maps. I am surprised to find that we are making better progress than I planned, especially as I had been using more magic than I expected. “Well Spike we seem to be ahead of schedule. If things continue we should reach the town later today and can get a good rest before heading in to meet Twilight as they arrive.”

Putting the maps away I check to make sure he is secured before taking off through the trees again. Spike speaks up shortly after I take off. “You know, no offense to Twilight and the others, but you are a much more comfortable ride. You don’t bounce around as much when you are running.” I chuckle at this and know a bit of what he’s talking about, having taken pony form myself before. “Well they really aren’t built for moving through rough terrain like I am. I’m much more comfortable in the forest than they would be and I can get through it much more easily. Smoother movement is a must if you have to go around and through things. They seem to be built more for the open plains and other areas with fewer obstacles.”

He quiets down for a while then as he just watches the forest pass by. This is probably deeper than any of the ponies have gone before so it would be no wonder that he wants to take in the sights. Around noon I take a quick break for lunch before moving on again towards our destination. I can feel the strain on my powers as well as my body as I start to run low when we finally reach the edge of the forest. Not wanting to rush into anything I find a good sized bush near the edge of the forest and crawl into it to rest as well as keep an eye on the town. I let Spike off of my back so he can finally stretch out and relax as well since he had been stuck there since we left.

“Well we’re here earlier than I planned, but that gives us some time to rest and observe the place before Twilight arrives.” I pull out the rest of the gems I brought for Spike as well as the remaining food. “Since there isn’t a need to save them I might as well give you the rest of the gems I brought for you.” He starts to drool at the size of the sack I hand him and he immediately digs into it to see what is available. While he is doing that I gorge a bit on my own food before lying down to rest for a while.

I was awoken by a strange feeling of energy sometime late at night. I look to my side to find that Spike is still asleep so he definitely had nothing to do with it but I soon find the cause. Looking towards the town I notice flashes of purple and blue and it soon hits me of the source of the flashes and I quickly shake the dragon awake. “Spike wake up, I don’t know how but they arrived earlier than I expected and I think they might be in trouble.” I growl in frustration as he just blindly swats at me as he tries to go back to sleep so I decide to pull out the big guns. “Spike, Rarity is in danger and needs help.”

This gets the reaction I wanted as his eyes fly open and he leaps onto my back. “Rarity is in trouble?! Then what are we sitting around here for!?” Finally getting him awake and serious, I dash out of the bush towards the town. Soon enough we meet an earth pony on the road and stop to have Spike question him, though something feels off to me. “You sir, have you seen a gorgeous white unicorn mare with a purple mane anywhere around here?” I continue to stare at the pony trying to figure out what is wrong while Spike tries to communicate with him and failing.

Acting on a hunch I cast a spell to detect undead being and my eyes widen in fright at how many it detects in the area, including the pony in front of us. Reacting in panic I blast him with the spell I used in Sunny Town and watch as it strikes him dead in the chest causing him to explode into ash to Spike’s horror. “Y-y-you killed him!” I’m shaking a bit myself at what I saw but I clamp down on the feelings and shake my head at him. “No Spike, he was already dead and it just confirms my fears. The only type of undead that die like that are thralls, a kind of zombie, that are under the control of a vampony.”

I quickly cast multiple protection spells around us as I pull out a quill, ink and scroll to write on. “Spike I need you to go through the bags on my left and search for the gem pouch in it. There should be a smaller pouch in it with two wrapped gems; I need you to get out the moonstone while I write this.” Taking a quick second to compose myself I quickly write a message to the Princess.

Princess Celestia,

Urgent, Urgent, Urgent! Whinnysted is occupied by vampony thralls. Considering the numbers I suspect that there is a vampony lord in the area. Requesting the aid of Princess Luna and any available Thestral Hunters she can spare. Heading to aid Twilight and the others now.

From the terrified of undead Flarenza

PS Next time just ask for my help instead of the elaborate schemes please

I roll up the scroll and tie it off before I reach into my bags for one last thing. I set two whistler fireworks in each end of the scroll with a thirty second fuse on them before lighting them and holding the scroll up to Spike. “Quick, send this to the Princess now; hopefully she can get help here in time as we are way in over our heads right now.” He does as I ask and finally pulls out one of the wrapped gems. Only now do I notice that while I was distracted we were surrounded by a good number of thralls. At that moment though, Spike unwraps the gem revealing it to be the wrong one.

“No Spike, the moonstone is the… other… one.” As he holds the sunstone I notice that the thralls shrink away from the light and start to smoke a bit. I knew that sunlight did nothing to them or vamponies, but something about the magical light of the gem was harming them somehow with its imitation sunlight. “Wait, that one might be useful. Give me a moment to think while you get the other one out.”

I take the gem in my magic and look between it and the thralls around us. I notice that it only seems to make them uncomfortable and doesn’t seem to do any lasting harm they can’t recover from. “I wonder what would happen if I somehow concentrate the light though.” Taking a moment I form a shield around the gem and try to get it to block only the light coming from it. Soon enough I succeed at this endeavor to see the light from the moonstone radiate out from behind my head as Spike finds the gem. The effect of this one is just as drastic on the thralls as they get thrown back from the light as it repels them as I hoped it would.

“Thanks Spike, I was hoping that gem would do what I though it did. But I think I have a better idea than what I originally had.” Taking the moonstone I do the same thing that I did with the other gem until I also block out the light from it. When the light from it vanishes, I hear a worried yelp from Spike as the thralls charge in anger. “Flarenza, I hope I know what you are doing because here they… come… T-t-that is so cool.”

Before he finishes speaking I expand the shield on one side of each gem into a long blade and slash them through two of the nearest thralls across their necks. The effect from each blade is immediate as the golden sunblade burns through the one while the silver moonblade effortlessly cuts through the other tuning them both into dust. I manage to let out a small grin at this success while the other thralls back off a bit in shock.

“Well Spike I didn’t think these would work this well but I’m glad they do. Now I think it’s time to make our way towards the others, watch my back and torch anything that gets close and remember to hold on.” With that I twirl the lightblades around my head and dash towards the thralls that our blocking our path to the flashing lights while recasting the glue spell to keep Spike on my back.

They seem thrown off by my actions as well as my speed as I slip between two of them while swinging the blades low cutting through them at the legs. This serves to delay the others as they stumble over the two while trying to chase us down as we make our way towards the center of town. I see more thralls ahead and I start to notice that there have only been earth ponies in our way and wonder where the other pony types are and the griffons that are supposed to be in town.

This thought is relegated to the back of my mind as I stop to sidestep a buck from the thrall in our path and Spike lights it up as I perform a cross slash maneuver on the one beside it. I am glad to see that his fire works well on these things as it flails around into another one catching them both on fire before they eventually burn away into ash.

Soon enough we reach the edge of the town square and I find my previous question answered as I find our six friends surrounded by griffon, unicorn and pegasus thralls. Oddly enough none of the winged ones seem to be flying and the unicorns seem to be barely using their magic except to break through Twilight’s shields. All this leaves my mind as I watch in horror as a griffon gets a good hit in on Applejack, slashing her from her side all the way down one of her hind legs. The others get distracted as it rears up to deliver a final blow that they don’t see another griffon sneaking up on the cowering Fluttershy. “AJ! NO!”

At their panicked shouts I do the only thing that comes to mind and send both blades flying like javelins at the two griffons, catching them both right in the chest. Immediately after I send the blades buzz sawing back, finishing them off as well as taking out two more apiece as the fly back to me. All eyes turn to us and I take the opportunity to dash up between Rarity and another group of thralls allowing Spike to immolate the group threatening his crush.

Fluttershy is actually the first to recover when she notices how badly hurt Applejack is and rushes over to try and pull her to the back of the group. Twilight sees this and helps with her magic while the rest of us try to fight off the onslaught of thralls. “Flarenza! Spike! What in Equestria are you two doing here?! And what are these things?!” I drive the undead back with a wide sweep of both blades in front of me, which allows Rarity an opportunity to kick away another and Rainbow Dash to dive bomb a third, before yelling an answer back over my shoulder.

“Well obviously we’re here to save you though I wasn’t sure from what until now. These are essentially zombies under the control of a vampony, and we’ve sent a message to Canterlot requesting help already.” I take a quick glance back to see her about to say something else but Fluttershy interrupts her. “This is bad; we need to get Applejack to a hospital. I don’t know how to fix an injury like this.” Hearing the panic in her voice I come to a quick decision and pull the green jade out of my pack and toss it back to Twilight. “Twilight, channel your magic through this towards the wounds!” I turn my full attention back to the fight a release a barrage of bolts into the crowd knocking a few away but destroying many that are hit by the spell.

At this display of power the thralls retreat into the darkness to regroup which allows the rest of us a moment to rest. I let Spike off of my back so that he can join the others while I keep watch with both magic and eyesight. I notice that they thralls are all gathering together from around the town and look to be surrounding the area we are in. Strangely enough I get an odd signal from the building behind us as well. I hear a loud crack behind me and I look back to see the jade I passed Twilight shattering into dust. “Ack! I didn’t mean for that to happen, Flarenza, I’m sorry.”

I shake my head at Twilight as I look over the now fully healed farm pony. “Don’t worry, that’s how that one works. There isn’t much that it can’t heal short of death but it only works once. It was probably my mother’s greatest accomplishment.” I notice that the thralls are starting to head back towards us, and upon checking my magic levels I find that they are starting to get lower than I’d like. I notice most of the drain is from trying to contain the energies of the two stones so I decide to stop casting them while putting the sunstone away.

“This isn’t good. I won’t be able to keep them off of us much longer. How long do you think you can keep a shield up around us Twilight?” She looks up from helping AJ to her hooves to answer. “Maybe an hour if they didn’t have those unicorns. They don’t seem to do much but they somehow can break through my shields fast.”

I had noticed that they weren’t doing much magic myself when I arrived. “That seems strange, as well as the fact that none of the ones with wings have been flying either. If they are a problem though I think I can take them out shield you hold a shield up around us letting magic out but nothing in.” She nods as she sets up her barrier within the light cast by the moonstone.

The next hour is a series of attacks by the surrounding undead with Twilight holding the barrier, and me targeting any unicorns I can spot before they can attack the barrier. The light from the moonstone is also able to hold the attackers back for a bit, but it steadily drains over time as well as our own reserves. “I hope you have another plan ready Flarenza, because I don’t and I don’t think I can last much longer.” I can hear the strain in Twilight’s voice, and I don’t feel much better either.

“I don’t have much left either; I don’t have much magic left myself.” Looking back I see Spike with Rarity and I get an idea. “But I have an idea to hold them off for a bit longer.” With the last of my magic I cover the ground around us with a glue spell and turn to the dragon and Pinkie Pie. “Pinkie, I need you to carry Spike so that he can put up a wall of fire once the shield goes down. You’ll know when and where to go.”

The pink pony gets a serious look on her face and throws a salute while tossing Spike onto her back. Soon enough Twilight’s magic is exhausted and the thralls start to charge at us enmasse. As soon as they hit the area with my trap the start falling over each other as the front rows crash into the ground becoming stuck. Soon enough there is a pile of them surrounding us and Pinkie charges around the edge with Spike torching them with his breath. Soon enough we are surrounded by a wall of flames as the ones that were trapped burn down to ashes, while the others watch us from across the flames.

“Good job you two, that should buy us a bit of time.” Spike looks a bit proud of himself, especially with having been complimented. Pinkie Pie though asks the question the rest have probably been thinking. “But what happens when the fire is gone?” I am taken aback as she isn’t acting as hyper as she normally is. “Then we start having problems again. Why were you in front of this building anyways?” I only now notice that we had been fighting in front of what appears to be the town hall and Twilight answers.

“The few survivors of the town are in there. We didn’t expect things to be this bad though as we thought we only needed to calm the town down, not fight off a zombie horde that shouldn’t exist.” I shake my head at her as she still doesn’t want to believe these things are real. “You really need to talk with Princess Luna and her thestrals more about what is real or not. That and learn a few spells to fight these things better as little you were doing was working.”

She seems a bit sheepish at having not believed me when I mentioned these creatures before, but I’ve started to notice she only believes what she can see and explain usually. Turning back I notice that the fire is almost gone and I prepare for one last ditch effort. Thankfully it isn’t needed as the street in front of us is suddenly filled with a large silver beam attack from above and then the war cries of thestrals as they dive in from the night sky.

I let out a sigh of relief at their timely appearance and assume that the beam came from Luna. I turn to the others with a small smile on my face. “See Twilight, this is why you should be bringing Spike with you more often. It’s always handy having a fast way to contact the Princesses for help. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a date with the ground.” With that I relax my hold on the emotions I had been suppressing all night and collapse to the ground unconscious at having to face an undead horde. The last thing I remember is the sound of them calling out to me.

Author's Note

I could probably have done the fighting bit a bit better but I don't have much practice at it. Still I kind of like how it turned out still but I probably missed something so don't be afraid to ask if there are questions.

Trip Home from Trouble

I slowly awaken to the feeling of a wet cloth across my eyes and something else near me. As I start to remember what I had gone through recently I could feel my breathing start to increase in speed until I hear a soft voice start to try and calm me. “Shh, calm down Flarenza, you’re safe now. Princess Luna and her guards are taking care of everything.” It takes me a moment to recognize Fluttershy’s voice but when I do my panic starts to shift over to amusement that she is the one trying to stop me from panicking.

I remove the cloth over my eyes and look around to find that we had moved inside to where the rest of the town was hiding. Looking around I see thestrals moving around examining the ponies and griffons, probably in search of the vampony and other undead threats. I notice that Fluttershy had brought me to an out of the way corner to take care of me while the others were near the center of the large hall talking with Luna. While looking over towards Twilight though I started to feel my fear start to rise as I sensed something in that direction. It felt like something that was darker than dusk and redder than blood.

Before I can try to figure out why I am feeling this, my attention is pulled away when a thestral starts talking to Fluttershy and I realize that I recognize him. “Night Wing? Is that you?” The stallion does a quick double-take towards me and his eyes widen as he recognizes me. “Well look at you. I never expected to find you anywhere near the scene of a vampony incident after I found you running away from a horde of thralls and their masters. If this happens again I’m going to start thinking you’re attracting these things.”

Fluttershy looks between the two of us looking confused about something. “Flarenza, you’ve already met Princess Luna’s captain already?” I raised an eyebrow at this, though I wasn’t overly surprised that he would be a captain after seeing him in action. “He was the very first thestral I ever met. Everything I knew about them I learned from him and he’s also why I thought to chase after you all when I heard you were headed to this town.”

Her ears perk up a bit when I say this. “Really? But why would you knowing about thestrals before be why you knew to follow us?” The captain also seems to be interested as well since they hadn’t had any notice about any potential problems here. “It was mostly a hunch since I met a group of thestrals when I came through this town before getting to Ponyville. They never did say why they were there or even their names, but the only reasons I know of for them to be in this area would be to for trade or to be on the hunt.”

Captain Night Wing nods in confirmation when Fluttershy looks to him though he seems a bit thoughtful. “While it’s not unusual to lose hunters when they go on missions, it isn’t often that an entire group just vanishes since I never heard about anything being found out here. If a group did go missing here then we might be dealing with something more dangerous than we thought.”

He doesn’t notice Fluttershy shrink away at this but when I look towards her my eyes are drawn to where Twilight used to be standing and I notice a strange sight. Across the way I see an earth pony colt huddled up against an older pegasus mare. I wouldn’t have thought anything about it if it wasn’t for two things that grabbed my attention. The first is that there was a look in his eyes that seems off for a pony of his age, and the second is that I started to feel my fear start to come back in force.

I vaguely hear Fluttershy and the captain talking to me but my eyes are locked on the colt. While watching him I notice that everyone else seemed to not notice the two standing there and the thestrals just seem to walk by without checking on them. I remember having sensed something from the building while we were out fighting, so I tried to use the same spell on a hunch. I wasn’t sure if it was working or if I was still too drained, but I couldn’t sense anything odd either way.

I am interrupted again when Fluttershy moves into my field of view. “Flarenza! Is everything all right?” I’m startled out of my thoughts by this and I turn to find her and Captain Night Wing looking at me with worry on their faces. “Wha? Oh yeah, I was just watching that strange colt over there.” They glance over there in confusion at my words and Fluttershy turns back while the captain starts squinting as he tries to look harder. “What colt are you talking about? I don’t see any over there. I think they still have all the foals in another room with their teacher.”

I look over at her in surprise as she is usually good at noticing things. I am about to say something but the captain quickly turns to me. “How did you notice them? There’s a spell on them to divert attention away from them.” As soon as he says this I recognize the spell as it’s one that I use myself as it’s really a simple one to cast. “I’ve just been getting a feeling the room and I noticed that is coming from where he was. The first time Twilight was in the way but the second time I had a clear view of him. Oddly enough I cast a spell to find undead while outside and sensed something from inside here, but now there’s nothing when I use it now.”

His eyes widen at what I said, but then his face goes all stony like what is normal from any of the Equestrian guards. He nods to both of us before slowly making his way over towards the princess and begins talking to her. It’s a good thing she is facing away from where the colt was as her eyes widen at whatever she was told. Thinking quickly I realize that either the colt or the mother must be what they were searching for. Fluttershy looks oddly worried so I try to reassure her so that nothing seems suspicious. “Don’t worry Fluttershy; everything is going to be fine. Did anything else happen while I was out though?”

This is a welcome distraction as she informs me about what little happened as well as what they all went through before I showed up. I find that my information was a bit behind and that they actually had a train out to here now. Soon enough her friends join us in the corner at Luna’s request and I notice that the princess and her guard are starting to make a move.

Glancing at the two ponies out of the corner of my eye I decide that the colt is definitely the target as the mare has a glazed look in her eyes. This is confirmed when he is suddenly wrapped up in Princess Luna’s magic to his complete surprise. He soon recovers and he starts hissing in anger as the Lunar Guard start to advance on him. From here I can see the fangs jutting from his teeth, confirming that he was the vampony they were searching for. I am a bit surprised really considering the power he showed in comparison with his apparent age.

Twilight and the others watch in shock as this all happens as none of them had even noticed the colt until now. They seem a bit unnerved at how he reacts as well as the sight of his fangs. Fluttershy looks at me as she realizes that I had seen the creature the entire time while everybody else didn’t even realize. I start to wonder what would have happened if I never did follow them even if they somehow managed to survive the initial attack from the thralls. This makes me shudder a bit as they could have been under its control now and spreading its control to other towns. For the first time since I’ve known them all I reach out and pull them all into a group hug on my own initiative, realizing how much I’ve come to care for them all.

They seem a bit shocked at this, but they have needed this as well with all that has happened. I think it only now hits them how badly things could have gone if I didn’t show. I see a few of them look towards Applejack and I’m sure that they are remembering how badly she was hurt just before I showed as well as what I stopped from happening. We all just sit there, some with tears in our eyes, until the guard finally requests our presence at the chariots outside.

Outside we find that Luna and some of her guards had already went on ahead leaving two chariots behind to take us to Canterlot, as well as a couple squads to watch over the town until relief is sent from the capitol. Seeing as there are eight of us we split into two even groups for the flight home. Fluttershy, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie happen to be with me as we all head back to report more fully to Celestia and Luna on what happened.

Pinkie Pie pretty much controls the conversation as we are in flight, trying to keep everyone’s spirits up. Applejack does take a moment to thank me for the save during the fight as she was scared about never seeing her family again when she was hurt. She almost broke down again at that point, but it’s rather hard to get depressed with Pinkie Pie around.

When we arrived in Canterlot we could see the sun beginning to rise and we were all letting out yawns of various sizes. I wasn’t exempt from this, even though I had a good amount of sleep still, as I had burned through a large amount of magic throughout the night and previous days. As things had been resolved for now we were all escorted to somewhere to sleep until we were ready to see the princess. They offered separate rooms for everyone, but after what occurred nobody wanted to sleep alone just yet and all ended up in a pile in the first room large enough to handle us all.

We all awoke sometime around noon and started to get ready to meet with Celestia. As the last of us finished cleaning up Princess Luna came through the door of the room to check on us. Seeing that we were ready we followed her out towards the dining area for lunch where we would also meet with her sister. As we made our way there she pulled me aside to ask something. “Would you mind telling me what you did recently that annoyed my sister?”

This reminds me that I’ll probably have to pay a bit for what I did with the letter. “Ah, that. Well when I sent the letter asking for help I wanted to make sure it would be noticed right away so I added a couple noisemaker fireworks before sending it.” She just looks at me as I say this while Twilight whips around to look at us. “You did what?!” Her gaze turns towards Luna who started laughing as she finally comprehends what I just said. “Well I guess that explains that new hole in the ceiling that’s about the size of her horn.”

Twilight’s glare just gets a bit darker at this which she soon directs at her friends to try and find out who let out a laugh as well. Luckily we reach the dining room just then so her attention is redirected to her mentor who is already seated and waiting. We all take a seat at the table, with me as far from Celestia as possible but with Twilight as close as possible. Orders are quickly placed and the princess begins to speak while we wait.

“First of all I’d like to thank you, Flarenza, for rescuing Twilight and the others when you realized what they were going to run in out there. For future reference though, dragon fire is not meant to transport fireworks into my bed chamber when I’m asleep.” She glares at her sister when she chuckles at this. “If it happens again I won’t be held responsible for any reprisals.” I notice a mischievous glint in her eyes as she says this and I just warily nod, not wanting to anger a millennial old being.

She then turns towards Twilight to find out what all happened during their adventure from their side. I only half listen as much of it was just about the trip to the town and there wasn’t much time for anything to happen before I arrived on the scene. I notice Celestia wince a bit when mention of how badly hurt Applejack was as well as something else when she was told of the gem used to save her.

Afterwards she asked for my side of the story which didn’t add much other information beyond my notice of the vampony though Spike did interrupt me at one point. The rest were just as confused about the actions of the timberwolves on our trip through the forest, but I could swear I saw a hint of recognition from Celestia. Soon enough I had finished my tale and she sat considering what we said as the food was brought out.

Lunch was consumed in silence as most of us were starving after all that happened and the Princesses were considering what we all said. Rarity looked as if she wanted to say something about some of her friends eating habits while dining with royalty, but she refrained as it would be unlikely to change anything. As most of us were finishing Princess Celestia cleared her throat to attract attention to her.

“Flarenza, I was wondering if I could take a look at those objects you were using as weapons when you were fighting those creatures.” I could hear the tone of it being a request instead of a question as I nod and pass them to her from my nearby bags. She looks at them in interest with both Luna and Twilight joining in as well. “These are rather interesting, though I don’t see how they would have worked like they were described though.”

I realize that I left that part out as well as the guesses I had made but hadn’t verified yet. “Well alone they didn’t do much, I had to contain the energy in a smaller area with a shield for them to work like they did. Why the sunstone did what it did I’m not fully sure yet. I’d guess that since the sun weakens the thralls normally that the magical nature of the light did more than normal sunlight would.”

I can tell that Twilight is itching to start researching more deeply on them but she’ll have to be disappointed as they are too important to me to let her near them with her equipment. The two princesses though gravitate to their respective gems that represent their celestial bodies for closer examination. “Strange, they seem to emulate aspects of that which they represent. Whoever made these must have been very gifted at enchanting these.”

I feel a stab of longing at Luna’s words, though not as strong as it used to be since I last told them about my mother. “She was; I just wish she was still here with me.” I think they only remember now what I told them when they first found out about me and they look a bit abashed at what they were doing. They return the gems to me which I return to their respective wrappings and pouch.

Things break up from there though Pinkie and Fluttershy stop to make sure I’m fine before leaving. I also intercept Princess Luna before she heads off as well after making sure her sister isn’t nearby. “Princess Luna, before I leave I wanted to check with you on any plans you have for Selene and how I can help.” She looks thoughtful for a second, as if she hadn’t thought on it too much herself.

“I really don’t have anything yet for her. We’ve come to a sort of agreement for now though where she stays in Ponyville until she feels ready to try something else. Of course things might change if my sister finds out certain things about her, but even there I’m not sure how to introduce them without something going wrong.” I think on this as I was kind of hoping that she would stay with me for a while as I’ve been a bit protective of her lately. “So not much has changed then from before. The only thing I can think of is to try and get them together when your sister is in a good mood. Of course just because she is staying with me doesn’t mean you can’t visit her more often.”

She doesn’t say anything to that and just nods as we part ways. I find that I’m not needed for anything else so decide to head home along with the others. The trip is uneventful though I can tell something is wrong as I near my home. Remembering that I left the Crusaders alone with only Umbra to watch them I fear what I may find, especially when I remember that I never closed the attic before I left.

Steeling myself for trouble I open the door to find chalk all over the ground with a few magic circles drawn out in various locations. Entering the sitting room I find the three and Selene each playing around with a few different circles as they found out that not only unicorns can use them. Luckily they hadn’t been able to get the dangerous ones to work, and on a quick examination only the levitation one is correctly drawn.

I notice the thestral in a corner shaking and assume that she had snapped from the stress the three caused while I was gone. All four of the fillies look up at me when I let out a loud sigh and their faces shift between worry about what happened while I was gone, and embarrassment for being caught doing what they were as well as the mess they caused. Seeing as Twilight still hasn’t talked to me yet about bringing Spike into danger, as well as the stunt with Celestia, I decide to try to distract her into forgetting about it.

“Yes I was right but nobody was hurt and they are all back in town again. So since I seem to have a mess to clean up, why don’t you all go and show Twilight the new tricks you learned while I was gone?”

Author's Note

Bleh, finding names for the chapters gets annoying sometime. Also I got lazy with the one name as I don't expect him to show up again and it was the first thing to come to mind.

Mystery of a Magical Nature

Using the Crusaders and Selene to distract Twilight from her coming talk about bringing Spike into danger probably wasn’t one of my better ideas. Somehow they managed to stick every book in the library to the ceiling as Twilight just froze up at seeing the two non-unicorns performing magic in front of her. She wasn’t the only one annoyed by this as Applebloom somehow launched the contents of a few trees high into the air, knocking down a few passing pegasi, and Scootaloo somehow managed to inscribe a circle on her scooter which allowed her to launch herself really high off of some of her jumps. Luckily after her first and only attempt she was able to land on a cloud Rainbow Dash was sleeping on and just curled up next to her until she woke up from her nap. Of course by that time a good portion of the town had seen the two which, in her words, ruined her image of coolness. Luckily the young filly wasn’t around when she said this, but those that knew Rainbow Dash well enough knew she didn’t really mean anything by it and proud of her little ‘sister’ for what she did.

Of course all of this eventually led to me and the Crusaders being strapped down in Twilight’s lab with the sisters of the fillies supervising. Selene was able to escape being strapped in with us since Luna decided to visit for a while though her alicorn status probably would have protected her as well. Either way the four of us were getting rather bored sitting there and the other three in the room didn’t look to be faring much better as the purple unicorn did her stuff with the machines.

Glancing over I noticed that Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash had actually fallen asleep while we waited on Twilight to finish her preparations. I just idly play around with my magic while waiting, making my tails vanish and reappear in sequence. Applejack finally speaks up, much to the relief of everyone getting tired of listening to the random sounds coming from the machines. “Um Twilight, what do all of these fancy gadgets do anyways?”

She looks over at her briefly before turning back to her work. “Oh they just detect the flows of thaumatic energies and then displays the readings on that machine giving a general view of the power and type of energy the subject has.” The apple farmer just looks even more confused, which is understandable as Twilight isn’t that good at explaining things to those outside of her areas of expertise. This does bring to mind something that I had been meaning to ask since the last time I was down here.

“I didn’t think to ask last time, but what do the numbers mean exactly with the strength ratings? I wasn’t paying as much attention as I should have been last time, though I remember you saying I was at a 2.9.” I can see Twilight sigh at this as most being do seem to zone out when she starts getting into her research mode.

“Well I told you before that the scale runs from 1 to 10, though it is still possible for things to land outside of those numbers. Anything below a 1 is essentially classified as a non-being and is most often things such as basic plants and other lower forms of life. A 10 or higher is pretty much impossible to really get a reading on as they tend to fry out any equipment used to try and get a value but thankfully those being are extremely rare and include Princesses Celestia and Luna as well as Discord. From there you can see a bit of where things would lie except that the system isn’t straight forward as a 2 isn’t twice as strong as a 1 or a 4 for a 2. Instead there is a complicated formula to figure out the exact differences between each level and even then it really isn’t exact on its own as it doesn’t take into account things such as talent or practice in spells or affinities as you’ve shown.”

She pauses for a second as she seems to realize something while the others just watch on with glassy eyes. “Wait, what did you mean by ‘was’ a 2.9? It’s not that easy to raise or lower ones thaumatic strength in a way where it is noticeable. And it’s not like you’ve had any major power surges or anything.” She stops at this and quickly turns to look at me, or more specifically my three tails as I only had two when I was last here. I can hear the gears turning in her head at the implications of this and she suddenly turns back to the machine and quickly gets it all turned on.

When it starts spitting out the readings she just glances over the three fillies before getting to mine when she gets a frown on her face. “This isn’t right, why is it showing your strength at only a 1? Wait, now it’s at 3.5… 2… 0.42… 3.5 again! What is going on with this machine, it works fine with the other three so why is it doing this now?” She starts to examine the machine frantically while I notice that the numbers change as I hide and reveal my tails. The others just look confused about the events while I smile and decide to play with this a bit more.

Soon enough I can see Twilight’s mane is starting to get all frazzled as she tries to figure out what is going on while the others start to look a bit worried. I decide to give her a break, but not before trying one last trick and hide all my tails at once which provokes an interesting reaction. “No reading?! Flarenza are you okay what hap-“ She turns to notice that I am still sitting there completely fine and looks confused for a moment. Looking between me and the machine she finally notices that something is off about me and when she realizes what she just glares.

“Really Flarenza? You’re going to play around like that when I’m trying to gather important scientific information and not only that scare me so badly by making me think the machines did something to you!?” I wince at the last bit and just give her an abashed grin. “Well I didn’t know that would happen at first, but when I did it just seemed like fun. Of course I didn’t know what would happen with the last bit, but at least you have some unique data to go over now, right?”

She keeps glaring at me as this all goes through her head and I can see that she is starting to get a bit excited for a second before she calms down again. “Well I guess I can let you off this time, but if you do this again…” She leaves her threat hanging as I relax and stop playing around letting her get an honest reading. After watching me to make sure that I don’t try to pull anything else she turns back to her machine again to read the information it gives her.

“Flarenza, are you sure you aren’t doing anything else? It wasn’t that long ago that you were here before but the difference is huge.” I shake my head at her and wonder what the results are. “Well you are showing a solid 4 now which is more than twice as strong as you were before. I wish I knew if this was normal for your kind or not but there doesn’t seem to be any books at all anywhere. The princesses don’t even know much and unfortunately anything from when they fought them is long gone.”

I think on this for a bit and don’t know what to say as I wasn’t told much myself. “Well I can say that it sounds about right. After the fireworks incident I did feel as if my energy was easily double what I used to have. Getting used to it and not accidentally crushing my tableware took a while as well.” Hearing that even I knew nothing seemed to cause a glint to appear in Twilight’s eyes as she slowly brought out a scroll and quill. The others vacated the place quickly, knowing what the look means, but I was trapped there as she grilled me for hours trying to learn everything she could in the attempt to be the first to write a new book on kitsunes.

<><><><><><><>

After many weeks of having to help Twilight with her research into my abilities as well as the magic circles it felt nice to have a break. I almost wanted to thank Princess Celestia for distracting her with that old book even though if she knew she probably wouldn’t have sent it. I made a note to try and not rile up Twilight’s researching instincts again without an escape plan.

I wondered what I should do for the day while cleaning up some of the mess left over from the Crusaders sleepover. I could hear them upstairs still as they plan whatever they had for today which hopefully wouldn’t destroy too much of the place. Seeing as I hadn’t done much of my own research lately I decided to play around with a spell I had wanted to try and expand on.

After checking on the four fillies to see if they needed anything I raided me gem supplies for a number of yellow topaz I made my way outside. When I leave my home, however, I notice that things seem to not be right in town as the sky is filled with a checkerboard of clouds. My first reaction is to blame Discord but when I tested the area within my territory I didn’t detect any of his magic. “Now what in the world is going on now?”

I turn to the door behind me when I hear hoofsteps and see the Crusaders look to be about to head somewhere. They stop when they see the chaos out there and look at me with questioning faces. “I have no idea what is going on, but it’s not Discord at least. Maybe you four should stick around here until it starts to clear up.” I realize my mistake at saying his name when I hear his chuckling come from nowhere.

“Oh I’m touched that you would be thinking of me but this is just too orderly for my tastes.” I just shake my head in annoyance, not wanting to deal with him even if it can get entertaining. “Hey girls, have you tried for a draconequus catching cutie mark yet?” They look at me along with for a moment before their mouths turn up in a smile. Seeing this Discord starts to look worried before taking off with the four in hot pursuit. I chuckle as they all run off while patting myself on the back for chasing off Discord without resorting to magic for once.

Seeing as the weather is in disarray as it is now I take a moment to clear the area above my home before pulling down a cloud to rest in front of me. Looking between it and the gems I brought out I ponder how to go about my experiment. Seeing as they’d fall through normally I start to crush the gems into a fine powder before starting to dust the cloud with the result. This, combined with a bit of magic to bind it, slowly turns the cloud a warm yellow color from the gems.

Once I was sure that the cloud and gem dust mixture was stable and wouldn’t break apart I started trying to decide how to apply the cloud-walking spell on it. While there were already some clouds that allowed walking without needing the spell it tended to remove almost all the softness from it as well. They also tended to need a lot of extra maintenance to keep them working right and even then non-pegasi still fell through on occasion making them a rarely used cloud type.

I’m not sure how long I spent working at it but I noticed that Rainbow Dash had started to clear the skies by the time I thought I finally got the spell to hold. Trying to enchant the dust from gems was much harder than doing it on a whole gem, and add in the fact that I was doing it without a magic circle just made it that much harder. I don’t think I would have even been able to make it work if it wasn’t for my recent increase in power.

Prodding at the cloud to see if it worked I was pleased to find that my paw wouldn’t pass through it like normal. Taking this as a sign of success I hopped up onto the cloud and started bouncing around a little, marveling at the softness. I actually could see why Rainbow Dash was always asleep on one and decided to do the same for a while as I curl up on the fluffy object.

I woke up sometime after dark to one of the oddest sensations I’ve ever had. I couldn’t identify what it was beyond it being somehow magical in nature and coming from the direction of Ponyville. Doing a quick check I noticed that Selene and the Crusaders were back in the manor and turning towards town I saw a purple glow emanating from it. With my curiosity piqued I decided to make my way into town quickly to see what was going on.

I wasn’t surprised to find that the commotion was centered at the library though the presence of Princess Celestia was rare for this time of day. I did stumble a bit when I got a good look at Twilight and noticed that she was now sporting a pair of wings. I caught the word princess being thrown around, though from the distance I was I couldn’t tell where it was directed but it didn’t seem to be at Celestia. I noticed Luna flying in from Canterlot as well as a large and warm smile on Celestia’s face which pushed me into doing what I did next.

“Well this is really a surprise. It wasn’t all that long ago when there was only one alicorn publicly running around yet now there are five of them.” Luna was just landing as I said this and stumbled when she realized what I just said. The others also froze up at my words though Celestia just sighed when she heard me. “I really hope you aren’t planning anything funny on this joyous occasion.”

I sometimes wonder if it’s me she has a problem with or just what I am that bugs her as I haven’t done anything worse than what the others around here have done. She even treats Discord better and he did things to the entire world. Shaking off these thought I notice a look of confusion on her face while the others watch on warily. “Wait, what do you mean by five? There are only four alicorns in existence.”

Seeing as the secret is being let out Princess Luna steps up to her sister. “That’s not quite accurate sister. Do you remember that filly I was telling you about that Flarenza was taking care of by the name of Selene?” Celestia looks thoughtful for a moment before nodding. “Yes I believe I remember you mentioning her though I was wondering why she was there. Wait, you mean to say…?”

Luna nods to her sister, which causes her to turn and glare at me. “I can’t help but wonder why I wasn’t told of this before, especially if you knew.” She sounds a bit annoyed, though probably not as badly as it would have been during a less happy occasion for her. “It’s probably better to see why instead of just explaining it.” After saying this and at her nod I led the group out of town and towards my home. I catch Twilight trying to give me some sort of signals, probably wondering what I’m thinking right now.

Soon enough we arrive at the manor and I do a quick scan to see where everyone was. Luckily Umbra seemed to be downstairs while the rest were upstairs so there wouldn’t be any awkward surprises. When we enter the lieutenant notices the princesses behind me and immediately jumps to her feet and salutes. Luna just nods to her while Celestia seems even more confused at the presence of the thestral.

I point Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy towards the kitchen to grab some snacks and drinks for everyone while I head up to get Selene and the Crusaders. I find them all deep in planning for their next adventures, and I note that Selene actually has a Crusader cape though I’ve never seen her wearing it before now. “Can you four come downstairs for a second? There’s someone that wants to see you.” They all look at me in confusion but nod before they organize their things and follow me down.

As we made our way down I was really hoping that I wasn’t making a mistake at doing this so early. I did my best to just shove my concerns away and reflect on them later while projecting a calm and confident exterior. Everyone had already moved to the sitting room and I caught sight of Pinkie and Fluttershy bringing food in ahead of us. At the entry to the room I take a moment to gather my thoughts one last time before heading in followed by the four fillies.

There is a short lull in conversation as I enter, but when Celestia sees who is following me she freezes in place while the room descends into dead silence. Glancing back I notice that Selene had also frozen up upon seeing the princess as she tries to comprehend what is going on. Everyone else in the room is silently looking between the two while waiting to see what will happen first.

I notice that one of Celestia’s eyes seem to have developed a bit of a tic as she tries and process what she is seeing. At this point I’m starting to have flashbacks of when Selene met Fluttershy and how long it took for them to do something constructive. “Well I guess it’s a good sign that nothing has been blown up yet.” Everyone in the room jumps when my voice breaks the silence and I can feel something hit my tails. Glancing over I notice that Selene chose that moment to hide from Celestia in them, while the princess was glaring at me again.

“Do I even want to know why there is a filly that looks like Nightmare Moon here?” I raise an eyebrow at Celestia as I notice the words she used. I try to decide how to respond to this and decide to go with a bit of a headstrong approach. “Well you probably do considering that her being here is in part your fault.” I hear a few gasps from around the room while Luna looks at me strangely. Celestia seems a bit taken aback by my words though. “And how, pray tell, do I have something to do with this situation?”

I’m a bit unnerved by her tone of voice and almost hope that Discord interrupts to kill the tension a bit. “Well you were the one who sent Twilight and the others to find the Elements of Harmony and when they used them on your sister Selene was born at the same time.” She seems a bit shocked at this revelation and I almost start laughing at the look on her face. I file the memory away for later as she slowly starts to get that thinking look I’ve seen on Twilight’s face so often.

“If that’s so, why was I never informed of this development?” I’m actually a bit relieved to hear the hostility fade from her voice though she sounds a bit uncertain. I start in on telling her everything about Selene, from when I found her until now, as well as my reasons for why I did so. Through this the other three fillies were able to coax Selene out of hiding with some snacks, though she refused to be separated from them or go anywhere near the princess.

While I was telling the story I could see a variety of emotions cross Celestia’s face. Just the fact that I could even identify the emotions themselves shows how shaken she was by the knowledge of Selene. Soon enough I come to the end of the telling and decide to add one last bit. “I wasn’t even planning on letting you find out today but the opportunity was too good to pass up. From my own experience you’ve judged more on what someone looks like than what they actually are. I’ve felt hostility towards me every time we’ve met and I didn’t want the same thing to happen to Selene.”

I level a glare at this last bit which she surprisingly flinches at. I decide that a good long soak will be a good idea for tonight as I feel the stress and panic slowly pile up in the back of my mind. Everyone is quiet again as they all wait for her response to what she has learned. Eventually she looks towards Selene with a hint of sadness in her eyes before speaking. “I’m not happy at how this has happened, but I do understand why you did it. I need some time to think through all of this before I come to a decision.”

There is a collective sigh at this as things could have gone much worse. Things wrap up pretty quickly from there though Selene still doesn’t get close to Celestia who seems a bit hurt by all this. Eventually they all head out as Twilight’s coronation is going to be in Canterlot the next day. I signal Pinkie Pie to wait though as an idea comes to mind. As they are all going to be gone tomorrow, and since it is probably best I don’t show up around Celestia for a while, I get her plans for the party she is going to throw Twilight so I can set it all up ahead of time.

After receiving everything I need I wave to her as she leaves and I prepare for the night after checking on the Crusaders. Seeing that they are already asleep I take that long soak I planned while also having a minor panic attack as well. Afterwards I curl up for the night while thinking of my plans for tomorrow.

The next day was rather quiet as most of the town had gone to Canterlot for the coronation. Setting everything up was relatively simple even without having access to Pinkie Pie’s talents though she could have done it much faster. I did make one small change though just as a bit of payback for the last few weeks. I made sure to keep the original banner behind the new one though just to make it easier to swap them out later.

The wait for everyone to return was rather boring even with all the books in the library. I didn’t want to head out in case they showed up early as I wanted to see the look on her face when she saw my little surprise. Eventually I could hear the sounds of hoofsteps from outside as they were returning from Canterlot. Hearing this I prepared the camera I had ready to record this joyous occasion.

When the door opened to reveal Twilight and her friends, as well as a few others from town, nothing was amiss. This all changed when they all saw what was now printed on the banner. “Congratulations Princess STARBUTT?!” Seeing the look on Twilight’s face a snapped a picture while laughing the entire time. I wasn’t the only one to start laughing as both Pinkie and Rainbow Dash had joined in soon after which earned them a glare from Twilight.

Of course the flash from the camera and my laughter gave away who pulled this prank and it was obvious that Twilight wasn’t impressed. “FLARENZA!” I quickly took off running while playing keep away with the camera as Twilight chased me around the library.

Author's Note

And there's the end of Season 3. Now comes the fun part where I pick and choose which parts of Season 4 stay and which ones go. The main criteria for if they go though is how bad the episode is when looking at the characters. This means that Somepony Watch Over Me is out, while Testing Testing 1, 2, 3 will be heavily downplayed but still mentioned. I'm also not sure if I want to keep the Wierd Al episode or not and have some changes planned for the Tirek fight. Most of the episodes will probably breeze by though as I don't really have much else planned which means the end of what is basically Book 1 is soon coming to an end.

Secret in the Everfree

The prank I pulled on Twilight could have ended horribly if I didn’t have that camera. She was more focused on grabbing the camera than me at the time so that when she finally got ahold of it she crushed it into a ball. Needless to say that wasn’t what she was planning to do and it made her realize that her control over her magic needed to be refined again. Seeing as I had gone through the same problem recently I was able to give her a few tips. Of course it wouldn’t be Twilight without her coming up with some overly complicated checklist for her retraining.

Other than that and having to pry Rainbow Dash away from the barrel of cider I brought it was a rather typical Pinkie Party. It was a good thing everyone had so much fun as they were pulled away to the Crystal Empire for a few weeks the next day, and once they were finished there Twilight had to stay at Canterlot for a while longer while the rest returned home. I heard something about some strange adventure through a magic mirror but it was hard to tell what was real or not as it was Pinkie that I learned this all from.

Through that time I heard nothing from Princess Celestia on what she was going to do regarding Selene, though Princess Luna was visiting more often to see her. In fact she was actually able to spend a whole week over, which I used to go off into the Everfree to calm my nerves at having to interact with her sister again. I decided to explore a few areas that were close by this time that I hadn’t bothered to go through yet, namely the area around the castle ruins.

While it had been a while since I last explored the forest I could still tell that something was off soon after I entered. I had the distinct feeling of being watched the entire time, and even saw recent evidence of some of the creatures that live in the place, yet I didn’t see any of the actual creatures themselves. This made me think back to what happened when I went through the place with Spike and wondered if there was a connection there.

My attention was dragged away from this problem when I reached the castle and I made my way around to the backside of it. There I found what I believed to be the remains of the old city that went with the castle, but it was hard to tell as there wasn’t much left beyond the occasional pile of rubble or chunk of wall. I did notice something odd while I was there as there were a few trees that just looked off for some reason.

“I don’t know why, but I feel as if these trees look familiar for some reason.” I mutter to myself as I run my paws across the bark of the giant tree. They are easily some of the biggest trees I’ve seen before, dwarfing even the one the library is situated in. As I think that I realize that the trees I am looking at are of the same species as the library, and if this really is part of the old city then it is highly possible that they were once used in the same way.

“It’s strange though, I thought the library was a unique thing but if I’m right then it’s either older than it looks or it originated in the Everfree Forest. I guess the latter is a possibility as the Zap Apples of Sweet Apple Acres are supposed to be from the Everfree as well. It did seem odd that I have never seen any other tree homes like that before outside of this area, especially with how often Applejack complains about pegasi sleeping in her trees.”

While weaving through the large trees I kept an eye out for any that might still be in a livable condition. I could tell where the doors and some windows used to be, but time and lack of care had caused them to seal up as the tree grew into those spaces over time. I made note to check with Twilight about what she knew about how these trees could be grown and maintained. It could be useful to have a bolt hole or two out in the forest ready when I travel through and making it in a tree would be the perfect camouflage.

Soon enough I reached the edge of the grove of these trees and was once again in the more wild forest. I was brought to a halt though as I spotted a large number of timberwolves surrounding the area ahead of me. I knew I could easily handle them if I needed to but I was getting curious about their strange behavior that I just waited for them to make the first move. As I waited I took the time to examine them and noticed that there was one that was a bit different from the others.

First of all it was obviously larger than the others but not in the same way as when the smaller ones combine into a large one. This one actually seemed to naturally be the size it was which brought up another difference. While the others looked to be cobbled together from random bits of debris from trees, this one looked as if it was carved from a single tree causing it to have more of a lifelike appearance. The final difference though, was in the eyes which were glowing a cool blue color instead of the usual eerie green. Whatever was going on it seemed like this one was the leader as the others seemed to defer to it.

After watching each other for a few minutes the odd timberwolf let out a huffing sound before turning away from me which led to the other spreading out into the forest. It took a few steps away from me before it turned its head back to look at me and then started making odd motions. I wasn’t sure why it was doing this but it seemed like it wanted me to follow it for some reason. Seeing as I would have just wandered around at random anyways I decided to play along for a while as it wasn’t like I could get lost with my self-updating map in my packs.

As I followed the timberwolf I made sure to keep an eye out for any surprises as I had no idea what to expect from it. It seemed oddly intelligent compared to the others, which meant a trap wasn’t completely out of the question, yet that same intelligence would mean it would probably know that I could easily take on a large number of timberwolves with a few well-placed fire spells not to mention them not being able to breach my barrier spells easily. Still it felt odd to be following it through the forest as they used to always just attack everything on sight and this recent development could mean any number of things.

Thinking about it there really wasn’t that much I did know about timberwolves beyond what was common knowledge. Discord supposedly created them by corrupting some other creature, but seeing this new breed I was starting to suspect that something else created them first before he got ahold of them. That just led to the question of where this one was hiding as well as why it only now was showing itself.

I had plenty of time to think over this and other problems as I followed it deeper into the Everfree, far from any area I had explored yet. I did get distracted every so often as I am led through stands of fruit trees growing wild and even manage to snag a couple as we pass by. Two of them really catch my attention though as they both seem to be some breed of apple I hadn’t seen before which means Applejack would be interested.

The first one I had mistaken for a cherry at first, but on closer inspection as well as tasting it I found that it was some kind of crossbreed of both a cherry and apple. The second one was a much more dramatic find as I had to rush to a nearby stream and guzzle down water for a good while to get the burning sensation to leave my mouth. Even with that though, it was so sweet and juicy that I was still tempted to bite into another one. Of course if Applejack wanted nothing to do with it I know Pinkie Pie would definitely want some of them grown just for the pranking potential.

It wasn’t until late into the next day that we finally reached the destination that the odd timberwolf was leading me to. I don’t think I would have even found the place if I wasn’t being led to it either as we were pushing through heavy brush one moment, and the next we were all of a sudden near the center of a large clearing. The clearing wasn’t empty either, as I spotted three more of this new kind of timberwolf and they looked to be guarding an alabaster obelisk. Taking a closer look at the three timberwolves I noticed that their eyes weren’t glowing at all making me realize that they were inactive. It would make sense then why they were never seen before if they were only in this well-hidden area and weren’t mobile until recently.

The timberwolf that led me here, I noticed, had moved up to the obelisk and placed it’s paw atop it before turning towards me once more before moving to a vacant spot and suddenly going still. Curious as to why I was brought here, as well as what the obelisk was, I moved towards it until I could see that there was writing on it. I couldn’t quite make out what was written on it though as the words seemed to shift and morph as I watched. Deciding to copy what I saw before I placed a paw atop the obelisk and suddenly jerked upright as information flooded my mind.

A boon for a boon as granted by ancient law
From one ruler to another until time immortal
A boon for Ameterasu the wise and just ruler
Another to Tsukiyomi the defender of all that is pure
Unclaimed goes the third to the nation of Sionnach
A boon for the asking
A boon for a boon
By words immortal a boon shall be granted
Until the end of time shall this stone stand
Until the boon that is owed is claimed by the last
All that needs be done is to speak and be heard
The words of le do thoil a dheonú mo chabhair
From one to another a boon shall be heard
And by immortal law shall the boon be given

I don’t know how long I stood there but by the time I came to again the sun had nearly set. My head was aching from whatever the obelisk did to me but the words as well as the language felt as if they were permanently burned into the inside of my skull. I decided to rest at the edge of the clearing until the next day while I thought over what just happened. I had never felt this type of magic before but it truly did feel ancient. I tried to actually vocalize what I learned from it, but found myself unable to speak the words near the end of it for some reason. With my mind swirling at the implications of all this I soon fell asleep.

I awoke pretty refreshed the next morning and decided to head back home again. Calculating the days I realized that it was almost the summer solstice again and knowing Pinkie Pie she probably would have some party planned today, even if it was just for the anniversary of me arriving in town. While unlikely I felt it was in the interest of my sanity to be there just in case. Of course I found an oddity with the area when I pulled out my map as it wouldn’t show up for some reason. The map started working fine once I exited the clearing which hinted at some very powerful magic being used to seal off and hide the area. Luckily it didn’t stop me from making a note on the map at the entrance to it in case I needed to come back here for whatever reason.

Heading back was rather uneventful, barring another experience with those irresistible fire apples, until I reached the area near the castle. Some strange black thorny vines were growing out of the ravine by the castle and looked to be growing in the direction of town. They were behaving rather erratically as I passed by them on the way home and I realized that I could feel the magic coming off of them and immediately recognized it. “Now what is Discord up to? Did he decide he was done being friends and go back to his old ways again?”

I picked up the pace along the path to my home and was soon met with an odd sight. I found a patch of vines dragging their way back from the direction of my home and looked as if they were carrying something. I watched whatever it was inside of it lightly struggle and my eyes widened when I caught the sight of a pitch black feather. Realizing who was inside of it I used my magic like I usually do with Discords magic and watched as the vine faded away into a mass of bubbles. I quickly rush forwards as they start to pop and catch Selene on my back as she falls out of the mass of pearlescent globes.

“Who?! What?! Flarenza! It’s you! You have to get back to the town fast, these vines started just growing out of the Everfree and started taking over the town! They were avoiding your house for some reason but grabbed me when I left your property.” I pondered this for a second and decided they were avoiding that area either because they don’t react well to the magic there or because they couldn’t sense it at all. Of course in my moment of distraction I didn’t see more vines sneaking up on us until Selene yelled out a warning.

Of course seeing as it was Discord’s magic and I knew about it coming it wasn’t hard to banish the vines into other odd shapes. “Don’t worry Selene, I’ll bring you back home and see what I can do about these things. I don’t know what Discord is thinking doing something like this though.” Selene seems surprised by this information for some reason as we make our way towards my property. “Are you sure it was him that’s doing this? He was hanging around watching me and the other Cutie Mark Crusaders doing stuff when this started and he looked surprised.”

This piece of information was disturbing as I could distinctly feel his magic, and if he was surprised then the implications of this all were staggering. “Well I’ll find out once we get you somewhere safe.” Getting through the forest was slowly becoming a pain as more and more vines kept converging on us. It seemed as if they were specifically targeting Selene for some reason as they completely ignored me before, though me attacking them could have set them off as well.

Soon enough we reached the boundaries of my property to be met with a virtual wall of thorny vines. It looked as if they were climbing up the edge of the bubble that surrounded my property as if it was a physical thing. With my gave following it up I noticed that they went all the way up into the cloud and were somehow changing the ones they touched into some kind of thorn cloud. Not wanting to waste any more time I cleared a path through the vines and dashed into the clear area of my land.

From there it was a simple thing to rush Selene home and drop everything off before going to track down Discord. Finding him wasn’t all that hard considering the bright clothing he was wearing for some reason and I rushed over to him. As I neared I noticed Twilight taking off for the forest, probably in the direction of the castle knowing her and trouble. Depending on what I learned from Discord would decide on if I follow her or not.

“All right Discord, what is going on and what do you have to do with it?” It always is satisfying seeing how high he can jump whenever I sneak up on him. Somehow he never sees or senses me coming, probably why he acts like he does around me. He does recover quickly as he turns and looks at me. “Oh, it’s you. I was hoping you had disappeared into the Everfree for good this time but I guess that would be too much to hope for. What makes you think I have anything to do with this anyways? Didn’t you hear? I’m reformed now.” He tries to put on an innocent display but I don’t buy it.

“Well how about the fact that this situation has you written all over it?” He rolls his eyes at me and winces when I kick them back into his head. “You know I had this same conversation with the others already and as I said this wasn’t me. What kind of friends don’t know how to trust each other anyways?” It was my turn at the eye-rolling, without the part where they fall out of my head.

“I’m not sure if I’d consider you a friend, especially with how overboard you have been with all those pranks.” I pause for a second to think. “Though, granted, you have been cutting back a bit after you set yourself on fire then turned yourself into an ice cube when you tried to put the flames out in the lake.” I chuckle as I remember that moment though he doesn’t share in my mirth. “Either way you forget I can sense your magic which these vines are crawling with. Also for some reason they were targeting Selene and… Why is the sky split into day and night like that?”

Only now do I notice the fact that both the sun and the moon are out though I’m not sure how I missed it before. His meant either the vines were doing something else to the sky or something happened to both Luna and Celestia. That would make three alicorns that would have been attacked, yet they didn’t seem to be going after Twilight like the ones I saw. Discord had been busy rubbing his chin the entire time I thought through this.

“Selene. Selene. Now who was that again? Oh yes, that little Nightmare Moon look-a-like. Well I don’t know why they would be doing that, and you say you felt my magic in these things?” I proceed to demonstrate by showing him what happens to a nearby vine, which turns into a rope of black licorice which I kick away in disgust. “Oh well I guess they might be mine then. Come to think of it you might be right about it being me, just not me me.”

I wait impatiently for him to continue. “I just remembered that these were planted a long time ago before I was first turned into a pigeon toilet.” He shudders at the memory and continues. “They were supposed to capture little Celly and Lulu but something went wrong and I guess they are only now sprouting. Oh but don’t worry, Princess Twilight Sparkle is on the case and soon everything will be all better.” I’m not sure if I should believe him or not, but if what he says is true it would explain why Selene was abducted as well as she is very similar to Luna. Of course at that moment a wave of rainbow colored energy was traveling down the vines, destroying them as it went.

“See? What did I tell you, all better now.” I just shake my head at him before finding a nearby bench to lie on while waiting for Twilight to return. Discord decided to do his usual thing and put up some banners and signs near the forest entrance in his usual patronizing style. It was about an hour later when Twilight and her friends came out of the forest and were met by Discord. I started to make my way over to find out what I had missed and arrived as they were about to part ways again.

“SO Twilight, what did I miss while I was out of town again? And did Discord tell you that the vines were his fault?” She seems glad to see me but lets out a groan at the last bit. “Oh yes, but only after we had already fixed everything by returning the Elements of Harmony to where they belong. I’m not sure if we can ever use them again so I really hope we don’t need them again. Discord was bad enough with them being available to use on him, but now he’s probably going to be unbearable. And really we went through a lot of trouble to return them when he probably could have just snapped his fingers and fixed his own mistake. Of course now that I think about it, it would probably be best not to let too many others know that we may not be able to use the Elements for anything big now.” She lets out an unsure laugh at this last bit, though I wonder where they returned the Elements to. Since it had something to do with the vines and they were coming from the ravine by the castle I made note to check it out later for curiosities sake.

“Well I guess that’s good to know just in case. Of course if you need help handling Discord I could always try and turn him into an ice cube again. It would be a good deterrent at least since it took Princess Celestia a good week to thaw him out.” This gets a few laughs as they remember that incident and they brighten up a bit, though Fluttershy just frowns slightly. “Well since everything seems to be fine now I guess I should go back and get cleaned up. An event like this after a week in the forest doesn’t give you much time to clean up easily, well unless you are Rarity.” This earns a few more laughs and an indignant humph from the white unicorn though she does have a tiny smile even with the teasing.

Just before I leave I remember what I found in the forest. “Oh yeah, you might want to come over when you can Applejack and Pinkie. I found some interesting apples this trip that you might want to try. I’m not sure about one of them but I’m pretty sure you haven’t had anything like the other one.” I try to hide my grin as I try to picture their reactions to the fire apple.

Author's Note

And there is the start of season 4. Originally I didn't plan on doing anything with the timberwolves but one day an idea came to mind and I decided to roll with it. Good thing I only have a vague plan for parts of the future of the story which allows me to more easily add things I think of. Of course now I've gotten some more ideas to use, such as a bit more use for Daring Do though I'm not sure how I want to do it exactly. Especially with Ditzy Doo being there as well and if I want to touch on that or not. Still there's going to be a bit more world building starting now as I slowly bring out elements that will be seen again in the future. Of course now is the perfect time for questions on anything that I left unclear, incomplete or was just plain confusing from previous chapters.

Change of Pace

I thought I knew a lot of colorful words but you haven’t heard anything until you hear an Apple family member get on a roll with their mouth practically on fire. Once she was able to drown out the burning though and give her opinion she agreed to try and grow a couple trees to experiment with, one of each being on my property for discovering them. Of course I had forgotten about Pinkie’s tolerance to hot things so the fire apples didn’t really affect her much but she did still like them. Finding a place for the trees on my property was easy, and with a bit of planning I had them far enough away from each other to hang a hammock between them once they got big enough.

Not long after waving them off as they went back to town I found that the Crusaders had found my little cloud experiment. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were both resting atop it while both Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo were trying to do the same but kept falling through. I sat there for a good while watching this before I burst out laughing at their antics. Needless to say the two pegasi weren’t happy about that and thought this was all some elaborate prank on them. It didn’t take long to explain what I was doing with the cloud, though using it as a prank would have been a good idea.

Things did calm down for a bit after the recent crisis which gave me time to think more on what I found as well as what Twilight found near the castle. A quick trip out there didn’t reveal much beyond the tree itself. In fact the most interesting thing about that day was watching Pinkie Pie ringing the school bell with her head. I have no idea why she was ringing it like that but I knew thinking too hard about it would be a bad thing.

I decided to leave the research on the tree to Twilight since she was more closely connected to it, and I had a feeling that showing the obelisk to anyone else wouldn’t be a good idea. Since showing it off was out then that left me with only a single clue to follow which was the name of the kingdom, Sionnach. Neither library I have easy access to had any information on it, though I wasn’t expecting much considering how old the magic in that clearing felt. While the Canterlot library may have something about it I was willing to bet it would be in a restricted area that only Luna and Celestia would have access to considering the solar rulers reaction to me.

That left only two options available to me to find any information on this curiosity. Either search through the Everfree even more until I managed to find something else linked to it, or go to some experts on ancient history. I wrote to a few museums to try and find information on any archaeologists that specialize in ancient and forgotten history and was able to get a short list of names from the ones I contacted. I spent some time at the library doing a little bit of research on their accomplishments, though I was forced to stop and reread the last name on one of the lists.

Professor D. Do? That can’t be who I think it is, can it? I look over at a nearby shelf as I ponder this, looking at the rows of Daring Do books that are there. Looking between the page in front of me and the books I wonder if it’s just a coincidence that the names match like that or if it’s really her. I had read a few of the books myself, and while not an avid fan as Rainbow Dash and Twilight, I did find some enjoyment in them. If they were the same pony then I could potentially use some of the information in them myself if I ever happened upon some hidden temple in the Everfree.

Since I could guess how Twilight would react if I mentioned this connection to her I decided to keep it a secret for now. Of course upon finding her name it pretty much made me rule out all of the other names on the list as, if it truly was her, she would be both an expert on ancient civilizations and somewhat of an expert on ancient magical artifacts. While I wouldn’t mention the obelisk itself, the timberwolves that were guarding it are a remarkable enough find that it wouldn’t give anything away on what I found.

I take a moment to compose myself on what I want to say in the letter to her. I decide to keep it as professional as I could just so I am hopefully taken somewhat seriously since if it really is her she’s hiding her name behind the author’s name for a reason.

Dear Professor D. Do,

You may not have heard of me but I am a novice explorer that is currently mapping out the Everfree Forest when I have time away from my other tasks. On my most recent journey I found some old ruins that appeared to be from some ancient civilization by the name of Sionnach. Other than the name of the kingdom itself I also discovered what appeared to be timberwolves that pre-date the Discord era as they were not at all like the ones currently found today and were free of any chaotic corruption. While I know you are busy with your own work if you have any information that could be of use to me it would be much appreciated. I ask this as you are one of the lead archaeologists of ancient ruins and civilizations and you may have come across something from this one before.

Signed,
Flarenza
Ogitsu Manor
Ponyville, Equestria

I do a quick read through of the letter again before sealing it up to be sent out. As I am heading out I run into Derpy as she is dropping off some packages to the library. “Ahh, just the mailmare I wanted to see. I just finished a letter that I needed to send out.” I hand over the letter and the bits to cover the delivery cost and was about to go on my way when she spoke up. “Hey, I didn’t know you knew my cousin.”

I pause for a second before turning back to her. “You’re related to Professor Do? I didn’t know that, I just found her name while I was doing some research and decided to ask for some help.” Derpy nods at this. “Yep, my real name is Ditzy Doo, but everypony just calls me by my nickname. Well I’ll be sure this gets sent out there but I have more deliveries to do first, see ya.” I just shake my head as I watch her fly off wondering what the odds are of not only finding out about Daring Do possibly being real, but also meeting a relative in the same day.

<><><><><><><>

The next few months I wasn’t able to turn up any other leads on what I found though I did find out that Twilight and Rainbow Dash learned that Daring Do was actually real. It wasn’t hard to find this out when the newest book that came out happened to have Rainbow Dash on the cover and bringing it up was all it took for her to start bragging. Of course I still didn’t mention Derpy’s connection to her since it wasn’t my secret to give out. Of course Twilight was surprised that I knew about her though pointing out how and why I found out caught her interest. Luckily her plans to clean up the castle ruins a bit distracted her enough that I was able to keep the obelisk a secret for now.

Around that time I was also helping out Selene a bit with a class competition for the Equestria Games that was coming up. She was paired with two other fillies from her class of which one I was surprised to find was Derpy’s foal. I didn’t know what they were looking to do exactly but I still provided as much material support as I could. I probably would have done more but I was distracted by something that I was hoping was nothing. While Trixie had been sending letters to keep me updated on how things have been going they suddenly stopped after leaving from Manehattan. I really did hope it was just a problem with the mail service, but anything could have happened on the road between towns.

It was around the middle of fall after Applejack finished dealing with some vampire fruit bat problem that I saw the first sign of trouble. It was late at night when the wards on the border of my property woke me from my sleep to the presence of intruders. I would have shrugged it off as the Crusaders or one of my friends, but a quick check revealed that they weren’t ponies that were approaching but they did feel familiar for some reason. Hmm, I think they are heading directly here and not to the town for some reason. I better head down and greet them, though it doesn’t mean I can’t have a bit of fun since I didn’t invite anyone.

With a grin I crawl out of bed and start to head downstairs, first making sure to put up some barriers on all the occupied rooms as well as a sound muffling spell as a precaution. Now that I was fully awake I noticed that whoever or whatever it was that was approaching they were coming in from the Everfree Forest side. The also seemed to be flying in so I blocked all the windows just in case so that the only way in was through the front door. Once that was done I climbed the wall above the door and sat waiting for the visitors to arrive.

I was glad that I had taken precautions though when I felt the intruders trying to get in through one of the upper windows. I debated going out to meet them but once they found that they couldn’t get in through the windows they gathered around the front door. With how close they were to the door I was able to strain my hearing a bit to catch a little of what they were saying.

“You sure this is the right place anyways? There was nothing in that journal about it being sealed up like this.” I frown at this, curious about what journal they mean. “Of course I’m sure, there are only two places outside of Ponyville and this is the only one that is like what was described.” My eyes shoot open on hearing this voice as it was one I definitely recognize, though usually it would be screaming. Well, well, well. It’s good old Citrine Eyes again. So that’s why they felt familiar, I hadn’t been near any changelings in a while so I forgot about how greasy their presence felt.

Now knowing what I was up against I started to grin as I plot at what to do to them this time. I use my magic to draw more shadows around the area above the door so that only a glow in my eyes showing. Soon enough the changelings open the door and sneak their way inside looking in every direction but one. It’s odd how only griffons and pegasi seem to look up for trouble as well as around them. I would think changelings would do the same since they also fly, but I guess them often being found in underground areas would dampen that instinct.

Since I didn’t want them to get to far in I tried to subtly get the attention of the orange-eyed one by trying to direct my joy at him. I must have done something right as his head jerked around and upwards to stare right into the glowing flames of my eyes. At the sight of them he completely froze in place, and if he had pupils they would probably be pinpricks by now. With his attention on me now I close my eyes and cast another spell to go invisible and dash to another part of the room.

His two partners soon notice him frozen in place and try to knock him out of his shock. “Come on, what’s with you all of a sudden now? I thought you had gotten over your problems of panicking at nothing. If you keep flooding the hive link with it they’ll cut you off.” This catches my attention as it actually confirms the presence of some sort of link between changelings. Considering that these three seem to retain some sense of individuality it must not be a complete link but it’s enough to communicate with.

Taking this into account I tune into the hearth stone and start adding layers of spells to try and block that sort of communication. I hit on something after a few tries as I see the heads of the two calmer changelings jerk upright in shock while Citrine Eyes completely breaks down. “Nononononono! It’s here, it’s HERE! It’s gonna get me again, please don’t let it get me!” I’m a bit surprised at how badly he’s reacting as I didn’t think I did anything that bad to him before. Still I can see the fear slowly spread to the other two as they take positions to guard each other’s backs while standing over the third. Of course it wasn’t going to stop me from trying some new things out as there wasn’t much information on what would work on changelings.

I started up with what I showed Trixie on her first visit here by bringing up the illusion of darkness and a giant dragon in front of them. Its appearance confused them at first and almost sent them running, but they quickly noticed something about it and just ignored it. I watched in confusion for a second, wondering why they barely reacted to such a high level illusion, when suddenly one whipped its head around and shot a bolt of green energy directly at me even though I was still invisible.

I threw up a quick shield to block the bolt from doing any damage and dashed around the room to somewhere else. The changeling seemed to lose track of me when I did that and I tried to reason out why. It didn’t take me long to remember that these things fed off of emotions so it would make sense that they could feel emotions as well. Since the illusion was made to trick only the other senses and not emotions it made sense that they would see through it easily.

After realizing that, it was easier to avoid them as I suppressed my emotions like I would when fighting undead. This threw them off as I vanished completely from their senses which made the downed one panic even more and bolt out of the house. Wince I didn’t want to deal with any damage to my home I put up a special kind of shield around the two of them and then revealed myself in front of them.

This got the reaction I was expecting as it tried to blast me, but instead of hitting me the energy bolt bounced off the shield surrounding it and slammed right back into its face. The second changeling, feeling its compatriot fall, whirled around and repeated the mistake of the other. With both of them down for the count I turned my attention to the third and was surprised to find that it was no longer within the borders of my influence. “Wow. I think that changeling could give Rainbow Dash a challenge when it comes to speed right now.”

Seeing as I had easy access to a guard I made sure that the two would stay unconscious for a good long while and went to wake Umbra up. She was surprised at the sight of the two changelings and sent a message to Princess Luna to send guards to collect them. While we waited for them to arrive I fashioned a pair of rings for their horns and, using a couple smaller gems, enchanted them to not only block their magic but also their connection to the hive. While it was still theoretical that it would work it would still be better than nothing as them getting word back home would be a bad thing.

Princess Luna and a squad of her Lunar Guard arrived to take the two in to custody within the hour. After letting me know that they would tell me if they find anything out they flew back to Canterlot under the cover of night while I went back to sleep. Their words when they were outside my home still bugged me a bit so over the next few days I practiced some ways to empower my illusions with emotions just on the chance of needing that kind of spell sometime. I had plenty of time to practice the spells since I was keeping an eye on the Crusaders while Rarity took her friends to Manehattan for some fashion show.

When they returned I got a message through Pinkie Pie that Trixie had returned to town and was arguing with Twilight again for some reason. This caught my attention as I wanted to find out why her letters had stopped so I made my way into town quickly. She and Twilight were both arguing as I was told but I noticed something else was off right away. As I approached I threw up a shield around Trixie which caused Twilight to look over at me in surprise. “Flarenza, what are you doing?” At my name Trixie looks over at me in surprise and with a little bit of fear I noticed. “Oh nothing much Twilight, just making sure the changeling doesn’t run away or contact the rest of the hive.”

Author's Note

I'm really running low on ideas now so Season 4 really will be breezing by fast. Still that means I can start in on the real plans that I've been wanting to get into. Also not sure if I will have Daring Do show up or not beyond some simple letters back and forth. Though next chapter I can actually finally reveal how a couple things work that nobody thought to ask about.

Invasion Take Two

Silence meets my statement as well as dumbfounded looks from all the ponies present. The only exception to this is the changeling disguised as Trixie who just stares at me with a look of horror and fear. “W-w-what do you mean by changeling?” I just glare at the bug in pony form as she tries to remain hidden after having been exposed. “Oh don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about. Twilight, didn’t you have a spell you for revealing changelings that you never had a chance to test on a live subject?”

This pulls the purple alicorn out of her state of shock while causing the changeling to start looking terrified. “What? Oh right, just give me a moment though I hope you know what you’re doing.” I slightly change the shield around the changeling so that it allows spells in but not out while Twilight charges the spell. Seeing this, the fake Trixie is trying to back away from her but is brought up short by the shield around her.

“Wait, you don’t have to do this, ask Trixie whatever you want, Trixie can prove she is real.” I don’t even turn towards her as she made a mistake. “You just proved that you aren’t the real one as Trixie doesn’t speak like that anymore to her friends. Do it Twilight.” Twilight nods at me and proceeds to unleash the spell on the trapped changeling. The effects are immediate as its form seems to melt away and fade to black revealing the changeling underneath the disguise. With its disguise gone the changeling goes berserk and tries to blast its way out and escape but is brought up short when I bring up a reflective barrier inside the shield so that it knocks itself out.

“Wow, I guess you were right Flarenza, but how did you know that it was a changeling and not really Trixie?” I sigh as I examine the changeling before answering Twilight. “Changelings have a feeling about them that I’ve been able to notice that marks them as different from actual ponies. The real question though is where is the real Trixie, I haven’t heard from her since she left Manehattan which means that she must have been taken between there and her next stop.” Twilight’s eyes widen at this information not having realized the full ramifications of this event.

I try to think of how to find out where they took Trixie, but it’s hard to focus with my fear of what happened to her and my anger at the changelings getting in the way. Luckily an idea literally bounced her way right in front of me as Pinkie Pie appears out of nowhere like usual bringing a grin to my face. “Ah, Pinkie Pie. Perfect timing as usual. Can you meet me down in Twilight’s basement in a minute?” She pauses to think about it for a second before returning to her bouncing. “Okie dokie loki, Flarie.”

I just shake my head at her randomness while Twilight looks at me strangely. “How are you going to find out where Trixie is and what does Pinkie have to do with it?” I chuckle at her but with little joy in it. “Well we need to find out fast so we can get her out before they move her anywhere else so we need to get this changeling to talk fast. As for what Pinkie is going to do? Well I’ve noticed that she has ways of making ponies talk and I bet they work on changelings as well. Remember what you did when Applejack ran away?”

Twilight’s eyes widen at being reminded of that incident and what AJ went through because of it. “While we’re handling this you should get to Canterlot and round up any help you can there, I’ll send Spike to gather those in town here. Depending on how many changelings are there we may need some help to get Trixie and any other captives out.” She nods at this and makes her way to the train station, forgetting once again that she can fly. As I head into the library I catch Spike’s attention and send him out to gather the others here while I head downstairs with Pinkie Pie.

She watches in interest as I proceed to lock the changeling into one of Twilight’s examination chairs and, using some nearby materials, quickly fashion a ring for its horn to block its powers. “So Flarie, what did you need me to do and why do you have a creepy changeling down here with us?” I stay silent for a moment and use my magic to scan the make-up of the changeling until I am certain I know how its body works. “Well Pinkie this changeling took Trixie’s place which means the real one is in trouble. What I need you to do is make it tell us where she is. To do that you just need to keep on talking until it does so.”

Pinkie frowns when I mention Trixie being in trouble and gets a serious look on her face before she jerks upright and salutes. “Rightie-o, Pinkie Pie is on the case.” I double check that the changeling is secured and then make my way to the door. “All right I’m waking it up now so it’s all yours Pinkie.” I quickly use a spell to force the changeling awake and then quickly dash out the door and close it while casting a muffling spell over it. Turning to the library I see that Spike had already rounded up the others who were watching me warily.

“Um yeah, you don’t want to go down there right now.” This doesn’t help the looks they are giving me but thankfully Rainbow Dash speaks up. “So why did you have Spike call us all out here, and where are Twilight and Pinkie?” Before I can respond to this Spike speaks up bluntly. “Yeah, and what was with that changeling you brought in here anyways?” This draws a gasp from the others and a look of panic from Fluttershy.

“Yeah I was about to get to that Spike. We just found out that a changeling replaced Trixie sometime after she left Manehattan and I have Pinkie trying to get it to talk. Twilight is also on her way to Canterlot by train though I think she forgot she could have just flown there.” The last part earns a face hoof from Rainbow Dash though Applejack questions the previous bit. “Uh, and why is Pinkie trying to get the changeling to talk? Does she know something that we don’t?” I look back to the door nervously as we all hear a scream come up through the floor.

“Well I asked Pinkie to talk at the changeling until it told her where Trixie is being held. You already know what that’s like and you are her friend so imagine her doing it to something that isn’t a friend.” Applejack’s eyes widen as she remembers what she went through that one time she ran away while the others also look a bit nervous. “Isn’t that a bit cruel to do to it? I mean sure we need it to tell us where Trixie is but isn’t this a bit overkill?” I consider Rainbow Dash’s concerns but just shake my head. “There really isn’t any time to waste finding some other way. Changelings seem to be able to communicate with each other at a distance and I’ve blocked this one from doing so. They may get suspicious if it is silent too long and may move Trixie elsewhere if we don’t hurry.”

The screams from below start to be coming through at an increased rate and I am about to cast another spell to block them out when the door to the basement opens. We all turn to see Pinkie bounce through the door and unroll a map on the table. I was about to ask where she got the map from when she points to a spot on it. “Mr. Meany Bugthing says that Trixie is being kept around this area and it’s one of their big gathering hives.” I look at where she points and I am surprised at how close it is to Manehattan with it not being discovered.

“Good work Pinkie, you all need to let Twilight know this when she gets back. I’m going to go on ahead to scout the place out and find out exactly where the entrance is. Just follow the fireworks that I’ll be setting up nearby.” This earns me some objections from the others. “Now hold on there a minute partner. Is it really a good idea to go running off alone? What happens if you get caught?”

I just smile at her since they seem to have forgotten an important detail. “Well I am pretty much the only one who has a chance of getting in and out undetected unless Rarity knows how to cast an invisibility spell.” She shakes her head no at this. “Also you seem to have forgotten that changelings aren’t the only one good with disguises.” Saying this I focus a bit and flames envelope me as I change my form into that of a changeling which draws a few gasps from the others.

“Ponies aren’t the only thing I can turn into, it was just the only form I knew of that could utilize magic. As long as I understand how its body works I can turn into it though it limits what I can do then and I won’t have the instincts needed for certain things. So while I could turn into a pegasus and fly it would be very dangerous as I’d have to focus on everything so a crash landing would really injure me unlike how it just inconveniences Rainbow Dash.” I shift back to my natural form again as the others are starting to look a bit nervous with how my voice sounds from a changeling body. They don’t have any more objections to this but they don’t seem very happy about me going alone either.

Leaving the library I make my way to the manor as fast as I can and grab my packs and a few other things I need. I make sure to grab one of my experimental fireworks since it would be a useful distraction if I need it and it would probably cause a lot of havoc by overloading the changelings with magic. Finishing my preparations I leave a note for Umbra and make my way up to the attic.

Once there I pull out a map and try to calculate the distance and other factors that I need to get there. I had been able to work out how to use the magic circle to teleport items a good distance away but this would be the first time that I teleported myself. I wasn’t sure how much magic I would need to use considering the distance so I decided to play it safe and tap into the power stored in the hearthstone. It shouldn’t even take much of the power from it but would still cause a good amount of fatigue just channeling the power.

After double and triple checking the calculations for the teleport I do one last check on everything I had while chalking out the extra runes I will need around the circle. While doing this I spot the mirror I keep in the attic and am overcome with a bit of curiosity about how I will look as a changeling. I quickly finish up with the circle before heading over to the mirror to get a good look at myself as I take the form of a changeling.

What I see in the mirror was definitely not what I was expecting though it still looked like a changeling. Instead of the normal black and green colors I found myself sporting an orange carapace with brown highlights and a white mane. The colors of my eyes didn’t change either which really made them intimidating by looking as if they contained a violent flame in them. There were a few other details that were also off a bit but seeing the coloration I had taken reminded me of the one flaw in my disguise, that being that while it’s a full species change it doesn’t change my natural coloration.

I shake my head about forgetting that one key issue and wonder if that was part of why the others were so quiet in the library. Still, I figure it’s better to find out about the problem now and just add a simple illusion to cover it than to find out later when it’s important. Finishing the last few preparations I move to stand in the center of the magic circle and start to charge it up, hoping I did everything correctly. With one last deep breath I finish charging the spell and activate it, watching everything around me fade away into a brilliant flash of orange flames.

I can immediately tell that I did something wrong as I feel myself thrown into various directions as if something is trying to pull me apart. As my visions starts to fade to black everything around me suddenly snaps into clarity again as I arrive at my destination, just to find myself falling. The drop doesn’t last long as something in my leg catches on something and I swing around to find myself hanging upside-down. I try to shake off the dizziness from the teleportation and look around to get my bearings to find myself high up in a tree which was not where I had planned on landing. I find that it was a good thing that I changed forms before coming out here as I find a tree branch sticking through one of the leg holes of my current form which explains why I stopped falling.

Well that could have gone a lot better, but for a first intentional attempt I guess it’s passable especially considering the distance. I need to figure out why I keep ending up high in the air as twice may be a coincidence but I’d rather not make it three times. It takes me a while but I eventually extract myself from the tree with minimal injuries and surprisingly little tree sap. On the way down I find that I was actually pretty close to where I wanted to go and with a careful extension of my senses I could detect a couple changelings very close to where I am.

Drawing in a deep breath I start layering various spells around me to do everything I can to deflect attention away from me as well as hide my presence. I especially make sure to throw up a couple spells to hide not only any emotions I give off but also the magic signature of all the spells on me as well. Once I feel that I have enough placed to minimize the chances of being found out I make my way towards where I detected the changelings.

It didn’t take long to reach the location they were at which was surprisingly an ordinary looking building not far from a well-traveled road. I made sure to come up from the back side of the building so that I could set up a few fireworks to identify the location when I set off the ignition spells for them remotely.

After making sure the fireworks were well hidden I made my way around to the front of the building and acted like I belonged there. That along with my spells allowed me to just walk past the duo guarding the place without earning a second look from them. Once inside the building I casually searched the place until I found the entrance to the underground tunnels the changelings were hiding and entered them with my magic map floating at my side.

I would have gotten lost very quickly in the tunnels as they started to branch of in various directions time and time again. A few times I even managed to go in circles and end up in locations I had already been so having the map ready was a must. As I made my way deeper into the caverns I started to get worried as I hadn’t seen any changelings since the ones at the door. I couldn’t even sense any others around, but I had found that only disguised changelings gave off the odd sensation and only the guards outside would need one.

I lost track of time as I searched the place for signs of Trixie and I started to wonder if she was even still here. From what I could tell from my mapping I was steadily running out of places to look and everywhere I had already been was disturbingly empty. I was relieved to finally hear some variety of activity down one of the tunnels I neared and made my way towards it.

When I arrived at the next cavern that the tunnel opened into I found a small handful of guards along with around a dozen green pods. I couldn’t see what was in most of them, but I spotted a bit of blue in one of the closer ones and I knew I had found my goal. Surveying the room I was glad to see that there was only the one entrance into it so there wouldn’t be any surprise ambushes once I took care of the few guards here, though deciding on the best way to do so was hard to decide.

Seeing as I wasn’t going to be able to sneak out with a dozen other beings I decided that I could experiment with some new ideas. First I send out a small pulse of magic towards the fireworks waiting outside to send a signal for Twilight; I then drop my disguise and concealment spells and start projecting an illusion around me. The illusion was in two parts; the first was subtle as it played with the target’s mind to have their own mind influence what they see, and the second was pure emotion to overwhelm the changeling’s senses. I had chosen fear and terror as they were the emotions I could summon most strongly.

The changelings quickly spotted me once I dropped my disguise, but the illusions came up immediately after giving them no time to react. I was about to say something, but they all reacted before I could do so and started throwing themselves at the walls to try and escape me as the fear took over their senses. Seeing that the illusion was working much better than I expected I padded away from the door to give them a way to escape which they all took when they saw it.

I kept the spell going as I examined the cocoons and thought over the situation. I hope I can wake some of these being up after I free them. I won’t be able to carry this many and if it comes to it I’ll leave them here and take Trixie if I’m forced to. Something is seriously wrong here though as I have only seen eight changelings but this place should hold hundreds judging by the size.

Seeing no obvious way to open them I started using my magic to pry the cocoons apart so that their contents were freed. Once I had opened them all I took count of what was there and found that along with Trixie there were six other ponies, three diamond dogs, a griffon, and a minotaur. The last one was a surprise as I had only seen one in Equestria so far and this one was obviously not that one as it was a female. Digging through my packs I searched for something to wake them up with, but the only thing that I thought would work was a vial of powdered peppers.

Taking a small sniff of it myself I quickly jerked it away as I found that it was from the special peppers I grew which would work well enough if my now runny nose was any indication. I decided to wake the non-ponies first as they all looked to be in a better condition than the ponies and could carry them if needed. I started with the diamond dogs as they would be the easiest to controls and ended with the griffon. I was about to start with the ponies but on a closer inspection I found that they were in a really bad state and decided it was better to let them stay down for now.

I turned back to the others to see that they had started to pull themselves off the ground as they recovered enough to do so. “What in the world happened, it feels like my head was caught under a wagon.” The griffon recovered the fastest of them all despite having been revived last. “You were all captured by changelings and we need to get out of here fast before the ones I drove off return with friends.” They all whirled towards me as they hadn’t fully noticed me until I spoke which brought a few varied responses.

“High One!” The three diamond dogs threw themselves prostrate in front of me on seeing me which caused the minotaur to look at them strangely. The griffon though was had a less friendly reaction. “Well you’re something different, how do I know that you aren’t working for them, huh?” I just shake my head and wonder why griffons always seem so bull-headed, no offense to the minotaur of course.

“Well if you want to act like that you are welcome to try and find your own way out instead of following me. It might take you a while without a map considering how deep you are in these caverns.” I proceed to ignore the griffon as it fluffed itself up in outrage and turned towards the diamond dogs. “Enough with the bowing you three, I need you to carry the ponies out with us while I lead the way. I just hope that the royal guard spotted my signal so that they can meet us outside.”

With a bit of sniveling and a few more bows on their part they each grab two ponies while the minotaur voluntarily grabs the seventh. Not bothering to see if the griffon will follow or not I start to lead them out towards the surface. I keep my illusion spell running to drive off any changelings that might try to stop us yet there still is no sign of them. Eventually we make it to the building hiding the caverns to find that the two guards were gone. We found someone else waiting for us though in the form of half of the Element Bearers and a pair of unicorn guards.

“Flarenza, you’re back! ChangelingsareattackingManehattanandTwilightandApplejackleftwiththeotherguardstogostopthemwhileRainbowDashwentoCanterlottowarnPrincessCelestia.” It takes me a moment to decipher what Pinkie Pie just said and my eyes widen at this as I look at both Rarity and Fluttershy. “That’s not good; I was wondering why there were hardly any changelings down there. How far away is the city from here?” One of the guards speaks up while they all start trying to help the rescued ponies. “The city is about an hour away on the ground or ten minutes by air. We need to take care of these ponies first before we can go though.”

I wince at this as a lot can happen in an hour and I’m not sure how many guards Twilight gathered and how well they can deal with the changelings. “We don’t have the supplies to treat them here. From what I can tell they are suffering from the emotional drain the changelings cause as well as possible magic fatigue.” I look over Trixie as she needs real medical help to recover. “Unfortunately Manehattan is the closest place to help them with that. I don’t know what I can do to help stop the changelings but I know I have to try.”

The guards just shake their heads and go back to dealing with the unconscious ponies while I try to figure out the fastest way to get to the city. While looking over my maps I failed to notice that one of the others had been looking over my shoulder as I was planning on how to get there. “So you’re really going there to fight those bugs, huh?” I jump a bit and turn to find the griffon was uncomfortably close.

“Well I’ve already come this far and didn’t get the fight I was expecting so I might as well go and chase them down. Not sure what I can do when I get there since I only came prepared to sneak in and out of this place, but better to fight myself than to let someone else fight and hope they win.” Really I have no idea why I feel I need to go, but if I can stall the changelings for even a few minutes it’ll give reinforcements time to arrive. I doubted that Twilight brought enough guards with to handle the numbers I estimated could inhabit the caverns I just left. The griffon cocked his head as he thought over my answer before nodding.

“Well I guess you’re better than these wimpy ponies, not many of them would run into a fight. Hop on, I’ll fly you there. But after this we’re even, bad enough being in debt to others but I’d never hear the end of it they found out that it was to a non-griffon.” My eyebrows rose at his offer as it was usually only the upper level griffons that cared much for honor and debt. I just nod and gather my stuff up while pondering who this griffon is but hold back from asking.

The griffon allows me to climb onto his back and we are soon on our way towards Manehattan. I use the time to think through what I have that can help with the fight over the city. Much of what I have would take too long to properly use, though the fireworks I still have could come in handy. I really need to start packing more things that are more easily accessible in setting that requires quick thinking and fast responses. I can only take out so many with the pepper powder and fireworks really aren’t made for battle. If I can somehow gather the changelings into a condensed area I might be able to use the prototype firework on them.

I try to figure out the best way to do so if I have to as the city comes into sight. Even from a distance I can tell that things aren’t going well as there appears to be a good many fires and many green flashes throughout the city. There does seem to be some kind of defense going on still as there are also other flashes of color around the city though my eyes are drawn towards the ones that look like they could be from Twilight. Since the wind is carrying my voice away I just tap the griffon’s shoulder and point towards the most likely location.

As we head in to land we are spotted by a couple changelings but they are easily swatted out of the sky with my magic. Soon enough we land atop a building close to where I pointed out and I quickly dismount. “Thanks for the lift; you’re free to do whatever you want now. Fight, find other griffons, take out the changeling that replaced you, whatever you want.” The griffon nods before taking off and flying deeper into the city leaving me to my own plans.

Looking around I find the exit from the roof and I rush over to the edge of the building to get a view of the area. I find that the streets are crawling with changelings while a couple blocks away I see a group of ponies in combat with them. I see a bit of purple flitting around down with them which I assume to be Twilight, especially as the flashes of magic also are coming from it. I turn away and rush over to the roof exit and make my way down to street level.

I find that the building is some sort of apartment building though things are oddly silent; hopefully because the inhabitants are in hiding. Once I reach the ground floor I find that the front doors have been barricaded but one of the windows is still clear. Of course it’s easy to figure out why as there’s barely any room between it and the next building over as well as it being hidden behind some plants.

Once I’m outside I throw up a simple invisibility illusion and dodge through all the changelings towards the fighting that I spotted. Some of the changelings sense my passing as I only concealed the sight of me but with how many are around it makes it hard for them to pinpoint where I am. Of course once I get close to enough to see that it really was Twilight with some of her guards I had to dodge not only the changelings but also the spells being thrown at them from the ponies.

I was able to make it to the pony defense line with only a few singed hairs and was able to catch my breath in the middle of them all as they were too distracted to see through my illusion. While doing this I notice that one of the ponies was avoiding getting into the fight, and on closer inspection revealed it to be a disguised changeling. I keep watch over it and notice that it is keeping an eye on Twilight and wonder what it is planning.

I find out soon enough as a large blast of green energy comes flying out of nowhere and knocks her out of the sky. Her guards quickly converge on her location to protect her while the source appears at the head of the charging swarm causing them to hold their positions. I notice that this one looks familiar when I realize that this is the leader of the attack I was searching for, Queen Chrysalis. This just got a lot more complicated than I thought it would be. Hopefully she will mess up like she did last time and leave an opening to exploit.

I look around the street for anything that can help out and notice that we are in the market district from the many food stalls along the sides of the street. I get an idea to distract the changeling queen and hopefully give the guards time to escape and get help. I turn back with a grin as the queen starts pontificating. “Your princess is down and there is nowhere for you to run now. So why don’t you make it easy on yourselves and just give up? I promise I-“ Her words are cut off as a fish comes flying from one of the nearby stalls and slaps her across her muzzle. This action shocks everyone that is present and I take a moment to blast the disguised changeling, knocking it out, before revealing myself.

“Well what do you know? Food does seem to be the weakness of changelings. It was the only thing that would shut you up last time as well.” Everyone in the area turns towards me in shock, though some of the guards are more shocked about the guard that turned into a changeling after I hit it. Chrysalis narrows her eyes at me as when realizes that I was the one that threw the fish.

“You again?! How dare you do that to me?! I will have your*guh*!” She goes speechless again as I not only hit her again with another fish but also smack her on the other side of her muzzle with the fish I previously threw. “My ‘guh’? I really have no clue what that is. Maybe you should speak in a language I can understand?” I can hear a few of the guards chuckle at what is going on, and I notice that they are slowly moving Twilight to safety as the eyes of every changeling is focused on me now.

The queen is obviously starting to lose it now and I think one more push should do it. “Again!? Do you not know who you are dealing with!? I am going to*Waugh!*” This time I pelt her with every fish that is left in the stand, which is enough to bury her, as well as the stand itself. I motion to the guards to get out of here fast as the attention of the changelings is now divided between me and their buried queen. They get the hint as smoke starts to rise from within the pile of fish, and green light is leaking out from under it.

As the guard gets out of sight there is an explosion that sends fish flying everywhere revealing the queen covered in steaming fish guts. “KILL HER!” And that would be my queue to run. At her orders the queen and her swarm charges at me as I take off in a direction opposite of where Twilight was taken. As I run I levitate out fireworks and pepper bombs which I send back at the swarm adding more chaos and anger to the mix. A couple of the fireworks even hit the queen who just shrugs them off with an angry screech before increasing her pace.

Well I have her following me but where should I lead them to? I have no idea where I am going in this city and I don’t even know if there is a wide open area anywhere. Even without a viable plan to go off of I start enjoying myself enough to toss back taunts and insults to keep her riled up. Even better is the fact that ever group of changelings we pass stops what they were doing previously and gets caught up in the blind rage of the swarm as they chase me.

Soon enough I notice that things had gotten so bad with them that clouds of changelings were flying in from all parts of the city. Did I really piss her off enough to summon the entire swarm just to chase me down? I didn’t realize their link was that vulnerable to emotions, they are so blinded by rage that they aren’t even trying to cast any spells to stop me. As I turn another corner I catch a scent on the wind which smells like a good amount of greenery. Hoping that this is what I think it is I follow my nose towards its source.

Soon enough I spot the perfect place to try and end this as the streets open up into a large park within the city. I am glad to see that had been cleared of any ponies so that any collateral damage should be minimal from what I have planned. Charging towards the center of the park I levitate out the prototype firework and break the seal inside of it that separates the key components. As I do this I start counting down from twenty. “Twenty… nineteen… eighteen…” I spot a large rock to make my stand at as I reach ten and get to it as fast as I can before putting my back to it. Once there I send the small orb flying back towards the air above the swarm before putting all my remaining magic into the strongest shields I can make.

“Five… four… three… two… Have a nice day Queen Chrissy” I wave at the changeling queen tauntingly which seems to snap her out of her rage. Only then she realizes what I was doing and realizes her mistake but it is too late. The magical cascade caused by the elements in the firework mixing finally reach critical levels and it explodes in a spherical rainbow of colors which starts sending changelings flying along the shockwave.

“Frig, still didn’t get it right yet. Maybe next time I’ll get it right.” I watch as the blast rapidly advance on Chrysalis who is now screaming in rage and fear as the wall of color and changelings impacts into her throwing her and her swarm into my shield. The impact sends a shock through me and I realize that something is wrong as the pressure continues to increase. I start to see cracks appear in my shield and I manage to get out one more words before it shatters.

“Frig…” With that all the changelings piled against it are blown through and into my body and I soon see nothing but darkness.

Author's Note

Took a while to get this chapter out. Wasn't fully sure where I was going to take it fully as I was toying with the idea of having Babs leading a CMC defense force but I decided not to go with it. The chapter ended up a bit longer than I planned though so I probably made a lot of mistakes somewhere.

If there are any complaints, comments, or typos found please leave a message at the bottom of the page.

Hospitals and Summaries

I awaken to some of the worst pain I’ve ever felt in a long time, only beaten by the mental anguish of my mother’s death. I let out a whimper at the feeling of agony while I slowly open my eyes to see where I am. I am a bit relieved to see that I look to be in a hospital and the beeping sound that I now notice makes this even more likely. With my eyes open I can see that there is some sort of metal contraption around my muzzle and with all the pain I try not to make any sudden movements until I find out what is wrong with me. Luckily, with a cautious test to make sure I still can, I find that my magic is still working well enough to do simple things as my reserves are still rather low.

I realize what the thing in my sight is when I realize that my mouth won’t open. Well this is a first for me. I don’t think I’ve ever had my mouth wired shut before. I haven’t had much chance to use my healing spells to fix bones before but I felt that it would be best to wait until I learn what happened to me exactly after I was crushed by the changeling swarm. I carefully stretch my magic out around me to get a feel of the bed as I search for the call button. After a couple false starts I manage to drag the call box into my sight and press it to signal a nurse or doctor.

It takes a while until the door opens and a head pokes in and I’m really surprised that it is neither a nurse nor a doctor but Princess Celestia herself. When she sees that I am awake her head vanishes back out the door for a second before it opens completely letting her make her way inside. “Why is it that whenever we meet there is always some kind of trouble around you? Still I should thank you for keeping my ponies safe, I’ve really been treating you worse than I should have and for that I am sorry.”

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I saw the princess walk through the door, but her thanks and an apology weren’t anywhere near the top of the list. Seeing as I can’t say anything I just blink at her as she levitates that medical chart up where she can read it. “Still you were very lucky that my sister arrived in time and that you made it really obvious as to where you were. Whatever it was you did incapacitated a good number of changelings, many of which ended up on top of where we found you including Chrysalis, which made it much easier to drive them off. We really need to talk about some of these things you have been making sometime.”

I really have a problem trying to decipher her emotions though she doesn’t seem to be holding in any anger like the last times I met her. She finishes flipping through the charts and I start to wonder why she is here and not a doctor. “I do wonder what you were thinking at the time especially with how badly you were injured by it all. A broken jaw, every rib cracked if not broken, fractured bones in your left forelimb and both hind legs. That’s all on top of the various muscle injuries though somehow your internal organs are fine.”

I refrain from wincing as she lists everything off but I’m thankful for an idea of what’s wrong. “Still, considering what you were out here for in the first place you and Twilight did rather well with what little warning you had. The changelings attacked a large number of cities all at once though the majority of them were here so it was a stroke of luck that you were all nearby. Canterlot was also completely ignored by the changelings as well so the guards Twilight took with her were better here than there.”

I was a bit worried about if Ponyville was one of the places hit as well as how well Twilight and the others were doing. I wonder how to let her know my concerns with my jaw wired shut but luckily that was the next thing she talked about. “I heard from the guards that it was thanks to you that they got Twilight to safety after she was hit. She’s still being treated here as well for her own injuries though they aren’t as bad as yours. Your other friends came through everything fine, though Rainbow Dash strained her wings getting to Canterlot and back in record time. Ponyville was also one of the places hit, but that swarm there was really disorganized so it was driven off easily enough. You’ll have to hear how when you get back as it’s quite a story.”

I am relieved to hear that the others are fine, though the bit about Ponyville worries me a bit. Still it’s a relief to hear that they are all doing fine which means that the ponies from the changeling caverns should have been brought here as well. I hear the door opening again and the head of a guard peek in and get the attention of Celestia. “Well it seems I am needed elsewhere for something. I’ll let the medical staff and others know that you are awake though. There are a large number of ponies that were brought in so the doctors and nurses are really busy right now.”

With that the Princess nods as she leaves me to myself in the room. With her gone and nobody to distract me I focus on the injuries in my jaw and gather my energy. I’m not sure how much I’ll need as I haven’t had the chance to heal bones yet but it’ll at least be enough to practice with at least. I carefully feel around my jaw with my magic to try and get a feel for what all is wrong with it and am relieved to find that there is only one break which being held together by the wires.

Slowly I start to feed energy into the bones as I shape the spell to encourage them to fuse back together and heal. The going is much easier than I expected, especially as it’s usually harder to use healing spells on myself than normal. Soon enough I finish with the healing to realize what the drawback of the spell is as I am physically exhausted as well as feeling as if I hadn’t eaten in days. I am so focused on what I am doing that I don’t notice that I’m no longer alone in the room until they clear their throat. My attention is pulled away and I notice that one of the unicorn doctors had arrived and was looking at me strangely.

“Well you already look like you are going to be as bad as certain unicorns and alicorns I’ve already had to deal with today. Can’t move around so you decide to start doing whatever you wish to with your magic without bothering to check with a doctor.” I raise an eyebrow at his behavior which is vastly different from what it was like in Ponyville. Still after his comment he quickly moves on and does his job really efficiently but with little warmth. I just sit and watch as he looks over my charts while casting a spell to scan over my injuries. After a few seconds he looks a bit confused as he looks between me and the charts.

“This is odd. It says here that your jaw is broken but there appears to be nothing wrong with it now.” He starts to remove the device on my mouth as he mutters while looking confused. “It’s not like them to do something like this for no reason, and even if your teeth are a bit threatening that’s still no reason to do this.” Soon enough the entire device had been removed from my muzzle allowing me to flex my jaw again to remove the stiffness from it. Doing so revealed yet another drawback of the healing as the stiffness is much worse than I’ve felt before.

The doctor was about to leave until I start to speak now that I could. “Those charts weren’t quite wrong when they mentioned my jaw injury. The spell I was casting was a variant of a healing spell I know, though it does have a few drawbacks I’ve found now.” The doctor looks a bit exasperated as I say this and rubs his temple with a hoof. “Well there’s a good enough reason to wire your jaw shut. You only have to say one thing and I’m already getting a headache. May I ask what these drawbacks are or should I just guess?”

He soon gets part of the answer as my stomach practically roars at him which actually draws a chuckle from him. “Uh, yeah. There’s that as well as a bit of physical weakness and heightened soreness of the affected area. This is actually the first chance for me to use this spell in such a way though it’s not like I have much of a chance to get injured to this extent to practice.” The doctor is once again rubbing his temples as he starts shaking his head before leaving the room muttering. “I really shouldn’t have removed the wires around her muzzle, she’s even worse than unicorns and alicorns.”

I chuckle a little as he leaves though soon regret it as pain shoots through my chest. I do my best to ignore it for now as I had probably done enough possible damage from the one healing spell to not want to risk any more for now. I resign myself to just lay there in silence until they decide to check on me again or send food but the flash of pink I spot in the corner of my eye changes that perception. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that you are the first one to visit me Pinkie.” I see what I now identify as her tail jump upwards a bit at being called out before it vanishes into her hiding place and I soon hear the front door open and close quickly which is her leaving the room I assume.

I am soon proven right as she bounces back into the room as if nothing happens followed by the other five and, surprisingly, Trixie. I look over them as they enter and I am glad to note that most of them seem uninjured. The three involved in the city defense are the exception as I note multiple bandages on Applejack indicating various cuts and Rainbow Dash’s wings are wrapped from the muscle strain of her efforts to get to Canterlot and back. Twilight looks to have been through the most as not only is one of her wings bandaged but she also sports bandages around her chest and head as well.

“It’s good to see you awake again Flarenza. I should yell at you for being reckless but things would have been much worse if you didn’t show up.” Twilights sounds both annoyed and grateful while the others display various emotions as well. “Well would I really be me if I kept out of trouble? Not like any of you are any different when it comes to trouble and you think you can do something to help.” Few of them want to keep make eye contact with me considering how true this is, the exception being Pinkie Pie.

Looking at the curly-haired menace I am reminded of something else. “Hey Pinkie, do you happen to have anything to snack on? Healing spells make me kind of hungry.” As I say this my stomach lets out another roar which startles the others and sends Fluttershy for cover. As predicted I soon have a fresh cupcake in front of me from Pinkie’s seemingly limitless supply. While I take the time to nibble on it the others catch me up a bit on what I missed while I was out. We are interrupted as a nurse wheels in a cart loaded with food who stops when she realizes how many are in the room.

Twilight talks with her and has her go and bring in some more food for everyone while the others cluster around. Fluttershy takes interest in the medical chart which I don’t mind as much as she probably is better suited to deal with my injuries than the doctors here. My attention is grabbed by Trixie as she shuffles forward. “Trixie-um, I want to thank you for rescuing me. It’s still strange to me that others will do so much for me after what I did to others.” I can see that she hasn’t fully recovered from her ordeal yet but she seems to be doing fine still.

“It’s fine Trixie, you should know by now that friends stick together. Any of them would say the same thing if you ask.” I nod towards the others in the room and the ones that heard the conversation nod and smile. “Of course darling, sure we may have had or differences but these last few years we’ve really gotten to know the real you instead of that horrid act you push for your show.” The others join in in reassuring Trixie while the nurse rolls in another cart of food.

It’s surprising that things don’t devolve into a party with Pinkie around but she has been a bit better about knowing when to throw a party lately. Who knows how long things would have gone if Princess Celestia didn’t return to break things up for the night. After they left she inquired into my research and extracted a promise to not let it out to the public without it being checked over by a princess first. It was easy to do this for her as much of it was for personal use only and the only thing I was sharing was already going through Twilight and Cadance.

The next day the others were heading back to Ponyville, and with a bit of persuasion I was on the way back with them under strict watch by Fluttershy and Trixie. They were able to get a few chariots together for us to get back quickly and safely. From my position I could only see out the back but I knew something was wrong from how the others in the chariot gasp as we approach. As we pass over I am able to see what they saw as I see scorch marks on the ground and buildings that we pass. As we pass out of town towards my home I notice a pattern to the damage with Trixie’s wagon at the center.

Taking in what I saw as well as the little information I got from Celestia there is only one conclusion that seems possible but is frankly a bit scary. “Why do I get the feeling that the Cutie Mark Crusaders are responsible for this and it happened during the changeling attacks?” Trixie and Fluttershy, the only ones sharing the chariot with me, both turn to me in shock when I say this. “Um, I know that they can be a bit of a handful but don’t you think that’s a bit unlikely?” Fluttershy may say this but looks a bit unsure over her words.

I just shake my head at how much they want to try and not see how dangerous the three, well four now, can be seeing as I’ve seen Applebloom building siege weapons for some of their crusades. Soon enough we land at my home and the two get out and retrieve the cloud that is thankfully still where I left it. I’m a bit amused as I watch Fluttershy try to push the cloud over to me but her pegasi magic prevents her from being able to interact with it. Eventually she gives up and let’s Trixie push it over to the chariot and carefully moves me over onto it.

Once I settle onto the cloud I notice how much the harder surfaces irritate my injuries. I try to push the cloud around with my magic but it’s nowhere near that simple as it doesn’t even twitch. I make a note to research and practice different ways to move it while waiting for Trixie to drag it inside. Once there we find the Crusaders and Umbra seated for a meal and they look surprised to see us and especially the state I’m in. After reassuring them that I’m fine I am brought up to my room so I can rest up after the long day.

The next day everyone sat down for a small Pinkie party so everyone can catch up on what happened. As I thought the Crusaders had gotten into Trixie’s wagon while we were out in another attempt at their cutie marks. It only just happened that the changelings scheduled to attack the town were on the way in when they somehow set of every firework in the wagon at the same time. That combined with the confusion of their leadership already being captured threw the group into a panic and an eventual retreat. Most of the town didn’t even have time to react with all this happening and just stared in horror as this all happened.

Umbra and the Crusaders in turn learned about what happened in Manehatten as well as my little adventure in the changeling hive. The story took longer than it should have when Twilight heard about the things I did and wanted to know more but my injuries made it impossible to go to deep into that for now. Eventually the whole story got out and Apple Bloom was reassured that her cousin was fine as that was where Applejack was while Twilight was organizing the rest of the city. My part earned in the city defense earned a few interesting looks, as well as more promises regarding my research and fireworks mostly to keep them out of the Crusaders’ hooves.

It was a good thing this happened right before winter time as it gave me plenty of time to recover from my injuries. While I was immobilized for most of it I was able to get plenty of practice moving my cloud around and was able to get it to move at a respectable pace. It did earn some odd looks from the pegasi around town especially when they learned that they couldn’t touch it though just about all of them tried at least once.

By the time that year’s Winter Wrap-Up came around I was once again recovered enough to resume my old activities again. I avoided going out into the Everfree for a while as I had already mapped out everything within a few days journey and wanted to be sure I was fully healed before going too deep into the place. This gave me plenty of time to watch after the Crusaders and keep them out of trouble especially when the others were away for the Equestria Games qualifiers and Discord’s little sick routine.

I was very careful about what I taught them during this time as they always managed to cause some sort of trouble with the knowledge I gave them. This led Twilight to try and rein them in with her own lessons that they took to pretty well but even then managed to cause a ruckus. I do wonder how the disguises they had to wear for a couple weeks work as they should have attracted more attention than not having them.

Things were rather interesting for a few days when one of Pinkie’s sisters came to visit her. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I heard about this but the reality was both surprising and not-so-surprising. Considering her relation to Pinkie I was expecting someone really odd but being a complete opposite personality-wise wasn’t what I would have expected. I did actually get along with her pretty well as her talent with rocks also included many kinds of gemstones as well. With a bit of trading and enchanting services I was able to acquire a few stones that are a bit harder to find in this area as well as a few good business contacts.

The Crusaders weren’t the only ones to have lessons pushed on them by Twilight but at least they took to them pretty well. For some reason when she learned that Rainbow Dash had a written test for the Wonderbolts she felt the need to try and push her into studying. This caused a good amount of arguing back and forth and it took Rainbow Dash dragging her up to her cloud house to show Twilight the collection of Wonderbolts merchandise she owned which included every book written about them including some rarer ones that they didn’t want to get out. Needless to say she passed the test easily thanks to her little obsession.

Despite Twilight’s reluctance over being made a princess she sure did well with the things she was sent to do. Her being sent to represent the four princesses at some sort of exchange fair, her cleanup after Rarity’s little fashion improvement spree, as well as her small part at the Equestria games turned out fairly well. She still had a habit of looking for one of the other three when someone addressed her by ‘Princess’ but I saw that as a good thing considering the attitudes of many nobles I had met before.

Of course with how smoothly things were going it was only a matter of time until something major happened again. The short period of relative quiet ended when ponies started losing their magic.

Author's Note

Yeah I'm starting to run low on ideas right now so things just ran a bit quickly at the end. Just as a note episodes 12, 13, 14, 16, and 17 were cut for various reasons and episode 21 turned out differently as summarized. As of now I only see 2 chapters, maybe 3, left to go before Book 1 is complete. I might come back at a future time to add more if ideas come up later but most of the ideas I have for now are mostly for Books 2 and 3. As usual please leave anything you'd like to know in the comments and especially make note of any typos I missed please.

Tirek

It was a rather nice day which was made even better due to a visit from Derpy. I had finally gotten a reply from Professor Do and I was quite eager to see what she had to say. I had tried finding information about Sionnach but there wasn’t even a hint of where it was or who ruled it. Even the names of the two other rulers named on the stone yielded nothing. I would have thought that I would have found some hint at the least of one of the three names that I learned but instead I found nothing. Even the language that I was prevented from speaking was an unknown which led me to believe that either the information I was seeking was so old that it was completely lost, or that someone had worked hard to erase it all.

Still the message from the Professor was awfully light so if there was anything related to my research then there wasn’t much. I dropped the letter off in my study before stopping by the kitchen for a drink and a snack. I noticed that I was running low on the chocolate cherry cordial cupcakes and made note to get Pinkie to bake up another batch for my personal stash as well as some decoys to keep others out of it. Returning to the study with my drink and snack floating behind me I took a seat and levitated over the letter to find out what the Professor had to tell me.

Dear Flarenza,

It’s always good to hear from another explorer even if they are just starting out. In regards to your inquiry I am sorry to say that I don’t have much more information regarding this Sionnach place you mention though I do have something that you may be interested in still. Your mention of pre-Discordian timberwolves reminded me of some ancient diamond dog ruins I was exploring many years ago. There were many carvings of feral wolves on many of the walls but what caught my interest was a wolf statue made of wood. There is a possibility that it may have been one of those timberwolves that you mentioned which suggests a link between them and the diamond dogs at one time. Unfortunately the ruins are no longer in any condition to explore due to an incident with some undesirables. While I am interested in these ruins you mention I will respect a fellow explorer and leave them to you. I personally prefer being out in the further corners of the world so I never thought to search the Everfree for lost ruins so I wish you luck in your endeavors.

Signed,
Professor D. Do
Equestrian Museum of History
Manehatten

P.S. You may wish to avoid mentioning me in Ponyville as there are a few overzealous fans living out there. Also my cousin mentioned how nice you are so please take care of her if you see her.

I wasn’t expecting much but the little bit she knew actually helped me more than I expected. The fact that the diamond dogs were linked to Sionnach means the there was a lot more information that I could search through at each den that they held. Of course finding them would be a problem but from the one I already knew about there was a very high chance that I would be welcome at any I do find.

I try to decide what to do next with this information as I put the letter away. I never did think to look too deeply into the diamond dogs beyond the little I needed at the time so I wasn’t sure how much information there would be on them. I decided to head over to the library to see what was there before searching elsewhere as Twilight often had a decent variety of information.

When I arrived there any thought of research went out the window as I walked in on a pacing and ranting Twilight. “Smile and wave, smile and wave, that’s all I ever do, then when something actually does come up instead of coming to me the princess instead goes to Discord of all ponies.” I can already see that Twilight had been at this for a while as Spike was practically ignoring her now. I did wonder what was going on as Celestia was more likely to deal with me than she was with Discord and that was still unlikely.

Deciding to avoid any unpleasantness for now I sneak around to Spike who is still oblivious to everything around him. “So Spike, do I want to know what’s going on now or should I just be ready to run for safety soon?” I wonder at the wisdom of startling a fire breathing being as Spike jumps and lets out a gout of flame sending the scrolls in his claws off to wherever. “What?! Oh Flarenza, yeah she’s in that kind of state again. Something about Discord being sent off to find whatever is out there draining ponies of their magic since his chaos magic can sense it.” I shake my head at this as Twilight would normally have seen the wisdom of this. I’m guessing the problem is more in the first part of her statement though I wonder what is draining ponies.

We sit there watching Twilight just pace around the library waiting for her to calm down. Of course we know that it’s unlikely that she will snap out of it herself any time soon so we argue back and forth on the best way to do it for her. We settle on a bucket of water though I decide to chill it down to icy levels before Spike empties it over Twilight’s head. “GAH! COLD! Spike, what was that for!” Twilight glares at Spike as she shivers from the freezing water while Spike glares at me for freezing it in the first place.

It was only with Spike glaring at me that allows Twilight to notice that I’m also in the room. “Wait, when did you arrive, Flarenza?” I sigh in frustration at how oblivious she can be at times. “I showed about ten ‘smile and waves’ ago. You went on about that more than you did about Discord being given work to do.” Twilight blushes at this but doesn’t try to deny it. “Well it couldn’t be that hard to find where Tirek is with how often he is draining ponies.”

I raise an eyebrow at the name Tirek as it was one I wasn’t familiar with and, from the way Twilight brought her hooves up to her mouth, was one I wasn’t supposed to hear. “True you might be able to find him but Princess Celestia has those trained to do exactly that but have failed. If she asked Discord to search because of his magic there’s probably another reason for it beyond the obvious.” I think for a moment and come up with a possible idea. “His chaos magic is probably the best defense as well from being drained. Putting the harmony magic of ponies with chaos magic is really a bad idea.”

Twilight cocks her head to the side a bit as she contemplates what I said. “But don’t you use both kinds of magic? Why would it be a bad idea to mix the two?” This gives me a moment of pause as she is right to an extent though I had not yet tried using the two in tandem. “You know I’m not really sure how I can do that yet, I’ll have to look into that later. But you’ve seen what happens when the two are mixed which I’ve done twice now. The event in Manehatten and my underground lab attest to what can happen when you mix harmonious magic with the chaos magic from a small amount of poison joke.”

Twilight’s eyes widen at this information as she hadn’t known what I was using in those fireworks until now. “If that can happen with a small amount of chaos magic what would happen with a large amount?” I try to come up with an answer but none really comes to mind. “Who knows really but it’s bound to be rather chaotic.” Twilight groans at this while seeming unsatisfied with my answer. “Now how about talking about what’s really bothering you?”

Twilight looks like she is about to argue or try and change topics but instead just lets out a sigh. “I’m supposed to be a princess yet I’m never called for anything useful. Any time I’m called on it’s just to be there to be seen and not for anything else.” It takes a good amount of effort to not roll my eyes at this. “How long did it take for Princess Cadance to be given things that you would classify as useful? From what I remember hearing she was your foal-sitter for a good long time while she learned what she needed to rule with Princess Celestia and Luna.”

Twilight is taken aback a bit at being reminded of what her sister-in-law went through before she took her place in the Crystal Empire. “Besides, do you really want to be constantly dealing with nobles like Blueblood instead of learning things with your friends? I’m pretty sure that their just easing you in slowly while you learn what you need to instead of just letting the nobles drive you crazy.” Twilight looks a bit thoughtful at my words as she tries to imagine what the alternative situation could have been like.

“You might be right. I never thought over what it would have been like if I actually did get wanted what I wanted. I’d like the chance to help out once in a while at least instead of just doing busywork.” I wonder if these things will repeat again when Selene grows old enough and is introduced to the public; if she is crowned in the first place at least. “You should really speak with the other princesses about this when you meet with them again. I’m surprised you don’t have a checklist or book with you trying to chart out your learning to be a princess.”

Twilight’s eyes widen once again at my words and she gets a rather creepy grin on her face. Spike turns to me with a frown. “Did you really have to say that? Now I’m going to be up all night helping her put together that checklist.” I slowly back away from the purple alicorn before muttering back at him. “You probably would have been kept awake all night anyways. At least now you don’t have to worry about her causing another incident and maybe she’ll go to the other princesses for advice who can help calm her down more.” Spike just wearily shakes his head as I back out of the library before I get caught up in the coming storm.

Since my plans to research more into the diamond dogs have been interrupted I decided to make plans regarding this Tirek character. Improving the protections around my home is easily at the top of the list but immediately after that is something else. Thinking back to what happened when Discord broke free the first time I decided to offer my help to the ones least likely to be able to protect themselves. For this I made my way over to the schoolhouse to meet with Cheerilee. Luckily school was already out and she was still there finishing up whatever work she had left for the day.

She looks up as I enter the room and sets aside her work to speak with me. “Hello Flarenza, was there something you needed from me?” I think how best to phrase this without causing too much panic. “Ms. Cheerilee, I’ve learned some interesting information recently that you may wish to know. There seems to be another major incident going on soon which is bad enough to have Discord sent out to try and deal with it. Remembering the trouble he caused himself I thought I’d offer my services for you and your students to have somewhere safe until it all blows over. Do you think you could set up some sort of a field trip for them all to my place for the next few days?”

The teachers jaw drops as I say this though recovers once I finish speaking. “Do you really think that it will be necessary to go there? And if something does happen do you think we’ll be safe?” I sigh since I really have no idea what this Tirek figure is. “I’m really not sure but it’s better to be safe and wrong than not. I have plans to improve my wards as a precaution but I know little about what the enemy is other than it drains ponies of their magic. It gets stronger after each one so it’ll probably take the princesses and Discord to stop it.”

She looks even more worried at this information but agrees to set something up and I make note to get Trixie’s help with this as well. I make my way home and spend the rest of my time until nightfall drawing up a magic circle in the basement and layering on some spells over the hearth stone. By the time I am finished I’ve added a barrier around my territory to deflect hostile spells away as well as make anything within it unnoticeable when activated along with the normal shield. I even attempt to tie a few trap spells into it as well but I am unsure how well illusions will work on Tirek.

The next day Cheerilee brings her class over for her lessons which are assisted by mine and Trixie’s magic. This helps keep the class entertained as well as shows them some of the things that can be done with it. In fact the lesson eventually changes to being about the different kinds of magic in ponies with use demonstrating through illusions what Cheerilee describes. This actually keeps the attention of most of the class including those that I’ve heard had problems paying attention. It actually turned out to be a rather fun day all in all and nothing bad happened.

The next day they returned and Cheerilee and I decided to show them some of the things I could do with my magic which was a bit different from what the ponies usually did. While I didn’t show them my workspace in the attic I did bring a few gems downstairs and demonstrated some of the enchantments I could do. I mostly did simple light spells in some of the gems too small for anything better and handed them out to the class. Unfortunately it was around lunch time when things started to go bad as I heard explosions coming from outside.

“Cheerilee, Trixie, take everyone down into the basement. If I’m not down in ten minutes there is a switch on the back wall the opens a door to my underground lab. Everyone should be safe in there as long as you keep the Crusaders away from the fireworks.” I glance at the four who try to look innocent before I head outside to see what is going on. Using my cloud, which I’m surprised has lasted this long, I ride up above the manor so I can get a good view of the Everfree as well as the surrounding area.

What I see leaves me speechless as I see Twilight around some strange creature that I assume is Tirek. Even from here I can tell something is odd about the alicorn as she somehow seems much stronger and faster than when I last saw her. She soon teleports somewhere and I can see Tirek charging up a powerful attack and was aiming it towards Ponyville. Unfortunately my house was between the two though on the fortunate side my defensive spells were active as soon as the students arrived.

From the trajectory I assume the blast was meant for the library but it was intercepted by the shield around my home where the two started to clash. Luckily I had been pouring energy into the hearth stone for the last few years along with what it absorbed naturally when it reached that stage so the sphere of energy was eventually sent off into orbit. Of course this interaction caused the barrier to shift into visibility clueing in the monster that something was hidden from sight.

Tirek walked up to the barrier and prodded at it a couple times in curiosity before her reared up and slammed his front hooves into it. The area around the impact shuddered but still held while he prepared to hit it again. Before he could land another blow he was blasted from above by a giant beam of energy from Twilight as he was sent flying away. She then interposed herself between the shield and Tirek as she poured on the power. Where in the world did she get all this power from? There’s no way it’s natural as she’s just wielding it like a sledgehammer and not a very efficient one at that. She’s wasting so much power in these attacks as most of the energy is surrounding Tirek instead of being focused on him.

From there it was hard to tell who had the advantage as they traded blows back and forth. Between the two Twilight felt as if she had more power while Tirek seemed in better control though his power felt off for some reason. Whatever the outcome the area would never be the same as they tore up the land, some of the Everfree and even a mountain. There was so much dust in the air from their fight that the sky started to take on a dirt-colored appearance.

Eventually the two unleashed a final powerful beam of energy at each other and where they collided a large explosion erupted ending in yet another stalemate. I was starting to wonder if there was anything I could do considering how close the fight was until Tirek decided to reveal his final trump card and brought out Twilight’s friends and threatened them. I could see Twilight’s resolve wavering from here but soon my attention was grabbed by the fact that there were seven bubbles and that the one in the seventh shouldn’t be there.

“Wait, that idiot actually absorbed Discord’s power? Does he not know what chaos magic does to harmonic magic? Whatever Twilight did powered her up to his level and stealing all that alone would be dangerous. I don’t even want to think what would happen with chaos magic added into the mix.” I now realize that this is what felt wrong about his powers before so I start to tap into the hearth stone and began putting everything into the barrier and focusing everything on the side Tirek was. I even reached back into my home for every enchanted gem and ruby I had and started spreading them in an array behind the shield in an effort to stop whatever may come.

Looking back over at Twilight I can see her defeated posture as Tirek releases her friends from the bubbles imprisoning them. Once that was done Tirek began to drain all the power that Twilight had into himself while growing vastly larger than before. “Wait, his size increases with his power? That can’t be good.” As I watch he grows to almost three times the size he was previously once he finishes draining Twilight. I hear him start to laugh triumphantly at his success until he lurches forwards, grabbing at his stomach.

Seeing this I reach out and grab the six ponies, Spike, and Discord and drag them back behind the barrier I had set up before pouring everything I could into it. “Whoa! Flarenza, what was that for?! And what are you doing out here where it’s dangerous!?” I just give Twilight a look considering I should be asking her the same thing. “Hopefully keeping everyone alive after whatever happens. Tirek isn’t looking very good right now.”

The others look towards the monster to see that arcs of energy could be seen flowing around his body and his color started shifting from his red and black to a sickly green. “What in the hay is happening to him?” Rainbow Dash’s question sums up what everyone is thinking. “The idiot drained Discord’s chaos magic. Chaos magic and harmonious magic doesn’t mix well if you aren’t built for it. That combined with greedily draining so much energy at once without acclimatizing to it means he doesn’t have the proper control. I’m not sure what is going to happen but that one firework I made works on one part chaos magic and twenty parts harmony and you’ve seen the damage it can do.”

They all just stare at me wide-eyed in fear, though there’s a glimmer of something else in Discord’s eyes, at this news as I turn all my attention to the shield. Looking at Tirek I see him start to give off a glow as his power begins to overload causing him to scream out in pain. When a ball of light coalesces around him I dumb all the unneeded spells I have active and push everything into protecting us from what is about to happen.

Moments later a huge explosion centered on Tirek erupts in all directions in a giant rainbow of power. As it impacts with my shield I can tell the difference between this and my fireworks are like the difference between a match and a bonfire. Like my fireworks though only the physical side of the explosion is blocked by my shield and not the energy being released. As the energy passes over us I can feel myself being energized as my magic pours into the barrier and I notice the others starting to recover as well as their cutie marks start to reappear.

By the time I am physically unable to pour any more energy into the shield Twilight had recovered enough to assist with her own shield. That was enough to ride out the last of the explosion allowing us to finally relax. After a few minutes of silence I spotted Trixie making her way out of the manor to see what was going on and to check if everything was over. The others reassured her but I was too worn out to listen and just drifted off to sleep on my cloud.

Author's Note

And a revamped ending of Season 4 without the Deus Ex Machina box that makes little sense. Instead the more logical and believable greedy villain pulling a bonehead move. Also the Golden Oaks Library lives! Right not much else to say, may get another chapter or two in but don't count on it. At the very least the prologue will be coming to summarize things before the next Book begins. Until then be sure to leave any comments and typos found so they can be fixed.

Crusaders and the Panicked Alicorn

After tucking Selene into her bed I decided to plan out some damage control as the town was sure to know her secret quickly now that it was out. Letting the Crusaders run off without saying anything was probably a bad idea as they were sure to talk to some pony that would spread the word. My thoughts were soon interrupted by the sound of snickering which turned into outright laughter coming from Umbra who was returning from wherever she was. I just turned and glared at her until she got it out of her system while wondering what was so funny.

“What in the world happened to you? You get in a fight with a rainbow or something?” I look at myself and realize that I had forgotten about the effects from the explosion that colored my fur in many pastel hues. “Ahh, I had forgotten about that. It’s nothing to worry about, just almost blowing myself up while working on a new firework as well as some magical overload in the area.” I make a note to clean up before getting anything else done as I turn back to the thestral.

“Of course that also leads to a small problem with Selene as the area had so much magic pouring out of it that it overloaded the gems hiding her while in front of her friends as well as the six Element Bearers.” Her eyes widen at the implications of this as I continue. “The Crusaders seem to have taken everything in stride, though they must not have said anything to Selene about it, and I think I distracted the others from making any hasty judgments but there are bound to be problems still. I think you might have to officially let them know of your status instead of hiding it unless you have any better ideas.”

She shakes her head at me as she digests this information. “Nothing comes to mind but I should run it by Princess Luna first who I just got done speaking with. It figures something would happen one of the few times I am gone. Do you have any ideas on how to deal with the fallout from others finding out about her now?” This is really the problem as I can easily guess what will happen, especially after the last few odd beings came into town.

“Truthfully I just hope it blows over quickly but will work on getting a few key figures to help out. Of course the Element Bearers are on the list, with Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy most likely to help out right away. The Crusaders would probably divert some of the attention off of who she looks like with some of their usual antics and it will help her out to be seen more with them. I’ll probably talk to Cheerilee tomorrow to let her know about what is going on so she can try to keep the other foals in town calmer. Other than that I think it’s probably time to warn Selene about what to expect as well as why, as well as why she shouldn’t worry.”

My ears perk up as I hear a noise from outside and realize that a certain trio haven’t left yet and were spying on us. Reaching out with my magic towards the door I decide to let them in. “Of course speaking of the Crusaders it seems they haven’t left yet.” As I open the door the three fillies fall in, all looking a bit worried at being caught. “You three might as well go up to her room and wait for her to wake up. She’ll need her friends to calm her down from the panic she is about to go through and you might as well also be there for the talk I was planning anyways. First things first though, I need to wash this gunk out of my fur.”

The last bit brings a chuckle from some of them as we all split up and head where we need to be. After soaking for a while in the tub I realize that the rainbow colors don’t seem to be leaving and I realize that it must be a side-effect of the poison joke in the fireworks. Luckily I keep a few packets of the cure around just in case someone decides to spy through my windows and steps in the flowers under them.

Using my magic to open the cupboard containing them I accidentally use more force than I intended and rip it off its hinges. I just stare blankly at it for a few seconds before I realize that my magic levels are a good deal higher than I am used to thanks to the new tail and will probably take some getting used to. Making sure to regulate my powers I grab a packet of the cure and bring it over as I set the cupboard door down to fix later. “Right, that is going to be near the top of the list of things to take care of. I don’t want to be painting the ceiling with food because I reflexively used more magic than I should.”

After I added the packet to my bath I just laid there thinking about what to do next. It was obvious that there were going to be problems concerning Selene’s appearance but beyond the obvious ones I was sure to be missing some. The biggest one would be Celestia’s reaction when she found out about her, which was getting closer with the latest developments. I just hoped Twilight could hold off on letter her know until things were settled a bit better as I really didn’t think her reaction would be all that positive. I wondered how things had been going with Luna and Selene as the Night Princess would probably be her biggest ally with that situation.

I cursed the fact that I had been taking such a passive role in everything Selene was doing. I really never thought much beyond getting her into a safer place to live and helping her get over her fears. The same thing went with Scootaloo as I had pretty much ignored her after giving her a room. I should probably start keeping a better eye on them and at least let them know that if they need help with anything they could ask me.

Looking down I could see that the extra colors had been washed away so I dunked my head under to get the rest. Things were so much simpler when I was on my own as all I need was to just find food and a safe place to sleep. Of course I’m not sure if I could bear the loneliness after meeting my friends here. Of course I am learning new things that I never would have been able to while on the road.

Pulling my head out of the water I hear a shriek which causes me to shake my head. “Well I guess that means Selene woke up and saw the Crusaders. I guess I should head over there and try to explain some things.” Climbing out of the tub and draining it I carefully use my magic to dry off while taking a moment to admire my third tail. It was actually comforting to have earned it back again as I wasn’t sure if it would be possible after casting that spell that caused me to lose it in the first place. It did feel rather odd though and I made note to figure out how to hide it without the side effects of the last spell I used that hid one when I only had two.

Sighing I made my way towards Selene’s room and was met with the sight of her crying while being hugged by all three Crusaders. I just sat and waited for them to finish in silence; which didn’t take long as Scootaloo was the first to notice me who broke away from the others with an embarrassed squeak. The other noticing this turned to look at her and then towards where she was facing and noticed me before they too broke up, but still staying pretty close together.

“Well I guess I should explain everything to you four since the secret is out now. That includes some things I haven’t told Selene but she will need to know since there are going to be those that react a bit poorly.” The four look at me in confusion over the last part wondering what even the young alicorn doesn’t know.

“First thing though I want to say that I am proud of you three for not over-reacting when the illusion failed, none of what I tell you changes who Selene really is beyond what you though she looked like.” I levitate the collar over to examine the gems closely and find that only the diamond is still in good condition, though the enchantment on it is gone, with the other gems sporting deep cracks in them. “The accident I had earlier left a lot of magic floating around that area which overloaded the spells I had set. I was about to call out a warning when I saw how Sweetie Belle was being affected, and no there shouldn’t be anything wrong with you other than that headache you felt.”

The young unicorn was in the process of raising her hoof but quickly dropped it again when I answered her question ahead of time. “The start of all this also happens to be Selene’s earliest memories where she saw Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, as well as the six Element Bearers. That moment, along with her unnatural fear of them all, combined with her having knowledge that she shouldn’t have, specifically Sunny Town, hints at her origins.”

I pause to let them think on this and soon Applebloom speaks up. “What do you mean by her fear of them? She’s been getting along with them just fine from what I can see.” I slowly shake my head. “Well now she has been doing better, but you didn’t see her when she first came into my home and Pinkie Pie popped up out of nowhere. I still don’t know how she got under the couch so fast.” The three Crusaders wince at this, knowing how Pinkie can be, while Selene blushes as she remembers that day.

“The thing is, before that day Selene didn’t even exist.” The four gasp at this as their eyes go wide and Selene gasps out. “What do you mean I didn’t exist? I remember Celestia and Luna being my sisters and disliking me.” I raise an eyebrow as she didn’t say hate like she used to do. “Well it was the events of that day that led to you effectively being born. At least, that’s what the information I have been able to dig up suggests since Princess Luna knew nothing about you when she found out about you.”

I smile a bit when I see the Crusaders move closer to Selene to calm her down as she starts to panic. Sweetie Belle looks thoughtful as she thinks through what I said. “What event are you talking about anyways? I can’t think of a time when all the ponies you mentioned would be together. Well other than that night that they all met.” Applebloom and Scootaloo both look at her in shock as they realize what day she was talking about though Sweetie Belle looks back in confusion. “What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

I chuckle at how the filly is smarter than she realizes. “It is that day exactly when it happened, when the Elements of Harmony were used to purify Nightmare Moon whose appearance Selene shares, though in a smaller and cuter form.” It’s a good thing the Crusaders were there to keep her calm as Selene really looks uncomfortable with this news, though she still blushes at my addition at the end.

“That was the reason why I made the collar so she could hide her appearance, though she did it to hide from the ones she was scared of. The important thing is that she is NOT Nightmare Moon, that was Princess Luna. Something happened that night with the Elements, what I’m not sure though. What I think happened though is that it couldn’t destroy what it took from the Princess so it instead made Selene with it all. That would explain why Princess Luna was so much smaller then, than she is now.”

Selene seems to calm down a bit at the information that she is not a monster, though she still seems a bit unnerved. “Does that mean that Celestia and Luna aren’t really my sisters?” I can see her tear up a bit at this and I ponder how to answer. “Well that really is a difficult thing to answer. It’s really something you should talk with them about, especially Princess Luna. The thing is she might actually want to treat you as a daughter instead of a sister so the decision would be between you two.”

The reactions when they hear this last bit amuse me as the Crusaders’ jaws all drop and Selene’s eyes go wide at this news. I can see she hadn’t thought about her lack of parents at all and she doesn’t know how to take this information. Scootaloo recovers first and asks the question that I was waiting for. “But wait, if it’s true that the Princess is her mother; then who would her father be?”

She seems a bit unnerved at my grin as I remember the reactions last time I mentioned this. “Well it’s obvious that since she was born from both Luna and the Elements of Harmony that the Elements would be the father. So if Rainbow Dash or the others start being mean just be sure to call them Daddy.” The orange pegasus looks like she is going into shock at this while the other two Crusaders giggle at this information. Scootaloo finally does come up with a reply though as she looks a tad grumpy. “Not cool.”

“Okay I may be exaggerating a bit with that, but it is still a possibility considering no one knows how the Elements even work in the first place as they are inconsistent in what they do. Still it’s not like it would be a bad thing really. If those six are technically the daddy, that means you three would also be related to Selene through them, yes you too Scootaloo since you are technically Rainbow Dash’s adopted sister.”

It seems as none of the three had thought of this possibility as they all just stare ate me wide-eyed in shock. They are interrupted though as Selene pulls them all into a hug at the thought of having even more family than she thought. The three soon return the hug as they get ahold of themselves while I wait for them to finish. As they are huddled together I take a moment to look them over closely, especially Selene and Scootaloo as they are in my care.

I only now notice that Scootaloo’s wings are looking bigger on her than when she first arrived. I think back to how much she put away at meals, and especially the times when fish was served. I wonder if her issues with not being able to fly are partially from malnutrition. Fish is supposed to be a big part the diet for a Pegasus, and her being alone like that would have made it near impossible for her to get enough. At the same time I also note how her wings look rather ragged when compared to Fluttershy’s or Rainbow Dash’s, with Selene’s being not much better, and made a note to find information on wing care for them.

Soon enough the four separate from their hug and turn their attention back to me, with Applebloom speaking first. “You said she has been doing better about her fear of everypony, but you haven’t said much about Princess Celestia.” I wince as this is probably the only sore point of all this. “Well I don’t think she even knows about Selene yet unless Princess Luna has said something, and I’ve asked the others not to do so yet either. I was terrified of her myself when I first came to Ponyville as I was warned to avoid her at all costs. Well when I saved Scootaloo she found out about me and wasn’t too thrilled to see me as something happened between her and my kind, what I still don’t know. I’ve been leaving her out until the end since I really don’t know how she will react considering how Selene looks so much like Nightmare Moon does.”

They all wince at the last part and look like they want to argue but can’t come up with anything. I look outside and notice that it is getting rather late now and should try to wrap things up. “There really isn’t much else to say about this unless you have anything else to ask. You three might want to look out for Selene for a while as I expect the reactions from other ponies in town to be a bit overboard. I’m not sure if I could fix the collar anytime soon so you might as well go without it.” Selene looks unsure about this while the other three just nod while trying to look serious.

“Also you’ll have some help as well. Umbra Rose is actually a Lieutenant in the Lunar Guard and was put here by Princess Luna to watch over Selene. She might be in uniform so that should go a long way to keep the town calm, though I still will be heading around to talk to a few ponies myself. Cheerilee will definitely need to be told though from what I hear about her she shouldn’t have too much of a problem I’d think.” I try to think of anything else that they should probably know but draw a blank so I let them ask anything else they need to.

“Will she have to move to Canterlot soon now that others know she is an alicorn?” Sweetie Belle’s question surprises me a bit and I find myself wondering as well. “That is really a good question that should be asked of Princess Luna. She will probably have to go there sometime, but it might be best to ask her to let Selene stay in Ponyville for a few more years. I can’t really see her being happy in Canterlot considering how the nobles there act, and all her friends are here. Even so it’s not that long of a trip from here to Canterlot so visiting in either direction wouldn’t be too terrible.”

From then on there aren’t really any more important questions so things start to wind down as the two non-residents head off home. After cooking up dinner for everyone in the manor I think about what needs to be done tomorrow. Before heading to bed I pull aside Selene and Scootaloo for one last thing. “Just so you two know I’m sorry for ignoring you as much as I have. I really didn’t think much beyond just giving you both a place to live, but know that if you ever need anything you just have to ask. Just make sure it’s within reason.”

I direct the last bit to Scootaloo as I caught a glint in her eye that meant potential trouble. With that said and nothing from them for now I put them both to bed, noticing how bare their rooms are and add that to the list of things to fix.

Author's Note

Well that chapter took me longer than I thought to get around to writing. Combination of burnout and finals week hitting at the same time. Still it gave me time to come up with a few more ideas to use after one more chapter of boring stuff. One of them takes place before the end of season 3 and will involve undead, though I am undecided on how to deal with it just yet. I have a semi-boring way that doesn't add much, or another idea that may seem a bit contrived but is still kinda cool.

All Good Things Must Come to an End

In the years following Tirek’s fall things started to settle into a mostly routine pace. Sure there was the occasional small adventure or bit of mayhem but there was nothing of overly dangerous proportions. I spent a lot of time refining my own skills as well as spending time with my friends. Between that and the occasional request to deal with minor undead outbreaks with Luna I had little time for much else. I eventually did manage to map out the Everfree over the years with few problems or other major discoveries. I also finally finished off the experimental firework I was making and surprised everyone with it during a festival creating an imitation of Rainbow Dash’s signature move, the Sonic Rainboom.

My friends also began to drift apart over the years though they never completely broke up. While some of them may have been gone from Ponyville for weeks at a time they all managed to come back for a few days a month at the least, if not longer. Rainbow Dash was the worst about this when she earned her place as Captain of the Wonderbolts with Rarity not far behind with her burgeoning career as the premier dress maker of Equestria. Pinkie Pie even spent time out of town as she was occasionally called upon to organize major parties in other cities as her web of friends spread out. Twilight had the most unpredictable schedule with her position as a princess so she could be in and out of town at any time without notice. She spent less time in the other courts when a group of nobles decided to contribute and have a castle built for her near the library in an attempt to get into her good graces. This partially worked as she would take the time to see them in gratitude but did little to sway her opinions. Applejack and Fluttershy rarely ever left town as they had little to pull them away from it beyond royal requests for their specific skillsets.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders antics came to a near standstill once the finally earned their cutie marks, though they still did occasionally cause some havoc when they met up again for old time’s sakes. Selene was the first to earn hers when she accidentally showed up in one of my nightmares one night after I spent a week dealing with an outbreak of ghouls. Her presence alone was enough to snap me out of it, due to the oddity of her being there, and on the following morning she discovered her mark of a dream catcher in the shape of a crescent moon. On finding out about this Princess Luna spent extra time with her to help her get used to her new abilities as well as train her in their use. Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle weren’t much further behind as they each earned theirs around the same time during a talent show. Their marks represented their skills in building and inventions, stunts, and the performing arts respectively. In fact Scootaloo’s first flight was at the same time and it was nearly impossible to get her on the ground after that event. They were often away from each other more than my older friends as their skills took them in different directions.

My relations with the immortal princesses as well as Discord also improved over the years as well, though Luna and Cadence were always friendly with me. While Celestia and Discord couldn’t be called true friends we at least were relatively civil with each other and helped each other out when it was needed. It was only because of this that things didn’t go too badly when a small prank war erupted between the four princesses, me, and Discord. There were no teams, though there was the occasional temporary alliance, and things got rather hectic over the course of that month. While Twilight and I were the youngest of the group we still managed to get the others with a good prank before we were retaliated upon causing us to escalate things even more. I managed to really make things hard on the two elder princesses as I often centered my pranks on them around Prince Blueblood. I only used him as the focus when I caught him being his usual rude self but it happened often enough that the two looked around in panic whenever he entered the room. The final day of the prank war was the most memorable though it not only affected the other five but also backfired on me as well. Needless to say I was immortalized at that point by being recognized with a brand new law banning anyone from ever giving Pinkie Pie chocolate covered triple-espresso coffee beans ever again. To make things worse I was also the first being to have been recognized with breaking the music of harmony around Equestria by teaching Pinkie Pie a never ending song. It took months for it to recover from that enough to begin working again as well as many memory spells to remove the song from the minds of the populace.

My friends also found love over the years as well, alone or in groups. Some ended up being a surprise while others were rather predictable. Mitta was one of the predictable ones as she married Big Macintosh along with the teacher Cheerilee. I had never considered what pony mating habits were until that point and it made me wonder what my own kind were like in that respect. I actually became a bit jealous of the others as they each found those to live with and begin a family with which made me long for my own kind. Twilight was really the only exception to this as she started out with a few doomed relationships that eventually evolved into others only being interested in her for her position and not for herself. She was the only one to not start her own family though she made up for it by being there for all of her friends children.

All good things have to come to an end sometime though and it began with the death of Rainbow Dash. She had been getting on in years yet refused to back down from her stunt flying. It all came to a head one day when she showed off her Sonic Rainboom for the last time. Nobody could tell when exactly she passed away but those of us watching noticed how limp she was between she broke the sound barrier and when she hit the ground. The days seemed a little less colorful after her passing and in tribute I fired off one of the two Rainboom Fireworks I had at her funeral in tribute. The other I kept for myself to remember her by as I had no urge to make any more.

Fluttershy was the next to go, though we never found out what exactly happened to her. One day she just vanished into the Everfree Forest without telling anyone else where she was going. The day after her family had gathered everyone they could to try and find her but after a week she was given up for dead. Even Discord, one of her closest friends, had no idea what happened to her and he took it rather hard. To help him with his grief I gave him a small part of my property to use to build a tribute to her and even gave him a few ideas of my own.

Rarity was the first to go peacefully from the effects of old age. Being a unicorn she never did have the best constitution of the group and it started to show as she slept longer and longer as time went on. One day after finishing up one of her ever popular charity events she settled down for the night and never woke up from her sleep again. Her funeral was one of the largest and most extravagant ever as everyone she had ever touched throughout her life wanted to show their appreciation for what she did. Princess Celestia was even heard to say that there had never been any event in her memory to gather so many beings in one place before.

Applejack’s death was much the same as she was surrounded by her family at Sweet Apple Acres. Like any family member of the Apple Clan her death brought every member that could come to the funeral. She was such a prominent member of the Apple Clan though that just about every member that was alive showed up for it even if they normally wouldn’t have been able to. While the funeral itself was solemn the Apple Clan showed their appreciation for her life in another way as the day after became an unplanned family reunion and party. I like to think that she would have been happy to see her family remembering her in such a fond way without all the frou frou stuff that normally goes into a funeral.

The loss of Pinkie Pie was the only one I was able to witness up close as she called me in to speak with her on her death bed. She gifted me with a bundled up item and told me that I would need it once I returned and would know what to do with it. After that she closed her eyes for the last time while still holding on to her trademark smile. Her death actually hit me the hardest seeing as I was right there though I wondered what she meant. I decided to store the item in the manor until the time came that she mentioned though I wondered what it was as it was wrapped up tight and sealed.

With the loss of the last of her best friends Twilight really began to break down. Princess Cadence spent a lot of time with her to help console her even though she was still hurting herself over the loss of her husband a few years back. Ponyville felt like a much darker place without those five to liven up the place and I found myself started to lose my reasons for staying around for much longer.

With the loss of Pinkie I began to prepare everything for when I eventually left to search for my own kind once again. My time in Ponyville had given me some hints to follow as well as a few new mysteries as well to solve. Many of the ponies I had business dealings with were rather disappointed to see me go, though I had managed to find a few to run a couple of my side businesses. Probably the most lucrative one was a security company the supplied enchanted gems for banks and other institutions which even included some way to reveal changelings and illusions used to rob said places. The bank in Ponyville was probably the most secure in the company as it was the one that I used and they were happy to set things up so that what funds I left with them were safe for if I ever returned.

The princesses, all five of them as Selene had been crowned many years back, were the only ones to know that I was not only leaving but also as to why. Celestia didn’t seem too happy about my destination but she understood my reasons for doing so. Twilight and Selene were less than happy to see me go though I did promise to write them whenever I had the chance to. Spike volunteered to be used as the delivery point, though considering how he had been growing over the years I wondered how much longer he would be around them.

As soon as I had finished fortifying Ogitsu Manor with preservation spells as well as sealing off the important areas with other spells I took a last look around the attic. I take a moment to look over the last things I had to remember my departed friends by. The Rainboom Firework and a feather from Rainbow Dash’s wing as well as a feather from Fluttershy, the dresses I had from Rarity as well as a set of bags enchanted to hold more, a couple bottles of Zap Apple Cider from Applejack which were only given to her friends, and the object that Pinkie Pie had given me on her death bed. I let out a sad sigh as I levitate the bags onto my back and put the first Gala dress in them before giving a final nod at the items and sealing the attic for the last time. Once I packed everything else I needed I stepped outside before locking the house down and left the town that had been my home for over a hundred and thirty years dragging my four tails behind me.

Author's Note

Well that's the end for now though it might feel a tad rushed but that's what epilogues usually do feel like. I'll probably be starting on the next Book once I decide on how to go about it but I can say now that it will probably be a bit different format-wise. There won't be much reference to time in that one as a good amount of time will probably pass between chapters. Up until a certain point each chapter will probably be more like a short story on Flarenza's adventures until the real meat comes about. I know that there are probably a lot of questions that are unanswered but there is a reason for that with some bits. If you want to know though don't be afraid to ask though I can't guarantee a satisfactory answer as it may spoil things to come. So until next time I mark Book 1 as Complete, though that doesn't rule out bonus chapter in the future if I come up with ideas.

Also I need to fix the tags so if you see any that should be added or removed please let me know, typos and other problems too please.

Mareless Moon Rises

Author's Note

Seeing as my original prologue was really bad, here is the new start of this story with a bit of a changed theme and hopefully a bit better written. The general path I have set for the story may not have changed much, but the elements that made the previous start subpar have been mostly removed and shall not show, so sorry for those wanting a HiE style story, but that was the big thing tossed. And a curse on my ability of writing something and after releasing it to wherever better ideas flow in.

Mareless Moon Rises

Night-time in the Everfree Forest. Many beings have fear of this place in the daytime, yet here I am trouncing through the place on a full moon night. Not that the moon helps any with how thick the canopy is anyways. Granted there is danger for the unprepared, with how far I’ve traveled and the teachings of my mother it isn’t all that bad if you are careful.

“Mother…” I cut that line of thought off before it can start. I need to focus on things of more immediate importance right now, like that pack of timberwolves circling the tree below me. Yeah, being stuck in a tree all night could put a damper on my plans to get out of the forest tonight.

Sighing I go through my packs and the remains of my emergency supplies. “Hopefully I can find somewhere to settle down for a while to restock these things,” I state while pulling out one of the last packets of a red powder I have. I carefully open the packet with my magic, making sure to not to spill any unintentionally or smell it, and carefully spread it into the air below me towards the wolves.

Being careful to not let any of it near sensitive parts of myself I watch as it floats down in a haze towards the wooden beings and chuckle as they begin to start pawing at their faces as the powder begins to take effect. Soon they are writhing around in pain as the powder gets into their sensitive eyes and noses, causing immense pain. “Glad I was able to find those peppers, not really safe to eat, but boy does it make a good deterrent,” making sure my pack is secured I leap out atop one of the wolves that has left the red mist in an upwind direction and take off at a swift, yet mostly quiet, pace away from the area.

Once I get away from the pack I slow to a more cautious pace and keep an eye and ear out for more problems. Thinking on the remaining items in my pack, I realize that if anything else shows up I won’t have anything left beyond my magic to deal with them. While my control of my magic has gotten good over the years, I’d rather not rely too much on it right now as I need time to creatively plan out its use or else things can get a bit… unpredictable.

Thinking on some of the dangers I know of in the forest, I do have some ideas on what to do if I run into them. The timberwolves could have been handled differently, but starting moving fires in a forest is usually a bad idea. I’ve heard of manticores and hydras in this place, and I’d rather not have to deal with them as things could get a bit sticky. “Hmm, there’s an idea, a simple glue spell could at least slow them down long enough for me to escape, if not stop them for a while,” I contemplate while passing along a gorge.

Glancing across the gorge I see what appears to be a wall of worked stone and upon closer examination looks to be part of a castle as I can see a tower peeking over the top of it. Not seeing any way across, and with all the vines and decay along the walls I make a note to maybe check it out later and continue on my way. Back to thinking of the dangers of the place I bring my mind to two of the most dangerous, the cockatrice and the basilisk. “As long as one doesn’t get the jump on me I shouldn’t have too much of a problem. The eyes are the biggest threat so avoid any direct contact with them. A glue spell could work well enough to immobilize them so I can escape, but to be safe I think I should have a blinding spell ready as well. I think that will disable the magic of their eyes for the duration, not sure so better not make any eye contact even then.”

Stopping into a bush for a short rest I perk up my ears and use all my senses to make note of the area. I can hear various insects and other smaller animals moving around, some of them moving away from me in fear. No unfamiliar scents are in the area and I don’t spot anything through the branches of my current cover. Sighing and taking a moment I dig through my packs for my map and take a moment to examine it.

“Judging from the distance I think I’ve come, I think I should be out in a couple more hours. Too bad there hasn’t been a good mapping of this place in like, ever. Maybe I can check out some of this place later on if I get time,” I ponder this idea as I return the map to its place, and file the idea for later, preferably after setting up a home base and restock on survival tool.

Carefully leaving the bush, making sure to make as little noise as possible, I continue along the gorge edge until I come to an odd sight. Spanning the gorge is a bridge towards what looks like the entrance to the castle. What’s odd is the path that leads to the bridge the heads off in the opposite direction towards what I assume is the forest’s edge.

“Nothing is supposed to be out in this place, so why is there a pathway?” I ponder this as I try to make a decision on how to treat this new find and decide to play it safe. I make my way into the forest along the edge of the path and follow a course parallel to it. While the path may be perfectly safe, it’s better to be cautious until I know more as predators may hide along it to ambush the unsuspecting.

Glancing at the path as I follow alongside it, I notice light streaming down from above. Following the glow I catch sight of the full moon in the sky, the Mare emblazoned across it. Gladdened to see something familiar in this dark place I turn my attention to making my way through the forest.

The path isn’t easy as I have to use my magic to cross a river at one point which drains much of my primary stores. Once I get across I take another break to refresh myself from the river and some stored food from my packs. “I really need to practice that water walking spell more often; it shouldn’t drain me this much. I don’t want to undo the seals on my reserves for no real reason other than an emergency,” I complain to myself as I examine some nearby plants while finishing my small meal.

Noting nothing too out of the ordinary I glance towards the open sky above the river before turning back to my course along the path. “Stars seem rather bright tonight,” I note as I head back into the darker forest.

My progress is slowed a bit as the trees seem to be closer together in this area and I ponder following the path for a bit to avoid difficulty. As I struggle through the trees and am about to decide to take the idea I come across a wall of rock, with a small gorge-like path cut through it along the path, making the mental argument moot.

Making sure all my senses are focused on the task at hand, I slowly make my way through the gorge as quickly as I can while remaining silent. Luckily I decided to be cautious, as I hear a deep breathing near the end of the gorge, and as I approach the exit I identify something I would rather not see, a manticore.

Holding my breath I peer at the creature from where I am, and notice that it seems to be sleeping. I slowly release my breath and I cautiously make my way forwards with any eye on the creature, and the other on the ground for any obstacles. As I attempt to sneak by I am forced to freeze in place as it starts to move, luckily it was just rolling over in its sleep though.

With that stressful moment passed, I carefully unfreeze and make my way past it and into the forest beyond it. Once I am, what I feel is, a far enough distance have a small breakdown after I make sure the area I stop in is safe. “I did not expect that thing to be so large, and a hydra is supposed to be much larger than that? I do NOT want to meet one now, I’d have to burn all my magic just to escape, let alone stopping it for long enough to do so,” I mumble in panic.

Setting down my packs I stumble to a nearby stream to take a long drink and calm down. Once having done so I glance along the path and notice what looks like some strange blue flowers on a separate pathway. Having not seen anything like these before I return to my packs and pull out an empty vial from it and make sure it is cleaned out at the stream.

Heading over to the flowers I carefully observe them while not making contact with them. Having dealt with some nasty plant-life before I’ve learned it is best to not touch something that is unfamiliar directly and even indirectly is bad sometimes.

Extending my magic while I hide partially behind a tree I prod one of the flowers lightly. Noticing nothing happens on doing so I breathe a small sigh of relief and advance towards it while staying a distance from it still. Unstoppering the vial I carefully levitate one of the plants on the edge of the patch, along with roots and some dirt, and place it carefully in the vial being careful not to touch it and replace the stopper. Returning to the stream I wash off the outside of the vial and return it to my pack to study later.

Once I have finished sealing my pack a flash of a purplish-blue something rapidly enters the corner of my vision. Before I can react it runs into me as it passes, knocking me into a patch of bushes by the path entangling me in it. I struggle for a second before I hear the sound of voices approaching along with some kind of footfalls on the pathway causing me to freeze.

Turning my head to peer through the branches of the bush I am trapped in I see the shapes of six beings making their way along the path heading in the direction of the thing that hit me. Trying to make as little sound as possible I observe the beings as they approach.

Once they get close enough to identify, I relax a bit at the sight of a purple unicorn leading them. At least they aren’t predators I think to myself while staying quiet. Examining the others I notice the group is comprised of two unicorns, two pegasi, and two normal looking ponies, all of them female. Having heard of, but never seen, these types of creatures I keep an eye on them and notice one of the unicorns levitating some objects along with it.

Making note of this as well as the marks on their flanks, as well as the fact of the numbers I assume that these are the main species in this area. This is a lucky opportunity as I don’t have to risk exposing myself to danger to find this out I think as I put some plans into mind for use, not paying attention to what they are saying.

Once they have passed by and are what I assume to be out of sight I start to try and struggle my way out of the bush. Unfortunately they weren’t as far as I thought when I hear something call out in a soft voice, “Is somepony there?” I freeze up at this and turn my head to see the buttery colored Pegasus had turned back at the sound of the bush and was making her way over to it.

Staying still in fear as she came over to the bush and peered into it, my eyes meet her deep aquamarine eyes. I am startled at her reaction when she sees me, “Oh you poor thing, how did you get caught in there.” She starts to untangle the bush around me as I am shaking in a bit of fear and amazement. I guess they have never seen my kind before I think to myself as she clears the brush around me, I thought mother said that we would be unwelcome to them, but if they don’t know of us how would we be unwelcome.

As the mare clears the last of the branches trapping me and starts to reach for me her head jerks to the side as one of her friends calls to her in a gravely sounding voice, “What are you doing back there Fluttershy, hurry up before you get left behind.” Taking this chance I bolt out of the bush and back towards my pack but hiding before I reach it. Glancing back I notice the now named ‘Fluttershy’ looking around trying to see where I had vanished to before sadly hurrying back towards her friends.

I feel a bit sad at her seeming disappointment and make note to try and repay her sometime, something about her just makes it feel like the right thing to do. Making sure they are fully out of sight, but not before noticing the buttery one look back one more time, I head over to my packs to make sure they are still safe. Once I have secured them on my back again I ponder what to do now that I have some idea of what to expect in this area.

“While the one didn’t seem to recognize me, and I think she saw me more as an animal instead of a being, that doesn’t mean others might not know. It’s been a while since I’ve had to use my disguise abilities, but it’s probably safer to do so, though need to be careful about my diet,” I ponder things out as I make plans while heading towards the forest edge. As I near I notice something odd, “Shouldn’t it be nearing daytime by now? Why does it still seem like the middle of the night?”

Pondering this I come to the edge of the forest and conceal myself before finalizing my plans. Looking into the now clear night sky I spot something that alarms me a bit, the moon is now Mareless. “That… can’t be a good sign,” I say to myself while digging through my bags for the round and clear crystal I keep with me.

While not the best at it, I have learned a couple things about reading the future. Nothing too extraordinary, but it has been enough to help me avoid some bad weather and find my way to water and food when I needed. Channeling a bit of power into the crystal I focus on trying to feel out what the weather will be like in a few hours. I breathe a sigh of relief when the image of the sun appears in the crystal, meaning that this extended night should only be temporary.

Replacing the crystal in my bags I then set them aside for the next step of my plans. Glad that this doesn’t consume much magic at all now as it is natural to my kind, I start to shift my form into one that is similar to the ponies that had passed, but different enough that I can be identified as a separate pony, and not a copy of another.

Blending traits from those I saw, and adding others I’ve seen on other creatures I slowly shift into a unicorn form as that seems to be the most obvious user of magic of the types I saw. Growing out a main from my head I form it down into a braid behind my head, while recoloring my tail into a long flowing shape. The colors of them shift into a black and white color while my coat stays an orange with brown ‘socks.’ I can see the same brown on my muzzle but would need a mirror to get a clearer view of everything.

Turning to my packs I lengthen the straps on them for my now taller body and lift them onto myself. While glancing back to my flank while doing this I note that it is still blank. Not fully sure what it is supposed to mean, but knowing it is important as all six of those I saw had them, I smile as I create one that will identify me well enough for now.

This done I turn my way towards the lights I can see in the distance. Assuming that this is the town that the six came from I start to make my way towards it. Along the way I notice that what I though was just a giant tree stump, was instead a cottage that is cleverly camouflaged to look like a part of nature. Looking closer I also notice the chicken coop behind it and the fence around it and wonder how I could have missed seeing those.

Making my way across a bridge towards the town I steadily plod along while getting a feel for my current shape. It feels odd to be bigger than normal and I feel a bit clumsier than usual. This should pass I know as I’ve been in odder form before, but it’s still annoying. Approaching the outer limits of the town I start to see others moving around in the lamplight, though the lamps seem to be few and far in between, many carried by the figures in the town.

Seeing the lack of light I use my magic to pull out a length of cord and one of my more precious gems that is wrapped in a dark cloth. Unwrapping it, a warm glow comes from the gem as I loop the cord around it and then place it around my neck so I can better see my path. Having done so I make my way into the town and try to see what is around.

Many of those I see are rushing around, though I spot a large number in a large open area near the center of town. Making my way towards the area I hear something galloping behind me, turning my head I see a pink mare with blond mane and tail galloping around in a seeming panic. As she nears I can hear her shouting, “Doomed! Doomed!” to any within hearing distance. Well this seems like an interesting town already I think while turning back and searching the surrounding buildings, hoping to find an open shop that I can unload some stuff at for some local currency.

I Ain't Afraid of No Ghost

It figures, the one night without a ghost keeping me awake or getting me up early and I wake up early anyways. Sighing at this as any chances of falling back to sleep are gone I instead turn my attention to the surrounding shelves. “Well if I can’t sleep I might as well find out some information on the area, didn’t have a chance to do that yet.” Pulling up my magic to do a quick search of the books I pull out two for some quick reading, a simple dietary needs book and one titled History of Equestria.

Seeing as the first one will be just a quick look on things I start with that one. After a quick search through it I find that a pony’s diet can consist of many different forms of vegetation, grains, fruits, and surprisingly fish as I found out at the café as well as a few other things. Looking into the fish part I find that it is mainly pegasi that need it to help keep their wings healthy, though the other races may eat it to a lesser extent though most prefer not to.

Smiling at the find I return the book to its place and turn to the more important one. Over the next while I find out about the general setup of the kingdom as well as the names of some important figures. Huh, so the princesses are named Celestia and Luna. Also the reason why the latter what the lost-sister is because she went evil and was banished? I ponder on the issue wondering how she is back again as well as not evil.

It probably had something to do with those mares being in the forest. I saw them go in and yet the next time I saw them was with both princesses. Thinking on that while I peruse the rest of the book I notice it starting to get a little lighter out. Taking a moment to stretch I finish off the last few pages of the book before returning it to the shelves and just browse the titles of other books as random.

Not much catches my eye as I look through them, though I do catch sight of one I heard mentioned before and pull it down. “Supernaturals huh? Wonder what this one is about if it’s not one on undead and other strange phenomenon.” Flipping through a few pages I find that it is actually an herbal remedy and the title is just a play on words. I do catch sight of a familiar flower as I flip through and make note to look this book up later.

Returning the book I turn towards the stairs, as I hear hoofsteps coming down them, to see Twilight yawning as she makes her way down. “Good morning there, I woke up a bit early and seeing as I couldn’t sleep again I took to browsing the shelves a bit, I hope you don’t mind.” She blinks a few times as she notices me there, probably forgetting that I stayed over the night, “Oh, good morning. No it’s fine, nice to see someone taking an interest in reading.”

With a bit of relief I turn back to the shelves again, trying to note the type of order they are placed in. Out of the corner of my eye I notice Twilight head to another part of the library and soon return with a cup of something. Taking a guess that that is a kitchen area I try and decide what to do for breakfast this morning. In the end I just decide to stop by and grab something while Twilight is leaving messages with her friends before heading out to deal with the ghost.

Casting another quick spell, I find a book on the properties of gemstones and minerals and bring it to a table. “So when do you want to try and clear out that problem from the manor?” I ask Twilight after she has gone through half of the cup of whatever. She pauses mid-sip to consider this, “It would probably be best to get it done early. No telling how long we will be in there and the sooner we get rid of it the sooner you can start settling in.”

I nod to her at this as I page through the book I make note to get a copy of it for myself for later experiments with enchanting said stones, noting the thoroughness the author went into the descriptions. “I’d really be grateful to be able to do that. Though after yesterday there is probably going to be much more to clean up as it started to tear down doors and cause other damage.” I grimace at this as I have no clue how much of the place was destroyed by it now.

Twilight winces at the mention of the doors and starts looking a bit worried about agreeing to this now, “I don’t think you mentioned that yesterday, just that it was much angrier after the spell.” I glance up apologetically, realizing that she is right, “Sorry, I did forget to mention it. Things just started getting out of hand in the planning yesterday. After this is I promise to do what I can to make it up to you.”

She calms down a bit and just waves it off, “It’s fine I guess, just make sure to give me all the information you have if you need help again. It’s bad enough that I couldn’t find anything on stopping that creature in the first place. It makes me wonder how you were able to find something so quickly…” She pauses and looks at me curiously while I try to ignore the look and focus on the book.

Turning the page my interest is caught on the entry involving salt. “Huh, salt has been used in purification rituals and in types of barriers.” This diverts Twilight’s attention from her previous train of thought, “It used to be when magic was more primitive. Considering how advanced things have gotten its use has fallen out of favor for other materials and spells. Though it still has a recreational use by many ponies.” She mutters the last line, but I’m more focused on the first part and make a note to stop for some as a precaution.

Looking outside I note that it has gotten a good deal brighter and it looks like other ponies are starting to move around outside now. “Well I should thank you for letting me stay the night and for helping me with this. It looks like stores are starting to open now and I want to pick up a couple things before we deal with the ghost so I think I’m going to head out now.” She once again winces at the word ghost, and after an attempt to get me to stay for breakfast at the very least she eventually gives up and agrees to meet outside of the manor once she informs her friends.

Heading out I stop by the usual place for a fast meal, then hit a few of the shops. After a time finding the items I may need, I head off to my home making sure everything is in place. “Okay, so a general medical kit, enough salt to fill two vials, parchment for notes on damages, and some more cleaning supplies. I’m probably getting ahead of myself with some of it, but better to prepare for the best case instead of worrying.”

I make my way back through town, only pausing to wave to Twilight and Applejack at her stand, and head to the manor. Once I arrive I circle the outside a few time while using the spell to locate the ghost. It seems to have settled down in the basement for whatever reason, but I know that can change in a moment’s notice. Settling down in the grass I wait for Twilight to arrive.

It doesn’t take long for her to trot up from town and we greet each other again in somber tones considering the danger. We head around back and I check the creature’s location one more time, “All right it seems to be settled in the basement for now, that could make things easier or harder.” Twilight turns at this, “Why could it be harder?” My response doesn’t reassure her, “It could be guarding what we need down there. While I didn’t find anything down there and it looked empty, I wasn’t searching very hard.”

She gets a bit worried at this but still climbs the ladder to the bedroom. I follow her in and once inside and gape at the fact that the door has been torn down since I was last here. Taking this in I notice that the moonstone is still intact, yet it is barely flickering now, “We need to hurry, this place is no longer safe and the sooner we get done the better, be ready to use that shield spell when it’s needed.” Twilight nods at this and we quietly make our way out of the room and down the hall.

We make it to the room without a problem, though we start to hear the ghost moving around as we enter the room. Finding the switch for the attic is easy, it being in a spot formerly hidden behind a picture, and return to the hall. There we find a set of stairs have swung down from the ceiling leading to the attic. As we ascend the stairs we hear the ghost’s scream rise in volume as it moves towards the second floor.

Looking at each other we hurry to the attic before it can see us. What we find there is not what we expected. Bones cover the place and the smell of decay assaults our senses causing us to gag, “This is bad, like really bad.” As I say this I stare around the room as we light it up with our magic. As we noted on first entering the place is covered in bones, what we missed though was the large circle drawn into the floor. Examining it closer I can tell it was done in blood, confirming my fears.

“The vilest of magic was used here, someone practicing the darker arts,” I quietly say this all while shuddering as memories of my past start to surface. Twilight seems to be in a fearful state as well as she takes in the disturbing imagery. We are interrupted from our respective musings by the ghost’s screech as it finds the open staircase. Twilight is the first to react, throwing a shield over the entry to stop it, though she soon takes on a strained look as things start to impact the shield.

“I’ll hold it back, you try to find whatever it is here we need to stop it,” she gets out in a strained voice. Nodding to her I turn to the room and try to find whatever it is I’m looking for. Discarding various objects that I find on tables around the room, I come across a thick book on a podium. I feel a strange aura from the book, but I feel an even worse one from the object on top of it, a blackened pony skull.

“I think I found it Twilight,” I call to her as I bring the skull towards her. Seeing her shudder as I near her with it I guess she also can feel something from it and nods to me. Setting it on the ground I rise up onto my hind legs and use all the force I can muster to stomp down on it. Unfortunately all that happens is a loud banging sound and a cry of pain from me as I twist something.

Twilight’s eyes widen at this and she tries to blast it with her magic only yielding similar results. This distraction is what the ghost was looking for as it suddenly shatters Twilight’s barrier, knocking us and the skull further into the attic. While both of us try to catch our breath, the creature makes its way up the stairs and turns to face us. Before it can do anything I climb to my feet and do the only thing I can think of, I blast it with the banishment spell again.

While this does pin the creature to the wall, it also serves to enrage it even further than it was, “Twilight, I’ll hold it down as long as I can, you need to destroy that skull fast.” Twilight just looks around in panic, “But how, physical force didn’t work, and neither did magic, what am I supposed to do?” What she says makes sense; even I don’t know how to destroy an object tainted by dark magic.

Wait, tainted? That’s it! “Twilight, there is some salt in my left pack, try using that!” Twilight just looks at me oddly for a second before she seems to remember the book this morning. Pulling out the vial she dumps it all on and around the skull then stares at it, “I used the salt on it, but what am I supposed to do now? I don’t know if I’m supposed to use a spell or just wait!” My mind races as I feel my strength slowly drain away from the spell so respond with the first thing that comes to mind.

“I don’t know, just set it on fire or something, fire always fixes everything!” Twilight looks at me oddly for a second but still tries it having no other options. Luckily it works, turning the skull into a miniature blue pyre. As the skull is engulfed in flames, the ghost’s screams cut off and it starts twisting in my spell as it starts to shrivel up. Eventually nothing is left of it except a scorch mark on the wall, and the faint sound of ‘thank you’ from somewhere.

Seeing that it’s over I cut the spell and collapse onto the floor, while Twilight staggers in place before joining me. “It’s over finally,” I say, “And I’d like to reiterate how much I hate undead, dealing with them is too much of a pain in the tail.” Twilight just nods to this as we both catch our breath.

As I recover I turn my eyes to the rest of the attic and examine the place better now that we don’t have to worry for our lives. Much of the clutter on the tables I searched earlier seems useless, mostly decayed from age. The bones scattered around the place aren’t easy to identify, most being from beasts, though a few look to be from ponies. The last objects I look at are the circle in the center of the room, and the large tome on the podium.

“That magic circle definitely has to go. Whatever it was for is definitely not something I’d want to repeat considering what we went through.” Twilight nods at this and looks towards the tome in interest. “True, it most likely was used to create that creature. The fact it’s drawn in blood makes it need to be destroyed. What was in that book though?” I slowly get to my feet and make my way towards it, Twilight following soon after. “No idea, I didn’t take the time to look though that skull was on top of it. I felt something odd from it though and it wasn’t a good feeling either.”

Once we reach it with both examine it curiously from different angles. The materials it is made from seem familiar, though the answer isn’t coming to mind. Glancing at each other we both nod once and flip the book open to a random page.

Immediately I cringe and force my burning eyes shut while slamming the book closed. I can hear Twilight stumbling over to a corner, retching the entire time at the sight of such evil. “This thing needs to be destroyed or locked up by somepony who knows how to if it can’t be!” As my eyes clear, I can see that Twilight is almost recovered, and is slowly turning towards me because of my exclamation.

“I agree, but I don’t think we should try to do so ourselves. I have no idea what would happen if we did, and we are drained as it is now. Princess Celestia will know what to do with it and will want to know about it anyways considering what has happened here.” My ears shoot up at this and I start to worry a bit as that’s the one pony I want to avoid, “Princess Celestia? While I know she’d want to know about this how would we get her attention. Wouldn’t there be a lot of ponies we’d have to go through before talking to her?”

“Normally yes,” she admits, “But being the Personal Student of Princess Celestia I have a direct line to her for important matters as well as my studies.” My worry turns into alarm at this information. Not only is she the student of the princess I want to avoid, but I just brought her into a dangerous situation. This is not good, I think to myself trying and failing to find a way out of this.

Seeing no way out of this I decide to try and hope for the best. With the aura given off by the tome, and the fact that the problem is solved, she might not take much notice of me. Bringing my attention back to Twilight I try to bury my misgivings, “Well that must be handy at times, and considering the contents of this she’d probably be one of few who know how to deal with it.” I bring out the medical kit and use the bandages from it to firmly tie the book shut before levitating it to Twilight.

“It’s probably best that you handle this thing from here. I’ve already had my fill of dark magic for the day, and the sooner I can clean up this place the better.” Twilight looks a bit unsure and nods at this before taking the bound book. Escorting her down to the front door, with a quick stop by my room for the keys, I wave her off as she heads back to the library to prepare for whoever will arrive to take that thing off her hands.

Once she is out of sight I turn back to my house and observe the damage. “Well one problem down, and now a giant mess to clean up. This is going to take a while,” I huff at the damage as I look at the shattered furniture, busted doors and scattered kitchen implements scattered all over the place.

Author's Note

Well another chapter done, and I believe that's the 25k word mark, go me. Still accepting any comments and complaints, though at this rate I'll hit 100k words with nothing.

Accidents Happen and a show of trust

Sometimes the ponies around here scare me with how crazy they can get at times. I thought that a depressed Pinkie Pie was bad, but when Twilight starts to snap it is a whole different level of scary. I’m not sure what set her off in the first place, but I’m just glad I had one of my sapphires with me to protect me from her spell she placed on that doll as it gave me time to get elsewhere. It was a good thing too, as the Princess had to come and clean up her mess and calm her down.

Even so, things has calmed down remarkably well after Discord’s little rampage even with incidents like that. Two of the Crusaders had some event to do with their sisters which looked to bring them closer together, though during that time I caught Scootaloo sneaking into an old abandoned building. She said she was searching for some cool stuff for some cutie mark project that her and her friends were planning, but I’ve noticed that most ponies are easy to catch out in a lie, yet I just let her go with is still.

Applebloom’s little foray in the world of alchemy also showed some interesting results to the town in the form of some sort of cutie mark disease. Seeing the effect it had on her I wondered if it had anything to do with the irrational fear of cutie marks in Sunny Town. Checking with Mitta when I had the chance later didn’t tell me much though as she didn’t know if there was a good reason they fear them, yet it did sound plausible.

Of course even things that seem impossible are bound to happen, such as the pet that Rainbow Dash chose for herself. From her personality a tortoise just doesn’t seem like something that would fit her, but seeing its personality, even if it took a while, I could see why she did though. Of course this did little to temper her personality as lately she had been getting a bit overbearing.

Sure she saved a few ponies more often lately, but that’s no reason to get a big head over it. Odd that she is reacting like that since she never did before when she saved others, or at least not to these extremes. Still it is strange that all these accidents have been happening with such a short span of each other, but I just chalk it up to some lingering effect from Discord.

Whatever the reason, I decided that it would be a good idea to go somewhere away from town for the time being. Sunny Town would have been a nice distraction if it wasn’t a few weeks from appearing again, and the diamond dogs were also out as I had no clue what to do with or about them. This of course left the castle in the Everfree, or exploring the Everfree itself, and seeing as I was still preparing for the latter…

“I guess the castle it is, I hope that filly is up for some company right now.” On making the choice I start to pack up some of the usual things I bring with me. I even had the diamond that I once used in Sunny Town as I no longer had to track when it was going to appear so I just kept it around until I found another use for it. I even decided to bring a rhubarb pie with me to share with her, though I made sure to keep most of the rest locked up in a separate container in the pantry to prevent a repeat of the Crusader Incident.

As I walk through the forest I think about my plan for the next few months, or the lack of them as the case may be. Having had an uneventful Summer Solstice this year, and the fact that cider season is coming up soon at the start of fall, I had nothing to do now that my house was mostly finished thanks to the Crusaders. “I probably could check out that cider and see what is so special about it; I missed it last year while doing other things. Maybe I can get that one spell to work so I can start exploring the Everfree more as well.”

Thinking about the spell I check my packs to see if I brought the materials for it along. Seeing that I did I made a note to check that spell I found again as well as look for anything else that could help as well. I had come to realize that the while the castle library had many spells that were harder to find elsewhere, many of the ones that were easily found tended to be of a more archaic form at the same time. This makes sense as the spells had progressed over the last thousand years, and ones not needed often fell out of use and were lost.

Arriving at the castle I soon sense that the filly is already watching me from somewhere like usual. I wonder how she can stay hidden so well every time I arrive while I make my way to the library. I set the usual packet of food down where I usually do and continue to my usual table. I forego the search spell as I know where the first book I want is located so I retrieve it for reading.

After verifying the information I need I started searching for other books that would help me with this spell. After an hour of research I found a few different ways to get the result I wanted, and I even had all the materials with me for it. “Well there’s no time like the present I guess, this will be the first time I try a multi-circle spell in a way so each circle doesn’t merge though.”

I find a large clear area to prepare a chalk circle for the spell and carefully inscribe all the necessary symbols. Once that is done I take a large sheet of parchment from my packs and place it in the center with a scrap of gold, a piece of jade, a pearl fragment and a bloodstone shard at each corner aligned with the cardinal directions of East, West, South, and North respectively. Completing that and checking to make sure that everything is aligned correctly I prepare myself for the complicated spell.

It starts easily enough as I channel my power into the circle causing the symbols to light up with energy. Once I finish powering the circle I start to direct the energies into the center objects. This part takes much more concentration and as the power increases the air around me starts to slowly churn. Soon enough I reach the level of power I need to complete the spell, which is higher than I first expected.

I can vaguely see object flying around me, and as the spell nears completion I put out a last burst of effort. As I finish the spell I start to unravel the energies in the circle carefully to prevent any sort of backlash. Unfortunately I am blindsided by a large tome crashing into the side of my head breaking my concentration causing the remaining energies to race back into me uncontrolled forcing me into unconsciousness.

<><><><><><><>

I slowly awaken to the feeling of something wet pressing against my side as well as a muffled sound. As I open my eyes I notice the book that had hit me causing this latest bout of pain, the book happens to be pertaining to healing and is currently open to a page on dealing with head trauma. Really? Out of all the books that are in the library this is the one that ends up hitting me?

Shaking my head I turn to look at whatever is pressed against me. I find out that it is what I assume to be the filly that had been hiding in this place alone that was there and it looks as if she was crying. Since she finally decided to come out on her own I decided to take the time to look her over to finally put a form to her voice.

The first thing I notice is how deep of a black her coat is, as well as her mane which seems to shift from a blue to violet colors depending on the angle of the light. I see at her sides a pair of wings, and when she shifts her head a little I notice the horn sticking out of her mane, showing her relation to the Princesses. On closer inspection I find that her mane and coat are in pretty poor shape, with dirt and clumps of hair all over.

She must not have many chances to get clean being cooped up in the castle; it makes sense as there doesn’t seem to be an easily accessible source of water to fill the baths from. I shift a bit, trying not to scare her away, just to notice that she is actually asleep. I am surprised by this as she always seemed wary about being seen, and also a bit touched that she seems to trust me enough to do so.

Trying not to wake her I levitate her onto my back and I go over to examine the object that was the catalyst for this development. Like I had hoped the stones had bonded to the parchment, and in the center was a small arrow surrounded by lines and other shapes. It actually worked, and from the looks of it better than I expected. I lift it up and start moving around to different parts of the room as I watch it slowly fill in as I move around.

The map, which is what it obviously is now, only seems to fill in what is visible from its location, but seems to only be able to pick up things at a distance of around a hundred meters. Now I can finally start exploring the Everfree without getting completely lost. I wander around the castle a bit with it and notice that it seems to shift its focus as I travel between different floors. When I go outside it changes focus from an inside view of the castle to an outside view.

I really need to be more careful with trying out new spells I think. This is much more complicated than I thought it would turn out to be, meaning I probably used much more power in making it than I realize. If that book had hit me any sooner then I might not have woken up. I shudder at the thought of that and also wonder at how much more magic I seemed to have been able to call on recently.

Eventually I tire of playing around with the map and head back to the library to put it away. Looking around I notice the mess that I had made of the place while casting the spell so I take some time to put everything away again. Eventually I run out of things to take up my time with and I realize that the filly doesn’t show any sign of wakening soon.

Smiling at her I make my way back to her room and gently lay her into her bed. I look around for the plush toy I gave her and set it next to her before tucking her in. She shifts a little as I do this, probably trying to get more comfortable. Before I leave the castle I set the pie I brought next to her bed for when she awakens.

As I make my way home I wonder what to do about her again. “This is the first time that she has allowed me to see her, even if it may have been by accident. I didn’t even think about the conditions she was living in until now either, though I should have guessed when I first saw the room she was in.” While reviewing my options there really aren’t a lot of things that I could do to help.

“I don’t have the right skills for getting the castle in livable condition, so that’s out, and she doesn’t trust any of the other ponies that I know of that would take her in. The only other thing I can think of that would be possible is to take her into my own home. I have plenty of space, yet with how Pinkie Pie pops up out of nowhere she would be found out in no time.” No other option really seems to have a chance of working except for the last one.

“If I did take her in then she would have to be disguised somehow. I doubt she has the magic to do it herself; otherwise she would at least be able to clean up a bit better. That is another point in her favor for not being Nightmare Moon, even if she seems to have some of the memories, or at least knowledge, that she had.” That brings to mind the other problem that she is sure to face as if others knew her background they would be terrified of her.

I try to still my train of thought as it is starting to go all over the place on the issue. I decide to just take things a step at a time and deal with it with the current problems before making any more that may not happen. “Okay, I’ll just focus on the most immediate concerns. First she needs a name, since her reaction to me asking before really seemed to hit her rather hard. Next is her living conditions, I guess giving her one of the spare rooms is the best option. This leads to the third point of somehow disguising her heritage.”

I near the exit of the forest as I try to think of the best way of doing this. Clothing to hide her wings would work for a while, but it wouldn’t be comfortable unless I brought her into Rarity’s for a good fitting, so that’s right out. It also would seem odd as none of the other fillies where clothing all the time. Teaching her a spell could work if she has the power to do so, yet I’m not sure if she has the ability to hold it constantly if she can even use magic yet.

After thinking of and discarding many ideas I find that there really is only one option that I can possibly do, yet it annoys me that my options are so limited. I guess I’ll have to figure out a way to enchant a gem with the right spell, and then somehow hide it so that it isn’t noticed easily. The last part is especially important considering the gem I’m going to have to use. As I enter my house I pull out the lone diamond I have been able to find and consider how difficult the spell could be.

I find that the Crusaders had been in while I was out again, and this time the damage isn’t as bad as usual. I note that they seem to have already finished everything upstairs which is a good thing for if I can get the filly to move in. Heading to the attic I start to go through my books in search of something that can help out with the spell.

While going through the book on gemstone and metals I find a couple entries that could be useful. With the diamond as the base, and a topaz for hiding either her wings or horn I could fashion a simple necklace or collar. Add in a clear quartz crystal to focus everything and cause the adornment to blend in with her coat and it should work perfectly. The only issue is getting the spell to work correctly after I spend a day or two to recharge, though if need be I can tap into the store of power under the house.

With the plan set, and there still being time left in the day, I head out to see how things have been going in town. It seems that things had gotten interesting after I left as a new hero had appeared in town to show up the boastful Rainbow Dash. Nopony said who it was, but after the descriptions of what the hero could do, as well as the winks between Rainbow Dash and her friends, it isn’t too hard to guess who it was, or rather who they were.

Catching up on other news I find that not only is Twilight’s birthday coming up, but Spike’s as well. Luckily the two had left already so the rest of her friends were discussing what to do for both of them. Considering I was hiding mine from a certain pink pony for now I decided to sneak away before she realizes that she doesn’t know it.

By this time night had started to fall so I returned home to check on one last time on any plans I have and to make sure I have time to get everything prepared for tomorrow. With the two new events added to it, as well as making the collar and cider season the next couple months started to look less empty.

Author's Note

So more things happen and stuff. I think I may need to dredge up a few idea again to spice things up a bit more as things are slowing down a bit. Though I guess the plans I have will get it to pick up for a bit soon. Now I just need to think of a good name for the filly as well as decide when she gets found out and by whom. Most likely Pinkie Pie even though that is a bit cliche, especially if I do the whole name guessing bit she does. As usual accepting comments, flames and complaints.

Author's notes

This section will be here for anything that people ask to have clarified in the story in case they have questions they want answered. While I can't promise that everything will get answered since I might be saving it for later I will at least say that if it is so or not. As of now there hasn't really been anything asked so at this moment it will be relatively empty so here's just a little bit of my thought process on this at the moment.

A big motivator I had for writing this story is that the world outside of Equestria is rather open which means there are a lot of potential creatures that could be there that haven't been touched on yet. We get little peeks at a few things like the phoenix and dragons but nothing really in depth. The thing I've noticed though is that not many people actually do things with creatures that can potentially as powerful as the alicorns and just use them as a fallback for godlike beings. (The setting of some of the Nyx universe being one of the few exceptions to this.) Thinking through the mythologies that I know of there aren't many things that could potentially rival them without being some sort of a monster so I eventually settled on the kitsune where a 9-tailed one would essentially be of similar godly levels of power.

I was originally thinking of them as some sort of side race at first but I decided to start tying them in with the diamond dogs as it makes a bit of sense as the diamond dogs would be to earth ponies as kitsune would be to unicorns. Add in the loyalty of canine companions and it made a pretty decent idea that I decided to run with.

Until something else comes up I'll leave this chapter ready but until then enjoy what you can, comment where you must, and be sure to check out the sequel if you haven't already done so and actually got this far which is located HERE .