The New Friendship Games
By Alaborn
Written for the Season 10 Bingo Writing Contest
Standard disclaimer: This is a not for profit fan work. My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic is copyright Hasbro, Inc. I make no claim to any copyrighted material mentioned herein.
“Thank you for your prompt attendance, Principal Celestia,” Superintendent Tirek said.
Principal Celestia sat down and put on her best professional smile. She looked around the conference room, at the superintendent and the senior school district staff. “I am always happy to work with you in creating the best educational opportunities for the students in our city,” she replied levelly.
“Principal, this meeting is not about your job performance. By all accounts, you have created a scholastic environment that allows the disparate groups and cliques of Canterlot High to learn and prosper. It is a task that your predecessors were unable to handle with anywhere near your level of success.”
“I can’t take credit for that,” Celestia said. “Without the assistance of Vice Principal Luna and my many dedicated teachers and administrators, there is no way I could....”
“Can the boilerplate speech,” Tirek interrupted. “We both know that there are few people who could run your school, and most would flee in terror at the... ahem... unusual activities the school has experienced.”
So this was it. After three separate incidents where “unusual activities,” as the superintendent described them, caused massive damage and endangered untold lives, the reckoning had finally come. There was no way she could survive this. All the things she had worked for....
“Parents, teachers, and the school board are all highly supportive of your activities, actually,” Tirek said. “Dean... well, now Principal Cadance even called me to specifically request that your Friendship Games be continued, and even suggested making it yearly, with more of a focus on, well, friendship. But a power greater than the school board has something to say.”
“Greater than the school board?”
“Yes. I’m referring to our insurance company. While they didn’t bat an eye at paying for the damages, they did take a closer look at your Friendship Games, and they’ve made a point to nix certain activities going forward,” Tirek stated. “While I know how you feel about the Friendship Games, I’m asking you to listen.”
“I have always felt that traditional academic and athletic contests unfairly exclude many students who would like to participate in a competitive event like the Friendship Games,” Celestia said.
“And no one’s going to stop your cooking events,” Tirek said. “But why did you ever think motocross racing was an appropriate competitive scholastic event?”
“You must agree, Superintendent, that the kinds of students who like motorcycle racing tend not to be athletically or academically gifted,” Celestia said.
“Regardless, I want you to fix your Friendship Games and make them more, well, normal. Report back to me a list of proposed events by the end of the month,” Tirek said. “And that will be all.”
After what had happened last year, the announcement that the Friendship Games would be returning on an annual basis surprised the students of Canterlot High. The announcement said that more details would be released Monday morning.
On a given morning, the students of Canterlot High normally spent the time before first bell talking with friends or running around. But that Monday, they were calm, as calm as a group of high school students could be, as they looked upon the posters announcing this year’s Friendship Games.
“To be honest, it’s kind of a letdown,” Sunset Shimmer said. “The rumor mill was hinting at big changes, but this is a lot like last year.”
“The entire slate of academic events is back,” Rarity observed.
“But the athletic events look boring. Not to say I won’t win them all,” Rainbow Dash commented. “And still no music contest.”
“I think the principal is hoping for nothing magical to happen this year,” Sunset Shimmer said.
“Yahoo! They’re doing horseback riding!” Applejack said. “Hope we can bring our own horses. Me and Lonestar will show everyone what’s what.”
Fluttershy gently nudged Pinkie Pie, who was staring at the cooking event, and pushed her back from the poster. “Oh! I like this,” she said. “Everyone can participate, but only the top three scores for each school will count. That means they can participate to have fun, without hurting their school’s chances to win, and no one has to be eliminated.”
Having seen her friends’ reactions, Sunset Shimmer noted one friend who was quieter than normal. “What are you thinking?” she asked Twilight Sparkle.
She paused before responding. “Without someone like Principal Cinch teaching us the wrong lessons, and if there’s no Equestrian magic involved, it might actually be enjoyable,” she said quietly.
“I know Principal Celestia has said she wants everyone to participate, but people will understand if you don’t want to,” Sunset Shimmer replied.
“No, I want to. Before that whole magic thing, I was kind of having fun, and feeling like I wasn’t alone for once,” Twilight Sparkle said. “And it will be nice to see my fr... schoolmates again.”
“I think that, with a focus on friendship, we will have the best Friendship Games ever,” Sunset Shimmer said.
Given last year’s debacle, the common feeling around Canterlot High was uncertainty that the Friendship Games would even happen. Sure, the students spent the next two weeks signing up for events, with some prodding by fellow students and teachers, but the Friendship Games didn’t feel real until the students from Crystal Prep arrived. That Friday afternoon, the gymnasium was crowded with approximately twice the normal number of students. Principal Celestia called it a pep rally, but memories ran long, and the atmosphere in the gymnasium was cold.
“Students of Canterlot High School, visiting students from Crystal Preparatory School, faculty, administrators, friends, and family, welcome to the rebooted Friendship Games. The goal of these games, as always, is to build bridges of friendship between our two schools. We may live our lives in different social circles, but the bonds of friendship are universal. And with the assistance of Principal Cadance, we have created a contest for all students. If you’re competitive, then compete for the top score, to help your school. If you’re more interested in attaining your personal best, you’ll find camaraderie with students just like you.
“In any case, today and Saturday, the school facilities will be open for those who want to practice. In addition, after school today, there will be a party for everyone. These games are about friendship, and with friendship, everyone wins.”
There was technically one more class period before the school day ended, but so many students were volunteering to set up the party, Sunset Shimmer wondered why they didn’t just end school early. Even Celestia’s School was less strict on having exactly the correct amount of class time.
About half of the Crystal Prep students were still lingering in the bleachers, with a few helping the Canterlot High students with setup and the rest practicing for their events. Pinkie Pie was leading the work, moving around the gymnasium with a speed that seemed impossible and coordinating everyone’s action. Her actions may have seemed chaotic, but everything was getting done.
“Sunset! Twilight! Can you put up those banners?” Pinkie Pie called.
Sunset Shimmer looked over and saw some rolled-up cloth banners that she was pretty sure weren’t there before. She shrugged and walked over there, Twilight Sparkle joining her. Once they got there, the work was pretty easy to follow: attach the banners to hooks, and then raise them by pulling on a rope, something like curtains or a flagpole.
The banners were deceptively heavy and unwieldy, making this a two-person job. They got to work. Sunset Shimmer started with her side, and after a bit of fumbling, got into a groove.
“Ready, Twilight?” she said.
But Twilight was still holding her half of the banner. She was looking distractedly at the crowd in the bleachers.
“Why don’t you go talk to them when we’re done here?” Sunset Shimmer said to Twilight Sparkle.
“Okay,” she replied.
The banners hung, Twilight Sparkle walked with some trepidation to the bleachers. She climbed each step slowly, planting both feet before moving on. This strategy didn’t offer much of a delay, for she was soon facing her former classmates.
“Hi, girls,” she said.
“Oh, Twilight! So good to see you!” Sour Sweet said. “Thanks for abandoning us,” she hissed.
“What she meant to say is hello, and how are things at Canterlot High?” Sunny Flare said.
“Good, I guess. I feel like I’m making more friends than at Crystal Prep,” Twilight Sparkle replied. “Uh, no offense.”
“Can’t get mad when you said is absolutely true,” Sugarcoat said.
Are you looking forward to these new Friendship Games? What events are you doing?” Twilight Sparkle said.
“We get this Friday off of school, and there’s going to be a party! What’s not to like?” Lemon Zest said. “Oh, and the only event I’m going to win is the baking contest.”
“And the rest of you?”
Twilight Sparkle was greeted by a bunch of noncommittal shrugs.
“I know Principal Cinch isn’t there anymore, but I was sure Principal Cadance would encourage you to sign up for events.”
“Oh, we’re signed up for events. I’m doing a bunch of the athletic events,” Indigo Zap said. “But we don’t have to try to win. We’ve got that covered.”
“Huh?”
“Our exchange students are really good,” Sunny Flare said.
“Exchange students?” Twilight Sparkle asked. She looked over the crowd. The Crystal Prep uniforms somehow made the painter’s palette of skin and hair colors all look the same. And when she tried to look closer, she recognized that she didn’t really remember what the bulk of her former classmates looked like.
“Hey, Twilight!” Pinkie Pie shouted from below. “Can you help with this?”
“Sorry, girls, gotta go,” Twilight said.
It didn’t take long for the students to finish setting up the party. Soon, the floor was filled with students chatting, dancing, enjoying the music, and sharing drinks and snacks. Twilight Sparkle spotted Pinkie Pie and Lemon Zest working together, bringing the students of the two schools together. It reminded her of how last year’s party started, before Principal Cinch enforced her will to try to protect Crystal Prep’s “reputation”.
And draining the magic of laughter from Pinkie Pie hadn’t helped, either.
All in all, the party was a success, because it couldn’t have been any worse than the previous year.
Saturday morning promised to be a busy day for Canterlot High. But Pinkie Pie got to school early, hoping to be first into the Home Ec room. There were desserts to make, and she needed to make sure they were extra-special-perfect! She was, in fact, first, but some other students from both schools soon joined her.
Finally, her early morning and hard work came down to this. Pinkie Pie carefully tilted a jar of maraschino cherries, dribbling a thin line of cherry juice over the meringue atop of her Super-Duper Baked Hot Fudge Brownie Sundae Surprise. With just a few more drips, she would complete the image of the Wondercolts logo, the cherry on top, so to speak, for her practice entry for the cooking contest.
And speaking of the cherry on top, she couldn’t forget the actual cherry on top.
Just one more....
“Pinkie!”
“Gaah!” Pinkie shouted, in the process dumping the entire jar of maraschino cherries on top of her pie. The perfect crown of meringue collapsed under the onslaught.
She looked up and saw Rainbow Dash. The athletic girl was wearing the standard gym uniform of Canterlot High, a thin T-shirt with the Wondercolts logo and gym shorts, and she was covered in a sheen of sweat. Whether that was from her athletic practice or running here from the track wasn’t clear. “Rainbow Dash? What’s wrong?” she said.
“They’re beating me! At everything!”
“But that’s always the case with the Friendship Games. I mean, until last year,” Pinkie Pie said.
“Well, duh, that’s because having to do all those academic tests first totally held back my awesomeness,” Rainbow Dash replied. “But these Crystal Prep students I’ve never met before are all beating me!”
“Dashie, I know you like to compete in every sport, but I also know you don’t win every event,” Pinkie Pie said, with much more seriousness than normal. “So what’s really bothering you?”
“No, you don’t understand,” Rainbow Dash said. “I know the athletes who compete with me. We’ve seen each other at sporting events since junior high. But I’ve never seen these guys before! There’s something going on!”
“If you’re really worried, then let’s get the others. But I have to fix this first.”
“I think you went a little heavy on the cherries there,” Rainbow Dash said.
“Gee, you think?”
Pinkie Pie was almost dragged by Rainbow Dash in the athletic girl’s eagerness to expose the Crystal Prep “cheaters”. They first went to the swimming pool, where Rainbow Dash pointed out a Crystal Prep boy who was clearly outpacing the competition. Compared to the others, it was like he was born to swim. Next came the gymnasium, for gymnastics, where a Crystal Prep girl was performing on the uneven bars with incredible grace. Then they went out to the track, where another Crystal Prep girl was leaving several other girls in the dust.
“See?” Rainbow Dash said. “I’ve been competing in track and field since I was ten, and I’ve never seen her before.”
Before Pinkie Pie could respond, the shrill sound of a whistle drew their attention. Said whistle was around the neck of a slightly older woman, probably college-aged, with turquoise skin and amber hair. “Good job, Long Stride,” she said to the fast girl. “Keep it up and you’ll get one of these for sure,” she continued, displaying the medal she wore around her neck.
“No way,” Rainbow Dash said.
The older student saw them and flashed a smug smirk. “If it isn’t Rainbow Dash,” she said.
“Lightning Dust. I thought you moved away,” Rainbow Dash replied.
“Well, right now, I’m looking to break into coaching, and so I just happened to hear about this here competition, and volunteered to help coach these Crystal Prep students to victory. And if I just happen to beat you in doing so, all the better,” she sneered.
“We’ll see about that,” Rainbow Dash countered.
“We certainly will.” Lightning Dust turned back to the track. “Long Stride, line up again! I know you can improve that time!”
Rainbow Dash watched with an angry scowl and clenched fists as Lightning Dust walked off.
“Old friend of yours?” Pinkie Pie asked.
“Yeah. We met at a summer track and field program four years ago. We got paired up based on performance, and even though I was best, I was forced to be her wing man, just because she was older.”
“And I take it you didn’t work through your differences, win your relay, and impress the program organizers?”
“No! I couldn’t respect her as a runner. She would do any number of unethical things to gain an edge. Some of the other runners got hurt, but no one ever caught her.”
“She does strike me as an antagonist, but with maybe an hour’s focused attention and a few inspirational songs, we could redeem her,” Pinkie Pie said.
“Or we could beat her by beating Crystal Prep instead!”
“That could work too!” Pinkie Pie chirped.
“But that means I gotta practice. See ya!” Rainbow Dash said, and then ran off.
When it came time for lunch, Sunset Shimmer had a hard time gathering her fellow Rainbooms. Rainbow Dash didn’t want to leave the track, Twilight Sparkle didn’t want to leave the chemistry lab, and Pinkie Pie didn’t want to leave the Home Ec room. But eventually, their growling stomachs revealed that they all needed a break from their preparations.
Sunset Shimmer winced as she watched Rainbow Dash attack her hamburger and fries with all the table manners of a ravenous hydra. “This isn’t a race, you know.”
“No, but you know what is a race? The track and field race. And I need to win it!”
“Dashie saw an old rival working for Crystal Prep, and she’s not going to let her win,” Pinkie Pie said.
“Lightning Dust is cheating!” Rainbow Dash said.
“If you think she’s cheating, you should tell Principal Celestia, not us,” Applejack said.
“It’s not something I can prove. But how else would she have gotten all those ringers?”
“Ringers?” Fluttershy said.
“Students I’ve never seen competing in any sporting event before. How do you explain that?”
“Exchange students,” Twilight Sparkle said. “Sunny Flare mentioned them.”
“You don’t sound convinced,” Sunset Shimmer said.
“Crystal Prep didn’t have exchange students. Principal Cinch said they would be bad for the school’s reputation.”
“But now that Cadance is principal....”
“It wouldn’t work that fast,” Twilight Sparkle said. “When I was at Crystal Prep, I didn’t really want to be there, so I read about exchange student programs. You can only participate in them if your school’s involved. And based on what I read, it takes about two years of preparation before you can send a student to another school.”
“See? Cheating,” Rainbow Dash said.
“Now, Rainbow Dash, we don’t know that,” Sunset Shimmer said.
“Well, that new student I met at the horse track? Exchange student or not, his accent says he’s definitely not from around here,” Applejack said. “He was a perfect gentleman, and a darn fine rider.”
Rainbow Dash grabbed her soda and chugged it down. “Well, I gotta go,” she said.
“Wait,” said Fluttershy quietly.
“Huh?”
“If you want to beat your old rival, then the best way to do that is to win as a school. Wondercolts forever!” Fluttershy said. “Um, you did read how the scoring is going to work, right?”
Rainbow Dash stared at her blankly.
“I know what Fluttershy is talking about,” Twilight Sparkle said. “The academic events are straightforward—if you get 100% of the questions right, you score 100. But for the athletic events, the top finisher will be assigned 100, and each other competitor will get a percentage, based on their relative finishes, with a minimum score of 75, in the event one school doesn’t have enough volunteers. And since my old classmates aren’t really interested in competing....”
“It doesn’t matter how good the one ringer is, if Canterlot High can provide three solid performances!” Rarity said. “And if there’s one thing we’re skilled at, it’s bringing the school together.”
“I’ll go light a fire under all my teammates’ butts,” Rainbow Dash.
“I know a couple of girls I can talk to about gymnastics,” Rarity said.
“And Carrot Top and Roseluck used to ride when we were girls. I’ll go talk to them,” Applejack said.
The girls put their hands together and shouted “Wondercolts forever!” The spirit of harmony and magic of friendship flowed through them, and they rose off the ground as they ponied up.
“Now remember, we’re going to win this without magic,” Sunset Shimmer said.
The magic winked out, and the girls drifted to the floor.
Sunset Shimmer left lunch feeling worried. She wasn’t worried about the new Friendship Games—her friends would come through—but rather worried about the matters that only she could understand. There was no telling how much of Equestrian magic could have slipped through that portal, thanks to the carelessness of Starswirl the Bearded.
She walked around the various athletic facilities, looking for the students Rainbow Dash called ringers. They were obvious to spot, being noticeably better even to the eyes of someone as athletically disinclined as Sunset Shimmer. They looked like students, but something felt off about them. But she couldn’t put a hoof, or finger, on it.
Her last stop was the track being used for the horseback riding event, and there was only one student on horseback, most likely the boy Applejack mentioned. He was chatting amiably with students from both schools. At one point, he stepped his horse back, and performed.
Sunset Shimmer had a flashback to her fillyhood. She was back as Princess Celestia’s student, attending some formal event with a Saddle Arabian delegation. The foreign horses were demonstrating their graceful and highly technical style of dressage, much to the delight of the Canterlot nobility.
The exchange student in front of her right now was demonstrating these very same moves, except using a human world horse.
All of a sudden, it hit her what was bothering her about the exchange students. When not practicing, they would rest or stretch or talk with others. But none of them used a single electronic device. Looking around the schoolyard, even the students actively practicing would play with their phones and tablets and portable music devices while waiting.
It wasn’t evidence, but it did warrant sending a message to her home world.
On Monday, Sunset Shimmer couldn’t wait for lunch to arrive. She had gotten in contact with her world’s Twilight Sparkle, and was eager to pass on the information she learned. So once the last of their group sat down at the lunch table, she opened her mouth to speak.
“We need to talk,” both she and Twilight Sparkle said.
“What?” Sunset Shimmer said, looking at Twilight Sparkle.
“No, you go first,” she said.
“Okay. After we parted ways on Saturday, I went to look at the ‘ringers’ Rainbow Dash warned us about. I watched the one doing horseback riding demonstrating dressage movements from Saddle Arabia. My world’s Saddle Arabia, not this world’s. Well, as near as I can tell from looking online, there’s no equivalent Saddle Arabian dressage here.
“Anyway, that, combined with all these exchange students being the only ones without electronic devices, made me fear that we have more unauthorized visitors from Equestria. I contacted Princess Twilight Sparkle to warn her about this, and asked if she knew anything about missing ponies, or this Lightning Dust. She confirmed that my world’s Lightning Dust was an ‘eternal rival’ of that world’s Rainbow Dash, but as for the rest, she reminded me that our world is still communicating by telegraph, and it would take a long time for her to learn anything. She’s focusing on Lightning Dust, but doesn’t have much hope to learn anything about anyone else, especially if they’re from beyond Equestria’s borders.
“Princess Twilight Sparkle will be ready to cross the portal this weekend, to help deal with any magic, but unfortunately she can’t help us much beyond that.”
She turned to Twilight Sparkle. “What is if that you wanted to say?”
“I was also worried about what Rainbow Dash said, so I did my own research on Lightning Dust. Now, you said that she was two years older than you, which would mean she should be in college.” Twilight Sparkle turned around her laptop computer, so that the others could see the screen. “Rainbow, is that Lightning Dust?”
Rainbow Dash peered at the screen, showing a group shot of a track and field team. “Sure looks like it,” she said.
“My research found a Lightning Dust running track for a Division III college in Whinnysota.” She grabbed her computer, pushed a couple of keys, and turned it back around. “And according to this, she was competing with her team in a meet in Whinnyapolis this weekend. That means she couldn’t have been here, which lends credence to your theory that she’s from Equestria.
“After finding this information, I called Cadance, ‘just to chat’. During our conversation, I asked her about Lightning Dust, and she couldn’t stop gushing about how Lightning Dust was a girl who made some mistakes, who was eager to redeem herself, and that she was glad to give her a chance.”
“Isn’t that something Principal Cadance would do? It certainly sounds like what I hear about Princess Cadance,” Sunset Shimmer said.
“It is, but the way she said it sounded... forced, in a way. Like when she was speaking in support of Principal Cinch’s bad ideas.”
“So she’s, like, mind-controlled? Then zap her with that magic doohickey of yours!” Rainbow Dash said.
“I’m afraid it doesn’t work that way,” Twilight Sparkle said. “It only interacts with magic that’s actively being used.”
“Back in Equestria, we have scanning spells that can detect enchantments. But they work by sending out magic, and analyzing how it’s changed by interacting with the enchantment,” Sunset Shimmer explained. “But without a horn, there’s no way I can do that here.”
“I think we stick with Fluttershy’s idea,” Applejack said. “We help our friends do the best they can, beat Crystal Prep, and send Lightning Dust back with her tail between her legs.”
“And if she doesn’t accept losing? Because she’s never going to accept losing,” Rainbow Dash said.
“That’s why the Princess of Friendship and Magic is going to watch the Games,” Sunset Shimmer said.
The week passed in a flash. With a cheerful song in their hearts, the Rainbooms worked to help their friends improve at their Friendship Games events, both athletic and academic. Their enthusiasm was contagious, and Canterlot High even got some last-minute sign-ups. By the end of the week, even the normal lunchroom cliques had faded, with students from different groups sitting together to help each other prepare for the Friendship Games.
Saturday arrived, and Sunset Shimmer arrived at the schoolyard early. At that moment, she was pacing back and forth; she had arranged to meet Princess Twilight Sparkle in this secluded location beneath the bleachers, but the princess was late. And Sunset Shimmer was getting nervous.
She was about to reach into her bag, to pull out her diary, when she saw a figure wearing a hoodie run up. She placed a violet hand against a support and leaned over, trying to catch her breath. Sunset Shimmer waited until she recovered enough to straighten up.
“Sorry I’m late,” Princess Twilight Sparkle said. “I thought I should look different from this world’s me, so I had Rarity cast a spell to change my mane color, but it didn’t change my hair color when I went through the portal, so I ran to buy a human hair coloring product, but I rushed it, and it looked awful, so I had to buy this hoodie, and....”
“Calm down,” Sunset Shimmer interjected. “Just like last year, the Friendship Games are starting with the academic competitions, and I think Lightning Dust is only going to mess with the athletic events. So we have time.”
“Good.” Twilight Sparkle pulled down her hood, revealing a frazzled head of burnt orange hair.
Sunset Shimmer recoiled at the sight. “Let’s keep your hood up. Meanwhile, why don’t we watch our friends?”
The academic events concluded late in the morning, just in time for the scheduled lunch break. Their normal lunch table was occupied by guests, so Sunset Shimmer suggested they sit at one of the picnic tables outside. “One that’s out of the way,” she added.
Having the academic events in the morning made a lot of sense; the morning’s chill had passed, giving way to a pleasant and sunny spring day. And other than the outdoor table, Sunset Shimmer counted a few differences from their normal lunches. One, Rainbow Dash was in her athletic uniform, and had a salad and protein shake for lunch, rather than her normal plate of junk food. Applejack was also dressed up, though for horseback riding. One couldn’t forget the visiting princess from another world, of course.
But strangest of all, Pinkie Pie was upset. Planning for the afternoon would have to wait. “What’s wrong?” she asked her.
“I lost!” she yelled. “My Super-Duper Baked Hot Fudge Brownie Sundae Surprise lost to Lemon Zest’s apricot pie. An apricot pie!”
“I like apricot pie,” Fluttershy said. “Maybe the judges liked it too?”
“She made her pie with fresh apricot. I stole a bite of one of them. And they were delicious!” Pinke Pie grabbed Princess Twilight Sparkle’s hoodie and shook her, causing her hood to fall and hideous orange hair to escape. “She must have used Equestrian magic!”
Princess Twilight Sparkle pulled away, putting her hood back up and straightening her hoodie. “I know a lot of spells, but I don’t think there’s one that makes delicious apricots.”
“Maybe she went to one of those high-end specialty grocery stores?” Sunset Shimmer said.
“Apricots ain’t gonna be in season for a few months,” Applejack said. “Any fresh fruit would have to come from the southern hemisphere, and those are never as tasty as a fresh-off-the-tree summer apricot.”
Sunset Shimmer smacked her forehead. “Right. No earth ponies, so you have to wait for your crops.”
“We can look into that later,” Princess Twilight Sparkle said. “Right now, we need to discuss Lightning Dust, and what to do if she brought some source of Equestrian magic.”
“I’m worried,” human Twilight Sparkle said. “We came out of the academic events with Crystal Prep holding a small lead, and that’s the worst position we could be in.”
“If they had crushed us, then Lightning Dust wouldn’t need to do anything to attain her goal of beating Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy said.
“And conversely, if Canterlot High had attained a huge lead, Lightning Dust might conclude that nothing would work,” Rarity added. “So if our strategy to win the athletic events as a school starts to work, Lightning Dust will see her chances to win slipping, and could do something drastic.”
“The problem is, we don’t have any idea what that could be,” Princess Twilight Sparkle said. “But Rainbow Dash gave me several ideas of how to stop her,” she continued, pointing to a large bag.
“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” Sunset Shimmer said.
The Rainbooms stayed together as they cheered for their school’s athletes. The first event was the equestrian event, and while the clear winner was the “exchange student” Sunset Shimmer suspected was from Saddle Arabia, Applejack and her two childhood friends came in second, third, and fourth. They watched the scoreboard to see the cumulative score posted; Canterlot High narrowed their rival’s lead.
The pattern continued with subsequent events. The Canterlot High students consistently performed well, better than their less-motivated Crystal Prep counterparts. Lightning Dust always ended each race by congratulating her chosen champion, but by the fourth event, she had noticed her school’s lead had dwindled.
Lightning Dust’s mood shifted for the worse. As Rainbow Dash lined up with the others on the track, Lightning Dust started yelling at Long Stride. The likely Equestrian winced at the hostile display, but she still took her place on the track. Rainbow Dash looked to her left, at Indigo Zap, and smirked.
Indigo Zap accepted the challenge. Even if Lightning Dust was cheating, there was still a worthy competitor with whom she could have a fair race.
The starter pistol fired, and the runners took off. Rainbow Dash and Indigo Zap were neck and neck, but both behind the ringer. The “exchange student” was the first one Rainbow Dash had noticed during last week’s practices, and she showed almost superhuman speed and endurance. But her technique marked her as an amateur, at least when it came to sprints, and Rainbow Dash knew she could beat her.
The foreign rival took an early lead, but at the halfway point, she started to slow. Years of experience told Rainbow Dash that her opponent had suffered a muscle cramp, something very hard to push through. In response, Rainbow Dash willed herself to run faster.
Over on the sidelines, Lightning Dust seethed with rage at the prospect of her ringer losing. A red glow came from her eyes, and the same color glow surrounded the gold medal she wore around her neck. A beam of magical energy shot out, striking the foreign woman, and she started to run faster, despite her injury.
Rainbow Dash saw the expression on Long Stride’s face. She was crying out in pain, but she continued to run.
The race was over mercifully soon. Rainbow Dash didn’t even check to see where she had placed. She ran over to Long Stride, who was clutching her leg in pain.
“Get the nurse!” Rainbow Dash called.
Over in the stand, human Twilight Sparkle’s magic detector reacted to Lightning Dust’s use of magic. The two native Equestrians sitting next to her also felt the magic. For Princess Twilight Sparkle in particular, the magical signature was one she couldn’t forget.
“She’s using the Alicorn Amulet!” she shouted.
“That thing is still causing problems?” Sunset Shimmer said.
“Don’t remind me,” she replied.
They saw Rainbow Dash running to them. The athletic girl bounded up the stairs of the bleachers four at a time until she reached the place where her friends were sitting.
“You’ve got to stop her!” Rainbow Dash shouted. “If you don’t, she’s going to hurt the other athletes. Or worse!”
“We know what’s going on,” Sunset Shimmer said. “The medal around her neck is actually the Alicorn Amulet, a potent artifact with incredible magic powers, but one that will warp your mind.”
“The amulet can’t be removed by force. Only its wearer can remove it, and the amulet makes it so the wearer doesn’t want to remove it,” Princess Twilight Sparkle explained. “The wearer has to be tricked into removing it, normally by giving them something they want even more.”
“But what does Lightning Dust want more than beating me?” Rainbow Dash said.
“My Rainbow Dash gave me an idea,” Princess Twilight Sparkle said. She opened her bag, and pulled out a bomber jacket. “Twilight, I need you to go find Principal Cadance. Ask her to interrupt the Friendship Games so that you can give Lightning Dust this gift, in thanks for all of her hard work. Rarity, go with her. You’ll need to tailor the jacket for that perfect fit.”
Rarity caught Princess Twilight Sparkle’s meaning right away. “One perfect fit, coming right up.”
“Cadance! Principal Cadance!”
Principal Cadance turned to Twilight Sparkle and Rarity. “Oh, hello, Twilight! So nice to see you!”
Twilight Sparkle had thought Cadance’s speech on the phone had sounded off. In person, the effect was even more noticeable. Whatever magic Lightning Dust possessed must still be affecting her. Her hope was that, since her request was ostensibly to honor Lightning Dust, the same magic would make Cadance accept without thinking too hard about it.
“Cadance, I’ve been thinking about what you said, about that nice woman that you offered a second chance. Could you please pause the games, so that Canterlot High can give her this gift, in honor of her success?”
A pause and a twitch. “Why, that sounds like a wonderful idea!” Cadance said.
Cadance walked to the announcer’s booth, where they were about to start the rollerblade relay. She grabbed the microphone out of the announcer’s hand and spoke. “Students and staff of Crystal Prep and Canterlot High, good afternoon. Before we start the next event, I’d like to take the time to recognize a very special young woman, one who overcame so much and volunteered her time so generously to help Crystal Prep prepare for the Friendship Games. Lightning Dust, would you please come to the podium?”
Lightning Dust wasn’t expecting this, but she did like being recognized. She walked over to the podium.
“In the spirit of the Friendship Games, our friendly rivals at Canterlot High are proud to present you this lovely gift.”
Lightning Dust didn’t hear a word Principal Cadance said. She could only stare at the Wonderbolts bomber jacket the one girl was holding, a jacket that only went to the best of the best. It even had the gold Wonderbolts pin with two rubies, only given to those Wonderbolts who set a world record.
“Go ahead and put it on,” one girl urged.
She put on the jacket and zipped it up. It didn’t fit well, but it was hers!
“Darling, we must tailor your jacket, to make it oh so magnifique!” the other girl said. “Won’t you be a dear and take off your whistle and medal, so that I may measure you correctly?”
She did so.
The medal transformed, changing its appearance to an amulet with a stylized equine head, complete with a horn and wings. Rarity pushed the Alicorn Amulet into her sewing kit and rushed away.
Meanwhile, both Lightning Dust and Principal Cadance were staring off in confusion and rubbing their heads. Lightning Dust looked at her hands in confusion, and then shuddered. “Where are my wings?”
“We need to take you to the nurse,” Twilight Sparkle said. “Cadance, could you please announce a thirty minute intermission?”
The first aid tent was now overflowing with dazed and confused visitors from Equestria. Due to the number of people involved, it was decided to keep the number of other in the tent to the very minimum. Only Principals Celestia and Cadance, Sunset Shimmer, and Princess Twilight Sparkle were present. The nurse was not; Principal Celestia had suggested they needed more medical supplies, in a tone the nurse had recognized after several other school events that she preferred to not think about.
“I know you’re all feeling a little strange right now, but we’re going to make sure you get home,” Twilight Sparkle said. “But first, I’d like to ask a question. Do you consider yourself a competitive creature? Raise a hoof, er, hand, if yes.”
It started with two people raising their hands, but soon all of them did.
Sunset Shimmer looked at the first two to volunteer. It was the boy she had seen swimming fast, and the girl who was the dominant gymnast. Now that she was looking at them, she saw similarities in their facial structures that suggested they were related. “Where are you two from? And are you related?”
“Yeah. We’re from Seaquestria,” the boy said. “I’m Blue Current, and that’s my little sister Skysinger.”
“But now we live in Mount Aris,” the girl said. “And it’s better there.”
“Is not!” the boy said.
“I’m beginning to see why you raised your hand,” Sunset Shimmer said. “What are you fighting about?”
“Blue Current says swimming is best, but I say you can be so much more graceful in the air,” Skysinger said. She frowned. “And I never got a chance to show him!”
“That’s right, we haven’t done swimming or gymnastics yet,” Sunset Shimmer said. “But there’s no reason you can’t compete. Principal Celestia, Principal Cadance, would you be willing to allow our fine visitors to compete, in the name of friendship?”
Principal Celestia looked to Principal Cadance, who nodded. “I think that is an excellent idea.”
“Now, you don’t have to participate if you prefer to watch,” Cadance said. “But you’re welcome to.”
The consensus among the visitors was that they came to compete, even if they weren’t expecting to do so in a new body.
The battle was fierce. Despite the lack of any personal stakes, the foreign visitors competed to win, and most often they did. But the students of Canterlot High stuck together, helped each other, and pulled away with a narrow victory.
Principal Cadance shook Principal Celestia’s hand, and passed her the trophy that signified the school’s victory. Both agreed that Superintendent Tirek didn’t need to hear anything about what happened today.
But there was one area where there was no cultural barrier between the two worlds, and that was the post-Friendship Games celebration. The Crystal Prep students seemed to take their loss in stride. Even the ones who were sure they were better admitted the need to work harder.
The only person who wasn’t celebrating was Lightning Dust, who was feeling the consequences of wearing the Alicorn Amulet. Princess Twilight Sparkle stayed by the transformed mare’s side. Trixie had told her about the corrupting effects of the artifact, how it overrode the part of you that told you what you were doing was wrong, and once the amulet was gone, all of that remorse came flooding back all at once. Twilight Sparkle was not going to abandon Lightning Dust to these emotions.
To help matters, she endeavored to keep Rainbow Dash away from Lightning Dust’s sight. Fortunately, she was a way’s away, talking with her friends.
The Rainbooms stood around one table. Rarity’s sewing kit was under the table, and everyone was leaning away from it.
“So why don’t you just destroy the stupid thing?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“It’s not that easy. In the magical land of Equestria, emotions have a power of their own,” Sunset Shimmer said. “Harmony is the strongest of these, but feelings like jealousy and envy can take form. There will always be ponies who fall victim to these feelings, and the Alicorn Amulet will be there, ready to lead them astray. It wants to be found.”
“Ooh, like the One Ring!” Pinkie Pie said.
Sunset Shimmer chuckled on hearing a human reference that she understood. “I guess it is.”
Pinkie Pie hopped up. “Gotta go! The party needs me!”
Pinkie Pie hummed to herself as she stocked the picnic tables with treats. The party was going even better than last week’s party, with more of the Crystal Prep students helping with keeping it running. There were even students helping with providing desserts.
The table in front of her had plates of pie dropped on it. Evil, evil pie, made by her arch-nemesis, as of six hours and 42 minutes earlier. She pulled out her party cannon. “Lemon Zest,” she hissed. “If you don’t want to be covered in leftover hot fudge and marshmallow sauce, you’ll tell me. Where did you get those apricots?”
“Oh, those?” the Crystal Prep student replied. “When I told Coach Lightning Dust I could win the baking contest if I had good apricots to make my apricot pie, she said she’d hook me up. And she did.”
“But how?”
“You’ll have to ask her.” Lemon Zest pulled out an apricot and bit into it, juice dripping down her chin. “Now, what happens if I want to be covered in hot fudge and marshmallow sauce?”
“Oooh!” Pinkie Pie replied.
The new Friendship Games happened a week ago, but the events were still fresh in Princess Twilight Sparkle’s mind. Part of her whole duty to Equestria thing meant dealing with the repercussions of events like this, and that meant consultation with Princess Celestia, long meetings with the Mage’s Council, and yet another reminder to Starswirl the Bearded to stop blabbing about the existence of mirror portals.
There was one loose end left to wrap up, and that meant a long balloon ride to Hope Hollow. Rainbow Dash (her Rainbow Dash) had volunteered to keep her company on the trip, though she suspected her real reason was to see those two foals who had idolized her during their previous trip.
“So what are we doing again?” Rainbow Dash asked.
Twilight Sparkle sighed as she explained it again. “We think Lightning Dust met with ponies in Hope Hollow, specifically Mr. and Mrs. Hoofington, while under the influence of the Alicorn Amulet. We need to make sure there are no lingering effects from that.”
“So that’s, like, a magic-slash-egghead thing, right?”
Twilight Sparkle sighed again. “Yes, Rainbow Dash, you can go see Pickle Barrel and Barley Barrel if you want.”
“Great!” Rainbow Dash shouted. She flared her wings, only to be captured in Twilight Sparkle’s aura.
“You can go after we land the balloon and tie it down.”
The moment that was done, Rainbow Dash flew off, leaving Twilight Sparkle to find the apricot farmers. Even if she didn’t recall the layout of the small town, she would have known where to go by delectable fragrance of the fruit.
To her surprise, the Hoofingtons were expanding, building a new barn and farmhouse. The unicorn couple was outside, monitoring the construction.
“Princess! It is an honor!” Mrs. Hoofington said. The couple bowed.
“Please rise,” she said. “Mr. and Mrs. Hoofington, have you recently met with this mare?” She held aloft in her magical aura a photograph of Lightning Dust.
“We have,” Mr. Hoofington admitted.
“This mare was corrupted by a powerful magical artifact, and I want to make sure there are no lingering magical effects on you,” Twilight Sparkle explained. “May I scan you magically?”
“Of course,” both replied.
As expected from what she had learned from Lightning Dust, Twilight Sparkle saw no such magic. “So, the apricot business going well?” she said.
“We had a recent windfall,” Mrs. Hoofington said. “That mare you showed us was eager to buy our first harvest, and paid generously for it.”
“Paid with what?” Twilight Sparkle said. She was positive Lightning Dust was not a mare of means.
“A cylindrical roll of pressed aluminum,” Mrs. Hoofington said.
“More than enough to fund the orchard’s expansion, as well as some improvements we’ve always wanted,” Mr. Hoofington added.
Pressed aluminum? When it finally hit her what they meant, Twilight Sparkle facehoofed. “I’m sorry, but as princess, I am ordering you not to discuss this windfall or where you got it.”
The couple looked confused, but nodded. “As you wish, Princess,” Mr. Hoofington said. “May we be of any further assistance?”
“No, that is all,” Twilight Sparkle said.
“So, Lightning Dust bought a bushel of apricots with a fortune of aluminum?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Yes, at least eighty thousand bits’ worth,” Twilight Sparkle replied.
“Why?”
“Because in the human world, aluminum is so cheap, they use it for disposable cans and cooking pans. They even have rolls of foil they use in place of tin, for wrapping food.”
“Really?”
“Yes. You can find it in any human grocery store.”
“So if I go through the portal....”
“No, Rainbow.”
“But I need to upgrade my house! I mean, I’m a Wonderbolt now. Ponies have expectations!”
“I said no, Rainbow.” This was going to be a long balloon flight back, Twilight Sparkle thought.
“Just one?”
“Rainbow Dash, listen to me! Part of being princess means thinking about greater issues,” Twilight Sparkle said. “And one of those is stopping ponies from abusing the mirror portals. And crashing the Equestrian economy certainly counts as abuse.”
Rainbow Dash crossed her forelegs over her chest. “You are no fun at all.”
It was a trying two weeks. Even with Sunset Shimmer and her human world friends helping, it was impossible to overstate the challenges caused by an artifact like the Alicorn Amulet.
She just prayed that it never fell into the hooves of somepony like Rainbow Dash.
Author's Note
Written for the Season 10 Bingo Writing Contest.
This was a difficult prompt. It would be hard to pick five characters and places that were more disparate in their interests and motivations. There wasn't even a core of two characters that had interacted at any point in the series.
This contest also marks the first time I've written something in the Equestria Girls universe.
