Chapters Equestria, a land of peace and harmony, ruled by two regal sisters; Princess Celestia, and Princess Luna. Princess Celestia was given the gift to control the sun, making her the caretaker of the daytime. As for Princess Luna, she was given the gift to control the moon, making her the caretaker of the night. During their reign, they faced many foes, such as the spirit of chaos and disharmony, a king overcome by shadows, and three sirens from the deepest seas! None of those, however, would outshine the battle between the two rulers. 600 years passed after Princess Luna was banished to the moon for a thousand years, and in that time, Princess Celestia was soon acquainted with her niece: Princess Cadence, who was destined to become the protector of the Crystal Empire. With her by Princess Celestia's side, Equestria remained to be in peace for generations. One day though, the trusted wizard: Starswirl the Bearded, came to the sun-wielder with a prophecy...
A unicorn was to come to Canterlot, born with a destiny to uphold to most powerful magic in all of history: The Magic of Friendship, and was to become a mighty leader. To make sure this was to happen, the unicorn must be taught the right things, and study friendship until they were ready to hold a kingdom of their own. But, with this power the unicorn was to uphold, there was to be a great evil to rise. This evil will come in many forms, and will do anything to obtain the power!
Once the princess was told about this, she immediately began the search to find the unicorn all across Equestria.
Months passed...
Then years...
Princess Celestia’s belief in the prophecy began to fade after the passing of Starswirl, and gave up the search for the unicorn.
But one day, Princess Cadence came to Celestia with interesting news. She told the princess that a filly she babysat seemed to have an interest in magic, and was taking an entrance exam into the School for Gifted Unicorns.
Although Celestia had her doubts, she halfheartedly decided to see for herself if this was the unicorn Starswirl prophesied.
As she was on her way to see the unicorn’s entrance exam, she suddenly witnessed magical flashes from the building in front of her, and watched in awe as a full-grown dragon burst through the roof! The dragon looked around its surrounding in confusion, when it spotted Celestia, it tipped its head. Seeing that this dragon was no danger for the moment, the princess forced herself to relax and trotted to the building's entrance.
Entering the room, Celestia was surprised to see a panicking filly wrapped in their own magic. The supervisors were being levitated, two plants stood at the other side of the room, and a full-sized dragon was trying to get its head out of the roof! The princess approached the filly warily, trying to avoid the bolts of magic shooting from the unicorn's magic; this definitely was a powerful unicorn, could this possibly be the one Starswirl prophesied? As soon as she was close to the filly, Celestia placed a hoof on the unicorn; the struggling filly faced the princess; remembering a time she was scared herself, Celestia gave her a warm smile.
Almost immediately, the filly's pupils returned and her magic stopped. The two plants turned into a pair of unicorns, who Celestia believed were to be the filly's parents; the supervisors fell to the floor, and the dragon shrunk to its original size as a baby dragon.
Impressed, Celestia looked back at the unicorn and raised her head, trying to hide that she was trying to remember the filly's name.
"Twilight Sparkle," The name rolled off her tongue like it was nothing, "I have never met a filly with such magic!... But this kind of magic will have to be controlled through studies and practice. Would you be interested in becoming my apprentice?"
From that moment on, the unicorn learned all she knew about magic and the power of friendship. Embracing the Elements of Harmony and the true Magic of Friendship during her exploits, Twilight Sparkle was put to test during the mighty battle with Lord Tirek, and prevailed; becoming a princess.
Today, Princess Twilight protects the land of Equestria with her five friends: Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy; keeping the land at peace.
But the prophecy had not yet been fulfilled...
Today's the day! Today's the day! Today's the day Princess Cadence comes to visit for the first time, and boy was the castle alive! Princess Twilight and Applejack were washing the floors and crystal walls, Pinkie Pie was in the kitchen preparing the meals, Fluttershy and her animals were gardening around the castle, Rainbow Dash was off to check on the weather report for the day, and Rarity was at the train station waiting for the train to Manehattan. During all this commotion, Spike checked off all the things on the "To-Do" list Twilight wrote for him as he watched the princess wash and dry the castle walls with her magic.
Twilight noticed Spike standing there, and cleared her throat, "So, is there anything else on the list we need to do?"
"Huh?" The purple dragon shook his head and looked at Twilight, "Oh yeah," He glanced at the list, tapping the end of the quill he held to his chin, "Uh, the time Princess Cadence is arriving still needs to be checked off."
The alicorn nodded and turned back to her work, "Rarity said she'd try that spell I taught her and will be sending a note shortly, saying when the train will be arriving."
"Okay," Spike scribbled some words next to check box and read aloud, "The flight path you and Princess Cadence are taking later this afternoon-"
"We're going straight from the castle, around the outskirts of Ponyville, over the Everfree Forest, and then back," Twilight interrupted with a tilt of her head, "Anything else?"
Spike frowned a bit and checked off a box. He looked at the list once more, "The last thing on here is the apple cider, it says here 'Don't let Pinkie make the cider alone, she doesn't seem to have learned how to put the Apple Family touch to the drink'."
Twilight Sparkle stopped what she was doing and cast Spike a confused look, "What? I didn't write that on the list..."
"That's 'cause I wrote it, sorry Twi, I forgot to tell y'all." Applejack apologized, wiping a strand of sweat off her forehead.
"Oh, it's okay Applejack," Twilight assured, "But, why did you write this?"
"Well, I was gonna let Pinkie Pie make the cider for this occasion, but the last time I had some of her apple cider, it wasn't quite... right. She hasn't learned the special technique as to how add the 'Apple Family' mark to the drink, so I thought I should help her out for this one. Is that alright with y'all?" Applejack asked.
Twilight thought for a moment, she examined the floors that still needed to be cleaned before Princess Cadence arrived, then tapped her chin with her hoof for a moment, "Hm... Yeah, it's alright! How about you get started on that before Pinkie does."
"You sure? What about the floors?"
"I can finish that for you once I'm done with this wall, it's the last one I need to clean."
Applejack hesitated for a moment, then dipped her head. "Okay then, I'll get right to it!" The earth pony placed the mop she was using to clean the floors on the floor and trotted down the hallway in the direction to the kitchen.
"Alright, Spike," Twilight used her magic to rinse the wall, "Could you get started on the floors while I rinse this wall? I'll help you as soon as I dry it okay?"
The purple dragon sighed and picked up the mop, "Okay."
"How's the gardening going Fluttershy?"
Twilight leaned against the front door facing Fluttershy and her group of animals; the animals consisted of birds, beavers, squirrels, and a few worms, who had specific roles in the gardening. Twilight watched as the beavers helped plant new flowers, using their tails to pat down the dirt. The alicorn smiled a little at the scene.
Fluttershy brushed specks of dirt off her front hooves, "It's going well, we're just finishing up the planting part of the gardening." She said, giggling as one of the birds landed on her shoulder.
Twilight turned to look behind her, and nodded to Spike who was still holding the list; he checked off a box, and followed the princess who walked back inside.
The alicorn headed to the kitchen, catching a whiff of something delicious as she neared. She licked her lips, "Mmm, smells like Apple Fritters are gonna be on the menu."
Pinkie Pie stuck her head out of the entrance to the kitchen. "Eeyupperdoodle! That was Applejack's idea!"
Applejack leaned out of the entrance, holding one of the fritters in her hoof. "Here," the earth pony tossed the fritter to Twilight, "Fresh from the fryin' pan!"
Twilight caught the fritter with her magic, and continued to enter the kitchen. "So how's everything going here?"
Pinkie Pie hopped back to the oven and looked inside, "Great! We have the sandwiches made and the cider almost perfected for lunch. For dinner we're having baked Daisy-Cheese Bread and Crispy-Salted Hay with a salad to the side and two desserts: cake and the apple fritters!"
"Wow! looks like you have everything planned for, Pinkie." Twilight said with surprise, taking a bite of her fritter.
"Well I am a party planner, I always plan ahead for things! Heck, I plan for everything!" Pinkie smiled with a squeal and hopped to the stove, where the apple fritters were being made.
Applejack sat on a nearby stool and worked on the cider, a small barrel next to her on the counter. She leaned towards it and pumped some already-made cider into a glass. The earth pony handed the glass to Twilight, "Here, have this with the fritter."
The princess graciously took the glass of cider with her magic, and took a sip after finishing the dessert. She coughed a little after she swallowed. Something in the drink tasted... off. The aftertaste was slightly bitter and left Twilight smacking her lips for a bit, trying to get rid of the taste.
"You taste it too, huh?" Applejack queried; she wore an amused expression as she observed her friend.
Twilight cleared her throat, "Yeah, it's good to drink, but the aftertaste is bitter... It's not very pleasant."
Applejack's smile turned into a smug grin as she turned her head to face Pinkie Pie, the pink pony made eye contact with her and immediately began to blush. Twilight saw the exchange and understood, "Did Pinkie forget to add something to the cider?" She asked quizzically.
Applejack chuckled, "She sure did, she forgot to add the 'Apple Family' mark again."
"I thought I did! I tried really hard on this one Applejack!" Pinkie Pie's casual smile looked strained, "I'm sorry, I promise I'll learn it soon!"
The farm pony's expression changed to sympathy, "It's alright Pinkie, it's easy to fix." Applejack slid off the stool and walked up to one of the nearby cabinets, she opened it and took out a green-tinted bottle filled with small, dark flakes.
The farm pony walked back to the barrel and ripped the lid off. She opened the bottle, tipped the top down, and shook it for a few seconds; causing a small amount of flakes to fall out. The flakes dissolved into the cider as Applejack stirred the beverage with a nearby spoon for a few moments. After stirring, Applejack placed the lid back onto the barrel and sat on the stool, "There, wait for about five minutes and it should be good!"
"So the 'Apple Family' mark is the green bottle!" Pinkie realized, "Huh, I keep forgetting that." She tapped her chin with her hoof, thinking. The party pony froze and gasped, "I used the blue bottle! Oh my gosh! Applejack! Please tell me what I did won't affect anything!"
The earth pony chuckled, "Of course it's not! It'll only make the cider a bit stronger than usual, don't worry Pinkie, if you made the cider go bad, I would've stopped you before you did it."
"Oh, okay," Pinkie giggled, "I bet Rainbow Dash will love the cider more than ever now!"
Applejack joined in on the laughter. "I bet she would!... Say... where is Rainbow anyway? Shouldn't she be back by now?"
"I'm sure she'll be back any second now, you know how the weather team is like during the spring. They always forget a rainy day or two. I'm sure Rainbow's behind fixing something like that." Twilight replied. She placed the cup of cider on the counter and walked out of the kitchen. "Great job girls!"
As Twilight made her way through the castle, she caught up to Spike who stood in the middle of the hallway, half-crouching. She caught up to him, taking notice of the small belches the little dragon made.
"Spike?" She asked, placing a hoof lightly on his shoulder. With that touch, Spike opened his mouth and let out a huge burp. A note appeared from the flames that ignited and fell to the ground; Twilight levitated the note to herself and read it.
"The train will be coming in ten minutes." The princess handed the slip to Spike and began to trot away, "I'll have to get going, do you think you could get everything checked off while I'm gone?"
Spike groaned in response, "I think you taught Rarity the wrong spell..."
Twilight felt the air brush between her feathers with every flap she took; she smiled as her mane flew behind her like a flag in the wind. The princess counted the seconds she had until the train arrived at the station, 348... 347... 346... 345... 344... 343... 342...
All of the sudden, a flash of gray passed before the alicorn's eyes and a stinging pain pulsed from her nose. She froze in the middle of the air and rubbed her nose as she looked to see where the flash came from. "W-what the-"
"Oh my gosh! I am so sorry Princess Twilight, I-I didn't mean to hurt you! Are you okay?"
Twilight recognized the voice immediately and chuckled a bit, "It's okay Derpy, just a little sting on the nose... Why are you in such a rush?"
The mail-mare's worried expression quickly turned into embarrassment. She rubbed the back of her head and giggled nervously, "I uh... I'm kind of behind on the deliveries," Derpy turned around and began to fly away, "Welp! Gotta get moving! Again, I'm really sorry Princess."
"It's alright Derpy, don't worry about it. Go on ahead and finish your deliveries... Oh, wait!"
Derpy stopped in her tracks and looked over her shoulder. "Yes Princess?"
"If you want, I could help get you to your next stop." Twilight smiled, "It could save you some time!"
The pegasus hesitated for a bit, looked at the saddlebag she was carrying, and then nodded to Twilight. "Okay, but are you sure you don't need to be somewhere?"
"I'm not that far from where I'm going. This won't take long, I promise. Where's your next stop?"
Derpy reached into her saddlebag and took out a letter. She used one of her hooves to cover her lazy eye and read the address. "The next stop is Daisy's house."
"Alright!" Twilight flew up to Derpy and placed both hooves on her shoulders. "Now I need you to stay still. Hm... think of standing in front of Daisy's house okay?"
The mail-mare straightened her shoulders, "I'll try Princess!" Derpy wobbled in the air as she tried to stay still. She scrunched her nose and glanced at Twilight. "I think I'll stand on one of the roofs." The pegasus landed on the roof to her right and balanced herself, "I'm ready!"
Twilight dipped her nose and focused on Derpy. She concentrated as she imagined the pegasus appearing in front of Daisy's house, the alicorn felt magic form around her horn as an aura grew in front of Derpy's chest. In just a second, Derpy disappeared in a flash of pink. The princess was just about to fly away when she spotted a small letter floating down.
"Wha-" Twilight reached down and caught the letter, "Huh, I guess I missed one." She used her magic and sent it to Daisy's house. After checking for any missed letters, Twilight continued flying to the train station.
"The train for the Crystal Empire has arrived! Make way for Princess Cadence!"
Twilight's ears perked at the announcement and stood up from the bench she was sitting on. The ponies at the loading dock left the area to make room for the alicorn's sister-in-law, some of the ponies looked at Twilight and dipped their heads to her as they passed. Twilight gushed a bit. She appreciated the respect, but sometimes she didn't feel like she should be treated like royalty. Then again... I am a princess, I really should play the part. She nodded back to the ponies and smiled. Heh, once again I'm smiling and waving. I guess I'll never get away from it.
The train from the Crystal Empire screeched to a stop in front of the station, and one of the car doors opened. Twilight watched as Flash Sentry, one of the empire's guards, exited the car and stepped to the side, holding a suitcase. A few moments later, Princess Cadence approached from the rail car. The pink alicorn turned to the guard and took the suitcase with her magic; she nodded to Flash Sentry, cuing him to leave. The pegasus bowed to Twilight and entered the car once more, closing the door behind him.
Twilight and Cadence waited until the train left, once it did, they looked at each other and squealed with glee. They trotted up to each other and performed their childhood greeting: "Sunshine, sunshine ladybugs awake! Clap your hooves and do a little shake!" The two giggled as they hugged each other. Cadence was the first to break away from the hug and booped Twilight nose, "Now, where's my sister's magical castle? Is it as 'crystally' as you've described it?"
Twilight booped Cadence back. "Of course it is!"
"It's shaped like a tree?"
"Mhm!"
"And it has a lot of rooms, including a library ?"
"Yup!"
"And it has a balcony almost as big as the empire's?"
"Undoubtedly!"
"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go!"
Twilight giggled again, "Okay, okay. Do you want to walk or fly there?"
"We can walk."
"Alrighty! Here," Twilight levitated Cadence's suitcase out of the princess's hold. "I'll carry that."
"Oh no you don't!" Cadence took the suitcase back, "You don't need to treat me like a guest Twilight! I'll carry my own stuff."
Twilight looked a bit unsure. "Are you sure?"
Cadence nudged her sister lightly. "Of course I am! There's no need to treat me like royalty during this visit, we're here to have some sister-bonding time. And to do that, we don't treat each other like guests okay?"
"Um, Okay."
"Hey," Cadence walked towards the main street, "Let's go and see that castle!" The princess hummed and nodded politely to the nearby ponies passing by, who returned the gesture.
Well, as long as she's okay with it. Twilight caught up to her sister and nodded to the ponies, she struggling not to blush as the ponies returned the same gesture as they did to Cadence.
"Still not used to the formalities huh?" The pink alicorn murmured to her.
Twilight dipped her head, "Yeah, it feels weird."
"I understand," the princess took a deep breath and exhaled. "Just do that and stand up tall, you'll be fine."
The purple alicorn raised an eyebrow, "You make it look so easy, how were you ever able to manage?"
"I became a princess at a young age Twilight. I had to learn all my life about posture, manners, appearance, things like that. But you have been a princess for a short time, and it's normal to feel this way at first. Soon you'll get used to the crowds and the respect you'll receive."
Twilight smirked, "Wow Cadence, for once you actually said something reassuring."
"Come on! Like those things I taught you as a filly weren't useful!"
"Well..."
"Ugh, fine! Be that way!" Cadence flipped her mane, making her hair flick Twilight's nose. "I'm not even here ten minutes, and you tell me I don't have good advice for you!"
"Aw, come on Cadence!" Twilight rubbed her nose, "You just gave me some useful advice!"
"Hmph!" The princess stuck her nose up. "I only gave you half of the advice you need to handle crowds!"
"Well," Twilight nudged her sister, "Can I have more advice?"
Cadence glanced at the purple alicorn, giving her a doubtful look. "Why should I? You wouldn't take my advice for granted anyways."
"Because, if you give me more advice, I may change my mind about you not being insightful."
The pink alicorn pretended to think, "Hm... I don't know..." She then smiled and nudged Twilight back. "Alright. But one remark about me not being helpful, and we'll be seeing who's visiting who next time."
"Okay, okay." Twilight snickered, "What else is useful for crowds?"
Cadence faced forward, "For one thing, you must always look in the direction you're going, unless a pony wants your attention. If you focus on something ahead of you, you'll be able to ignore the ponies around you. But at the same time you... Oh my gosh!" The princess stopped in her tracks and gaped, "Is that the castle?!"
Twilight looked ahead to see the top of the castle peaking over a few houses. She stopped next to Cadence, "Mhm! It really stands out doesn't it?"
"It really does!" Cadence smiled wide, "It's so beautiful!" The alicorn squealed and began to trot towards the castle. "Come on! I want to see it up close!"
"Whatever happened to posture?!" Twilight called, trying not to laugh at her sister-in-law's eagerness. She bit the inside of her cheek as Cadence immediately froze. The purple alicorn caught up to her, "Maybe you should take your own advice at times."
"Noted," Cadence straightened up and walked towards the castle, levitating her suitcase closely next to her. "Now, shall we continue our stroll to your new castle?"
Twilight straightened herself as well and held her head high. "Of course!"
"Have a great day Daisy!"
"You too Derpy! Try not to collapse in any more flower beds okay?"
"You got it!" the mail-mare walked down the street, her cheeks still red in embarrassment. That's the last time I'll let Princess Twilight teleport me anywhere... Whew! Derpy shook her head vigorously, That spell really messed with my head! As she strolled down the street, the pegasus brushed off some dirt on her shoulder with her wing. I wish I didn't fall into Daisy's garden, ugh, that was so embarrassing! "Clumsy mare! Why can't you do anything right?" Derpy muttered to herself, "Daisy doesn't need another fainting episode 'cause you can't balance on your own four hooves! I mean really! It's bad enough that your eyesight is-"
"Hey! Watch out!"
All of the sudden, Derpy could feel herself being jerked back by her saddlebag. The pegasus squeaked in surprise as the jerk made her fall back on her flank. Irritably, the mail-mare looked over her shoulder, but looked back in front of her to see a herd of cattle pass. She yipped in shock and shifted backwards. "W-w-whaa?!"
"Winona! To the left girl! Big mac! You able to catch up to the front?!"
"Eeyup!"
"Get to it! We gotta stop these cows before they hit Sugarcube Corner!" A yellow filly raced next to a straying cow and shoved it back in the herd of running cows. "Catch the leading cow Big Mac!"
The commotion continued through the street, the filly's voice dying away as the herd of cattle continued its "rampage". Derpy shakily stood up and fixed her saddlebag strap. Remembering the reason for her flank being slightly sore, she looked around to see who the culprit was. "Now the hay-"
"Hey, are you okay?"
"Yipe!" Derpy whipped her head around to see a unicorn standing behind her. One of the mare's hooves hung in mid air as if she had meant to poke her or something. The pegasus was about to snap at the pony for sneaking up on her, but noticed their expression seemed confused and alert. She doesn't look like she was sneaking up on me.
Realizing she hadn't said anything, Derpy faced the unicorn and gushed a bit. "Yeah, flank's a bit sore but I'm alright."
"You sure? You seemed pretty startled when those cows passed you."
"I'm fine, really." The pegasus pretended to dust something off her foreleg. "Anypony would have been startled to see a herd of cows running past you."
"If you say so... Sorry for tugging you so hard, I didn't mean to hurt you."
"Oh?" Derpy tilted her head, "That was you?"
The mare smirked sheepishly. "Yeah, sorry about that."
"It's okay, I should've been looking where I was going." Derpy smiled, "Thanks for saving my flank!"
The unicorn blinked, then returned the smile. "You're welcome," The pony reached her hoof out, "I'm Crystal."
Derpy hoof-bumped the pony's hoof. "I'm Derpy Hooves, nice to meet you."
"You too!"
"Wait a sec!" Derpy chuckled, noticing the purple suitcase next to Crystal. "How come I didn't think of this sooner? You're new around here, right?"
"I am," Crystal gestured slightly to her left. "I just came from the train station... Say, do you know where the 'Ponyville Apartments' complex is?"
Derpy nodded, "Yupper pupper! I'll show you the way!" The pegasus lifted herself a few inches off the ground and headed off while the mare followed levitating her suitcase. The mail-mare kept a few paces ahead of the unicorn, making sure Crystal didn't see her face. Derpy scrunched her nose, First impressions Derpy. Just fly straight. Don't let her know you're clumsy, She turned her head slightly to look at the unicorn. But what if she already knows? What if she'll judge me for having weird eyes? Oh no! She must think I'm a klutz with all this dirt on me from the garden! Oh Derpy! You're such a bamboozle! The pegasus gasped and looked forward again, her lip beginning to tremble. What if she's a Canterlot pony?! Is she a snob just like that one mare that visited Rarity that day?
"Is everything alright?"
Derpy looked over her shoulder to see Crystal looking at her with a concerned expression. The pegasus landed on the ground and continued walking, "Yeah, I just forgot that I still have mail to deliver." Smart excuse Derpy, now you sound like you want to leave her. Change the subject before she says anything!
"Eh, I'll take care of it later... So," Derpy lowered her pace to match the unicorn's, "You said you came from the train station, where'd ya come from?"
"The Crystal Empire."
"The Crystal Empire?!" Derpy's eyes widened, and looked at Crystal up and down. "You don't... look like you're from there."
"I know," Crystal snorted jokingly. "I get that remark a lot. I'm actually half-crystal, half-unicorn. So that's why I don't have that 'crystal' effect on my body."
"Ah, I see."
"So what about you?" The unicorn continued walking, "I noticed your eyes are a bit different from everypony else's."
Oh no! She's gonna judge! She's gonna judge!
"Is it Amblyopia or is it Strabismus?"
Wait, what?
Crystal noticed the pegasus' expression. "Oh, I'm sorry." The unicorn pulled back her ears, "I didn't mean to offend you."
"Oh no no no!" Derpy shook one of her hooves in the air. "You didn't offend me at all! I-I was just surprised."
"Surprised by what?"
The mail-mare faced forward again. "By your question." Derpy's expression began to sulk, "Normally when I meet new ponies they either just stare at my eyes or tell me how weird they look."
"Well, that's kind of stupid."
"I guess... Anyways, I think it's Amblyopia. I'm not sure honestly, heh, I keep forgetting."
"That's alright, those names do kind of get confusing... Um, do we go left or right?" Crystal stopped and looked to Derpy, the mail-mare lifted her head to see the intersection between town-square and the housing area.
Oh! I didn't think we'd get here so fast! Derpy turned to the right and pointed to Hoof Road, "Right. You go down that street and you'll see the Ponyville Apartments' sign. It'll be slightly to the right of the street but I'm sure you won't miss it."
"Okay." Crystal walked past Derpy, stopped, then looked at the pegasus. "Thanks for helping Derpy, it was nice meeting you."
"It was nice meeting you too Crystal!" The pegasus lifted herself off the ground, "If you need anything, be sure to let the office pony know you want to talk to Chilly Puddle. She's one of the best employees at the complex! And if she isn't there, ask for Lilac Links. Both of them will be able to help you with anything that relates to apartments!"
"I'll keep that in mind! Thanks again Derpy! I'll see you later!"
"Bye!" Derpy waved as Crystal walked down the street, keeping her suitcase close to her. After a few seconds, the pegasus took a letter out of her saddlebag and read the address. "Golden Harvest. Well, that's not far from here!" The mail-mare bit the letter and flew away towards town-square.
"Amazing!" Princess Cadence gaped in awe as she looked around the foyer of the castle. "I love the color scheme the castle has! And the carpeting," She squealed, "It's so cool!" The princess turned to her sister and punched her on the shoulder lightly. "I'm jealous now! You have so much space, and yet it still feels small and cozy!"
Twilight smiled, "It does feel that way doesn't it?" The alicorn lifted a hoof. "I imagine the empire's castle would feel like that too right?"
"Not at all! Every room in the castle is humongous! Heck, even the bathrooms are big! Honestly, it feels like the castle was built for giants."
"Well the crystal ponies did have an interest in big things. That would be understandable that every room in the castle would be-" Twilight stopped when she noticed her sister-in-law's amused expression. She cleared her throat and she gestured to to the hallway on the right. "Shall we begin the tour with where your bedroom will be?"
"Of course!" Cadence levitated her suitcase. "It'll be great to finally put this thing down."
"You should've let me carry your suitcase then." Twilight teased as she led the way down the hallway.
"Then what kind of a sister would I be?"
"A sister-in-law, that's what."
"But sister-in-laws don't dump their sister to do the hard work!" Cadence smirked at Twilight, then she huffed sarcastically. "Fine! If you insist on carrying my things." The alicorn stopped in her tracks and fell on Twilight's back dramatically. "You can carry me and the suitcase!"
Twilight huffed back as she tried to balance. "I would love to Cadence, but I think carrying you would be a bad idea."
"And why is that?"
"Because," Twilight pretended to quiver under her sister's weight. "I... I don't think I can carry you anywhere! What has Shining Armor been feeding you? Crystals?"
"Oh yes!" Cadence rolled her eyes, "He gives me the best crystals everyday!" The princess slid off her sister and spread her wings. "As the protector and princess of the Crystal Empire, I must be well-fed everyday in order to perform the daily routines properly for my fellow ponies." She stuck her tongue out, "And to not be taken away by any forces of evil, I must eat crystals everyday to make myself too heavy to carry!"
Now it was Twilight's turn to roll her eyes. "Okay, now you're taking it too far."
"Am I?" Cadence gave her sister a pitiful look. "Aw phooey, I guess I'll tell Shining to stop feeding me crystals then."
"What?" Twilight gave her a look of disbelief.
Cadence laughed, "Don't worry Twilight, I'm not eating any crystals." She scrunched her nose in disgust. "But could you imagine eating them though? Ugh, the taste of rocks in your mouth would be nasty!"
"Actually, rocks are much different from crystals. For one thing, rocks break up into more tiny pieces than crystals do when you bite into them, it's kind of like biting into a flaky crust."
Twilight and Cadence turned their attention down the hall, where a small purple dragon approached them from down the hall. The dragon looked curiously to the crystal walls and raised an eyebrow. "I wonder if these crystals taste the same as the ones from the Crystal Empire."
"Keep dreaming Spike, you're not eating those crystals." Twilight raised her eyebrow as well. "So Spike, how is everything?"
"What?" He tipped his head, after a few seconds he remembered the list and burped it out. The dragon showed Twilight the list, "Everything's been checked off!"
"And the weather?"
"Rainbow Dash just gave me the report a few minutes ago."
"And?"
"And everything's clear for the flight today."
"Great!" Twilight used her magic to make the list disappear. She noticed Cadence's confused expression and realized that she hasn't told her about the plans for the visit. "I've planned a little flight for us to take after dinner."
Cadence smiled brightly, "That sounds fun! For a second I forgot you're one to plan things." The princess then turned to Spike. "And it's nice to see you again Spike, have you grown?"
Spike straightened at the question and smiled smugly. "Of course I have! Every dragon's got to grow sometime!" The dragon began to flex, "Glad to know somepony's noticed." Twilight rolled her eyes and shook her head while Cadence began to giggle at the dragon's performance.
Twilight cleared her throat and walked down the hall. "Let's get to your room before you scream for encore." She smirked as Spike glared at her sarcastically. Cadence began to pick up her suitcase when Spike rushed to pick it up. "I'll take it princess."
"No need Spike, I can carry my own things."
"No need to refuse princess! I must honor the dragon code. And to do that, I insist on carrying your things."
"May I remind you that 'Spike the Brave and Glorious' saved the lives of many ponies twice? I do believe Spike, that your dragon code runs like this:" Princess Cadence levitated her suitcase out of his grasp, "If somepony has saved your life, then you are dedicated to serve them forever, correct?"
Spike rubbed his arm shyly. "Somewhere along those lines, yeah."
"Well, since you have saved many lives including mine. I may be dedicated to serve you, but not forever." Cadence followed Twilight, "So, I guess levitating my things is a way of serving you."
"Hm... I guess so." Spike stood there for a moment as Cadence caught up to her sister-in-law, he tapped his chin for a while and then looked in the princess' direction. "Wait... what?"
"Very slick." Twilight remarked to Cadence as she opened a door that led to a room. "I gotta use that trick sometime... Anyways, here's your room." The alicorn pushed the door, revealing the castle's guest room. Twilight lead her sister into the room and opened the curtains with her magic, letting some light inside. "This window reveals the east part of Ponyville, it's a great view especially in the mornings! You're welcome to use any of the dressers. Heck, you're welcome to use anything in this room."
"Really? So I can use this?"
Twilight turned to see Cadence looking at something that was sitting on the mantel. Twilight recognized her childhood doll, Smarty Pants, and immediately blushed. Her ears flopped down in embarrassment. "I forgot Smarty Pants was there... Well, I guess she's only there for... decoration purposes."
"Oh, I see." Cadence put her hooves up, "I won't touch Smarty then." The princess smiled and walked up to the bed, she lifted her suitcase on top of the bed. "So is there anything else you want to show me before I unpack?"
The purple alicorn tapped the floor for a few moments, remembering what else was to be shown to her sister. "There are the necessities to be shown, like the bathroom... I still want to show you the library and the balcony... but we can do all that after lunch. Go ahead and unpack, I'm gonna go see when lunch is."
"Alright."
Twilight exited the room and trotted down the hallway towards the kitchen, humming to herself. The princess began to round a corner when she spotted Rainbow Dash down another hall. She noticed that the pegasus was drenched with water and called to her. "Hey Rainbow!" She said, flying up to her friend. "How's the weather?"
Rainbow Dash pulled her damp forelocks back, revealing her eyes, they seemed to look wary and tired. "Pretty good, the weather will be clear for you and Princess Cadence for that flight."
"Excellent! But... Why are you wet?"
The pegasus looked away from Twilight for a moment. "Uh, I had to help the weather team clear a few storm clouds... One of the rookies hit one of the clouds a little too hard and made it rain."
Twilight tipped her head to the side. "Were they taken care of?"
"Yeah!" Rainbow Dash stood up straight, flicking off a few drops of water. "We got all those storm clouds moved out of your route! So uh, I gotta go take a shower before lunch. Don't want to get sick during Princess Cadence's visit!"
"Good idea Rainbow, don't take too long though!" Twilight turned back to where she rounded the corner and continued trotting towards the kitchen.
Closing the door behind her, Derpy's shoulders slumped while she entered her living room. She pushed the back of her mane to the side as she reached to loosen the strap on her saddlebag. Another day, another buck-load of mail to deliver... Oh well, at least I got it done. The mail-mare managed to slip off the bag and placed it on a chair. She then flopped on the couch and sighed as she felt her muscles begin to relax. After a few minutes, Derpy could feel herself drift off to sleep until she heard the sound of hoof-steps approach her. She looked up drowsily to see Amethyst Star approaching her.
"You're home late." Amethyst said while Derpy sat up and rubbed her eyes. "You're usually home around three."
The pegasus yawned, "Yeah, sorry, I had to cover for another employee for a bit. I hope that didn't affect your schedule."
"Don't worry about it, I didn't have much planned except for taking care of Dinky today anyways." The unicorn used her magic to give Derpy a cup of tea.
The pegasus thanked her and took a sip. "How is she?"
Amethyst gestured to the hallway, "She's still working on the assignment I gave her."
"What's she working on?"
"Magic."
"Ah, okay."
"I must say," Amethyst sat down next to Derpy, levitating a cup of tea for herself. "Dinky's really good at practicing magic when she sets her mind to it. But lately she's been a little... Out of it I guess."
"Is that so?"
"Yeah." the unicorn leaned closer to Derpy and lowered her voice to a whisper. "Every time she messes up on a spell she gets upset. I don't know what's troubling her, but it's really affecting the way she's performing... Do you think Dinky's upset because she's-" Amethyst was about to finish her question when the sound of an explosion and a thud echoed down the hallway.
"Oh pony feathers! Amethyst! The broomstick's broken!" A small, purple unicorn trudged into the living room, carrying half of a broomstick in her mouth. The filly spat it out and frowned as she glared at the piece. "The stupid thing wouldn't budge! I tried and I tried but the broom just wouldn't move!"
Derpy's eyes widened, she pegasus glanced at the broken broomstick. She's normally not so mad... What could possibly upset her to break a broomstick? She looked at her daughter and noticed that the filly had her forelocks covering one of her eyes. Derpy squinted slightly, Why is she covering one of her eyes?
Dinky kicked the broomstick piece away from her, she noticed her mother looking at her. Dinky bit her lip, She's giving me that look again... "Oh, hey Mom... You're home late." The unicorn smiled weakly. "How was your day?"
"It was busy, as usual. How was your day Dinky?"
The filly ducked her head and pointed to the broomstick halfheartedly. "What do you think?"
The pegasus tipped her head; that wasn't the reply she was expecting. "Hm... I could imagine it was pretty busy. How's your math going?"
"Pretty good I guess," Dinky flipped her mane, only for her bangs to cover one of her eyes again. She turned to look at Amethyst, "Are there any more broomsticks? Or are we done for today?"
Done for the day? What's going on? She loves to learn new things! Derpy took another sip of her tea, trying to hide her surprise.
Amethyst took a sip of hers, stood up, and placed her tea on the coffee table in front of her. "I think we're done for the day. But before you go and do anything, let's go and see if there's a mess in the hallway we have to clean up."
"Oh, okay." Dinky grabbed the piece and followed Amethyst down the hallway, glancing at her mother as she passed. Derpy caught her daughter's eye and looked at her warmly, trying to reassure her. Dinky quickly looked away, Why's she looking at me like that? I just broke a broomstick! Wouldn't she be mad at me?
Derpy sat back and glanced at a small mirror, hanging with a collection of pictures on a wall across from her. She focused on the reflection and stared at it, then looked at the pictures. The pegasus froze and focused on one picture; Dinky sat on a picnic blanket, smiling at the camera. Derpy smiled as she noticed the glimmer in Dinky's eyes in the picture. I remember that day, Dinky was so happy to enjoy that day with me... She was so carefree and energetic! She sighed, She believed nothing was wrong with her...
"Hey Amethyst, What do I do with the broom?"
"Hm... I don't know, ask your mother about that."
"Okay..."
The mail-mare's ears perked as the filly approached her from the hallway. Watching Dinky place the pieces on the floor, Derpy thought how much it would cost to buy a new broom, including all the other things she had to buy. The pegasus placed the cup of tea on the coffee table and slid herself off the couch.
"Uh, Mom? What do I do with this?" Dinky looked at her, slightly worried. "Do you think we could fix it with duct tape or something?"
Derpy picked up a piece of the broom and examined the splintered end. "I don't think we have duct tape sweetie... And I don't think duct tape could keep these parts together anyways." When the mail-mare noticed her daughter lower her head, she ruffled Dinky's mane. "Don't worry about it! We can always get a new one!"
"Do you want me to add it to the list?"
"Sure, go ahead. I'll take care of this." Derpy picked up the other piece of the broom and headed to the back-door. Once outside, she dumped the pieces in the trashcan next to her and went back inside and walked to the hallway. The pegasus gaped in surprise to see black residue on the wall opposite of Dinky's room. She watched Amethyst easily wipe off the residue with her magic and looked inside her daughter's room. The room was almost perfectly clean, except for small splinters scattered around the front of the room. Derpy swept up the splinters into a pile with her tail and caught sight of more residue surrounding the doorway when Amethyst entered the room.
"She's lucky she didn't get hurt." She muttered grimly, "I thought I could leave for a few minutes, you know, let her try something by herself... I didn't think she was able to do this." The unicorn sighed and levitated the pile of splinters into a small trash can near Dinky's desk. "I'm sorry Derpy."
"For what?" Derpy asked, flying up to sweep the residue off. "Dinky didn't get hurt did she?"
"Well... no..."
"Then you shouldn't be sorry." The pegasus landed and began to walk out the room.
"Derpy."
Derpy glanced over to her shoulder, "Yeah?"
"I meant her new attitude... I feel like I may be responsible for this." Amethyst sighed, "If I just didn't mention her lazy eye as a serious thing maybe she'd-"
"Amethyst." Derpy placed a hoof on her friend's shoulder. "It's okay, she had to know sooner or later right? Don't beat yourself up because of one small thing. Heck! Remember when we were in our teenage years? I didn't leave my house at one point because I realized I was the only pony who didn't have normal eyes."
The unicorn frowned a bit. "I do remember that... but you had me to help you. Dinky's home-schooled, she doesn't have many friends who hang out with her."
Derpy bit the bottom of her lip, thinking. "Well... Let me talk to her tonight. For now," She turned and exited the room, "Let's see what we can make for dinner tonight. You can stay for dinner if you'd like to Amethyst."
The unicorn followed her towards the kitchen, "That's okay. I'm planning on just helping you for a while and then head home."
"Alright, I'll get the list and give you some bits for the market. We need to catch up on groceries." Derpy entered the kitchen, noticing Dinky writing on the list hanging on the fridge.
The filly spat out a pencil from her mouth after a few seconds and took down the list. She turned and gave her mother the list, "I added duct tape to the list, including carrots, oats, apples, milk, and some other things."
The pegasus nodded thanks to her daughter and handed the list to Amethyst, who was strapping on her saddlebag. The mail-mare then headed to one of the cabinets and took out a pouch full of bits from behind a stack of bowls. She gave Amethyst the pouch, "Don't buy what we don't need okay?"
"Okay, I'll be back soon." Amethyst smiled to Dinky and left the house. Once the front door shut, Derpy faced Dinky and smiled. "Did I mention that a pony moved into Ponyville today?"
"No." Dinky picked up the pencil with her mouth and placed it in a cup full of writing utensils.
"Well, did I at least mention that I met a pony from the Crystal Empire?"
"The Crystal Empire?" Dinky turned to her mother and cocked her head. "Was the pony crystally?"
"Actually no. The pony told me she was half-unicorn, half-crystal."
"Huh, that's something you don't see everyday." Dinky began walking out of the kitchen, but froze after a few moments. The small unicorn spun around and faced her mother with a surprised expression. "This pony is the one who just moved in right? And she's 'half-unicorn?!"
"Mhm!"
"But... how is that possible? She's full-grown right?"
"Yeah?"
"The Crystal Empire didn't return until, like, two or three years ago! How would that pony even be alive?"
"Huh." Derpy tapped her chin, "I never thought about that."
Dinky's eyes widened, "Maybe she was in the empire when it disappeared... Woah..." The little filly thought for a while. Suddenly, an idea popped into her head. She smiled widely, "Do you think I could meet this unicorn sometime?"
Derpy chuckled, Now that's my Dinky! She rubbed her daughter's head again, "Of course we can! But you'll have to wait for a while okay? She just moved here and I think she should settle in before being ambushed by an excited filly."
"Oh I don't mind, as long as I can at least ask her a few questions." Dinky bounced, "A unicorn from the Crystal Empire, that is so interesting! This could help me learn more about the history of the empire!"
The pegasus watched the filly proudly. Talking to her about her attitude can wait. I think it's died down for now. She wrapped her wing around her daughter and nuzzled her. "How about we read until Amethyst gets back?"
"Okay." Dinky smiled and followed her mother towards the living room. A pony that's different! Just like me! A unicorn from the Crystal Empire, who's grown-up and possibly knows about the magic the crystal ponies used! I could learn so much from the unicorn instead of learning from boring old books and lectures. But... Dinky slacked her pace, What is this pony judges me for my eyesight? Then again, Derpy didn't seem too troubled to talk about them...
"Thank you for the lunch Pinkie Pie and Applejack! I can't wait to see what you have made for dinner!"
"Oh trust me Princess, you will love dinner, then you'll love the dessert, and then possibly the midnight snacks if Twilight will let us wake up then!" Pinkie replied, bouncing around the two alicorns.
"We'll see about that Pinkie." Twilight looked at her sister-in-law, "So, what do you want to do next? We could go see the library, explore the upper-levels of the castle, or we could chat on the balcony."
"Hm... How about we chat on the balcony? We could enjoy the view and catch up on things, then tomorrow we can do the rest!" Cadence suddenly belched and quickly covered her mouth with her hoof. She giggled, "Oops, excuse me."
"We'll be expectin' that during dinner." Applejack joked, making her way down the hall with Pinkie by her side. "We'll go make sure dinner will be ready by four okay?"
"Alright!" Twilight replied.
"Oooo, An early dinner?"
"Mhm! That way we'll have time to fly around Ponyville later."
"Sounds good!" Cadence said as Twilight led the way to the balcony.
Glancing over her shoulder, Twilight became amused at her sister-in-law's bounce in her step. She's been so energetic today; I bet things at the Crystal Empire are running smoothly. The alicorn approached a set of stairs and began climbing them. Being accustomed to teleporting from one place to another, Twilight could feel the burn in her thighs when she took her tenth step. She looked up to the rest of them and groaned softly.
"Having trouble already?" Cadence came to Twilight's side and continued climbing the stairs. "Come on! The stairs aren't going to carry us!"
Twilight sighed and followed her sister-in-law, trying not to show how envious she was of Cadence's endurance when the pink alicorn looked behind to check on her.
When they finally made it to the top of the stairs Twilight stopped to catch her breath while Cadence gaped at the balcony ahead of her. "Oh... My... Celestia! This is so cool! It's almost like the one in the Crystal Empire!" She trotted onto it and placed her fore-hooves on the railing. "But the scenery is much, much more peaceful. Nothing glittery, nothing flashy," She took in a breath of air, "Just peace... You are so lucky to have your castle here."
"Why's that?" Twilight asked, confused. "Isn't the empire a good place too?"
"Don't get me wrong Twilight, the empire's a great place! But..." Cadence didn't meet Twilight's eyes, but instead looked back at the view of the town. "It's just too peaceful at times... Sometimes the empire's just so peaceful that I feel like snapping!"
Twilight laughed, "You better not do that. I did that once, and I got into major trouble with Celestia!"
"I heard about that." Cadence joined in on the laughter. "Yeah, I'm not going to do that... Especially around your brother."
"Around my brother, why?"
"I never told you? Oh, I-" Cadence stopped as Spike and Fluttershy approached, carrying two lounging chairs and a foldable table. Fluttershy whistled and four birds flew in, carrying a platter holding two drinks.
"Sorry if we're interrupting. We just thought you two might like these to relax." Fluttershy bowed her head to Cadence and nudged Spike to exit the balcony. "See you two at dinner. Enjoy yourselves!"
"Thank you!" Twilight used her magic to unfold the chairs and the table, relaxed in one of the chairs, and gestured for Cadence to do the same. She then placed the table and the two beverages between the chairs, and looked up to the sky. The purple alicorn stretched and shifted herself to be more comfortable. "This is nice, isn't it?"
"Mmm...." Cadence's reply was barely audible, and her expression seemed to be clouded with thought. Twilight turned her head to face her, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing..." She sighed and rubbed her temple between her eyes. "I'm sorry Twilight, I don't mean to be like this... This is supposed to be a nice visit and I'm beginning to kill it."
"It's okay. Honestly Cadence, I didn't expect you to be happy this whole trip." Twilight faced the sky again, "Besides, we're princesses. We have a responsibility, it's normal for us to be stressed out."
"That's easier to be said than to believe..." Cadence sighed and looked at Twilight. "Your brother doesn't handle stress very well."
"What?"
"Well, Since there's really nothing much for Shining Armor to do in the empire, he's always going to Canterlot to take over duties there. But... For some reason... He's been really upset about some things. And we... We argue every time he comes back from Canterlot."
"Arguing?"
"Yeah... It's always about the smallest of things, like how 'I don't make sure the guards keep up with their daily routine', or, 'I rely on him to do everything every day'... It's just so stupid!" Cadence's eyes began to water, and she immediately wiped the tears away. "So that's why I wanted to visit here now rather than in two weeks, I thought it was best to let Shining Armor look after the empire and see what kind of work he doesn't have to do but... I think I made a mistake."
"Cadence," Twilight turned to her side, meeting Cadence's eyes. "The Shining Armor you're talking about doesn't sound like the brother I grew up with, or the colt you married. If anything goes wrong, come to me okay?"
"Okay..."
"When Shining and I were younger, he would usually just go outside and exercise, or practice his magic if he was stressed. Has he done anything like that?"
"No... When he comes home he just goes straight to bed and doesn't talk to me unless we argue." Tears welled up in Cadence's eyes, "Have I made a mistake in marrying him?"
"Cadence..."
"What if I did? What if he put up an act just so he could marry a princess?" Cadence whirled her head to Twilight, "He wouldn't do that, would he?!"
"Of course not! Hey," Twilight slid off her chair, she placed her hoof on Cadence's shoulder and gave her a warm smile. "Take a deep breath."
Cadence nodded and took a deep breath. As she exhaled, Twilight pulled her sister-in-law to her hooves. "Come on!" Twilight spread her wings and lifted herself off the ground. "Let's take that flight now, I think both of us need it."
"I think I need it the most." Cadence remarked. She spread her wings and followed Twilight towards the outskirts of Ponyville. The pink alicorn frowned slightly, I really hope I didn't ruin this visit, I should've waited until the time was right to tell her... That must've been a good enough time to tell her though. She shook her head and caught up to Twilight, pushing away her worries. Forget about it! Right now I'm going to make sure Twilight and I have a fun flight.
After what seemed like hours, Twilight collapsed on a cloud, panting while Cadence landed next to her, puffing her chest as if she won a race. The purple alicorn glared at her sister jokingly as a drop of sweat trickled down the side of her face. "You think you won already?"
"Well..." Cadence took a moment to ruffle her feathers, "I'm not the one gasping for air like a fish, am I?"
"Oh ho! So I'm a fish now?" Twilight whipped her tail at Cadence, sending part of the cloud to hit her. "How do you like that?"
"Fish don't throw cloud-balls!" Cadence giggled and brushed her chest, where the piece of cloud hit. She sat down, gazed at the view, and sighed. "Ponyville is such a nice place."
"Yeah." Twilight sat up and joined her sister-in-law. She looked to where the town clock was, Three o'clock... Okay, we still have a while. The alicorn glanced at her sister and smiled, seeing Cadence looking relaxed. It's good to know the flight worked, but how long will this work? Twilight looked to the right, viewing the Everfree Forest. She gasped, her eyes widened at the sight of storm clouds in the distance. Rainbow Dash said something about taking care of a storm right?
"What's wrong?" Twilight spun her head to face her sister, who now looked at her in concern. Cadence glimpsed at where Twilight was looking and squinted her eyes. "Are those... storm clouds?"
"I think so."
"But didn't Spike say that Rainbow Dash had the sky cleared for today?"
"He did," Twilight frowned, "When I saw Rainbow earlier she told me she had our route cleared."
"It does seem that way but," Cadence raised a hoof over her eyes, trying to see farther ahead. "That storm looks pretty dark."
"Yeah. It looks like it's coming our way too."
After a while, Cadence suddenly sat up straight, her eyes beaming. She smirked as she glanced at Twilight. "You know, the pegasi don't seem to be around..."
Twilight raised an eyebrow. "You're not thinking what I think you're thinking, are you?"
The pink alicorn slowly stood up, spreading her wings. She faced Twilight with her determined yet excited eyes and smiled. "I haven't fought many storms lately either..."
"I... I don't know Cadence." Twilight rubbed her foreleg, "I don't think this is a good idea."
"Oh, come on Twilight!" Cadence nudged her sister. "It's not like you haven't done anything more dangerous! May I remind you that you were the one who fought Lord Tirek?"
"Well... Yeah... But we're supposed to be back for dinner by four."
Cadence rolled her eyes playfully. "Typical Twilight," She muttered, and then shook Twilight slightly. "I'm sure your friends will understand why we'll be late."
"I guess... Okay," Twilight stood up, "Let's do this quickly!"
"Just imagine that storm is Tirek." Cadence giggled as she flew forward, "And I'll imagine it as Shining."
Twilight flew up to her side in pursuit. "You're really upset about Shining, aren't you?"
"You think? You marry a guy and then see this side of him, when you could've seen it while you were dating him."
"I guess I wouldn't know what that would be like."
"Yeah you little stinker!" Cadence flapped her wings harder, gaining speed. "Let's break this storm!"
Twilight followed Cadence, still unsure about dealing with the storm. She then became aware that they were flying farther and farther into the Everfree Forest territory. I really hope this will be quick.
"Get your magic ready!"
Twilight nodded and ignited her horn, and looked below and watched as trees in the forest passed them. The alicorn soon became so deep in thought that she lost track of time and the environment around her. The only thing she was aware of was
"W-what the?!"
Twilight perked her ears at her sister's voice, snapping back to reality. She looked forward to see the storm beginning to grow. The purple alicorn looked behind to see Ponyville at least a mile away. She then looked back at the storm and noticed that storm wasn't just approaching them, it was growing, and spreading!
Cadence's ears fell back as they neared the storm, her eyes revealing her hesitation and her magic cutting off.
"Picture it as Shining Armor. That might help!" Twilight suggested, hoping she sounded confident. If this storm hits town, then everypony will be drenched!
Cadence's horn flared, and the pink alicorn charged at the storm. As soon as she disappeared into the clouds, a flash of lightning struck out of the clouds, creating deafening thunder.
Oh no! If this storm isn't destroyed now, Ponyville might face another dangerous storm "Cadence! Wait!" Twilight pursued the alicorn, but froze in place to see the storm clouds growing and surrounding her. Rain began to fall heavily over her, soaking her mane and coat. Twilight could feel adrenaline pulsing in her body, the immediate thought echoed through her mind as another roll of thunder echoed in the air: Get out!
Twilight shook her head, fighting the urge to flee. She lit up her horn and used her magic to shoot a beam of heat through the clouds above her, but the clouds immediately closed the hole. "Cadence!" The purple alicorn whipped her head around to see where they came from, but she she was blinded by a wave of rain hitting her face. Twilight coughed and wiped her eyes, "Cadence!" She used her magic again to shield herself from the rain, her heart pounded in worry as she searched for her sister-in-law. Lightning continued to light up the area, both it and the thunder seemed to threaten to break Twilight's concentration on her magic. "Cadence! Where are you?!"
A flash of blue appeared in the corner of Twilight's vision, and she sighed in relief to find Cadence flying towards her. The alicorn's mane and coat dripping wet as she used her magic again to shield herself from the rain.
"This storm isn't giving up!" Cadence gasped for breath, "My magic isn't working on it!"
"We need to get out of here now! The weather team will know what to do!"
"Are you sure?! What if the storm has already spread to Ponyville?!"
"Then the weather team will see it! Let's go!" Twilight's horn flared as she shot a wide beam of magic through the clouds above them. Still using her magic, she flew upwards, clenching her teeth while the rain hit them sideways, half-blinding her. A huge gust of wind abruptly blew towards the two alicorns, carrying another wave of rain that was stronger than the last.
Cadence used her magic to create a shield around both of them. She yelped as the wave hit, her magic wavering. The pink alicorn continued the follow Twilight, her eyes blazing in fury as she pictured the wave being Shining Armor. Her love for her husband suddenly interfered and killed her fury, causing her concentration to falter. What do I do now? Think Cadence! Think! The thought of Sombra's reign popped into her head, but the thought wasn't fast enough. A strike of lightning shot close to her and Twilight, and Cadence gasped, her magic cutting off. The waves of rain cut through the broken shield; the rain hit Cadence, feeling as if the drops were small daggers. She screamed in panic as the wind blew her away from Twilight. She coughed and sputtered, trying to keep the rain out of her face.
Twilight winced in surprise at the sudden rain, her magic cutting off. "No!" She panted, and then grunted as rain sprayed into her face.
"Twilight!"
The faint cry from her sister alerted Twilight. The purple alicorn whirled around, only to see no sign of Cadence. Her heart skipped a beat, Oh no! Twilight's head spun in a panic, everything in her body numbed. "Cadence?!"
Using her magic to turn up the thermostat, Crystal looked around her room, planning on what do in the morning. She glanced at the clock she placed earlier on the dresser next to her. Crap... I better get to the market before they close. Crystal went to her suitcase, opened it, and pulled out a small black saddlebag. She slipped it on and placed a few bits inside one of the pouches. The unicorn tightened her hair-tie in her mane with her magic and trotted out of her room. Her new roommate, Parasol, perked her ears from the kitchen table, and smiled at Crystal. "Gonna explore Ponyville?"
Crystal tightened her hair-tie in her tail, "Only for a while, I just want to pick up some food." The unicorn approached the front door and turned to Parasol. "So the market is in Town Square, right?"
"Yup! I think you take main street and head north for a while." Parasol giggled in embarrassment, "Sorry, I usually fly to the market... I honestly haven't memorized all the roads."
"That's okay, I'm sure I'll find my way. What time does the market close anyways?"
Parasol looked at the clock hanging on the wall to her left. "Hm... In about, twenty-five to thirty minutes. The market stays open late on Saturdays, but it normally closes around six-thirty."
"Alright, thanks Parasol!"
"No problem, don't get lost!"
Crystal shut the front door behind her and used her key to lock it. She then began heading to Town Square, greeting the ponies she passed on her way. Some of the ponies she met eye contact with seemed to be surprised, and murmured with each other once Crystal passed them. Her ear's slightly twitched in remote irritation, Is Ponyville gonna be the same as the empire? With everypony talking about me behind my back? She stifled a sigh. Nevertheless, Crystal kept her head held high and refused to show any signs of annoyance.
In a few minutes, Crystal approached the market and she looked around to find the carrot stand. Once she spotted the stand, she made her way to it and dipped her head to the vendor. "Hi," Crystal greeted, "I'd like to buy ten carrots."
The vendor nodded, her eyes half-closed from the long day. "Yes ma'am." The vendor-mare pushed back a strand of her blue mane and reached into the barrel next to her. She glanced at the unicorn. "You're new around here aren't you?"
Crystal smiled, "That's right, I just moved here today."
"That's wonderful!" The vendor opened a bag and placed the carrots inside. "So where are you from? Canterlot I presume?"
"The Crystal Empire, actually." When the unicorn noticed the vendor's surprised look, she rubbed the back of her neck. "I know, everypony I've met has gave me the same look when I told them."
"Interesting... Well I hope you enjoy living here! Ponyville is a great place to be in!" The vendor placed the bag on the counter and stuck out her hoof. "That'll be twelve bits please."
Crystal reached into her saddlebag and gave the mare the amount. After levitating the bag into her saddlebag, Crystal turned to leave. "Have a nice night!"
"You too!"
Okay! Carrots are bought, I guess I can buy more food tomorrow... For now, I can get some oats and apples for breakfast and head home. The unicorn looked around to find the stands. Yet before she could spot one, a force broke her balance and she staggered to the left. Crystal whipped her head to the right and saw a purple unicorn fumbling with her groceries. Crystal immediately used her magic to lift a few bags into the air before they fell. The unicorn fumbling with her groceries noticed the bags, and balanced herself after a few moments. She looked around in confusion as to who was levitating the bags, and smiled sheepishly as she noticed Crystal. The unicorn's cheeks flushed a bright pink, "I must apologize miss, I didn't mean to be such a klutz."
"It's alright, no harm done." Crystal handed the bags to the unicorn. "You seem to have a lot groceries with you."
The unicorn looked inside each bag to check if anything was damaged. "Yeah, I'm shopping for one of my friends and for myself. I honestly never thought we both needed this much stuff!" She levitated a slip of paper out of her saddlebag and skimmed over it. "I think I have everything though, so that's a perk out of all this."
"If you'd like, I could help you carry some of those bags."
"Oh you don't need to!" The unicorn took a step forward, but stopped when she realized the amount of weight she had to carry. "Um..." She looked to Crystal, "Maybe I do need some help."
"Here," Crystal took some bags with her magic and walked to her side. "Are you okay with the rest?"
"I'm okay, thank you." Amethyst stuck out her hoof, "I'm Amethyst."
Crystal returned the gesture and hoof-bumped her. "I'm Crystal."
"Crystal, huh," The unicorn smiled, "That's a nice name! So where do you live?"
"I'm staying in the Ponyville Apartments."
"Alright, that's not far from where my friend's home is." Amethyst led the way, staying to the side of the road. "I appreciate you for helping me out. Normally my friend's daughter comes to help me with the groceries, but she didn't seem to be in the mood to help out today."
Crystal chucked, "Children, Am I right?"
Amethyst snorted sarcastically. "Indeed. Sometimes you can't tell what they want or even read their expressions... Children are indeed a mystery."
"I can imagine. Do you have a child of your own?"
"No," Amethyst sighed, "I'm not able to bear children sadly. But I work with one of my other friends and run a small filly-sitting business."
"Nice!" Crystal followed the unicorn down a road that led to a neighborhood, she looked and read the sign: Haystack Lane. She then glanced at Amethyst. "Do you live near your friends?"
"I live a street over," She nodded to the right, showing the direction of where her home was. "The friend who I help out with lives down here, and the friend who I work with in the business lives to our left, three houses behind us."
"Wow."
"Heck, that's a small town for ya! Everypony knows each other, and no pony is left out." Amethyst approached a house with a mailbox that had seven bubbles painted on it. Crystal stood behind the unicorn, looking at the mailbox in wonder as Amethyst knocked on the door. That mark looks familiar...
The door to the house opened. Instead of a mare welcoming them, a small, purple filly let them inside. "Hey Amethyst," The filly spoke, "Did you get everything?"
"I did! See?" Amethyst lifted one of the bags she carried.
"Good." The filly looked behind Amethyst curiously. "Who's that?"
Amethyst made her way inside and gestured Crystal inside. "This is Crystal, she offered to help me with the groceries."
"Does she work there?"
"Crystal!"
The three ponies looked to see Derpy trotting happily to them. "What a coinkidink!" The pegasus chortled, "It's nice to see you again!"
Dinky's eyes widened, "You've met her before?"
"Of course silly! Crystal's the pony I told you about who moved here today!"
"Really?!" Dinky faced the newcomer with excitement, "Are you really from the Crystal Empire? The place where everypony is crystally? And the place where all those lights came from the day the empire returned?"
"I am!" Crystal smiled in amusement. "It's nice to meet you too, Ms...?"
"Dinky!" The filly stood up straight and puffed out her chest. "Dinky Hooves!"
"I don't remember you telling me you had a daughter." Crystal raised an eyebrow at Derpy. The pegasus' cheeks reddened and Amethyst chuckled softly at the sight.
Amethyst made her way to the kitchen. "Come on Crystal, I'll help you separate my groceries from Derpy's."
"Okay!"
"I'll help too!" Dinky rushed past Amethyst. The little unicorn squeaked as she accidentally hit her head against the doorway. "Ouch!"
"Are you okay Dinky?" Derpy flew up to her daughter and inspected her head.
"Yeah mom, I'm fine." Dinky squirmed in her mother's grasp and rubbed her forehead a bit. "I just misjudged where the doorway was."
"That might be because your bangs are in the way." Amethyst placed the groceries on the kitchen table and signaled for Crystal to do the same with her hoof. "Maybe if you put your hair back to the way it was, you might be able to see better."
"Besides," Derpy brushed Dinky's hair back with her hoof. "You look prettier without those bangs in the way."
Dinky glanced away, slightly scrunching her nose. "N-no I don't."
"You do actually, there's nothing wrong with hiding your eyes." Dinky faced Crystal in surprise; she met Crystal's eyes and began to blush. "Huh?"
"Your eyes may not be normal, but that's what makes you different from everypony!"
"Exactly!" Derpy booped her daughter's nose. "See? Even a pony who's only just met you thinks you look better without those bangs in your face."
"You really think so Crystal?" Dinky queried.
"Of course! When I was a filly, I used to do the same thing because I felt uncomfortable being the only pony in my class who didn't crystalize. But later on I learned to be confident in myself, and not let my insecurities get the best of me."
"Woah."
"Well how about it Dinky? Are you gonna help us with the groceries or not?" Amethyst asked, taking out a few apples from one of the bags and holding up the list of groceries.
"I will!" Dinky walked up and sat on one of the chairs. She took the list from Amethyst and searched through the first bag the unicorn gave her, checking off the list. While she inspected a slightly bruised apple, she glanced at Crystal and smiled to herself. She's so nice... Why can't other fillies be like her?
"Where do these apples go Derpy?"
"They go in the bowl right there with the bananas."
"Alright."
"Are you sure you're okay with helping us out, Crystal?"
"Certainly!"
Suddenly, the deafening sound of thunder shook the windows, causing the group of ponies to jump in surprise. Derpy and Amethyst walked to the sink and peered through the window in front of it. They both looked at each other and furrowed their brows, both looking a mixture of confusion and concern.
"What's going on?" Crystal asked.
Derpy shook her head, "Thunder storm... The weather team must've decided last minute to schedule one tonight."
"Seriously? Without any warning?" Amethyst looked outside again, clearly looking unamused.
"It happens sometimes." Derpy flinched as another wave of thunder shook the windows. "Doesn't look like it's safe to head home for you." The pegasus looked to Crystal, "I don't think you should go out either, this storm looks like it's gonna stay for a while. I have a spare mattress in the back if this storm lasts the whole night."
"I'm fine with that, thank you Derpy."
Derpy nodded and turned to her daughter. "Dinky, could you help me put the food in the fridge and pantry? And Crystal, could you put these in the supply closet? It's the second door to the left."
"Yes ma'am."
"Of course." Crystal took the bag and headed to the hallway. After placing the bag in the closet, Crystal walked back the kitchen to see Derpy and Amethyst preparing dinner.
Amethyst took out a cutting board, and used her magic to control a knife to cut the carrots. Derpy took out a bag of sliced bread, grabbed a package of cheese slices from the fridge, and made her way to the counter where four plates were placed. Derpy saw Crystal as she opened the package of cheese and pointed back to the hallway. "Dinky volunteered to get the bed out for you, could you help her out?"
"Sure." Crystal went back through the hallway and spotted Dinky at the end of it, trying to use her magic to pull a mattress out of the room she was halfway in. The unicorn could tell that the filly was struggling; Dinky's horn flared in strain, her ears fell backwards, and the constant groans of irritation reflected the trouble she was in.
Crystal used her magic to help lift the other side of the mattress and gestured Dinky to the side, making room for the mattress to move through. "Here, you carry one side of the mattress, and I'll carry the other."
"But I can't levitate things that very well." Dinky huffed.
"You can always use your back."
"Okay..." The filly faced herself forward and braced herself for the edge of the mattress to be placed on her back. Once Crystal placed it lightly, Dinky walked forward, making her way to the living room. "Mom said you'll be sleeping in the living room, so we can put this thing near the couch or... somewhere."
"Lead the way." Crystal lowered her side of the mattress to meet it at the same height as Dinky's back. "Thanks for helping Dinky."
"Thanks for helping too!" Dinky smiled, turning slightly to enter the living room. Crystal had to lift the mattress slightly to avoid it touching the wall to her right.
Dinky winced at the sudden change in weight and looked behind. When she noticed the reason for the change, her ears fell back again. "Sorry."
"No worries. Just remember to always walk straight until the mattress is all the way out in the open, so we have room to move it around."
"I'll remember that." Dinky moved forward until they were near the couch and stopped. "This is good enough, right?"
"Yeah, it's fine." Crystal levitated the mattress to the floor, she then turned to Dinky. "Let's go see if your mom needs any help."
Another roll of thunder echoed, making the whole house tremble. Dinky shuddered, "The last time we had a storm like this, we had to go in the cellar because it turned into a twister..."
Crystal looked outside the window near the front door. "I doubt a twister's going to form in this storm." She smiled reassuringly, "Don't worry about it. Now come on, let's help with dinner."
"Cadence!" Twilight turned around quickly, only for a wave of rain to spray her face. Blinking the water out of her eyes the best she could, she looked around in panic. She couldn't have disappeared like that could she?! Twilight flew upwards and tried to fly through the mass of clouds, but she couldn't make her way past it without feeling suffocated. She flew back down and looked around once more to see if she could spot her sister-in-law. It felt like hours since she lost Cadence; Twilight's wings began to ache from the cold and wet of the rain, her eyes felt sore from the constant wiping, and her head throbbed from the thunder. The adrenaline started to die away, and Twilight could feel herself growing tired. Another strike of lightning shot through the air, pumping the smallest amount of adrenaline left in her body. Twilight spun in an energized panic.
"Cadence! Where are you?!" Twilight screamed, but the sound of thunder drowned out her call. Lightning struck a few yards away from the alicorn, causing her heart to skip a beat. "Cadence !" Her voice strained. Twilight began to cry in defeat, "Cadence, please!" She was just about to give up and lower herself to the ground when she saw the faintest silhouette of a pony in the distance.
Twilight smiled in relief. "Cadence!" She flew as fast as she could to the silhouette, fighting the strong gusts of wind. When she was a few feet away from Cadence, she stopped and called, "Cadence!"
"Twilight! There you are!" Cadence quickly flew to Twilight and embraced her tightly. She looked at Twilight with a strong urgency, "We need to get out of here!"
"Right! We need to make it to the ground, we can find our way home from there!" A strike of lightning lit up the air, and Twilight pulled her ears back as thunder followed.
"We can't! The Everfree Forest is below us!"
"What else can we do?!" Twilight tried to use her magic, but her mind spun in dizziness; realizing she was too tired to perform her teleportation spell. "I can't use my magic!"
"Neither can I!" Cadence looked up, shaking her head a bit to move her soggy bangs to the side. "We could try to get past the clouds!"
"I've already tried that, it won't work! Oh Cadence! What do we do?!"
Cadence frowned, then looked into Twilight's eyes. Twilight could feel Cadence's hooves on her shoulders tense up as she returned the look with uncertainty. "Cadence?"
"We need to take our chances in the forest!" More lightning struck around them, lighting up their surroundings. "Come on!" Cadence began to lower herself towards the forest, but the strong gusts of wind broke her balance and she staggered in the air.
"Cadence!" Twilight grabbed her with her front hooves and tried to steady the pink alicorn. She tried again to use her magic, but her effort to steady her sister drained her strength. Twilight's vision blurred and she felt like she was going to pass out.
"You can't pass out yet Twilight! Not now!" Cadence shook Twilight and grabbed her hoof, beginning to lower to the forest again. The wind suddenly became stronger and sent a wave of rain splashing over them. Twilight and Cadence jolted backwards and shook their heads, trying to keep the water out of their eyes. But the winds kept sending more waves of rain into their faces, and they soon had to stop to wipe their eyes with their hooves.
At that moment, the wind caused the two alicorns to separate. Cadence aggressively flapped her wings in order to keep herself upright, she spotted her sister and stretched her hoof out. "Twilight!" She yelled, trying to reach for the purple alicorn. "Take my hoof!"
"I'm trying!" Twilight struggled to fight the wind, but fatigue began to overtake her. Twilight's vision blurred, her eyes shook, her mind spun so much it became numb, and the thought of falling into a deep sleep seemed to... soothe her... She shook her head to try to stay awake, but she no longer had the energy to continue fighting the urge. Twilight fell limp, and let herself be carried by the wind, slowly fading into unconsciousness.
"Twilight!" Cadence tried to use her magic, but her horn only ignited a small flare of light. She then tried to fly to her sister-in-law, using whatever energy she had left. "Stay awake Twilight!" Glancing upwards, she noticed a part of the clouds glow, she then looked to where her sister was and gasped. Oh no!
"Twilight! Look out !"
Twilight's ears twitched at the shrill scream from Cadence, and opened her eyes. A flash of white light abruptly enveloped her vision, and a strong force struck her body shortly afterwards. Pain coursed from her left side to her whole body, causing her to convulse in agony. Twilight felt the need to scream, her mouth wide open, but she was too much in shock to make a sound. Her vision blurred from white to black, and her mind went completely blank.
"Twilight!" Cadence cried, she dived towards the falling body of the purple alicorn. "No!" She closed her wings, catching up to her sister as they fell. She quickly grabbed the limp body and wrapped her body around it as the two of them plummeted into the Everfree Forest.
Crashing through branches and landing on the ground with a huge thud, Cadence let go of Twilight and laid there in shock and pain. Her wing began to twitch, and tears welled up in her eyes. After a while, the pink alicorn shakily turned her head to look at her sister. Her eyes widened in shock at the sight. Oh my Celestia... No! No, no, no!
Cadence turned to lay on her shoulder, and placed a hoof gingerly on Twilight's back. "T-Twilight? Twilight... you have to get up!" She jerked her hoof off as she heard the faint sound of a groan. "Twilight?" The pink alicorn suddenly felt something warm on her wing that Twilight laid on. She gently rolled Twilight away from her wing and gasped at the sight of fresh blood, staining her wing and the ground they were on. "Good Luna..." She breathed as she spotted the wound Twilight wore. "No... Celestia no! Please no! Not now!" Cadence lifted herself up to her hooves, but collapsed as pain shot through her right shoulder. She tried again, this time balancing her weight on three legs. She quickly looked around frantically for anything to use to block the blood flooding out of Twilight's wound, yet found nothing but wood and thorny vines.
Cadence then collapsed onto her knees and hung her head over her sister-in-law's body. She squeezed her eyes shut and concentrated as hard as she could. Finally managing to spark a small amount of magic, she used it to apply pressure to the wound. The pink alicorn looked around, What do I do now?! I'm not able to help her! My shoulder feels like it's going to fall off, Twilight's bleeding out, we're in the middle of the Everfree Forest and a storm... Ugh! How could this possibly get any worse?!
Suddenly, her magic gave out and more blood gushed from the wound. "No!" Cadence screamed, "No! No! Stupid damned horn! Don't give out on me!" Desperately, she clenched her teeth, trying to ignite her magic again. "P-Please! Work! Work !" When she couldn't get another spark, she pressed her hooves against the wound and looked around frantically, hoping somepony was there. This is all my fault! Oh Celestia, what have I done? What have I done?!
"Somepony! Anypony! Please! Help us! Please! Twilight's gonna die! Somepony! Anypony! For Celestia's sake! Please! Somepony help us! " Cadence cried to the sky; another wave of pain shot through her shoulder and caused her to fall again. In spite of her pain, she lifted her hoof to Twilight's wound. Her weary eyes shook, the drops of rain from the sky barely felt as they landed on Cadence's body. Her eyes slowly closed as her hoof became covered in blood. She'll never make it... "I'm... sorry..."
Re-positioning herself, Princess Cadence settled down in her seat as she watched the landscape outside pass by. She tingled with excitement; she smiled at the thought of exploring her sister-in-law's castle. I'm so proud of her, it seemed like yesterday I was pushing her on a swing!... I wonder what the castle is made of. I wonder how big it'll be... The princess wondered, she sighed, I hope this visit will be fun...
The alicorn's ears perked at the sound of the door opening, she nodded as her personal guard, Flash Sentry, entered the rail car.
"Your highness," He began, bowing, "We'll be arriving at Ponyville in about 4 minutes."
"Thank you Flash, you may stand."
The guard straightened up and nodded to her as he left the car. Cadence's ears fell back in exhaustion, I can't wait 'til I get there... all these formalities are so aggravating! She looked out of the window once more, Why should there be formalities when everything is so peaceful? I mean, If everything is peaceful, then everyone would get along, and we wouldn't have to treat anypony like they're any higher than a normal earth pony! I wonder what Equestria would be like if that ever happened?
Cadence's thoughts were interrupted by the door opening once again. She was surprised to not see Flash Sentry, but instead a unicorn. The unicorn bowed her head to the alicorn as she closed the door behind herself. The unicorn's lavender coat and light blue mane didn't glow as they should've, reminding Cadence that the unicorn wasn't fully crystal.
"Sorry for intruding Princess Cadence, but I wanted to wish you a farewell before we arrive to Ponyville."
"It's alright, you're not intruding on anything honestly. And thank you for the farewell." An awkward silence filled the rail car, making the atmosphere a bit uncomfortable. Cadence tipped her head, "Are you sure Ponyville is the place to go?"
"Yes ma'am."
"But what about the Crystal Empire? I'm sure there's something to find in the library still."
"I've been searching all my life princess and I found nothing useful. I won't stop until I find what I need to. Besides... Maybe I'll find my place in Ponyville."
"I understand your feeling of being left out, especially since who your mother was."
The unicorn lowered her head, trying to dismiss the remark. "I might not be coming back if I do find my place... When you return to the empire, could you notify Sapphire of where I am?"
"Of course."
"Thank you, princess." The unicorn bowed her head and headed to the door. Right when she was about to close it, she heard the princess call to her. The unicorn looked behind to face Cadence.
Cadence looked into the unicorn's green eyes; the only feature showing she was a crystal pony. "Good luck."
The unicorn smiled slightly. "You too princess."
