My Little Pony- Stories of the Shinsengumiby Dragonfire2lmChaptersPrologue Enter the madstallionThe CouncilIntroducing the ShinsengumiPrologue Prologue Princess Celestia was in her chambers, a quill in her golden magic ready to write up the next round of responses to the various bits and pieces of paperwork that had been p[iled onto her desk that morning. Just as she began to write, there was a knock at the door. "Come in" she replied as she placed the quill down. "Sister I have need of some....advice" Princess Luna said as she walked in. "Is something wriong?" the princess of the sun asked. "I am worried about Dreamer Prose, despite taking her on as my student, despite all she has done for Equiestri I fear that as her friend I have not done all I can for her" Luna replied. Celestia nodded and motioned for her sibling to continue. "As you know siox months ago, a dragon from another dimension came to Equestri, imprisoned you and the bearers of the lements of harmony. Which led me to not only free all of you, but to also undo the mind controlling magic the creature had poisoned our land with. Dreamer was the first pony to be imprisoned in the drem realm, and with her help I was able to rescue Twilight Sparkle nd her friends, as well as break the curse on the kingdom". Princess Luna explained. "Indeed, Dreamer's efforts helped save Equestria and created n alliance between Equestria and the world of Draconnia, the very same land thaty was home to the dragon that terroriused us all those months ago" Princess Celestia agreed. "And yet her memories show something different, that this was not first time these events had occurred" her sister stated. "She has memories of different events sister, two different versions of what happened and they are terrible. In the first she fell to the nightmare and used her dark magic to pose a greater threat than the very beast that imprisoned her and we were forced to use the elements against her..." "Was she alright?" Celestia asked. "Was she cured?" Luna shook her head sadly. "The Dreamer Prose we fought was but a magical construct...We found her true self amungst bits oftwisted metal that was once the power source of the device that was used to trap ponies in the dream realm and we...were to late" the princess of the night finished sadly. "In another version of the events the power of her dark magic acted as a double edged blade and destroyed her moments after the two worlds were saved. Too have memories of such events, too die and then be reborn having to perform the same actions thrice!' Princes Celestia looked out the window and down onto the sculpture garden elow, the mare they were discussing was, once again, sitting on a picnic blanket in front of Discord's statue, chatting away to the pertrified Draconequus as she had done every day for the last six months. "She appears happy but the reality is she's fighting to hold herself together" she mused sdly. "What do we do?" Lunasked. "The High Council of Draconnia know her much better than we do, perhaps asking them for help may be the best thing to do" Celestia said and turned back towards her sister. "I shall contact them tonight and thank you Tia, for hearing me out" "Oh Luna I'll lways her what you hve to say" Princes Celestia replied with a smile. As Luna left the room the sun princess stole one last clance at the mare casually conversing with the trapped spirit of chaos and watched as the ynicoprn levitated a small emerald to her mouth and munched on it. "I hope we can help her when she needs us most.." she said softly and went back to her paper work. (Time shift) Canterlot, September, 1001 AH (after harmony era*) It was a beautiful autumn day, a bit chilly, but I didn't mind even if it was kind of weird for me though, I was used to the warm spring weather during this time of year, another thing I have to get used to I suppose. My name is Dreamer Prose, and not too long ago I was trapped in the dream realm, of course I wasn't the only one, but I did make sure those who were stuck inside a nightmare got out...I kinda had to be rescued, not only from the dream realm, but from myself as well. Nowadays I run errands for Princess Luna while learning new things to help support myself as a citizen of Equestria, and thank goodness for that, I can finally cook stuff now! While I was fitting in alright, I had a steady job, a good group of friends and a roof over my head...it all felt off. Everything felt forced, I saw myself as a third wheel, I felt like a stranger here and to be truthful, I was. Before this, before nightmares and lonliness and insanity...I was human, I had a few simple goals, I knew what I wanted to do with my life and I was working my way forwards. Sure I had confidence issues, was technically an introvert and needed a helping hoof to get into new things, but I was getting there. Now though? I still have the same dreams, goals and personality flaws but...I wasn't sure what to do next. My writing career in Equestria is going well, I'm happy with how things are and yet I feel like I've just been given this life as if someone is saying "Here, your wildest dreams have come true, ignore the issue of being in a place you don't have a right to be in". I was in my room trying to figure out how to deal with this when I was summoned to the throne room. (scenbe shift) A unicorn walked into Canterlot Castle's throne room. Her orange mane was tied up to match her neatly groomed tail. The sapphire blue, sparkly quill she had for a cutie mark stood out against her snow-white coat. She stopped to use a hoof to push her black-framed glasses from where they had slid down her muzzle and then continued forward to stand before the throne of Princess Celestia. The unicorn's right eye showed respect and nervousness as she waited to be addressed, her left eye however, was unfocused and was a faded washed-out blue compared to the grayish blue of her functioning eye. "Dreamer Prose, at your service Princess" The young mare stated, her Australian accent a stark contrast to other ponies who lived or worked in Equestria's capital. "Thank you for coming on such short notice, we have a lot to discuss" Princess Celestia replied warmly with a serene smile. "Huh really? So I guess this isn't about some errand you want me to run?" Dreamer asked casually. ."While I do have one request for you, my sister, along with our new allies on Draconnia, have asked me to bring up a more important issue" The Sun Princess explained. "Um ok.. The Princesses face shifted from the calm look of royalty to one of concern. "Are you sure you're settling into Equestria alright? You have done much for my subjects, my sister and myself. We all want to make sure you're happy here". Celestia stated "I haven't done much really..." Dreamer said modestly. "I helped ponies because I was the only one who could at the time. I run errands and stuff for both you and Luna because I owe you. Everything that happened was, is, my fault, even I'm indirectly to blame for all the stuff that still has to be sorted out because-" "What problems that are left in the wake of the Nightmare Incident* is not your fault" The Princess said as she raised a hoof to interupt Dreamer's depressing rant. The unicorn's ears had dropped and she didn't really look convinced. The Princess stepped off her throne, sat down in front of Dreamer and with a golden shoed hoof, lifted the mare's chin so they were eye to eye. "Despite what you may think, you were brought to this world for a reason" Celestia said. "Just because one role you were meant to fulfil is over does not mean it was the only one in your destiny. You once told Princess Luna that it is the bonds we forge with the world around us that defines who we are and it is our experiences that shape those bonds". "Yeah so?" Dreamer asked. Celestia smiled. "Do you truly believe there nothing else here for you to experience? Do you think you have made all the bonds you can in this world?" "But I shouldn't be here, I am, I was a human-I-" "Fixating on who you were is not the best of ideas" Princess Celestia stated. "It is true we can learn from our past, but letting it rule our present and draining potential happiness from our future will not do you any good". "I know..." Dreamer replied. "That said, I think you should embrace your former life as a human, just think of it as a unique addition to your life" The Princess advised. "Your friends here in Equestria and in Draconnia have accepted you for who you are, I'm sure others will do the same". "And from what I have heard, I do not think you should care if they don't" said Princess Luna as she walked into the room. "Um hi Luna" Dreamer said. "Hello Dreamer, my apologies for arriving so late to this meeting" The Princess of the night replied. "Those intolerable nobles have increased my workload as of late". "I know the feeling..." Celestia replied. "More ponies petition to the day and night courts every week". "Indeed, but the scheming of the wealthiest of ponies is not the purpose of our current meeting" Luna stated and turned to Dreamer. "I have been aware of your inner conflict for some time, Dreamer, so I took my concerns to the high council of Draconnia to see if their magic could find a solution" Princess Luna explained. "What did they say?" Dreamer asked nervously. "They foresaw three potential futures for you, so they decided to allow to choose your destiny...with these" Luna replied and summoned three objects to float in front of the unicorn. The first was a sheathed katana. The hilt was midnight blue and decorated with gold bands. The second item was a wooden staff with blue runes carved into the side, the staff itself looked like a branch from a cherry blossom tree. The final object was a silver shield adorned with a blue dragon and Dreamer could have sworn she a gold triangle on it, but when she blinked, it wasn't there. "By choosing one of these objects, you will activate the magic within them which will decide the path you will take" Luna stated. "Regardless of the path you choose, the High Council has sworn to help you when you are in need". "That also applies to us as well" Celestia added. "We will be guiding you, to be there for you when you need us and I'm sure your friends will help you as well". "That doesn't seem fair to me" Dreamer said. "The High Council are Gods in all but name, the two of you are the rulers of Equestria and one of my friends is a freaking Time Lord! I'm guessing that I'm going to get into enough trouble to warrant divine intervention, or the High Council feel bad for all the stuff that's already happened". "The choice accept this is yours, we will not force you" The sun Princess said calmly. Dreamer looked at the objects, the fancy-looking hilt of the sword gleaming in the light of the afternoon sun. "The sword looks cool and it was kinda fun beating the crap out of those nightmare monsters..." She mused. "Each item is connected to a role you have in previous events" Princess Luna said. "This blade represents the courage and determination you showed when fighting to save those trapped in a nightmare. You fought to prevent others from sharing your fate and this weapon is proof of desire to help and protect those who are in danger". "The staff represents your unusual gift in undrstanding and using magic differently" Princess Celestia elaborated. "You used your magic to guide Luna to those in need and showed us a way to resolve the conflict peacefully". "And the shield?" The unicorn asked. "Your desire to defend the very creature who imprisoned you has shown us that you have a pure heart to protect two opposing forces until the full story is brought to light" Luna replied. "You used your foreknowledge to help everypony, you display self sacrifice to prevent those you knew of and respected from from being harmed". "So I can be the warrior, the sage or the paladin?" Dreamer asked. "That is a simple way of putting it, but you are correct" The moon princess said. "This might come back to bite me in the butt later, but I do want to make myself useful so...I pick the sword". With her decision made, Dreamer picked up the sword in her telekinetic grip teleported it to her room. "So what now?" she asked. "It is time for your magic lesson" replied Princess Luna. "Oh yeah..." Dreamer said sheepishly. (Scene shift) A few minutes later the Moon Princess and her student were out in the garden for the day’s lesson. "Have you practiced your duplication spell?" Luna asked. "Or do you still find it difficult trying to control both your real body and the magical copy?” "I spent the last week doing research in the Starswirl the Bearded wing and I finally worked out the issue" Dreamer replied. "Go on..." She concentrated while the princess looked on. Her horn glowed blue and a wisp of magic flowed out of her horn to hover beside her. It grew to take on a silhouette of Dreamer, and then changed to become an exact clone of the unicorn. "Making the construct is easy" The original said. "Dividing my attention between two bodies is the hard part" Her clone explained. "I can't really be two places at once, at least mentally" The original continued. "Letting the copy have a mind of its own is just asking for trouble". "Twilight helped me track down the spell she used to back in time..." The original said. "And then helped me combine it with the duplication spell, so instead the caster back in time..." Clone Dreamer explained. "It sends their mind one second into the past to occupy the magical replicate" Original Dreamer finished and dismissed the spell, her copy vanished into thin air. "The caster remembers everything they did while in the copy as well". "You have done well, but are there any flaws to this technique?" her teacher asked. "The more copies you make the bigger the drain on your magic because it's trying to sustain a bigger and more complicated temporal paradox each time you make a new clone" Dreamer replied. "And that strain increases the longer the copy exists...not to mention that if your copy gets hurt, you get hurt too-" "How did you discover this?" Luna asked, concerned. "Rainbow dive bombed the library and crashed into my clone while Twilight was running tests". "You are fine now, correct?" Luna asked. "Yeah, when it happened I felt phantom pain from the crash, a drain on my magic as my clone reconstructed herself and I gained a headache and a few bruises after I ended the spell" Dreamer stated. "At least no harm was done and you learnt something vital about the spell because of it" The Princess said. "True, it's useful for getting stuff done I just have to be careful and know my limits" Dreamer summarized. "I can only sustain one copy for about a day or so, it's not very impressive though, when Twilight tried it she had five copies running around for a full twenty-four hours..." "It is true that Twilight Sparkle is a gifted pony, but your magical prowess lies not in sheer power, but the creative ways in which you use what you have" the blue alicorn explained. "You are a spell crafter I have not seen in a long time. I should think my sister has finished Day Court, why you don't you go and see what task she has for you this time?" Princess Celestia had asked me to go to the Whitetail Woods to test out the prototype of a translation spell a pony had shown her in Court, The deer who lived in the woods had volunteered their native language to test it on, so I was on my way to meet one of the more important clans for the test run. The afternoon flew and everything turned out better than expected, the spell worked fine and I got to sample some food and had some fun swapping stories with the herd. I was on my to ponyvile to stay at Twilight's place over night when...Well when my 'destiny' decided it was time to rear it's head. A group of stallions ambushed me, mentioning something about needing a unicorn for something; they did hesitate, with pony of the group worrying that 'Yukimura-san' would prefer a colt over a mare. Yukimura-san? Wasn't 'san' a Japanese honorific? Before I could ask what the hay they were doing, I was knocked out. Author's Note *For the purpose of this fanfic, Equestrian history has been divided into eras due the plotline taking place over several years from one year after Luna's return (after the episode 'magic duel') 1001 after harmony (after she was banished) and continues for several years (Planned to go on to 1007, don't know if it will). The rest of season 3 and season 4 are cannon in this version of Equestria, the events are simply spaced out over a longer time period. Ok so I've edited the damn thing (this is the first time I've been able to use my computer in several months, appreciate my hard work guys 'cause I might not be able to go on for another couple months after this... Enter the madstallionI awoke to find myself in room made of wooden planks with no windows and the only exit under careful guard. The floor was covered in hay and I was lying on simple mat. I felt a weight on my and realised that whoever had taken me had the sense to block my magic. The door opened and a tan coloured, brown eyed, bald earth pony stallion walked in. He was wearing japanese style clothing- a dark brown jacket and a light green undershirt. "I hope you're comfortable, it took quite a lot of work to get you onto the ship" he said, his accent suggested Equestrian wasn't his native language. So that's why the room was moving, I was on a boat. "Who are you and what do you want?" I asked. "Forgive my rudeness, my name is Kodo Yukimura. I 'm in the process of researching a substance that will change the world" The stallion announced and pulled out a glass vial filled with red liquad. I froxe, fear and sadness clawed at me as the name of my captor and what I suspected was in that vial jogged my memory. This was Docotr kodo Yukimura, from what I knew of his fictional counterpart from Earth, he was trined in western medicine and the substance he now had was from france....er Prance. The original concoction was too toxic for those who drnk it, but Kdo was able to refine it back in Japan and used it's power to turn ordinary people into bloodthirsty monsters... If this Kodo mirroed the actions of his counterpart, then what would mean for me? Kodo continued talking, unaware, or simply indifferent to my fear. "This is the water of life, a unique potion that heals any wound and strengthens anypony that drinks it. Despite some flaws with the medicine, I have continued to improve and test it". "While I have tested my new formula on many earth ponies and pegasi, a unicorn test subject has been...difficult to get a hold of" Kodo stated. Two unicorns walked into the room and pinned me to the wall with their magic while a pegasus walked in, grabbed the vile from Kodo and continued towards me. I closed my eyes and gagged as the cold, coppery liquid was forced into my mouth and down my throat. The effect was immediate, my body throbbed in pain and my throat dried up. I could feel a headache at the base of my horn while my magic built up and forced its way past the seal around my horn. My mane and tail felt warm and I could hear flames crackling loudly. I opened my eyes and forced my body to stay rooted to the spot when I wanted to simply teleport away. I looked behind me to see that my tail had burst into white flames and I caught flashes of my new, white and flaming mane as I turned back to face Kodo. "Do you have any idea what you've done?" I growled, my had changed slightly, it was more of a dragon-like growl than the voice of a pony. "Fascinating, your magical signature has influenced the transformation to create white flames instead of changing the mane and tail colour..." Kodo mused. "I'm too young for this shit" I said and prepared to teleport when the worst of the transformation began. I fell to my knees as pain roared through my body... When I came to, I felt calm and my hooves felt like as if I was standing on air. "So back in the dream realm...greeeaaat" I said sarcastically. I was in a replica of the starry realm Twilight would one day arrive in when she'd become a princess. Instead of Princess Celestia waiting to meet me, however, I was face-to-face with the High Council of Draconnia. The Council were the overseers of another dimension and six months ago, one of their members, The one who's job was to play the villian went overboard. He summoned me to his world, and used me as a basis for a machhine that trapped living beings in their dreams. It was only when I realised who he was, where I was that it all sank in... When I was a child I created a world called Vardos with one of the continents being Draconnia. My own creations were real nd well, quite frankly, I was scared. I made some pretty nasty things happen to the inhabitants there, only thinking it was just a story. My regret, my lonliness nd despair at what my fate could be while in the drem realm led to me becoming consumed by dark magic, my dark magic...If it wasn't for Luna I don't think I would've made it through... Maybe being turned into a monster was the council's way of punishing mke for all the crap that hppened six months ago. I knew they cared about me but why would they just sit there? No warning or a heads up or anything? They're supposed to be my friends right? The CouncilDreamer looked at the strange group of creatures that stood before her with ever growing frustration. "What...The hell...Were you thinking?1" she growled. The wolf with dark brown fur, white face , paws and was the one to respond. "We can only see generic details in the timeline-" he began but Dreamer cut him. "This wasn't generic enough?" she snapped, her voice changing as her mane and tail burst into white flames and her eyes became the colour of blood. As quickly as the dhange began, it reveresed and was back to normal. "I'm sorry" the wolf said sincerity. "We knew you would survive the events of this timeline...But it appears someone didn't do his job". He pointedly looked over at the black dragon ghat stood to his left. The reptile had the body of a t-rex, a swan-like neck and the tail and spines akin to an alligator. "Oh come now Tempus" the dragon scoffed and his cat-like red eyes. "I did do my research, I've made sure her new powers won't chip away at her life force". The wolf, Tempus, looked skeptical. "And pray tell Manaquire, just how did you do that?" he asked. "It can't use up her life force if she has unlimited life now can it?" Manaquire responded with a grin. The golden-furred, seven tailed vixen beside him shook her head in disbelief. Dreamer looked annoyed. "So I'm immortal? Well isn't that just great? I'm a monster, again, and I'm most likely going to end up in japan with a group of guys I'll end up making friends with...Only, only to watch their world torn apart by war and see them die one at a time!" Dreamer exclaimed as she panicked. "Did I do something wrong?" she asked as a purple aura surrounded her and her voice took on a mournful tone. "Was inadvertently dooming two worlds not enough? Is this punishment for causing you all trouble without my knowledge?". Her mane and tail twisted into a braid, her eyes changed colour from blue to purple. "This is a dream, she shouldn't be able to invoke the darkness*" the vixen whispered to Manaquire. "Her special talent revolves around daydreaming and her imagination" he explained. "Of course she can invoke the darkmness". As Tempus moved to calm Dreamer down, the final member of the council spoke up. "I thought you said it was all taken care of..." The statement was spoken softly and calmly by a grayish-black wyvern with a raptor-like body, owl-like talons, a long tail with a blade on the end and thin, needle-like spines running down his snake-like neck. his webbed wings remained folded at his sides while he looked at Manaquire, his snake-like, green eyes glaring at the dragon. "What?" Manaquire asked innocently. The wyvern sighed. "Must I do everything?" he mumbled. "Well Carbros, you do work for me" Manaquire said. "That is only a cover to keep you check, sir" Carbros replied mockingly. "By the end of this meeting you won't even remember I was here". "All the more reason to enjoy myself while I'm here" The dragon replied. "Alright that's enough" Tempus ordered. "Now Dreamer, care to explain what the fuss is all about?" "Yes my dear, do enlighten us" Manaquire added. "Um ok..." The unicorn replied. "Kodo is a character from a visul nove, call Hakuoki Stories of the Shinsengumi. The story is based on true events from 1864 to 1869 during a war to determine the goverment of Japan. The novel itslef focuses on kodo's daughter when she travel's to Kyoto to look for him after not hering from him in six months. When she rrives some stuff take place that result in her living with a group of samurai called who the Shinsengumi as they search for her father. Long story short you witness a war, there's a subplot about demons which is cool and it has multiple endings". She stopped and looked upset. "A lot of characters die because of the war and the water of life...A lot of people are killed on both sides of the battlefield..." She stated. "I see, Kodo and his experiments were from a work of fiction on Earth, but the events are fact in this world and since you are now involved in the events you're afraid things will happen in order they did in the fiction you know, resulting in the possibility of you watching characters you respect die in real life" Tempus said. "The water of life turns those who consime it into monsters? I'll have to look into an antidote" Carbros mused. "I'll make sure the war doesn't happen, though that issue you mentioned about the demons could take its place as the main conflict" The vixen offered. "And I'll keep the princesses up to date, I might be able to send that time pony your friends with a message too" Tempus stated. Everyone turned to look at Manaquire. "Fine I'll throw in my support as well, You can read, write and speak Japanese" Manaquire grumbled. "Thanks guys, I kmow you're all busy and everything and I really do appreciate the help" Dreamer replied. "You can choose to do something else if you like" Tempus added. "We're not forcing to go down this path". "I know, but if i can use my knowledge to try and help the Shinsengumi, then why not?" We now had a plan, and I was really glad I wasn't on my own this time. Since I had a general idea of what was to come I could do as I pleased as long as I didn't get myself killed. My plan was to become a part of a group of rogue samurai who keep the peace in Kyoto and try to prevent, or at least lesson the amount of hardships they would face in the coming years. At the same time I would try to stop Kodo from fulfilling the plans he hoped to achieve with the water of life. I would save the Shinsengumi, I would stop Kodo. Or get myself killed in the process. Two weeks later the boat arrived in Neighpon, I was shoved into a simple grey kimono and carted off to Kyoto... Author's Note *The darkness is the manifestation of negative emotions into magical energy, this energy often gains s mind of its based on the emotions that created (a well-known example is Princess Luna turning into Nightmare Moon). Another result is the power suppressing lighter emotions and often blinding the victim to obvious truths. the effect is emulated by the alicorn amulet. Very few are capable of controlling this power, those who either use it for domination, or instead, like Dreamer Prose, merely appear to, choosing to become a villain to bring the better qualities in others and indirectly work for the greater good. Dreamer's darkness is a double-edged sword, powerful, but due to being born of despair, will cause her pain with prolonged use. Introducing the ShinsengumiOctober 1001 AH, The Yagi residence, Kyoto. Sitting at his desk and finishing up his paperwork for the night, was a white earth pony with purple eyes. His long black mane was tied up to keep it out of his face, save for two bangs that framed his face and his tail equally impressive. He wore a white undershirt and purple jacket. Hoofsteps sounded from the hallway and came to a stop outside the sliding door of his room. "Permission to enter?" A voice on the other side of the door asked. "Come in Yamazaki-san" The room's occupant replied and the paper and wood door slid open. The earth pony put down his writing brush and faced his visitor. The yellow pegasus colt sporting a mostly short and scruffylight brown mane and wearing an emerald green jacket walked in and sat down with practiced grace. "Hijikata-san, We have a situation, A group of ronin* claiming to work for doctor Kodo Yukimura has appeared at the entrance with a unicorn mare in their possesion" Yamazaki explained. "Call a meeting with the captains" Hijikata ordered. "I'll go have a word with our guests". "Understood" Yamazaki replied and left the room. Moments later, Hijikata found an annoyed white furred, orange maned mare wearing a simple grey kimono, bound and gagged on the doorstep of the Shinsengumi headquarters with the ponies that left her there nowhere in sight. "If you run, I'll kill you" He stated as he untied the unicorn. The mare simply nodded in understanding. She took a quick glance at the pair of swords at his left side, but remained quiet. "Follow me, no sudden moves" Hijikata commanded and headed towards the common room. "Hey Hijikata-san, what's the big idea calling us in this late at night?" A tan earth pony, with his light brown mane tied up in a simple knot, asked brashly as Hijikata walked into the room. The orange jacket with a gold hem and sleeves the pony wore looked hastily thrown on. "Rude as always Souji..." Hijikata replied. "Be patient". "Huh? Who's she?" A light brown, blue eyed pegasus asked, his scruffy mane was tied up in a rather long 'pony tail'. He wore a gold vest lined with purple silk, as well as matching purple armbands on his forelegs. The shortness of his attire allowed his cutie mark, a sword xrossed over a sun, to be seen. "Hey she's kind of cute, don't tell me you got her at shimabara**' a cream colored unicorn spoke up. He had a dark red mane and tail, amber colored eyes and wore a white vest with red lining that was half open. His cutie mark was an ornate-looking spear. The mare looked embarrassed and a bit insulted. "I'm not cute...Or a freaking geisha" She grumbled. "Nice one Sano-san!" The light blue earth pony with a dark brown mane, wearing a similar white and green vest and a necklace of green dragon scales, laughed and elbowed his comrade in a good natured fashion. "You've made the girl mad". "Well Shinpachi-san, how was I supposed to know a pretty thing like her had claws hm?" 'Sano' replied. "Perhaps if you all quiet down, we can let the commander explain the situation". This came from the ink blue pegasus in the corner of the room, his dark purple mane was tied loosely, the 'tail' draped over his shoulder and a long fringe obscured his right eye. he wore a white scarf around his neck and was dressed in black clothing. Unlike his fellow swordsstallions, he carried his swords on his right side instead of his left. "Aw come on Hajime-Kun, we're just having fun" The brown pegasus who spoke earlier said. "Even so Heiskue-kun, The Commander has called us here for something important" the dark blue pony replied. "As soon as chief Kondo-san arrives we will most likely have to decide the mare's fate. We are captains of the Shinsengumi, we cannot afford to take this matter lightly". "Yeah I know..." Heiskue said. "What matter is there?" Souji asked. "We're just going to kill her anyway right?" "He's joking right?" The mare in question asked. "I didn't get dragged here against my will just to die..." Sitting on one of three cushions placed near the right side of the room was a grey earth pony with a slicked back dark brown, almost black, mane. He wore a dark green jacket with gold lining. "Until we can determine you are not a spy, or a threat to our organization, you should assume the worst" he said, the light of the paper lanterns glinted off his glasses. The mare pushed her pair of glasses back up her muzzle and frowned. "I haven't done anything to give you all a reason to kill me" she said. "Not yet at least" the grey earth pony replied. Hijikata moved to sit on the cushion on the end, leaving the one between him and the other earth pony vacant. A door on another side of the room slid open, a yellow unicorn with a large build walked in. His black mane was tied up in a knot and he wore an orange jacket, he took his place on the middle cushion. "Sorry I'm late everypony, what's the situation?" He asked. Author's Note *Ronin is the term used for samurai who have no lord to serve or have left their home area. **Shimabara, the red light district. Now to clear up any future confusion on names, The ponies only refer to one another by their first names (with the right suffix) if they're good friends, family and so on. I'll give more details on that next chapter. I've spent the last couple of hours editing the shit out of this thing and its no longer that fun to write anymore....Seriously guys this is the first time i get to use my computer in MONTHS and I spend it editing fanfic, one i was doing to cure boredom! My PSN friends play GTA v day in, day out a game i can't afford, I have no rel life friends because I left them behind when I moved (due to not being on the pc all day, every day I can't keep in touch with them) and the one friend I have on here, who I can chat to on the PS3's voice chat, is busier than me. I'm bored, feeling a bit lonely and my entertainment is reading or writing or playing playing games I've already completed....I can't even write as much as I'd like! I have other fanfics that I want to do, stuff that's not pony, but I can't so I'm stuck with pony, I like pony fanfics amd while I could update my other fics with 150 word chapters and piss those readers off, I decided to start a new one, explain why it had short chaptyers and hope someone was understanding to give this a chance. You can wait for two months for the next chapter, because that's most likely the next time I'll be on the computer...
Prologue Prologue Princess Celestia was in her chambers, a quill in her golden magic ready to write up the next round of responses to the various bits and pieces of paperwork that had been p[iled onto her desk that morning. Just as she began to write, there was a knock at the door. "Come in" she replied as she placed the quill down. "Sister I have need of some....advice" Princess Luna said as she walked in. "Is something wriong?" the princess of the sun asked. "I am worried about Dreamer Prose, despite taking her on as my student, despite all she has done for Equiestri I fear that as her friend I have not done all I can for her" Luna replied. Celestia nodded and motioned for her sibling to continue. "As you know siox months ago, a dragon from another dimension came to Equestri, imprisoned you and the bearers of the lements of harmony. Which led me to not only free all of you, but to also undo the mind controlling magic the creature had poisoned our land with. Dreamer was the first pony to be imprisoned in the drem realm, and with her help I was able to rescue Twilight Sparkle nd her friends, as well as break the curse on the kingdom". Princess Luna explained. "Indeed, Dreamer's efforts helped save Equestria and created n alliance between Equestria and the world of Draconnia, the very same land thaty was home to the dragon that terroriused us all those months ago" Princess Celestia agreed. "And yet her memories show something different, that this was not first time these events had occurred" her sister stated. "She has memories of different events sister, two different versions of what happened and they are terrible. In the first she fell to the nightmare and used her dark magic to pose a greater threat than the very beast that imprisoned her and we were forced to use the elements against her..." "Was she alright?" Celestia asked. "Was she cured?" Luna shook her head sadly. "The Dreamer Prose we fought was but a magical construct...We found her true self amungst bits oftwisted metal that was once the power source of the device that was used to trap ponies in the dream realm and we...were to late" the princess of the night finished sadly. "In another version of the events the power of her dark magic acted as a double edged blade and destroyed her moments after the two worlds were saved. Too have memories of such events, too die and then be reborn having to perform the same actions thrice!' Princes Celestia looked out the window and down onto the sculpture garden elow, the mare they were discussing was, once again, sitting on a picnic blanket in front of Discord's statue, chatting away to the pertrified Draconequus as she had done every day for the last six months. "She appears happy but the reality is she's fighting to hold herself together" she mused sdly. "What do we do?" Lunasked. "The High Council of Draconnia know her much better than we do, perhaps asking them for help may be the best thing to do" Celestia said and turned back towards her sister. "I shall contact them tonight and thank you Tia, for hearing me out" "Oh Luna I'll lways her what you hve to say" Princes Celestia replied with a smile. As Luna left the room the sun princess stole one last clance at the mare casually conversing with the trapped spirit of chaos and watched as the ynicoprn levitated a small emerald to her mouth and munched on it. "I hope we can help her when she needs us most.." she said softly and went back to her paper work. (Time shift) Canterlot, September, 1001 AH (after harmony era*) It was a beautiful autumn day, a bit chilly, but I didn't mind even if it was kind of weird for me though, I was used to the warm spring weather during this time of year, another thing I have to get used to I suppose. My name is Dreamer Prose, and not too long ago I was trapped in the dream realm, of course I wasn't the only one, but I did make sure those who were stuck inside a nightmare got out...I kinda had to be rescued, not only from the dream realm, but from myself as well. Nowadays I run errands for Princess Luna while learning new things to help support myself as a citizen of Equestria, and thank goodness for that, I can finally cook stuff now! While I was fitting in alright, I had a steady job, a good group of friends and a roof over my head...it all felt off. Everything felt forced, I saw myself as a third wheel, I felt like a stranger here and to be truthful, I was. Before this, before nightmares and lonliness and insanity...I was human, I had a few simple goals, I knew what I wanted to do with my life and I was working my way forwards. Sure I had confidence issues, was technically an introvert and needed a helping hoof to get into new things, but I was getting there. Now though? I still have the same dreams, goals and personality flaws but...I wasn't sure what to do next. My writing career in Equestria is going well, I'm happy with how things are and yet I feel like I've just been given this life as if someone is saying "Here, your wildest dreams have come true, ignore the issue of being in a place you don't have a right to be in". I was in my room trying to figure out how to deal with this when I was summoned to the throne room. (scenbe shift) A unicorn walked into Canterlot Castle's throne room. Her orange mane was tied up to match her neatly groomed tail. The sapphire blue, sparkly quill she had for a cutie mark stood out against her snow-white coat. She stopped to use a hoof to push her black-framed glasses from where they had slid down her muzzle and then continued forward to stand before the throne of Princess Celestia. The unicorn's right eye showed respect and nervousness as she waited to be addressed, her left eye however, was unfocused and was a faded washed-out blue compared to the grayish blue of her functioning eye. "Dreamer Prose, at your service Princess" The young mare stated, her Australian accent a stark contrast to other ponies who lived or worked in Equestria's capital. "Thank you for coming on such short notice, we have a lot to discuss" Princess Celestia replied warmly with a serene smile. "Huh really? So I guess this isn't about some errand you want me to run?" Dreamer asked casually. ."While I do have one request for you, my sister, along with our new allies on Draconnia, have asked me to bring up a more important issue" The Sun Princess explained. "Um ok.. The Princesses face shifted from the calm look of royalty to one of concern. "Are you sure you're settling into Equestria alright? You have done much for my subjects, my sister and myself. We all want to make sure you're happy here". Celestia stated "I haven't done much really..." Dreamer said modestly. "I helped ponies because I was the only one who could at the time. I run errands and stuff for both you and Luna because I owe you. Everything that happened was, is, my fault, even I'm indirectly to blame for all the stuff that still has to be sorted out because-" "What problems that are left in the wake of the Nightmare Incident* is not your fault" The Princess said as she raised a hoof to interupt Dreamer's depressing rant. The unicorn's ears had dropped and she didn't really look convinced. The Princess stepped off her throne, sat down in front of Dreamer and with a golden shoed hoof, lifted the mare's chin so they were eye to eye. "Despite what you may think, you were brought to this world for a reason" Celestia said. "Just because one role you were meant to fulfil is over does not mean it was the only one in your destiny. You once told Princess Luna that it is the bonds we forge with the world around us that defines who we are and it is our experiences that shape those bonds". "Yeah so?" Dreamer asked. Celestia smiled. "Do you truly believe there nothing else here for you to experience? Do you think you have made all the bonds you can in this world?" "But I shouldn't be here, I am, I was a human-I-" "Fixating on who you were is not the best of ideas" Princess Celestia stated. "It is true we can learn from our past, but letting it rule our present and draining potential happiness from our future will not do you any good". "I know..." Dreamer replied. "That said, I think you should embrace your former life as a human, just think of it as a unique addition to your life" The Princess advised. "Your friends here in Equestria and in Draconnia have accepted you for who you are, I'm sure others will do the same". "And from what I have heard, I do not think you should care if they don't" said Princess Luna as she walked into the room. "Um hi Luna" Dreamer said. "Hello Dreamer, my apologies for arriving so late to this meeting" The Princess of the night replied. "Those intolerable nobles have increased my workload as of late". "I know the feeling..." Celestia replied. "More ponies petition to the day and night courts every week". "Indeed, but the scheming of the wealthiest of ponies is not the purpose of our current meeting" Luna stated and turned to Dreamer. "I have been aware of your inner conflict for some time, Dreamer, so I took my concerns to the high council of Draconnia to see if their magic could find a solution" Princess Luna explained. "What did they say?" Dreamer asked nervously. "They foresaw three potential futures for you, so they decided to allow to choose your destiny...with these" Luna replied and summoned three objects to float in front of the unicorn. The first was a sheathed katana. The hilt was midnight blue and decorated with gold bands. The second item was a wooden staff with blue runes carved into the side, the staff itself looked like a branch from a cherry blossom tree. The final object was a silver shield adorned with a blue dragon and Dreamer could have sworn she a gold triangle on it, but when she blinked, it wasn't there. "By choosing one of these objects, you will activate the magic within them which will decide the path you will take" Luna stated. "Regardless of the path you choose, the High Council has sworn to help you when you are in need". "That also applies to us as well" Celestia added. "We will be guiding you, to be there for you when you need us and I'm sure your friends will help you as well". "That doesn't seem fair to me" Dreamer said. "The High Council are Gods in all but name, the two of you are the rulers of Equestria and one of my friends is a freaking Time Lord! I'm guessing that I'm going to get into enough trouble to warrant divine intervention, or the High Council feel bad for all the stuff that's already happened". "The choice accept this is yours, we will not force you" The sun Princess said calmly. Dreamer looked at the objects, the fancy-looking hilt of the sword gleaming in the light of the afternoon sun. "The sword looks cool and it was kinda fun beating the crap out of those nightmare monsters..." She mused. "Each item is connected to a role you have in previous events" Princess Luna said. "This blade represents the courage and determination you showed when fighting to save those trapped in a nightmare. You fought to prevent others from sharing your fate and this weapon is proof of desire to help and protect those who are in danger". "The staff represents your unusual gift in undrstanding and using magic differently" Princess Celestia elaborated. "You used your magic to guide Luna to those in need and showed us a way to resolve the conflict peacefully". "And the shield?" The unicorn asked. "Your desire to defend the very creature who imprisoned you has shown us that you have a pure heart to protect two opposing forces until the full story is brought to light" Luna replied. "You used your foreknowledge to help everypony, you display self sacrifice to prevent those you knew of and respected from from being harmed". "So I can be the warrior, the sage or the paladin?" Dreamer asked. "That is a simple way of putting it, but you are correct" The moon princess said. "This might come back to bite me in the butt later, but I do want to make myself useful so...I pick the sword". With her decision made, Dreamer picked up the sword in her telekinetic grip teleported it to her room. "So what now?" she asked. "It is time for your magic lesson" replied Princess Luna. "Oh yeah..." Dreamer said sheepishly. (Scene shift) A few minutes later the Moon Princess and her student were out in the garden for the day’s lesson. "Have you practiced your duplication spell?" Luna asked. "Or do you still find it difficult trying to control both your real body and the magical copy?” "I spent the last week doing research in the Starswirl the Bearded wing and I finally worked out the issue" Dreamer replied. "Go on..." She concentrated while the princess looked on. Her horn glowed blue and a wisp of magic flowed out of her horn to hover beside her. It grew to take on a silhouette of Dreamer, and then changed to become an exact clone of the unicorn. "Making the construct is easy" The original said. "Dividing my attention between two bodies is the hard part" Her clone explained. "I can't really be two places at once, at least mentally" The original continued. "Letting the copy have a mind of its own is just asking for trouble". "Twilight helped me track down the spell she used to back in time..." The original said. "And then helped me combine it with the duplication spell, so instead the caster back in time..." Clone Dreamer explained. "It sends their mind one second into the past to occupy the magical replicate" Original Dreamer finished and dismissed the spell, her copy vanished into thin air. "The caster remembers everything they did while in the copy as well". "You have done well, but are there any flaws to this technique?" her teacher asked. "The more copies you make the bigger the drain on your magic because it's trying to sustain a bigger and more complicated temporal paradox each time you make a new clone" Dreamer replied. "And that strain increases the longer the copy exists...not to mention that if your copy gets hurt, you get hurt too-" "How did you discover this?" Luna asked, concerned. "Rainbow dive bombed the library and crashed into my clone while Twilight was running tests". "You are fine now, correct?" Luna asked. "Yeah, when it happened I felt phantom pain from the crash, a drain on my magic as my clone reconstructed herself and I gained a headache and a few bruises after I ended the spell" Dreamer stated. "At least no harm was done and you learnt something vital about the spell because of it" The Princess said. "True, it's useful for getting stuff done I just have to be careful and know my limits" Dreamer summarized. "I can only sustain one copy for about a day or so, it's not very impressive though, when Twilight tried it she had five copies running around for a full twenty-four hours..." "It is true that Twilight Sparkle is a gifted pony, but your magical prowess lies not in sheer power, but the creative ways in which you use what you have" the blue alicorn explained. "You are a spell crafter I have not seen in a long time. I should think my sister has finished Day Court, why you don't you go and see what task she has for you this time?" Princess Celestia had asked me to go to the Whitetail Woods to test out the prototype of a translation spell a pony had shown her in Court, The deer who lived in the woods had volunteered their native language to test it on, so I was on my way to meet one of the more important clans for the test run. The afternoon flew and everything turned out better than expected, the spell worked fine and I got to sample some food and had some fun swapping stories with the herd. I was on my to ponyvile to stay at Twilight's place over night when...Well when my 'destiny' decided it was time to rear it's head. A group of stallions ambushed me, mentioning something about needing a unicorn for something; they did hesitate, with pony of the group worrying that 'Yukimura-san' would prefer a colt over a mare. Yukimura-san? Wasn't 'san' a Japanese honorific? Before I could ask what the hay they were doing, I was knocked out. Author's Note *For the purpose of this fanfic, Equestrian history has been divided into eras due the plotline taking place over several years from one year after Luna's return (after the episode 'magic duel') 1001 after harmony (after she was banished) and continues for several years (Planned to go on to 1007, don't know if it will). The rest of season 3 and season 4 are cannon in this version of Equestria, the events are simply spaced out over a longer time period. Ok so I've edited the damn thing (this is the first time I've been able to use my computer in several months, appreciate my hard work guys 'cause I might not be able to go on for another couple months after this...
Enter the madstallionI awoke to find myself in room made of wooden planks with no windows and the only exit under careful guard. The floor was covered in hay and I was lying on simple mat. I felt a weight on my and realised that whoever had taken me had the sense to block my magic. The door opened and a tan coloured, brown eyed, bald earth pony stallion walked in. He was wearing japanese style clothing- a dark brown jacket and a light green undershirt. "I hope you're comfortable, it took quite a lot of work to get you onto the ship" he said, his accent suggested Equestrian wasn't his native language. So that's why the room was moving, I was on a boat. "Who are you and what do you want?" I asked. "Forgive my rudeness, my name is Kodo Yukimura. I 'm in the process of researching a substance that will change the world" The stallion announced and pulled out a glass vial filled with red liquad. I froxe, fear and sadness clawed at me as the name of my captor and what I suspected was in that vial jogged my memory. This was Docotr kodo Yukimura, from what I knew of his fictional counterpart from Earth, he was trined in western medicine and the substance he now had was from france....er Prance. The original concoction was too toxic for those who drnk it, but Kdo was able to refine it back in Japan and used it's power to turn ordinary people into bloodthirsty monsters... If this Kodo mirroed the actions of his counterpart, then what would mean for me? Kodo continued talking, unaware, or simply indifferent to my fear. "This is the water of life, a unique potion that heals any wound and strengthens anypony that drinks it. Despite some flaws with the medicine, I have continued to improve and test it". "While I have tested my new formula on many earth ponies and pegasi, a unicorn test subject has been...difficult to get a hold of" Kodo stated. Two unicorns walked into the room and pinned me to the wall with their magic while a pegasus walked in, grabbed the vile from Kodo and continued towards me. I closed my eyes and gagged as the cold, coppery liquid was forced into my mouth and down my throat. The effect was immediate, my body throbbed in pain and my throat dried up. I could feel a headache at the base of my horn while my magic built up and forced its way past the seal around my horn. My mane and tail felt warm and I could hear flames crackling loudly. I opened my eyes and forced my body to stay rooted to the spot when I wanted to simply teleport away. I looked behind me to see that my tail had burst into white flames and I caught flashes of my new, white and flaming mane as I turned back to face Kodo. "Do you have any idea what you've done?" I growled, my had changed slightly, it was more of a dragon-like growl than the voice of a pony. "Fascinating, your magical signature has influenced the transformation to create white flames instead of changing the mane and tail colour..." Kodo mused. "I'm too young for this shit" I said and prepared to teleport when the worst of the transformation began. I fell to my knees as pain roared through my body... When I came to, I felt calm and my hooves felt like as if I was standing on air. "So back in the dream realm...greeeaaat" I said sarcastically. I was in a replica of the starry realm Twilight would one day arrive in when she'd become a princess. Instead of Princess Celestia waiting to meet me, however, I was face-to-face with the High Council of Draconnia. The Council were the overseers of another dimension and six months ago, one of their members, The one who's job was to play the villian went overboard. He summoned me to his world, and used me as a basis for a machhine that trapped living beings in their dreams. It was only when I realised who he was, where I was that it all sank in... When I was a child I created a world called Vardos with one of the continents being Draconnia. My own creations were real nd well, quite frankly, I was scared. I made some pretty nasty things happen to the inhabitants there, only thinking it was just a story. My regret, my lonliness nd despair at what my fate could be while in the drem realm led to me becoming consumed by dark magic, my dark magic...If it wasn't for Luna I don't think I would've made it through... Maybe being turned into a monster was the council's way of punishing mke for all the crap that hppened six months ago. I knew they cared about me but why would they just sit there? No warning or a heads up or anything? They're supposed to be my friends right?
The CouncilDreamer looked at the strange group of creatures that stood before her with ever growing frustration. "What...The hell...Were you thinking?1" she growled. The wolf with dark brown fur, white face , paws and was the one to respond. "We can only see generic details in the timeline-" he began but Dreamer cut him. "This wasn't generic enough?" she snapped, her voice changing as her mane and tail burst into white flames and her eyes became the colour of blood. As quickly as the dhange began, it reveresed and was back to normal. "I'm sorry" the wolf said sincerity. "We knew you would survive the events of this timeline...But it appears someone didn't do his job". He pointedly looked over at the black dragon ghat stood to his left. The reptile had the body of a t-rex, a swan-like neck and the tail and spines akin to an alligator. "Oh come now Tempus" the dragon scoffed and his cat-like red eyes. "I did do my research, I've made sure her new powers won't chip away at her life force". The wolf, Tempus, looked skeptical. "And pray tell Manaquire, just how did you do that?" he asked. "It can't use up her life force if she has unlimited life now can it?" Manaquire responded with a grin. The golden-furred, seven tailed vixen beside him shook her head in disbelief. Dreamer looked annoyed. "So I'm immortal? Well isn't that just great? I'm a monster, again, and I'm most likely going to end up in japan with a group of guys I'll end up making friends with...Only, only to watch their world torn apart by war and see them die one at a time!" Dreamer exclaimed as she panicked. "Did I do something wrong?" she asked as a purple aura surrounded her and her voice took on a mournful tone. "Was inadvertently dooming two worlds not enough? Is this punishment for causing you all trouble without my knowledge?". Her mane and tail twisted into a braid, her eyes changed colour from blue to purple. "This is a dream, she shouldn't be able to invoke the darkness*" the vixen whispered to Manaquire. "Her special talent revolves around daydreaming and her imagination" he explained. "Of course she can invoke the darkmness". As Tempus moved to calm Dreamer down, the final member of the council spoke up. "I thought you said it was all taken care of..." The statement was spoken softly and calmly by a grayish-black wyvern with a raptor-like body, owl-like talons, a long tail with a blade on the end and thin, needle-like spines running down his snake-like neck. his webbed wings remained folded at his sides while he looked at Manaquire, his snake-like, green eyes glaring at the dragon. "What?" Manaquire asked innocently. The wyvern sighed. "Must I do everything?" he mumbled. "Well Carbros, you do work for me" Manaquire said. "That is only a cover to keep you check, sir" Carbros replied mockingly. "By the end of this meeting you won't even remember I was here". "All the more reason to enjoy myself while I'm here" The dragon replied. "Alright that's enough" Tempus ordered. "Now Dreamer, care to explain what the fuss is all about?" "Yes my dear, do enlighten us" Manaquire added. "Um ok..." The unicorn replied. "Kodo is a character from a visul nove, call Hakuoki Stories of the Shinsengumi. The story is based on true events from 1864 to 1869 during a war to determine the goverment of Japan. The novel itslef focuses on kodo's daughter when she travel's to Kyoto to look for him after not hering from him in six months. When she rrives some stuff take place that result in her living with a group of samurai called who the Shinsengumi as they search for her father. Long story short you witness a war, there's a subplot about demons which is cool and it has multiple endings". She stopped and looked upset. "A lot of characters die because of the war and the water of life...A lot of people are killed on both sides of the battlefield..." She stated. "I see, Kodo and his experiments were from a work of fiction on Earth, but the events are fact in this world and since you are now involved in the events you're afraid things will happen in order they did in the fiction you know, resulting in the possibility of you watching characters you respect die in real life" Tempus said. "The water of life turns those who consime it into monsters? I'll have to look into an antidote" Carbros mused. "I'll make sure the war doesn't happen, though that issue you mentioned about the demons could take its place as the main conflict" The vixen offered. "And I'll keep the princesses up to date, I might be able to send that time pony your friends with a message too" Tempus stated. Everyone turned to look at Manaquire. "Fine I'll throw in my support as well, You can read, write and speak Japanese" Manaquire grumbled. "Thanks guys, I kmow you're all busy and everything and I really do appreciate the help" Dreamer replied. "You can choose to do something else if you like" Tempus added. "We're not forcing to go down this path". "I know, but if i can use my knowledge to try and help the Shinsengumi, then why not?" We now had a plan, and I was really glad I wasn't on my own this time. Since I had a general idea of what was to come I could do as I pleased as long as I didn't get myself killed. My plan was to become a part of a group of rogue samurai who keep the peace in Kyoto and try to prevent, or at least lesson the amount of hardships they would face in the coming years. At the same time I would try to stop Kodo from fulfilling the plans he hoped to achieve with the water of life. I would save the Shinsengumi, I would stop Kodo. Or get myself killed in the process. Two weeks later the boat arrived in Neighpon, I was shoved into a simple grey kimono and carted off to Kyoto... Author's Note *The darkness is the manifestation of negative emotions into magical energy, this energy often gains s mind of its based on the emotions that created (a well-known example is Princess Luna turning into Nightmare Moon). Another result is the power suppressing lighter emotions and often blinding the victim to obvious truths. the effect is emulated by the alicorn amulet. Very few are capable of controlling this power, those who either use it for domination, or instead, like Dreamer Prose, merely appear to, choosing to become a villain to bring the better qualities in others and indirectly work for the greater good. Dreamer's darkness is a double-edged sword, powerful, but due to being born of despair, will cause her pain with prolonged use.
Introducing the ShinsengumiOctober 1001 AH, The Yagi residence, Kyoto. Sitting at his desk and finishing up his paperwork for the night, was a white earth pony with purple eyes. His long black mane was tied up to keep it out of his face, save for two bangs that framed his face and his tail equally impressive. He wore a white undershirt and purple jacket. Hoofsteps sounded from the hallway and came to a stop outside the sliding door of his room. "Permission to enter?" A voice on the other side of the door asked. "Come in Yamazaki-san" The room's occupant replied and the paper and wood door slid open. The earth pony put down his writing brush and faced his visitor. The yellow pegasus colt sporting a mostly short and scruffylight brown mane and wearing an emerald green jacket walked in and sat down with practiced grace. "Hijikata-san, We have a situation, A group of ronin* claiming to work for doctor Kodo Yukimura has appeared at the entrance with a unicorn mare in their possesion" Yamazaki explained. "Call a meeting with the captains" Hijikata ordered. "I'll go have a word with our guests". "Understood" Yamazaki replied and left the room. Moments later, Hijikata found an annoyed white furred, orange maned mare wearing a simple grey kimono, bound and gagged on the doorstep of the Shinsengumi headquarters with the ponies that left her there nowhere in sight. "If you run, I'll kill you" He stated as he untied the unicorn. The mare simply nodded in understanding. She took a quick glance at the pair of swords at his left side, but remained quiet. "Follow me, no sudden moves" Hijikata commanded and headed towards the common room. "Hey Hijikata-san, what's the big idea calling us in this late at night?" A tan earth pony, with his light brown mane tied up in a simple knot, asked brashly as Hijikata walked into the room. The orange jacket with a gold hem and sleeves the pony wore looked hastily thrown on. "Rude as always Souji..." Hijikata replied. "Be patient". "Huh? Who's she?" A light brown, blue eyed pegasus asked, his scruffy mane was tied up in a rather long 'pony tail'. He wore a gold vest lined with purple silk, as well as matching purple armbands on his forelegs. The shortness of his attire allowed his cutie mark, a sword xrossed over a sun, to be seen. "Hey she's kind of cute, don't tell me you got her at shimabara**' a cream colored unicorn spoke up. He had a dark red mane and tail, amber colored eyes and wore a white vest with red lining that was half open. His cutie mark was an ornate-looking spear. The mare looked embarrassed and a bit insulted. "I'm not cute...Or a freaking geisha" She grumbled. "Nice one Sano-san!" The light blue earth pony with a dark brown mane, wearing a similar white and green vest and a necklace of green dragon scales, laughed and elbowed his comrade in a good natured fashion. "You've made the girl mad". "Well Shinpachi-san, how was I supposed to know a pretty thing like her had claws hm?" 'Sano' replied. "Perhaps if you all quiet down, we can let the commander explain the situation". This came from the ink blue pegasus in the corner of the room, his dark purple mane was tied loosely, the 'tail' draped over his shoulder and a long fringe obscured his right eye. he wore a white scarf around his neck and was dressed in black clothing. Unlike his fellow swordsstallions, he carried his swords on his right side instead of his left. "Aw come on Hajime-Kun, we're just having fun" The brown pegasus who spoke earlier said. "Even so Heiskue-kun, The Commander has called us here for something important" the dark blue pony replied. "As soon as chief Kondo-san arrives we will most likely have to decide the mare's fate. We are captains of the Shinsengumi, we cannot afford to take this matter lightly". "Yeah I know..." Heiskue said. "What matter is there?" Souji asked. "We're just going to kill her anyway right?" "He's joking right?" The mare in question asked. "I didn't get dragged here against my will just to die..." Sitting on one of three cushions placed near the right side of the room was a grey earth pony with a slicked back dark brown, almost black, mane. He wore a dark green jacket with gold lining. "Until we can determine you are not a spy, or a threat to our organization, you should assume the worst" he said, the light of the paper lanterns glinted off his glasses. The mare pushed her pair of glasses back up her muzzle and frowned. "I haven't done anything to give you all a reason to kill me" she said. "Not yet at least" the grey earth pony replied. Hijikata moved to sit on the cushion on the end, leaving the one between him and the other earth pony vacant. A door on another side of the room slid open, a yellow unicorn with a large build walked in. His black mane was tied up in a knot and he wore an orange jacket, he took his place on the middle cushion. "Sorry I'm late everypony, what's the situation?" He asked. Author's Note *Ronin is the term used for samurai who have no lord to serve or have left their home area. **Shimabara, the red light district. Now to clear up any future confusion on names, The ponies only refer to one another by their first names (with the right suffix) if they're good friends, family and so on. I'll give more details on that next chapter. I've spent the last couple of hours editing the shit out of this thing and its no longer that fun to write anymore....Seriously guys this is the first time i get to use my computer in MONTHS and I spend it editing fanfic, one i was doing to cure boredom! My PSN friends play GTA v day in, day out a game i can't afford, I have no rel life friends because I left them behind when I moved (due to not being on the pc all day, every day I can't keep in touch with them) and the one friend I have on here, who I can chat to on the PS3's voice chat, is busier than me. I'm bored, feeling a bit lonely and my entertainment is reading or writing or playing playing games I've already completed....I can't even write as much as I'd like! I have other fanfics that I want to do, stuff that's not pony, but I can't so I'm stuck with pony, I like pony fanfics amd while I could update my other fics with 150 word chapters and piss those readers off, I decided to start a new one, explain why it had short chaptyers and hope someone was understanding to give this a chance. You can wait for two months for the next chapter, because that's most likely the next time I'll be on the computer...
