MLP: The Second Chapter

After meeting Luna in the dream realm, Starlight awoke to a crack of thunder and realized that it was storming heavily. With her coat completely drenched, she ran helter skelter through the brush, blindly trying to feel her way back to the castle. Her mind raced just as much as her legs did. She still didn't have any idea of the choice that she had to make that would so greatly affect the future of Equestria. The thought of her choosing incorrectly and thus making the lives of her friends and the ponies of Equestria completely miserable ignited a fire of anxiety and apprehension inside her the likes of which she had never seen.

She finally found her way out of the heavy thicket and back into the castle yard. She stopped and looked up. Lightning crashed in the heavens, and its glow lit up the castle. It gave her home a rather sinister atmosphere. Ironically, the Castle of Friendship looked like the Castle of Enemies. She slowly approached the building, ignoring the pounding rain. She wanted to be sure that she would find her friends inside, laughing and generally being normal.

She nudged the door open with a hoof and peered inside. Looking around, she saw nothing except the suits of armor that dotted the room. They had been given as a gift by Celestia, and Flash Sentry had insisted that they go in the main hall to greet guests. Twilight was unnerved by his suggestion, and they fought about it for a while, but in the end, a compromise was reached. Flash put the armor where he wanted, and he bought Twilight a brand new bookcase.

Now, those same suits of armor looked alive in the darkness. The storm raged outside, and nopony had bothered to turn any sort of light on. So Starlight picked her way through the hall and up the main stairs. She turned right and headed for Twilight's room. She wanted desperately to make sure that her best friend was alright. If something's gone wrong, I'll never forgive myself! She wailed internally.

Luna had said that Twilight thought her foal could do no wrong. But, if that was the case, then why was Twilight so nervous and upset when Zecora confirmed the prophecy's existence? Now, Starlight was afraid that Twilight would swing to the other extremity, and think that everything Midnight did was subpar or below standard. I've got to hurry, she told herself as her hooves picked up speed down the carpeted hallway.

She skidded around a corner and bumped into something, or rather, someone. "Hey!" The voice said in protest, "watch where you're going!" Starlight recognized Rainbow Dash. "Dash, is that you?"

"Starlight?" Dash asked, "where in Equestria have you been?! We've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Sorry," Starlight said as she blushed. Thankfully, it was still dark and nopony noticed, "I fell down a hill on the way back from Zecora's and hit my head pretty hard."

"You OK?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. But I need to see Twilight!"

"You and the rest of Equestria, it seems. Flash called us all in here in the middle of our search. He sounded absolutely frantic!"

Starlight gulped nervously. For Flash Sentry to be frantic about anything was a rarity that not many ponies were privy to. If he was in hysterics, then Twilight must have slipped into a realm of insanity the likes of which they had never seen before. "Dash, I have to see Twilight now!"

"OK, OK!" Dash said, "here, you'll have to weave your way through the line. All of our friends are standing in front of me."

"Hi, Starlight!" A happy voice greeted. It was Pinkie Pie, and Starlight nearly wretched at the memory of her body bobbing in the lake of blood in her dream. She couldn't imagine the bright and jovial pony being murdered brutally at the hooves of Twilight's daughter. "Uh…hi, Pinkie," she called back, trying to stay positive, "some storm, huh?"

"Oh, yeah! The Pegasi have really cooked one up this time!"

"I need to see Twilight. It's incredibly important! Can you guide me into the room? You seem like you're at the front of the line."

"Yep-a-doodle! Just put one hoof in front of the other until you get to my voice. There's some light over here."

So Starlight, with a few "excuse me's" and a few apologies, stumbled her way around her friends until she got to Pinkie. Once she got there, a small light illuminated Pinkie's face. It was so small, that it was impossible to see from the back of the line. "We were so worried about you!" The pink mare exclaimed, "but I'm so happy to see that you're back, safe and sound!"

"Yes, Pinkie," Starlight said, "I'm glad to be back as well. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to see Twilight." With that, Starlight opened the door and light flooded into the hallway. She could finally make out her friends, who were giving her very neutral looks. They were happy to see her, but some of them weren't too happy about having their tails stepped on. She smiled sheepishly and disappeared into Twilight's room.

What she found there shocked and devastated her. Twilight was rocking back and forth on the bed. Her eyes were bloodshot and they darted back and forth. Her mouth was open wide in a crazed smile, and her jaws seemed to be just a little bit out of place. Her mane was unkempt and her ears twitched randomly. "I am a good mother," she said crazily, "I'm a very good mother. There's nothing wrong with my foal. I'm a wonderful mother. I'm an insanely good mother."

These crazed utterances went on in a repetitive fashion. She would say these seemingly reassuring phrases, and then cackle as an old witch. Then she would go right back into her insane musings. Flash stood by the bed in an absolute panic. He shook Twilight, urging her to come back to reality, but she never did. All she did was sit there and utter her crazed iterations.

Flash turned to Starlight. He ran to her and grabbed her by the shoulders. "What did you do TO MY WIFE?!" He yelled at her. She fought him off. "I didn't do anything, Flash!"

"She came back and talked about some kind of prophecy and then went completely insane! I have no idea what to do! She's trying to make herself believe that Midnight can do no wrong! I mean, I love our filly just as much as she does, but…come on! That's crazy talk!"

Suddenly, Twilight snapped out of her haze and threw herself on Flash. "IT'S NOT CRAZY TALK!" She screamed, "MIDNIGHT SUN IS A PERFECT PONY! NOTHING WILL HAPPEN TO HER! SHE'S PERFECT AND WONDERFUL AND AMAZING AND I NEVER WANT TO HEAR ANY NEGATIVE TALK ABOUT HER AGAIN!"

Starlight realized with a start that this was what Luna had been referring to. Now was the time for her to make that choice. If she chose to side with Twilight and calm her and make her feel like she was "mother of the year" material, then the vision of the lake of blood and a destroyed land would surely come to pass. But she would keep Twilight as a friend. If she chose to side with Flash Sentry and stand against the deranged mare in front of her, then Equestria would be saved, but a wonderful friendship would be destroyed in the process.

It was the most difficult decision of Starlight's life. She had already lost one friend, and now she faced the prospect of losing another. That was the last thing she wanted. But she also didn't want to see ponies dying. She didn't want the lake of blood to become reality. So, she put the good of Equestria before her friendship. She sided with Flash Sentry.

She ripped Twilight off of him and threw her against the wall. "SNAP OUT OF IT, TWILIGHT!" She yelled. The purple pony stared back at her with her mouth open. She appeared to be back in a sensible mindset, but Starlight wanted to be sure. "Now," she said, "I'm going to let you down. When I do, I want you to answer the following question: is Midnight Sun a perfect filly?"

She let Twilight down, and the princess stood there shaking on her hooves. Starlight couldn't tell if she was angry with her for asking the question, or if she was recovering from her recent bout of insanity. Twilight sighed and relented. "No," she said, "Midnight's not perfect…and I have to accept that. I just love her so much…"

"No," Starlight said, "you don't love Midnight. You're obsessed with her. There's a difference. If you loved that little filly, then you would punish her when she does something wrong. A truly loving mother guides their children in the path of what's right. She doesn't allow them to stray without consequences. Now, I'm not saying you have to be an extremely strict mother. But there do need to be rules and regulations. I know Midnight's still just a baby, but even now the seeds of obsession are being planted in your heart and they will affect, not only Midnight's future, but the future of Equestria as a whole. When she grows into a young filly, she'll need the boundaries that you should set for her. If you set those boundaries, maybe the course of the future will be changed and Zecora's prophecy won't come true."

Twilight was a little surprised at just how much Starlight knew about being a mother. "Starlight?" She asked.

"Yeah?"

"How on Earth do you know so much about being a mother?"

Starlight looked down, "because I never had one. My father was the only parental figure I had, and he had to play my mother as well. Everything I know about being a parent comes from him. I may never get the opportunity to be a mother myself, but I can help you with Midnight." She smiled at her friend, who smiled right back. Maybe we just saved Equestria and our friendship, she thought in excitement.

"Starlight?"

"Mm-hmm?"

"I've thought it over and I have something I'd like to ask you."

"What's that?"

"Would you be Midnight's godmother?"

Starlight beamed. She was so excited to be given this honor. Being the godmother to a royal foal was very serious business. She would have to be on her hooves constantly, helping Twilight care for the young one until she reached the age of 2 years. After that, Equestrian tradition stated that Starlight would take on the role of tutor to the young pony.

She bowed low before Twilight. "Princess, I humbly accept your offer, and I would be honored to be Midnight's godmother." Twilight bowed back in respect and thanks, and then grasped Starlight in an embrace. The friendship that exuded from her body was palpable. You could almost reach out and touch it. The ponies broke apart and smiled. They knew that, no matter what the prophecy said, they would find a way through it. After all, they had always beaten trials before, so what made this any different?

What they didn't realize was that young Midnight's power was immense, and her magic, if unleashed improperly, could destroy entire cities. The foal would have to be trained hard, night and day, in order to control it. Their darkest days were ahead of them and, though they didn't realize it yet, it would take all of their friendship and all of their strength to battle through just one of them.