Irony's Tale

"I hate getting all dolled up," Lightning Dust grumbles, shaking her head as Soarin runs a comb through her hair.

"Hold still!" he mutters around the implement of mane-care clamped in his teeth.

"I know exactly how you feel, Dust," I commiserate, weathering a similar assault from Moon Shadow.

"You have to look good when you meet the President. You know, you wouldn't have to go through this, if either one of you had a clue as to how to take care of yourselves," Shadow chides us, using her magic to rip the comb through another snarl in my mane.

"Hey, is it our fault that we both spent our lives here on earth as men?" Dust asks.

"I was born male to begin with. I've never had much of a reason to learn beautification tips," I chime in.

"You two are just big babies," Soarin states after ripping out one last rats nest from Dust's blonde hair. "Look at me, I'm male and I know how to take care of myself."

"Yeah, but you grew up a girl, remember? Though, come to think of it, you were always kind of messy..." Dust ribs him.

"That's enough of that. The President should arrive anytime now," Shadow states, glaring mildly at Dust.

"Hey, why doesn't Mindy have to get her mane done?" Dust asks suddenly.

Moon Shadow's mild glare firms into something more unpleasant, "Because there's no power in the 'verse strong enough to tame that pony's hair."

Dust opens her mouth to respond but is interrupted by the pony in question seemingly popping out of thin air, "Come on Dustie! The President is almost here!"

* * *

"Dust, stop fidgeting," Moon Shadow glares at the turquoise pegasus.

"Sorry Moon. I just hate waiting on other people. It doesn't help that having my mane done up like this just doesn't feel right. It totally throws off my aerodynamics!" she complains, but settles down. For a few seconds, anyway. It doesn't take long before she's ruffling her wings, her head darting this way and that.

Moon Shadow opens her mouth, but closes it again without speaking. Shaking her head, she exhales explosively.

After an interminable wait, we finally hear the distinct sound of a helicopter's rotors chopping its way through the sky.

We watch Marine One, the presidential seal plain as day on the side, approach. The pilot adroitly sets her down in the clearing across from us, his adeptness with the controls obvious in the softness of the landing.

Within moments of the wheels settling into the turf, the door slides open and Secret Service agents leap out to secure the area. None of them even pause at the sight of several multi-hued ponies waiting patiently at the edge of the field.

Efficient and effective, I think in approval of their skills.

My attention is drawn back to Marine One as a man I assume is the president climbs out. He turns, offering his hand to lovingly help an amethyst coated unicorn down from the deck. So, his daughter really is a pony... and now he's brought her here, to us. An interesting development, to say the least, I muse.

The President makes his way over to us, the pink unicorn lagging slightly behind.

"Mr. President, I am known as Lightning Dust. Welcome to our home," Dust offers a hoof to the well-dressed man. He pauses for a moment, taken aback slightly, but recovers well. He drops to one knee and takes Dust's hoof in his hand, shaking it like he would any other human's.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Dust," he replies, a genuine smile blooming on his face. "Thank you for having us on such short notice. I hope that we haven't put you out any."

"Not at all, sir. It's an honor to have you."

The President makes the rounds, shaking all of our hooves as we introduce ourselves. Looking into his eyes, I see a man who has slept little of late; I also see a firmness to him, an underlying toughness. He won't hesitate to do what he must, I realize, my respect for him growing.

"And this is my daughter, Amy," he says, gesturing to the pony that has been hiding behind him. She steps forward tentatively, looking ready to bolt at the first sign of danger.

"Amy?" Dust's head tilts to the side, "What is your pony name?"

Amy looks at Dust in confusion, a look of fear crossing her face so quickly it's hard to tell it was ever there.

"You know, the one from the dreams you've been having. The dream you had when you got the cutie mark on your flanks, your three brilliant cut diamonds."

"I don't remember any dreams," she shrinks away, shaking her head.

Dust touches a hoof to his knee, "I think you and I need to have a talk. Alone."

He looks at Lightning Dust, confusion plain on his face. Finally, he nods. He turns to his daughter, kneels down, and kisses her on her forehead next to her horn. That done, he waves off his Secret Service escort and steps outside our circle, Dust trotting to follow him.

Once they're out of earshot, Shadow turns to Amy, "Welcome to Montana, Amy. Thank you for coming to visit us."

"Umm... thank you for having us. I can't believe so many people have been afflicted with this disease. I thought I was the only one," she states quietly.

Mindy gasps, filling her lungs with more air than I thought physically possible, "Thisisnodisease!ThiswasDiscord!Hecursedustwentyfiveyearsagoandmadeushuman!Nowwe'vefinallyreturnedtoourtrueforms!"

Amy's eyes are so wide that it looks like they're going to fall right out of her head.

"Mindy, calm down, you're just scaring her," Shadow puts a hoof on Mindy's back to settle her down. She turns to the new unicorn, "What Mindy here was trying to say, is that it's no disease. It--"

"That's not what the doctors told me! They said it was some kind of retro-virus. They told me they're going to cure me, soon!" the young unicorn wails, whipping her head around, wild-eyed.

"Shhh... calm down Amy. It's okay," Shadow puts her hoof on Amy's shoulder, like she had Mindy, calming her down a bit with the contact.

"They promised they would cure me," she whispers, tears dripping down her cheeks and across her muzzle, to fall silently to the ground.

Moon Shadow pulls her into a hug, ruffling her mane with a hoof.

"I'm sorry, little one, but this isn't a disease. We were cursed, twenty-five years ago; by the Lord of Chaos, Discord. We've already been 'cured', if you think about it. These are our original forms," I say quietly.

"What? What are you saying?!"

"She's saying that we were always ponies. We just took on the shapes of humans for a time. Against our will, of course," Moon Shadow replies.

"I just said that!" Mindy spouts, bouncing back and forth.

"Yeah, but Moon was a lot easier to understand," I reply, my lips quirking into a half-smile.

"No, that's not true! I'm human. There's no way that I was ever anything but human!" Amy bursts out, her eyes narrowed as she glares at us.

"I'm sorry, Amy, but it is true. We," Shadow makes a sweeping gesture at Mindy and I with her hoof, "all know the curse to be fact. We aren't from earth. We're from Equestria."

"How do you know that?" she asks, disbelief in her eyes, though she seems to have calmed down a bit.

"We had dreams, like the ones you say you don't remember. Plus, we've been regaining our memories, albeit slowly," I answer for Shadow.

"I haven't been having any dreams," she whines, biting her lip.

Moon Shadow cocks her head to the side, one of her ears flopping forward quizzically, "No dreams? Are you certain?"

"Ummmm..." she sucks on her lip, looking down at her hooves.

Shadow lifts her chin with a hoof, "I know the dreams are frightening, but they only have power over you if you let them. More importantly, they are a link to your past. They can help you to remember who you are."

Amy bursts into tears again, "B-b-b-but, they're so scary! He was so horrible! He made everypony disappear in a blast of white light. I was all alone!"

"Shhh, I know. I know. It's okay, it's okay. We all know just how scary it was. We all lived it too," Moon Shadow comforts her again.

Several minutes pass in relative quiet as Shadow whispers comforting words to the pink coated unicorn.

Finally, swiping at her nose with a fetlock, she speaks again, "I think I'm okay now. I'm so sorry for breaking down like that. It's just been so hard. I was all alone at school when I started to change. I was so scared. I had no idea what to do. I'm just glad that Daddy took me in, that he didn't turn me away. I don't know what I would have done, if he treated me like some kind of freak."

"We understand exactly what you mean. Do you want to talk about your dreams now?" Shadow asks kindly.

Her head bobs up and down slowly.

* * *

*Moon Shadow*

"Okay, Amy, let's start by recounting your dream from the beginning. I know it won't be easy, but if you take it slowly you'll remember more," I say to her, mildly.

She squeezes her eyes shut in concentration, her head tilted slightly to one side, "I... I... ungh..." Her eyes pop open, and she exclaims excitedly, "I was foalsitting! I was watching... ummm... Berry Pinch!"

"Excellent!" I declare. "What happens next?"

Her eyes close once more, she nibbles her lip as she considers, "I hear a snap, and then Discord appears in a flash of really bright light. He says... I can't remember what he says, but suddenly he's chasing Berry Pinch around the house. He's chanting something weird. I don't know what it is."

"Five Score, Divided by Four?" I ask gently.

"Yeah, that's it! He's saying something about Five Scores. He corners Berry. She's quivering, her poor little legs locked in place. He snaps his claw, throwing a shiny globe of magic at her. Before I can think about it, I jump in front of her! The magic hits me and the world blacks out. Then I hear this horrendous screaming... like a baby crying!" tears leak out of her closed eyes. She falls to her knees, overcome with the remembrance.

"I'm sorry Amy. I know that was really hard to relive," I kneel down next to her, wrapping a hoof around her in solace. "I promise, I didn't have you do it to be cruel. Dreams are powerful, and ignoring important ones like this can have devastating consequences."

"I think I understand now. Thank you for your help, Moon Shadow. I'm sorry that I've cried so much."

"Nonsense. Discord did something irreversibly horrible to all of us. Trust me, it's worth a few tears. Were you able to remember anything else?" I ask.

"Yeah. Something pretty important, actually," she's able to summon a smile, despite the moisture still drying on her cheek fur.

"What is it? What did you remember?" I query, returning her smile.

"I remember who I am... I remember my name. I'm Amethyst Star! But everypony called me Sparkler." her smile widens.

* * *

*Irony*

"How long do you think they'll stay?" I quietly ask Moon Shadow, while Dust gives our illustrious guests the grand tour of the farm.

"Him? I doubt more than a day or two, if that. I think, though, that we've convinced her to stay here. At least for a while. She seems pretty excited to see what life is like as a pony, now that she's stopped believing that she is the victim of some disease," she smiles.

"That's a step in the right direction, but only a step. Underneath her newfound excitement, I think she's still terrified. I mean, it's really great that she and her father don't think that a virus caused the change anymore, but that's only the first bump in the road for her. Accepting who, and what, we really are, is the first real mental/emotional hurdle that most of us seem to go through. For some it's fairly easy; others... not so much," I lean against Moon Shadow, sighing.

"She's tougher than you think, though I agree that you have a point. I'll be monitoring her dreams, at least for the next few nights, to make sure that she has somepony to lean on if they become too extreme."

Nipping her ear lightly, I say, "Thank you, my little Shadow. As it always seems to be, you have read my mind before I even fully had it thought; and planned accordingly. How do you do that?"

Her muzzle splits in a grin, and her eyebrows waggle, "Oh, I have my ways."

I swat her with my tail, eliciting a bright giggle from my sexy unicorn lover.

* * *

*Sparkler*

"Dad? What's going on?" I ask, a thrill of fear shooting down my spine as orderlies burst into my room. They surround my bed, each of my legs is grabbed by one, while a fifth holds up a syringe.

"Daddy! What's going on?! Let me go!!" I scream, jerking my hooves in a fruitless attempt to get free.

"Get my daughter back. No matter what it takes," my father says to them, not even looking at me.

"What if our efforts are unsuccessful?" the one with the syringe asks, both of them ignoring my struggles as the four wrestle me onto a gurney and begin strapping me in.

"Then get rid of it. That thing is not my daughter. If I can't have her back, I don't want it to be here as a reminder of what I've lost," he replies, stone-faced.

"Yes, sir. We shall do as you ask," the orderly turns to me, slipping the syringe into my neck.

"Daddy, no... I'm still your little girl. I really am," I whimper, tears falling freely. My whimpers turn to sobs as my vision dims. Why doesn't my daddy love me anymore?

* * *

*Moon Shadow*

I keep watch over Sparkler's dream as it fades into darkness. It was filled with sadness and fear, but no more than many others that I have witnessed recently. The fear of rejection by human family has been heavy on many a pony's mind.

How I wish I could spare them all these dreams... but that isn't what guarding dreams is about. It helps them to learn to cope... I sigh to myself, still fighting the desire to end bad dreams completely.

"Hard to watch and not interfere, isn't it?" a voice startles me out of my internal conflict.

I turn my head and gasp, "Luna!"

"Hello, Moon Shadow, my faithful apprentice," she smiles down at me.

"You... you remember me?"

Her smile fades, her cheeks redden, and her head hangs low, "Finally, yes. I am quite sorry that I didn't before. It must have been disheartening to have me flee from you. For this, I must apologize profusely. I cannot believe that I couldn't remember you, my student."

"Nonsense! You carry no blame for your lack of memories. That lies at Discord's feet, for it was his doing that brought us all low. Yes, I was saddened when you didn't remember me, but I understood. I barely remember anything myself. So often, I am left foundering in the sea of what I don't know about my own past," I respond, daring to reach a hoof forward to lift my Princess' chin.

"Thank you for your understanding, Moon Shadow. It means so much to me," she nuzzles my cheek gently.

"Did you seek me out this evening, or did poor Sparkler's dream bring you?" I ask, afraid to hope for too much.

"Actually, I did come for you," she states, bringing a grin to my muzzle, "as terrible as her dream is, it is no worse than many another. It is one she will recover from, as I'm certain you had already ascertained."

We turn back toward the young unicorn's dream, to see that now she was cuddling up in her father's lap, with him stroking her head lovingly.

"As you no doubt see, she has started to dispel her own fears. Thanks, in part, to the help of you and your friends," the lunar Princess' smile warms my heart.

She continues, "I have come to share some good news. Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, and the others have all found each other. They are all staying at a farm owned by Applejack and her brother, in Iowa of all places."

"That's wonderful news!" I state, practically bouncing with excitement at the prospect.

"That's not all. We want to gather ponies together, especially those in need, but we've hit a bit of a problem. After talking to Twilight and the rest, we figure that news of us ponies is being suppressed by each nation's respective government."

"We kind of figured the same thing. We already know that our own government is definitely doing it," I agree.

"Indeed. Due to this, we can't just put out a call for ponies to assemble by normal means. Instead, we've decided to put out a call that will be reported without being linked to any pony," she states.

"What sort of call can you send that won't be immediately seen as a pony source?" I ask, wracking my brain for an answer to my own question.

"The Sonic Rainboom--"

"Of course! That makes perfect sense! It'll be covered by every network, because they won't have a clue as to what could have caused it. It'll let every pony that hears of it know that they aren't alone. It's brilliant..." in my continued excitement, I interrupt my mentor, "but... how will they know where to gather?"

"That brings me to the other reason I sought you out this night... I need to visit every pony dream that we can, to tell them about the farm in Iowa. But, I can't do it alone. There are simply too many dreams to visit. Will you help me in this endeavor, my student?" she asks me with tears in her eyes, almost pleading.

"Of course I'll help! It would be my honor. I wouldn't ever consider turning you down for something like this; ever. Thank you for reaching out to me," I bow deeply before my Princess.

"Oh, thank you Moon Shadow. Your actions will help many a pony, of this I am certain. I am so grateful to have you as my apprentice... assuming of course that you still wish to be considered such?" she says, a tremble to her voice.

I kneel before her, my horn touching the ground, "I most certainly would, my dear Princess. It is my greatest desire. Thank you."

"Now, get off your knees, we have work to do!" she shouts in the Royal Canterlot voice, before tearing a hole in the fabric of reality and stepping through. I shoot to my hooves and quickly follow her.