Dusk and Dawn

Chapters

Season 1 Prologue - Hey Soul Sister
Season 1 Prologue - Cool Friends
Season 1 Prologue - Come On and Meet the Elements
S1C1 - Friend Like Me
S1C2 - Don't Stop (Color on the Walls)

Season 1 Prologue - Hey Soul Sister

Twilight Sparkle slammed the library's door shut behind her, and tried to rub her headache out. She was trying to stay awake to be able to clean up the remnants of her party, though at the same time she was also ready to drop into a dead sleep after all the crazy that had just happened. She had stayed up all night for the Summer Sun Celebration, spent hours in the most dangerous forest in Equestria, channeled the power of an ancient artifact, then (to top it all off) had the second Pinkie Pie party in a 24 hour period. One which had just carried on into the night.

To say she was tired would be the most obvious statement ever. Of all time.

Her need for sleep won over her obsession for tidiness, and she moved in the direction of the stairs that led to her new room. After climbing the second set of stairs to the same level as her bed, something stopped her from just jumping right into the covers and embracing sleep. A prickling at the base of her horn, a tingle in the back of her head. Twilight walked past the bed and out onto the library's balcony.

She had a great view of the town and Sugarcube Corner from there. She listened to the distant arcanotronic music being played at Princess Luna’s party. Who was the DJ? Record Spin, or something? It didn't matter. No. Twilight told herself. It does matter. If I'm going to be staying here with the other Elements- my friends, then I might as well get started on learning the locals' names.

Twilight let out a sigh, considering the unknowns of her new life in Ponyville as she stared up at the bright turquoise star above. Her brow furrowed. She blinked a few times. That's not right. She looked up at the turquoise light that was getting brighter by the second. Was it... screaming?

Something clicked in Twilight's brain- a fight or flight response, perhaps- and she ran back into the house and dove into her bed in time for the shooting star to enter the room. There was a great crashing noise, some panicked yelps, some books falling, then quiet, muffled mumbling. She slowly lifted her hooves off her head, then jumped off her bed in curiosity, fear, and apprehension.

The blue glow in the room died out, leaving Twilight in darkness as her eyes worked to readjust. There were a few more muffled shouts from over her bedroom's ledge. "H- hello? Anypony there?" Twilight whispered while peeking her head over the ledge. She blinked. A pony groaned. Twilight pulled her head back, rubbed the last of the turquoise glow out of her eyes, then looked back over. It was her but...nother. The frame was larger, the hair was messier, and the muzzle was... masculine.

Her mouth worked to find something else to say that was appropriate for the situation. "Are... are you alright?"

The not-her rolled over on the floor, draped a fetlock across his eyes, then took a few heavy breaths. He lowered the hoof so it was blocking his mouth and blinked at Twilight a few times. "Hold on. You aren't nothing. Neither is this floor." He held his hoof out, then looked himself over. "I'm not nothing, either. Not only that, but I'm... oof. Figures." His head fell back onto the floor, then he flopped onto his side. "Well, of all the crazy things that have happened to me, the afterlife spitting me out tops the list."

He flailed for a moment as he tried to get his hooves under himself, then stood up, brushing himself off as he did so. He froze. "Oi, wait a minute!" He turned around and pointed at Twilight. "Who're you? Because my eyes are still burnt out and all I'm seeing is a vague pony shape."

Twilight stammered and stomped a hoof. "I should be asking you that question! Who are you, and why did you just crash into my room!?"

"You don't know- ah, no, of course not. I'm... actually, give me a moment. See, I've just gone through a rather stressful ordeal, and I did not plan to end up here. I'm processing this all, hold on." The pony sighed, covered his face with a leg, and let out a long groan. "Oh, I'm gonna feel this in the morning." He blinked. "Y'know, I'm taking this surprisingly well. I mean, I really should be panicking more, right? I mean, I'm here, all small and young looking. That's an issue."

Twilight shook her head, trying to catch hold of something that made sense. "What do you mean, anissue? and you still haven't answered my questions!"

The stallion stood up, then waved a hoof dismissively. "Don't worry about that, it doesn't really concern you."

"You just crashed into my bedroom, of course it concerns me!" shouted Twilight.

He tilted his head. "Nnnnno, it doesn't. Sorry about the room, though. Who knew crashing could be so destructive? Anyways, enough rambling. To answer your question, I'm Dusk Shine, Herald of the Sky, Element of Harmony, and Agent of Chaos. How about you, little pony?"

Those titles spun in Twilight's head. How could one be an Element of Harmony and an Agent of Chaos? What did Herald of the Sky mean? How could Dusk also be an Element of Harmony when her friends were just named as the Elements? "I'm Twilight Sparkle. The Element of Magic."

"Really, it changed already? I wonder how long I was gone... Well, it's nice to meet you, Miss Twilight Sparrrrr..." He trailed off and became silent. His horn lit up with a brilliant turquoise light, illuminating his equally concerned and shocked expression. "Now this issue concerns you. Not only am I here, you're also here. With me." Dusk turned around, taking in the room. "Oh. Oh no. Ahhhh..."

Twilight began walking down to the lower level of the bedroom. "What is it? What are you talking about?" She cast a glance at the windows behind her. "Where did you come from?"

Dusk scratched his chin. "Those aren't easy questions. Uh, I need to orient myself. What happened today, or anytime this last week? What was the most exciting part?"

"The Summer Sun Celebration was today. Nightmare Moon escaped from her prison and was turned back into Princess Luna."

"I'm really- oh for the love of- why couldn't it have been at least post-chaos- I'm really that far back!?" Dusk sat down on the floor, then rubbed his horn. "Oof. Okay. Out of the frying pan, into the heart of a star. I come from... a universe parallel to your own, apparently. I left that universe, for my own reasons, and then somehow ended up in your universe. I'm the version of you from my own universe, with a sister named Gleaming Shield and an adopted dragon sister named Barb."

Twilight's headache returned tenfold as this bombshell of information was dropped right on her head. She stammered for a good minute as she processed it all. Dusk watched her hair slowly deteriorate from perfectly straight to 'Smarty-pants'. She shook her head. "I don't believe you. I- I can't believe you, it's just not possible." Her mouth made strange shapes as her eyes rapidly blinked.

Dusk held his hooves out and tried to comfort Twilight. "No, no, calm down, it's okay. You'll believe in time, so don't worry about that for now. Just answer this simple question for me: are the Elements of Harmony and the ruler of Equestria all mares?" He walked over to Twilight and patted her withers.

Twilight flinched at the sudden touch, but slowly nodded her head. "Alright then, good. Take deep breaths. Put your hoof to your chest like this, grab the stress, and push it out." Twilight followed his motions, taking deep breaths as she did. "There you go, there you go. Now, I understand that this is all very strange and perhaps scary for you, so we can put off explaining it in detail later, and just focus on the here-and-now.

"Okay, you know what? Let's go to the party. It's been a stressful day and your world has been turned over multiple times." Dusk's voice transitioned from a quickened ramble to a slow, comforting, and somehowwisesound. "Let's just relax, grab a cupcake or two, and forget about everything."

Twilight nodded, still in shock from realizing that not only was Starswirl's theory on alternate realities true, she was standing next to another version of herself, older and displaced. She held up a hoof. "I expect an extensive explanation in the morning, though." She looked around the room. "You need to clean this up as well."

Dusk's horn flared turquoise (Twilight frowned at this), and the books flew onto their shelves, perfectly organized. The dented floorboards pulled in every splinter and bent back into shape, and the dust disappeared from every surface. "Of course, I could never leave a library in disarray. Come on."

He ushered Twilight through the door, down the stairs, then glanced back. "Well. This is going to be all kinds of difficult."

Author's Note

A revised version of the chapter. I think I'm gonna do this for the others before I begin moving forwards.

Season 1 Prologue - Cool Friends

Dusk Shine gently closed the library's door behind him as he stepped onto the porch. He took a deep, stuttering breath and stamped a hoof against the floor a couple times. He threw his head back and screwed his eyes shut as he grit his teeth. In all the ways that spell could have gone, it sent him here? With a season-one Twilight who was still looking up the definition of friendship, an Equestria stuck in the Dark Ages, and with his old body, no less? He just might move to Manehatten until the coronation.

He inhaled, exhaled, and closed his eyes, savoring the fresh air as he did so. When he finally opened his eyes, he smiled. As he looked over the dirt roads, the straw roofs and quaint architecture of Ponyville, fragments of memories came flooding back. The town may have been... medieval and his situation less than ideal but... at least it was home. Even after all the years spent in Canterlot, the Crystal Empire, and Crystopolis, Ponyville was still home. He turned around, running his hoof across the candle painted on the door of the Golden Oak Library as he did so. It was strange, seeing it intact. When he turned around once more, he caught Twilight's eyes.

"Whats with that look? It's like you haven't seen Ponyville before." Twilight gave Dusk a skeptical frown.

He broke his view of the town long enough to glance at Twilight. "Oh, no. It's not that. It's just..." Dusk smirked. "Seeing Ponyville like this gives me a strange sense of... pride. It's the very epitome of Equestrian culture. Diverse, tolerant, and..." He shook his head in amusement. "Absolutely insane."

No wonder Eris is so obsessed with ponies. A sharp stab of pain stopped him in his tracks. His family was going to miss him. They'd probably go looking for him. They'd be hard pressed to find me, though, he thought with a grim shudder.

He cleared his mind of all unhappy thoughts, then continued on his way.

Twilight looked at the town, lit by the light of the now-pure Moon, and gave a thoughtful sigh. "I haven't taken the time to look around yet. I've been busy, with the Summer Sun Celebration and... you know."

Dusk shrugged, then took a breath when he saw Sugarcube Corner come into view. "Yeah, I remember. It's an old, foggy memory, but I do remember. Trust me when I say you will never forget this day as long as you live!"

Twilight got a strange look in her eyes. "And... how long do I live?" She corrected herself as she shook her head. "I mean-- how old are you, if you don't mind me asking?"

Dusk stopped, then looked back at Twilight with a wide grin. "Spoilers," he said in a strange, amused tone. "I don't want to tell you anything about me, Twilight. Even telling you who I spend my time with could break the timeline and prevent you from becoming who you should be. Now come on, the party isn't going to last forever."

The door to Sugarcube Corner was closed, surprisingly. Despite this, music and banter could still be heard from inside, and the sweet scent of cake batter and candy reached Dusk's nose, making him sigh in nostalgic ecstasy. He could almost taste the sugar in the air. He slowly made his way up the steps of the store, then pushed the door open with a brush of turquoise magic. As his senses were bombarded tenfold by the store's environment, the sight of Ponyville dancing so closely together made Dusk puff up in pride. Even if the familiar faces were mares' instead of stallions', or vice versa.

Dusk looked back at Twilight. "If anybody asks who I am, just tell them the truth! I'm you from out of town." He winked, then stepped inside, only to be swept away by the circulating current of party-goers. Twilight reluctantly followed.

The first things the unicorn noticed were the two reunited sisters standing to the side of the room, easily visible over the crowd. Even Princess Luna, who was far shorter than her sister, could stand above a large stallion. The second thing she noticed was Pinkie Pie, who was trying to catch her attention. Twilight took a breath and made her way over to Pinkie's place at the confections table.

Pinkie beamed when she finally was within speaking distance with Twilight. "Twilight, hey! Welcome back to the party! I totally understand that it might be a little too crazy after everything, but..." She rubbed the back of her hair. "Anyways, I just say you come in with a stallion so at first, I kinda assumed that you walked out of the party with that stallion, then was kinda surprised a book-pony like you would do that..."

"Pinkie! No!" Twilight shook her rapidly-reddening face.

"Yeah, that's what I thought after I thought that! So anyway, when I really got a good look at him, I realized..." Pinkie squinted and leaned towards Twilight. "He looks like you! But you aren't a stallion, so he has to be a new pony... Unless he is you and some kind of spell went wrong or you drank a magical potion resulting in his creation..." She stroked her chin. "That isn't it, right?"

"No, Pinkie. He's... He says he's another version of me from a different universe, though I'm not sure if I entirely believe him yet." Twilight tried to find him in the crowd but soon realized that it was too thick to do so. She turned back to Pinkie. "So... has this been a good party?"

Pinkie smiled and looked at the ceiling. "Oh, great like you wouldn't believe!" She then proceeded to tell Twilight about the party, going as far as listing how many smiles of certain numbered kinds she has seen, and how many smiles of certain numbered kinds she should be seeing. She noted that a couple ponies had a smile that meant they weren't actually happy, but just pretending to be happy, so she would have to visit them later. Twilight made a mental note to study up on the various kinds of smiles after she figured Dusk out.

Dusk!

Twilight's eyes widened as she realized the implications of having an identical version of herself roaming the party. Why hadn't she realized that earlier!? "Ah! Pinkie! Excuse me for a while, I need to go check up on something!" She nodded politely to the party mare, then began pushing her way through the crowd, keeping both eyes peeled for her mane and coat coloration.

She looked at the table where they had been but paled. They were gone! The doppelganger kidnapped them! Twilight squeaked and danced on the tip of her hooves, her eyes darting around the room. Eventually, in the midst of the chaos, music, and lights, Twilight caught the distinct flash of a teleport and gasped.

Dusk was with the princesses!

Twilight rushed to them and gave a quick bow, a skeptical glance at Dusk, then a smile to the sisters. "Princesses! I see you met Dusk. I--" She glanced at him, he smiled. Twilight closed her mouth, not quite sure what to say.

Celestia chuckled. "Don't worry, Twilight. Dusk has explained himself to us." She and Twilight both glanced at Dusk, who only slightly smiled.

Twilight understood that Celestia was told many things she knew she would never hear, but to know that a version of her was talking to Celestia behind Twilight's back... Twilight took a few sharp breaths and frantic glances between the three figures. "How much? What did he say?"

Celestia opened her mouth, but Dusk cut her off, to Twilight's amazement and annoyance. "Enough, for now. Don't worry, Twilight. I'll tell you more about myself in time, but I can't risk the destruction of Equestria, or something, because I accidentally told you what career path I choose," said Dusk in a voice just loud enough to be heard over the party. Twilight glared at him, but Dusk hardly twitched his half-smile.

Dusk nodded. "Well, it's been a joy meeting the matches of my mentors, but there is a party that I have hardly participated in. Luna, Celestia, Twilight." He nodded to each of them, then walked into the crowd.

Twilight fumed. "He didn't even properly bow! His hair is out of place! He didn't address you by your titles! He cut you off! How does he expect us to believe that he's me?" Twilight took a few heavy breaths as some of her hairs curled out of place.

Celestia chuckled. "It's a little refreshing to have somebody talk to me so casually. Besides, I trust him."

Luna, previously hiding behind Celestia, raised her head. "He did say things that we have no choice but to believe. Things about us that our sister doesn't know, things about our sister that we didn't know. He spoke to us as if greeting an old friend, even though Tia alone knows us in that manner."

Twilight pondered these things, then looked into the crowd. "I need to hear these things for myself."

Author's Note

The adventure continues! Unlike the ~4k chapters of Friendship Bling, D&D will stay around ~1k, at least until things really pick up.

Also, I made a Discord server! Check it out for (eventual) chats about my stories and stuff! https://discord.gg/VQZ37ZX

Last but certainly not least, thank you to the user Mix-up for the shiny new cover art! Go check him and his Deviantart out!

Season 1 Prologue - Come On and Meet the Elements

Twilight Sparkle didn't have to look hard to find Dusk Shine again. She found him in the back of the crowd, staring at the ponies with a strange look on his face. Conflicted, or perhaps longing. Twilight slowed her approach, then tried to see what Dusk was looking at. She saw Rainbow Dash in the crowd, dancing vigorously to the music, with Applejack shaking her head at Dash. Twilight looked over to Dash. "Hey, are you alright? You look..." She trailed off, not quite sure how to finish.

Dusk glanced at her, then switched back to his familiar smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. Even if they're mares, it's been a long time since I've seen them. I'm not quite sure how I should introduce myself, especially since..." He waved at Twilight. "It might be a tad strange for the both of us to show up at once."

A long time since he saw his friends? "How long is 'a long time'?" Twilight wondered. It couldn't be too long unless Dusk got some kind of important job outside of Ponyville. Twilight blinked. Ponyville was her home now. The girls are her neighbors. She got so lost on that train of thought that she barely noticed Dusk walking into the crowd. "Dusk! Wait!"

Too late. Dusk walked up next to Applejack and tapped her on the shoulder. The farmpony turned around and smiled. "Twilight! Hey, sugarcuuueh?" Applejack stared at Dusk Shine, then glanced over at Twilight, then stared at Dusk. "What the hay?"

Dusk held out his hoof. "Hi! My name is Dusk Shine, I'm from another universe."

Applejack shook his hoof with a raised eyebrow. "Really? Huh." The mare lifted her hat and scratched her head. "I dunno if it's the lack of sleep, or just the fact that I've lived in Ponyville for most my life, but... I don't have anythin' to say to that."

They all awkwardly glanced at each other. Applejack flinched. "Where are my manners? I'm Applejack! I run the farm just outside of town."

Dusk gave a warm smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Applejack. If your farm is anything like the Sweet Apple Acres from my home, I'll be sure to buy plenty of apples."

"Ah, thanks!" She blinked. "Wait, what?"

"Another universe! It's probably easy to see, but I'm Twilight's counterpart there. There's also a Ponyville, a Sweet Apple Acres, an Applejack." Dusk leaned towards AJ at this, causing the mare to look a bit surprised.

"Oh hey, Twilight! You came back!" Rainbow Dash had stopped her dancing long enough to notice the trio talking to each other, but stared at Dusk. "Who're you?"

"Dusk Shine, I'm from another universe!" Dusk replied automatically. He stuck out his hoof for the mare to shake.

Rainbow nodded. "Huh, cool. I'm Rainbow Dash, the fastest flier in Equestria!" She took Dusk's hoof and looked him over. "So... can you dance, or are you as lame as Twilight?"

Twilight flushed and straightened up a little as Dusk chuckled. "Nah, I'm pretty much the same as her. I can dance when I've had a full eight hours of sleep!" Twilight hissed a little at Dusk. "Besides, we're the best kind of lame. The kind that helps you on tests and cheers at an embarrassing level for you!"

Rainbow chuckled. "Yeah. Anyways, it was nice meeting you, Dusk, but if you aren't going to dance, then you'd better get off the floor. I need all the room I can get!" Applejack coughed a little. "Eh, yeah. That probably goes for you as well, AJ." Dusk chuckled, then cleared off the floor with Applejack and Twilight.

Once they were off, Dusk rested a hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "Anyways, Twilight, don't you wanna introduce me to the rest of your friends?"

Twilight opened her mouth to say something, but Applejack beat her to it. "Hey, yeah, I can help with that. I've known the girls for a mite longer than Twilight, I'll be happy to show you around!" She muttered something else under her breath. "Pinkie's probably gonna take over after me, though."

Dusk nodded. "That sounds great! Lead the way."

They stepped up to the confections table, with no sign of Pinkie beyond the big cotton-candy tail sticking out from under the table, which Applejack tapped her hoof on. "Hey, Pinkie! This is Dusk Shine, he says he's from another universe. He showed up for..." She looked over. "Why exactly are you here?"

Dusk held his smile. "That's personal business, sorry."

Pinkie waited until Dusk was done talking to reveal herself. She shot up from under the table with a burst of confetti. Dusk hardly reacted. "Suprise! Twilight, you should have told me a stallion-you was coming to Ponyville! We could have had a Welcome to Ponyville party for him and Princess Luna!" She waved a hoof. "This will have to do for now!"

Pinkie reached under the table and revealed a very rapidly made banner, with the words 'Welcome to Ponyville, Dusk Shine' written in purple and blue paint.

Twilight stared at the bright banner for a moment, then scratched the back of her head. "Anyways Pinkie, Applejack and I are introducing Dusk to the girls! Have you seen Rarity and Fluttershy?"

Pinkie's mouth was released as her eyes widened. "You're introducing ponies to each other and you didn't get me first! GASP! TWILIGHT, DUSK, THE PARTY CAN WAIT LET'S MOVE!" She grabbed the hooves of Dusk and Twilight, then dashed out the door at speeds that would make Rainbow whistle.

Applejack was left standing there awkwardly. "Well, can't say I didn't expect it." She grabbed a cup of fruit punch and shuffled off to the side of the room.

On the way to where ever Pinkie was taking them, Twilight had the clarity to ask where they were going. "To Fluttershy's cottage! Fluttershy thought the party was too loud, so she went home, but I didn't want her to be alone when everypony else is partying together so I got Rarity to stay with her because she thought the party was too crazy!"

They stopped in front of the tiny cottage by the woods, taking a moment to appreciate the scenery. Twilight glanced over at Dusk who was, inexplicably, frowning. He was tense, she could see his hooves inconspicuously edging backward. Did he look almost... sad? "Dusk?"

Dusk snapped out of it and smiled once more. "It's a really nice place, isn't it?"

Pinkie nodded. "Yep! It reflects her nature-love like my mane reflects my... mane! Fluttershy likes animals and plants like I like parties and candy! Rarity is super nice too, and super generous! That's kinda obvious now, but it's true even without the Elements! She makes dresses!" Pinkie pronked up to the porch and poked the door.

They heard a faint 'come in' from inside, so Pinkie pressed the handle and opened the door enough to stick her head in. "Pinkie Pie, darling! What are you doing here, did the party end already?"

"No, but something amazing happened!" Pinkie pushed the door all the way open, revealing Twilight and Dusk side by side. "Twilight has a stallion version of her who came to town from another universe!"

Dusk waved at a very wide-eyed Rarity, who quickly figured out which of the twins was which. "How exciting! I see you share a very similar frame to Twilight... though that makes you a little bit skinny for a stallion, doesn't it, Mister..."

"Dusk Shine. It's nice to meet you, Rarity. Twilight and Pinkie wanted me to meet you and the other Elements." He gave Rarity a small bow, to which she blushed. "Not that I don't enjoy your company I must ask... where's Fluttershy?"

Rarity waved her hoof. "Oh, the dear went to bed. I'm sure you know by now, but it's been a rather exhausting day. Night. Whatever time it's supposed to be." They all chuckled.

Dusk let out a sigh. "Well, I won't wake her. I'll swing by another time, I'm actually going to be staying in Ponyville for a while."

"You are!?" Twilight practically shouted.

"You are!" Pinkie squealed.

"You are?" Rarity questioned.

Dusk was slightly taken aback by the chorus of answers. "Uh, yeah. I need a change of scenery; what better place to get away from the Canterlot air than Ponyville?"

"Well, that means that I'm going have to throw you a 'Thanks For Staying in Ponyville Temporarily' party! After your welcome party, of course!"

Dusk nodded. "I'm looking forward to it."

Author's Note

Cover art by the wonderful Mix-Up!

Here's his Deviantart page.

S1C1 - Friend Like Me

As Dusk woke up the next morning, he could smell breakfast. A breakfast that was familiar in a way that made him mumble a few words from his place on the library’s floor. (Twilight hadn’t gotten a sofa from Sofa and Quills yet, so Dusk had just piled a bunch of blankets on the floor and called it good. Twilight was too tired to say or do anything different.)

Dusk smiled. “Good morning, Barb.” He frowned. Barb? That wasn’t right. Dusk sat up in his bed, quickly glancing around himself. When he saw the interior of the Golden Oaks Library, he was even more confused, but last night’s memories soon caught up with him, so he smiled. Spike was making breakfast, not Barb. He chuckled. Barb would probably crush it anyway. When had Barb last made breakfast? Not for... a while. His smile dropped.

Dusk decided that those thoughts could wait until later, so he stood up, looked himself over while smoothing his coat, then took a breath. He made his way to the kitchen, where Spike the baby dragon was indeed making breakfast. “Hey, good morning.”

Spike, caught off guard by the sudden and unfamiliar voice, tried to wield his frying pan as a weapon against the intruder, but only managed to throw a fried egg into Dusk’s magical grasp. Spike blinked for a moment, his mind trying to put the Twilight-but-not-Twilight pieces together. “Twilight? Did you turn into a stallion?”

Dusk facehoofed. “Oh my gosh, no, sorry. I just realized: I haven’t introduced myself!” He held out a hoof. “I’m Dusk Shine! I’m a version of Twilight from an alternate universe. I kinda fell out of the sky last night, during the party. You were dead asleep.”

Spike raised a brow but shrugged it off. Twilight had done some crazy things with magic before, like that quesadilla monster and the time she raised an army of skeletons from some of his baby teeth. “Alright. Well, there’s a few pancakes over there and eggs are almost done.” They looked at the egg that was still floating in the air. Dusk sheepishly dropped it into Spike’s pan as his hoof fell back to the floor.

“Thanks.” Dusk almost grabbed a plate but decided to wait. “Has Twilight come down yet, or is she upstairs?”

“She’s still upstairs. Hey, does she know you’re... here?” Spike looked back at Dusk as he dropped a fried egg off his pan.

Dusk chuckled, then ran a hoof down the side of his face. “Yeah... I made quite a bit of a racket when I landed. She was just going to sleep." He blinked. "How did you not wake up?"

"Eh, I'm a heavy sleeper."

They were silent for a while. Dusk offered to help, so Spike had him grab some gem dust to mix into the extra pancake mix. Dusk made the pancakes just how Spike wanted them, to his surprise. It wasn’t until they had sat down at the kitchen table with eggs, pancakes, and glass of milk that they began asking questions.

Spike set down his fork, then let out a small burp and a green ember. “So, Dusk, how did you even get here in the first place? Did you teleport wrong or did some kind of spell collapse?”

Dusk looked up from his own meal, shook his head, then swallowed. “I’m not actually sure how I ended up here. The spell I had just cast went off perfectly, without any kind of hitch. And then I was on Twilight’s floor.” He shrugged. “It’s one of the many things I want to figure out while I’m here.”

“Huh. Well, I hope you figure it out. I’ve seen Twilight get weird results from her spells; it drives her crazy trying to figure out what happened.” Dusk and Spike both laughed.

“Hey Spike, can I get a favor from you real quick?”

Spike nodded. “Cool. I need to send a letter to Celestia.” Spike asked why. “I have a project I want to get started on as long as I’m here. I don’t want to get in anypony’s way, so I’m going to find ways to keep myself busy and somewhat out of the picture.”

“Oh. Okay then, let me just go grab my writing stuff.” Spike jumped off his chair, then made for the staircase.

“I’ve actually got a quill and paper handy.” Dusk frowned. ”At least I’ve still got a pocket.”

There was a white flash of light, which faded to reveal a very strange looking quill and a paper with quality beyond what Spike had ever seen. The quill was obviously pony-sized, though it’s owner must have been a massive pegasus. It was lavender, with a dark purple then magenta gradient at its tip. The paper was perfectly rectangular, perfectly white, and perfectly flat. Spike whistled at its quality.

“Where’d you get a quill and paper like this? I’ve never seen a pegasus wing with this kind of pattern. The closest thing I can think of is the colors on Princess Celestia’s feathers. Twilight would kill for stacks of paper like this.” Spike blinked. “Wait, you didn’t get an ink bottle.”

Dusk smiled, then tapped the quill to the paper. A dot of blue ink appeared on the sheet. Spike whistled. “Twilight would kill for that spell.”

Dusk chuckled. "Not a spell, actually. If you twist the nib, it reveals an ink resivoir inside of the pen! It was something I thought of, a while back. Canterlot scholars scrambled to get the prototypes. Try the pen on that paper, there was a company in my world that made it."

Spike reverently took the quill and paper, then scribbled a bit on the corner of the paper. His eyes widened. “Wow, it’s like writing on glass.” He looked up at Dusk. “Anyways, what did you want to write to the Princess?”

“Actually, that’s private. Sorry, but I’m gonna have to write this one.” Dusk took the materials back as Spike pouted. Dusk took some time writing on the paper in a very small handwriting, which he still managed to fill the paper with. When he was done, he signed his name at the bottom, blinked, then scribbled a part out. “Alright, that’s ready to go,” Dusk declared as he folded the paper up. He held it out to Spike, who grabbed it, ran his claws over it, then sent it away with a small flame.

It was at this moment that Twilight came downstairs, rubbing her eyes. She walked into the kitchen, then waved to the two others. “Hey Spike, hey...” She glared at Dusk for a moment. “Oh, so you are real. I was hoping that you were some kind of hallucination caused by my lack of sleep.”

Dusk laughed. “Nope, you’re stuck with me. If it helps, though, I’ve just asked Celestia to let me know when it's best to let me into the Starswirl Wing of the Royal Library. I’m going to get a research project going that will probably keep me out of your mane.”

Twilight straightened up, immediately and completely awake. “Princess Celestia gave you access to the Starswirl Wing!? What on Equus would you need to get in there for?” She blinked. “Why would the Princess give you permission? You’re a stranger and I’m her most faithful student. I don’t even have access!”

Her rant was cut short by Spike burping out a small trail of smoke. It then solidified into a scroll bearing the royal seal. “See! She’s probably already changed her mind!”

Dusk opened it up, read through it, then smiled. “Perfect. She wants me to meet her in Canterlot this afternoon to let me in, since I’m kinda not an Equestrian citizen here so I’m not in the registry, you know?”

Dusk stood up from the table, dropping his dishes into the sink as he went. Twilight’s eyes twitched, and a few hairs came out of place.

Author's Note

So I am aware that Twi and Spike have just moved into another house, and there probably wouldn't be gem dust, eggs, and pancake mix readily available.

However, I personally subscribe to the headcanon that Celestia had the library prepared with the foods that were in their last home in order to make their transition as comfortable as possible, so Twilight could focus on friends. I think she intended for Twilight to stay in Ponyville all along.

Stuff is happening now! Dusk has multiple projects that he is going to be working on. Some are going to be more public than others.

Cover art by the wonderful Mix-Up!

Here's his Deviantart page.

S1C2 - Don't Stop (Color on the Walls)

Twilight, after taking a deep breath and eating breakfast, decided to find where Dusk had gone. Turns out the library had a basement that Twilight hadn't noticed, which Dusk had gone down into. He was levitating sheets and sheets of paper from some boxes in the room, then fastening them to a wall with his magic.

"What do you think you're doing?" Dusk looked back at Twilight but continued putting papers on the wall.

"I'm going to write down the matrix for the spell I last cast, to see if it could have somehow sent me here. I doubt I'll find anything, but it'll be good to make sure. Explore every possibility, you know?" When the papers were arranged in a square grid, Dusk stopped putting the papers up, then raised his quill, and projected an image of the matrix onto the papers.

Twilight's eyes widened at the complexity of the spell. There were arcs and gates just milimeters apart from each other, even when stretched onto the papers that Dusk had prepared. Even the most complex spells Twilight had cast didn't come close to this spell. "What is that matrix supposed to do?"

"Can't tell you. Private. Personal. A real headache to cast, that's for sure." Twilight frowned at his answer, then began comparing the matrix to the ones she knew. She recognized a few patterns present in nearly every transfiguration spell and some structures that told the caster how much mana needed to be supplied to the matrix to power it.

"How did you cast this spell? Ignoring the sheer complexity of it, you would need at least a week's worth of mana to power it. Unless you were casting the spell for a week straight, I can't see how you could have done it. There aren't any markers that accept external sources of mana, either."

Dusk began tracing the image of the matrix, after labeling each paper by position in the grid. "Twilight, two nights ago, or one, depending on how you see it, a fairy tale came to life and tried to end the world, only to be stopped when you used another fairy tale. Impossible is a very silly term."

Twilight frowned but stayed there to watch Dusk work. There were times that he would, after writing a part down, remove the image of the matrix then closely inspect the part that he had written. It has to be perfect, he explained. That made sense to Twilight since it was the standard for most complex spells.

Every so often he would teleport upstairs, grab a pancake or two, then teleport back down to continue right where he left off while putting food in his mouth. When he was about halfway through the matrix, a few hours of work having gone into its reconstruction, he made his quill disappear.

Dusk turned around then jumped, not expecting to see Twilight sitting on the floor, taking notes. "Have you seriously been sitting there this whole time?" Twilight nodded slowly like there was no other reasonable thing to be doing. "Well, I hope you've enjoyed watching me writing this down because my horn is aching and I need some kind of food before I head for Canterlot." He starting walking up the staircase. "Wanna come with me? I'm going to Sugarcube Corner."

Twilight shrugged. She went with him.

Dusk, as the store came into view, reflected. He found it equal parts fascinating, hilarious, and annoying that he had happened to fall into a world whose differences were so clearly defined. Males were females, females were males. Sure, the names were often very different than his world's, and some buildings were in different places, but there were no big differences between his memories of Ponyville and the town around him.

By the time his train of thought stopped, he was already at the store's entrance. The door was all the way open, revealing a somehow-cleaned-up floor and Pinkie Pie, who had multiple straws balanced on her muzzle, to the delight of the few customers in the store. When her eyes looked down and saw Dusk and Twilight, she gasped, hardly disturbing the straws.

"Hey, it's the Twilights! Gooood morning you two!" Pinkie tipped her muzzle forwards, dumping the straws off and directing attention to the unicorns. The ponies stared for a moment, then went back to their business. Pinkie leaned forwards on her counter. "So, what can I getcha both today? Or did you come here to talk about Princess Luna's party? Or maybe did you come here to talk about your party? I'm still getting that ready, by the way. Don't you worry!"

Dusk smiled, then stepped forwards. "Can we get two chocolate croissants and two toasted everything bagels with blueberry butter? Nothing too special, just a little something different."

As Pinkie moved to get the order together, Twilight turned to Dusk. "Did you just order for me?" Dusk nodded. "I've never had those before. I would have liked to get what I want."

Dusk shrugged. "That's the beauty of it Twilight. Those are what you want, because they're what I want. We don't just look the same, Twilight. We've got the same preferences too, at least when it comes to basic things like color or food. I mean, yeah those preferences do change over time, but even then I can just bring out the fundamentals and go from there!"

Twilight almost argued against that, but just sighed. "But you act so differently from me! There are smaller details, too, like how you haven't properly addressed the Princesses a single time since you've been here, or how you don't seem to care that your mane is so unorganized! We clearly aren't exactly the same."

Pinkie finished the order and placed it on the counter. Dusk tossed some bits down, then grabbed the bag. Twilight continued. "I mean, I just don't get it! You can't be that much older than me since your body still has the proportions a stallion at my age and level of exercise would have, but you act like a totally different pony."

Dusk waved goodbye to Pinkie as they left. "And don't get me started on your magic!" Dusk didn't, though Twilight continued anyways. "If you really are another version of me, your magical aura should be lavender, like mine! Magical aura only darkens or thickens with age and skill; it doesn't change color all together!"

"Once again, Twilight, you're comparing past rules to the present. Things change, believe it or not. I don't know if it has ever worked the same way here, but where I'm from ponies change aura color quite often. Blue to gold, azure to red, fuchsia to turquoise." Dusk reached into the bag with his magic, then pulled out the croissants. "Just accept that and eat the choco-sant."

Author's Note

All the chapters are revised now! Yay! Time to start working on chap 3...

Cover art by the wonderful Mix-Up!

Here's his Deviantart page.