Chapter Five

Steel Shield poked his head into the room after Princess Twilight had gone. Seeing Misty standing there alone, head hanging and ears fallen, he thought she looked almost about to cry. But Misty never cried, not even when they were foals. Concerned, he walked over to her. “Everything okay?”

Misty sighed and shook her head. “No, nothing’s okay. Steel, Queen Chrysalis is going to try to kill the Tree of Harmony and invade Equestria. No-pony will listen to me. They just hear ‘Chrysalis’ and decide they’re going to get to the Tree first, but they can’t.”

“Why not?” asked Steel, perplexed.

She released another hopeless sigh. “I don’t know.”

Steel Shield was quiet for a moment, and then an idea struck him. “Come on, Misty.”

“Where are we going?”

“To somepony who can help,” he replied confidently, leading the way out of the castle. As they walked through Ponyville, he tried to reassure his friend. “Don’t worry, you’ll like Nightingale. She’s not quite as… enthusiastic as Juniper Berry and Lilypad.”

“Whoever said I didn’t like Juniper Berry and Lilypad?” Misty asked suddenly.

Steel Shield raised an eyebrow. “Well, you did kind of run away from them.”

“But I didn’t dislike them,” she insisted. “They were a little noisy and they crowded me, but I know they didn’t mean to upset me. Besides, I was in a hurry to reach Princess Twilight. Not that it matters much now…” Misty hung her head again.

Steel Shield settled a wing over her in a friendly embrace. “Don’t be so gloomy. If you keep frowning like that, I’ll have to find a raincloud to follow you around.”

Misty could not help but smile a little at Steel’s jest. “Do you really think this Nightingale can help me?”

“Come on, when have I ever let you down?” He ruffled Misty’s mane with a hoof. “I’ve always got your back, Misty.”

That was certainly true. There was not a time when Steel Shield had abandoned her. Even after he moved away from Brumbyburg, he would come back at a moment’s notice if Misty really needed him. She had not needed him in quite some time, though. Still, it was nice to know that some things never changed.

Steel Shield stopped at a meadow near the edge of Ponyville. Wildflowers bloomed in brilliant rainbows of colors, and hummingbirds and bumblebees flitted among the flora. A stream wound through the meadow and away into the distant hills. Weeping willows and wisterias were sprinkled along the stream’s banks, their vines trailing blossoms of their own. Sitting in the shade of one of the willows were two ponies, a small earth pony mare and a unicorn stallion. The stallion had a warm brown coat and short, dark brown mane and tail. His eyes were earthy and kind, and on his flank he sported a white cloud and bright red feather quill. The mare was dark periwinkle with magenta eyes. Her dark blue mane and tail were neatly braided, though her forelock was a bit long and untidy. White splashed her hindquarters like spots of paint, and on them were a rosy heart and musical note.

“Here we are,” said Steel, taking wing. He flew ahead of Misty and hovered before the other two ponies. “Hey, guys!”

“Hello, Steel Shield,” said the unicorn. Beside him, the mare smiled brightly but said nothing.

“I want you to meet an old friend of mine,” Steel replied, alighting. He motioned for Misty to join him, and when she had done so began the introductions. “Guys, this is Misty Moonrise. Misty, this is Cloudy Day—” He pointed to the unicorn. “—and this is Nightingale.” He hooked a foreleg around the mare.

Cloudy Day looked away uncertainly, ears back. He almost seemed to be blushing.

Nightingale, on the other hoof, stepped closer to Misty and offered her a welcoming smile. When Misty returned the smile, Nightingale giggled merrily. She began to walk slow circles around Misty, looking her up and down, never losing her smile.

“Uh, Steel?” said Misty, confused by Nightingale’s odd behavior.

“Don’t worry,” Steel assured her. “She’s just working her magic. Tell her what you told me back at the castle.”

Magic? What sort of earth pony magic could help Misty? She sat down and sighed sadly, but nevertheless explained Chrysalis’s dream, what Princess Twilight and her friends intended to do about it, and how Misty could not explain why she felt this was the wrong thing to do. When she finished, she felt more uncertain than before and looked down at her hooves hopelessly.

A lavender lily abruptly appeared before Misty’s eyes, enveloped in a silvery aura of magic. Misty raised her gaze to see the quiet Cloudy Day standing in front of her. The same silvery magic which held aloft the lily sparkled around his horn.

Then a voice, pure and clear, rang out across the meadow:

You feel like you’re alone in the world,

You feel like you’re on your own.

You find your path is blocked by a wall

Too high for you to climb alone.

Misty turned to see it was Nightingale who was singing. Nightingale smiled and slipped a foreleg around her. Cloudy Day tucked the lavender lily into Misty’s mane as Nightingale continued:

Challenges you must face head-on,

And once you do, you’ll fin’lly see:

The answer you seek is here within,

The magic inside is the key.

Misty regarded Nightingale quizzically. “What do you mean? I don’t understand.”

Steel Shield rolled his eyes. “You’re thinking too much with your head,” he said, scrunching up her nose with a hoof. Then he nudged her lightly in the chest. “Try thinking down here for a change.”

Misty closed her eyes and tried to do as Steel said. Why can’t Chrysalis’s dream be changed? she wondered silently, repeating it over and over again to herself. Why, why? It doesn’t make any sense. If it was a vision of what might happen, why can’t it be changed?

Nightingale nodded in satisfaction and stepped away from her new friend. She shooed Cloudy Day and Steel Shield away, motioning for them to follow her instead. Nightingale paused long enough to give Misty Moonrise a last glance, and then led the other two off to let Misty concentrate in peace.

When they were a little distance away from the meadow, Cloudy Day stopped and looked back. “Are you sure we should leave her alone, Nightingale?” he asked worriedly.

Nightingale nodded.

“C’mon, Cloudy,” said Steel, hovering in the air beside them. “Have you ever known Nightingale to be wrong?”

“Well, no, but… I don’t know, she just seemed like she could use some friends. All that talk about Queen Chrysalis coming back…” Cloudy shuddered. “It’s enough to give anypony bad dreams.”

“Don’t worry about Misty,” Steel Shield assured him. “She’s one of the smartest ponies I know. She’ll figure it out.”

*

Time seemed to slow for Misty as she sat beneath the willow in the meadow. A breeze ruffled her hair every now and then. The hum of the hummingbirds and the buzz of the bumblebees seemed too far away to be of any concern. She could not even hear the distant bustle of Ponyville from here.

Suddenly, her eyes snapped open. Finally, she knew.

Then Misty noticed that the shadows were longer than they had been when she first arrived. She looked up at the sun and found it had moved considerably closer to the horizon. Reds, pinks, and purples were beginning to tinge the sky as dusk settled over Equestria.

“Oh, no!”

Misty launched into a gallop, racing out of the meadow and back into Ponyville. She skidded to a stop outside the castle, where Steel Shield stood with Lilypad, Juniper Berry, Cloudy Day, and Nightingale. Steel was no longer in his armor, but when he saw the anxiety in Misty’s face, he looked as serious and ready for battle as he could have in full Royal Guard regalia.

“What is it, Misty?” he asked.

“The princess, has she left yet?” Misty panted.

“Twilight and the others entered the Everfree Forest over an hour ago, dear,” Lilypad answered. Beside her, Nightingale nodded in agreement.

“They waited for you,” put in Juniper, “but when you didn’t show up, they left.”

“Oh, no! Oh, no, no, no!” Misty stammered, leaping into another wild dash, this time toward the Everfree Forest. The other ponies galloped after her, Lilypad and Steel Shield following above by wing.

“Misty, wait!” Steel yelled as he came abreast of her. “What’s wrong?”

“I have to catch up to them,” replied Misty Moonrise breathlessly. “They don’t realize the danger they’re in.”

“Then we’re coming with you,” stated Cloudy Day firmly, running up on her left. Nightingale galloped beside him, and Lilypad soared above them. On Misty’s other side, Steel Shield flew beside her, and beside him ran Juniper Berry. They all appeared determined to follow her into the Everfree Forest after Princess Twilight and her friends.

Misty dug in her hooves, sliding to a stop on the very edge of the Forest of Everfree. She turned to face the others as they hastily halted as well. “No, it’s too dangerous. I can’t—”

“No friend of ours is running off into some terrible danger alone,” countered Juniper Berry, resolute.

For a moment, Misty was speechless. I’m their… friend? However, she quickly recovered and shook her head. “No, you can’t come with me, none of you.”

“Why ever not?” asked Lilypad as she and Steel Shield landed.

“I need you to stay here,” explained Misty, “in case the changelings start their invasion with Ponyville. Without Princess Twilight, Ponyville will be without its leader. I need you all to defend it until I can bring the princess and the others back.”

“Changelings?!” Lilypad gasped. “What are they doing in Equestria?”

“I’ll explain later,” Steel said hastily, and then returned his attention to Misty. He held her gaze for a time, but it was clear that her mind was made up. He sighed in defeat and wrapped his friend in a hug so tight Misty could barely breathe. “You better come back alive, Misty Moonrise,” Steel Shield said, releasing her. “I’ll never forgive you if you don’t.”

Misty nodded, and then turned to face the shadowy forest. She took a deep breath to steady her nerves and set off as fast as she could through the trees. She had to catch up with Twilight Sparkle and her friends before it was too late.