Princess Twilight Sparkle trudged through her new castle, exhausted after all the recent events. Tirek taking over, her being infused with more magic than a single pony ever should be, and finally becoming a definitive Princess of Friendship and getting her very own castle. It had been quite an eventful couple of days. All she wanted to do now was sleep like a rock.
She opened the door to her new bedroom, taking in the unfamiliar decor. It was a moderately-sized room, especially for a princess, but every square inch served a purpose. It was utilitarian, just as Twilight would want her bedroom to be if she had built it herself. Back at the library, she had had to buy rugs to fill the extra floor space in her bedroom to avoid a nervous breakdown.
Spike laid already asleep in a miniature bed, unlike the modified dog bed he used to sleep in at the library. His bed sat in a corner, surrounded by stacks of comic books, one of which was draped over his face open and upside down as he snored.
Her own bed was fit for a princess—as it should be—with silky lavender curtains draped over a queen-sized mattress with a fluffy white pillow at the head, and a comforter the color of her coat, sporting her cutie mark.
She finally reached it and climbed in gratefully, slipping under the covers. She laid back into the pillow and reveled in the warm, snug security of the comforter. As she warmed up, her eyelids grew heavy, and soon she drifted off to the safe haven of sleep.
~~~~~
She was walking slowly through a dim forest of huge, twisted, and gnarled blue trees, searching for any sign of sentient life. It appeared to be night, but there was no way to see the moon or stars with the gigantic, redwood-size trees blocking out the sky. She was huddled for warmth, and she could see her breath faintly as the hot, moisture-laden air came into contact with the frigid atmosphere.
Where am I? she thought. How did I get here? Where is here? I don't remember ever hearing or reading about a place like this. She bunched up her shoulders, trying to reduce the surface area of her coat exposed to the cold air. She wished she had a jacket or cloak, or at least a scarf.
She found a small clearing in the trees, but she still could not see the sky through the thick leaves. She walked over to the huge trunk of a tree and sat down on her rump, leaning her back against it. She pulled her hind legs in and covered herself with her wings, ruffling her feathers in an attempt to keep herself at a decent temperature.
After a minute of huddling, she jumped at the sound of a suave, smooth male voice coming from above her and to her right.
"You know, you really should have something to cover up with." The voice spoke slowly and in a very low key, but was still perfectly intelligible.
"Who said that?" Twilight looked in the direction she thought the voice had come from, but then she heard it all the way from the other end of the clearing.
"Why, it's just little old me," said the voice. Twilight measured her words carefully, not knowing if the voice was friend or foe.
"And who would that be?" she asked. She saw a glint of light in the darkness and a floating crescent came into focus. It slowly approached her, turning sideways and becoming a huge grin chock full of crooked, pointy teeth. It stopped a few meters from her and floated in the air, then a pair of eyes opened suddenly above it, causing Twilight to jump again.
The eyes hovered above the rim of the mouth, colored a dark turquoise with slit pupils. Then, behind the face, a head and body materialized out of wispy bluish-green mist. The head was the first to appear, followed quickly by the rest of the body, and Twilight realized that it was feline. His ears—for it was certainly a male—were pointed and erect, swiveled forward to give the mare his attention.
His fur was a grayish-blue, with ill-defined deep teal stripes running concentrically around his body. His front paws were crossed in the air, and he floated lazily as if he were a pegasus lounging on an invisible cloud.
His smile was frightening, sitting just on the edge of being grotesque. It stretched literally from one ear around his face to the other ear, with seemingly hundreds of sharp teeth in between. Twilight thought that if he wanted to, he could swallow her whole with no trouble at all.
"What's the matter, Twilight?" he said in his quiet, silky voice. "Cat got your tongue?" When he spoke his mouth hardly moved, opening up just enough to let out the air needed to make the proper sounds. The smile never moved from its position either, appearing glued to his face. She elected not to answer his question, and he seemed to read her mind.
"Oh, Twilight," he said, twirling in a lazy barrel roll in the air, "you don't need to be afraid; I'm not going to hurt you. Just... passing through, is all." He promptly floated into a branch, phasing through it and continuing on as if it were not even there.
"Well, then," Twilight began, still feeling a bit nervous, "who are you? Where am I and how did I get here? And why are you floating and phasing through things? That should be impossible!"
"Says the talking magical purple unicorn," said the cat.
"For your information, I'm an alicorn!" she said indignantly. "And you haven't answered my question."
"Which one?" His grin did not change, but his voice conveyed the slightest hint of amusement. He floated lazily about her head, his tail moving behind him as if he were swimming through water. "No matter; I might as well answer them all. You're in a place I like to call 'Wonderland.' This particular version is largely inhabited by breezies, which, might I add, can be quite an unfriendly bunch."
"This version?" she asked.
"Yes, I was getting to that. You see, this place is, in essence, a construction created by your mind in which I simply happen to appear." He floated to a stop back in front of Twilight, waiting for her reaction.
"So, you're telling me I'm... dreaming?"
"Oh, I didn't say that," he said somewhat smugly. He suddenly evaporated into mist, leaving Twilight staring at empty air. She then heard his voice behind her. She turned and saw him sitting on a branch as if he had been there forever.
"As for who I am and why I can float, that's a bit complicated. I am known by many names, but I think here, I'm known as... The Cheshire Cat."
"'Cheshire Cat?'" Twilight repeated.
"Yes," he said, floating around lazily some more. "Or some simply call me 'Cheshire.'"
"Why do they call you that?" she asked.
"I'm not sure, really. I think it was something about a cat on a farm and a bowl of milk. But wherever it comes from, they still call me 'Cheshire.'" His body began to evaporate, leaving behind his grin for a second before it too disappeared.
"Who are you, really?" Twilight asked the air in front of her.
"I could be just a figment of your imagination," he said from behind her. She turned to see him floating in front of her once more.
"But you're not," said Twilight after a moment. "Is that what you're saying?"
"Bingo."
"So," she said, still skeptical, "if I'm not imagining you... then what are you?"
"That, my dear, is a very simple question with a very complicated answer. Or a simple one, depending on how you interpret it."
"That doesn't make sense!" she said in frustration. "An answer is either simple or complicated; it can't be both!"
"Au contraire, mon cherie. To answer your question, 'who am I?' I must first ask you a question. Who are you?"
"Why, I'm Princess Twilight Sparkle," she said, puffing out her chest. "I'm an alicorn, former student of the great Princess Celestia of Equestria, as well as the Princess of Friendship."
"Try again," he said simply. Twilight was thrown for a loop.
"What? What are you talking about? I know who I am!"
"Do you? Then tell me." He alighted on a thick branch, wrapping his tail around himself.
"I am... a loving sister and daughter."
"Wrong again."
"A good friend? The Element of Magic?"
"Nope." She was sweating by now. She knew this was some kind of test, but she could not figure out how to pass it. Then she hit upon the answer.
"I am an arrangement of atoms," she said with conviction, certain that it was the way to pass the cat's test.
"Technically correct," he said. "The best kind of correct. But unfortunately not what I was looking for."
"What?!" she shouted, finally losing her cool. "You're telling me I got it wrong?! I was certain that was what it was! What else could it be?!"
"You tell me. You know the answer; you just have to look hard enough."
"I am..." She could not come up with anything else. "I am..." She thought long and hard, but nothing came to her. After a long time, the cat spoke.
"Correct."
"What?"
"You passed."
"'I... am?' It was that simple?"
"Yes."
"What does that have to do with you?"
"Nothing. I'm just trying to help."
"Well, you're doing the opposite!" The Cheshire Cat considered that.
"Have you ever participated in 'Opposite Day?'" he asked after a moment.
"Yeah," mumbled Twilight, thinking back, "a certain pink mare made sure of that." She shook her head in an effort to clear it and return to the task at hoof. "That doesn't matter! What are you trying to tell me?!"
"I am an all-knowing being from a higher dimension. I occasionally come down here for the conversation." Twilight was, of course, still skeptical.
"That doesn't sound very realistic."
"Well, that's not really what I am, but if the truth about me was just as ridiculous, would I be able to prove it to you?"
"Hmm. I guess not."
"Indeed." The cat continued to float in the air, which was still slightly annoying Twilight. Doubtless, that was exactly why he was doing it.
"So what are you saying? That you're some eldritch abomination beyond my comprehension or something? Like Hoofthulu?"
"No. I'm just being a good friend."
"A friend?"
"Oh, don't worry," said the cat. "I call a lot of people friends, even if they're not." He sounded sad, as if he were lonely. Twilight's expression softened and her anger and frustration disappeared, her natural empathy showing through.
"Do you actually have any friends?" The cat looked up briefly in thought.
"I believe I had one. But she left a long time ago." Twilight felt something break inside.
"What was her name?"
"You wouldn't know her. Let's just say she was... out of this world."
"So you don't have any friends?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Well... I have plenty of friends, and sometimes they can get on my nerves a bit. But no one should ever be completely alone."
"Hm, yes." The cat appeared to gaze into the distance. "I have seen the effects of long-term solitude, or at least near-solitude. Loneliness can drive one completely mad.
"But that's not important, of course," he continued. "What is important is that I'm awfully disappointed in you."
"Huh?" she said flatly.
"Honestly, Twilight, I'd think that Celestia's magic would have given you at least some of her reason." She bristled at that, realizing what the cat was implying.
"Hey! Are you saying I'm not smart?"
"Oh, bra~vo, Twilight," said Cheshire in mock condescension, clapping his front paws slowly together. "You certainly deserve that A, don't you?" Once his paws returned to their original positions, for some reason Twilight could have sworn they had never moved at all.
"When you were given Celestia's, Luna's, and Cadance's magic," said the cat, "you were given, in essence, a part of their souls. And you used that energy in an attempt to exact revenge upon the creature responsible for putting them in danger." Twilight gasped quietly in realization.
"So this is about Tirek," she said.
"Yes, we've finally finished beating around the bush and reached the roots of why you are here. You see, you have no idea how lucky you are, Twilight. Not just you; all Equestrians, zebras, and all other inhabitants of your planet, big and small. There are many worlds out there, Twilight; many universes. Universes inhabited by equines, simians, reptilians, and all other manner of life never before imagined by any equine mind. They all have their own special abilities, their own technologies.
"Magic as you know it, however, is almost completely unique to your world in particular. Magic drives your day and night, your seasons, your world. The creatures are dependent on your magic to survive. It has driven your entire world's very evolution. It is an integral part of every living thing on your planet. Without it, your world and everything on it would be nothing but lifeless dust. It brings life; light; joy. And yet there are those who use it for destruction... for pain. Nightmare Moon, Sombra, Tirek... you."
"But I didn't—"
"Magic should never be used for destruction. It should be cherished. When used with any negative intent, magic can be used for any number of things that one may deeply regret. Your Princess Celestia is particularly aware of this." Twilight's eyes widened.
"The Elements of Harmony."
"Go on," Cheshire prompted.
"When Celestia used the Elements of Harmony against Nightmare Moon," continued Twilight. "I remember now. I saw her and Luna—I mean, Nightmare Moon, fighting. And when Celestia used the Elements... she cried." Twilight herself felt tears welling up behind her eyes as she recounted what she saw. Princess Celestia never cried, ever. The fact that she did then drove home just how difficult it was for her to do what she had to.
"Yes. You may not know it, but being blasted by the Elements was a very painful experience for Luna. Although without the Elements, Nightmare Moon would have brought about eternal night, ultimately causing the end of all life. Princess Celestia did what she absolutely had to do. But afterward, she made a secret vow; that she would never see magic used to cause pain or suffering ever again.
"There are worlds, Twilight, alternate timelines, where magic has been used for true destruction. One world developed magical weapons called megaspells, which were dropped on Equestrian cities like bombs, crippling some of them and destroying others entirely. In yet another, a unicorn picked up where Sombra left off, usurping the throne of Equestria with the use of her vast reservoirs of dark magic. She became a tyrant nearly as hated as King Sombra himself."
"Who was it?" asked Twilight. Cheshire shook his head sadly.
"If you knew, you could not bear it." He jumped down off the branch, floating down until he was hovering at eye level with Twilight.
"Heed this warning," he said, his grin seeming to shrivel. "Your world could head off in the wrong direction at any time. You are the most powerful mage on the planet, aside from Celestia. Soon, you may even surpass her in raw power. Therefore, it is your duty to protect magic from those that may use it for ill. It is a gift, Princess. Use it well."
"I... I will, Cheshire," she said with conviction. "I will." The cat's smile twitched in satisfaction.
~~~~~
Twilight woke up with a gasp, sitting up in her bed. She looked around the bedroom. Spike was still asleep in his bed, snoring like... well, a dragon. His head was tilted to the side, and the comic book had fallen off onto the floor at some point. She looked up at the clock, which read half past 2:00.
She thought back on her dream. It was weird to say the least, and also extremely vivid. But it made her think. Why had she attacked Tirek like she had? Did he really deserve to be obliterated, like Twilight had wanted to do? Or was she being childish? As somepony once said, "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind."
She had dedicated her life to the study of magic, and the concept that it was to be used only for good was practically the cornerstone of her entire morality. She had been a hypocrite, trying to justify violence against Tirek by claiming that she still had the moral high ground. But violence was never the moral high ground.
She resolved right then and there that she would do everything in her power to protect magic from those that would misuse it. It was her duty, as the most powerful mage, as the Princess of Friendship, and as the Element of Magic itself.
She looked up to the right and saw the crescent moon shining in through her window. She could have sworn for a second that it was a toothy grin, but she blinked, and then it was gone.
