Twi-Light: The Twilight Twins

by TMH

Rating: teen
Tags: Slice of Life, Alternate Universe, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Spike, Comedy
Length: 13381

Dusk Shine is Twilight Sparkle's twin brother. They have a lot of things in common, love of magic, love of books, neurosis, but they also have some key differences, and not just what's between their hindlegs.

Dusk Shine is Twilight Sparkle's twin brother. They have a lot of things in common, love of magic, love of books, neurosis, but they also have some key differences, and not just what's between their hindlegs.

For my first new story in three years (not that I was updating the other ones) I want to try something a bit simple but with loads of possibilities. While I will be following the order of episodes of the show and going through most, if not all, of them, I promise they will be trans-formative and not simple retrots of the episodes with another purple horse hanging around.

I've often heard it said that Equestria would not survive with two Twilights running around. That just may be the case.

Published 2017-11-10 02:00:06 UTC
Last updated 2018-07-14 04:09:25 UTC

What's New With Two?

Chapter 1: What's New With Two?

☾♀☀♂☽

"Aaaaaaaaaaand...done!” Dusk Shine smiled proudly to himself as the last book in his magical grasp slotted neatly onto the end of the shelf. He’d spent the last two hours reshelving the chaos that had resulted from an intense late night study session the day previous, and he couldn’t help the fluffy, energetic feeling that sprung up inside of him as he looked over his work. Nothing in the world was better than a well shelved library!

Spike hadn’t helped at all. In fact, he’d just gotten back from the market to buy a present for Moon, uh, Sparkler? Moon Prancer? Moon Walker? Well, for somepony.

A crash from the other side of the room drew his attention, “Spike! Spi-ike! Spike?” And that was the voice of Twilight Sparkle, his sister, and twin. From her tone of voice, excited screaming, he imagined she must have something exciting to share, and trotted over to the entrance where he could just make out her conversation with Spike.

“Dusk! Have you seen Predictions and Prophecies?” Twilight asked as she ran past her brother, Spike trailing behind her staring forlornly at his broken present.

Dusk had to restrain a sigh as Twilight started pulling every book off the shelf to inspect the title before dumping them haphazardly on the floor with a series of, “No, no, no, no, no.”

“I think it’s over-” He started to say before he was interrupted.

“Found it!” Spike proclaimed from atop a ladder. Twilight’s magic immediately latched onto the book in the young dragon’s claws and brought him down along with it where he audibly impacted the floor.

“Ah! Elements, Elements, E, E, E... Aha! Elements of Harmony, see: Mare in the Moon?” Twilight looked up and tilted her head in thought.

“Mare in the Moon? But that's just an old ponies' tale.” Spike said as he started reshelving the books Twilight had thrown on the floor. Dusk Shine wondered briefly on the stereotype that males are slobs and females tidy as he trotted to his sister’s side.

“Mare...Mare...Aha! The Mare in the Moon, myth from olden pony times. A powerful pony who wanted to rule Equestria, defeated by the Elements of Harmony and imprisoned in the moon. Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about nighttime eternal!” Twilight finished with a startled gasp. “Do you know what this means?” She asked out loud as she turned away from the book and trotted over to Spike.

“That you’ve gone crazy again and are projecting fairy tales into reality?” Dusk responded, half joking and half worried for her sanity.

“No, you don’t get it!” She said as she grabbed Spike in her magic and brought him down to rest on her back, the books he was holding fell from his grasp and impacted the floor around them, “The Mare in the Moon and The Regal Sisters! They’re the same story and that story is real! And the thousandth summer solstice since Nightmare Moon’s banishment is in two days! Spike take a letter, to the Princess.”

Twilight began dictating her letter, strutting around dramatically and working around Spike’s limited vocabulary as Dusk Shine ran dates and authors through his mind. By the time Spike used his dragon magic to send the scroll off to Princess Celestia, Dusk Shine had come to an Equestria shattering conclusion, Twilight was right! “It lines up, it all lines up, Twilight you’re a genius!” He grabbed his sister, who was lightly blushing at the praise, and shook her by the shoulders excitedly until her eyeballs were rolling around in her head. He let go of her and looked to Spike, eagerly anticipating the Princess’ response.

Twilight stumbled around dizzily and tripped over a book she’d pulled out earlier. If Dusk Shine had been paying attention he would’ve been pleased at the karma.

Spike rolled his eyes at the twins’ antics, “I don’t know why you two are getting so worked up over this. Princess Celestia is really busy preparing for the Summer Sun Celebration, I wouldn’t hold my breath for a reply.”

“I’m not worried Spike, the Princess trusts me completely, in all the years she’s been my mentor she’s never once doubted me.” Twilight stated proudly, after she picked herself up off the floor. If he weren’t so excited by his sister’s revelation Dusk Shine would have pointed out the myriad times that their mutual mentor, had, in fact, doubted her.

Spike belched the Princess’ reply and Twilight walked smugly over to one of the large windows, “I knew the Princess would want to take immediate action!”

The dragon ignored her and began reading from the scroll, “My faithful student Twili-hey, woah!” Spike shouted as the scroll was torn from his hands by Dusk Shine’s magic, the sudden force carrying him face first into the ground. Spike silently thanked Celestia that he was covered in dragon scales, because if he wasn’t he was fairly sure the twins would have accidentally killed him no longer than a week after his hatching.

“My most faithful blah, blah, blah, hmm. You know that I value your diligence and trust you completely,” Dusk Shine read, rolling his eyes at the ego stroking.

“Mmm-hmm.” Twilight hummed happily, feeling vindicated.

“But you simply must stop reading those dusty old books?” Dusk Shine’s voice faltered with confusion so that the end of the sentence sounded like a question.

“What!?” Twilight shouted suddenly and galloped over to him. She bodily knocked him aside and grabbed the scroll in her own magic, eyes centimeters from the writing, studying it intently.

Dusk Shine was sent stumbling sideways and tripped over Spike, who was just picking himself back up. The two hapless males fell over one another and hit the base of a large bookcase with enough force to send a bookalanche cascading down onto them.

Twilight ignored what she was certain was a dramatic overreaction to a light tap and continued reading, “My dear Twilight, there is more to a young pony's life than studying, so I'm sending you and Dusk Shine to supervise the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration in this year's location: Ponyville. And, I have an even more essential task for both of you to complete: make some friends! Safe travel and have fun, Princess Celestia.” Twilight groaned and threw the scroll at the pile of books Spike and Dusk were now extricating themselves from.

The scroll hit Dusk in the eye and he cried out, “Ow!” and fell back into the painful, jagged hardcovers of the book sea.

Twilight was already packing, grumbling all the while.

☾♀☀♂☽

Twilight and Dusk were not happy. They were so unhappy that they were both leaning over opposite sides of the sky chariot and giving the passing countryside withering, though ineffective, scowls. “Aw, come on you two, the Princess arranged for us to stay in the town’s library, doesn’t that make you happy?” Spike tried to cheer them up, it did, but not in the way he intended.

Twilight lit up first and grinned mischievously, “Yes it does, Spike, because after we check on the festival preparations today…”

“.. we can find proof of Nightmare Moon’s return at the library!” Dusk had now joined his sister with a mischievous smirk of his own, the two delighted with the plan they’d made.

Spike resisted the urge to groan into his claw, “Will you two at least try to make some friends, like the Princess said?”

“The Princess told us to check on the festival preparations.” Dusk replied, smirk remaining.

“And as her students we will do our royal duty.” Twilight continued.

Then the two chorused together, “But the fate of Equestria does not rest on us making friends!”

Spike did groan into his claw this time, he really hoped they would quit completing each other’s thoughts like while they were in public.

The chariot touched down and the three jumped out. Twilight thanked the royal guards who had flown them while Dusk Shine fetched the checklist from his saddle bags. Twilight had her own copy as well, of course, they both had two copies, in fact, just in case.

Spike noticed a pink mare walking down the street towards them, “Maybe the ponies in Ponyville have interesting things to talk about. Just try.”

Twilight put on a polite smile and walked forward to greet the mare while Dusk kept his head in the scroll, mentally plotting the most efficient routes to their destinations from the map of Ponyville he had memorized on the flight. He looked up when a blur of pink sped past him, the wind following in its wake nearly ripping the scroll from his telekinesis, “What was that?”

Twilight frowned, “A waste of time. Let’s hurry up and get this checklist taken care of so we can get to something that actually matters.”

“Alright, I think it would be most efficient if you and Spike check in on the banquet preparations at Sweet Apple Acres and then stop by the Town Hall to check on the decorations while I look into the music and weather. We can meet at the Golden Oak Library afterwards and have plenty of time to find proof of Nightmare Moon’s return and convince the Princess when she arrives.” Dusk stated confidently, already mentally sorting through the tomes most likely to contain the information they wanted.

Twilight nodded as she put Spike on her back, “Sounds good. Hopefully not every pony in this town is nuts.” And she cantered off, heading for Sweet Apple Acres.

Dusk idly wondered what that pink mare had said to irritate his sister as he trotted towards the park. A park is a strange place to rehearse, he thought, maybe it’s an earth pony thing?

A few minutes later he had entered the park. A few ponies were out and about, some making last minute polishing touches to prepare for the festival and some simply enjoying the fine, though somewhat cloudy, day. Seems the weather team isn’t why Ponyville was chosen to host the festival.

Then a chorus of birdsong caught his ear and he headed towards the melodious sound. Emerging from some shrubbery he found a buttercream pegasus mare directing a choir of songbirds. Wow! A pegasus animal caretaker with a bird choir, that’s amazing! She must be great with animals. He’d studied animal cutie marks and magic in the past and to orchestrate this many skittish birds so well was an incredible feat.

The song stopped and the mare flew up to one of the birds, critiquing his performance it appeared. Dusk took the break in rehearsal to step out into the open and greet the mare, “Hello! I-” And the birds all scattered while the mare gasped. “Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to scare your birds.” He apologized, sheepishly.

The mare floated softly to the ground and pawed at it, looking away and avoiding eye contact.

Dusk coughed awkwardly and stuck out a hoof, “I’m Dusk Shine.” Several more seconds of awkward silence, “I’m, uh, here to check up on the festival preparations.” About twenty seconds of silence passed as the mare slowly sunk into herself, the birds had returned to their perches in the tree and were glaring at him. “Do, um, do you, have a name?” ‘Do you have a name?’ What kind of question is that? Celestia, I haven’t gotten any better at talking to mares since I was fourteen.

“...hy” The mare squeaked something that may have been an introduction, if it was twenty decibels louder.

“I’m sorry, what was that?” He asked again, blushing and feeling guilty about this flaming failure of a conversation.

The mare just squeaked like a dog toy.

“Well...I guess everything is in order here. Yup. You get Princess Celestia’s stamp of approval, hehe,” Harmony, what am I saying? “Well, I mean, not literally, the Princess doesn’t really have a stamp like that, I don’t think. I mean, she might, but if she did I think I would have seen it, or Twilight, my sister, would have,” Stop. Talking. Idiot. “Or, I guess Spike, my dragon friend, would have, well, baby dragon, he’s actually an interesting genetic specimen of…” Dusk suddenly slapped himself across the muzzle with his own hoof, the mare cowering at his hoo-

No, wait, scratch that, she was in the air and half an inch from his face, “Did you say a baby dragon!?” She screamed, well, really asked with passion at a conversational volume, but it seemed like a scream compared to the rest of what he’d seen from her.

Dusk was trying to reboot his mind from the incredible speed the shy mare had completely changed her behavior, and that she was now basically muzzle-to-muzzle with him, “Uhhhh…” He closed his gaping mouth and shook his head, “I mean, yes?”

The mare, apparently noticing their proximity and her behavior blushed heavily and fell back down to the ground. Her wings just snapped to her sides and she fell the few feet right onto her flank. The mare winced lightly at the impact and hid her face under her mane, but just when Dusk was sure she was completely comatose she spoke, “I’m...Fluttershy...could I, uhm, meet your dragon, if you don’t mind…”

Dusk actually managed to understand the pegasus, Fluttershy apparently. His cynicism surrounding the supposed urgency of making friends in Ponyville completely destroyed by his confusion regarding Fluttershy. That, and the guilt he couldn’t help but feel seeing the mare quaking in her horseshoes, destroyed his defenses, “Sure, I mean, he’s not really my dragon, he’s his own person. He tends to stick with Twilight most of the time anyway.”

Fluttershy, confidence seemingly buoyed at the prospect of meeting a dragon, nodded her head in acceptance of this information, though she apparently hadn’t garnered quite enough courage to speak again.

Dusk spoke up quickly, eager to keep the awkward silence away and to get back on schedule, “Twilight is my sister, she’s the one who hatched Spike back when we were taking our entrance exams for, uh, nevermind. How about you just drop by the,” he paused, trying to remember the name of his residence for the night, “Golden Oak Library at dusk, and I’ll introduce you to him. Does that sound alright to you, Fluttershy?”

“Oh, that sounds lovely,” Fluttershy peeked out from her mane, still blushing, and giggled, “I’ll see you at dusk, Dusk.” Fluttershy’s eyes widened as she realized how outspoken she had been to a stallion she’d just met and promptly eeped her way back behind her mane.

Dusk, blushing somewhat himself at the seeming flirt from the shy, cute mare, responded without thinking, “It’s a date!”

Fluttershy squeaked, fell completely onto her stomach, and covered her face with her hooves.

Dusk winced at his choice of words even as his own blush deepened. He started backing up with some speed and shouted, “I mean not a date, not a date, just a, a rendezvous! Er, a, uh, bye!” And he turned around and galloped away from the pegasus, What the buck is wrong with me!? I nearly gave the poor mare a heart attack! I’ll have to do something to make it up to her, flowers? NO! Absolutely not, what am I thinking? I need to forget this, focus on Nightmare Moon. That’s all that matters.

As his galloping faded into the distance, Fluttershy slowly picked herself up, gazing towards where the stallion had ran off to. Still blushing she sighed and hoofed despondently at the ground and berated herself, “Oh, Fluttershy, you floosie, you mess everything up.” One of the birds, the blue jay that had been off rhythm, landed on her back and rubbed against her neck affectionately, “Thank you, Jay-Jay, let’s get back to rehearsal.”

☾♀☀♂☽

Several minutes later Dusk was trotting around Ponyville, craning his neck all around and up and down to try and spot the town’s Chief Weathermare, Rainbow Dash. Also, the only permanent weatherpony employed by the town. Considering the state of the sky at the moment, Dusk began to wonder if this Rainbow Dash character had some kind of blackmail material on the mayor.

That’s when a train hit his flank and he went rolling over himself until he hit a wall. He came to rest upside down with his back against the wall and his horn digging into the dirt, thankfully his tail fell between his legs and covered what most separated him from his sister, and his face. His body ached and he let out a very masculine whine.

“Oh, don’t be such a sissy, I barely even tapped you.” Came a scratchy mare’s voice, apparently the one who had thrown him like he was Smarty Pants, “Here, let me help you up,” then laughed mischievously.

Before Dusk could respond she bit down on his tail and with quite a bit of force pulled his hind legs out of the air and to the ground, she kept pulling and dragged him a few feet by his tail. His horn dug a furrow in the dirt as he was dragged along before he managed to get his forelegs under him and stand up. The mare let go of his tail and he slapped her across the face with it, she was lucky he didn’t buck her! “What in Celestia’s name is wrong with you!?”

He turned to face the mare, a cerulean pegasus with a prismatic mane, the incompetent weatherpony more than likely. Dusk revised his opinion of her to add “assault and battery,” alongside, “probable blackmailer,” and, “incompetent.” She was rubbing at the fresh welt his tail had given her across the cheek, “What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with you!? You whipped me with your tail!” She accused.

“After you rammed into me, bit my tail, and dragged me across the dirt!” Dusk fumed. Was this mare really trying to say he was somehow at fault here?

“I barely tapped you! It’s not my fault you fall over like a leaf!”

His pride assaulted, years of playground insults leaping out of memory to help, he shot back, “What if I had been a foal? You could have seriously hurt a child!”

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes and her cheek smarted at the action, “I would have flown straight over a foal, I was high enough.”

“That’s not the point! You were being reckless. Not to mention you’re completely neglecting your duty.” Dusk Shine tried to keep a lid on his anger, but this mare had riled him up like he thought only unsolvable theorems could.

Rainbow stomped her hoof at the accusation and glared at him, “I am not neglecting my duty! I could clear this sky in a jiffy, I was just taking some time to practice, so stuff a hoof in it...uh,” Her other cheek flushed to match the welt on its counterpart, “What’s your name, again?”

Dusk snorted, “Dusk Shine, personal student of Princess Celestia and representing her here to check the festival preparations. You’re Rainbow Dash, correct? And what were you practicing? Whatever it was, it certainly wasn’t related to your job.”

Rainbow bit back a growl as she had a breakdown on the inside, Oh horsefeathers, you’ve done it now, Dash, this guy’s important, he could probably get the Princess to put me in prison or something. Or worse, keep me out of the Wonderbolts! But despite her fear, her pride wouldn’t let her apologize to a pony she’d just met, one that had insulted her and tail whipped her! Even if she had, kind of, maybe, possibly, deserved it. So she fell back on her tried and true technique to get out of trouble, showing off her awesomeness, “I could clear this sky in ten seconds flat, bub. In fact, why don’t you take a seat so you won’t fall flat on your flanks after seeing the Rainbow Dash in action.”

Dusk Shine scoffed, “You couldn’t clear this sky in...ten...years…” he trailed off as the last bits of white fluff dissipated into the air. The mare had massacred the clouds so fast that if he had blinked he’d have missed half the action, and, if anything, it had taken her less than ten seconds. Judging by the pure smug radiating off the pegasus hovering before him, she knew that too.

“Hehehe, don’t be embarrassed, that’s the reaction most ponies have when they get their first taste of the Rainbow.” I need to stop referring to myself in the third person, Dash thought to herself. The stallion sat on his rump before her, having fallen on his flanks as she predicted, picked the bottom half of his muzzle off the ground and tried desperately to find some kind of come back, “As much as I’d love to sit around here and bask in your amazement, I got places to be and naps to take. I’ll catch you around Dusk Shine, you got spunk, for a unicorn stallion.” She gave him a shameless simper and flew on, confident she’d blown his mind. Hopefully enough to keep me on this side of a dungeon.

Dusk simply stared off into space, not even watching the pegasus as she flew off. His mind was fully occupied trying to comprehend what he had just witnessed, and the only conclusion he could come to was that that mare was the best flyer and cloudkicker he’d ever seen. So she’s not incompetent, and probably not blackmailing the mayor, but she’s still a bitch. He thought as he got back onto his hooves and hobbled toward the town library, his hindquarters crying out in pain and demanding revenge against the mare.

☾♀☀♂☽

On the way to his temporary abode Dusk Shine spotted Twilight and Spike making their own way through the streets of Ponyville. As he approached them he couldn’t help but notice that they both looked gorged, Twilight looked like she had just gotten back from the spa, and Spike was gazing dreamily off into the sky. Figures.

“Hey! Twilight!” He called as he trotted over.

Twilight looked towards him, her face stopping halfway to a smile before reversing and settling on a frown of worry and disgust, “Dusk, what happened to you?” She asked, the dirt in his mane and throughout his coat and the limp in his hindlegs quite noticeable.

“Oh, who? Me? Nothing much happened to me, just doing my royal duty is all. Why don’t you tell me about your day? It looks like it was very relaxing.” He asked with sarcasm and a tinge of hysteria.

Twilight was about to press him for details, but Spike interrupted her before she could, his lovestruck state keeping him from picking up on social cues, “It was pretty great, we did some taste testing at Sweet Apple Acres, and we must have tried at least one of every kind of apple based food there is, it was delicious. And then we went to the town hall and met the most beautiful mare in Equestria…” he trailed off, obviously lost in his memories.

“Is that right? And what did this mare do? Full spa treatment? You’re positively glowing Twilight.” Dusk said, with far too much enthusiasm, Twilight thought.

“Well, uh, Rarity is in charge of decorations and once we met her at the town hall we started talking and once she found out I was from Canterlot she insisted on giving me a, um, a makeover, and well, she gave me a dress too, as a gift, I tried to refuse bu-” Twilight was cut off from her sheepish admissions.

“Well isn’t that lovely? I nearly gave a pegasus mare a heart attack, thoroughly embarrassed myself, was bodily assaulted by another pegasus mare, dragged through the dirt, insulted, humiliated again, and I didn’t get a buffet or a dress!” Dusk fumed, mentally slapping himself for the dress remark.

Spike snickered at the hapless stallion while Twilight put a hoof under his muzzle and forced his gaze up from the ground to look at her, “Hey, why don’t we go get you a bath and some lunch? I’m sure Spike wouldn’t mind making it,” She said pointedly to the dragon on her back, who was looking appropriately remorseful from the little scolding, “and then we can finish our research into Nightmare Moon, convince the Princess, and get back home. Okay?” Twilight smiled hopefully at him.

Dusk nodded and fell in beside his twin as she resumed walking, “Sorry for blowing up at you, it’s been a rough day, and I just can’t believe the Princess is acting so flippant about everything! We should be in Canterlot putting together counterspells for Nightmare Moon’s magic and getting Shining to organize the guard! Not playing bureaucrat errand colt and running around this backwater earth pony village.” Dusk Shine stomped his hooves for emphasis as he walked, venting his frustrations not very discreetly judging by the stares the trio got from the few ponies around.

Twilight frowned slightly at her brother’s outburst, sharing his frustration, but also a bit upset at the bit of tribalism he let slip at the end. I know he doesn’t really mean it, but, ah nevermind, I don’t have time to worry about this right now. She banished the thought, and all the attached memories she’d rather not dwell on, from her mind and focused on the only important thing, Nightmare Moon, well, that and getting Dusk a bath. She thought, nosing wrinkling as the stench of sweat hit her.

A few minutes passed in silence, Spike daydreaming, Dusk groaning in pain, and Twilight feeling too awkward to say anything, before they reached the Golden Oak Library. Twilight thought it looked pretty nice, if a bit modest compared to their tower in Canterlot.

“I hope the collection is more impressive than the building.” Dusk Shine was less impressed, but Twilight thought that was probably just the frustration talking.

“Well let’s get inside then,” Twilight took the initiative and walked up to the door, she levitated the key they’d been given from her saddlebags, but quickly found the door was already unlocked, “That’s kind of strang-”

Whatever else she might have said was lost in a scream of, “Surprise!” and a pelting of confetti as the pink mare from earlier pulled the door open as soon as Twilight pushed it forward.

Twilight, Spike, and Dusk were all taken by surprise. Twilight instinctually reared up on her hind legs which caused Spike to tumble off of her back. The dragon desperately flailed his arms to find some purchase for the purpose of rescheduling his date with the ground and managed to get a claw around Dusk Shine’s horn. Dusk Shine, who had jumped back at the party ambush, yelped as Spike’s sharp claws scraped against his horn. This caused him to rear back on his hindlegs himself, which put too much strain on his injured hindquarters, a fact his hindquarters were all too happy to inform him off. So as his hindlegs gave out beneath him he crumpled forward and planted his face firmly into the unyielding bark of the Golden Oak Library. Spike, swinging around Dusk’s horn with one claw, found himself on a trajectory that lead to a similar fate, but his hard dragon scales saved him from the bleeding muzzle Dusk Shine now sported.

The pink mare had enough decency to look guilty, “Eh, hehe, I guess maybe too surprised.”

Author's Note

If any of the people who followed me three years or so ago are still alive: Hi! I know more than likely you've totally forgotten about me and the trash I wrote back then, but thanks bunches for coming back to read my new trash!

To anyone new who might stumble across this story: Hi! I hope you enjoyed the first chapter and aren't hysterically ripping your eyeballs out of your head after reading it.

To all: please leave any critique, funny jokes, unfunny jokes, unsolicited political views, and declarations of amorous intent down below!

Thanks for your time!

From Dusk...

Chapter 2: From Dusk...

☾♀☀♂☽

Dusk Shine waded through the crowd of ponies in the library like an ancient soldier who had just survived a warmage’s spell, spell-shocked, the history books called it. His head ached, from the tip of his horn to the deepest reaches of his brain where the pain then radiated out in waves and pooled in his bruised and slightly bleeding muzzle. The pink mare ahead of him chattered like a battery of repeating ballistae and forced the bulk of his consciousness to remain deep in cover for fear of being reduced to unsalvageable mush by the mad mare, he was thus left in a dazed state.

A shifting weight from his back indicated that Spike had taken residence there, recovering from his own wounds. His steadily recovering mind was just beginning to question why Twilight was putting hot sauce on a cupcake when he caught a blur of yellow and pink speeding towards him in his peripheral vision. Brace for impact! He commanded his sluggish body.

But instead of yet another slam of a sojourn to the wall or floor he felt a pair of soft hooves lift Spike off his back. He opened his eyes gingerly, taking care not to disturb his muzzle wound, and found Fluttershy hovering just beside him, cradling Spike in her arms and looking him over with a professional eye. After a few moments she turned to look at Dusk with an intensity and resolve that was totally unlike the mare he had met just a couple hours earlier, “How did this happen?” She asked softly but firmly.

It took Dusk a few seconds to fully comprehend the question; a combination of his still aching head and surprise at Fluttershy’s boldness. When he did process the inquiry he pointed a hoof tiredly at Pinkie Pie who appeared to be gorging herself on cupcakes doused in hot sauce. Dusk was too tired to question it.

A spark of understanding came to Fluttershy’s eyes and her stare lost most of its intensity, “Oh, well I know she didn’t mean it, but I’ve asked Pinkie so many times to be more careful with her surprises when animals are around.”

“Hey! Who are you calling an animal?” Spike demanded, apparently having finally realized he was not on Dusk’s back.

“Oh my, you can talk! I didn’t know dragons could talk!” Fluttershy gushed and blushed before setting Spike down.

Dusk heard Spike respond, but he was too busy scanning the party for Twilight to actually register what the drake said. He filed away his surprise at Fluttershy’s ignorance of dragons as another piece of evidence of Ponyville’s backwater status.

With a start, his full mental faculties returned to him and he remembered Twilight eating a hot sauce covered cupcake a couple of minutes ago. Suspecting that that had likely not agreed with her, he absconded from the sea of party ponies and ascended the stairs to follow her, leaving Spike adrift.

☾♀☀♂☽

“Oh my, you can talk! I didn’t know dragons could talk!” Fluttershy gushed and blushed as she set Spike down.

“Oh, uh, well… we can.” Spike responded, craning his head to look for Twilight or Dusk.

“Wow, this is just so, so amazing! Oh, where are my manners? I’m Fluttershy, you’re Spike, right?” Fluttershy all but squee’d, her wings beat excitedly against her sides and she leaned down towards Spike, eyes wide in amazement.

Spike leaned back from the mare, nervously rubbing the back of his neck with a claw, his eyes shooting around desperately for any sign of his purple ponies, “Eh, hehe, yep, that’s me, Spike the dragon at your service! What can I do for you?”

“I have so many questions about dragons! I’ve always wanted to know more about them, about you! What do you eat? Do you hibernate? Do you mate for life? Why are you in Ponyville? How’d you meet Dusk Shine? I want to know everything!” Fluttershy reared up on her hind legs and clapped her forehooves together happily, oblivious to Spike’s discomfort and the stares from nearby ponies that normally would have petrified her.

“Uhhhh…” Spike tried to process the flurry of questions, Fluttershy’s intense stare made him feel like a sample on one of Twilight’s microscope slides, “Well, I guess we’ll have a while,” Spike grumbled at Dusk’s betrayal, “so we might as well start at the beginning...

☾♀☀♂☽

Dusk emerged from the stairway into the bedroom. He looked around the room confused at the absence of his sister. I know I saw her come up here. He opened his mouth to call her, “Twi-” but was cut off by a book falling on his head. “Ow!” He rubbed at his newest wound and looked up to find Twilight on the second floor of the room going through the books on the inset shelves, discarding the impertinent ones in her trademarked haphazard style.

For a bibliophile, Dusk thought she was supremely abusive to books, like a book sadist.

Twilight stopped and looked down when she heard Dusk and sheepishly smiled when she saw him rubbing at his head, “Sorry.”

Dusk waved her off, “It’s fine. You find anything useful so far?” He looked around the cozy wooden interior with clear disdain, “It doesn’t look like much of a collection…”

Twilight shrugged and floated a few books down to him which he grabbed with his own magic and began inspecting, “A few interesting ones, earth pony and pegasus legends and myths mostly. There’s not much new regarding Nightmare Moon, but it corroborates a lot of what we already thought. I’m surprised our collection in Canterlot didn’t have these.” She said, muzzle deep in a new book.

Dusk Shine skimmed through them briefly before setting them down softly next to the spread of books that had fallen from Twilight’s perch. He took a few new tomes from the bookshelf next to him and started reading through them.

The twins went on like that for many hours, excepting a small break where Dusk took a much needed bath and applied a healing spell to himself, and steadily made their way through the rare and protected books housed in the resident librarian’s personal quarters. All the while the Moon rose eagerly.

Eventually Spike hopped his way up the stairs, a lampshade adorning his head, “I really shouldn’t be surprised that you two would read through your own welcome party, but come on!” Spike shook his head when Dusk’s and Twilight’s ears swiveled towards him but their gazes remained solidly trained on their books, “Everypony is going to the town hall for the sunrise and if Princess Celestia doesn’t see you guys there I’m pretty sure she’s not going to be happy.”

Dusk put his book down and rubbed at his eyes, sighing. He glanced out the window at the Moon and became lost in thought staring at the Mare in the Moon. Are you real? Or are we just making fools of ourselves? The Moon did not answer his thoughts.

He was pulled out of his staring contest with the Moon by Twilight’s hoof prodding his side, “Come on Dusk, I don’t think we’re going to find out anything useful about the Elements of Harmony tonight, and, well, we should probably be with the Princess if we are right.” Twilight said, her voice wavering a bit in fear, but her eyes burning with determination and curiosity. Not for the first time, Dusk considered his twin probably would have done quite well in the Royal Guard. If only Shining had pestered her about it every day when we were foals.

Dusk followed his sister down the stairs, Spike resting on her back and berating her for ignoring what was in his view a literal Celestia-given order to party. Dusk frowned as he fell back into his thoughts, If Nightmare Moon is real, can we really stop her? Can the Princess? She beat her once, but at what price? Will we be caught in the crossfire? Doubt and fear wormed deeper into the stallion’s heart, and he hurried his step to fall in right beside his sister, so close they brushed against each other as they walked.

Twilight smiled when she felt Dusk brush up against her. She briefly considered making a verbal jab at him, but it was more out of sibling teasing reflex than anything else. She knew he was as scared as she was, and the physical contact was calming to them both. It’ll be fine, she thought to herself as they approached the town hall, I’m sure the Princess is prepared for anything, she probably just didn’t want us to worry. Twilight spared one last glance to the Moon before they stepped into Ponyville’s town hall. She shivered at the moonlight.

☾♀☀♂☽

Dusk was impressed with the decor inside the town hall. It was bright and cheerful, which he thought would clash with the rustic, earthy tones of the town hall, but instead they popped quite artfully from the backdrop. Bringing his focus back down he found that Twilight had led them over to a group of ponies. They had been called over by the pink one, Pinkie Pie, he remembered from the mare’s hyper-spastic introduction at the ambush she called a party.

Alongside Pinkie Pie was an orange earth pony and a white unicorn, both mares, and Rainbow Dash, oh joy. Rainbow, hovering a few feet above the rest, grinned at him and whipped her tail in the air. The meaning of the action was completely lost on Dusk.

She had just opened her mouth to speak when Pinkie bounced into the air excitedly and temporarily blocked their line of sight, “Hey Twilight, hey Dusk, hey Spike! I’m really, really, super-duper, extra sorry about accidentally scaring you and making you face plant into a tree and almost break your muzzle, Dusk! I make a cupcake for you that says that!” She hoofed over a cupcake which Dusk took in his magic and inspected. There was an intricate design of frosting on it which may have read that if put under a microscope. The scent of peppermint, strawberry, and vanilla reminded him that he had not eaten since leaving Canterlot that morning, and he ate the cupcake with gusto. Sweet Celestia that’s the best cupcake I’ve ever eaten! No wonder the royal kitchens hire so many earth ponies!

Finished with his treat Dusk noticed Twilight being introduced to Rainbow Dash, his sister evidently unimpressed with the latter’s ego if her eye roll was any indication. He thought he saw Pinkie putting away a folder into her saddlebags, but before he could blink she was just grinning widely at him, evidently pleased he enjoyed her apology offering. His muzzle had still ached as he had eaten the cupcake, but considering the bliss he’d felt eating it, Dusk decided Pinkie was most definitely a pony he wanted to be on good terms with, and so smiled back at her.

“Pinkie Pie sure is something, ain’t she?” The orange earth pony mare drawled as she approached Dusk, smiling and extending a hoof towards him, “Ah’m Applejack, pleased as punch to meetcha, Mr. Dusk Shine!”

It took Dusk a second to realize she was offering her hoof to shake, a peculiar earth pony tradition he remembered being quite common in their traditional towns, and so he extended his own. She looked quizzically at him for a second before she raised her other foreleg to grasp his extended one with both her front hooves and shook him vigorously. After she had released him, and his vision settled from the intense rattling, he smiled as best he could past his sore muzzle, “Ah, please, Dusk is just fine, Ms. Applejack.”

Applejack snorted, “Ain’t no, ‘miss,’ about it sugar cube. Applejack or AJ is just fine with me, hon.”

“Well then, Applejack, it’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance. I understand your farm is providing the catering for the festival?” Dusk asked, making small talk.

“Sure as sugar are! And your sister is just the sweetest thing, I know how you un-er high society folks are so formal, but she took the whole Apple family’s hospitality just as polite as you please, and that’s not an easy ask even for an Apple!” Applejack chuckled, trying to hide her little slip of tribalism.

Dusk didn’t mind however, “She’s certainly something else.” Dusk agreed as he scanned around the town hall. He wasn’t quite certain what he was looking for, but he was too on edge to focus his eyes on any one spot for too long.

“Y’know, Rainbow Dash had quite the tale about meeting you, and I got to say that anypony that can give that mare a good tail across the face is alright by me.” Applejack looked over her shoulder as if to confirm the red mark was still on Rainbow Dash’s cheek and snickered, “She’s a right mess, that mare, but she’s our mess. Best weatherpony in the province I reckon.”

Dusk cringed slightly when he saw the welt on Rainbow’s cheek. He briefly felt guilty and wanted to go and apologize to her, but that feeling was quickly joined, then overtaken, by a righteous indignation, “Yes, well, she’s certainly a safety hazard if nothing else. Did she mention the part where she struck me like a runaway cart, knocked me into a wall, and then drug me by the tail through the dirt for forty hooves?” Dusk asked somewhat irately.

Applejack laughed and righted the stetson she was wearing, “Now that sounds more like the truth than what Rainbow would’ve had me and Rarity believe.” She dropped her smile to just a grin and spoke more seriously, but still friendly, “I know she can be a whole four hooves to handle, but she means well. She’s always done right by Sweet Apple Acres and Ponyville. Please keep that in mind before you might go and get too upset with ‘er.”

Dusk bristled internally at the notion that he could be assaulted and humiliated and yet somehow he was the one getting the warning. Still, he had to admit the mare was stellar at her job, “Provided she doesn’t use me as an extreme dartboard again, I won’t make any report concerning the incident.”

Applejack smiled a little brighter, “That’s all I could ask, hon. Now, why don’t I introduce you to Rarity. Apparently she and Twilight got along famously, course, Rarity would have you believe she gets along famously with everypony, ‘specially the famous.” Applejack chuckled, but Dusk thought he detected some distaste in her tone.

Seems like social mechanics in bumpkin-ville aren’t that different from Canterlot, all smiles and gossip. Only difference is that nopony here matters. Great Harmony I hope I don’t die in this town. Dusk thought as he followed Applejack towards Twilight, Spike, Rarity and Rainbow Dash. Pinkie Pie had disappeared off somewhere. Probably to refill on amphetamines.

As they got closer, everypony turned to greet them, Spike, however, seemed to have his gaze glued to the figure of, presumably, Rarity. Well that’s one thing I can safely file away as, “Twilight’s problem.”

She was quite beautiful. A pristine and finely maintained coat, luxurious and clearly beloved mane and tail, a strong and delicately ridged horn, and sharp sapphire eyes that were fiercely intelligent. All in all, she wouldn’t have looked that out of place in Canterlot. Her shorter and stockier frame, along with a slightly shorter than average horn, spoke of earth pony blood in her lineage, however, and that would not be something missed by the ponies of Canterlot, noble and lowborn alike.

“Howdy everypony, Rarity, this here’s Dusk Shine, Twilight’s brother, Dusk Shine, Rarity, Ponyville’s prissiest pony.” Rainbow snickered from behind Rarity at AJ’s jab.

Rarity shot the farm pony a venomous glare before she quickly collected herself and fluttered her eyes at Dusk, “It’s such a pleasure to meet you, Dusk Shine. Twilight is such a dear and I just know you must be as well!”

Dusk Shine felt no awkwardness or interest from the obvious flirt, because unlike the pitiful, endearing, and, above all, earnest nature of his encounter with Fluttershy the day before, this was a social scenario he was plenty familiar with.

House Sparkle-Shine was a respected family among Canterlot’s aristocracy, with all the privilege and responsibility that entailed. Shining Armor, while chief heir and scion, had long been busy with his military and Guard duties, not to mention his courtship of the most sought after mare in Equestria, and so dear old mother and father had left him to his own devices for many years. Twilight had always been, well, Twilight, and had shown an interest in petty politics and schmoozing that was directly proportional to the number of eminent scholars in attendance. Considering her exceptional magical potential and preponderous intellect, dear old mother and father had left her mostly to her own devices as well. But somepony had to represent the new generation of the family to Canterlot’s social scene, and that somepony had been Dusk Shine. His appreciation for his role had always been mixed, but he’d become rather good at it all the same.

So it hadn’t even been the third flutter of her eyes when Dusk realized what Rarity was: a small town unicorn who dreamed of making it big among her tribe’s high society and saw eligible bachelor Dusk Shine as her meal ticket. Years of dealing with similar mares trying to claw their way up the social ladder through him had heavily colored his perception of courtship, among the unicorn nobility you married for titles, not the names attached to them, and so he saw no honesty in her, whether there was any or not.

For a fleeting moment he thought about ruining her. Considering she was being so forward with him she obviously had no real training or experience in unicorn noble politics, or she was desperate enough not to care that she, a lowborn of no notable renown, was initiating courtship with a son of a prominent noble family. And she was obviously not well liked by the rough and earthy denizens of Ponyville if Applejack and Rainbow Dash were any indication. A smooth rejection, a subtle shunning, and a pointed reminder of relative social station and it’d be over. She’d be embarrassed in front of ponies she no doubt thought herself superior to and her dreams of high society would be shattered.

He held power of fortune and failure over her, and she barely understood that if she understood it at all. All the frustration and pain of the previous day, the contempt for the backwater town and its uncouth inhabitants, and the fear of Nightmare Moon welled up inside him and he tried to find enough anger to hurt her.

But he couldn’t. This mare before him would have hardly fared better in Canterlot than Applejack, she was almost childlike in that regard. She had clearly worked hard to make the town hall as presentable as it could be for Princess Celestia, and she had treated Twilight well, even if it was ultimately for self serving reasons, at least in Dusk's mind. Looking at Rarity just made Dusk Shine want to be home, petty politics and all, instead of being about to face down a creature of literal nightmares in Ponyville, so he decided to humor her.

Plus, she was pretty cute.

Dusk Shine gently guided one of Rarity’s pristine forehooves up with one of his own and kissed it gently. “The pleasure is all mine, Ms. Rarity.” He said with such overdone sincerity that Twilight had to restrain herself from rolling her eyes.

The rest of the assembled ponies, and sole lovestruck dragon, didn’t detect Dusk’s false, almost condescending, insincerity.

Rarity blushed heavily and giggled, surprised and elated. It never crossed her mind that she had been socially sized up and discarded in less time than it took her to introduce herself.

Dusk looked away from Rarity, who was still trying to come up with a response, and looked toward Twilight. She appeared somewhat amused at his antics, but she still glanced around the crowded room anxiously. Spike, on the other hoof, looked betrayed and ready to kill.

Oh. Oh! I'm an idiot! How could I forget about that! This is what happens when I get cocky even for a moment! Dusk chided himself and looked sheepishly at Spike, mouthing his apology. Spike merely huffed and turned away. Something to worry about later. Assuming anypony survived today.

It was then that Dusk Shine realized the ceremony had started. He saw Fluttershy up above with her avian choir and when the mayor finished her canned speech they tweeted out their fanfare and the curtains drew back revealing Princess Celestia in all her glory!

Or, at least, that’s what Dusk told himself was going to happen.

But when the curtains did slip away they revealed the most terrifying emptiness Dusk Shine had ever seen. He felt numb and distant as panicked ponies shouted the Princess’ absence.

And when a whirl of smoke and shadow seething with magic enough to make his horn practically vibrate coalesced into the form of the monster from foal's stories? He fell back onto his rump, stunned.

He was vaguely aware of Spike fainting and falling off Twilight’s back.

Some isolated part of his mind filed away how Rainbow Dash nearly flew headlong into what would have surely been her death had Applejack not restrained her.

When Nightmare Moon launched into a brief tirade and was then interrupted by Pinkie, he unconsciously inched away from her, expecting an incoming bolt of lightning.

Dusk closed his eyes and for the first time in his life he really felt his heart beat. He focused on that sound and resigned himself to whatever fate lay in store for him.

But then a sound cut through his fear-induced zen like a fire alarm through a firefighter’s daydream, his sister's voice. He opened his eyes and found Twilight had stepped past the herd of cowering ponies to answer Nightmare Moon’s challenge to name her.

Suddenly, Dusk Shine found himself beside his sister. Like a slideshow cutting from one frame to the next. He didn’t remember moving. But, as he stared up into a face that radiated malice enough to burn and felt his sister trembling next to him, yet standing strong all the same, he knew why he had moved without any thought. It was pure instinct.

Whatever his fate, he’d face it at her side.

Author's Note

Surprise! :pinkiehappy:

Yup, I'm not dead, and neither is this story! Crazy, I know! I'm really bad at being consistent with my stuff on Fimfiction, but I really am trying to get into a better writing habit. Hopefully the next update won't take like six months. :twilightblush:

I've proofread this chapter a couple times but I might've missed something here or there, so please let me know if you find some mistake!

Hope you guys enjoyed and leave any questions for me down below!

Ciao!

...Through the Night...

Chapter 3: ...Through the Night...

☾♀☀♂☽

The moonlight had never felt quite so intimidating to Dusk as he galloped down the streets of Ponyville. At some point along the journey from the town hall to the Golden Oak Library Dusk had managed to snap out of complete autopilot, and in his mind he ran through the events that had transpired only a couple of minutes ago again and again, desperate to find some excuse to deny it had really happened. But it had.

Princess Celestia was gone. He refused to consider the full implications of what that might mean. If Celestia was dead, if she could even be killed, then they were already doomed, even if they could devise some way to defeat Nightmare Moon.

He caught sight of the tree just over the rooftops and looked back to check that Twilight and Spike were still with him. A tension he hadn’t even realize he’d been holding dispersed as he confirmed they were.

That relief gained, Dusk put his eyes back on the road in front of him, just in time to catch a glimpse of an overturned cart that had been carelessly left on the side of the street. The incredible stress he was under summoned grace and strength he hadn’t known he possessed, and in less than a blink of an eye he was in the air, easily clearing the obstacle and landing on the other side with no loss of speed but a very undignified neigh.

Approaching the Golden Oak, Dusk started to brake while opening the door with his magic. He didn’t quite judge it right and stumbled into the library, knocking his hooves on the door frame. He was forced into a quick circuit of the room to avoid impacting the walls, slowing from a full gallop to a nervous prance, and he was only just able to avoid Twilight as she entered in a similar fashion.

“We only have one chance…” Twilight muttered nervously, almost whinnied really, as she scanned the bookshelves of the first floor, occasionally tossing a book to the ground after closer inspection revealed it to be impertinent.

Dusk, doing the same but with the occasional glance to the window replied, “If they’re real…”

“Nightmare Moon obviously is, and most of our primary sources mention both.”

“Roselight’s Compendium of Classical Equestrian Legends specifically treats them as a myth, though.”

“But Highlight’s Collection of Lesser Known Equestrian History is a far more reliable source, we’ve been over this! Plus Roselight-”

“-is given to bias against those legends from the political pressures of fourth century revisionism, I know, but-”

“-she still has the most complete and well-sourced research, I know. We’ll just have to hope.”

The two siblings had dedicated only their ears and mouths to their argument, both having kept their eyes solidly glued to the spines of the books under their care, searching desperately for The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide. A book Twilight had found listed in the library’s catalog just before they’d had to leave for the Sunrise.

Twilight felt a shifting weight on her back and reflexively grabbed a dozing Spike in her telekinesis before he impacted the ground. She frowned and ran to the stairs, sprinting up them two at a time she shouted down to Dusk, “I’m going to put Spike to bed. I’ll be right back!”

Dusk didn’t take the time to respond as he continued the search, his mind racing through the multitude of criteria they used to organize their collection back home: publication date, number of sources, field of inquiry, complexity of proofs, and so on. “Elements of Harmony, where are you?” He spoke absentmindedly.

“And just what are the Elements of Harmony?” Came a familiar, and grating, female voice from behind him.

He didn’t turn away from his search. The combination of stress, fear, and his own dislike for the mare caused him to snap at her however, “I don’t have the time or the patience to deal with yo-”

“And how did your sister know about Nightmare Moon, huh? Are you two spies? I bet-whoa!” Dash was cut off by Applejack pulling her down by her tail and she impacted the ground roughly.

Dusk turned towards the sound and found Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie entering the library. Oh, and Fluttershy, but she was managing to hide herself fairly well behind the others. Rainbow was rubbing her newly sore flank and glaring at Applejack who returned a stern gaze to the pegasus, “Simmer down there Sally. They ain’t no spies, but I reckon they do have an idea what’s going on, don’t you?” She addressed Dusk Shine.

“Yes, yes we do. As you all might have surmised, Nightmare Moon is quite real and has returned. She’s defeated Princess Celestia, somehow, and has now, presumably, run off to find the only thing that can stop her, the Elements of Harmony. That is, if they exist at all, we’re still a bit fuzzy on that. There should be a reference guide to them, their myth at least, somewhere here but this library’s sorting system is still alien to m-”

“Found it! The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide!” Pinkie proclaimed cheerily, hoisting the very tome aloft in her pink hoof.

Dusk Shine was astounded she had discovered it nearly immediately and ran over. He immediately took it out of her grasp with his magic and started flipping through the pages, glancing through it to get a quick grasp on its contents, “How’d you know where to look?”

Pinkie Pie, smiling like the world wasn’t in the early stages of oblivion, replied melodiously, “It was under ‘E’~”

Dusk’s gaze flew to her, mouth slightly agape in disbelief, “This library is sorted alphabetica-LLY!” He asked bewildered, until the end of the sentence when Twilight, who had returned from upstairs, noticed the book and galloped over to him at full speed, knocking him off his hooves and into the wall, and took it into her own magic.

She was apparently completely ignorant, or indifferent, to her brother’s latest slapstick wall slam and immediately had her muzzle in the book. Rainbow Dash snickered at the stallion as he groaned and got to his hooves. Applejack rolled her eyes while smirking. Rarity looked aghast. Pinkie was too busy reading over Twilight’s shoulder to care.

Dusk, for his part, merely groaned in pain and shot Twilight a venomous glare that she didn’t notice whatsoever. He was about to get up when Fluttershy’s face, half hidden behind her mane and radiating concern, suddenly appeared a couple of hooves in front of him, “Oh my, are you okay, Dusk?” She asked and offered a hoof to help him up.

Dusk grabbed it, noting that she was stronger than he expected, and got back onto his hooves. He glanced over to his sister, who was now explaining Nightmare Moon and the Elements of Harmony to the other mares, and sighed, “Yeah, I’ll be alright. When you live with someone as powerful, reckless, and distrait as Twilight you get use to the occasional punting. Although I do think I’ve gone a bit over my quota in the last several hours.” Dusk chuckled amiably and turned his attention to Fluttershy.

“Oh...” She didn’t seem to know what to say to that, and so she settled on pawing the ground and retreating further behind her mane while lightly blushing at the attention, although she did smile softly.

“...and that’s why we’re going to the Everfree Forest!” Twilight announced confidently while the other mares gasped.

“Oh my…” Fluttershy whispered from behind her new Dusk Shine shaped cover.

“Well, at least I’ll die with mares that aren’t my sister, more than I ever really expected. Ponyville has really been everything I’d hoped it would be.” Dusk muttered sarcastically mostly to himself as he gathered his saddlebags, but somewhere he hoped Celestia could sense his displeasure.

☾♀☀♂☽

Somewhere along the journey from the Golden Oak Library to the edge of the Everfree Forest Twilight and Dusk had become the pointponies for the ragtag group’s foray into the most infamous and dangerous region within Equestria.

That promptly changed when Pinkie Pie bounced jubilantly into the air and overtook the twins, “Whee! Let’s go! I gotta get Black Snooty’s birthday!”

Twilight spoke up before the marbles missing mare could run headlong to her untimely demise, “I appreciate the sentiment Pinkie Pie, but I think my brother and I should be the ones to handle this. We may not be guards but we can handle ourselves, and as Princess Celestia’s students we have a royal duty to protect Her and Equestria, I think. I need to brush up on The Complete Rules and Regulations Concerning Celestial Pupils, actually, now that I think about it…” Twilight trailed off and levitated her saddlebags in front of her and began searching through them.

Dusk sighed and resisted the strong urge to facehoof. The aforementioned rules books Twilight was searching for was made specifically for her by Princess Celestia after one too many late nights discussing exactly what their role as her pupils entailed. He was pretty sure it was the four hour discussion about a hypothetical grandfather paradox caused parallel universe thaumic hyper-influx recursion matrix scenario that was the proverbial backbreaking straw. For a self proclaimed “serious academician,” Twilight was obsessed with time travel, parallel universes, and other magic-fiction, Dusk thought.

Regardless, however, this was certainly going to be a very dangerous, suicidal really, mission, and Twilight was right in saying that this was actually their responsibility. Shining Armor and the rest of the leadership of the Royal Guard commanders would definitely already know something was wrong considering it was over an hour past sunrise and it was dark as midnight, not to mention the guards stationed in Ponyville for the festival had surely already sent word to Canterlot of Nightmare Moon’s return.

Ergo, literally the entire Guard were, or shortly would be, on their way to Ponyville. Moving that many troops would take hours, though, hours that Nightmare Moon would be spending searching for the Elements of Harmony. And if she got her hooves on them, well, considering their close relation to Princess Celestia, Dusk was pretty sure a lifetime in the oubliette was the best he and his family could hope for.

So as much as I’d like to claim I’m being brave for the sake of all ponykind the reality is that if we don’t stop Nightmare Moon I’m dead, or worse, anyway. Harmony, if I survive this I’m going to buck Celestia across the muzzle. Dusk turned to address the five mares that had spent the last few seconds staring at his sister like she was crazy, “What my attention-span-of-a-goldfish sister is trying to say is that this is going to be very, very dangerous. We’re both powerful mages that can handle ourselves, and if Nightmare Moon wins we’re both going to be targeted anyway. You five, no offense, are just regular ponies, if things do go her way you’ll probably have a strong chance of living unbothered by her. There’s no reason for you girls to put yourselves in danger.”

Applejack shook her head and smirked, then straightened her stetson, “Listen here sugarcube, what you’re saying is mighty noble and whatnot, but I’ll let Sweet Apple Acres become a desert before I let friends of mine gallop off into danger without backup.”

Rainbow Dash nodded her ascent, “And don’t think I missed your little ‘regular ponies’ comment. You’re gonna see just what the fastest pegasus alive is made of. Heck, danger is my middle name!” She flashed a winning smile which Dusk could only roll his eyes at.

Then Rarity spoke up, “You and your sister are no doubt very capable, darling, and you’re both certainly noble, but just because I’m not from Canterlot doesn’t mean I don’t know how to use my horn. Besides, what kind of lady would I be if I just let my friends run off to face goodness knows what while I sit and cower at home? I’m afraid you’ll have to suffer my presence as well, dear.”

Fluttershy, hiding in her mane and half behind Rarity, looked Dusk straight in the eyes, “I-I’m going too. I know a lot about the forest and the dangerous creatures in it, and I can’t let some big meanie ruin the world. My animal friends are counting on me, and my pony friends too.” Then she seemed to notice Dusk wasn’t the only one listening to her and eeped deeper into her mane, but she didn’t step back one hoof.

Pinkie Pie strode up to Dusk and booped him, grinning like a maniac, “Silly Dusky, you can’t just get rid of us like that, think of how boring the story would be!”

While Dusk looked at her bewildered, Applejack reaffirmed their commitment, “That’s right Dusk, we’re sticking to you and Twilight like caramel on a candy apple. Now I reckon we best get a move on. Come on, everypony!” And she trotted into the forest with three mares following her.

Pinkie Pie made to follow and winked back at Dusk, “Especially if there are candy apples in there!” When Dusk just continued to look at her bewildered she tilted her head and sounded bemused, “What? Those things are good!” And then bounced her way into the forest.

“Found it!” Twilight called, having retrieved the book she was searching for from her saddlebags. Then she looked around confused, “Hey, where’d everypony go?” Dusk walked up to her, took the book in his magic, put it back in her saddlebags, then put said saddlebags back on her rear with perhaps a tad more force than was necessary. Twilight grunted under the sudden force and glared at the back of her brother who was trotting away to catch up with the others. “What was that for?”

She saw Dusk shake his head, “Just come on, Twi. I don’t want to have to tie our tails together to keep you from zoning out and getting lost. Again.”

☾♀☀♂☽

Several minutes into the ill-advised trip, Dusk Shine was beginning to wonder if maybe nighttime eternal under the tyrannical rule of an evil goddess would really be all that bad compared to being brutally torn limb from limb by some nocturnal predator.

He suspected it would be, but that did little to assuage his prey instincts that every shadow and bend in the trail hid some bloodthirsty carnivore. He was aware of his companions making small talk, something about the unnaturalness of the forest, when he suddenly realized he wasn’t walking anymore.

In fact, he discovered as he reflexively started to scream, he was falling. Shortly thereafter he impacted the ground with a considerable amount of force and started bouncing, rolling, and sliding down a hill that somepony really needed to remove the rocks and briars from. The world was spinning around and he couldn’t focus on much of anything besides the pain. He heard mares screaming and then the ground disappeared again.

He closed his eyes, saw his family in his mind, and then waited to die.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited.

…

This is a really long fall. Maybe I’m dead? Celestia, that would be just like me to miss my own death. I should probably open my eyes to check.

He opened his eyes and found that the world was pitch black. He blinked a few times to no effect. He tried to move his legs but found they had no desire to obey him. Slowly his sense of hearing started to return and he heard the flapping of wings and a mare grunting in time with them. He realized his muzzle was buried in something soft and warm and his front legs were wrapped around the same thing. A mare, his shaken, not stirred, mind eventually connected the dots. A pegasus mare.

He debated moving his head back to see his savior, but he didn’t want to risk messing up her focus and getting himself killed.

Also, he was holding the mare in a vice grip and his head was locked stiff as a statue from fear.

His rear legs, previously dangling in the air, found purchase on the ground and his body immediately reacted by releasing their grip on the mare and he landed stiffly on his hooves with a bit of a stumble.

Jittering only slightly with adrenaline he looked up only to see a flash of yellow before it impacted him and forced him to the ground. Several seconds passed as the mare breathed deep, desperate gasps of air before she managed to stumble off of Dusk and collapse in a heap a couple of hooves away.

Dusk was immediately on his hooves and standing over Fluttershy. She looked to be in bad shape, she was panting so hard he worried her throat might collapse from the strain, sweat was running off of her in rivulets, and her wings laid limply on the ground twitching occasionally. Her eyes fluttered open, it was seemingly taking her great effort to do so, and after a few false starts and choking and coughing fits she managed to wheeze out, “S-so-sorry f-f-f-or drop-ping, y-ou-ouuu…”

“You saved my life! Harmony, I almost died! I, uh, I mean, thank you!” Dusk stammered out, coming down from his adrenaline high. Then he remembered he hadn’t been alone and his head flew up, “Twilight!” When he didn’t see her immediately his head whipped around so fast he stumbled sideways and nearly toppled over. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Rainbow Dash lowering her onto the ground. Well, I guess I owe Rainbow Dash now, great.

He heard Fluttershy groan and turned his attention back to her, Speaking of ponies I owe. “Fluttershy, how do you feel?”

The panting, sweating, heap of a pegasus mare strained to look up at him with eyes she struggled to keep open, “I-I’ll, be, oka-” A coughing fit wracked her body.

Dusk scrambled to think of something he could do to help her, “I’m not a nurse or a doctor, but I know a few mending and pain-killing spells I can use on you, okay?” His patient nodded her ascent and he began casting a simple diagnostic spell. Unsurprisingly, she was suffering from overexertion with strains throughout her wings their associated muscle group, also a sprain in her left wing joint. He relayed the information to her, she merely moaned in pain in response, and cast a couple of pain numbing spells on the appropriate sections of her nervous system and an anti-inflammatory spell on her sprain.

Eventually, the rest of the group navigated down to Fluttershy and him. By then she was able to get onto her hooves, though flying would be impossible for several days. Dusk was temporarily left bewildered and frustrated when, after requesting water on her behalf, he was informed they’d brought none. Rainbow Dash merely flexed her wings and brought down a couple clouds to give her friend a drink and a quick shower.

After that, Fluttershy was able to smile and assure everypony that she was fine. Dusk didn’t really buy it, but telling her to go back by herself was more dangerous than letting her continue you forward with the rest of them. Still, she was made of sterner stuff than he ever would have suspected.

Then, wounded wing clutched painfully to her side to keep it off the ground, she had faced down a raging manticore and tamed it. Dusk, and seemingly the rest of the group, had been prepared to wound it and scare it off, but Fluttershy had known exactly what to do to calm it down. Between her incredible abilities with animals, totally selfless nature, strength to stand up for and put herself on the line for her beliefs, and the small detail that she had saved his life, Dusk was starting to think that maybe, just maybe, this wasn’t a suicide mission. And, hay, you could do a lot worse than dying fighting alongside somepony like Fluttershy.

☾♀☀♂☽

The next ten or so minutes of the journey were much smoother, chiefly occupied by Rainbow Dash retelling her heroic rescue of Twilight, again, and again, and again. From what Dusk could tell, most of their group seemed entirely unsurprised by this. To Rainbow’s credit, it had been heroic, and she even complimented Fluttershy on her own “awesome saving the stallion-in-distress, moment.” Fluttershy had blushed and affirmed that she would have done it for anypony. Dusk didn’t particularly enjoy being called, “the stallion-in-distress,” though he couldn’t deny it was an accurate description. But for the sake of keeping conflict in the group down, and the whole saving his sister’s life thing, Dusk watched his tongue and contented himself with reliving the tailwhip across the muzzle he’d given the nacreous braggart yesterday.

“Whatcha thinkin’ ‘bout Dusky?” Said stallion was brought out of his daydream (nightdream?) by the hopping, smiling Pinkie Pie who’d dropped back from the front of the group to talk to him.

“Dusky?” Dusk Shine questioned.

Pinkie nodded enthusiastically, “Yup! Twi’s nickname was easy. I mean I could have gone for Sparky or maybe T-Sparks, but she didn’t like those for some reason. I had to think about yours, though. Dusky doesn’t really have the ring to it I’d like, but what can you do?” Suddenly, the mare’s eyes went wide and she stopped in place, “Shiny! Why didn’t I thi-”

Dusk Shine stopped and wheeled around to look at Pinkie, glaring at her seriously, “Don’t call me that.”

Pinkie frowned slightly and tilted her head like a confused dog, “Why not Shin-”

Dusk stepped forward and a spark popped off his horn, “Don’t!” He closed his eyes and sighed, “Just, ugh, ‘Dusky,’ is fine. Let’s just go with that one.”

When he opened his eyes he found Pinkie standing beside him, her normal smile gracing her bubbly visage, “Okie, dokie, Dusky!” She giggled and started bouncing forward to catch up with the group.

Shaking his head, Dusk followed after the mare slowly, taking time for a few deep breaths to calm himself down. There’s something wrong with that mare.

“Hurry up, Dusky! I can feel a song coming on~” She singsonged up ahead. Dusk trotted a bit faster to catch up.

Of course, a song. Maybe we can defeat Nightmare Moon with the Magic of Music! Dusk scoffed and habitually fell into the haughty eyes closed and head held high posture of condescending nobles. When he opened his eyes again he found that it had perhaps been easier to see with his eyes closed it was so dark, and then he ran into something horn first. A quick lighting spell revealed the forest floor and the tree that he’d impaled. Pulling back did nothing but pinch the base of his horn painfully. Great. “A little help? Somepony?”

Silence met him. And was it just his imagination, or was something moving beyond the circle of light from his horn? Buck it all! “Anypony? Twilight! Fluttershy! Hello!?” He caught a flicker of motion in his peripheral vision and everything seemed to get darker. The trees menaced with shadows and limbs that seemed precisely made to conceal any number of pony eating predators!

Alright, sorry tree but it’s you or me. A quick charge of mana and a bolt of arcane energy shot from the tip of Dusk’s horn to rip apart the tree trunk it was embedded in. That’s what should have happened. Instead, his magic was seemingly absorbed by the tree and dissipated, including his illumination spell. Left in darkness, Dusk tried in vain to force some magic through his horn, but every attempt was dispelled and the magic sucked away off his horn.

Okay, time to panic. “HELP! ANYPONY! Bucking Tartarus!” Suddenly, the cool feeling around his horn started moving down, coming to cover part of his head. Then, it seemed to move into his head, and he was subjected to a feeling like getting the world’s worst brain freeze while falling into arctic water. It was unpleasant, as his shuddering and convulsing body and chattering teeth and pitiful moans attested to.

Just as suddenly, it was gone, and he was left feeling vaguely violated and very vulnerable. His mind was sluggish and his thoughts slippery and hard to focus on for awhile, until his sister’s voice broke through the haze, “-usk, are you okay?”

The world suddenly came into focus like a piece of distorting glass was removed, and he found himself standing freely next to a tree, no horn impalement. He looked around for a moment, thoroughly confused, before responding shakily, “No, I don’t think so. Either I’m losing my mind or I was just subject to some kind of- Wait.” He narrowed his eyes at Twilight, standing alone on the path and looking at him with concern. “Where’s everypony else?”

“They’re just up the trail.” She stepped closer to him, “What’s wrong?”

Dusk stepped back from her, maintaining distance, and she frowned. Something felt wrong about all this, very wrong, “Why’d you come back alone?”

“They wanted to find the Elements as quickly as possible, but I was concerned about you. Dusk, please, you’re scaring me.” She did sound scared, and tears brimmed in her eyes as her lips quivered. She looked for all the world like a stereotypical little sister looking to her big brother for protection. Twilight, however, was quite fond of using her older sibling card and reminding Dusk that she’d been born an entire six minutes earlier than him. Yeah, that’s probably not Twilight. Buck. Plus, I’m pretty sure the rest of the girls wouldn’t abandon Twilight and me.

“Smarty.” Dusk said simply as he frowned. He tried to surreptitiously move into one of the fighting stances that Shining Armor used to try and teach him all the time.

“Huh?” That’s all not-Twilight was able to say before a burst of arcane energy went straight through her face. Unfortunately for Dusk, it was because she dissolved into a laughing cloud of ethereal blue smoke that quickly reformed into Nightmare Moon grinning predatorily with her razor sharp teeth. “Well done my little pony, you are so very clever.” She chuckled and advanced toward him casually.

Dusk Shine, now very much fearing for his life, trembled as he tried to keep his distance from her while keeping his horn ready to fire. “S-stay back.”

“Or what? You’ll try another immobilization spell on me again? My dear sister seems to have raised such weak stallions in my absence, too weak to fight, too weak to kill, just soft prey.” She continued her advance on the quivering stallion.

Dusk’s heart almost jumped up his throat when his flanks hit a tree behind him, blocking his retreat. With flight no longer an option, process of elimination left him with only choice. He got off one haphazard burst of magic before the cackling alicorn hit him with her own magic. He was unconscious well before he hit the ground.

☾♀☀♂☽

Author's Note

Long time no see! Yeah, remember when I promised more frequent updates? Well, technically this is more frequent! From six months for an update to one and a half! Progress!

Anywho, this update would have been out a lot earlier, but I could not decide where to end this chapter! I finally decided on this because the rest after this I wasn't really happy with and I wanted to meet the deadline I imposed on myself yesterday to update this story today.

Speaking of other stories, check out Me Amore Cadenza (yes the spelling error is intentional! :3) It's something different, and I'm not entirely happy with the first chapter, but I have a lot of exciting ideas of where I'm going to take it.

Another story is coming out tomorrow, my sequel to the surprisingly well-received The G-Word!

And another new story Sunday!

And this won't even affect the update rate of this story! Well, that's kind of a lie. This story will now be updated every Friday! ~~Starting today!~~ (Yesterday my clock is now informing me. :twilightblush: I'll just say I'm superstitious and didn't want to update on Friday the Thirteenth, everyone buys that right?)

This is going to be a big (and long overdue) change for me. And to go along with it I've launched a Twitter to keep anyone who's interested up to date with new stories/updates/my breakfast cereal of choice.

I've also launched a Patreon to appease my own vanity. Also, to potentially make fanfiction pay some of my bills (read: copious amounts of illicit substances).

As always, please leave any questions, comments, concerns, criticisms, and/or intoxicated tirades below!

I'll leave you with the music that got me through this chapter, ciao! :twilightsmile: