With Spike riding on his brother’s back, Midnight Errant and Featherdew crossed the town square.
“So,” Midnight said, “she became an alicorn by completing one of Starswirl’s spells?”
“Yep,” Featherdew said.
“And after defeating some evil, magic-stealing horse-monkey, a giant castle in the shape of a crystal tree grew out of nowhere?”
“Yeah.”
“And then she built her own school and invited every creature in the world to learn the ways of pony friendship?”
Feather smiled. “Uh-huh~!”
Midnight looked away. “The show must of made a fortune on toys…”
“Wait,” Spike said, “are we talking about the same Twilight here? Because I don’t know if Auntie could handle being a princess.”
“Well,” Featherdew said, “she did tend to blow things out of proportion from time to time. But with her friends by her side, she accomplished great things.”
Midnight gave her a stare. “Did you know that my aunt once moved here all the way from Canterlot because she discovered that this place had no library?”
“Really? Is that how she met her friends here in this universe?”
“Yeah. We had a little chat about it when I went back home. Apparently, I met some of her friends during the Summer Sun Celebration, and they told her about it.”
Feather gasped. “Did they build the library together?”
“They grew the library together. Her friends thought it was impractical, but she insisted. It took them three years to complete.”
Feather hummed. “You know, I’d like to say I’m surprised. But I‘m not.”
Arriving at the entrance to town hall, the three jumped as Clover Quartz burst through the doors. “You’re a prince—!?”
Midnight groaned. “I’m not a prince—”
“What happened to Fuzzy Heart?!”
“Flurry Heart,” Featherdew said. “And no, Midnight doesn’t have any siblings, Clover. He’s an only child.”
“Wait, you knew?!”
Her eyes rolled. “He’s the only thing the girls seem to talk about these days. Honestly, I’m surprised that you didn‘t know. You’re a guardspony, for heaven’s sake.”
“Sure would’ve, if I had joined the Royal Guard. Shoot, All we knew back in Rocksville were the VIPs like Celestia, Cadence, and the greatest captain of all time — Shining Armor.”
Midnight tilted his head. “I don’t know how I feel about that last one…”
“Hold on,” Clover said, “if Princess Cadence is your ma and she’s married to Shining Armor, doesn’t that make Twilight Sparkle your aunt?”
“Yeah, so?”
Clover laughed. “So you are the Twilight! I was right all along! And with a family like that, I’m surprised you’re not surrounded by bodyguards at all—” He frowned. “Hey, that’s right! You got me fired, you jerk!”
“Oh, you were not ‘fired’,” Featherdew said. “I bet you were simply reassigned.”
Clover pouted. “It’s still his fault…”
Spike frowned. “It was not. Since he’s going to live in Ponyville for now on, Midnight has to have a personal escort. The Queen knew that sending a royal guardspony would really annoy my brother, so she made you two into his official entourage.”
“And,” Midnight said, “now I have to ask the both of you to accompany me to the Ancient Castle, again. While I’m perfectly capable of defending myself, if my family finds out that I went into that forest by myself, I wouldn’t hear the end of it.”
“What? Why?”
“Clover,” Featherdew said, “me and Midnight were just talking about the show, and he recognizes some of the villains.”
Clover’s eyes widened. “And they’re still a threat? But how are we going to deal with them without the Elements of Harmony?!”
“Don’t worry,” Midnight said. “If this world is as convenient as I think it is, then we will definitely find something of use there.”
Clover groaned. “I really don’t want to go through the Everfree again… I mean, how will we get back before night falls? Gonna use more of that fancy magic to—?”
“Teleport us across time and space?” Feather grinned. “Have you seen the show?”
Clover turned to Midnight, eyes wide. “No way…”
Smiling, Midnight pulled out a crystal shard from behind his ear and dropped it onto the ground. Then, as the Queen’s protégé poured his mana into the artifact, the magic crystal bloomed, creating a solid, sparkling platform.
Spike, Featherdew, Clover Quartz, and the rest of the ponies in Ponyville gave him a round of applause.
Midnight covered his blushing face. “I’ve got to stop casting spells in front of the entire town…” He stepped onto the platform. “Come on, you two.” Once everyone was in place, Midnight cast the spell with a zap from his horn.
The crystal began to emit waves of mana, which then fused into a distorted dome in space-time. Then, in a flash of light, the energy field collapsed, the platform and everyone on it vanishing without a trace.
In the royal throne room inside the Ancient Castle, each of the two thrones fired a beam of mana toward the center of the room. On contact, a large, round table made of magic crystal erupted out of the floor.
A ripple in space-time washed over its surface. Then, Spike, Midnight, Clover Quartz, and Featherdew emerged through this glowing portal before it snuffed itself out.
Feather flew off and looked around. “We’re back! Amazing!”
Clover sat down, head in hoof. “Ugh… This seemed a lot better in the show…”
Midnight jumped off the table. “Alright, you two. Do you remember anything about—?”
Featherdew gasped, hovering over the table. “The Cutie Map!”
Spike frowned. “The what?”
Clover sprang up to his hooves. “The what!?” He looked down. “Well, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle! What’s this doin’ here?”
Midnight blinked. “Ah. The plot device. Right…” After helping Clover onto the floor, he zapped the table.
A holographic map flickered to life, the area between Ponyville and the Everfree Forest depicted on the table’s surface.
“This is the Map of Harmony,” Midnight said, “the creation of Starswirl the Bearded. With it, he and the other Pillars of Unity would teleport to different places in the world on what were essentially friendship missions.”
“How is that possible?” Featherdew said. “And why isn’t it showing all of Equestria? At least, that’s how it was in the show.”
“This Map is, or was linked to the Crystal Heart, which was said to have a mind of its own. The Heart was the one that determined where the Pillars should go. However, with the disappearance of Aurora, the Map no longer has access to the Heart, so this region is all we have to work with.”
Clover frowned. “I’ve never heard of this ’Aurora’ before. In the show, the Crystal Heart was kept in the Crystal Empire.”
“That city is called Aurora in this universe,” Featherdew said. “But, the Crystal Empire does refer to King Sombra’s realm after the fall of Queen Amoré.”
“Huh. I guess it never did make much sense callin’ it that.” Clover turned to Midnight. “Alright, so what are we lookin’ for?”
“Well, do you two remember if this castle had anything interesting we could start looking for? Hidden artifacts, secret entrances, or—?”
Feather gasped. “The Journal of the Two Sisters!”
Clover nodded. “Right… Her Majesties had a secret readin’ room hidden in the library. I’m sure we could find all kind of things in there.”
Midnight hummed. “Seems promising…” With a flick of his glowing horn, the map magnified to a scale model of the entire castle.
Clover raised his hoof. “Ooh, ooh! Check under the castle! Her Highnesses found the Elements in a cave down there.”
Midnight enlarged the map and explored the crevice around the castle. Eventually, with a little help from the other ponies, he found a large, yet empty cave.
“O-oh…” Featherdew said. “It’s really gone…”
Clover sniffled. “Y-yeah…”
“Now, now, you two,” Midnight said. “We might still be able to find something that’s just as awesome as the Elements.” He moved the map around to a large room in the castle and then gave the table a zap.
A portal opened on it’s surface leading to the castle library: a crumbling, yet grand depository with walls of shelves filled with dusty, old books.
Smiling, Midnight looked at the awestruck duo. “After you.”
“Don’t mind if I do!” Vaulting over his brother’s head, Spike dived into the portal. However, the change in gravity sent him crashing onto the floor.
While the other two snickered, Midnight climbed in after him. “Spike! Are you alright?”
Groaning, Spike picked himself up. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
“Here, you should sit down.”
As he helped his brother onto a chair in a nearby table, Feather flew through the portal with ease while Clover crawled in.
“Ugh,” he said, “that was weird…”
“Clover?” Featherdew said. “Do you remember how Twilight even found the reading room? Oh! Maybe one of these books is actually a hidden lever!”
Clover’s eyes narrowed in thought. “I don’t know, but it’s a start, I guess.”
The Trio went about checking each bookshelf for a secret switch.
Meanwhile, after Spike climbed down the chair, the baby dragon noticed how big and spooky the library looked with all the dust and the cobwebs and the creepy shadows everywhere. So, he jumped back up to his seat and onto the table for good measure. S-someone has to stand guard, right?
Clover smirked. “Hey, Midnight. Aren’t you gonna geek out over all these books?”
“You mean these outdated books that were probably written in Old Ponish?” He then gave it a thought, but then shrugged anyway. “Maybe if they were written by someone important like Starswirl the Bearded.”
“Oh. Wait, Featherdew, were you fired from Weather Patrol?”
“Yep.”
“And that doesn’t bother you?”
She laughed. “And miss my chance to go on adventures? That was one of the reasons why I even moved to Ponyville.”
“But what about the boutique? And who‘s gonna help Scootaloo with the weather?”
“Oh, Scootaloo’s a big girl. She can handle it. But if she really needs help, she could always ask Rumble. I only joined the patrol to do my mom a favor. The real reason I moved here was to help Sweetie Belle run the shop, but she had that well in hoof by that time, so I guess Rarity was worried over nothing.”
“What about you, Clover?” Midnight said as he reached the far end of the room. “Do you have any other responsibilities to take care of?”
“Well, no — not accordin’ to Sheriff Mayberry, anyway. There’s the farm, but the Apples don’t really need me anymore.” Clover pouted. “They thought it was a hoot and a half when I told them. Apple Bloom was all, ‘Now you‘re a real guardspony’.” He huffed. “Shoulda moved back to Rocksville…”
“Hey! I think I found something!” Midnight pulled on a fake book attached to a lever, triggering a mechanism hidden inside the bookshelf. This device pulled the nearby stone wall aside, uncovering a wooden door marked with stars among a cloud of swirls.
Spike ran across the table. “Hey, isn’t that Starswirl’s cutie ma—?” Jumping down onto the other chair, Spike’s forward momentum caused it to tilt over. “Ah!”
The chair then came to a sudden halt with a click, activating a series of gears inside the floor. A pair of bookshelves sunk into a nearby wall then parted, revealing a small reading room beyond an stone archway.
Feather flew in and marveled at the things inside the room: the pair of stain-glass windows, the ornate lounge chairs, and all the fancy cushions strewn about. “It’s beautiful! And look at all the cute little—!” She spotted a closed book resting on a stand, the image of two alicorns on the cover. “Is that—? It is!”
“Wait,” Spike said, “you aren’t planning on reading that, are you?”
She left the room, book in hand. “Of course! Why did you think we came here?”
“But that’s obviously Her Highnesses’ private—!”
“We may not have to.” Midnight lifted the book away from Featherdew grasp and into his reach. Shelving it nearby, he then passed thorough Starswirl’s door and into a small observatory: a disorganized mess of a room with a spiral staircase leading up to a viewing platform.
He walked around, glancing at the aged scrolls on a few tables and the faded diagrams on the walls. Then, he came across a large desk with a single book on top, its cover depicting a river of stars.
Featherdew and Clover followed behind moments after.
“Did you find somethin‘?” he said.
Opening the book, Midnight grinned. “Oh yeah…” He began to read:
This is a tale of the heroes of Equestria. However, there is one very important thing to remember about me: I am not a hero.
“WHAT?!” Feather flew over and took a look at its illustrated pages. “No way! This is from one of the comics!”
Clover ran over. “For real!?”
Midnight began flipping pages, skimming through the text. “Hmm… This seems to tell the story about how the Pillars were formed. Not much is known about that. Even less is known about Stygian: the pony that brought them all together.”
“I remember him,” Featherdew said. “In the show, he turned into the evil Pony of Shadows. Starswirl and the other Pillars had to sacrifice themselves to banish him into Limbo.”
Midnight looked at her, eyes wide. “They became unstuck in time?”
Clover grabbed him. “Are we gonna go save them?!”
Midnight pushed him away. “Assuming that’s what happened, no. Time travel is very dangerous, and you can easily get lost without setting up a reference point to go back to. Although, it sounds like Starswirl wanted to get lost, so I doubt I’d be able to bring them back.”
“But Twilight did bring them back!” Featherdew said.
“How?”
Clover and Featherdew described how the Mane Six used Starswirl’s long-lost journal to find an ancient monument, leading them on a worldwide quest to acquire the Pillar’s old artifacts to then use them in a ritual which saved the legendary ponies from Limbo.
Midnight shook his head, flipping pages. “It’s still unfeasible. Even if the Cutie Map can locate their artifacts, it no longer has the power to do so. Regardless, I don’t think I’ll be able to save the Pillars without bringing Stygian back.”
“What I’m wondering is what’s Stygian’s journal in doing Starswirl’s room,” Featherdew said.
Near the end of the book, Midnight paused. “Hey, listen to this:”
And as I watched them push those Sirens through the portal, only two thoughts crossed my mind.
The first was, “I did it. I helped save my town.”
But the second — the second was different.
The second thought was, “I should be down there.” And that thought rung in my head for months after that day.
Since that day, I’ve devoted myself to finding a way in which I might become a hero in my own right. But I think I’ve finally found something that can allow me to become a hero like my friends.
It’s simple enough, I think. All I need is to borrow the symbol of each of their strengths. This ritual should allow me to do something amazing.
And then I can stop hearing those four words repeating in my head. I can stop writing them down in every story I tell about the pillars.
I am no hero.
“That’s…” Clover said. “That’s really sad.”
“There’s more.” Midnight flipped through pages and pages of charts and formulas. “‘Virtuous Reservoir’?” The Queen’s protégé then summoned a bundle of scrolls from a nearby table and looked through Starswirl’s old notes. “Ugh…” What horrid hoof-writing… And in Old Ponish, no less. He then looked up and examined a large diagram on the wall: a schematic of the Pillars’ symbols surrounding Starswirl’s own. “He was studying Stygian’s spell. I think Starswirl was trying to replicate it.”
Clover’s eyes widened. “The Tree of Harmony…”
Feather gasped. “The Tree of Harmony!”
Midnight frowned. “The Tree of Harmony?”
“Yeah!” Clover said. “Before the Pillars went to deal with the Pony of Shadows, they left behind a magical seed that grew into this large tree made of crystal.”
“And that’s where the Elements of Harmony came from!” Featherdew said.
“So you’re saying that this ritual resulted in the creation of these so called Elements?”
“Yep!” the duo said.
Midnight studied Stygian’s journal. “Hmm… Well, it certainly seems possible…”
Clover gave a gasp that rivaled Pinkie Pie’s. “Does that mean that you can—?”
“Not exactly.” Midnight turned to leave, taking the book with him. “I may not have the luxury of growing a thousand year old tree, but I do have the benefit of a thousand years of research and development into the art of magic.”
Feather squealed, wings aflutter. “We’re totally going to be the new Mane Six! No, wait… Mane Three?”
“Three? But what about Spike?” Clover looked around. “Where is he, anyway?”
Leaving the room, the Trio spotted Spike sitting beside the door on the stone floor, the Journal of the Two Sisters open in front of him.
“Wha—? Hey!” Featherdew said.
“Oh!” Spike jumped to his feet. “H-hi, everypony—!” Eyes widening, he hid the book behind him. “W-what’s up?”
Feather flew in close, nose to nose. “Tell. Me. Everything!”
Clover pulled her back. “Settle down there, Feather. Give the boy some air.”
“But Clover,” Feather said, whining, “I was going to read it, but Spikey-wikey didn’t let me. The least he could do is tell me about the royal sisters.”
Midnight sighed as he lifted the book from Spike’s grasp. “As fillies, Sunny Skies and Moonbeam lived in an orphanage in the city of Aurora. They later became the apprentices of Starswirl the Bearded: Queen Amoré’s royal adviser and one of six unicorns in charge of night and day. One day, the two sisters successfully moved the Sun and Moon, earning their cutie marks and becoming the youngest alicorns in history. They were then crowned princesses and renamed Celestia and Luna.”
Feather gasped. “Really? Wait, where they actually sisters?”
“No, but they would always refer to each other as such.”
“How do you know all that?” Clover said.
“My mother told me. Celestia and Luna used to be her foal-sitters.”
“So Princess Cadence actually did travel through time!” Feather laughed. “Awesome!”
“But how did she end up bein’ raised in the mountains by the deer folk?” Clover said.
“No one knows, but I think it had something to due with the way Princess Luna saved my mom from King Sombra. You see, most ponies think that Luna’s teleportation spell was interrupted by whatever Sombra did to make the city disappear. I for one think that Sombra used time travel as a way to retreat from that final battle of the Great Crystal War, only he ended up going too far into the future. Meanwhile, my mother teleported outside of the time-space field, and so a little filly unicorn was found in the White Tail Woods.”
Spike smirked. “And trained in the ancient art of Fawning.”
Midnight sighed. “And trained in the ancient art of Fawning…”
The other two frowned. “What’s Fawning—?”
“Anyway!” Midnight said, picking Spike up. “I think we’re done here.” He then walked to a nearby wall and opened a portal to the outskirts of Ponyville.
A sparkling mist drifted through the portal and gathered in the air in front of Spike. The magic spell popped, and a sealed scroll fell into his hands.
Midnight entered portal. “A letter from the Queen, huh? Did something come up?”
Following behind, Featherdew and Clover’s eyes widened. “No way…”
Opening it, Spike cleared his throat. “‘Hear ye, hear ye. Her Grand Royal Highness, Queen Celestia of Equestria, is pleased to announce the Grand Galloping Gala, to be held in the magnificent capital city of Canterlot on the twenty-first day of’…” he skimmed through the text, mumbling, “Yadda-yadda-yadda… ‘Cordially extends an invitation to Midnight Errant plus one guest.’”
“I knew it!” The other two turned to each other. “It’s happening!”
“Wait,” Midnight said, “did this happen in the show?”
Clover nodded. “It sure did! Since Spike didn’t want to go to the Gala, Twilight had to invite some other pony to be her plus one. But with all of her friends wantin’ to go, she couldn’t decide on who to go with.”
“Well, as my bodyguards, you two are expected to come with me. And so is Spike.”
Spike groaned. “Nightie… Why do I have to go?”
“Oh, come on, Spike. Auntie Celestia sent this letter personally, so she must really want us to go. Besides, we’ll all get to spend some time together. Doesn’t that sound fun?”
Spike rolled his eyes. “Oh, alright. But can we at least prank some snooty nobles?”
Midnight smirked. “Knowing Auntie, I bet that’s why she invited us in the first place.”
The boys laughed, but it was interrupted by Midnight’s growling stomach.
“Oh.” Midnight frowned. “Did I have breakfast this morning?”
Spike stared, deadpan. “No.”
“Ah.” Midnight turned to the others. “Well, we’re heading to the library to drop these books off, so do you two want lunch? I could make something.”
Feather shrugged. “Eh, I could eat.”
“You cook?” Clover said.
Spike grinned. “Oh, ho, ho, you are in for a treat. Midnight uses magic to cook and it is awesome!”
Midnight rolled his eyes, shaking his head and hiding a smile. “Come on, you two. Let’s eat.”
Sweetie Belle was inside Carousel Boutique when Midnight Errant burst in through the front door.
“Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where every—” She recognized him. “Oh! H-hello, I, I— Wait, are you alright—?”
“Quick! Lock the doors!”
Sweetie Belle did so as Midnight went and closed the curtains.
“What happened?” she said. “What’s going on?”
Midnight began tapping on a gray medallion that was pinned to a loose, yellow sash around his neck. “A large number of ponies found out that I was going to the Gala, and they each tried to get invited as my plus-one. I tried to get away, but I ended up being chased all over Ponyville.”
Sweetie Belle gasped. “The Gala? You going to the Great Galloping Gala!?” She shrunk under his glare. “I, I mean, uh… W-What are you doing with that thing around your neck?”
“This is a beckoning amulet. I’m using it to transmit my location to Clover and Featherdew using Smores code. Is Rarity here by any chance?”
“No, why?”
“I’m looking for a special gem to use in an enchantment. I was hoping that she would know where to find one.”
“Well, my sister might be able to help you with that, but she won’t be back for a while.”
“Ah, shoot. I really needed that gem.”
“B-but you could ask Maud Pie instead! She has a doctorate in rock studies. She lives just outside of town.” Sweetie Belle started shuffling her hooves. “I could take you to her if you’d like?”
“Oh, I wouldn’t want to bother you—”
“It’s no bother at all,” she said, smiling.
There was a knock at the door. “Sweetie Belle? Why is the door locked?”
Waving a hoof to get her attention, Midnight nodded at the door before turning invisible.
After looking around wide eyed for a bit, Sweetie Belle opened it.
Apple Bloom walked inside, an enchanted bracelet around her hoof. “Midnight? Are you in here?” She jumped as he reappeared. “Oh, ponyfeathers! You almost scared the apples outta me!”
“Why do you have that?” Midnight said. “Did Clover give it to you?”
“Eeyup. We were runnin’ the apple stand when this bracelet started glowin’. He thought I’d have a hard time there without any help, and he had a whole lot of chores to do at home, so he sent me here instead.”
Sweetie Belle raised a brow. “Oh? Are you saying you didn’t yank his ear a little?”
“Alright, so maybe I didn’t wanna haul the cart back home all by myself, and maybe Clover owed me a favor. Besides, I wasn’t goin’ to miss this, whatever this is.”
Scootaloo burst into the boutique, the same bracelet in hoof. “MidnightI’mHereI—! Oh. Hey, everypony!”
“Let me guess… Featherdew sent you?”
“Well, yeah. I was hanging at her place when her parents showed up. I guess she forgot to tell you about it, so she asked me to fill in for her. Then just as I was heading over to the library, this bracelet started blinking in Smores code. I thought it was an emergency, so I flew over as fast as I could.”
Midnight shook his head. “It wasn’t really that bad, but I felt better with some backup.” Eyes narrowing, he tapped his chin. I really need a better amulet…
“Why?” Apple Bloom said. “What happened?”
“A bunch of ponies wanted to go with him to the Great Galloping Gala,” Sweetie Belle said, “and they chased him around town.”
“Why would anypony want to go to some boring old dance?” Scootaloo said.
“Oh! Are you plannin’ on inviting anypony? Sweetie Belle here is available.”
Said pony gasped. “Apple Bloom!”
“Sorry, but I’ve already invited Spike to the Gala. Anyway, are you two sure you want to come with me? I just need talk to Maud Pie about some rocks, and that’s not something most ponies would get excited over.”
“That’s alright,” Apple Bloom said. “Being a prince’s bodyguard is all the excitement I need. I bet I could even do a better job than Clover.”
“I just want Featherdew to owe me one.” Scootaloo shrugged. “And I have nothing better to do, so…”
“Well, alright, if you say so. Just please don’t call me a prince.”
Exiting the boutique, the group found themselves surrounded by a mob of mares with one or two stallions here and there.
“Would you like any help with your gardening?”
“I’ll wash your dishes!”
Apple Bloom stepped forward. “Now see here, y’all—!”
“Have I ever told you how much I love your mane?”
“I have a cartload of extra carrots!”
Scootaloo stood by her. “Hey! Calm down, everypony—!”
“I’ll paint your cart—!”
“CITIZENS OF PONYVILLE.”
The crowd flinched at the sound of Midnight’s magically enhanced voice.
“AS FLATTERING AS THIS MAY BE, WE HAVE ALREADY INVITED OUR NUMBER ONE ASSISTANT TO THE GRAND GALLOPING GALA. NOW, KINDLY DISPERSE THE AREA. YOU LOT ARE DISRUPTING LOCAL BUSINESSES.” That said, the Queen’s protégé teleported the group inside and locked the door. Midnight then turned to a bewildered Sweetie Belle. “Oh! Sorry. Does this place have a backdoor?”
Midnight and the Crusaders walked up a trail to a hill near a wooded area adjacent to Ponyville.
“So your club helps little foals find their cutie marks?” he said.
“Yeah!” Scootaloo said. “We even hold a day camp to help them find their special talents.”
“Is that what a cutie mark is? What a pony is good at? I always thought that they were a mark of somepony’s destiny.”
“It could be,” Apple Bloom said. “It could also be how a pony sees themselves or their place in the world.”
Midnight hummed. “So your cutie marks would represent your commitment to helping others find themselves. I can relate to that.”
“What about you, Midnight?” Sweetie Belle said. “How did you earn your cutie mark?”
“Well, my mom used to tell me stories about her life as a young filly, especially about the days she spent with Celestia and Luna. Now, as a young colt, we lived in Canterlot Castle with the Queen, and I’ve always wondered what became of her sister.”
Scootaloo leaned in. “So you found out about the Mare in the Moon and decided become the prince of legend?”
“Not a prince; but yes, I did find out. However, I didn’t think I had anything to do with it at the time. But then I got abducted by the Queen of the Changelings.”
Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo gasped.
Apple Bloom frowned. “She did? Wasn’t she supposed to be nice and all?”
“Not Princess Ocellus!” Scootaloo said. “He meant the bad changeling: Queen Chrysalis!”
“Why did she go after you?” Sweetie Belle said. “You were just a foal!”
“She was using me to get back at my mother for thwarting her invasion of Canterlot,” Midnight said. “Feeding on the Princess of Love was a bonus, I think.”
“Oh, now I remember!” Apple Bloom said. “Wasn’t that when your ma got her wings?”
“Yes, and it was also the day my parents got married.”
“Wait, wait,” Scootaloo said, “we’re getting off track here. What happened? How were you saved?”
“My parents saved me; but I was cocooned by Chrysalis, so I only heard about it after I was saved. But when I woke up, I could almost feel how relived my parents were.” His ears drooped. “That was the first time I’ve ever seen Celestia cry. It was from then on that I poured myself into learning everything I could about magic.”
Sweetie Belle shook her head. “I can’t imagine what that must have felt like…”
“But how did you get your cutie mark?” Apple Bloom said.
“Well, a while after that, my parents decided to enroll me in Queen Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns. However, I still had to pass an entrance exam, so after the written and the practical portions of the exam were over with, I was told to hatch a dragon egg.”
Scootaloo’s eyes widened. “Spike?! That’s how you got your cutie mark?”
“Isn’t that the one where you’re supposed to fail?” Apple Bloom said.
Midnight eyed her. “How do you know that?”
“Several years ago,” Sweetie Belle said, “when we were just a trio of blank flanks, we asked a few ponies how they earned their cutie marks. One of them told us how that test made her appreciate the value of failure.”
Midnight blinked. “Was her name Twilight Sparkle?”
The ladies looked at him, eyes wide.
“Yeah!” Apple Bloom said. “How’d you know that?”
Midnight shrugged. “Lucky guess.” Ugh… I really am the Twilight… “Anyway, not only did I manage to hatch an ancient dragon egg, but I nearly blew up the entire auditorium.”
“Why?” Scootaloo said. “What happened?”
“Well, I tried so hard to hatch the egg that I had a mana surge. It was so unstable that only Queen Celestia was able to snap me out of it. And that’s the story of how Spike was born, and how I got my cutie mark.”
“So what was it that made you follow the legend?” Sweetie Belle said. “Was it because of your cutie mark or in spite of it.”
“I thought it was a call to adventure, but now I’m not so sure. Or maybe it doesn’t matter. Whatever it is, whether its destiny or identity, I made my choice, and I’m happy with it.”
Walking through the wooded area adjacent to Ponyville, the group came upon a wooden mailbox in front of a stone walkway leading to a large hole in the ground.
“Is this where Maud Pie lives?” Midnight said.
“Yes, indeed-ee~!”
Midnight jumped as he came face-to-face with Pinkie’s face. “Oh my stars!”
“Hi, everypony!” Pinkie Pie said, rummaging through her mane. “I was just dropping Spike off with Maud. I didn’t know you liked rocks, Midnight.”
“O-oh well, it’s just tha—”
Pinkie stuffed a muffin down his muzzle. “Spike told me you didn’t have much to eat this morning, so I brought you muffins because you seemed like a nutty kind of pony; but I wasn’t sure if I should go with apple nut or cinnamon; but then I remembered that you went to the Apple family reunion just after you came to town, so I’m sure you‘ve had enough apple treats to last you until tomorrow; but then, since it isn’t breakfast anymore and it’s not quite lunch, I thought having some banana nut muffins would be the perfect thing to have for brunch!”
Midnight went to take another bite out of his muffin, but it had mysteriously disappeared, inside his stomach. “Aw… Well, thank you, Pinkie Pi—”
Muffin deployed, Pinkie Pie grinned. “Don’t mention it~!”
Watching as she bounced away, Midnight and his muffin stood there as the Crusaders passed him by. I have so many questions…
Emerging from a gem-studded tunnel underground, Midnight and the Crusaders were in awe as they arrived at an open living-area inside a vast cavern. The area was covered by a large, fabric canopy and outfitted with furniture, hanging lanterns, and gemstones. Beyond it lay a blue river fed by waterfalls surrounded by a bank of lush, green foliage, all lit by a gigantic cluster of multi-colored crystals above, with several smaller ones scattered about.
“This never gets old…” Sweetie Belle said.
“Hey, down here!”
The group spotted Spike as he waved to them from a nearby pier in the river.
Beside him stood a bluish-gray Earth pony with a straight, grayish blue-violet mane. Wearing a blue frock that covered her cutie mark and eye shadow that matched her mane, the mare sorted through a large pile of gems.
Letting the ladies look around, Midnight walked down some steps toward the duo. “Spike? What are you doing here? What’s all this?”
“Well, you ran off before I could tell you that Rarity wasn’t in town. Since you were carrying that amulet with you, I was just going to send you a note, but then I remembered that one of Pinkie’s sisters lived nearby, and she was some kind of rock doctor or something. So I went to Sugarcube Corner to ask Pinkie Pie if I could talk to Maud, but then Pinkie took me here.”
“And you must be Maud Pie,” he said. “I‘m Midnight Errant. It’s nice to meet you.”
Turning toward him, her expression remained ever so neutral. “Hi.”
For a moment, only the waterfalls had anything else to say.
“Uh…” Midnight looked at the pile. “So! I’m guessing Spike filled you in on what I’m working on?”
“Yes.”
“Great! I already have some of what I need like copy quartz and glowpaz, but I’m still missing a gem that can hold a spell matrix.”
“You mean like this?” Maud held up a white, heart-shaped crystal.
Midnight stepped back. “Whoa. Should you really be holding that? I thought cosmic spectrum was supposed to be dangerous.”
“I know what I’m doing. Trust me, I’m a doctor.”
Midnight chuckled despite his nerves. “If you saw so—”
Maud tossed the gem at Midnight. Eyes wide, he reached out and, after juggling the gem for a bit, he caught it in his hooves.
“Careful,” Maud said, still deadpan, “she can sense fear.”
Standing still, Midnight stared at the stone. “I-I’m more worried about the magically enhanced, emotional blowback.”
“Only if you wear it everyday.”
Midnight relaxed. “Oh.” At the sound of a crunch, he turned to find Spike eating one of the gems. “Hey!”
“What?” he said. “It’s not as if you’re gonna use them all. Besides, how are you going to carry them? Some of these gems are reactive to mana, so I doubt you could just use telekinesis on them.”
“Ah, shoot…” Midnight said. “Maud, do you have a—”
She held up a pair of saddlebags.
“Oh, thank you.” He lifted it off her hooves and strapped it onto his back. “So! Let’s see what else you found.”
Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo arrived at Carousel Boutique, Midnight lagging behind with a stuffed saddlebag.
“Thanks for letting us guard you for the day,” Scootaloo said, “even if it was a bit boring.”
“Are you sure you don’t wanna come inside?” Apple Bloom said. “That looks a mite heavy.”
Midnight moved the saddlebags off a sore spot on his back. “I’m fine, thank you. The library’s not that far from here. I’ll manage.”
Sweetie Belle smiled. “Well, don’t blame us if you‘re ambushed by a herd of fangirls.”
“Eh, I’m sure they’ve given up by now.” Midnight walked away. “Goodbye, ladies. Don’t forget to return those bracelets.”
Sweetie Belle and the other Crusaders waved at him. “Bye, Midnight! Good luck on your friendship amulets~!”
“Not calling it that~!”
Entering the boutique, Sweetie Belle caught the smirk Apple Bloom was giving her. “What?”
“So when are you gonna ask him out?”
Scootaloo groaned. “Not this again…”
Sweetie Belle shook her head. “I’m actually not that interested anymore.”
“What!” her friends said.
“But that’s all you’ve ever talked about!” Scootaloo said. “What happened?”
“Wasn’t he a nice fella?” Apple Bloom said. “He’s much nicer than I’d thought he’d be, actually.”
“That’s just it,” Sweetie Belle said. “Midnight isn’t some Prince Charming — he’s so much better than that. It isn’t fair for me to treat him like somepony he‘s not. That’s why I really want to be his friend and get to know him better.”
“So does that mean you’re gonna get rid of all that stuff in your room?” Scootaloo said.
“Well… Some of the books I have are really good; and if I take down my posters, I’d have to find new ones to replace them with; and, and I like my plushie — it’s hoof-stitched!”
Apple Bloom grinned. “And maybe if he gets to know you better, he might ask you out?”
“Maybe…” Sweetie Belle frowned. “Or maybe not. I don’t want to deal with all those fangirls.”
Scootaloo snorted. “Said the fangirl.”
“It’s complicated!” Sweetie Belle pouted as her friends laughed, but she soon joined in.
