Little Keys

by Skijarama

Rating: everyone
Tags: Romance, Alternate Universe, Twilight Sparkle, Sad, Main 6, Princess Luna, Drama, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Spike, Rainbow Dash
Length: 208123

After two long, painful years, Twilight Sparkle has finally regained her lost memories. Unfortunately, her remembrance has come at a terrible price...

After two long, painful years, Twilight Sparkle has finally regained her lost memories. Unfortunately, her remembrance has come at a terrible price...

Exiled from her home city of Canterlot and haunted by the whispering voice of Midnight Sparkle, Twilight has been tasked with opening a mysterious chest presented to her by the Tree of Harmony. To do this, she must prove to her friends - and to herself - that she is still worthy to wield the Element of Magic. But with her own mind threatening to swallow her whole at every turn, her task will be far from easy. If she is to succeed, Twilight must face her fears and come to terms with what she allowed herself to become, or fall prey to the shadow whispering in her ear...

Thankfully, she does not have to carry this burden alone.

Beware spoilers in the comments!

Edited by Chromio

The cover art was drawn by Hagalazka

This is the fifth story in the Little Flashes series. Reading through the previous stories is intensely encouraged to understand the events of this story.

Published 2020-04-26 16:40:02 UTC
Last updated 2024-12-31 05:11:51 UTC

Clueless

“Another dead end…” Twilight thought, barely able to contain a growl of frustration as yet another thick book slammed shut on her desk. She might have wondered about how many books this made, but she just didn’t have it in her to keep track after the fifth. With a snort, she shunted it off to one side so it could join the rest of the wastes-of-time in their ever-growing towers of parchment and leather. The spire swayed uneasily from the book’s forceful landing, but it thankfully did not fall.

Twilight was sitting alone in the loft of the library, beams of midday sunlight streaming in through the window. Motes of dust danced aimlessly in the rays of light while hastily scribbled scrolls, diagrams, charts, and reference tables were scattered along the floors and walls. Stacks of books as tall as Celestia were tucked haphazardly into the corners of the room, each one less orderly than the last; a clear visual indication of Twilight’s waning patience.

She had been at this for hours. From the time she had gotten up, she worked tirelessly to try and find some reference to the Tree of Harmony and that chest it had grown after turning her back to normal. It’d been maybe a week since that incident—and since Twilight had regained her memories, too—but so far she hadn’t made any progress whatsoever in opening the chest.

No clues had presented themselves up to now. No Flashes or cryptic visions. Not even a vague feeling to guide her. She was left well and truly without a direction to go in. In a situation like this, with not even a clear starting point, what else was she to do but what she did best?

Lose herself in a pile of books and hope it leads to something.

The tomes she had scanned through so far had been interesting, but none were helpful. There were a few scattered references to the Elements of Harmony, but only ever in the vaguest and most cryptic of terms; a result of the near-mythical status the old artifacts had gained over the thousand years since Nightmare Moon was banished. Sadly, none of those references had been of any help, so Twilight moved on to more books.

Rainbow helped her at first, but the pegasus had eventually needed to take off. She may have been the Princess of the Skies, but she still insisted on volunteering to assist the Weather Bureau. Admirable, indeed, but it meant Twilight was down a pair of eyes and a mind that wasn’t attacking itself at every misstep.

Spike had been helping, too, but Twilight eventually sent him off to tend to some errands around town. In truth, those errands were just a thinly veiled excuse to get Spike out of the library and away from her. Twilight didn’t want to lash out at him when he had done nothing wrong. She just didn’t want to lash out at him, period. The drake had been one of her greatest friends during her time with amnesia, helping her just as much as Rainbow. She couldn’t repay that kindness with angry shouts and long-winded rants.

As a result of her concern and desire to remove Spike from her growing frustration, she was forced to do her work all on her own. This was both a blessing and a curse: a blessing because it meant she had no cause to hold herself back when she needed to vent her anger. She could shout and snarl whenever she needed without worrying about anypony poking at her about it.

The curse was almost enough to counteract the benefits. Between her nightmare and general anxiety, Twilight had not slept well the previous night at all. Combine that with a burning in the base of her skull that became worse and worse with every dead end or red herring, and she was beginning to wish she had kept the drake around to reign her in and pull her back down.

That thought was summarily put down as a memory from her youth resurfaced.

“Twilight, you’re scaring me… I really think you should take a break-”

Twilight turned her glare to Spike once more. For a moment, she trembled before opening her mouth. “Take a break? Spike, did you hear me the last time? Or the time before that?!” her voice rose from a cold growl to a harsh yell. “I don’t need to take a break! I’m fine and I just wish you’d stop bugging me so I can concentrate!”

“But -”

“BUT NOTHING!” Twilight all but screamed before turning her eyes back to her desk. “Just leave me alone!”

Twilight grimaced at the memory. She had been extremely young at the time. Only ten years old. A short temper was to be expected, but that had not made the ordeal any easier on her conscience. She had been guilt-ridden for several days after Rainbow and Fluttershy tore into her about it, and she had gone out of her way to make up for it.

With a deep breath, Twilight turned away from the desk and scanned the shelves, looking for another book to try and give herself a lead. The shelves in her room had been all but cleaned at this point, but there were still a few scattered about. She took the titles in, hoping for something related. Once or twice, she pulled one out to check the subtitle or read the description before putting it back when she deduced it had nothing to do with what she was trying to figure out.

It slowly dawned on her that there was nothing else in the library that could be related to what she was looking for. “But if there’s nothing else in the library, then… I’m flying blind,” she thought. Her eyes slowly widened, a chilly sensation seeping into her veins. If she couldn’t find a clue about that chest or how to open it, then...

The ice in her veins melted into fire. Her lips curled back into an ugly snarl as magic gathered on her horn. “You… you’ve got to be KIDDING me!” she seethed, her eye twitching. With a frustrated scream of rage and a stomp of her forehooves, she threw her head back, allowing a pulse of raw, uncontrolled magic to shoot out of her horn and rapidly spread throughout the room. A gust of intense wind was kicked up by the force, throwing books and parchment flying all over to scatter along the floor.

A moment later, everything was still again. Twilight looked on at the mess she had created, her rage forgotten and replaced with mortified shock. “W… w-what?” she breathed, her hoof wandering up to her chest. “...Why did I do that?”

“Why am I acting like this?!” she thought, a pearl of unease forming in her gut. She had just thrown the equivalent of a temper tantrum, like a spoiled child stamping his hooves and screaming bloody murder because he didn’t get what he wanted. Children had an excuse. Many of them got upset over the smallest things, and others flippantly threw blame around to avoid taking responsibility for their own mistakes. That was just how foals were. They didn’t know any better.

But Twilight wasn’t a child. “I do know better,” she thought, letting her face fall onto her desk and covering her head with her hooves. “I’m a grown mare, for pony’s sake! I shouldn’t be getting this angry this easily… ugh. What in Equestria is wrong with me?!”

A gentle knock came to the door. With a start, Twilight turned and looked to see Spike poking his head in, a nervous look on his face. “Uh… h-hey,” he greeted quietly. His eyes fell to the mess, widening with shock. “You, uh… y-you okay?”

Twilight sighed and nodded. “I… yes, Spike, I’m okay. Sorry, I just…” She lit her horn and carefully put everything back where she had found it. She winced at the sight of a few torn pages and bent covers. “I’m just stressed out… if I can’t open that chest, I can’t go to Canterlot and see my family… What are you doing back so soon? I would have thought those errands would take longer.”

Spike stepped all the way into the room, tapping his claws together over his chest. “Er… you sent me away two hours ago. I’ve been downstairs for thirty minutes, and Rainbow’s due to come home any minute.”

Twilight blinked and turned to look at a nearby clock. Surely it hadn’t been that long already, had it? Sure enough, she realized that she had sent Spike out at ten, and it was now noon. “...Oh.”

Spike stepped up to her side and held something up. Curious, Twilight looked and found a scroll clutched in his claws. He shuffled on his feet. “I just got this a little bit ago… I was coming up to give it to you when I, uh, heard the commotion.”

“Who’s it from?” Twilight asked, taking the scroll in her magic and opening it up.

“Your parents.”

Twilight froze at those words. Her throat constricted, and her wings twitched anxiously on her back. Her parents had sent her a letter. Were they upset with her about what happened? Had she hurt them when she was running around as Midnight? She swallowed heavily, unsure if she wanted to read the contents.

But she had to know what they thought. She took a deep breath and opened the scroll all the way before looking at the contents.

Dear Twilight.

We heard about what happened to you last week. We had heard the commotion from our house, but your father and I had no idea that it was you. Princess Celestia came by to talk to us and tell us what had happened. We’re so sorry to hear about what happened, and we hope we can come to see you soon to give you all the love and support we can. We know you’re not a bad mare, Twilight, and we want you to know, right now, that we don’t think any less of you for what happened. You were able to turn things around and give back everything you stole.

But we are worried about you… really worried. First amnesia, now a Fall? It’s incredible that you are able to bear that weight on your shoulders as well as you do. If you ever need somepony to talk to, you can always send us a letter, and we’d love to come to visit whenever possible if you need an extra shoulder or two to cry on. We know you’re all grown up now, but you will always be our little girl, and we will always be here for you if you need us.

It’s amazing, really, just how much you’ve accomplished since moving to Ponyville. You just keep finding ways to amaze and astound us. Even with what’s going on now, you’re still fighting on, as brave as ever. I don’t think either of us can ever truly express just how proud we are of you, Twilight. When I gave birth to you, I could never have imagined we’d have such a beautiful, strong, and gifted mare as you for our daughter. No matter what mistakes you’ve made, or what struggles you’ll face in the future, we have every confidence that you’ll face it with courage and come out on top like you always have before!

We love you with all of our hearts, Twilight! And we’re cheering for you!

Love,

Mom and Dad.

Twilight stared at the page for several seconds, her heart fluttering in her chest. She took a deep breath and held the parchment over her heart, a subtle warmth flowing through her veins from the page.

It didn’t help her find the keys to that chest, but it sure made her feel better. At least for the moment.

“Well, looks like that’s working,” Spike commented, a small smile creeping onto his face.

Twilight nodded and set the letter down on her desk. “Yeah… heh. Those two… I don’t know what I was thinking, assuming they’d be mad at me,” she muttered.

“They’re your parents,” Spike pointed out. “Angry? No. Worried? Absolutely, just like the rest of us.”

Twilight winced. Of course, everypony was worried. “I don’t know why I would expect any different…”

Before she could open her mouth about it, a brief tremor shot through the home, followed by the voice of Rainbow Dash calling from downstairs. “Hey! I’m back! Any luck?!”

“Does a Twilight meltdown count as luck?!” Spike called back over his shoulder, eliciting an undignified squawk from Twilight.

“Spike!” she hissed, glaring at him. “Why?!”

“Because you need some good old fashioned Sprainbow Therapy,” Spike stated without missing a beat, shooting her a cheeky sideways glare.

“How is chucking me under the chariot like that therapeutic?!”

“Because it makes us happy,” Rainbow answered as she sauntered casually into the room. Her mane was swept back from her time in the air, and a thin layer of sweat had built up in her fur, but she otherwise seemed fine. “And when we’re happy, so are you.”

Twilight glared at Rainbow indignantly. She thrust her nose up into the air and gave a loud, haughty huff. “...Jerks,” she mumbled, puffing up her cheeks.

Rainbow laughed at that, coming up Twilight’s side and draping a wing over her. “Aw, c’mon. Y’know you love it,” she said quietly, nuzzling into the alicorn’s cheek affectionately.

Twilight huffed again before lightly reciprocating the gesture. “...Yeah, I guess I do,” she admitted quietly.

“Victory,” Spike declared with an enthusiastic pump of his fist and a victorious grin. “Excellent!”

“You hush!” Twilight shot at him before turning back to her desk.

A few seconds passed before Rainbow got a more serious look on her face. “So… what was Spike going on about a meltdown?”

Twilight’s smile faded, and she leaned down to rest her chin on the surface of her desk. “Ugh… Not one of the books in this library has anything to tell me about the Tree of Harmony, or that chest, or anything about any keys to open it…” she mumbled, covering her head with her hooves.

Rainbow’s wing squeezed her closer to the pegasus, while one of her hooves rested on Twilight’s shoulder. “Hey…”

“I don’t know what I’m doing, you two,” Twilight continued, deciding to just bite the bullet and spill her frustration to them. It wouldn’t do her any good to bottle it up, after all. The mess Spike had walked in on was evidence enough of that. “I feel like I’m lost! I have to figure out to open that stupid chest, but I don’t even know how to start looking for the keys!”

“Twi…”

“Have they always existed, or are they things that have just magically appeared to go along with the chest?! I don’t know! And if I can’t figure it out, then I won’t be able to go back to Canterlot and see my family, or visit the library, or see Princess Celestia, or any of my old friends! I’ll be-”

“Twilight!”

Twilight’s head jerked up in surprise from the force in Rainbow’s voice. She turned to look and saw the pegasus’ deep pink eyes staring intensely into her own. A few seconds passed before Rainbow’s lips curled up into a devilish smirk, and she darted in to steal a kiss. Like a woodpecker, she was in and out before Twilight had a chance to react, leaving her flustered and confused with a healthy red blush on her cheeks. “W-wha?! B-but, I…”

“You, Twilight Killjoy Sparkle, worry too much,” Rainbow said lightly.

Twilight snorted.

“We’ll figure it out,” Spike added with an encouraging smile. He placed a claw on her hoof for emphasis and beamed up at her. “And ya know, if you’re stressing yourself out over this chest thing so much, why not send a letter to Princess Celestia? I’m sure she’d be willing to offer you some advice.”

Twilight blinked, her heart skipping a beat. “W-wha…? Send a letter to… Celestia?” she echoed. The idea hadn’t occurred to her up until now, and it seemed kind of obvious in retrospect. But at the same time, Celestia was one of the two beings who had delivered this sentence onto her in the first place, and she hadn’t done anything to reign Luna in before she slapped an exile sentence on top of opening the chest.

“And after how badly I hurt her daughter… stealing her memories like I did…” Twilight thought, her hoof drifting up to her chest as her mind wandered back to that terrible moment. She could still feel how much it had hurt when Rainbow had opened her eyes, only to look back up at her with no idea who she was…

Rainbow didn’t seem to share Twilight’s concerns. She pointed briefly at Spike with a sharp nod before giving Twilight a little shake. “Spike’s got a point, Twi. Mom’d probably be the best pony to talk to about this.”

Twilight didn’t say anything for a few moments, battling with the idea in her mind. Some small worm of bitterness and resentment snarled at her, commanding her to discard the idea and press on without Celestia’s help. “Celestia let this happen to you in the first place! Why should you humiliate yourself any further by begging for help from her?!” her voice snarled at her from somewhere inside her skull.

Twilight screwed her eyes shut, a subtle spike of pain worming through her skull. She immediately put a hoof to her chest and took a series of deep breaths, going through the motions Cadance had taught her, and Rainbow had re-taught her. In and out, in and out…

Her sudden need for that exercise did not go unnoticed, and she felt the claw and hooves on her giving her comforting squeezes. A few seconds went by before she finally calmed down enough and opened her eyes again. Spike and Rainbow were looking back at her with concern written all over their faces.

“...Twi? Are you feeling okay?” Rainbow asked, lifting a hoof to feel at Twilight’s forehead. “That looked kinda intense…”

Twilight shakily nodded. “Y-yeah, I’m fine. Just… just a headache,” she half-lied, lightly brushing the hoof away and turning back to her desk. “It’s not humiliating. She’s my teacher. Asking her questions is what I’m supposed to do. So I can learn!”

The voice between her ears had no rebuttal. Twilight took a deep breath before pulling forth a blank sheet of parchment and her writing quill with her magic. Without much thought, she began to write.

Dear Princess Celestia,

Over the last several days, I have gone through every single book in my library that I think might have some sort of connection to the chest presented to me by the Tree of Harmony. Since I have to open that chest to regain entry to Canterlot, I am devoting every ounce of energy I have to this task.

Unfortunately, there is nothing in my library that’s of any help. Not even a reference to get me started. I’m fumbling in the dark with no idea what to do or where to go for answers. Without some clue, I can’t hope to ever open the chest and make up for what I did as Midnight.

Twilight’s head twinged as she wrote that name, but she pressed on, ignoring it.

It’s beyond stressful. I’m getting more and more frustrated with every passing day, and I’m getting scared that I might never be able to make things right and go back to Canterlot. It’s eating me up inside, to the point that I just got done having a small ‘Twilight Meltdown,’ as Spike and Rainbow so affectionately put it.

That’s why I am writing to you now. If it isn’t too much trouble, I would be grateful for any guidance or advice you could give me. Anything would be a huge help here.

I look forward to your quick response.

Your faithful student,

Twilight Sparkle.

She looked the sheet over one more time to ensure it said everything she wanted. Then, with a nod, she turned and drifted it over to Spike. “Alright, to Princess Celestia, Spike,” she instructed simply.

Spike took the letter with a sharp nod. “Aye aye, Twilight!” he said. He breathed in and unleashed a gout of green flames over the letter, transforming it into a cloud of smoke and sparks. The cloud drifted over to the nearby window, which Rainbow saw fit to trot over to and open up so it could pass through unhindered.

“Okay, it’s on its way!” Spike proclaimed, sticking his chest out. “Now we just need to wait for her to write back!”

“Yeah, guess so…” Twilight nodded, looking ahead at the wall behind her desk.

A few seconds passed in silence before she felt a hoof on her back, and Rainbow spoke up. “Hey, why don’t we head outside for a little while?” she suggested quietly, guiding Twilight from her seat and for the door. “Ya know, get some fresh air, clear your head, get ya away from all these books.”

Twilight thought it over for a second. Outside, huh? She shrugged. “Hm. Sure? Why not?”

Rainbow put on a comforting smile. Without another word, Twilight allowed the pegasus and the dragon to escort her out of the loft and out of the library.

Ponyville had seen better days, that much was certain.

Twilight winced as she looked out over the town. It had only been a few weeks since the Plundervines rampaged across the region. Several homes had been torn to practical shreds, leaving a large number of ponies displaced or forcing them to room up with their neighbors until repairs could be completed.

Repairs which were well underway, and would probably be more or less done in just a few months. For as much damage as the town had suffered, Twilight knew that damage wasn’t exactly anything new to Ponyville. The town had rebuilt itself a few times already in the time she and Rainbow had called it home. It always took a bit of time, but in the end, everypony pulled together and put things back the way they were meant to be.

That didn’t stop her from frowning at the signs of damage, though. The library had been spared the worst of the carnage, thankfully, but the buildings surrounding it had not been so fortunate. In every direction she saw shattered windows and holes in walls, and she even spotted the broken legs of a dismantled furniture set puncturing the ground like a series of poorly aimed javelins.

It got worse the further she looked towards the Everfree. Many homes had been outright obliterated, one of which she knew to be Fluttershy’s cottage. Repairs were due to start on that building any day, as she understood it, but given it had basically been broken into rubble, a full rebuild was probably in order…

She gave off a quiet sigh and looked ahead. It was still hard for her to believe that all of that damage had come about as a result of Discord not being around to hold the vines in check like he had in the original timeline. If the scattered Flashes her friends had experienced were anything to go by, the vines had been almost docile in the original version of events. They had spread and broken things, to be sure, but they hadn’t been so violent or hostile…

Her train of thought was broken by a series of coughs and gags from her right. Curious, she turned to see Spike sitting by her side, a claw held up to his lips as his cheeks bulged out.

Rainbow, who had been sitting on Twilight’s other side, leaned over to look past Twilight. “Aw, sweet! Getting a reply, huh?”

“Uh- ulp- huh!” Spike gagged before his mouth opened wide. Twilight shied back as a comically unattractive belch tore out of his open maw, unleashing a torrent of green flames. The flames coalesced and gathered into one space before a scroll popped into existence, bound with the royal seal.

Twilight snatched it out of the air with her magic in a heartbeat and tore it open, equal parts anxious and excited to see what her teacher had to say.

My dearest student, Twilight,

I am sorry to hear that you have been having such a hard time with your task. In hindsight, it would have been prudent of my sister and I to try and render some more guidance before we left you. Alas, I fear that the exhaustion of the night’s events, not to mention my own emotionally unstable state after what I witnessed, led me to excuse myself. It is an old flaw of mine, one Rainbow Dash knows only all too well.

I will make up for it as best as I can right now, however. It makes sense that there wouldn’t be anything in your library that could give you answers, as even I am not sure what resides in that chest, nor do I have any ideas on how to open it. I fear that this is a test you will be taking at all times, rather than one you will actively have to study for. A trial of character rather than a trial of intellect.

After all, you are attempting to regain access to your Element of Harmony. If I had to speculate, I would imagine that to do so would require that you prove to the Tree that you are still worthy of wielding its power. As the centerpiece of the Elements, I have no doubts that this will be a very difficult trial to overcome.

I must caution you, however, against haste or recklessness. As true as it is that you are exiled from Canterlot until further notice, the fact remains that there is no further level to your punishment, and no time limit on the objectives laid out before you. I strongly encourage you to take your time and not stress yourself over it. Take some time to enjoy life and be with Rainbow Dash. With your memories restored, so too is your relationship, as I understand it.

On that note, there is one thing I must request: I need Rainbow Dash to come up to Canterlot as soon as possible. As she is the one appointed to oversee your progress, I need to go over the finer details with her, and I would rather do it in person. Rest assured, I will not devour much of her time. A day or two at the very most.

If you still insist on finding reading material to help you, however, I recommend you pay a visit to the library in the castle that Luna and I once lived in, deep in the Everfree Forest. I believe that there may be a book hidden somewhere in those ancient shelves that may be of some use to you.

I hope you find what you are looking for, and I want you to know, Twilight, that no matter what you did, I am ever hopeful that you will succeed, and that you may always reach out to me if you need guidance, or even just an ear to vent to.

Sincerely,
Princess Celestia.

Twilight set the letter down once she was done reading it, her brow furrowed. “A book in the library of the Castle of the Two Sisters…?” she wondered, thinking back to their previous expeditions to that place to see if she recalled anything helpful.

“Makes sense,” Spike pointed out. “Luna and Celestia did basically live on top of the Tree for a really long time. Decades, at least. There’s bound to be something that at least talks about it in there.”

“Yeah, probably,” Twilight acknowledged. She rolled the scroll up and teleported it inside before turning to Rainbow.

The pegasus grinned, puffing out her chest. “Okay, then let’s go! We can fly there and get a start right now! I don’t have anything else going on today!”

“Um, actually…” Twilight muttered, her ears drooping. “Princess Celestia said that she wants you to go and see her in Canterlot as soon as possible…”

Rainbow’s posture deflated. “W-what? Why? I mean, I’m real happy to go and see her whenever, but uh, I don’t think this is a social call.”

Twilight shook her head. “It’s not. She wants to talk to you about how you’re… overseeing my progress,” she said, her brow furrowing. A small spider of fire crawled along the base of her skull at the idea, but she was quick to banish it.

Rainbow opened her mouth to object, then gave off a quiet sigh of frustration. “Oh, yeah… that. Man, this stinks,” she grumbled, looking up at Canterlot. “Ugh. Guess our trip to the castle’s delayed till I get back, huh?”

“Yeah, probably…” Twilight replied, rubbing a hoof along her shoulder. She couldn’t keep a small drop of venom from dripping into what she said next. “...At least you get to spend some time with your family.”

She could feel the stares on her the moment she said that, and she immediately regretted it. She looked down at the grass beneath her hooves and clamped her mouth shut, her ears folding back.

A few seconds passed before Spike cleared his throat. “Actually, Rainbow, I think Twi and I can manage the trip to the castle while you’re in Canterlot.”

Twilight blinked. “Huh?”

Rainbow mirrored that remark.

Spike shrugged. “Well, I mean, it’s the most practical way to do things, isn’t it? You’re gonna be busy for a few days, probably, and searching through the whole castle’s probably gonna take a few days, too. Why do them one at a time when we can do both?”

“W-well, yeah, but…” Rainbow began before her words died. She looked at Twilight, her ears drooping. “Going back there so soon after everything we just got done going through…”

Twilight actually managed to put on a smile at that. She reached out with a wing to pull Rainbow into a side-hug. “I actually like this plan, Rainbow. It’s better than letting me sit around here on my rump with nothing to do but wait for you to come home. It’ll give me something to do, take my mind off things.”

“But-”

“And don’t worry, I’ll be safe. Spike and I can bring some of our friends with us to help keep us safe. We won’t be in any danger that we won’t be able to handle.”

“Especially if we bring Fluttershy,” Spike pointed out. “Her ability to deal with animals and stare them into submission will basically make the whole trip a cakewalk.”

“And with her house still due to be rebuilt, she’s between things right now, too,” Twilight finished with a short nod. “So as long as she’s alright with coming with us, I’m sure it’ll all turn out fine, and we can meet back here when we’re done.”

Rainbow stared at the two of them for a few seconds, mouthing uselessly like a fish. She eventually nodded, a small smile gracing her lips. “Heh, fair points across the board,” she acknowledged. Her smile faded, and she looked down. “Sorry, Twi. I don’t wanna baby you or anything, but… well, I’m just worried, that’s all.”

Twilight hummed and leaned over, giving Rainbow an affectionate nuzzle. “I know you are. And it means a lot to me. But I’d rather be on my hooves trying to be productive than sitting around doing nothing while you’re gone.”

Rainbow nodded in understanding. “Yeah, yeah, I hear ya. Just be careful, alright? It’s still the Everfree you’re gonna be running through. Place isn’t exactly friendly.”

“Trust me, I remember,” Twilight said with a roll of her eyes. “We’ll be careful, don’t worry.”

Rainbow stared at her for a few seconds, looking into her eyes as if to search for something. Whatever it was, she must have found it, as she finally relented and pulled back from Twilight’s wing-hug. “Alright. I’ll try not to,” she said while ruffling her wings. “So… we splitting up now, or do we wanna get some lunch first?”

“Definitely lunch,” Spike decided for Twilight, scampering over to Rainbow’s side. “Can we hit that hayburger joint farther into town?”

Twilight wanted to protest the idea at first, but the moment Spike mentioned hayburgers, a monstrous roar from her stomach silenced her words in her throat. Wow, she was hungrier than she realized. That, or hayburgers were just an easy cheat button for these two. One or the other.

Whatever the case, she stood up and walked over to join her two grinning roommates with a tiny blush and a roll of her eyes. “Eheh, sure. I could go for some calories right about now.”

“Just make sure you burn em off later,” Rainbow jabbed as they set off down the street.

“I run all over Ponyville with you every morning.”

“Twi, it’s hayburgers.”

“So? What’s your point?”

“Well-”

“Don’t answer that.”

As the trio bantered back and forth, their voices faded into the distance as they left the Golden Oaks Library behind and ventured forth into Ponyville. Their destination: lunch.

Author's Note

This turned out a solid two thousand words longer than I had been expecting.

I'm sorry this one took so long. Between a lack of sleep on many of the days I wanted to write this and some delays on the part of my editor, getting this sucker ready for publishing proved to be a bit of an ordeal. I can't claim with any confidence that future chapters will be faster, but hey, we can hope, yeah?

Under Peaceful Boughs

Twilight looked up into the branches of the trees overhead with an uneasy grimace. Once upon a time, the Everfree Forest had all but petrified her with fear due to its alien nature as a primal zone. The unpredictable weather and truly wild animals had both proven to be potentially dangerous obstacles the first time she had entered this dark forest, three years ago.

However, she had set foot under these boughs numerous times since then. Each visit had done more and more to assuage her fears and anxieties. She learned to appreciate the solemn, almost haunting beauty of the woods that enveloped Equestria’s former capital. The weather did as it willed, and there was something to be admired about that. The animals lived their own lives, free of pony influence, and for as scary as they were as a result, they were nevertheless fascinating creatures to behold.

Needless to say, her fear had faded with time, replaced with cautious fascination… Until her most recent visits. Her throat tightened reflexively as the memory of having her lungs filled with blue sleeping gas filled her mind, and a cold shudder ran down her spine as she recalled Rainbow’s weight settled there.

She was not pleased to be back here. She hadn’t thought about it back in Ponyville before they set out, but now that she was here, the memories of what she had endured under these trees festered in her mind like an open wound.

Alas, it seemed the other members of the group did not share her reservations.

“Huh. Ya know, I haven’t actually been here since that whole mess with the queen,” Thorax noted, looking up into the branches with a thoughtful look on his face. “I remember everypony warning me that the Everfree was a really dangerous place, and at the time I was too scared of everything else to question it. Now, though?”

“It’s not as scary as it used to be,” Fluttershy acknowledged with a slow nod. “But I think that might just be us getting used to it…”

“Or we were blowing it out of proportion,” Spike ventured with a noncommittal shrug.

“Oh, I wouldn’t say that,” Fluttershy countered. “This place is still super dangerous. It always has been.”

“Fluttershy’s right,” Twilight cut in, eager for the chance to distract herself from her own haunting thoughts. “The Everfree Forest is nothing to sneeze at. We’ve simply gotten used to navigating it and being in danger.”

She stopped in place, her muzzle wrinkling in thought. “Although, I’m not sure if it's a good thing that I can say that with such certainty…”

Spike rolled his eyes. “Eh. Comes with being a wielder of an Element of Harmony, I guess,” he said, gesturing at her and Fluttershy. “You and the others are like the textbook definition of superheroes.”

Fluttershy squeaked. “Oh! Oh, no, I don’t think I’m a hero. I don’t even have the costume for it…”

Thorax gave her a soft smile. “Well, uh, not all heroes wear capes, you know.”

Fluttershy blushed and hid behind her mane. Angel, who was situated on her head, stuck out his tongue in mock disgust before snickering in devilish amusement.

Twilight rolled her eyes at the adorable display before focusing ahead. Superheroes, huh? A fun notion. “Although not one I can really agree with.”

A tingle ran down Twilight’s spine, and she shuddered involuntarily. A faint, echoing snicker sounded somewhere in the depths of her mind, causing her to frown. “Heroes don’t hurt the ponies they love, after all…”

Her dropping mood must have been more visible than she had thought, as the others soon silenced their discussion to focus on her in concern. She noticed them staring and jumped in her skin before clearing her throat and putting on a sheepish smile. “What? Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something in my mane?”

Thorax shifted uneasily on his hooves as the group’s pace slowed considerably. “Well, no… it’s just that…” he looked over her head at something she couldn’t see, his brow furrowing. “...You’re the most uncomfortable pony here. I can see it in the air. Something has you really on edge.”

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat in her chest, and she inwardly cursed herself for forgetting that she was standing beside an empath. She shook herself and looked away, her ears drooping. “I-I’m fine. Just…”

Fluttershy tugged on Thorax’s hoof, slowly shaking her head at him. He opened his mouth to speak, but the words caught in his throat. He must have sensed the emotions coming from Fluttershy and discerned that that topic was not open for discussion. He slowly nodded and gave Twilight an apologetic smile. “Sorry, Twilight. I won’t ask.’

She relaxed and nodded at him. “Thank you. I’m sorry, but it’s just… really sensitive,” she said sheepishly, rubbing her shoulder with a hoof.

“It’s also none of his business,” her voice sneered in her skull. “Where was he when you learned that Rainbow was lying to you? Where was he when you reduced the observatory to ashes? Where was he when you went on your rampage? Oh, that’s right. Hiding away in his home like a scared cockroach!”

Twilight blinked, screwing her eyes shut. “You need to be quiet!” she barked back internally. “You’re not helping! Just shut up!”

She heard a dismissive snort between her ears before the voice faded into the back of her mind. She took a deep breath to calm her nerves and focused ahead. She noticed Spike by her side as she opened her eyes. He tapped the tips of his claws together over his chest, his eyes boring into her. “Twi… are you okay?”

She sighed and shook her head, subtly nudging him away from Fluttershy and Thorax so they could speak with some privacy. “Honestly? No, Spike, I’m not,” she admitted, bringing a hoof up to her temple. “I’m just… ugh. This whole situation is getting to me… let’s just find those books and get this over with, alright?”

Spike stared at her for several long seconds. Then he wandered closer and placed his claw on her shoulder, trying to impart some comfort. “You’ll be okay. We’re here for ya. And no matter what, I won’t let you turn into Midnight again.”

Twilight smiled down at him, her heart warming from the gesture. She unfurled a wing and draped it over the dragon, pulling him closer. “I know you won’t, Spike. Thank you…”

He grinned up at her. “What can I say? It’s what I do! Number one assistant Spike at your service!” he declared, thumping a fist against his puffed up chest.

“Oh, he won’t let you turn again, will he?” The voice whispered, sending a chill down Twilight’s spine. “Hmph. How adorable. The dragon thinks he’s useful.”

“Shut. The heck. UP!”

The voice cackled before once again receding into silence. Twilight did her best not to let her frustration at its jab show on her face. Instead, she focused on the feeling of Spike’s warmth pressing against her side and began counting the steps she was taking to the castle.

The remainder of the trip passed by in something of a blur for Twilight. For a mercy, they encountered no threats on the way. It was as if the local wildlife was still afraid that there may have been some Plundervines still lurking around. The signs of destruction left behind by those malevolent weeds were more bountiful the deeper in they went; torn soil, uprooted trees, overturned stones, scattered burrows. She could only imagine how Zecora must have felt in all of that chaos.

“Come to think of it, I don’t think I ever saw her in all of that mess… I wonder if she’s alright.” She thought as her mind wandered back to the moments when the vines had lashed out at her and her friends, with her barrier just barely keeping those despicable growths at bay. She had struggled against them, as had her friends. Zecora had probably been hard-pressed to escape.

It was pretty late in the afternoon when, at long last, the Castle of The Two Sisters came into view. The group came to a stop at the edge of the ravine that surrounded it to take in the sight. Angel took the opportunity to hop down from Fluttershy’s back and scuttle around to look at everything, though by her insistence he did not venture far.

Twilight didn’t pay the wayward rabbit any mind, though. Her gaze was focused solely on the castle. At first, she had been relieved to see the old place. It would provide shelter from the elements, and the knowledge she sought would hopefully be found somewhere within those crumbling halls. But as time went on, her mind wandered back to her last visit, and her blood began to chill in her veins.

She did her best not to look down into the ravine where she knew the Tree of Harmony resided. Yet despite her effort to not look toward it, some paranoid part of her mind imagined that it was watching her like a hawk. She could almost feel it, a sensation on the back of her neck, watching her every move.

Watching her. Assessing her. Judging her every decision with a critical, unbiased eye.

She shook her head, forcing herself to focus. “We should probably head inside,” she said, turning back to the others. “We only have a couple hours of light left. If we don’t hurry this along we might have to spend the night here, and I’d rather not do that if we can help it.”

Fluttershy lifted her head from the bush she had been looking into, Angel following her up by the ear. She turned to Twilight, wincing as the bunny pulled himself back up onto her head. “Oh! Ouch- uh, right!”

Thorax glanced at the bridge and frowned. “Hm. That thing’s pretty rickety… we should fly over.”

Twilight nodded. Without a word, she spread her wings and deposited Spike on her back. Then with a few flaps, she took to the air. Thorax was close by her hooves, Fluttershy right behind him. They crossed the distance without issue, and soon were setting down by the aging wooden gates of the castle.

“It’s been a long time since I was here,” Thorax noted, looking up at the towering spires and squinting.

“Two years or so,” Twilight acknowledged. She pushed the doors open with a quick pulse of magic, to which it responded with a shuddering groan. The entrance hall greeted them, and Twilight’s eyes found the ancient pedestal where she had first found the Elements three years prior.

She led the way through the halls without issue, calling back on their last trip through these halls. She knew the way, more or less. She cast her eyes across the broken, mossy stones, the shafts of evening sunlight streaming in through the broken walls and ceiling.

“Ya know,” Spike suddenly spoke up, looking around with a raised eyebrow. “I remember Rainbow talking about that old legend about this place last time we were here. Ya know, the one about that piece of Nightmare Moon that stuck behind?”

“I did some reading up on that, actually,” Thorax said, his wings twitching on his back as a small smile lit up his face. “Wind was studying history, and I studied some of it with her, and came across the legend. Apparently that ‘dark magic’ takes the form of ‘the pony of shadows’ at night.”

“Pony of Shadows?” Fluttershy mumbled, tugging on her mane. “That doesn’t sound nice…”

“Lucky us, it’s just a myth,” Twilight dismissed, glancing over at Thorax with newfound appreciation. “Even if there’s dark magic infecting these halls, we were here long enough last time to know that it’s basically inert. We’re fine.”

“See, normally I’d call you out and say ‘we’re totally gonna meet him,’ because that’s just how our luck goes,” Spike jabbed with a cheeky grin. “But you have a point. Nothing happened last time we were here. Well, other than letting Starlight out of her cocoon.”

Twilight’s smile faltered at the mention of the other unicorn. She slowed slightly, glancing over at Fluttershy. “Yeah, Starlight… I remember her. Do we know what happened to her after she left?” she asked.

Fluttershy shook her head. “I don’t think so. I never heard anything, at least,” she said softly. She looked down, an edge of guilt creeping into her voice. “I do hope she’s doing okay. We really hurt her…”

Twilight sighed, a pearl of regret forming in her own gut as well. “Yeah… we did,” she admitted, thinking back on the lilac unicorn. How many things had gone wrong because they had set out to find her? Just about everything bad that had happened to them could be traced back in some way to that mission and the consequences of their actions.

“I’m sure she’s doing fine,” Spike said comfortingly from Twilight’s back. “She’s a tough mare, and by the looks of things, she was going to do some soul searching last time we saw her. If we ever see her again, I totally bet she’s gonna be a lot better.”

“Heh. I hope so,” Twilight said quietly. Her eyes trailed off before landing on a familiar plaque over an open archway. Her heart skipped a beat with excitement, a grin appearing on her face. “Oh! I think we’re here!” she declared, breaking into a sprint for the archway.

She ran through the archway and, sure enough, found herself in the library. Her grin grew, accompanied by an ecstatic squealing noise as she took it all in again. She had browsed these shelves once before, but that didn’t at all mitigate her excitement at seeing it all again. Besides, there was a lot in here she hadn’t even had a chance to take note of yet.

As her eyes drifted up to the second level and all the shelves there, she began running in place. “Oooh! I take it back! I can totally spend the night here! No problem!” she declared, her wings fanning out.

Spike chuckled on her back. “Yep. That’s Twilight for ya.”

“Don’t ruin this for me! I will slap you!”

“Sure you will.”

Twilight groaned in exasperation before gently bucking her hips, sending Spike flying off to land on the floor a few inches behind her. “Ow!” he protested, rubbing at his back as he got up. “What was that for?”

“A stand-in for the slap.” Twilight declared pointedly, sticking her nose up into the air with a delighted smirk.

“Ugh.”

Thorax and Fluttershy filtered in after them, looking around with wide eyes. It was Thorax who spoke next. “Wow… it’s just how we left it.”

Twilight blinked and actually took in the details. Thorax was right. Everything was exactly as they had left it. Well, save for an inch of dust that had accumulated to cover everything. But she saw the familiar places they had arranged. Bundles of pillows her friends had used as makeshift beds, piles of books they had gone through and determined to be of no help to their cause at the time, and even the now long-shriveled and dried remains of the cocoon that had housed Starlight shoved out of sight into an empty corner.

Even the books were still where they had left them, scattered across the tables. A few were even open. Her jaw fell open in shock and dismay. “Oh my gosh… how could we leave it all like this?!” she asked, slapping a hoof to her temple. “It’s such a mess! I can’t find anything with it all scattered around like this!”

Now, Twilight knew that, in retrospect, they had been in a rush to get gone and out of the forest before Chrysalis’ minions had a chance to find them. They had more pressing matters to worry about then put everything back.

But that was then.

Now…

Spike’s shoulders sagged. “Oh, no…”

Twilight spun around to look at the group, her eye twitching. “Welp! Guess we’ll just have to put everything back where we found it!” she declared, lighting up her horn. “In fact, why not just organize the whole place?! It’s been a thousand years, it’s due for an arrangement!”

The entire library lit up with lavender light as Twilight pulled every book from the shelves at once.

Spike turned to shoot a glare at Thorax. “This is your fault,” he accused bluntly.

Fluttershy giggled at the changeling’s sheepish look. “Oh, it’s okay,” she said reassuringly before nodding at Twilight, who was now losing herself in the process of sorting everything so it could be sorted to the shelves again. “Let her get it out of her system. We all know how much she loves organizing things…”

Spike tried to look disapproving, but the farce did not last long. He sighed and put on a weary smile. “Yeah, I guess. I… kinda missed getting to sort things with her.”

Fluttershy glanced sideways at him. “Huh?”

He sighed, his smile turning strained. “...When she had amnesia, she never did this. She didn’t remember that it was something she loved to do… And I’m not gonna lie, I kinda missed it.”

With that, Spike stepped forward, ready and willing to help Twilight reorganize the entire library in Celestia and Luna’s old castle. Fluttershy, Thorax, and Angel shared a glance before nodding and stepping forward to help out however they could.

The Ancient Library

It had taken longer than anypony was expecting for the books to get even partially sorted. Twilight had been so eager to totally reorganize a library that she forgot to consider the fact that she had no idea how any of these had even been organized before, and she had to go through the books one by one to figure out where to place them. As a result, her normal filing systems became utterly impractical.

Disappointing as it was, alphabetical order would just have to do.

Around an hour and a half later, everything had been reshelved in loosely alphabetical order. Twilight frowned at it, her cheeks puffed up in annoyance. “...Spike, that ‘E’ book is in the ‘C’ section.”

Spike glared at her. “Twilight. No. Bad. Stop.”

“But-”

“Stooop it.”

Twilight puffed up her cheeks at him even more, her wings ruffling at her sides. “Hmph. Now who’s the killjoy?” she asked in a deadpan.

Spike chuckled in amusement and lightly punched her on the shoulder. “I might be a killjoy, but you are always gonna be the killjoy!” he declared with decisiveness.

“Oh, uhm, I don’t know about that,” Fluttershy muttered, tugging absently at her mane.

Spike turned to her with his arms crossed. “Fluttershy, I’ve lived with this nutty book pony for, quite literally, my entire life. If I say she’s the killjoy, she’s the killjoy.”

“Um… okay.”

Twilight rolled her eyes and playfully shoved Spike. “Oh, hardy har.”

Thorax looked on from Fluttershy’s side with an amused smile. Angel was situated on his head, using his horn as a makeshift handhold so he didn’t fall off. “Heh. Well, you’re in higher spirits, at least,” he pointed out, nodding at Twilight with a warm smile. “You were kinda down earlier.”

Twilight hesitated before nodding. “R-right. Yeah, I guess so,” she admitted, rubbing the back of her head. “Sorry. But hey, I got it out of my system! And now all these books are ready for us to explore and read!”

“That they are,” Spike agreed, hopping down from her back and walking forward a few paces. “So, how we doing this? I mean…” he gestured at all the books. “There’s a lot to cover here.”

Twilight looked up again, her eyes shimmering with anticipation. “There is. There really is…” she mumbled dreamily. There were so many books in here, she honestly wasn’t sure where to start. Her heart sped up just a little at the thought of reading so many of them. It may have been her imagination, but she could have sworn her mouth was starting to water-

A carrot then clocked her in the side of the head, jarring her from her trance. She gave off a quiet grunt and shook her head before turning to face the offender. She found a smugly grinning, unrepentant Angel Bunny staring back at her, his paws rubbing together.

A few giggles went around the group before Twilight huffed and spoke up. “Ugh. Spike has a point, there’s a lot of books here, and we’re kind of going in blind,” she said, raising her voice to address the whole group. “We’re looking for any information that’s connected to the Tree of Harmony, the Elements of Harmony, or anything even remotely related. We’re looking for clues about the chest that it presented to me. It has six keyholes, so I am assuming there are six keys needed to open it. I have no idea where to begin looking for those keys, though, and that’s what we’re here to fix.”

She turned and gestured widely at the chamber. “But like Spike said, we don’t really know a whole lot of the books in here, so we’re going to have to do this the old fashioned way. We’ll go through each section one at a time and pick up any books we come across that sound like they might be related. Then we’ll come together and scour them for any clues.”

She turned and began to point at each member of the group, one at a time, as she dished out instructions. “Spike, I want you to browse through ‘A’ through ‘F.’ Fluttershy, I want you to get ‘G’ through ‘L.’ Thorax, ‘M’ through ‘S.’ I’ll take ‘T’ Through ‘Z.’ Let the rest of us know if you find anything particularly noteworthy when going through your books so that I can skim them. I’m probably the fastest reader here, so that will give the rest of you a chance to scour other options. Sound like a plan?”

There were no objections, although Fluttershy did glance over at Angel with a curious frown. “Um… what about Angel? Can he do anything to help?”

Angel began furiously squeaking and waving his paws around in a clearly negative gesture.

“If you didn’t want to help, why did you come along?” Fluttershy asked with a raised eyebrow.

Angel opened his mouth and pointed at it emphatically.

“Oh. Well, if you help us, I’ll give you extra carrots on top of your regular dinner. Does that sound good?”

Angel crossed his arms and looked away.

“Extra extra carrots?”

Angel glanced back at her as if tempted, before resolutely returning to his refusal.

Fluttershy put on the sweetest smile she could, her eyes shimmering. “Pretty please?”

Angel gave off a high-pitched sigh before turning back to her and letting out a begrudging series of squeaks. Fluttershy clopped her hooves together with a smile before turning back to Twilight. “Angel can help me with my books.”

“Good idea. The rest of us can’t exactly understand the little guy,” Spike agreed. “So, A through F, right?”

“Right,” Twilight confirmed, glancing up at the roof. Her brow knitted with mild annoyance. The light streaming in through the grand window in the back was turning a dark shade of orange. They were definitely not going to be heading back today. “We’ll look around for a couple hours, then we should probably try and get some rest. We can keep looking in the morning if we haven’t found anything by then.”

“And if we don’t find anything tomorrow?” Thorax ventured carefully. “How long are we planning to stay out here? I mean, Wind and Squall are going to be worried if I take too long, and this castle is in the middle of the Everfree Forest…”

“Not to mention Rainbow,” Spike pointed out, his lips curling into a frown. “We all know how she gets. If you aren’t there when we get back, she’s probably gonna get real worried real fast.”

Twilight paused, her ears drooping. That was a problem, wasn’t it? Rainbow had always been excessively protective of her, and given recent events, Twilight could only imagine she would be even more so than ever before. The mere idea of making the pegasus needlessly worry, especially with how much anxiety she was still trying to deal with…

“...If we don’t find anything by the end of tomorrow, then we’ll head back the next morning,” she decided with a firm nod. “If worse comes to worst, we can always come back and keep looking another time.”

Spike gave her a thumbs up before turning and waddling off for the ‘A’ section. “Sounds good. Let’s hop to it!” he called back over his shoulder.

A general vocalization of agreement came from the others, and they all scattered to their assigned areas. Twilight watched them all go for a second, taking the chance to internally appreciate everything they were doing for her right now; to go so far out of their way for her sake, especially Thorax, given he wasn’t nearly as close to her as Fluttershy or Spike.

“I really have the best friends in the world,” she thought, smiling softly. With that warm thought chasing away the cold that had taken up roost in her heart, she set off for the ‘T’ section.

Sadly, it turned out that ‘the best friends in the world’ was not synonymous with ‘the best at finding information in a thousand-year-old library.’ Twilight resisted the urge to groan under her breath as yet another tome of red herrings and dead-end leads snapped shut before her muzzle, affording her a view of the others.

After they had collected their first batch of books, they all assembled at a nearby table and got to work skimming over what they had found. As they had planned, anything that seemed particularly relevant was shuffled over to Twilight for her to pore over while the others kept searching in broad strokes. It was definitely effective, albeit somewhat slow, and a backlog was starting to form. Twilight was a fast and thorough reader, but even she had limits, amazingly.

However, Twilight’s reading speed proved to be all but irrelevant. She had forgotten about the old dialect these books were written in, and it took quite a while to get fully accustomed to what each one was trying to tell her. Once she had it down, the information was fascinating, she had to admit, but translating the old, antiquated letters and speech patterns had slowed all of them down significantly, adding a layer of frustration to what would have otherwise been a relaxing and thought-provoking study session.

More layers of frustration would be added with each and every book Twilight went through. Each one had something that seemed somewhat related: notes on ancient relics or places of power, common arcane trends between such locations and objects, and the typical methods of interacting with or getting around any relevant hazards.

But none of them really had anything to do with the Tree or the Chest. Anything even remotely close was still too far detached or off-topic to be of any help. The Tree of Harmony and the Chest were wholly unique magical forces, and it was becoming more and more apparent with time that the odds of anypony having encountered anything similar in the past were slim to none.

Unable to resist the groan any longer, Twilight heavily brought the book down onto the table with enough force to jostle the rest of its contents. She took a few seconds to breath and calm herself down, not wanting a repeat of what happened back in the Golden Oaks.

“...Um… are you okay?” Fluttershy’s tentative whisper of a voice called out to her, drawing her attention back to her assembled friends.

Twilight shrank down into her seat when she realized all of them were looking back at her with varying degrees of confusion and concern. Thorax took it a step further, actually looking apprehensive. Twilight swallowed heavily and sighed, gingerly pushing the book away. “I’m sorry… I was hoping we’d have gotten somewhere by now, but, well… nothing, yet. I’m starting to think this might be a lost cause.”

Spike frowned. “But… it was Celestia herself who sent us out here,” he pointed out. “She told us, no doubt about it, there is at least one book in here that can help you.”

Twilight scoffed and slid out of her seat. “Well, it wouldn’t be the first time she was wrong about something,” she said, unable to keep the bitterness from slipping into her voice.

“Twilight?” Fluttershy called after her, the pegasus rising up from her seat.

Twilight paused, the coals in her skull dying out. She sagged, her ears drooping before turning back to face her fillyhood friend, offering her a small smile. “I’m okay, Fluttershy… I’m just going to talk a little walk and clear my head, okay? You all can keep reading if you want.” She didn’t wait for a response. She set off down the first row of books she came across, eager to lose herself among the shelves and get a hold of herself.

As she left the light of the candles behind, she was soon enveloped in near-total darkness. Twilight slowed her pace to a snail’s pace, mindlessly ambling between the shelves. She took a deep breath, holding her hoof up to her chest. She allowed the musty, dusty scent of ancient books to fill her nostrils and soothe her thoughts before breathing out and pushing her hoof away. She repeated the motion once, then twice, and finally a third time before, at last, she felt more or less like herself again.

The breathing exercise did not, unfortunately, do much to chase off the confusion and anxiety in the back of her mind. Her spikes of anger were becoming increasingly concerning. How long could she go like this before one of them was too much for her to handle? What if one of them came about and she lost control, lashing out at her friends? What if she hurt them? What if she hurt Rainbow?

She shuddered, leaning against the side of a bookcase with a hushed whimper. It was a terrible thought and an even worse possibility. The worst part, though, was that it was entirely possible, and she had no idea what to do to prevent it.

She remained like that, slumped against the case, and tried to dissect some course of action she could take in her mind for quite some time. Eventually, she was pulled out of her morbid worrying when the tell-tale scraping of claws on stone reached her ears. She looked back to see Spike waddling into view, bathed in the flickering orange glow of the candlestick held in his claws.

“Hey… you feeling any better?” he asked tentatively as he drew closer.

Twilight nodded. “A little,” she said, a half-truth at best.

Spike hummed. He set the candlestick down before coming closer and putting a claw to her shoulder. “You’ve got a lot on your mind,” he said softly. “But you’ll figure it out. We’ll figure it out. We always have before, this won’t be any different.”

Twilight took a deep breath and smiled down at him. “Heh… I hope you’re right about that,” she said, reaching down to pat him on the head.

“I am!” he assured her. “I don’t think I’ve been wrong about that yet!”

Twilight gave a more energetic laugh at that. She pushed herself away from the bookcase and nodded down at him. “Alright. If you say so,” she said in agreement, deciding there was no harm in trusting his word on the matter for the time being.

He flashed her a toothy grin before turning to head back for his candlestick. “Anyway, we’re thinking we’re gonna wrap it up and get some shut-eye. We’re all getting kinda tired, and we might be able to work better with some actual sleep.”

“Sleep, huh?” Twilight echoed, starting to follow after him. Now that he mentioned it, she was pretty tired. Some rest would probably do her a world of good. If nothing else it would help her clear her head so she could focus better on the morrow. She took a few steps after the baby dragon, igniting her horn to light the way.

When they emerged from the shelves, Thorax and Fluttershy were already pulling over the various pillows that had been laid out before, dusting them off for use. Angel was looking at them impatiently, tapping one of his feet against the table. He glanced back as Twilight and Spike returned, then squeaked and chattered at Fluttershy.

“Just a moment, Angel, we’re almost ready,” Fluttershy told him.

Angel, apparently, did not approve of this. He gave off the tiniest draconic growl that Twilight had ever heard, rolled up some invisible sleeves, and then leaped for a chair that sat between him and Fluttershy, probably to use it as a launchpad to accost the pegasus. He landed on the backrest, already crouching to pounce.

And then the chair tilted backward.

Twilight’s eyes widened when she heard the sound of gears grinding, and her eyes caught the glint of old steel as the chair tilted back at a strangely uniform angle. Angel squeaked in alarm, falling from the chair’s backrest to land with a tiny thump on the cold stone below.

“Oh my goodness! Angel!” Fluttershy exclaimed, quickly reaching down to pick him up. “Are you okay?!”

Angel made angry, indignant rabbit noises.

“Oh, thank goodness!”

Twilight frowned at the bunny, her feathers ruffling in irritation. She was happy to tolerate him because of how much he meant to Fluttershy, but she could not for the life of her ever figure out why Fluttershy liked him so much. He was like an angry little devil.

“Uh, guys?” Thorax suddenly spoke up, drawing everyone’s attention to him. His eyes were glued onto the wall on the other end of the table, his ears pointing forwards. “There’s something in the walls.”

“What?” Twilight asked, swiveling her ears forward as well.

Sure enough, she could hear something moving in the walls. A steady ticking sound, like gears moving together in some great clockwork machine. It was getting louder, too, and she could feel a subtle tremor in the floor to accompany it.

“Angel, what did you do?!” Fluttershy asked, her ears folding back. “Is it a trap?! Are we in danger?!”

In answer to Fluttershy’s question, two of the bookcases that sat against the wall suddenly lurched forward with a crack of stone grinding on stone. A cloud of dust was kicked forward from the sudden movement, drawing an alarmed squeak out of Fluttershy. She quickly dove behind Thorax for cover as the changeling spread into a defensive stance.

The bookcases then opened out like a sliding door, revealing an archway hidden in the wall that led to an isolated chamber. Twilight’s eyes widened at the sight. Two windows were set into the back wall, one depicting a stylized abstraction of the sun shining down on the Equestrian countryside, while the other showed a crescent moon over a collection of stars. Tapestries that were practically untouched hung between the windows, shifting slightly in the aftermath of the secret door’s thunderous opening.

A collection of pillows was set up by the bookcase, half purple, and half pink. A reclining chair not unlike Rarity’s fainting couch was against the opposite wall. A dusty round wooden table was off on the right side of the room, a grey cup set down on its surface. In the very center of the room was a stone pedestal, at the top of which was a thick, leather-bound book that looked to have been made by hoof.

Twilight swallowed and stepped inside, lighting up her horn to see better. Her eyes were immediately drawn to the book above all else. She approached the pedestal, briefly looking around for any signs of a trap. There were none to be had that she could see, thankfully, so she approached the pedestal.

The Journal of the Two Sisters.

Twilight’s eyes widened. She took the book in her magic and flipped it open, skimming the first few pages with interest. There was a short entry accompanied by a collection of rudimentary sketches depicting hidden chambers, a long corridor with hooves reaching from the walls, and a trap door.

The blurb of text read: “I love to duck behind the paintings, and though the hall of hooves still gives her a bit of a fright, the trap-door slide is Luna’s favorite!”

Twilight turned the page, finding more sketches and another paragraph or two of text. The sketches depicted an elaborate pipe organ with lines connecting it to various seemingly random objects: a wall sconce shaped like a hoof, a suit of ancient pony plate armor, a trap door, and an extravagant throne.

“Soon, the Organ to The Outside will be finished! I can hardly wait!”

“Huh… interesting,” Twilight muttered, lightly lifting the book in her magic and turning to the others. “I think this might have been the book Celestia was talking about.”

“Oh? How do you know?” Fluttershy asked, poking her head out from behind Thorax.

“Well, for one thing, it’s hidden,” Twilight pointed out, gesturing to the room around them. “Secondly, she specified one book, and that it would be hidden. Third, this is her and Luna’s old journal from when they were fillies!”

“So… do you think maybe she talked about the Tree in there at all?” Spike asked, raising an eyebrow.

Twilight beamed. “I have no idea! But there’s one way to find out!” she declared before flopping down onto a nearby cushion and turning to page one. “I’m going to read through this for a while. You all go ahead and get some rest.”

“How ironic,” her own voice grumbled in her skull. “Taking advice from the very pony who punished us in the first place; from her brown childhood ramblings, no less.”

Twilight’s smile faltered, her nostrils flaring. She did not dignify the voice with a response this time, however, instead focusing on the words on the first page. A few moments passed in silence before the voice spoke up again. “Ignoring me, are you?”

“You’re just a symptom,” Twilight thought clinically. “A side effect from my last blunder. All you are is an irritating voice in my head, and I don’t have to listen to anything you say.”

“Adorable,” the voice chuckled in amusement. “You’re still not getting it.”

“It’s adorable that you think this conversation is still open.”

“Ooh! The worm has some bark!” The voice exclaimed in a condescending tone. “Such a pity she has no bite. She never will. Not without me.”

“I said the conversation is closed.”

“Then why are you still talking?”

Twilight snarled deep in her throat but did not continue. She tuned the voice out as well as she could, pouring all of her focus into the book beneath her. A few seconds passed and she slowly began to relax into her pillows, a sense of calm coming over her. She quickly lost herself in the words of her mentor, finding no small amount of fascination from looking at her hoofwriting long before it gained the elegant twists and curls she had come to know when she was growing up.

She abruptly jarred from her reading when the others came back into the room. Curious, she looked up to see they all had their pillows floating behind them in Thorax’s magic. Spike and Fluttershy were at the head of the group. The pegasus stepped forward and smiled. “Um, is it alright if we sleep in here with you?” she asked gently. “You know, to keep you company?”

Twilight looked at them all for a moment, before a tender smile crept onto her lips. “I don’t mind at all, Fluttershy. Make yourselves comfortable,” she said, nodding next to her.

In a flash, Spike hopped onto the pillow next to her and leaned against her side, a sleepy smile on his face. “Aw yeah, best mattress in the house,” he snarked before giving off a loud yawn.

Twilight snorted and draped a wing over the baby dragon, pulling him closer. “Yeah, yeah, just remember, this mattress moves. And it’s made of flesh and bones, so don’t get too grabby! Your claws are sharp.”

Spike nodded, burrowing his face into her fur behind her foreleg. “Uh uh,” he mumbled before falling quiet.

Fluttershy and Thorax set themselves up on her other side, laying out their pillows and getting comfortable side by side. Twilight glanced over at them, her smile growing. They were clearly cuddling closer than she would expect for somepony as shy as Fluttershy, and she didn’t miss the almost-protective way Thorax draped his wing and foreleg over her shoulders.

“I’m happy for them, I really am,” she thought to herself before turning back to her book. “Now, let’s see what Celestia left for me…”

Spite

“You do realize… if you let me go through with this, then you won’t remember me at all when you wake up, right? It will be as if you never even knew I existed.”

Rainbow Dash swallowed heavily, looking into Midnight’s eyes. Midnight stared back, her eyes narrowed with skepticism and doubt. The chilly night air felt as if it was clawing at their throats, suffocating them with tension and anxiety.

Eventually, the pegasus shakily nodded her head. “I know that… but… if it means saving you from turning into this and saving our friends, then no price is too high.”

Midnight blinked. She then huffed and stepped forward, her horn flaring up with ghostly blue magic. “Fine. Then hold still,” she instructed simply. She reached out with her magic, not giving Rainbow a chance to speak before she ensnared Rainbow’s body in a vice-like grip. Rainbow’s eyes bulged in their sockets, her mouth flying open in a silent scream.

“Wait… this is wrong…”

Midnight yanked Rainbow down so their muzzles were less than an inch apart. Her lips curled into a sadistic smirk before she closed her eyes and pressed the tip of her horn to Rainbow’s forehead.

Rainbow screamed.

“Wait, no, STOP! This isn’t how this is supposed to happen!”

Midnight couldn’t help it. She chuckled deep in her throat as Rainbow kicked and squirmed feebly against her restraints. Her smile grew when she felt Rainbow’s memories starting to trickle into her mind, a veritable flood of information about her life. There were more memories of Twilight Sparkle than memories Midnight had of anything. It was overwhelming.

Several seconds passed. Rainbow’s screams withered and died away into silence, and she fell limp in Midnight’s grasp. The Fallen Alicorn looked the body over with a disappointed frown. There was so much information she had just gotten, yet somehow, it wasn’t enough.

“Hmph… just another disappointment,” she scoffed before throwing the unconscious body to one side as if it were no more than an empty wrapper to be discarded in the trash. “I shouldn’t have expected anything else from you.”

“NO! Go back! GO BACK!”

Midnight held her head high, her wings spreading out. “It’s not enough… I need more,” she declared, emitting a low, insane laugh before resuming her slow, measured pace through the silent streets of Canterlot, leaving the body of Rainbow Dash behind among all the others.

“STOP!”

Twilight jerked awake with a barely-contained shriek of terror. She bolted upright, gasping for breath as cold shivers ravaged her body. Her heart hammered wildly against her chest like a tribal drumbeat, filling her frantically-swiveling ears with their steady, constant rhythm. Her eyes darted left and right, taking in her surroundings.

She was in the hidden room in the Castle of The Two Sisters. Spike was curled up to her side, stirring from the sudden disturbance, but otherwise remaining asleep, thankfully. Fluttershy and Thorax were right where Twilight had left them, curled up together on the pillow adjacent to hers.

A few seconds passed before a relieved sigh snaked its way out of her. “It was just a nightmare,” she thought, slumping back onto the pillows. Her eyes wandered down to find the Journal of The Two Sisters open beneath her, the current drawing depicting Starswirl the Bearded with his head held high and a stern frown on his old, wisened face.

“I must have fallen asleep while I was reading…” she thought, gingerly closing the book with her magic. She looked over towards the window, trying to gauge the time. It was dark outside; although, if she had to guess, she’d say the sun was due to rise in the next couple of hours.

With a quiet sigh, Twilight slowly pushed herself up to a standing position. Spike grumbled in his sleep as she rose, one claw limply reached out for her. She smiled down at him and gently ran her hoof along the back of his head before turning for the door and slipping out. She knew she wouldn’t be able to get back to sleep like this. Quickly recovering from nightmares was always Rainbow’s specialty, not hers.

Twilight paused mid-step at that thought, her ears drooping. How long had Rainbow been suffering from periodic nightmares at this point? It felt like forever. A few years, at least. Ever since Discord.

Of course, for most of that time, Rainbow had been lucky enough to have her aunt looking out for her, diving into her dreams whenever they turned dark to chase away the nightmares. Heck, it had gotten to semi-regular therapy sessions, for crying out loud!

“Oh, how sweet,” Twilight’s voice snickered bitterly between her ears. “Rainbow Dash has a nice, loving aunt to chase away her bad dreams. Such a shame that Luna couldn’t care less about your suffering.”

Twilight grimaced, her ears drooping. She quickly slinked away from where her friends were sleeping, hopeful that Thorax’s empathic senses wouldn’t pick up the growing resentment the voice was trying to cultivate inside of her. Soon, she was out of the library and ambling aimlessly down the halls, her mind wandering while her eyes took in the moonlit landscape outside.

“Do you think your anger is something to be ashamed of?!” the voice demanded, a spike of pain tunneling through Twilight’s skull after a moment, causing her to come to a stop and clutch at her temple with a hoof. “It’s NOT! You were wronged by Luna, and you know it! You have every right to feel angry with her! Her scorn and hostility led to me, by her own admission, didn’t it?!”

“Maybe it did,” Twilight shot back, snarling deep in her throat. “But you just said she admitted it! She apologized! She knows she was wrong!”

“What good are her apologies?! They don’t make right what she did, and she has done nothing to make amends!”

“I’m sure she will!” Twilight countered, shaking her head. “Just wait. You’ll see!”

“Hmph. I suppose we will.”

And just like that, the voice went quiet. Twilight stood still, listening for it to speak again. When it did not, she gave off a sigh and kept doing. “You’ll see…”

Following her little argument with herself, Twilight continued wandering the halls of the castle. She let her thoughts drift where they may, so long as they didn’t go back to the other who spoke with her voice. To think of it would serve no end but to feed it, make it stronger, and egg it on. She had no desire to do that, and so she thought of literally anything else.

Her hooves carried her out of the corridors and into a large antechamber. Tapestries ancient and exquisite hung from the walls, each one deprived of their former majesty by the coming of Nightmare Moon and the inevitable march of time. Piles of rubble were strewn about, haphazardly stacked here and there. Holes had long ago been blasted or eroded into the walls, allowing a haunting, ghostly howl to echo through the chamber.

Once upon a time, this chamber might have been beautiful. She could absolutely see the signs, looking at it all right now. The masonry was masterful, the artistic vision of every archway, pillar, and window could not be denied, and the care and attention that had gone into the tapestries transcended even the finest works Rarity had made. Quite the accomplishment.

To see it all laid to waste like this… an old, forgotten ruin most ponies dared not even approach out of fear for what surrounded it. A historic site left to be reclaimed by nature… once, it was the capital of the entire country. Now? Little more than a waymark, a stand-out feature of the landscape to tell Twilight and her friends where the Tree of Harmony was.

“This place… it could really use some fixing up,” she thought, slowly coming to a halt. “A bit of dusting, maybe clear out the rubble. The masonry is pretty much shot, but I don’t see a reason why the tapestries couldn’t be restored with a bit of time and effort. The windows would be kind of tricky, especially with so many of them blown out, but it could be managed.

“Heh. Maybe my friends and I could do it. Fix this old place up,” she thought, a small smile spreading on her lips at the idea. It would be a nice little side project, now that she thought about it. Something for her to fill her time with, to distract her from all of this Chest stuff, especially when it really started to get to her.

There was also the detail of restoring an ancient historical site from just over a thousand years ago, with who knows how many ancient books, relics, artifacts, and secrets scattered throughout its halls like sprinkles on one of Pinkie’s birthday cakes. That was enticing, too.

A mammoth of an undertaking, but the more she thought about it, the more she began to appreciate the idea. It would take a long time, for sure, but she could already imagine the ways she and her friends could contribute.

Applejack would be able to haul the rubble and debris out of the ruins, Rarity could fix up the tapestries while providing her own artistic vision for replacements for the old windows. Fluttershy would be good for clearing out or relocating the various insects and bats that called this old place home. Rainbow would be ideal for keeping the weather clear while everypony else worked, and she could help Applejack with clearing the debris. Pinkie could be Pinkie. Add onto that Twilight and Spike working together to keep them all organized and on-task, and an impossible task would become very possible, very quickly.

She closed her eyes, imagining it. The Castle of The Two Sisters restored and renovated. She envisioned a pathway leading through the Everfree Forest, a safe route for ponies to come and see the old castle where their kingdom had once been based out of. It could practically become a museum on ancient Equestrian history and culture, with ponies shuffling from one chamber to the next, reading and studying all about their own home.

She was sure Princess Celestia would be thrilled by such an outcome. This had been where she lived when she was a foal, right? She and-

Twilight’s eyes snapped open, her pupils dilating, her enthusiasm dying away then and there.

Luna had once called this place her home, as well. And in her descent into madness as Nightmare Moon, she had reduced it to rubble…

“Why give her the satisfaction?” the voice whispered, barely at the edge of Twilight’s senses. “She broke it. Let her fix it.”

It said no more. Twilight took a deep breath before letting it out in a full-bodied heave of a sigh.

Before she could give much thought to what it had said, something else caught her attention. Somepony was coming. Twilight lifted her head and turned to look at a nearby open archway. She couldn’t see down it from this angle, but she could hear somepony trotting down with slow, even steps.

Her brow furrowed. Something was off. She didn’t recognize that pattern of steps, and the way they sounded as they clacked across the stones reminded her of Thorax’s chitinous hooves rather than hers or Fluttershy’s. Thorax didn’t walk that fast, though—not to mention he should still be asleep.

Twilight’s eyes widened, her heart jumping into her throat as a changeling drone slowly stepped into view, head held low and eyes looking directly at her. It was a female, her black chitin marked with a few small scars. A line on her shoulder, a chip off her hoof, and so on. Her wings and ears were down, and her every step conveyed an aura of submission.

Twilight took a step back, her jaw falling open. “W-what?! What are… who are you?!” she asked, immediately going on high alert. The last time she had encountered a changeling other than Thorax, she had…

The changeling slowly sat down on her haunches and bowed her head. “H-hello… you must be Twilight Sparkle, r-right?” she asked in a surprisingly quiet, timid voice.

Twilight blinked, taken aback. She swallowed the lump in her throat, slowly unfurling her wings just in case she needed to spring into motion. “That depends… who are you, and what do you want?” she asked carefully.

The changeling lifted her head, though she did not meet Twilight’s gaze. She seemed scared to look directly at her. “Um… m-my name is Spiracle. I served alongside Thorax two years ago during the attack on Canterlot…”

Twilight’s heart burned a little in her chest. She stepped back a few feet, her eyes narrowing. “...Really? And why are you here, now?” she asked.

Spiracle winced under her venomous tone before speaking. “I… I-if it would be permissible, I was hoping you could take me to speak with Princess Rainbow Dash,” she said quietly, reaching a hoof up to rub at one of her forelegs. “I’m not welcome at the Hive anymore… I’m here in Equestria seeking asylum if I can get it.”

“Asylum?” Twilight echoed, raising an eyebrow. “What did you do that you need something like that?”

Spiracle grimaced, her face contorting with shame. “...I deserted from the hive after the Queen was sealed away. When we all went home, it all just… fell into chaos. It wasn’t safe for me anymore, and without a queen to lead us, I feared my home would never recover… And so I left.”

“A deserter? Like… Thorax?” she asked slowly, her eyes widened. The heat in her breast abated somewhat as she considered that. She didn’t seem to be lying so far. If anything, she seemed like she wasn’t all that different from Thorax. A lot more quiet and hesitant, maybe, but in fairness, Thorax had gone through his own trials back then. He had grown stronger and more confident as a result.

“Who cares?” the voice asked a moment later, drawing a cold gasp out of Twilight. “Are you forgetting what happened the last time a changeling crossed your path?”

The world flickered for a moment. Twilight sucked in a deep breath, her muscles locking up as tingles began to dance across her shoulder blades. The smell of burning fur wafted up her nostrils, and her body began to feel colder than the harshest blizzards the Frozen North had ever thrown at her.

“The last time you met one of these things, they murdered you!”The voice went on. Twilight grit her teeth as her skull began to pound with every beat of her now-burning heart. “They killed you in Rainbow’s hooves! They stole away your life, and they stole your memories for two years! You have no reason to humor this creature’s ridiculous request!”

Twilight’s blood was beginning to boil. Her teeth ground together behind her lips as a fury she didn’t even know she had been suppressing slipped into her eyes. Spiracle shrank back from her, her eyes going wide in fear. “M-miss Twilight?” she asked in a jittering voice.

Twilight peeled her lips back into an ugly snarl. “Get. Out.”

Spiracle’s ears drooped, her entire posture withering on the spot. “But… But I don’t have anywhere else to go-”

“Do you think I care?!” Twilight demanded, her horn sparking to life. Some small part of her cried out that she should stop and reign herself in right now, but the memory of her own death spurred her on, silencing any dissenting voices in a heartbeat. “Why would I care about you?! Do you have any idea what you creatures have put me through?! What you put my friends through?!”

She stepped forward and shoved Spiracle back, sending the drone sprawling to the floor with a cry. Twilight went on, undeterred. “Rainbow Dash almost lost her life, and she’s still trying to recover from the psychological damage you monsters gave her! She has a permanent scar on her hoof that I see her staring at more than she should! All of my friends were forced to run for their lives from their homes across an arctic wasteland just to get away from you! And to top it all off, right at the end, when we thought we had won, I was killed by one of you!”

Spiracle backed away along the floor, visibly shaking with fear under Twilight’s rage. “I… I’m sorry-”

“SORRY?!” Twilight snapped. She threw her head back, barking out a hideous laugh before it devolved into an infuriated growl. “Who does that help?! What does your ‘apology’ make up for?! Nothing, that’s what! Being sorry won’t give me back the two years I spent without my memories, it won’t cure Rainbow’s PTSD, and it will not get rid of the voice that I have to listen to every time I close my eyes!”

Spiracle rolled onto her hooves but kept her belly close to the floor, her ears folded back. She opened her mouth, fishing for words, but nothing came out.

Twilight huffed angrily. “...Just get out of here. If you come near me or my friends again…”

She did not complete the sentence. She merely lit up her horn and narrowed her eyes. That was enough to get the message across. Spiracle, with a frightened cry, rose to her hooves and broke into a mad sprint away from the chamber, her tail tucked firmly between her legs. Twilight watched her go, staring after her until she was out of sight and the sounds of her hooves sprinting along the stones faded into silence.

The quiet that followed was deafening. Twilight was breathing heavily after her outburst. Her lungs were burning, and it felt as if the air itself was trying to strangle her. She felt heavy all of a sudden and stumbled off to one side, leaning against a broken pillar for support while her mind reeled.

“Twilight?!” Spike’s voice echoed from the way she had come, and Twilight’s heart all but stopped in her chest. How much of that did they hear? How much of that had she even said? How much of it was really her? A horrible feeling of sickness and nausea overcame her, and she slumped to the floor, one hoof clutching at her head.

“...What did I just do?” she asked in a broken, strangled whimper.

A flurry of steps entered a moment later. In a heartbeat, she felt Spike’s claws and Fluttershy’s hooves on her, trying to comfort her and pull her back. She could hear them asking her what was wrong, but she couldn’t parse the words through the ringing in her ears or the numbness in her mind.

Eventually, though, the presence of her friends won out over her horror. Her gaze lazily drifted to look up at them, and she saw Fluttershy, Spike, and Thorax all looking back at her in confusion.

Spike spoke first, his voice weak and anxious. “You… you weren’t in the room,” he mumbled, tapping his claws together. “We got worried about you, and we came looking…”

“We heard you screaming at somepony,” Fluttershy added, her ears drooping. “And we heard them running away and crying. What happened in here?”

Twilight opened her mouth to speak, but no words came. She looked past Fluttershy, locking gazes with Thorax. He stared back at her with a grim frown slowly appearing on his face. “Twilight… who was it?”

Twilight gulped down another breath before speaking. “...Spiracle.”

“Spiracle?” Spike asked, confused. “Who's that? Kind of a funny name.”

“It sounds like a changeling name,” Fluttershy noted, tapping at her chin. The color then visibly drained from her face, and a tiny, strangled squeak of fear came from the bottom of her throat as the implication set in. “OIh, dear… is there another changeling here?”

“Spiracle…” Thorax suddenly spoke up, his eyes having flown wide open. He took a step forward, his expression turning urgent. “Spiracle was here?! Really?!”

Twilight shakily nodded. “Yeah… she s-said she wanted to talk to Rainbow. S-she wanted to ask for asylum… that she ran from the Hive.”

“Oh, wow,” Spike muttered, crossing his arms. He looked up at Thorax. “Guess somepony’s following in your hoofsteps, huh?”

Thorax frowned. “I mean, maybe… but…” his expression hardened, and Twilight wilted away from him. “What did you say to her?”

“I… I…” Twilight stammered, her throat constricting in a bid to keep the words in. “I… I told her to leave… I warned her to never come near me or my friends again…”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened, her hooves flying up to cover her mouth. “Oh my goodness…”

Thorax’s ears drooped, and he, too, flinched away. “Oh, no…”

Spike blinked. “So… that’s what all the screaming was?”

Twilight nodded.

A few seconds passed before Fluttershy rose to her hooves. “...And did you mean any of it?” she asked in a remarkably firm tone.

Twilight flinched as if struck. “I… I don’t know…” she mumbled, clutching at her head again.

“Lies,” the voice sneered. “You meant every word.”

“Hold on a sec,” Spike suddenly cut in, as if remembering something important. He turned to face Thorax again. “Did you know her?”

He nodded. “Uh-huh. We worked in the same unit under my brother back in the lead-up to the invasion. She was an infiltrator and spy, gathering intel for the most part. In fact, it was, uh… it was her who brought word that you guys had left Ponyville without telling anypony where you were going.”

“So she kinda caused the invasion to happen when it did?” Spike asked.

Thorax sighed. “Well, yeah… but I can vouch for her. She’s a good sort. She wasn’t all that different from me; shy, quiet, timid. Not as gentle as me, not by a long shot, but she was still nice. She was one of the only drones besides Pharynx I ever got along with…” he lifted his head to stare at Twilight. “And you sent her away? You threatened her?”

Twilight didn’t answer for a few seconds. When she did, her words were strangled. “I didn’t know…”

Thorax didn’t reply for several seconds. He grunted and kicked at the ground before turning and trotting for the nearest archway. “I’m gonna go look for her.”

“Huh?” Fluttershy called after him. “But, Thorax-”

“If she was at the hive when Pharynx went back, maybe she knows something about what things were like after Chrysalis was defeated!” he said, coming to a stop by the door. “I have to know. I have to know what’s going on back home.”

Fluttershy and Spike stared after him for a few minutes. Fluttershy sucked in a deep breath before placing a hoof on Spike’s back. “Take Twilight back to the library,” she instructed simply. “Take care of her while we’re gone, okay?”

Spike nodded. “Uh, right.”

Fluttershy stood and made her way after Thorax after that. Together, the two departed the chamber, leaving Twilight alone with nothing to keep her company, save for Spike, and the rampant confusion and dread that were raging like a hurricane in her mind.

Author's Note

Fun fact: Spiracle, much like Stinger, was not originally meant to have much of a role in things. She was a throw-away character back in Choices. But then Stinger became a secondary antagonist in Consequences and is still somewhere out there. So I figured, what the hay? Why not bring back another member from Thorax's old squad? Give the old bug a chance for some meaningful character development alongside Twilight.

Somepony Has To

The next hour passed in a hazy blur for Twilight. Spike had gently guided her back to the secret room in the Library and gotten her settled down on the pile of pillows. He had talked to her every here and there, and she knew she’d responded, but for the life of her, she just could not remember what they talked about. The memories were being overshadowed by the disgust clawing at her heart.

“That was so STUPID of me!” she internally chastised herself for what must have been the millionth time. “Princess Luna warned me! She TOLD me not to listen to her! She would know, she’s been here before!”

She gave off a long, tired sigh and buried her face into the pillows, trying to chase the cold in her chest away with her own body heat. She felt Spike’s claw resting on her shoulder, giving a firm, reassuring squeeze. “It’s okay, Twilight. When we get home, we’ll get you some help. You’ll be fine, I know it.”

Twilight shivered at the idea. Getting help? Was she really at a point where she needed that now? Or had she ever gotten back to a place where she didn’t? For all of the time she had spent without her memories, she needed Rainbow and Spike to help her figure herself out. Maybe, in the warmth of the moment, she had just assumed that getting her memories back would be the moment where she could totally go back to her old self.

It would have been childish to think everything could go back to normal so easily. No… she was simply at a place where she could start to recover. Clearly, though, she couldn’t do that alone. She needed help, and she knew it, no matter how much it stung to admit it; even to herself.

Twilight was pulled from her grim musings by the sound of approaching hooves. She lifted her head with a start as Thorax and Fluttershy walked into the room, grim expressions on their faces.

Twilight leaned forward. “Guys. Did you find her?”

Thorax sighed and shook his head. “No. We didn’t. Spiracle was always an expert infiltrator. If she doesn’t want to be found, we’re not gonna find her…” he said, scuffing the floor with a hoof.

“And it’s still dark outside,” Fluttershy added, glancing out through the nearby window. “And it’s not safe in the forest, especially at night… It would be safer to wait until the sun’s up before we look for her out there.”

Twilight’s ears drooped. “...Oh,” she exhaled, looking away. Another shiver ran through her body. She curled up into the pillows in a futile effort to chase away the chill.

Spike tapped his claws together pensively. “Um… so, what do we do now?” he asked slowly.

Thorax sighed and sat down with his back to the wall. “Ugh. We wait until sunrise, I guess…” he said in defeat. Twilight could imagine he had argued to try and chase Spiracle into the woods already, only for Fluttershy to shoot the idea down out of fear for his safety.

Speaking of Fluttershy, the pegasus came up to Twilight’s side and settled down beside her. “Um… when that happens, Twilight… I think we should take you home,” she whispered, carefully draping a wing over Twilight’s back.

Twilight’s eyes widened. “W-what? But…” she protested weakly before gesturing out the door. “The books! We still haven’t finished-”

Fluttershy narrowed her eyes, and Twilight’s words died in her throat. The pegasus spoke a second later, her voice firm and leaving no room for argument. “Twilight. You are not okay. Ever since we got here, you’ve been getting more and more agitated and irritable. Being here, clearly, is not the right thing for you right now. So I am going to take you back home to Rainbow Dash, and then we are going to figure out how to help you.”

Twilight stared at Fluttershy for a few moments, slack-jawed. Now Fluttershy was insisting they get her help. Was it really that bad…?

“What do you think?” Her own voice asked in a deadpan.

Twilight swallowed heavily. “You’re in my head, aren’t you?”

“You talk as if that’s new.”

“Maybe it’s not. But you didn’t talk until recently.”

The voice gave off a hum, but did not carry the discussion any farther. Twilight visibly relaxed with relief as it backed off. She leaned into Fluttershy’s side, taking what comfort she could in the pegasus’ presence. “Fluttershy, I… I don’t know… I want to find Spiracle, too. I want to apologize to her…”

Fluttershy offered her a comforting nuzzle. “And you will… just as soon as Thorax finds her and brings her back.”

“Hm. I guess,” Twilight relented. But as much as she paid lip service to that plan, something about it just rang hollow inside of her…

A few seconds passed before a big yawn from Spike drew all eyes to him. He looked around once he realized everyone was staring, a blush forming on his cheeks. “Uhuh… sorry. We kinda got up earlier than I was expecting…”

Thorax chuckled weakly at that before looking to the window. “Well, we’ve still got a couple hours until sunrise… might as well get some more rest, huh? Especially if you’re all heading back to Ponyville.”

Fluttershy nodded. “Right. Good idea,” she agreed before nodding down to Twilight. “You, too.”

“Heh. Yes, mom,” Twilight replied, finding the strength to crack a joke thanks to Spike’s little display.

Fluttershy tsked a few times with a shake of her head. “Ah ah ah, none of that cheek, young lady!” she said in a faux stern voice.

Spike rolled his eyes. “Oh, please, what are you gonna do to stop her?”

“Don’t ask her that,” Thorax interjected, shuddering in his shell at some unsettling memory. “Trust me. You don’t wanna know.”

Fluttershy nodded in approval at him, her smile growing wider.

Twilight’s expression blanked. There was an implication there she was not entirely sure she wanted to explore.

Spike, however, had no such reservations. He scratched the side of his head with a raised eyebrow. “Wait, what does that mean?” he asked.

Thorax winced before curling up on the ground and closing his eyes. “Get some sleep,” he instructed simply, clearly not wanting to keep that discussion going.

Spike was starting to look worried, now, his claws tapping over his chest faster than before. “What does she do? Thorax?!” he asked, waddling a few paces over to the changeling. “Come on, tell me!”

Fluttershy giggled before lowering her head to the blankets. “Let him sleep, Spike. He’s really worn himself out from all the running around we did,” she instructed quietly. “Come lay down. You need sleep, too.”

Spike looked between them for a few seconds before sighing and nodding. “Oh, okay. But he’s gonna tell me what you’d do one of these days!” he decided, most likely a fatal mistake, before hopping over and retaking his position under Twilight’s wing.

Twilight managed to give off a quiet laugh at that before closing her eyes as well. She felt the two adjust a few times to get more comfortable before they all fell still, and the room fell into silence. Twilight took a deep breath, savoring the warmth of her long time friend and baby dragon, eager to get some more sleep. Who knew? Maybe some rest would do her some good, especially if a certain somepony didn’t screw with her dreams.

Sadly, sleep did not come for her. Even as the others fell sound asleep around her, filling the air with insectoid chitters, draconic snores, and equine breaths, Twilight was unable to follow them. The warmth afforded by Fluttershy and Spike soon began to lose meaning against the cold feeling of shame that had set up shop in her chest, digging a nice, spacious hole for itself.

The worst part, however, was the fear. Once or twice, she felt herself starting to doze off, only for the memory of her nightmares to snap her back to wakefulness with no mercy whatsoever. They were always so vivid and clear, and she never knew that she was dreaming until she at last awoke.

Eventually, she gave up on getting back to sleep and opened her eyes. It was still dark out, though the first hints of light could be seen creeping up on the horizon. The sun would be up, soon. When it rose, Fluttershy and Spike would take her back to Ponyville, while Thorax would stay behind to find Spiracle and bring her to Ponyville in order to talk to Rainbow. Twilight could apologize to her then, right…?

She shivered again. Why couldn’t she be happy with that outcome? Why couldn’t she just go with it? She had already ruined the situation here more than enough, so what was stopping her from accepting what was most likely the best course of action?

Her eyes fell, a solemn frown splitting her muzzle. “Because it isn’t what I want, is it?” she thought to herself. “What good will my apologies be worth if I wait that long? If I let her come to me? What will that prove? What will that do? As far as she’ll be concerned, I’ll have just capitalized on a moment where we were around each other to save face… and really? She will be absolutely right…”

“Who cares?” The voice asked, sounding just as tired as Twilight felt. “Spiracle is a changeling. And in case you forgot Thorax’s testimony, she was the one who kicked off the attack on Canterlot by bringing word of your absence to Chrysalis. That entire disaster is her doing.”

“No, it wasn’t,” Twilight thought back, too tired to even shout in her mind. “It was Chrysalis’. She was their leader, and it was her decision to make in the end. Spiracle was just following orders, like Thorax. And just like him, she has deserted from the Hive.”

“Pfft. Do you really believe that?”

“If you’re a part of me as you keep claiming, then go ahead. Tell me I don’t.”

There were several long seconds of silence before the voice scoffed in irritation. “Alright, fine, I’ll give you that one.”

Twilight’s lips curled up into a small smile. “Wow, really? I didn’t realize you had the ability to admit defeat.”

“And what does that say about you?”

Twilight’s smile grew, and she slowly pushed herself up to her hooves. “That I don’t give up. Not on what I believe in.”

“We call that character trait ‘stubborn,’” the voice mocked.

“And we call you ‘schizophrenia,’” Twilight shot back without missing a beat.

“Cute. Also inaccurate,” the voice snarked. “But let’s roll with the notion that Spiracle isn’t lying to you, for now. So what? She committed horrible war crimes by enabling the queen to launch her invasion. And I am certain you remember the awful trauma you and the ponies you love had to endure because of it. She’s a criminal. She’s an enemy. If nothing else, she should face trial for her crimes, shouldn’t she?”

Twilight frowned, hesitating. Her first instinct was to point Thorax out as an example, but he had been a special case. He had been supplying them with intel and advice on how to fight back against Chrysalis the entire time he had been with them, not to mention actively assisting their every effort. He had been a staunch ally from the moment he arrived in Ponyville with Wind Whisper.

There was no conflict like that now, though. Equestria was at peace, and all but recovered from Chrysalis’ invasion. There was still some residual damage leftover in some of the larger cities that got hit—mostly Canterlot—but that was it.

“Exactly,” the voice went on. “If Thorax finds her, she needs to be punished for what she did, and for doing nothing to prevent it. Her coming here seeking asylum was an act of desperation, nothing more. She isn’t our ally, she isn’t our guide, and she is not our friend!”

Twilight grit her teeth behind her lips. A few moments later, though, a small smile spread on her face. “No, she isn’t… but that doesn’t mean she can’t become one.”

With that, Twilight carefully slipped away from the mound of pillows. She heard Spike and Fluttershy stirring behind her, but thankfully, they did not wake. She sneaked across the room on the tips of her hooves, casting furtive glances at the others every few steps to ensure they did not wake to stop her. As soon as she was out of the room, she unfurled her wings and flew out of the library.

“Where do you think you’re going?” the voice asked.

“To find Spiracle,” Twilight replied, out loud this time. “I’m going to find her, apologize for what I did, and I am going to bring her back into the castle so we can sort all of this out. And this time, I am not going to listen to anything you have to say about it!”

“After everything you’ve endured?!” the voice snapped, the sharpness in its voice causing Twilight to briefly falter in the air. “After the agony of losing your life, your memories, and your sanity, because of what those creatures did, you still plan to help it?!”

“Yes, I do!” Twilight replied, pressing on.

“Why?! Why do you care about her, anyway?!”

“Because somepony has to!” Twilight snapped, pumping her wings harder. “And because it’s the right thing to do! I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I hurt her just out of petty spite! Changeling or not, she’s hurting, too, and I am not going to feed that anymore!”

“You’re making a mistake…”

“Maybe I am, but this time it’s my mistake to make, not yours.”

“Tch. Fine. Have it your way. Just don’t come crying to me if she stabs you in the back.”

“She won’t.”

“And how do you know that?”

Twilight took a deep breath, a small, serene smile appearing on her face. “...Because Thorax trusts her,” she said softly. “And I trust him.”

“That isn’t exactly a compelling argument.”

“Miles better than anything you can suggest.”

To that, the voice did not have any comebacks, thankfully. Twilight breathed a sigh of relief as merciful silence filled her head once more, allowing her to focus on the task ahead of her.

Spiracle

The Everfree Forest was a strange place. During the light of day, it could be seen as a place of solemn beauty. Being an ancient Primal Zone, it was perhaps a rare watermark of what Equestria had been like before the pegasi domesticated the weather across much of the landmass, or the earth ponies tamed the land itself: tranquil, wild, serene, and unpredictable.

In stark contrast to this was the ominous aura the forest took on during the night. Under the shroud of the moon and stars, it became a dark, brooding, hostile place that promised pain and suffering to anyone stupid enough to dare venture under its claw-like boughs. Malevolent beasts of all shapes and sizes hid away in the darkness under the branches, glowing eyes piercing the dark and just waiting for some poor soul to wander too close.

And then there was the forest in the light of the approaching sunrise. It struck a paradoxical middle ground between frightening and enchanting, terrifying and enthralling. The shadows beneath the canopy promised misery and wonder both, while the calls of the animals that called the forest home somehow soothed, but also unsettled, the soul.

Twilight looked down on it all from high in the air, her wings pumping slowly and evenly to keep her aloft. She swallowed heavily, watching the leaves sway as a gentle breeze ran through them. She followed the ripple of movement with her eyes until it disappeared into the distance.

“...This might be a really dumb idea,” she eventually said out loud, her lips quirking into a crooked smile.

“You said it, not me.”

Twilight scoffed before drifting forward, doing her best not to give the voice any attention. She focused her eyes down on the branches below, looking for any sign of the renegade changeling she had flown out here to find.

She must have been flying over the forest for fifteen minutes before she finally realized that it was probably a lost cause. The forest canopy was already dense enough by the edge of the ravine, leaving only a few scattered pockets where she could see the ground. It was only a few dozen yards from the ravine before the canopy became too thick to see anything meaningful. Just rolling hills of green, drooping leaves.

Swearing under her breath, Twilight came to a stop and spun in a slow circle, racking her brain. Spiracle was bound to be out here somewhere, right? If what she said earlier was true, then it stood to reason she had been eyeing Twilight for a little while, now. That meant she probably had a campsite of some description set up not far away. Assuming Spiracle hadn’t broken camp after Twilight’s outburst, then finding that would be her best bet of also finding her.

Swallowing heavily, Twilight descended beneath the forest canopy not far from the edge of the ravine. She spared a glance down towards the Tree of Harmony’s cave, and a tingle ran down her spine. It was watching her. She knew it.

“I can’t mess this up…”

Twilight took a deep breath before facing deeper into the forest. It loomed ahead of her like a great gaping maw, the gnarled branches reminiscent of crooked fangs and grasping claws ready to snatch her away to some unspeakable fate. The way the ground had been torn and shredded in places after the Plundervines passed through only added to the unsettling imagery. Twilight’s throat involuntarily stiffened, her breaths becoming a little strained as her memory of being suffocated by sleeping gas filtered into her mind.

She shook her head to dismiss the image after a moment. Setting her jaw, she set off at a brisk pace, eager to get this over and done with. The more time she stood around feeling sorry for herself or what she had been through, the more time the others had to wake up and realize she was gone again, and she planned to find Spiracle and put things right before they had a chance for that.

“An optimistic plan,” the voice noted. “Considering the sun’s already starting to rise. They’ll be waking up any minute now. Do you really think you can find Spiracle before Thorax, Fluttershy, and Spike find you?”

Twilight nodded. “I do.”

“How come?”

“Because I know they’ll search the castle first. That gives me at least a little room to breathe. Plus, this forest is big. They’d need to find my tracks first, and that could take a while.”

The voice hummed but did not follow up on that for the moment, allowing Twilight the freedom she needed to focus on her search. Her efforts were slightly hindered, however, as her mind wandered back to her three friends back in the castle. She didn’t doubt they were going to be worried about her, and a significant part of her ached with guilt at making them worry like that.

“But I have to do this on my terms,” she told herself, trying to bury her guilt. “They’ll understand.”

“Are you sure about that?”

Twilight frowned in irritation. “Don’t you have something better to do than bother me all the time?”

“Not really.”

Twilight grunted in annoyance, about ready to tear into the voice and give it a solid piece of her mind for being such a persistent pest. Before she could get the words out, though, a sound caught her ear. She froze, perking up her ears, and waiting for it to come again. A few seconds passed until it did, loud enough for Twilight to make it out.

Whimpers.

Twilight slowly turned to face the sound. Ahead of her, the trees formed a line that was almost a wall, and she couldn’t see through the shade they cast. But there was something whimpering on the other side of that veil, and it sounded familiar.

Twilight smirked triumphantly. “Hey, look, I think I found her.”

“Congratulations,” the voice deadpanned. “Would you like a medal for this magnificent achievement, or would you prefer a biography?”

“Oh, shut up.”

Whatever witty retort the voice had, Twilight drowned it out as she approached the whimpers. She moved slowly and carefully, not wanting to startle Spiracle if the one whimpering was indeed her. A small bead of worry began to form in Twilight’s gut as she drew closer. Why would Spiracle be whimpering? If she worked as an infiltrator, as Thorax had suggested, it implied that she was at least emotionally mature enough to hold her composure.

“Being in a position of power does not mean you can’t have childish meltdowns,” the voice snarked. “I mean, just look at Rainbow Dash.”

Twilight went rigid, her coat bristling and her pupils dilating. “Don’t talk about her like that.”

“Why not? I’m right.”

“She’s suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, grief, and probably depression!” Twilight shot back, her ears flattening back in barely-contained rage.

“And?”

Twilight growled deep in her throat before screwing her eyes shut and taking a deep breath. She didn’t give the voice the satisfaction of a response this time. She didn’t expect it to understand Rainbow Dash’s condition, nor did she expect it to ever learn to. She did her best to drown out whatever remarks it made before carefully pushing through the wall of foliage.

As she had suspected, a campsite came into view, albeit not one she had ever seen the likes of before. There wasn’t a tent in the traditional sense. Instead, there was a vaguely igloo-shaped dome of green resin with one side open to the world and supported by a thick, slimy green pillar. A makeshift fire pit sat in the heart of the small clearing, and a pair of makeshift saddlebags made from yet more resin was leaning next to them.

Also, as Twilight had suspected, Spiracle was there. She was sitting on her haunches by the fire pit, a pained grimace on her face as she dug through her saddlebags. “Come on, come on… I know I had at least a few more bandages, didn’t I?” she asked through clenched teeth. She winced, screwing her eyes shut and throwing a hoof down to her left hind leg. Twilight’s eyes followed the movement before going wide.

Spiracle’s leg had obviously suffered some sort of injury in her retreat. The chitin along her hip had been shattered, exposing the grey, rough skin that sat underneath. It was swollen and bruised, and Twilight did not imagine it felt good to try and walk around like that.

“Sweet Celestia…” she breathed.

Spiracle’s ears twitched at the sound, and she quickly rounded to face Twilight, her lips peeling back to show her sharp teeth. “Who’s there?!” she demanded in a loud hiss, although it was evident she was trying, and failing, to suppress a groan of pain as she put weight on her injured leg.

Twilight quickly held up her hooves, falling to her haunches in the process. “Woah, woah, hey, easy! I’m not here to hurt you,” she said, her ears folding back.

Spiracle blinked, her hostile expression melting away and replaced with a frown of confusion. “What…? Twilight? What are you doing here? I thought- ACK!”

“Oh my gosh!” Twilight gasped as Spiracle collapsed to the ground, her injured leg giving out under her. Twilight quickly rose and cantered over to get a better look, and she realized that the wound was a lot worse than it looked. “What happened to you?!”

Spiracle groaned before opening an eye and glancing up at Twilight. “...Giant lizard made of rocks jumped me on the way back,” she said through grit teeth. “Got a pretty good chomp on me before I got away…”

Twilight winced. “A cragodile… They’re nasty, and probably still wound up after all the chaos the Plundervines caused,” she said, slowly sitting back on her haunches. Her eyes fell on Spiracle’s saddlebags, and she noticed that they were largely see-through. She saw a small roll of bandage wrap at the bottom of the right pouch.

Spiracle sucked in a breath before rolling onto her back and slowly sitting up onto her haunches. “Gh! Ack! Ow, that hurts, ow, ow…” she protested as she went.

“Here, let me help,” Twilight offered, putting her hoof to Spiracles back to support her as she went up. A few seconds passed before the drone was sitting upright, and she gave off a relieved sigh. Twilight smiled and withdrew her hoof. “There you go. That’s better. Here, let me get some bandages for your leg.”

Spiracle watched, transfixed, as Twilight reached into the right pouch with her magic and withdrew the bandages. Twilight began to unroll a long strip of gauss, looking down at the injury again to get an idea of how much she would need. A queasy grimace spread on her muzzle at the sight of Spiracle’s brutalized flank, and she realized that she was probably not the best pony for the job. Fluttershy would be better.

For now, at least, she could ease the pain. Fluttershy could do a better job later. With that determination in mind, Twilight leaned down and carefully applied the bandages to the wound, wrapping them around a few times before tying it off at the end to apply some pressure. She leaned back a moment later to survey her work.

It was sloppy, but it would do the trick for now. Spiracle looked down at the bandaged leg, visibly relieved and already looking less pained. She then looked up to Twilight and tilted her head. “Thank you… but, um… I don’t mean to sound ungrateful or anything, but… uh… why are you helping me like this?” she asked quietly. She looked down and away, her ears drooping as if in shame. “I mean… you made it pretty clear how you felt about me back in the castle…”

Twilight’s heart withered in her chest at the reminder. She gave off a weak sigh and looked down at the ground. “...I know. I’m really sorry about before,” she apologized meekly. “I’ve just been dealing with some really personal problems, lately. Been struggling to overcome some ‘inner demons,’ you could say. It’s been driving me up the wall for a while, now, and… I guess I took my anger over it all out on you… It was wrong of me, and it was stupid, and I want to make up for it.”

Spiracle eyed her in surprise. She fidgeted in place for a few moments, briefly reminding Twilight of Fluttershy before she spoke again. “Really? How do you plan to do that?”

Twilight hesitated for a moment before lifting her head. “Well… I’ll start by hearing your story. All of it. I didn’t listen to you back in the castle, and that was a huge mistake…”

Spiracle blinked a few times before looking away, running a hoof over her shoulder. “Um… well, uh… oh, jeez. Where do I start?” she asked sheepishly.

Twilight put on a reassuring smile. “How about you start with what happened after Chrysalis was sealed?”

Spiracle was quiet for a few seconds before nodding her head. “Well… after the battle in the Empire, all of us drones just sort of… felt it, I guess. We just knew that we had lost, and that we needed to go home. The whole trip back was silent, and when we returned to the Hive, nobody said much of anything. It was completely silent for three days…”

Spiracle turned to Twilight with a distant, horrified look on her face. “Do you know what that’s like? To be surrounded by noise at all times when home, with drones flying around and chattering, constantly working, always in motion, only for it all to go completely still? It was the most harrowing thing I’ve ever experienced… even worse than that shadow in the snow…”

She shuddered, hugging herself. “And then, when there was noise again, it was just… chaos. There was no order, no structure. Everyone just… started yelling and arguing and fighting. The throne was empty. We had no queen. There was nobody there to give us direction or purpose. Our clutches were unattended for the first time in centuries, and no one knew what to do… I lost count of the fights that broke out on just that first day alone… It was horrible.”

Twilight winced and looked away. “I’m sorry you had to go through that… But remember, we were defending ourselves up in the Empire. We only did what we had to do to protect ourselves from the swarm. Chrysalis was an immediate and existential threat to me and everypony I love. I don’t regret sealing her in that tree. As far as I see it, Chrysalis was a monster. She got what she deserved.”

“Maybe…” Spiracle mumbled before shrugging. “It doesn’t matter now, though. It’s done, and the hive practically fell apart because of it. Everyone started squabbling over food and resources, and factions started springing up as powerful drones began clawing for the throne, fighting each other off. The hive practically became a battleground… Eventually, the fighting became so bad I decided I couldn’t stay anymore. But I was too scared to leave, at first. I was petrified by the idea of being alone out here, no idea where to go or what to do, but I was just as petrified of staying at the hive, where I could get caught up in the crossfire at any moment...”

Then Spiracle lifted her head, a tiny smile appearing on her face. “But then, my old commanding officer, Pharynx, began to vie for the throne himself… and the speeches he gave… He told everyone of his brother, Thorax, and how the pacifist runt of the hive had discovered something not even our queens had managed to discover.”

“How to feed properly, right?” Twilight asked carefully. “How to get love without hurting others? How to stop being hungry all the time?”

Spiracle nodded. “Exactly! A lot of drones blew off his words as the delusional ramblings of the brother of a soft-headed traitor, but I know Pharynx! I worked under him for years, and I know that he trusted his brother. Thorax had found a way to end our hunger, and he found a place to call home here in Equestria! When I heard about him, I knew I had to come looking. I had to come find him. But… I had no idea where to look, at first. Equestria is such a big place… I’m used to only having one ‘colony’ as my entire nation within the hive. Having so many cities and towns across all this land, just… confused me.”

“Cultural whiplash,” Twilight noted. “Yeah, that’ll get ya… It took Thorax a while to adapt, too, from what I heard.”

“Well, he had a place to call home right from the start,” Spiracle commented with a slightly jealous tone. “I didn’t… When I first came to Equestria, I showed up as just myself. And how was I greeted?”

Spiracle sighed and idly kicked at one of the stones around her fire pit. “...With an angry mob, torches, pitchforks and all. They ran me out of town before I even had a chance to explain myself or ask for help…”

Twilight sighed, placing a hoof on Spiracle’s back. “I’m so sorry… Ponies aren’t typically malicious creatures, but… well, a lot of us have a bad habit of holding grudges, and a lot in smaller villages tend to be unhealthy in their superstitions… I know. Ponyville had plenty when I moved there.”

Spiracle hummed quietly at that. “Well… I wandered around after that, just trying to find somewhere that would be willing to accept me. I eventually started taking on new identities with every town I visited, trying to blend in, learn a few things, and get some love in my belly. But it was never enough… and when the ponies were kind to me, I…”

Twilight wilted. “You started snarling and hissing, right?”

Spiracle nodded. “Yeah… I’m starving, and whenever I smell so much love and kindness around me, I just… I can’t hold it in! I’m barely keeping it in around you right now! I barely ever got more than a snack before I was forced to bolt for the hills…”

With every word Twilight heard, the guilt she felt for her previous anger explosion grew several times stronger. This poor drone had been run off so many times, now. She had been denied a chance at friends or happiness purely because of what she was, and when she finally saw a chance to obtain both, the very pony she had sought out to grant them—her last hope, practically—had shot her down in a wild rage.

“That is not how I’m supposed to be,” Twilight thought despondently, her ears drooping.

“But it is who you are,” the voice muttered.

Twilight closed her eyes. “No. That’s who you are. I’m nothing like you.”

“Denial denial denial,” the voice droned in irritation. “When will you open your eyes to the truth?”

“Just shut up and leave me alone. I’m busy.”

With that, Twilight took a deep breath and put on a warm smile. “Well… if you’re so hungry, then…” she began before spreading out her forelegs, exposing her chest. “You can have some of mine if you need it.”

“WHAT?!” the voice bellowed in alarm. “Are you serious?!”

Spiracle didn’t seem to be faring much better in response to the offer. Her mouth fell open while her eyes went as wide as saucers. She stared at Twilight for a few seconds, her glowing blue eyes shimmering with barely-restrained hunger. “W...w-what?” she finally managed to stammer out, completely taken aback.

Twilight nodded at her, trying to ignore the way her heart was thumping anxiously against her chest. She thought of every nice thing she could imagine about Spiracle. It was regrettably little right now, but she hoped it would be enough. “If you need a little love to keep yourself going, I can let you have some… You know, to make up for how I treated you before.”

Spiracle licked her lips, seemingly without thinking about it. Her eyes locked onto Twilight’s chest, right onto where her heart would be. “I… a-are you sure?” Spiracle ventured timidly. “I really don’t want to hurt you… and if I start, I might not be able to stop…”

“Do you need any more assurances that she’s not evil?” Twilight thought inwardly at that.

“Have you ever heard of the concept of a lie? Because I don’t think you have.”

Twilight elected to ignore that before nodding at Spiracle. “I’m sure. If I think you’re taking too much, I’ll stop you,” she assured.

Spiracle hesitated for several seconds before looking up and around Twilight. She blinked again, and her eyes flew wide at something Twilight couldn’t see. “Oh… oh, wow…” Spiracle whispered, clutching a hoof up to her belly as it let out an audible rumble. Then, without another word, Spiracle opened her mouth.

Twilight winced when she felt something tugging on her chest. She watched with uncomfortable awe as streams of pink light began to emerge from thin air and from her chest. They drifted lazily down before flowing into Spiracle’s mouth, illuminating everything inside and affording Twilight an exceptionally detailed look at a changeling maw.

Spiracle began to hiss and snarl, a small trickle of drool leaking out the corner of her mouth as she feasted on what Twilight had to give. Her wings twitched and buzzed on her back, and she rose to her hooves instinctively. Twilight cringed back, tensing involuntarily as Spiracle took on a threatening, predatory pose like she was about to pounce. Twilight did not move beyond that, however. She forced herself to stay perfectly still and wait for Spiracle to make the next move.

Finally, after almost a minute, Spiracle screwed her eyes shut. The hissing in her throat cut out without ceremony as she clamped her muzzle shut and looked away. All at once, the tugging sensation on Twilight’s chest ended, and she was suddenly overcome by a feeling of tiredness. Twilight gave off a heavy sigh before falling forward, barely catching herself with her forehooves.

“I’m so sorry,” Spiracle mumbled a moment later. Twilight felt a pair of hooves on her back gently easing her up into a sitting position. Spiracle was staring back at her with a worried, uneasy frown. “I couldn’t stop. I haven’t eaten so much since I left the hive, and… instinct just… took over. I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

Twilight shook her head, keeping one hoof planted to her chest over her heart. She shivered as an unnatural cold spread through her body, but she was quick to put on a smile. “It’s o-okay. I v-volunteered for this. I’m glad I could h-help.”

Spiracle relaxed somewhat. She withdrew her hoof and stepped back to give Twilight some room to breathe. Several moments passed in silence before Twilight’s breath steadied and she was able to focus. She shook herself to chase away the hollow chill in her heart and gave Spiracle a tender smile.

The changeling drone smiled back before shifting awkwardly on her haunches. “S-so… um… what now?” she asked, a crooked smile on her face.

Twilight slowly rose to her hooves, wobbling slightly as she did so, and held one out to help Spiracle stand. “Now, we head back to the castle. We can have Fluttershy patch up your leg while Thorax talks to you.”

Spiracle’s eyes widened as she stood up, using Twilight to support her weight. “Thorax is with you?!” she asked.

Twilight nodded. “Yeah. He was visiting Fluttershy when I asked her to come with me and Spike out here, and so he decided to come along. You two used to be friends, right?” she asked while guiding Spiracle slowly out of the clearing.

Spiracle hummed, looking up at the sky. “Um… sort of? I didn’t really have anything against him, honestly. He seemed really nice, but… well, I didn’t get to talk to him very often. I didn’t want to earn any disfavor from the queen by associating with the runt.”

Twilight shrugged. “Well, he clearly thought pretty highly of you, since he vouched for you,” she said before focusing forward. “I’m sure he’ll have a lot of questions for you about what things were like back at the hive. And then, once you’re all patched up and caught up with him, we can take you back to Ponyville, and you can talk to Rainbow about being granted asylum.”

Spiracle relaxed at that, leaning more into Twilight’s side. She gave off a relieved sigh and let her head hang down low before speaking in barely even a whisper. “...Thank you.”

Twilight smiled over at her. “You’re welcome.”

A Little Kindness

The return trip to the castle was, thankfully, uneventful. Twilight escorted Spiracle out of her campsite and into some more open space, allowing the changeling to use her as a crutch for the duration of their trek on hoof. As soon as they had a sizable opening in the forest canopy overhead, though, there was no longer a need for Spiracle to lean on her, as the two of them spread their wings and took to the air.

Twilight kept close to Spiracle the whole way, just in case. Her wings weren’t injured, but Twilight knew, first- and second-hoof, that enough physical pain in other parts of the body would easily distract one from their flying. She hovered a few feet to the changeling’s side, ready to reach out and catch her at a moment’s notice.

Spiracle’s face was contorted into a perpetual grimace of pain the whole way, but she bore it well. Twilight was genuinely impressed by Spiracle’s resilience and composure. She must have been allowing herself to appear so vulnerable before because she was all on her own, a notion reinforced by how quickly she had sprung into a defensive stance when Twilight had stumbled upon her camp.

Soon enough, the Castle of The Two Sisters came into view. They passed over the chasm that surrounded it, affording Twilight a momentary opportunity to look down at the cave where the Tree of Harmony resided. She could just make out the faintest hint of the blue glow the ancient growth gave off.

“Twilight!”

Twilight jumped as somepony called out to her, and she looked down and ahead to the speaker. Her heart leaped into her throat when she saw Fluttershy and Thorax flying up to meet her from the castle’s entrance, with Spike riding on the former’s back. It had been Spike that called out to her, his eyes wide and his face painted with relief.

Twilight smiled and waved down at him. “Hey, guys!”

Her smile became strained when she saw the disapproving look in Fluttershy’s eyes. Thorax was more shocked-looking than anything, but really, it wasn’t his ire she was afraid of earning. Twilight slowed herself to a halt, holding out a hoof to make sure Spiracle did the same. She took a deep breath and forced her smile back onto her face as the others came up to meet her face-to-face.

“Where have you been?!” Spike demanded the moment Fluttershy came to a stop. Without waiting for a response, he leaped from her back, undeterred by the many yards of empty air that separated him from the ground. Twilight yelped, drifting back before reaching out and catching him as his arms wrapped tightly around her neck in a bone-crushing embrace. “I was so worried about you! We all woke up and you weren’t there! I thought… I th-thought you’d run off again, like… like…”

He couldn’t finish the sentence. Twilight’s blood went cold when she felt him shudder in her grasp, burying his face deep into her chest fur. Her ears folded back in regret. She had hoped she could get back before they had a chance to really worry about her, but evidently she had not succeeded.

Resisting the urge to sigh, she pulled Spike closer and nuzzled him affectionately atop the head. “I’m sorry, Spike. I would have said something, but, well… I knew you’d all try to stop me.”

Spike looked up at her, his eyes shimmering. “Of course we would have!” he exclaimed, balling up one of his hands into a fist and thumping it against her. “It’s really dangerous out there, especially at night! And after everything that’s happened, I just-”

“Shh,” she soothed him quietly, pulling him closer and resting her chin on his head. “I know. I’m sorry. I just had to take care of this… I’m sorry I scared you.”

Spike shook his head but didn’t say anything else. Twilight gave him a reassuring squeeze before lifting her eyes to look at Fluttershy and Thorax. They had drifted back a little bit to give the two some room. Fluttershy was smiling at them, although the faintest hint of disapproval was still in her eyes. Twilight winced. She was probably due for a Fluttershy scolding here in the next little while.

Thorax, on the other hoof, wasn’t even looking at her. His eyes had instead locked onto Spiracle, who had similarly drifted back to afford Twilight and Spike their little moment. His eyes were wide, and his jaw was open. He eventually noticed Twilight looking at him and clamped his jaw shut before speaking. “You… you found her,” he said quietly.

Twilight nodded slowly and turned to gesture at the changeling beside her. “Yeah… I had to make up for what I did wrong, so I came out here to look for her. And I found her…”

Fluttershy’s eyes drifted from Twilight to study her company and immediately locked onto Spiracle’s bandages. Her eyes flew wide as saucers. “Oh my goodness! You’re hurt!” she exclaimed, flying in to get a better look. Spiracle squirmed slightly, emitting a quiet squeak of surprise as the pegasus drew into her personal space to inspect the injury. “How bad is it? What did this?”

“U-uh, a c-cragodile, I think,” Spiracle mumbled out, seemingly not sure how to take Fluttershy’s proximity. “At least, that’s what Twilight called it.”

“I bandaged her up as best as I could,” Twilight explained. “But I’m not a doctor, or even really any good at first-aid. I brought her back not just so we could talk this out properly, but also so you could treat her better.”

Fluttershy nodded. “Right. Can you walk?” she asked, all business.

Spiracle hummed, wiggling her injured leg a little bit. “I can… I might need some help, though,” she acknowledged.

“Okay, let’s get you to the library, then,” she said, gesturing down at the castle. “Follow me, please.”

With that, she took the lead, flying down for the castle. Spiracle lingered for a moment before following after her, casting a glance at Thorax. To Twilight’s pleasure, she actually smiled at him before vanishing into the castle after Fluttershy. Thorax stayed behind with Twilight for a little longer, his expression one of relief. He turned to face Twilight, his lips twitching up into a smile. “...It was kinda stupid of you to go flying off on your own like that, but… you found Spiracle. I appreciate it, Twilight, really. Thank you.”

“I was just doing what I thought I had to,” she replied, glancing down at the ground far below with a solemn frown. “...I couldn’t wait for you all to get her and apologize then. I had to make things right on my own terms.”

Thorax nodded. His eyes drifted down to Spike, who had fallen silent in Twilight’s embrace. His brow furrowed, and his smile fell away to be replaced by a worried frown. He didn’t say anything, though. Instead, he turned and flew down after Fluttershy and Spiracle. Twilight held back for a few more seconds before gingerly placing Spike on her back and taking off after him.

A short time later, everypony was back in the library, comfortably nestled on the various pillows that were scattered about the secret room. Fluttershy was seated next to Spiracle, tending to her wounds with a first-aid kit on hoof, while Thorax sat in front of them, eagerly talking with Spiracle. Both of them had warm smiles on their faces, and it was pretty apparent that they were happy to see each other.

“So Pharynx really started vying for the throne?!” Thorax asked, his wings giving an excited buzz while his eyes lit up.

Spiracle nodded. “He did. And by the time I left, he was really making some progress. Although, uh, I don’t think it’s going to be easy on him…”

“Oh, I don’t doubt it,” Thorax agreed, glancing to one side with a fond look of remembrance. “But Pharynx is tough. As tough as changelings can be. He’s strong, he’s smart, and he doesn’t take anypony else’s nonsense…”

Fluttershy smiled at Thorax as she finished applying a new layer of bandages to Spiracle’s leg, much better than Twilight’s previous haphazard attempt. “I’m sure he’ll do just fine,” she said sweetly.

“So am I,” Thorax agreed. “And when it’s all over, with any luck, maybe Equestria and the Hive can finally be on peaceful terms! Make all the other drones finally see just what they’ve been missing out on!”

Spiracle hummed at that. She gave Fluttershy a thankful smile before turning back to Thorax. “Maybe… I’m not sure it’ll be that easy, but I guess you can hope,” she said, not sounding quite as enthusiastic about the idea as Thorax. She quickly sobered up, though, giving Thorax another friendly smile. “B-but enough about me, for now. I want to hear about you, Thorax. It’s been such a long time, and from the sounds of it, you’ve been busy.”

Thorax smiled sheepishly while rubbing a hoof along his shoulder. “Eheh, well, I’m not sure if ‘busy’ is the right word. I’ve just been living in Canterlot with a family of thestrals, working at a local theater—sometimes even as an actor—but mostly I just move stuff around on set.”

Spiracle tilted her head. “...What’s a theater?”

Thorax blinked. “...Oh, yeah, that’s right, we don’t have those back at the Hive, do we?”

“Not really, no.”

“Okay, well, a Theater is this big stage where actors come on to put on a performance, telling a story to an assembled audience by acting out the events in the story,” Thorax explained, pausing here and there as he tried to find the best way to explain the foreign concept.

Spiracle listened with fascination as Thorax went on and on about his life, his work, and the various misadventures and instances of culture shock he had been through since arriving in Equestria.

All the while, Twilight looked on from the other side of the room with a big smile. Spike was still leaning against her side, with one of her wings draped lovingly over him like a blanket. The two hadn’t said much since they had gotten back.

Eventually, though, Spike shifted to look up at her, his face still showing his relief from earlier. “...I’m really glad you’re okay,” he mumbled, pressing closer to her side.

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Honestly, Spike, you make it sound like I was going off on some dangerous odyssey. I’m sorry I scared you, but it wasn’t really that bad, was it?” she asked lightly, hoping to ease his concern.

It did not work. Spike’s expression hardened with disapproval, and she felt him tense up under her wing. “Twilight… the last time you flew off after being angry like that, you turned into Midnight.”

Any mirth Twilight had been feeling in that moment was immediately squashed like an ant under a buffalo’s hoof. Her ears drooped, and her smile fell away. “O-oh… I…”

“I was scared it might have happened again,” Spike went on, closing his eyes. “You need help, and for a minute there I was scared that we should have gotten you that help sooner. I mean, if you had gone back to being Midnight, then what would we do? What would you do? I mean, you have your memories back…”

“Spike…”

“Would you go after Spiracle? Or the Hive itself?” Spike continued, getting lost in his paranoid hypotheticals. “Or would you go after the Tree for rejecting you?”

“Spike, please.”

“What would Rainbow have thought? Would she blame herself again?!” Spike screwed his eyes shut.

“Spike, that’s enough,” Twilight finally cut him off in a low but firm voice. She leaned down and nuzzled him on the head, pulling him as close against her side as she could with her wing. “It’s okay… I’m fine. And I promise I won’t turn back into Midnight. She’s gone.”

“Lies.”

Twilight did her best to ignore that snarled whisper. She leaned back and smiled down at Spike as widely as she could. “And I won’t go running off like that again without telling you where I’m going, either. That’s also a promise. So chin up, okay?”

Spike stared up at her for a few moments before smiling and nodding. “O-okay… if you’re sure.”

“I am,” she assured him. “Pinkie promise.”

“Do the chant.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Ugh. Alright. Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”

That seemed to be enough for Spike. His smile grew, and he gave off a satisfied hum as he snuggled up against her again. Soon enough, his breaths became slow and rhythmic, and Twilight realized he had fallen asleep against her side.

Twilight closed her eyes and took the chance to get a little rest, basking in the warmth of Spike nestled up close to her, and the happy voices of Thorax, Fluttershy, and Spiracle talking not far away. She took in a slow, deep breath before letting it out with a gentle smile. She had scared Spike, yes, but it had all turned out alright in the end, hadn’t it? And she could do better next time something like this came up.

“I told you,” she thought, her smile turning ever so slightly smug. “I told you I had this handled.”

“Even a broken clock is right twice a day,” the voice remarked dismissively.

Twilight’s smile became strained. For the moment, she elected not to pursue that discussion any further. As it was, it would be better to take it as a compliment and carry on.

Eventually, though, her moment of rest and inner reflection came to an end. A hoof tapped her on the shoulder, drawing her attention. Looking up, Twilight was greeted by Fluttershy’s face. Spiracle and Thorax were still happily chatting in hushed voices on the other end of the room.

“Hey, Fluttershy. How’s her leg?” Twilight asked in a hushed voice as the pegasus settled down beside her.

“She’ll be just fine,” Fluttershy replied with a simple nod. “It might take a while to heal, but she’ll be okay. Changelings are very strong creatures.”

“Heh, tell me about it,” Twilight replied. “Thorax turned into a dragon once.”

Fluttershy’s eyes drifted to the changeling in question, a far off look coming over her eyes. “Yeah… he did. I wish I had gotten a chance to see it…” she said quietly, her lips curling up into a soft smile.

Twilight observed Fluttershy from the side for a few moments, one of her eyebrows taking a trip up north for the summer. A few seconds passed before she smiled and lightly nudged the other mare in the side with her elbow. “So… are you and Thorax… you know, I’m not surprised.”

Fluttershy’s ears shot straight up, her cheeks turning a faint shade of red. “W-wha-?! I, uh, um… How did you... well, but, uh, I uh…” she babbled before withdrawing behind her mane, a series of embarrassing squeaks slipping out. “How obvious is it?”

Twilight giggled quietly, placing a comforting hoof on Fluttershy’s back. “Not super obvious, actually. Really, my big clue was how quick Thorax was to fly down here and help out after he found out about your house. That, and, well, everything with you two over the last two years: the letters, the way you sometimes gushed about him, how you spent most of your time with him at my brother’s wedding. Although I didn’t catch on until Rainbow gave him an evil smirk at your cottage. She only ever gets that look with me when she’s messing with me, and she knows she only gets away with it because I’m her girlfriend.”

Fluttershy let off another withering squeak before slowly poking her face out from behind her mane. “Um... okay,” she murmured sheepishly. “Just… don’t go telling anypony else, please. I mean, unless you have to.”

Twilight’s smile faltered. She tilted her head to one side curiously. “Huh? Why not?” She asked.

Fluttershy emerged fully from her mane and tapped her hooves together in front of her chest. “Um… it’s just that… I’ve never, you know, been with somepony like that before. It’s all really new to me, and I’m still trying to figure it all out. And, you know, it’s a little private.”

Twilight’s expression softened with understanding. It made sense. Fluttershy was, true to her name, the most socially reserved out of the entire group. Out of all of them, she would probably want and need the most space to herself to sort through it on her own and get used to it, and sharing the details of her love life with everypony else wasn’t really something Twilight could see her doing.

At the end of the day, though, it wasn’t Twilight’s business. She withdrew her hoof and nodded. “Alright, I understand. Really, I’m still trying to figure out how Rainbow and I are supposed to do this.”

Fluttershy blinked at her. “Really?”

“I had amnesia for two years,” Twilight reminded her, shuddering slightly at the memory. “Our whole relationship was put on pause for that entire time. Now that my memories are back, though, it’s back on, but… well, I mean, she and I already live together, and we have been living together since we came to Ponyville… I mean, do she and I start dating now, or are we past that point already?”

“Um… I don’t know?” Fluttershy said weakly with a very useless smile.

Twilight gave off an exaggerated groan of dismay. “Ugh, neither do I! It’s weird. My love life is weird.”

Fluttershy giggled at that before leaning over to give her a reassuring nuzzle. “Well, even if your life is weird, I’m sure you’ll figure it out. You and Rainbow have so much chemistry, and I know you two love each other very much. I know you’ll figure something out together.”

“Heh. Yeah, I guess we will,” Twilight agreed, taking a deep breath. She looked ahead, her eyes finding Thorax as he and Spiracle both suddenly broke out into laughs over something one of them had said. “Heh. Those two seem to be happy.”

Fluttershy nodded. “Mhmm… Thorax talks about the Hive sometimes, you know. I think he really misses it…”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Really? I mean, after everything I’ve learned about him, I thought he’d never want to go back.”

“Oh, he doesn’t,” Fluttershy clarified with a shake of her head. “He was treated horribly there. But, at the same time… it’s home to him. He was born there, raised there, and before he met us, his entire life revolved around there. All of his old friends are still there… He gets this really sad look whenever he talks about it…”

She looked down, her ears drooping. “I think, more than anything, he just misses being with his own kind. As much as he loves Wind, Squall, and the rest of us, he just… I don’t think he feels quite right, yet. Like there’s something missing...”

Twilight hummed, looking at Thorax again, more closely this time. Now that she was really looking, the depth of the happiness in his eyes was far more profound than she had at first thought. His every movement was laced with ecstatic energy, the big smile never once left his face, and his wings just could not hold still. He was like a kid bouncing around with excitement at getting to go into the candy shop.

Fluttershy watched him, too, a deeply pleased smile on her face. “But now look at him. He has another changeling to talk to again, after all this time. Somepony who will get it when he starts going off about how emotions taste, or who can understand how he sees the world…”

Fluttershy turned to Twilight, and her smile grew. “And you made it happen, Twilight.”

Twilight blinked. “Huh? O-oh, well, I mean…” she cracked a sheepish smile and rubbed the back of her head. “I mean, kinda? I came dangerously close to messing it all up…”

Fluttershy hummed. “Maybe… but in the end, you didn’t. You did the right thing, you showed her a little kindness, and now we can all help her,” she whispered. She then closed her eyes, and when next she spoke, there was something to her words, something deep and distant. “I’m proud of you, Twilight… thank you.”

Twilight blinked, her heart skipping a beat. All at once, a pressure on her heart and soul that she had not been aware of was lifted, at least partially. She gave off an instinctual sigh of relief, her entire body relaxing all at once. A pall that had been hanging over her ever since she had gotten her memories back began to thin, though it did not disperse entirely.

Twilight closed her eyes and smiled, leaning over into Fluttershy’s side. “Hmm. Thanks for saying that, Fluttershy. It’s the least I could do,” she said softly before falling silent, allowing the happy chatter and laughs of Thorax and Spiracle to echo in her mind.

Come to think of it, she had gotten very little sleep over the last few nights, and their joy was soothing…

With a content sigh, Twilight relaxed entirely into Fluttershy’s side, allowing herself to follow after Spike into the world of dreams. This time, for a mercy, there were no nightmares awaiting her.

Polynite

By Fluttershy’s insistence, the group elected to remain in the castle for the rest of the day. Spiracle’s leg needed some more time to heal up, after all, and all of them needed a little bit of time to wind down and relax after the burst of confusion and stress that Twilight’s meltdown had caused.

Twilight initially objected to the idea when she woke up from her little nap, wanting to get home to Rainbow to make sure the pegasus didn’t start worrying. Thankfully, though, Spike was on top of things, and in short order had sent a letter to Rainbow explaining that they would be a little late and that they’d be bringing some company.

After that, things had quieted down. Twilight stayed in place for the vast majority of the day, only occasionally getting up to stretch her legs or read some more of the books in the library. She even picked out a few to bring back with her to the Golden Oak. They were just going to waste here, she figured. Back at home with her, they might at least be preserved and start to serve a purpose again after centuries without use.

The tomes were more of a side note, though. The book she delved into the most was Celestia and Luna’s old journal. One would be hard-pressed to find a moment where she didn’t have her nose buried in its ancient, miraculously well-preserved pages. She read it almost like she was possessed.

She wasn’t possessed, of course. She just thought it was really interesting. To read through the thoughts of her mentor, the oldest known pony in the world, when she was little more than a filly? Learning about how she and Luna used to squabble and bicker about the tiniest things before Starswirl the Bearded would chastise them and bring them into their next lessons in magic? Learning about how the various mechanisms in this old castle worked…

Apparently, the “Organ to the Outside” she had read about before was actually a sort of control station, located deep in the castle’s basement. Every key not only played a note on a gigantic pipe organ that could be heard through the entire castle but also made things happen. Secret passages, trap doors, magic fires, and so much more were all controlled directly by this one, ancient musical organ.

Celestia, of course, had used it almost exclusively for the purpose of pranking the ponies who worked in the castle.

“Another successful song! While archivist Ghast Coin was coming to take Luna’s dirty dishes, I opened a trap door and sent him sliding into a super-secret ball pit that Luna and I made last week! He then got really cranky and grumbled something about ‘beasts’ and ‘shops’ before going away, all huffy. It was so much fun! Starswirl won’t approve, but that old unicorn has no sense of humor.”

Such tales were plentiful, and each one served to soothe Twilight’s anxieties just a little more. It soon became clear to her why this was the case. Never once in all of these pages did Celestia worry about the future. She enthused about it. She anticipated it. She didn’t dwell upon it. If anything, she barely gave the future much thought and simply lived in each moment, tackling the problems as they came to her and solving them one at a time.

When one considered the chess-master Celestia was known to be in the modern era, to see her own hoof writing depicting such casual, free-spirited shenanigans, they may be hard-pressed to think it was the same mare.

Yet it was. That same mare was Twilight’s former teacher, and her foalish innocence somehow made the future a lot less scary. As if to compound that note, the voice in Twilight’s head was mercifully silent for the rest of the day.

Finally, as the sun was beginning to set, Twilight curled up to get some rest. As the waking world drifted away from her, her thoughts drifted back to Ponyville, and to Rainbow Dash.

“We may not have found out how to open that stupid chest,” she thought as her eyes drifted closed. “But I don’t think she’ll mind…”

The following morning, the group got their things together and set off from the Castle of The Two Sisters. Twilight relished the flight home, taking the opportunity to relax and soak in the scenery while the wind rushed by her face, blowing her mane back and soothing her senses. More than once she found herself closing her eyes to take a deep breath before remembering the extensive safety lessons Rainbow had drilled into her ever since she started teaching her how to fly.

Spiracle, Fluttershy, and Thorax talked quietly every so often during the trip. Spiracle had taken to gushing over Angel Bunny and how “adorable” he was. At least, she had been gushing about that, until the little devil decided to use her horn as a replacement for a carrot when Fluttershy let the changeling hold him.

Needless to say, Spiracle’s opinion of the foul creature was now far more in-line with everypony else’s. Except for Fluttershy.

“I swear, that mare has Stockholm Syndrome if she can stand his behavior,” Twilight thought with a bemused roll of her eyes.

Soon enough, the trees began to thin, and Ponyville came back into sight. Twilight could already feel her body loosening up at the prospect of getting back to the library. She briefly glanced back at the others, and her eyes settled on the two changelings in their company.

Two.

Twilight frowned and slowed her flight until she was side-by-side with Spiracle. The changeling eyed her curiously. “Hm? What is it?” she asked.

Twilight gestured at her. “I don’t mean any offense, but you should probably disguise yourself as something other than a changeling when around ponies until Rainbow gives you all the all-clear. Thorax has had two years to earn everypony’s trust, but I can’t say the same about you, and I don’t want anypony causing a scene. We’ve had enough drama,” she said in a low voice, not wanting to accidentally upset the changeling.

Spiracle blinked, then gave a solemn nod. “Right… makes sense,” she mumbled before closing her eyes. A moment later, green flames swirled around her body, and when they parted, Spiracle had been replaced by a wholly unremarkable pegasus mare with a dirt brown coat and a dusty blonde mane and tail. Her eyes were still a piercing emerald green, while her imagined cutie mark was three ladybugs caught in a whirlwind.

Twilight shuddered at the sight of the ladybugs and quickly tore her eyes away. “Y-yeah! That should do the trick!” she blurted, her muscles tensing up.

Spiracle flinched back. “Uh… are you okay?”

“Fine! Perfectly!” Twilight squeaked imperfectly.

Spike, who was situated on her back, glanced down at Spiracle. Judging by the low, amused chuckle he let out, it was safe to assume he had spotted the source of Twilight’s distress. “Pfft, ha! Ahem, sorry Spiracle, there’s no way you could have known this, but Twi’s got an intense phobia of three things: quesadillas, snakes, and ladybugs,” he listed off matter-of-factly.

Twilight groaned, hiding her face in her hooves. “Ugh… the only memories I wish I didn’t get back…”

Spiracle gave off a sheepish giggle before her flanks lit up with more flames, burning away the ladybugs and replacing them with dragonflies. “Sorry. Is that better?”

Spike gave a sage nod. “Should be.”

Twilight groaned before lowering her hooves. The Golden Oak Library was in sight now, thankfully. Without wasting a minute more, Twilight tucked her wings in at her sides and entered a sharp nosedive for the ground. Mere moments before she would have struck the dirt, she fanned out her wings, slowing her descent until she gracefully touched down just in front of the entrance.

“Not today, dirt!” Twilight declared triumphantly under her breath, kicking the ground. “No kisses for you!”

“A shame,” Spike teased while hopping down from her back. “Watching you face plant for months was hilarious.”

Twilight rolled her eyes, following after the drake for the door. “Hardy har. Let’s just get inside.”

Spike didn’t need to be told twice and pushed the door open. The inside looked more or less as they had left it, though Twilight did notice, with a mild degree of annoyance, that some of the books had been taken down from the shelves and then left open on the coffee table. Definitely Rainbow’s handiwork.

Fluttershy, Spiracle, and Thorax followed the pair in, closing the door behind them. Spiracle looked around with wide eyes. “So this is what it looks like on the inside…” she whispered, trotting up to one of the walls and running her hoof along one of the many alcoves that formed the shelves. “It almost reminds me of the hive… it’s very organic-looking.”

“It is a tree,” Spike pointed out. He turned to the rest of the room and cupped his claws around his mouth. “Rainbow Dash! We’re home! And we brought company! You here?!”

Muffled movement from upstairs answered his call before the bedroom door opened, and a rainbow blur shot down into the room. It came to a stop in mid-air over the center of the room, allowing Rainbow Dash to come into focus.

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat. It may have only been a few days since she had last seen her, but it sure felt like a lot longer.

“There you are!” Rainbow declared, dropping down to the floor and lunging in to give Twilight a big hug. “Oh, man! When you guys weren’t here when I got home yesterday, I was real worried! I woulda sent you all a letter, but I don’t have a horn.”

Twilight grunted from the impact before returning the hug. “Heh. Sorry. We’re alright, Rainbow. We just got a little sidetracked, that’s all,” she said before her eyes fell on the scattered books. Her smile faded. “I see your worry didn’t keep you from making a mess of my carefully ordered books, though.”

Rainbow leaned back with a sheepish grin. “Eheh… sorry. Kinda had to pass the time somehow with you and Spike gone.”

Twilight made a show of glaring at Rainbow before smiling and quickly returning the books to their places with a precise flick of her magic. “Well, I guess it’s not a big deal,” she said before backing up.

Rainbow gave a sigh of relief before glancing at the others. “So, how’d it go? And, uh…” her eyes settled on Spiracle, and her brow furrowed. “...and is this that pony Spike mentioned in his letter?”

Spiracle shied back, suddenly appearing extremely self-conscious. “Uh… y-yes, Your Highness,” she mumbled, shrinking back against the wall. “Um… uh… I’m not a pony, though.”

Any amusement or mirth that had been in the air quickly faded away, and a sudden tension filled the room. At least from Twilight’s perspective. She glanced back and forth between Spiracle and Rainbow with a small bead of doubt building up inside of her. It had been two years since they faced the swarm, yes, but Twilight didn’t know if that was enough time for Rainbow to totally get over it. That disaster had damaged all of them for a long time, after all.

“You losing your memories after being murdered being the most prevalent,” The voice noted in a quiet growl.

Twilight huffed. “Shut the hay up. It’s too late for you to talk me out of this. Spiracle’s here, and it’s out of my hooves.”

“So it is. All that remains is to wait and see how magnificently this is going to backfire in the future.”

“You sound so sure that it will.”

“And you sound so sure it won’t,” The voice countered. “Time will tell who is correct. The broken clock, or me.”

Twilight snorted before returning her attention to the scene unfolding before her.

“You’re not a pony?” Rainbow echoed, raising an eyebrow. “Then… what are-”

“She’s a changeling,” Thorax said, stepping forward. “She’s a friend of mine. I can vouch for her. She’s a good one.”

Rainbow’s expression hardened considerably. She glanced at Thorax before focusing intently on Spiracle, her wings twitching against her sides. “...Show me.”

Spiracle took a deep breath, then dispelled her disguise. The changeling drone returned to the world, still backed up against the wall, and making herself look as small as possible. “My name is Spiracle, Your Highness,” she said slowly and carefully. “And, uh… W-well, I was hoping you’d be willing to let me stay here in Equestria.”

Rainbow blinked. She took a slow, measured breath before taking a step back. “...I’m listening.”

The following discussion went on for quite some time. Twilight watched as Spiracle recounted her story, with some insights into Changeling culture and society provided by Thorax from time to time. Twilight and Spike sat with her, while Spiracle, Fluttershy, and Thorax sat on the loveseat across from them.

All the while, Rainbow listened with rapt attention. She didn’t say much, aside from taking the time to ask the occasional question or for clarification. Her expression was incredibly hard to read, and Twilight found it somewhat unsettling. It was uncommon for Rainbow to get a look like that on her face, especially for so long. She normally wore her emotions on the cuff of her sleeve.

“I think that’s about everything,” Spiracle eventually said, her story drawing to a close. She drew back, looking down at the floor with her ears folding back. “So, um… I g-guess my fate is in your hooves, now.”

Fluttershy draped a foreleg over Spiracle’s shoulders in an effort to comfort the uncomfortable drone. Twilight wilted at the sight of Spiracle’s anxiety. She looked to Rainbow to find that her face was still impossible to read.

The pegasus princess leaned back in her seat, taking a few deep breaths as she collected her thoughts. Several moments passed in silence, and with each one, Twilight’s own doubts grew more and more.

Finally, Rainbow opened her eyes and looked directly at Spiracle. “Well… I can’t say that I’d be willing to trust you most days,” she began slowly, her tone surprisingly calm. “I went through a lot of stuff because of our conflict with the changelings, and I knew just how good you guys can be at deception when you need to be. You were planning the attack on Canterlot for quite a while before you found your window and took it. Under any normal circumstance, I’d assume you were a spy sent by whoever was in charge at the hive to keep an eye on us.”

Spiracle flinched as if she had been struck, shying away from Rainbow’s stare.

A few moments passed before Rainbow’s eyes drifted to Thorax, and then to Twilight. “...But this ain’t exactly a common situation, is it?” she asked, her tense expression softening.

Spiracle perked up, looking hopefully to the princess. “W-what do you mean?”

Rainbow hopped down from her seat and approached Spiracle. “Well, for one thing, you have Thorax vouching for you, and I trust Thorax. We would never have stopped Chrysalis if it hadn’t been for him. I trust his judgment. Twilight’s vouchin’ for ya, too, and I trust her with my life. She was the one who convinced me to trust Thorax, and now she wants me to trust you. So if she says you’re okay, I believe her.”

“So, that means I can stay here?” Spiracle asked, leaning forward while her wings gave an eager buzz.

Rainbow paused, her expression becoming strained. “Well, see, that’s a bit more complicated. See, I can suggest that you get Asylum, but it’s actually outside of my jurisdiction. I’m the Princess of the Skies. The weather is my main focus, most days,” she explained, offering a non-committal shrug. “So if you want full-blown asylum, you’re gonna hafta talk to my mom or my aunt up in Canterlot.”

Spiracle hummed quietly, offering a timid nod of understanding. “I think I understand… so, uh, I need to go to Canterlot and seek out the ruling alicorns, and then they can help me?”

Rainbow nodded. “Pretty much. I can send word ahead that you’re coming, though, and let ‘em know I trust you to behave yourself. Should help your chances.”

The room fell quiet for a few minutes as everypony pondered this new information. Soon, Spiracle nodded and gave Rainbow a thankful smile. “Thank you, Princess Rainbow Dash. When should I go?” she asked eagerly.

Rainbow chuckled and lifted a hoof as if to calm her down. “Well, I’m not gonna have ya go alone, first of all,” she said before pointing at Thorax. “You’re gonna go back to Canterlot with him. He’s trusted there already, more or less. He can take care of ya until you meet with mom.”

Thorax blinked. “Oh. Okay, I can do that. But, uh…” he glanced sideways at Spiracle, his brow furrowing. “Where do you think Spiracle’s going to wind up?”

“Dunno. It isn’t my call,” Rainbow reminded with another shrug. “Probably somewhere in Canterlot, though. If Squall and Wind don’t mind the company, maybe she could bunk up with you guys for a little while.”

“I don’t want to impose too much,” Spiracle pointed out, shifting uncomfortably on her haunches. “I just want to be safe and accepted.”

“Well, this is step one for that,” Rainbow stated matter-of-factly.

Fluttershy nodded along. “Wind and Squall are really good ponies, Spiracle. Trust me. I’m sure they’d be happy to have you, at least for a while.”

Spiracle hummed quietly in response, taking what comfort she could from the pegasus’ words.

Rainbow, seemingly satisfied, returned her attention to Thorax. “When do you think you’re leaving?”

Thorax got a sheepish look on his face. He scuffed a hoof along the seat under him, not quite meeting Rainbow or Twilight’s gazes. “Er, well… I was actually kinda supposed to be back yesterday. I’m actually late, so I should probably be heading back as soon as we’re done here.”

Fluttershy turned to him, visibly disappointed. “...Oh.”

He smiled back at her, one of his wings drifting over to brush against her side. “Hey, I’ll come visit again real soon, okay? I can help rebuild your cottage when I do!” he said enthusiastically.

Fluttershy’s smile returned at that. She leaned over to give Thorax an affectionate nuzzle, a tiny blush forming on her cheeks. “Oh, um… alright. I look forward to it.”

Rainbow smirked. “Hah. Adorable.”

Twilight’s brow furrowed, her mind wandering back to Fluttershy’s earlier request for her relationship with Thorax to be left alone. Rainbow hadn’t been there for that conversation, though, and now wasn’t really the time to go into detail with it. Some other method would have to do to silence her for now...

With an evil smirk, Twilight surreptitiously lifted a book in her magic and lightly thwacked it against her prismatic girlfriend’s flank. An audible ‘smack’ resounded through the air, drawing all eyes toward Rainbow just as her eyes widened, and a very undignified squeak shot past her lips. She quickly spun around to face the only other magic-user in the room. Twilight answered by shaking her head and holding the tip of her hoof up to her lips in a ‘shush’ gesture.

Rainbow gave off a low, indignant growl. “Why, you… I’m gonna get you for that.”

“I’m sure you will,” Twilight shot back with a coy smirk. “But later. We have company right now.”

Rainbow ruffled her feathers in annoyance. “Hmph. Time to fix that, then!” she said before turning to Spike, who had been watching the exchange with an amused grin. “Spike! Letter!”

Spike sprang down from the couch, throwing a smart salute, though his smirk persisted. “Ha! Right away, Princess!” he barked before running over to a nearby shelf and procuring a scroll and a quill with practiced ease.

Rainbow rolled her eyes at his enthusiasm. “Okay. So. Ahem,” she cleared her throat before reciting what she wanted her letter to say.

“Dear Mom,

Just as a heads up, Thorax is probably going to be stopping by there in the next day or two with another changeling with him. Her name is Spiracle, and she’s come to Equestria seeking asylum. Apparently, Thorax knew her back when he was still in the hive, and he’s vouching for her. I trust his judgment, but the decision isn’t really mine to make.

I’m sending them both up to Canterlot to speak with you when you get a chance. They can tell you all the details when they get there. If I try to recount her story in this letter, it’s gonna be, like, seven pages long and full of mistakes, so best to let it come from the bug’s mouth.”

“Er, no offense,” Rainbow suddenly said to Spiracle.

Spiracle raised an eyebrow. “Um… none taken?”

Satisfied, Rainbow continued.

“Also, on a related note, Twilight, Spike, Fluttershy, and Thorax are back from the castle. I haven’t had a chance to really talk to them about how it went yet, though. Seems like they’re okay, though.

Talk to you later, mom.

With love and awesome,

Rainbow Dash.”

Twilight barely restrained a snort of amusement as Rainbow wrapped up the letter. Of course she’d close it off like that. Humbled as she was, she was still Rainbow Dash. Nothing would ever change that, it seemed.

“That it?” Spike asked.

“Mhmm. Send it,” Rainbow commanded.

With a nod, Spike blew green flames over the rolled-up letter. It dissolved and vanished into the flames, flying out through a nearby open window as wisps of greenish-gray smoke. “There, it’s on its way!”

“Sweet,” Rainbow nodded before turning back to Spiracle. “You guys might wanna get a move on, then. Canterlot might be right there, but it’s still not a short trip. The train is gonna be your best bet to getting there on time if you wanna have this meeting today. I can walk ya there if you’d like.”

“I’ll come, too!” Fluttershy insisted, springing up from the couch. “To see them off.”

Thorax gave Fluttershy a gentle smile. “Heh. Thanks, Fluttershy,” he said before lightly hopping down from the couch and holding a hoof out to Spiracle. “Come on, let’s go. Have you ever been on a train?”

“No, I haven’t,” Spiracle said as she took his hoof and leaped down. Curiously, though, her eyes settled on Twilight, an odd look on her face. Her mouth opened as if she had more to say, but no more words came out.

Twilight met her gaze with an encouraging smile and a nod. “Go on. This is what you sought us out for, isn’t it?” she said softly.

Spiracle bit her lip, her eyes shifting with indecision. A few seconds later, she gently pulled her hoof from Thorax’s grasp. “Hold on. There’s something I have to do first,” she said. Without waiting for a response, she cantered over to her translucent saddlebags resting by the door and opened them up. Twilight raised an eyebrow as the changeling dug around in the pouch for several seconds before withdrawing with something cradled in her hooves.

Twilight’s eyes widened as the sight of a smooth, egg-shaped gemstone, colored the same green as changeling magic and about the size of a small tangerine. She might have thought it was an emerald at first, but as Spiracle brought it closer, she realized it was too opaque. More than that, as she got a closer look, she realized there was a gently pulsing light from within the stone, almost like a heartbeat.

“This is a piece of polynite,” Spiracle explained. “It’s a rare gemstone, largely found in tunnels under the Hive. It’s been naturally infused with changeling magic over centuries of exposure to it. That’s what the light is…”

Spiracle held it out to Twilight, a gentle smile on her face. “It pulses like this whenever a changeling is nearby. It reacts to our presence, and… I want you to have it.”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “Wha… Spiracle…” she said softly, eyeing the stone. It was beautiful, drawing her to lean in for a closer look. With her eyes this close, she could actually see the swirls of magic just beneath the surface, making it ripple like the surface water of a pond.

“Woah,” Rainbow breathed from the side, eyeing the stone herself. “That’s pretty neat, actually. But why are you giving it to Twilight?”

Spiracle looked down, her ears drooping. “I… I know that you’ve all suffered a lot because of my kind. I don’t expect that this would ever be enough to make amends for everything you went through, but maybe it can be a start. Maybe this can help protect you from any others that might want to hurt you.”

Rainbow’s expression visibly darkened, and Twilight immediately knew exactly who she was thinking about. “Stinger. She’s still out there, isn’t she?”

“But also,” Spiracle went on. She looked back up and met Twilight’s gaze. “I want to say thank you. You gave me this chance, Twilight. I have nothing else I can give you… So please. I insist. Take it.”

Twilight swallowed heavily. On the one hoof, the stone was gorgeous, and if Spiracle was telling the truth, it could be invaluable in the future, especially if Pharynx failed to claim the throne and they had to deal with the changeling swarm again. On the other, every instinct was telling her to refuse the gift; to tell Spiracle it was a part of her home, and that she should carry it with her.

“And give up a way of defending yourself against Stinger?” the voice asked skeptically. “Don’t be stupid. We both know she’s still out there, and we both know she’ll happily kill us again if given the chance. We can’t take any chances with her. Take the stone.”

Twilight swallowed heavily. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, the devil on her shoulder made a good point. And so, with some reluctance, she reached out and gently took the stone in her hooves. “...Thank you,” she whispered quietly, giving Spiracle a warm smile. “I’ll take good care of it. I promise.”

Spiracle’s smile grew. “No. Thank you. I won’t forget this…” she said before backing away and giving Twilight some time to stare into the gem without any distractions. The way the surface shifted and rippled drew her attention, occupying her thoughts in an almost hypnotic manner. It was strange. The longer she stared, the more she felt like her muscles were beginning to relax.

This stone… it was important, somehow. Not just due to the significance of how she attained it, either. Something about it spoke to her very soul, whispering that someday, she would have need of it. She held it close to her heart and closed her eyes. It was warm to the touch if only a little. That warmth spread to her heart, and then to the rest of her. A pleased smile formed on her face, and she took a long, deep breath.

“Hey, you coming, Twi?” Rainbow’s voice cut through the silence that had filled Twilight’s mind, drawing her out of her impromptu reverie.

Twilight blinked and looked up. Rainbow, Thorax, Spiracle, and Fluttershy were all assembled by the front door, which now stood open. They were looking back at her curiously.

She smiled at them and shook her head. “I think I’ll stay here, actually. It’s been a crazy few days. I’d like a chance to just relax and read a little bit.”

“Fair enough,” Rainbow acknowledged before stepping outside and motioning to the rest. “Kay, c’mon.”

While the others slipped outside, Spiracle lingered in the doorway for a moment. She looked back at Twilight one more time, boundless gratitude shining in her eyes.

Twilight nodded at her. “You’re welcome. Spiracle. Goodbye… and good luck.”

Spiracle’s eyes shimmered slightly. “...You too,” she said softly before stepping outside, closing the door behind her.

Two Years Overdue

Twilight gave a quiet murmur of contentment as she returned to the waking world. She could feel the warmth of the sun against her face, and the notably different warmth of Rainbow Dash snuggled up against her back. She hummed softly and cracked open her eyes. The sun was only just starting to come up in the distance, casting its gentle orange rays across town. A narrow line of that light slipped in through the gap in the curtains, just enough to rouse her from her slumber.

All was quiet there in the loft of the Golden Oak, and Twilight was perfectly content to leave it that way for now. Stifling a yawn, she shimmied back until she was pressed closer to Rainbow’s belly and closed her eyes. A tiny giggle slipped past her lips when she felt Rainbow nuzzling into the back of her neck.

“Mmf… G’morn…” Rainbow drowsily mumbled, her hooves curling tighter around Twilight’s own belly.

Twilight hummed and craned her neck to get a look at the sleepy pegasus. She barely kept herself from giggling again when she saw how messed up Rainbow’s mane had become after a long night of sleep. The pegasus had the worst cases of bedhead ever.

“Heh… Morning, Dash,” she whispered in response, setting her head back down.

Rainbow hummed, nuzzling her again, but did not speak. The two fell into a long, companionable silence after that, neither saying a word, merely enjoying the peace of the morning and the warmth of the other.

Eventually, Twilight shifted in place, slowly rotating around until she was facing Rainbow Dash directly, drawing a confused groan of dismay from the pegasus. “Hey, stop movin’. I’m tryna hug ya…”

Twilight rolled her eyes and rubbed her nose against Rainbow’s. “Sorry. I just wanted to look at your face, is all,” she said, not being totally dishonest.

Rainbow cracked open an eye, her lips faintly curling up into the beginnings of a self-absorbed smirk. “Yeah? Is it lookin’ good?” she asked.

“You look like you drank a mug of cider and bathed in a tub of it,” Twilight replied without missing a beat, her eyes drifting up to Rainbow’s rat's nest of a mane. “It’s kind of impressive, really.”

Rainbow pouted. “Yeah? Well, you look like… like… uh… fwah…” she grumbled before leaning forward and burying her face in Twilight’s chest fur, murmuring something unintelligible.

Twilight giggled and pulled the pegasus closer, using her wings to envelop both of them in a feathery blanket. “What was that? I couldn’t hear you.”

Rainbow mumbled again before pulling her head back just enough to speak. “...Your chest is soft,” she said before burying her face again.

Twilight laughed at that, resting her chin on Rainbow’s head. “Nice dodge, Rainbow.”

“Mmph. Thanks.”

With one last giggle, Twilight fell silent, simply enjoying the feeling of Rainbow pressed up against her. She gave off a relaxed sigh. This. This was perfect. She could stay right here until the end of time and be perfectly happy, she decided. Just her, the warmth of the morning sun on her back, and her sleepy girlfriend cuddling her in the bed they shared. Peaceful. Serene. Tranquil. Not a care in the world.

The serenity, sadly, was doomed to be short-lived. Twilight’s smile faltered as the contents of her dream began to resurface in her mind: Luna’s sudden intervention, their brief tension, the revelation of Rainbow and Fluttershy’s spoken concerns, and Luna’s gently given advice.

Twilight’s brow furrowed, and she leaned back a bit to look into Rainbow’s face. The pegasus blinked open her eyes to stare back at her, looking a little confused. “Hm? Wha? Somethin’ wrong?”

“I, uh… I had a dream last night,” Twilight whispered, her smile fading away entirely. “A nightmare, really…”

“Oh yeah?” Rainbow asked, swiftly coming to her senses. She pulled Twilight a little closer. “I thought that’s what it was…”

Twilight blinked. “Huh?”

Rainbow sighed. “Ya kinda started tossing and turning in the middle of the night. Jostled me. Woke me up. I was gonna wake you, but you calmed down pretty quickly. After that, I figured I’d let ya sleep and just cuddled ya from behind. And that’s, ya know, why I’m big spoon this morning.”

Twilight blinked. It had never even occurred to her that she had typically been the one doing the holding in the past. She blushed and giggled sheepishly, her ears folding. “Aha, yes, right, okay, that makes sense…” she said awkwardly. She then rolled onto her back and looked up to the ceiling, her serious expression returning.

“...What was it about?” Dash asked a moment later, keeping one foreleg under Twilight.

Twilight hummed. “I was… running. Along the road up to Canterlot. It was pitch-dark out, and something was chasing me. It kept… talking to me, in my voice, taunting me, mocking me. When I got to the gates, they wouldn’t open…” she began to recount the dream, a chill starting to seep into her veins. “I called for Celestia, Luna, Cadance. My mom and dad. Anypony to open the gate and save me… But nopony came. And then the… the thing was on me.”

“Thing?” Midnight asked in offense. “You know perfectly well what I am, don’t use such derogatory terms.”

“So says my inner demon who calls me an idiot on a routine basis!” Twilight shot back, not allowing her frustration with the inner voice to manifest on her face.

“But then… the thing was gone. And… Luna was there,” she went on, turning her head to one side to look at Rainbow.

Rainbow’s eyes widened, and she propped herself up on her elbow. “She did? That’s good. She give ya good advice?”

Twilight nodded. “She did, after we worked through some… personal issues, I guess. But…” she met Rainbow’s gaze again, her brow tilted with anxiety. “Rainbow… she told me that you and Fluttershy told her about how I was doing.”

“Of course we did,” Rainbow replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. A few seconds passed before a look of alarmed realization dawned on her face “What, did you not want us to? Are you still angry with her after, well… how she treated you?”

Twilight shook her head. “No! Well… maybe I am, a little, but that’s not the point,” she relented with a tired sigh. “I just… is it really that bad?”

Rainbow grimaced, then nodded. “...Your anger issues? Yeah, they’re pretty bad. I’ve never seen you blow up so much over such little things. I mean, it’s usually a lot of little things all piling up that get to you, not one or two minor inconveniences… And after what happened in Canterlot, I...”

“...You’re worried I might Fall again?” Twilight asked knowingly.

Rainbow opened her mouth as if to offer a denial, but she held her tongue. A second passed before she sighed and nodded. “Y-yeah, I guess. I mean, I know that you being really… angry with m-me is what led to you Falling in the first place. And now you’re so easily agitated, and I just… I wanna look out for you, ya know? I just got you back…”

Twilight smiled, then leaned in to give Rainbow a soft kiss on the lips. The pegasus stiffened at first, then quickly reciprocated the unprompted gesture of affection. A few moments later, they parted, faces flushed and eyes shining with newfound wakefulness.

“...I appreciate it, Rainbow,” Twilight whispered to her with a warm smile. “I really do. Luna’s talk with me was pretty helpful, actually… so thank you.”

Rainbow’s distant look reformed, her trademark smirk—albeit a smaller version—returning. “Heh. Anytime, Twi,” she said casually. “What did she suggest you do?”

Twilight hummed, her smile fading as she thought back on her chat with the Princess of the Night. “Well… she told me not to worry too much about the Chest, or my banishment from Canterlot…”

“I don’t see you doing that.”

“Shut up,” Twilight bit back playfully, giving Rainbow a little shove. “I can focus on other things instead!”

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “Uh-huh. I believe you.”

“I’m serious!”

“Like what?”

Twilight jabbed Rainbow in the tummy with a hoof, making her burst out into breathless giggles and roll away. Twilight then rose to her hooves and positioned herself over Rainbow, her hooves on either side of the pegasus’ head. She made direct eye contact with Rainbow, whose giggles swiftly fell silent. She stared back up at Twilight like a deer in the headlight of a speeding train, her eyes wide and transfixed by Twilight’s.

Twilight grinned and poked her in the belly again, gently this time. “You, you featherbrain.”

Rainbow blinked a few times, and Twilight could practically see the cogs turning in her head as her sleepy mind processed that. “...Oh.”

“As it so happens,” Twilight purred, leaning in just a little closer. “Luna also suggested that I focus on spending time with you…”

Rainbow blushed furiously at that, her wings twitching at her sides. “Ahah, ahem, uh… h-how so?” she asked sheepishly.

Twilight paused at that, her own train of thought grinding to a sudden halt. She slid back and off of Rainbow with a thoughtful hum, her brow furrowing. “Uh… well… Honestly? I dunno. This is all kinda new to me. Ya know, the relationship thing.”

Rainbow propped herself up on her elbows, looking briefly disappointed about something, but was quick to regain her composure. “Well, I mean… Ya could just, I dunno… kiss me? And stuff?”

“See, we already do that,” Twilight pointed out. “And that’s kinda the assumed default state in a romantic relationship, isn’t it?”

“Er… maybe?” Rainbow shrugged. “I’m not an expert here, Twi. You’d have better luck asking Rarity how this crud’s supposed to work.”

“But Rarity isn’t my girlfriend,” Twilight pointed out matter of factly. “You are. And our relationship isn’t exactly the picture of a common romance, either, so Rarity’s advice would probably not be super applicable anyways.”

“Give her five minutes,” Rainbow deadpanned. “Just five. She’ll figure something out.”

“Well, even if that’s the case,” Twilight rolled her eyes for what felt like the millionth time that morning alone. “Again, she isn’t my girlfriend. You are. And, well… I feel like, however we do this, it should be figured out by us.”

Rainbow forced herself up onto her haunches, stretching out her wings in the process and filling the air with a few deeply satisfying pops. “M’kay, fair point. What were you thinking, then?”

“Well, we already live together,” Twilight pointed out, gesturing at the library around them. “Hay, we sleep together, too. And we’ve been doing at least one of those things for the last, what, three years?”

“Somethin’ like that,” Rainbow confirmed.

“So, if my admittedly limited understanding of these things is anything to go off of, then in a usual relationship, we’d basically be past the dating stage by now.”

“Kay, I’m following you so far.”

“But our relationship, again, isn’t exactly normal. I mean, I first found out you had feelings for me in Hollow Shades, and I didn’t finally put two and two together and get four about my own feelings until we were in the Crystal Empire, and all of that was in the middle of the most stressful string of events we’ve lived through.”

Rainbow’s expression darkened somewhat. “Er, right…”

Twilight paused, immediately regretting how she had put that. For a brief moment, it had slipped her mind that she’d died back then, and how hard Rainbow had taken it. She placed a hoof on Rainbow’s shoulder and gave her a comforting smile. “...The point I’m getting at is we never even had a dating phase. We just kinda… uh… ‘noveled’ it, I guess.”

“Noveled it?”

“Yeah, you know. Like all those romance novels Rarity likes to read.”

“What, the trashy ones?”

Twilight’s comforting hoof shoved Rainbow lightly. “No, Rainbow, the classy ones.”

Rainbow smirked. “You make it sound like Rarity thinks there’s a difference.”

“Oh, for the love of- You know what I mean!” Twilight whined, her wings flaring up in mild exasperation. “I’m talking about the ones where the lovers go through some harrowing experience and, in the process, discover they love each other, kinda seeming to skip the dating part of the process altogether. That? That’s us.”

Rainbow blinked, tilting her head to one side. “Are… are you saying we’re characters in a romance novel?”

“Oh, I hope not,” Twilight scoffed in dismissal. Being a character in a book. How ridiculous. “After everything we’ve been through, if it turned out we were the product of somepony’s imagination, I’d probably punch him.”

“You and me both,” Rainbow agreed, lifting a hoof as if for a toast.

They shared a short laugh. Twilight regained her composure a moment later and went on. “But, the point is… We skipped a step that I think a lot of real romances kinda need. And, so…”

“Do we need it, though?” Rainbow asked skeptically. “I mean, I already know you like the back of my good hoof. Isn’t dating supposed to be the ‘getting to know the other one’ part of the process or something?”

“Rainbow, this is about the process,” Twilight deadpanned. “There is an order to this stuff! I won’t feel right if we just go around skipping steps and jumping around in the order of events!”

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Guh. Okay, so, what? You wanna take me on a date or something?”

“YES!”

Rainbow blinked, her smile fading. “Uh, I was kinda kidding.”

“And I,” Twilight shot back, poking Rainbow in the chest again. “Was not.”

Rainbow’s cheeks flushed again. “Uh… do we gotta? I mean, I love you to bits, yeah, but…” she cringed, her wings poofing up as if to shield herself from view. “You know how I feel about showing it where others can see…”

“I mean, it doesn’t have to be all full of kisses and hugs and all that,” Twilight pointed out. “That’s for when we’re in private, anyway.”

“Well, I mean, then what do we do on a date? Cause kissing and hugging and making you squirm are kinda the hallmarks from where I’m sitting,” Rainbow complained, giving Twilight the impression that, somehow, neither of them were very well-educated on the finer points of having a love life.

Nevertheless, Twilight smiled and took one of Rainbow’s hooves in hers. “Well, we can just… be together, you know? Go somewhere nice, talk, kill time. Just the two of us. That’s how it usually works.”

Rainbow stared blankly at her for a moment. “So… what we normally do, then?”

“Spike is usually with us,” Twilight pointed out. “This would be just us. You and me. Nopony else…”

Rainbow hummed thoughtfully at that for a few seconds. She then gave a noncommittal shrug. “Okay, I guess… Where do you wanna go?”

“Let’s start simple!” Twilight chirped, her wings giving an exciting flap. “Let’s just go and get some lunch later! Eat out, somewhere nice.”

Rainbow chuckled and nodded. “Okay, I guess that’s fine. Just make sure it ain’t a salad joint, alright? I need my carbs!”

Twilight’s grin grew, and she threw herself against Rainbow in a warm hug. “It’s a date!” she squealed delightedly, the force of her body knocking Rainbow back into the bed.

“Oof! Heh, yep, it is,” Rainbow replied, chuckling. She patted Twilight on the head a few times before falling still and quiet. The two remained there for a while, perfectly still and silent.

Twilight hummed, burying her face in Rainbow’s chest fur. Her stomach was filled with a swarm of butterflies, making her feel like giggling like a lunatic. She couldn’t stop the giant, goofy grin from spreading on her muzzle as a four-word sentence repeated in her head over and over again.

“I have a date. I have a date!”

Her train of repeating thought came to an end when Rainbow cleared her throat. “Uh… you gonna lemme get up so I can shower? Can’t take you out to lunch looking and smelling like this.”

Twilight groaned in refusal, cuddling closer. “No. You can wait a few minutes.”

Rainbow smiled and let her head fall back. “Heh. Okay, fair enough…” she mumbled quietly, before allowing a serene silence to fill the room.

Author's Note

And so the opening mini-arc comes to a close.

Pinkie's Squad

Several weeks have passed since Twilight Sparkle returned from the Castle of the Two Sisters with Spiracle. In that time, she has done her best to follow the advice practically everypony close to her has given her, finally opting to spend more time focusing on the present and less fretting over a future that she cannot rush. To this end, she has devoted much of her time to Rainbow Dash and finally establishing their relationship in a more formal way. During her time with the pegasus she never would have imagined herself falling in love with, her anxieties have seemed to be drifting further and further away.

Alas, not even Rainbow’s soothing presence is enough to chase away her fears in full. Subdued though they may be, they still linger in the depths of her mind, simmering softly and waiting for the time when they might make themselves known again...

Twilight’s breath came in heaving gasps as she galloped down the road. Sweat poured down her brow, her lungs strained for air, and her legs burned with every step she took. It was dark out, or very nearly, with only the faintest hints of sunlight breaching the distant horizon. The world around her was very quiet, to the point that, save for her own labored breaths, the only sound audible was that of her hooves pummeling the soil, and those of another’s just to her side.

She grit her teeth and focused forward, pumping even more power into her legs. She couldn’t afford to let anything distract her. She had to move faster! If she didn’t, then-

“Aaand I win!” Rainbow’s voice declared from her left as the pegasus pulled ahead at the last second, crossing their arbitrary finish line in Ponyville’s marketplace with a whoop and an only slightly awkward front flip.

Twilight slid to a stop, gasping for breath and glaring at the pegasus in spite. “Ugh. Darn you! I was this close to winning!” she complained, using the tips of her feathers to emphasize her point.

Rainbow took a breath and smirked back at her with a shine in her eyes. “Yeah, you were. Gave me a run for my money,” she acknowledged between her own labored breaths. “But ya still got a long way to go before you can match my speed.”

Twilight puffed up her cheeks indignantly, then dragged herself over to slump against a tree that sat beside the road. Rainbow joined her a second later, reaching into a pair of saddlebags she was wearing to withdraw a couple of bottles of water. She passed one to Twilight while keeping the other for herself.

Twilight sighed as she took the bottle. “I guess… I just thought I’d be faster by now, you know?” she asked quietly. “I mean, we’ve been running together like this for how long?”

“A while,” Rainbow answered vaguely, shrugging her shoulders. “But ya gotta remember, you were out cold for a few days there back in Canterlot. Your muscles kinda lost some progress during that.”

“Oh, right,” Twilight muttered, her brow furrowing at the subtle reminder of her little stint with unconsciousness after returning the Elements to the Tree of Harmony. She had almost died doing that, she recalled. Then, of course, pretty much as soon as she woke, up she went and turned into Midnight and everything just spiraled out of control after that.

Thankfully, Rainbow didn’t give Twilight much of a chance to get lost in the past. The pegasus reached over and gave her a friendly nudge, smiling. “But hey, you’re definitely getting better. Who knows? A few more weeks of you really pushing your limits and you might actually get faster than me on the ground!”

Twilight returned the smile. “Heh. What about in the air?”

“You’re an alicorn, so that’s cheating, and we don’t count that,” Rainbow dismissed matter-of-factly.

Twilight snorted in amusement. “Cheating?” she asked playfully, leaning over slightly and lowering her voice. “Oh, it sounds to me like you’re just a little jealous…”

Rainbow rolled her eyes before turning and poking Twilight directly on the nose with her hoof, causing the alicorn to go cross-eyed and shut up. “Nah.”

A few seconds passed before Twilight shook her head and puffed up her cheeks in mild annoyance. “Oh, why you…” she muttered under her breath. Rainbow’s smirk did not let up in the slightest.

Before the situation could ‘deteriorate’ any farther, a high-pitched gasp echoed through the air from not far away. Twilight recognized that voice and immediately braced herself before turning her head to face the source.

“Dashie! Twily!” Pinkie Pie squealed from the now open door of Sugarcube Corner, her mouth stretched wide into an ecstatic grin. “Oh, sweet! I didn’t know you two would be here this early! This totally saves me, like, thirty seconds!”

Rainbow raised a hoof in greeting. “Sup?”

Twilight tilted her head. “Saves you thirty seconds?”

Pinkie vibrated for a second before perking up as if remembering something. “Oh! Wait, hold on a sec!” she declared before sprinting back inside. Twilight stared at the doorway for a moment, narrowing her eyes expectantly. She picked a number in her head and began counting down.

“Six… Five… Four… Three… Two… One-”

Pinkie Pie came sprinting back out, a miniature tray balanced on her back with six vibrant blue cupcakes on it. She slid to a stop in front of the two resting mares. “Sorry, had to get your cupcakes!” she said, setting two of the cupcakes down in front of them.

“Cupcakes? This early in the morning?” Rainbow asked with a raised eyebrow. She did not refuse hers, though, taking it without hesitation.

Twilight frowned as she looked over hers. “It’s Pinkie. Sugar is good for literally any meal of the day.”

Pinkie nodded emphatically. “Uh-huh! Eat up, you two! I wish I could stay and chat, but I gotta bounce! Gotta deliver these to the rest of our friends!” she sang before replacing her tray on her back and sprinting off at a full-tilt gallop, soon fading from sight.

Rainbow and Twilight shared a bewildered glance. A second passed before they both shrugged at the same time and dug into their newly acquired snacks. It would probably completely undo all of the calories they had just burned off from their run—and then some—knowing Pinkie Pie. It was worth it, though, as far as Twilight was concerned.

She was proven correct as she sank her teeth into the soft, moist, delightfully sweet frosting. A little shiver wiggled its way down her spine at the divine taste. Ever and always, Pinkie was the finest baker Twilight had ever met. So good was the little pastry, in fact, that Twilight’s usual table mannerisms decided now was an appropriate time to take a vacation, much as they did whenever Spike was brave enough to make her hayburgers.

As she began to mercilessly devour her cupcake, Rainbow leaned slightly away from her with a face that couldn’t decide if it was entertained or a little scared. Nevertheless, she gave a tiny smile. “Heh. Jeez, Twi. You hungry?”

“Shush. Cupcake,” Twilight dismissed through the food in her mouth before going in for yet another bite. As her teeth bit into it again, though, she paused. There was something else in the cupcake. Something that was decidedly not as tasty as the rest of it. It was long, soggy, and felt exceptionally out of place.

Resisting the urge to gag, Twilight pulled back and stared at the offensive ingredient with a critical eye. She blinked in confusion when she saw that it was, in fact, a narrow slip of paper. “...What the hay?”

“What? What is it?” Rainbow asked before taking another chomp out of hers. Judging by the scrunched up face she made afterward, Twilight knew she had found the same thing.

“That,” Twilight said simply. Her horn lit up, and she carefully extracted her own piece of paper in her magic. There was something written on it.

“Pinkie Pie is assembling the squad! Please meet in her room in Sugarcube Corner at your earliest convenience!

P.S: Sorry about the paper in the cupcakes. There are more in the room. One for everypony!”

“So… we’re ‘the squad,’ now?” Rainbow asked with a hint of mirth as she cast aside her slip. “What’s Pinkie want us for? Something come up, you think?”

Twilight hummed in thought, turning the slip this way and that in curiosity. Eventually, she shrugged, rolled it up, and rose to her hooves. “With that mare, who knows? But let’s go see what she wants. She went to all the effort of bribing us with more cupcakes, and I, for one, don’t intend to refuse.”

Rainbow snorted, following Twilight for the door. “Wow. You that easy?”

“When it’s Pinkie’s cooking,” Twilight said as they stepped aside, flinging her rolled up ball of damp paper into a trashcan nearby. “Always.”

Just like Pinkie promised, there were yet more cupcakes to be had in the second-floor room that served as Pinkie’s bedroom. It wasn’t long after Rainbow and Twilight took theirs and got comfortable that the others began to pile in, one at a time. Each looked suitably tired for the hour, frazzled by Pinkie’s all-too-early exuberance and grumpy from the unexplained summons.

First came Rarity who, in spite of her best efforts, was unable to hide her exhaustion from the rest of the room. If Twilight had to guess, she would assume that the fashion designer must have been in the middle of some multi-day project and was behind on her sleep. It would go a long way in explaining her sagging posture and the fact that her makeup was not at all up to standard.

Then came Fluttershy, who was far more animated than the unicorn. Though still clearly waking up, she at least had the energy to sit down with Twilight and Rainbow and strike up a conversation. It was mostly mindless small talk and idle speculation about what in Celestia’s name Pinkie Pie was up to. Their theories ranged from the mundane to the comically absurd.

One such idea was that Pinkie’s pet alligator, Gummy, secretly wanted to take over the world and Pinkie was assembling his greatest threats in one place so they could all be eliminated at once. Rainbow in particular took that idea and just ran with it for far longer than was needed, really diving into the details.

“Hey, if you’re so into the idea, why don’t you write it?” Twilight jokingly asked, interrupting Rainbow just as she was getting to the part about evil crystals powering a coffee machine.

Rainbow paused and glanced over at Twilight with a wrinkled muzzle. “What? Me? Write? Ya do know who you’re talking to, right? I’m not an egghead writer.”

“Coulda fooled me,” Twilight replied with her lips curling up into a predatory smirk. “With the creative tangent you’ve been on? You could write a whole series of silly short stories around that concept.”

Rainbow spluttered incoherently for a moment, her wings ruffling at her sides. “Well, I mean, y-yeah, but… having a good idea isn’t the same thing as, ya know, making it good.”

“Hm, Fair,” Twilight conceded with a shrug. “Knowing you, you’d need an editor… or twelve.”

“Hey!”

Before Rainbow’s indignation could be acted upon, Pinkie Pie and Applejack finally entered the room, the former leading the way while the latter pronked along cheerily behind her.

“Pinkie snared y’all too, huh?” Applejack asked with a tired smile.

“Oh, um, I don’t know if snared is the right word, but… yes,” Fluttershy replied.

“Naw, she just lured us here with sugary treats,” Rainbow replied casually, leaning back in her place. She turned her attention to the pink mare in question and nodded in greeting. “So, Pinks. What’s going on? What’cha need all of us for?”

“Yes, I would quite like to know that as well,” Rarity agreed with a curt nod, drawing Twilight’s attention to how one or two hairs in her mane were out of line.

Pinkie Pie happily cantered into the center of the room before slowly spinning in a circle, as if to ensure she had everyone’s attention. Then, once she was sure she had them all focused, she spoke.

“I’ve called you all here because my big sister Maud is coming to Ponyville in a few days to spend the week with me and I need all of you to help me prepare everything I’m gonna need!” she belted out in one long breath.

Applejack raised an eyebrow. “Huh. Pinkie bein’ to the point. Never thought Ah’d see the day.”

Twilight hummed in thought, tapping a hoof to her chin. “Maud, Maud… I don’t think I’ve heard of that one, yet…”

“Oh, she is the best!” Pinkie declared while thrusting her hoof into the air. “She’s super smart and likes poetry like you, Twilight! she’s really strong and fast, like Rainbow and Applejack! She has a pet she loves to bits and takes good care of, like you Fluttershy! And she’s totally into fashion, like you Rarity!”

Rarity’s eyes widened. “Oh, is that so? My oh my, that is quite an impressive assortment of skills and traits, Pinkie Pie. She sounds remarkable!”

“Darn straight!” Pinkie replied with a sharp nod and happy quiver of her tail.

“Okay, so- what was her name again? Maud?” Rainbow asked slowly.

“Ya-huh!”

“Okay, so, Maud’s pretty awesome according to you, that’s great. But, uh… why do you need all of our help?”

Pinkie turned to Rainbow, bouncing in place with a mixture of excitement and anxiety. “Because, Dashie, I haven’t had a chance to pick up all of the things I need! I don’t have all of the rock candy I need to make her rock candy necklace!”

There was a moment of silence. Fluttershy leaned in. “Um… Rock candy necklace?”

Pinkie Pie nodded. “Mm-hmm! Here, lemme show ya,” she said while withdrawing a notebook and a pencil from her mane with a hoof. She took the pencil in her mouth and quickly began to sketch.

After a second, she spat away the pencil and held the notebook out for all to see, revealing a series of simple-yet-charming depictions of Pinkie and another mare, presumably Maud.

“It all started when Maud and I were fillies on the rock farm,” Pinkie began, pointing to the first sketch, which showed off a crude, but charming, view of a farm in the middle of a largely-barren field surrounded by big boulders.

“Ah never really got the point of rock farms, to be honest,” Rainbow said with a shrug of her shoulders. “I mean… you can’t eat rocks.”

“Not with that attitude you can’t!” Pinkie shot back.

Twilight chuckled before nudging Rainbow in the side and whispering in her ear. “Rock farms are basically just another word for a permanent home for miners. They’re built in regions that are exceedingly rich in natural mineral resources, like metals and precious gems but are otherwise too inhospitable to sustain a large community like a city. Rock farmers are ponies, typically earth ponies, with enough endurance and survival knowledge to survive in environments like that while getting at the rare and highly sought after resources right beneath their hooves.”

“Oh… so, Pinkie’s a miner, then,” Rainbow confirmed slowly.

“Her family’s a mining family,” Twilight clarified. “But we all know she’s a baker.”

“Kay, I think I gotcha,” Rainbow said before nodding back at Pinkie. “Sorry, you were saying?”

Pinkie took that as her cue to continue and went on, pointing to the next picture in line. “You see, when I was reeeaaally little, Maud taught me the Pie family rock candy recipe. She even told me the secret ingredient! Which is a secret, but it’s totally rocks.”

Applejack snorted in amusement. “Sounds like somethin’ Spike’d like.”

“Oh, absolutely!” Pinkie agreed, pointing to the next sketch that showed her and Maud dropping large pieces of colorful candy onto a needle on a string that was three times their size. “But anyway, after that, she showed me how to string them together into a necklace! And once we were finished, we’d trade!”

Pinkie closed the notebook and stashed it back in her mane. “Maud and I have been trading rock candy necklaces ever since I moved to Ponyville. They’re how we make sure we’re always on each other’s minds, and that no matter how far away I am from her or the farm, she’s still my big sister and bestest friend!”

“Aaaw, that’s a real sweet lil tradition there, Pinkie Pie,” Applejack said, a warm smile replacing her groggy frown.

“It certainly is,” Rarity agreed. She leaned forward, her smile being replaced by a skeptical frown. “But, and not to be rude, Pinkie, darling… are you positive you require our aid to make one for her?”

Pinkie turned to Rarity and tilted her head. “Well, I’m not making one just for Maud, silly! It’d mean the world to me if you could all meet Maud when she turns up! Ever since the Plundervines—and even since all of that sad stuff with Chrysalis and the Empire—she’s been super duper worried about me all the time! I want her to meet all of you and get to be friends with you! That way, not only does my sister get to have five of the very best friends a mare could ask for, but she also gets to see that, with all of you, I’ve never been better, and she really doesn’t need to worry about me so much! And with how much she has in common with all of you, I just know you’re all gonna be getting along great!”

“And to commemorate that,” Twilight went on, the realization clicking into place. “You’re going to want all of us to trade necklaces too?”

“Not quite, though that is a fantastic idea!” Pinkie replied without missing a beat. “What I’m actually gonna do is make one for each of you, too! It’s a super special tradition in my family, something only the closest of ponies share, so showing Maud that I can share it with all of you will let her know that I have the best ponies in the world looking out for me!”

Pinkie turned in place, her eager smile slowly morphing into a more uneasy grimace. “Buuut… she’s gonna be here in, like, two days. And If I’m gonna make and taste-test enough rock candy to find the perfect flavors for each of you, I’m not gonna be able to do it all on time!”

“Oh, so that’s what ya want our help with?” Applejack asked, raising an eyebrow. “Making the candy?”

“Goodness, how much candy do you need if it will take six of us?” Rarity asked, taken aback.

Pinkie spun around to face her. “Yes!”

“Yeah, saw that comin’,” Rainbow muttered under her breath with an amused smirk.

Twilight giggled at that, not quite picking it up as Pinkie began to go into a long-winded spiel about different flavors and how to make them. A few seconds passed before Fluttershy suddenly intervened, trotted timidly up to Pinkie, and putting a hoof on her chest to stop her. “Pinkie Pie, um… maybe you’re working yourself up a little too much over this?”

“Yeah,” Rainbow agreed, glancing sideways at Twilight again. “Like, ‘Twilight with a late return’ worked up.”

Twilight’s face lit up with red, her eyes glaring daggers into Rainbow’s very soul. “Wha- HEY!”

Rainbow snickered before leaning back in her spot and casually throwing her hooves behind her head. “I get that this tradition is a big deal Pinkie, but I gotta agree with Flutters on this one. You’re kinda overthinking it.”

“Ya don’t need a mountain of rock candy,” Applejack agreed with a nod. “Ya know yer sister better than any of us. And ya know all of us really well, too. Ah don’t think yer gonna need as much help as yer makin’ it out to be.”

“We’d be delighted to meet Maud, though,” Rarity chimed in. “Perhaps we could arrange to meet her in the grassy hills just past the train station? The view of the mountains is simply divine—an ideal place for a picnic!”

Pinkie looked around at everypony for a moment before taking in a long, deep breath, then letting it out in a relaxed sigh. “Whooo… Thanks, guys. I’m just really excited cause I haven’t seen her in a while and I’m really nervous because she’s always so worried about me over here after everything we went through. I just don’t want her to keep worrying so much, and I really want her to meet all of you and like you and know that I’m okay so she doesn’t have to feel so worried for me.”

“Pinkie, Pinkie,” Twilight cut in gently, bringing the mare’s tangent to a halt. She smiled gingerly at her before nodding. “We understand. And we’d love to meet her.”

“She’s coming in a few days, right?” Rainbow asked.

“Uh-huh. The day after tomorrow, if her train doesn’t get delayed.”

“Well, then that gives you plenty of time to whip up the rock candy,” Applejack said with a nod. “And while Ah don’t think ya need the mountain ya were makin’ it out to be, Ah wouldn’t mind helpin’ with a batch or two. Apple Bloom could use the treat if ya don’t mind me takin’ some home.”

“Much the same for Sweetie Belle,” Rarity agreed. “The poor dear’s been having nightmares ever since those Plundervines came through town…”

Pinkie smiled at all of them, beaming from ear to ear. “Eeee! Thank you girls so much! We don’t have any time to lose!” she declared before turning and sprinting down the stairs at full speed. “Follow me, everypony! We got ROCKS to make!”

Twilight rolled her eyes at Pinkie’s enthusiasm, falling into stride with the others as they descended the steps. A nice distraction was just what she needed, and this was proving to be pretty distracting.

“Trying to forget me already?”

Twilight briefly froze at that tell-tale whisper. She shook her head, doing her best to push it aside, and followed after the others, ready and eager to lose herself in the chaos that was anything involving Pinkie Pie.

Boulder-Faced

The next two days passed by in a thankfully uneventful blur for Twilight. She largely spent her time relaxing and being together with Rainbow, with some intermittent contact with the others thrown in here and there to make sure they were all prepared for the upcoming picnic with Maud. During that time, Twilight had, in the hopes of having some more knowledge to strike up a conversation with her, done more thorough research on rock farms in general, even going so far as to briefly attempt to interview Pinkie Pie for her firsthoof accounts.

It wasn’t long, however, before she realized that Pinkie is Pinkie, and Pinkie tended to go off on these long-winded tangents about anything and everything that had nothing to do with what Twilight was trying to get her to focus on. So she pretty quickly gave up on that idea.

Rainbow and Spike had even warned her. Why didn’t she listen?

Whatever the case, following that failure of journalistic methodology, the day came. It was a fairly pleasant day, too, with only a few clouds peppered haphazardly across the summer sky. A refreshing breeze washed over the countryside outside of Ponyville, carrying with it the lush smell of grass and flowers, along with the more subtle aroma of the Everfree Forest.

Twilight took in a long, deep breath, closing her eyes. She savored the air as it filled her lungs, invigorating her body, and awakening her senses. She let it out a few seconds later with a content smile, opening her eyes back up. She was laying down on the red and white checkerboard-patterned picnic blanket that had been set up by Applejack a few minutes’ walk away from the train station, with the rest of her friends, sans Pinkie, scattered around her.

Rainbow was laying down beside her, using the side of Twilight’s barrel as an impromptu pillow. The pegasus’ eyes were closed, and her chest rose and fell in slow-but-even intervals, advertising that she was, unsurprisingly, taking a nap to pass the time. Fluttershy wasn’t far away, sitting on the other side of Twilight and looking at Rainbow with a small smile. She probably found the sight of her slumbering fillyhood friend to be cute.

Angel Bunny, who Fluttershy had insisted on bringing, did not seem to share that notion and was currently busying himself with exploring a smaller basket with four muffins in it.

Rarity was on the other side of the blanket, a wide-brimmed sun hat on her head with a ring of small, well-cut gemstones carefully stitched around the band. Spike sat with her, predictably, listening intently as she talked to him about something or other, her eyes glued to the pages of a magazine she had brought along to pass the time while they waited. Her white cat, Opal, was currently laying down a short ways away, bathing in the sun.

Applejack was off to the left, Winona keeping close to her side, idly munching on a spare apple she had brought along for her enjoyment. She had been considerate, though, and brought along one for everypony else, including Maud. They were all stored in one of the several picnic baskets they had brought along, each one loaded with lunches for the ponies gathered around.

Quite some time passed like this, in blessed silence and tranquility. Eventually, though, the peace was bound to end. The loud, piercing tone of the train’s whistle cut through the air like a knife through butter in the distance, announcing its arrival. The loud sound drew Rainbow out of her slumber with a start and a groggy murmur. Twilight smiled and looked down at her just as Rainbow opened her eyes.

“Morning, sleepyhead,” Twilight said in a soft voice. “Sleep well?”

Rainbow blinked at her a few times. “I, uh… wha? When did I…?” she babbled, still apparently not quite lucid. She glanced around a little before it seemed to click, and her eyes widened.

“Oh, heck! Did I fall asleep?!” she squawked in a very undignified manner while flailing to get back up into a regular seated position by Twilight’s side.

Twilight giggled, though she elected to say nothing, if only for the sake of sparing Rainbow’s ego. Fluttershy seemed content to remain quiet as well, but alas, the same could not be said of the remaining three members of the group.

“Yup, you fell asleep,” Spike said with a knowing grin. “Used Twilight as a pillow, too.”

“Ya looked mighty comfy, there, RD,” Applejack added, adjusting her hat with a snicker. “Kinda wish the train didn’t come by yet.”

“I quite concur,” Rarity agreed, smirking at the now heavily-blushing pegasus. “It was quite adorable.”

Rainbow groaned, hiding her tomato-colored face with her wings. “Uuuugh. You guys are the worst.”

Twilight rolled her eyes, draping one of her wings over Rainbow’s back and glancing at the others. “Okay, that’s enough, you guys,” she said, though, try as she might, she could not hide the mirth in her voice.

Rarity tittered into her hoof. “Oh, yes, of course. Forgive us, darling, but it is all too rare that we get to see you really embrace that side of yourself,” she said, nodding at Rainbow with a reassuring smile.

“And there’s nothing wrong with being cute,” Fluttershy added, leaning forward to get a better look at the still hiding Rainbow.

“Yup,” Spike agreed. “It’s good to see you relaxing again, Dash.”

Rainbow huffed, lowering her wings a second later to glance expectantly at Applejack.

The farmer shrugged. “What? Ah ain’t apologizin’.”

Twilight snorted and shook her head, giving Rainbow a gentle squeeze with her wing before pulling back. “Well, anyways, Pinkie and Maud should be along pretty soon,” she said, not-so-subtly redirecting the topic. She squinted past the group in the direction of the station, looking for any sign of the colorful duo.

Her efforts were rewarded a few minutes later when a certain pink mare came into view over the top of a nearby hill. Pinkie was bouncing merrily along the path that led to their designated spot, no doubt humming some cheerful lullaby to herself.

“Hey, guys!” Pinkie’s voice came a moment later, drawing all eyes to her. “Maud’s here! Maud’s here! EEE!” She closed the remaining distance in no time at all, coming to a stop right by the edge of the blanket. A humongous grin adorned her muzzle, and her eyes were shining with anticipation and excitement.

“Nice! Where is she?” Rainbow asked, glancing past Pinkie the way she had come. Twilight followed her girlfriend’s gaze, expecting to see some similarly bright and energetic mare bouncing along to meet them.

“She isn’t quite as fast as me,” Pinkie explained, spinning around to look back toward the station. “But she’s so super duper excited to meet all of you!”

“Isn’t quite as fast?” Twilight thought, her brow furrowing. “If we can’t see her yet, that must be quite the understatement. The station isn’t that far…”

A long, awkward silence filled the air as the group waited. And waited… And waited. Twilight’s muzzle began to scrunch up, and she glanced at Pinkie. “Uh… are you sure she-”

“Oh! Oh! There she is!” Pinkie chirped, pointing. Twilight followed her hoof, figuring that Pinkie’s sister had just gotten turned around for a second in this unfamiliar terrain- No, wait, the hilltop was still empty.

Fluttershy coughed awkwardly into her hoof.

Finally, finally, Twilight saw movement. Very slow, very deliberate, very boring movement. Where Twilight was expecting bright, vibrant colors akin to Pinkie Pie, there was instead the dullest shade of gray she had ever seen, combined with what looked to be a very basic frock of a dull teal, and a desaturated purple mane that was even straighter and flatter than Twilight’s.

That must have been Maud.

Twilight blinked. “Is… is she moving?”

“Took the words right outta my mouth,” Rainbow mumbled.

Pinkie, not at all deterred by their confusion, bounced eagerly in place a few times. “We’re over here!” she squealed to her sister, her voice echoing all around them in the otherwise-quiet countryside.

It took what felt like forever, but, at long last, Maud came to a stop a few paces away from Pinkie. A flat, borderline emotionless expression rested on her face. Her teal eyes, perhaps the most colorful part of her, swept across the group, settling intently on Twilight and sending a chill down her spine.

She didn’t say anything. She just focused on Twilight for several seconds, making the alicorn feel increasingly uneasy as if she were being judged. Then, Maud did something quite unexpected. She suddenly knelt down and… sniffed the ground?

Twilight’s mind blanked, her expression twisting with abject confusion.

“Hmm. Sedimentary.”

There was a beat before Rainbow spoke up. “Huh?”

Maud lifted the object of her interest: a single grey rock, and held it up for the others to see. “This is a sedimentary rock,” she elaborated, her voice devoid of emotion, tone, or anything truly noteworthy. Perhaps the most distinguishing part about it was the abject lack of anything distinguishing.

A familiar voice growled in the back of Twilight’s head. “Seriously? This is who Pinkie dragged us all this way to meet?!”

Twilight fought the urge to scowl. “Shut up. We just met her!”

“Yes, and this first impression is just beyond enticing! Truly, we have spent our time well coming out here when we could have been trying to find more of those stupid keys!”

Twilight briefly glanced off to one side, avoiding Maud’s gaze. “Look, can you just shut up and leave me alone for five minutes?! I’m busy!”

“You’re wasting your time,” Midnight snarled before Twilight felt her withdrawing. “But fine. Do whatever you wish. Just don’t come crying to me when you realize how much progress you could have been making right now.”

With that, Midnight fell silent, allowing Twilight to refocus on the discussion at hoof.

“Real pleased to meet ya, Maud,” Applejack greeted, tipping her hat, following up on something Rarity had said. “Ah’m Applejack. These here are Fluttershy, Rarity, Spike, and our resident lovebirds, Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash.”

Maud blinked slowly, her eyes focusing on Twilight. “I know.”

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat as Maud stared at her again. She swallowed heavily, taking a step back. “Eheh… you, uh, you do?” she asked, trying to keep an anxious tremor from creeping into her voice.

“Pinkie’s told me a lot about all of you in her letters,” Maud clarified, her tone still as bland as ever. “Of course, I didn’t need her letters to know about Rainbow Dash.”

“Lemme guess,” Rainbow chimed in with a flat look, idly toying with the end of her mane. “Cause I’m a princess?”

“Yes.”

Rainbow shrugged in defeat. “Geh. Yeah, go figure. Everypony knows about me for that,” she grumbled in mild dismay.

Rarity chose that moment to speak up, too. “Well, we’ve certainly all heard a great deal about you over these last two days, Miss Maud,” she said, giving her mane a stylish toss. “Pinkie Pie would not stop enthusing about you. It is quite clear that you mean a great deal to her, and that you possess a truly expansive skillset!”

Maud blinked. “I like to try new things,” she confirmed bluntly.

“Oh, that’s marvelous, dear,” Rarity continued, expertly hiding her brief hesitation from Maud’s lack of enthusiasm. “In particular, Pinkie told me that you share my love of fashion.”

“I’m really into expressing myself through my wardrobe,” Maud acknowledged, glancing down at her basic frock, the most movement Twilight had seen from her since she picked up the rock.

“And what is the delightful frock you’re wearing right now saying?” Rarity pressed a hopeful glint in her eyes.

Maud tilted her head, actually getting an expression on her face. Namely, mild bewilderment. “It doesn’t say anything. It’s a dress.”

If ever there was a look of true devastation, surely Rarity had it now. Twilight winced, her mind racing. This was not at all how she imagined Maud, from how Pinkie had described her. Of course, she figured, her first mistake was taking Pinkie’s word for, well, anything.

“Just now catching onto that one, are you?” Midnight snickered.

Twilight ignored her.

“O-oh, well, yes, of course,” Rarity mumbled, backing away and sputtering quietly to herself as she tried, and failed spectacularly, to find some way of reviving the discussion.

Thankfully, Winona, who had been keeping quiet by Applejack’s side, saw fit to interject at this time. The small canine hopped forward with a few happy barks, her tail wagging in excitement.

Applejack followed after, a little less smoothly than Rarity had. “So, this is Winona,” she said gesturing at her dog. She then turned and pointed to the few other animals assembled at the picnic. “And that there’s Opal, and that there’s Angel.”

Maud looked to each pet in turn, then glanced at Twilight and Rainbow. She raised an eyebrow.

Rainbow leaned back. “What? What’s with the look?”

“You don’t have pets?”

Twilight froze at that, her ears drooping. A few seconds passed before she shook her head. “No, not really. We never really had cause to get one,” she admitted.

“Closest we had was that owl that broke into our room one night,” Rainbow noted with a thoughtful frown. “But I chased it off.”

Twilight turned to Rainbow with a surprised look. “What? You did? When was this?”

“Sometime before Discord showed up,” Rainbow replied casually. “You’d exhausted yourself on some big research project or other. Something to do with space? I dunno. Point is, I spent, like, an hour trying to get you to go get some sleep. You needed rest, and I didn’t want some nocturnal bird waking you up in the middle of the night, so I shooed him off.”

“Huh. Missed opportunity, maybe?” Spike ventured.

“Yeah… maybe,” Twilight muttered, rubbing the back of her head. It was strange, but somehow, she suddenly felt like she was missing something.

“W-well, what Ah was gettin’ at,” Applejack gently retook the wheel, turning back to Maud and smiling. “Is that Pinkie told us y’all have a pet, too.”

“He’s in my pocket,” Maud replied, not at all distracted by Twilight’s sudden thoughtfulness.

Fluttershy, who had been hanging back up till now, suddenly came forward with a large smile at the prospect of meeting a new animal friend. “Oh my! You have a pocket pet? Like a tiny squirrel, or a fluffy mouse, or a baby bird?!”

“It’s a rock,” Maud said while reaching into a chest pocket and withdrawing a single stone, perhaps three inches from one side to the other, and depositing it on the ground at her hooves. “His name is Boulder.”

Fluttershy recoiled slightly.

Several seconds of silence fell over the assembled mares as everyone tried, and probably failed, to make sense of what it was they were seeing. Growing desperate, Twilight turned to Pinkie in the hopes that, somehow, the otherwise unfathomable mare would make sense of this situation.

She would be disappointed. Pinkie Pie simply threw a hoof into the air and squealed again. “This is gonna be the best, most awesome-fun week EVER! I can’t wait for us all to become bestest friends!”

Midnight’s voice snarled in Twilight’s mind. “Somehow, I doubt that.”

“The worst part?” Twilight thought, repressing the urge to sigh even as her friends gave off sheepish, awkward laughs and half-hearted agreements. “...I think I agree with you on that.”

Midnight hummed pleasantly at that but otherwise spoke no more.

The following interactions with Maud were not very different from the introduction. One of Twilight’s friends would step forward in an attempt to break the ice, bringing up what Pinkie had told them they had in common and then would be thoroughly disappointed when Maud put an incredibly boring or outlandish spin on it. Rainbow’s attempt had been particularly agitating, and Twilight’s confusion had soon given way to legitimate frustration.

She had poked Maud, citing that Pinkie said she enjoyed playing games. In response, Maud had explained in her bland way that she and Boulder sometimes played a game called ‘camouflage.’ She described it as being like hide and seek, but way more intense. Her eyes had even widened for a second as if she were making some half-hearted attempt at showing emotion.

Then Pinkie Pie doomed them all by insisting they play it as a group. In answer, Maud picked Boulder up and unceremoniously hurled him into the nearest collection of rocks she could find. From there, it was a simple matter of finding him and bringing him back to Maud. For the first ten minutes, it had actually been somewhat enjoyable for Twilight. Her admittedly limited knowledge of geology—and its aberrant big sister, rockology—had afforded her an academic angle in the game that she was only too happy to stretch out.

Then Rainbow had pointed out to her in a hushed tone that they were literally trying to find a rock in a pile of rocks, and any enjoyment faded away. She loved that mare to death, but sometimes Twilight wondered who the real killjoy between them was.

They had been going for a while now, and Twilight’s patience was beginning to run thin. She turned over yet another rock and peered underneath with a grimace. “Oh for the love of… Come on, Boulder, where are you? I wanna go home.”

There was nothing but dirt and a small centipede under the rock. Twilight set it back down and looked around, taking stock of the situation with the others. There was a general air of combined frustration or boredom amongst her friends, and she couldn’t say she blamed them. The only one who wasn’t in a sour mood by this point was none other than Pinkie Pie, who was, paradoxically, having the time of her life. She kept bringing rocks up to Maud to eagerly ask “is this him?!” before zipping off to find another one.

“Well, at least one of us is having fun,” Rainbow, who was next to Twilight, grumbled irritably under her breath. “I get the feeling Pinkie might be a little biased, here.”

“They’re sisters,” Twilight pointed out dryly. “Of course she’s biased. On the plus side, you know what that word means now.”

Rainbow paused, her muzzle scrunching up. “Wha… huh?”

Twilight giggled, stopping in place to lean into Rainbow’s side for a moment. She allowed the warmth of the pegasus to cool off her frayed temper before speaking. “It was back in the Empire, just after we got into the palace. You and I found that nice room and were getting ready for bed, and I remember us talking about how biased you were towards me, and how you didn’t know how science works.”

Rainbow’s eyes widened as the memory came back to her. “Holy… you remember that? That was years ago!”

“It was,” Twilight acknowledged, smiling gently at Rainbow. “But I also got all of my memories back a month ago. A lot of things you’ve totally forgotten are still really fresh to me. Plus...”

She gently took Rainbow’s hoof in hers, lifting it up. “That was the night after I finally admitted that I loved you… not just to you, but to myself. That night meant a lot to me…”

Rainbow’s lips curled up into a loving smile, and she squeezed Twilight’s hoof in turn. “Heh… fair enough. I kinda… I had other stuff on my mind that night, though…”

Twilight’s smile faltered. She remembered. She had been laying in a bed separate from Rainbow’s for a while until she had heard the barely-stifled whimpers. At the time, she had simply thought the stress of the situation and her fear for her family were the culprit, but in retrospect, she knew better. Rainbow had been carrying the weight of her contract with Sombra on her shoulders, a weight that had only made her already-guilty conscience so much worse.

On instinct, Twilight quickly leaned in to steal a quick kiss, making Rainbow stiffen up in surprise. When Twilight pulled back, she gave Rainbow a reassuring smile.

Before the two could say or do anything else, Maud’s voice rang through the area, raised only slightly. “I found him.”

Just like that, Twilight’s good mood evaporated. She turned back to Maud, one of her eyes twitching as Maud lifted what might as well have been just any old rock from the pile.

“Does that mean we’re done?” Applejack asked hopefully.

“Mhmm,” Maud acknowledged as she put her “pet” away.

“Unbelievable,” Midnight sneered. “Do I need to keep telling you how much of a waste of time this was?”

Twilight closed her eyes. “Don’t you have some way of entertaining yourself?”

“Well, I suppose it has been somewhat enjoyable watching you all dig your hooves through the dirt.”

“Forget I asked,” Twilight dismissed with a slow shake of her head before focusing back on Rainbow. The pegasus looked just as unamused as everypony else.

“Eee! Nice job, Maud! That was super fun,!” Pinkie declared, bouncing in place with her typical energy. “We should play again!”

Before Twilight could stop herself, the word came tearing past her lips. “NO!” She shouted, her voice carrying a lot more volume and intensity then she had meant.

Twilight’s ears folded back in shame as everypony turned to her with shocked eyes, all of them taken off guard by her sudden outburst. Spike, in particular, appeared anxious, his claws already lifting to hover over his chest. “Twi…?”

She blinked at him, her heart twisting in her chest. Quickly, she shook her head and put on an apologetic smile. “Sorry, sorry. I didn’t mean to shout… Uh, I just, uh… I think it might be better if Rainbow and I took Spike back home,” she tried, though she knew her excuse sounded even weaker to her friends than it did to her. “We’ve been out here for a while, digging through the dirt and rocks. He could use a bath. We all could.”

Rainbow frowned. “Huh? Me too?”

Twilight lightly kicked her with a hind leg. “Yes Rainbow, you too.”

Rainbow leaned down and lifted a wing, taking a few experimental whiffs. Her eyes bulged in their sockets, and she visibly recoiled. “Ugh! Okay, yep, bath, gotcha,” she relented, quickly folding her wing tightly against her barrel to trap the offending odor.

“Aw, that’s okay,” Pinkie said with a wave. “You all go and get cleaned up! Maud and I will probably swing by some other time to hang out some more! You still have to hear her poems!”

“Eheh, yeah, that sounds… great,” Twilight said weakly, even as she was starting to take her leave. Rainbow was following close behind, though it was clear from her facial expression that she was tagging along out of concern for Twilight than out of any desire to leave her other friends. Spike came over as well, looking much the same.

“Have fun, girls!” Twilight called over to the rest of them before smiling at Maud. “And you, too, Maud.”

Maud didn’t answer. She just stared back at Twilight. Her gaze, despite carrying no discernible emotion, was yet again enough to make Twilight flinch back. It was all in the eyes… And whatever it was, it surely did not care for her.

Maud’s gaze remained locked on to Twilight, boring into her very soul, until the hills finally severed their line of sight and Twilight was alone with Rainbow and Spike.

The moment they were out of sight, Rainbow trotted ahead of Twilight and spun to face her, a disapproving look on her face. “Okay, Twi, what the heck was that?” she asked slowly.

“Anger issues again?” Spike ventured gingerly, placing a claw on Twilight’s shoulder for support.

Spotting her out, Twilight sighed and nodded down at him. “Y-yeah…” she said quietly.

Spike sighed, wrapping his claw around her leg in a side hug. Rainbow’s expression softened with concern. She took a step forward and placed a hoof on Twilight’s chest, staring into her eyes. “When’s the last time Luna talked to you?” she asked softly.

Twilight blinked, taken off guard. She had forgotten that Luna was supposed to be keeping in touch with her, and even more so that Rainbow was in on it. She took a second to rally her thoughts before she spoke up. “Um… not since the first time I brought it up.”

Rainbow nodded and withdrew her hoof. “Alright… do you want me to get her attention next time she pops into my head? Ya know, so she can help you out?”

For a fraction of a second, Twilight wanted to refuse. She was quick to shoot down that notion, reminding herself that Luna was genuinely trying to make amends for her past misconduct. She nodded. “Sure, if it’s not too much trouble.”

“For your sake?” Rainbow asked, taking a position by Twilight’s side and draping a wing over her withers. She gave Twilight a big smile. “Nothing’s too much trouble.”

Twilight relaxed, leaning into Rainbow’s side and basking in their shared body heat. She took a few quiet deep breaths, savoring the contact, before pulling back and nodding. “Thank you… Now, how about those baths?”

Rainbow blinked. “Wait, you were serious?”

Twilight giggled and lightly bumped her hip against Rainbow’s before walking forward again. “I just got a faceful of you and your aroma. And you got a good sniff earlier, remember?”

Rainbow sputtered incoherently for a moment before sighing and taking off after her, Spike close in tow. “Yeah, yeah, good point.”

The trio shared a small chuckle at that. Twilight was grateful for the moment of levity, eager to chase away her recent misstep, and that silent, unreadable stare from Maud.

Maud's Trust

The Golden Oak Library was, more often than not, a peaceful and quiet place. On most mornings, even the resident loudmouth pegasus was content to keep her voice down after she and Twilight got back from their routine runs. Combining that silence with the ever-present fresh, earthy smell that permeated the interior—not to mention the taste of Spike’s always fantastic cooking—and one would have a recipe for a very nice morning.

Twilight Sparkle was enjoying the quiet just then, her eyes glued to an old Daring Do book that floated in the air in front of her, courtesy of her magic. A plate of breakfast sat on the table in front of her, largely consisting of leftovers from the previous night. Spike had wandered out a short while ago to read his comics in the other room, leaving Twilight all on her own.

On most other occasions, Rainbow would already be up so that she and Twilight could go on their run. However, her work with the weather team the previous afternoon had, apparently, left her far more worn-out than usual. When Twilight had woken up, Rainbow was still sound asleep. The sight had been too adorable for Twilight to even think of disturbing it, and so, at the cost of missing a little exercise, she decided to let Rainbow sleep in today.

Thankfully, it was Rainbow’s day off.

“Woah no!”

Suddenly, the peaceful silence that Twilight had been enjoying was dashed against the stones when a loud crashing sound emanated from the living room alongside a loud, indignant squawk from a certain pegasus princess. Twilight paused with her fork halfway to her mouth and lifted her book to see what all the commotion was about.

Rainbow Dash had just crashed down the stairs, coming to a sprawled-out stop at their base. A lampshade had made its home on her head, somehow, and Twilight could just imagine a bunch of baby birds flying in circles around it.

“You okay there, Rainbow?” she called out, her voice a mix of concern and amusement.

“Yeah yeah, I’m fine, just… slipped,” Rainbow grumbled as she forced herself back to her hooves. She pried the lampshade off her head to reveal that her mane was still a mess from all of her tossing and turning, and dark bags were still situated under her eyes. “Guh…”

Twilight chuckled at that, setting her book off to one side. “You need to pay better attention in the mornings.”

Rainbow gave off some unintelligible grumbles as she stumbled into the dining room. Her eyes soon found the plate that had been set aside for her, and her stomach gave off a very loud, audible grumble. “Yeah, whatever. I hate mornings…”

Twilight laughed into her hoof as Rainbow staggered past. “Oh, trust me, I know. I remember how often I had to forcefully roll you out of bed in the first year we lived here,” she said, recalling several such instances, including the morning before Discord began his rampage.

“Ugh, don’t remind me,” Rainbow growled as she took her plate. “Ugh… so, what’s the plan?”

Twilight blinked. She quickly took a bite out of her breakfast as Rainbow sat down before speaking up. “Uh, what do you mean?”

Rainbow gestured vaguely. “Ya know. Today. What are we doing? Is it just a lazy day, do we wanna go on a date, are we gonna go see Pinkie and Maud? What?”

“Go see Maud?” Midnight snarked. “Ah, yes, the biggest waste of time in this entire village.”

“If you could not talk,” Twilight snapped right back. “Ever.”

“I’m sure you’d love that, wouldn’t you?” Midnight asked with an audible sneer.

“It would be better than having to listen to you throwing your bile around every time something unpleasant comes up!”

“Well, then, with that compelling argument, I guess I will just have to say… no.”

Twilight resisted the urge to groan in frustration. She shook her head and focused on Rainbow, who was looking back at her in confusion. “I don’t know. Probably just take it easy. You worked yourself pretty hard yesterday, so it might be better for both of us if we stayed away from anything draining.”

“...Like Pinkie?”

“Like Pinkie.”

Rainbow hummed at that. “Meh. Can’t say I can argue with that,” she said before digging into her breakfast.

Twilight spent the next few hours relaxing. As soon as breakfast was done, she migrated out to the central room to read on the couch. To her surprise, but not to her displeasure, Rainbow Dash joined her to read over her shoulder after she got out of the shower. Every so often, one of them would talk about what was happening in the pages, reminiscing about some part or other of the older books. Spike kept to himself, for the most part, only occasionally making some cheeky remark about how he lived with a couple of nerds.

Alas, their quiet reading time eventually came to a sudden and unwelcome end when a series of sharp knocks was heard at their door. Twilight winced and glanced up at the source of the sudden sound, an irritated frown on her muzzle. “Ugh… who is that?” she asked, not hiding her annoyance at being interrupted.

Rainbow shrugged, hopping down from the couch. “I’ll get it.”

When Rainbow opened the door, Twilight blinked in surprise at the sight of none other than Pinkie Pie standing on the other side with an enormous grin on her face. Maud Pie stood behind her, staring up at the branches overhead with expressionless eyes. Twilight was sure there was an emotion in there somewhere, but she just couldn’t see it.

“Hi, Dashie!” Pinkie chirped enthusiastically, bouncing once in place for emphasis.

Rainbow leaned back, surprised. “Oh! Uh, hey, Pinkie… We weren’t expecting you,” she said awkwardly, her eyes darting over to Maud. “And you brought your sister, too.”

“Of course she did,” Midnight snarled. “She couldn’t just take the hint and leave us be, could she? The oblivious idiot.”

Twilight was unable to keep her coat from bristling at that remark. Barely biting back a snarl, she shoved a bookmark into the novel and set it aside. She looked down to hide her face from the others so she could scowl without incident. “Don’t talk about my friends like that!”

“What are you going to do about it?” Midnight asked with an infuriatingly audible smug smirk. “Yell at me? Cause a scene? Throw some more denials onto that impressive pile you’ve been hoarding?”

“Shut UP!”

Midnight cackled between Twilight’s ears, a sinister sound of sadistic enjoyment. She did not, however, speak up again, allowing that harrowing sound to roll up and down Twilight’s spine like an army of ants.

She took a few deep breaths and looked up, focusing on the new arrivals. Rainbow had just stepped aside, allowing Pinkie and Maud to step inside unobstructed. Pinkie was in the middle of speaking to Rainbow in a long, excited spiel.

“So then I thought—gasp!—it would be really good to have Maud see all of Twilight’s books and stuff! She’s super into poetry and literature and stuff, and so is Twilight, and so I thought that, in the right environment, the two could totally hit it off! And what better place than the place where you keep all of the books?!”

“I mean… I guess?” Rainbow answered, glancing over at Twilight with a hopeless look. “You, uh, ya gonna help me out here?”

Twilight nodded and stood up. “Sure. Good to see you Pinkie, Maud.”

“Hey, Twi!” Pinkie chirped, waving enthusiastically.

“Hello.” Maud deadpanned.

Twilight’s eye twitched once. She cleared her throat and put on a small smile. “Well, Pinkie went through all this effort… might as well humor her. Besides, I didn’t exactly get a good chance to talk to Maud about the things I like last time we met… Maybe she’ll surprise me?”

“Or you’ll just be let down again,” Midnight quipped. “Which seems far more likely to me.”

“Well, that’s my call to make,” Twilight shot back, resisting the urge to snort. “So just shut up and let me do my thing.”

“Tch. Fine.”

With that disgruntled resignation, Midnight withdrew again, allowing Twilight to focus entirely on Maud and Pinkie. “So, Maud… Pinkie Pie keeps saying you’re into poetry and literature? Have you ever read anything by Quill and Ink? Or Flourish Prose?” she asked, trying to keep her hopes tempered.

Maud glanced over at a nearby shelf. “I prefer to read my own poetry,” she said bluntly.

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “You write poetry?”

“She sure does!” Pinkie declared, bouncing over to where Spike was still sitting. He had lowered his comic and was simply watching the scene unfold. Pinkie leaned down and whispered to him loud enough for the whole room to hear. “You should totally pay attention, Spike! Maud’s poetry is the best!”

Twilight gave Spike a pitying smile before focusing on Maud. It was poetry. How bad could it be? “Well, I’d love to hear some.”

Rainbow looked to Twilight with an uncertain look. “Uh, you sure that’s-”

Too late. Maud had begun.

“Ahem.

Rock. You are a rock.

Grey. You are grey.

Like a rock.

Which you are.

Rock.”

A heavy silence fell over the room, punctuated only by Pinkie’s enthusiastic, if quiet, clapping.

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “...What was that?” she asked skeptically.

“A poem,” Maud answered.

“You sure?” Spike questioned, scratching the side of his head. “I mean, I’m not an expert or anything, but it just kinda sounded more like a string of factual statements than a poem… does that count?”

“It totally does!” Pinkie answered for Maud.

Maud nodded. “I’ve written thousands.”

Twilight felt her heart skip a beat at that word. Thousands. As in plural. More than a single thousand. More than ten sets of one hundred.

“This next one is about rocks,” Maud said. “They’re all about rocks.”

“Okay, I take it back,” Midnight suddenly piped up. “Watching this train wreck is amazing.”

What felt like an entire geological shift later, Twilight thumped down tiredly at the dining room table, a distant, hollow look on her face. She and Rainbow had both excused themselves from the living room after Maud’s seventh poem recital, much to Midnight’s protests. Somehow, the little inner voice had taken a perverse amount of pleasure in the spectacle.

It was probably because it made Twilight uncomfortable, and that was practically food for Midnight’s soul.

Putting thoughts of her inner demon aside, Twilight quickly downed a glass of water in an effort to refresh her senses. “My brain feels like gravel,” she mumbled when she was done, setting the glass down to one side.

“That’s a type of rock,” Rainbow murmured to her left before downing some of her own.

“It’s a lot of small rocks added together,” Twilight corrected with a snort.

“Oh, good, even better,” Rainbow drawled, thumping her face down onto the kitchen counter. Her next words came through muffled. “Because the last thing we need is more rocks.”

“Rocks, rocks, rocks,” Twilight agreed, laying her head down on its side to stare at the wall. “So many rocks…”

“I dunno, you guys, it—heh—it didn’t seem that bad to me,” Spike commented from the entrance, trying and failing to stifle a series of amused snickers.

Twilight turned her attention to Spike, pouting at him. “Yes, because you were watching our brains melt, not listening to Maud’s poetry recital.”

Spike shrugged his shoulders.

“And for once, the little brat and I are in agreement on something,” Midnight chuckled in a surprisingly light tone.

“Shut up,” came Twilight’s immediate rebuke.

The trio spent a short time in silence after that. Spike came forward and took a seat off to Twilight’s right, his smile fading away in favor of a neutral look. He briefly eyed Twilight, and for a moment, she was worried she had let some of her irritation from Midnight slip through. Luckily, he did not press the matter for now.

Rainbow sighed and sat upright, a bewildered frown on her face. “Honestly, I’m having a hard time believing that those two are related,” she said, gesturing vaguely at the door. “I mean, Pinkie Pie is the most hyper thing I have ever met, but Maud’s, like, the total opposite of that.”

“I see what you’re getting at,” Twilight agreed with a grimace. The sheer gap between Pinkie Pie’s behavior and Maud’s was staggering, to put it mildly. Where one would go springing around the room and squealing her fuzzy pink head off, the other would just… stand there. Maybe she’d even blink, if fate was feeling generous. Perhaps offer a one or two word acknowledgement that, yes, there was in fact something happening, and then go on to either admire the local geology or recite poetry about it. Probably.

To be fair, Twilight reminded herself, they were essentially grasping at straws here. They had known Maud for all of two days, and only spent a collective couple of hours with her. There was a pretty good chance that Maud had a lot more to her, and that Twilight simply hadn’t seen it yet. Pinkie certainly seemed to think that Maud was wonderful in almost every sense…

But at the same time, Pinkie had a penchant for exaggeration…

“Meh,” Rainbow grumbled after a moment, resting her chin in her hoof. “That mare is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an igneous.”

“Enigma,” Twilight corrected automatically.

“No. I mean igneous. It’s a type of rock.”

“Ah, there it is,” Twilight thought with a groan, placing a hoof on her head in a futile bid to quell her rising headache. “Oh, please, no, not more rocks…” she complained.

In response to her complaint, somepony cleared their throat from the doorway.

Startled, Twilight sat bolt upright to find Maud Pie standing in the doorway, staring at them with that ever unreadable expression on her face.

“Holy cow, that mare’s quiet!” Twilight exclaimed internally. How had Maud managed to sneak up on them so quietly?!

Rainbow was similarly startled. She spun in her seat to look at Maud with wide eyes. Her face quickly contorted into a crooked smile when she saw who it was. “Oh, hey, Maud. How, uh… how did you sneak up on us?”

“Please,” Maud dismissed bluntly. Twilight blinked. Did she just...

Before Twilight had a chance to ponder the word choice, Maud stepped up to the chair directly across from her. She glanced down and gestured at it. “May I?”

Twilight blinked a few times, her mind taking a second to catch up. She nodded. “Oh, uh, sure, yeah, make yourself comfortable.”

Maud sat down, her eyes fixing themselves to Twilight. “I was hoping to talk to you. Without Pinkie listening in.”

“Huh?” Spike asked, mirroring Twilight’s thoughts. “Why not? And where is she, anyway? That pony’s practically been glued to your side since you showed up.”

“Because she won’t like what I need to say,” Maud replied, never taking her eyes off of Twilight. “And I asked her to go talk to the rest of your friends. She wants us to all spend some ‘one-on-one’ time together. To help us click.”

“Huh. And you just abused that plan to be alone with us?” Rainbow asked, leaning back in her seat.

“Yes,” Maud answered bluntly.

Twilight swallowed heavily. What could Maud possibly have to talk about with her that Pinkie Pie wouldn’t like? Well, a lot of things, probably. But for her to dislike it enough that her own big sister felt the need to send her away first? Red flags began to go up in her head, and she had a hard time keeping her sudden feeling of unease from showing on her face.

“So, uh… w-what do you want to talk about, then?”

Maud stared at Twilight for several long seconds, her eyes narrowing with a visual emotion. Suspicion.

“I know about what happened in Canterlot.”

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat, a horrible feeling of coldness swelling outward from her core. She swallowed again, her ears lowering. Of course Maud had heard. Hay, Twilight wouldn’t be surprised if all of Equestria knew about her Fall and the disaster that followed in her wake. It hadn’t exactly been a secret event, and all of the memories she had stolen of her abhorrent actions had been returned to their rightful owners… not to mention her victims had numbered in the dozens.

It had been a hair’s breadth away from being so much worse...

Even if word of the event hadn’t spread to every corner of Equestria by now, this was Pinkie Pie’s sister. And unless the secret was a surprise party, there was not a chance in Tartarus that Pinkie could keep anything secret from those she cared about for long. She just didn’t have the fortitude or patience to do it.

Twilight coughed weakly into her hoof, looking away from Maud in shame. “I… r-right, of course you do… W-what did you hear?” she asked, hoping against hope that maybe Maud’s knowledge of the disaster was blown out of proportion.

“What does ‘blown out of proportion’ even mean in this context?” Midnight asked with a surprisingly calm tone. “You stole the memories from dozens of ponies, causing immense psychological pain to all of them in the process, including a princess of Equestria. And, if Luna’s recounting of the aftermath is anything to go by, many of those ponies have been having nightmares about it. I don’t know what proportions that could reasonably be blown up to without entering the realms of unbelievable absurdity.”

“I heard from Pinkie Pie that you turned evil,” Maud explained bluntly. “That you turned into somepony called ‘Midnight Sparkle,’ and went on a rampage through Canterlot, stealing memories from innocent ponies.”

Twilight looked down, the chill in her veins growing worse. “I… y-yeah, that’s about right,” she confessed with a sigh.

“Is this why you’ve been so worried about Pinkie?” Rainbow asked gently, leaning forward slightly. “I mean, I can’t say I’d blame you, if so. It… it wasn’t exactly pretty.”

“That, and more,” Maud confirmed. “I’ve actually been worried about her off and on since she moved to Ponyville. But this was the last straw. I had to come make sure she was really going to be okay around you.”

“You don’t exactly seem worried,” Spike noted. “I mean, you’re always kinda… blunt? Dull? Boring?”

“Spike!” Twilight chastised lightly, though there wasn’t very much energy in her voice.

Maud shook her head. “No. He’s right. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I don’t exactly express my enthusiasm in the same way as my sister. That doesn’t mean that I don’t care, though,” she said before catching Twilight’s gaze again. “And I’m really worried about her being around you. She kept telling me in her letters that you were fine now, and that everything was going back to normal. But that’s not true, is it?”

Twilight opened her mouth to try and assure Maud that yes, everything was in fact fine. However, the words would not come. How could she say them when they would be little more than lies? She licked her lips and looked down, her shame building. “...No, not entirely,” she eventually confessed, bringing a hoof up to rub at her shoulder.

Maud’s gaze intensified considerably.

Before Twilight could speak up about it, though, Rainbow suddenly spoke up, leaning forward. “W-well, she’s been having some anger issues lately. It’s a side effect from what happened. But we’re helping her work through it, bit by bit!”

“Yeah,” Spike added, pumping a fist in the air. “She’s kinda grouchy, but we’re here to keep her calm and down to earth.”

Twilight looked back and forth between the two of them, taken aback by the sudden outbursts of support. A few seconds passed before a tender smile graced her lips. Of course they were standing up for her… why wouldn’t they?

“I noticed the anger issues,” Maud said, nodding at Rainbow. “Back when we were playing camouflage. Pinkie was worried about you after you all left, you know. They all were.”

“Of course she was,” Twilight lamented, a sickening feeling building up in her gut.

“It’s a mess,” Rainbow conceded after a moment, her earlier bravado simmering down to something more somber. “I’m not gonna lie to you, Maud, it’s all kinds of messed up. But I wasn’t kidding when I said we’re doing our best to help her out.”

“And besides, Midnight’s gone now,” Spike pointed out. “So, little outbursts of frustration aside, she’s basically back to her old self! Everything is going to be fine, you’ll see!”

Maud looked between them all for several seconds, her expression softening somewhat. A few seconds later, she focused on Twilight again. “...Is there anything else?” she asked slowly. “Anything else that I should know about?”

Twilight swallowed heavily. A few seconds later, she opened her mouth and spoke. “No. Nothing important, at least.”

Maud studied her for what felt like an eternity. Eventually, she nodded and slowly stood back up. “Okay.”

Rainbow blinked. “Huh? What, is that it?”

“Yes.”

Twilight watched maud rise in abject confusion. She had been expecting some long-winded speech about how Pinkie meant the world to her, and how if Twilight ever hurt her, there would be a reckoning or something; overprotective big sister stuff, but no. Maud was just getting up and walking away.

“Why?” She asked before she had a chance to think better of it.

Maud paused in the doorway. “Because Pinkie Pie trusts her friends,” she said a moment later. She glanced back over her shoulder. “And I trust her.”

She didn’t wait for anypony to reply. Without another word, Maud stepped out of the dining room, vanishing from sight. A few seconds later, the sound of a door opening and closing rang through the library, plunging everything into a heavy silence.

Author's Note

Fun fact: I totally got the idea for Maud to be suspicious of Twilight from the following comment.

It was a good idea and I decided to run with it as a sort of sub-plot for this part of the story. :)

Rock Wall

For the remainder of the day, Twilight found herself struggling to focus. Her confrontation with Maud—and all of Midnight’s subsequent comments about her past actions in Canterlot—left her distraught and distracted. Rainbow and Spike had caught on pretty quickly and were always moving to either cheer her up or, at the very least, make sure she didn’t forget that she wasn’t alone.

Their efforts were successful, by and large. Though they were unable to undo her fears and anxieties, they were, at least, able to make her feel not so overwhelmed by them. Their presence and affections grounded her in reason, allowing her to tackle her anxieties one at a time and with a clear head.

The night eventually came, and Twilight was thankful for a dreamless slumber. No nightmares haunted her, and when she woke up, though it was far from the most restful sleep she had ever had, she nevertheless felt ready to move on and take on whatever the new day brought to the table.

She opened her eyes when, at last, she felt the warmth of the sun washing over her face. The light of morning streamed in from between the blinds, casting the silent room into shades of orange and yellow. Twilight gave off a quiet yawn before nuzzling into the back of Rainbow’s head, the pegasus held to her chest in Twilight’s hooves.

“Mmph. Is it morning already?” Rainbow mumbled, stirred awake by Twilight’s ministrations.

“Looks that way,” Twilight replied, lifting her head from Rainbow’s mane to look at the window again.

“Guh. I don’t want it,” Rainbow lamented. She rolled over and buried her face into the pillow with an indignant huff. “Go tell mom to put it away.”

“But she’s your mom,” Twilight pointed out with a roll of her eyes. “Not mine. You tell her.”

“But then I’d have to fly and stuff. I don’t wanna move.”

“Well, you can take one of three options here,” Twilight reasoned with a playful giggle. “You can either A, Fly up to Canterlot to request that Celestia put the sun down for another few minutes, all of which you would then use up on the flight back, B, lay here and ignore the day, or C, get up on time.”

“Twilight?” Rainbow said, turning her head just enough to glare at the alicorn from the pillow.

“Yes?”

“You suck.”

Twilight giggled again. She gave Rainbow another affectionate nuzzle. “And yet you’re dating me,” she said in a teasing voice. “Who sucks more? The sucker, or the sucker who dates her?”

“The purple egghead who’s teasing me.”

“And that is a fair point,” Twilight conceded.

The two fell into blissful silence after that, simply enjoying the warmth of the other while along with the slowly growing heat of day. Every so often, they drifted into idle chatter, being sure to keep their voices down to not disturb Spike. Eventually, though, they had to get up. The day wasn’t going to wait for them, no matter how much they may have wanted it to.

Twilight was up first, as Rainbow insisted on another ‘five minutes,’ or, as Twilight had long ago translated into ponish, ‘until Twilight makes me get up.’ Not that she minded. She took the chance to hop into the shower and be alone with her thoughts for a little while. Her mind inevitably wandered back to Maud and Pinkie, and what the excitable one of the two was bound to try and make them do to bond with Maud.

Of course, she knew that Pinkie had gone off yesterday to meet with each of their friends one by one, hoping to make them bond with Maud via one-on-one time. In fact, unless Twilight was mistaken, that had been the whole point of bringing Maud to the library and having her recite rock poems for a while.

“Such a shame it didn’t work out,” Midnight sneered from the depths of Twilight’s thoughts.

She scowled and closed her eyes, trying to drown out the voice in her head with the white noise of the shower.

“Why are you ignoring me?” Midnight asked ‘innocently.’ “You know I’m right. She wasn’t even here to be friendly with you, but to interrogate you!”

“She’s just worried about her sister!” Twilight bit back, her teeth grinding together behind her lips. “And with you still hanging around, she has every right to be!”

“She doesn’t even know about me!” Midnight countered with an audible roll of her eyes. “But I suppose that makes sense. She’s worried for her poor, sweet, delusional, and willfully-ignorant sister. The one who can’t see the monster her friend turned into.”

“The only monster here is YOU!”

Twilight shuddered as an unnatural chill crawled down her spine from the base of her neck. It was horrible, like a malevolent grasper was reaching for the base of her tail and making sure to slither all along her body on the way for the sole intention of making her uncomfortable in her skin.

Then, for just an instant, a pair of ghostly eyes flashed at her through the darkness of her eyelids. “What’s the difference?”

A series of deafening booms filled Twilight’s ears, making her heart skip a beat and land in her throat. Her eyes snapped wide open, the unnatural chill in her body growing infinitely worse. She took a series of deep breaths, trying to calm herself down from the sudden onset of anxiety she had just undergone.

The booms came again, now recognizable as a series of knocks on the door. A moment later, she heard it open just a crack before Spike’s voice came through. “Uh, Twilight? You gonna come out of there anytime soon? You’re gonna use up all the hot water.”

Twilight blinked. Use up all the hot water? She hadn’t been in the shower for all that long, had she? She poked her head out from the curtains to look at the baby dragon. “What are you talking about? I’ve only been in here for a few minutes.”

Spike raised an eyebrow. “Um, no? Twi, you’ve been in there for over half an hour. Rainbow’s already up and waiting for her turn.”

Twilight blinked again, her mind taking a second to register that fact. Glancing behind the dragon, she could just make out the brighter glow of light from the bedroom beyond. There was no denying it. Somehow she had quite literally lost track of time.

“But how? It hasn’t felt like that long! A few minutes at most!”

She nodded her head a moment later, a lump forming in her throat. Now that she thought about it, this wasn’t the first time she had experienced a moment like this. She recalled a moment mere days after she had gotten her memories back when Spike had gone for groceries, and before she had even noticed, he had been back for a while.

“Is this a side effect of Midnight?” she wondered to herself, a pit of dread forming in her gut. “To make me lose time? To lose myself in my head?”

A few seconds passed before Twilight shook her head and shut off the flow of water. It didn’t matter. Not now, at least. “Sorry, Spike,” she called as she stepped out, reaching for a towel with her magic. “I guess I got lost in my head.”

A bit of an understatement, but not a lie in the slightest.

Spike raised an eyebrow. “Again? You okay?”

“I’ll be okay,” Twilight assured him with a small smile. “Go let Rainbow know I’ll be out in a bit, okay?”

Spike eyed her for a moment longer before slipping out, closing the door behind him. Once she was alone again, Twilight released a heavy sigh, lifting a hoof to rub at the bridge of her nose. What other nasty tricks was Midnight going to pull on her? It was worrying to ponder. Especially if Twilight wasn’t able to quell her little inner demon. If Midnight managed to egg her on enough, spur her to enough rage and anger...

She quickly shook her head, dispelling the notion. It would do her no good to dwell on such a hypothetical scenario. Midnight’s influence, while agitating, was mercifully limited. Twilight just had to focus on ignoring her and finding her peace, as Luna said, and soon enough, these little bouts of personal insanity would end. Midnight would not get any new powers to lord over her or dictate her actions. She wouldn’t.

“But what if…”

Twilight again shook the thought away. Once she was dry, she slipped from the bathroom to the sight of Rainbow waiting impatiently on the bed, looking about as tousled and unkempt as she usually did when she first woke up. The pegasus smiled on seeing Twilight emerge. “Finally! Did ya save any hot water for me?” she asked as she leaped from the bed.

Twilight nodded, hiding her worries behind a smile of her own. “There should be some left for you, sleeping beauty.”

“Hardy har,” Rainbow mock-laughed back as she passed, lightly thwacking Twilight upside the head with the back of her wing. “Spike’s making breakfast downstairs. Go eat something.”

“Right, I will!” Twilight replied just as Rainbow vanished into the bathroom.

She made her way downstairs, and her nostrils were met with the ever-stimulating scent of Spike’s cooking. She followed the smell like a bloodhound and soon found the drake working away in the kitchen.

He glanced over at her. “Well well, look who finally came back from the realm of eternal rain!” he chirped in greeting.

“I get it, I lost track of time!” Twilight shot back with a roll of her eyes. “Ya don’t need to rub it in.”

“Actually, I kinda do,” Spike countered without missing a beat. “I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t, and it’s all part of that sprainbow therapy!”

Twilight’s expression flattened into a deadpan. “This again? What even is sprainbow therapy? I mean, I know it’s supposed to be therapy for me from you and Dashie, but what’s the format? What are the principles? What are the moral and ethical guidelines? Did either of you take the time to figure all of that out?”

Spike’s lips curled up into perhaps the cheekiest grin she had seen on his face yet. And it scared her.

“Why, I am so glad you asked! Because yes, as a matter of fact, we did!”

Twilight’s jaw dropped. “What? How?! WHEN?!”

“To answer your questions in order, with a lot of patience from me and grumbling from Dash, and when you weren’t looking,” Spike replied before holding his head up with pride. “And I think I like the end result.”

Twilight’s eye twitched. “Oh yeah? Well, go on then,” she said, stalking over to the dining room table and taking a seat. “Tell me about it.”

Spike turned to Twilight and lifted a claw. “The practice of sprainbow therapy is founded on three core principles. Principle one, you need Spike the dragon, Twilight Sparkle, and Princess Rainbow Dash. Principle two, Spike and Rainbow Dash then tease and harass Twilight wherever they get the chance.”

Twilight’s expression flattened. “Gee, that sounds so therapeutic.”

Spike lifted the third claw. “And third, we don’t let her forget that she isn’t alone. We let her know she can always count on us to listen to her and lift her spirits however we can, whenever we can.”

Twilight snorted. That was about as cheesy as could be expected. Nevertheless, she smiled at him. “Well, while your methods are a bit… questionable,” she said slowly, leaning back and holding her head up as if she were a professor at an upper-class university. “I cannot say I can totally argue with your results.”

“And that,” Spike declared before turning back to his cooking. “Is the whole point.”

Rainbow came down to join the duo soon enough, and Twilight took some time to grill both of them on the finer points of this ‘sprainbow therapy’ practice that Spike had actually taken the time to organize and define. Spike was happy to go into detail, but there was no end of mildly-disgruntled grumbling from Rainbow.

Though she loved to tease Twilight to no end, she didn’t like trying to codify it like this. Too ‘eggheady,’ as she had eloquently put it. Spike, on the other hoof, had decided to sit down with Dash and get it all sorted purely so that they could have it on hoof to show Twilight that their affectionate teasing and whatnot came with due diligence and proper procedure. While it was invariably a joke as a result, Twilight could still appreciate the effort, at least.

Though that did nothing to make the constant jokes about her lack of cooking skills any less annoying. She could learn how to cook whenever she wanted! Seriously!

Eventually, their discussion wound down, and the trio was content to enjoy their breakfast in peace. When it was all gone, they remained at the table, happily chatting away the morning, enjoying some time to themselves. That was until a knocking came to the door. Twilight looked up from a book she had pried from the shelves and turned toward the sound. “Huh?”

“I got it,” Spike said, hopping down and making his way out of the room. Twilight watched him go before turning back to Rainbow.

“Who do you think it is?” Twilight asked curiously.

The pegasus shrugged her shoulders. “Meh. Dunno. Probably Pinkie, though, if I had to guess. She’s been kinda off-the-wall active lately.”

Twilight frowned, turning her attention back to the living room. “Yeah… she has,” she said, her tone dropping somewhat. Her thoughts began to wander to her conversation with Maud again.

Rainbow’s expression soured. “Twi?”

Twilight was quick to cast aside the thought. She shook her head and smiled at Rainbow.

Before either of them could speak any further, an unexpected sight made itself known in the form of Spike returning to the room with a trio of mares following close behind him. Twilight leaned back in surprise at the sight of Fluttershy, Rarity, and Applejack stepping forward.

“Girls,” Twilight greeted, genuinely stunned by the sudden arrival. And so early in the day, too. “What are you all doing here?”

Applejack frowned, taking the lead of the pack. “Howdy, Twi, RD. Er… We all know it’s kinda early and all, but we were wonderin’ if y’all had a little bit of time to talk about somethin’.”

Rainbow craned her head back to look at the others with a knowing frown. “Lemme guess. Maud?”

Rarity blinked. “How did you- Oh, hum. I suppose it’s not exactly hard to deduce, is it?” she asked, her snout wrinkling.

“Should we really be talking about this when Pinkie isn’t here?” Fluttershy asked meekly, her ears drooping. “I mean… it’s her sister.”

Applejack sighed, turning to her. “Ah know it ain’t exactly upfront of us, but y’all and Ah both know that if Pinkie were here, she’d never let us really get goin’...”

Twilight raised a hoof like a foal in school, for she had a question. “Uh, excuse me. What are we talking about?” she asked.

Applejack turned back to her, her brow furrowing. “Well… Pinkie and Maud went round Ponyville all of yesterday. Did ya know that?”

“I recall Maud mentioning that she sent Pinkie to talk to all of you about ‘one on one time’,” Twilight said slowly. “But I didn’t know if they actually committed to it.”

“Oh, they did,” Rarity said, stepping toward the table. “Would you all mind if I sat down?”

“Oh, not at all,” Twilight said, gesturing to the empty chair.

Rarity took the seat with a relieved sigh. “Whew. Thank you, dear.”

“So, Pinks and Maud went to see you all yesterday,” Rainbow recounted, leaning back casually in her chair. “And how did that go?”

Several seconds passed in a tense, awkward silence. Twilight’s eyes flitted from one face to another, and she saw some variation of the same thing on all of them. Not one of these mares had established a meaningful connection with Maud, did they?

“Bad, got it,” Spike said what everypony was thinking with his customary bluntness.

Fluttershy shied back. “Well, bad might be a bit extreme… Maybe, a teensy bit underwhelming?”

“That’s a word to use,” Applejack muttered.

“Darlings, please,” Rarity gently scolded. She took a deep breath before meeting Twilight’s gaze. “Yes, it was… less than ideal. Pinkie had hoped that one-on-one time would suffice to bring us all closer, help us connect more, and see the things we have in common with her more clearly. For example, she brought Maud to my boutique in the hopes that we could connect over our shared sense of fashion, or so she claimed.”

“Didn’t go great, I’m guessing,” Spike said.

Rarity sighed, resting her face in her hooves. “I know she doesn’t mean anything by it, but the mare’s tastes are just… incomprehensible to me. I mean, when I volunteered to make a lovely new outfit for her, she just pointed at a dish towel—a dirty dish towel—and said she’d take that! I mean,” she shot up with an aghast look on her face. “Far be it from me to offend Pinkie’s sister, but goodness gracious, Maud, it looked like it fell in the dirt! And heavens save you if you even attempt to have a conversation with her on the finer nuances of fashion design!”

Rainbow cringed. “Youch. I mean, I’m no fashion geek or anything, but a dish towel?” she asked with a raised eyebrow. “That’s a bit weird even for me.”

“You at least know stylish when you see it,” Rarity said, planting her face in her hooves again. “You only really lack an understanding of subtlety.”

“I can vouch for that,” Spike agreed.

Twilight thrust her hoof into the air again. “I second that.”

Rainbow pouted at the two with her cheeks puffing up and a tiny red tint coming to her cheeks. “Do ya gotta? Right now? When the others are right there?”

Twilight smirked playfully at her other half. “Oh, please, tell me that there is a better time.”

“You are disgustingly sweet to that moron, you know that?” Midnight asked with a gagging noise.

Twilight’s smile twitched, but she otherwise did not respond.

Rainbow’s wings ruffled in annoyance before she turned to Fluttershy. “Okay, Fluttershy, be my bell here. What was your time with Maud like?”

Fluttershy tilted her head, looking confused. “Your… bell?”

“As in saved by the bell,” Spike clarified. “She wants you to change the subject.”

“Oh. Okay,” Fluttershy agreed with a warm smile before clearing her throat. “Ahem. Well… my time with Maud wasn’t so bad. She went along with me while I walked a forest trail around the edge of town. A lot of my little animal friends tend to relax around there, so I can spend time with them and hear about anything I should know about deeper in the woods.”

“Sounds relaxin’,” Applejack noted.

Fluttershy nodded. “Oh, yes, very relaxing,” she confirmed before her smile faded. “Maud was quiet for the most part, just following along. When I saw her looking at a particularly scary-looking spider, I told her all about how they’re actually very sweet and helpful, and keep other, more dangerous insects away.”

“Huh. So she actually was interested in the wildlife?” Twilight asked in surprise. Of course, if anypony was capable of connecting with Maud, it would be-

“No. she was looking at the rock it was standing on.”

Absolutely none of them. It was official, Twilight decided. They were doomed.

“Go figure,” Rainbow snorted in dismay.

Fluttershy sighed. “I honestly should have known. She’s going to that big university about rockology, so of course, she’d be more interested in the rock then the spider,” she lamented. “If I just knew something about rockology or even geology, then maybe I could have struck up a conversation and held it.”

“Rockology, geology,” Spike parroted before lifting his head. “Is there a difference?”

Twilight leaned forward. “A bit, yes. Geology is the science that deals with the physical characteristics and substance of the world, its natural history, and the forces that act on it. This heavily involves rock formations and minerals. Rockology is similar but exceptionally more in-depth and technical. It’s not just about the physical characteristics and the forces that act on them, it’s also the forces they exert back on the world. It’s a science heavily used when using magic crystals to create enchantments since you need to know exactly how the crystal will react to what magic to create your desired effect.”

Spike nodded along slowly. “Okay, okay… I think I get you… I think… maybe.”

“Well, it definitely flew over mah head,” Applejack said. “Just like most things about Maud. When Pinkie brought her over, Ah thought it’d be good to have her help me make up a batch of apple cider. Ya know how easy it is to chat it up with somepony when yer cookin’ together, right?”

“I know that,” Spike agreed before glancing at Twilight. “Twilight, though-”

“You can stop right there, buster,” Twilight shot him down with a saccharine smile before he could finish that sentence.

Applejack chuckled at the bit of banter before shaking her head. “Well, try as Ah might, ah just couldn’t hold a discussion with her. She just didn’t talk much. One or two words… Ah even gave her the easy part of peelin’ the apples. Not a lotta attention goin’ into that part. But, well… Ah guess they peel things differently on the rock farm, cause she just took a rock and beat the thing into a literal pulp!”

Twilight blinked in shock. “She beat it?!”

“Yup. When Maud was done, there weren’t no apple left, just a smear o’ juice soakin’ into the table. Left a mighty impressive stain, too.”

“So suffice it to say,” Rarity picked up, lifting her face from her hooves again. “None of us had a particularly stellar time trying to bond one-on-one with Maud.”

“And Pinkie Pie’s still goin’ on and on ‘bout sharin’ this friendship necklace tradition with us…” Applejack added.

“But we’re just not sure we’re really friends with Maud,” Fluttershy finished with a solemn frown. “Even when we all really tried…”

Applejack stepped forward, adjusting her hat on her head. “And that’s why we came here to y’all. We were hopin’ that maybe y’all saw somethin’ we missed, and had a better time with her. Maybe give us some insights or somethin’?”

Twilight and Rainbow shared a glance.

“Oh, boy,” Rainbow grimaced. “You wanna recount it, or should I?”

“I will,” Twilight volunteered, though she felt uncomfortable doing so. She took a deep breath before shifting to face the others directly. “Maud did come by here yesterday before she met with all of you. And… well… I don’t think she was planning on being friends with me.”

Rarity blinked. “How do you mean?”

Twilight fidgeted anxiously in place for a moment, wrestling with her thoughts. She took another breath before she went on. “You see, before she sent Pinkie to talk to all of you, Maud recited a bunch of poems she wrote to me, and, while they were all structurally fine, they were all about rocks. I couldn’t find much to say about them. So already, there was a bit of a disconnect. But then…”

She adjusted her wings and looked down. “She sent Pinkie off to talk to you, and used that time to… confront me.”

Fluttershy gasped. “Confront you?! About what?!”

“About… Midnight,” Twilight eventually forced the words out, a chill racing down her spine.

A heavy silence fell over the room. Everypony glanced between themselves for several seconds, only adding to Twilight’s growing discomfort. She tried to continue, but all that came were false starts and worthless workings of her jaw. Finally, Rainbow saw fit to save her and picked up the tale.

“See, that was the incident that drove her to come here in the first place,” Rainbow said, gesturing vaguely. “To Ponyville, I mean. Maud heard about what happened with Twilight, about what she did when she was Midnight, and she was scared that Pinkie might have made friends with a dangerous pony. She more or less admitted to keeping an eye on Twilight specifically, watching her like a hawk the whole time. And when we were alone, she interrogated Twilight to make sure she wasn’t going to be a problem to Pinkie or something.”

Applejack sighed, sliding her hat off. “Aw, shoot. Ah can’t really blame her fer that, honestly…”

“Indeed,” Rarity agreed with a slow nod. “I say this with no offense meant to you, Twilight, but if I heard that Sweetie Belle was close friends with somepony who I knew had committed horrible crimes, I would certainly be worried for her until I could take her friend’s measure for myself.”

Fluttershy frowned. “Zephyr didn’t have many friends when we were growing up… but most of them were a lot like him… and not in good ways.”

Spike raised an eyebrow. “That guy has good qualities?”

“Spike!” Twilight chastised lightly.

“He’s stupid, stubborn, lazy, and clueless,” Rainbow said bluntly before meeting Fluttershy’s gaze in understanding. “But he’s not a bad pony. But Zephyr’s not the point here.”

“Right…” Applejack agreed, turning her attention to Twilight again. “So, judgin’ from all that, Ah’m guessin’ y’all didn’t hit it off once ya showed her ya ain’t a threat?”

“Not a threat, huh?” Midnight mused absently. “Hm. That’s an idea time will test.”

“If you lay a single hoof on them…!”

Midnight laughed at that. “Lay a hoof on them? Oh, heavens no. Why would I ever do that? After all… they’re your friends.”

Twilight shuddered before sighing and shaking her head, both in answer to Applejack’s question and to dismiss Midnight from her thoughts for the time being.

“Ugh… I just feel so helpless, dears!” Rarity complained, throwing her head back as if to shout at the heavens. “Pinkie Pie is going to such lengths to try and have us bond with her sister. And I want to, heaven knows I want to!”

“But we’ve all tried,” Applejack lamented.

“And we’ve all hit rock walls,” Rainbow finished with a sigh. “So… what? We throwing in the towel?”

“I don’t know if we really have much of a choice,” Twilight said sadly, looking down at the table with her ears drooping. “Pinkie wanted us all to bond with her so Maud could see that Pinkie’s in good hooves, and so we could all share their rock candy necklace tradition. But… that tradition is only for the best of best friends, and…”

“We aren’t,” Applejack finished with resignation. “Are we?”

A general muttering of acknowledgment passed throughout the room. As much as it pained all of them to admit it, in spite of their individual best efforts over the course of the last couple of days, none of them had really managed to click with Maud at all…

And that just left one final question.

Spike sighed and leaned against one of the table’s legs. “So… who gets to tell Pinkie, then?”

Squares and Circles

Twilight swallowed heavily as she and her friends walked together down the street towards Sugarcube Corner. Rainbow was to her immediate left, while the rest of their friends were scattered loosely around them. Spike, however, had elected to hang back and remain in the library. His excuse had been that he wanted to tidy the place up. A clumsy excuse, given that there hadn’t even been a chance for things to get messy yet.

The reason for the excuse, however, was plainly obvious, and Twilight envied the fact that he had been in any position to excuse himself at all. Though he was part of the group, especially for her and Rainbow, it went without saying that Pinkie hadn’t really had him in mind when she brought Maud to Ponyville.

Maybe it was because Maud was an aspiring rockologist, and Spike ate rocks. Especially gems. There might have been a bit of a clash there. Maybe. Oh, who was she kidding? Maud was so good at keeping her emotions well and truly hidden that the most Twilight could imagine from her was a slight tilt of the eyebrows. At most.

Whatever the reason, Spike wasn’t the highest on Pinkie’s priority list when it came to her list of ‘ponies to have bond with Maud.’ Twilight and the others were all on that list in big bold letters, though. Twilight couldn’t sit this one out. She had to be present for the coming conversation, no matter how unpleasant it might wind up being.

“Are we sure we really want to do this?” Fluttershy meekly asked, coming up to Twilight’s side with her ears drooping. “I really don’t want to hurt Pinkie’s feelings…”

“None of us do, darling,” Rarity said soothingly. “But alas, If we don’t say something, I get the feeling Maud will…”

“Yeah. The mare’s harder to read than a rock, but she is honest,” Applejack added with a slow nod.

Rainbow shrugged. “Maybe she would. But who knows? She’s harder to read than one of Twilight’s history books,” she said.

Twilight stumbled at that, an indignant squawk coming out of her. “Hey! My history books are not hard to read!” she protested, her cheeks puffing up in agitation.

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “Keep telling yourself that, egghead.”

Twilight groaned. She lightly smacked Rainbow on the back of the head with her wing, eliciting a few amused chuckles from the others. A brief moment of levity to help lift their spirits before they inevitably had to take the plunge.

The plunge that came far sooner than Twilight would have liked. Mere moments after their giggles died down, they rounded the bend to find Sugarcube Corner waiting for them just up ahead. They could already see movement inside, a surefire indication of Pinkie’s presence. The bakery had been closed down for a few days at her request so that she could tend to the whole Maud situation in peace, and the Cakes had been gracious enough to comply with the request. They had taken advantage of the time to focus on taking care of their twins and being with each other.

Twilight hesitated somewhat, slowing down her pace. She was suddenly second-guessing herself, the urge to abandon this course of action making itself known. She hadn’t been wanting to do this at all, but she felt like she needed to. Pinkie deserved to know. She needed to know, especially after all the effort she had put into things. Twilight knew this, and yet that sense of need was crumbling into dust, leaving her with no other desire than to turn tail and run back to the library so she didn’t have to deal with this.

Alas, she was not afforded the chance to make that decision. Before she could voice her concerns, the door to the bakery slammed open. Pinkie Pie stepped out with a gigantic grin on her muzzle. Her eyes landed on the group, and she visibly had to restrain herself from prancing in place. “Great! You’re all here! This saves me the time of looking for you!” she declared.

Applejack put on a crooked smile. “Aheh… yeah. Here we all are,” she said awkwardly. She turned back to the others. None of them could meet her eyes.

Pinkie was oblivious. “Well, Maud’s out looking for rocks, so now is the perfect time for us to make your super best friends rock candy necklaces!” she squealed, throwing a hoof into the air as if expecting a chorus of assent that matched her own excitement.

Silence was her answer. The ecstatic grin on her face slowly began to unravel as she realized her friends couldn’t meet her gaze, and all of them were looking away with despondent looks. Pinkie frowned, leaning forward in concern and confusion. “Hey, girls? What’s wrong?”

Nopony said anything. Twilight looked around, biting her lip. She could see all of them working their jaws, clearly trying to work up the courage to speak their minds, to tell Pinkie what they had all agreed to tell her. None of them could make themselves do it. They looked up at Pinkie, they saw her innocent blue eyes staring back at them, asking them to tell her all that ailed them.

How could they let her down like that? That was probably what was going through their heads. Hay, that was what was going through Twilight’s mind. This mare had made them all smile and laugh more times than any of them cared to count. She was one of their biggest sources of optimism every time things turned for the worst.

In spite of that, in many ways, she was so like a child… and it was never a fun thing to break a child’s heart.

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat when Midnight scoffed between her ears. “Honestly, Pinkie Pie is a grown mare. If she can’t take a little bit of hard truth every now and then, then that is no fault of yours. So just tell her how oblivious and stupid she’s been so we can all be done with this depressing scene.”

Twilight inhaled sharply through her nostrils, but she was quick to shut down any desire to retort. She had to focus, and though her inner demon had worded it in the wrong way, she wasn’t entirely wrong. Pinkie Pie did need to know…

“Well, uh…” Twilight finally began, although her voice was tentative and weak. She winced back when Pinkie Pie and all the others placed their focus squarely on her. She took a deep breath and kept going. “I’m not sure now is really the best time to be making best friend rock candy necklaces…”

“Why not?” Pinkie asked. The question came immediately, lined with even more confusion.

Twilight winced. “Uh…” she began, but further words would not come. She glanced helplessly to her friends, hoping for one of them to pick up the slack. Rainbow didn’t seem to be in any position to do so, though, resting her chin on Pinkie’s mailbox and hiding her muzzle with her hooves as she was.

“Well, darling, you see…” Rarity tried to start, but the words quickly died in her throat as well.

“You’re ever so thoughtful to share your special bonding ritual with us,” Fluttershy went on, managing to put on an appreciative smile. It faded a second later, and she averted her eyes. “But…”

Pinkie leaned forward slightly. “But what?”

“Oh my gosh this is pathetic,” Midnight sneered. “Just get on with it!”

A tingle of fire ran across the base of Twilight’s skull. She winced, but soon enough, she managed to find her voice. She took a deep breath, let it out with a heavy sigh, and spoke again. “Pinkie… We’ve all been trying really hard to get closer to Maud. You know that. You brought her around to all of our homes yesterday. You saw us trying our best, all of us.”

Pinkie nodded along, seemingly oblivious. “Uh-huh.”

Twilight took a few steps forward, her eyes glued to the ground. “But… I don’t think it’s really been working. Some ponies just don’t… match, I guess. They don’t get along and ‘click’ as nicely as, say, we do.”

Pinkie Pie tilted her head. “Huh? But…”

Twilight pressed on. “I know you love your sister, Pinkie, we can all see it. And… I can tell that she really loves you, too,” she said, recalling how Maud had expressed her worries about Pinkie’s wellbeing around Twilight. “And we all care about you, too. But… I’m not sure if that’s enough for us to click with Maud like you do. I mean, you’re her sister. You grew up with her. You can see things in her nopony else can… Things that none of us can.”

Pinkie’s eyes widened as the realization began to set in. “What? But… b-but, Twilight! She recited poetry to you! You love poems!” she protested, taking a few steps forward.

“I love poetry,” Twilight rebuked gently. “But that doesn’t mean every poem I hear is going to be a gem. There’s also a lot more to me than just books and words, you know. Same for all of us. Applejack is more than apples and honesty, Fluttershy is more than animals and being shy, Rarity is more than fashion and creativity. Maybe Maud has these things in common with us, but that doesn’t mean we’re going to become the best of friends.”

Pinkie’s eyes darted between all of her friends, her expression becoming more and more strained. “But… b-but… I…”

“I know you really want us all to get along with Maud,” Twilight pressed on, finally managing to meet Pinkie’s gaze. “But… I just don’t think it’s going to happen… no matter how hard you try to make it. It’s like trying to fit a square block into a circular hole…”

She looked back at the others. “...Something is going to have to break before you get anywhere.”

Several seconds passed in silence. Twilight took one more deep breath before turning back to Pinkie. The mare’s expression was one of pure disappointment. Twilight winced, her heart skipping a beat with regret. Maybe she could have worded things a little more gently?

“The mare has enough sugar coating in her life,” Midnight snarked. “Let her eat her daily dose of reality.”

Twilight sighed and looked down. “...In the end, we really appreciate all the effort, Pinkie, and we’re touched that you want to share this tradition with us. But…”

“None of us would feel right about it,” Applejack picked up, finally taking the pressure off of Twilight. “If it’s supposed to mean we’re the best of friends. Because… well, Pinkie… we aren’t.”

Pinkie stared down at all of them for several seconds. She eventually looked away and gave off a heavy sigh. “...Okay. I understand, you guys,” she muttered, clearly disappointed. A few seconds passed before she gave them all a weak, but understanding smile. “Just… thanks for giving her a chance… Now, uh…”

She looked back inside and cringed. “...If anypony needs me, I’ll be trying to figure out what to do with two hundred pounds of rock candy.”

With that, Pinkie slipped back inside and shut the door quietly behind her.

A heavy silence fell over the group. Eventually, Rainbow broke it with a tired sigh. “Welp, I feel horrible.”

“You didn’t even say anything,” Applejack noted gently.

Rainbow shrugged. “Meh… Just… didn’t wanna be the one to let one of my best friends down this time, I guess.”

“Dash…”

Twilight winced. Of course Rainbow felt that way. How many times had she blamed herself, justifiably or not, for the pain of her friends? Just off the top of her head she could recall several incidents where Rainbow had fallen into pits of self-loathing over what she perceived as her own mistakes. Turning her back on her friends to Discord's influence, attacking Starlight on the Friendship Express, being absent for Chrysalis’ attack on Canterlot, her deal with Sombra…

“And hiding the truth from you,” Midnight reminded in a whisper. “About how you died.”

Twilight winced and closed her eyes. Too many times had Rainbow beaten herself up, as far as Twilight was concerned. So of course, Rainbow wouldn’t want that responsibility this time…

“...Let’s go home, Rainbow,” Twilight said quietly, turning to leave. “I think we’re done here.”

Author's Note

Fun fact: The last two chapters weren't originally supposed to exist in their current format. This conversation with Twilight and Pinkie was supposed to take place during the chapter with the poems, but due to the added sub-plot of Maud's doubts about Twilight, this scene got nudged back a little in the pipeline. That's a big part of why it's so short compared to the others.

Pinkie's Solution

Twilight yelped in surprise when a series of loud knocks reverberated throughout the Golden Oak Library. She opened her eyes and sat up, looking around in confusion. She was in her room, and Rainbow was next to her, slowly sitting up with a less-than-pleased grimace on her face. Judging by the orange light of the sun piercing the pulled curtains over the window, it was early morning.

Who in the hoof could be knocking this loud this early in the morning?!

“Ugh… Twi?” Rainbow asked in a drowsy mumble as she slid out of bed.

“Yes?”

“I’m gonna kill ‘em.”

Twilight frowned. “Rainbow, come on, don’t talk like that,” she lightly scolded, though she had to admit, the idea was not without its merits.

“We can blow them up the second we open the door,” Midnight cood maliciously.

“No, no. It’s too early for you,” Twilight deadpanned in her mind. “Go back to sleep.”

“I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“Because you’re awake.”

Twilight resisted the urge to sigh in frustration as she followed Rainbow down the stairs. She cast a glance over her shoulder to see Spike poking his head out of his bed basket. His expression was one of pure irritation.

“Can you soundproof the room for me?” he asked groggily.

Twilight managed to smile at that. Her horn lit up, and a thin coat of lavender light blanketed the room before fading away. Just like that, the insufferable knocking became all but inaudible. Were it not for the door now standing open after Rainbow’s exit, it would have been completely silent in the room.

Spike gave a thankful smile, a half-hearted thumbs-up, and then withdrew into his blankets.

Twilight watched him for a moment before turning to follow after Rainbow. Her ears folded against her head in a vain attempt to drown out the continuing knocks as soon as she crossed the threshold and shut the bedroom door behind her.

Finally, there was a moment of blissful silence as the door opened, followed swiftly by Rainbow’s voice echoing through the house. “What the- Pinkie?!”

Twilight came to a stop as soon as she heard that, her ears perking up. Pinkie? What was Pinkie doing here, especially this early in the morning, and making a tribal drum out of their front door? She frowned. Her thoughts drifted back to the last time she had seen the party mare outside of Sugarcube corner, and how they had all, as a group, systematically upset and disappointed her...

Suddenly, she had a bad feeling about all of this.

“The foal just can’t take a hint, can she?” Midnight seethed in irritation.

Twilight ignored her and quickly made her way down. She emerged into the living room to find Pinkie Pie bouncing up and down energetically in front of a now very concerned-looking Rainbow Dash. Twilight mirrored that concern the moment her eyes fell on Pinkie’s face. There were dark bags under her eyes. She looked as if she hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep. There was also a very subtle twitch in her left eye.

“Heya, guys!” Pinkie chirped, waving a hoof in the air manically.

“Er, hi,” Rainbow replied awkwardly. “Uh… you okay-”

“Pinkie Peachy!” Pinkie cut Rainbow off with a series of unhinged giggles. She then reached into her mane and pulled out a simple bright blue box, the same type one might carry donuts or pastries in. “Here, I got a present for you!”

Without waiting for a reply, she shoved the box into Rainbow’s chest, forcing the pegasus to react and snatch it up before it could fall to the ground below. Rainbow glanced down at the package, then up at Pinkie again. “Uh… thanks?” she asked in abject bewilderment. “But, uh… couldn’t you have… I dunno… delivered it a little later? It’s kinda…” she glanced over at the nearest clock. Her eyes widened. “What the- Seven?! Pinkie, it’s seven thirteen in the morning!”

“Oh, I know,” Pinkie replied without missing a beat. “But I spent all night trying to figure out what to do for this, and when I finally came up with it, I spent all night putting it together as quick as I could, and when it was all done I just couldn’t bring myself to wait any longer, and so I decided to come and let everypony know right away! It’s okay, you don’t hafta answer right now!”

Twilight stepped forward, struggling to keep up with Pinkie’s rambling tirade. “Pinkie Pie, slow down, you’re not making any sense.”

Two sets of eyes landed on Twilight.

Rainbow opened her mouth to speak, but Twilight cut her off. “Yeah I know, realized it the moment I said it,” she said in defeat.

Pinkie nodded sagely as if all had suddenly become right with the world.

Which it most assuredly had not. Pinkie still had yet to explain herself. Twilight cleared her throat and tried again. “What I mean, Pinkie, is that even this seems a bit weird for you. You don’t usually show up, and you’re usually very considerate about your friends' feelings - if not their personal space. So for you to just arrive and wake us up this early with a random present… I mean this with no offense-”

“Liar.”

“...But this is a good way to make your friends angry with you,” Twilight finished, ignoring Midnight’s jab.

Pinkie hesitated for a second before taking a step back. “Er, right. Sorry, guys. I just couldn’t wait any longer, really.”

“So… what’s the deal, anyway?” rainbow asked, glancing down at the box in her hooves. “And what the heck is this?”

Pinkie perked up and smiled again. “Oh! That! Just open it up! You’ll understand everything soon enough!”

She reached into her mane and felt around. Twilight tried not to think about it when she heard who-knows-what rattling around in that bottomless pocket. Was that a cat meowing?Soon enough, Pinkie withdrew her hoof and grinned. “I still got a few things to do this morning, so I’ma go get right on that! See ya later, love gators!”

Rainbow and Twilight both blushed at that, the pegasus moving to retort. Before she could utter even a single syllable, however, Pinkie was already gone, bouncing out the door and slamming it shut behind her with all the grace and tact of a drunk tic-tac.

A few seconds passed in silence while Twilight tried to wrap her head around what just happened. A second passed before she shook her head and focused on the box in Rainbow’s hoof. “Well… that happened,” she deadpanned.

Rainbow gave a stiff nod. “Uh, yeah, it did,” she replied before turning to the alicorn. “Any idea what that was all about?”

Twilight sighed and trotted over, taking the box in her magic. It didn’t feel especially heavy in her grasp. She scrutinized it before looking to Rainbow and giving the ‘present’ a gentle shake. “No idea. But the answer’s probably in here. Probably.”

Rainbow frowned skeptically. “Ya sure about that?”

“Well, Pinkie said so, so absolutely not,” Twilight shot back. In truth, this could have been just about anything. Given recent events, though, and the unhinged way in which Pinkie had conducted herself, Twilight was inclined to feel at least a little anxious. She glanced down at the box, frowning, and gently pried open the lid.

She was met with the sight of two cupcakes with what appeared to be rainbow-colored frosting and a note.

“Dear Friends,

I had the greatest idea on how to bring everypony closer together with Maud! I know you all told me that you really tried and that it didn’t work out, and I don’t wanna overdo it with all of this or make you upset with me, but it would mean the world to me if you’d give her one more shot! I’ve set up something special that should help everypony get close right outside town, in that grassy patch where you first met her!

Please meet there at 3:00 PM today. If this doesn’t work, then I Pinkie Promise, I won’t try to force this anymore.

Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!

Your Friend, Pinkie Pie.”

Twilight’s ears slowly lowered as she read the note. It made sense. Pinkie was one of the most stubborn ponies she had ever known. To assume that she would give up or back off on this Maud business so easily was nothing short of lunacy.

Rainbow came up to Twilight’s side and read the note over her shoulder. Soon, her own expression mirrored Twilight’s. “...Oh. Well, that explains that,” she said quietly.

Twilight sighed before setting the box off to one side. “Right.”

“Don’t bother going,” Midnight scoffed dismissively. “You’ve already stated your case. Pinkie’s refusal to look at reality is no longer your concern.”

“She’s my friend!” Twilight snapped back, resisting the urge to grit her teeth.

“I have noticed,” Midnight sneered. “And I am not impressed.”

Twilight’s coat bristled, but she otherwise did not favor the devil on her shoulder with a response. Instead, she simply turned and went for the stairs. “Well, we’ve still got a while before this thing of Pinkie’s. Let’s get some more sleep.”

Rainbow nodded, following after her, offering up no complaints.

Twilight didn’t sleep as well as she would have liked, following that. She spent some time tossing and turning, off and on sharing whispered small-talk and idle speculation with Rainbow about what Pinkie had in store before finally managing to fall back to sleep. When they returned to the waking world some few hours later, just after noon, Twilight’s senses were far more awake, albeit still far from where she would have liked them to be.

The minutes crawled by slowly. A mixture of curiosity and anxiety over Pinkie’s plan clawed away at Twilight’s senses. Knowing Pinkie Pie’s penchant for overblowing even the simplest of things, and her complete lack of regard for the laws of physics, the solution she had come up with could have been anything from a simple Pinkie Party to a cannon that would yank a meteor out of the sky with a grappling hook attached to the ammunition.

Or something just as ludicrous. Really, it could be anything with that mare.

Eventually, though, the time came to set off. Twilight and Rainbow quickly took turns in the bathroom to make themselves decent enough to be in public. Spike volunteered to remain behind in the library to keep an eye on things and do some reorganizing in the basement. The shelves down there were a little behind and needed a good switching around, as far as Twilight was concerned, so it worked out nicely.

It was another typically pleasant day in Ponyville when they stepped outside, and the warmth of the sun did wonders to chase away some of Twilight’s nerves. As her eyes wandered to the south, though, she frowned. There was a dark, very noticeable storm front in the distance.

Rainbow caught her looking and spoke up. “Ponyville’s due for a lot of rain,” she explained simply. “And there was a lot of excess from Cloudsdale. They figured they’d ship it here since we’ve been in the middle of a bit of a dry spell since the Plundervines did their thing.”

Twilight hummed but did not otherwise speak. She instead simply focused her attention on their destination. The field just outside of town where they had first met Maud.

Go figure that Pinkie’s last attempt to make all this work out would take place right where it started, huh?

“Snared ya again, huh?”

Twilight jumped in her skin at the new voice. She turned to look and saw Applejack approaching from the side, a knowing look on her face.

Rainbow nodded. “Yup. Got us at seven.”

“Hmph. Eight for me,” Applejack noted with a grunt. “Filly’s slowin’ down. Lucky her Ah’m usually up at that time.”

“I dunno how you can do that,” Rainbow snorted in disbelief. “Eight in the morning? No decent pony could be up that early! Not without some serious grouchiness.”

Applejack rolled her eyes and lightly nudged the mare in the side with her elbow. “Oh, hardy har, RD. Just cause y’all are a late riser don’t mean the rest of us are.”

“I hate to interrupt,” Twilight cut in with a frown. “But Applejack, do you have any idea what Pinkie’s grand plan to make us closer to Maud is? I’ve been trying to piece it together in my head, but I can’t think of anything.”

Applejack hummed in thought, then shrugged her shoulders noncommittally. “Yer guess is as good as mine, Twi. Pinkie’s been less predictable than a ferret that got into Granny’s cider stash durin’ silly season.”

“Oh, that’s an image in my head now,” Rainbow frowned.

Applejack shrugged again. “Wish Ah had a better idea. All we can really do is see what she’s got planned.”

Twilight couldn’t really argue with that. And apparently, neither could the rest of their friends. As they made their way, Fluttershy and Rarity soon joined them, having apparently taken a brief detour to grab lunch, just in case they would be at this for a while.

Soon enough, slowly but surely, the buildings thinned out, and the train station came into view. The group didn’t give it a second thought, striding right past it. As they came over the next hill, however, Twilight’s eyes latched onto something that had not been there last time.

The serene, grassy hills outside of Ponyville’s train station had been marred by what could only be described as a linear jungle gym. There was a transparent red slide, a ball pit stuffed to the brim with fabrics and cloth of all colors and textures, a wall of books, a poker table with a very confused looking Harry the Bear, Angel Bunny, and Otis the Coyote sitting around it.

Had Pinkie abducted them?

What was perhaps the most alarming part of this entire construction was the colossal pile of massive rocks stations at the end of it, with a gargantuan boulder balanced haphazardly on the top. It looked as if a stiff breeze would be enough to cause the entire thing to fall apart, sending giant stones rolling everywhere.

“Uh, would anypony like to explain what the hay we’re looking at?” Rainbow asked with a raised eyebrow. She jumped a few feet into the air and squinted at the construct as if to divine some clearer purpose. “Because I am beyond confused.”

“Whatever it is,” Rarity said, drawing Rainbow’s attention. She gestured ahead, and all eyes turned to see Maud standing at the base of the creation, with an ecstatically bouncing Pinkie Pie coming right for them. “I get the feeling we are about to find out.”

“Heya girls!” Pinkie greeted, sliding to a stop in front of them. “I’m so glad you could make it!”

“Uhm, hi,” Fluttershy greeted meekly. “Um… What is this?”

Pinkie’s grin grew wider. “Oh, this little old thing? I call it: Pinkie-Rainbow-Rari-Twi-Apple-Flutter-Maud FUN TIME!”

“That explains literally nothing!” rainbow protested vehemently.

Pinkie came forward and grinned up at Rainbow, still bouncing in place. “It combines everypony’s interests into one super fun activity that we can all do together that will bring us all that much closer together!”

“That still explains just about nothing!” Rainbow insisted.

Pinkie giggle-snorted before gesturing for the others to follow her. “Probably better if I show ya! Come on, Maud’s waiting for us already!”

And with that, the pink mare began to happily frolic towards the looming construct. The others shared an uneasy glance before setting off after her at a much slower pace. Applejack broke the silence with a worried tone. “So, is it just me, or does this thing look kinda… flimsy?”

Twilight had noticed that herself but didn’t really have a chance to properly process it with how absurd it was and Pinkie’s attempt at an explanation. The whole construct gave the impression that it was a rush job, and very much an improvisation. Just about everything was either made of or framed by wooden beams that crisscrossed at irregular patterns, held in place with loose smatterings of nails and duct tape. It was all quite impressive, to be blunt, but it didn’t exactly look safe, either. Especially those rocks. Where had Pinkie even gotten those?

None of them had a chance to question it. The moment they came to Maud’s side, Pinkie began talking all over again. “So, as you can see, the P.R.R.T.A.F.M, or Purrtafm, if you want, is a course composed of all the things we all love! There’s an applesauce tunnel for Applejack, a pile of pretty shiny things for Rarity, a wall of books for Twilight, a game of poker with animals for Fluttershy, cupcakes for yours truly, and it’s all a race for Rainbow Dash! Plus there’s the rockslide at the end for Maud!”

“Okay, that kinda explains it,” rainbow admitted, scratching the back of her head. “But it also raises a whole lot of other questions! When did you have time to even think of all this, much less build it?!”

“And what are Angel, Harry, and Otis doing here?” Fluttershy asked in surprise on finally noticing the trio of animals. “They were back at home when you came to see me this morning.”

Pinkie grinned. “Haha, please.”

Maud turned to look at Rainbow. “What were you expecting?”

Rainbow sighed and dropped back down to the ground. “About what I got, really,” she said in defeat.

Pinkie giggled before taking a few steps back. “Hehe! Here, lemme take a quick run through all of it for ya, just so you all know the route!”

“Pinkie,” Applejack spoke up in a firm but gentle voice. “Are ya sure about this? This thing doesn’t exactly look all that safe to me.”

“Of course it’s safe!” Pinkie chirped. “I made it!”

“That’s the part that worries me.”

Pinkie laughed and waved her hoof in dismissal. Twilight’s frown deepened. There it was again. That almost manic, unhinged look.

“The mare’s gone insane,” Midnight snorted. “Fantastic. Well, at least we get to watch it all fall down on top of her.”

Twilight stiffened and briefly closed her eyes. “It’s not going to do that. It looks weak, but this is Pinkie Pie we’re talking about. This is a mare who can defy the laws of physics! Literally, I’ve seen her do it!”

“Until she gets reminded of them, yes yes, I know,” Midnight grumbled. “But who said I was referring to the construct? Even if it doesn’t crumble, it’s pretty obvious just how desperate she’s gotten if this was her ultimate solution. This isn’t going to work. It’s just another waste of her energy and our time!”

Twilight wasn’t able to stifle a growl at that but kept it quiet enough that she was sure nopony else heard it. She opened her eyes, ignoring any further remarks Midnight had to make, and instead focused on Pinkie Pie. She didn’t miss Maud giving her a sidelong glance for just a moment, though.

Pinkie finally went into motion, jumping headfirst into the red tube. Twilight now saw the apple sauce and cringed when Pinkie leaped from the other side and into the pit of fabrics.

“PINKIE!” Rarity shrieked in alarm, her marshmallow face somehow going ashen. “THE FABRICS!”

“It washes out, silly!” Pinkie called back before barreling through the wall of books, much to Twilight’s growing chagrin.

“How dare that mare disrespect those books like that!”

Pinkie continued to work her way through the course, loudly shouting back at everypony else to explain what she was doing and how it related to everything else. But Twilight’s attention was slowly starting to come away from that. Something was wrong. She wasn’t sure what, but she could tell. Her wings ruffled anxiously at her sides, and she turned her attention to Pinkie. Her instincts began to scream at her to warn Pinkie, to get her out of there. Now.

“Pinkie!” she called out, unable to stop herself.

Pinkie, who was currently in a tall wooden tower topped with a pink plastic dome and floating cupcakes, turned to look at her. “Yeah?!” she shouted to be heard through the wall. An audible groan passed through the woodwork, sending a spike of adrenaline through Twilight’s veins.

“I think we get it! You can come back, now!” Twilight shouted, her eyes darting around the construction. Was it starting to sway? There wasn’t any wind that she could feel.

“But I haven’t gotten to the rockslide, yet!” Pinkie called back with a roll of her eyes. “Just gimme a sec, I’m almost-”

Snap.

Twilight’s heart dropped out of her chest. In one moment, everything fell into absolute chaos. One of the four wooden beams that held the tower Pinkie was in aloft suddenly snapped near the base, sending the whole thing lurching to one side. Pinkie fell out of view inside the dome with a high pitched shriek.

“PINKIE!” Everypony shouted at once, quickly moving forward. Twilight flared her wings and lit her horn, preparing to teleport Pinkie out. She needed to be fast, the tower was collapsing.

Unfortunately, her concentration was broken when the ground beneath her hooves began shaking. Alarmed, Twilight looked around for the source of the disturbance, and her eyes fell on what Pinkie had dubbed the ‘rockslide.’ It appeared that the tremors caused by the tower’s sudden loss of stability had upset the boulder on top, and the entire mound was crumbling. The large boulder rolled down the slope to crash to the ground below, causing the earth to lurch and tremble.

Twilight couldn’t focus on her spell through all of that, and by the time she managed to focus back on the tower, it was too late. Twilight cried out as the dome crashed into the red tube, sending it toppling over as well with a deafening, cacophonous crash and a spray of dust mixed with applesauce.

Twilight shielded her eyes as well as she could from the cloud of dust, coughing a few times when it washed over them. She grunted and focused on her horn. They didn’t have time for this! Pinkie needed them! With a pulse of magic, a burst of powerful wind expanded out from her, pushing the dust away from them and revealing the damage.

Twilight’s stomach twisted into a knot. The entire course had collapsed on itself. It was an absolute mess. She could already hear raised voices from the direction of the train station. No doubt ponies waiting for their ride to arrive had heard the commotion and seen the cloud of dust and pulse of magic. The site would probably be swarming with curious onlookers soon enough.

That was no longer of importance. Twilight shook away her shock and broke into a sprint towards where the tower had fallen. “Pinkie!” she called out, fear and dread clawing away at her heart. She could hear the others sprinting behind her, and to her surprise, Maud rapidly pulled ahead, a look of pure, unfiltered terror on the usually bland mare’s face.

When they reached the tower, there was no sign of Pinkie. Dirtied cupcake remains were smeared and scattered across the churned soil, while shattered shards of pink plastic littered the ground like shrapnel. The basket of the tower was upside down, having come away from the main pillar after striking the tube.

“Pinkie! Just hang on, we’ll get you out!” Rainbow shouted, already grabbing onto the wreckage and lifting with all her might. “Please be okay, please be okay, please be okay!”

Twilight glanced at Rainbow for a second before lending her magic to the effort. To her surprise, the basket almost seemed to weigh nothing in her grasp. The reason became apparent when she saw Maud bodily shoving the basket up with her shoulders with an audible grunt of strain. The whole thing lifted up and tilted back, crashing onto the grass and lurching the ground again.

Another cloud of dust formed, and Twilight flapped her wings a few times to try and clear it. She squinted through the dirty haze for any sign of Pinkie. She saw Rainbow and Maud kneeling down, with Fluttershy rushing to join them. Her throat tightened at the sight of a curl of disheveled pink hair.

“Huh. Whaddya know?” Midnight mused in surprise. “It literally fell apart on top of her.”

Twilight froze, her blood starting to boil in her veins. “What. Did you. Do?!”

Midnight scoffed. “What makes you think I did anything? All I can do is talk to you, remember?” she demanded incredulously. “You can hate me as much as you like, but don't waste our time with accusatory hoof-pointing. This wasn’t me.”

Twilight snarled before shaking her head and cantering forward to join the others.

Her eyes widened. Pinkie’s eyes were closed, and her lower body was pinned beneath more wreckage that Applejack and Maud were working to clear away. Rainbow was kneeling at Pinkie’s side, her hooves hooked under the unconscious mare’s armpits, ready to pull her out. Fluttershy was waiting for her to be freed, no doubt to look for injuries.

“Twilight!” Maud called, looking back to Twilight with desperation in her eyes. “Help me lift this thing!”

Twilight was briefly taken aback by the intensity of the request. She didn’t hesitate for long, though. Her horn sparked into life, and she set about grasping the wreckage. She groaned with the strain. It felt like somepony was taking a hammer to her cranium, but she didn’t care. Slowly but surely, she lifted much of the debris from the collapse and floated it several yards away, freeing Pinkie and clearing the scene of the disaster, for the most part.

Once she set the wreckage down, she let off a sigh of relief and fell to her haunches. She took a moment to catch her breath before focusing on Pinkie. Her chest was starting to darken and swell in an eerily familiar fashion. Twilight winced, memories of the Crystal Empire briefly dancing in front of her eyes.

“Is she gonna be alright?!” Applejack asked, adjusting her hat and kneeling down by Pinkie’s side now that the wreckage was gone.

Fluttershy lightly felt around Pinkie’s chest, her expression one of complete and utter focus. A few seconds passed before she looked up, the color draining from her face. “Oh my goodness… Um, I think so, but she needs to see a doctor right away!” she said, pulling her hooves back. “She has a few broken ribs, and, um, I think she might have suffered some other trauma lower down.”

Maud took one of Pinkie’s hooves in her own, her ears drooping. “Pinkie…” she whispered quietly. “What were you thinking…?”

Twilight looked down, closing her eyes. Somewhere deep inside of her, the knee-jerk thought that this was somehow her fault sprang into the forefront of her mind. Their inability to bond with Maud, her visit spurred on by Twilight’s Fall, and then the decision to tell Pinkie that it just wasn’t working when it all meant so much to her…

She was quick to shut down that idea. This wasn’t her. This was an accident. Something like this could have happened to anypony, and she wasn’t about to linger on the past.

“Are you sure it could have happened to anypony?”

Twilight went rigid at that, her eyes widening. “What?”

Midnight merely hummed, however, and did not deign to give her any further information. Twilight growled in frustration. However, before she could follow up on that, Maud’s voice cut through her thoughts, drawing her back to the situation at hoof.

“Teleport us.”

Twilight blinked and looked up. She saw Maud cradling Pinkie, looking back at her with a pleading look in her eyes. Everypony else was already gathering around and looking to her expectantly.

Twilight only hesitated for a moment before nodding. Whatever went wrong here didn’t matter at the moment. Pinkie Pie was hurt and needed help. Until she was taken care of, nothing else mattered.

Twilight stepped forward to join the group, though she paused when she saw Rainbow. She hesitated. “Rainbow… are you sure-”

“I can handle a teleport, Twi,” Rainbow cut her off without hesitation. “And I’ve gotten a lot better. Just do it. Don’t worry about me.”

Twilight hesitated for a second, her heart twisting in her chest. She really didn’t want to cause Rainbow any pain today, but they didn’t exactly have any time to lose. Besides, she knew better than to argue with Rainbow when she got that look on her face. With a hesitant nod, she lit her horn, focusing on the Ponyville Clinic farther into town.

With a large flash of light and a loud pop, the group of seven mares disappeared, leaving behind nothing but the ruined remains of Pinkie’s solution.

Author's Note

...What? Stop looking at me like that, this is par for the course with me.

The Hospital

“How much longer?!” Rainbow demanded in exasperation. She was pacing in the air over the door that led deeper into the hospital, a grimace of anxiety on her face. Her hooves were wringing themselves over her chest, and she kept shooting pensive glances at the door as if hoping that her gaze alone would open the way.

Twilight, who was seated in one of the many chairs of the waiting area like everypony else, couldn’t blame her. Everypony was in similar straits, and it was taking all of her will to keep herself planted and patient in her seat. The doctors would come sooner or later. They would tell them that Pinkie would be fine. Probably. Hopefully.

Applejack sighed at Rainbow’s question, tilting her hat back to speak. “RD, c’mon, sit down. Yer pacin’ ain’t gonna speed anythin’ along.”

Rainbow paused in the air to shoot the cowmare an indignant glare. “No, but it helps me think! I can’t just hold still, ya know!” she barked back.

“Darlings, please, volume,” Rarity gently interjected, glancing back and forth between the two with a stern frown. “We aren’t the only ones here.”

Rarity was right, and the reminder drew Twilight’s eyes around the waiting room. It hadn’t changed at all in the years she had called Ponyville home. It was bright in color, as always, featuring largely marble whites, pale greens, and gentle blues to soothe the senses of those who waited within the spacious lobby. Several other ponies were scattered around, occupying their time with one thing or another. Some of them occasionally cast curious glances at the princess in the room, but otherwise kept to themselves.

Twilight recalled multiple occasions on which she and the girls had, for one reason or another, had to wait here for news of one of their number. The most prominent examples were when Rainbow’s wing was busted after her outburst on the Friendship Express—an incident that felt like so long ago now, yet the repercussions still haunted them—and the times when Twilight had been checked in early on during her time with amnesia to make sure she hadn’t retained any other forms of mental damage.

Rainbow sighed after a moment, drifting lazily back before plonking down in the chair next to Twilight’s. “Sorry… I just hate waiting like this,” she grumbled, her wings ruffling in agitation.

“Pinkie will be okay,” Fluttershy, who sat on Rainbow’s other side across from Twilight, assured her with a small smile. She reached out and patted Rainbow on the back. “She was hurt, but it wasn’t too bad. She’s strong, and she’ll make it.”

“She is.”

Twilight winced before turning to the owner of the new voice. Maud was standing a short ways away, having opted to keep on her hooves. In all of the chaos, she had moved quickly and with fiery intensity. She had been first in line to bring Pinkie to the counter and explain the situation, and she had lent her strength to get Pinkie onto a stretcher and on her way. After that, she elected not to sit down. She kept a silent vigil near the center of the room, her eyes never leaving the door. All of the previous emotion had evaporated from her expression, leaving her much the same as Twilight and the others were well familiar with by now… but they knew.

Maud was hurting just as much as they were, if not more.

Applejack leaned forward in response to Maud’s words, putting on a small smile. “Ah reckon there’s a story there, ain’t there?” she asked knowingly.

Maud blinked. “It could be told like one. Pinkie’s always been one of the strongest ponies in the family. Once she found her cutie mark, she didn’t go into the mines very much or work in the field. She mostly helped mom with cooking for the rest of us, or bothered Limestone to smile more, or spent a lot of time with Marble, trying to help her out of her shell. And she threw parties for us. A lot of them. But she was still strong. I remember a tunnel collapse that happened once. We all thought that Marble had been buried since we couldn’t find her afterward. Pinkie was there to dig through the rubble before anyone else. She moved almost as many boulders as I did.”

Fluttershy’s hooves flew up to cover her mouth. “Oh my goodness. Was, uh, Marble okay?”

Maud nodded. “Yes. She wasn’t anywhere near the mine when the tunnel collapsed. She was hiding under her bed in the house.”

Rarity raised an eyebrow. “Whatever for?”

Maud turned to her. “She’s scared of thunder. There was a big storm that day. We found her there hours later, and Pinkie threw a massive party out of relief.”

Rainbow snickered quietly at that. “Heh… yeah, that’s Pinkie for ya.”

Maud turned to her. “Because it is. But the point is that Pinkie’s tough, and I know she’ll be okay.”

As if on cue, the door that had been the focus of Maud’s attention slid open, and the doctor stepped out: a light brown unicorn stallion with a darker brown mane and tail. Twilight recognized him as Doctor Horse, the same pony who had tended to Rainbow’s wing. He glanced down at a clipboard, then looked up to the group, a smile adorning his lips as he approached.

Rainbow stepped forward. “So? How is she?!” she demanded, unable to hide the edge of desperation in her voice.

The doctor continued to smile and lifted a reassuring hoof. “You can rest easy, Your Highness. Pinkie Pie will be just fine, and we expect her to make a full recovery. It’s a good thing you brought her in when you did, or things might have been a lot worse.”

A wave of relief washed over everypony present. Twilight heaved a huge sigh, her hoof wandering up to settle over her heart as the weight was lifted. Maud stepped forward, her eyes boring into the doctor’s. “When will she be out?”

Doctor Horse turned to Maud and put on a more solemn frown. “Well, we’ve managed to get the broken ribs back into alignment. We’re monitoring her for the rest of the day before we commit to a specific treatment, though. The most likely case is that she’ll need a couple of days for my healing magic to run its course, and then she’ll need to take it nice and easy at home for about a week to make sure there is no lasting damage.”

“Is she awake?” Maud asked without a moment’s hesitation.

The doctor shook his head. “No. I’m sorry, but to better monitor her condition—and because we know how hard it is to keep Pinkie Pie still—she’s being kept under sedation until tomorrow at the earliest.”

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Twilight asked, leaning forward and already running through everything she knew about healing magic. She knew precious little, sadly, but with a little bit of time and research, she could probably turn something up.

Her desire to help was mirrored by her friends, with just about everypony offering an affirmation and leaning forward as well. The doctor smiled at the visual outpour of support before pushing his glasses up. “You’ve all done plenty already. Digging her out of the debris and getting her as fast as you did was no small feat. You’ve done admirably, but the rest you can leave to us. Don’t worry, we’ll take good care of her.”

The enthusiasm in the room was quelled by that statement, but not by much. It was replaced with a subdued form of satisfaction. Twilight looked to her friends, and she could see they all knew it too. The doctor was right. They had done all they could. It was out of their hooves now. But Pinkie was going to make a full recovery, according to the doctor. “What more is there for us to do or worry about?”

“How about how she got injured in the first place?” Midnight suddenly suggested from the depths of her mind.

Twilight twitched. Midnight had been quiet ever since they came here, in spite of the storm of emotions rolling around in Twilight’s mind. She frowned, turning away to hide her expression from her friends as they continued to talk with the doctor. “What are you talking about?”

“Think it through, seeing as you’re supposed to be the smart one,” Midnight bit back in a condescending drawl.

“If you know something, say it already!” Twilight inwardly snapped, her lips peeling back into an agitated frown. “I don’t have the patience to waste my time beating around the bush with you!”

Midnight chuckled in amusement at that, sending a chill and a series of furious sparks coursing through Twilight’s veins. “Oh, but what if I don’t want to?” she jeered mockingly.

Twilight barely resisted the urge to growl. “If you’re hiding something from me… I’ll-”

“You’ll what?” Midnight challenged confidently. “Yell at me? Make a scene? Make all your friends think you’ve gone crazy? They’re already feeling like they’re walking on eggshells with you as it is.”

Twilight’s teeth ground together behind her lips, a fire building up at the base of her skull. She closed her eyes and took a series of deep breaths, forcing herself to calm down. After a few seconds, she managed to find some semblance of calm and opened her eyes again. “Look, are you going to tell me what you know or not?”

Midnight sighed. “Oh, and here we go again. Why do you automatically assume I know something that you don’t? I can’t exactly leave your mind, you know. I’m simply connecting the dots that you aren’t.”

“And which dots are those?!”

Twilight could practically feel the smug smirk Midnight was giving her. “Oh, I’m sure you can figure it out. Just think back on what I’ve said...”

And with that, Midnight fell silent. Twilight snorted in frustration before shaking her head. Oh, how she wished she could gain the ability to attack Midnight sometimes. She definitely wanted to scream after most of their interactions, but right now she didn’t have that luxury; a fact that was made plainly apparent when a hoof found her shoulder, making her jump.

Rainbow was next to her, looking into her face with concern. “Twi? You okay?” she asked in a hushed whisper.

Twilight shook her head to dispel any lingering echoes of Midnight’s voice. “Er, yes. yes, I’m fine. I was just… my mind was elsewhere,” she said, not technically a lie.

Rainbow frowned at that but did not press the matter, thankfully. “Well, did you hear what we all said, at least?”

Twilight frowned. How much of the conversation had she missed? Looking back over her shoulder, she just caught sight of Doctor Horse’s tail disappearing through the door, along with Maud’s, while everypony else was heading for the exit. It appeared that she missed the entire discussion. She put on an apologetic look and turned back to Rainbow. “Sorry, but, I think I missed it.”

Rainbow sighed. “Maud’s gonna hang out here for the night, and she’s probably gonna extend her stay in Ponyville for as long as she can. Doc’s not letting the rest of us visit right now, seeing as we’re not Pinkie’s family, so we gotta get a move on.”

Twilight nodded, her ears drooping. “Right… fair enough. Come on, then. Spike doesn’t know what’s happened, yet.”

Rainbow cringed at that, following Twilight for the door. “Oh, yeah, somepony’s gotta tell him, huh?” she asked, her wings ruffling uncomfortably at her sides.

Twilight hummed at that. This was shaping up to be an exceptionally unpleasant day, and there were still many hours to go before it could be considered over. Pinkie was injured and in the hospital, and now they had to tell Spike about the entire disaster. That was a conversation she wasn’t looking forward to having. Not to mention the aggravating discussion with Midnight she had just gotten done with.

It was strange, though. The longer she thought back on Midnight’s cryptic-as-ever antagonisms, the more it began to feel as though she knew more than she was letting on. Twilight’s brow furrowed with thought as she cast her mind back to their discussion, and the last thing Midnight had said to her.

“Oh, I’m sure you can figure it out. Just think back on what I’ve said...”

Just think back on what she said… Had Midnight left some clue for her throughout the course of their discussion? Twilight thought back, scouring her recollection of their chat. Some small part of her was questioning why she was doing this. Midnight was a parasite, a malevolent force to be expunged. There was no good to be had in listening to anything she had to say… but at the same time, Twilight couldn’t stop herself. Something about this whole incident felt wrong to her, as if it shouldn’t have happened to begin with, and Midnight’s comments had her wondering if she was right about it...

“What more is there for us to do or worry about?”

“How about how she got injured in the first place?”

Twilight faltered mid-step as the beginning of their conversation resurfaced, and almost immediately she was reminded of something else Midnight had said, just after Pinkie’s construct had collapsed on top of her.

“Are you sure it could have happened to anypony?”

There was an implication there that made Twilight’s skin crawl. She shuddered uncomfortably and instinctively drifted closer to Rainbow. She felt the pegasus drape a wing over her on reflex, and she managed to relax somewhat from the affection. She lifted her head to look at Rainbow, her expression turning anxious. “Rainbow… I think you can handle telling Spike about what’s happened. There’s something else I need to do.”

Rainbow paused, bringing them to a stop. She faced Twilight directly and raised an eyebrow. “Huh? What are you talking about? You heard the doc, didn’t you? It’s out of our hooves, isn’t it?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, no, that’s not what I mean. It’s something else. It’s just… I have a bad feeling about all of this.”

Rainbow’s expression soured significantly. “...What do you mean?” she asked slowly, her tone making it clear that she was listening intently.

Twilight swallowed heavily, weighing her words before she said them. “...I’m not sure. But something about all of this just doesn’t add up to me… about the collapse, specifically.”

Rainbow hummed, glancing off into the distance toward the scene of the incident. “I dunno, Twi…” she mumbled uncertainty.

However, there was no uncertainty in Twilight’s mind. She felt she was onto something. She knew she was. She leaned forward, speaking emphatically. “I know it’s probably crazy, and maybe I’m just being paranoid, but I still want to look into it. I’m going to head back to the crash site and poke around, see what I can find.”

Rainbow sighed, her shoulders slumping. She then gave Twilight a small smile. “Alright… fair enough. Guess I can’t stop you, can I?”

“You could give me an order,” Twilight pointed out.

Rainbow bit back a laugh. “Ha! Twilight, I have given you all of two orders in the time I’ve known you, and you flat out disobeyed one of ‘em. I ain’t doing that unless I gotta,” she said with an amused shake of her head. A few seconds later, she straightened up and cleared her throat. “That said, you mind waiting till tomorrow to do this? If you’re gonna be poking around the scene, I’m gonna hafta make sure you’re authorized to be there, which means paperwork.”

Twilight frowned. She wasn’t keen on putting this off if she didn’t have to… but at the same time, Rainbow had a point. Odds were high that there were already ponies being organized to go in and start cleaning up the debris. Getting them to stop and getting Twilight the appropriate clearance to do her own little investigation based on nothing more than a gut feeling would require the resident princess’ signature.

“Always have to do things by the book, don’t you?” Twilight thought, imagining that Midnight would probably say something like that. She managed to shake the thought of the devil of her shoulder away and nodded at Rainbow. “Alright, I can wait. Just don’t keep me waiting too long, okay? I know I’m onto something here, I just have to find out what it is.”

“Will do,” Rainbow said before extending out her wing. “Now c’mon. Spike’s waiting… and I dunno about you, but I could do with a good lunch right about now.”

Twilight chuckled and rolled her eyes, falling into step beside Rainbow. She cooed as she felt the pegasus’ wing drape over her back and pull her in. She leaned into Rainbow’s side and rested her head on the pegasus’ shoulder. She gave off a content sigh as the warmth of her lover chased away her doubts and her fears. She knew she had a lot of work ahead of her, but it could wait. Right now, she was happy to walk in silence with Rainbow down the street, leaving the hospital behind.

Wreckage

“She’s been at this for a while.”

Rainbow glanced down at Spike with a frown as he said that. The two were standing a modest distance away from the scene of the incident. Briefly glancing up at the sky and the position of the sun, Rainbow guesstimated that it was about nine in the morning right now. If that was right, then Spike wasn’t wrong.

Rainbow returned her gaze to the debris, her keen eye locking onto the subject of Spike’s concerns. Twilight emerged from behind the fallen tower Pinkie had been in, a plank of wood drifting behind her in her magic. There were some very evident signs of wear and tear on the alicorn. She had been getting up rather early to come here and examine the wreckage for the last couple of days now, and there were rings under her eyes as proof. Add onto that a few strands of her mane that had seemingly sprung up of their own accord and how she occasionally talked to herself in hushed voices, and one could almost be forgiven for thinking she had lost it.

Almost, for this was not the first time Twilight had experienced an ‘episode.’ This did not, however, mitigate the concern that Rainbow felt for the mare. Twilight had been growing increasingly intent on coming out here and examining the scene of the incident, insisting that there was something here for her to find. Rainbow’s muzzle twisted into an even more concerned frown as she thought back on Twilight’s behavior after they had left the hospital.

She was fine, at first, but as the night dragged on, she became increasingly… distracted. It was as if she were trying to listen to multiple ponies talking to her at once, often asking Rainbow or Spike to repeat something they said, even if it wasn’t directed at her. It didn’t help matters that Twilight had tossed and turned for quite some time that night, and all of these symptoms had been growing steadily worse over the last few days.

Rainbow gave off a quiet sigh and nodded down at Spike. “Yeah, she has…” she muttered, finally answering him.

Spike crossed his arms over his chest, one eyebrow lifting up skeptically. “What is she even looking for again? I mean, from what you all said it just kinda fell apart, didn’t it?”

Rainbow turned back to the debris, her brow furrowing. That was a good question, and one she had given plenty of thought to. Twilight had been tight-lipped about the whole ordeal, simply claiming that she had a ‘hunch.’ A gut feeling that there was more to the collapse then they all first thought.

“But if there is more to it, then what could it be?”

“I dunno, Spike. Wish I did. All we can really do for now is just let her work it out of her system,” she eventually said out loud with a noncommittal shrug.

Spike sighed. “Yeah, that sounds about right,” he admitted.

Before the two could say much more, Twilight called out to them. “Rainbow! Spike! Come here!”

Immediately, Rainbow was on alert. It sounded like she had found something. Moving quickly, Rainbow scooped Spike up onto her back and took to the air. She spotted Twilight near the base of the tower Pinkie had been in, her eyes seemingly glued to one of the snapped support beams.

Rainbow came in for a landing, allowing Spike to hop down before focusing on Twilight. “Hey. Did ya find something?” she asked eagerly, already casting her keen eye about for anything out of the ordinary.

Twilight turned to face her. She nodded emphatically and jabbed her hoof at the base of the tower. “Yes! I did, finally! Look, right here, at where the wood broke!” she instructed, all but grabbing Rainbow and hauling her over.

Rainbow yelped from the sudden momentum but otherwise did not resist. Once she had her bearings, she examined the break in question for several seconds. Her lips drew into a thin line. “Uh… Twi? What am I looking at?” she asked skeptically, unsure of where the revelation was. It was just snapped wood, near as she could tell.

“Rainbow, we saw the tower fall to the side after this plank snapped, right?” Twilight asked intently, leaning into view from the side.

Rainbow nodded.”Uh-huh. What about it?”

“Look at the way the wood broke. It’s completely inconsistent with how it should if it was simply under the weight of the tower itself!” Twilight said, gesturing at the base.

Rainbow squinted at the break pattern. She was no carpenter or architect and didn’t have the first clue about how this sort of stuff worked. As far as she could tell, the tower just broke and fell over. She wouldn’t have been able to tell the cause unless it was something incredibly obvious, like fire or magic.

Spike, who had come up to her side, looked at the break himself, a dubious frown on his face. “I… I’m not seeing it. Dash?” he asked.

Rainbow sighed and shook her head. “Nothin’. Twi, you’re gonna have to walk us through this one, cause I’m lost.”

“Ugh!” Twilight groaned in frustration and stomped a hoof, the sharpness of her voice taking Rainbow by surprise. There was a flash of regret on the alicorn’s face, but she was quick to shake her head and press on before a big deal could be made of it. “Okay, okay, look. The tower fell over, we assumed, because it was poorly made, and the weight of the top of the tower was too much for the support beams down here to bear. With me so far?”

Rainbow nodded along, trying to predict where Twilight was going with this and failing spectacularly. “Uh-huh. The whole thing was kinda wobbly and just kept swaying around. Looked like it’d fall apart from a stiff breeze.”

Twilight continued, gesturing at the break point again. “Right. But tell me, then, Rainbow. Assuming something rigid but slightly flexible like this wooden beam broke under an intense weight, pressing down on it vertically, how would it be affected, and what would happen first?”

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “Uh… I dunno? Uh, I guess it’d bend a bit first?” she guessed blindly, shrugging her shoulders.

To her surprise, Twilight nodded emphatically and jabbed her in the chest with a hoof. “Right, exactly! But look at the break, and the wood around it.”

Rainbow frowned and looked again, closer this time and taking Twilight’s words into consideration. After several seconds of staring, she blinked. There wasn’t any bending that she could see and very little splintering. It wasn’t as if anyone took a saw to the material or anything, though. If anything, it was more like there was a very sudden application of pressure all at once, causing it to break in a moment.

She leaned back and turned to Twilight. “Okay, uh… so, there isn’t any bending or anything. So… What does that mean?”

“It means,” Twilight said eagerly, jabbing her hoof into the plank with her eyes shining. “That the tower didn’t fall because Pinkie built it wrong! It must have been sabotaged!”

Rainbow’s eyes flew wide open. She furrowed her brow, her muzzle scrunching up in confusion. Sabotage? That seemed like a bit of a jump to make with only one oddly broken plank to go off of as the most critical piece of evidence. If Twilight were some kind of master defense attorney, maybe Rainbow could see her finding some clever argument to prove her point with it, but right now? And with her looking this frazzled?

Spike summed it up perfectly with a raised eyebrow. “Uh… huh?”

Twilight stomped her hoof into the grass again. “Ugh! Come on, you two, work with me here! If it didn’t snap under the weight or poor construction, then what else could it have been?!” she demanded, her voice rising in volume.

Red flags went off in Rainbow’s mind. Twilight’s temper was flaring again. They didn’t want her blowing up at them, especially not so soon after they all just about had a heart attack fearing for Pinkie. A haunting laugh echoed into Rainbow’s mind from the depths of her memory, and she remembered the ghostly blue magic that had been leaking out of Twilight’s eyes. She shuddered at the memory and spoke. “Twi, I think you might be overthinking this just a little bit. I mean, there were eight of us there. If there was some other pony present to sabotage the whole thing, we woulda seen them.”

Twilight narrowed her eyes. “Rainbow Dash…”

“Dash’s got a point,” Spike noted, looking around. “This place is pretty empty. Not a lot of places to hide. Just a bunch of grass and hills.”

“I’m telling you, somepony tried to sabotage Pinkie’s obstacle course!” Twilight snapped, her ears folding back and her eyes narrowing in frustration. “Someone was trying to get her—and maybe even us—KILLED!”

Rainbow frowned and quickly put her hoof against Twilight’s chest. “Twilight, stop,” she said in as disarming a voice as she could. “Take it easy. I’m not saying you’re wrong, I’m just not sure if a weird piece of wood is really proof of something that extreme.”

Twilight paused, going rigid under Rainbow’s hoof. A few seconds later, she took a deep breath, seemingly calming down, and gently brushed Rainbow’s hoof away. “Alright, fine, fair enough,” she relented, though her tone hinted that she wasn’t happy about it. “I guess you have a point...”

Rainbow’s brow furrowed. Something about her tone didn’t seem right. Several seconds passed before Twilight shook her head and cleared her throat. “I’m going to keep looking around and see if I can find any more clues. There has to be something mixed in among all this.”

Spike sighed, taking a few ginger steps forward. “Twilight, you’ve been obsessing over this for days already. Are you sure you aren’t just overthinking things?”

Twilight paused but did not answer right away. For a few seconds, she didn’t speak, though her ears swiveled to face some sound that Rainbow didn’t hear. She raised an eyebrow and turned to look that way, but before she could spot anything, Twilight spoke, drawing her attention back to the matter at hoof. “Yes, Spike, I’m sure. I know I might seem crazy right now, but I know there’s something more going on here. I just have to find out what.”

Spike’s shoulders sagged. He clasped his claws behind his back and idly kicked a stray pebble. “Well… can you at least take a break for now?” he asked solemnly.

Twilight turned back to him curiously. “Huh? Why?”

Rainbow frowned. Did Twilight not know? “Twi… Pinkie’s gotten out of the hospital. The doc let her go home yesterday evening. She’s back at Sugarcube Corner right now, and the rest of us were planning on heading over to spend some time with her and make sure she’s getting on alright. I told you about that this morning, remember?”

Twilight’s face fell, her eyes widening. “Oh… N-no, I don’t. I’m sorry, I just… I guess I was thinking about other things,” she mumbled guiltily. She glanced back to the debris, ears resting flat against her head. After a few seconds, she sighed and went to return to the rubble. “I’ll come by later, okay? I wanna cover my bases as long as I’m here.”

“Twilight…” Rainbow called gently after her, but Twilight didn’t seem to be listening anymore. Rainbow watched the alicorn turn and vanish around the pile of broken wood and plastics, leaving her alone with Spike.

The two didn’t linger long after that. In spite of all their concerns, they knew there wasn’t a whole lot they could do to make Twilight stop for now. All they could do was head back and wait for her to show up at Pinkie’s place later.

The trip was made in silence, and Rainbow’s thoughts wandered aimlessly all the while. The ponies they passed gave her and Spike respectful nods of their heads, which she answered stiffly in turn, though she was not really paying them any mind. She couldn’t stop thinking about Twilight: the frustration in her voice when they had doubted her claims of sabotage.

Her frown deepened. Thinking back on it, she wasn’t so sure if it was a good idea to leave Twilight all on her own right now; a concern that only grew in intensity as Rainbow recalled a time from long, long ago, when the two were mere fillies, during which Fluttershy had first come to see Rainbow in her new home in Canterlot.

“Well, here’s hoping this isn’t gonna be a repeat of that,” she thought before putting the situation out of her mind for the time being. Sugarcube Corner finally came into view up ahead.

“Right, let’s go,” she said, ducking down to let Spike hop up onto her back. He did so without a word, and once he was settled, Rainbow flapped her wings, soaring up toward Pinkie’s bedroom window. Sure enough, once she reached it, she could see the back of Applejack’s head, making it pretty clear that the group was gathered upstairs.

Putting on a friendly smile, Rainbow knocked on the glass. Applejack turned to face her and gave an incredulous frown as if to ask her why she couldn’t just use the door like a normal pony. Rainbow just smirked and shrugged before gesturing for Applejack to open the window. With an exaggerated sigh, the farmer did just that, allowing Rainbow to swoop in and touch down gracefully in the center of the room.

Everypony was here, as expected. Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Maud, and, of course, Pinkie. Rainbow’s eyes settled on the last, and she had to resist the urge to wince. Pinkie’s barrel was encased in thick bandage wrappings, making her look almost like she had been trying to put on a mummy costume and gave up halfway through.

However, in spite of her injury, Pinkie grinned. “Rainbow Dash! You made it!” she cheered, bending her legs to jump. Maud shot her an intense look, and Pinkie immediately slowed to a stop and carefully stood back up, now with a grimace of discomfort.

“Yeah. Sorry, we’re late,” Rainbow replied, crouching down to let Spike hop off. “We get held up for a little bit.”

“Think nothing of it, darling,” Rarity assured her with a warm smile. She glanced past Rainbow at the window, frowning. “Though, I hope you don’t mind my asking, but where is Twilight?”

“Probably taking the door like a normal pony,” Pinkie guessed with a chirpy nod.

Rainbow winced. “Er, actually… Twilight’s gonna be even later. She stayed back at the, uh… ahem, scene of the crash,” she said, awkwardly rubbing the back of her head.

A heavy silence fell over the room for several moments before Applejack broke it with a sigh. “Really? That filly’s still fussin’ over all that junk? What’s she even lookin’ for?” she asked in mild dismay.

Spike opened his mouth to answer, but Rainbow stopped him by placing a hoof on his head, her eyes darting to Pinkie. The last thing they needed right now was to upset everypony even more by sharing Twilight’s insane hunch. Unless she found some more tangible evidence, it wouldn’t do anypony any good to stress out over it.

“Eh, just give her a little bit. You know how she can get,” Rainbow answered with a simple nod. “She’ll be around later. If you wanna grill her about it, do it then.”

Applejack narrowed her eyes at Rainbow, but she held her ground. A few seconds passed before Applejack sighed and shook her head. “Alright, whatever ya say,” she said before closing the window.

Pinkie looked down, a forlorn frown on her face. “Oh… Well, I hope she shows up soon,” she said, perking up again, though not as much as before. She turned and nodded over at her desk, and Rainbow saw an assortment of cookies and cupcakes spread out on it. “I can’t really throw a full-on party with my ribs like this, but I can still bake, and I’d hate for Twilight to miss hers.”

“Is there some for us?” Spike asked eagerly, his fists bunching up over his chest.

Pinkie shot him a sideways glance and gave a wink followed by the obvious answer. “Haha. Please.”

Paranoia

Rainbow was growing concerned.

The quiet gathering in Pinkie’s room had gone on for quite some time. Jokes were made, laughs were had, and some basic, non-physical party games were played to keep everypony entertained. Pinkie had been clearly eager for something more strenuous, but Maud was never far, watching her like a hawk or an overprotective mama bear. The presence of her big sister was always more than enough to get Pinkie to simmer down and contain her desire for physical activities; no conga lines that day.

As time went on, though, Pinkie’s eyes would more and more frequently dart at the stairs or the window. Every so often, she would ask Rainbow when Twilight was going to show up, and every time she had been given the same answer.

“I don’t know.”

It must have been a few hours by now, and Pinkie was starting to show signs of wearing down. Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy were all making their exits, explaining that they had their own obligations back home to deal with: Applejack still had work to do at the farm, Rarity had a few orders she needed to get back to, and Fluttershy, while still waiting for her house to be rebuilt, was focusing her efforts on helping the fashion designer however possible.

“Bye guys!” Pinkie waved to the trio as they stepped out, leaning forward slightly. “Thanks for coming! See ya next time!”

“Of course, dear!” Rarity called back. “Just get some rest in the meantime, yes? It just won’t do if you fall and hurt yourself!”

“Will do!” Pinkie replied before, finally, the tops of their heads disappeared down the stairs, leaving Spike and Rainbow alone with Pinkie and Maud.

Rainbow shifted uncomfortably on her hooves. She wasn’t sure there was much else she could add at this point. Things had wound down, and there wasn’t anything else Pinkie could really do without potentially agitating her injuries.

Rainbow sighed and turned to her. “Spike and I should probably be getting a move on, too,” she said apologetically. “No offense, Pinks, but you look beat. You should probably lay down and get a few Zs.”

Pinkie shook her head emphatically. “Nuh-uh, I can still keep going for a little while. I just need to-” a loud and unattractive yawn interrupted her mid-sentence, immediately disproving her denial. Her cheeks turned a slightly darker shade of pink, eyes darting this way and that as if she were hoping nopony had seen it. “...Uh, you didn’t see that.”

“We saw that,” Spike replied in a dry tone.

Maud nodded, placing a hoof carefully on Pinkie’s back. “Rainbow’s right. You should sleep.”

Pinkie offered feeble resistance as Maud began to guide her towards the bed in the center of the room. “B-but! But Twilight hasn’t come by yet!” she protested weakly. “I haven’t gotten to talk to her yet, and she hasn’t had her cupcake!”

Rainbow’s ears drooped, and her eyes turned back to the window. “C’mon, Twi… Now would be a great time for one of those last-second entrances to make everything better.”

But there was no sign of the alicorn by the window. Not even a single lavender feather. She wasn’t here.

“She can have it later,” Maud said simply, finally ushering Pinkie into bed. “But you won’t recover any faster by wearing yourself out so much. Rest.”

“But I-”

“Pinkie.”

A silence fell over the room, and though Maud’s expression was unchanged, Rainbow got the impression there was a fire in her eyes that only Pinkie could see. The way she shrank and cowered back into her mattress all but confirmed it. She stuck out her lower lip in a pitiful display of childish disapproval. “That’s mean, sis… You haven’t busted out your meanie voice in years!”

Maud blinked. “Yes. But I’m your big sister. It’s my job to look after you if you won’t.”

Pinkie sighed dramatically, her eyes starting to drift closed. “Ugh. Fine, you win… I’ll nap.”

Maud stayed where she was for several seconds, waiting. Then, after a moment, a series of loud, obnoxious snores began to emulate from the now-slumbering Pinkie. Rainbow tilted her head. How in the world did Pinkie fall asleep that fast?

A heavy silence fell over the room. Maud looked down at Pinkie the whole while, her expression as unreadable as ever. She glanced at Rainbow and Spike after a time, and her eyes narrowed ever so slightly. “Is Twilight still at the wreckage?” she asked bluntly.

Rainbow almost jumped in her skin from the abruptness of the question. She took a moment to find her words before nodding. “Yeah, she is. Or, at least, she was when we last saw her. She might’ve gone back to the library, though.”

Maud turned back to Pinkie at that. Her brow furrowed in thought. Then, with a flick of her tail, she turned and marched to the stand with the last remaining cupcake. Without a word, she picked it up and made her way for the stairs at a brisk pace. Rainbow watched her, an eyebrow going up. “Er, where are you going?”

Maud didn’t even slow down. “To give Twilight her cupcake.”

With that, Maud disappeared from view. Rainbow blinked and glanced over at Spike. The young dragon was looking back with uncertainty in his eyes. “Er… is it just me, or was the way she said that kinda… ominous?” he asked.

Rainbow knelt down and unfurled a wing to let Spike up. “You took the words right outta my mouth,” she stated matter-of-factly. She nodded for her back for Spike to get on board, and he did not waste any time in doing so. Once he was nestled between Rainbow’s wings, she rose to her full height and went after Maud at a brisk canter.

Whatever was about to happen, she wanted to be there.

“This saboteur of ours must be quite good at hiding their tracks,” Midnight mused absently as Twilight scanned the surrounding environment.

Twilight grimaced. She had been at this for several hours, now, and had yet to find any further clues that could prove her—or rather, Midnight’s—theory that someone had sabotaged Pinkie’s course. Just the one wooden beam that had snapped in a strange way. She didn’t find any other clues aside from that; no scuff marks in the dirt, no disturbances in the local shrubbery, no marks of magic. She couldn’t even use the spell she and Starlight had used to find the Empire, as if it had been a spell, it would be far too small for such a scan to find.

So where did that leave her? With a single plank of wood and a severe allegation with no suspects to throw it at. She was stuck. She looked down and heaved a heavy sigh. “Or maybe there was no saboteur, and we’re just overthinking things.”

“Oh, there was a saboteur!” Midnight scoffed, sending a spike of pain through Twilight’s skull. “We know that Pinkie’s creation wouldn’t have collapsed like that! We know it perfectly well!”

“Well, there isn’t any sign of anypony else!” Twilight argued, scuffing her hoof along the ground. “I’m not a carpenter. Maybe I misread that stupid piece of wood! Maybe I made a mistake in letting you convince me that there was something else going on here!”

“You deny me at your own peril,” Midnight warned in a low hiss. “I speak from your heart. To deny me is to deny yourself. But, then again, that has ever been your wont, hasn’t it? To scoff and turn your head whenever I dare to tell you what you already know. To lie to yourself, deceive yourself, and pretend that I am your enemy.”

“YOU ARE MY ENEMY!” Twilight finally snapped, turning and grabbing a large piece of shrapnel and throwing it off to one side. The loud crash it made as it collapsed jarred her senses, but she kept going. “From the moment I first turned, you’ve been a parasite in my head! You are everything I refuse to be! You’re paranoid, you’re malevolent, you’re sadistic, and you mock and torture me at every turn! There is NOTHING of me in you!”

Midnight gave off a series of quiet, disappointed ‘tsks.’ Twilight gasped as, suddenly, her vision went dark. She blinked, and when she opened her eyes again, she was standing before the Tree of Harmony. She took several steps back, her heart twisting with the memory of the ancient flora literally tearing the life out of her.

“A fool to the last.”

Twilight’s blood turned to ice. She spun around, her horn flaring with energy, and without thinking, she unleashed a beam of magic at the voice, pumping as much power into it as she could.

“WOAH!”

Twilight blinked as a new voice entered the fray. The cave was gone. The tree was gone. She was back amid the mounds of junk and shrapnel, one of which had just been reduced to ashes by her magic. “What…?”

“Twi, what the hay are you thinking?!” the voice came again. Twilight looked up at it, and her heart dropped into the pits of her stomach. There, flying above her with a singed tail, was Rainbow Dash. On her back and clinging for dear life was Spike, and held firmly in her hooves was none other than Maud. She was holding something in her hooves, but Twilight couldn’t see it from here.

Twilight’s throat tightened. “...Rainbow?” she choked out in shock, the realization clicking into place as to what she had almost done. She took several steps back, her heart beating harder in her chest. “What… what just… what did I…?”

Rainbow slowly came back down to the ground. She gingerly let Maud go, the earth mare landing soundly, before touching down beside her. Rainbow stared at Twilight with wide, shocked eyes. There was a flicker of anger in her expression, but it was quickly bleeding away, replaced with worry and fear.

“Twi…? Are you okay?” she asked carefully, taking a few very tentative steps forward.

“I… I… I should be asking you that!” Twilight cried, finally finding the will to step forward. “Oh my gosh, I am so sorry! I didn’t realize you were there, and I, I just, I was so frustrated I… I didn’t… I wasn’t… I’m so sorry!” she babbled, her eyes starting to mist over with tears. She had almost reduced all three of them to ashes. If Rainbow had been even a second slower, then…

Rainbow turned slightly to look at the tip of her tail. She frowned, then shrugged. “I mean… you missed the important bits, I guess, so…” she tried to joke, but it fell flat.

Spike hopped down from Rainbow’s back. The moment his clawed feet met the ground, they wobbled like jelly, and he fell forward onto his hands and knees. “Oh, man… I think I just saw my life flash before my eyes…” he mumbled.

Twilight’s first instinct was to go to him, to hug him and tell him everything was alright. Her legs remained planted, however, and her expression contorted with fear. Was it safe? What if Midnight made her lash out again? She didn’t want to hurt them…

“Twi?” Rainbow called gently, slowly inching forward, as if to not scare or startle a dangerous animal. She lifted a wing out in a simple beckoning gesture. “I think you’re done here. Let’s get you home, okay?”

“I… But I…”

“You’re not okay, Twilight,” Rainbow stated matter of factly. She then pointed carefully at the band around her mane. “I hate to do it, but please don’t make me pull rank on you. Let’s just go home and call it a day. I’ll have Spike send Luna a letter, and make sure she talks to you tonight. I think you need her.”

Twilight’s hooves remained planted for several seconds. The way Rainbow and Spike were looking at her, their eyes uncertain and fearful. And next to them, Maud. Her gaze was as unreadable as ever. The combined weight of their stares broke down any will to resist them she had left. It just wasn’t worth it. Not anymore.

“Okay… okay,” she relented in a barely audible voice. A few seconds passed before she felt Rainbow’s wing on her back, and the pegasus began to guide her away from the site. As they passed by Maud, though, they came to a stop. Twilight didn’t dare look at her, though. She could only imagine what Pinkie’s sister thought of her now.

Then, Maud’s hoof came into view. Twilight’s eyes widened as she saw the squashed remains of a cupcake held in it. She looked up at Maud to see a smear of frosting staining the front of her frock. Maud’s eyes narrowed and hardened. “This is for you,” she said. “Pinkie made it.”

Twilight gulped and gingerly took the cupcake in her magic. “I… Maud, I-”

“Stay away from my sister.”

The breath left Twilight’s lungs as Maud uttered those words. With her statement thus given, Maud then turned and walked away, not even waiting for a response. Twilight opened her mouth to call after her, but no words came. What could she say? What could she even try to say?

“Maud, hey!” Spike called after her, but there was little strength in his voice, and Maud did not listen. Soon enough, she disappeared from view, vanishing behind one of the mounds of wreckage. Twilight stared after her, working her jaw up and down.

A few seconds passed before she felt Rainbow nuzzling against her. “I’m sorry… let’s go,” she whispered in a reassuring tone.

Twilight shook her head but did not resist as the pegasus began to guide her along. “You’re not the one who should be sorry,” she thought.

Author's Note

Well, that could've gone better.

Spreading Laughter

“Where is the baking powder? Come on, come on, where is it…?” Twilight muttered furiously to herself as she scoured the contents of the library’s kitchen. She was already falling behind on the instructions in that book—she was certain she had added the eggs too early, and the chocolate chips were proving stubborn to melt. She didn’t need anything else going wrong, and yet the cruel mistress that was fate seemed intent on barring her progress at every conceivable turn.

Finally, she pulled open a cabinet and grinned ear-to-ear. “Ahah! There you are!” she declared, pulling the container out with her magic before returning to the scene of the project. As she turned, she realized that there was a pony and a dragon in the door leading out to the living room, and both were staring at her with looks of abject bewilderment.

“Uh… Twi?” Rainbow asked slowly, raising an eyebrow as she looked around. “What… are you doing?”

“A surprise,” Twilight replied with a slight twitch in her eye. She tried in vain to use her hoof to block one of the multiple piles of flour that had somehow wound up on the floor that she did not know the origins of, no sir. “Nothing!”

Spike raised an eyebrow. “Twilight… are you trying to cook?” he asked after several seconds.

“Er, no!” Twilight denied with a furious shake of her head, forgetting the baking powder that was currently floating right next to her in her magic. She looked at it, grinned sheepishly, and hid it behind her back. “I’m trying to bake. A bit different.”

Rainbow slowly waded through the chaos, trying not to step in anything. “Yeah, uh, I guess,” she uttered slowly, wrinkling her nose as if there were some foul odor in the air. “Ugh. But why are you baking?”

“It’s a surprise!” Twilight shot back without missing a beat before turning back to her cookbook and scanning the contents for exact measurements. “Don’t you two worry about me. I’ll be fine. Just go ahead and, uh…” she paused, her brow furrowing as her brain caught up. She turned to face the two and tilted her head in confusion. “Actually, what are you two doing up so early?”

“It’s almost noon,” Spike deadpanned.

Twilight blinked. “Noon?” Her eyes began to wander toward the nearest clock. It couldn’t be noon, that was absolutely ridiculous. She had gotten up at the crack of dawn to start working on this, and if her staggering lack of progress was any indication, she hadn’t been at this for very-

The clock gave off twelve chimes, signaling the arrival of noon, ending Twilight’s train of thought before it could properly form. Her ears drooped in mild irritation. How had she lost track of time like that? That wasn’t like her at all!

...Okay, it was absolutely like her, but that was beside the point. She shook her head to chase away the unwanted thought before smiling back at the others. “Heh. Guess I lost track of time, huh?” she asked sheepishly.

Rainbow nodded along. “Uh-huh… Twi, you doing okay?” she asked, drawing closer and draping a foreleg comfortingly over Twilight’s shoulders. The alicorn immediately melted into Rainbow’s embrace, leaning into her. The warmth of Rainbow’s chest fur immediately chased away Twilight’s lingering doubts, allowing her to sigh and relax as her thoughts began to come into focus.

She nodded after a few seconds. “I think so. Luna talked to me last night, so I’m better than I was,” she said, smiling up at Rainbow.

Rainbow’s concerned expression softened with relief. “Oh, thank gosh for that. And how did it go?” she asked after a moment.

Twilight gently pried herself from Rainbow’s embrace and returned to her bowl of partially mixed ingredients. “It went fairly well. She helped me wrangle my thoughts on all of this into order and helped me come up with a plan on what to do next. Which is what I am trying to do with all of this baking,” she explained, tapping the mixing bowl with a hoof.

Spike waddled in after Rainbow, tilting his head in confusion. “I don’t get it… How does baking something with your cooking skills help anypony do anything ever?” he asked bluntly with a hint of mirth in his voice.

Twilight pouted at him indignantly. Were these two ever going to stop teasing her about that?! “Ugh. It’s not about what I make, Spike, but- you know what? No, nevermind, you can find out with everypony else,” she decided after a moment, putting on a tiny, triumphant smirk. She’d withhold the purpose of the disastrous insult to her baking from these two, and she’d lord it over them, make them beg for the answers, and she would laugh and deny them until the time was right. Oh, it would be so sweet! Payback! Kind of.

Spike shrugged. “Meh. Alright.”

“Curses!” Twilight thought with her cheeks puffing up in annoyance.

“Brilliant revenge, truly,” Midnight cackled in sadistic amusement. “Now, if only you had-”

“One more word and my head is going in the mixing bowl,” Twilight threatened without missing a beat. “The contents have about the same consistency as cheese in a quesadilla. And you and I both know how much I wouldn’t like that.”

There was a prolonged period of silence, and Twilight took that as her victory.

Rainbow chuckled at Spike’s reaction before glancing back to Twilight. “Heh. Well, I don’t mind waiting to know what it’s all for. I mean, I’m sure the, uh…” she glanced at the mixing bowl and cringed. “...Cake? Er, pie? Fudge?”

“It’s cake.”

Rainbow did not seem convinced. “I’m sure the cake will be good,” she said all the same, turning back to Twilight with a small, uncomfortable smile of her own.

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Oh, hardy har. Just go and get a move on,” Twilight dismissed with a wave of her hoof. “Go see Pinkie. I’m sure she’d like the company. I’ll be along in a little while.”

Those words put an immediate end to the jovial atmosphere in the room. Rainbow and Spike shared a nervous glance. It was the dragon who broke the silence by coughing into his hand. “Uh… Twi? Are you sure that’s a good idea?” he asked slowly. “I mean, Maud said-”

“Maud has good reason to be mad at me,” Twilight cut him off, her own tone lowering. Lingering feelings of guilt and regret over her actions, even if aggravated by Midnight, swelled back into her thoughts. She took a few deep breaths to force them back down before giving the others a nod and knowing smile. “But I’m confident Pinkie will make her come around. I mean, that is the little sister’s job, isn’t it? To make their elder’s come around when they’re overdoing it?”

Spike chuckled, folding his arms over his chest. “Heh, fair enough. I can vouch for that myself. How many times have I talked you two out of-”

“Many times,” Rainbow and Twilight answered simultaneously. They then looked at each other for a moment, their eyes wide in surprise. A few seconds passed before their stunned silence was broken with a series of amused giggles.

Once the chuckles died down, Rainbow gave Twilight a knowing look. “Luna said that didn’t she?” she asked with a wink.

Twilight hesitated, then nodded. “Yeah. She did.”

Rainbow nodded along before turning to Spike. “Heh. She’d know,” she said before nodding for the exit. “Anyway, I think Twi’s right. Let’s go see Pinks. I think she’s supposed to go and get another session of healing magic from the doc, so I bet she’d like some company.”

Spike nodded at that, taking confidence in Rainbow’s assurance. He quickly hopped up onto Rainbow’s back and got comfy. However, before the two could exit, Rainbow spun back around to face Twilight, her expression turning serious.

“And Twi?”

“Yeah?”

Rainbow’s expression softened into something less intense. “...keep your word this time, please. Show up,” she requested quietly.

Twilight winced, another small spark of guilt lighting up inside her heart. She had completely forgotten to go last time she had said she would, thanks to that stupid pile of rubble and her insatiable obsession over it. But she would do better this time. She knew she would. She wouldn’t let herself not. She smiled and nodded. “I will, don’t worry.”

Rainbow watched her a moment longer before smiling, seemingly satisfied with the answer. With that, she turned and stepped out through the door. The moment it closed behind her, Twilight turned back to her mixing bowl and took a long, deep breath. The contents were a stringy mess. She had obviously done something wrong with this attempt.

“Oh, well. Just have to try again,” she told herself as she scooped the inedible contents into the trash. She returned to her cookbook on the tabletop and squinted at the page. As she did so, her horn lit up, and she was sure to lay her ingredients out before she began mixing them this time.

She was no Pinkie Pie, but she could still give it her best effort.

The walk to the clinic was a slow and quiet one. Rainbow and Spike had dropped in at Sugarcube Corner to see if Pinkie was still there, only to find that she had already departed to see the doctor for the next round of her treatment: another dosage of healing magic to speed up the recovery process. The Cakes had proved to be optimistic that this would be the last round Pinkie would need, as, despite all of her grumblings and complaining, she had been following the doctor’s orders remarkably well and was speeding toward full recovery faster than expected.

Nevertheless, Maud had gone with her to keep an eye on her. In the back of her head, Rainbow couldn’t help but think that the reason Pinkie was following her orders so well was that Maud was there to keep her on task. Rainbow shuddered at the memory of Maud’s cold stare managing to cow Pinkie into going to bed the previous day.

For a mare whose emotions were about as expressive as the rocks she studied, Maud could be really terrifying sometimes.

It didn’t take long for Rainbow and Spike to arrive at the clinic, and, after a brief period of having to wait in the front lobby, they were eventually called back to join Pinkie and Maud in the room. Rainbow grimaced as they entered. This was the very room she had been kept in back when she and her friends had returned from Hollow Shades, just before Chrysalis’ invasion of Canterlot. Her wing throbbed slightly in protest at the unpleasant memory, and she instead forced herself to focus on the three other ponies waiting in the room.

Maud was seated on one of the simple chairs, watching Pinkie, who was currently seated on the bed with a bored look on her face. The doctor was next to her, his glowing horn lightly pressed up against her now-exposed side. Pinkie looked over at Rainbow and Spike as they entered and got a big grin on her face. “Oh, hey Dash!” she called over, lifting her other hoof to wave. She locked up, her eyes bulging and her mouth falling open, no doubt as the sudden movement aggravated her tender ribs.

“Miss Pie, please try not to move,” Horse said in a firm but soothing voice. He pulled his horn away and gently nudged her foreleg back down into position. “This magic is delicate, and we don’t want anything to heal wrong.

“Sorry. I just wanted to wave hi to my friends,” Pinkie apologized.

The doctor nodded, giving Rainbow a respectful nod. “I understand, but your greetings can wait. Hoof up, please,” he instructed. Pinkie once again lifted her left foreleg, exposing her side. The doctor leaned in and got back to work, filling the air with the gentle hum of his magic.

“How’s she doing?” Rainbow asked as she made her way to sit beside Maud. Spike hopped down and took the seat next to her without a word.

“Well enough,” Horse replied, though his tone made it clear he was only half paying attention to the new arrivals. “We’ll see where we’re at when we’re done with this round.”

“Well, that’s good,” Rainbow said with some relief. She then turned to Maud and put on a small smile. “And what about you, Maud? Holding up alright?”

Maud turned to Rainbow, then glanced down to the now snipped-off tip of her tail. “I’m fine. You?”

Rainbow absently flicked her tail so the tip was out of view, her ears lowering slightly at the reminder of her near-death experience. “I’m doing okay. Twilight’s doing better now, in case you were wondering. She got some help.”

Maud blinked, then looked back at Pinkie. “Okay.”

A few seconds passed in silence. Rainbow wanted to feel frustrated by that response, but at this point, she just couldn’t find it in her. If Maud had more to say, she’d say it. No use trying to pry it out of her.

It was just such a shame that Spike didn’t feel that way. He leaned forward to stare at Maud past Rainbow with a furrowed brow. “Really? That’s all you gotta say?” he asked in mild annoyance. “Come on, express some worry or something!”

Maud turned to him and visibly frowned. “I’m not worried about her, though.”

Spike sighed and flopped back in his seat. “Guh, whatever.”

A few seconds passed before Pinkie spoke up in a much quieter voice. “...I’m worried about her, though.”

Rainbow turned to face Pinkie. Her ears had drooped, and her eyes were downcast. “Is she doing okay? I heard about what happened yesterday. Maud told me. She must be so sad and upset because she’s blaming herself for what happened, and she probably thinks I hate her now, and I just wanna go and hug her and tell her it’s alright, but I-”

“Hey, hey,” Rainbow cut her off before she had a chance to devolve into a manic rant. She leaned back and put on a comforting smile once she had Pinkie’s gaze. “Relax. Twi’s okay. Luna talked to her last night and helped her work through it. She’s doing okay, and she said she’s gonna come by a little later to check in.”

Maud’s frown deepened. “I told her to stay away.”

Rainbow turned to Maud, matching her frown with one of her own. “You did. But Pinkie’s her own mare. Pretty sure she can make her own choices as to who she hangs out with.”

Maud suddenly rose to her hooves, and any further words died in Rainbow’s throat as the gray mare loomed over her. Maud stared down her nose at Rainbow, her expression as always unchanging, yet somehow far more threatening. “Pinkie Pie is my sister,” she said simply. “My little sister.”

Rainbow blinked a few times before straightening herself out and matching Maud’s glare. “She’s also Twilight’s friend. I get you’re protective of her, but come on, ease off a bit.”

Maud snorted, but before she had a chance to speak, Pinkie spoke up again, cutting her off. “I want Twilight to come.”

Maud blinked and turned to face her younger sister. Pinkie was smiling and nodded emphatically. “She’s one of my best friends. In fact, if we count all of the Flashes I had before I met her in real life, then she’s also one of my oldest. I’ve known about her since I was reeeaally little, you know.”

Maud was quiet for a moment. “I remember,” she eventually said.

Pinkie nodded energetically. “I know you do! I had all those weird and crazy visions and you all kept thinking I had gone nuts or something!” she giggled at the memory before shaking her head and focusing on Maud again. “But Maud, I know Twilight. I trust Twilight. She’s one of my best friends, and I can always count on her to be there for the rest of us when we really need her. She’s brave, she’s nerdy, she’s funny, she and Dashie are just so cute when they get all smoochy with each other~”

Rainbow blushed and looked away, whistling a little tune.

Pinkie smirked and continued. “And she’s just so nice and friendly!”

“But… Pinkie,” Maud tried, but Pinkie kept going before she could.

“I know she’s not really herself right now,” Pinkie admitted, nodding slowly. “But she did just get done having amnesia for a few years, and she turned into an evil meanie version of herself that stole ponies’ memories of her. That was really really bad of her… And I know that whenever I do something mean, or something that hurts my friends, I feel horrible about it afterward… I feel like I’m not a good friend anymore, and there’s no feeling worse than that.

“And Twilight represents the Element of Magic! She’s, like, the big cherry on top of the wedding cake of friendship! She’s the big cheese that holds the hayburger together! The bark from the dog, or the meow from the cat! So if doing something bad hurts me, I can only imagine how hard it must be on her.

“She’s just struggling…” she continued, lifting her free hoof gently to hover over her heart, being careful to not disrupt the doctor or cause herself any pain. “But she’ll pull through. I know she will. And when she does, I wanna be there to throw her a big party to celebrate, and I wanna be there the whole way to cheer her on and be the bestest friend I can be. Because that’s what friends are for. They’re there for each other even when things are at their worst. If we left each other when things got bad, then… well…”

She lowered her hoof and met Maud’s gaze with a sad smile. “Then we wouldn’t be friends anymore… and I don’t want that.”

Rainbow stared at Pinkie with wide eyes, genuinely impressed with the eloquence of that entire speech. She then put on a warm smile and nodded approvingly in the party mare’s direction. The light in Pinkie’s eyes grew brighter, and her smile wider.

Maud was quiet, though. She stared at Pinkie for a time, her expression unchanged. Her tail flicked behind her once or twice, and she took in a very slow, very deep breath. When she let it out, she gave a tiny nod. “...Okay. She’s your friend,” she finally conceded. “Sorry.”

Pinkie shook her head. “No no, that’s totally okay, Maud! I know you were just looking out for me, and I appreciate it! You really are the best sister ever, even if you can be a little overprotective sometimes!”

Maud managed to smile a little at that, her eyes shifting to the side to look at anything else.

Several minutes passed after that where nopony said a word. Doctor Horse continued his work on Pinkie’s wound, only occasionally offering muttered instructions for her to move her hooves or shift so he could get a better angle. The only other sound was the muffled chirps of the birds outside the hospital window.

At some point, Spike became visibly bored. With a huff, he stood up on the chair and turned around to look out the window. He kept his eyes out there for several minutes before his eyes widened. He squinted into the distance before leaning back and tapping the glass. “Uh… Twilight’s coming.”

Rainbow looked up at Spike and raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah?”

“Yeah. And she’s bringing something with her.”

Pinkie bounced slightly in her seat, much to the doctor’s chagrin. “Ooh, ooh! What is it? Is it a kite? A book? No, no, wait, a horseshoe! A candy bar?”

“It’s a… box,” Spike leaned back slightly. “A big cardboard box. She’s also got one that’s for carrying a cake or a pie or something.”

Pinkie’s eyes lit up, and he gasped in excitement. “Oh, oh! Did she try to bake something?!”

“Maybe?” Rainbow said with a noncommittal shrug of her shoulders. As true as it was that Twilight had claimed to be baking before they left, leaving that mare alone with the stove and oven was, in all likelihood, a recipe for the birth of a new eldritch lifeform before the creation of sustainable food.

Without a word, she stood up and prised open the window. Sure enough, there was Twilight, cantering up the street with two separate boxes floating along behind her in her magic. Rainbow grinned, relieved at least that she was here, before reaching a hoof out to wave. “Hey, Twi! Up here!” she called out.

Apparently, the doctor had some objections to this. “What the- hey! You can’t just let somepony in like that! We have a receptionist for a reason!”

“Aw, give it a rest,” Spike said in disapproval, glancing back at Horse. “After that whole speech Pinkie gave? Plus, you know, Rainbow’s a princess, so she technically outranks you.”

“Spike, do not pull rank on my behalf,” Rainbow chastised him with a frown. She then turned back to the doctor and smiled apologetically. “But, ah… can we get her up here to the window?”

The doctor sighed in exasperation, then nodded. “Oh, very well… I suppose it can’t do any harm,” he relented before withdrawing from Pinkie’s side. “At any rate, miss Pie, your ribs are healing nicely. I want you to come back the day after tomorrow for one more check in to make sure they’ve healed up properly, but if you keep it up as you have, you should be right as rain in no time.”

Pinkie grinned. “Woo! Thanks a lot, doc!” she said, leaning over and giving him an appreciative hug.

Horse grunted as he was squished up against her. “Oof! Pinkie, please…”

She released him a moment later. “Haha, sorry,” she said apologetically.

Rainbow smiled warmly at the display, then turned to the window. Twilight was flying up now, her eyes alight with a weird mixture of excitement and… was that fear? Whatever it was, she did a good job of hiding it as she swooped up to come in through the window. Rainbow stepped aside to let her pass, and with a flutter of her wings, Twilight alighted gently on the floor.

“Whew! Hey, Pinkie!” she greeted, notably short of breath. Her mane was a little frazzled, too, and, judging by the bags under her eyes, her early start had taken its toll on her. “Sorry I didn’t come sooner, but I had a lot of stuff to get on short notice!”

Pinkie jumped down from the bed and quickly gave Twilight a friendly hug. “Aaaww, it’s no biggie! Thanks for stopping by, Twi!” she said happily. She drew back and looked up at the boxes. “Ooooohhhh. Did you get me presents?!”

Twilight chuckled sheepishly and set the boxes down on the bed. “Eheh, kind of? Sorta? Er, not exactly. Well… hm,” she tapped a hoof to her chin. “I guess it’s technically a present, but it’s not what ponies normally associate with-”

“Twi,” Spike cut her off with a deadpan look. “Concentrate.”

“Oh, right. Sorry,” she apologized. She then turned to look at Pinkie, then Maud. A quiet tension came over the room at that. Nopony said a word, and Rainbow watched on from the sidelines with a growing frown on her face. Several seconds passed.

Finally, Twilight took a deep breath. “Pinkie… Maud. Both of you. I’m sorry. I’m sorry I almost blew you up at the ruins, Maud, and I’m sorry I didn’t come when I said I would, Pinkie. I have no excuse,” she finally confessed. “I got lost in my own little world. I was too scared to face the situation, and I let my own paranoia get the better of me… I let it consume me, and I wasn’t there for you when I should have been. I let you down, and I can’t take that back.”

She then turned to the boxes on the bed and nodded at them. “But, hopefully, if you’ll let me try, I can make it up to you, and I’d like to start with these.”

Pinkie eyes the boxes intently, seemingly taken off guard by the sudden apology. A few seconds later, though, she tore her eyes away and gave Twilight another hug, surprising the alicorn. “Oh, Twilight. You don’t have to be sorry,” she said, giving her an affectionate nuzzle. “You’ve been sorry for so much lately. I don’t blame you for anything. I’m just glad you’re here.”

She then drew back and smiled softly down at the packages. “That said, I won’t say no to presents!”

Twilight visibly relaxed, her smile returning. She then turned to the boxes and, with a simple flick of her magic, opened the first one. Rainbow leaned in with everyone else to get a closer look, curious to see just what Twilight had been concocting all morning.

The first package was stuffed to the brim with a wide assortment of party favors. Party hats, kazoos, party poppers, party horns, a single bag of confetti, and a few rolled-up sheets of colorful laminated paper that she recognized as belonging to a few of Pinkie’s favorite party games, such as ‘pin the tail on the pony’ or ‘twister.’ There were also a few muffins wrapped up in plastic wrap that Rainbow instantly recognized as coming from Sugarcube corner. There were eight of them in total.

“I missed out on your last gathering,” Twilight explained simply. “And I’m really sorry about that. So I thought it would be a good idea for me to throw a small party for you. Just a little one, easily portable—hence the small box. But there’s just enough in there for the basics.”

Pinkie lifted a hoof to her chest and gave out a long, adoring coo. “Aaawww, a little mini Pinkie party! Or, I guess it would be a mini Twily party, huh?” she asked with a short giggle.

Twilight nodded before moving on to the next box. “Of course. But what would a party be without…” she left the sentence hanging and opened the box with her magic.

A long, awkward pause filled the room. Rainbow squinted at it, trying in vain to find words to describe the charred, lumpy, oddly-concrete resemblant block of stuff that filled the second box. She could faintly smell frosting and chocolate in it, but the rest of it was overwhelmed with the smell of burning flour and other, nameless aromas that gave Rainbow a funny feeling in her stomach.

Pinkie blinked and pointed at the monstrosity. “What… what is that?” she asked.

Twilight’s eyes flew wide open in horror and disbelief. “Wait, what?!” she asked upon realizing something was wrong. She peered inside, and the color swiftly drained from her face. “No, no, no! But I- how did- what is- What?! How did that get in here?! It was supposed to be a cake!”

Spike smirked. “Ya see? This is why we don’t let Twilight cook,” he said as if there was no other way this could end. He lifted a single digit and wagged it back and forth. “Tsk tsk tsk. Honestly, what were you thinking?”

“I followed the instructions to the letter!” Twilight whined, her face turning an impressive shade of red. “I just… I must have grabbed the wrong one on the way out… It was getting late and I was in a hurry…”

Rainbow watched the ‘cake’ for several long seconds. Was this thing really supposed to have been cake? Judging by the way it was faintly bubbling on one side, she had a hard time making that connection. The doctor looked in and blanched. “Oh, good heavens, that thing is moving.”

Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “So… the cake is a… live?” she asked slowly, not really wanting to know the answer.

“If there was a new species of bacteria growing inside that thing, I would not be surprised,” Horse said before levitating over a can of disinfecting spray and giving the monster a few good squirts. “That said, this is a hospital.”

“I’m sorry,” Twilight mumbled from behind both hooves and wings, having retreated into the corner. “I’m so sorry.”

Rainbow turned to her, her ears drooping. She opened her mouth to say something before a sound cut her off, one she was not expecting to hear, but one she really should have.

It was Pinkie laughing.

All eyes fell on the pink mare as she covered her face with her hooves, giggling hysterically. She shook her head, a few tears rolling out of her eyes before she turned and lunged at the cowering, confused Twilight, enveloping her in a tight hug and eliciting a startled squeak from her.

“I love it!” Pinkie declared. “Thank you, Twilight! This is gonna be the best hospital room mini party EVER!”

Twilight stared blankly at Pinkie for a second, completely taken off guard. But then her own fortitude began to falter, and she joined Pinkie in her laughter. Not long after, Spike joined in, and Rainbow just did not have it in her to resist and added her own chuckles to the mix. Of course, Pinkie would love it. Why wouldn’t she?

Doctor Horse shook his head with an amused smile before quietly excusing himself.

As the room was left to just the group of friends, laughing their little hearts out, Rainbow couldn’t help but notice that even the corners of Maud’s lips had turned up.

Author's Note

One more chapter and this little arc will be wrapped up. :3

Pie Family Tradition

“Do you reeeaallly have to go?”

“Yes, Pinkie.”

“But I don’t want you to!”

Maud turned back to Pinkie with her brow furrowing ever so slightly. “I’m sorry, but I’m late as it is.”

Twilight watched the two sisters chatting like this from the sidelines, a weak smile on her face. The discussion, or some variation of it, had been repeated numerous times ever since they all arrived at the train station. It had been a couple of days since Twilight’s impromptu ‘porta-party’ as Pinkie had dubbed it, much to the immense displeasure of everyone who had been in attendance. In that time, Pinkie’s injuries had finally fully healed thanks to the doctor’s efforts with his healing magic.

Now, with her sister’s recovery, there was no longer a cause for Maud to stay. She had soon gathered her things and was now bound to depart on the next train. Pinkie had, of course, insisted that everypony come along to say goodbye, and so they did, albeit for the moment they were choosing to keep back and let the sisters have their space.

“Heh. Ah reckon she’ll be alright,” Applejack eventually said with a warm smile as Pinkie hugged Maud yet again. “Both of ‘em.”

“They have certainly proved their constitution, have they not?” Rarity agreed, giving a sage nod.

That was one way to put it, for sure. Twilight watched the two mares conversing, her mind wandering back to what they had all been through of late, and she couldn’t help but feel a combination of relief and envy. The two of them were unquestionably strong of heart and mind, and it took a lot to keep them down. Even when things went badly, Pinkie always seemed to find some way to turn her frown upside down and pull a laugh out of thin air.

“If nothing else, they don’t have to worry about you,” Twilight thought, knowing perfectly well that Midnight was listening. She was always listening. “Or anything like you.”

“Who says they don’t?” Midnight asked dryly. “They have their darker tendencies just as surely as you do.”

“Maybe,” Twilight admitted before looked off slightly to one side. “But at least their inner demons don’t come with a voice.”

“Are you quite sure about that with Pinkie?” Midnight asked in an almost mocking tone. “Come, now. We both know no sane pony could act the way she does.”

Before the conversation could carry on any farther, the high-pitched blaring of a train’s whistle shot through the air. All eyes and ears turned up slightly to get a better idea of where the approaching vehicle was, and Maud was already adjusting her saddlebags and making one final check that she had everything.

Soon enough, the train came into view in the distance—at least, the smokestacks it emitted did. The train itself was obscured by the hills in the distance, but it would be here soon enough.

Pinkie visibly deflated and turned back to Maud. “Aaawww, so soon?” she complained, pawing idly at the ground in disappointment. “But… but…”

Maud put a hoof on Pinkie’s shoulder, silencing her. “It’s okay, Pinkie. I’ll come visit sometime when I get a chance,” she said somewhat quieter than usual. She then turned and approached the rest of the group.

Applejack was the first to step forward to meet her. “Well, Maud, guess this is it,” she said while tipping her hat. “Y’all have a safe trip now, ya hear?”

“Okay,” Maud replied in her usual monotone.

“And do not forget to call on me if you have any need for my skills as a seamstress,” Rarity added with a small toss of her mane. “I know my style and yours are not, shall we say, in sync with one another, but after you went to such lengths to help us look after Pinkie when she got hurt, it’s the least I can do to say thank you.”

“Or just any favors in general,” Rainbow said with an emphatic nod. “We owe ya.”

Maud stared at them all for a few seconds before the tiniest ghost of a smile appeared on her face. “You don’t need to hide it from me. You just want to spend time with me again,” she deduced without missing a beat.

Twilight blinked and glanced sideways at her friends. “They do? Is she sure about that?” she thought skeptically. While it was true that they had all spent far more time with Maud than initially planned thanks to Pinkie’s little accident, she didn’t really think there was a whole lot of bonding going on, was there?

Of course, she had been focused almost entirely on the scene of the incident for the first half of the ordeal, so maybe she just missed something.

A sentiment proved true when Applejack chuckled and tilted her hat over her eyes as if she were embarrassed. “Heh, ah shoot, ya got us.”

Pinkie leaned past Maud, her eyes growing wide. “Wait, WHAT!? You all finally got to bond with Maud?!” she asked in a combination of shock and elation.

“Um… yes,” Fluttershy said meekly, tugging at her mane slightly. “When you were hurt, she told us about how strong you were when you two were little, and we spent a lot of time with her when you were recovering.”

“Her love for you is palpable, dear,” Rarity added with a sage nod. “And in all of that, I daresay that, however subtle, we were able to find some very sturdy common ground between us.”

“No kidding,” Rainbow added with a small grin. She marched up to Maud and casually clapped her on the shoulder. “This mare could teach me a thing or two about loyalty! You’re about as expressive as a board, but you give all you got for your family. And… I can really respect that.”

Twilight’s eyes fell on Rainbow, a tiny smile forming on her lips.

Applejack nodded along. “Ah agree, and Ah found it refreshin’ just how blunt ya were with Pinkie. Ya didn’t sugarcoat somethin’ that didn’t need to be, ya just told it to her how it was. Like when she needed rest back in Sugarcube Corner that one time.”

With every utterance of acknowledgment and praise given to Maud, Pinkie’s grin grew and grew, until she looked fit to burst. “Oh, my, GOSH! Maud did you hear all of that?!” she squealed, hopping up and down excitedly. “Does that mean you guys are bestest of best friends now?!”

Maud gave Pinkie a sideways glance. “‘Bestest of best’ might be an exaggeration,” she shot down bluntly. She then smiled at Applejack, who was chuckling in amusement at that. “But I’d say we’re friends, now.”

Pinkie’s eyes practically glowed with that declaration. She bounced in place several times, squeeing excitedly to herself with satisfaction that, finally, her wish for this visit was fulfilled. It came right at the very end, but there was not a chance that would stop her from celebrating.

As Pinkie turned to Maud and began to excitedly chatter at her about something, Twilight’s eyes began to wander to each of her friends. She felt no small amount of pride for them, having found a way to bond with Maud despite the clear social disparities that divided them from her. They managed to find common ground in their shared love and care for Pinkie, and it showed. They were all animatedly joining in on the discussion, no longer seeming to be perturbed by Maud’s deadpan responses or almost expressionless face.

Twilight’s eyes soon landed on the train, and her smile wavered. Her friends had pulled that off… But she had not. She had lost herself in distractions, and she had missed her chance. Her brow furrowed and she looked down at the ground, a small bead of regret building up in her chest. She should have been there more. While she had really put in the effort at the end, was it enough? Had she done too little, too late?

The train pulled into the station, venting a small cloud of steam. Pinkie gasped. “Oh! Girls! The train’s here! We almost forgot to do something!” she exclaimed.

Twilight looked up. “Huh? We did?”

Pinkie nodded emphatically, reaching into her mane. “Yes! Oh, come on! Where is it?! Where did I- Oh, no! Did I leave them at Sugarcube Corner! Girls, I think I left them at Sugarcube Corner! I-”

“Pinkie,” Maud cut her off, placing her hoof against Pinkie’s shoulder. Once Pinkie’s frightened tirade came to an end, Maud gave her a small smile. “Relax. I brought them.”

“Brought us what?” Fluttershy asked, flitting forward slightly to get a better look.

Maud sat down and reached into her saddlebags. A moment later, she pulled out a see-through plastic bag filled with colorful pieces of rock candy, a spool of thread, and a needle. She also brought out a wooden box and set it to one side.

Pinkie grinned. “The candy! You remembered!” she squealed, jumping in place. She then paused and glanced at the back, frowning. “Wait. Those necklaces are already made.”

Maud turned to Pinkie with a frown. “The train is right there, Pinkie. We don’t have time to make any more now. I made these last night while I was thinking about it.”

Pinkie appeared just a little disappointed. “But- but- but I didn’t even get to make you one!” she complained, idly pawing at Maud’s shoulder. “Did you at least bring enough candy and string for that?! I can’t let you leave without me making one for you! It just wouldn’t be right!”

Maud rolled her eyes and then pulled another bag from her saddlebags, along with a small spool of thread and a needle. She handed them to Pinkie, who gave off a shrill noise of excitement before falling to her haunches and setting to work. Maud eyes her for a second, then turned to everypony else. “I made necklaces for all of you. To say thank you for looking after Pinkie for me. She’s in safe hooves with all of you.”

“Oh, my! Well, then, darling, I think I speak for everypony present when I say that we would be honored!” Rarity beamed, eagerly trotting forward. The others soon followed after, ready to receive the gifts. Fluttershy voiced some concerns that they had none to give back in return, but Maud assured her all was well.

As her friends took turns receiving their necklaces as if they were medals of honor, Twilight continued to hang back, watching them. She didn’t feel like she belonged in that circle just now. They had all earned Maud’s respect and trust. What had Twilight earned? At best, she had earned Maud’s tolerance, and even that was a miracle.

“Twi?” Rainbow suddenly said from her side, drawing Twilight out of her solemn reverie. She turned to the pegasus, idly taking note of the candy necklace now dangling from her neck like a medal of honor. Rainbow’s face, however, was a worried frown. “You okay? You’ve been kinda quiet since we got here.”

Twilight sighed and nodded with a sad smile. “I’m okay. I just thought I’d let you all have your space is all,” she said, looking back to the group. Rarity received her necklace next, and the way she was beaming made it almost look like she thought she was being crowned as a princess for something.

Twilight’s smile grew somewhat. “You all really bonded with her… But I didn’t.”

Rainbow frowned and draped a comforting wing across Twilight’s back. “Maybe you did, maybe you didn’t… but what I do know is that there are six necklaces in that bag,” she said knowingly.

Twilight blinked and looked into Rainbow’s eyes. “Huh?”

Rainbow grinned. Without a word, she nudged Twilight along for the group. Twilight offered a token of resistance at first but soon allowed herself to be swept along. By the time she arrived, Maud was giving her last necklace to Fluttershy, who withdrew with a small smile. Twilight’s eyes fell upon the plastic bag, and sure enough, she could see that there were still two necklaces left inside. One for Pinkie, and one for…

Maud turned to Twilight, meeting her gaze. Neither of them said a word for what felt like forever. Twilight smiled sheepishly, her eyes darting this way and that as the awkward silence dragged on, punctuated by Pinkie’s enthusiastic mutterings and the awkward stares of other ponies on the platform.

Finally, Maud lifted a hoof and put it over Twilight’s heart, much to her surprise. “...Pinkie told me about how hard things have been for you,” she said softly. “About how much you must be hurting inside because of Midnight.”

“Oh, if only you knew,” Twilight thought to herself.

Maud withdrew her hoof a moment later. “I misjudged you, Twilight. I knew it when you made Pinkie laugh in the hospital. You made a couple of mistakes, and I am still worried about my sister… But it’s not your fault. Not really.”

“I… uh…” Twilight stammered, taken aback. She shook her head a little to clear the cobwebs and gave Maud an appreciative smile. “I appreciate you saying that, Maud. And for what it’s worth, I am very sorry about what happened with my magic around the wreckage. I didn’t mean for that to happen. My mind was just… playing tricks on me. I won’t let it happen again, I promise.”

Maud nodded. She then turned and reached down into the bag, pulling out one of the necklaces. Twilight’s eyes widened when she realized that it was far more elaborate than the others. The pale blue piece on the very end was larger, too, and sprouted off to have several pointed tips aimed at the ground. She stood stalk still as Maud placed it gingerly over her neck.

The second the necklace came to a rest, a warm sensation passed through Twilight’s body. She was immediately reminded of the sensation she had felt back when she had received the piece of polynite from Spiracle. Her hoof wandered up to the stone, her eyes widening. From her side, Rainbow gave an impressed whistle.

“Woah. Fancy.”

Maud nodded. “It’s supposed to be,” she said. “This one’s special. Not only is it a thank you, but it’s also supposed to cheer you on. You are working through something that I can’t understand, Twilight… but maybe this can help you. This kind of candy can last for years, so if you want to keep it as a keepsake, or as a reminder that you have ponies hoping for your success even on the other side of Equestria, you can.”

Twilight gently curled her hoof around the end of the necklace, her eyes shimmering. She swallowed heavily and reigned herself in before giving Maud a large, grateful smile. “Th-thank you, Maud. I won’t let you down.”

Maud smiled. “Look after Pinkie for me, and you won’t.”

“I will. We all will,” Twilight assured, lightly bumping Rainbow with her hip. Rainbow flushed slightly from that but gave a curt, warm nod.

“Yeah, don’t sweat it. Pinkie’s part of the gang, and we never leave each other hangin’.”

Maud watched the two for a second. A small smile then appeared on her face. “Thank you.”

“It’s ready, it’s ready!” Pinkie declared suddenly, breaking up the moment. All eyes turned to her to see her sitting up and presenting her own newly finished rock candy necklace to Maud. “Here you go!”

Maud took the necklace without a word before reaching back into her bag and passing one final necklace to Pinkie. She took it with gusto and immediately chomped down on one of the pieces of candy with great enthusiasm.

Twilight then watched as Maud reached down to the wooden box she had set down earlier. She cracked it open to reveal that it was full to the point of bursting with several of these rock candy necklaces, all of them entangled together with a powerful, sugary smell. Twilight’s eyes widened in confusion until she saw Maud set the one Pinkie had given her inside.

Rainbow quirked a brow. “Are those… all the necklaces Pinkie’s given you?”

“Mhmm,” Maud replied, closing the lid. “All the ones she sent me since she moved from the rock farm.”

“Why aren’t you eating them?” Twilight asked in confusion, glancing at the box and then to Maud’s gaze.

Maud looked at her with her regular expression. “I don’t really like candy…” she said. A small smile graced her lips, and she looked over at her sister, who had hooked the string onto the end of her mane and was now trying to use momentum to swing one of the pieces of candy into her mouth. “...But I do love Pinkie Pe.”

Twilight blinked before looking down at the necklace around her neck. A few moments passed before she smiled and looked up to Maud one more time. “I understand.”

Before anything else could be said, the voice of the conductor cut through the air. “All aboard!”

Maud rose to her hooves. “Time for me to go. It was nice to meet all of you,” she droned. She turned to Pinkie, her eyes lingering on her side. “Take it easy for a while, Pinkie. You’re still tender.”

“Aaaw, okay,” Pinkie relented before chomping down on one more piece of candy. She then smiled and stepped forward, wrapping Maud up in a warm hug. “Come back soon, Maud!”

“When I can,” Maud replied, hugging Pinkie back.

Everypony else was quick to offer up their final farewells and well wishes before Maud finally turned and stepped onto the train. Twilight kept her eyes on her until the doors slid shut, blocking the mare from view. She then looked down at the necklace, her eyes latching onto the shining gem at the end.

She couldn’t help but smile at its color. Bright blue. Like the gem in Pinkie’s Element of Harmony.

Author's Note

And so ends Pinkie's little arc.

Help Wanted

In the weeks following Maud’s departure from Ponyville, Twilight has worked to separate herself from her anxieties. She has spent more and more time with her friends, partly to make up for any time she has missed—be it due to her prior amnesia or modern obsessions— partly to hold her peace, and partly to keep the voice of Midnight at bay.

In spite of everypony’s best efforts to move on, however, the carnage left in the wake of the Plundervines is slow to heal, be it physical or purely psychological, as will soon become plainly evident.

Dear Twilight,

It’s good to hear from you again! We’re glad to hear that you were able to sort the situation with Pinkie’s sister. We can’t really blame her for being a little protective, though. Shining used to be the same way with you when you were younger, and even now he occasionally lets it slip in our letters with him how much he worries about you. It’s a sibling thing, I guess.

Your father and I are currently making plans to come to see you later this month. Work is starting to ease up a little bit for him, and we’d love to spend some time with you and see how you’re getting on. I’ll be sure to buy a box of Donut Joe’s for you, too, since you can’t come to the

Your father also wanted me to pass along his love and encouragement, by the way. He’s at work while I’m writing this, and we wanted to get this one to you without upsetting Spike’s stomach in the middle of the night. You know how grumbly he can get if he doesn’t get his beauty sleep!

Speaking of sleep, have you been getting enough rest? You mentioned in your last letter about how Princess Luna is helping you in your dreams, and I just want to make sure things are going well on that front. It doesn’t drain you to have her step into your mind like that, does it? I don’t think that’s how it works, but you and your father have always been the intellectuals of the family.

Remember, we’re always cheering you on up here!

Love, Mom.

Twilight let off a quiet sigh as she finished reading the letter from her mother. She was lounging lazily in one of the many chairs scattered around the library’s central living room, and the letter had been delivered via Spike’s Dragonfire not long ago. It was early in the afternoon, meaning that there was plenty of time left in the day.

Twilight set the letter aside and lowered her head to the cushion. It was nice to hear from her parents again, but some small part of her couldn’t help but feel irked by how her mother had so obviously crossed out part of the text as if that would somehow make Twilight unable to read it. She didn’t need nor particularly want to be reminded about her lingering status as an exile from Canterlot. It only made her stress worse.

“They’re just coddling you,” Midnight mused absently. “Too afraid of upsetting you with what you already know.”

“Gee, I wonder why that might be,” Twilight spat with a grunt, turning over on the couch so her back was to the room.

“Sarcasm really doesn’t suit you.”

“Neither does the cancerous parasite in my subconscious.”

Midnight chuckled at the riposte but otherwise did not speak again on the matter. Twilight gave off an annoyed huff and closed her eyes. Rainbow was out doing her rounds with the weather team right now and Spike was reading his comics in another room. Combine that with the hour and the fact that it was a workday for most ponies and she was, for the moment, left entirely to her own devices.

Her thoughts idly wandered over the contents of her mother’s letter again, and she eventually began to give some thought to her question about Luna. Twilight’s brow furrowed. Since Maud’s departure, there had been one or two sessions in Twilight’s dreams, but they had not been of much significance. The most notable things she had learned from any of them were a few basic breathing exercises to help her relax, as well as some tips on meditation.

“Well, there’s nothing else going on right now,” she eventually decided. She sat upright on the couch and closed her eyes. With a quick flick of her magic, she opened the windows, allowing a gentle draft to come through along with the sounds of the Golden Oak’s leaves rustling and the distant chirping of birds.

With that tranquil ambiance established, she began to breathe. She lifted one hoof up to her chest as she breathed in, combining Cadance’s old breathing technique with Luna’s meditation. When she breathed out, she pushed her hoof away, doing her best to just clear her head and let the ambiance of Ponyville outside consume her.

For many, many minutes did this carry on. In, and out. In, and out. A flick of the ear as a bird chirped or a few foals went scampering by. A small, involuntary twitch of the nostrils as the faintest whiff of something pleasant wafted through. Maybe a yawn or two here and there, but nopony could prove that.

Twilight didn’t quite know for sure how long she let herself remain like that before a sound drew her out of her trance. Her brow furrowed as she heard the tell-tale flapping of wings outside, and she opened her eyes. The door opened, and Rainbow walked in, only looking slightly windswept. The pegasus grinned at her.

“Hey, Twi! Sup?” she asked, closing the door behind her.

Twilight smiled, glad for the company, and rose from her seat. She stretched as she did so, groaning with deep satisfaction as her joints and bones popped. Sitting like that was great for her mind, but it tended to do a number on her body. She peeked open an eye as she lifted her chest from the ground, and a tiny, knowing smirk appeared on her lips when she realized Rainbow had absolutely been staring, no matter how nonchalantly she looked away and whistled.

The blush gave away the game.

Twilight, only blushing slightly, sauntered over. “Oh, nothing much. A pretty quiet day,” she said slowly. “What about you? See anything… interesting?”

Rainbow’s cheeks flushed a deep shade of red. She squirmed uncomfortably in place, her wings ruffling at her sides. “Uh… ahem, I uh…” she stammered weakly, electing to look at anything but Twilight.

Twilight giggled and rolled her eyes. She sauntered up to Rainbow and affectionately draped her forelegs over her shoulders, drawing her attention. Once they were eye to eye, Twilight’s smile softened, and she leaned in to steal a quick kiss. Rainbow, as always, did not seem to be expecting it, but she was quick to respond, enveloping Twilight in a warm hug and kissing back.

The two came apart a few seconds later, with Twilight smirking into Rainbow’s face. “Anypony ever tell you that you are just too easy to tease?” she asked in a low voice.

Rainbow groaned but managed to smile in return. “No, but I get reminded of it basically every day.”

“Mm. Good. I’m doing my job,” Twilight remarked before pulling out of the hug. “But for real, though, how was your day? You’re back earlier than I was expecting.”

Rainbow followed Twilight to the couch and flopped down with a relaxed sigh. “Eh. It was kinda dull, to be honest. Everything’s on point with the bulk of the team, and the fresh blood they hired a couple weeks back have been picking up the slack I usually carried. Mostly I was just telling them where things go and the basic protocols for stuff. They caught on quick, so I got to come home early.”

Twilight’s smile grew. “Well, that’s good. That means I get more time to have you all to myself.”

“I am right next door!” Spike’s voice emanated from the other room.

Twilight blinked, a tiny blush forming on her cheeks. Without a word, she lit her horn and cast a bubble of silence over her and Rainbow. She chuckled sheepishly. “Okay, now I have you all to myself.”

Rainbow chuckled, pulling Twilight closer so they were pressed together. “Ya know, all he has to do is walk in through the door.”

“Rainbow?”

“Yeah?”

“Hush.”

The two shared a few laughs at that before falling into a companionable silence. Twilight leaned into Rainbow’s side, resting her head on the pegasus’ shoulder and closing her eyes. The two were happy to stay quiet for a while, and Twilight allowed her bubble of silence to dispel after a minute.

Once an indeterminable amount of time had passed, Rainbow shifted, and Twilight opened her eyes to see her picking up the letter from her mom. Rainbow didn’t look long enough to actually read it, though, passing it over to Twilight once she realized what it was. “Letter from mom, huh?”

Twilight nodded, taking the letter and moving it to a different end table with her magic. “Yeah. She and dad plan to come down here sometime later this month to visit.”

“Hey, that’s good. They don’t come by anywhere near often enough,” Rainbow said encouragingly, draping a foreleg over Twilight’s shoulders.

Twilight hummed and snuggled closer to Rainbow with a nod. “Yeah… I just wish I could go see them from time to time…” she muttered, her smile fading.

Rainbow was quick to give her an affectionate squeeze. “Hey, now. You’re working on it, and you’re doing great,” she said in a hushed whisper.

Twilight appreciated the effort, she did, but she nevertheless shook her head. “Ugh, no, I’m really not. I still have no idea how to open that chest. I’ve had a few months now and what do I have to show for my efforts?”

Rainbow opened her mouth to retort, but nothing came out. After a few seconds, she sighed and gave her a kiss on the cheek, chasing away the dreary mood in her head. “Well… your temper’s a lot less fiery, for one,” she eventually pointed out with a small smile. “So that’s progress on that front, at least.”

Twilight paused, her lips drawing into a thin line. “That’s because things have been quiet recently… all it would take for me to fall right back into all of that is for something to go wrong,” she thought, knowing all too well that Midnight was listening intently to their conversation.

“Point is, this stuff’s not gonna solve itself overnight, ya know,” Rainbow assured her with another squeeze. “And we all knew that going in. Not to mention everypony and their mom’s tellin’ ya to not stress over it. So let’s not stress, eh?”

Twilight snorted but managed to smile. “Heh. That is so much easier said than done, you know that right?” she asked, giving Rainbow an incredulous look.

“I do,” Rainbow acknowledged, a playful glint coming to her eyes. Twilight tilted her head. The pegasus was planning something… the question was, what? Rainbow shifted to face Twilight more directly. “But I can think of one or two ways to make it a heck of a lot easier…”

Twilight blushed violently at that and looked away with a weak chuckle and embarrassed cough. “Oh, my. Aheh, maybe you should take me to dinner first?” she suggested sheepishly.

“Sure, just name a time.”

Twilight grinned, placing a hoof on Rainbow’s chest to hold her back. “Okay, okay. How about tomorrow evening? Spike already has the start for tonight’s dinner out to defrost, and I don’t wanna waste his time.” she suggested. It had been a little while since their last date, now that she thought about it, and spending some quality alone time with Dash sounded like just what the doctor ordered.

To her surprise, however, Rainbow did not leap into agreement. Instead, her muzzle contorted into a disappointed frown. She backed off a second later with a weary sigh. “Ugh… sorry, but tomorrow’s not a good time for that. I kinda already agreed to be somewhere else for, well, basically all of it,” she said sheepishly, rubbing at her foreleg with a hoof.

Twilight raised an eyebrow. Well, this was unexpected. “You have? What do you mean? Where are you going to be?” she asked curiously, leaning forward slightly. She didn’t think it was anything problematic, but it was still surprising that she was only now hearing about this. Rainbow must have only made this arrangement today.

Rainbow leaned back in her seat and blew out a puff of air, sending some of her mane drifting. “While I was coming back from my rounds, Applejack stopped me on the way. We talked for a bit, and she eventually asked if I’d be willing to give her and her folks a hoof in the orchard tomorrow. Those Plundervines kinda left everything on their heads, and with how big AJ’s orchard is—and since it’s right next to the Everfree—they’re still finding spots where things got torn up. They’re trying to fix everything up in good time, but it’s been tough on em, with Apple Bloom being small, and Granny Smith being a cranky old mare whose hip doesn’t work right.”

Twilight took that information in for a little bit. She leaned back and gave a quiet sigh. “I see… And you agreed to help them,” she said, only slightly disappointed.

“Yeah. Never gonna leave my friends hangin’ and all that,” Rainbow said with a nod. She gave Twilight an apologetic look. “Sorry. But it’s not a big deal, we can just have our dinner date the day after, how’s that sound?”

Twilight gave the suggestion some thought. It was the most reasonable suggestion, and it wasn’t like an extra day without a date would kill her. They already lived together, and if there was one thing that had been proven a long time ago, it was that Rainbow Dash was the perfect distraction just by being around.

Except there was a problem. Twilight frowned. Rainbow was probably going to be gone for the bulk of the day if she was going to be helping the Apples out on the farm, which meant Twilight would once again be left to her own devices for several hours on end. Not ideal, given that distractions from that stupid chest were in high demand right now.

Although… a smile came to Twilight’s lips, and the one she gave Rainbow was even larger. “That sounds fair to me… if you also bring me along when you go to the farm,” she said, jabbing Rainbow lightly in the chest.

Rainbow blinked. “Fwuh?” she asked in confusion.

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Come on, think about it. It can be a different kind of date!” she suggested, bouncing slightly in her seat. “Maybe not a romantic date, but let’s be real, Rainbow, you’re about as good at being romantic as a drunk walrus.”

Rainbow’s wings sprang open, and she gave an offended squawk at the comparison. “You wanna say that again?!” she asked, her cheeks flushing.

Twilight giggled and drew closer, drawing the words out into a slow, teasing whisper. “You are about as romantically skilled as a drunk walrus.”

Rainbow’s cheeks puffed up with indignation. Her wings flapped once or twice at her sides in an open display of her displeasure, before she tried to offer up a witty comeback. “Y-yeah?! Well, you’re about as romantic as, uh, um, a dusty old book!”

Without missing a beat, Twilight lit her horn and levitated over one of the books from the shelves, and presented it to Rainbow. “Behold, a dusty old book.”

Rainbow took the book in her hooves and frowned. “What is this?”

“A romance book,” Twilight chirped.

Rainbow lowered the book with one eye twitching. “You are just… guh!” she complained, throwing the book aside and crossing her forelegs in a foalish huff. Twilight laughed openly at the display, then leaned in to hug Rainbow from the side, burying her face into the pegasus’ neck fur.

“You know you love it,” she whispered a moment later.

Rainbow heaved a sigh of defeat and leaned into Twilight’s embrace. “Yeah… guess I do,” she admitted quietly. A few seconds passed before she drew back and nodded at her. “So, you sure you wanna come along? I mean, it’s gonna just be a lot of walking around and moving stuff.”

“It’ll be a good distraction,” Twilight assured Rainbow. “I’ll manage.”

Rainbow smiled. “Okay. If you say so.”

With that, the two fell silent, and Twilight leaned against Rainbow’s side again. She let her eyes drift closed, and once again focused on the sounds of the world beyond her front door. As a gentle breeze washed over her face, carrying with it the smell of flowers and somepony’s outdoor baking, she couldn’t help but notice that it was a lot easier to meditate when Rainbow was by her side.

Author's Note

Been a hot minute since we had some good-old-fashioned Twidash fluff.

Lingering Bitterness

Canterlot loomed ahead of her. The city on the mountainside was bathed in the divine radiance of the sun, causing it to glow as if it were, itself, a source of light. A gentle, serene breeze washed by, tickling the edges of Twilight’s senses with its phantasmal touch. Twilight gazed at the city gates, her eyes wide in confusion.

“W-what…?”

How and when had she gotten here? She looked from side to side, taking in the landscape. It was just as she remembered it; not a blemish or mark in sight. The small stream that ran down from the mountain slope and widened to form the city’s primary moat stood off to her right, as it always did, its currents lapping softly at the shore. Trees on the far side of the stream wavered in the breeze, lending their own quiet rhythm to the ambiance.

But… where were the birds? Twilight couldn’t hear a single bird singing their customary song right now. It was just the wind, the water, the trees, and her own confused, rambling thoughts.

Something rustling caught her attention. Twilight looked down at her hooves to see a sheet of paper pinned to the dirt beneath her, fluttering erratically in the wind. Her brow furrowed, and she lifted it up to her face in her magic. Her eyes widened as she recognized her mother’s letter to her from the other day.

A tiny chuckle escaped her.

“Of course… how could I forget?” she asked as it all came rushing back to her.

After getting this letter from her parents, she had spent hours anguishing over the fact that she hadn’t been able to return to Canterlot of her own will for so long. She had vented her frustrations to Rainbow Dash, been consoled by Spike, and gone to sleep fitful and restless.

When she had awoken, though, it was with a resolution burning in her heart. Everypony kept telling her that she couldn’t come up to Canterlot, that she had been exiled, but what could any of them realistically do to stop her if she tried? She was an alicorn, and even before that was the case she had ranked among the top ten most powerful magic users in modern Equestria. The number of ponies that might have had the power to oppose her was few, and even fewer of them would be willing to use force.

What would it hurt to drop in for a quick, quiet little surprise visit with her parents? Just a little drop-in, an hour or two to catch up, and then she’d slip away before anypony could be any the wiser. It wouldn’t hurt anypony. It would barely even ruffle any feathers. If Celestia and Luna caught wind of it, they would probably give her the mother of all lectures via letter, but Twilight could live with that.

Besides, it wasn’t like there was anything left for her to be punished for. She had learned her lesson already, hadn’t she? The point of punishment was to make sure somepony did not commit the crime again when it was over. To teach them the consequences of their actions and dissuade them from doing it again, often by encouraging them to pick a better path and choose a better fate.

And she had been doing just that. Sure, she hadn’t totally purged Midnight from her mind yet, and that stupid, pointless chest was still sitting and collecting moss back in the Everfree Forest, but who cared about that rotten old thing?

With a deep breath, Twilight readjusted her wings at her sides and tucked the letter away under her wings. She then spread them wide and took to the sky, aiming to fly high over the wall and duck into an alleyway before anypony could notice her presence. She closed her eyes and let off a content hum as the wind washed over her face and her mane, awakening her senses and purging her melancholy.

And then she flew into something. Hard.

Twilight cried out as an invisible barrier intercepted her course, knocking her back with a crackle of energy. She flailed wildly as she tumbled down before, eventually, finding her center and righting herself in the air. She snapped out her wings and entered into a circling glide, glaring at the city with cold contempt.

Of course it wouldn’t be that simple. Why would it be? Nothing ever was.

Not when it came to the princesses.

Twilight’s hooves found purchase on a grassy ledge overlooking the city from up the mountainside. She glared down at it, indignation and frustration burning away at her core. She drew one of her hooves back, creating a trench in the dirt, and blew out a snort of anger. Who were they to keep her from her home? From her family?

Her horn began to light up with magic. Fine, then. If they wouldn’t let her come home quietly, she would just have to make a bit of noise first. She angled her head down, lining up the shot, and fired off a pristine bolt of cyan magic. It struck the dome with a flash of light and a distorted, high-pitched boom, like static feedback and shattering glass. Much to Twilight’s frustration, however, the dome held firm, flickering at her as if to taunt her.

It was blue.

“Luna…” Twilight seethed, spreading her stance. “Let! Me! IN!”

She fired off shot after shot, pouring more power into each one for every word she spoke. Each one was just as ineffectual as the last, only heightening her growing anger. She just wanted to pay her parents a visit! Was that so much to ask for!?

With one last shout, Twilight reared back and fired off the largest beam of magic she could. The winds shifted around her. No longer were they whispering for her to stop. No, now they were telling her to tear the wall down. To break through and reclaim entry to her home by force. It was her home! She would not be kept from it by some high-and-mighty princesses who barely had grounds to criticize her in the first place!

She remembered perfectly well the sneer of Nightmare Moon in the Castle of the Two Sisters, and the malevolent glare of Daybreaker in the Empire. They had both fallen just as surely as she did! In fact, they had fallen first! They had no right to condemn her for the very folly they themselves had committed!

NONE!

The beam struck its mark. The barrier flashed brightly in retaliation, but it did not give away under Twilight’s assault. She let loose a billowing shriek of rage and poured more power into the spell, growing desperate.

Suddenly, the dome flared and pulsed. A wave of arcane light expanded outwards from it. Twilight’s eyes widened. She didn’t have time to react, only to lift a foreleg over her face in a feeble attempt at defense. The expanding wave crashed into her like a tsunami, hurling her off her hooves so she tumbled head-over-hooves through the air. Twilight screamed and flailed, beating her wings frantically against the galeforce winds in a desperate bid to regain control of herself before she hit something.

She met the ground before she could make any progress. The wind was driven from her lungs, sending Twilight sprawling along the ground for several yards before finally coming to a rest. Her entire body throbbed with pain, and a low groan of discomfort snaked its way out of her throat. She lifted her head to glare at Canterlot.

She blinked. “W-what the hay?”

She wasn’t in the mountains anymore. She was in the cave with the Tree of Harmony. And to her combined shock, shame, and irritation, Princesses Celestia and Luna stood in front of her, looking down on her with disappointed expressions.

“Not until your work is done,” Celestia stated in a cold, distant voice.

Twilight’s coat bristled. She forced herself back to her hooves, trying and failing to reign in her flaring emotions. “And who are you to make that decision?!” she spat venomously, fire flooding her veins.

Celestia lowered her eyes to meet Twilight’s directly, her expression hardening. “Your teacher. Your mentor. I expect you to do as you’re told.”

Twilight scoffed, her eye twitching. “Oh, do you? Well, what if I say no?” she demanded, scraping her hoof along the ground again. “What if for once in my life, I decide that your word isn’t the law I should live my life by?! What if, for once, I decided there was something more important than you?!”

Celestia’s eyes narrowed. She opened her mouth to speak, but Twilight was no longer willing to listen. She kicked off the ground and threw herself as the sun princess, her darkening hooves outstretched, her growing fangs bared, and her glowing eyes wide with fury.

It was only when her hooves found Celestia’s neck that she realized what was happening.

Twilight screamed.

“Wha-huh?! Twi! Twilight, hey! Wake up!”

Twilight awoke with a panicked scream, jerking her hooves back to her chest. Her eyes snapped wide open, darting this way and that in a frantic daze. In a moment, she felt a familiar pair of hooves on her shoulders, drawing her attention. She looked up, gasping frantically, into a calming pair of tired, cerise eyes.

Twilight allowed herself to get lost in those eyes, and her frantic breaths started to calm back down. Rainbow loomed over her, looking to have just woken up herself. It had been her voice that called Twilight out of her panicked nightmare. Judging by the faint orange light on the side of her face, the sun was only just starting to come up.

Twilight swallowed heavily, shivering as she realized how cold she suddenly felt. “R-rainbow…” she stammered out.

“You okay?” the pegasus asked in a lower whisper, lowering herself down somewhat and wrapping her forelegs tightly around Twilight’s body. “You started screaming really loudly… you kept saying ‘no,’ and ‘I’m sorry’ and stuff like that.”

Twilight returned the embrace, taking a deep breath to steady her nerves. “I… Y-yeah. I think so. Just a nightmare.”

“Kinda figured,” Rainbow replied, a small edge of humor in her voice. She leaned back after a moment and planted a tender kiss on Twilight’s lips before she could say anything, cutting her off and serving to further cool the flames of fear in her gut. Once Rainbow pulled away, she readjusted to get more comfortable and idly stroked Twilight’s mane with a hoof. “Wanna talk about it?”

Twilight hesitated. She opened her mouth to speak, to explain what had happened and what she had seen, but no words came. She stared into Rainbow’s eyes, the words only becoming further entrenched halfway to her lips. How could she tell Rainbow that her nightmare had ended with her strangling Celestia, Rainbow’s adoptive mother, to death in front of the Tree of Harmony? She couldn’t even begin to fathom how she should word such a dream to anypony else, much less Rainbow.

She felt sick to her stomach and shivered again. She shook her head. “N-no… I’d rather forget it,” she said weakly.

Rainbow eyed her a moment longer before conceding. She pulled Twilight closed, nuzzling affectionately into her neck. “Well, if you change your mind, I’m right here,” Rainbow said softly.

The two fell into silence after that. Twilight was numbly aware of Spike opening the door at one point to check on them, Rainbow assuring him that all was well, and then it closing again. The silence dragged on after that, allowing Twilight’s mind to wander and race. She closed her eyes and tried to get some more rest. They had an hour or so before they had to be up, after all, and it wouldn’t do to get up before she was ready.

She tried to focus on anything other than the dream she just had in the hopes of finding her comfort again. She walked through the breathing exercises that she knew as well as she could without disturbing Rainbow, she tried to clear her head as Luna had taught her. But leaving her thoughts empty only served to allow the visceral memory of her nightmare to return in full force.

“Why would I do that?” she thought, her stomach churning with disgust. She didn’t hate Celestia. She didn’t even dislike her! In all of Twilight’s years, she could maybe count the number of times she had even remotely been upset with her on her hooves. What, then, would drive her to try and grab at her throat? She tried to dismiss it as simply an oddity of her nightmare, but she couldn’t do that anymore. She knew well enough by now that dreams so pointed and visceral had more to them than met the eye.

Unfortunately for her, her passenger had something to say on the matter.

“Maybe you don’t hate the princesses. But they have both certainly earned your ire for more than a few reasons,” Midnight whispered into her mind, drawing a withering gasp out of Twilight. “They are afraid of you. They are afraid of what you did. They are afraid of what you will do again. And so they keep you at a distance. They keep you under strict watch. And they keep you away from their precious little ponies. Your parents included.”

Twilight began to curl up into a ball, trying desperately to drown Midnight’s voice out. But the dark voice would not be denied. It kept on going, its words starting to blend together, but being no less hurtful for it. Twilight’s body began to shiver with fear, anger, grief, rage, sorrow, frustration, guilt, and countless, countless other emotions as Midnight went on and on.

“Twi?” Rainbow whispered from behind her, her voice laced with concern.

Twilight saw a chance to distract herself, to drown Midnight out, and she took it. She quickly rolled over and threw herself against Rainbow, pinning the pegasus down and mashing their lips together. A surprised squeak came from Rainbow, but Twilight didn’t care. She couldn’t care. She just needed something, anything, to distract her. And right now, Rainbow fit the bill perfectly.

Exhaustion

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

Twilight let off an impatient snort at the repeated question. She must have heard it at least a million times by now, and the day was still young. She turned to Rainbow Dash and gave the pegasus a reassuring nod. “Yes, Rainbow, I’m fine. One little nightmare isn’t going to be enough to stop me from being there for my friends.”

Rainbow did not look convinced. At all. At least, for the moment, she chose not to press the subject. Not that it mattered. She would no doubt come asking again once they were halfway to Sweet Apple Acres.

It had been like this off and on ever since Twilight and Rainbow got out of bed. They’d stayed there a little longer than originally planned, due entirely to Twilight’s insistence on keeping Rainbow pinned and slathering the poor mare in an endless deluge of affection. It had done wonders to distract her from Midnight’s prior insinuations and taunts, but conversely did very little to rest her weary mind.

She felt exhausted, and if the looks Rainbow and Spike had been giving her over the course of that morning were anything to go by, she looked exhausted. She was probably acting exhausted, too, but she was too tired to really care about that; an irony that was lost on her just then.

It was about time for them to head out, and both Rainbow and Twilight were gathered by the door. Spike stood not far away with a pensive frown, watching them get their things ready for their trip. He interlaced his claws together, his frown worsening. “Just take it easy out there, okay Twilight? You’re really out of it.”

Twilight shot him a small, grateful smile, glad at least that they were looking out for her. “I will, don’t worry. It’s not going to be a problem,” she assured him.

Spike, like Rainbow, did not look convinced. Twilight gave an exasperated sigh and meandered over to him. “Oh, come on, Spike. Have a little faith in me, would you?” she said, patting him on the head with a tender smile. “I promise, if I start overworking myself, or something goes wrong, the princess will haul me back by the tail.”

Rainbow perked up. “Wait, I will?”

Twilight shot her a smug look over her shoulder. Rainbow flushed, her cheeks turning a bright shade of red from the look. She cleared her throat and looked away, finding a spot on the ceiling very interesting all of a sudden. “O-oh, right. Yeah, of course, I’ll do that. Yeah. Tail. In my mouth. Gotcha.”

Spike’s expression flattened at that, and he crossed his arms over his chest. “Well, now you’ve done it. You broke her!” he playfully scolded Twilight, earning an amused snicker from her.

Twilight shook her head and turned for the door. “Too easy. Now, come on, Dashie,” she said playfully. As she walked by Rainbow, she took the time to deliberately bump her hip against Rainbow’s, drawing an indignant squawk from her. She held back the urge to laugh again as Rainbow grumbled in irritation and followed her out.

“You know, we had all that time in the room for you to pull crud like that,” Rainbow pointed out once the door closed.

Twilight’s amused smile faltered, ever so slightly. She tried not to think about that little moment. As pleasant as it had been to spend that time with Rainbow, she wasn’t keen on remembering why she had felt so driven to do so in the first place. She shook her head and tossed out the first excuse that came to mind. “It was too early in the morning. Still is, really. But embarrassing you in front of Spike? It’s always the perfect time for that.”

It was Rainbow’s turn to roll her eyes. She strutted past Twilight, flicking her on the nose with her tail as she passed. “Killjoy.”

Twilight’s eyes crossed from the flick before her own cheeks lit up with a blush. “Hey!” she called after Rainbow. She cantered to catch up, the two sharing some amused chuckles before lapsing into idle small talk—mostly hypothesizing about what Applejack would need them to do.

Twilight gave the matter some thought as they meandered their way through Ponyville. It was unlikely for Applejack to ask them to do a whole lot of heavy lifting. While she had learned long ago when she was outdone and needed help, she wasn’t one to shirk her responsibilities onto others lightly, and besides, it wasn’t like they were trying to harvest all of the apples in the orchard in a short span of time. She’d probably just want them to help her find any damaged locations and provide rudimentary assistance in getting it cleared up.

Their path took them through the Ponyville market, and before long the buildings began to thin out and the familiar path to Sweet Apple Acres became visible. Twilight was overcome with a small wave of nostalgia as her hooves fell onto the wider, but far less compacted dirt path. She smiled softly and turned to Rainbow. “Do you remember our first few minutes in Ponyville?”

Rainbow smirked at her. “How could I forget? I mean, we met Pinkie right out the gate, didn’t we? And she knew us because of the Flashes.”

“And then she just… er, dropped us off on this path,” Twilight recalled, thinking back on those days. In spite of her fears about Nightmare Moon all those years ago, she felt as if she could give almost anything to go back to then; a time when the threats were simple and there weren’t malevolent vestiges of her worst self harassing her in the back of her mind.

“Feels like an age ago,” Rainbow agreed with a slow nod. She looked ahead, her brow furrowing. “Lot’s happened, huh?”

“And knowing our luck, it’s just going to keep happening,” Twilight replied, her eyes lowering slightly.

“Oh, absolutely,” Midnight chimed in with a sneer. “The question is simply when it’s going to happen. And whether or not it’s you next time.”

Twilight frowned bitterly at the unwelcome comment. “Be quiet. I wasn’t talking to you.”

“I was talking to you, though,” Midnight shot back, snickering in a way that made Twilight’s coat bristle. A moment passed before she let out an overly dramatic sigh. “But very well. I’ll let you be with your girlfriend.”

Twilight let out a relieved sigh at that. She was not in the mood to listen to that insufferable inner demon any more today.

Unfortunately, she had briefly forgotten that Rainbow was right there. “Twi?” she asked curiously with a raised eyebrow. “Something up?”

Twilight’s heart just about leaped into her throat. She quickly gave Rainbow a reassuring smile. “Oh, sorry. Just enjoying the fresh air,” she lied, before trying to make that lie into the truth. She turned her head up and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. She savored the smells of the orchard, tried to enjoy the feeling of the soft dirt beneath her hooves, and take in the rustling of the branches.

It was harder to slip into her usual trance than she would have liked when walking, but Celestia as her witness she was going to try.

Eventually, the path ahead of them widened out, and the farmhouse and surrounding structures came into view. Twilight felt relieved at the sight and picked up the pace. Finally, she could focus on something arduous enough to keep Midnight out of her head for a while. She swept her eyes across the visible landscape, looking for any sign of the Apples.

She spotted them soon enough. Applejack and Big Mac were by the front door of the house. Big Mac was already strapped to a large wagon loaded with a wide assortment of supplies. Farming equipment, mostly, along with a few bulging sacks that contained Twilight could only guess what. The door stood open, and Twilight could just make out the shapes of Apple Bloom and Granny Smith across the threshold. They were in the middle of some kind of discussion.

Rainbow smiled on spotting them and lifted a hoof in greeting. “Hey! We’re here!” she called out, drawing the attention of the family.

Applejack raised an eyebrow on spotting Twilight. “Howdy, Twilight. Yer helpin’ out, too?” she asked, masking her surprise with her friendly tone and a warm smile.

Twilight nodded. “Yeah. I wanted to take Rainbow on a date today, but she was busy with this, so I just decided to join her and make this the date,” she explained before covering her mouth with a hoof to hide her large and unattractive yawn.

Applejack frowned, and Twilight realized a moment later that she was being heavily scrutinized. “Ya sure you wanna be helpin’ out with farm work right now, Twi? No offense or anythin’, but y’all look like ya just got done wrestlin’ with a bull. And like ya lost, ah might add.”

A small flare of irritation at once again being questioned on her wellness sprung up in Twilight’s breast. She was quick to force it out, maintaining her friendly smile. “I’m sure, Applejack. I didn’t sleep very well last night, but I’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, and I already asked her, like, a trillion times if she was okay and good for this,” Rainbow added with a roll of her eyes. She glanced sideways at Twilight, a small shimmer of worry hiding behind her eyes. “But you know how Twilight can get when she gets something in her head. You’re not stopping her easily.”

“Not without sacrificing some memories, at least,” Midnight’s voice intoned quietly.

A chill ran down Twilight’s spine. Her eyes drifted back to lock onto Rainbow’s. Her mind wandered back to that horrible night in Canterlot for a few moments. She recalled how Rainbow had begged her to stop, and the despair in her eyes when Midnight told her that there was no way for her to return the memories she had stolen. She remembered how coldly she had dismissed all of Rainbow’s overtures, and even how violent she'd gotten when Rainbow dared to utter her true name instead of her Fallen alias...

“Hey, is she alright?” Apple Bloom suddenly asked, drawing Twilight out of her morbid reminiscing.

She quickly shook her head and put on her most convincing smile. “Sorry, sorry. I zoned out, what were you saying?” she said, inwardly wincing at just how unconvincing her voice was.

Applejack and Rainbow shared a concerned glance. It was the former who spoke up. “Ah know RD already asked this a bunch, but are you sure you’re okay?” she asked tentatively. She took a cautious step forward. “Ya looked pretty upset a second ago… is somethin’ wrong?”

“Would everypony stop asking me that?” Twilight dismissed without thinking about it, this time unable to hide the irritation in her voice. When she saw the surprised looks she was receiving from that little outburst, she was quick to put on an apologetic smile. “Sorry. Everything’s fine. Just… I’m tired, okay? Can we just get to work so I can have something to focus on? I’ll wake up a little if I’m working.”

Applejack’s brow furrowed in doubt. Granny Smith gave off a quiet snort. “Bah, leave the poor mare be, Jackie. Don’t go stickin’ yer nose where it don’t belong. Besides, y’all got work that needs doin’, so hop to!”

“I agree with the old mare,” Midnight mused with a mockingly sweet tone. “Your troubles aren’t any of their business.”

Twilight did her best to ignore Midnight as Granny’s commanding tone snapped everypony’s attention off of Twilight, to her relief. Applejack shook her head and put on a more serious look. “Right. Ah assume RD went and told ya the basics of what we’re doin’ today. The long and short of it is that Big Mac and I are gonna be goin’ round replantin’ a bunch of the trees that those pesky Plundervines went and uprooted. We’re also gonna be clearin’ up any debris, like fallen trees and whatnot. But mah orchard’s a big place, and Ah can’t see to it all at once. Ah’d mighty appreciate it if y’all could fly up and help Big Mac and I go where we need to get—call out fallen trees or any damage, that kinda thing.”

Applejack turned and nodded at Big Mac’s wagon. “Big Mac’s got the tools we’ll be usin’, along with a bunch of fresh apple seeds for replantin’,” she pointed a hoof at Rainbow. “Mac and Ah can handle movin’ the debris, so when we plant a tree, Ah’d like you to bring us some rain clouds to get some water in the soil.”

Rainbow threw a sharp salute. “I’m on it!” she said enthusiastically.

Twilight stepped forward. “And what about me?” she asked curiously. “What do you need me to do?”

Applejack eyed her for a moment, a frown adorning her muzzle. “Well, shucks, Twi, Ah’d been countin’ on only Rainbow showin’ up. Plus, yer dead tired. Ah say you just stick with Rainbow and help her spot anythin’ what needs fixin’, and leave the heavy liftin’ to the rest of us.”

Twilight frowned, having grown very tired of the constant questioning she’d been getting today about her wellness. She opened her mouth to protest, to assure them yet again that she was fine enough to do more work, but the words caught in her throat. With a weary sigh, she had to admit to herself that Applejack was right. She was exhausted. If she tried to get too involved with the heavy lifting side of things, she’d run the risk of hurting herself, and so, with a small sigh, she agreed and gave Applejack a nod of understanding.

Applejack gave her a reassuring smile. She turned to Big Mac. “Alright, then let’s get a move on. Y’all ready, Bro?”

“Eeyup.”

Rainbow turned to Twilight. “You good?” she asked one more time while unfurling her wings in preparation.

Twilight nodded, spreading her own. She looked up at the sky, already picking out a collection of clouds that she thought might supply good rainwater drifting across the sky. “Yeah. Let’s go.”

With that, the two kicked off and flew up into the air. For a moment, with the wind rushing in her ears and pushing her mane back, Twilight was able to close her eyes and forget her exhaustion and anxiety.

The last time Twilight had helped Applejack out on the farm, it had not felt this tedious or boring. Of course, last time it had only happened after an entire day of trying to convince the stubborn mare that she needed help, with a whole slew of comical hijinks occurring as a result of Applejack’s insistence that she could handle herself. Even when half asleep and beating a dead tree, she hadn’t given in until there was no other option.

The work was simple enough. True to their original plan, Applejack and Big Mac handled the bulk of the heavy lifting, while Twilight and Rainbow kept largely to the skies. Whenever the aerial ponies spotted a scene of residual carnage, they would call it out, and the Apples would set to work clearing out the remains before planting a new tree. On occasion, Rainbow helped them move the husks of particularly large apple trees. Once all was clear and the new trees were planted, Rainbow or Twilight would bring in rainclouds and water the freshly-turned soil.

The process had few variations; it was the same basic thing over and over again. It wasn’t as engaging as Twilight had hoped, but she was being allowed plenty of time to try and distract her thoughts from her nightmare this morning. Plus, having Rainbow flying beside her all the time was making things a lot easier.

“There’s another one!” Rainbow called out, pointing to a swath of farmland that had been unceremoniously torn apart by the Plundervines. A series of trees had been uprooted in a straight line, leaving a large and ugly gash in the earth. Twilight grimaced at the sight. It would be a lot of effort to fill in that ground, and even then there would probably be a very visible scar in the land there for quite some time.

“Ah see it!” Applejack’s voice called back up. Twilight saw her and Big Mac trotting into the clearing. Applejack let out a long whistle. “Whew. Looks like them vines went and had themselves a Pinkie Party durin’ cider season in this spot.”

“Ugh, don’t talk to me about cider,” Rainbow complained as she and Twilight bled altitude to alight on the ground. “I’m thirsty enough as it is.”

“No drinkin’ on the job, Dash,” Applejack sternly pointed out. “That’s a surefire way to get yerself hurt.”

“Eeyup,” Big Mac agreed with a sage nod. Twilight couldn’t help but notice a slightly awkward shifting of his weight, and the fact he didn’t dare look directly at Applejack as he spoke. She wondered, however briefly, if the injury he had suffered in the past had been born from a moment of reckless imbibement…

Rainbow snorted and scuffed her hoof along the dirt. “Yeah, yeah,” she dismissed Applejack’s warning, turning toward the tree and matching Applejack’s whistle with one of her own. “Ouch. Uh, not to question your strength or anything, but are you guys sure you got this? I mean…”

“It’s a lot. Even for you,” Twilight finished, following the line of destruction. The trench was long and deep, and the trees it had toppled hadn’t actually sustained much damage, aside from being uprooted. Their trunks were whole and largely splintered, leaving their leafless branches poking out in every direction.

“And we ain’t exactly close to the farm, neither,” Applejack lamented, glancing back the way they had come. They had been at this for a couple of hours now, and in that time had wandered quite far from the heart of the property. “We might wanna put a pin in this one…”

Twilight frowned, glancing down at the damage. No, they could manage this. The trees were large, but she had lifted far larger things, and for far longer than would be needed here. She was tired, yes, but she was also an alicorn. She turned to Applejack. “Why don’t you let me try moving these with my magic, first?”

Applejack turned back to her, her brow furrowed with concern. “Are ya sure that’s a good idea? No offense, Twi, but this is a lot fer you, too. Yer a right powerful mage, Ah ain’t gonna deny that, but ya still got limits.”

“She’s babying you. Typical.”

Twilight tried to ignore Midnight’s snip of a response. She faced Applejack fully and put on a confident look. “It’s not like I’m handling a zodiac beast this time. It’s just a few trees, and I just need to move them out of the way.”

Applejack looked Twilight up and down for a few seconds before giving a quiet nod. “Alright… Ah guess you’d know yer limits better than Ah would. Just don’t overdo it, ya hear? If it’s too much, we can come back and handle it another day.”

Twilight smiled at that. She turned back to the felled trees, took a deep breath, and began to focus her magic. She inwardly smiled when she felt Rainbow lightly pat her on the back and offer an encouraging ‘you got this, Twi,’ before backing up to give her some room. She wasn’t sure if Rainbow’s tone really convinced her, but it would have to do. Tentatively, she reached out and began to ensnare the trees with her magic.

They were heavy. Much heavier than she had been expecting. She grit her teeth behind her lips and lifted. The trunks groaned, and a few pieces splintered away as they lifted several inches off the ground. A bead of sweat formed on Twilight’s brow from the exertion. She groaned to herself as she began to nudge them forward, trying to get them onto empty soil to make room for the seeds.

A pounding headache began to build up in her skull. Her teeth ground together, and her own frustration began to mount alongside the fire in her head. “Why is this so hard? I’ve tangled with far more difficult magical challenges than a few fallen trees before! So what if I’m tired? That’s no excuse for such a lackluster performance!”

Those thoughts, and plenty more besides, circled throughout her mind before a headache flared and Twilight became aware of a flood of light from her horn as her magic burst forth, empowered by her irritation. She gasped and yelped in surprise when a deafening crack and boom split the air from where the trees were, and her aura flickered and faded in the span of a moment. Her legs gave out under her, sending her falling to the ground in a gasping heap.

“Twi?!” Rainbow’s voice cut through the pounding in her skull, and Twilight felt a hoof on her shoulder. “Twilight, are you okay?!”

Twilight gave a shaky nod, her breath coming in heaving gasps. “Y-yeah,” she managed to stammer between her pants. “Yeah, yeah, I’m o-okay.”

She took a moment to catch her breath before being helped back to her hooves by Rainbow Dash. She turned to look toward the trees she had originally only meant to move a few yards. A grimace came over her face at what she saw. While she had succeeded in moving them away, that little surge of frustration caused her to also snap the trunks, leaving massive splinters and chunks of wood scattered all over. It was quite the mess.

Applejack came up to Twilight’s other side, a stern frown on her face. “Twi… Ah think yer done,” she said matter-of-factly.

Twilight opened her mouth to protest, but she didn’t have it in her to offer any words that would excuse her loss of control. She hung her head with a dejected sigh and nodded. Applejack was right. She had drained up her magic doing that. It didn’t make any sense, but it was the only explanation she could come up with. It must have just been a byproduct of her physical and mental exhaustion. Her efficiency with her energy must have been lower than usual…

Applejack turned back to the carnage. “Big Mac and Ah can get this tidied up. RD, ya mind fetchin’ a cloud or somethin’ so we can water the seeds?”

Rainbow hesitated, her grip on Twilight’s foreleg tightening. “I mean… Sure, I guess…”

Twilight, after another deep breath, gave Rainbow a reassuring look. “It’s fine, Rainbow. I’m tired, but I’m not hurt. Go on.”

Rainbow hesitated a moment longer. She finally conceded with a reluctant nod, turned, and flew up into the sky. Twilight watched her go until the tip of her prismatic tail faded from view. She fell onto her haunches to rest, focusing on her breathing. Silence fell over the area as Big Mac approached the holes in the earth.

Applejack, however, remained by Twilight’s side, a contemplative frown on her muzzle. Finally, she turned to face Twilight directly, her brow furrowing with concern. “...What is goin’ on?” she finally asked.

Twilight looked up at Applejack in confusion. “Huh?”

“Ah wasn’t born yesterday, ya know,” Applejack pointed out. “Somethin’s buggin’ ya. Has been since… well, ya know since when. Ah’ve been holdin’ my peace about it, but Ah’m really gettin’ worried.”

Twilight went rigid. She stared up into Applejack’s emerald-colored eyes, working her jaw up and down as she tried to think of a way to respond. Eventually, she settled for asking a question. “What do you mean?”

Applejack looked down, brushing her hoof along the ground. “Well, the temper, fer one thing,” she said. “Ah’ve seen how irritable y’all have gotten. Hay, we all have. You’ve been havin’ more and more nightmares lately, too, and yer just… outta it, ya know? Like yer distracted a lot. Ah’ve seen ya lookin’ off, zonin’ out. Sometimes ya mutter to yerself…”

Twilight averted her eyes when Applejack knelt down in front of her. The farmer reached a hoof out to turn Twilight’s chin until they were eye-to-eye again. There was nothing but kindness and worry in her eyes. “Talk to me, sugarcube… what’s wrong?”

Twilight hesitated. The longer she looked into Applejack’s eyes, the more at ease she began to feel. After a few moments, she reached up and brushed Applejack’s hoof away with a tired sigh. “It’s… it’s a lot of small things, really,” she finally said, her voice low. “And they’re swapping out all the time. New ones come in, old ones go out. It’s a cycle.”

Applejack gave off a quiet hum. She sat down beside Twilight and placed a comforting hoof on her back. Big Mac looked over to Applejack, silently inquiring as to what’s going on, and she shot him a pointed look. The stallion took the hint and got to work with the seeds, giving the two mares their privacy. Once he was occupied again, Applejack returned her attention to Twilight. “And right now?”

“It’s my parents,” Twilight explained, allowing her mind to drift back to those two wonderful ponies. “I haven’t really been making time for them ever since I moved to Ponyville. Not as much as I should, at any rate… Canterlot is right there, though, so I didn’t have any excuse. But now…”

Applejack nodded in understanding. “Aah. Ah gotcha. Now that ya can’t go yerself, yer missin’ them?” she ventured.

Twilight frowned. “That’s part of it… but it’s more than that,” she said, a small pearl of resentment building up in her breast. She did her best to force it down, not wanting to let her anger show right now. She didn’t want to give Midnight a chance to slip into the conversation.

Applejack’s brow furrowed. “...Mind tellin’ me what?”

Twilight hesitated. She fought with herself for several seconds, then turned to Applejack, her face contorting with anxiety. “If I tell you, can you promise me you won’t tell Rainbow Dash?” she asked hesitantly, knowing that Applejack probably wouldn’t take too kindly to such a request.

Indeed, Applejack’s muzzle contorted into a disapproving frown. “Twi… filly, ya know Ah don’t like hidin’ things from mah friends,” she said slowly.

“I know, I know,” Twilight replied, looking away. “But… It should come from me. It won’t do any of us any good if it comes up before I’m ready to tell her…”

“Just like how poorly things went when she refused to tell you about your death?” Midnight asked in a low, sinister whisper. “Give me a break. You’re being a hypocrite.”

“This is different!” Twilight insisted. “I’m not hiding something about her! I’m hiding something about myself!”

“A cute excuse that changes nothing,” Midnight spat. “But fine, be that way. You seem to like lying to yourself so much, so go on, lie to your friends next. What’s the harm that could do?”

“Would you just SHUT UP?!”

“Twilight?”

Twilight gasped as she felt Applejack’s hoof on her back giving her a shake. Her eyes snapped back to her friend’s. “Huh?”

Applejack’s muzzle scrunched up. “Y’all okay? Ya kinda zoned out on me.”

Twilight swallowed heavily, trying to ignore Midnight’s amused cackling. She shook herself to chase off the chills and focused back on the conversation. “Sorry. Just… Got lost in thought.”

Applejack nodded, withdrawing her hoof. “Alright… well, Ah can’t say Ah’m too happy ‘bout keepin’ secrets from RD. But Ah’ll keep it under wraps… unless she asks,” she finally relented, earning a small sigh of relief from Twilight as the conversation went back on course.

“Thank you,” she said, smiling warmly at Applejack. She took a moment to collect her thoughts. Her eyes drifted off in the general direction of Canterlot. Her lips drew into a thin line as she tried to think of how best to put her thoughts and feelings into words. “...The truth is… I’ve been very unhappy with the princesses lately.”

Applejack blinked. “Ah mean… Ah can see why,” she said in a tone that did not do justice to the gravity of the situation. “Ah gotta admit, part of me thinks that them banishin’ you from Canterlot was a bit overkill. Plus, it’s yer home. Only natural yer gonna be a little bothered ‘bout that.”

“No, no, you don’t get it,” Twilight insisted, turning back to Applejack. “This isn’t just some bit of irritation or bitterness. It’s… it’s…” Twilight took in a long, deep breath, trying to force down the self-disgusted shivers trying to worm their way into her voice.

Applejack leaned back, surprised. Her mood shifted to match, her expression hardening. “It’s what?” she asked slowly. She put on a comforting smile. “It’s alright, Twi. Y’all can tell me what it is. Ah won’t judge ya.”

Twilight gave a shaky nod of her head, though her anxiety over the words she was to say next did not go away. She took one more deep breath before, finally, she found her words. “Last night, I had a nightmare. I tried to force my way back into Canterlot. I failed. Princess Celestia and Princess came out to confront me about it. And I… I…”

She wasn’t able to suppress the next shudder. Applejack’s eyes widened at the reaction. She lifted a hoof to reach out, but Twilight spoke first.

“I a-attacked them. I tried to kill them...”

Oh, merciful Celestia, to even breathe the words was bad enough. After so many years of devoting herself to the princesses, Celestia in particular, to even contemplate wishing harm upon them was enough to make her blood run cold.

Applejack’s expression softened with sympathy. Her hoof fell over Twilight’s shoulders, pulling her into a comforting side-hug. “Aw, shucks, Twi. It was just a dream, right? It’s not like you really feel that way.”

“Oh, if only she knew,” Midnight whispered in sadistic amusement.

Twilight did her best to ignore her. She focused on the warmth of Applejack’s embrace, using it to anchor herself in reality and drown out the voice in her head. Still, she couldn’t deny that Midnight had a point. With what she knew about dreams now, it was a terrible idea to dismiss the images within them out of hoof.

“Maybe not,” she finally said, shaking her head. “But to even dream of it… Our dreams are born from our innermost feelings and thoughts, Applejack. I don’t want to hurt Celestia or Luna. I don’t want to be angry at them, especially when Luna’s doing so much to help me. But… I look at the city, or I get a letter from my parents promising to come meet me here, and I just can’t help but feel so… so angry that I can’t go back!”

Applejack gave Twilight a comforting squeeze, and she only then realized that her voice had started rising in volume. She took a deep breath, forcing the fire down. Her ears perked up, listening to the sounds around them.

The two sat in silence for a long while. Twilight’s temper slowly began to cool as the serene atmosphere washed over them. She took in the rustling of the leaves and the sound of Big Mac working the soil not far away and calmed down somewhat. Applejack’s side rose and fell with each breath she took, a lulling rhythm that helped set Twilight’s mind at ease.

At last, Applejack broke the silence by clearing her throat. “Well… if nothin’ else, Ah can see why ya don’t want me tellin’ this to RD,” she quietly admitted. “Ah don’t think that filly’d be all that happy if she heard y’all were dreamin’ about hurtin’ her ma. But she’d still understand.”

Twilight sighed. “I guess so.”

“Ah know so,” Applejack said, putting more force into her voice. “That gal loves you, Twilight. More than Ah think either of ya realize. She’d be upset, sure, but after everythin’ that mare’s gone through, you’d best not be doubtin’ her.”

Twilight looked up to Applejack in surprise. She found the farmer’s smiling face staring back down at her.

“Whatever issues she’s got goin’ on, whatever mistakes she might’ve made in the past, there’s no denyin’ that Dash is the most loyal pony Ah’ve ever met, and one of the hardest workin’ when it comes to the ponies she cares about. She devoted two years of her life almost entirely to you, fer ponies sake! And when ya turned dark and nasty, she was the first one there tryin’ to stop ya. And she weren’t doin’ it with force, neither.”

A lump formed in Twilight’s throat, memories of that night in Canterlot flashing through her mind yet again. “I remember,” she said in a quiet whisper.

Applejack’s smile widened. “Exactly. RD gave up everythin’ fer you because she loves ya that much. And she wasn’t wrong to do it, either, cause in the end, y’all gave back everything ya took. So don’t you go frettin’ over how she’ll react to yer nightmare. She’ll never turn her back on ya. She will understand, and she’ll be there to help ya no matter what.”

Twilight felt her heart warm slightly from Applejack’s earnest and impassioned endorsement of Rainbow Dash. In her mind, Twilight knew that all of those points were very true, and she had known it for a long, long time. It was her heart that had sent her into doubt, and indeed, still was.

She smiled slightly, letting her head rest against Applejack’s side again. “...Thank you, AJ. I needed to hear that,” she sighed in relief, closing her eyes.

“Anytime, sugarcube,” Applejack replied, patting Twilight on the back a few times. “Though, Ah do gotta admit, it is a bit outta character for ya to be havin’ dreams about attackin’ the princesses. Ah don’t think Ah’ve ever met anypony as endeared to ‘em as you.”

“Honestly, it might not even be a regular dream,” Twilight replied, not really thinking about what she was saying.

“Whaddya mean?”

Twilight opened her mouth to speak, to explain the phenomenon of Midnight residing in her subconscious. However, to her confusion, the words to describe what was wrong with her just… slipped away. She frowned. “Well… I mean… Y-you see, there’s this… uh…”

That was weird. What had come over her all of a sudden? It wasn’t like it was a hard concept to explain. The persona she had taken on as Midnight was still lingering in her subconscious, a malevolent aftereffect of her Fall that tried day in and day out to drag her back into the dark. It antagonized her all the time, and it was sometimes very hard to ignore its biting words. It wasn’t any more complex than that.

Yet the words did not reach her lips. Every time she went to speak them, her mind went blank. Her tongue felt heavy in her mouth, her eyes lost focus, and her head felt as if it was going numb on the inside. Her thoughts became cloudy until she backed off, and then snapped back to sudden clarity.

Applejack, oblivious to the problem, snorted in amusement. “Wow, is it really that complex, Twilight?” she asked with a raised eyebrow. “Just out with it. Ah promise, Ah’ll at least pretend Ah understand.”

Twilight’s blood began to go cold. Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong. She turned back to Applejack, her mouth flying open to say something, but the words still did not come. Her heart beat faster and faster in her chest as fear and anxiety flooded her system. She wanted to open up, to spill everything about Midnight then and there, but something was blocking her from uttering the words. They hitched in her throat over and over, held back by something unseen.

Unseen… but not unknown.

Adrenaline flooded Twilight’s veins as the realization hit her all at once. She stiffened and sprang to her hooves. She ignored Applejack’s exclamation of surprise, her eyes darting this way and that. “What the- what are you doing?!” she demanded internally.

Applejack’s eyes widened from the fearful response. “Twi? Hon, what’s wrong?” she asked urgently, rising to her hooves.

When Midnight offered no answer to Twilight’s question, she turned to face the woods. “I… I need a minute,” Twilight blurted out, desperate for an excuse to get away and deal with this. “I need to think.”

With that, she broke into a mad sprint into the orchard, ignoring the burning in her lungs. She heard Applejack calling out to her, but she did not look back. To her relief, it seemed that Applejack wasn’t chasing her. If she was, Twilight had already somehow left her in the dust.

All the while, she kept trying to explain what Midnight was to the open air. As she got further and further away from Applejack, the easier it became. Soon, she was belting out a verbal essay on the subject as she wove between the apple trees.

“There is a malignant entity in my mind!” she panted as she jumped over another gouge in the earth. “An aftereffect from when I turned into Midnight! When I turned, all of my inhibitions were lifted! It felt good, and my subconscious wants me to take that feeling back! All of the magic I have as an alicorn has allowed those dark thoughts to manifest into this sickly parasite, and it keeps antagonizing me and taunting me, trying to drive me into a state of emotional distress strong enough to cause a second Fall!”

Suddenly, the ground underneath her fell away. She had run straight into another strip of torn earth. Twilight cried out in surprise from the sudden fall, her wings instinctively snapping out to try and catch her. It was not enough, and she crumpled into the churned dirt with a grunt. She groaned in discomfort before lifting her head. Her vision was swimming from the exertion, the shapes of the surrounding trees blurring into indistinct blobs.

Standing at the edge of the small chasm, sharp and clear to Twilight’s blurring vision, was a twisted, tainted mockery of her own reflection. Darkened wings with dagger-like feathers stretched out wide in a show of dominance, while slitted eyes emitting trails of ghostly magic glared down at her. A fang-filled grin split the muzzle of the apparition, making Twilight shiver with disgust, guilt, and unyielding hatred.

“Well? What excuse do you have for me this time?” Midnight asked.

Author's Note

Holy H:rainbowderp:LL this chapter was a nightmare and a half to get to a point where I was happy with it. It was rewritten at least three or four times before I finally landed on this one. That's a big part of why this chapter took so long to come out. I was really struggling with it from start to finish. I hope the end result of my labors are worth it.

Also, yes, we are finally addressing the fact that Twilight has not told anyone about Midnight yet. I imagine plenty of you have been waiting on that.

Bound to Silence

Twilight blinked in a mixture of shock, horror, rage, and abject confusion. How? How was this possible? Midnight was an intangible parasite, wasn’t she? She shouldn’t be there. She couldn’t be there. It must have just been an illusion. There was no other possibility.

Midnight lifted her head to glare down her nose at Twilight. “Well? Are you going to answer me, or what?” she demanded, the amusement faded from her voice as her grin fell away.

Twilight growled. She slowly pushed herself back to her hooves. Her muscles burned in complaint, and it took her a moment to find her balance, but she wasn’t about to show weakness in front of Midnight, of all things. Once she was stable, she affixed her doppelganger with a murderous glare. “What do you think you’re doing?” she asked coldly.

Midnight scoffed, looking lazily to one side as if Twilight was unworthy of her attention. “You tell me. I’m from your mind, aren’t I?” she asked mockingly.

Twilight grit her teeth, slowly stalking forward. “You’re preventing me from telling my friends about you, aren’t you?!” she demanded, her wings ruffling against her sides. “I tried to tell Applejack, and you stopped me!”

Midnight looked at Twilight out of the corner of her eye. “An inaccurate way of phrasing it, but I suppose the result is the same. So sure, let’s roll with that,” she stated before focusing on Twilight again.

“Why?!” Twilight seethed, stamping a hoof. “Why would you do that?! It’s not like my friends can do anything against you! You’re my monster to fight, not theirs!”

“Calling yourself a monster, are you?” Midnight asked with a fang-filled smirk. “Oh, Rainbow would love to hear that your self-loathing matches hers, wouldn’t she?”

“SHUT UP!” Twilight snapped, her horn sparking to life. Oh, how she wanted to take this wretched parasite and rake her over the coals.

Midnight’s grin grew. “Oh, if you want to do that, then just find a brazier and throw yourself into it.”

Twilight’s pupils dilated. The light on her horn grew brighter and, with a frustrated shout, she unleashed a beam of condensed energy at Midnight. To her surprise, Midnight merely fanned out her wings as if in invitation. The crackling stream of energy closed the gap quickly…

And passed right through Midnight. Twilight gasped as, instead of obliterating her target, the spell struck an Everfree tree behind her. The wood splintered and cracked, and the entire trunk shattered under the force of the beam. Twilight immediately cut off the flow of her magic and backed away, her eyes unable to turn away as the remains of the tree crumpled to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Even as the cloud washed over them both, Midnight remained perfectly clear in Twilight’s vision. She shook her head with a dismissive sigh. “Ah, you know I’m an illusion, but you decide to attack me anyway. Really, for all the time you spend disowning me with your words, you should really work harder to match them with your actions.”

Twilight took a series of deep breaths, casting a quick pulse of magic from her horn to dispel the dust. She closed her eyes, trying to focus Midnight out. She couldn’t let herself lose control. She had to remain calm and focused. She took a deep breath, trying to listen to the sounds around her, trying to drive out her anger.

A cold hoof clapped down on her shoulder. Twilight jumped and spun to face the source. Midnight had practically teleported and now stood behind her. “Oh, no, you don’t get to ignore me this time,” she spat.

Twilight backed away, her heart starting to beat harder in her chest as fear replaced her rage. A hoof wandered up to her shoulder. It had felt so real. If Midnight was just an illusion, she was a shockingly convincing one. She shuddered, unsettled by the thought. She focused back on Midnight and set her jaw. “You didn’t answer my question.”

Midnight rolled her eyes. “About why I decided to silence you?” she asked, lazily walking to one side, slowly circling Twilight like a cat toying with a mouse.

Twilight kept her eyes locked on Midnight, making sure to face her at all times. “You know my thoughts, don’t you? Do I need to answer that?” she demanded.

Midnight chuckled, shaking her head. “True enough, but it is so much more satisfying when I get to hear you say things out loud,” she replied before facing Twilight directly. “But in answer to your question… I’m not doing it because your friends are any threat to me.”

“Then why?!” Twilight pressed. “Tell me that!”

Midnight’s face contorted into an oddly gentle smile. Twilight blinked, taken aback. After a moment, Midnight spoke. “Think it through. What reason could I have for holding your tongue for you? If not to defend myself from your friends, then what?”

Twilight narrowed her eyes. “What are you getting at?”

Midnight shook her head with a mocking chuckle. “What? Am I simply to reveal my evil plan to you just because you asked?” she pointed out in amusement.

“It’d make for a refreshing change of pace,” Twilight snipped.

Midnight threw her head back and laughed. “Ha! Oh, you would think so, wouldn’t you?” she asked with a twinkle in her eyes. “But, since we both know you’re just going to keep lying to yourself… I guess I can be upfront with you this time.”

Twilight blinked. She wasn’t in Applejack’s orchard anymore. She was suddenly standing in the middle of the living room of the Golden Oaks Library. She could see her friends around her, looking on with a wide range of faces. Rarity and Pinkie appeared shocked into silence, Applejack and Rainbow were leaning back in concern, while Fluttershy had shrunk back and was now looking at Twilight in fear.

Twilight looked around, confused. “What the… how did I…?” she mumbled in confusion.

“So that’s what the problem was…” Applejack suddenly murmured, taking a few steps back. “Shoulda known… Shoulda known.”

“Huh?” Twilight asked, turning back to face Applejack again. “What are you talking about? What’s going on?”

“Twilight…” Rainbow spoke up. She didn’t seem to have heard what Twilight had said. Twilight focused on her and shrank back when she saw the deep, deep disappointment in the pegasus’ eyes. Rainbow took a step back as if she was afraid of her. “...Why didn’t you say anything to me?”

“Rainbow?” Twilight asked, her heart starting to beat rapidly in her chest. A moment later, she caught herself and shook her head. “No… No, you’re not Rainbow, and this isn’t real.”

“But it could be,” Midnight’s voice came from behind her. Twilight turned to her, eyes narrowing. She saw Midnight lounging casually on one of the chairs, watching the scene with a cold, distant look in her eyes. Her slitted pupils locked onto Twilight. “And I would strongly advise you to pay attention to make sure it doesn’t become true.”

“But it won’t,” Twilight spat, though she was surprised by the lack of strength in her own voice. “W-whatever you’re showing me… It’s just an illusion. You’re trying to scare me.”

“I don’t have to scare you,” Midnight shot back before focusing on the rest of the room. “You beat me to it.”

Twilight snarled and stamped a hoof. “I’m not scared!” she shouted. “I’m angry! Because you won’t leave me in peace!”

Midnight ignored her. She lifted a hoof and gave it a flick as if to swat away a fly. Twilight knew she would get nothing else out of Midnight right now. With a huff, she turned back to the illusion of her friends to see what Midnight was going to show her. Internally, she kept repeating to herself that all of this was just an illusion.

Rarity quiet cleared her throat. “I appreciate you telling us, darling, truly I do,” she began hesitantly. As she spoke, she began to unconsciously tug on her mane, her eyes unable to look into Twilight’s. “But… well, th-that is, you see… I, well, heard about what happened at Applejack’s farm… With the tree you blew up.”

“And I remember how you almost blew up my sister…” Pinkie added, her eyes looking down at the ground. “If Rainbow hadn’t been there…”

A few seconds passed in silence. Everypony’s eyes were locked on anything but Twilight. Eventually, Applejack broke the quiet by clearing her throat. “Ah think Ah get where they’re goin’ with this, sugarcube… If that Midnight’s still loiterin’ around up there in yer head, then… If ya lose control again…”

Twilight blinked, her heart starting to feel cold in her chest. She slowly shook her head. “I… I won’t lose control,” she said, though her voice came out strangely hollow. “I swear, I won’t.”

For a brief moment, the illusion faded, and she was staring at the ruined remains of the tree she had fired on. She sucked in a deep breath as ice flooded her veins before the vision snapped back to a new scene.

She was with her friends at an outdoor restaurant in Ponyville. They were laughing and talking and eating their food, enjoying one another’s company. The ambiance was serene and tranquil.

Twilight watched as her hoof reached out without her consent, her body acting of its own accord. She was reaching for a salt shaker when her hoof bumped against a tall glass of what looked like juice. She wasn’t fast enough to stop it, and the red contents spilled all over the tablecloth, staining it a deep shade of red.

“Gah, DANGIT!” Twilight snapped, the words fleeing her lips unbidden. Her skull began to burn with pain, and she let off a pained grunt, her hooves reaching up to clutch at her head. She took several deep breaths, trying to calm herself down before slowly looking back up.

Her friends had all gotten up and backed away from her. Rainbow had placed herself protectively in front of Fluttershy, her wings starting to unfurl slightly.

Twilight blinked, her breaths becoming heavier. “They wouldn’t do that!” she protested mentally.

“Think it through,” Midnight chided as the scene began to bleed and change again. “If your friends learned about me, then they would see you for what you have become. A threat.”

Now Twilight was in front of Fluttershy’s cottage, freshly rebuilt. She had yet to lay eyes on it in person, and so she knew that the recreation before her was merely how she imagined it. Nonetheless, Fluttershy stood in the doorway, shrinking back from her a little bit. “Oh, uhm, I guess, if you want to… Come in?”

The door opened, and Fluttershy allowed Twilight to step inside. The interior space was muddy and cloudy to her vision, a byproduct of not really knowing what to expect. After a few seconds, the image stitched itself into a rough facsimile of the interior of her old cottage, with her and Fluttershy seated on the chairs and talking to each other. Though Fluttershy was smiling, there was an unmistakable tension behind her eyes.

“They would try to be understanding, of course,” Midnight went on. “They’re good ponies like that. But they would all know. Somewhere, deep down, they would all know that all it would take is one little incident, one tiny thing to set you off…”

Fluttershy’s face suddenly paled as her eyes darted to look at something behind Twilight. Twilight began to turn around to look, but to her shock, Fluttershy darted past her. She watched as she scooped up a startled Angel, who squeaked in surprise, dropping the ball of tissue he had been rearing back to throw.

A heavy silence hung in the air, with Fluttershy looking back at Twilight with wide, almost frightened eyes. Twilight sagged in her seat and looked away. She didn’t say anything. The scene began to change again.

“And they would all fear what would happen next.”

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat when she found herself in her room back in the library. She was seated at her desk, reading through some nondescript book. It was a bright day outside, and she could feel the illusory warmth against her coat as if it was real. A few seconds passed before a knocking came on the door.

“Come in,” she called, thumping the book shut.

The door opened, and Rainbow Dash stepped in, followed shortly by Spike. Twilight stiffened when she caught sight of the scroll clutched in the small dragon’s claws, bound with a red ribbon and clasped with the royal seal.

“We, uh, got a letter for you,” Spike said uneasily, holding the letter out. “It just showed up a minute ago.”

Twilight smiled. “Thank you,” She replied, though inside she was screaming. She could already tell where this was going, and she did not want it to continue. But no matter how hard she tried to fight it, the vision continued, with her body acting on its own without any say from her. She unfurled the scroll and began to read the contents.

The words ran together into a meaningless blur of ink, with no meaning, in particular, standing out to her. All that was clear on the page was the ever-elegant signature, whose graceful curves almost seemed to mock her, now.

Most Sincerely,
Princess Celestia.

Twilight stared at the letter for several long seconds. She could feel her hooves starting to shake, and she knew that in this vision, she was succumbing to more anger. She tried to close her eyes, to block the vision out, but it did not happen. She watched, helpless, as she lifted the letter in her magic, and without warning, the parchment combusted in the air. The flames licked and rolled ominously before her, and then flickered away, leaving naught but ash where the letter had been.

“...Twilight?” Spike asked in a timid whisper.

“What?!” Twilight snapped, tensing up from the sudden break in the silence. A heavy silence hung in the air, and her ears began to droop. She took in a deep breath and slowly turned around.

Rainbow and Spike had both retreated several steps, the former having placed herself between Spike and Twilight, her expression torn between fear and sorrow. Shaking in a whole new way, she slowly reached out. “Dash…”

Rainbow took a deep breath and gently ushered Spike out of the room. “...It’s not getting better, is it?” she finally asked.

Twilight bit her lip, then shook her head. “No… No, it’s not.”

Rainbow took in a deep breath. Then, with a heavy sigh, she turned and slumped against the door. “I dunno if I can keep doing this, Twi,” she said, suddenly sounding exhausted.

Twilight blinked, and she felt her actual heart constricting anxiously just at the thought of hearing Rainbow say such words. She didn’t want to contemplate the implication. She took a slow step forward. “What do you mean?” she asked hesitantly.

Rainbow looked up, her ears lowering. She gestured vaguely. “This. All of this… Midnight. What Midnight’s doing to you. I don’t know how much longer I can keep going, being scared that she might overtake you again every day. I’m scared for you, I’m scared for Spike, our friends…”

“She won’t take over!” Twilight insisted, her voice coming out louder than she intended. She took a moment to compose herself before speaking again. “You know me, Rainbow. You know that this isn’t how I usually am. She’s making everything bad about me worse.”

“Yeah, I get that,” Rainbow replied. “But there isn’t anything I can do about it. I feel like I’m walking on eggshells with you all the time. Like, even the tiniest thing could set you off, and if you get too angry…”

Rainbow gave a heavy sigh, burying her face in her hooves. “What if you lash out again? What if you go firing off more magic? What if you actually hurt something next time? What if it’s one of our friends? What if it’s Fluttershy? What if it’s Spike?”

“I won’t lose control!” Twilight stressed emphatically, her voice trembling as if in desperation. “I would never hurt you! Never, not in a million years!”

“But you did lose control!” Rainbow shot back. “Just a second ago! It was only for a moment, but you burnt up a letter from my mom because she denied your request to go to Canterlot.”

“But… I…” Twilight hesitated, her words dying in her throat.

Rainbow stood up and slowly approached her. “Twilight… I love you, you know that. I’d never do anything to hurt you… But I also can’t just sit by and pretend nothing’s wrong when, any day, you could turn me, or Spike, or our friends, to dust.”

Twilight took a step back, her heart hammering harder and harder in her chest. She couldn’t tell if it was part of the vision, or if it was real.

“And in the end…”

The vision flickered and changed again, and suddenly Twilight was walking back into the Golden Oaks Library on a rainy day. She was carrying a bunch of grocery bags in her magic, grimacing as she focused on keeping the water off of her and her haul. Once she shut the door behind her, she dispelled her magic umbrella and made for the kitchen. It was dark inside, to her surprise. She didn’t give it much thought, though, and simply flicked on the lights with another spark of magic.

“Spike! Rainbow! I’m back!” she called out as she stepped into the kitchen. An eerie silence was her answer. Twilight frowned, an uneasy feeling building up in her gut. She set the groceries down on the table and began to sort through everything she had gathered when she spied something on the counter by the stove.

It was a letter, written in Rainbow’s painfully-jarring hoofwriting. Twilight picked it up, suspecting that they had simply gone out to visit one of their friends or something.

“Twilight.

I’m so sorry. I wish I didn’t have to tell you like this. I wish I could say this to you directly, I really really do, but I just don’t think it’s safe anymore. I’m sure you noticed how dark it was in the library when you get back…

The truth is, Spike and I are gone. Your condition has been getting worse and worse. It’s almost like you break and get angry at something every day, and it’s been a miracle you’ve managed to calm yourself down. But we can tell it won’t last… So we’ve decided we’re gonna move somewhere else in town, for Spike’s sake if nothing else.

I know you’re not going to take this news well, and I really wish I had some way of softening the blow. I’m sorry, really, I am, but I just can’t keep doing this. If something sets you off, and Spike got hurt, and I couldn’t stop it… I could never live with myself. I can barely live with the decision of moving out without telling you about it. It makes me feel sick, but…”

Twilight stopped reading. The letter fell out of her arcane grasp, landing on the floor with a barely audible rustle. She just stood there, her eyes wide, unblinking, and unfocused. Inside, she was thrashing violently against what she was seeing. It wasn’t real, she kept telling herself. It wasn’t real, it would never be real, it couldn’t be real, it wasn’t real!

But it felt real. And it hurt.

In the vision, she crumpled to the floor, and a long, anguished scream tore past her lips, echoing throughout the silent, empty Library. Nothing answered her. Nothing came to her. She was alone.

“...They will abandon you.”

At last, the vision ended. Twilight gasped as she returned to reality. She had crumpled to the ground and was shaking horribly. Midnight stood over her with a solemn, almost sympathetic look on her face.

Twilight looked back up at her, blinking back her tears. “N-no…” she choked out weakly. “That’s not going to happen…”

“You’re right,” Midnight replied, turning away from her. “It’s not. Because I won’t let it happen.”

With that, Twilight blinked, and Midnight was gone. She could feel the tendrils of her darker side’s influence receding, and she was free to think on her own again. She took a series of deep, deep breaths, trying to calm herself, but the fear she felt would not go away. She thought back on the vision Midnight had shown her, and felt her blood turning into ice.

There was no way her friends would do that to her, right? No, no, of course not. They were wonderful, the best friends a pony could ask for. They wouldn’t abandon her, they’d help her… right? After all, it had all been an illusion. A fabrication. A fiction. None of that had been real. She wouldn’t hurt her friends, and she wouldn’t be abandoned by them… would she?

She shuddered, the image of Rainbow lifting Maud out of the way of her rage-induced beam of magic filling her mind. She felt her legs going numb, her stomach twisting with guilt. It hit her like a freight train. They would be right to be afraid of her. She hated to admit it, but she was afraid of herself. She kept saying she wouldn’t let Midnight take over, but her history made that assertion less than credible.

She looked down, her chest clenching with emotion. Maybe, on this one point, Midnight had the right of it?

“Twilight?! Where are ya?!”

She froze at the sound of Applejack’s voice slicing through the trees. Twilight rose to her hooves, her heart starting to hammer in her chest in a blind panic. She spun to face the source, a cold sweat building up under her fur.

She couldn’t think straight. Fight or flight kicked in as a result of the looming confrontation. She looked back to the obliterated tree, her mind racing. If Applejack came upon her now, she’d probably be even more afraid of her than if she knew about Midnight. And then what?

With a quiet whimper, Twilight unfurled her wings and leaped into the air, speeding away from the scene as quickly as she could. She wasn’t thinking about where she was going or what she was doing. All she knew was that she had to get away from there, get away from Applejack. She had to get somewhere safe and take some time to get her thoughts in order.

She pumped her wings for all they were worth, leaving the orchard far behind her.

Author's Note

This chapter was a LOT of fun to write. I love me some dream sequences, or anything similar.

Absent Alicorn

It took Rainbow a little longer than she would have liked to find a cloud that could suit their purposes. The sky hadn’t been particularly dense with the things, to begin with, and those few that were in the sky had already been used up in their efforts to replant the downed apple trees. Eventually, she was forced to take a trip back into Ponyville proper and head for the weather office.

Unfortunately, her adamant insistence to follow all the same rules and protocols as a typical weather team member meant that getting her desired clouds involved more than a healthy amount of bureaucracy— a fact she was seriously lamenting as she waited patiently for Thunderlane to fill out another piece of parchment.

“Ugh, could you hurry it up?” Rainbow asked with a snort of impatience. “My friends are waiting for me.”

Thunderlane shot her a look. He briefly set down his pen and raised an eyebrow. “Why don’t you just give me an order?” he asked bluntly. “If you’re in such a hurry, you can pull rank.”

“I can, yeah,” Rainbow said, unable to suppress a shudder. “But you know how much I hate doing that, especially with mundane crud like this.”

Thunderlane shrugged. “Well, then you get to go through the paperwork like everypony else,” he said with a small smirk before leaning down to pick up the pen again.

Rainbow groaned in frustration, burying her face in her hooves. The more time she wasted here, the more likely it was that Twilight and Applejack would move on, and given Twilight’s condition when last she saw her, Rainbow was not keen on leaving her side for too long.

Especially given the nightmare Twilight had gone through. Rainbow’s brow furrowed. Twilight hadn’t spoken a word of it, but Rainbow could tell that whatever it was she had experienced, it was deeply, deeply unsettling. She knew the feeling—far more intimately than she cared to admit—and imagining Twilight dealing with it right now set her senses on edge.

She began to walk in place, tapping her hooves anxiously on the floor as she waited for Thunderlane to finish the necessary paperwork. Finally, he leaned back, offering her a reprieve, as he read off what was on the sheet. “Okay, so, in summary, you want to procure a bundle of ten small rainclouds, stated purpose being to help Applejack replant what was torn up during the, er, ‘incident’ a ways back. All that sound about right?”

“Yes!” Rainbow half-shouted, leaning forward. “Please, can I just take my white fluff and go now?!”

Thunderlane jumped slightly in surprise. He looked at her critically, searching her for something. Whatever he found, it seemed to concern him. His earlier teasing look gave way to a frown. “...Sure. Just sign the paper and-”

Rainbow snatched the sheet the moment it was held out to her. As quickly as she could, she signed her name in the marked boxes and passed the sheet back to Thunderlane. “Ugh, finally! Thanks, Lane!” she said, flashing him a small smile. She didn’t wait for him to say anything, though, and instead turned to dart outside. She knew where to get the clouds already, and at this point, she was willing to skip a step and fetch them herself.

After procuring her needed clouds, she took to the air and shot back for Sweet Apple Acres. She pushed the clouds in front of her, partially obscuring her view and protecting her from the wind. She took the chance to breathe, allowing the sound of rushing air and the softness of the clouds to calm her anxious mind.

Ponyville beneath her gradually thinned out, and soon enough she had returned to the sprawling orchards around the farm. She slowed her pace at this point, her eyes sweeping this way and that for any sign of where she had left the others. She soon found one of the spots where they had been before, judging by the signs of freshly moved dirt and the tracks left by Big Mac’s wagon.

She followed the path, spotting more signs of the group’s earlier passage. As she went, though, something began to feel off. She frowned, slowing to a halt.

“...Huh?” she asked out loud, her eyes narrowing in confusion. She was flying right over where Twilight, Applejack, and Big Mac had last been when she left. Under normal circumstances, she might have assumed that they just moved on without her—and indeed, for a moment, she figured that was the case.

But then she saw the wagon, with no sign of Big Mac. The mess of splintered scraps of wood from Twilight’s earlier breakdown had only partially been cleaned up, and no hole for planting had been dug. A deep, dark sense of foreboding began to fill Rainbow, pooling in her gut like a puddle of poison. She quickly descended, bringing her clouds along for the ride.

“Yo, AJ!” she called out once her hooves touched the ground. “Where are ya?! Twi? Big Mac, c’mon!”

There was no answer. Growing increasingly concerned, Rainbow released her hold on the clouds and nudged them to one side with her hind leg. They’d get caught in a tree or something and she could grab them later. For now, she looked around the scene, her lips drawn back into a thin, suspicious line.

As she surveyed the scene, she caught sight of tracks in the dirt. She eyed them carefully. These were definitely Applejack and Big Mac’s prints. One set was larger than the other, and both had torn and broken the earth as they went. Had they been galloping? If so, why? She followed the tracks with her eyes. They went deeper into the orchard, in the direction of the Everfree Forest.

Rainbow swallowed heavily, her wings ruffling against her sides. She quickly stored the clouds under a tree and then sped off after her friends, following the tracks they had left in their wake as quickly as she could. The sense of unease she felt only grew worse the farther she ran, and she began to grow concerned for Twilight. She thought back on how tired and distraught she had been all day long, and her breath hitched as, for just a moment, the image of Midnight flickered into her memory.

She shook her head to banish the notion. “No! No, that’s ridiculous. Twilight wasn’t anywhere near upset enough for that to happen. She’s fine. They’re fine. They must have just gotten distracted or something. Everfree fruit bats chomping on AJ’s apples, maybe?”

It was the only explanation she could think of that made sense. Applejack was excessively protective of her crop. Understandable, given it was her family’s entire livelihood. But still… Something about the explanation rang false in her mind.

After about two minutes of running, she came to the border of the orchard and the Everfree. She slid to a stop, gasping for breath, and took in the scene. She saw Applejack and Big Mac, both of them appearing anxious and confused, standing before the splintered ruins of an everfree tree. It had been felled partway up the trunk, the wood having exploded outward in an uneven pattern.

But there was no sign of Twilight.

The anxiety was growing steadily worse. Rainbow stepped into the clearing, her ears drooping. “AJ!” she called out, drawing the farmer’s attention.

Applejack turned to Rainbow with a start, then offered her a worried frown. “Rainbow… There ya are.”

“Yeah, here I am,” Rainbow replied, looking at the felled tree in confusion. “What happened here? Where’s Twilight?”

Applejack flinched, her ears drooping. She looked away after a second, her eyes darting this way and that. “Ah, uh… Ah dunno, Dash.”

Alarm bells rang in Rainbow’s mind. She marched closer to Applejack, her heart quickening. “What do you mean you don’t know?” she parroted incredulously. “She was with you, wasn’t she?”

“She ran off!” Applejack said, taking a step back. “She ran off, we heard an explosion, came here and- And she was gone! This was all we found!”

Rainbow’s mind blanked. She mouthed like a fish for several seconds as she hunted for words. Eventually, she clamped her jaw shut and eyed the fallen remains of the tree, her anxiety increasing rapidly. “What do you mean, ran off? Why? What happened?” she asked, taking a second to lower her voice and calm down. Panicking would not help her right now.

Applejack took a moment to compose herself as well. She turned to the carnage. “After y’all flew off, Ah sat down with Twilight while Big Mac worked on clearin’ out the debris. Ah asked her what had been botherin’ her, lately, and she told me ‘bout how much she’s been upset with the princesses lately, and about how much it’s makin’ her angry that she can’t go home and see her parents…

“But then she said somethin’ real weird-like. Said that some nightmare she’d had weren’t a regular nightmare…”

Rainbow blinked, raising an eyebrow. “What in the heck does that mean?”

Applejack sighed and shook her head. “Ah dunno. Ah asked her to tell me, but it was like she couldn’t figure out how to say it. Kept openin’ her mouth and workin’ it, but she never got out anythin’ more than a shaky stutter. Suddenly, she just gets up and runs off, sayin’ she needed to be alone fer a minute to clear her head.”

More alarm bells. Rainbow turned back to Applejack, eyes wide. “And you let her?” she asked incredulously.

Applejack turned to Rainbow with a defensive look on her face. “Hey, now, don’t get on my case, Dash! Ah was just tryin’ to respect her privacy. Ah wanted to go after her, but it wasn’t my place to go chasin’ her down.”

Rainbow took a deep breath and let it out with a heavy sigh. “Okay… fair point,” she conceded. As likely as it was that she would have gone after Twilight without a moment of hesitation, she had the excuse of being Twilight’s partner and childhood friend. That was a luxury Applejack did not share. After a few seconds, Rainbow turned back to Applejack. “What then?”

Applejack sighed and shook her head. “Not a whole lot left to tell. Big Mac kept workin’ on clearin’ out the rubble and whatnot, and Ah helped him. We figured Twi’d come back once she’d had a chance to calm down and figure out what was what. But then we heard this big boom, and the sound of a fallin’ tree in the direction she’d been runnin’. We dropped everythin’ and chased after her, only when we got here, well…”

Applejack gestured vaguely at the scene before them. “This is all we found. Ah thought ah heard her just before we turned up, but she weren’t here after that. But… Dash…”

Rainbow’s blood ran cold when she saw the nervous look in Applejack’s eyes.

“It sounded like she was crying.”

A lump formed in Rainbow’s throat that stubbornly refused to go away when she swallowed. Her mind raced with a hundred questions, but no answers were forthcoming. What could have possibly upset Twilight enough that she would have been crying? And more than that, what could have set her off so fiercely that she would blow up a tree? Had she been attacked, and this was a remnant of her trying to defend herself? They were right up against the Everfree Forest, after all.

Still, that didn’t seem right. Ever since Twilight’s memories were restored, she was back to being the epic powerhouse of a mage that she had been ever since they were foals. It would take something pretty substantial to even remotely threaten Twilight as she was now. If she had been attacked, then the fallen tree was more likely evidence of the utter destruction of whatever had been dumb enough to jump an upset alicorn.

But that thought wasn’t any more comforting. Twilight hated fighting. She’d do it if she had to, and Rainbow recalled she was surprisingly good at it when it counted, but she’d avoid violence if at all possible. And even if it wasn’t, she’d still show restraint…

Rainbow growled and smacked herself in the forehead. “Guh! Darnit! We can’t just guess blindly in the dark! We don’t know enough!”

Applejack sighed. “Ah wish Ah knew what to tell ya, RD…”

“Eeyup,” Big Mac solemnly agreed, idly kicking at a loose stone.

The trio fell into an uncomfortable silence. Rainbow took the opportunity to look around for any more clues as to what had happened. There was precious little to find, aside from a spot where she could only assume Twilight had been standing. Her prints were in the dirt, seemingly stepping over themselves in one spot several times as if she had been turning in circles or running in place.

It was as Rainbow was trying to piece together what that could mean when, finally, a lead came to her. Literally. She felt a familiar tingling sensation on the tips of her ears. Her heart skipped a beat, and she looked up just in time for a tell-tale burst of green flames to erupt in the air in front of her face. She took a reflexive step back, squinting into the light.

A rolled-up sheet of parchment fell out of the smoke. Rainbow quickly reached out and caught it, her expression contorted with confusion. “Huh?”

“A letter from Spike?” Applejack asked as she trotted over. “Open ‘er up, let’s see what he’s gotta say.”

Rainbow wasted no time in doing just that, unrolling the sheet and looking at the contents, and reading them out loud.

Rainbow,

Twilight just came back to the library and locked herself in her room. She won’t open the door, and every time I knock she tells me to leave her alone. She sounds really upset. I don’t know what’s going on, but it’s scaring me. You two didn’t have a fight, did you?

Whatever happened, please come back and help me sort this out as soon as you can. I’m really worried about her, and I don’t want a repeat of Canterlot.

-Spike.

Rainbow’s stomach twisted in on itself in her belly. That didn’t sound good, but at least now she knew where Twilight was. She turned back to Applejack. She opened her mouth to speak, but the farmer stopped her by holding up a hoof.

An understanding look was on Applejack’s face, and when she spoke, there was no room to argue with her voice. “Go to her.”

Rainbow opened her mouth to say something but quickly thought better of it. She passed the letter to Applejack before bending low, giving her wings a quick stretch, and then kicking off as hard as she could. She felt the wind pushing back against her as she gained altitude, lending a sense of frustration to her already swelling urgency.

“Shove off!” she growled under her breath, pumping her wings for all they were worth. In a matter of moments, the air began to form a near-solid barrier slowing her down. Only seconds later, with a shout of effort, she punched through. Her ears were filled with a deafening roar, and the world around her was bathed in the familiar prismatic glow of a sonic rainboom.

“Hang on, Twilight,” she thought as she sped through the air for the Golden Oaks Library. “I’m coming!”

A Somber Revelation

When moving faster than the speed of sound, it didn’t take Rainbow very long to get back to the library. She grit her teeth and flared her wings to slow herself down when it came into view. Her wing joints burned from the pressure being placed on them, and the faintest hint of vertigo tickled the back of her mind, but she forced herself to power through it until, at last, her hooves met the solid ground. She staggered forward into the front door and took a second to catch her breath.

“I am probably gonna regret that in the morning,” she thought with an unamused snort before bodying the door open. Spike was there, just coming down the stairs from the loft.

He jumped in surprise on spotting her, his eyes flying wide. “Woah! That was fast!”

“Spike,” Rainbow said in a deadpan, nudging the door shut with her back leg. “It’s me. Fast is kinda the name of the game.”

Spike blinked, then nodded along. “Er, right, yeah. Sorry, I’m just-”

“How is she?”

Spike went rigid, his posture sagging. The tips of his claws tapped anxiously together, and he looked up and over his shoulder at the door leading to Rainbow and Twilight’s bedroom. “She… she still isn’t coming out,” he mumbled quietly. “And she still won’t let me in, either. But, uh, well, in the time it took you to get here, it sounds like she’s at least calmed down a little bit. I think.”

Rainbow nodded, her eyes focusing on the door in question. If Twilight was calming down, that was a good sign. No risk of a repeat of Midnight—at least, not straight away. Still, she wasn’t keen on leaving Twilight on her own, at least not until she had some assurance that she was going to be fine.

Rainbow looked back down at Spike. “Alright. You go ahead and chill out down here. I’ll handle this,” she instructed simply. Spike nodded and backed away before wandering off. Rainbow didn’t pay much attention to where he went. She simply began the climb up to the door. She came to a stop once she reached it, placing her ear up to it to listen in on her significant other.

On the other side of the door, she could just make out the sound of Twilight breathing. Deep, rhythmic breaths, slow and even. Rainbow’s brow furrowed. “Must be doing that meditating thing Aunt Luna taught her…” she pondered. She hesitated for a moment, wondering if she really wanted to disrupt whatever serenity Twilight had managed to find.

She quickly cast her hesitation aside, though. Twilight had been deeply upset not all that long ago and had probably resorted to the meditation to cope. It wasn’t a sign that she had actually gotten better. Simply that she was trying.

With that thought echoing in her mind, Rainbow cleared her throat and gently knocked on the door. “Hey… Twi? You in there?” she called out, doing her best to keep her voice soft and gentle in spite of its natural rasp.

The breathing on the other side of the door cut off for a second. Then came a gentle rustling, and the sound of hooves shuffling slowly across the wooden floor. They drew closer and closer until Twilight spoke from the other side of the door.

“I… I’m here.”

Rainbow wilted. She sounded so tired. Not surprising, given how she had slept, but… no, this was a different kind of tired. This was mental fatigue. Emotional. Rainbow’s own intimate familiarity with such things let her pick it out with only a moment of thought. She shook herself and spoke again. “You okay? You gave AJ and I one heck of a scare.”

A pause. “...I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to scare you or anything. I was just… I needed to be alone for a little while.”

Rainbow quirked a brow. “...Pretty sure you were alone, Twi. Unless that tree you blew up could talk. In which case, we got a whole new problem on our hooves.”

That got the desired result, a quiet snort of amusement from the other side of the door. There was another pause, followed by a sigh. “...No, the tree wasn’t talking. I was just…”

She didn’t continue. It felt like an eternity as the two fell into silence, and Rainbow’s heart began to twist in her chest. She remembered all the times she had fled from her friends when her own psyche had begun to break down. It had taken her far, far too long to stop doing that, and now Twilight was doing the exact same thing. Hiding away, and when somepony came asking after her, she just couldn’t find her words.

Rainbow slowly lifted a hoof up and placed it against the door. She imagined Twilight doing the same thing on the other side. A grimace came over Rainbow’s muzzle. To be separated by a thin, brittle sheet of wood that could easily be broken by either of them… were they both not so scared of breaking the fragile peace of the library.

“So… can I come in?” Rainbow asked after a minute, though she had a feeling she knew the answer already.

There was a brief silence before the answer came. The door swung open with a barely audible click. Rainbow withered on the spot at the sight of Twilight’s expression. If she had been exhausted before, she looked to be on the verge of collapse now. The bags under her eyes were so much heavier than before, and the eyes themselves had gone red and puffy. There were still visible marks on her cheeks where tears had passed.

“Oh, Twilight…” Rainbow breathed, her ears resting flat against her head.

Twilight looked down, almost as if she were ashamed, and backed out of Rainbow’s way. The pegasus slipped into the room and shut the door behind her without a word, unable to tear her eyes away from the only other mare in the room. She worked her jaw up and down, trying to find the words, but what could she say? Without knowing what it was that had sent Twilight spiraling like this, her words would all be blind shots in the dark, but prying to find out what had happened ran the risk of breaking the all-too-fragile composure Twilight had managed to pull together.

Twilight looked down and away, anxiously rubbing her shoulder. Her eyes fixated on one spot on the floor, while an uncomfortable grimace made itself known on her muzzle. Every so often, her gaze flicked back to Rainbow before returning to the floor.

She just looked so fragile. A lump formed in Rainbow’s throat, and she couldn’t help but be reminded of herself in Hollow Shades. How she hadn’t been able to meet the gaze of the mare she loved, how she had been withdrawn, quiet, and barely able to keep herself together. That memory compelled her to reach out and pull Twilight into a tight hug, eliciting a startled squeak from the mare.

Neither of them said a word for several seconds. Twilight slowly returned the embrace. Her grip was tight, almost as if she were afraid she might fall to her death if she lost her hold. Rainbow buried her face in Twilight’s mane, nuzzling her affectionately, before placing her lips by Twilight’s ear. “What happened?”

Twilight shuddered, but she did not answer at first. When she did speak, it was in halting, hesitant words, as if she weren’t even sure of what she was saying.

“I, um… It’s just… It all just got to me, you know?” she stammered out slowly. “Being banished from Canterlot, my parents, the Elements, the Tree, the chest… It all got brought to the front by that s-stupid dream, and...”

Rainbow’s brow furrowed, thinking back to that morning. She felt a chill race down her spine at the idea that Twilight’s nightmare had been sufficiently harrowing to make her break down like this. The more she thought about it, though, the more sense it made. Twilight had been anxious, out of it, and on edge all day.

She leaned back to look into Twilight’s bloodshot eyes, her expression twisting with sympathy. “Are you sure you don’t wanna talk about it?” she asked slowly.

Twilight looked down at the floor. “I… I don’t know,” she whimpered.

Rainbow pursed her lips, trying to figure out what she was supposed to do here. Twilight was obviously stressed, and whatever she had dreamed about had her shaking in her skin. It must have been pretty bad. Her mind wandered back over the events of the day, hoping to see if she could find any clues as to what the dream might have been about, and her thoughts drifted back to what Applejack had said.

“...She told me ‘bout how much she’s been upset with the princesses lately, and about how much it’s makin’ her angry that she can’t go home and see her parents. But then she said somethin’ real weird-like. Said that some nightmare she’d had weren’t a regular nightmare…”

Rainbow blinked, her eyes widening slightly. She looked down at Twilight a moment later, her brow furrowing in thought. “...Applejack mentioned that you thought it wasn’t a regular nightmare. What did you mean by that?” she asked slowly.

Twilight visibly tensed at the question. She suddenly drew back out of Rainbow’s hooves, a wide-eyed look of fear on her face. “S-she said that?” she stammered a moment later, forcing out a nervous chuckle. “H-heh, uh, I th-think she might have been exaggerating a bit.”

Rainbow’s frown deepened. Something was wrong. Twilight’s ears were swiveling to face somewhere else, but there was no other sound in the room. It was just them, and they were alone.

Rainbow took a ginger step forward, tilting her head. “Er, that’s not really AJ’s style. You know that, right? She doesn’t lie, and if anything, she usually downplays stuff,” she pointed out.

Twilight swallowed heavily.

Now Rainbow was really worried. No longer was she just concerned for Twilight’s emotional state. Something else was going on. Twilight was hiding something from her, and whatever it was, it terrified her.

“O-oh, uh… w-well, I,” Twilight stammered out, unable to form a proper counter. Her face began to twitch every so often, her muscles tensing again. Rainbow leaned back in surprise when Twilight let off a barely audible growl of frustration, and her pupils dilated somewhat. Her ears flicked again.

Rainbow faltered. The sheer fear and confusion in Twilight’s eyes were heartbreaking in their own right. What in the world could have led her to such a broken state? And even more importantly, what could possibly have happened in that dream that made her not want to share it? And what made it ‘not a normal nightmare?’ The only thing Rainbow could think of that could have possibly been responsible for that was the Tantabus, but Luna had destroyed that mistake years ago.

No, this was something else. And Rainbow meant to get to the bottom of it.

She set her jaw, her expression hardening. “Twilight. Tell me what’s going on,” she commanded softly. A moment later, she found she couldn’t maintain the intensity and lowered her voice. “...Please.”

Twilight watched her for several long seconds. She shook her head stiffly. “I can’t,” she choked out in barely even a whisper.

Rainbow frowned in confusion. “What do you mean you can’t?”

Twilight didn’t say anything else. She just backed away some more, looking down at the floor.

Rainbow followed after her, her ears lowering. “Twilight… c’mon. Don’t you trust me?” she prodded gently. She wasn’t fond of trying to play the guilt card, especially in this kind of scenario, but desperate times called for desperate measures, and she needed to know what was wrong.

“W-with my life,” Twilight replied weakly.

“Then tell me what’s going on,” Rainbow insisted, lifting a hoof to reach out to Twilight. “Please… I love you, Twilight. I don’t like seeing you like this. Let me help you. I want- No, I need to help you. But I can’t do that if you don’t trust me to try.”

Rainbow slightly relaxed when Twilight took a few seconds to breathe, slowly calming down. It seems it had worked, even if only a little bit. After a few seconds, Twilight nodded towards the bed. “Okay… okay. I’ll tell you about my nightmare. Just… promise me you won’t be mad at me?”

Rainbow quirked a brow. “Why would I be mad at you for a dream?” she asked after a second. “That’d be kinda dumb.”

“Because…” Twilight paused, then let off a small snort of amusement. She shook her head. “No, nevermind. Just promise me, alright?”

Rainbow was a little confused, but then shrugged. “Er, okay. I mean, that wouldn’t happen anyway, but alright. I promise I won’t get mad at you for having a sucky dream. Here, I’ll even make it a Pinkie Promise!” she decided, quickly going through the associated motions.

“Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”

Twilight smiled softly at the display before hopping up onto the bed. She patted the space next to her, and Rainbow wasted no time in joining her. She draped a wing over the alicorn’s back, providing what warmth and comfort she could.

Twilight took in a deep breath and then launched into her story. “So… in my nightmare, I was walking up to Canterlot. I was gonna get in and go see my family. You know, a little surprise visit, since I’m not supposed to be up there. I figured, you know, slip in and out before anypony else noticed, don’t talk to anypony, and it would be fine. Just a harmless visit. But, well, I guess, in the dream, the princesses disagreed. The entire city had a magical barrier around it that kept me out.

“I threw everything I had at it, and I didn’t even make a dent. And I started getting so angry. I was screaming, and crying, and ranting my head off. Looking back, I sounded like an absolute lunatic. Eventually, my efforts stopped working, and, suddenly, I was in the cave with the Tree and the chest.”

Rainbow nodded along quietly. “Kay, I’m with ya so far…”

Twilight took a deep breath. “...Celestia and Luna were there. Celestia told me that I had to wait until my ‘work is done,’ I assume referring to that stupid chest. I argued with her, still angry. We argued back and forth, and, eventually, I… I…”

Twilight went silent. Rainbow frowned. “Eventually you… what?”

Twilight took a deep breath. “...I lunged at her. I went for her throat. I… I tried to kill her. I wanted to kill her!” she finally exclaimed, shuddering at the mere thought. She screwed her eyes shut, bowing her head under the strain. “I reached out to grab her by the neck and choke the life out of her! For that moment, I hated Celestia and Luna, and that scares me more than anything! I love those two! Why would I ever…?”

Rainbow blinked in surprise as Twilight trailed off. She had been expecting something bad, sure, but that wasn’t exactly what she had been picturing. In her nightmares, Rainbow had typically either been a victim of the violence, or a bystander unable to defend the ponies she loved. Her various nightmares about Starlight and Chrysalis wormed back into her mind, and she cringed at the memory.

Twilight’s dream was different in that she had been the aggressor. Rainbow was no psychologist, and so she could only guess that the emotional problem was very different. She knew that Twilight had still been carrying some leftover resentment towards Luna for how poorly the lunar alicorn had treated her during her time with amnesia, but she had assumed it was only for Luna. Not Celestia, too.

“Bah. this is all too complicated for me,” she thought in mild irritation. Besides, she had something more important to think about right now. Namely, the alicorn under her wing that seemed to be on the verge of breaking into sobs.

“Might as well dispel one of her fears.”

Rainbow leaned over to kiss Twilight on the cheek. That small act of affection elicited a tiny squeak of surprise from her, and a blush came to her cheeks. Rainbow smiled at her when she looked back. “Not gonna lie, that is kinda messed up,” she said in a casual, reassuring tone. “But come on, it was just a nightmare. Why would I get mad at you for something like that?”

Twilight blinked. “Because… I tried to kill your mother in it?”

“See, if you were awake and you tried that, I’d be livid,” Rainbow pointed out. “But you were asleep, and it was a dream. A nasty dream, totally, and it brings up a few really worrying questions about your mental health, but hey, I had really bad nightmares for how long? I ain’t gonna judge you for yours.”

A long silence followed that. After a few seconds, Twilight began to let out a few quiet giggles and leaned into Rainbow’s side a little more. Rainbow smiled genuinely and pulled the mare closer. That was a good sound. It was a little bit of progress, a step in the right direction.

“Sorry,” Twilight eventually managed to say between her quiet giggles. She wiped a hoof over her eyes and looked up at Rainbow. “I guess I was making it out to be a bigger deal than it was. I mean, I know that dreams are manifestations of our subconscious, so I guess I just assumed you’d think I hated your mom or something.”

“Twi, I have seen you suck up to mom more times than I could be bothered to count, and I tried when we were little,” Rainbow shot back with a roll of her eyes. “Not to mention that, before I came along, I am pretty sure she was like a mother figure to you, too.”

Twilight looked away. “Yeah, I guess… I mean, we were more like sisters back then, weren’t we? Which makes us being a couple now a little weird, doesn’t it?”

Rainbow shrugged. “I dunno. A little? Honestly, I never really bought into all of that ‘we’re like sisters’ crud anyway,” she dismissed.

Twilight giggled again, the sound music to Rainbow’s ears. “Oh, of course, you didn’t. You didn’t think about anything very much back then.”

Rainbow shot Twilight an irritated frown. “Wanna run that by me again, egghead?”

“Not especially.”

Rainbow grunted, then smirked affectionately. A few seconds later, Twilight cuddled closer to her and breathed out a relieved sigh. “Thank you, by the way… I’m starting to feel a little better,” she whispered.

Refocusing her attention on the matter at hoof, Rainbow nodded and gave Twilight another nuzzle. There couldn’t be too much affection right now, as far as she cared. “No problem. I’m always glad to help… although, you still haven’t told me what you meant when you told AJ the dream wasn’t normal.”

Twilight tensed under her, but not as much. A few seconds later, Twilight sighed and shook her head. “Nevermind. I haven’t really been at the wheel as much as I should be all day.”

Rainbow sighed, spotting the attempted deflection for what it was. “Twi, c’mon.”

There were several seconds of silence. Twilight turned away, her ears drooping. “...I can’t talk about it.”

“And why not?” Rainbow asked incredulously, her brow furrowing. “You just told me about how you went and tried to choke my mom out in your dream, but you can’t even tell me why it wasn’t a regular dream?”

Twilight continued to tense up, and Rainbow briefly contemplated backing off. “I just can’t, okay. Besides, it… it doesn’t matter.”

“It sounds like it matters to me,” Rainbow said with a frown. “I mean, yeah, I can get that you’d be mad at mom and aunt Luna for, ya know, all this. And while I’m not mad at you for having a dream like that, I am worried about what it means. I mean, strangling mom? That ain’t really… like you…”

Rainbow’s eyes slowly widened as a sudden realization dawned on her. This whole situation felt somewhat familiar to her. The roles had switched, but…

“...Every time I see you, I want to… hurt you… I want to make you pay…”

“Every time?” Starlight asked, her other eyebrow shooting up to join its twin. She watched as Rainbow nodded, then brought a hoof up to her chin. “Every time… That doesn’t sound right. There’s no way that should be happening.”

Rainbow’s turned to look at Starlight with a raised eyebrow of her own. “Huh?”

“Look, I can totally understand it if you have some… ah, lingering feelings of doubt or bitterness over what happened to your wing,” Starlight winced and looked away as she said that. “But you know that I’m innocent. You shouldn’t be feeling so angry towards me all the time. Not unless you just have a very poor grasp of reality.”

Rainbow frowned angrily at that remark before shaking her head. “I’m just gonna pretend you didn’t call me an idiot there and say yeah, you’re right, I shouldn’t be so angry and hostile towards you, but I am. I’m hoping that getting to know you better can help with that.”

Starlight brought a hoof up to her chin and let her eyes wander as she thought. “...Tell me, Rainbow. Does your anger towards me feel… normal for you?”

“Uh…” Rainbow blinked and took a step back. “What do you mean?”

Starlight’s eyes shifted for a moment before focusing on Rainbow’s. “Okay, think about Queen Chrysalis for a second. She invaded Canterlot so she could turn its population, your subjects, into food to be farmed. She then went and imprisoned your adoptive mother and aunt, probably after fighting them, which means she had to hurt them. Then, to top it all off, when you and Twilight tried to rescue the other Princesses, Chrysalis tried to kill you two outright. If Twilight hadn’t been as fast as she was to teleport us out, all three of us would have been reduced to ashes. All of that has got to be really upsetting to you, right?”

Rainbow nodded, her brow furrowing. “Yeah, of course, it's upsetting. I’m angry at Chrysalis and scared for my family. What are you getting at?”

Starlight took a couple steps forward. “What I’m getting at is this; Every single time you talk about Chrysalis and what she’s done, you don’t talk about hurting her or making her pay. You never look as angry when you mention her as you do when you even glance in my direction. You talk about trying to rescue your family and saving Equestria, and you’ve seen her atrocities firsthoof. But with me,” Starlight put a hoof on her chest. “You want to hurt me every single time you lay eyes on me, you said. You want to make me pay for a crime committed by a different mare who doesn’t even exist anymore. Don’t you see? That’s not a rational feeling, and it’s inconsistent with everything else I’ve seen in you, everything I know about you.”

Rainbow blinked, her eyes going a little wide. “So… are you saying that…” she breathed out, slowly rising to stand at her full height as the realization began to set in.

Rainbow blinked. It had been a very long time since she had given much thought to her time in the Empire in such detail, but that one interaction with Starlight now stood out to her. Back that, her hatred for Starlight had been fueled by a spell that Discord had sneakily implanted into her mind. It had forced her to experience very specific emotional reactions whenever she thought of or looked at Starlight. It had even manifested with a voice repeating a mantra in her head…

Make her pay.

Twilight loved Princess Celestia almost like a second mother. And though the two had long had an icy relationship, she also held no small amount of respect for Luna. In recent times, she had rapidly warmed up to the lunar princess when she began to help Twilight deal with her current mental issues.

Now, one of those issues was a nightmare that was very extreme for her. Not to mention she had been acting erratically ever since she had gotten her memories back. She had become quick to anger, and Rainbow could recall several occasions when Twilight had completely zoned out when there was nothing there to distract her. Each time, she came back just a little more upset than when she had first zoned out.

Rainbow swallowed heavily, the cogs turning rapidly in her head. Was it possible that Twilight had something similar going on with her? Rainbow knew that Twilight had had some limited exposure to Discord during the Plundervines incident. The two had spoken while Twilight was unconscious. Had the draconequus managed to put a spell on her at that time? Did he even have that power?

Twilight blinked, tilting her head. “...Rainbow? What is it?” she asked, jarring the pegasus out of her sudden reverie.

Rainbow jumped in her skin. She turned to look at Twilight, her eyes wide and unblinking. If she was right about this…

“...Did Discord put a spell on you, too?”

Twilight blinked. “Huh?”

Rainbow hopped off the bed, starting to pace back and forth across the room. Her brain was going, and she wasn’t about to let it slow down. This was too important. “I just remembered how I was acting all those years ago in the Empire. What Discord’s spell did to me,” she explained quickly, her eyes flicking this way and that. “And you saw how that went. How it made me act. Did he do something like that to you, too?”

“W-what?!” Twilight exclaimed, sitting up and leaning away. “No! No, of course not! I would have gotten rid of it by now if he had!”

“Then what is going on?” Rainbow pressed, turning to face Twilight directly. “Because you’re acting a lot like how I used to when he had me under one, and frankly, I shoulda noticed a long time ago!”

“Rainbow, please,” Twilight tried, but her words fell on deaf ears. Not that it would have mattered if they didn’t, for she couldn't find any more.

Rainbow continued to pace. “Ever since you got your memories back, you’ve been more easily agitated, you’ve gotten angry a lot easier, you’ve gotten distracted by things as if you were hearing things nopony else could. When I was under Discord’s spell, I had his voice in my head! So if not Discord, then who? Who else could have put a spell-like that in your head!?”

“There is no spell!” Twilight argued, leaning forward.

“Well, something’s not right!” Rainbow shot back. “This sure ain’t a regular case of PTSD. I have PTSD, Twilight! I’m no psychiatrist, but I am at least thirty percent sure it doesn’t work like this.”

“I’m fine,” Twilight insisted. “I’m just stressed out.”

“Twi, I’ve seen you stressed. Before and during your amnesia,” Rainbow countered. “You get frazzled, confused, and kinda manic. But you never had these massive emotional meltdowns where you yelled at creatures asking for help, knocked down big trees, obsessed over some paranoid idea about a stalking psycho, or almost blew up one of your friends. The only time I can think of where you were doing any of those things before you got your memory back was… when…”

It clicked. Rainbow suddenly understood. Or at the very least, she had a theory.

Twilight shrank away from her, the color draining from her face. “Rainbow… please, don’t…”

Rainbow took a deep breath. She turned to face Twilight directly. “...Was when you were Midnight,” she said quietly. “When you were trying to steal memories to figure out what I had been hiding from you… You were angry, confrontational, obsessive, and…”

She winced, remembering how much it had hurt when Twilight had kicked her back then.

Twilight’s eyes were glistening with fresh moisture. “I… I…”

Rainbow was quiet for several seconds. She turned back to Twilight, finally comprehending what had been plaguing her beloved all this time. “It’s Midnight, isn’t it? She’s still in there, somewhere.”

Twilight flinched as if she had been struck, and Rainbow knew she had hit the nail on the head. This was only confirmed when Twilight offered up a tiny, timid nod. “Yes… she is…”

Rainbow slowly climbed back onto the bed, a whole new wave of concern coming over her. “How long?”

“Since I got my memories back,” Twilight replied. “Like you said… Luna says it’s a part of me that yearns to Fall again.”

Rainbow frowned. “Why in the world would any part of you want that?”

“Because it felt good,” Twilight said, and Rainbow could actually hear the longing in her voice. Twilight went on a second later when Rainbow didn’t reply. “When you Fall, all of your inhibitions are lifted. Every feeling you chain down, every impulse you controlled, every bad thought you denied… Everything about you that you hold back is all released at once. It suddenly feels like you’ve become whole. It’s liberating. You’re not afraid of anything anymore. You know what you want, and you aren’t afraid to take it. And the power that comes with it. The raw emotions… it escalates your strength. Your magic, your flight. Everything. Becoming a Fallen Alicorn takes everything about you, the good, the bad, and amplifies it all… But without your restraints, all of the bad shines through and takes over.”

“I think I get it,” Rainbow replied quietly. In truth, most of that had gone over her head, but she understood enough to get the idea. “So, she wants to go back to that, and makes you act out?”

Twilight nodded slowly. “Yes. She talks to me a lot. Taunts me… insults me, you, our friends. She’s like a little devil on my shoulder, always looking for a sign of doubt, or frustration, or anything to latch onto to try and make me angry. The nightmares I’ve been having are her fault. She’ll try anything to make me take her back… But I won’t. I am not Midnight, and I will never turn into her again!”

A long, heavy silence fell over them. Rainbow took a moment to fully digest the bombshell that had just been dropped on her. “That explains so much…” she whispered. Everything that had been going on with Twilight up till now suddenly made so much more sense. There was a cause, and indeed, a villain to blame for it.

But that still left the question… “Why didn’t you ever say anything?” she asked in a low whisper. “This is info we could’ve used a while ago.”

Twilight shook her head. “I just… I never thought to. And then, when I tried to tell Applejack earlier, I found out that Midnight was blocking me from doing it. She kept me from physically saying the words… She’s only backing off now because you figured it out on your own… Damage already done.”

Rainbow frowned. “Damage?”

Twilight shrank down into the mattress. “...What if I can’t control her?” she eventually mumbled. “You know now that there’s an evil, parasitical remnant living in my head, antagonizing me and making me lash out. She’s driven me to violence before. If I lose control, or if she gets to me…”

Suddenly, Twilight reached out and ensnared one of Rainbow’s hooves in both of hers, her eyes desperate and pleading. “Please, don’t leave me. Don’t leave me alone with her!”

Rainbow blinked. “Huh?! Why in the world would I ever do that?!” she exclaimed in shock.

“Because… because… I’m a threat,” Twilight finally choked out. “I’m dangerous to you, to our friends, to everypony around us. I almost h-hurt you when Maud was visiting… If I can’t keep Midnight in check, then-”

Rainbow hadn’t even realized she was placing a hoof against Twilight’s muzzle until her words went quiet. The two were silent for several seconds, just staring into each other’s eyes. Rainbow took a deep breath, set her jaw, and spoke, her voice laced with steel conviction. “No. You aren’t a threat to us. Midnight is a threat,” she said slowly. “And frankly? I’d have been more likely to jump ship if you hadn’t told me that. But now I know that there’s a bad guy in your head. So now I know that whenever you act out or lash our like that, it isn’t you, it’s her. She’s just using you.”

Twilight brushed Rainbow’s hoof away. “But… But I’m still the one who makes the decisions… I’m the one who makes the mistake of listening…”

Rainbow nodded along. “Yeah… kinda like how I was still making the decisions when under Discord’s spell,” she pointed out. “But even still, you can’t accept all the blame. She’s still aggravating you into doing those things. As long as she’s in there, you can’t really be yourself.”

She draped a wing over Twilight’s back. “And that means we need to figure out how to get rid of her.”

Already, a range of ideas were going through Rainbow’s mind. Back when it had been her under Discord’s spell, Starlight had been the one to finally remove it. Maybe they should call on her for help? Then again, Starlight had made it pretty clear she wasn’t interested in being friends with her or anypony in her group, and wanted to be left alone by them. Although, it had been a couple of years. Maybe she changed her tune?

Or maybe Celestia and Luna? Those two were the most powerful mages in the whole world, bar none. It would be a trifling matter to yank out the parasite, wouldn’t it? “In fact, why haven’t they? Twi already said that Luna knows Midnight’s around and knows what she is.”

Twilight sighed and shook her head, pulling Rainbow from her thoughts. “It’s not that simple… This isn’t a spell that was put on me from the outside, Rainbow… It’s coming from within. We can’t just pull Midnight out of me and hope for the best. She’s completely woven into my psyche…”

Rainbow winced. “And… what does that mean?”

Twilight set her head down and closed her eyes. “...It means that the only pony who can get rid of Midnight is me… She’s my demon. My inner monster. Nopony else can fight her for me. Nopony else can even help me. I have to be the one to get rid of her… on my own.”

Rainbow stared at Twilight for several long seconds. She felt a surge of frustration, and her teeth ground together behind her lips. She had been on such a roll, and for a moment, it had felt like she was on the brink of solving all of their problems, but if Twilight was right—which she probably was—then yet again, Rainbow was going to be forced to sit idly on the sidelines, powerless to do anything to help somepony she loved.

Just like in Baltimare. Just like when Nightmare Moon took Celestia’s place. Just like when Chrysalis had invaded Canterlot. Just like when rainbow had watched, helpless, as the Plundervines snatched Luna right out of the sky.

Just like when Rainbow had felt Twilight dying in her hooves…

“No.”

“Maybe we can’t fight Midnight for you,” she said quietly, but confidently. She watched as Twilight looked up at her in surprise, and she gave the tired alicorn a cocky grin. “But we can still help you fight her in other ways.”

Twilight blinked. “Huh?”

Rainbow leaned down at nuzzled affectionately up to Twilight. “We’ll just do what we always do. We’ll be there for you. We’ll support you when you’re struggling, we’ll pull you back when you’re slipping, we’ll stop you if you lose control. And all the way, we’ll cheer you on.”

Twilight stared up at her in shock. After a few seconds, her shock morphed into an appreciative smile. “...Rainbow,” she whispered quietly.

Rainbow stared into her eyes, drawing nearer. A tiny blush formed on her cheeks as she darted in for another, gentle kiss. Twilight returned it, humming contentedly before the two parted. Rainbow grinned. “What? Did you really think we’re gonna leave you hanging?”

Twilight sighed and chuckled quietly. A few seconds passed before she frowned. “Um… what did you mean by ‘we,’ by the way?” she asked uneasily.

Rainbow frowned. It had seemed pretty obvious to her. “Er, me and all of our friends. Duh. What, did you think I was the only one that was gonna be helping ya?”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “B-but, the others don’t know…”

Rainbow nodded along slowly. “Mhmm. that’s true enough… guess we gotta fix that, then, huh?”

“B-but…” Twilight protested, her ears lowering. “What if they…”

Rainbow’s expression darkened. “Twi, they need to know. If you’ve got Midnight loitering in your brain, then they gotta be in the loop. Not just so they can help you, but so that they can know why you’ve been acting up the way you have. You know that… It’s just Midnight’s making you forget.”

Twilight snorted softly. “I’m… not entirely sure it works like that,” she said quietly. “But… I don’t know, Rainbow… I’m scared…”

Rainbow eyed her for a few seconds. Twilight certainly looked to be anxious and on edge… and to top it all off, she was still exhausted. A few seconds passed before Rainbow nodded quietly in understanding. She had been thinking of just gathering everyone up ASAP, but right now, it looked like Twilight needed rest more than anything.

Rainbow gave a slow nod. “Alright… fair enough. It can wait until tomorrow.”

Twilight winced. “Does it have to happen at all?”

Rainbow frowned. “Twi, you know that the others have to know. Ya gotta tell ‘em what’s going on, and if you don’t, I will. They can’t be kept in the dark about this.”

Twilight opened her mouth to protest. A few seconds passed before she sighed and looked away. “...Just so you know, Midnight is using some very colorful language to describe you right now.”

“And Midnight can bite me,” Rainbow shot back without missing a beat.

Suddenly, a loud, guttural growling sound filled the room. Rainbow perked up, looking at the source of the noise; Twilight’s belly. The alicorn’s face steadily began to flush into a very deep shade of red.

Rainbow couldn’t help it. It was just such a sudden and ridiculous thing that she began to laugh. Twilight did not seem to be as amused at first, but a few seconds later, she joined in.

It was nice, letting loose like this, and after the tension of the last several minutes, the laughter was more than welcome.

Once they calmed down, Rainbow, still chortling, hopped off the bed. “Speaking of bites, how about we grab one to eat?” she asked, hoping that some grub would lift Twilight’s spirits. “After all that, I’m thinking we could let Spike spoil us a bit.”

Twilight chuckled tiredly, following Rainbow off the bed. “Heh. Sure, I guess. I could go for a hayburger right now.”

“Or seven?”

“Or shut up.”

“Nope.”

Their chuckling soon turned to silence as they shut the door behind them.

Shared Dream

“Is she coming to bed or not?” Twilight asked drowsily, her half-closed eyes drifting aimlessly around the bedroom, unable to focus on any one thing in particular. It was just about dark out, the sun having just dipped below the horizon, casting the world outside the library in shades of rapidly darkening pinks and purples. Twilight sat alone in her bed, waiting patiently for Rainbow Dash to come up. Given all that had been revealed earlier, the pegasus was insistent on being there for Twilight at all times.

Which made it somewhat odd that, just before Twilight had come up, Rainbow had insisted on staying downstairs to “take care of one or two small chores,” and while Twilight had not questioned it, there were just three small problems with that line of reasoning.

“Problem one: Rainbow Dash hates doing chores,” Twilight thought to herself, her snout wrinkling. “Problem two: There are no chores around the Library that need doing. We handled all of those earlier. Problem three: Rainbow Dash said she wasn’t going to leave me alone if she could help it, but she’s left me here for the last five- no, ten- minutes. And seeing as there are no chores left to do…”

It didn’t make any sense until Twilight read between the lines. Clearly, Rainbow was up to something that she didn’t want Twilight to know about. On most occasions, that amounted to fun surprises or gifts, but there had been the one or two occasions where Twilight caught Rainbow eating more sweets than her diet really allowed for—usually as a response to stress, but the point remains.

“Or perhaps she’s just afraid to share a bed with you, now,” Midnight suddenly piped up. “Seeing as she somehow managed to piece together my presence.”

Twilight went rigid, her mind flickering back to her vision from earlier, and the harrowing moment she had found Rainbow’s goodbye letter…

Twilight quickly shook her head. “No! You’re wrong! You heard what Rainbow Dash said earlier! She isn’t going to leave me alone with you!”

“That won’t stop her from being afraid,” Midnight snipped. “She’ll put on a brave face like she always does, but deep down, you and I both know she’s terrified of what she has discovered.”

Twilight grit her teeth behind her lips, then took a long, deep breath to calm herself down. “I’m not listening to this.”

“Then you’re an even bigger coward than she is,” Midnight spat caustically before Twilight felt her receding into the depths of her mind. Twilight let off a heavy sigh of relief once she was confident her malevolent shade had gone silent.

The silence that followed was mercifully short-lived. Twilight didn’t have a chance to even begin doubting her own conviction when the door to the room gently swung open and Rainbow stepped in.

“Hey. Sorry for the wait,” Rainbow said casually as she nudged the door shut behind her.

Twilight instantly perked up, her pensive expression morphing into one of relief. “There you are. What kept you?” she asked.

“I told you. Chores,” Rainbow replied with a noncommittal shrug before lightly hopping up onto the bed. She pulled her hairband off and shook her mane about, sending the long hairs cascading wildly down her back and over her shoulders.

Twilight’s face flattened into a deadpan. “Of course…”

“What, don’t believe me?” Rainbow asked with a snicker.

Twilight sighed and rolled her eyes. “I just know you, Rainbow.”

“Then you know it isn’t a problem,” she nudged Twilight in the ribs with her elbow.

Twilight raised an eyebrow, staring directly into Rainbow’s soul. The pegasus’ cocky grin became strained, and she leaned back with a small, nervous little chortle.

“Uh… eheh, so… sleep?” Rainbow finally suggested, picking at the blankets with her hoof.

Twilight continued to eye Rainbow for a few more seconds before finally giving off a defeated sigh. She was too tired for this. “Yes. Please. Sleep. I need sleep,” she muttered. The promise of rest was already lulling her into a state of total shut-down. She slumped limply down onto the bed, her face plowing gracelessly into the pillow with a muted pomf.

Rainbow snorted at the display. She didn’t say anything, though. Twilight felt her moving around until Rainbow’s hooves coiled gently around her from the side, and the warm blankets fell over them both. Twilight’s exhausted body began to relax when she felt Rainbow nuzzling into the back of her head.

“G’night, Twi. I got ya.”

Twilight managed a tiny smile at that and embraced Rainbow’s hooves with her own. “Thank you, Rainbow… goodnight.”

That was the last thing she said before the world faded away, and she stepped into the dream realm.

Twilight’s slumber was mercifully peaceful. Rainbow’s presence and vow of continued support and affection in spite of her knowledge of Midnight did wonders to ease the alicorn’s troubled thoughts. No nightmares came to torture her in the night, affording her pleasant dreams that she would forget come the morning.

In one such dream, she was flying high over Equestria. The clouds were parting before her all the way to the horizon, where the sun waited. It was as if the heavenly object had sliced open the sky itself to give the flying mare an unobstructed view of the world below. Twilight could see forests and rivers, mountains and valleys, grasslands and deserts. The geography was utterly alien to her, but it was no less beautiful for it.

More attention-grabbing than the wondrous view beneath her, however, was the view immediately to her left. Rainbow flew close by her side, just far enough away that there would be no risk of their wings clipping into each other. The cocksure pegasus shot Twilight a wide grin. “Pretty awesome view, huh?” she asked knowingly.

Twilight nodded, though her eyes did not once leave Rainbow. “Yeah… Beautiful.”

“I was talkin’ about down there.”

“I wasn’t.”

Rainbow snorted and looked away, a small blush forming on her cheeks. “Heh… smooth-talker.”

Twilight rolled her eyes in amusement at Rainbow’s embarrassment before focusing ahead. As true as it may have been that she could focus on Rainbow for hours on end and not get tired of looking, she could not deny that the world below her was beyond beautiful. She had no idea where they were, still, but to be frank, she didn’t care. She was with Rainbow, and Rainbow wasn’t going anywhere.

She blinked. “Huh… that’s weird. Where’d the sun go?”

Indeed, the sun had completely disappeared from the horizon, plunging the world into darkness. How had she not noticed that? It was like she had blinked and, in that brief instant of darkness where the world ceased to exist, the sun decided to just not come back.

“Huh? Rainbow, are you seeing this?” she asked, turning to her left.

The sun wasn’t the only thing that was missing. Rainbow, too, was absent.

Twilight came to a screeching halt, her eyes flying wide in alarm. She quickly spun in place, calling out, but there was no response. Rainbow had vanished into thin air just as surely as the sun had.

“Rainbow?! Where are you?!” Twilight called again, turning around to face the way they had been headed. Maybe Rainbow had kept moving, or veered off or something?

There was no Rainbow Dash up ahead, either. Instead, to Twilight’s surprise, there was a needle-thin crescent moon where the sun had been prior. It was slowly waxing, bathing the darkened world with pale light.

Just like that, Twilight knew what was going on. She deflated on the spot, overcome by a sense of mild disappointment. “And I was having such a good dream, too…”

The moon waxed full and gave off a gentle pulse of light. A low note, like a large wind chime, reverberated throughout the dream, carried by the pulse. It was a soothing sound, and it chased away what little anxiety Twilight had been feeling a moment prior. Then, as if the moon were a door or magic portal, a silhouette emerged in front of Twilight, framed by the moon’s glow very deliberately.

Princess Luna put on a gentle smile as the glow dulled to normal, allowing Twilight to take her in properly. “Twilight Sparkle. I am glad to see your dreams are not haunted tonight,” she said with a small nod of her head.

Twilight nodded in response before glancing off to one side. “Yeah… I was actually having a really nice dream. I was enjoying myself... You could have waited a few more minutes.”

Luna’s muzzle contorted somewhat, and she looked away. “My apologies, but I am afraid I was compelled to seek you out swiftly. I am given to understand that, last night, your slumber was… remarkably less pleasant.”

Twilight blinked in surprise. She turned to eye Luna suspiciously, a frown adorning her muzzle. “Yeah, it was. And you didn’t show up. How did you know I had a nightmare last night?”

A second passed, and a spark of genuine anger formed in Twilight’s breast as something occurred to her. Her eyes narrowed, and she took a demanding step forward. “In fact, where were you last night?! I could have used some help at the time, you know!”

Luna flinched back, a guilty look on her face. Her ears drooped, and she lowered her head again in apology. “I am sorry. You have been doing well in your slumber for a time, and so I felt it would be safe to leave you to your own devices for the night while I attended my other subjects. Alas, my timing was rather poor. Please forgive me.”

Twilight took a few seconds to process the statement, then heaved a heavy sigh. As much as she wanted to blame Luna, she knew it would be foolish in the extreme to do so. Luna, for all her power and the malleable nature of time within the Dream Realm, still had her limits. She couldn’t be everywhere at once, and Twilight couldn’t expect Luna to put the rest of her subjects off to one side indefinitely. Luna had all of Equestria to look after, after all, and Twilight was not more important than anypony else.

“It’s alright,” she eventually muttered, idly kicking at the clouds beneath her. “I understand… Although you didn’t tell me how you knew I had a nightmare last night.”

Luna stood upright. “My niece brought the situation to my attention ere you two went to sleep,” she said.

Twilight’s muscles tensed in surprise. “W-what?”

Luna walked slowly forward and turned to stand by Twilight’s side. In the air in front of them, a scroll of parchment appeared and unraveled, revealing what was unmistakably Rainbow’s sloppy hoofwriting. “She had Spike send me a letter detailing the day’s events and her own deductions. She is aware of Midnight’s presence.”

Twilight sighed and looked down. So that was what Rainbow had meant by “chores.” She’d been telling Luna about it without Twilight knowing. Probably because she knew Twilight would try to stop her if she knew. An impulse Midnight would have enforced, no doubt, in an attempt to keep her from getting the help she needed.

“What did she tell you, exactly?” Twilight asked in a weak murmur.

The scroll disappeared like dust in a gust of wind. “That you had a nightmare spurred on by Midnight of attempting to harm my sister and I. She mentioned how you had been exhausted and even more aggressive than usual during your work at Sweet Apple Acres. She mentioned your outburst and summarized the process by which she deduced Midnight’s presence in your mind. In all honesty, she was rather more thorough than I am used to. Her letter was several pages long.”

Twilight snorted. “Heh. That explains what took her so long…”

Luna hummed, though she did not ask for Twilight to elaborate. She began to walk, the clouds around them swirling together to create a surface under her hooves. She looked back at Twilight and beckoned with a subtle jerk of her head. “Walk with me.”

Twilight hesitated, eyeing how the clouds were forming under Luna’s hooves. She eyed her own for a second, took a deep breath, and stepped forward. To her relief, more clouds moved under her, allowing her to walk unimpeded. She quickly caught up to Luna, and the two of them walked side-by-side over the endless landscape below.

They were in silence for almost a full minute, affording Twilight an opportunity to get her thoughts in order. Eventually, Luna glanced down at her without breaking her stride. “Before we begin our work tonight in earnest, there is a request I am to convey to you.”

Twilight glanced up at Luna, confused. “What do you mean?”

Luna pursed her lips in thought, looking directly ahead. “...As you know, I have long tended to Rainbow’s dreams to provide therapy for her. She has come far, but she still requires my intervention on a regular basis. Post-traumatic stress disorder is a difficult beast to overcome, especially for one as emotionally driven as her.”

Twilight nodded along. “She definitely wears her heart on her sleeve.”

“For better or worse, yes,” Luna added solemnly. There was a momentary pause before she continued. “As it is, in light of what she has discovered, Rainbow has requested your permission to join you in your dreams on those nights I speak to you.”

Twilight came to a sudden stop, her eyes widening. “W-what?" She asked. She was about to ask if such a thing was even possible when a distant memory tickled at the edges of her mind. A memory of the first time Luna entered her dreams, of a frozen cave on a mountainside, and of Rainbow Dash when she was at her absolute lowest. A big grin began to form on Twilight's face. She had been summoned into Rainbow's dream back then, and now Rainbow wanted to return the favor. How could she refuse?

“Well, she certainly doesn’t need my permission! Bring her in!” she stated emphatically.

To Twilight’s surprise, however, Luna shook her head. “Hold, Twilight. I would have you understand the full weight of what it is Rainbow is asking of you before you grant her permission to enter.”

Twilight’s smile faded. She tilted her head. “Huh? Why? Is this dangerous?” she asked.

“No, it is not dangerous. If it were, I would never create shared dreams for my subjects unless in emergencies,” Luna replied. “No, instead the gravity of her request comes from what it is she wishes to aid you with, and what that will entail.”

“W-what do you mean?”

Luna turned and nodded down at the world below. Twilight followed her gaze, and to her surprise, she saw that the landscape had visibly changed. Many of the alterations were subtle, but now that she was really paying attention, it was shifting constantly beneath them.

“While it is true that I often create shared dreams,” Luna began. “It is done with the express intent of aiding multiple ponies at once. The discussion is sharp and focused, and I am very cautious with which minds I connect. But for you, and indeed for my niece, I have committed myself to provide psychiatric aid for the long-term. Between Rainbow’s various scars and your struggles with Midnight, I must often pry at deeply personal and, especially, secretive matters. I can guarantee you that there are things I know about my niece that you have no idea about.”

Twilight focused back on Luna, quirking a brow. That had her attention. “Things I don’t know about her? Like what?” she asked.

Again, Luna shook her head. “Such things are not for me to discuss—not without her expressly given permission. The privacy of my subject’s deepest thoughts is one I am forced to breach every night to defend their mental wellbeing from nightmares, and it is one of my most important rules to not violate said privacy further by sharing what I find with anypony unless I have been granted leave to do so by the dreamer. Save for emergencies, there are no exceptions.”

Twilight took a second to process this information. What Luna was describing right now was not unlike the rule of doctor-patient-confidentiality that doctors were required to adhere to. Thinking that Twilight had to wonder if Luna had pioneered that particular rule. She shook her head to dismiss the question. She could look into that another time.

“I think I understand. And since we’re dealing with my issues, you want me to be sure that I am comfortable with Rainbow being there to hear it, right?”

Luna nodded. “Yes. Already, during our time together, we have spoken deeply of many things that I doubt Rainbow fully grasps about you. And so, anything you would wish to hide from her may have to be laid bare. I want you to be absolutely sure that nothing we discuss here with Rainbow present will cross over any boundaries you two have set in your relationship. I would hate to jeopardize it when I know that she is such a source of stability and comfort for you.”

Twilight blinked and fell silent. She racked her mind, trying to think of anything she didn’t want Rainbow to know. Most of what she came up with immediately were just old things from her foalhood, either when they were apart or before they even met. Silly things that Rainbow could use to embarrass her if she made the mistake of sharing it.

However, that wasn’t really relevant to this, was it? Twilight’s brow furrowed. “...Truth be told, Princess, I don’t know if there is anything I want to hide from Rainbow… If there is, I don’t know if that’s me wanting to hide it, or Midnight.”

She lifted her head to meet Luna’s gaze, her expression hardening. “But right now, that doesn’t matter. Rainbow did so much for me while I had amnesia, and even now she’s helping me at every single turn. Even when she found out about Midnight, she didn’t flinch in deciding to offer whatever help she could. I’m not about to turn her down now. Whatever I have to hide…”

She took a deep breath and put on a small smile. “...Well, maybe she can help me work through that, too. So send her in, Luna. Whatever happens in here, I trust her with my life.”

Luna pondered Twilight’s words for a few seconds, before offering up a slow, understanding nod. “Very well. So long as you have given your consent…” She said before closing her eyes and lighting up her horn. Twilight watched, her breath held. She wasn’t sure how exactly Rainbow was going to appear. Maybe her entrance into her dreams would be just as strange and varied as Luna’s? The alicorn did seem to have a flair for the dramatic when it came to her appearances.

Her more artistic side showing, no doubt.

A moment later, there was a flicker of light, and a door appeared in the air next to Luna. It was plain white in color, with a cyan frame and Rainbow’s cutie mark stenciled in at eye level. The door shimmered faintly, humming quietly with magical energy.

Twilight blinked. This wasn’t quite what she had been expecting, but she wasn’t about to complain.

A moment later, there was a subtle click as the knob turned, and the door swung open with a barely audible creak. Sure enough, there was Rainbow, poking her head into Twilight’s dream with a pensive look in her eye. She caught sight of Luna, first.

“So… this it? Did it work? Did she say yes?” she asked after a moment.

Luna nodded. “That she did, my niece. Enter.”

Twilight couldn’t help but smile as Rainbow stepped fully into her dream. It was odd. She could actually feel the new presence in her mind. It was difficult for her to find the words to describe it. The best way she could think of was a subtle tightening of her skin, especially in her head, as if the contents they contained just grew slightly, stretching out her physical form to accommodate Rainbow’s presence.

Twilight took a step forward, her lips curling into a wide smile. “Rainbow!” she greeted, drawing the pegasus’ attention.

Without a moment of hesitation, Rainbow kicked away from the door and enveloped Twilight in a very warm hug, her wings wrapping around her to block out the rest of the world. Twilight let out a grunt from the forceful impact, then laughed at Rainbow’s enthusiasm. She curled her hooves around Rainbow’s body to return the hug, offering her girlfriend an affectionate nuzzle.

“Thank you,” Rainbow suddenly whispered, taking Twilight by surprise.

She opened her eyes, having closed them on impact, and leaned back in confusion. “For what? You’re the one helping me.”

Rainbow took a deep breath before focusing on Twilight’s eyes, a gentle smile on her face. “For trusting me with this.”

Twilight inhaled softly, and she was faintly aware of Rainbow’s scent. It became intense and vivid once she focused on it, and she had to resist the urge to cringe. She smelled like she was covered in a post-workout layer of sweat and had gone for potatoes and gravy after. Not exactly a pleasant aroma... though not unpleasant either.

She leaned in and rubbed the tip of her nose against Rainbow’s. “Of course. I’d trust you with anything.”

“Even a science project?”

“...Anything that matters.”

“And science doesn’t?”

Twilight leaned back, pouting. “Watch it, buster. The door is right there, and I can still revoke your visiting rights if I want!”

Rainbow snickered merrily at the hollow threat. She smacked Twilight on the shoulder and rose back to her full height. “Heh. Sure you can, but we both know you won’t,” she taunted with a wink. “You love it just a little too much.”

Twilight sighed in exasperation and rolled her eyes. Then, with a stray thought, she summoned a toy hammer made of the same material as a rubber ducky, and thwonked Rainbow on the head with it. There was a comical squeak, and an indignant, startled squawk from one very startled pegasus, followed shortly by the stifled, amused giggling of Princess Luna.

Once the idle banter drew to a close (which took far longer than anypony really desired), the trio set off at a slow trot across the infinite sky. Luna was silent for a time, allowing Twilight and Rainbow to chat about whatever they so wished. And they talked animatedly. Not about anything in particular—just an aimless, meandering conversation, one that put Twilight’s heart at ease.

“Man, I still cannot get over how weird this feels,” Rainbow suddenly piped up after what felt like about half an hour, hopping up and down on the clouds.

Twilight tilted her head. “What do you mean?”

“You dream. It’s so different from mine,” Rainbow elaborated, gesturing vaguely. “But, like, I dunno how to describe it. I just kinda feel… uh…?”

“Out of place?” Luna volunteered with a knowing look in her eye.

Rainbow jumped up, smacking her hooves together for emphasis. “Yeah, sure, we’ll go with that!”

Luna smirked. “To be fair, that is because you are. You have stepped into Twilight’s dream. It is natural to feel out of place at first.”

“So, kind of like how you wouldn’t feel at home the first time you visit a new friend’s house, you aren’t used to how my dream feels,” Twilight explained, figuring it was a close enough analogy.

“I guess,” Rainbow acknowledged, touching back down and falling into step beside Twilight.

Luna smiled softly at the two, then cleared her throat, drawing Twilight away from whatever comment she was about to make next. Once Luna had their attention, she spoke. “Now, then. As pleasant as this discussion has been, we have yet a purpose to fulfill here. Namely, addressing your recent struggles, Twilight Sparkle.”

And just like that, Twilight’s good mood evaporated into dust. She looked away, her ears falling flat against her head. “Oh… right.”

Rainbow placed a hoof on her back and gave her an encouraging nod. Twilight smiled at her, grateful, before focusing on Luna.

The princess slowed her pace slightly. “I know of the general string of events, but there is much that I do not know. I want you to fully recount the day’s events to me, Twilight, as honestly and as truthfully as you can.”

Twilight swallowed heavily. “Okay… uh… well…”

It took her a minute to really get going. She began with several false starts, and when she did find her train of thought, it came slowly, and in short fits. But with gentle urging from Rainbow, and Luna’s patient demeanor, Twilight was eventually able to properly recount the events of the day, beginning with her horrible nightmare.

She told Luna about how she had dreamt of attempting to break into Canterlot, and then of trying to strangle Celestia. She talked about her exhaustion, and how it had plagued her over the course of the day. She spoke of Midnight’s periodic jabs and snarky remarks, and of the growing frustration these led to. She recalled, with a grimace and some small guilt, how she had panicked in front of Applejack when she realized that Midnight was blocking her ability to speak of her. She described her breakdown by the edge of the Everfree Forest, and the terrible vision Midnight had forced her to endure.

She began to taper off once she discussed how Rainbow had deduced the truth, figuring that this was information everypony present already knew, and would not benefit any from her recounting of events.

Everypony fell silent once her tale came to a close. Rainbow looked strained from all she had heard, and Twilight had to wonder if the pegasus was blaming herself for not doing more to help, or for not even noticing just how bad Twilight really was. Luna, meanwhile, was as unreadable as ever as she mulled the information over.

“I see…” Luna eventually said quietly. She offered an apologetic bow of her head. “Once again, Twilight Sparkle, I must apologize for not coming to your aid last night.”

“It’s fine,” Twilight waved her off. “You have a lot of ponies to take care of, and you can’t get to everypony in a night. You can’t neglect the rest of Equestria because of me.”

Luna lifted her head. “I thank you for the kind words. But let us get to the crux of the matter. Tell me, do you have any ideas as to what caused this nightmare of yours? Seeing as the stress of the last twenty-four hours was spurred on by that dream, it would be useful to understand from where it sprung.”

Twilight hesitated. “What caused it…?” she echoed quietly, lowering her eyes. Hadn’t it been caused by Midnight trying to dig under her skin and get a response? Most of her nightmares of late featured the dark entity in some capacity, so it only made sense that she would be the logical culprit.

It only took Twilight a moment to cast that notion aside, however. As convenient a scapegoat Midnight was to blame for all of Twilight’s problems, in this case, she merely capitalized on an already existing one.

Suddenly, they were in the loft in the Golden Oaks Library. It was daytime outside, allowing warm streams of golden sunlight to bathe the room in comforting warmth. It was utterly silent beyond the window, though, and Twilight wasn’t even sure if there was anything past the glass right now.

“Woah… we’re back in the library,” Rainbow stated the obvious in surprise. “What are we doing here?”

Luna said nothing. She watched Twilight patiently, but expectantly. Twilight took a moment to take another deep breath, not happy with what she now had to discuss. She turned to her desk, hoping that maybe it wouldn’t be there. To her dismay, it was. A rolled-up sheet of parchment. She took it in her magic and gently floated it over to Luna. “...Here. Read this.”

Luna eyed the scroll questioningly before taking it and unrolling it. While her eyes scanned the page, Twilight turned to Rainbow. The pegasus had a sympathetic look on her face, her ears lowered and her eyes strained.

“You okay?” Rainbow whispered, sidestepping until her side was pressing against Twilight.

Twilight offered a stiff nod. “Yeah… Thank you.”

A few moments passed before Luna lowered the parchment. Her expression had changed. Gone was the unreadable look, replaced instead with one of morbid, sympathetic understanding. “...I see. A well-intentioned letter from your family, informing you of their coming visit, reminded you of the punishment I inflicted upon you, causing you distress that was then amplified by Midnight…”

Twilight looked away. She felt Rainbow pressing closer against her, the pegasus’ wing draping over her back. She took in a deep breath and leaned into Rainbow’s embrace, once again grateful for the comfort.

Luna was silent. There was a storm behind her eyes, as if she were being torn in half by equally great forces. Then, to Twilight’s surprise, Luna let the breath out in a long, tired sigh. She sagged in place as if she were suddenly exhausted, and her head lowered to hide her face behind her drifting mane.

“...I’m sorry.”

Twilight leaned back slightly in surprise. Her mind flatlined. She opened her mouth to say something, though she rightly did not know what. However, before the words could escape, Rainbow broke away from her side and approached Luna.

“I know that look,” Rainbow said in a gentle voice, drawing Luna’s attention back to her. She closed the gap and placed a comforting hoof against her aunt’s foreleg. “You okay?”

Twilight’s gaze darted back and forth between the two of them. Rainbow and Luna shared a very close bond, she knew that, but she had never been fully privy to the finer details. And right now, she felt that there was far more gravity to what she was looking at than she presently understood.

Luna looked down at Rainbow for a few more seconds before the storm behind her eyes faded, and a tiny smile spread across her face. She offered her niece an affectionate nuzzle. “Yes. I will be fine,” she answered, her voice returning to its usual serene self. She withdrew from Rainbow a moment later and returned her attention to Twilight.

“What do I do?” Twilight asked, glancing back towards the desk with her ears falling flat. “I don’t want to run the risk of breaking down like this every time my parents send me a letter- or anytime something reminds me of Canterlot…”

Luna looked off to one side, her own ears drooping. “...I shall give that matter some thought,” she said after a moment. Twilight, surprised by that statement, turned back to the alicorn with a tilt of her head. Luna pressed on before she could question it. “For now, however, let us turn our attention to a matter we are better equipped to solve tonight.”

The dream around them trembled and warped, the environment dissolving like ink in a glass of water. Twilight spun in place, awestruck at the flowing shapes and blending colors. She heard a pleased exclamation from Rainbow, indicating she was enjoying the show as well. For several seconds the matter flowed around them before taking on a new shape and solidifying.

A mild breeze sent Twilight’s mane and tail drifting as she found herself now standing in the middle of Sweet Apple Acres. She felt a small twinge of anxiety, recalling how she had broken down here earlier. A crow called off in the distance, as if in response.

Luna nodded in satisfaction at their new surroundings. She turned back to Twilight, giving her a small, encouraging smile. “Namely, that of your fear of Midnight being discovered.”

Twilight’s anxiety increased. She instinctively took a step back, looking off to one side. “Wha… I…”

“You said it yourself,” Rainbow pointed out gently. “Midnight showed you that big vision of you telling all of us about Midnight and us getting scared of you. And earlier, when we were talking, you were still really reluctant to tell our friends. You even tried to make sure I didn’t figure it out.”

Twilight looked away, idly rubbing at her shoulder. “I… I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be,” Luna said gently, drawing a glance from Twilight. The lunar alicorn’s smile was still there, coaxing Twilight into letting her worries go. “The fear you are experiencing is only natural. We are all afraid of rejection from the ones we love. I know the feeling very intimately.”

“Ditto,” Rainbow agreed, her brow furrowing. “That kinda fear kinda enveloped me for a while, there.”

Twilight winced but did not comment.

“That being said,” Luna went on, drawing Twilight’s attention back to her. “This state of affairs can’t go on like this. I would strongly encourage you to tell your friends sooner rather than later.”

Twilight’s heart skipped a beat. Images flashed through her mind of Fluttershy cowering away from her, of Rarity wincing and nudging Sweetie Belle behind her, of Applejack backing away with fear in her eyes. Twilight screwed her eyes shut and shook her head to chase away the morbid scenarios.

“But… I can’t,” she mumbled, rubbing at her shoulder again. “Even if I wanted to, Midnight won’t let me.”

Luna raised an eyebrow. “You don’t want to tell your friends, you say?” she asked.

Twilight hesitated, then nodded. “I don’t. I don’t want my friends to treat me like glass, or like there’s something wrong with me. That just makes it feel worse. I don’t want to make them worry about me any more than they already are. I’ve put them all through more than enough lately. Between my amnesia, my Fall, and now my temper… I just...”

She heaved a heavy sigh as the full weight of what she really wanted came crashing down on her shoulders. She fell to her haunches, lowering her head to stare down at the packed dirt beneath her. “...I just want everything to go back to normal.”

The silence that followed was almost suffocating. Twilight could hear Rainbow and Luna shifting around in front of her, but she didn’t bother looking. It took the feeling of Rainbow’s wing on her back giving her a squeeze to draw her out of her inner ruminations. She looked up to see an understanding look on the pegasus’ face.

“I know the feeling, Twi… but, to be blunt, everypony already knows something’s wrong with you,” she stated matter-of-factly. “It’d be pretty impressive to not notice. And trust me when I say that the longer they go without knowing what, the worse it’s gonna get for them. They don’t know what’s going on, yet.”

“And that will scare them,” Luna cut in gently as she approached. She knelt down in front of Twilight, her ears lowering slightly. “That which your friends do not understand, do not know, will frighten them far more than anything you tell them ever could.”

“Right. But if they all know about Midnight, then guess what?” Rainbow continued, nudging Twilight in the ribs. “They’ll be prepared. They’ll actually get what’s wrong. I said that already, remember?”

“R-right, but,” Twilight looked away, her ears drooping. “I just… I dunno. What if it doesn’t go well? What if you’re wrong?”

“I’m not. Not this time,” Rainbow assured her with another affectionate squeeze. “And besides… hiding something like this from our friends is the same kind of mistake I made when I hid the fact that you died from you.”

Twilight’s eyes flew wide open in shock at that. She quickly spun to face Rainbow, seeing a pang of lingering guilt in her eyes. “W-what?! Rainbow, no, this and that are nothing alike!” she protested. “You were hiding information about me from me. Everypony else already knew! This is me keeping something about me to myself!”

“The circumstances do not matter,” Luna pointed out. “The general principle is the same. You are withholding vital information from the ponies around you, and if it should come to light in an undesirable manner…”

Twilight’s eyes flew wide at the implication. She found herself increasingly grateful that Midnight didn’t seem to be capable of making any of her snide remarks in the Dream Realm, at least while Luna was around.

“I’ll tell them if you don’t,” Rainbow repeated what she had said before in a low whisper. She nuzzled gently into Twilight’s side, imparting whatever strength she could. “But let’s be real. It’d be much better coming from you.”

“But… but I can’t,” Twilight stressed. “Midnight is stopping me.”

“She was stopping you,” Luna corrected. “While you were unaware of her influence. But you must recall that all of Midnight’s power comes from you. She is the manifestation of the darkest parts of your mind. And the power she has most likely been using to hold your tongue is your own fear, amplified by her presence. And so, just like with any other fear, if you can learn to overcome it, it will no longer hold any sway over you.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll be right there with ya, watching your back and cheering you on,” Rainbow added with an assuring smile.

Twilight leaned into Rainbow’s side. Was it really that simple? It was probably a lot harder than they were making it sound; that was usually how these things went. She took in a slow deep breath and closed her eyes, allowing her thoughts to wander unimpeded.

How comparable was her situation to Rainbow hiding her death from her? She went over it in her mind. Midnight had commented on it before, she remembered, drawing that very same parallel, but at the time, Twilight had shot it down and dismissed it. Had she been wrong to do so? Had Midnight been in the right that time? It was a disgusting notion to even toy with, but she had to. Midnight had been right once or twice before, after all.

And the more she thought about it, the more she began to relax. Luna and Rainbow were right. The longer she kept Midnight’s existence to herself, the more likely it would be that her friends would actually become afraid of her. She had to deal with this, and she had to deal with it immediately.

The thought still sent a spear of dread through her heart, but a quick squeeze from Rainbow allowed her to fight down the feeling and focus. “I can do this… I can do this,” she told herself in her mind over and over again.

Finally, she felt calm and sure of herself. Or as sure as could be expected, at least. She opened her eyes, meeting Luna’s gaze. “Alright… I’ll try.”

Luna’s eyes lit up, and she gave a warm smile and nod. “I am glad to hear it, Twilight Sparkle. Know that I will be cheering for you from afar.”

“We can get all our friends gathered together in the morning,” Rainbow suggested with a small nod. “And we can deal with it then.”

Twilight nodded along. She still felt worried, but with Rainbow at her side, and with the epiphany she had finally allowed herself to come to, she felt sure of herself for the moment. After another moment, a different dread began to creep up her spine, and she focused back on Luna again. “Um… what if I have another nightmare tonight?” she asked meekly. “Midnight might try to sabotage things…”

Luna frowned. “...I will keep an eye on your dreams wherever I am in the Dream Realm. If you should need me, I will not fail to aid you this night, of that you have my word.”

“Ah, just leave it to me,” Rainbow said in a cocky tone. She stood up and puffed out her chest in a display of bravado. “I’ve tangoed with the Tantabus before! I can handle any spooky nightmares Twilight’s mind might conjure up!”

Twilight tilted her head. “Tantabus?”

“Oh, uh...” Rainbow suddenly looked to be very self-conscious. She cast an anxious glance over at Luna, but the alicorn merely smiled and shook her head.

“You may tell her. You have my permission.”

Rainbow visibly relaxed at that and nodded.

Satisfied, Luna rose back to her full height. “Now, then, I believe we have addressed the most pressing matters for now. I must leave to tend to the rest of my subjects.”

“Oh… alright,” Twilight said, her ears drooping.

“Is something still the matter?”

Twilight hesitated, fidgeting in place. “I just… um… will this shared dream stay together after you leave?” she eventually asked.

Rainbow tilted her head. “What? You wanna hang out in here for a while or something?”

Twilight nodded. “Mhmm. My dreams are the only place where I really feel like myself these days. Midnight doesn’t usually bother me on a night when Luna visits me, so… I just…

She looked away to hide her blush. “I want a chance to savor this with you.”

“Oh. Uh, okay, sure, if it’ll work, I’m down for that,” Rainbow agreed, turning back to Luna hopefully.

Luna blinked before a knowing smile came across her face. She gave a slow nod. “So long as you two remain asleep, and neither of you loses your lucidity, then yes, Rainbow should remain for as long as you permit her to.”

Rainbow jumped into the air with a victorious cheer. “Aw, yeah! Awesome dream adventures, coming right up!” she whooped.

Luna snickered in amusement and turned her back to Twilight. “Heh. I shall leave you to it. Have fun.”

There was a flash of light, and with that, Luna disappeared. The orchard around them dissolved, soon replaced once more with a midnight cloudscape hovering high above Equestria. Twilight took a deep breath and smiled as Rainbow came to a landing by her side.

“Whew! Just us, now,” she said before eagerly elbowing Twilight in the ribs. “So, what’s your plan? Want us to fight some epic monster, or pull off cool stunts? Oh! What about you pulling off a sonic rainboom?! It’s a dream, you can do that!”

Twilight rolled her eyes at Rainbow’s excitement before turning to face her with slow, deliberate movements. “Actually, before anything else…” she said softly. Rainbow’s excitement was replaced with curiosity.

“Uh… huh?”

Without a word, Twilight threw herself against Rainbow, mashing their lips together. Whatever adventures they were going to entertain themselves with tonight could wait. For now, she was going to take this opportunity to just enjoy Rainbow’s company to the fullest.

Author's Note

NOTICE: As of 5/10/2021, I have gone back and reworked a small portion of this chapter. I had forgotten that Twilight had already experienced a shared dream before, back in Choices, and have made the needed adjustment to fix that continuity error.

Breaking The Silence

“You are making a terrible mistake.”

Twilight had heard that phrase many times this morning. Ever since she and Rainbow had emerged from their shared dream, Midnight was hounding her at every turn, trying to dissuade her from going through with this. Twilight did her best to ignore her. Failing that, she sought comfort in Rainbow Dash.

Such as right now.

The two were seated next to one another on a couch in the living room of the library. It was early in the morning, the sun having come up not long ago. Shafts of gold-hued sunlight streamed in through the drawn curtains, creating glowing beams in the drifting particles of dust that lingered in the room.

Spike was next to the gently cuddling pair, his eyes heavy with sleep deprivation and his lips drawn into an irritated grimace. “I still dunno why you guys had to wake me up this early…” he grumbled drowsily, giving Rainbow his best death glare.

“Told you already, Spike, this is kind of a big deal,” Rainbow shot back without missing a beat. “And we don’t wanna do it more than once. Best to get it all out of the way at once. Like ripping off a band-aid, ya know?”

“Band-aids hurt, though,” Spike whined pathetically. He threw his head back in an overly dramatic display that he clearly learned from a certain unicorn before flopping into Rainbow’s side like a pool noodle.

Twilight couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. They had all gotten up far sooner than they would have liked. However, according to Rainbow, they had to get this done sooner rather than later. It had taken some doing, but Spike was eventually convinced to send a collection of letters across town to their friends via his Dragonfire. Soon enough, the whole group would be assembling in the library—or, so they hoped.

“For once in his life, the dragon makes a good point,” Midnight snarled in Twilight’s mind, drawing her out of the real world for a moment and sending a cold shiver down her spine. “If you follow through with this insane plan, it will only cause you pain!”

Twilight gave off an outward scoff. “More painful than having to fight you all on my own? I doubt that.”

“For a given definition of ‘fight,’” came the snipped response. “I would say your feeble attempts at rebuke are typically more like the ineffective jabberings of a chihuahua.”

Twilight felt her coat bristling up at the remark, but a sudden squeeze from Rainbow drew her out of the debate in her mind. She turned to see the pegasus smiling affectionately at her.

“Midnight?” she asked simply, though she already knew the answer.

Twilight nodded quietly. “Mhmm…”

Rainbow was quiet for a moment. She then leaned in until her lips were right by Twilight’s ear. “Midnight? Do me a favor…”

Spike looked up at Rainbow as the pegasus whispered something in Twilight’s ear. “Huh? What’re you saying?” he asked, pawing idly at Rainbow’s side.

It was at about this time that Twilight burst into a fit of giggles, shoving Rainbow back with a playful hoof. “Oh-ho my GOSH Rainbow! That’s horrible!” she managed to stammer out between her chortles.

Rainbow beamed with pride. “Tell me she doesn’t deserve it.”

“I mean…”

“Nahp,” Rainbow placed a hoof up to Twilight’s mouth, silencing her before she could say another word. “Nope. Nonna that. I was being sarcastic.”

Twilight rolled her eyes and brushed Rainbow’s hoof away. “Heh… Thanks, Rainbow.”

“You thank her now,” Midnight seethed. “But you know exactly what’s going to happen the moment you reveal my presence. You’ve seen it!”

Twilight’s brow furrowed. “No. I’ve seen what you decided to show me. But you can’t see the future. There isn’t a shred of positivity in your soul. All you can see are the worst outcomes. At every turn, that’s all you’ve ever done. Maybe you had the right idea once or twice, but I will not let you make me afraid of my own friends!”

“It’s not you being afraid of your friends that I’m worried about,” Midnight snapped back. “But fine. Play your stupid game. Tell them your dark secret. Reveal my presence to one and all. Advertise the threat that you represent wherever you walk to the only ponies who still trust you.”

A knock came at the door, and Twilight became aware of a collection of hushed voices right outside. She went to rise, but Rainbow beat her to it. The pegasus smiled at her. “Stay put. I’ll get it. You just get yourself prepared, yeah?”

“Okay…” Twilight said, offering Rainbow a smile of her own before turning her thoughts inward. As she did, she became aware of somepony appearing off to her right, fuzzy and indistinct, just at the edge of her vision.

“I will tell them,” Twilight stated with finality without turning to the mirage of her dark passenger. “And you’ll see just how wrong you are!”

Midnight snorted, turning to glare at the door. “Maybe. Maybe not. Just remember… Rainbow Dash has been wrong about plenty of things before. And so has Princess Luna. Are you truly certain you want to follow their advice?”

Twilight didn’t respond, ears drooping. A second later, Midnight vanished from view as the door swung open, revealing the rest of Twilight’s friends on the other side.

“Heya guys!” Pinkie chirped as she bounced into the room, not even waiting for Rainbow’s go-ahead.

“We got your message, darling,” Rarity said, holding up a sheet of paper in her magic. “You said that you had something important you needed to talk to us about?”

Rainbow nodded, stepping aside to let them in. “Yeah. Come on in, get comfy.”

“Heh. Gotta say, this feels kinda familiar,” Applejack noted as the group shuffled in. She closed the door behind her with a hind leg. “We ain’t gonna be spyin’ on anypony this time, are we?”

Rainbow snorted at the memory and shook her head. “No, no. Nothing like that, AJ.”

“I hope not,” Fluttershy said, getting settled on a floor cushion. She shuddered at the memory. “And I really don’t want to think about that trip right now… It’s too early in the morning.”

“I mean, without that trip, you wouldn’t have met Thorax~” Pinkie teased with a knowing waggle of her eyebrows.

Fluttershy squeaked, her face flushing a deep shade of red. She quickly hid her face behind her mane, mumbling out something incoherent.

“Oh, leave the poor dear alone,” Rarity chastised Pinkie, tugging her down by the tail with her magic until they were seated side by side on one of the many couches in the room. “We’re here for Twilight, not to tease Fluttershy.”

“Aaaw. Okay!” Pinkie whined and then chirped, turning her attention fully to the alicorn on the other side of the room. “Lay it on us, Twily!”

There was a brief pause. Applejack sighed in exasperation at Pinkie’s antics before focusing on Twilight. “Were Ah a bettin’ mare, Ah’d say this has somethin’ to do with what happened yesterday… Am Ah right?” she asked carefully, her eyes boring into Twilight’s with concern.

Suddenly, all of Twilight’s earlier confidence fled her system, leaving her shrinking in place with a timid nod. “...Yes,” she said quietly, dragging her hoof along the cushion beneath her.

Rainbow was back at her side after a few seconds, draping a wing over her shoulders and giving her an encouraging nuzzle. “You ready?” she asked in a near-silent whisper.

Twilight took a deep breath. It was now or never. Either she told them, or Rainbow did. Either way, they weren’t leaving this room without knowing the truth. She turned to Rainbow and forced herself to put on a small smile. “I think so,” she whispered back.

Rainbow gave her a gentle kiss before nudging her forward. Twilight rose from the couch, stepping forward until she was standing in the middle of the room. All eyes were on her, and she could feel the oppressive weight of their expectations in the silence that filled the room. She took another deep breath, then another.

The words would not come.

“Stop it. You already know that you can’t stop Rainbow from telling them!” Twilight snarled in her mind. “You’re just delaying the inevitable.”

“Maybe I am,” Midnight conceded, and Twilight could practically feel her shrugging. “But how many times did you believe that you were only delaying the inevitable, but went along with it anyway? The barrier you and Starlight put up over the Crystal Empire comes to mind. Both times.”

“That was different. I was defending a lot more than just myself, and I was putting myself in harm’s way to do it!” Twilight countered, closing her eyes and clenching her teeth behind her lips.

“Twilight?” Spike asked from the couch, his tired voice now laced with concern. “Are you okay? You’re shaking.”

“Oh, my, Spike’s right. Are you feeling well?” Rarity added, rising slightly from her seat.

Before anypony else could speak, Rainbow lifted a hoof. “No, stop. Everypony stay quiet and wait. This isn’t easy on her. Let her focus.”

Though the others were clearly reluctant, they held their peace. Twilight gave Rainbow an appreciative glance before closing her eyes again. She tried as hard as she could to force the words out. It wasn’t even that many. Five of them. ‘Midnight is in my head.’ That was all she had to say. But nothing came through. Midnight was still blocking her every attempt with all the same power as before.

“Let me talk!”

“And let you shoot yourself in the wing?” Midnight scoffed. “Please.”

Twilight groaned under her breath, unable to hide her growing frustration. She could hear her friends shuffling around in front of her, and the tension in the room began to build. A bead of sweat was beginning to form on her brow.

She couldn’t do this, could she? Midnight was proving to be too strong. She couldn’t bring herself to say the words she knew she had to say. She wasn’t strong enough. But more than that… she was still scared. Scared of what they would think. Maybe Luna was right… or maybe she wasn’t. Doubt began to eat away at the edges of Twilight’s resolve, and her frustration began to dissolve into resignation.

“Twi…”

Twilight opened her eyes and looked up. Her eyes met those of Applejack. Two emerald green orbs that had, in all the time Twilight had known them, never once broken under the pressure—in this moment, they were soft and gentle. They shone with kindness and concern, with worry and encouragement. A smile spread of Applejack’s lips.

“It’s just us, Sugarcube. Y’all can say it… Whatever it is, we’re here for ya.”

“She’s lying,” Midnight spat the words like they were venom.

And in that moment, Twilight knew. It was like a veil was lifted off of her mind. Her lips quirked up, just slightly, in victory. “No,” she thought. “I am.”

“Midnight Sparkle is still in my head.”

Twilight blinked. The words had come so easily. She frowned and lifted a hoof up to her throat. It was almost as if Midnight had just given up trying to hold the words back any longer.

Or maybe she had just lost the ability to do so?

“...Forgive me, darling,” Rarity suddenly said, her confused voice slicing through the silence like a knife through butter. “But, would you care to repeat that? I can only assume I misheard you…”

Pinkie nodded. “Yeah, it kinda sounded like you said Midnight was still around. But that’s not right. She got zapped by the Tree of Harmony!”

“Right…?” Fluttershy added quietly, her own eyes boring anxiously into Twilight’s.

Twilight was quiet for a second. She opened her mouth to speak.

“No. It’s why I’ve been so… angry, lately. Why I’ve had such a short temper. When I was turned back into Twilight, a part of Midnight stayed behind in my subconscious. She talks to me all the time. Taunting me, ridiculing me, and you. She’s trying to make me take her back… make me turn back into her…”

At first, the words came out slowly, but when she realized Midnight was no longer stopping them, or even hindering them, they began to come out in a seemingly endless torrent. She began to recount in endless detail how Midnight had first begun to manifest deep within her mind, about how Luna had offered to help her, and of all of the ways Midnight had been preying on her anxieties, her frustrations, her insecurities, and using them to drive her to do things she never would have done.

She went on like this for what felt like an eternity. Even when she knew she had covered everything that mattered, she could not stop herself. She just kept going, rambling on and on and on. She was sure she repeated herself at least a few times, but she didn’t care. She could finally get all of this off of her chest. She didn’t realize just how much she had been needing this, but now that she was experiencing it, she just couldn’t stop.

Finally, her endless tirade was brought to an abrupt end when an orange-colored hoof pressed gently against her lips. Just like that, Twilight was made painfully aware of her friends, and the shared looks of shock, surprise, and the dawning realization that had spread across their faces. It had been Applejack to silence her, though, and in her eyes was nothing but appreciation.

“...Gosh, Twi. Ah can’t even begin to imagine how hard it musta been on ya all this time. Havin’ a little devil on yer shoulder all the time… It’d drive me insane,” she said quietly. She pulled her hoof away, her smile growing. “But by Celestia, look at ya. Y’all’ve gone and carried all of this alone all this time… Ah just wish ya’d told us sooner. But Ah get it wasn’t really on option, huh?”

Twilight sighed and shook her head. “No… I’m sorry. I think, in the end, I was just scared of what might happen if I spoke up.”

Applejack shook her head. “Naw naw, nonna that. No apologizin’ hon. Y’all did good. Ah’m mighty proud of you,” she said, surprising Twilight by pulling her into a warm hug. “Thanks fer bein’ honest with us… and yerself.”

It happened again. The pressure on Twilight’s mind lessened just as it had with Spiracle and Maud. The relief that came with the lifted weight was the last straw. Twilight’s eyes clouded over with tears as she hugged Applejack back, buried her face into the mare’s shoulder, and began to weep tears of joy.

“Oh, Twilight,” Fluttershy whispered, joining the hug and nuzzling up to her foalhood friend. “I’m so sorry. If we had known what was really going on…”

“We couldn’t have,” Rarity soothed, lending her own body to the growing mass. “But we do now.”

Pinkie was oddly quiet as she, too, joined in on the group hug, completely enveloping Twilight in a blanket of love and affection.

Twilight felt her body all but liquify in the embrace of so many of the most important ponies in her life. She couldn’t stop herself. She pulled them all closer with her hooves, still crying her happy tears. The relief she felt was matched only by what she had felt when she had returned the memories she had stolen.

“Thank you…” she choked out between her grateful sobs. “Thank you all so much…”

“Think nothin’ of it, sugarcube,” Applejack whispered, patting her on the back. “But c’mon. We were never gonna abandon ya.”

Twilight couldn’t help the small, triumphant smirk that spread on her face at that. “See? What did I tell you?”

Even with her eyes closed, Twilight could vividly make out the shape of Midnight as she appeared in front of her. The apparition scowled and jerked her head to one side. “I’ve said it before. Even a broken clock is right twice a day.”

“Maybe so,” Twilight acknowledged. “But I’m starting to wonder which one of us is the broken one.”

To that, Midnight had no retort. She growled in irritation before vanishing back into Twilight’s thoughts and going silent.

The group hug lasted for what felt like forever, but all too soon, the group began to disentangle themselves. Twilight sniffled, wiping at her face and nose to clear away the last remnants of her little breakdown, a quivering smile still clinging to her lips. As her friends slowly pulled away from her, she realized that Spike and Rainbow had been hanging back at the edge of the group. Rainbow wore the usually smug, satisfied smile she had when something went exactly the way she wanted it, while Spike looked far more surprised.

“Twilight… I had no idea,” he said quietly, stepping forward.

“Nopony did,” Twilight consoled him. She reached out and patted him on the head.

“But I should have!” he protested. “I was the first one to see you as Midnight! I should have noticed that something was still wrong and put two and two together! Maybe then-”

“Slow down there, little guy,” Rainbow cut him off, coming up to his side and placing a hoof on his back to silence him. “Don’t go getting all mopey and angsty on us. You are way too young for that, and between Twilight and I, we more than meet our quota.”

“Don’t even joke about that!” Pinkie protested, lightly swatting Rainbow on the shoulder. “It’s no fun when you guys get all sad and junk!”

Rainbow chuckled at that, feebly fending off the now-ranting party pony. Twilight managed to give off a weak giggle at their antics before lowering herself to be at Spike’s eye level. She smiled at him and gave him a comforting nuzzle. “Don’t worry, Spike. You did wonderfully. Even without knowing about Midnight, you’ve helped take care of me at every turn. And I know that you’ll keep helping in the future. I couldn’t have asked for a better assistant. I’m proud of you.”

Spike didn’t say anything. He simply hugged her tightly around the neck, an embrace she happily returned. A few moments passed before a hoof tapped lightly on the drake’s shoulder, gently breaking up the embrace. Applejack smiled down at him. “Hey, how ‘bout a picture?”

“Huh? Why?” Spike asked, tilting his head.

Applejack smiled at Twilight. “So that she if she ever forgets that she can be honest with us, and herself, she can look back on today and get a good ol’ fashioned reminder.”

There was something odd in Applejack’s eyes as she said that, and Twilight immediately found herself nodding in agreement. “I like the sound of that.”

Spike raised an eyebrow, then nodded. “Alright. Group up, everypony! Lemme find my camera!”

There was a flurry of motion as the group scrambled to get into position. Twilight was briefly overwhelmed by the sudden burst of activity, especially since everypony deliberately made her the centerpiece. Just about everyone was cuddling up to her in some way, imparting their affection and reassurance.

Twilight smiled wide when Spike finally returned with the camera. “How could I have ever doubted them?” she wondered.

“Say cheese!” Spike called out.

A bright flash of light filled the room, capturing the moment and the memory.

“I won’t make that mistake again.”

Growth

Dear Princess Celestia.

It’s been two weeks since I told my friends about Midnight. Two weeks since I opened my heart and spilled my most terrifying secret to six of the most important people in my entire life. Two weeks since I put my faith in them not to shut me out, but to give me the guidance and support I need to finally banish my own inner demon.

I must admit that I was scared. Scared that things would be different after I opened up. That my friends would be more cautious around me, even after their heartfelt promises to the contrary. But thankfully my friends proved to me yet again that sometimes I can be just a little bit paranoid.

Things were a touch awkward at first, yes. Sometimes, my friends gave me these anxious sideways glances if I was in a bad mood. It would make me feel worse, like I was doing something wrong, and Midnight would always jump in to try and escalate things. Make me angry. Make me lash out.

But so far it hasn’t worked. I have a new secret weapon, you see, and I have been making very liberal use of it.

Telling on her.

It’s incredibly gratifying to know that any time Midnight is getting on my nerves, a helping hoof is just a holler away. When I call on them, my friends chase her away with soothing words and friendly hugs. They can never make her shut up, but at least they can help me ignore whatever poison she’s spewing at the time.

I know I’ve probably learned this lesson before… but seeing as I’m basically having to teach myself how to be me all over again, I thought it would be a good idea to send you this little letter to let you know how I’m doing, and what I’ve learned lately. And what I’ve learned—or rather, what I’ve been reminded of—is that good, true, friends won’t abandon you if you’re honest with them. So long as the real you is a good pony, then true friends will help the good in you shine through no matter what. You just have to let them in to pull that out for the world to see.

All that said, I still haven’t opened the chest. But I feel like… I don’t know how to describe it. Like I’m getting closer, maybe? It’s hard to say, but my mind doesn’t feel quite as clouded as it used to. The weight pressing down on me ever since the Tree of Harmony rejected me isn’t as heavy as it used to be. think I’m doing something right. I just wish I knew what.

I wish I could write more, but my parents are due to arrive any minute.

Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle.

Twilight looked the sheet of parchment over a few more times, ensuring there were no major typos or subjects she wanted to rephrase. After a minute of careful analysis, she gave a small smile and a sharp nod. She turned to Spike, who was waiting dutifully behind her and floated the parchment over.

“Alright, it’s ready, Spike. Send it.”

“Aye aye!” Spike said, snatching the scroll in his claws. Then, with a deep breath, he spewed green flames over it, and it vanished into smoke and ashes flying out the window. “There it goes!”

Twilight smiled, watching the last drifting embers of Spike’s dragonfire fly out the window. It was a bright and sunny day outside, just after lunchtime. Perfect for a family visit, she thought. She then turned back to Spike, giving him a grateful smile.

“Thank you, Spike,” she said, rising from her seat and heading for the door.

Spike grinned, crossing his arms over his chest. “Ya know, it’s been a long time since you sent a letter like that one,” he commented nostalgically.

Twilight paused, glancing sideways at her assistant with a raised eyebrow. “Huh? What do you mean?” she asked.

“Oh come on, you know what I’m talking about,” Spike pressed, spreading his arms for emphasis. “A friendship lesson letter. Ya know, talking about something you learned about Friendship. I don’t think either you or Rainbow have been sending anything like that ever since that whole fiasco in Manehattan.”

Twilight’s ears stood upright, her eyes going wide. For a brief moment, she felt an oncoming surge of genuine panic. She’d told herself way back when they started sending those letters that she’d send one every week, but it had been literal years since they went to Manehattan and she had only just now sent in a letter that could even vaguely be classified as a friendship report!

Then she stopped herself, taking a deep breath. She closed her eyes, allowing her mind to wander. “...You know why we didn’t, Spike,” she finally said.

“Yeah yeah, I know,” Spike replied, lowering his arms. “But to do one now? Feels nice, seeing you do that. It means you’re getting better.”

Twilight opened her eyes, her heart warming up at the point of praise. She was slowly getting better, wasn’t she? She was a scatterbrained psychological break when she first emerged from her amnesia. Now?

Her smile faded, and she shook her head. “Maybe I am. But I’m still not fully recovered, yet. And I doubt I’m going to be for a while. Things like this don’t just go away overnight, even with all of the help I get.”

Spike gave her a stern frown, crossing his arms. “Okay, none of that. This is not the kind of topic you get to be a killjoy on! That’s an order!”

Twilight leaned back. An order? She smirked in confused amusement at him, tilting her head. “Since when did you start giving me orders?”

“Since Sprainbow Therapy became a thing,” Spike pointed out without missing a beat, flashing her a grin that exposed a fang.

“Oh, for the love of…”

Before Twilight could give Spike a proper response, the door to the room suddenly slammed open, causing its current occupants to jump and let off exclamations of surprise. Twilight spun on her hooves to find a cheerfully grinning Rainbow standing in the doorway. “Hey, guys! Guess what?!”

“Dash!” Twilight complained, pouting at the pegasus indignantly. “Be careful with the door! You’ll break it!”

Rainbow shrugged. “Whatever. I say again, guess what?”

Spike sighed, sagging in place. “Ugh, what?”

“Just have a guess!”

A pause. Twilight shook her head, growing more confused by this sudden change in events by the second. “What is it vaguely about?”

“No clue, just have a guess!”

Twilight gave off a snort of irritation. “Rainbow, you know I love you, but this really isn’t a good time for this!” she chastised. “Spike and I were having a moment!”

Rainbow blinked and leaned back in mock horror. “What?! Without inviting me?!”

“Dash…” Twilight growled in warning.

Rainbow smirked, her face twitching. She then looked down, letting off a series of laughs. Twilight glared at her for a few seconds longer, trying to maintain her scorching look, but it didn’t take long for the other mare’s laughter to win her over, and she started laughing too. She just could not say no to that sound, try as she might.

Rainbow calmed down a second later, though the smirk remained. “Heh. Anyway. Your folks are almost here, Twi.”

Twilight’s own lingering laughter died in her throat almost instantly. She looked up at Rainbow with wide eyes, surprised. “WHAT?!” she shrieked. “Why didn’t you say so sooner?! And how do you know?!”

Rainbow’s smirk was now smug instead of amused. “Well, while I was out doing my volunteer work with the weather teams, I saw them leaving the train station. Figured I’d come and give you a heads up.”

“By cryptically saying ‘guess what?!'” Twilight bellowed, her nostrils flaring.

Rainbow shrugged innocently. “I wanted to have some fun with ya, what can I say?”

“Guess what, apparently,” Spike deadpanned, already heading for the door. “Now come on. You two can kiss and make up later!”

Rainbow rolled her eyes at the comment, though there was no hiding the subtle blush adorning her cheeks at the implication. Twilight’s own cheeks flushed slightly, though she did not drop her very displeased scowl. She marched up to Rainbow, her cheeks puffing up in indignation and her lips twisted into a pout.

Rainbow leaned back slightly, her smug smirk becoming a touch nervous. “Uh… we are gonna kiss and make up later… right? That- that is how this works, right?”

Twilight maintained her glare for a few more seconds. Then, she took in a long, deep breath, calming her nerves. Rainbow’s method of delivery notwithstanding, the news of her parents’ proximity was welcome. She put on a small smile and nodded at Rainbow. “Yes, we will.”

“Oh, good,” Rainbow breathed a sigh of relief.

“But only if you give me good kisses!” Twilight went on, smirking and relishing in how quickly she was able to turn the tables.

Rainbow blinked, her blush intensifying. “Uh… I-I, uh… How do I d-do that?” she stammered helplessly, cowering under Twilight’s gaze.

Twilight just smirked and sauntered by. “I don’t know. Use your imagination and show me—tonight,” she teased, taking the chance to bump her hip against Rainbow’s on the way past.

Rainbow’s embarrassed whines were music to her ears.

“Your saccharine affection for that trainwreck of a mare is absolutely disgusting,” Midnight groused internally.

Twilight faltered for only a moment, her smile fading. She felt a prickle of anger in the base of her skull but was quick to shake her head and push on.

There was a scoff from Midnight, but no further remarks, to Twilight’s relief.

She soon emerged into the main room of the library, Rainbow following closely behind her. Spike was just ahead, standing up on the tips of his toes by the front door to look out through the window.

“Any sign of them?” Rainbow called over, fidgeting with her mane slightly.

“Uh… nope. Not yet.”

“Welp,” Rainbow said, giving a languid stretch before flopping unceremoniously onto the closest couch. “Nothin’ for it but to wait.”

Now it was Twilight’s turn to roll her eyes. Instead of joining Rainbow on the couch, though, she chose to walk over to the door. She reached for the handle but stopped just before she pulled it open, an uncertain frown on her face.

Her parents didn’t know about Midnight, yet. She hadn’t had a chance to tell them, and it just didn’t seem like the kind of thing she should tell them via a letter. It was too personal. Too serious. It had to come from her directly, or not at all. That was how she had done it with her friends, and she was not going to snub her family.

Logically, she knew her parents would probably treat it the same as her friends had. They’d understand, they’d be supportive, and when she was around them, they’d make sure to make the distinction between Twilight and Midnight’s influence in their interactions.

But some small part of her mind wondered… what if they didn’t? With her ears drooping, it fully dawned on Twilight just how little time she had spent with her family over the last few years. And ever since her banishment from Canterlot, their visits had grown ever more spread out and sporadic. And with all of that time spent apart, Twilight had to wonder if they were really still as close as she thought.

Friends could drift apart with time, she knew. Was the same true of family? And if so, would it make them less likely to accept what was happening to her…?

She was jarred from her depressing thoughts by a tug on her tail. Curious, she looked down to see Spike pointing animatedly at the window. “There they are! They’re here!” he said emphatically, bouncing slightly in place.

Twilight took in a deep breath and shoved her mind back into the present. There was no point in worrying about it. “Besides! I had these worries with my friends! Or close enough! It’s all fine. It’s fine.”

She heard Rainbow’s hooves on the floor behind her, but she didn’t turn to look. Having the pegasus at her back was enough to solidify her resolve. With a subtle nod to herself, Twilight lit her horn and opened the door.

There, hoof raised and poised to knock was Twilight Velvet. Night Light stood to her side, eyebrow raised in surprise.

Any doubts Twilight had about her relationship with her family died the moment she set her eyes on them. A nostalgic warmth flooded her veins, filling her chest and stomach with soothing warmth. Her lips curled up into an enormous grin, and she threw herself forward without a second thought, throwing her hooves around her parents in a tight embrace.

“Mom! Dad!” she greeted, pulling the startled unicorns close to her and basking in their presence.

The sound of Velvet and Night Light laughing filled Twilight’s ears as they returned the embrace.

“Wow! Heya, kiddo!” Night said, pulling back a second later. “You’re in a good mood!”

“She just got done teasing Dashie a minute ago,” Spike pointed out, poking his head out from behind Twilight. “And that’ll make anypony giddy.”

Rainbow groaned.

Twilight pulled back from her parents and shot Spike a look. “Oh, hardy har, Spike. I’m just happy to see my family,” she chastised him.

Spike shrugged. “Didn’t say you weren’t.”

Velvet giggled at the display, rolling her own eyes. “Goodness! I would normally ask you how you’ve been, but it sounds like you’ve been doing pretty well!”

Twilight hesitated, then shrugged. “Eh… it’s been kinda up and down.”

“But you’re clearly on the up right now!” Velvet persisted, smiling and patting Twilight’s cheek affectionately. Then, with a devilish little smirk, her horn lit up, and the saddlebags she was wearing lit up. “And I think I know just the thing to push you even higher…”

“What are you…” Twilight went to ask before trailing off. Her eyes widened, latching onto the unmistakable sight of a box of Donut Joe donuts, straight from Canterlot, levitating out of her mother’s saddlebags and into her now-waiting hooves.

Night Light laughed. “Ha! You okay there, Twi? You’re looking pretty reverent there.”

Twilight licked her lips, mouth watering, before focusing a warm smile on her father. “I just… I haven’t had anything from Canterlot. Especially not any of Joe’s Donuts. Not since… well…”

She trailed off. She looked back down at the box, her smile softening somewhat.

“A little taste of home, then,” Velvet said, her voice lowered with understanding.

“Yeah…” Twilight replied, tracing a hoof over the box. She hadn’t really appreciated that little donut shop by the roadside when she was younger, even with how often they had gone there. Now, though…

With a start, she realized that she had forgotten something. “Oh! Uh, would you like to come in?” she asked, stepping aside.

“Well of course!” Velvet replied, strolling in. Her gaze locked onto Spike, and she quickly knelt down to scoop the dragon up into a warm embrace. “Oh, and hello Spike! How are you doing, little guy!”

“Doing well! Eating gems. Putting out the fires these two keep causing. The usual,” came Spike’s response as he returned the hug.

“I feel like I should be offended,” Rainbow deadpanned, walking over to join him. “But you’re not wrong.”

Twilight stepped back, giving Rainbow and Spike a chance to get in their greetings with her mother. Once Velvet disengaged from her hug with Spike, she went right to hugging Rainbow. It was a touching scene, and Twilight couldn’t stop smiling at it.

“...For real, though,” Night Light suddenly said from her side in a hushed voice, drawing her eyes back to him. His smile had faded, replaced with something a little more serious. “Are you doing well?”

Twilight paused, considering her words for a few seconds. Eventually, she nodded. “It’s slow going, but yes. I’m doing well. Or at least I’m doing better than I was.”

Night Light raised an eyebrow. “Something happen?”

Twilight hesitated, biting her lip. “Er… yeah, you could say that…” she said, turning to face her father directly. “Look, I uh… I have a few things I need to tell you and mom. About what’s going on with me.”

She was about to continue when Night Light lifted a hoof, cutting her off. He put on a gentle smile and slowly shook his head. “Nah. Not right now, at least. We’re gonna be here for a few days. So let’s all take a minute to catch up first. Haven’t seen you in way too long. Let’s not start with depressing stuff.”

“But… it’s…” Twilight wanted to protest, to just get it out of the way. But she couldn’t, and when she heard a series of laughs coming from Velvet, Rainbow, and Spike, she couldn’t help but nod along. “Alright.”

Night Light grinned and ruffled her mane. “Atta girl. Now, that said, there is one thing I need to get out of the way now.”

Twilight quirked a brow as Night Light reached into his own saddlebags and procured a scroll of all things, bound with a dark blue ribbon and held closed with the royal seal of Canterlot. Twilight’s eyes widened as she took it in her magic. “Huh? A letter?”

“From Luna, yeah,” Night Light said. “She stopped us just before we got on the train and asked us to bring this to you. Said it was important.”

“And she didn’t send it through Spike?” Twilight asked skeptically, turning the letter over in her magic. Something seemed odd about this. Why would Princess Luna send along an important message via such a comparatively slow means of delivery when near-instant communication was possible thanks to Spike?

Night Light shrugged. “Nope. When we asked, she just said it’d be better coming from us.”

Twilight hesitated. If this was from Luna, it probably had something to do with her mental state, or Midnight, or something related. Depressing things like that would almost certainly kill the mood, and she had just agreed not to start with depressing stuff. But at the same time, it was also probably important, and Twilight did not have the room to ignore her therapist’s words.

“...Mind if I just get this out of the way right now?”

Night Light shook his head. “Not at all. Go for it.”

Twilight braced herself for the worst with a nod, unfurled the letter, and began to read.

Dear Twilight Sparkle.

When you lost your memories, I treated you with mistrust and cold contempt. I was a blind fool, unable to see the scared, frightened mare you were through my own fears of how your loss of experience could harm my niece. And as a result, I only made you feel worse, escalating the problem.

When you regained your memories, at last, it was my decision to banish you from Canterlot as punishment for the crimes committed against my city’s inhabitants. At the moment, it had seemed just. It had felt right. You were to walk the path of redemption, and returning to your home was to be your reward for seeing that path to its end. Or so I told myself.

Again, I was a blind fool. I’m sorry.

I see now how my actions, my hasty judgments, have hurt you. Time and time again my decisions have caused you harm that you never deserved, and it has only ever made things worse. For all of my knowledge of dreams, of emotions, I confess with shame and regret that I have ever been a slave to the whims of mine.

Separating you from your home city. From your family, from your origins, from your mentor. I told myself It was to drive you to make amends. But in truth, it has served little more purpose than a petty, spiteful act of revenge. I remembered how you had cradled Rainbow’s body in the streets, having just robbed her of her memory of you, and I felt anger like I had never known. All I could think of was how my family had been harmed… and I took no heed of why, or how I could keep it from happening again.

That ends today, with this letter.

And so I, Princess Luna, hereby decree, that you, Twilight Sparkle, shall once again be free to return to Canterlot, provided you do not come alone, that you notify either my sister or myself of your coming and that you limit your time in the city to one week per month. It pains me to impose even these limitations on you, but your task is not yet complete, and your redemption not fully earned.

But it is my hope that being able to come home will remove some of the strain upon your emotions, which, in turn, will hasten your recovery and triumph over Midnight. But, upon a more personal note, it is my hope that this can begin to earn your forgiveness.

I will suffer no excuses to be made for me, Twilight. I failed you. As a Princess, as a peer, and as a friend. I can never make amends for how I have treated you and held you back with words alone. I can but hope that the power my words hold can, in time, absolve my name in your mind and heart.

Humbly yours,

Princess Luna

Twilight stared at the letter, dumbfounded. Her jaw hung open, working rigidly up and down as she processed everything she had just read.

“...I… I can go home…?”

She didn’t notice how the ponies around her immediately fell silent. The storm in her mind was far louder than the quiet could ever be in her thoughts. She didn’t even hear it when Rainbow asked her what she had said, or when Spike placed his claw on her hoof when she started to shake. She couldn’t see the worried looks in her family’s faces through the tears welling up in her eyes.

She could go home. Just like that. There were strings attached, of course, but she didn’t care right now.

She could go back to Canterlot.

Her legs gave out under her. A broken sob of joy and relief escaped her lips.

“Twilight?!” Rainbow exclaimed, her voice just breaking through the noise of Twilight’s tumultuous thoughts.

Twilight looked up at her family as they crowded around her, concern written evidently on their faces. She smiled at them, a trembling, uneven smile, but one that glowed with relief, joy, and so many others. She lifted the letter up so her family could see it.

“I can go h-home,” she blubbered out. She sniffled, passing the letter into Spike’s claws. “It’s from Luna. S-she’s letting me go home…”

Spike took the letter, eyes wide, and quietly read the letter aloud for the whole room to hear. The mood of everpony present gradually shifted with every word until all had joined Twilight in their quiet, solemn joy. When he finally finished, nopony said a word.

“So… y-you can come visit us, now?” Velvet asked as if she didn’t quite believe it.

Twilight sniffled, wiping a hoof over her face. She opened her mouth to say yes, absolutely, but something stopped her. As much as she wanted to just drop everything and go back to Canterlot right now, her family had just come all this way to visit her here.

And besides… she wouldn't feel right about just going back. She had something she had to do first.

“Don’t you dare.”

Twilight faltered as Midnight’s venomous snarl echoed around in her head. She blinked, and suddenly her malevolent reflection stood before her, behind Spike and between her mother and Rainbow Dash.

Midnight bared her teeth angrily, putting her fangs on display. “I know what you’re going to do, and I won’t allow it.”

Twilight frowned, rising to her hooves. “You can’t stop me.”

“She doesn’t deserve it!” Midnight yelled, stomping forward until her muzzle was mere inches from Twilight’s. “She hasn’t earned it!”

Twilight had to resist the urge to react to the apparition. “You read the letter. You know how much she regrets how things have gone. If I don’t do this, I’ll be making the exact same mistake she did.”

“No, because you have done nothing wrong!” Midnight snapped, her pupils dilating as ghostly magic bled out of the corners of her eyes. “You are not the one who hurt a perfectly innocent pony with your blind contempt! You are not the one who stared into the heart of someone sad, scared, broken, and confused, and ripped their heart out!”

Twilight flinched back under Midnight’s tirade, her ears drooping. She opened her mouth to rebuke her, but nothing came. “I…”

“...Twilight?”

Twilight blinked when the sound of Rainbow’s voice reached her ears. She looked up and locked gazes with the pegasus that had captured her heart. She got lost in those cerise orbs, was swallowed whole by the concern they were now expressing, and the boundless love that spurred on that concern.

She remembered a quiet hospital room bathed in the light of sunset. She remembered a quiet Canterlot bedroom in the middle of the night. She remembered Rainbow’s body cradled in her hooves as a storm of memories that did not belong to her danced in her mind. And she knew.

She turned back to Midnight and said three words.

“Yes, I am.”

Twilight was expecting Midnight to argue. To fight back the point, to rage and scream against it. But to her surprise, the fire in Midnight’s eyes faded away. For several seconds, she didn’t say a word.

“Fine,” she said quietly, turning away.

Twilight blinked, and just like that, Midnight was gone.

“Twilight, are you okay?” Velvet asked, drawing Twilight’s attention. She turned to look and saw the still concerned faces of her family. After a few seconds to wrangle her thoughts back into line, she put on a smile and nodded.

“Sorry, I just… I got lost in my head for a minute,” she said before looking down at Spike. “Spike, can you do me a favor?”

Spike perked up, standing upright. “Uh, yeah, sure, what is it?”

Twilight’s smile grew. “Take a letter.”

A million thoughts ran through Princess Luna’s mind as her eyes wandered aimlessly over the landscape far beneath her from her place on one of Canterlot Castle’s many balconies. The sky was clear, with only the occasional stray wisp of a cloud drifting by. The sun was high in the air, slowly making its long journey for the horizon.

It was all beautiful, to be sure, but just now she couldn’t find it in herself to appreciate it. The light of the sun was too bright, too cheerful. It was almost like an eye, glaring at her in scrutiny and judging her for her decisions.

She took in a deep breath and let it out in a heavy sigh.

“Sister?”

Luna opened her eyes and turned to see Celestia stepping out onto the balcony with her. She tilted her head in surprise, though she did smile at the sight of her elder sibling. “Celestia. What are you doing here?”

Celestia took a position by Luna’s side, draping a wing over her shoulders. “Day court finished early today, and I wanted to come to check in on you. You’ve been quieter than usual, lately,” she said, dropping her regal tone for the time being.

Luna looked down, repressing a snort of amusement. She should have known better. “Ha. You noticed that, did you?”

“I am more perceptive than most ponies give me credit for,” Celestia replied, giving Luna a squeeze. “So tell me. What’s bothering you?”

Luna was quiet for several long seconds. She took in a deep breath and turned away, gently brushing Celestia’s wing off of her back. She took another moment to think of how best to phrase her question before looking back over her shoulder. “Tell me, sister. Do you think I’ve matured?”

Celestia blinked. “...What?”

“As a mare. As a pony,” Luna clarified, turning to face her sister directly. “Do you think I have grown in any significant way since before my banishment? And I do not mean physically, I mean mentally.”

Celestia’s eyes widened in shock. A moment later, she relaxed, and a small, encouraging smile decorated her lips. “Of course you have, Luna. You’ve grown incredibly.”

“Are you certain of that?” Luna pressed.

“As certain as I am that I love you, little sister.”

Luna twitched at that, unable to stop a small smile from forming on her lips. “I… I see. That is some incredible confidence in my growth you are exhibiting.”

“Oh, that’s not to say you still have room to keep growing,” Celestia followed up, her tone turning playful.

“Ah, there it is.”

Celestia laughed, shaking her head. “But, to be honest, that is true for me as well.”

Luna smirked. “Clearly, consumer of cakes.”

Celestia flinched at the well-placed jab, consciously prodding at her belly. A moment later she caught Luna looking—and smirking—and pulled her hoof away. The two shared another amused chortle. Celestia quickly sobered up, however, and affixed Luna with a concerned frown. “What brought this on?”

Luna hesitated, her jovial mood fading away. A few seconds passed before she stood up and turned away to look out over Canterlot again.

“When you banished me to the moon, it was because I had allowed my own emotions to take ahold of my heart. My jealousy over how much more love and reverence you received. I felt ignored and overshadowed. Like I didn’t matter. And before that, I had often been far easier to offend than you. I was more rash, reckless, and prone to making decisions that were, in retrospect, incredibly stupid.

“When I came back from the moon, I swore to myself I would never allow such things to happen again. I created the Tantabus to punish myself, and to ensure I never forgot what I had done so I could never make the same mistakes again. But Rainbow Dash, and to a lesser extent, you, sister, helped me believe that I had grown past those old mistakes and that the Tantabus was not necessary. That I need not torture myself so.”

Luna turned back to Celestia, her gaze hardening. “I thought I had grown past such follies, but of late I have found myself repeating them over and over. Perhaps not on the same scale as before, but the pattern is all too familiar… And so I ask again: Have I grown? Have I matured? Am I better now than I was then?”

It was impossible to read Celestia’s expression. Whatever she was thinking, it was masterfully hidden behind her poker face. She stared at Luna for several long seconds, her eyes narrowing analytically. Luna stood her ground, unflinching. Whatever assessment her sister made of her, she would accept it in stride and learn from it.

It came as a surprise to her, then, when Celestia’s lips pulled up into a smile, and she nodded. “Yes, you are.”

Luna tilted her head. “You… are certain?”

“As certain as I am that I love you,” Celestia repeated, drawing a roll of Luna’s eyes. Celestia’s smile grew, and she placed a hoof over Luna’s heart. “Because back then, when we were young and foolish, you responded to all of these bad feelings by turning into Nightmare Moon. You were as blind to the danger you were putting yourself in as I was of how my neglectful behavior was harming you.

“But here you are now, voicing these concerns to me. That on its own is leagues beyond where you used to be. I have watched you ever since I got you back, Luna. Watched you overcoming your grief, your guilt, your trauma, and reaching out to do the same for Rainbow and all of our subjects. So while it is true that you perhaps have more you need to learn, you have grown, and you will continue to grow.

“And whatever mistakes you have made, past or present, I have the utmost faith that you will rise above them, learn from them, and emerge a better mare for it. And the first step in learning from your mistakes is to recognize that you have made them in the first place… Something you would never have done before your Fall.”

Luna took a deep breath and closed her eyes, feeling her sister’s hoof over her heart. She allowed her words to sink in and resonate in her mind, before opening her eyes and giving Celestia a grateful smile. “Thank you, sister. I just hope you’re right, and that I can earn forgiveness for my mistakes.”

Before Celestia could respond, there was a sudden flash of green flames off to their right. Luna turned to look, catching sight of a scroll of parchment. Celestia was quick to snatch it up in her magic, quirking her brow in confusion. “Oh? What is this? Another letter?”

“Another?” Luna asked, watching as her sister undid the seal and opened the letter.

“Twilight sent me one earlier, checking in with me. It was like the friendship reports she used to… oh…” Celestia trailed off, a smile spreading on her face. A moment later, she turned the letter over to Luna. “It’s for you.”

Luna gingerly took the scroll in her magic and brought it up to her face, equal parts curious and dreading what she would find written on it.

Dear Princess Luna.

Some part of me says you don’t deserve it. That you haven’t earned it. But I don’t care. My hooves aren’t clean either.

I forgive you. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Twilight Sparkle.

That was all that was written. And it was enough to make Luna silently tear up. She lowered the scroll to see Celestia smiling warmly back at her.

“You see?” Celestia asked in a near-silent whisper. “You’ve grown.”

Luna swallowed heavily, unable to hide her smile. “I… I suppose I cannot deny it any longer, can I?” she asked shakily before barking out a quiet half-laugh. “Ha. I have grown. But I still have more to do.”

Celestia drew her into a warm, loving embrace. “And you will do wonderfully,” She assured her, the certainty in her voice leaving no room for doubt.

Author's Note

And so the 'Luna doesn't like Twilight' subplot that began with Little Memories is about as close to wrapped up as I can make it right now. I'll not lie, I had planned on keeping it going for a little while longer initially, but the feedback I've received in the comments about Luna made me decide it'd be better to push that bit of character development to happen sooner.

That said, I have an announcement to make regarding the next arc of Keys.

Namely, I will be writing the entire thing out before I publish it. I am doing this as an experiment with my editor to see how it works. This means that it's probably gonna be a little while before you all get to see the second-to-last arc of Little Keys, but it's a learning experience I kinda wanna tackle and see how it impacts my writing and the quality of what I put out.

My other stories will remain on their usual rotations. So whenever Rise and Shine and Bug in The Mirror both get updates, you can take that to mean that a new chapter of Keys has probably been finished behind the scenes. Or at least a draft has been finished.

P.S: Fun Fact, I had a hard time coming up with a chapter title for this one.

Then this happened. Spoilered for bad language.

There is a running gag and a half in there, along with quite the throwback. A small few of you may get it.

Bittersweet Homecoming

In the month since Princess Luna decided to lessen Twilight’s punishment, things have been quiet. Midnight’s biting words still haunt the back of Twilight’s mind, never far from her thoughts, but with the support of her friends, her spirits have slowly but surely been lifting.

However, the time has come. With the dawn of a new month, the way to Canterlot is at last open to the young alicorn, and she is not going to let this opportunity pass her by…

“Honestly, darling, you need to stop fidgeting,” Rarity gently scolded from her place across Twilight in their booth aboard the Friendship Express. “Honestly, if you keep fretting like this, you’re going to pop a gasket.”

Twilight didn’t pay Rarity much mind, her gaze remaining firmly locked on Canterlot through the train window. The city was bathed from below in the fiery orange glow of the early morning sun, and a thin mist that hung around the city in the mountains allowed its shadow to be cast up and through the air. It was an incredibly rare sight, one that Twilight had only seen once or twice in all her life.

Her view of it this morning was afforded solely due to the fact that the group had departed from Ponyville incredibly early.

“Leave her alone, Rares,” Rainbow quipped from Twilight’s side. “Telling Twi to stop worrying is just gonna make her worry more, you know that, right?”

Rarity pouted indignantly. “I’m just trying to help, Dash. She’s hardly held still since we sat down.”

“Can you blame her?” Spike asked carefully, prompting Twilight to look back at him. He was staring back at her with a small, encouraging smile on his face.

Twilight offered up a small smile to him in return before turning to Rarity. They were seated in a private booth, secured by Rainbow when they had come aboard. A small luxury that Twilight was very thankful for. She didn’t want anypony she didn’t know seeing just how anxious she was.

Rarity hesitated for a moment before heaving a heavy sigh. “I… no, I suppose I can’t. I’m terribly sorry, Twilight. If I’m being a bother at all...”

Twilight shook her head dismissively. “No, no, it’s fine, Rarity. You’re probably right, honestly,” she said, returning her gaze to Canterlot. “It’s Canterlot. It’s my home… How bad could it be?”

There was a momentary pause before Spike offered up a response. “Are you sure you want me to answer that?”

Twilight shot him a disapproving frown. “Spike.”

He held up his claws defensively. “Hey, I’m just saying it how it is.”

“Ever hear of tact, Spike?” Rainbow asked with a deadpan glare.

“You say that as if you’re one to speak on the subject,” Rarity commented with a raised eyebrow.

“Better than this lummox,” Rainbow snipped, pulling Spike against her side with a hoof and proceeding to give him the mother of all noogies.

“Wha- hey!” Spike protested, flailing uselessly against the powerful pegasus’ iron grip. “Lemme go! Not cool, Dash!”

“Nah,” Rainbow smirked, leaning casually back against her seat without releasing her hold on the squirming baby dragon.

Twilight couldn’t help but giggle at the exchange before turning to look back at Rarity. The unicorn was covering up her muzzle with a hoof to hide away her own amused titters at Spike’s expense. She caught Twilight looking her way, and her smile softened considerably. She lowered her hoof and leaned forward, lowering her voice.

“Never you mind them, Twilight. You’re right. Canterlot is your home. You have absolutely nothing to worry about—nothing worth worrying about, at least. And even if something does go wrong, we’ll all be here to support you.”

Twilight smiled, finally managing to relax. Whether or not Rarity was right that Twilight had nothing to worry about, she was right that Twilight had a pretty good support network traveling with her.

“Thanks, Rarity. And thanks for agreeing to let us come with you on this trip of yours,” Twilight said, leaning back in her seat. “I’m not sure I would have worked up the nerve if you hadn’t invited me.”

“Think nothing of it, darling. It was the least I could do,” Rarity dismissed with a wave of her hoof. “Besides, it has been far too long since you’ve been in Canterlot.”

Twilight’s smile faltered, and she returned her attention to the city, her heart twisting with anxiety in her chest yet again. She took a deep breath to quell that unsettling sensation, but it lingered in the back of her mind, like a panther quietly waiting for the right moment to pounce and tear her limb from limb.

Her thoughts drifted back to the last time she had been in the city. A chill ran down her spine as she recalled the echoing screams of the ponies she had ensnared in her magic. None had gotten away. None could have gotten away. She cringed as she remembered how much she had been enjoying herself, how much she relished the feeling as she tore their memories out of their heads and took them into herself. She screwed her eyes shut as she remembered the sadistic joy she had felt at watching them cower before her.

“No. Not me,” she finally managed to think, forcing the macabre thoughts aside. She opened her eyes and focused on Canterlot. “That was Midnight.”

“Tsk tsk tsk,” the expected voice of her inner demon came from behind her, sounding both amused and disappointed. “Again with the denial.”

Twilight ignored her.

Midnight did not press the matter, thankfully. But Twilight knew she was still there; listening in on her thoughts, waiting for something to attack.

“...You okay?”

Twilight blinked and turned around. Rainbow had released her hold on Spike and was now looking at her with a worried frown. Twilight offered her a reassuring smile.

“I’m okay. Midnight was bothering me, that’s all,” she said without hesitation.

Rainbow’s expression soured. “Again? Ugh, can’t that stupid delusion take a hint?” she asked in exasperation.

“I don’t think it’s that simple…” Twilight said before looking out the window again. She gave a quiet sigh, one which rapidly turned into a large and unattractive yawn, much to her surprise.

A knowing hum came from Rarity at the sight. “Oh, my my, darling. Tired, are we?” she asked carefully.

Twilight nodded, her ears lowering slightly. “A little, yeah. We left pretty early…”

“Well of course we did,” Rarity replied, tossing her mane slightly. “If I want to make the most of this little business trip of mine, then I need to be punctual. Sapphire Shores runs a tight schedule, you know.”

“I know, I know,” Twilight said dismissively, waving Rarity off. “I guess I’m just not used to being up this early.”

In truth, she simply hadn’t slept well the previous night, even after going to bed at an early hour in preparation for this little trip. Her thoughts kept returning to those dark places she wished it wouldn’t about the last time she had been here, and it more often than not led to her waking up prematurely.

She yawned again, then her muzzle scrunched up in annoyance at the involuntary action. “Oh, for the love of…”

Spike leaned past Rainbow to get a better look at Twilight. “Why don’t you go ahead and take a little nap?” he suggested with a helpful smile. “We’re still a ways out.”

Twilight pondered the suggestion for a moment, then gave a little nod. A nap sounded good right about now. “Okay, I guess. Wake me when we’re getting close, okay?” she asked, lowering herself to get comfortable on the cushions. With one more powerful yawn, she closed her eyes, and in mere moments, the perpetual rumbling of the train lulled her to sleep.

“We are now arriving at Canterlot Station. This is our final stop. All passengers must disembark the train. Thank you for riding with the Friendship Express!” a friendly mare’s voice said over the intercom sometime later, snapping Twilight back into the waking world. She blinked and looked back to Rainbow and the others as they got up, with Rarity using her magic to pass around the group’s assorted luggage.

Rainbow turned to Twilight as she got her saddlebags fastened to her back. She smiled. “Hey, sleepyhead. How you feeling?” she asked, gently chucking Twilight’s bags onto the cushion next to her.

Twilight blinked in confusion as she sat up. She looked back out the window, and indeed, they were pulling into Canterlot station. Twilight frowned and looked back to the others in confusion. “Why didn’t anypony wake me?” she asked while slipping her bags on.

“Thought you needed the rest,” Rainbow replied with a shrug. “Besides, you’re cute when you’re asleep.”

Twilight gave the unrepentant pegasus a death glare.

“Aaawww,” Rarity cooed at the display, much to Twilight’s growing embarrassment. “Has anypony told you two just how adorable you are when you banter?”

“A few times,” Twilight remarked dryly.

Rarity tittered behind her hoof once again before slipping out of their compartment. “Well, I have told you again! Now come along! We have places to be, business deals to finalize, and parents to visit!”

“After you, Rarity!” Spike declared while hopping from his seat to land on Rainbow’s back. The pegasus rolled her eyes at him and went for the door.

Twilight hesitated. She turned to look back out the window. The train slid to its final stop with a low groan of metal and a barely audible hiss of steam. Even in this early hour, Twilight could make out a small sea of ponies waiting for their turn to board the train and be on their way. Some looked to be business ponies from out of town, but many carried the unmistakable look of locals.

Twilight’s heart began to beat faster and faster in her chest. What would they do if they recognized her? How could they not recognize her? It wasn’t like there was any other alicorn who looked like her! Her breathing was getting heavy. She could already imagine those ponies out there scowling at her, cursing her name. Or worse, paling in terror before turning and running from her in a blind panic, warning others of her coming.

Something tapped Twilight on the shoulder. She jumped in surprise with a yelp and spun to face the pony that had snuck up on her. She came face to face with a startled Rainbow Dash, recoiling from the ferocity of the reaction.

“Woah. Easy there,” Rainbow said, holding her hoof up placatingly. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you. You okay?”

Twilight swallowed heavily before looking over her shoulder out the window again. “...I’m fine,” she said weakly. “Just a little nervous.”

Rainbow nodded. Without a word, she gave Twilight a hug, took her hoof, and guided her out of the train. Twilight kept herself close to Rainbow the whole way, her eyes flicking this way and that. They rejoined with Rarity in the central corridor, the unicorn having decided to wait for them to catch up. She didn’t say a word either, no doubt sensing the tension surrounding them. She merely gave a reassuring smile, and a curt nod, and led the way off of the train.

The first thing Twilight noticed when she stepped off the train was the mountain air. She was struck by a sense of nostalgia, and even with the smell of the train right there, she had to pause and take a deep breath. The mountainous air of Canterlot had always smelled so pure and fresh, crisp and cool even during the hottest months of summer. It was the smell of home, and it did wonders to set her mind at ease.

When she opened her eyes, she was greeted by the sight of several ponies giving their group little looks, usually to offer up respectful nods to Rainbow. A few pairs of eyes lingered on Rarity, but it was those that locked onto Twilight that made her almost freeze in place. She felt her chest constricting with anxiety and guilt.

“You are pathetic,” Midnight sneered.

“Come on,” Rainbow said in a hushed voice, draping a wing over Twilight’s back and guiding her off of the platform. Nopony said anything as they passed, and it was impossible for Twilight to gauge the emotions of those who were looking at her, but to her surprise, remarkably few ponies actually bothered to look her way. Most were just going about their business.

Before long, they were out of the train station and stepping onto the streets. Twilight breathed a sigh of relief. “Ugh. When we go back to Ponyville, I say we fly back,” she said with a shake of her head.

“Oh, don’t pay them any mind, Twilight,” Rarity softly encouraged. She stepped in front of Twilight and lifted her chin with a hoof. She wore a warm smile, and it was reflected in her eyes. “You’re here to reunite with your family and relax in your home city. Don’t let the stares of a few locals sour that.”

“But Rarity,” Twilight protested, standing up a little. “What I did to them… I don’t know if-”

Twilight’s eyes crossed as a white hoof suddenly pressed itself against her lips, silencing her. She blinked and pouted at Rarity, her cheeks puffing up.

Rarity just smiled back at her. “Twilight, dear, you’re letting your nerves get the better of you again. Whatever you did before does not define you now. You’re getting better, step by step, which is why you’re here this week.”

“Yeah, no sweat,” Rainbow agreed, giving Twilight a reassuring squeeze. “Don’t worry about them. Let’s just go see your folks, yeah?”

“Yeah, maybe Velvet can take us down memory lane,” Spike said with a knowing grin. He turned to Rarity, a devilish spark in his eye. “Hey, Rarity, you ever seen Twilight Velvet’s foal photo album?”

Rarity blinked before an equally evil smirk crossed her muzzle. “Why no, I do not believe I have.”

Rainbow turned to Spike with the most hideous of glares. “Spike! You traitor! I am gonna get you back for that!” she snapped. With a single twitch of her waist, she sent Spike careening off of her with a yelp of surprise.

Twilight managed to smile at that before looking back at Rarity. “It’s not as bad as they make it sound. Rainbow just likes to play it up for comedic effect.”

“I DO NOT!” Rainbow snapped back, her cheeks flushing slightly. “Don’t you lie to her! This is serious business, Twilight!”

Rarity rolled her eyes at the two. “Well, I shall have to be the judge of that,” she said before turning around to look back at the city. She took a deep breath. “But alas, it will have to wait for now. You two go on ahead to Twilight’s demanse. I’ll catch up with you later. Ta!”

“Yeah yeah,” Rainbow snorted, waving with a wing as Rarity went frolicking off into the crowded city. Once she was out of sight, she turned back to Twilight. “You good?”

Twilight took a second to center herself and took another deep breath, just like Cadance and Rainbow taught her. After a few repetitions of the old ritual, she nodded. “I think so.”

Rainbow scooped Spike off the ground and set him down on Twilight’s back. “Alright. Let’s fly, then,” she said with an eager grin.

Twilight liked that idea, actually. She looked up at the sky, spotting a few stray clouds drifting through the air. Then, with a nod, she spread her wings and took to the air. The chilly mountain wind that met her as she rose shocked her still-groggy mind into total alertness, and she relished the feeling. Had it not been for Spike on her back, she might have done a little twirl to express herself a bit.

That, and she was confident that she would lose control and plummet like a stone if she tried anything too dramatic. Despite all of the flight training she had gotten, she wasn’t even half the stuntmare Rainbow was.

Speaking of whom, Rainbow came flying up and joined her in the air a second later. There was a glint in her eye, one that Twilight had seen plenty of times before.

“Say, we missed out on our morning run today,” Rainbow pointed out with a waggle of her eyebrows. “Wanna make up for it with a race to your folks?”

Twilight considered it for a moment. On the one hoof, she was here to relax, and while fun, a race was anything but relaxing—and she wasn’t sure she wanted to step into her family home for the first time in months smelling of sweat and mountain moisture. But, then again, she could use a good distraction, and there were few things more distracting than seeing Rainbow in her element. When those red eyes of hers shined in the rush of a close race, Twilight could get lost in them for ages, as she had during the running of the leaves, and so many times afterward.

After a few seconds of deliberation, she gave a cocky grin. “Last one there has to go through the foal photos with mom!” she declared before shooting off as fast as she could. She heard the beginnings of an indignant protest from Rainbow, but the words were lost in the wind rushing past Twilight’s ears.

She lost herself in that wind. Though she tried to be mindful of Spike on her back, she was quickly able to put her problems behind her, at least for the moment. As the familiar buildings of her hometown sped by beneath her, she didn’t even have time to see if anypony down there looked up, much less if they recognized her. She didn’t even really notice as Rainbow pulled ahead of her with minimal difficulty.

All she knew was that she was finally home, and she was going to make the most of her time there.

Author's Note

Well, well, well. Here we are, at long last. The next section of this confounded story is finally put into motion! Alas, due to my editor having to go away for a while due to a whole assortment of reasons, I am once again back to my original state of self-editing, so do please let me know if you spot any significant typos or things like that in the bulk of this text.

Also, I think that as far as 'Acquire a key' arcs are concerned, this one is so far the longest. Which makes sense, given just how much stuff goes on it. I am not entirely sure how well it will turn out, but we'll see. The full arc is already written up, about 11 or so chapters, and I'll be posting them up in fairly rapid succession, so keep an eye on this space.

The Sun's Promise

Twilight couldn’t stop herself from letting out a loud sigh of relief as her old foalhood home came into view just ahead. It had only been a few months since she had last been there, but it had felt like years. All of her struggles with Midnight had made time feel as if it were crawling along at a snail’s pace, with her own anxiety, dread, fear, and swells of amplified anger making the feeling even worse.

She looked back to Rainbow Dash with a weak smile, and the pegasus gave her an encouraging nod in turn. There was nothing else for it. Twilight took in a long, deep breath, then dropped down for a landing. Her hooves touched down gracefully on the stone street in front of the house.

It looked the same as it always had. A wave of nostalgia swept over her, and she had to fight to keep herself from just throwing open the door and barging in. Whether this was her childhood home or not, she still had manners, darn it!

Rainbow touched down beside her with a smile. “You’re getting faster there, Twi. Almost had me breaking a sweat!”

Twilight turned back to Rainbow with a small, playful smirk. “I’m pretty sure I got here before you did,” she remarked.

Rainbow waved a hoof dismissively. “Yeah, yeah. Look, I let you win. No way that’d happen if I were giving it my best.”

Twilight snorted, giving Rainbow a challenging glare. “Oh, yeah? We’ll just have to test that later!” she declared, stomping a hoof for emphasis.

Rainbow tossed her ponytail with a swing of her head and met the glare head-on with her trademark cocky grin. “Oh, you are on, egg-for-brains.”

“Egg-for-what?!” Twilight asked with a scandalized gasp. That was a new one.

Spike hopped down to the ground with an exasperated roll of his eyes. “Is this the part where I demand you two just kiss already, or what?” he asked knowingly.

Twilight and Rainbow both went rigid and quiet at the unexpected remark, their cheeks tinting slightly red. Twilight recalled - with staggering clarity - what Spike was calling back to, and it was one of only a small number of memories she wished she hadn’t gotten back.

Spike gave an evil little snicker at the awkward silence and marched up the steps for the door. “No? Then let’s go inside. I’m hungry!” he said before knocking three times.

Rainbow and Twilight glanced at him, then at each other. Rainbow shuffled uneasily on her hooves, still clearly flustered. “W-we’ll finish this later,” she said under her breath, looking up and to the side innocently.

Twilight rolled her eyes, not nearly as flustered as her girlfriend was. And besides, this presented a magnificent opportunity. After all, she needed to get Rainbow back for that ‘egg for brains’ comment…

With deliberately exaggerated movements, Twilight sashayed up until she was right in front of Rainbow, the fur on their chests intermingling. Rainbow blinked and stared at her, wide-eyed and slack-jawed. Her cheeks flushed an even deeper shade of red from the sudden proximity. “...Uh.”

Twilight didn’t give her a chance to formulate anything else. She darted in and planted the biggest, sloppiest kiss she could on Rainbow’s cheek, being sure to make a very loud smooching noise in the process. She felt Rainbow jump and give off a high-pitched, mouse-like squeak. Twilight withdrew with a cartoonish ‘mwah!’ and smirked at Rainbow.

“Whose got eggs for brains, now?” she asked with a waggle of her eyebrows.

Rainbow puffed up like an infuriated pigeon, her cheeks inflating with indignation. “Why you…”

“Maybe I shoulda suggested you two get a room first,” Spike commented under his breath.

It was at about this time that an audible click came from the door, and it swung open to reveal Night Light on the other side. He poked his head out, and a wide, ecstatic grin split his muzzle. “Twilight! Rainbow! There you are! How was the train ride- ...Um...”

Twilight only then realized that she was still chest-to-chest with Rainbow, their muzzles mere inches apart, while Spike was the one at the door. She slowly turned her head to look at her father and was mortified to see his expression shifting from sheepish confusion to a large, knowing grin.

“Do you two need some time alone?” he asked.

“That’s what I thought!” Spike agreed, throwing his arms wide.

Rainbow glared at Twilight, now having turned an impressive shade of tomato. “I am gonna get you for this.”

Twilight gulped and nodded. “Go for it.”

Night Light laughed in amusement at their expense. He then smiled down at Spike, and his smile went from predatory to affectionate. “Ah, Spike! You little rascal!” he cheered, pulling the dragon up into a tight hug. “How was the trip?”

“Meh,” Spike replied, returning the hug. “Long and kinda quiet. Rarity’s off discussing business elsewhere in the city. She’ll be by later.”

Night Light set Spike down. He stepped down the stairs, approaching Twilight as she and Rainbow re-established the concept of ‘personal space.’ Twilight felt her stomach clench involuntarily as he drew near, and her lips distorted into a nervous, wobbly smile.

“Hey, dad…” she whispered, scuffing the floor idly with a hoof. “I’m… I’m home.”

Night Light came to a stop at that, blinking. For a moment, he didn’t move or say a word. Then, his smile grew all the wider even as it started shaking, and his eyes shimmered with moisture.

Twilight blinked, taken aback. Was he crying? But before she had a chance to think any more about it, Night Light was on her. His hooves flashed out and pulled her against him in a tight embrace, eliciting a startled yelp from her.

“You are,” Night Light whispered to her, squeezing her close to his chest and resting his chin on her head. He was cradling her the same way he used to when she was just a little filly. “Welcome home, Twilight.”

“Dad…?” Twilight replied in an equally hushed tone, though she didn’t resist the embrace at all. It felt good, honestly, being held like this.

Night Light sniffled and whipped a hoof over his face. “Gah. S-stupid tears. S-sorry, sorry. Just… Your mother and I have been waiting for you to be able to come home ever since… Well, you know,” he said, quickly forcing himself to regain his composure. “It’s been eating us up just as much as you. We’ve been worried about you. But this is a sign things are getting better!”

Twilight stared at him for a moment before relaxing gratefully into his embrace again. “Yeah… I guess it is,” she whispered, taking a deep breath. A few seconds passed and she just savored the embrace of her father. Then a thought occurred to her, and she leaned back with a raised eyebrow. She looked past Night Light and towards the door.

Why hadn’t Velvet come out yet? Surely she had heard the knocking, right?

“Where’s mom?” She asked a second later, extracting herself from Night Light’s hooves.

He looked almost disappointed that the hug had to end, but he turned back to the house all the same. “Ah, she’s inside with Celestia. She got here a little before you did,” he stated matter-of-factly.

Suddenly, a whole new wave of anxiety and tension washed over Twilight. She went rigid on the spot, inhaling quietly. Celestia was here? Right now? Normally that thought would be enough to make Twilight excited, but now?

“Mom’s here?” Rainbow asked in surprise, finally joining the discussion. She stepped forward, quirking a brow herself. “I’m guessing to check in with Twi personally?”

“I think so, yes,” Night acknowledged. He turned for the door and beckoned them to follow him. “Come on, they’re waiting for us.”

Twilight watched as Night Light stepped back inside, and Spike followed after him without a moment of hesitation. Twilight remained planted in place, though, going through her breathing exercise to chase away her nerves.

Rainbow looked at her from the side, her eyes hardening with understanding. “Nervous?” she asked quietly.

“Extremely,” Twilight confessed, setting her hoof back down and ruffling her wings. “The last time I saw her was back in the cave with the Tree of Harmony. When she and Luna…”

She didn’t finish the sentence. She looked down, her ears drooping as guilt swelled in her heart over the morbid memory.

“When they hurt you,” Midnight commented in a cold, quiet snarl. “When they cast you away out of fear and hatred. When they abandoned you when you needed them the most.”

Twilight screwed her eyes shut. “Midnight, shut. Up,” she hissed through clenched teeth.

Rainbow was instantly at her side, draping a wing over her shoulders. “I dunno what you’re saying, Midnight, but Twi’s right. Shut your trap!” she whispered into Twilight’s ear.

Midnight scoffed in Twilight’s mind before apparating before her, standing in the door frame. She glowered over her shoulder into the house, visibly bristling with contempt. “Even after everything you’ve done, all the effort you’ve put in, she still doesn’t trust you. Why else would she have come here unless she was afraid you’d do something dangerous again?”

“Because she cares about me!” Twilight spat, her wings twitching in anger on her back. “She’s my teacher! She was practically a second mother to me when I still lived in this city!”

Midnight turned back to Twilight with a hard frown. She approached her with slow, methodical steps, the ominous, ghostly blue light in her eyes growing brighter as she drew closer. “And yet she cast you aside…”

“Twi, look at me.”

Twilight turned to face Rainbow reluctantly. The pegasus was staring back at her intensely.

“Dash…”

“Ignore her,” Rainbow whispered, pressing her forehead against Twilight’s. “Whatever she’s saying, just ignore her. It’s not worth it. We’re here to have fun and relax, remember?”

Twilight took in another deep breath, offering up a small nod. She focused on her family waiting for her in there, and on the happiest memories she had with Celestia. After a moment, the burning in her skull faded away, and she felt Midnight vanishing into the depths of her mind.

Twilight smiled. “Okay… I think I’m good. She’s gone.”

Rainbow grinned. She pat Twilight on the back before taking her hoof and walking with her up the stairs and into the house.

The second the door closed behind them, Twilight’s nose was hit with the unmistakable smell of some of Velvet’s freshly brewed tea, and she could hear voices from the dining room. She looked to Rainbow for support and got another nod. She took what comfort she could, shoved her anxiety aside, and stepped deeper into the house.

The dining room was more or less the same as when it was the last time she had seen it. The only difference was that some of the older appliances had finally been replaced. Velvet was by the counter next to a slowly warming kettle, while Night Light and Spike were seated at the table, nursing mugs of the steaming liquid. And just across from them was…

“Twilight!” Velvet suddenly cried out upon catching sight of Twilight. She sprung across the room, practically bouncing, and enveloped the startled alicorn in a warm hug before she even had a chance to react. “Oh, welcome home, sweetie! It’s so good to see you again!”

Rainbow, who was still draping a wing over Twilight’s back, was also caught in the embrace with a grunt of surprise.

Twilight just smiled, returning the hug without hesitation. “Mom! It’s good to see you, too!” she greeted, idly noting the differences in her mother’s embrace versus her father’s.

Velvet pulled back to smile at Rainbow. “And hello, Rainbow. Doing well, your highness?”

“My lungs,” Rainbow wheezed once she was released, holding a hoof up to her chest. She shot Velvet a skeptical look. “You sure you didn’t turn into an Earth Pony or something?”

Velvet just smirked and playfully punched Rainbow’s chest. “Nope. I’m just really happy to see my daughter!”

A new voice joined them, one that made Twilight freeze for what felt like the thousandth time today.

“As am I to see mine.”

All eyes turned to the speaker, and for the first time in several months, Twilight beheld the radiant features of Princess Celestia. She was right there, walking forward with her trademarked motherly smile. Twilight’s heart skipped a beat, and she locked up, unsure of what to do.

“Mom!” Rainbow greeted, jumping into the air with her wings and flying over to give Celestia a hug of her own. Celestia stepped back from the force of the embrace, laughing merrily.

“It is good to see you again, Rainbow,” Celestia said, giving her daughter a nuzzle. “I trust you are doing well?”

“As well as can be expected,” Rainbow said with a smile, drawing back.

“I’m glad to hear it,” Celestia said. Her eyes then turned and locked onto Twilight. “And I am glad to see you, too, Twilight. It has been too long. How are you?”

Twilight didn’t say something for a long moment. What was she supposed to say? Somehow a typical greeting just didn’t feel right. After everything that had happened, and the less-than-happy note their last meeting had ended on...

“I… I’m alright,” she finally managed to force out.

Celestia’s smile faltered. For several moments, she didn’t move. To Twilight’s surprise, the princess actually looked unsure of herself. A tense and heavy silence fell over the room before Celestia offered a slow nod. “I’m glad to hear it. If you wouldn’t mind, I’d like a chance to speak with you privately later. After you’ve spent time with your family.”

Twilight hesitated. She glanced over at her family. It was clear they could sense the underlying tension in the room, even if most of it was coming from Twilight herself. They were looking back and forth between the two alicorns with clear unease on their face, with Velvet’s eyes typically lingering longer on Twilight than on Celestia.

Twilight didn’t want that discomfort to hang over them the whole time. As much as she wanted to prioritize spending time with her family…

She turned back to Celestia and put on a small smile. “N-no. If it’s alright with you, maybe we could just get it out of the way now?”

Celestia raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure?”

Twilight nodded. “I am.”

Celestia looked towards Night Light and Velvet. Neither said anything, but they neither offered any protest. Celestia nodded over at them, then affixed Twilight with a warm smile. “If you wish. Come, then,” she beckoned with a wing and stepped out of the dining room.

Twilight took a deep breath, casting a glance at the others. Her parents were clearly a touch uneasy, but Rainbow didn’t seem all that worried. She just smiled and nodded after Celestia. “Go on. We’ll be here.”

Twilight nodded. “...Thanks,” she said quietly before following Celestia out of the room.

The door led out into the household’s large front room. Celestia was already seated in one of the love seats situated around a coffee table set off to one side, nestled against the well. Twilight remembered sitting in one of those very spots not long after losing her memory.

Celestia offered her a kind and patient smile, waiting for her to take a seat. Twilight took a deep breath to collect herself before taking the seat across from her teacher. Once she was seated, she stared ahead, meeting the taller alicorn’s gaze.

“You don’t visit very often,” Twilight blurted out. Her eyes flew wide, and she quickly slapped her hooves over her muzzle to keep anything else from coming out. Where had that come from?!

Celestia flinched at the remark, her ears lowering. “I… I know, Twilight. Forgive me. But you know how hectic and busy things can be up here. Especially in recent years, given all that has happened.”

Twilight lowered her hooves, heaving a sigh of her own. “I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have said that. I know you’ve got a lot on your plate up here.”

Celestia shook her head. “No, no, it’s fine. You don’t have to apologize,” she said softly. She looked at Twilight directly, her gentle, reassuring smile returning. That one look had served so often in the past to chase away Twilight’s fears and doubts, leaving her feeling safe and content. The effect had waned in time as Twilight grew more familiar with how fascinatingly - and annoyingly - complicated the world could sometimes be. A warm smile from a mother figure was not enough to make things better.

Still, it helped her thoughts ease somewhat.

“Luna has been keeping me appraised of your progress with Midnight,” Celestia said, sitting more upright. “If her reports are accurate, which I believe they are, then your progress has been most impressive.”

Twilight looked to one side, her brow furrowing. Impressive? She sure didn’t feel that impressive. What progress she had made had been bought with metaphorical blood, and very real sweat and tears. “...It’s been a struggle,” Twilight admitted, slumping in her seat. “Sometimes, I feel like I’m beating my head against a brick wall.”

Celestia smiled at the comment. “It is no easy thing you must do, Twilight. But I have faith in you. I always have.”

Twilight looked up at Celestia again. “Heh. I thought I was the faithful one.”

“Indeed,” Celestia’s smile grew a touch softer. “Perhaps too faithful, sometimes…”

Twilight rolled her eyes, recalling a certain blunder on a test about corn. “Yeah yeah, you’re never going to let me live that down, are you?”

The two shared a small laugh at that. It was strange. The more Twilight talked to Celestia, the easier it was to speak, to call on her words, and the more at ease she felt. Maybe she had been stressing herself out over nothing?

But there was still something nagging at her, eating away at the back of her mind. Something she didn’t want to confront, or even acknowledge. But it had been brought to the forefront of her thoughts since the moment she learned Celestia was here. Midnight had made sure of that.

With her smile faded and her laughter dying in her throat, Twilight turned to face Celestia directly. The serious look in her eyes immediately drew Celestia’s attention, and she sat upright, her ears facing forward to listen.

Twilight took a moment, trying to think of how best to phrase her question. In the end, she settled on just being direct and honest with her concerns. She’d just got done teaching herself not to lie to herself, after all.

“Celestia… Are you here because I’m a threat?”

The silence that followed was beyond heavy. Twilight opened her eyes. She wilted on the spot when she saw the genuine hurt in Celestia’s eyes. The taller alicorn looked down and away, her ears drooping.

“Twilight… I…”

“Please, I need you to tell me the truth about this,” Twilight stated firmly, leaning forward in her chair.

“...Why are you asking me this?” Celestia countered, her voice low and solemn. “What prompted it? If you are honest with your answer, I will be honest with mine.”

Twilight hesitated for a moment. Off in the corner of her eye, she could see her shadowy devil glaring at her from the shadows cast by the stairwell heading upstairs. Her ghostly blue eyes stood out like a lighthouse in a dark storm. Twilight ignored her, focusing on Celestia. “...Midnight. It’s Midnight. She thinks you and Luna are afraid of me. She thinks you’re here now to spy on me. She’s been wrong about a lot of things, but she has been right, once or twice...”

Celestia hummed, though Twilight could not see her face as her flowing mane drifted to obscure it. “And do you think she might be right this time?”

“I don’t want to believe her,” Twilight said, looking down again. “But… After what I did...”

She couldn’t finish. She looked down, closing her eyes. The memory of the horrible things she had done, of a Canterlot street riddled with the bodies of ponies who, mere moments prior, had screamed in terror and begged her to show mercy. She saw the frightened look on Spike’s face as he beheld her transformation, and the resignation on Rainbow’s as she had surrendered everything she knew in a last-ditch effort to stop Midnight’s rampage.

“Oh, Twilight…” Celestia’s soft voice cut through the storm of terrible memories rampaging in her mind. Twilight looked up as Celestia stood and closed the distance between them. In moments, the taller pony was seated next to Twilight and pulling her into a warm, gentle embrace.

Twilight buried her face into Celestia’s chest fur, shuddering. “It’s true, isn’t it?” she asked in a quiet whimper. “You’re afraid of me...”

“No, Twilight,” Celestia assured her, holding her and squeezing her close. “Never. I could never be afraid of you… But I am afraid for you.”

Twilight looked up into her mentor’s eyes, blinking. “Huh?”

Celestia leaned down, offering Twilight an affectionate nuzzle. “I am afraid, yes… but not of you. I am afraid of what might happen if you turn back into Midnight. I am afraid of losing my wonderful, intelligent, faithful student to the monster that lurks in all of our hearts. I am afraid of what must be sacrificed to bring you back from that shadow. I am afraid that, if it happens again, it might be too late, and you’ll cross an edge you can never be pulled back from.”

Celestia leaned back, smiling down into Twilight’s eyes with tears in her own. “I am not here because you are a threat Twilight… I am here because I care about you, and I want to do what I can, as your teacher, to guide you through this ordeal.”

She looked up into Celestia’s eyes, and she found no lie in them. No deception, no hesitation. Just the love and dedication of an old mare who had taught her so much of what she knew, and who had practically raised her as a second mother for much of her life.

Twilight’s lips curled up into a soft, trembling smile. “Do you really mean that?” she asked, though she knew the answer already. She just wanted to hear Celestia say it. “Everything you just said?”

Celestia smiled and held Twilight closer. “Every word. I promise.”

“Pinkie promise?”

“Let’s not get crazy.”

“Heh. Too late,” Twilight chuckled, snuggling into her teacher’s embrace even more.

“...On that much,” Midnight muttered distantly. “We are in agreement.”

Old Places

“It was all poetics; you realize that, right?”

Twilight had to repress the urge to sigh as she and Celestia stepped back into her family dining room. The others were all already seated, looking up at their return with an array of expressions ranging from welcoming relief to thinly veiled concern. The smell of tea and snacks filled the air.

“What are you talking about?” she bit back, trying not to let her irritation at Midnight’s snide remark show on her face.

Midnight appeared at the other end of the table, glaring at her with obvious contempt. Her balefire glare then shifted to Celestia, and her lips peeled back to reveal her fangs. “Everything she said back there. About being afraid for you rather than of you. Tripe poeticism and nothing more.”

Twilight’s eye twitched. “You can make anything sound like a conspiracy, you know that?”

Midnight’s lips twitched up just slightly with amusement. “So sayeth she who once thought the princess would flay her alive for being five minutes late,” she mocked.

Twilight blinked, her face gradually turning red. She had completely forgotten that she had once actually thought that was possible. She looked away from Midnight, pouting at the floor. “...Dash?”

“Sup?”

“Midnight’s picking on me.”

Rainbow frowned, turning to where Twilight had been looking a second ago. “Hey! I dunno what you’re saying, but stop it and go away!” she snapped, swinging her hoof through the air ineffectually.

Midnight scoffed and turned away, vanishing through the wall without another word.

Twilight relaxed when her doppelganger disappeared before smiling back at her family, all of whom were looking on with bewildered expressions.

Night Light cleared his throat. “So… is that just how it looks?” he asked with a raised eyebrow.

Rainbow leaned back in her seat with a shrug. “There’s usually a lot more drama attached,” she said casually. “Lots of cuddling and whispered reassurances and stuff, and- wait, hold up! Did that actually work?!”

Twilight chuckled as Rainbow spun to face her with a look of wide-eyed confusion. She rolled her eyes and walked over to sit next to Rainbow. “Yes, it worked. This time,” she said with a smile.

Rainbow blinked in disbelief. She then shook her head and slumped back into her chair, facing the other. “Meh. Whatever.”

“Was she saying something embarrassing?” Velvet asked from the other end of the table, leaning forward curiously.

“...Just picking at some of my, er, older behaviors.”

Rainbow hummed at that, quietly sipping at the mug in her hooves.”Ya know… if making you blush is her game, then your filly years are, like, a goldmine of material.”

“Hey!” Twilight complained, turning her now irate look on her girlfriend. “Don’t get any ideas!”

“Too late,” Rainbow deflected with a coy grin. A few amused chuckles went around the table at Twilight’s expense before the pegasus in the room sobered up and focused on Celestia. “So, did ya have a good talk?”

The jovial mood quickly dimmed in light of that question. Twilight turned to Celestia, fidgeting with her tail under the table. Their conversation had taken quite some time after they separated from their embrace. Celestia had calmly asked Twilight to give her the rundown on her progress with her mental health, dealing with Midnight, and any progress she had made on opening the chest.

Twilight had told her what she could: that progress against Midnight was slow but steady. She detailed how Midnight had taken to visually appearing to Twilight of late, no doubt in a bid to try and use more direct methods to elicit powerful emotional reactions. She went on to talk about how her temper was not nearly as fiery as it had been before, how breathing exercises, meditation, and Luna’s advice and guidance had helped her slowly work through her issues.

Through it all, Celestia rarely spoke. She had occasionally stopped Twilight to ask a clarifying question, but she didn’t make any comments on the stories she was told. When all was said and done, though, Celestia had seemed pleased with the report.

That was, at least, until Twilight had spoken of the chest. She still had no idea how to open it, or where any of the keys were. She had given up on conventional research entirely. No books would have answers for her, and it wasn’t like she could safely approach the darn thing without the Tree of Harmony potentially lashing out at her.

Celestia had been less pleased by that, though she did not seem surprised—more thoughtful than anything. She had only muttered the words ‘I see,’ shortly before the two made their way back into the dining room.

In response to Rainbow’s question, Celestia merely smiled. “Our conversation was very productive, Rainbow, thank you. Twilight’s progress has been nothing short of phenomenal.”

Twilight blinked, leaning forward slightly. “Phenomenal? Don’t you think that word’s a bit… strong?” she asked, looking back on all of her little stumbles so far. How could her progress be ‘phenomenal’ when all of that was there to stain her record?

Celestia shook her head. “I do not. Though the road ahead is yet long and treacherous, the simple fact remains that you have improved enormously since Midnight first began to whisper within you. After all, it wasn’t so long ago that you couldn’t even speak of Midnight to those who did not know of her, yet here we are now.”

Beside Twilight, Rainbow grinned and thunked her on the back. “Mom’s got a point, ya know.”

Twilight took a second to take in the praise, and a deep breath while she was at it. Slowly, her lips curled up into a warm smile, and she relaxed in her seat. “Thank you, Princess. I promise I won’t let you down.”

Celestia’s smile grew even wider. “I know you won’t. Now…”

The alicorn turned to Velvet and Night Light, her tone shifting from motherly to friendly. “Enough of that. We are here to visit, are we not?”

Velvet smiled, levitating a cup of tea for Celestia in her magic. “Of course we are!” she said cheerfully before turning to Twilight and Rainbow with a warm smile.

Twilight allowed herself to get absorbed in the dreamy, almost hypnotic monotony of just hanging out with her parents. The discussions were simple and mundane, but in spite of that, they were wondrous and enthralling. Everything from the cute dog Velvet had found the last time she went on a walk, to some sort of logistical issue at the library where Night Light worked that could have ended up costing the business thousands of bits. It was all just… simple. Basic. Normal. It was almost enough to make her forget her problems.

Almost.

Twilight was jarred out of her trance when there was a loud knock on the front door, reverberating through the entire house. Blinking, she turned to look out of the kitchen. “Huh? Who’s that?” she wondered aloud.

“Probably Rarity,” Spike observed a little too eagerly. “She must be back from her business meeting!”

Twilight frowned. “Huh? What are you talking about? Didn’t she say that was going to take her hours to do?” she asked, confused.

There was a brief, incredulous silence before Rainbow quirked a brow. “Uh… we’ve been sitting here talking for three hours.”

“We have?!” Twilight exclaimed, shooting up in her chair and looking towards the nearest clock. It was just past one in the afternoon. She slapped a hoof to her face in exasperation, recalling with a huff how Midnight’s presence had thrown off her sense of time before.

“Yup,” Spike nodded, crossing his arms and frowning toward a clock on the wall. “In fact, she’s running kinda late… like, a lot late, actually… You don’t think something happened, do you?”

“Nah,” Rainbow leaned back in her seat with a casual smirk. “Even if anything happened, she’d just whine, complain, and sass her way out of it.”

Velvet rolled her eyes at the display of ‘confidence,’ and made for the door. “I’ll get it,” she called over her shoulder in a sing-song voice.

“Do you think it went well?” Spike asked once she was gone, turning to Twilight curiously.

“Probably. Rarity’s always been a very capable mare, especially where business is concerned,” she replied, taking the chance to distract herself from her loss of time.

Velvet came trotting back into the room a minute later, followed closely by a very satisfied, if somewhat tired-looking, Rarity. She raised a hoof in greeting, her eyes lighting up. “Hello, dears! Terribly sorry for the wait.”

“Hey, Rarity!” Spike said, waving a claw in the air. “How’d it go?”

The tired look in Rarity’s eyes faded away entirely in favor of her pride. She gave off a weak cough to compose herself, then tossed her mane and puffed out her chest. “The meeting went splendidly, darling! Sapphire Shores is a very particular mare with very high standards, but I am proud to announce that she was more than satisfied with my work!”

Twilight smiled, relaxing somewhat. “That’s great to hear! Although, I’m surprised it took so long. You’re usually pretty punctual,” she pointed out, glancing at the clock again.

Rarity’s pride was replaced with that tired look from a second ago, and she heaved a heavy sigh. Now having everyone’s full attention, the unicorn dramatically hauled herself into an empty chair next to Spike and threw a foreleg over her eyes. “Oh, do not remind me. For as well as the meeting went, there were some… unexpected twists involved. Along with the stark realization that I just narrowly avoided having my entire career ruined for something that wasn’t even my fault!”

“What?!” Spike exclaimed in shock. “What do you mean?! What happened?!”

Rarity glanced back for the doorway with a grimace. “...I’d rather not go into specifics just now, but let us just say somepony performed a little act of sabotage on my work… and it was only rectified when said saboteur had a change of heart. I’m as late as I am because I had to sort through all of that, and then escort the little she-devil back to the train station...”

Twilight’s eyes widened in surprise. Somepony had tried to sabotage Rarity’s work?! Who?! A business rival, perhaps? Or maybe just someone jealous of her work? A thousand ideas sprang through Twilight’s mind, and she opened her mouth to ask for clarification when she caught sight of a dawning look of realization on Celestia’s face.

The solar princess let out an exaggerated hum before nodding her head. “I see… so that’s what she had to do…”

Night Light blinked. “Uh… who?”

Celestia smiled and shook her head. “Oh, never you mind that. A minor epiphany, nothing more.”

“Sounds like we missed a whole story or something,” Rainbow remarked with a shrug. “But it all worked out, right?”

Rarity nodded with a warm smile. “Yes, quite. No hard feelings are to be had, I assure you. I’ll tell you all the details another time. But for now…” She leaned forward in her seat, a certain, mischievous glint in her eyes. “Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, there is something I absolutely must show you!”

Rainbow tilted her head. “Er… What? I mean, can it wait? It’s about time for lunch.” she pointed out curiously.

Rarity lifted a hoof with her smirk growing. “Ah, but that is just it! We are going to lunch! In fact…”

Twilight blinked in surprise as Rarity turned her attention to Celestia with a wide, eager grin. The alicorn tilted her head and raised a brow, clearly interested in where this was going.

“Princess Celestia, while I would never dream of imposing on you, would it be possible for you to accompany us as well?”

Celestia blinked. “...Oh? It must be quite the restaurant if you are asking me to accompany you,” she noted with a hum.

Rarity hesitated, a slight, strained squeak coming from the back of her throat. “Well… in a manner of speaking, yes…”

“What’s so special about it?” Twilight asked, trying to do the math in her head. She knew about basically all of the restaurants in Canterlot, even if she had only eaten at a small number of them.

“If I told you that, it would ruin the surprise!” Rarity countered with a toss of her mane. She then turned to Twilight and lowered her voice to something gentle, and considerate. “And that aside… it has been a very long time since you were here, Twilight. In Canterlot. And you only have so much time you may spend here this month. Why not take the chance to experience everything you can before we return?”

That gave Twilight pause as she was suddenly reminded of the limitations on her visits Luna had imposed on her. A small seed of bitterness crept into her chest, but she was quick to ignore it.

“She shouldn’t have imposed any,” Midnight snarled.

Twilight ignored her.

A moment passed before Celestia gave a sad smile. “As much as I wish I could, I fear I do not have the time for such an outing. I have put my royal duties back in the castle on hold for long enough as it is. Plus, things tend to become noisy wheresoever I go.”

Rarity looked down, her face twisting up with a grimace. “...Ah,” she began, trying to find the words.

“You think stuff gets noisy with you?” Rainbow asked with a quirked brow. “But not us? Mom, have you been paying attention to the last few years? Things tend to explode when we’re around.”

“I feel that is rather not the point, darling!”

Twilight rolled her eyes at the back and forth before returning her attention to Celestia. “So… you won’t be coming with us?” she asked quietly.

Celestia shook her head again. “I’m afraid not, no. I should be heading back to the castle at this point regardless,” she said before approaching Twilight and leaning down to offer her an affectionate nuzzle. “But remember; I will always be happy to make time for you in private. If you have need of me, you know where to find me. And rest assured, We shall be seeing each other again before you return to Ponyville. I promise.”

Rainbow lifted a hoof to that as if in a toast. “I’ll hold you to that, mom.”

“What about us?” Night Light asked curiously. “Are we invited?”

An awkward cringe came across Rarity’s face. “O-oh… well, you see, the thing is…”

Velvet nudged Night Light with a bump of her hips, flashing Rarity a nod and understanding smile. “It’s fine, we understand. I know we can be a little much at times.”

Night gave her a skeptical frown. “We?”

“Yes, honey, we,” she stressed, a silent threat hidden somewhere in her saccharine voice. She kept her eyes locked firmly on Rarity. “You all go on ahead. We’ll be here.”

“Very well, then,” Rarity gave the parents a courteous bow, then turned back to Rainbow, Spike, and Twilight. The glint from earlier had returned to her eyes. “Just follow me, dears.”

The first stretch of the walk from the house was made in relative silence, at least from Twilight’s end. She walked beside Rainbow, following after Rarity, who was currently deeply engrossed in some conversation with Spike. Twilight hadn’t really been paying attention to the finer details of their conversation.

The streets of Canterlot were far livelier now than they had been earlier, as more ponies got up and went about their day, most no doubt on their way to lunch. In spite of the rush, it managed to be peaceful. Mundane.

Except for the odd looks that were routinely thrown their way. Twilight did her best to ignore them, reminding herself that Rainbow was in their group. “It’s only natural for ponies to look when a princess and savior of Equestria just goes strolling by,” Twilight thought. “Especially without an armed escort.”

“Because she isn’t the one in need of guarding,” Midnight whispered bitterly from the back of Twilight’s mind, causing her to stumble slightly. She looked off to one side and spotted Midnight’s apparition on Rainbow’s other side, her cold glare affixed forward. “You are.”

Twilight had to resist the urge to scowl, looking directly ahead. “Are you still on about that?” she demanded.

“I always will be,” Midnight snapped, her eyes darting at Twilight and narrowing with disdain. “You let yourself be swayed by Celestia’s poetics, but I will not. Do not forget, Rainbow Dash herself was assigned to watch you during your ‘probation.’ You’re always being watched. You’re always being supervised because none of them trust you.”

Twilight took a deep breath, glaring down at the ground. She closed her eyes, imagining Celestia’s smiling face and trying to take comfort in it.

Twilight could feel Midnight bristling. “You place far too much trust in her honeyed words and her disarming smile. Your judgment is clouded by your fond memories of her. You’ve always worshipped her. But sooner or later you’re going to have to realize that Princess Celestia is a liar.”

“Would she have ever been able to use the Elements of Harmony if that were true?!” Twilight asked, focusing forward again. “One of them is honesty, in case you forgot!”

“Who’s to say that Honesty was even hers to command?” Midnight bit back. “We do not know how the Elements delegated their power to the sisters. Luna seems a more likely candidate in my eyes. For all of her poor judgment and uncontrolled emotions, she is at least upfront more often than not.”

Twilight hesitated for a moment before giving her answer. “W-well, we know she used the Elements to banish Nightmare Moon, and they only work when all six are operating together.”

Midnight scoffed. “And? In case you forgot your own predicament, those who have Fallen can not wield the Elements of Harmony. They granted Celestia their power just long enough to conveniently tuck away the greatest symptom of her neglect and abuse, and then fell silent until you came along.”

That made Twilight go silent. She looked down at the ground, her ears drooping. The image of the Tree of Harmony flickered through her mind, as did the memory of its glowing tendrils pulling the literal life out of her…

“Twi?” Rainbow asked in a whisper, bumping her gently from the side. “What’s wrong?”

“...It’s Midnight,” Twilight whispered in response.

In a heartbeat, Rainbow’s wing wrapped over her shoulders and pulled her close. The pegasus gave her an affectionate nuzzle, and some of the ice in Twilight’s veins began to melt. “What did she say?”

“...She just… reminded me why she’s even around,”she muttered, burying her own face into Dash’s shoulder and taking a deep breath, savoring the other mare’s scent.

There was a moment of quiet before Midnight cackled. “Oh, touched a nerve did I?” she asked tauntingly. “Very well. Go on. Hide. Cower behind your broken shield. I’ll be here whenever you’re done being afraid of the truth.”

With that, Twilight felt Midnight withdrawing back into her mind. Lifting her head, she was both relieved and unnerved to see that the apparition had also faded.

She took a deep breath, still somewhat unsteady. “...Sh-she’s gone,” she whispered, smiling at Rainbow. “Thank you.”

“Anytime,” Rainbow replied. Her eyes darted around for a second before she snuck in and planted a very quick kiss on Twilight’s cheek. When she pulled back, her eyes hardened and focused directly ahead as if she were hoping nopony saw that.

A few more minutes passed before, finally, Rarity led the group around a corner and onto a wide thoroughfare. She led the group down another block or so before spinning around and bringing the group to a halt. “Alright then, you three! Here we are~!” she sang, swinging a hoof dramatically to the left at one of the many businesses that lined the road. Twilight followed her eyes, and her jaw fell open.

The building was only a single story, with tall, plain windows set into the front wall. Through the windows, Twilight could see the typical workings of a middle-class restaurant. They looked to be having a pretty busy day, too, given the number of cheerfully eating ponies she could see inside. Even so, it wasn’t particularly remarkable.

And yet Twilight remembered it anyway.

“Woah! Isn’t this the place where we met Rarity?!” Rainbow exclaimed, her wings flaring open in surprise.

Twilight swallowed. “Or, well, where we sat down to talk after we met…”

Rarity grinned triumphantly. “Yes, it is! I happened upon it when I was heading down to the train station after the incident I mentioned earlier! I recalled the day I met you two, and I was immediately taken by a feeling of nostalgia! And then I thought that it would be delightful if we were to come here for lunch. I’ve never eaten here, so it will be a fun new experience on top of fond reminiscing on simpler times!”

A second passed before Rainbow’s look of surprise melted into a flat frown. “Didn’t you basically assault my mane here, too?”

Rarity flushed and backed away somewhat. “A-an impulse of my youth!” she deflected.

Twilight grinned herself and lifted a hoof. “Oh, and you sent me into a Flash, so that was fun.”

Rarity backed away even further, covering her face with a hoof. “Ooooh… This is what I get for trying to be nice to you lot… what was I thinking?!” she demanded of herself in exasperation, though Twilight could still hear the smile in her voice.

A few amused chuckles went around the group before Twilight started for the door. Lunch did sound good right about now, and some fond remembrance might be just what she needed. “Well, come on, then. I haven’t eaten here either. We just kinda appropriated it for our chat way back then.”

With that, the group stepped into the establishment, the door closing behind them.

Old Faces

“Ah, I never grow tired of this,” Rarity mused in quiet wonder, her eyes lit up with delight and slowly roving this way and that, taking in every last detail of the street around her. “Taking in the sights, the history, the decor. Sometimes I feel as though I could walk down one of these streets forever and never grow tired of it.”

Twilight watched her from the side with an amused smile. Rarity’s reactions to big cities and the wonders to be found within had dulled over time—especially after the disaster on the Friendship Express—but her passion for places of ‘culture’ and ‘refinement’ clearly burned as hot as ever.

“I don’t know about that, Rarity,” Twilight remarked, looking up at a particularly extravagant store as they passed it by. “I lived in this city for most of my life. Pretty as it is, sometimes it can be a little much, you know?”

“Nonsense, dear!” Rarity rebuffed without missing a beat, flashing Twilight a scandalized look. “Why, just look around! This block on its own is practically glowing with artistic mastery! I’m no architect, but I can still see a work of art when I see one! And these buildings are all works of fabulous art!”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “I’m not saying they aren’t art. But you have to admit, if you surround yourself with nothing but, say, I dunno, paintings all the time, sooner or later you’re going to get sick of looking at them.”

Rarity harrumphed indignantly. “Well, that is why they say ‘all things in moderation.’”

“If you say so.”

A moment passed before the two mares broke down into a quiet fit of amused giggles. They were walking through the streets of one of Canterlot’s many commercial sectors. It was early in the morning, the sun having only just risen an hour ago. Spike and Rainbow were absent, citing the early hour as an excuse to stay back at Twilight’s place and ‘chug coffee.’

Even after all this time and her constant insistence on ‘decent’ wake-up times (meaning anytime after noon, in Twilight’s experience), Rainbow could still be a hoof full to get up in the morning, and Twilight had realized ages ago that Spike was just a lost cause on that front. Twilight couldn’t really blame them, though, a fact that was emphasized when she let out a large and unattractive yawn of her own. This was pretty early to be up and about, even by Twilight’s standards.

Not counting all-night study sessions.

She was pretty sure they didn’t even have much of an objective out here. Rarity just wanted to see the sights before there was too much traffic. That said, the cool, early morning air and the golden glow of the sunrise did do wonders to put at ease any turbulent thoughts Twilight might have otherwise had.

Rarity broke the silence with a polite clearing of her throat. “Ahem. Now, Twilight, I know it’s not my place, but if you don’t mind my asking… have you given any thought to what you’re going to get for Rainbow Dash?”

Twilight blinked, slowing to a halt. “Huh? What do you mean?” she asked. Was it a special occasion? Rainbow’s birthday wasn’t this month, so it couldn’t be that, and Hearthswarming was still a long way out.

Rarity gave off an exasperated sigh. “Oh, come now, darling. Surely you don’t mean to tell me you’ve forgotten that your anniversary is coming up?”

Twilight’s cheeks flushed brightly at that, her eyes bulging in their sockets. “Wha- Rarity!” she exclaimed, looking away.

Rarity tittered in amusement, much to Twilight’s dismay. “Ah, so easy. But really, Twilight, you have been thinking it over, have you not?”

Twilight turned back to Rarity with a puff of her cheeks. She briefly racked her brain, thinking back over the long and bewildering course of her relationship with the pegasus before giving off a long groan of frustration. “I don’t even know when our anniversary is, Rarity!” she bemoaned, slapping a hoof to her face. “How do you?”

“Simple,” Rarity said with a sage nod. “The day you two had your first kiss in the Empire.”

“How do you even remember what day that is?! We didn’t have a calendar!”

Rarity scoffed. “Oh, please. Did you honestly think I wouldn’t find a way to keep track?”

“But… but…” Twilight protested weakly, her cheeks lighting up even more. “But then I died! And we weren’t together for over two years!”

“True though as that may be,” Rarity acknowledged slowly. “The fact remains that your love story truly kicked off that day when you reciprocated Dash’s love for you. And so, amnesia-born-hiatus notwithstanding, that day is your anniversary. Unless, of course, you object?”

Twilight sighed heavily before taking a deep breath. “No… I don’t object,” she relented after a minute. “But I just… I haven’t actually given much thought to it. Rainbow and I are still kinda feeling things out, you know? The road we walked to get where we are was really long and weird, and neither of us is any good at this.”

“Oh, perish that thought!” Rarity said. “Do you think I have forgotten the way you two danced at Shining and Cadance’s wedding?”

“It was so awkward!”

“And it was also the most precious thing,” Rarity replied, a twinkle in her eye.

Twilight groaned, regretting going along with Rarity on this trip, now. She sighed and shook her head a moment later. “Well… in answer to your question, Rarity, no, I haven’t actually been giving much thought to that. I’ve had a lot on my plate.”

The twinkle in Rarity’s eyes simmered down with sympathetic understanding. She lifted a hoof and gently pat Twilight on the shoulder. “Of course, I understand. I’ll not shove my nose any further without your consent, but just know that I am always willing to lend a hoof in such matters should you need one.”

Twilight put on a warm smile at that, her blush dying down while her own anxieties evaporated somewhat. “Thanks, Rarity,” she said before a somewhat evil thought came into her mind, one she did not mind indulging in at all.

“You know, It’s kind of ironic that you’re the one offering to give me romantic advice.”

Rarity tilted her head. “How so?”

Twilight put on a small, predatory little grin. “Because between the two of us, I’m pretty sure I’m the only one who’s actually been in a relationship.”

Rarity stared at Twilight for a good long moment, her expression unreadable. Then her cheeks began to light up red, and her eyes narrowed in irritation. “...How dare you,” she stated simply and concisely.

Twilight snickered apologetically. “Heh heh… please don’t hurt me.”

“I shall leave that to your better half, darling.”

“Ooooh, enticing!” Midnight chirped. Twilight ignored her.

Twilight swallowed heavily but did not otherwise say anything. Instead, she allowed her mind to wander. It felt strange to her to think of the day she had first kissed Rainbow as their anniversary. Romance had been one of the last things on her mind at the time. At the moment, she had expressed that love less because the time felt right and more because she was afraid she wouldn’t get another chance. Rainbow had been about to step headlong into Sombra’s embrace to talk him down, after all. Most ponies wouldn’t have been able to pull that off, and given how emotionally unstable Rainbow had been at the time…

But to be honest, what other landmarks did she really have to go off of? When Rainbow confessed her feelings in Hollow Shades? Twilight cringed at that. That had been during one of the hardest times of her life. The only other time would be when she had gotten her memories back, but that was only a few months ago now, and…

“My love life is weird” Twilight declared internally for the umpteenth time, shaking her head.

She decided to put thoughts of her romance with Rainbow aside for the moment as the duo rounded a corner. They came out onto a wide thoroughfare, a line of evergreen trees running down the middle to lend some much-appreciated green to the mountain city. There were more ponies out and about now, starting to go about their business.

Some few still shot Twilight glances as she passed, and she did her level best to ignore them.

Rarity suddenly came to a stop about halfway down the avenue, her eyes locking onto a window display and lighting up with delight. “Oh my! Twilight, are you seeing these?!” she asked excitedly, pointing.

Twilight looked. The display was for a boutique, that much was obvious, and the dresses on display were of a very high quality indeed. They varied from Rarity’s stylistically but were all the same very nice to look at. Twilight glanced sideways at Rarity with a small smile. “They’re very nice.”

“That they are, that they are,” Rarity said quietly, her eyes tracing over the stitching with the eye of an expert. “And very well made, as well. Whoever runs this store, they clearly have a talent for this.”

Rarity took a deep breath and let it out in a long, longing sigh. “If you’ll permit me a moment of selfishness, I’m actually a touch jealous.”

Twilight blinked in surprise, glancing sideways at Rarity. “Jealous? You don’t even know them.”

“True,” Rarity conceded before turning and gesturing widely around them. “But what I do know is that they are running their boutique in Canterlot. To be capable of running a successful business here is a mark of status that, I confess, I have long dreamed of achieving.”

Twilight nodded along slowly. “I see…”

“One day,” Rarity began excitedly, lifting a hoof as if to draw in the air. “One day, I will open my own boutique in Canterlot. It’s been one of my dreams since I was a little filly, and I haven’t abandoned that dream in all the years since.”

Twilight gave Rarity an encouraging smile. “You have always been pretty in love with this city, haven’t you?” she asked.

“Why, of course, I have! I used to want to live here!” Rarity exclaimed with a wave of her hoof.

Twilight quirked a brow. “Used to? What changed?”

Rarity turned to her with a sage smile. “Why, I became friends with all of you in Ponyville, of course.”

Twilight opened her mouth to say something, but the words caught in her throat. A moment passed before her heart warmed up in response, and she nodded. However, before she could say anything, a high-pitched yelp cut through the air. Twilight jumped in surprise at the sudden exclamation, turning to look.

Across the street, a butter-colored unicorn mare wearing a ratty grey sweater was lying face-down on the street. There was a carry-out box on the ground, split open from the fall, and its contents, presumably the mare’s breakfast, scattered across the ground.

“Oh my goodness!” Rarity exclaimed, already cantering for the fallen mare’s side. Twilight was hot on her heels. “Excuse me, miss? Are you alright?”

The mare groaned in both pain and frustration before pulling her face up from the ground. A pair of black, thick-rimmed glasses fell from her face, broken in half with the lenses cracked. She didn’t even look at Rarity as she approached. “I’m fine,” she stated bluntly.

Twilight hesitated as they reached the mare’s side. Now that she was closer, Twilight was hit by the sudden realization that this mare was exceedingly familiar. She had met this pony before, she just couldn’t quite remember where…

“Oh my goodness! Your glasses!” Rarity exclaimed, looking down at the destroyed frames. “Can you see?”

The mare hesitated, her ears drooping. “...I’ll manage,” she deflected quietly before hauling herself back to her hooves.

“Hang on, I think I can fix them,” Twilight said, putting aside her familiarity for the moment and lifting the broken glasses in her magic. She squinted at them, running the numbers in her head. The frames were cracked, but not broken outright. The snap on the nosepiece was a straight, clean line; easily mendable with the right spell. Taking a breath, Twilight began to pour magic into the accessory.

The sound of scratching glass and bending plastic was drowned out by the thrum of her magic. The cracks gradually began to mend themselves, though there were still visible seams in the lenses where they had once been. Then, with one last pulse, the broken gap was sealed shut, leaving the glasses repaired, though the marks of the breaks were still visible.

Twilight smiled and passed the glasses to the mare. “Here you go. You’ll still want to get them replaced, I think, but that should hold you over.”

The mare took the glasses in her own pale pink magical aura and brought them down onto her face. A moment later she looked up at Twilight. “Thanks. I appreciate… it…”

The mare trailed off as she beheld Twilight’s face, and it was now that Twilight recognized her. The sweater and mane had thrown her off at first, but there was no mistaking that face now that she saw it.

“Moondancer?!” Twilight exclaimed in surprise, taking a step back.

Rarity blinked, turning to Twilight curiously. “Twilight, do you know this lady?” she asked curiously.

Twilight nodded slowly. “Er, yeah. We were classmates in Celestia’s school,” she said before the corners of her lips pulled up into a warm, friendly smile. “Wow! It’s been a long time, Moondancer! How’ve you been?” she asked, holding out a hoof to help her old friend up.

Only, Moondancer didn’t take her hoof. She stared into Twilight’s face for several long seconds, the color steadily draining from her face. A feeling of unease began to grow in Twilight’s heart. Moondancer didn’t look happy in the slightest. She looked afraid.

“Y-you…” Moondancer choked out, slowly rising to her hooves without taking Twilight’s. “W-what are you doing here?!”

Twilight tilted her head. “H-huh?”

Moondancer adjusted her glasses, her ears folding back defensively. “Y-you’re supposed to be banished! W-what are you doing here?! What do you want?!”

Twilight took a step back, hurt and confused. “Moondancer, I… I just…”

Suddenly, Rarity was between them. “Is there a problem?” she asked in a stern tone. “My friend here just repaired your glasses for you. The polite thing to do is say ‘thank you’.”

Moondancer cringed back before a look of absolute fury crossed her features. “Thank you? THANK YOU?!” she bellowed before shoving Rarity back.

“Rarity!” Twilight exclaimed, reaching out to steady the other unicorn as she stumbled back.

Moondancer went on, her voice rising to a furious shout. “You expect me to thank her?! After everything she did?! After all the ponies she’s hurt?! After what she’s done to me?! No!”

It was like she had been punched in the gut. Twilight shied away from Moondancer’s tirade, her ears drooping and her heart constricting in her chest. “Moondancer? What did I...” she choked in barely even a whisper.

Moondancer stomped a hoof. “You don’t even remember, do you?! Oh, but of course, you don’t! I never meant a thing to you, did I?! I was NEVER worth remembering! Not even when it was MY TURN TO FORGET!”

A heavy silence followed that last sentence, and an impossible weight settled onto Twilight’s shoulders in response. Her breath caught in her throat, Moondancer’s final words echoing in her mind over and over again.

“My turn. My Turn. My Turn.”

“That is enough,” Rarity stated firmly, stepping forward to place herself between them again.

Moondancer scowled at her, her breath coming in heaving gasps as her fury began to subside. She then cast her eyes about and withered on the spot. Twilight realized a moment later that they were being watched. The ponies that had been peacefully going about their days around them had stopped what they were doing and were now looking on with equal parts pity and disgust.

Curiously, there were two who were rather closer than Twilight would have expected. A mare and a stallion, the latter holding up a leg to hold the former back.

Moondancer let off a quiet huff before turning her back on the two and stalking away.

Rarity watched her go for several seconds before heaving a long, tired-sounding sigh. She then turned back to Twilight. Her wrath vanished in an instant, replaced with concern. “Are you alright, Twilight?”

Twilight didn’t answer, but she didn’t need to. She wasn’t alright. Because she did remember. She remembered Moondancer being one of her friends when she was younger. She remembered spending long days studying with her and their other friends in her parent’s home, matching wits with Moondancer wherever they could. She remembered Moondancer’s remarkably keen observations about how the population would take the revelation of Rainbow Dash’s adoption.

But more than all of that, Twilight remembered the night she had Fallen. She remembered very few of the faces she had stolen memories from, most of them blending together in a mindless blur of panic, terror, and desperate, futile pleading. But from that cacophony of sorrow and fear, one face finally began to emerge from the swirl.

Moondancer’s.

“My turn. My turn. My turn.”

There was no denying it. Twilight fell to her haunches with a withering exhale of shame and guilt as the reality settled onto her shaking shoulders.

Moondancer had been one of her victims.

Old Friend

After Rainbow finished off her breakfast, the group took off for Minuette’s abode. The walk through Canterlot was mercifully uneventful. Rainbow took the lead, of course, with Twilight and Rarity walking side-by-side behind her. Spike, predictably, had parked himself on Rarity’s back; with her permission, of course.

Thorax and Spiracle agreed to head back to Squall’s home for the time being. A small part of Twilight felt bad about excluding them from things, especially after they stuck their necks out to get those guards off her back. But it really wasn’t their business, strictly speaking, and Spiracle was still new to the city. Getting her involved in Twilight’s personal drama—especially considering how severe said drama was—was a recipe for disaster.

Still, the insights they could provide as empaths could be of use…

She shook her head. “Only if we have to.”

Rainbow led the group down a series of streets into one of the lower districts, where citizens with lower incomes made their homes. Of course, a ‘low income’ household in Canterlot was still a few grades of quality higher here than what one might find in other cities. The buildings were usually one story tall, though some had two. They lacked the elegant design work and elaborate patterns of the wealthier parts of the city, but they were still finely made. Competent stonework and colorful roofing made for a charming, almost rustic appeal.

Rainbow came to a stop in front of one of the said houses, her eyes looking it over with scrutiny. Twilight came to a stop beside her, eyeing the building. It was a two-story house sandwiched between two larger homes. A short set of stairs went up to the front door, over which resided a decorative hourglass with a golden frame.

Minuette’s Cutie Mark. This was the place.

“Had a feeling,” Rainbow noted with a sage nod. “She liked this place—even if it’s kinda cramped.”

Rarity gave the hourglass over the door a quizzical look. “An hourglass? What was her special talent again?”

Spike sat up. “To hear her tell it, she makes friends in no time at all,” he explained with a shrug. “Which is kinda true, I guess.”

Rainbow snickered. “Hah. You and I both know you became friends with her so fast because she gave you belly rubs.”

“They were good belly rubs!”

While those two were going back and forth, Twilight kept her eyes on the house. It had been a long time since she had seen Minuette. The other foal had been one of the bubbliest, most cheerful ponies Twilight had ever met. She was almost like Pinkie Pie in many respects, albeit perhaps a little less… chaotic.

Even so, Minuette held her friends really close to her heart. Twilight could only imagine how she had taken it when she had flown off to Ponyville.

A few moments passed before Rainbow turned back to Twilight. “You want the honors, or should I?” she asked.

Twilight took another deep breath. “I’ll do it,” she said with a firm nod. She was the one trying to make amends, after all, and Moondancer wasn’t the only friend she had neglected.

Rainbow gave her an encouraging smile and stepped aside, giving room for Twilight to make her ascent. She hesitated for only a moment until she received a thumbs-up from Spike. Taking the small gesture to heart, she put on a brave face and marched up the stairs.

“Here goes…” she whispered to herself, knocking three times.

There was an ominous pause before the door suddenly clicked open. Twilight’s wings ruffled on her back, and she took an involuntary step back. The door creaked loudly as it slowly swung inward, revealing that the entrance hallway beyond was dark, unlit. Twilight could just about make out what she thought was a cobweb.

And there was Minuette. Twilight immediately felt a rush of recognition at seeing the blue unicorn. Minuette was almost Twilight’s age; just a touch younger. But in the darkened interior, it was difficult to make out details. Her face was obscured by shadow, save for her eyes, which stared at Twilight, unreadable.

A lump formed in Twilight’s throat. A tingling feeling crawled up and down her back under Minuette’s stare, and she suddenly found her confidence waning. She felt like she was being judged already, silently reprimanded for her past actions.

“M-Minuette?” she asked haltingly, her voice hitching in her throat for a moment.

Minuette didn’t answer her. The tense silence dragged on.

Twilight swallowed hard. This had been a mistake. She opened her mouth to say as such, to apologize for bothering her and withdrawing, but the words didn’t come.

Or rather, they didn’t have the chance to.

A powerful blunt force slammed into Twilight’s chest, knocking the wind out of her from the impact. She let out a startled squeak as something constricted tightly around her neck, holding her in place with a grip as tight as an iron vice. She squirmed for a moment, thinking she was being strangled, until she realized that the hold on her was firm, but not crushing.

Confused, Twilight glanced down. Her eyes widened when she realized that Minuette was hugging her tightly, face buried into her shoulder.

Odd. She hadn’t thought they’d been this close.

A moment later, Twilight licked her lips and spoke again, her voice low and uncertain. “Minuette…? Are you…?”

“Welcome back,” Minuette suddenly whispered. Twilight felt another rush of nostalgic memories overcome her on hearing it. Of playful laughs and weird jokes, of enormous grins and metaphors that only Minuette would ever understand. Minuette looked up into Twilight’s eyes, her lips pulled into a large, ecstatic grin. “It’s so good to see you, you old so-and-so!”

Minuette released her hold on Twilight and took a step back. “What are you doing here?” she then noticed the ponies standing behind her, and her grin grew several times over. “Dashie?! Spike?! Is that you?!”

Rainbow waved, smiling back at her. “Sup, spazz ball?”

Minuette giggled at the nickname before turning back to Twilight, practically vibrating on her hooves. “Oho, wow! This is great! I had no idea any of you would be coming by! And just look at you!”

Twilight barely had time to utter a bewildered “uh” before Minuette was right up in her business, poking at her wings like a foal playing with their newest toy. “Lookit these wings, huh?! They’re so cool!”

“She does realize that you quite literally died to get them, right?” Midnight asked with an irritated snort.

Twilight ignored her.

Minuette then pranced—not walked, not stepped, pranced—past Twilight to land by Rainbow and Spike. “And Rainbow! I love your mane! I never imagined you with a ponytail, but you make it look so good! You’re taller, too!”

Rainbow leaned back slightly from the sudden gush of praise. She fidgeted with her ponytail, a slight blush coming to her cheeks. “O-oh, uh, thanks. I, uh, I made it myself.”

“Smooth,” Spike deadpanned.

Minuette was undeterred by Rainbow’s awkward response, still running in place. Suddenly, she gasped in realization and shot up onto her hind legs. “Wait wait wait! Hold everything! AAH!”

And just like that, she turned and disappeared back into her home with a speed that would make Pinkie proud. A moment passed in silence, and Twilight took the blessed seconds to try and process what had just happened.

That was not the reaction she had been expecting at all. But, if nothing else, she could take some small comfort in the fact that Minuette didn’t seem to be mad at her for disappearing. Did she even know about Twilight’s Fall?

“What a childish idiot,” Midnight scoffed dismissively. “You’re wasting your time here. Best to leave now while her back is turned.”

Twilight continued to ignore her.

A moment later, Minuette came rocketing back out of her house, now with a camera floating erratically along behind her in an aura of yellow magic. She slid to a stop by Twilight and turned to Rarity. “Mind getting a pic of me with these guys?”

Rarity didn’t even have a chance to protest before the camera was all but shoved into her hooves. She spluttered incoherently. “Wait, what?”

Minuette ignored her, turning back to Twilight and Rainbow. “I tried to tell my coworkers way back when that I was friends with you guys, but they never… believed me…” she trailed off for a moment, her eyes going distant.

Twilight felt a twinge of uncertainty. She lifted a hoof, leaning forward slightly. “Minuette?”

Minuette shook her head. “Nevermind! Pictures now, drama later!” she declared before plonking herself down next to Twilight. She grinned back at Rainbow and Spike. “C’mon, guys! Get in here! Pic time!”

Spike and Rainbow shared a glance.

“Do I get any say in this matter?” Rarity asked, though the resignation in her voice made it clear she knew the answer.

“Just roll with it,” Rainbow said, rolling her eyes. She came up to Twilight’s side and sat down, draping a foreleg over her shoulders and pulling her in close. “Once Minnie’s got her mind on something, she doesn’t give up.”

“Nope!” Minuette chirped. Suddenly, she gave a loud gasp and turned back to Twilight one more time. “Wait wait wait! Really fluff ‘em up!”

“Does she think you’re a toy?!” Midnight demanded.

Twilight just smiled and awkwardly did as Minuette asked, unfurling her wings as wide as she could. It took some shuffling about for them to be displayed properly without bothering Rainbow or Spike.

Rarity’s expression was flat and unimpressed. “...Ready then, are we?” she asked.

Spike flashed her a thumbs-up.

“Fine. Everypony say Pinkie.”

A moment later, the picture was taken, and Minuette quickly stashed the camera back in her house before shutting the door and turning back to face the group again. Her rush of excited energy finally seemed to be fading, though she was still grinning like a goofy idiot. “Oh, gosh! This is so exciting! I wasn’t expecting to see any of you! What are you doing here?”

It was then that her smile dropped, and her voice took on a more solemn edge. “Did… did Celestia finally let you off the hook?”

Twilight flinched, her ears drooping at the reminder of her still-standing punishment. She forced herself to cast such thoughts aside with a shake of her head. “Er… not exactly. I’m still in hot water, but I can come and visit Canterlot for a few days every month… as long as somepony’s with me.”

Rainbow looked down, her own ears drooping. Nopony said a word for several seconds.

Minuette growled in frustration, stomping a hoof. “Gah! It’s all so dumb! I tried to tell them you didn’t do it, that they had the wrong mare! But nopony ever believes me! They all think you were the one who went around stealing memories and stuff, but it couldn’t be you! You’d never do something like that! I know you wouldn’t!”

With every word, Twilight felt another pang of guilt. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm down her trembling nerves. She opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

Minuette’s voice dropped. “...Right?”

Suddenly, Rarity cleared her throat, drawing all eyes to her. She put on a warm smile. “It’s all rather complicated, miss Minuette, and not something we should be discussing on your front doorstep. May we come inside so we can discuss these matters in private?”

Minuette narrowed her eyes at Rarity for a moment. A second later, her eyes snapped wide open, and her jaw dropped. “Oh, shoot! You! You’re Rarity!” she exclaimed as if in horror.

Rarity huffed. “...My name precedes me?” she asked, offended by Minuette’s tone.

Minuette, seemingly realizing the fool she’d just made of herself, bowed her head in apology. “Ooooh, I’m sorry! I didn’t realize that’s who you were! I was just so caught up in seeing my old friends again I wasn’t even thinking about the pony they had with them! I’m real sorry!”

Rarity took a deep breath, then nodded, her smile returning. “It’s fine, darling. I am a little out of place in this reunion, aren’t I?”

Minuette perked right back up, her grin returning. She turned and opened her door for the others. “Well, let’s fix that. Come on in, everypony, and make yourselves comfy!”

The group entered without a word. Twilight cast her eyes about as they emerged into Minuette’s living room. Off to the left, a round wooden table rested on top of an equally round decorative rug surrounded by sitting cushions. A fireplace was set into the wall next to it. A bookcase was set against the far wall, loaded with books; mostly dentist textbooks or adventure novels, from what Twilight could see. Two archways led out of the room, one to the right led to what looked like a kitchen and dining room, while the other was next to the bookcase and led into a hallway.

Minuette flopped down at her table, gesturing for the others to sit. As they got comfortable, Twilight was still trying to find her words. She looked down and took a few deep breaths, trying to regain her confidence from earlier.

A second passed before Minuette spoke up again. “So… you didn’t do it, right?” she asked slowly, leaning forward slightly.

Twilight sighed, looking up at Minuette. No use in denying it.

“I did,” she confessed quietly, her voice low with regret.

Minuette slapped a hoof to her mouth, her eyes wide in disbelief. Twilight looked away, unable to bear the sight of her old friend looking at her like that. She felt Rainbow’s hoof on her back a moment later and offered the pegasus a grateful smile.

“But why…?” Minuette finally asked, lowering her hoof.

Twilight sighed, looking down. “I… I wasn’t in my right mind. After everything that happened with the Plundervines, I was stressed and angry. And then learned some… painful truths.”

Rainbow’s hoof on her back tensed, and Twilight instinctively reached a wing out to comfort her.

“Let’s not forget who was hiding those truths, shall we?” Midnight spat, her voice caustic.

Twilight looked up to Minuette. “You know I had amnesia, right? Well, what I learned threw everything I knew about my life into question. I suddenly felt like I couldn’t trust anyone… not even my best friends. I hadn’t felt emotions like that since I got amnesia in the first place. It was overwhelming. And, being an alicorn, all of that negative emotion… it was just too much for me… Before I knew it, those feelings had turned into something… else. Something wrong. And they took control.”

“You became your truest self,” Midnight countered. “You let your artificial inhibitions drop like the dead weight they are. At that moment, you were more yourself than you ever had been before.”

Twilight ignored her, pressing on. “My mind wasn’t right… but it was still me. And I hurt a lot of ponies. I did a lot wrong… The princesses were right to punish me. I have to make amends for what I’ve done wrong.”

She looked back up, meeting Minuette’s gaze. “And, on that note… I want to apologize to you, too.”

Minuette blinked, clearly confused. “H-huh?”

Twilight sighed, looking down. “...When I left Canterlot, I did it without even giving a single thought to the good friends I already had back here. I didn’t even say goodbye or come by to visit after what happened with Nightmare Moon. I just… forgot about all of you. I was a terrible friend to all of you, and after what I’ve done, I don’t know if any words I say will ever suffice, but… I am so sorry for how I treated you all. I was distant, I was cold… I cared more about my books than any of you, with the exception of Rainbow Dash.”

She looked back up to meet Minuette’s gaze, her jaw set. “So, if my neglect caused you any pain, then… I’m sorry. I wish I could take it all back, that I could go back in time and be a better friend to all of you. But I can’t… and I’m sorry.”

Rainbow looked sideways at her, her brow furrowed. Twilight knew why. They both knew that time travel was possible. If they figured out how it worked, Twilight could probably follow through on that wish.

But she never would. She knew the consequences of time travel well enough.

She wouldn’t put anypony else through what Rainbow had suffered. Not again.

A moment passed. Minuette’s smile returned, though it wasn’t as big as it had been before. “It’s alright, Twilight. We were all kinda used to you being in the background. We didn’t take it personally. But, for what it’s worth, I forgive you… For everything.”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “Really?”

Minuette’s smile grew. “Of course. You’re my friend. I don’t think I could ever stay mad at you. Especially not after an apology like that.”

Twilight sighed with relief, a weight she hadn’t noticed being lifted. “Thank you…”

There was a poignant pause as those words settled in, affording the group a chance to collect themselves. Eventually, the silence was broken, and Rarity spoke up. “Now, as long as we are on the subject of apologies and making amends for past mistakes, that brings us rather neatly to the reason we sought you out in the first place.”

Minuette looked at Rarity, tilting her head. “Huh?”

Rarity continued with a disarming smile. “You see, earlier today, Twilight and I had a run-in with another from her old friend group here in Canterlot. There were some…” she hesitated for a moment, choosing her words with care. “...Heated words, shall we say, and we learned that this friend was one of the ponies Twilight had crossed paths with that night.”

“It was Moondancer,” Spike clarified, his shoulders slumping.

Rainbow leaned in, pulling her hoof away from Twilight. “As nice as it is to see ya, Minnie—and we should absolutely hang out more often—we came to you because… well, like Twi said, we gotta make things right. But we don’t actually know anything about what’s been going on with Moondancer lately, other than she got hit by Midnight. Plus, we don’t even know where to find her. We were kinda hoping you’d be able to fill us in about that, seeing as, ya know, you’re so close with her and all that.”

Minuette was quiet for several seconds. She looked down, closed her eyes, and sighed in dismay. “Moondancer… I, er… I haven’t actually talked with her a whole lot in a while.”

Twilight blinked, feeling a ping of dread. Had they come here for nothing? She leaned in anxiously. “Why not?”

Minuette rubbed at her shoulder, averting her eyes. “She kinda… drifted away from the rest of us after you moved to Ponyville. We reached out to her from time to time, but she was always too busy studying to hang out. So, eventually, we just stopped asking.”

Minuette shook her head, her tone dropping even more. “Last time I talked to her was a couple of weeks ago. We bumped into each other at Donut Joe’s… She looked so tired. Like she hadn’t been sleeping right for weeks. She was jumpy and irritable. But she seemed happy to see me, at least.”

Spike leaned forward in anticipation, though his voice reflected his anxiety. “And? How’d it go?”

Minuette shrugged. “We talked for a while, reminiscing about old times. She was really into it, too. I dunno. It was like she didn’t want it to end. She kept fishing for new subjects. Like, she told me about where she works, she told me about all of the cool books she’s been reading lately. She almost looked desperate. And I was happy to talk with her again, and we started reminiscing. But then… when I got to talking about Twilight…”

Minuette paused, idly dragging a hoof along the surface of the table. “She snapped. She started yelling at me. We started arguing… I tried to tell her it wasn’t you, but… she…”

The blue unicorn fell silent, and a heavy silence blanketed the table. Twilight heaved a heavy sigh. She could only imagine how frustrating that would have been for Moondancer, having her own friend telling her that the one who had wronged her was actually innocent. But more than that, she couldn’t help but wonder what had happened to her in the years before Midnight’s rampage.

“I screwed up,” Minuette lamented, burying her face in her hooves and taking a deep breath. “Oh, Celestia, I screwed up bad.”

Twilight lifted a hoof to comfort her old friend, but Rainbow beat her to the punch by standing up and quickly making her way around the table. Minuette looked up in confusion as Rainbow placed a hoof on her back.

“C’mon now, nonna that,” Rainbow soothed, a gentle smile on her face. “We got enough angst going around. Besides, you were just trying to stick up for your friend. Nothing wrong with that.”

“But… but…”

“Hey. I get it, trust me. That feeling of screwing up’s been a constant buddy of mine since Discord did his thing. In my experience, the best thing to do to make it go away is to put right what went wrong. Trust me, it’s super cathartic.”

Minuette was quiet for several seconds. She then offered up a slow nod. As she spoke, her words gained energy and momentum. “Right. Okay. Right! Okay!”

Minuette hopped up from her seat. “No problem! I can do that! If you need help helping Moondancer, then I’d be happy to help with the helping!”

Twilight wrinkled her nose. “Minuette, do you have to butcher ponish like that?”

Minuette just giggled. “Oh, c’mon, Twi! You know that Ponish is a joke of a language, right?”

“Ce l’est certainement, oui,” Rarity said with a sage nod.

There was a moment of silence.

Spike pointed at her. “What she said.”

Twilight rolled her eyes and rose from her seat. “Heh. Alright, I get it,” she said, admitting defeat, before turning back to Minuette. “Alright, Minuette. You mentioned you know where Moondancer works, right?”

Minuette nodded. “Mhmm! She told me before we had our argument!”

Rarity nodded slowly. “Then I believe we know our next destination, dears. Maybe her coworkers would be willing to part with some information?”

“Sounds like as good a plan as any,” Spike agreed with a sharp nod.

Rainbow came back around to Twilight’s side of the table. “Then we should probably be getting a move on,” she said, nodding for the door. “We only have so much time to do this, so let’s not waste any, eh?”

Twilight had no arguments with that. “Right. Come on,” she said as she rose, turning for the door.

“Oooh, this is so exciting!” Minuette cheered, bouncing over the table like a certain party pony. “A quest with a princess of Equestria, an alicorn, an element of harmony, and the most adorable dragon in Equestria! And all of them are my friends! With a squad like this, we’ll make things right with Moonie with flying colors!”

Twilight snorted in amusement, a small smirk playing at her lips. That had been a favorite sentence of Minuette’s way back in the day.

With that, Minuette practically knocked her own door down as she frolicked into the streets. “Come on, guys! Let’s fly! Get it?!” she called over her shoulder, her voice fading into the distance.

Rarity stared after her, a brow raised. She turned to Twilight. “You found some fascinating friends growing up.”

Twilight blushed, looking away slightly. “Eheh, I didn’t really find them. Minuette found me. And dragged me into the group. Kicking and screaming.”

“Didn’t she tickle you in the school cafeteria during lunch?” Spike asked, quirking a brow.

Rainbow snickered, pausing briefly in the doorway. “Let’s be real; that’s why we like her.”

“And the belly rubs,” Spike agreed as he followed Rainbow out.

“Oh, would you stop obsessing over that?”

“You don’t get it, Dash! You never got a belly rub from her!”

“I got Twi for that!”

“I did not need to know that!”

Twilight rolled her eyes as their bickering faded into the distance. Rarity followed after them, tsking quietly and shaking her head. That left Twilight alone in Minuette’s house. She took a moment to look around the room, basking in the newfound quiet for a second. The home was a little dusty, maybe, but it was otherwise well kept and very lived in. It was nice, too.

To see one of her old friends doing so well set her heart at ease. She put on a small smile. “Yeah… I should come see them more often,” she whispered to herself.

With that, she turned and followed her friends out of the home, closing the door behind her.

Author's Note

Wound up trimming off the end of this chapter and stitching it onto the start of the next one. It just felt right for the flow of things. Man, I am having to do a LOT of revisions as I am going, seeing as these chapters were written months apart from each other. >.<

As usual, still self editing, so do let me know if you spot something awry.

Old Wounds

Twilight caught up with the rest of the group shortly, and together they set off, following Minuette’s lead deeper into Canterlot. Twilight took the opportunity to try and catch up with her old friend some more, hoping to lift their collective spirits with the other unicorn’s infectious enthusiasm.

Thankfully, Minuette was happy to oblige, sharing stories of her career as a dentist, and the crazy things she got up to with Lemon Hearts and Twinkle Shine. Apparently, those two were still the same as they had ever been. Lemon Hearts was still timid and soft-spoken, while Twinkle was her usual cocky, brash, outspoken self.

It was comforting to Twilight, knowing that even with all of the crazy things her life had thrown at her, some things never changed.

Twilight, in turn, took the chance to speak of her time in Ponyville. Rainbow and Spike were more than happy to join in on that conversation, sharing their takes on Twilight’s stories while also telling a fair few of their own. Minuette was a great listener, but also a very talkative one, constantly interrupting to ask questions or make some kind of goofy comment or other.

Not that Rainbow or Spike really seemed to mind. They smiled and laughed just about every time Minuette piped up. Pretty much the only one who wasn’t invested in the discussion was Rarity. She was fairly quiet through it all. Probably out of a desire to not intrude on the long-overdue reunion. But it didn’t take long for Minuette to start prodding her to share some of her own stories.

Thankfully, Minuette was a much better listener with Rarity. If there was any irritation left in Rarity over Minuette’s earlier antics, it evaporated in mere moments once she was brought into the conversation. Soon enough, Rarity was laughing and chattering with the rest of them as if she had known Minuette her whole life.

To be expected, given Minuette’s… odd special talent.

Their path eventually took them out of Minuette’s residential district and out into a large, busy plaza surrounded by an assortment of establishments from clothing stores, antique shops, and various eateries. It was around lunchtime, and as such, there was a near-constant rush of ponies eager to get in a quick meal, or in the cases of those who did not have work to get back to, to spend their free time doing what they wished. In such a stampede, Twilight was thankful to discover that their little troupe was easily overlooked. Only those who passed right next to them even had a chance of recognizing the princess and alicorn in the public space, and even then, most only had eyes for the royalty.

Most would simply give a quick nod of their head and a soft greeting to their princess, but otherwise just kept going on with their day, leaving the whole group more or less undisturbed. Twilight felt grateful that Rainbow had drilled it into this city’s head to not make a big deal out of her being in public when they were foals.

Minuette paused next to a lamppost, shielding her eyes with a hoof and scanning the plaza with a comically exaggerated squint. A few moments passed before her eyes lit up, and she pointed at a smaller building nestled comfortably between one of the aforementioned antique shops and a candy store. It was a humble, single-story affair with tall windows in the front. Stacks of books stood on display, and even from here, Twilight could tell that it was a bookstore.

“As if Moondancer would work anywhere else,” she thought with a small smile.

Minuette grinned, bouncing in place. “There it is! Told ya I knew where it was!”

“Great! So, what’s the plan?” Rainbow asked, turning to the others. “We just wanna go in and ask around?”

Twilight hesitated, suddenly hit by a wave of doubt as something occurred to her. She bit her lip, considering their options. A moment later, she voiced her concern. “Well… what if Moondancer is at work right now?”

“Well, wouldn’t that be ideal?” Spike asked, tilting his head. “I mean, then we could skip all the subterfuge.”

“But Moondancer doesn’t want to talk to me,” Twilight countered. “If I go in there, she might get paranoid. What if she thinks I’m stalking her? What if she thinks I want to hurt her again? That won’t go over well… I don’t want to get anypony in trouble, and I don’t want to cause her any grief at her work of all places.”

That gave the group pause. Everypony looked amongst themselves. After a moment, Rainbow shrugged. “Meh. I’ll go in and scout it out. She hasn’t seen me yet, so she probably won’t make a fuss if it’s just me. Besides, last time we were trying to dig up info on a mare without causing a ruckus, you all went in without me. My turn.”

Twilight decided against pointing out the fact that, last time, they had only left Rainbow behind because she was the one likely to cause a scene.

“Very well, then, dear,” Rarity nodded at the pegasus. “We’ll wait for you out here, then.”

Without a word, Rainbow made her way to the store. Twilight shifted uneasily on her hooves, watching as Rainbow disappeared inside. It didn’t take long for Rainbow to come back out and beckon to them with a grin.

Coast clear, then.

Twilight stepped in first and was met by the sight of a very well-kept, homely interior. Warm lights shone down from a set of four hanging chandeliers, accented by the shafts of sunlight pouring in through the display windows in front. Several rows of bookcases made of finely carved wood were arranged before them, and Twilight’s mind was immediately drawn from her present endeavors to her overwhelming desire to read.

Minuette shot her a knowing look and giggled. “Eheh~! You gonna start drooling?”

Twilight sucked in a bit of saliva and shook her head. “N-no!”

Everypony looked at her skeptically.

She shrunk in on herself a bit. “...No?”

Rainbow snickered and clapped Twilight on the back. “Ha! Tell ya what, when all this gunk with ‘Dancer is sorted out, I’ll bring ya over here myself. Just the two of us. My treat.”

Twilight smiled at her, a warm bubbly feeling swelling in her chest. “Heh… Alright. It’s a date.”

Minuette perked up. “Wait, date?”

Rainbow went visibly rigid.

Spike’s face was split as a tiny malevolent smirk befitting a red dragon about to devour a poor damsel for lunch. “Oh, yeah, those two have it bad for each other.”

Minuette inhaled sharply. “Oh my gosh! Really?!”

“Anyways moving right along,” Rainbow cut Minuette off, ushering the group deeper in. “Gotta job to do! Let’s do it, yeah? Got it? Got it. Kay, good, awesome.”

Rarity tittered under her breath. “Adorable…”

Before the group could get much farther, somepony cleared their throat off to one side. Twilight turned and saw a bright pink unicorn mare with a two-toned red mane and tail tied back into a stylish bun smiling back at them. She had buttery yellow eyes set behind thick-framed reading glasses. Her cutie mark was of an open book being written in with a quill. She wore a practiced, welcoming smile.

When she spoke, her voice was high and airy, filled with optimistic cheer, and just slightly accented. “Hello! Welcome to The Open Tome! I’m Bookmark Ribbon, but you can just call me Ribbon! Can I help you find anything?”

Twilight took a deep breath and stepped forward. “Er, not exactly… We were actually hoping you’d be willing to answer a few questions for us?”

Ribbon quirked a brow, eyeing her customers with more scrutiny. It was then that she noticed Twilight’s wings, and the color drained from her face somewhat. Twilight felt a pang of guilt, and a stab of frustration. “Is it too much to ask for somepony to recognize me and not be afraid?!”

“You know how small-minded these ponies can be,” Midnight spat. “They will never look at you the same way again. They blame you for acts brought about by their own silence and ignorance.”

Twilight flinched back, taking a deep breath.

“I… er…” Ribbon muttered anxiously, glancing at the rest of the group.

Rainbow stepped in to save the day. “She’s here on my authority. There isn’t a problem with that, is there?” she asked in a friendly tone.

Ribbon all but jumped out of her skin as she realized that there was a princess in the party. She quickly bowed her head low, frantically babbling out an apology. “O-oh! I’m sorry, Your Highness! No, no problem at all. I just… wasn’t expecting this today.”

Rainbow nodded slowly. “I gotcha. Don’t worry, you’re not in trouble. We’re here on personal business, so don’t go getting your bun in a knot on our account. We would still like those questions answered, though. It’s kinda important for Twilight’s, er… legal stuff.”

“Truly, the prime example of the eloquence of royalty,” Midnight jabbed sarcastically. “What a joke.”

Twilight closed her eyes, forcing herself to take a deep breath and quell the tingling in the back of her skull. She couldn’t deal with Midnight right now.

Ribbon stood back up and adjusted her glasses. “Of course, Your Highness. Whatever you need.”

Twilight opened her eyes and put on a friendly smile. “I’m sorry for startling you.”

Ribbon paused, tilting her head slightly. A moment later, she visibly relaxed and put on a smile of her own. “Apology accepted. What can I do for you?”

Twilight let out a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding. Finally! Progress! Fighting the urge to grin, she leaned forward slightly. “I was hoping you’d be willing to tell me a little bit about Moondancer. I was told that she works here?”

Ribbon’s smile faded, and she frowned. “...Moondancer? I don’t know who told you that she works here, but I’m afraid they were mistaken.”

Twilight blinked, an uneasy feeling settling into her gut. “What do you mean?”

Ribbon sighed. She took off her glasses and rubbed at the bridge of her snout. When she spoke next, her voice sounded tired and dismayed at her own words.

“...Moondancer was fired last week.”

Twilight blinked, her mind racing. Moondancer had been fired? But, then…

Ribbon put her glasses back on, her brow furrowed and her eyes reflecting her dissatisfaction. She shook her head.

Rarity stepped forward carefully. “Why? What happened, if I may ask?” She asked in a respectfully low voice.

Ribbon shrugged. “I wasn’t there that day. All I can tell you is that she had a meltdown in the store. Started yelling at somepony for some reason. The manager caught her doing it and fired her on the spot.”

Minuette deflated, looking at the rest of the store. “Just like that? Even if she was yelling at somepony, that seems harsh…”

Ribbon looked away. “It wasn’t the first time something set her off… I don’t know what all that mare was going through, but I could tell that it was a lot. It’s such a shame, too. Whenever she was in a good place, she was a really smart and sweet mare. Usually. But most of the time, she just seemed so far away. I tried to reach out to her a few times, but she always brushed me away.”

A heavy silence fell over the group from this new information. Twilight took a few deep breaths, trying to calm her rampaging thoughts and focus. As upsetting as this was, they still had a job to do, and she wasn’t about to be dissuaded so easily. She leaned in pleadingly. “Please. If there is anything else you can tell us…”

Ribbon gave Twilight an appraising look, her eyes narrowing in thought. “What is it to you, anyway? Why do you want to know so badly?” she asked.

Twilight hesitated, not sure how to form the words. She didn’t want to put it out there that Moondancer had been one of her victims. Ribbon’s trust was already strained, even with Rainbow’s influence. But, in the end, Twilight decided to settle on the simplest, and most honest answer she could. “I want to help her. She’s my friend.”

Ribbon was quiet for a few seconds, her frown persisting. A moment later, she relented. “Well, I’m not sure what else I can tell you… She usually kept to herself. She was quiet, but polite most of the time. She spent most of her time reading when she wasn’t dealing with customers or tending to the shelves. She was good at smiling for customers, but I could see that the poor thing was not in a good place. She always came in looking exhausted, and I could see that she was hurting all the time. Like, physically hurting. Like she was sore and stiff, and she was just gritting her teeth to bear it in front of the rest of us. And she was so easy to upset, too… One time, a little foal was talking about, er… the changelings…”

Twilight’s ears folded back.

Ribbon continued. “It was like somepony flipped a switch. Moondancer dropped what she was doing and went to the back office. When I went to check on her, she looked like she was having a panic attack in the corner. Hyperventilating and the like. When I tried to ask her what was wrong, she practically yelled at me to get away. She looked terrified.”

Rainbow looked down, a grim look settling over her face. “She must’ve had it bad, then…”

Ribbon nodded. “Everypony had it bad. The Changelings didn’t discriminate… But yes, I can only guess she had it worse than others.”

The group was quiet for several seconds. Twilight’s eyes were locked onto the counter, unfocused as her mind spun. She momentarily imagined Moondancer being forcefully encased in one of those vile cocoons, probably fighting back for all she was worth. But it hadn’t been enough.

“Oh, Moondancer…” she breathed, closing her eyes. It wasn’t right…

“Where can we find her?” Rainbow suddenly asked, her tone firm.

Twilight’s eyes shot open, and she turned to face Rainbow. The hardened expression on the pegasus’ face sent a chill down Twilight’s spine. Her jaw was set into a grim frown, her brow was angled sharply, and there was something raging behind her eyes. It was the same look Rainbow had when they came to Canterlot for the first time after Twilight awoke with amnesia.

Ribbon was clearly taken aback by Rainbow’s expression, leaning back. “I… Er, she lives in an old apartment complex down near that old stadium. It’s about a twenty-minute walk from here. Room six, I think?”

Minuette suddenly perked up. “Oh! Oh! I know where that is! I passed by it last time I went to a Wonderbolts show here!”

Rainbow nodded, her lips quirking up into a hollow smile. “Good. Then I guess we know where we’re headed next, don’t we?” she said before addressing Ribbon. “Thanks for the info. You’ve been a big help. Twi and I are probably gonna be by here sometime in the next couple of days to do some browsing.”

Ribbon perked up slightly at that, clearly enticed by the prospect of business from royalty. “Oh, uh, well, I look forward to it, Your Highness! But uh, if I may ask…”

Twilight stiffened slightly when Ribbon’s gaze fell on her again. It wasn’t stern or suspicious, but there was clearly doubt hidden in her eyes.

“If you find her… what do you plan to do?” Ribbon asked a few seconds later, her voice low and tentative.

Twilight was quiet for a moment, then sighed, shaking her head. “I’m not really sure, yet. But I’ll figure it out.”

Ribbon nodded slowly at that. “Alright… just be gentle with her. I don’t know her all that well, but I still care about her. Be careful, won’t you?”

Twilight gave Ribbon a small smile. “I will, don’t worry. If she doesn’t want my help, I won’t force it.”

Ribbon managed to smile in turn.

With that, Twilight stepped out of the bookstore. The others pooled around her, an uncomfortable silence settling over them as they processed this new information.

“So, are we going directly to Moondancer?” Spike asked once they had all assembled outside, gathering by a lamp post as their haunt.

A brief silence fell over the group as they considered their options. Twilight looked down, her brow furrowed and her lips drawn into a thin line. Moondancer had been volatile this morning, and now they knew she had been this way for a while. Things must have been really bad if she was willing to yell at Minuette or even a total stranger in a bookstore. It was hard to imagine the shy, socially awkward bookworm Twilight had known being so hostile. Had she not been on the receiving end of her ire, she wouldn’t have believed it.

Twilight spoke her mind a few seconds later. “I don’t think that would be a good idea. She’s probably still fuming after our last encounter… And after everything we’ve learned today, it sounds like she’s in a really bad place. Maybe we should give her some time to cool off and calm down a little?”

Rarity glanced at her quizzically. “Are you certain we have time for that?” she asked uneasily. “You are on a time limit, darling, as much as it pains me to say it.”

“And you said it yourself. Moondancer’s in a really bad place,” Rainbow reminded them, her brow furrowing. “And I get why. I’ve been there. The last thing she needs is to be left alone to let her own thoughts eat her alive.”

Twilight flinched, looking away from the pegasus. A moment later, Rainbow cupped her chin with a hoof and turned her head so they were eye to eye. “I get that it’s probably gonna be rough, and I ain’t gonna force you. But Twi… I really think we should go to her as soon as possible.”

Twilight blinked as Rainbow sighed and turned away.

“I can’t leave her hanging, remember? Especially now.”

Twilight fell silent, biting her lip as she went over the options in her head.

“Why bother delaying the inevitable?” Midnight groused impatiently. “If you’re going to go and make a fool of yourself in front of that mare, do it now and stop wasting everypony’s time.”

Twilight grit her teeth behind closed lips. “If I want your opinion, I’ll ask for it.”

“I think we established long ago that you’ll get it regardless.”

Twilight sighed and shook her head to dispel her demon’s snapping remarks. She looked up at Rainbow, who had turned back to face her. Her gaze drifted between those of all of her assembled friends, and as her anxiety and fear redoubled, so too did her refusal crumble into dust.

Rarity took a gentle step forward. “I know it may be… unpleasant, darling,” she said softly. “And indeed, it may not go well at all. You may walk away empty-hooved and distraught. But it’s not about you anymore. It’s about Moondancer.”

Something in Twilight gave in. She looked down at the ground again, taking a deep breath to steady her nerves. “Okay… okay, you all win. We’ll go to her,” she said before looking back up. “But if she asks us to leave, we leave. We respect her privacy. If she doesn’t want our help, we can’t make her accept it.”

“She’ll appreciate the offer, I’m sure of that much,” Rainbow noted with a sharp nod of her head. “And if it makes you feel better, I can take the lead again. Talk to her ahead of the rest of you. Ya know, soften the landing, break the ice a little. I mean, she doesn’t have any reason to be pissy at me.”

She then frowned and glanced back at Spike. “Right?”

“All I can think of is the time you scared her with that ‘medusa’ costume of yours that one Nightmare Night, but that was ages ago,” he replied with a shrug. “And even then, she laughed with you afterward.”

Twilight smiled at Rainbow, her heart fluttering at the offer. “That would be a big help, Rainbow. Thank you.”

“Then it’s settled!” Rarity declared with a sharp nod. Somewhere deep in her eyes, Twilight thought she saw the faintest hint of a spark, and a pressure that had been advancing on the edges of her mind withdrew all at once until it was just a subtle tingle at the edges of her mind, forgotten as quickly as it was noticed.

Rarity then turned to Minuette. “Minuette, dear, if you would be so kind as to lead the way?”

Minuette giggled and jumped in place, clearly eager to get a move on. “Alright! But first…” Her tone suddenly dropped. All eyes turned back to her, and Twilight was startled to see what could only be described as the murderous delight of a trickster imp blazing in her old friend’s eyes. Minuette stomped up to Twilight, each step almost enough to shake the earth beneath her hooves.

“Uh…” Twilight leaned away from Minuette, growing increasingly anxious. Had she done something wrong? She looked back and forth at the others, hoping for an explanation, but they all looked just as confused as she felt.

Minuette glared into her face for a few seconds, before grabbing onto Twilight’s shoulder and shaking her with the fury of a yak with Pinkie energy.

“WHEN WERE YOU GONNA TELL ME THAT YOU AND RAINBOW ARE DATING?!”

Minuette’s shriek bounced up and down the streets like the wail of a banshee. So loud was the call that Twilight’s ears were ringing long after the echoes faded into silence.

A silence that existed because everypony on the street had stopped to stare at the congregation.

Twilight’s cheeks began to heat up from the looks they were getting. Rainbow didn’t look much better, shrinking in on herself.

Minuette seemed utterly oblivious to their embarrassment, as the murder in her eyes rapidly morphed into unrestrained delight. “Oh, wow! I always knew you two were, like, the bestest of best friends when we were fillies, but I always thought you were more like sisters! But now you’re dating, and I can totally see it, and that explains so much about all of the little looks and all the physical affection and GAH! It’s so CUTE!”

And then Minuette hugged her.

Twilight’s brain was having a hard time catching up.

Spike, meanwhile, fell right over onto the stone street, laughing hysterically.

Rainbow buried her face in her wings. “Minnie… d’ya think you coulda picked a worse spot to announce that to the whole world?”

It was at about this time that Minuette seemed to realize the gravity of her mistake. She pulled away from Twilight and looked toward the passing ponies with a sheepish grin. “Eheh… um… oops?” she ventured weakly.

“It’s… okay, I guess?” Twilight said, though there was no strength in her voice. After a moment she shook herself and started down the street. “So. Uh, anyway… Moondancer?” she said eagerly, hoping to get the group moving away from the staring crowd.

Minuette realized her motives easily enough and soon took up a position at the head of the pack, leading the group away from the plaza and all of the staring eyes. Rainbow came up beside Twilight as they went, her face still beet-red from embarrassment. A few moments passed before Twilight gave her a sideways smile out of sympathy.

“Hey, it could’ve been worse,” she said.

“Blegh,” Rainbow dismissed, sticking out her tongue. Twilight simply giggled at the response before focusing ahead.

The walk through the Canterlot streets was spent largely in silence. At least, that was how it felt to Rainbow Dash as she followed Minuette toward the old stadium. The structure loomed against the rest of Canterlot’s pointy skyline, standing out like a sore thumb. It was made even worse by the still-evident signs of damage leftover from Chrysalis’ invasion.

Not that the structure was damaged, but patches of new stonework were visibly more pristine than those that had been spared, making the entire structure look patchy and disjointed. It was like an old quilt that someone was trying to extend with new squares of fabric.

The rest of this part of the city had a similar feeling to it. These streets were narrow and claustrophobic, even when compared to where Minuette made her home. Rainbow couldn’t help but furrow her brow as they went, casting her eyes this way and that. The buildings here were smaller and clustered closer together. Many, she imagined, would struggle to house more than one pony.

Parts of the street beneath their hooves were broken open, but not by damage from the invasion. No, it just looked like regular wear and tear that just hadn’t been repaired yet. Similar signs of age marked many of the homes as they passed, making Rainbow grimace uncomfortably.

“Goodness…” Rarity whispered, looking around with wide eyes. “I do not say this to sound rude, but I hadn’t realized there was any part of Canterlot that looked quite so… rough, so to speak.”

“Canterlot’s a big city, Rarity,” Rainbow said solemnly, glancing to one side as they passed by a family of other ponies heading the other way. Her gaze lingered on them for a few seconds before looking ahead. “It’s nicer than most, but it’s still got places that don’t get a whole lot of love.”

Minuette sighed, looking forlornly off to one side. “It got worse after the invasion, you know… A lot of ponies lost their homes.”

Twilight let off a quiet hum to Rainbow’s right, drawing the pegasus’ attention. The alicorn’s eyes were downcast, her lips drawn into a thin line. Rainbow wondered what was going through her mind, but Rarity spoke before she had a chance to prod about it.

“That’s awful… But Celestia and Luna helped those ponies who were displaced by the fighting, yes?”

“Uh-huh,” Minuette replied with a sharp nod. “A lot of relief packages, shelters, food drives. You know, stuff like that.”

“But they couldn’t help everyone,” Rainbow thought bitterly, taking a deep breath. “And some things just can’t be fixed by throwing royal money at it.”

The group, at last, came to a four-way intersection. Heading straight would have taken them directly to the stadium, while left and right would take them down long, narrow streets of more low-income housing. Minuette came to a stop and pointed to a building on the corner to their left. “There it is!” she chirped.

Rainbow blinked. It was a simple two-story affair, with three front-facing doors per floor. The walls were the typical Canterlot stonework, although the intended splendor of such construction was marred by the odd crack and sign of erosion. The foundation was marked with stains of mud and growths of moss. A staircase on the left side of the building went up to the upper set of doors.

“Looks cramped,” Spike commented quietly.

“Very…” Rainbow agreed with a slow nod, squinting at the old complex for any sign of which door was Moondancer’s. After a moment, she turned back to the others. “So, this the part where I go in and solo things?”

There was a clear air of discomfort around the group as she asked the question, but nopony offered up any protest. The only one who spoke was Twilight, her voice gentle. “Just… please, be careful. Try not to upset her.”

Rainbow put on her trademark smirk to hide any and all uncertainty she might have been feeling and ruffled Twilight’s mane. “You worry too much. I got this,” she said confidently.

The show of bravado seemed to do wonders to ease Twilight’s concern, and she was even able to put on a small smile.

Rainbow pulled out of her hug and nodded at the others. “Alright, all of you hang back. I’ll come get ya if and when I need ya.”

“Good luck, Dashie,” Minuette offered.

Rainbow nodded, puffed up her chest, and then turned to the apartment complex. A small pit formed in her stomach, and her smile faded. Somewhere deep in her mind, a part of her told her that she was not the right pony for this job, that she’d just stumble over her words and make things worse for everypony. The same tiny voice that always screamed at her for being so powerless when it mattered.

She took a few deep breaths and chased that voice away with a firm shake of her head. Wordlessly, she took to the air with a few flaps of her wings and soon alighted on the walkway in front of room six. It was a plain, brown wooden door with a peephole and a metal knocker. Rainbow only hesitated for a moment, shot a glance back at the others, and then knocked three times.

There was a moment of silence before the door popped partially open. The interior space was dimly lit, but Rainbow could make out Moondancer’s face in the gloom.

Moondancer squinted at her for a moment, giving Rainbow a second to really see the mare her old friend had grown into. Her heart twisted at what she saw. Moondancer looked beyond exhausted; heavy bags under her bloodshot eyes, her once tidy and well-kept bun of a mane messy and with the odd hair poking out all over. Even her sweater looked ratty and old, seeming like it would be terribly itchy to wear.

Rainbow swallowed heavily. “Uh… Moondancer?” she asked quietly.

Moondancer’s purple eyes shot wide open with recognition. “Rainbow Dash…?” she breathed, blinking several times. “Princess Rainbow Dash? What… why… why are you here? What do you want?”

Rainbow put on a tiny smile. “I think you can guess.”

Moondancer stared at her for a few seconds longer before her eyes narrowed. “...You’re here because of what happened with her, aren’t you?” she asked, a strange mix of dread and venom seeping into her whispered words.

Rainbow nodded carefully. “Yeah. I am.”

Moondancer screwed her eyes shut, taking a long, deep breath.

Rainbow took the chance to speak again. “Can I come in? I just wanna talk.”

Moondancer let out her breath in a frustrated groan, then opened her eyes. There was a clear fury burning behind them, but reigned in and controlled by something else. “Fine. If you have to talk about it… Let’s just get this over with,” she relented, opening the door the rest of the way and withdrawing inside.

Rainbow glanced back over her shoulder at the intersection. The others were all watching her from a safe distance up the street, and she doubted a non-pegasus would be able to recognize them from this far without knowing where to look. She locked eyes with Twilight for a moment, hoping to convey comfort through that small connection.

Twilight met her gaze for a moment before giving a slow nod of her head.

Rainbow took that as her cue and stepped into Moondancer’s home, closing the door behind her.

Moondancer

To say that Twilight was anxious was an understatement. She couldn’t take her eyes off the door to Moondancer’s apartment, and it was taking all of her willpower to resist letting her mind run wild with rampant speculation but resist she did. She took slow, deep breaths and focused on the thought of Rainbow Dash’s confident smile.

“Ah, yes, because that cocky smirk of hers is always the prelude to triumph, isn’t it?”

Twilight had to resist the urge to groan at Midnight’s snapping remark.

“You’re wasting your breath, Midnight.”

“Only because you’re too bull-headed to listen to reality.”

“How many times have I proven you wrong so far?” Twilight challenged, the corner of her lip twitching up slightly.

Midnight was unmoved. “Once or twice, I concede. But even geniuses make mistakes from time to time.”

Twilight blew out a puff of air. She didn't have time for this. Luckily, Midnight seemed content to let the discussion end there for the moment. She felt Midnight withdrawing into the depths of her mind as the door to Moondancer’s apartment sprang open, drawing her undivided attention. Rainbow Dash stepped out, and even from this distance, Twilight could see just how troubled the pegasus looked.

“Goodness, that doesn’t look good,” Rarity mused, her brow furrowing.

Twilight shook her head. “It doesn’t, no.”

Minuette shifted uneasily in place, glancing between Rarity and Twilight with clear anxiety. “How bad do you think it is?”

“Only one way to find out,” Spike replied.

Twilight took a breath before stepping forward to meet Rainbow as she flew back to the group. Her disquieted frown was even more apparent up close.

“So… what’s the damage?” Spike asked reluctantly from Twilight’s back.

Rainbow opened her mouth to say something, but no words came. She looked at Twilight. There was a clear storm of emotions raging behind her eyes, and it did not inspire confidence in Twilight. A few seconds passed before Rainbow turned back to the apartment complex. Her ears swiveled this way and that before, finally, she spoke. “I talked to Moondancer… She’s agreed to talk to you.”

Twilight didn’t miss how Rainbow dodged the question. She took a tentative step forward. “Rainbow…”

Rainbow didn’t look back. She shifted slightly, her gaze drifting from the apartment complex to stare at the cobbles beneath her hooves. “It’s better coming from her.”

Twilight flinched, biting her lip. A moment passed before she took a shaky breath, her anxiety rearing its ugly head again. “Alright. Let’s go,” she said, pushing her stiff legs into motion before her nerves could root her in place.

Rainbow eyed her as she passed, then went to catch up with her. She fell into stride beside Twilight, her lips drawn into a thin line. “Alright. Just uh… ya know. Be careful. She’s really not in a good place right now.”

It was a short walk, but it felt painfully long. In spite of that length, though, she did not feel at all ready when she came to the door. At the very least, she was able to take some comfort in the presence of her friends at her back.

Rainbow stood beside the door and gestured for Twilight to proceed. “It’s unlocked.”

Twilight swallowed the lump forming in her throat. She knocked gently on the door before pushing it open with her magic.

She was immediately hit by the smell of stale air as she entered the space. The apartment was cramped, and she couldn’t imagine it accommodating more than one pony comfortably. There were two doors against the left wall, leading to a bedroom and bathroom. Extending out from the right wall in the back was a counter cordoning off a kitchen. A plane coffee table was to the right, framed on either side by a loveseat and a trio of worn-out chairs. The curtains were all drawn, plunging the interior into a dim shade, with the main sources of light coming from a dull ceiling light in the kitchen and a lamp on the coffee table.

More striking than all of that were the stacks of books tucked wherever there was space. They were all over the room. Each tower of tomes was well-balanced and supported by smaller ones, and there did appear to have been a conscious effort made to keep the piles as out of the way and neat as one could get them without having a bookcase.

In the middle of it all, sitting on the sofa with a mug of coffee, was Moondancer. Twilight’s breath hitched in her throat. Surrounded by such cramped living conditions, Moondancer’s haggard appearance was even worse than Twilight remembered. The other mare’s eyes narrowed with disdain and barely-restrained rage.

Twilight swallowed heavily, but the lump persisted. She licked her lips and took a tentative step forward. When she spoke, her voice came out in a weak stammer. “M-Moondancer…?”

Moondancer gestured to the chairs across from her. “Sit.”

Twilight flinched from the edge in Moondancer’s voice, but didn’t argue. She stepped inside and settled down into one of the seats, setting Spike down with her magic on the way. Rainbow was close behind her, followed by Rarity and Minuette.

Once everypony was in, the door was shut by Moondancer’s magic. The silence that followed felt as impenetrable as a block of tungsten. Twilight shuddered, fidgeting uncomfortably in her seat. The backrest was rough and itchy. Rainbow took the other one. The others found places to stand around the table, maintaining a respectful distance.

Rarity glanced about with wide, almost horrified eyes. “My goodness… you’ve been living here?” she asked quietly.

Moondancer snorted. “Yeah, I have.”

Rarity looked like she had some sort of follow-up remark she wanted to make, but she held her piece for now.

Minuette, on the other hoof, had something to say. “I mean… at least it’s cozy?”

“Don’t patronize me. It’s cramped and it stinks like mold,” Moondancer snipped, rubbing the bridge of her nose with a hoof. “Please tell me you can at least see that much.”

Minuette flinched, her ears folding back as a look of shame crept across her face.

“Moon,” Twilight said softly, lifting a hoof out to her old friend. She wanted to say more, and the tiny tingle in the back of her skull demanded she scold Moondancer for her failure to be civil. She was quick to shut it down.

Moondancer closed her eyes and remained silent for several moments. She reopened them to take a sip from her coffee, set it down on the table, and leveled a glare at Twilight.

“You wanted to talk to me? Well, here I am. So talk. What do you want?”

Twilight hesitated. All throughout the day, she had been trying to run through what she would say to Moondancer in her head when the time finally came for them to have their discussion. Minutes ago, she’d thought she had it all primed and ready to go, but when finally confronted once again with the sheer contempt and vitriol behind those almost-familiar eyes… her words abandoned her. For an agonizing moment, she could only open her mouth in preparation to speak.

Finally, she closed her mouth and took a deep breath. “You can do this,” she told herself over and over, hoping the sentiment would chase away her doubts. She glanced sideways at Rainbow, and her girlfriend gave her that ever-supportive smile and nod.

It didn’t dispel her fears, but it gave her enough confidence to face them. She turned back to Moondancer and met her gaze. “I want to help you.”

Moondancer blinked, her brow furrowing in confusion. Her eyes narrowed with skepticism. She leaned forward in her seat, sliding her mug off to one side. “You want to what?” she hissed through clenched teeth.

Twilight flinched back but held her ground. “You have every right to be mad at me, Moondancer. Just saying sorry would never be enough to make up for how I hurt you. That’s a lesson I’ve been forced to learn a lot, lately… I could apologize for a thousand years, but it wouldn’t change anything. So, here I am. I want to make up for what I did to you properly. I want to help you. Or, at least, I want to try.”

Moondancer gawked at her like a deer in the headlights of the Friendship Express. She adjusted her glasses and shook her head in exasperation. “And what in the world makes you think I want your help?!”

“I know you don’t want it,” Twilight confessed, looking aside with a shameful sigh. “But I wanted to at least make the offer. Extend the olive branch, and bury the hatchet. That sort of thing. I want to be there for the ponies who call me their friend.”

Moondancer’s eyes widened, and her pupils dilated with rage. She slammed her hooves down onto the table with a loud slam and shot up to tower over Twilight. “Friend?! FRIEND?! Do you honestly believe that’s what you are to me?!”

Twilight jumped in shock from the sudden spike in volume. She cringed back, her ears drooping. She stammered to find her words, but nothing came.

“Moonie, please…” Minuette cut in, drawing Moondancer’s balefire glare to her. The blue unicorn flinched away but maintained eye contact. “Can you just hear her out?”

“And why should I do that?” Moondancer snarled. “Why should I even listen to you?! You didn’t listen to a word I had to say last time!”

“I know! And I’m sorry, too!” Minuette shot back, her eyes starting to glisten. “For not believing you! For upsetting you. I was wrong, okay? I was wrong, and I’m sorry! That’s why I’m here.”

“Why we’re all here, darling,” Rarity added with a slow nod. “Now, please. Take a breath. We’re not here to fight or spark an argument. Can we at least be civil?”

Several seconds passed in silence. And it was in that silence that Twilight saw something far more vulnerable under Moondancer’s furious exterior. She was shaking, and her breaths were becoming ragged.

Twilight’s heart twisted at the sight. She lifted her hoof. Her lips twitched open, but once again, her words failed her.

Moondancer’s attention snapped back to her a moment later. “You never cared, did you?”

The question took Twilight by surprise. “Huh?”

“About me. About our friends. You never really cared about us. We were just another assignment to you. Another test to turn in to the princess.”

Twilight leaned back in surprise, hurt. “Moondancer, I… I didn’t-”

“Tell me I’m wrong!” Moondancer snapped, her brow angling again. “Look me in the eye and tell me, honestly, that I’m wrong!”

Twilight wanted to, but the words caught in her throat. Because they would be a lie, wouldn’t they? And she didn’t have the luxury of lying. Not to her friends. Not to herself. Not anymore.

When Twilight didn’t immediately answer, Moondancer looked away with a bitter scoff.

“Maybe you’re right. Maybe I didn’t care back then. But… I care now,” Twilight finally managed to get out.

Moondancer was quiet for several long seconds. She reached up and pulled off her glasses with her magic, looking at the still visible seam where Twilight’s spell had repaired them earlier. The fire in her eyes dulled somewhat. Her posture sagged, and she let out a defeated sigh.

“What happened to you, Moondancer?” Spike finally said, breaking the silence he had been holding since he got here. “You’re so different from how I remember you.”

Moondancer actually gave off a tiny laugh at that. “Different? Heh. That’s a word to put to it… Fine. You want to know what happened to me? I’ll tell you,” she finally relented, putting her glasses back on. “I’ll tell you everything.”

Twilight leaned forward intently, waiting.

“Tell me. Do you remember the day I invited you to that party?”

“Party?” Twilight frowned, confused. “I… don’t remember you ever inviting me to a party.”

Moondancer snorted. “Of course, you don’t. You were busy that day…”

Several years ago…

Moondancer’s heart fluttered anxiously in her chest as she slowly ascended the steps of Twilight’s observatory. The chilly mountain air of Canterlot felt even harsher than usual in spite of the mid-summer month. It was like the wind was mocking her, taunting her, telling her to give up this mad endeavor and let somepony else - somepony more qualified - handle it.

“It’s okay, Moondancer,” she whispered to herself, trying to calm down. “It’s just Twilight, and it’s just a party. It’ll be fine. Just go up and ask her. The worst she can do is say no.”

Not that Moondancer would admit it, but the prospect of Twilight saying ‘no’ was terrifying. Oh, who was she kidding? Everything about this was terrifying! Deciding to throw a party to celebrate their imminent graduation, being the one to orchestrate it all, inviting anypony to spend time with her of her own volition? Yet here she was, going to invite Twilight Sparkle, the one pony she wanted to attend more than any other, personally.

All of these things went contrary to what Moondancer was normally like. She didn’t like parties, mostly because of loud music and big crowds. She didn’t like being bumped around by throngs of obnoxious ponies getting blasted on cider. She didn’t like feeling out of place, and like she was missing out by not participating. All of those ponies were there to chat and dance and sing and have a good time, and there she would always be, withering away in the dimmest corner she could find, hoping a stranger wouldn’t come up to strike up a conversation. She hated being approached by strangers. Especially when they opened up with compliments. That was always the worst.

But it just… seemed right this time. She couldn’t describe it. Maybe that eccentric princess, Rainbow Dash, was rubbing off on her. That young mare was an absolute party animal. ‘Abandon hope all ye who let the princess into your cider closet’ had become a saying among the student body for a reason.

Normally, Moondancer would avoid a pony like that. But she didn’t get to do that, because Rainbow Dash was basically fused with Twilight at the hip.

And Moondancer wanted to be around Twilight.

The two were a package, and despite the young princess’ cocky attitude and wild behavior, there was something about her that just felt good. A general feeling of reassurance and security. Like she had your back. It was thanks to that feeling that Moondancer was here now.

At long last, Moondancer made it to Twilight’s door. She stared up at it, suddenly feeling small and insignificant in comparison. She swallowed heavily before lifting her hoof and knocking, the sound echoing in her ears like thunderclaps.

There was a shuffling sound behind the door before it popped open to reveal the unicorn herself. But instead of the warm or at least neutral expression Moondancer had been hoping for, all she saw was a troubled, impatient frown.

She suddenly felt ashamed and unwanted.

“Oh, Moondancer. Hello,” Twilight greeted, forcing a small smile. It had to be fake.

Moondancer shied back slightly, not quite able to meet the other mare’s gaze. “Uh… h-hey, Twilight. Um, I was wondering… Uh… I was thinking that, er… maybe… you see, I… erm…”

Twilight sighed, her smile fading. “Moondancer, can you please cut to the point? I don’t want to be rude, but I’m in the middle of some really important research right now.”

With the pressure mounting, and the added guilt that she was interrupting something significant, Moondancer’s words became even more broken and disjointed. “I just, uh… w-well, you see, since we’re all gonna be graduating soon, I just thought that maybe our little group could, uh… y’know, get together? Have a little celebration?”

Twilight almost looked offended. “Ugh. Now’s not the best time, Moondancer,” she said dismissively. “And I don’t think I’m going to be available for any get-togethers anytime soon. Maybe some other time?”

Moondancer deflated on the spot. “I… b-but, I…”

From somewhere inside the tower, Spike’s voice rang out. “Hey, Twi! I found it!”

Twilight looked back over her shoulder, then turned back to Moondancer, speaking in a hurried rush. “I’m sorry, I need to deal with this. I’ll talk to you another time, Moondancer,” Twilight said. Moondancer didn’t even get a chance to speak before the door shut in her face.

She remained there for several seconds, her ears lowering. The wind was jeering at her, disparaging the effort and lambasting the result. The hope she had felt walking up here sputtered and died like a candle dropped into the ocean, leaving her cold and restless. She took a few timid steps back.

“I… I’m sorry I wasted your time,” she mumbled before walking away. The trip back down the tower felt even longer than the trip up, her mind torn by feelings of mounting inadequacy and disappointment.

By the time she was reaching the edge of the courtyard, she heard the sound of a door opening not far away. She turned to look to see Rainbow Dash emerging into the courtyard from another entrance, her expression contorted with grim contemplation. Something was troubling her, clearly. Moondancer felt a tiny tingle of an urge to go ask her what was wrong, but she had already made so much of a fool of herself today, she wasn’t eager to make it worse.

She watched as the pegasus ascended Twilight’s tower just as Moondancer had, eventually knocking on Twilight’s door. But unlike Moondancer, who had been brushed away with dismissal, Rainbow was practically yanked into the tower, the door slamming shut behind her. Moondancer felt a sting in her heart, and it soon journeyed to her eyes. The world blurred around her as she finally left the courtyard.

Twilight’s eyes were wide by the time Moondancer concluded her tail. A heavy feeling of guilt and shame settled over her chest, and she found herself once again unable to meet Moondancer’s gaze.

“It was only the first time I ever put myself out there,” Moondancer said tiredly. “And when I finally let my guard down, when I finally let Minuette, Lemon Hearts, and Twinkleshine convince me that other ponies might like me and want to be my friend, the one pony I wanted to connect with the most, the one pony who was supposed to be my friend already, didn’t even have the time of day to hear me out.”

Moondancer’s expression darkened, and she leaned forward. “But she did have time for the princess.”

Twilight blinked, her jaw agape as she searched for her words. “I... But I… I’m so sorry, Moondancer. If I had known how important that was to you…”

“Ah ah ah,” Midnight whispered in her ear, sending a chill down Twilight’s spine. “No lying, remember?”

Moondancer leaned forward angrily. “You didn’t even give me a chance to tell you!”

“Hey!” Rainbow cut them both off before their voices could rise again. “In Twi’s defense, she had just found out about Nightmare Moon, like, an hour before either of us showed up. And she was smart enough to figure out that it wasn’t just some old phony ponytale, either.”

“Oh, so I wasn’t even important enough to be warned?!” Moondancer shot back.

Rainbow held her ground, not even flinching. “Moondancer, Nightmare Moon had been a myth for a thousand years. A story to scare kids. About as real as Daring Do, as far as we were all concerned. If Twilight had told you that she was not only real, but also about to pop back up and bring eternal night with her, would you have even believed her?”

Moondancer’s disdain held for a moment. Then it faded, albeit only slightly. “I… I suppose not. Fine. Fair enough. Maybe that gives you an excuse for not coming. It doesn’t give you an excuse for brushing me off the way you did!”

“It doesn’t,” Twilight agreed, bowing her head. “I know it doesn’t.”

Moondancer fell silent, then looked away with a heavy sigh. She was shaking again. “Then you just left. You went to Ponyville and you never came back. You never even said goodbye, and when you came up to Canterlot, you never once took the time to see Minuette, Twinkleshine, or any of them…”

Moondancer glared at Twilight again. “I was humiliated! I felt like I wasn’t important!” The fire had returned to her eyes, and with it, something else. Something volatile. “And then, to top it all off, after Nightmare Moon and Discord, everypony thought you would be there to protect Equestria! They all sang your praises, confident that you’d be our hero! And I believed them! But then, when it was time for the changelings to take their swing at us, YOU WEREN’T THERE! And I…”

Moondancer’s tirade petered out before it even had a chance to fully manifest. A hollow, distant look came over her eyes. Twilight withered in her seat, recognizing that look as the very same one Rainbow had experienced long ago in Manehattan when they first ran into Starlight Glimmer in the streets…

Minuette inched forward, her ears drooping. “Moonie?”

“I… I-I, I… They…” Moodancer mumbled, her eyes completely unfocusing. She shuddered and wrapped her hooves around herself so tight it almost looked like her sweater would rip apart. She screwed her eyes shut as if trying to blot something out.

Rainbow was at the distraught mare’s side in a heartbeat, wrapping her hooves around her in a tight embrace. It only took a moment for Twilight to follow suit, followed closely by Rarity, and finally a dumbstruck Minuette. Moondancer made no effort to protest or shoo away the sudden phalanx of warm bodies enveloping her, nor did she respond to the soft whispers of reassurance from Minuette.

“It’s okay, Moonie,” Minuette told her, stroking her mane. “It’s okay. You don’t have to say anything…”

“They just… they just appeared,” Moondancer said. She didn’t register what Minuette was saying. “So fast. It all happened so fast. Ponies just… became them. They were in my house… Crashed through the roof. Lit it on fire. I c-couldn’t run. I tried. I tried… But they just…”

“Moondancer, please. It’s okay. You don’t hafta tell us,” Rainbow urged softly.

Again, Moondancer didn’t respond to her. She kept mumbling, recounting her experience in a strangled whimper of a voice. Even enveloped in so many ponies trying to help her calm down, Moondancer’s trembling was getting worse.

“They toyed with me… I f-felt l-like a m-mouse, and t-they were the cats. And then… th-then… they… they…”

Moondancer could say no more. She curled into herself even tighter, choking out a sob.

It didn’t take a genius to deduce what had happened next. The changelings must have trapped Moondancer in one of those disgusting pods. And judging by her response, she had been conscious for the whole ordeal. Or enough of it to leave a mark, at least. Twilight closed her eyes and squeezed Moondancer even tighter.

“Moondancer, look at me,” Rainbow suddenly spoke up when Moondancer sobbed again. Her voice was firm, yet still gentle. Twilight blinked and glanced at Rainbow as the pegasus extracted herself from the huddle and knelt in front of Moondancer, finally drawing her attention. Rainbow held her gaze for a moment.

“They… they…”

“It’s okay, Moondancer,” Rainbow said quietly. “It’s okay. The changelings are gone. They can’t hurt you anymore.”

“T-Twilight… She-”

“She wasn’t responsible for that,” Rainbow cut her off, a slight edge creeping into her voice. She looked away, a hint of all-too-familiar guilt appearing in her eyes. “...I was.”

Moondancer blinked. “W-wha…?”

“Rainbow, that’s not true, and you know it,” Rarity stated matter of factly. “Do not even think of-”

Rainbow closed her eyes. “Look. Whether or not I was responsible for the attack, It was still because of MY decisions that we weren’t there to stop the changelings when they attacked. I was the one who pulled the whole group away from Ponyville to go off to Manehattan because of my own stupid paranoia. Whether or not I’m responsible for the attack’s not the point.”

She lifted her eyes back to Moondancer and set her jaw. “If you gotta blame anypony for what happened to you, if you have to be angry at somepony besides the changelings, then be angry at me. I abused my power as a princess to go under Celestia’s nose and do things I wasn’t supposed to. I basically made all of my friends leave their posts, and it left Canterlot vulnerable to the changelings. It wasn’t Twilight’s decision. Heck, she tried to stop me. But I was too stupid and frightened to listen to her.”

Rainbow leaned forward slightly, taking one of Moondancer’s hooves into her own. “Now, take a few deep breaths. Can you do that for me? C’mon, deep breaths.”

Moondancer complied, taking a deep breath, and then another, guided by Rainbow. It might have been surprising for anypony else to see the pegasus in such a role, but not for Twilight. She watched Rainbow going through the motions with remarkable precision until finally, Moondancer’s episode began to subside.

Moondancer took one last deep breath and gingerly brushed the ponies clinging to her away. “Th-thanks…” she mumbled.

“Are you okay, now?” Spike ventured, having remained outside of the cuddling mound of bodies.

Moondancer shook her head. “N-no… but I will be. Maybe? I think? Ugh… I’m such a mess,” she lamented, burying her face in her hooves.

“Moondancer…” Twilight tried to console her, placing a hoof on her shoulder.

“Don’t even,” Moondancer snipped, brushing Twilight’s hoof away. “I’ve been a mess since I got busted out of that c-cocoon. My house was destroyed, my savings along with it, and the library where I worked got turned into rubble! Now I’m out of a job, my rent is due, the landlord’s threatening to kick me out, and to top it all off, I can’t even keep my composure enough to hold down a job for more than a month! GAH!”

Moondancer slammed her hooves down onto the coffee table with enough force that it sent the half-empty mug toppling over to one side. The instant before it would have spilled its contents, however, a glow of lavender magic enveloped it, holding it carefully in place. Twilight gently moved the cup back to the table, not quite able to meet Moondancer’s gaze.

“I’m sorry,” she finally muttered yet again.

Moondancer shook her head. “Yeah, you keep saying that. I don’t care. Just save it, okay? Just… just save it.”

A heavy silence fell over the entire room. Twilight took a few deep breaths of her own while her mind was spinning. She opened her mouth more than once to try and say something. Eventually, though, she was able to force something out. “Is there anything we can do?”

Moondancer shrugged. “I don’t know. You tell me.”

Another beat of silence came and went.

Moondancer rubbed the bridge of her snout with a sigh. “Look. I appreciate that you want to make up, Twilight. But right now? …Right now, I just want to be alone. It’s been a really stressful day, and you’re not helping right now. So just... just go.”

Twilight flinched, feeling as if she had been struck. She turned to Moondancer, opening her mouth to say something, but thought better of it at the last second. Instead, she simply settled for looking down at the ground. “Alright... We'll leave you be.”

With that, Twilight pulled open the door with her magic. One by one, the other members of the group began to filter out of the apartment, offering up hushed farewells as they passed. Minuette, in particular, lingered and even went so far as to give Moondancer one more hug before scampering out the door, hiding her face from view.

Twilight was going to be the last one out, following Rainbow and Spike. As she was passing through the threshold of the doorframe, however, a low, audible growling reached her ears. She glanced back at Moondancer to see an uncomfortable grimace on her face and a hoof on her belly.

With that, an idea came to her. It wouldn’t be anywhere near enough, but maybe, it would be a start. She turned to face Moondancer fully one more time. “Moondancer?”

“What?”

“...Can I at least go and buy you some donuts?”

Moondancer quirked a brow. “Donuts?”

Twilight put on a small smile. “From Donut Joe’s. We used to go there all the time when we were foals, didn’t we? It’s not much, I know, but… Maybe it’d be a start?”

Moondancer stared at Twilight for a moment, visibly perplexed. She then gave off a small snort of a laugh and shook her head in disbelief. “Pfah. Sure, why not? I could go with some comfort food right now.”

“Okay. Take care, Moondancer. I’ll figure something out. I promise.”

Moondancer met her gaze one more time. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”

Twilight’s smile faded. She said nothing more. With a quiet sigh, she closed the door behind her, leaving Moondancer in silence. She only briefly took note of the contemplative frown on Rarity’s face.

Uncertainty

Twilight gave off a tired sigh as she walked back into her parent’s house. It was evening now, and after nearly a full day of walking around, talking to ponies, and stressing herself out about how she was going to make things better between her and Moondancer, the familiar interior of her childhood home did wonders to put her body at ease. For a brief moment, her troubles, doubts, fears, and concerns faded into the background. Not forgotten, not even lessened, but set aside.

Rarity, Rainbow, and Spike followed closely behind her. The trio turned around to face the last member of the party, Minuette, who remained outside.

“You sure you don’t wanna come in?” Twilight asked with a welcoming smile. “I’m sure my parents wouldn’t mind a chance to catch up with you.”

Minuette smiled warmly, but shook her head. “Thanks, Twi, but I’m good. It’s been a long day. I’m kinda tired, and I’ve uh… I’ve got a lot to think about,” she said, looking away.

Twilight’s smile faded. “Right… okay.”

There was a momentary pause before Rainbow chipped in with her customary smirk. “Eh, no sweat. We can hang out another time if ya want. Twi and I are gonna be in town for another few days anyway, so if ya got time and wanna hang out, you know where to find us.”

Minuette perked up at the suggestion, her smile growing. “Right! I might just take you up on that!” she chirped before lunging forward. In rapid succession, she gave Rainbow, Twilight, and even Rarity big hugs, and Spike an affectionate head pat, before cantering down the street. “Goodnight! It was good seeing you again! And it was wonderful to meet you, Rarity!”

“Likewise,” Rarity called after her with an elegant wave. “Ta ta, dear!”

The others called their own farewells after Minuette before the door was finally closed. The moment it clicked shut, Twilight slumped against it, closing her eyes and taking a minute to just breathe and collect herself. When at last she opened them, weariness was reflected back at her perfectly by the eyes of those around her.

Rainbow put on a small smile. “Tired?”

Twilight said nothing. She pushed away from the door and led the way towards the nearby seating area. She threw herself into the first loveseat she could find and practically melted into the soft cushions. Rainbow sat down beside her and pulled the alicorn into a loving cuddle. Rarity sat across from them, with Spike predictably parking himself right next to her.

It only took a moment for the weight and stress of the long day to catch up to Twilight, slamming into the front of her mind like a sack of bricks. She buried her face into Rainbow’s chest fur and let off the mother of all exhausted moans. Only then did she finally deign to answer Rainbow’s question.

“Yes. I’m tired.”

Rainbow snickered softly. Twilight felt the vibrations of that quiet laughter through her girlfriend’s coat, followed shortly by a comforting hoof running down the back of her mane in a series of slow, soothing pets.

“I think we’re all tired,” Rarity noted from across the way.

“Mmph,” Twilight grunted, cuddling closer to Rainbow for a few seconds more. She just did not have the mental energy to work up a proper reply right now.

Several seconds passed in silence before a sound reached Twilight’s ears. Hoofsteps, drawing closer. Curious, she lifted her head from Rainbow to see her mother approaching with a warm grin.

“Twilight! Dash! Oh, there you all are! We were wondering where you were when we came back,” she said happily. “All we found was a note saying you’d be out for the day. Where have you all been?”

Spike tilted his head. “...A note? We didn’t leave a note.”

“Musta been Thorax,” Rainbow mused, furrowing her brow. “He was here earlier.”

Velvet came up short, blinking in surprise. “Thorax? The changeling you’re friends with? What was he doing here? He doesn’t usually come to visit us,” she asked curiously.

Twilight’s ears drooped. “I… er… it’s a long story.”

Velvet eyed her for a few seconds, and Twilight could instantly see the gears turning behind her mother’s eyes. It only took a moment for the ‘mama bear’ look to settle into place. Velvet stepped forward and sat down beside Twilight. “What’s wrong?”

Twilight opened her mouth to say ‘I’m fine’ as if on impulse, but clamped down on the lie before it had a chance to flee her lips. She didn’t say anything for several seconds. She stared at the floor, working her jaw and her mind. She briefly cast a glance in her mother’s direction, and when she saw the worried look in her eyes, Twilight’s silence crumbled into dust.

“I’m just… only now really realizing just how bad things were for the ponies I hurt,” she began, closing her eyes and launching into her story of the day. She told her mother everything, from the hostile encounter with Moondancer on the streets, to Thorax and Spiracle’s surprise intervention, to the hours spent wandering about town with Minuette, and finally the heavy conversation with Moondancer in her own home.

Recounting the events felt as if it took a lifetime. It was hard for her to imagine all of that happening in just one day, and yet here she was, looking back on it with the weight of what felt like a whole new year.

All the while, Velvet listened in silence, her eyes never once losing their shimmer of concern. Once or twice she interjected with a question, but she otherwise didn’t say a word. Her expression said more than enough. The deeper into the tale Twilight went, the more her mother’s face reflected her sympathy for Moondancer’s plight, her concern for her daughter, and her own distress at no doubt not having a readily available solution in her pocket.

“Goodness…” Velvet murmured as Twilight finally concluded her story. “I hadn’t seen or heard from Moondancer in years since you left for Ponyville. I had no idea things were so bad for her…”

“It’s dreadful to imagine,” Rarity added, closing her eyes. “I had always pictured Canterlot to be the pinnacle of high society. I was aware of the possibility that poverty must exist here, but… To see it with my own eyes?”

“Canterlot’s always had its grungier spots,” Rainbow chimed in with a snort. “It just got worse after the changelings showed up.”

“Not that it was ever pretty to begin with,” Midnight snipped quietly in the back of Twilight’s head. “The privileged were just better at hiding it all behind a lamination of pompous wealth… Not unlike yourself.”

Twilight tried to ignore her.

Rarity turned her attention to Rainbow at that, her brow furrowing. “Yes, and upon that note, Rainbow…”

Rainbow turned to her, quirking a brow. “Huh?”

Rarity leaned forward, disapproval written fiercely across her face. “Darling… why in the wide world of Equestria did you claim responsibility for the changeling attack?! You know that wasn’t your fault-”

“I didn’t, and I’m not.”

Rarity paused, tilting her head. “B-beg your pardon?”

Rainbow was quiet for a second, then shrugged. “Think about it like this. If you hire somepony to be the night watch for your store, and then they leave their post in the middle of their shift, and then somepony else robs the place because nopony was there to stop them, you’re probably gonna fire the security guard for being lousy at their job. If a city watch pony leaves their post, they can get slapped with some pretty major punishments for being AWOL.”

Rarity was quiet for a moment, tilting her head. “Well, yes, but-”

Rainbow kept going. “It’s kind of a similar deal with us. We were the only ponies who could use the Elements of Harmony. There was always this sort of… I dunno. It felt like an unspoken obligation, you know? We had to be where we could be reached just in case we were needed. Doubly so for me. I mean, I’m a princess for crying out loud. I’m supposed to be on hoof if things go sideways. Instead, I hauled you off to Manehattan to harass Starlight.”

Twilight gave Rainbow a quiet look. There wasn’t any guilt or shame on Rainbow’s face, however. Just a simple conviction.

“So, as a Princess of Equestria, I had a duty, and I shirked it. Simple as that. I wasn’t responsible for the changelings, I get that, but I was responsible for deciding my paranoia was more important than my obligation to my freakin’ country. I can take responsibility for that, at least,” Rainbow continued. “And not to be rude, Rarity… but I don’t expect you to really understand what that’s like.”

Rarity flinched and finally settled back into her seat. “I suppose you have the right of it on that front, darling. I couldn’t understand…” she muttered, toying idly with her mane.

Rainbow nodded. She leaned back in her seat, casually pulling Twilight in closer. “And putting all that aside, I was just trying to take some of the pressure off Twilight. I mean, she’s got enough to deal with, and I’m not the one with a devil waiting to set me off at the slightest provocation.”

Twilight felt her heart flutter slightly at that. A tender smile graced her lips, and she pulled herself tighter against Rainbow’s chest with a quiet hum. “Thank you, Dash.”

Rainbow smiled, giving her an affectionate squeeze. “Anytime, egghead.”

Twilight’s smile then faded. “That said… We still need to figure out what to do about Moondancer…”

Silence fell over the table for a few moments as everypony processed those words. Soon enough, Velvet let off a quiet hum and gave Twilight a few pats on the back. “Well… what do you plan to do about it?” she asked softly, a hopeful smile creeping onto her face. “Surely you have some big plan ready to go?”

Twilight had to resist the urge to laugh at that. “A plan?” she echoed incredulously.

Velvet blinked. “Well… yes? You’ve always been such a clever girl, Twilight. I would know, I saw it in your father long before you came into the world.”

“Booksmarts,” Twilight countered flatly. “I have booksmarts, mom. I can do formulas in my head all day! Give me a telescope and I can find a nebula in space in five minutes. Hoof me an encyclopedia and I can probably define the most obscure word in it off the top of my head! Hay, when it comes down to it, I can even be brave! I’ve fought changelings, Discord, and I faced down Nightmare Moon! But this?”

She stood up from the seat and walked a short distance, her head down under the weight of it all. “Maybe I could logic out one big solution, but the problem is that Moondancer is as bad as she is, in part, because of me! There isn’t any one problem to find a solution to, no one enemy to point the Elements at. It’s not an enemy, it’s not an invasive problem, it’s a consequence of my own mistake! It’s what happened when I didn’t even realize that I was stealing the memories of a pony who thought we were friends!”

She spun back to the others, throwing her hooves wide for emphasis. “I have no idea what I’m doing! I have no idea how to fix this, how to make it right! I want to, but how do I?! Where do I even start?! What could I possibly do that would even begin to make amends?”

All eyes were on Twilight following her tirade, however brief it was. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself before slumping to her haunches in a heap of exhaustion and confusion. “I just… ugh… I don’t know how, okay?”

She felt everypony looking at her. A moment later, she heard the tell-tale clicking of Spike’s clawed feet walking toward her. She looked up to see the baby dragon coming to a stop right in front of her. He tapped his claws together over his chest in a familiar display of nerves, and his eyes bored into hers.

“We’ll figure it out,” he finally said, stepping forward and giving her a hug. “We always do, don’t we?”

Twilight gave a soft smile, pulling Spike closer and closing her eyes. “Maybe,” she conceded. “Maybe…”

“If I may,” Rarity suddenly piped up, drawing Twilight’s eyes back to her. “Moondancer was once one of Celestia’s students, was she not? You were classmates. Would it not be possible to appeal to her to give Moondancer some relief?”

“If it was ever true that Celestia cared at all about her students, the simple fact is that she would have helped Moondancer long ago!” Midnight suddenly spat in Twilight’s head, manifesting from afar. “Besides. I will not suffer you to grovel at her hooves one more time! I will not be made to kneel to that witch!”

Twilight’s eyes fell on Midnight manifesting in the loveseat where she had been sitting a moment prior. The hatred and vitriol in the doppelganger's eyes was palpable. A thrill ran down Twilight’s spine, sending her to her hooves reflexively.

Rainbow took note of where Twilight was looking, momentarily confused. It only took a moment for the realization to click into place, and she promptly began to make goofy faces around where she hoped Midnight’s face was.

She was a little to the left, but the effort was appreciated nonetheless.

Midnight scowled and jumped from her seat, storming across the room until she was in Twilight’s face. “Don’t ignore me,” she snarled bitterly, her voice crisp and clear. “Celestia is not getting involved. She pushed you away, she invited this with her selfish refusal to share, and I will not let you crawl back to her. If you absolutely must fix Moondancer’s wretched life for her, then you will do it without Celestia’s help.”

Twilight frowned. “And who are you to command me?”

Midnight glared into Twilight’s eyes for a few more seconds. She then smiled. A sickeningly haughty expression that made Twilight’s spine tingle with frustration.

“I don’t need to command you,” Midnight taunted silently, striding past Twilight with her head held high. “You already made up your mind.”

Twilight turned to follow Midnight, but the apparition was gone when she looked. A chill crept down her back. “I hate it when she does that…”

“Twilight?” Rarity called, drawing Twilight’s attention back to the others. The look in the unicorn’s eyes was knowing. “Were you ‘distracted?’”

Twilight briefly glanced at her mother, then nodded. “Yeah… that’s a word to use,” she said, slowly making her way back to the group.

“Well, you aren’t distracted now, right?” Rainbow asked, patting the seat beside her. “So let’s get back to talking, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Twilight muttered, sitting beside Rainbow. She was quiet for a second, considering Rarity’s idea. Theoretically, it made sense. Celestia cared deeply for her students, and if it was brought to her attention that one of them really needed her help, Twilight could see no reason why Celestia would deny lending it.

Of course, Moondancer was smart enough to know this, so why had she not reached out to Celestia herself? Maybe it was simply pride. Or maybe shame. The embarrassment that she had fallen so low as to ask the leader of the land for personal aid. Given the air of aristocracy that tended to permeate so much of Canterlot, it would be a mark in her life she’d likely never be allowed to live down by those who considered themselves her ‘betters.’

If Twilight were to go to Celestia instead, then there wouldn’t be so much thrown Moondancer’s way. But the more Twilight thought about it, the more and more she found the idea of going to Celestia to be… unappealing. It just didn’t feel right to her, somehow.

Eventually, she pinned down why, and put her thoughts into words.

“No. I don’t want Celestia to get involved here if we can help it.”

Rarity blinked. “But… she could set this to rights just like that, couldn’t she?”

“Maybe she could,” Twilight acknowledged with a nod before looking Rarity in the eye. “The operative word there being ‘she’. Celestia would be fixing it. Celestia would be doing all of the work to make Moondancer’s life better, not me. If I go to Celestia, I’m confessing that I don’t have what it takes to make amends myself. I’d be passing the burden off to somepony else… And if I ever want to be forgiven for my mistakes, I have to earn it… I have to face the problem that I helped create, and I have to solve it.

“It’s like solving a math problem with a calculator instead of doing it manually,” she went on. “Sure, the calculator will absolutely give me the right answer, and most of the time, it’s probably the best thing to do. But I didn’t put in any of the effort to reach the answer. I just pushed in some numbers and voila. Answer. That’s good for practical situations… But this isn’t practical. It’s personal. It’s not about finding a sum.”

“An eloquent justification,” Midnight whispered from the back of her mind. “With perhaps a hint of truth, I concede. But still dodging the truth of it.”

“You can hate Celestia all you want,” Twilight shot back. “But I’m not keeping her out of this because you told me to.”

“Of course not,” Midnight mused, slowly fading into the distance. “That would imply I needed to convince you to begin with.”

Rarity nodded solemnly. “Yes, I suppose that makes sense, dear… But that still leaves the question, what are we going to do? It’s not exactly a simple situation we’ve found ourselves getting involved in.”

Twilight took a deep breath, closing her eyes. “I don’t know, yet… but I’ll figure something out. I know I will. I just need time to sort it all out in my head.”

A few seconds passed before Velvet stood up. “You should get some rest, first, little miss,” she said with a familiar maternal firmness that made Twilight equal parts nostalgic and fearful. She opened her eyes to see Velvet looking down at her intently. “Don’t make solving this problem an all-nighter, you hear me?”

Twilight opened her mouth to agree, of all things, but Velvet beat her to it.

“No no, don’t even think of protesting!” she said with a firm shake of her head. “You just sit there, get some rest, and cuddle your girlfriend. I’ll go get an early dinner going, and when that is done, you will march right up to your room and get some much-needed sleep!”

Twilight blinked at her mother’s resolute face, wide-eyed.

And then she laughed.

Velvet blinked, confused. “...What did I say?”

“I wasn’t going to protest,” Twilight said between her snickers, holding a hoof up to cover her muzzle. “I was actually going to agree with you. I am exhausted. Going to bed with this cuddleable doofus sounds like just what I need.”

She elbowed Rainbow in the ribs for emphasis.

Rainbow blinked, flushing slightly. “Cuddleable? Doofus?”

“You have nice chest fluff, what can I say?” Twilight asked, giving Rainbow a big grin.

Rainbow rolled her eyes, a small smile tugging at the corner of her lip. “Heh. So do you, egghead.”

Spike leaned forward, grinning. “So this is the part where you kiss, yeah?”

“Shut it,” the two lovebirds said in unison. They then stared at each other for a moment, before breaking down into a fit of laughs.

None of their problems had been solved yet. But if only for this one moment, Twilight was able to relax. She had time to work on a solution, and right now, she was ready to put it all behind her and take her ease.

And take her ease she did. True to her word, Velvet wasted no time in throwing together an early dinner, and even went out of her way to surprise her guests by making a spread of hashbrowns, pancakes, and various other delicious breakfast items. Night Light joined them before long, with Velvet taking the time to get him caught up from an out-of-the-way spot to keep from dragging down the tenuous high spirits the rest of the group was able to enjoy.

But through it all, there was still the lingering uncertainty in Twilight’s mind. The question of how to make amends for what she did to Moondancer was never silent, just buried. When she lay her head down against Rainbow that night, the question grew louder in her thoughts. It brought with it doubts and fears.

Thankfully, the slow rise and fall of Rainbow’s chest, the sound of her slumbering breaths, her slightly salty smell, and the feeling of her hooves and wings wrapped possessively around Twilight helped her rally herself. She didn’t have the answers yet, but she would give her all to finding them.

That silent, internalized promise was the last thing Twilight thought before drifting off to sleep.

Author's Note

This chapter got extended by a few hundred words so I could address something one of my commenters saw fit to bring up about the last chapter. Namely, the bit where Rainbow once again took the blame for the changeling invasion. It seems that Rainbow's intentions weren't written clearly enough in that scene, so I extended this chapter to clarify and show how Rainbow's perception of that disaster has changed as she's grown and matured since Consequences.

Quiet Walks

The last thing Twilight remembered was laying her head on Rainbow’s absurdly cuddleable chest and falling asleep, promising herself that, come the morning, she would devote every ounce of brainpower she could toward finding a solution to the conundrum of Moondancer. She had been anxious but also resolved. She was determined to give it her all despite the risk of failure.

But if that was her last memory… then how did she get here?

She didn’t even remember opening her eyes. She was standing in the middle of a seemingly endless space, illuminated from above by the light of the stars. The ground beneath her hooves was perfectly flat and reflective, like a mirror, and stretched on for eternity, vanishing beyond the infinite horizon like the stilled surface of the ocean. The air was still, but pleasantly cool.

“What the…?” Twilight questioned, turning this way and that for a clue as to where she was. It only took a moment before the running themes - and the familiar sensations - made it clear, and she realized what was happening.

As if on cue, the sky above was graced by a new heavenly body. The full moon faded into view with a pulse of platinum light and a low, melodious chime like a morning bell. The serene starscape below was bathed in pale radiance. Twilight squinted against it, waiting patiently for the pony she knew was about to emerge.

Sure enough, gliding gracefully down from the moon as if it were a portal was none other than Princess Luna. The alicorn’s descent brought her in a single loop around Twilight before, with an elegant flap of her wings, she gently touched down in front of the dreaming mare. The mirror-like surface beneath rippled gently under her hooves, but only once.

“Are you ever going to get tired of making dramatic entrances like that?” Twilight questioned with a small smirk.

Luna smiled right back at her, her wings folding up at her sides. “Once, my niece posed a similar question to me. I shall offer you the same answer I did her: So long as my entrances remain fun, then no, I shall not grow tired of them. And besides, it helps to pull my little pony’s thoughts away from the subject of their distress when I make a spectacle of my arrival.”

Twilight nodded along. She could see the logic in that. Make a big enough splash and you’ll draw all the attention you need. And in the realm of dreams, holding somepony’s attention was almost certainly harder than in the waking world. Especially if they weren’t lucid yet.

Twilight shook her head to dispel that train of thought and gave Luna all of her attention. “Alright, fair enough. But tell me… what are you doing here right now?” she asked curiously, glancing around at the beautiful, albeit barren, dreamscape. “I don’t think I was having a nightmare…”

“Perhaps not,” Luna noted with a small nod. “But that does not mean your mind is at ease. And I wanted to check in with you and touch base regardless. You are in Canterlot right now, are you not?”

Twilight nodded. “Yes.”

“And do tell… how has your first return to your home been treating you?”

Twilight winced, looking away. “It’s been… difficult,” she understated, her ears lowering.

Luna quirked a brow but did not appear surprised. “As I thought. Could I trouble you for the details?”

Twilight blinked, and a walkway of smooth stones had risen from the water, winding off into the distance. Twilight gave Luna a curious look. The taller alicorn merely smiled and nodded at the path.

Getting the idea, Twilight started walking, and Luna walked beside her.

“I’m not really sure where to start,” Twilight muttered, frowning. “How much do you know?”

“I have not been monitoring the situation as closely as you might think,” Luna confessed simply. “This is your first time in your home city in quite some time. I wanted to afford you your privacy, and not shove my muzzle where it does not belong.”

“A refreshing change of pace,” Twilight thought with a small degree of bitterness. She paused for only a moment, then shook her head to banish the invasive thought. She glanced up at Luna. “So, if I don’t want to tell you anything, you won’t make me?”

“Such a practice would be extremely counterproductive to meaningful therapy, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna replied. “I am not here to force you to do anything. In this space, I am a resource at your disposal, should you have need of me. Nothing more, nothing less.”

Twilight nodded quietly and focused ahead. The two walked on in silence for a time. Twilight took the chance to let her thoughts wander before she confronted her troubles. As they walked, a thought came to her, and she gave the alicorn beside her a questioning glance. “Will Rainbow be joining us tonight?”

“Do you desire her presence for this?”

“...Not yet,” Twilight decided a moment later. “When you and I are done, though, by all means. Send her in.”

A knowing look crept onto Luna’s face, and Twilight suddenly felt a tingle of warmth in her cheeks.

“Ah… so that is the way of it?” Luna asked in a tone that made it clear she knew exactly what Twilight had in mind. Twilight’s flush deepened, and she looked away with an awkward cough. Luna only chuckled. “Very well. You shall have your date when our matters are concluded.”

Twilight swallowed heavily, somewhat regretting bringing it up now. “R-right. Uh, well, how about I get you all up to speed on what’s been going on instead of talking about that anymore? That sounds like a great idea! Let’s do it!”

Again, Luna chuckled. “By your leave.”

Twilight gave a quick nod, then launched into a point-by-point recounting of her time in Canterlot so far. Luna listened attentively the entire time, her expression impossible to read. As Twilight was reaching the end of her story, the path led them out of the infinite starscape and once more into Luna’s tranquil grotto. The harp on the island was already playing a soothing melody as they stepped onto the shores of the little island, accompanied by the gentle lapping of the water at the island’s edge and the faint rustling of the trees over their heads.

“So… that’s where we stand,” Twilight confessed with a shrug of her shoulders.

Luna nodded, closing her eyes. “I see.”

Neither of them said anything for several moments. Twilight took a breath and found a place to sit down. As she looked, a large, soft, spongy-looking mushroom sprouted from the ground to serve as a chair. Grateful, Twilight closed her eyes and slumped into the seat with a long, tired sigh. A moment later, she covered her face. “I don’t know what to do, Luna… It’s all just so… complicated.”

Luna hummed contemplatively, taking a seat on a mushroom chair as well.

“So it is,” she said slowly. She affixed Twilight with a hard, thoughtful look. “But I have faith in your ability to come up with a plan of action.”

Twilight stifled a humorless snort. “Not going to hoof me an easy solution, are you?”

“If there were an easy solution to Moondancer’s troubles, you may be confident I would have employed it myself long ago.”

That reply gave Twilight pause. She turned to Luna, raising an eyebrow.

“I mentioned to you before that the minds of those you accosted that night had been haunted by nightmares, did I not?” Luna reminded plainly. “Yes, I know of Moondancer’s suffering. What I did not know was the extent of her history with you, nor was I fully aware of how difficult her life was before Midnight’s emergence. Such details she elected to keep to herself, even when I intervened in her nightmares.”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “So, you’ve already been helping her?” She asked in surprise, leaning forward. “I thought she’d been dealing with all of this all on her own! I mean, she didn’t say anything.”

Luna quirked an eyebrow at Twilight. “Forgive my bluntness, but do you believe she would have reason to share the contents of her dreams with you, given the current state of affairs?”

Twilight opened her mouth to retort, but the words died in her throat. She slumped back into her seat. “I guess not…” she confessed.

Luna hummed, her eyes drifting to look at her harp. “I have aided Moondancer where I can. But her recovery has been slow, and much of the progress I had made with her after the changelings invaded was undone in the wake of Midnight’s rampage. That was not so very long ago, and the various practical troubles she faces in the waking world continue to wear her down even as I try to help her build herself back up.”

Twilight felt another stab of guilt in her chest, her lungs constricting in response. She looked down, a withering sigh slipping past her lips. She might have uttered an apology, but the words did not come. Probably for the best. What would be the point? Her words meant nothing in isolation.

Luna continued a moment later, her tone lowering with melancholy. “She is shy. Vulnerable. Self-conscious. Lacking self-esteem. Easily upset… I have known many like her, both before and after my banishment. Such souls are often the most deserving of happiness, but helping them to accept it is an ordeal of patience. The self-destructive and harmful thoughts that can be bred from such a mindset are difficult to break down, and in the end, I cannot do it for her. And neither can you.”

Twilight felt a small pang of curiosity but forced it aside. She knew how Luna worked. The details of other pony's dreams were off-limits to her. She shifted on her mushroom and looked off to the harp, letting her thoughts relax under the guidance of its gentle lullaby.

“...Do you have any advice for me, at least?” she asked hopefully.

Luna hummed thoughtfully, closing her eyes. Twilight waited for several seconds for the lunar princess to speak. Finally, Luna opened her eyes. “Precious little, I am afraid… other than you should be prepared to accept it if Moondancer wants no more to do with you. At this stage, rekindling your old friendship is not likely, and no amount of amendments can ever take away the events of that night.”

Twilight sagged in place, her ears drooping. She had known that already, of course, but it still stung to be reminded of it so bluntly.

“Nonetheless,” Luna went on a moment later. “That is no reason not to try.”

Twilight was quiet for another few moments. Finally, she took a deep breath and gave a small nod. “I guess that’s all I can do now, huh? Try my best and hope I pull it off.”

Luna smiled. “And that you will try your hardest, I have no doubt. For all of your anxieties and fears, you have ever pushed through at the last. I have faith you will walk this path till its end, and walk it well, regardless of the outcome.”

“Right. Till its end…”

The two were quiet for a moment. Twilight closed her eyes and took one more deep breath, savoring the serenity of the environment. The fresh, fragrant air filled her lungs before she let it out in a long exhale.

Luna gave her a reassuring smile. “Have you any more concerns you wish to share with me, tonight?”

Twilight shook her head. “No. You already know the others.”

Luna’s expression darkened somewhat. “Midnight continues to hound you, then.”

“Yes. But I have her under control,” Twilight replied with a nod. “It’s pretty easy to ignore her with my friends around.”

Luna eyed Twilight cautiously for a moment, making the smaller alicorn feel uncomfortable. She suddenly felt as if she had said something wrong. Before she could press the matter, however, Luna’s lips twitched up into a small smile.

“Very well. If that is the case,” she began, rising back to her full height. Her horn flared up with pale light, and a familiar door materialized in the air beside her in a rippling shimmer. “Then I shall leave you and your love to your activities. Should you have further need of me, you know how to reach me.”

Twilight got up from her seat, sending the princess a grateful smile. The grotto around them was slowly fading away, replaced by a generic cloudscape beneath a starry sky. “We will, don’t worry.”

Luna didn’t say anything else. She just smiled and faded away like a breath on a mirror. With that, Rainbow’s door clicked open, and for a little while at least, Twilight’s concerns were forgotten.

Twilight’s return to the waking world was a pleasant one. She could feel the unmistakable sensation of Rainbow Dash nuzzling into the back of her neck, and the pegasus’ hooves wrapped snugly around her barrel from behind, mirroring how their time in the dream had ended. The warmth of the sun on her face as it lifted also did wonders to chase away her grogginess.

“Mmph. Yoo’wake?” Rainbow slurred groggily, making Twilight giggle.

“Heh heh. Yes, Rainbow. I’m ‘wake,’” Twilight replied. She gently pried Rainbow’s hooves off of her and rolled to face her sleepy girlfriend. Rainbow’s expression was even more comical than her mushy greeting. Tired eyes, a mussed-up mane, and maybe just the tiniest bit of drool leaking out the corner of her mouth.

Not that she needed to know that.

“Mmmf. Idsha slurll…?” Rainbow mumbled as she pressed her face into Twilight’s chest. Twilight wrinkled her nose. She could only assume that was supposed to be a sentence.

“...You want to run that by me one more time?”

Rainbow gave off a groan and pried her face away so she could speak clearly. “Ugh. Didya sleep well?” she tried again, actually enunciating this time.

Twilight snickered. “Ah. I slept alright, thanks,” she assured before leaning in for a quick kiss. When she pulled back she gave Rainbow her best ‘lovey dovey’ eyes. “Much better after you turned up.”

And with that, Rainbow went right back to cuddling her, probably trying to hide her now furious blush in Twilight’s chest fluff. Twilight rolled her eyes and held Rainbow closer.

The two lay there for what felt like an eternity. Not that Twilight was complaining. Rainbow’s warmth and embrace did wonders to keep her nerves in check, and she was more than happy to capitalize on the opportunity to just exist. No concerns, no worries, no immediate drama to tend to. Just her and the mare she’d fallen hopelessly in love with.

But, as with all good things, their peaceful rest had to come to an end. As the sun rose higher and higher into the sky, the temperature rose with it. And before long, joining the slow build-up of body heat and Rainbow’s sweaty musk was the irresistible smell of a freshly cooked breakfast.

Rainbow and Twilight tried to resist the siren call, but it was to no avail. Spike had trained them well, and if he had the help of Twilight’s family, then all hope of victory was lost before the battle lines had even been drawn.

Drawn out of bed like dogs to the smell of chicken, Twilight and Rainbow soon found themselves in the dining room, where a hearty meal awaited them, prepared by the suspected duo of Spike and Velvet. There was some idle chatter as they ate, but nothing Twilight felt particularly interested in committing to memory.

As they ate, Twilight’s mind instead turned to the uncertainty of her predicament. It wasn’t eating at her as much as before, mercifully. But still, it was there, just at the edges of her mind. Nibbling away at her thoughts.

Her inattentiveness and uncertainty must have shown. Soon enough the chatter around the table faded into silence. Twilight glanced up when she realized ponies were looking at her. Rarity and Night Light had joined the table since she had zoned out.

Twilight blinked. “What? What is it? Is there something on my face?” she asked, though she knew that wasn’t it.

Night Light pursed his lips, but Rarity spoke. “I asked you if you were feeling alright. You haven’t said a word since we got here.”

“Ah,” Twilight leaned back in her seat. “Sorry. I’m just thinking…”

Rarity hummed quietly, looking back down at her own meal. The silence that fell over the table was deeply unpleasant, but Twilight didn’t know what to say to break it.

She felt Rainbow’s hoof on her back in a silent display of encouragement. Twilight felt a small flutter in her chest and offered Rainbow an appreciative smile before returning to her meal.

The rest of the meal was had in silence, and all the while, Twilight was trying to piece together some kind of strategy to solve the problem in front of her. But try as she might, the ideas just wouldn’t come to her. It was maddening. She felt like she should have had the answers set up and ready to go just like that! Solving friendship problems and learning from them had been her entire life for the better part of a year after she moved to Ponyville, so one would think that she’d be prepared.

But the trouble was, none of those friendship problems had been this complicated, nor had they been caused by her own mind turning against her.

“Or the stupidity of those around you,” Midnight whispered into Twilight’s ear.

“What, like you?” Twilight shot back.

Midnight merely snickered, amused by the retort, and said no more.

Twilight shook her head, eyes locked onto her now empty plate. “Well,” she finally decided. “Loitering around my parents' house isn’t going to help.”

“I think I’m going to take a walk,” she announced as she rose from her seat.

Rarity almost immediately perked up. “Ooh! May I come with you, dear?” she asked, politely floating her plate over to Night Light, who had been assigned to clean the dishes after losing a coin toss with Velvet. “A morning stroll sounds like just the thing to clear out the cobwebs.”

Twilight smiled. “Sure, I don’t mind.”

“I’m coming, too,” Rainbow chimed in, rolling out of her seat.

Twilight smiled at her, glad for her company in particular. She then turned to Spike, who had said nothing, and yet the hopeful glint in his eyes, and the way he kept glancing at Rarity, said it all. And so, without a word, Twilight ensnared him in her magic and dropped him off on her back. “Yes, you can come, too, Spike.”

“Yes!” Spike practically cheered, perhaps a little too triumphantly.

“Goodness, I didn’t realize Spike was one to be so eager to go on quiet strolls,” Rarity commented, tittering into her hoof.

“He’s not,” Rainbow commented, giving Spike a sidelong smirk. “He just likes following things he likes.”

Spike gave Rainbow a hard glare that clearly said ‘shut the hay up.’

Thankfully—or disappointingly, depending on where one stood—Rarity did not seem to catch on to what Rainbow was implying. Or if she did, she did an absolutely magnificent job of hiding it. “Well, the more the merrier. Do we have a particular destination in mind, Twilight?”

“Not really,” Twilight said as she slipped out of the dining room. “But who knows? Maybe my hooves will take us somewhere nice.”

There was only a scattered hooffull of clouds in the sky, allowing for the late morning sunlight to chase away the chill of the mountain. Twilight welcomed the warmth and the purity of the air. As soon as they stepped outside, she picked a random direction and got to walking.

The number of ponies out on the street was relatively small, considering the hour. No doubt just the calm before the lunch hour storm, Twilight figured. She did her best to ignore the occasional glances their little troupe received. As usual, most of the attention was on the literal princess among their number. A tiny blessing.

The group shared brief bouts of idle chit-chat and banter as they were walking. Nothing of note. The topics always petered out and died long before they could evolve into anything of substance. Not that Twilight minded. It was nice to just stretch her legs and not think about her problems for a little bit. The reprieve wouldn’t last, and she knew that she was just stalling. But like with any problem, maybe stepping away from it, even if only for a moment, would bring that flash of inspiration she needed to turn it all around.

“Hey, Rarity?” Spike suddenly spoke up as the group was ambling by a series of empty roadside buildings up for lease. When Rarity turned back to him, Spike continued. “Think any of these places would make a good place for you to open up shop one of these days?”

Twilight expected Rarity to immediately launch into a long-winded tirade about how ‘this shop has the perfect front display windows,’ or ‘this one is just too small for my needs,’ or some other explosion of passion about her craft. When Rarity didn’t say a word, she turned to see the unicorn’s head tilted to one side, and one eye quirked in confusion.

“...Open up shop?” she questioned.

Spike tilted his head. “Er, yeah. You were wanting to open up another boutique here in Canterlot someday, weren’t you?”

Rarity blinked a few times before slowly nodding. “Ah, yes. Right. Of course. Hmmm…”

Rainbow gave her a questioning look. “You okay there, Rares?” she asked, beating Twilight to it by a second.

Rarity gave her a smile. “Perfectly fine, yes. Forgive me, but my own aspirations are a little far from my mind at the moment.”

Twilight hummed in thought, but said nothing on the subject.

They carried on for a short time, and before long they emerged onto a large boulevard, on one side of which was one of the public entrances to the grounds of Canterlot Castle. The drawbridge was lowered. Twilight paused on the side of the road, looking up at the imposing structure of the castle. The structure had always made her feel small like she was a little filly again. And that feeling sent a fresh wave of nostalgia crashing over her. Her mind wandered back to happier, easier days…

…And then to the last time she had been there. A chill raced down her spine, and she could practically feel Midnight smirking at her from the depths of her subconscious. For a moment, she thought she could hear the sound of melting glass, her own despairing wails morphing into murderous laughs, and see the horrified look on Spike’s face…

Rainbow nudged her gently from the side, chasing away the phantoms. Twilight turned to her. The pegasus’ concern was written plain on her face, but she said nothing. Twilight just smiled and nodded gratefully. She then turned back to the castle.

“Hey, do you all mind if we head into the castle?” Twilight asked, though in reality, she was more curious about whether she was even allowed to enter.

Rarity hummed. “I don’t mind. I’m always eager to marvel at the Princess’ abode.”

“I’m good,” Rainbow agreed. “But what’re we gonna do in there? Aside from some nice buildings and stuff and whatever’s happening with the guard, it’s pretty much all just stuffy paperwork and legal jargon.”

“Does a pony need a reason to admire the castle?” Rarity countered indignantly.

“When you lived there for years and got bored of said castle’s looks, kinda?”

“Girls, please,” Twilight cut them off with a flick of her tail. “There’s just something I want to check on. It won’t take long, I promise.”

“Yes, please,” Midnight snarled. “I don’t think I have the patience to deal with their pointless bickering.”

Rainbow shrugged. “Alright. Sure. Lead on, I guess.”

The group ventured toward the front entrance. A small tingle of anxiety crept up Twilight’s spine as they drew closer to the guards. One earth pony and one pegasus, both eyeing the passing crowds with scrutiny. Their eyes did land on Twilight but then shifted to Rainbow before they said anything.

Twilight wasn’t sure what face Rainbow gave the guards, but it seemed to do the trick, as they immediately snapped their eyes forward until the group had passed. Twilight gently bumped into Rainbow from the side and felt the gesture return, giving her a little tingle of warmth.

The castle courtyards were as beautiful as ever, but Twilight’s eyes barely even registered them. She soon found one of the familiar paved paths and followed it. She could hear Rainbow, Rarity, and Spike chattering amongst themselves, but she didn’t pay their conversation any heed.

Soon enough, her destination came into view, and she drew to a halt. The others stopped beside her, their conversation dying out, leaving them in silence. A gentle wind whistled through the otherwise empty courtyard, putting a feeling of foreboding deep in Twilight’s gut. It felt strange to look at it again.

Her old observatory tower rose high into the air from the center of the courtyard. Even from here, she could see that the window she had blasted through had been repaired. There was almost no indication that anything bad had even happened, or that so much heartache had reached a boiling point from within her old home.

“Twilight?” Spike spoke up quietly.

“I’m okay, Spike,” Twilight assured him. And she was.

Mostly.

Nopony else said anything. Twilight took that as her cue to continue and stepped forward.

There was only a small selection of guards scattered around the courtyard, standing vigil at doors that led to other parts of the castle. She saw them observing her as she climbed the steps, but she paid them no mind. She just focused on the steps in front of her. And soon enough, those steps led her to stand before the entrance to the observatory.

She ran a hoof gently down the grain of the wood. So many fond memories beyond this door… All tarnished, now. Blackened and smeared with soot and ash. Her ears drooped.

“Um… Pardon me, dear,” Rarity spoke up gently. “But is this…?”

Twilight nodded. “Yes. This was my home, once…”

“And it’s where you set yourself free.”

Without another word, Twilight gently pushed open the door. It let out a low, ponderous groan that echoed unnaturally in the empty space beyond. The interior was dull and unlit, and the stale stench of something burnt wafted up her nostrils. Motes of dust were kicked up from the disturbance, dancing in the air before parting like the sea before the prow of a ship.

Twilight swallowed heavily and ventured in. The first floor was unharmed, and a small smile of relief tugged at her lips. The small scattering of books she kept on the lower shelf in front of the door were all still there, untouched by the events of that night. They were slightly dusty, and she immediately recognized that they were not sorted in accordance with her current sorting style. A quick flick of her horn neatly arranged the three shelves of books into their proper order, clearing the lingering dust away in the process.

As she did this, Rarity spoke again. “Pardon me, darling… but you did not leave this place in good condition, did you?”

“When I moved to Ponyville?” Twilight muttered distantly. “No, not really. I was in a rush and I was scared. It was a total mess. I didn’t get to tidy it up until-”

The words died in her throat. She swallowed heavily and tucked the last book into place. She was stalling. She knew it. Deciding that enough was enough, she turned and climbed the steps heading up to the main floor.

As she emerged onto it, she was disappointed to find that there was nothing left. No furniture. No books. No reading pedestals. The giant hourglass was gone. Even the signs of the destruction she had left in her wake had been scrubbed. It was all pristine. But the lack of her old possessions sent a very clear message.

This was not her home. She did not belong here. Not anymore.

“There used to be a bed,” she said softly as she strode into the heart of the room. “There were bookcases all along the walls. A reading pedestal over there. All kinds of measuring tools and implements were tucked into the corners. Spike would sleep over there…”

Spike hopped down from her back as she advanced. She paused in the center of the room and looked back at him. His claws were tapping together in front of his chest again. His eyes bored into hers with concern. “Twilight? Are you…”

“I’m okay,” Twilight dismissed him, turning away. “I just… I wanted to be here. See if anything had been done with it after… After I let Midnight out.”

Rarity looked around uneasily. “Then… this is where it happened?” she asked. “Where that thing took over?”

“Oh, how they frolic in their ignorance.”

Twilight simply nodded. Silence dominated the room, and her mind began to wander. Memories of that horrible night once again bubbled to the surface. Rainbow’s confession of her lie of omission. The sudden feeling of Twilight’s world shattering under her hooves. The idea that she couldn’t trust anyone - not even her dearest friends - to be honest with her. Not even the pony who loved her.

It had all been too much…

“What came next was only natural.”

Twilight turned back to Rainbow. There was clearly a lot going on inside her head, but she was keeping it well hidden behind a stoic mask. She took several steps forward, her eyes wandering about the space. Twilight recalled that Rainbow shared a fair few of the memories they had of this place.

“...You remember when we had that sleepover here?” Twilight asked, trying to keep her voice optimistic. “When Celestia first gave me this place?”

Spike perked up. “Oh, I remember that! It was a lot of fun! Especially when Rainbow brought out all those water balloons!”

Twilight couldn’t help but chuckle. Now, that had been a disaster and a half.

Rainbow, however, didn’t answer. She didn’t even seem to realize that they were talking about one of her juvenile blunders. Her eyes were lingering on the window. Twilight’s smile died, and she shifted uneasily on her hooves.

Finally, Rainbow turned to her. Her expression was dark and solemn. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here.”

Twilight blinked. Rainbow held her gaze for a short while before walking up to her. Without a word, Twilight allowed herself to be drawn into a hug. She buried her face into Rainbow’s shoulder, taking a few deep breaths.

“It’s okay, Rainbow,” Twilight whispered to her a moment later. “You don’t have to apologize. It was-”

“Don’t say it.”

“But I-”

Rainbow’s hooves around her squeezed tightly, once again cutting Twilight off. Rainbow’s voice hardened. “Don’t.”

Twilight was quiet for a few moments. Then, with a nod, she pulled away. She snuck a quick kiss from Rainbow, uncaring about Spike or Rarity watching, then gave the pegasus her space back. For once, Rainbow didn’t seem bothered that there were observers.

Twilight turned to their audience. “Sorry, you two. I don’t really know for sure why I came here. I haven’t seen it since that night. I guess I just…”

Rarity only smiled and shook her head. “Now now, dear. You don’t have to explain it to us. Take all the time you need,” she said before looking down at Spike. “Both of you.”

Spike gave Rarity a warm smile before looking up and around. “Heh… it was really nice, living here. It was so high up. It was quiet. And Twilight didn’t have to go far for anything. If there wasn’t a shop right outside the walls that had what she wanted, she could just ask a guard to fetch what she needed.”

Rainbow smirked. “It was, in short, the perfect tower for the reclusive wizard.”

A surge of indignation sprang up in Twilight, and she opened her mouth to counter that, but the words died in her throat when she realized that Rainbow was kind of right. She closed her mouth and puffed up her cheeks in irritation.

Rainbow just smirked. “Tell me I’m wrong.”

“I won’t,” Twilight snipped. “But I will get revenge.”

“Try it.”

“You know I will.”

“I do. And ya know I’m lookin’ forward to it.”

Rarity smiled at the loving banter before walking up to the window. “Well, I can certainly see why you would enjoy it here, darling. It seems perfect for you.”

Twilight’s smile faded again. She turned to Rarity. “It really was. As much as I love the library, I’ve always had a soft spot for this place. I miss it, sometimes.”

“Did you ever consider coming back and just taking a few days off here?” Rarity asked. “For vacation or the like?”

“I might have,” Twilight answered. “If I had even remembered this place.”

She only realized after she said it how much bitterness her words carried. She took a short breath and shook her head to chase away the frustration at that part of her life. “It doesn’t really matter, though. I don’t think I could ever live here again after Midnight… And even if I could…” She gestured widely. “Look at it. Everything’s gone. The whole place is empty because I destroyed everything.”

Spike shifted uncomfortably in place. Twilight smiled softly and gingerly drew him into a hug from the side with her wing. He gave her a thankful nod and cuddled close to her.

Rarity nodded quietly. “Yes, I see what you mean… Empty and waiting for new habitation. A shame. It truly is a perfect home for a bookish sort like yourself.”

There was a pause. A lingering moment, like when a coin was tossed into the air and all eyes locked onto it, waiting to see it land. The almost inaudible ringing of the metal whistling through space.

The proverbial coin landed, and it was at that moment that Twilight was suddenly struck with an epiphany. Her eyes flew wide as, all at once, so many things clicked into place.

“A perfect home…” she whispered.

Rainbow tilted her head in confusion. “Twi?”

Twilight ignored her. She suddenly sprang away from Spike and shot over to Rarity. She took the startled Unicorn’s hoof in her own and shook it emphatically. A massive grin spread across Twilight’s face, and her wings were flapping of their own accord. “A perfect home for a bookish sort! Rarity, that’s it! You’re a genius!”

Twilight hugged Rarity. Rarity squawked in confusion.

“Twilight, what are you-” Spike tried, but it was too late. Twilight was already in motion.

“Don’t you see?!” She exclaimed as she broke away from Rarity. She flew up into the air to better address her friends. “I used to live here! It was a perfect place for me to call home! Far away from ponies trying to harass me, all the books I needed, and ways to get all the books I could ever want! A beautiful view, peace, and quiet! But I don’t live here anymore.”

Twilight spun in place for a moment, casting her eyes about her to once again drink in the sight of her old home. The feeling of loss and regret was still there, but it was now overshadowed by a powerful sense of hope. She turned back to her friends, her smile growing.

“I don’t think I ever could live here anymore. But I can think of somepony else who can.”

Spike seemed to catch on first. He perked up with a large smile before throwing his claws wide. “Moondancer!”

Twilight grinned and pointed at him. “Precisely!”

Rainbow quirked a brow. “Huh. I never woulda thought of that.”

“Of course, she wouldn’t. She’s an idiot,” Midnight spat.

“An idiot I’m in love with,” Twilight countered.

Midnight gagged.

Rarity hummed thoughtfully, clearly intrigued by the idea. “Well… the idea does have its merit,” she said softly. Her expression hardened with concern a moment later. “But are you certain? Tragic endings notwithstanding, this place was still your home for such a long time. Are you certain you just want to… pass it off?”

Twilight hesitated for a moment, a bead of uncertainty forming in her chest. She looked around at the old abode once again, her ears drooping. The emptiness stared back at her. Twilight stared into it for a long second, licked her lips, and finally offered up a nod. “Yes. Yes, I’m sure. Besides, you heard Moondancer.”

Twilight dropped back down to the floor, her enthusiasm for the idea now tempered by the solemn reality that prompted it. “She’s at risk of being evicted. She doesn’t have anywhere else to go, she doesn’t have a job anymore to help cover her rent. And worst of all, she’s too stubborn to reach out and ask anypony for help.”

A long silence fell over the chamber. Twilight turned to look out the window, at the cityscape of Canterlot beyond. Her face lowered. “Moondancer will get far more out of this place than I ever will. Ponyville is my home now. ”

With that, Twilight turned back to Rarity, looking into her eyes. There was a degree of scrutiny behind Rarity’s gaze. But slowly, ever so slowly, Rarity’s lips curled up into a sad smile. “Yes, I rather suppose she will…”

Rainbow took a few steps forward. “Alright, so… what’s the plan then? Just grab some paperwork and sign it over to her, or what?”

Twilight’s smile slowly returned, her enthusiasm for what was to come slowly returning. She stepped closer to the group, her mind spinning into motion as ideas took shape. “Not quite. I had a few other things in mind first.”

She placed a hoof on Rainbow’s chest, looking into her eyes for a moment before turning to Rarity, and then Spike. “But first, I’m going to need all of your help.”

Spike blinked. “Really? With what?”

Twilight turned to him, a grin slowly creeping across her face. “Spike? Get some paper. We need a checklist.”

Author's Note

Ooooh, Twilight has an idea. O.O

A Display of Generosity

Moondancer awoke feeling like death. She lifted her head from her pillow as the first rays of the morning sun filtered in through her old ratty curtains. She could see the motes of dust flitting to and fro in the air, reminding her of the squalor she called home. A series of long-familiar aches and pains across her body reminded her of their presence as she lifted herself off her lumpy mattress.

She sat on the edge of her bed for several long seconds, idly kicking her hind legs as her mind caught up with the rest of her. She didn’t have any pressing obligations today that she could think of. Without a job, she basically had nothing but free time. If only she had the resources to enjoy said free time…

Her thoughts momentarily flickered back to her conversation with Twilight the other day, and her already unpleasant mood soured further. Her run-ins with that sanctimonious mare had been hounding her thoughts ever since they had chanced to bump into each other on the street. And now it seemed like Twilight was steadfastly refusing to just leave her be. Even the sanctity of her own thoughts wasn’t safe from her anymore.

With a growl of frustration, Moondancer shook her head, forcing herself to shove the memories aside. She didn’t want to deal with them. She wouldn’t deal with them. She had more important matters to fill her time with. With a huff, she rose to her hooves and made her way to take a shower.

The aches and pains in her muscles receded under the assault of the hot water, and she felt her senses coming alive and awake. Once she was clean - or as clean as she could reasonably be expected to be, given her accommodations - she had a quick breakfast of leftover donuts - courtesy of Twilight - threw on her ratty old sweatshirt, and stepped out of her apartment.

She wasn’t entirely sure where she was going. She rarely ever did these days. Often she would just find herself wandering aimlessly, letting her eyes draw her to whatever caught her attention. Sometimes it was a listing for a job opening, sometimes it was a street performer. Sometimes it was other ponies who had it even worse than she did in the wake of the invasion or Midnight’s rampage. Whatever it was, it would be better than just standing idly around in her apartment. It was a roof over her head, but that was it.

Moondancer’s wanderings took her from the dingy backstreets where her apartment was located, and out into the wider streets of Canterlot. She allowed her senses to absorb the sensations around her as she walked. The cool mountain air filled her lungs. The distant calls and responses of the birds. The muted chatter of the morning crowds slowly swelling their ranks as more and more ponies came out to join the day. The fresh smell of coffee and pastries as street-corner cafes met the needs of their customers.

Simple things. Pleasant things. The day-to-day of normal life passing her by without a care. She soaked it all in like the rays of the sun, using it all to ground herself. For as many troubles as she faced, the world still turned and moved. It helped put her troubles into perspective. It didn’t mean she could easily banish them. But it gave her a moment to breathe and think.

She momentarily stopped in at one of the aforementioned cafes to pick up a bagel and a mug of coffee, then made her way to one of Canterlot’s many scenic parks. A wide-open field, with squares of land set aside for playground equipment where foals could enjoy themselves. A few paths of aesthetically pleasing cobblestone wound between artistically arranged copses of trees and bushes, affording grown-ups a place to meander around.

Moondancer found one of the benches and got comfortable, taking in a deep breath. From this point in the city, none of what was left of the damage done during the changeling invasion was visible. It was a perfect slice of peace within Canterlot as she remembered it. Moondancer closed her eyes and took in a series of slow, deep breaths.

She wasn’t sure how long she was like that before something disturbed her sleepless rest. She heard the fluttering of wings, and the gentle click of talons alighting on the backrest of the bench. Annoyed, Moondancer opened her eyes and turned to glare at the offending bird.

She blinked in surprise. It was a black bird, like a crow or a raven, but somehow off. The angles of its tail feathers didn’t match either of those birds, and its face was slightly too short. Its eyes were a vibrant shade of sapphire blue and twinkled with remarkable intelligence. But the most unorthodox thing about the surprise animal was the folded-up sheet of parchment held in its beak.

“What?” Moondancer asked quietly, staring at the bird in confusion. It hopped toward her before leaning forward, giving off a quiet trill. Did this thing want her to take the parchment? Moondancer furrowed her brow and gingerly took the paper in her magic, half expecting the bird to protest as its find was taken from it. To her surprise, it released the parchment with a happy nod.

Moondancer’s mind was already running on all cylinders. “Okay, so clearly intelligent… judging by the eyes, I’d say you’re probably a magical creation of some sort. A familiar, maybe? An arcane messanger?”

The bird just jerked its beak at the parchment. Then, without a sound, it spread its wings and took to the air, soon vanishing behind nearby trees. Moondancer felt the urge to try and catch it with her magic, and for a moment her horn flared with light to do just that. Eventually, however, she decided against the waste of energy. Now curious, she unfolded the parchment and began to read.

Apologies for the unusual greetings.

I’d have come to see you face to face,

but I think we both find little joy in typical meetings.

A mystery, then - or rather, a race.

I would meet with you, Moondancer,

And I would give you a present.

But no fun is to be had in a straight answer,

And I know the allure of a riddle’s scent.

My little friend - you know of whom I speak.

He will have flown north. Follow him.

Over cobble and feather to the mountain’s peak,

Where knowledge sleeps and sings sunlight’s hymn.

Should the path become obscured,

And should your way be lost,

Then turn your gaze heavenward,

And find where the blackbirds crossed.

At journey’s end, I shall await.

I yearn to meet with you.

I pray that you can conquer your fate.

And that I can, too.

Moondancer read the poem a few more times, her brow furrowing with every repetition, and her mind racing. Who in the world could have sent her this? Whoever it was, they had been aiming for a sort of flourishing style with their writing, no doubt trying to make the words look fancier than they really were, and only mostly succeeded. Moondancer was very quick to pick out the tacked-on tail on that lowercase b!

She contemplated tossing it away. No good could come of listening to the instructions of a mysterious note given to her by a unique black bird. It was all just too suspicious…

But the note had been right about one thing. The alluring scent of this mystery was just a bit too enticing for the troubled academic to ignore. And so, with a huff, Moondancer rose from her bench.

“Follow the bird, huh?” she asked, gazing off to where the blackbird had vanished beyond the tree. “And keep my eyes on the sky? I think I can do that.”

With that, she set off at a brisk pace, curious - and apprehensive - about what awaited her at the journey’s end.

Twilight looked at it all with an equal mixture of anxiety and hope.

The inside of the observatory had undergone a remarkable transformation in the last twenty-four hours. A transformation she knew she never could have accomplished all on her own. Decorative banners stretched across the high ceiling, while various folding tables were arranged around the edges of the central chamber. There was also a large array of speakers - borrowed from a DJ down in Ponyville - that presided over the clear space in the heart of the room. ‘The dance floor,’ she had said.

Twilight wasn’t entirely sure if a dance floor was really what this event called for, but she wasn’t the expert.

The expert was currently chatting it up with Minuette and Rarity a little ways away. Pinkie Pie was bobbing energetically in place, thrilled to have been brought in to do what she did best. Thanks to some swift flying from Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie had been brought up from Ponyville to assist them in their plans.

Things had gone even better than expected when Pinkie Pie and Minuette turned out to already know each other. Apparently, Minuette spent a lot of time with her when she was down in Ponyville visiting Lyra, another member of their old friend group that Twilight had let fall out of her life. Thanks to that, the two had fallen into near-perfect synchronization when it came to putting all of this together.

A party for Moondancer, housed in Twilight’s observatory, where the deed to the tower would be passed on to the guest of honor - among other things. Everything was ready. All they needed now was for Moondancer to appear…

Twilight shifted uneasily in place, looking this way and that for any sign of their chosen messenger and guide. As of now, however, she saw no sign of the birds in question.

“Come on, you two,” she thought, shifting uncomfortably on her hooves. “Where are you…?”

“Oh! Somepony’s gone all frowny face again!” Came Pinkie’s sing-song voice from nearby. Startled, Twilight turned to her as she and Minuette walked up. “Are you still worried?”

Twilight nodded. “A little bit, yeah. She was pretty volatile last time I saw her,” she confessed, looking around at the prepared party once again. “All of this is wonderful, and I imagine she’d like it any other time. Or, at least, she’d appreciate the effort. But… coming from me?”

Minuette pulled Twilight into an affectionate side hug. “Aww, c’mon Twilight. Have a little faith. It’s not like things can get any-”

Pinkie’s hoof suddenly pressed itself to Minuette’s mouth, silencing her. Pinkie’s expression was paradoxically serious. “No! None of that! No Jinxies!” she commanded. “If you say things can’t get worse, they will get worse! Them’s the rules!”

Pinkie withdrew her hoof, drawing a bewildered blink and tilt of the head from Minuette. “Huh?”

Pinkie just grinned. “Haha, please,” she said before turning and pronking away, singing a little diddy to herself as she went.

The two watched her go for a few moments longer. Then Minuette chuckled and lightly elbowed Twilight in the ribs. “Well, either way. Fretting about it now won’t do anypony any good, Twilight. So come on, try to relax, mmkay?”

“Quite right. We’ve all done just about everything we can do for now, dear. Why don’t you sit down and take a rest? You’ve been running yourself ragged all day trying to get this set up,” Another voice added from behind. Twilight turned to see Rarity standing there, a warm - if tired- smile on her face. A face that was, Twilight couldn’t help but notice, sprinkled with the occasional bit of residual confetti or glitter.

Twilight was still not entirely convinced, but she knew well enough that it was pointless to argue with Rarity or any of her friends when they got uppity about her anxiety. Probably a good thing, really.

Unfortunately, there wouldn’t be a chance for her to sit down and relax. A thud from high above signaled the opening of an upper window. Twilight looked up, spotting Rainbow Dash soaring down for them from up above, followed closely by two blackbirds, one on either side.

Twilight felt a lump of dread and tension forming in her chest. “She’s coming. It’s time,” she muttered under her breath.

Rarity gave her a reassuring nod. “You will be fine, darling.”

Twilight took a moment to absorb the reassurance before stepping forward to meet Rainbow Dash as she touched back down. At the last second, the birds beside her both erupted into emerald flames, and Thorax and Spiracle emerged from the embers.

Thorax grinned. “Hook, likn, and sinker. She ate the note right up and followed us without a second of hesitation!” he declared triumphantly, thumping a hoof to his chest.

“She’ll be here any moment,” Spiracle added. “She spotted us flying in through the window.”

“Which means she totally knows that we’re behind that note,” Rainbow added, dusting off her flank with a few flicks of her wing. “Still dunno why you wanted me to write it, though…”

Twilight walked up to Rainbow and gave the mare a quick peck of a kiss, drawing an embarrassed squawk out of her. Twilight idly noted how Spiracle looked away uncomfortably and licked her lips at the display, but did not comment on it. When she drew back, she gave Rainbow a smirk. “She knows my horn writing, Dash, not yours. It was to keep her off the trail until she was in too deep to back out.”

“Sly,” Spiracle pointed out. “I like it.”

Rainbow shot her a look. “You would.”

Spiracle shrugged. She smirked slightly. “I was a spy.”

“Either way,” Twilight interjected before that discussion could continue. “She’s on her way! Which means-”

“SHE’S HERE!” Pinkie Pie suddenly bellowed like a banshee. “PLACES EVERYPONY!”

“Does that idiot not understand the meaning of subtlety?!” Midnight demanded irritably. “If you are all so deadset on a surprise then her yelling is-”

“Okay, Pot, yell at Kettle later!” Twilight cut her off with a scowl.

Internal bickering aside, the next few moments were a hectic scramble as the lights were shut off, the curtains were drawn, and everypony present found the best hiding spot they could. Thorax and Spiracle were quick to snap back into their bird forms and vanish up into the rafters, while most everypony else dove under tables. Pinkie elected to hide behind the music station. In a few short seconds, the room was plunged into silent darkness, illuminated only by a thin sliver of late morning sunlight streaming in through the gap in the curtains.

Twilight found herself next to Rainbow Dash and Rarity in their hiding place under one of the tables, hidden from view by a white tablecloth.

The seconds ticked by, dragging on as if they would last into eternity. Twilight held her breath anxiously the entire time, her wings starting to twitch against her sides. She felt a comforting hoof fall onto her shoulder blades and took what comfort she could from the touch.

The sound of the observatory’s lower door creaking open disturbed the silence, and the narrow sliver of light it let in mingled with that of the window. Hoofsteps echoed slowly up the steps. Twilight took a breath and chanced a peak under the tablecloth. Sure enough, there was Moondancer, stepping with even, measured paces into the room, her horn aglow.

And then the window drapes were yanked back with a burst of Minuette’s signature yellow magic. It was like a flash of thunder going by how Moondancer yelped and flailed back from the sudden change in brightness, a hoof flying up to her eyes. Twilight heard Rainbow snort in amusement before rising to join the next part of the plan.

From all their various places, all the gathered ponies and two changelings poked their heads out, and, as one, called out the word, “Surprise!”

Somewhere hidden within the observatory that Pinkie had stalwartly refused to reveal, a series of loud bangs went off, followed by the jovial squealing of party horns. Confetti and streamers exploded out of every conceivable nook and cranny, fluttering and slithering down to the floor like colorful snowflakes.

Moondancer rubbed at her eyes for a moment, growling in irritation from the sudden burst of noise and color, before lifting her eyes to look around. Twilight felt herself smile just a little wider when she saw the way Moondancer’s jaw dropped in surprise at everything that had been put together.

Pinkie Pie rose at the music station. She casually leaned over it with one hoof on her hip. “There you are, Moondancer! We’ve been waiting for you, silly filly!” she called with a happy wave. “I’m Pinkie Pie! Nice to meet ya!”

Moondancer shook her head, still clearly off-balance. “W-what is this?!” she demanded, looking around at the decorations and assortment of smiling faces. Twilight felt a twitch in her chest when Moondancer’s eyes landed on her. The unicorn’s expression instantly darkened. “Twilight. What are you doing?”

Twilight hesitated only for a moment. The weight of all of her preparations - and the fear that it might all be for nothing - settled over her shoulders. But it was too late to back down, now, and even if she could, she wouldn’t. So she swallowed the lump in her throat and stepped forward, putting on her best smile. “I think the balloons speak for themselves,” she said. “But this is a party. For you.”

Moondancer’s eye visibly twitched. “A party?” she echoed incredulously. “Really? Is this all you can think of? No thanks.”

Twilight’s ears drooped as Moondancer turned on the spot.

“I don’t do parties,” she spat, casting a bitter glare back at Twilight over her shoulder. “Especially not with you.”

Midnight growled in Twilight’s mind. “What an ungrateful horse. I don’t know what you see in her.”

Twilight, however, held her ground against both undesired responses. Ignoring Midnight’s scathing commentary, she stepped closer to Moondancer. “Maybe not… but you used to, didn’t you? After all… you tried to invite me to one.”

Moondancer looked away. “Yes, I did, and you and I both know how that turned out.”

Twilight flinched. Moondancer’s tone was as sharp as a razor, and every word dug deep and hooked into her mind like barbed wire. “We do,” she confessed, coming up to Moondancer’s side with a disarming smile. She waited a moment, and Moondancer finally afforded her an impatient, but waiting, glance. She took that as her cue to continue. “I didn’t listen. I didn’t even let you talk. I let you down that day, and no amount of saying I’m sorry will make it better.”

Moondancer opened her mouth to offer up some scathing remark, but Twilight held up a hoof to stop her. “And before you say it, yes, I know that a party won’t do anything to make up for what I let Midnight do to you, and it won’t make what the changeling invasion did to you any better.”

Moondancer’s lip twitched up to show her teeth. “Then why bother? Why did you drag my tail all the way out here on that stupid bird chase?! Why can’t you just leave me alone?!”

Twilight’s smile died at that. She looked down for a moment, taking a breath. “...Because I didn’t just put together a party for you.”

That got Moondancer’s attention. She turned fully to face Twilight, quirking a brow. As the conversation was dragging on, the other party-goers were forming a circle around them, albeit at a respectful distance. Pinkie remained by her place at the sound station but nonetheless looked on with hopeful eyes.

Twilight met Moondancer’s gaze again. “I don’t know if anything I do can make up for how I hurt you,” she began. “And if you really don’t want me to, then I’ll stop pressing the issue. But after everything that I’ve seen, I couldn’t just sit by and do nothing… And so, Moondancer, that’s why I have a few things I want to give you.”

That was the first cue. From above, Thorax and Spiracle took wing with loud caws, drawing all eyes up to them. Moondancer watched as the two blackbirds swooped to either end of a large furled banner that had been secured to the ceiling. They pulled at the chords that kept it hidden from view, unfurling it and revealing the contents.

WELCOME HOME, MOONDANCER!

The large words were written in large, pastel purple letters, with a stylish depiction of her cutie mark framing the last letter of her name. Moondancer’s eyes flew wide, her jaw dropping open yet again.

Twilight smiled at the reaction, and she heard Rainbow snickering in satisfaction nearby. Ignoring that, she pressed on.

“As you know, I used to live in this observatory before I moved to Ponyville,” she said softly. “And it was a perfect place for me. Far away from other ponies, easy access to every book I could ever want or need, and a beautiful view. As my friend Rarity put it, it was basically my own little wizard tower.

“But I don’t live here. Not anymore,” Twilight went on, her expression falling. Memories of her Fall flickered through her mind, and she could feel Midnight smirking at her. “I don’t have the right… But I do have the deed.”

Moondancer turned to her, eyes wide. “You didn’t…” she said in disbelief.

Twilight met her eyes, smiling confidently. “Moondancer, I live with Rainbow Dash. You would be surprised by what I’m capable of.”

Rainbow frowned. “Should… I be offended by that?” she asked. “I feel like I should be offended by that- Ow!”

Rarity kicked her in the hoof to shut her up.

Twilight rolled her eyes before continuing. “I want you to have this place, Moondancer. A gift from me to you.”

Moondancer stared at her in shock, her glasses sliding cutely down her nose. A moment passed before she noticed and quickly pushed them back up. “But- but- It’s enormous! And it’s on the castle grounds! I can’t afford to live in a place like this! How would I ever make rent?!”

Twilight shook her head. “You don’t have to worry about that. I didn’t have to pay a bit while I was living here, and I still don’t. Thanks to a little bit of help from a certain Princess I’m in love with, that benefit now extends to you.”

“You’re welcome,” Rainbow piped up once again with her signature cocky grin. Rarity gave her an exasperated glare, making her flinch back. “What?”

Moondancer still didn’t seem convinced. “Okay, fine, but… This place, it’s… it’s your home, not mine!”

Twilight’s smile softened even more. She shook her head. “Maybe it was my home, once. But like I said. I don’t have any right to claim it for myself. Not after what I did. But I don’t want it to go to waste, either. You’ll get far more use out of it than I will. And besides… what good is a home if there’s nopony to live in it?”

Moondancer was quiet. She turned around, looking around at the observatory with a new look in her eyes. A few seconds carried on in silence before she managed to choke something out. “You can’t just… I can’t just…”

“Take it off my hooves, Moondancer,” Twilight pressed gently. “I don’t need it.”

Moondancer didn’t say anything for a few more seconds. When she turned back to Twilight, she was obviously trying to hide a storm of emotions behind a stoic mask.”A-alright… if you insist, I guess I can take it,” she finally relented, a ghost of a smile flashing across her face. It was there only for a fraction of a second before it was gone, but Twilight saw it.

She relaxed, a wave of relief washing over her. So far, so good. “Thank you.”

Moondancer snorted. She took off her glasses and rubbed a hoof over her eyes. “F-for what? You’re the one that just gave me a freaking tower to live in.”

Twilight just shook her head. “Heh… never mind. Welcome home, Moondancer. Consider this a housewarming party, now.”

Moondancer let off a sound somewhere between a sob and a laugh. “Hah! I guess so, huh? Th-thanks…”

“And that’s not all!” Minuette suddenly piped up, hopping in place. “Twi, Twi Twi Twi! Go on! Tell her the next bit!”

Moondancer looked about ready to faint. “But- wait- there’s more?!” she asked.

Twilight snickered. “Heh heh. Yes, Moondancer, there’s more. You know the old theater where they usually put on the Hearthswarming Pagent every year?” she asked.

Moondancer nodded. “Uh… yeah?”

“I have a friend who works there, you see,” Twilight said, flicking her eyes briefly up at Thorax in the rafters. He nodded quietly, his beak visibly curling into a smile. Twilight turned back to Moondancer. “And he said they recently started looking for somepony to help with scheduling their events and performances. If you’re interested, he agreed to put in a good word there for you.”

Moondancer actually laughed. “Sweet Celestia, are you kidding me?” she asked, adjusting her glasses. “A party, a house, and a job?!”

“And we're not through yet,” Rainbow chimed in again. She deftly ducked away as Rarity took a swipe at her before sticking her tongue out at the fashionista.

“Oh, so there’s even more?!” Moondancer exclaimed, falling to her haunches and throwing her hooves into the air. “What’s next?! The throne of Equestria?!”

Twilight chuckled at that. “Ha! No, I don’t think I could pull off anything even remotely like that."

Moondancer tilted her head. “Then what?”

Twilight’s smile faded, and her voice lowered to a far gentler tone. “...I wish I could say that I can’t even imagine what it must be like, having to deal with what the changelings did to you. What I did to you… And maybe I can’t. But I do know that so many of the problems we face in our lives can’t be solved all on our own. That’s why we make friends, after all. To help us when we need help, pick us up when we fall down, and steer us right when we mess up. I’m lucky to have surrounded myself with so many friends to help me overcome my trauma. But… you don’t have anypony like that, do you?”

Moondancer was quiet for a few seconds. She looked down, her ears drooping, but she said nothing.

Twilight continued. “I thought so… Aside from Minuette, I didn’t see any sign of friends in your life. I can only imagine my blowing you off is to blame for that. Like you said… you didn’t want to be hurt like that again. And I get it. But that doesn’t mean you should have to carry your burdens all alone…”

That was Minuette’s cue. She stepped forward until she was at Twilight’s side. Her face was lowered, but her tender smile was no less genuine. “That’s why… if you don’t mind… I’d like to ask you to hang out with our old friends from magic school with me. I still hang out with them all the time, and I know they’d love to see you again. We…”

Moondancer’s eyes slowly widened as Minuette hesitated, a tiny tremor creeping into the blue mare’s voice. A second later, Minuette cleared her throat and affixed Moondancer with the widest, most sincere smile she could muster. “We’ve all really missed you. And maybe we can help you.”

Moondancer just sat there for a little while after that. She looked around the interior of the observatory one more time, mouthing like a fish. Finally, after what felt like forever, Moondancer slowly got back to her hooves. “This is… all of this… it’s…” she stammered out. “All of this… to apologize?”

Twilight nodded slowly. “Yes. Again, I don’t know if I can ever really make things right between us. But… maybe I can at least make things right for you. If I can do that much, at least, then… maybe I can live with myself, again.”

Moondancer gave her a questioning glance.

Twilight looked away. “Even after all of the things I’ve faced - Nightmare Moon, Discord, Sombra, Chrysalis, even death itself… nothing could have ever prepared me for what I felt when I saw how my actions affected you. It was the worst feeling I’ve ever had. And I can’t get rid of it. Maybe I can move on from it, but I can’t forget it. It’ll haunt me forever… I just hope that all of this can make sure that what I did doesn’t have to haunt you, too.”

Moondancer was quiet for a few more seconds. Finally, she got back up to her hooves. She sniffled quietly and again took off her glasses to wipe at her eyes. When she spoke again, there was a forced calm to it. “...I can’t forget what happened either. And I’m not sure I can ever forgive you for it. But, as far as apologies go…”

She looked up and around at the observatory again before affixing Twilight, for once, with an actual, genuine smile. “...This is a good start.”

Twilight almost toppled over with relief at that, her legs going weak from the sudden surge of relief she felt. She had to hold herself back from launching herself at Moondancer to give her a hug. So instead she launched herself at Rainbow Dash, who was appearing similarly triumphant.

As the two lovers struck the floor with a loud crash, Pinkie let out a holler of delight from the sound station. “Ha! Alright, everypony! In that case, if all of the drama is said and done, then how about we get this party started?!”

Without waiting for an answer, Pinkie practically punched a button on her control panel. Colorful party lights suddenly flashed on from hidden places along the roof, marking the dancefloor with a series of dancing, colorful circles. The room was filled with the deafening blast of electronic dance music, and even more confetti blasted out of somewhere.

“I guess that answers that!” Minuette cheered, rearing up on her hind legs. She turned to Moondancer with a wide grin. “How about it, Moonie? Wanna take your old school pal on a dance?” she asked, holding out a hoof.

Moondancer leaned back, eyes wide. “Uh, wha, I mean, I don’t- it is VERY loud in here!?” she yelled, though her words came out like a question.

Rarity tittered into her hoof. “Yes, dear. That is how a Pinkie Party works.”

Minuette wiggled her hoof enticingly. “C’mooooon~ Take me for a spin! Or I can spin you! Either way! Somepony is spinning on the dance floor today!”

Moondancer looked around as if for an escape. “I… I don’t really think- WHAH!”

Minuette, deciding that enough was enough, latched onto the bookworm’s hoof with one of her own before practically hauling her out onto the dance floor. To say that Moondancer was unprepared would be a dramatic understatement.

In a way, she reminded Twilight of herself on the night of Shining and Cadance’s wedding. How she and Rainbow had gone out onto the dance floor together and basically stolen the show… after Rainbow had to bear the ignominy of seeing Twilight try to dance on her own. She had moved like a stiff robot.

It was… charming, to put a charitable word to it. And a touch embarrassing. Twilight looked down at Rainbow, who was still pinned to the floor beneath her. “Did I used to look like that?” she asked in a whisper.

Rainbow kissed her on the nose and flashed her a smirk. “You kidding? You still look worse.”

Twilight’s expression flattened. “Gee. Thanks. I’m really feeling the love tonight.”

Rainbow snickered and lightly nudged Twilight off of her. “Heh. Love you, too.”

“Aaaw, Rainbow initiated! Adorable.”

Rainbow’s face immediately turned a very impressive shade of red at the sound of Rarity’s voice from beside them. The two lovebirds looked up to see the unicorn smirking down at them with a positively predatory light in her eyes.

“Rarity. Not a word,” Rainbow warned.

“Oh, darling, come now. Everypony knows how much of a softie you really are.”

“Rarity, I will break your sewing machines!”

“Try it and see what I can do with your hide using my bare hooves and a needle.”

“...Nevermind.”

Twilight laughed. This party was going to be amusing, she had a feeling.

Twilight was not wrong. Though it took a little while for Moondancer to get into the swing of things, she was unable to resist the allure of a well-prepared Pinkie Party. There was also the fact that Minuette was absolutely relentless in bringing Minuette from one activity to the next. Being both, Moondancer’s closest friend in the room, and a regular attendee of Pinkie’s parties when in Ponyville, she was the obvious choice to lug the flustered bookworm around.

Eventually, Moondancer did give in and embraced the chaos and the noise, though she remained close by Minuette’s side basically the entire time. Twilight did not mind, though. She was just glad to see an actual smile on the other mare’s face. She knew it wouldn’t last. One party and one massive apology wouldn’t chase her problems away.

But for this moment, this one special afternoon, Moondancer could at least focus on something that made her feel good for a bit, and Twilight was determined not to intrude on that. So instead, she capitalized on the occasion to dance with Rainbow - much to the amusement of all present who had yet to see Twilight trying to dance. She could hear Thorax chittering with laughter at her from above.

Things began to wind down as the sky began to shift from vibrant blue to a gentle teal in preparation for the evening. Twilight found herself seated at one of the tables off to one side, a cup of juice in hoof. Rainbow sat next to her with a mug of the hardest cider she had legally been allowed to fly with, while Rarity and Spike sat across from them.

Twilight looked across the room at Moondancer. She was sitting at a different table, talking quietly with Minuette. The two wore soft, thoughtful expressions. Some small part of Twilight wondered what they were talking about, but she refrained from listening in. Instead, she turned back to Rainbow Dash. “So… how did I do?” she asked.

Rainbow eyed her for a second, then flashed her a grin. “I’m kinda biased, but I think you did awesomely,” she said, lifting her mug as if for a toast.

Twilight rolled her eyes and lifted her juice to match it. “Heh. Thanks, Dash… I was so scared it wouldn’t work.”

Rainbow’s smile faltered somewhat. “Trust me. I know.”

Twilight’s own smile faded. Her mind wandered back to those dark days after Discord when Rainbow’s own insecurities had been at their worst.

“I second the notion,” Rarity added, drawing Twilight’s attention. The pearly mare leaned across the table, her eyes alight with warmth. “For what my opinion is worth, it is a very good thing you have done here, today.”

Twilight blushed slightly, a red tint coming to her cheeks as she looked away. “W-well, yeah, but I can hardly take all the credit. And besides, I was just trying to put right what I did wrong.”

Rarity nodded slowly. “Yes. But even with that being the case, the lengths you’ve gone to - and on such short notice besides - beggars belief. I mean, for Celestia’s sake, look around! This is remarkable what you’ve managed to throw together. And the gift you’ve given Moondancer is one she shall not soon forget.”

“I-I, uh… Thank you, Rarity.”

Rarity nodded once. The two sat in silence for a moment before Rarity’s smile began to fade. “So remarkable… so much so that it’s helped put a few things into perspective for me.”

Twilight blinked, turning back to Rarity. “Huh?”

Rarity hummed quietly, her eyes lowering. She seemed torn on what to say and remained silent for several seconds. Her brow furrowed, and her lips twitched down into a firm line. Eventually, though, she found her words. “Do you recall the day we ran into Moondancer the first time? Specifically, how I kept gushing at you over various places I thought might make a good storefront for my next boutique?”

Twilight tilted her head curiously. “Yes?”

“...Ever since we learned about Moondancer’s situation, about all of the damage the changelings did to the ponies of this city that we can’t see… It’s just got me thinking about my aspirations. It has me asking if another high-end fashion store is really what the ponies of this city need.”

Twilight watched as the passionate glint suddenly returned to Rarity’s eyes. She hadn’t seen it since their first encounter with Moondancer.

“But… but you love designing fashion!” Spike piped up in surprise. “You’ve been talking about opening more stores forever!”

Rarity smiled and gave the dragon a few pats on the head. “I know, Spikey. I’m not sure what I would do instead just yet. Maybe my efforts would be put to better use trying to offer ponies relief. It would be naive to tell ourselves that Moondancer is the only pony suffering like this, and as wonderful as they are, the Royal Sisters can’t be everywhere and solve every problem at once. Maybe I could open a shelter for ponies like her, or a soup kitchen. Just… something.”

Rainbow was the first to respond, slapping a hoof across the table with a loud bang. “Hey, that sounds like a great plan to me, Rares! If it’s a relief effort you’re wanting to start up, maybe I could run the idea by mom, get you some extra funding or something.”

Rarity’s face lit up, her lips parting into a massive grin. “Well, far be it from me to turn down an offer of royal support. But there is still so much thinking I have to do on the matter. Rest assured, when I am ready, you shall be the first to know!”

Twilight stared at Rarity for a few long moments, feeling a whole new wave of respect washing over her for the mare. After a moment, her lips curled up into a warm, approving smile. “That sounds like a wonderful idea, Rarity.”

“I’m glad you think so, Twilight,” Rarity said quietly before the two fell into a gentle silence. She slowly brushed back the elegant curl of her mane and affixed Twilight with a far more meaningful look. It felt like she was staring into Twilight, rather than at her. “And… thank you. I don’t think I would have found the inspiration for such a decision had it not been for this crowning display of generosity.”

Twilight blinked. There it was again. That feeling of a weight lifting from her shoulders. And there was something more, too. She might have just been imagining it, but she thought that she saw a brief shimmer of prismatic light shining in Rarity’s eyes as she said those words.

Midnight let off a frustrated growl, briefly making Twilight tense up. She waited for her inner devil to say something, offer up some scathing remark, but nothing came.

“Ahem.”

Twilight almost jumped out of her skin. Turning to the side, she was surprised to see Moondancer standing by their table. She adjusted her glasses. It was clear that she was tired after the day’s activities. Her posture was sagging, and her expression was strained. “Hey…”

“Sup?” Rainbow asked. “Everything alright?”

Moondancer nodded. “Y-yeah, fine. Everything’s… fine.”

There was a pause, an awkward silence. Twilight cleared her throat. “Did you want to talk about something?” she asked.

Moondancer hesitated, then nodded. “Yeah. In private.”

Twilight was surprised by the request. She glanced back at her friends for a moment before standing up. “Uh, sure. Lead the way.”

“We’ll be here when you get back, dear,” Rarity called after her.

Twilight smiled back at her, then fell into step behind Moondancer. The unicorn led her down the steps and out the front door, onto the front balcony that overlooked the castle courtyard. The afternoon sun was low enough to cast long shadows across the ground, painting the verdant grass of the courtyard in long, dark stripes. A cool breeze washed over them, sending Twilight’s mane drifting.

Moondancer looked directly up at the castle, her eyes distant. “...Do you remember when we were little?” she asked softly. “We went to class together all the time. We studied together. Minuette dragged us both into all kinds of weird projects all the time…”

Twilight nodded, thinking back on those bygone days. “I remember… Like the time Lemon Hearts got her head stuck in that beaker.”

Moondancer smirked. “Heh. Yeah…”

There was another pause. Moondancer turned to face Twilight directly. “You were my friend back then… They all were. But after you left… I sort of… forgot what friends were like.”

Twilight didn’t say anything, just letting Moondancer talk.

Finally, the mare put on a small smile. “Today was good, I think. It made me feel like the little filly I was back then. It was good to spend time with Minuette without any misunderstandings ruining it… I think I’ll take her up on her offer. Reach out to the others. Lemon Hearts, Twinkleshine… They deserve better than what I’ve given them.”

She shot Twilight a sidelong glance. “Was that your idea, too?”

Twilight was quiet for a second, then nodded. “I wanted to invite them to the party myself, actually. But Minuette advised against it. She said we shouldn’t overwhelm you with too much all at once.”

Moondancer snorted. “She said that? Really?”

Twilight nodded, a small smile on her face. “You don’t give her enough credit. She can be considerate when she needs to be.”

A second passed in silence. Twilight felt a small sparkle of hope in her breast. Licking her lips, she took a tentative step forward, deciding to take her chances. “And… if you want, maybe I could be your friend again, too? I could teach you the dragonfire spell. We could keep in touch with letters.”

Moondancer was quiet for a moment. Then shook her head. “No. Not with you. Not after everything. Don’t get me wrong, Twilight, this party, and this tower, and all of this… it was great. Wonderful, even. When I say thank you, I mean it. But…” her eyes turned down. “...too many bad things happened. I don’t think I can ever look at you the same way after everything I’ve gone through.”

Twilight wasn’t surprised. It was the same outcome that Rainbow had come to with Starlight, she recalled. They had buried the hatchet, and they held one another with mutual respect, but after everything Discord’s spell on Rainbow had caused, the two just couldn’t be friends. There would always be the memory of their fights lurking in the backs of their heads, making every interaction less than it should be.

She drew back slightly, offering up a small nod. “I understand.”

Moondancer looked off at the castle again. “...Thanks. For all of this. I can’t forget how you hurt me… but I won’t forget this, either.”

Moondancer reached up to her sweater, rifling through a pocket on the side. Twilight blinked, curious until Moondancer pulled out another pair of glasses. Twilight realized a moment later that it was the pair that had broken when they had run into each other. She hadn’t even noticed that Moondancer was wearing a new pair.

“Here. Have them,” Moondancer said, passing the damaged spectacles to Twilight with her hoof.

Twilight blinked, gingerly taking the accessory in her magic. “But… why?” she questioned.

Moondancer shrugged. “So you don’t forget this, either, I guess? I’m going to be honest, I’m not sure why I held onto them. I just felt like I had to keep them around… Now I don’t. So keep them. As a memento or something.”

Twilight was quiet for a second, then nodded, lightly taking the glasses into her hoof. The seam from their previous break stared back at her, forever scarring the once pristine surface. Not unlike Moondancer, really. Scarred, maybe, and probably never back to her former glory. But repaired. Or at least, on the path to being repaired. Twilight gently ran her hoof over the seam, and her heart felt settled.

“Thanks, Moondancer.”

Moondancer nodded, giving her a small smile. “Yeah…”

The two were quiet for a moment. Then Moondancer let out a massive yawn. Then she blushed.

Twilight gave her a knowing smirk. “Tired?”

Moondancer grunted, rubbing at her eyes. “A little, yeah. I think I’m gonna head home,” she said.

Twilight blinked, looking up at the observatory. “But… what about this place?”

Moondancer gave her a look. “Well, seeing as I’ve been busy partying all day, I haven’t had a chance to move any of my things here. Namely, my bed. So until that’s done, I’m gonna go sleep at my apartment.”

Twilight’s cheeks lit up slightly. “Oh… uh, right.”

Moondancer rolled her eyes and lightly punched Twilight on the shoulder. “Hah. Forgetting already?”

Twilight smiled quietly and rubbed her shoulder. “...It’s been a long few days.”

The two shared a quiet laugh at that, then fell into silence. The breeze washed over them again, howling softly between the distant towers.

“Are you going to say it, this time?”

Twilight looked up at Moondancer. The other mare was staring at her expectantly.

It only took a moment for Twilight to get what she meant. She put on a warm smile. “Yeah. I won’t forget this time.”

Twilight lifted a hoof as if to beckon Moondancer closer. A second later, Moondancer answered, allowing Twilight to draw her into a hug. The alicorn rested her chin on Moondancer’s shoulder and closed her eyes.

“Goodbye, Moondancer,” she finally said. “Take care of yourself, okay?”

“You, too,” Moondancer replied.

“I will.”

The two stayed like that for a few tender seconds before disentangling. Moondancer adjusted her glasses one more time, offered up a smile, and looked up at the observatory. “Heh… I’m gonna have a lot of room for my books, now,” she mused absently before turning to start walking down the steps.

Twilight watched her go, then turned to look up at the castle. The breeze washed by her one more time, but she didn’t mind the chill. The glasses in her hoof were warm, chasing away her dread, and the pall over her soul lifted just a little more.

Author's Note

4 Down...

Visit's End

What little time Twilight had left for her visit was spent in a pleasant blur. In the days that followed the party, She mostly spent her time visiting with her old friends from Celestia’s school. Minuette helped her track them down, and the old group spent plenty of time getting caught up.

Much to Twilight’s relief, there were no hard feelings. Her sudden departure was, in their words, ‘nothing they weren’t used to.’ It didn’t make her feel better about leaving them, as it was not okay that her being aloof was considered normal to them. But their high spirits more than made up for it. It felt like no time at all before their old friendship sparked back into life. The group even shared a box of donuts from Donut Joe’s. For old times’ sake.

Between all of that, there had of course been her date with Rainbow Dash. Just the two of them. Far away from the chaos and hubbub of their daily troubles. Far from the concerns of the chest or the Tree of Harmony. Far from her past mistakes. Just Twilight and her girlfriend, reading books, joking, and flirting.

It had all been so pleasant. Unfortunately, the few remaining days of her visit soon drew near their end. It still felt like there was so much left to do, ponies to see, places to show off to Rarity, or catching up to do with Spiracle and Thorax. Alas, such endeavors would have to wait until next month.

But there would be one last notable event before it came time for them to depart. This came in the form of a letter from none other than Princess Celestia, summoning both Twilight and Rainbow to join the royal sisters in the castle for a private dinner.

In all of the stress over what was happening with Moondancer, Twilight had completely forgotten that Celestia had promised to make time for them when they first arrived. It had come as such a surprise that, for a moment, she thought she was in trouble. She had been quick to calm herself down, however, reminding herself that this was simply meant to be a pleasant dinner, and a chance to catch up with friends and family.

“You delude yourself. They just want to see how easy you are to fool,” Midnight had sneered in response. Twilight had felt a tingle of irritation at that. But she wasn’t sure if it was in response to Midnight’s words, or something else. She had recalled with vivid clarity - and no small degree of shame - the night she dreamt of trying to strangle the life out of her mentor. The memory made her shiver.

Still, there was no refusing a summon from the princess. Especially not when you were on parole, Midnight was so keen to remind her.

And so it was that, as the sun was setting on their last full day in Canterlot, Twilight and Rainbow took off for the castle. Everypony else remained behind at Twilight’s parents’ place, leaving the two mares free to spread their wings and fly to their destination.

Twilight closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as they soared through the heavens. The cool night air did wonders to awaken her senses, and she took the chance to remind herself of all the proper etiquette for dealing with royalty.

Twilight glanced over at Rainbow. The Pegasus was giving her a sidelong glance, lips quirked up into a smirk. “You nervous or somethin'?” she called over.

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Heh. A little, maybe. I haven’t sat down in the castle in what feels like forever,” she replied, training her eyes ahead at Canterlot Castle. It still felt so large and imposing to her. Like a judge overseeing his court, gavel primed to slam down and administer justice.

Rainbow drifted closer to her side. “I gotcha. But hey, it’s mom. What’s the worst she can do?” she asked casually.

“Do you really want me to answer that?”

“Not particularly, no.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. She would have bumped Rainbow’s hip had they not been in the air right now.

The two didn’t say anything else for the remainder of their flight. Soon enough, they swooped down, coming to a landing in front of one of the many entrances to the castle. The two guards stationed in front briefly stiffened, then relaxed on recognizing Rainbow.

“Your Highness. We were told to expect you,” one of them said with a curt nod. “Do you require an escort?”

Rainbow shook her head. “Nah. At ease, boys. I got this.”

To their credit, the guards weren’t phased by Rainbow’s casual tone. They went right back to standing as still as a statue. Twilight always wondered how they did that for so long. Wouldn’t their legs get stiff?

She would ask Squall about it sometime.

Rainbow took the lead as the two entered the castle. But as they walked, Twilight’s pace slowed somewhat as she was hit by a wave of nostalgia. For a moment, she allowed herself to be lost in simpler times. When she was just a foal, messing around with Rainbow Dash in these long, elegant castle corridors. A time when everything was simple, and made sense, and neither of them had a coma tally next to their name.

The pair soon found themselves before the large double doors that led to one of the castle's numerous dining halls. Rainbow turned to Twilight, looking her up and down with narrowed eyes.

Twilight frowned. “What? What is it? Is there something on my face?” she asked, looking down at herself.

A moment later, Rainbow grinned. “Nah. Just making sure you look good,” she said before flashing Twilight a wink. “Which you always do.”

Twilight snorted in amusement. “Pfft. Charmer.”

“S’what I do.”

Twilight snickered. This time, she did bump her hip against Rainbow’s. She then turned her attention back to the door and, with only a moment of hesitation, knocked three times.

The voice of Princess Celestia came from the other side, warm and welcoming. “Enter.”

Twilight pushed the door open. All at once, her senses were assaulted with the telltale and familiar scent of the castle staff’s cooking. Twilight’s mouth was already watering long before she could even see the freshly prepared spread. The dining table in the heart of the room was loaded with a miniature banquet, more than enough for four ponies to absolutely stuff themselves. Mashed potatoes, rich salads, platters of fruits and vegetables, and even a scattered assortment of little cakes, cookies, bagels, and muffins.

It was all near the left half of the table. And there, at the end, seated side by side and waiting, were none other than Princesses Celestia and Luna.

Celestia stood as Twilight and Rainbow entered. Her face was warm with a gentle smile. “Twilight. Rainbow. Thank you for joining us,” she said as a way of greeting. She gave a polite nod of her head. “Please, take a seat.”

Twilight felt a lump form in her throat and a tingle of fire in the back of her scalp. She ignored both feelings and bowed her head. “Thank you for having us,” she said stiffly. A moment later, she righted her posture and gave a small smile. “It’s good to see you again, Princess.”

Celestia’s smile grew. She stepped approached Twilight and knelt down to wrap the smaller alicorn in a warm embrace. “And you as well, Twilight. How has your visit to Canterlot been treating you?”

Twilight was momentarily taken aback by the embrace, her eyes flying wide. A moment passed before she reached up to return the hug. But something stopped her.

“Don’t you dare.” Midnight seethed, apparating behind Celestia. “Don’t you dare give her the satisfaction.”

Twilight went stiff, the muscles in her hooves locking up. She realized with a surge of indignation and frustration what was happening. “Midnight. Let me go.”

Midnight stomped her hoof, her eyes flaring. “I will not sit here and let you indulge this harpy!” she shouted. “It is bad enough you came to this farce of a meal, I will not let you sully our dignity further by catering to her pretentious act of ‘compassion’!”

Twilight felt a surge of frustration but was quick to force it down. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

Celestia slowly pulled out of the embrace, looking down at Twilight in confusion. “Is something wrong, Twilight?” she asked.

Twilight hesitated. She glanced past Celestia to where Midnight still stood. Her shadow’s glare was directed squarely at the taller mare. Twilight sagged. “Sorry… A certain somepony’s being an absolute killjoy.” she stated.

Celestia blinked. Rainbow, however, seemed to catch on. She followed Twilight’s line of sight before glaring at what, to her, would have been empty space. “Hey! Buzz off, Midnight!”

Luna sat upright, her expression hardening. Celestia paused, then closed her eyes. “I see,” was all she said before her smile returned. “You don’t need to explain it to me, Twilight. I understand.”

Twilight turned to her, confused. “Huh? But-”

Celestia raised a hoof, and Twilight’s words died in her throat. Celestia just smiled at her. She shook her head, the motion so subtle it was almost imperceptible. Without another word, she nodded for the table before turning to return to her seat.

Twilight watched as her mentor phased through Midnight. The apparition scowled at her as she passed, then turned back to Twilight. When she spoke, her words came in a low, savage snarl. “I will suffer only so much indignity. And don’t even think of being dishonest today. I won’t tolerate lies. Not at this table.”

With that, Midnight turned and walked to the far side of the table. There was no food there. No light save for that streaming in through the windows. And yet she stood out in Twilight’s vision perfectly as she took a seat directly across from Celestia. Her eyes remained glued onto the taller alicorn, narrowed with a hatred that made Twilight flinch away from her.

She felt Rainbow’s hoof on her back. “You okay?” she pegasus asked in a whisper.

Twilight nodded. “Yeah. I think so,” she said quietly. “But Midnight’s watching. I don’t think I can get rid of her this time.”

Rainbow shrugged. “Then we ignore her and talk over her. Easy,” she said. She gave Twilight a quick side hug, then guided her to the table.

Twilight hummed, allowing herself to be guided to her seat. She knew that it wouldn’t be that simple, but nonetheless, she appreciated the display of confidence.

Rainbow’s eyes fell on the spread of food as she sat down. For the first time, she seemed to realize how much food there was on display. “Oh! Holy cow, mom! Are you trying to make me fat?” she asked with a coy grin.

Celestia tittered. “Come now, Rainbow. I wouldn’t be able to put a pound on you if I tried,” she said in amusement.

Rainbow’s grin grew. “Ya know what? Challenge accepted.”

Celestia’s smile faded. “Wait, no, I wasn’t-”

Too late. Rainbow was already digging into the plate directly in front of her. Pasta and potato sandwiches. Of course.

Celestia sighed in defeat, then gave a defeated smile. “Of course… Just don’t choke, please.”

Rainbow declared something with confidence, but the words were lost in the chewed-up mush.

Celestia rolled her eyes, then turned to Twilight. “Well… My daughter’s refined table manners aside, it is good to see you again, Twilight. Please, eat, relax, and enjoy yourself.”

Twilight was quiet for a moment, quickly picking out a plate of hayburgers. “Thank you, Princess.”

Celestia nodded. “It is my pleasure. That said, you didn’t answer my question a moment ago. How has your return to Canterlot been?”

“Chaotic,” Twilight answered automatically. “Very, very chaotic. And more than a little eye-opening.”

Celestia quirked a brow. “Is that so? Then, please. Tell me everything.”

Twilight looked back up at her. “You mean you don’t know? I would have thought Luna would be keeping you up to speed,” she noted, giving the younger sister a questioning look.

Luna shook her head. “What we discuss in your dreams is to remain between you and I, Twilight Sparkle. Nopony hears of it without your permission. Not even my sister.”

Twilight was taken aback by that. For some reason, she had assumed that Celestia might have been an exception to that rule. “Oh…” she muttered, twirling her fork in the air with her magic as she went into thought. “Alright… Well, in that case…”

Twilight took a breath, then launched into the story. She started off slowly, a touch unsure. Her scalp still tingled every time she laid her eyes on Celestia. But the good food and the encouraging nods from Rainbow and Luna soon got Twilight into the swing of things. Bit by bit, she recounted the tale of her encounters with Moondancer.

Luna chimed in from time to time with her own observations, usually providing some limited perspective that Twilight did not have. All the while, Celestia listened with rapt attention, her eyes focused on Twilight, hard to read as ever.

When at last the story came to an end, Celestia’s expression had lowered. “I see,” she said softly. “I am glad that you and Moondancer were able to bury the hatchet. It sounds like it was quite the ordeal.”

Twilight nodded, looking down at her meal. She frowned, her appetite faltering in the wake of the story. “It was. I’m just glad everything worked out…”

A moment passed before Celestia lifted her head, her smile returning. “It did. In no small part due to you. You did well, Twilight. And, if I may say so, you look… lighter.”

“Lighter?”

Celestia’s smile grew. “When last we spoke, you were still under so much strain. You were weighed down. And not without reason. But much of that seems to have lifted… This return visit has been good for you in some ways, I feel.”

Twilight leaned back in her seat, surprised. “Is it really that obvious?”

Celestia hummed quietly, taking a small sip from her glass. Her eyes drifted up and down Twilight’s form for a moment before she spoke again. “No. Not obvious. But the signs are there, to one who knows to look.”

Twilight smiled softly, looking down at her food. “Well… thank you, Princess. It means a lot to me, to hear that from you.”

“I have had enough.”

Twilight jumped in place, startled by the sudden remark. She turned to Midnight as the apparition shot to her hooves, her eyes narrowed and teeth showing in a vicious snarl.

“I told you. I would only suffer so much indignation, and I would not tolerate lies!” she snapped, her wings flaring out in a dominating display. Twilight felt a thrill of fear on seeing the saber-like tips of her devil’s feathers.

Despite her anxiety, she was quick to compose herself. “What indignity? Celestia just complimented me, for crying out loud!”

Twilight blinked involuntarily. When her eyes opened, she almost let out a scream and flailed back in her seat. Midnight was in her face, pale wisps of ghostly magic bleeding out of her eyes and lashing at the air like a flag in a storm. “She said you were recovering. But she has failed to take responsibility for her role in putting you in this position in the first place!”

Twilight winced as a sharp, stabbing pain exploded through her skull, throbbing with every beat of her heart. Try as she might, she was unable to bite back a hiss of discomfort, and her hoof flew up to her temple.

Celestia frowned, leaning forward. “Twilight? What’s wrong?” she asked, setting down her silverware and standing up.

Rainbow was quick to catch on, her brow furrowing. “It’s Midnight, isn’t it?” she asked.

Twilight gave a stiff nod but wasn’t able to look away. Midnight’s glare had her transfixed.

“Celestia puts on a good show,” Midnight went on, turning her hateful glare on the alicorn in question. Even just looking at her sent Midnight’s eyes narrowing with disgust, and her pupils dilating with violent intent. “Pretending to be concerned for your wellbeing. She waxes poetic about your mental health. But you and I both know the truth, don’t we?”

Twilight’s eyes were glued to Midnight as her darker half stalked up to Celestia, fangs bared. Celestia, oblivious to the advance, just looked at Twilight in concern.

Midnight spat at her, though it passed harmlessly through her. “The moment - the second you stop pretending and show her what you really feel - what you really want - is the moment she’ll drop the act and cast you aside. Just like she did with her sister.”

“Don’t talk about her like that!” Twilight snapped out loud, unable to keep her response internalized.

“Twi?” Rainbow asked, alarmed. Her grip on Twilight tightened, but through the storm of pain in her skull and the pounding of her heart, Twilight could barely feel it.

Midnight threw her head back with a scathing laugh. “Hahaha! Oh, come on. Aren’t you the one who only recently learned to tell the truth? Why deny it, now?”

Celestia’s expression hardened. She looked to where Twilight was looking. Her expression slowly hardened as she stepped fully away from the table and slid her seat back into position. The message was clear. Dinner was over.

Rainbow shook Twilight gently. “Twi? Twi! C’mon Twilight, snap out of it! What’s she saying? Twilight!”

Midnight’s eyes flicked to glare at Twilight, but she said nothing. Twilight remained silent, a wave of uncertainty and fear taking a hold of her thoughts. She didn’t want to speak about the hateful things Midnight kept emphasizing about the pony she held in such high regard. She didn’t want to offend or antagonize Celestia or give her the wrong idea about where she was at. But at the same time…

Her mind wandered back to the last time she had held her tongue back in the Library. Until a gentle word from Applejack and the encouragement of her friends compelled her to speak the truth. Midnight was right. Celestia had a right to know. She had a right to defend herself against Midnight’s accusations directly. And so, with a deep breath, Twilight spoke.

“Midnight hates you. She hates you so much. F-for all the times you’ve lied, or hidden things from me. And…”

She trailed off as Celestia lifted her hoof in command for silence. All eyes were on her for several seconds, waiting for her to say something. Twilight fidgeted in her seat, only calmed by the presence of Rainbow’s hoof on her withers.

Finally, Celestia opened her eyes. “Stop, Twilight. If Midnight has words for me, then I would hear them from her lips.”

Twilight blinked. “Wha… huh?”

Midnight took a step back, and for the first time since Twilight had seen her, she looked uncomfortable. “You wouldn’t,” she seethed, her wings unfurling even wider.

Luna gave Celestia a sideways glance. “Sister, are you certain?” she asked.

Celestia nodded. Her eyes never left Twilight’s. “I am. Twilight? May I have your permission to do this?” she asked as she drew around the table. Her steps were short and measured, her eyes the definition of gentle, motherly compassion.

Twilight was quiet for several long seconds. Was that even possible? It was possible to enter into the minds of others, of course, she had done it and been on the receiving end of it, thanks to Celestia’s efforts to revive her. But could it be used to confront her own inner demon? If so…

Midnight silenced her train of thought with a furious shout. “No! No, you cannot! You do not have the right! This is my mind! It has suffered enough, and I will not let you tarnish it any further!” she roared, stomping her hoof. “You are NOT welcome!”

Another spike of pain went through Twilight’s skull, this one stronger than all the others. She felt a sudden rush of Midnight’s anger spilling into her veins, burning in her chest and her throat. She realized with a choking sound that it was the urge to scream.

“I… I d-don’t,” Twilight stammered. Her mind was screaming at her, torn in two separate directions and searing from the conflict. She screwed her eyes shut to try and focus and drown it all out, but it was no good. The fire in her mind, the rage she could feel pulsating from Midnight in rolling, chaotic waves killed any chance to be rational. Did she or didn’t she? She wanted to trust Celestia, she adored her. But she hated her, but she loved her, but she…

Rainbow’s hoof on her back wrapped farther around her. “Twi…? Isn’t it worth a shot?”

Twilight managed to open an eye, looking up into her lover’s face. “Rainbow?”

Rainbow gave her a small, tentative smile. Amid the storm of Midnight’s fury, and the tumult of Twilight’s own confused thoughts, she was able to find a moment of stability in that look. Rainbow leaned forward slightly, offering Twilight an encouraging nuzzle.“Maybe she can help you. Like you and Starlight helped me.”

Twilight swallowed heavily, but a moment later, she began to relax.

“I know you’re going to tell me no, but… I can do it.”

“What?” Rainbow asked, tightening her hold on Twilight.

Starlight flinched but was quick to elaborate. “Breaking Discord’s spell. I can do it. I… know more than I probably should about mind spells… I know you don’t trust me, Princess Rainbow Dash, and to be honest, there are a lot of problems with me. But I also know that you’re a good pony. And if I didn’t try to help you, I’d be falling into the same deadly pit I barely managed to dodge when I was just a filly. And that’s not to mention that… I… don’t have the same bias toward you that Twilight does. She won’t willingly cause you any pain because she loves you… but I don’t.”

Rainbow bared her teeth at Starlight for a moment, and Twilight felt certain she was about to snap at her. But then Rainbow closed her eyes, took a breath, and turned to face her. For a moment, the two were quiet, searching each other’s gazes for something to go off of.

Then, Rainbow asked her a simple question: “Do you trust her?”

“Huh?”

“Do you trust her?” Rainbow repeated, her grip getting tighter. “Yes or no, do you trust Starlight with this?”

Twilight was quiet for a moment, working her jaw up and down. A moment later, she nodded.

Rainbow slowly shifted to look at Starlight. “Alright… fine. If Twilight trusts you, then… Then that will have to be good enough for me. I trust Twilight not to lead me astray.”

Twilight actually managed to put on a small smile at the memory. “Heh… guess it’s my turn to trust her not to lead me astray, huh?” she thought.

Midnight turned to her, eyes wide with what looked like panic. “No! No! Don’t you DARE!”

Twilight, finally, managed to break through the storm in her mind and looked up at Celestia. The alicorn was still waiting for her, her eyes patient and her smile serene. Twilight nodded. “Do it.”

Celestia nodded gently, closed her eyes, and lit her horn with the gentle glow of her magic.

In the background of her awareness, Twilight could see and hear Midnight screaming and thrashing with impetuous rage, like an infant throwing a temper tantrum. But all of that was of no consequence when compared to Celestia’s serene face, and the sunlight that washed over her senses.

Twilight gasped in surprise as she opened her eyes. She wasn’t in the dining hall of Canterlot Castle anymore. Instead, she was standing in the middle of an expansive void of purple and pink mist. All around her, enormous leatherbound books drifted through the void, tethered to one another by long red ribbons. Most of the books were closed, but in those few that were open, she could see penciled-in illustrations of moments she remembered from her life.

She saw the day she first met Fluttershy in one such book, with paragraphs upon paragraphs written alongside it that described what she had felt and thought of the day. It was written in a cipher, but the meaning was perfectly clear to her eyes.

She knew this place. She felt a chill of discomfort, recalling the first memory she had lived with for so long after Celestia revived her, and of the blackened hoof that threatened to drag her beyond the threshold of death’s front door.

“I had hoped to never have to come here again,” Celestia’s voice suddenly said from Twilight’s right. Turning, she witnessed the alicorn stepping into her mind in a pale shimmer, followed closely by Princess Luna. Twilight tilted her head at the latter.

Luna gave her a nod. “You’ll forgive me for tagging along, but as you are my patient, I felt it only prudent to ensure my sister did not overstep her boundaries.”

Twilight wordlessly conceded the point with a nod before turning to look around. If Celestia was right, then somewhere in here, they would find…

“How dare you?”

A freezing wind washed over Twilight, making her shiver. Up ahead, a darkened tome, leaking ghostly mist, drifted out of the masses. The ribbons reaching from its spine were dark purple, eroded and tattered. The book snapped open, allowing pitch-black mist to pour out of its pages in a horrid gale. Twilight held her ground, as did the alicorns beside her, as the mist washed past them, redirected by some unseen barrier.

Within the shadows, Twilight saw Midnight’s ghostly eyes snap open. The mist dispersed, revealing the Fallen Alicorn in all her horrible glory. Her face contorted with unspeakable fury.

“How dare you?! This is our mind!” she bellowed. “Get out! GET OUT! You are not welcome here!”

Celestia did not flinch from the smaller alicorn’s tone. As Twilight turned to look into Celestia’s face, she expected to find loathing or contempt, or even just stalwart resolve. Instead, however, all she found was… pity?

“I do not make such an intrusion lightly. I can only hope she’ll forgive me for this liberty. But this has to be done, and I cannot allow you to poison my student’s mind with any more unneeded doubts.”

Midnight’s eye began to twitch. “Doubt? Doubt? You dare accuse me of sowing the seeds of doubt when it is you who violated the sanctity of my mind?! Oh, the nerve of you, Princess! But tell me this! Why, oh why, should I trust you?! At every turn, you have lied to me, hidden things from me, and used me like a tool to further your own ends!”

With every word, Midnight advanced, and her voice raised. “You knew the truth of the Flashes for years, and you lied to Rainbow and me! Even when I fell into a coma and saw your intentions for me, you still hid the truth from us! You lied, and it hurt us! It hurt your own daughter! You lied to me about Nightmare Moon, and threw me head-first into a situation I could never have been prepared for. I only managed to pull through because I got lucky and stumbled on the truth in some dusty history book!”

She was right up to Celestia by now, jabbing her hoof into Celestia’s face. “And then, and then, when I died, and you brought me back, did you tell me what had happened to me? NO! You were complicit in the lie of omission, just like your daughter! Just like everyone else! You were supposed to be BETTER than the rest of us, but you’re just as guilty as they are! And when I dared to find the truth out for myself because you were so determined to keep it from me, what did you do?! WHAT DID YOU DO?!”

Celestia didn’t even flinch as Midnight’s tirade went on. She just stared patiently into the outraged alicorn’s eyes. And the raw, unbridled indignation Midnight felt went beyond words. She ground her teeth together behind her lips. How dare Celestia treat her like this?! Starting at her like a foal throwing a tantrum, dodging all accountability! How dare she?!

Midnight jabbed her hoof into Celestia’s chest, so hard it may as well have been a punch. “YOU CAST ME ASIDE!” she screamed, her vision starting to blur with tears. “You left me there in that cave, and didn’t even raise your voice in objection when Luna banished me! You knew perfectly well what was going to happen to me because of your negligence, but you didn’t say a word! YOU ABANDONED ME!”

She was wiping a hoof over her eyes, now. And then she was hitting her again, every screaming accusation punctuated by her hooves slamming fruitlessly into Celestia’s chest. “I adore you! I’ve looked up to you my entire life, and you repay that with lies and manipulation! You say you care about me?! Then why don’t you ever SHOW it?! I’ll tell you why! Because you DON’T! I’m just another pawn on the board, aren’t I?! Another piece to move! And manipulate! And when my purpose is served, you’ll throw me away! If I dare to speak out or act in a way you don’t want, you’ll crush me underhoof! Just like you did with your SISTER!”

The moment those last words left Midnight’s mouth, she regretted them. Celestia’s expression darkened into something cold and ruthless, and she knew she had just crossed a line. Midnight stopped striking the taller mare, dropped back to the ground, and took several frightened steps back, suddenly feeling like an ant before a lion.

Celestia matched her retreat, eyes narrowing. “I would strongly encourage you to choose your next words with exceptional care, Twilight.”

For a moment, Midnight felt a surge of vindication. She put on a smirk, though her bravado was hindered by the quiver in her voice. “H-ha! See? I spill my heart, and you answer with a threat!”

Celestia was quiet for a moment. “...Is that truly what you think of me?” she asked softly.

Midnight blinked. “What? What are you-”

“Do you truly think so little of me that you believe I could ever threaten you, Twilight?” the alicorn cut her off. Midnight clamped her muzzle shut, humiliated by how swiftly she fell back into the position of the quiet, lectured foal.

Celestia lifted her eyes to stare into hers. “I am trying to stop you from saying something you can’t take back,” she said quietly. “Because some things… some thoughts… are best left unsaid.”

“You’re one to talk!” Midnight snapped. “Did you forget all the things you keep hiding from me?! And not just from me, but all of Equestria?!”

“I lie. It is true,” Celestia stated in a calm, even tone. “But not because I want to. I do so because I have to. And only when I have to. I have hidden things from the most important ponies in my life. But only to keep them safe. Never out of malice.”

Midnight backed away, and once again, Celestia matched her retreat step for step.

“I hid the Flashes from you because, as I said back then, I could not risk tampering with the course of history. My sister needed to be freed. You needed to acquire the Elements. Direct interference could have led to ramifications that would be impossible to control or predict. And more than that, I refused to take away control of your own destiny. A little nudge here and there to keep you and Rainbow on the right path, but the steps you were to take were yours and yours alone to decide.”

Midnight opened her mouth to speak, but Celestia kept going. “I never once told you that Nightmare Moon was fake, Twilight. But I did not vindicate your claims about her imminent return because I knew you would have thought about the impending threat in the wrong way. You needed friends to connect with the Elements and save my sister. That is why I sent you and Rainbow to Ponyville, to begin with. If I sent you there with the stated goal of stopping Nightmare, your approach would have been born out of malice, a mindset of conflict and war, rather than the camaraderie you formed with your friends.

“As for your death…” Celestia stopped her advance. She blinked, looking away. “...In truth, I was afraid. Just as afraid as Rainbow was. You were… vulnerable. You were confused and susceptible to outside influences. It had been my intention to trust in my daughter’s judgment when it came to you, as her bond with you was far stronger than mine. Unfortunately, she miscalculated. And by extension, so did I. I can never take back the pain that has caused you. And for that, I am sorry.

“I cannot blame you for doubting me, Twilight. I have lied to you in the past. And I may very well lie again. But on this point, I am telling the complete and total truth,” she said before coming to a stop and sitting down on her haunches. Midnight felt her heart beating in her chest as she stared into Celestia’s deceitful, familiar, disgusting, beautiful eyes. “I am here to help you in any way I can. It is my duty as your teacher and as your princess, and I will never forsake it. No matter what you do, what you say, or how you feel, you will always be near and dear to my heart, and I could never bring myself to wish you harm. I will stop you if that is what I must do. But I wish with all of my heart that it will never come to that.”

Twilight blinked, suddenly overcome by a wave of disorientation. She staggered to one side before falling over into Luna’s waiting hooves. Her mind was spinning, a jumbled mix of confused emotions and conflicting thoughts. What just happened? It was like she had just woken from a dream…

She looked up to see Midnight and Celestia staring at one another. But… hadn’t she just been standing there…?

Finally, Midnight scoffed and turned her back on Celestia. “Just… just get out,” she finally muttered in a low, crooked voice before walking away. “You can pour as much honey on your words as you like. But it doesn't change anything.”

Celestia sighed, rising back to her full height and turning to rejoin the others. “We’re done here,” she said as she came up to Twilight. “Thank you for hearing me out.”

“I… I feel strange,” Twilight mumbled, rubbing her temple. “What happened? It was like…”

Luna gave her a squeeze. “It is difficult to lie within one's own mind,” she said quietly. “And as such, broken things may speak as one.”

Twilight was quiet for a moment, allowing the ramifications to wash over her. Suddenly overwhelmed by a sense of exhaustion, she closed her eyes as she was pulled out of her own soul and back into the waking world.

Twilight slowly opened her eyes as she came to. The light from Celestia’s horn dimmed and winked away with a whisper of a sound. It was the strangest thing. Celestia looked so much more tired than she had before. Midnight was nowhere to be seen.

Rainbow’s hoof was on Twilight a moment later. “Are you okay?” she asked softly. “How’d it go?”

Twilight didn’t say anything at first. She looked at Rainbow, then back to Celestia and Luna. The other alicorn’s exchanged a glance of their own before turning expectantly to her. She met Celestia’s eyes. And, there, deep in her heart, she felt something. It had been tempered by her frustration and previous experiences, but it was unmistakably the love and adoration for her princess she had always felt.

Finally, Twilight put on a small smile. And Celestia smiled back.

Author's Note

And so ends our time in Canterlot. Let me tell you, I am SO happy with how the scene between Celestia and Midnight went. As a fun fact, that scene was originally written to take place all the way back at the start of the arc when Celestia visited Twilight at her parents' place. But it felt like such an important, breakthrough moment, that my editor and I agreed to nudge it to the end of the Canterlot arc to cap it off. A breakthrough for Twilight on her feelings toward Celestia.

As of the time of posting this chapter (January 12th, 2023), we are now all caught up on what I have written. And... yeah, I don't think I'm gonna do the 'write it all in advance' thing again. At least not for THIS series. Not because it didn't work, but because I wound up suffering a bit from analysis paralysis while I was writing, and it forced me to basically rewrite the entire arc, like, 3 times over. Then again, a lot of that could be considered a side effect of my editor having to slow down his output and eventually jump ship entirely, so... yeah, not doing that again. At least not for a while.

As it is, this was the second to last 'arc.' Come next chapter, we will begin the final arc of Little Keys.

Prelude to Fire

Several years ago…

“Princess Celestia? What’s Tartarus?”

Princess Celestia perked up, taken aback by Twilight Sparkle’s abrupt question. The little unicorn filly, having only been her student for a couple of months now, looked back up at her from the floor with those wide, inquisitive, innocent purple eyes. The two were situated in the princess’ chambers. It was getting late in the evening, allowing rays of golden sunlight to filter in through the window.

Celestia frowned. The question had come out so suddenly, and she wasn’t sure how to answer for a moment. She stared into the flames of her hearth, the embers reflected in her eyes. “...Where did you learn that word?” she asked after a moment. There was no accusation or disapproval in her voice. Just genuine curiosity.

All the same, Twilight shifted on her haunches. Her keen mind instantly picked up the severe connotations of Celestia’s delayed response. “Rainbow said it earlier,” she snitched without even a moment of hesitation. “She blurted it out when we were playing hide and seek. She said ‘how in Tartarus did you find me so fast?’ I’ve heard the word a few times, but nopony’s told me what it means.”

Celestia had to fight the urge to sigh in disbelief. She knew Rainbow had a hard time containing her impulses, and her life before Canterlot had not been one of etiquette or proper manners. But for her to drop the word with such reckless abandon was a little more than Celestia had expected of her new daughter. A moment later, she affixed Twilight with a warm smile. “And you chose to come to me instead of a book?” she asked.

Twilight nodded. “Uh-huh! You’ve been around longer than everypony else, and you know everything! I figure you could tell me better than anypony else!” she declared with truly staggering confidence. “Even a book!”

This time, Celestia resisted the urge to laugh. She bit her tongue to stop herself from swiftly dismissing Twilight’s claims that she ‘knew everything.’ Instead, she just pulled Twilight closer to her side with her wing. “I suppose that is true. Well… Tartarus is a difficult place to describe,” she began softly, her eyes once again lingering on the flames.

“It’s a place?” Twilight’s eyes widened with fascination. She leaned in, listening to Celestia’s every word with bated breath.

“It is. Deep beneath our hooves,” Celestia explained slowly. “An entire world beneath the surface of Equestria. Endlessly wandering tunnels and cavernous chambers, each one as large as Canterlot, and filled with spires of stone and illuminated by frightening ghostlight. Many dark and dangerous beasts lurked there when it was first discovered over a thousand years ago. Hungering creatures that could eat a pony up in one gulp. It all bore a striking, and terrible resemblance to the afterlife of evildoers in pre-equestrian Earth Pony mythology. For this reason, the caves were given the same name. Tartarus. The prison of evil.”

Twilight nodded along slowly, her eyes wide. “Woah… it was filled with evil monsters?” she asked quietly, curling up a little in fear. “Like… like the windigos? From the hearths warming stories?”

Celestia shook her head. “No. Those were spirits conjured forth by senseless hatred. Abstractions of emotion, given form and life by generations of mistakes from our ancestors. The horrors of Tartarus were more… tangible. And when you were in their domain, they were never far.”

Twilight let off a tiny whimper, curling closer to Celestia’s side for her protection. “Will the evil monsters come out of there?” she asked quietly.

Again, Celestia shook her head. “No. Not long after it was discovered, I led an expedition into Tartarus to end the threat. The monsters within were bound, sealed by powerful magics that infused them into the very stone, never to escape. But just to be sure, magical wards were placed at every entrance in the form of frightening gates, and a mighty gatekeeper was created to guard them. Following the theme of the earth pony legends, we dubbed the beast Cerberus. The guardian of the underworld.”

Of course, what Celestia did not disclose was that Luna had accompanied her on that expedition and that it was only by the power of the Elements of Harmony that the monsters of the deep were spirited away. And even then, Celestia could never be sure if they had gotten all of them…

Still, her recounting of the events gave Twilight a measure of comfort. She visibly relaxed against Celestia as the fear fled from her eyes. “Good… But, doesn’t that mean it’s empty, now?”

Celestia’s smile faded. “...Far from it. You need to understand, my faithful student, that those days were… darker. Harder. Even with the beasts no longer a threat, our world was still victim to dark forces. Terrible monsters warped by untamed magic. Ponies and other creatures who invoked dark magic for their own selfish ends. In the discovery of Tartarus, however, we found a suitable place to contain those evil beings that we could not… or would not destroy. It is now a prison, the largest prison in all the world, filled with evil spirits, dark magical beasts, and the worst villains in the history of Equestria. So fearful is the place, that to utter its name is something akin to profanity - especially among more traditionally minded earth ponies.”

At that, Twilight gasped, slapping her hooves over her mouth. “So- so- Rainbow swore?!” she bellowed, latching into that tidbit instead of anything else Celestia had said.

The princess rolled her eyes. Of course, Twilight would be the most interested in the youngest royal’s impropriety. Celestia couldn’t find it in herself to redirect Twilight’s attention back to the more important parts. Not right now. The filly still had so much of her foalhood ahead of her. She didn’t need to be burdened with the knowledge of what lurked beneath the surface of the world just yet. There would be a day for that, but not today.

Not today.

Present day.

The fire pleased him.

In the hills of central Equestria, along the edge of a dark and grisly forest, a lone figure sat by a blazing campfire. A pitched tent sat nearby, its cloth faintly rustling in the gentle breeze. The sun had just set, leaving only a rapidly diminishing crimson glow on the horizon. Soon, the stars would come out to play, and the moon would rise.

A cloaked figure sat before the flame. His every breath was labored, bubbling and crackling with frailty and age. It had been so long since he had looked into a fire. So, so long. The warmth of it, the light. It warmed his face, and it rekindled his hope. His ambition. His drive. Even if, within his mind, he could not put words to any of them.

A single, shriveled red hand reached out from beneath the worn, tattered black fabric of his cloak as if to touch the fire. It drew short, just as the heat of the fire became painful against his palm. The ancient, knobbly fingers trembled and twitched, and his breaths came harder and faster.

The figure licked his ancient cracked lips, coarse as sandpaper. He worked his jaw, searching for words that had long since abandoned him. How long had he gone without speaking? Centuries? Millenia? In the cold darkness of the underworld, in the solitude of his eternal prison, there was no concept of time. There was no concept of anything. Nothing but chains, the distant wails of his fellow forsaken, and the ever-present cold.

He wasn’t even sure how he had escaped. It was all a blur to him. A flash and a rush of instinct when he saw the sliver of sunlight from the gates. He had heard the shattering of chains and felt a searing pain in his hooves and wrists. His limbs, ancient and atrophied, had somehow found the strength to carry him. He had half expected to hear the thunderous roar of Cerberus, expected to feel the feral mutt’s fangs tearing into him to haul him, screaming and begging back to his chains.

But the beast had gone. If only for a moment, Cerberus had abandoned his post. And in that moment of absence, the prisoner found his escape.

And now, here he sat. Free, at last. But where would he go? What would he do? He could barely speak. He couldn’t even remember his own name properly. He licked his lips again, conscious of a white, wiry beard that had not been there before his imprisonment, and attempted to speak. “I… I… I a-a-a-am… T…T…T-t…”

“Hello?! Who’s that?!”

The figure lurched at the sudden call. He tried to rise, but his crooked legs buckled beneath him, sending him sprawling to the floor with a croak of pain. He heard hooves approaching. And not hooves like his. He felt a surge of emotion in his heaving chest, like fire and brimstone and all the things his punishment proved not to be.

Helpless, the prisoner lifted his head to see the one who was approaching. His eyes picked out details, and words long buried resurfaced with a flash of inspiration. Earth pony. Stallion. Adult.

The stallion was taller than the frail creature by more than a head, his deep blue eyes wide with shock. His fur was a deep, dark brown, while a short, messy head of dusty brown hair adorned the top of his head. Similar colored hairs worked along his jawline to surround his lips in a thick mustache and bushy beard. He wore heavy boots and a warm blue vest, wet with sweat and covered in dirt and grime. Leather saddlebags straddled his withers, loaded with chunks of wood. A woodcutter’s axe was hooked into the side of the bags.

The stallion took a cautious step forward, his eyes lingering on the prisoner. “Woah… hello? Sir? You alright?” he called out, his voice now laced with concern.

Pity. The prisoner knew that tone of voice, and his fiery emotion redoubled in strength. The word for it was on the edge of his thoughts, brimming, bubbling like a boiling cauldron of water, but the words still eluded him, and he was too tired to act on the impulses it inspired.

The creature lifted his head to speak. “I… Live…” he rased out dryly.

The stallion blinked and stepped closer. “Sweet Celestia… what in Tartarus happened to ya?” he asked as he set down his saddlebags.

The phrasing of the question sparked a withering laugh from the prisoner. Upon seeing the confused look the pony was giving him, he merely flashed him a large, toothy grin. “Tartarus,” was his only answer.

The stallion furrowed his brow, not quite sure what to say in response to that. A moment later, though he was clearly unsettled by the old creature, he stepped closer. “Well, uh… D-do ya need help? I’ve got food and water in the tent. Some blankets, a pillow, first aid kit if yer hurt.”

The prisoner blinked, turning back to the tent. He remembered, now. He had not made this campsite. He had discovered it after endless wandering, barely sustaining himself on puddles after rainfall and the meat of squirrels, rabbits, and rats that dared to cross his path.

Hearing another creature speak was slowly reminding the prisoner of his words. “Y-yes… Water. Give me water,” he said, his weak voice slowly growing in volume.

The stallion smirked, setting down his saddlebags before strolling for the tent. “Couldn’t hurt ya to say please,” he teased lightly. There was levity in his voice, burying his clear suspicion, that made the prisoner want to puke. He very well might have, if there had been anything in his stomach.

A moment later, the stallion came back from his tent, setting a metal flask filled with water and a bar of dried vegetable matter next to the prisoner. “It’s nothin’ special, I know,” the stallion said with a shrug on seeing the prisoner looking back up at him. “Wasn’t expectin’ company. If I was, I’da made up some soup. Lemme tell ya, I make the best darn bowl of soup you ever did see.”

“Soup…” The prisoner repeated the word, rolling it over on his tongue. Memories of meals in a massive hall, side by side with his brother, and receiving the disimpassioned glare of one who resembled him, his… father… clawed through his mind. “I remember soup…”

The stallion’s smile faded. He sat down across the fire from the prisoner, and it didn’t take a genius to see that the position was defensively chosen. Still, there was compassion in the pony’s eyes. Pity. “Ya ‘remember’ soup? My stars, man, how long have ya been out here on your own?”

“Not long enough,” the prisoner replied. He reached down to the flask, fumbling only for a moment with the cap before prying it free and greedily guzzling the water within. His throat burned from the sudden influx, but he did not care. He was starving. He was thirsty. He needed to drink. He needed to eat. He needed more.

When he lowered the flask, he saw the stallion’s eyes latched onto his hand, wide with surprise. A moment later, he looked up under the prisoner’s hood, unable to see his face through the cast shadows. “Hands?” the stallion asked in surprise. “If ya don’t mind me askin’, what are ya? Ponies don’t come with hands.”

The prisoner paused. The word came to him more quickly this time, the water having done wonders to wash the cobwebs from his mind as thoroughly as it had cleared the crackle in his voice. “Centaur,” he replied a moment later. “I’m a centaur.”

The stallion let out an impressed whistle. The noise hurt the centaur’s ears. “Don’t get many of yer kind ‘round Equestria these days,” he said after a moment. He offered a smile and thumped a hoof to his chest. “I’m Lumberjack, by the by. What can I call ya?”

The centaur paused, looking back down at the now empty flask. His fingers twitched and clawed across the metal canister, his unkempt nails biting into it with a painful scraping noise. A name. What was his name…?

The fireplace spat a spark of embers at him as if repulsed by his presence. The centaur leaned back, scrunching up his wrinkled old face.

“...Tirek,” he whispered at length, the word leaving his lips as if it were a reverent prayer.

Lumberjack nodded. “Pleasure to meet ya, Tirek. If ya need a place to rest up for the night, I don’t mind lettin’ ya stick ‘round my camp. It can be dangerous to wander at night, especially this close to the Everfree. It’s a primal zone, ya know. All kindsa nasty little critters what’ll chomp you up, and surprise storms that can ruin yer day.”

Tirek was not listening. The moment his name had left his lips, it had brought with it a flurry of memories that his solitude had left buried. Memories of a barren wasteland, his useless father’s magnificent domain. The loving smile of his brother as they set off into the world. The refusal of his teachers to share what they knew. The pitiful ponies that groveled at his hooves. The sweet taste of their essence as he gorged himself. The swelling of his body as he ate. The hateful sting as his own brother turned his back on him. And the years spent screaming and howling, his mind eroding into that of an animal, bound in chains, as the madness of Tartarus claimed him, body, mind, and indeed, his very soul.

Oblivious to Tirek’s revelations, Lumberjack continued. “Course, livin’ near the Everfree ain’t stopped the ponies of Ponyville. Nice little town. I can lead ya there in the morning if I ya like. Plenty of folks there’d be more than happy to give ya a hand, I think.”

Lumberjack’s words slowed to an uneasy end as Tirek spoke, repeating his own name aloud. “Tirek… Tirek… Tirek…” he rasped again and again, a hand finding its way to his head.

Lumberjack leaned back slightly, his brow furrowing with concern. “You, uh… you alright?” he asked again.

Tirek began to laugh. A sickly, sickening cackle. “It had been so long. I had almost forgotten…” he wheezed before descending into a violent coughing fit. He slowly lifted his head a moment later, his lips parting into a wicked grin, while his eyes flared with firey yellow light. “Lord Tirek. I am Lord Tirek.”

Lumberjack slid back on his haunches, and Tirek did not miss how his hoof was drifting over towards the axe strapped to his deposited saddlebags. “Er… that doesn’t sound egotistical at all,” he said with a voice that was clearly strained with sudden nerves.

Tirek chuckled, ignoring the peasant’s impropriety. He was a stupid pony. How could he be expected to know any better? “You mentioned a town called Ponyville?” he asked after a moment. “Where is it?”

Lumberjack swallowed heavily and jerked his head to the south and west. “Th-that way. I told ya I could help ya there in the morning,” he said uneasily.

Tirek shook his head. “In the morning? Oh, no no no. That won’t be necessary, my little pony,” he rasped before pushing himself slowly back to stand at his full height. His body groaned, cracked, and popped in protest, but it nonetheless obeyed. “You shall help me there tonight.”

Lumberjack frowned, inching closer still to his axe. “I, er… that’s a bit of a trek, and it’s dark out,” he tried to reason. “And I’m tuckered out. I wouldn’t be a very good guide like this…”

Tirek took a threatening step forward. Lumberjack’s hoof found his axe. Tirek grinned wider. “Oh, you misunderstand me,” he stated matter of factly. “I don’t need a guide.”

The act came back to him with effortless ease. Lumberjack became frozen in place. The pony’s eyes peeled wide open, his mouth stretching in a silent scream as tendrils of fiery magic ensnared his form and held him in place. His eyes darted frantically about as black wisps swirled threateningly around his body, and Tirek could see his muscles twitching and spasming in a futile effort to break free.

With no horn, there was no easy way to get what he needed from this pony. But it mattered little. He had been foolish enough to let his guard down for too long. And now, it was too late to fight back. With a cackle, Tirek stalked around the fire to Lumberjack’s side, stretched open wide his own mouth, and bit down on Lumberjack’s shoulder.

If Lumberjack had been able to give voice to his agony at that moment, he would have. The aura around him twisted and convulsed as tendrils began sinking into his very skin. His body spasmed in unnatural ways, trying to fight off the intruding presence, but he had not been prepared for such an attack.

Bit by bit, the stallion’s body began to shrivel and wither, much like Tirek’s own. And with every bit of muscle that the stallion lost to those probing, devouring tendrils, Tirek’s own mass began to regrow. He had to fight the urge to scream with triumphant joy as he felt strength returning to his body, his bones, and even to his mind. The rush of his powers at work was a perfect reminder of his purpose, and the word that had danced at the edges of his mind ever since this pony stumbled upon him came surging back into his mind. The final flash of the revival of Lord Tirek.

The word was hate.

When there was nothing left to draw from the stallion, Tirek pulled away, letting Lumberjack crumple to the ground. He released his magical hold on the poor fool, and Lumberjack immediately began to cry and whimper with a hoof clutching at his shoulder, squirming on the ground like the earthworm he was.

Tirek admired his handiwork. The stallion’s body was shriveled, now, though not in the manner of one who failed to eat well. His muscles had fled him, leaving his skin wrinkled and folded against his weakened body. His eyes, staring up at Tirek in absolute terror, had dulled to pools of lightless gray. On his flank, the cutie mark that Tirek had never even bothered to memorize had disappeared.

In turn, Tirek looked down at himself. Still far from his prime, perhaps, but stronger than he had been a moment before. He could stand strong, now. Strong enough to make the journey he needed to make. He grinned down at Lumberjack, his eyes flaring with delight, and his throat rumbling with a victorious growl. “Thank you for the help… and the meal,” he said in a low, mocking whisper.

“W-what are you?” Lumberjack wheezed, his trembling voice reminding Tirek of himself only a few minutes prior.

Tirek’s grin widened, and he looked up to the distant city of Canterlot, barely visible against the last fading light of the and the darkness of the night. “I am Lord Tirek,” he proclaimed matter-of-factly. “And I will take what should have been mine long ago.”

“Monster!” Lumberjack moaned, trying to roll over and lift his axe. He let out a terrified whimper as Tirek’s iron-clad hoof smashed down into his back between his shoulder blades, pinning him in place. A firey glow stole his axe away from him and cast it lazily into the fire.

“Did you not hear me?” Tirek snarled. “I am Lord Tirek! Address me properly, pony.”

Lumberjack, in stubborn defiance, snapped a glare back at the centaur lord. “Demon,” he growled. “Go to Tartarus!”

There was a pause as the words washed over Tirek. He looked down, his hood hiding his face from view. He couldn’t help it. He began to laugh. A horrid, wretched sound that made Lumberjack realize the error in his choice of words. He only had time to let out a squawk of panic as Tirek’s hand found his throat and squeezed, lifting him breathlessly to the centaur’s eye level.

Tirek grinned at him as his hood fell away, revealing the two horns growing out of the sides of his head. They began to glow with a fiery light.

“Not today.”

Lumberjack’s fire burned brighter for only a moment and then went dark.

Author's Note

And so Begins the

Prince of Fire Arc

And here we go! The final arc of Little Keys, and we have Tirek rocking in to cause trouble!

Also, what does everyone think of my origin story for Tartarus? I've been listening to some D&D Audiobooks of late set in the Underdark, and so I kinda had a bit of inspiration from that for the place.

Storm On The Horizon

A handful of months have come and gone since Twilight Sparkle returned to Canterlot. In that time, she has made good on every opportunity she has had to return to the city of her birth, spending time with her family and the friends she had long neglected. Midnight’s influence over her thoughts is weaker than it has ever been before, and Twilight almost - almost - feels like her old self again.

If only she could have known of the inferno nipping at her tail, about to swallow her whole…

“It really is good to see you again, Twilight,” Lyra Heartstrings said as she poured another refill of juice for the four mares seated at the table. “Bon Bon never believed me when I told her I knew you and Dash way back when I lived in Canterlot.”

Twilight smiled, politely declining her refill with a wave of her hoof. She was sitting at a round table in Lyra’s house, joined by Lyra herself, her girlfriend Bon Bon, and Rainbow Dash. Spike had wanted to come, but Rarity had needed his help with something and had ‘acquired’ him when they had been en route.

The little guy, notoriously, was powerless to resist Rarity’s charms.

“Honestly, I still labor to believe it, personally,” Bon Bon said, giving Twilight an appraising look for what must have been the thousandth time tonight. “I never really imagined Lyra rubbing shoulders with such high-profile figures.”

Lyra rolled her eyes and lightly nudged the butter-colored earth mare in the shoulder. “Is it really that hard to believe? I went to Celestia’s school, for pony’s sake!” she said with a chuckle. “I met Princess Celestia herself plenty of times! She even told me my music was beautiful!”

Rainbow sat forward mid-swig of her drink, one eyebrow going up. “Wasn’t that the day you got your cutie mark?” She asked curiously.

Lyra’s face split wide with a proud grin. She rotated in place, putting her flank and the mark emblazoned upon it on full display - and very deliberately bumping it into Bon Bon’s in the process. The action elicited a blush and a high-pitched squeak from Bon Bon.

Grinning wider, Lyra continued. “You betcha! Music class, first year, fourth period, halfway through. Princess Celestia came walking in while we were in the middle of personal practice. She was supposed to talk to the teacher about something, but instead, she came walking up to me. She told me my lyre-playing was excellent! Hearing the princess of all the land tell me that, you can bet that I felt inspired! So I decided that I wanted to play a little thing I’d been working on for the princess, played my little heart out, and then BAM!”

She smacked her flank with a resounding slapping sound, deepening the blush on Bon Bon’s face. “Got my mark!” Lyra declared before crossing her hooves over her chest and puffing up with pride.

Twilight blinked in surprise. “Wow. I didn’t know that was how you got it!” she exclaimed, leaning forward slightly to get a better look. She had never taken any classes in music when she was in school, but she had known Lyra had been the best in her class. To hear that she had got her mark playing for Celestia of all ponies sent a whole new wave of appreciation for the mark washing over her.

Midnight scoffed in the back of her mind, but Twilight ignored her.

Bon Bon gave Twilight a confused look. “Not sure how you’d miss it. Lyra brags about it every chance she gets,” she noted, scooting a little closer to Lyra as she did.

“To be fair,” Rainbow noted, pointing down at Lyra’s still presented flank with a knowing smirk. “I think that’s mostly for your benefit.”

Bon Bon was silent for a second, the gears slowly turning in her head. She then turned to the unrepentantly grinning unicorn and pouted. “...Oh, you are gonna get it,” she said with equal parts annoyance and amusement.

Lyra’s grin grew. “I’m counting on it!”

Twilight chuckled in amusement at the sight, immediately reminded of her own flirting with Rainbow Dash. The motions of it typically came naturally to her, but seeing something so like it from the outside was a whole other feeling. She smiled warmly at Lyra, and she couldn’t help but feel a little pride for her friend. Lyra had come so far since Twilight had known her in Canterlot, and there was no mistaking the passionate glint in her eyes.

Allowing the conversation to carry on without her, Twilight leaned back in her seat. She looked over towards a nearby window… and let out a yelp of alarm when she realized that the sun was setting.

She sat bolt upright, her wings flaring out and smacking Rainbow right in the face. “Speaking of Celestia, sweet Celestia, where did the time go?!” she asked a little louder than intended.

Rainbow said something, the words muffled by Twilight’s wing and tickling the outstretched limb.

Lyra chuckled. “Heh, it happens. We had a lot of catching up to do!” she said before setting her glass down and standing up as well. “And this has been really nice. It’s been wonderful to chat with you two again, but we should probably be wrapping this up. Bon Bon and I have a date night tonight.”

Rainbow managed to pry Twilight’s wing out of her face long enough to give her a questioning glance. “Oh yeah? Where ya goin’?”

“Local theater,” Bon Bon replied, also standing up. “There’s a big musical performance tonight. Figured I’d bring my little note-goblin to see it. My treat.”

“It’s the Four Harps!” Lyra squealed, trotting in place with frantic energy. “Oooh, I’m so excited! They never stop by small towns like this!”

Rainbow finished folding Twilight’s wing up against her side, gave Lyra and Bon Bon a puzzled look, then shrugged. “Sounds fun? I dunno who the Four Harps are, though,” she made the mistake of saying. To call the look on Lyra’s face ‘scandalized’ would be akin to saying the sun was a little warm.

Bon Bon rolled her eyes. “Now you’ve done it.”

“You don’t know the Four Harps?!” Lyra shrieked, reaching out with her hooves to take Rainbow by the shoulders and give the pegasus princess a ferocious shake. “They’re only the most esteemed quartet of classical musicians in all of Equestria! Fifteen years, nine tours, and at least ten albums of the best musical bliss in the whole wide world! They’ve played in the court of Princess Celestia herself! And Princess Luna once she came back!”

Rainbow might have conjured up a witty response about liking more modern music, like those weird guitar things that relied on electricity or powerful drum solos. But any words she uttered came out as an indecipherable mass of yelps and rolling groans as Lyra thrashed her around like a ragdoll. Twilight laughed merrily at the display before lighting up her horn and gingerly prying Lyra off of her.

“Hey, hooves off. That’s mine,” she lightly teased, setting Lyra down beside Bon Bon.

Bon Bon rolled her eyes and quickly got Lyra into a masterfully practiced headlock. She pressed her hoof into Lyra’s mane with a wicked grin, giving her a noogie. “And this one is mine. Unfortunately,” she replied.

Lyra squirmed, crying out indignantly. “Bonnie! Cut it out! Ow! My mane!”

“I told you you were gonna get it.”

“THIS IS NOT WHAT I THOUGHT THAT MEANT!”

Twilight let out another happy laugh at the display, then took a few steps back. “Alright, well, we’ll leave you to it. We need to get back to the library anyway. Spike’ll be home by now. Thanks for hanging out, Lyra! We should do this again, sometime!” she said, guiding a still dizzy Rainbow for the door.

Lyra finally managed to pry herself free from Bon Bon’s noogie, dusted herself off, pouted at her girlfriend, and then waved happily after Twilight. “Yeah, we should! Maybe next time Pinkie throws a party!” she called out. “And I’ll bring a Four Harps album!”

Twilight looked over her shoulder at Lyra as she and Rainbow stepped out into the rapidly cooling Ponyville air. She gave the two lovebirds a warm smile and a nod. “Sounds like a plan. Until then!” she said before closing the door. The last thing she saw before it closed fully was the absolutely predatory look that Bon Bon was giving Lyra.

Some small part of Twilight wondered if they were actually going to make it to the theater…

Twilight let off a little sigh of contentment, falling into step beside Rainbow as the two began the walk back to the Golden Oaks. “Whew. That was nice!”

Rainbow nodded along. “Sure was. Lyra hasn’t changed a bit,” she said with an equally pleased smile. “Kinda surprised by Bon Bon, though.”

Twilight turned to her, quirking a brow. “Huh? How come?” she asked curiously. She had never met Bon Bon before, but nothing had stood out to her as odd.

Rainbow opened her mouth to say something, but then stopped. A second later, she offered up a helpless little shrug. “Eh. Dunno. Guess I just didn’t realize Lyra swung that way.”

Twilight eyed Rainbow for a moment. The pegasus clearly knew something and was keeping it to herself. In the end, though, Twilight decided that it probably didn’t matter. So she simply shrugged and dropped it. The two fell into a companionable silence after that, taking a chance to enjoy the relative peace and quiet. The usual noise and chatter of Ponyville in the day were rapidly fading away as ponies started making their way to their homes to tuck into a home-cooked dinner and a warm bed.

Twilight took a deep breath, savoring the moment. Getting to see and talk to Lyra again, setting right another of her youthful mistakes, had brought another measure of peace back to her mind. A measure of clarity and satisfaction, the reassurance that she was on the right path.

But still, she knew she was missing something. Her smile faded, replaced with a thoughtful frown. Her thoughts wandered back to the Tree of Harmony, and that enigmatic chest. She hadn’t set hoof in front of either of them ever since the chest first appeared. She felt like she had made progress in opening it, but she could not for the life of her find a justification for that feeling. It was like an instinct or Intuition. Like there was some outside thing that was telling her she was making progress, and she had no choice but to take it at its word.

Maybe it was the Tree itself? It was intelligent, she knew that much, and it was absurdly powerful. But thus far it had yet to communicate with her in any way that wasn’t infuriatingly cryptic. Perhaps the only direct communication it had ever given out was a flash it had forced on Fluttershy when the Plundervines were on the rampage, and even then it had taken a few minutes of detective work to decipher what the stupid thing wanted.

She shook her head, banishing the thoughts. She knew nothing would come of stressing herself over it. For now, all she could do was keep living her life and hope for the best. And right now, living her life just meant spending time with the lovable featherbrain that walked beside her.

Their moment of tranquility was, unfortunately, shattered. A voice came hollering over the rooftops, loud and shrill. “Rainbow! Rainbow Dash! Where are you?!”

Rainbow and Twilight came to a stop, the former groaning in frustration. “Oh, for the love of- what now?” she demanded under her breath, clearly exasperated. She unfolded her wings and took to the air, followed closely by Twilight. They were met just above the rooftops by a grey pegasus mare with a blonde mane and tail and eyes that pointed in different directions. Derpy Hooves, the local mailmare.

“Dash! There you are!” Derpy said, flapping her wings to slow down and coming to a stop only slightly past Rainbow. She turned to face them, one eye focusing on the princess and the other following a firefly that had decided to pop out its light a little early.

Rainbow nodded in greeting. “Sup?”

Derpy, unfazed by the casual greeting, nodded her head to the east. “Uh, Thunderlane asked me to come and get you and the other weather team members. There’s a big storm brewing in the Everfree, and he wants all hooves on deck to chase it off!”

Rainbow groaned again, slapping a hoof to her face. “Gah! Of course the Everfree’s acting up,” she muttered, deflating on the spot. “And tonight was going so good, too…”

Twilight gave Rainbow a supporting smile. She reached out to pat the pegasus on the shoulder, drawing Rainbow’s attention back to her. “It’s alright. You go do what you need to do. I’ll have Spike whip something up for you for when you get home. Sound good?” she suggested hopefully.

Rainbow looked like she wanted to protest, but closed her mouth a second later. Then she nodded, rolling her hairband up a little higher on her mane to better keep it behind her head and out of her face. “Alright. I’m on my way, Derpy. You go on home. Ya don’t wanna be out in the open in case the storm somehow gets past me.”

Derpy threw a sharp and corny little salute before turning and flying down for the streets below. Twilight watched her go, and a thought occurred to her. She turned back to Rainbow with a raised eyebrow. “Why did Thunderlane send Derpy? She doesn’t even work for the weather teams. What was she doing there?”

Rainbow shrugged. “I dunno. Maybe she was just walking by. Or maybe she was flirting with one of the team members. Either way, if Thunderlane wants all hooves on deck, that probably means it’s a big one, and sending a team member out as a messenger would mean fewer hooves to do the job. So, send the nearest pegasus who knows who you’re talkin’ about.”

Twilight hummed, turning her attention back toward the Everfree. Sure enough, now that she was really looking, she could see storm clouds just peaking up over the distant treeline, dark and ominous. They roiled and churned, and even from here, Twilight could faintly make out the distant rumble of thunder.

She cringed. “Ooh, that is a big one. Do you need any help?” She asked, feeling a pang of concern for Rainbow’s wellbeing.

Rainbow shook her head. “Nah. You’re a good mage and all, Twilight, but you don’t really know the first thing about fighting a storm. You go on home and I’ll see ya there.”

Twilight’s expression flattened. “Gee. Thanks for the compliment,” she droned out.

Rainbow grinned, flying slowly backward in the cocky way she did when she wanted to show off her skills in the air. “You’re welcome. Besides, somepony’s gotta be there to keep Spike company.”

Twilight couldn’t refute that logic. She gave Rainbow one last look, an encouraging smile, and then dipped into an overly exaggerated and flamboyant bow. “As you command, your highness.”

Rainbow gagged playfully, snickered in amusement, and then turned to bolt off for the weather team office. In a flash, all that was left of Rainbow Dash was a prismatic blur, and even that faded away in a matter of moments. Twilight stared after her for a moment, feeling the gust of air from the sudden departure. Her smile slowly faded. “Well, so much for walking home together,” she thought morosely. “Still. Duty calls, and she’s not one to shirk it.”

A new, far colder gust blew by, a prelude to the oncoming storm, and Twilight decided it might be better to stick to the ground. She was good at flying, yes, but a strong enough wind from a primal storm could throw off even a master flyer, and she was not in the mood for unplanned crash landings. She touched back down on the ground and resumed her journey at a brisk pace.

The silence around her was now occasionally being broken by the rising howl of the wind, and the voices of ponies being sent out to warn the population to hunker down and wait for it to pass. Those few ponies who were still out and about quickly moved to withdraw into their homes, not wanting to be out in the open when it came upon them.

Twilight weathered it all without complaint. She’d been through far worse than a little storm from the Everfree. And even that itself was a routine enough occurrence in Ponyville for basically everyone to know exactly what to do. So she just kept her eyes focused ahead. It wouldn’t much longer until she reached the library, and then it would just be a waiting game. And waiting was never much of a problem when you lived in a library.

Another hard gust of air suddenly blew by, strong enough to make Twilight pause and lift a wing to shelter her face. She heard a stallion just down the street from her let out an impressed whistle at the gale before he ducked into his home, leaving Twilight as the only pony standing in the street.

As the gust died down, Twilight put her wing away with a huff. She was about to resume her trek at an even brisker pace when a new sound caught her ear, distinct from the soundscape she was used to. She paused, perking her ears up and listening carefully.

A second passed in silence. And then another.

The noise came again. Labored wheezing, followed by a series of sharp, rattling coughs. They were coming from a nearby alleyway.

Twilight turned to look. At this late hour and with the clouds rolling in, the alley’s contents were draped in deep shadows, casting everything as blackened silhouettes against off-black darkness. The back wall of a house cut the alley off farther back.

The coughing came again, and now that Twilight was paying attention, she realized just how unhealthy it sounded. Whoever was in there, they were not well. She felt a spark of concern, and before she was even aware of the decision, she had pivoted on her hooves and was advancing into the alleyway.

“What are you doing?” Midnight demanded, apparating next to Twilight in a flicker of blue mist. “We don’t have time for this. Move on.”

Twilight cast Midnight a dismissive glare before focusing ahead. “Somepony might need my help,” she mentally spat. “I can’t just leave them without making sure they’re alright. They sound sick.”

Midnight scoffed. “Their concerns are none of your business. You can’t waste your energy on every little trifle that crosses your path!”

“Maybe not,” Twilight conceded in a low whisper, shrugging her shoulders before pressing on, marching past a glaring Midnight. “But I can spare enough for this one.”

Midnight stomped a hoof in frustration, but she did not fade away. She lingered in the entrance of the alleyway, silently watching.

As Twilight advanced, she caught sight of a lone figure deeper in, taking shelter from the wind behind a trash can. They were around her size, maybe a little shorter, though she could not see any details of their form under the ancient grey cloak they wore. She could barely make out the tips of iron-covered hooves on the ground. The figure lurched forward, letting off another series of ragged, gurgling coughs.

Twilight winced, slowly lighting up her horn to cast some light across the alleyway. “Hello? Excuse me, sir? Are you alright?” she called out to him as her light spread across the alley.

The figure flinched away from her light, his breath hitching for a moment. He turned away, hiding his face under his hood. “I’m fine,” he said, his voice older than any Twilight had heard before, like sandpaper on gravel. “Leave me be.”

Twilight came to a stop, eyeing the pony in front of her. At least, she assumed it was a pony. She put on a small smile and a hoof to her heart. “My name is Twilight Sparkle. May I ask yours?”

There was a pause. The pony shrugged. “I’d rather keep that to myself,” he answered, seemingly giving in to Twilight’s presence.

Twilight nodded slowly, a little off-put. Something was starting to feel wrong. A tingle in the back of her neck, the same feeling she got when something was watching her. She shook her head, banishing the thought. It was probably just Midnight trying to discourage her.

But then Midnight stepped up to stand beside her. Her eyes were focused on the hacking pony, and her face was set into a grim frown. “No. I feel it, too,” she said simply.

Twilight blinked, giving Midnight a shocked look. Since when did Midnight agree with her about something that felt wrong? She wanted to question her, but another series of ragged coughs drew her eyes back to the pony in the alley. She swallowed a lump in her throat and took a tentative step forward. “A-are you sure you don’t need any help?” she offered, unable to hide the slight tremble in her voice. “There’s a big storm rolling in. You shouldn’t be outside when it hits. I could help you get indoors if you’d like, or maybe give some directions?”

The figure sighed warily and slowly turned to face Twilight. His face was obscured entirety by the shadow cast by his hood, but she thought she could make out cracked lips and a grey beard poking out from the darkness. He opened his mouth to say something, then paused, and Twilight suddenly felt even more uncomfortable.

“Wait… you…” the figure mumbled, giving Twilight a slow look. “You’re an alicorn?”

Twilight frowned. “I… am, yes,” she conceded uncomfortably.

Midnight visibly bristled, her pupils dilating. She took a step back, her posture shifting defensively. “Twilight. Leave it,” she ordered, turning back to her with an almost frightened look in her eyes. “I mean it. Leave him and go. This is wrong.”

The figure took a step forward, cutting Twilight off before she could answer. “I was not aware there were more of you…” he rasped, his voice impossible to read. There was an audible tremble, but whether it was born from nerves or delight, Twilight could not tell. “When did this…?”

Twilight frowned, setting her jaw. “I’d rather keep that to myself,” she said firmly, taking a defensive step back herself.

The figure froze in place, and a tense silence fell over them. Next to Twilight, Midnight was becoming visibly distressed. Her wings unfurled slightly, her hoof pawing anxiously at the dirt. She turned to Twilight again, and when she spoke again, she sounded desperate.

“We need to go!”

The figure in front of Twilight cut Midnight off with a low chuckle. Twilight’s eyes widened when she saw a pair of crimson-skinned hands rising out of his cloak. She inhaled sharply, taking another step back. “Centaur,” she whispered, her brain trying to claw up whatever information she could on the reclusive species.

A scythe-like grin showed from under the hood. “You’re right, alicorn. I don’t need to know why, how, or when,” he said in a quivering, predatory rasp.

“RUN!” Midnight screamed at Twilight. The fear and panic in her voice were all the convincing that Twilight needed. She turned to flee as long and as fast as her hooves and wings could carry her.

She didn’t make it a single step.

Right before Twilight could light up her horn or lift her defenses, a fiery orange glow encased her, holding her in place. She opened her mouth to cry out a question, to demand he let her go. All that came out was an agonized scream that was lost to the roaring wind. An agony like fire erupted inside of her body, rolling in blistering waves up her legs, through her barrel, up her neck and skull, and gathering at the tip of her horn.

Her eyes widened in horror when she saw a stream of bright lavender light leaving her horn. It flowed out of her and vanished into the centaur’s wide, gaping mouth. She could hear him breathing in, inhaling her magic through his open jaws. She tried to thrash and fight, but his infernal magic had her held firm. All she could do was scream. Scream as the strength left her muscles. Scream as the wind went dead and distant between her feathers. Scream as the spark that had always been there, ever since the day she was born, burning brilliantly in her heart and soul, winked away like a snuffed candle.

Beside her, Midnight was screaming, too. A howl of rage and panic.

And then, all at once, it was silent.

Twilight crumpled to the ground, gasping for breath, her hooves curling up protectively around her barrel. She was shaking uncontrollably, the chill in the air slicing through her fur and into her muscles as if all of her layers of insulation and warmth had been stripped away. She felt naked, empty, hollowed out, and violated. Struggling even to breathe, she lifted her eyes to look with terror upon the face of her assailant.

They were growing. Their body was enveloped in firelight, growing taller and broader as her stolen essence was integrated into them. She could hear the monster’s triumphant growls, their cloak falling away as they grew too large for it. Twilight could see his arms, once twig-like and spindly, swelling with bulging muscle and newfound strength. Short, stubby horns on the sides of the centaur's head, black as coal, rose up, curving in and then out, reminding her of a demon. His eyes, pitch black save for his amber pupils, flew wide with ecstasy. His torso, covered in fur as dark as tar, swelled with yet more muscle mass until he towered over double Twilight’s height.

And then he stopped growing. The glow of his magic faded away, and his new form came to a rest. He held his posture for a moment, then looked down at his hands. He frowned in disappointment. When he spoke, his voice had deepened and smoothed with newly restored youth into the rumbling bass of a rock slide. “Bah. Head and shoulders above the rest of your worthless kind, but barely more than a child compared to the sisters…”

Twilight, hyperventilating, struggled to speak. “Wh-wh-what… wh-what did y-you do to m-me?” she finally managed to stagger out. “Wh-wh-who are you?”

The figure’s lips peeled into an enormous grin, and he knelt down to peer into Twilight’s face. “I took what belongs to me,” he said with the cold conviction of a demon.

“Th-thief,” Twilight choked out, trying to clamber back to her hooves. However, she barely even had the strength to twitch, much less rise. “G-give it back.”

The figure’s smirk fell away. Twilight let out a strangled squawk as his thick crimson fingers curled her around the throat. The centaur lifted her effortlessly off the ground, her hind legs swinging uselessly beneath her as if she were hanging from a noose.

“I am no thief,” the centaur rumbled. “I am a prince. I am a king. I am Lord Tirek! And you will address me as such!”

Twilight might have said something, but she couldn’t breathe. She struck a hoof feebly against Tirek’s hand, but to no avail. Whatever strength she might have had even back when she was a unicorn was gone. She wouldn’t even be able to topple a toddler in her condition.

Tirek pulled her in close, his eyes flaring with menacing light. “Thank you for the meal… But I am afraid you are no longer of any use to me.”

Twilight’s heart leaped into her throat. She opened her mouth to scream for help, but she didn’t have the chance. Tirek pitched back and threw her against the ground, hard, and the air was driven from her lungs. Something crunched in her barrel, stars exploding across her vision. Dazed, and confused, she barely had the awareness to realize Tirek had raised his iron-clad hoof above her head.

“W-wait…” she breathed, raising a hoof in futile defense.

Tirek grinned, and the hoof came down.

For an instant, Twilight’s world was pain, and then she knew no more.

Hollowed

Rainbow was dripping wet by the time she finally touched down in front of the library. She wasn’t sure how much of it was rainwater versus how much of it was sweat from her exertions. The storm had come quickly - far more quickly than she had expected, and it had been fierce. The winds had thrown more than one of the newer pegasi on duty out of the air, forcing her to order them home for their own safety, if nothing else.

It had been an arduous process, swallowing multiple hours of her time, but finally, finally, it seemed like the storm was starting to come to an end. At the very least, the worst of it passed, and Thunderlane had insisted that she head home and that they could handle the rest without her. She knew he was probably just trying to encourage her to go back to Twilight and relax for what little was left of their waking hours, but at the same time, she couldn’t help but feel slightly offended. She wasn’t an employee of the weather teams, after all, she didn’t have to follow his orders. She outranked him by several orders of magnitude.

In the end, though, she had relented. She did want to cuddle with Twilight, after all. And so, with a few mock grumbles of dismay, she had flown home. It was only now as her hooves were slogging through the mud for the front door that she realized just how worn out she was. Puffing out a tired grunt, she shouldered open the door and stepped into the dry warmth of the library.

“Yo! I’m back!” she called out as she entered, resisting the urge to shake herself dry then and there. Twilight would never let her live it down if she got the books wet again. “I need a towel over here!”

The tell-tale clicking of Spike’s claws on the ground signaled his approach. Rainbow turned to see him emerging from the steps to the loft, a towel already in his hand. He gave Rainbow a surprised look and quirked a brow. “You’re late getting back. Did ya get recruited for weather duty or something?”

Rainbow nodded, staying still on the doormat. “Just me,” she said, gratefully accepting the towel and quickly clearing out the worst of her dampness. “Phew. It’s really putting down out there.”

Spike hummed, approaching a window and peering outside. A moment later, he turned to Rainbow and put on a curious smile. “So, how was the visit?” he asked, leaning against the wall.

Rainbow finished drying herself to the point she wouldn’t be dripping everywhere and tossed the towel back to Spike. “It was good. Lyra and Bon Bon are a thing, now, so that was fun to watch.”

Spike’s eyes widened. “Wha- really? Wow! I can’t really imagine Lyra being in a relationship with anypony,” he mused, rubbing at his chin.

Rainbow rolled her eyes. “To be fair, you knew her when she was still a kid at mom’s school,” she pointed out.

Spike shrugged. “Eh, fair. I bet Twilight had fun. Speaking of which…”

Spike’s brow suddenly furrowed. He leaned to one side as if to look past Rainbow, visibly confused. He then turned and looked out the window “Where is she?”

Rainbow frowned. “Huh? What are you talking about? I sent her home ahead of me. She shoulda been back a while ago.”

Spike shook his head. “She would’ve told me if she was back,” he said, an edge of concern creeping into his voice.

Rainbow grimaced, an uncomfortable feeling starting to pool into her gut. Midnight must have gotten to her again. At least, that was the only explanation Rainbow could think of. And the last time that had happened…

“She’s probably just upstairs,” Rainbow said before lifting into the air on her wings and flying up the steps before Spike could get a word in.

To her surprise, however, she found the door open. She set herself down in the doorway and peered at the bed. To her growing concern, Twilight wasn’t there. The bathroom door was also open and the light was out. Twilight wasn’t there either.

A deep discomfort settled into Rainbow’s stomach. She shifted on her hooves, her wings twitching with nervous energy at her sides. This wasn’t right. The rattling of the rain against the windows suddenly sounded far louder and far more ominous in her head.

Spike came running up the stairs behind her, panting for breath. Looking past her, he wilted on the spot and slowly shook his head. “Not here either?” he asked quietly.

Rainbow pursed her lips tightly together, one hoof scraping idly against the floor. “No. She’s not.”

Spike shuddered, his claws wringing themselves together over his chest. “Do you… think she’s okay?” he asked, mirroring the question pounding through the forefront of Rainbow’s thoughts. “Maybe she just took shelter from the rain with one of our friends?”

Rainbow shook her head. “No, that wouldn’t make any sense. Twilight could easily make something to keep the rain off of her. I’ve seen her do it. And even if she did duck in with one of our friends, it wouldn’t be for so long that I’d beat her here a couple hours later. Besides, she can do that funky magic teleport thing.”

Spike fidgeted in place, letting off a low groan of discomfort and worry. “So, what do you think could’ve happened?” he finally asked, looking up at Rainbow in hopes of an explanation.

A moment later, Rainbow shook her head. “I don’t know…” She muttered, turning her eyes to the window at the far end of the bedroom. She wanted to just jump through it, fly out into town and start looking for Twilight. But it was still dark out. Combined with the rain and the wind, she would have basically no visibility. She’d be more likely to get blown off course and break something than actually find anypony.

She let out a low growl of frustration, the feeling of helplessness once again creeping up into the back of her mind. She forced herself to take a breath, to try and calm her fraying nerves. She was probably working herself up again, letting herself get overprotective. She had done it before, after all. But still, she couldn’t help but feel concerned.

“If she’s not back by the time the weather team clears this up, I’m gonna go look for her,” She decided as she started back down the stairs.

At the promise of definitive action, Spike perked up, walking alongside her. “Sounds like a plan. I’ll come with you,” he volunteered without missing a beat.

Rainbow nodded, not saying anything else as she got comfortable in her favorite chair and picked up the Daring Do book she’d been working on. She tried to distract herself, or at least pass the time until the rain outside stopped its relentless assault. But she just couldn’t. The rain pounded against the window, mocking her, taunting her, promising her that something was terribly wrong and that yet again, she was powerless to do anything about it until it was too late.

Hollow.

That was the first thing Twilight felt as consciousness slowly came back to her. She felt hollow. Empty. Like everything inside of her had been removed, leaving an empty shell of skin and bone. The next thing she felt was cold. She was frigid, freezing, and if there had been any strength in her body, she might have shivered.

Her mind was a tortured mess, foggy and indistinct, and every attempt at thought invited a surging rush of dull, throbbing pain. It was made worse with every pound of her pitifully flailing heart. She tried to recall what had happened, but it was all a jumbled blur of fog and fire. For a moment, she felt a spike of panic, a concern that, somehow, she had lost her memories again. But the mere fact that she recalled losing them before helped chase away such a notion and grounded her thoughts.

She tried to breathe in. She regretted the decision immediately. Foul-tasting water flooded into her mouth and throat, sending her into a spluttering, coughing fit. Adrenaline pumped into her veins, sending her shooting up and doubling over. Her senses came alive from the sudden movement, and she realized that it was pouring rain. Mud clung to her fur and her coat. As her coughing began to subside, she wiped the mud from her face and opened her eyes.

Her hoof came away partly covered in something that wasn’t mud. It was red. She shivered, a wave of nausea and dizziness coming over her. Her sense of balance all but disappeared, and before she knew it, she was toppling weakly over into the mud again wit ha wet plop. She kept her eyes open, pivoting to land on her back so she could get a look around.

The sky overhead was as black as pitch, occasionally illuminated by stray blasts of lightning. Thunder rumbled over her like the snarling of a hungry wolf, sending her bones quivering in her chest. Every so often, Twilight could see an indistinct shape zipping this way and that through the sky. She realized a moment later that they were pegasi, frantically trying to get this wild storm under control.

“Ponies.”

If there were ponies, Twilight could get help. She tried to sup up once again, but the strength just would not come to her. Groaning, she focused on her horn, intent on shooting a pulse of magical light into the air to serve as a beacon. Somepony would see, and they would be able to help. She grit her teeth and focused.

But there was nothing.

Twilight’s eyes widened in spite of the rain. “What…?” she choked, her voice an almost inaudible rasp. She tried again, and again there was no response. Her horn stayed cold and dark. Lifeless. She felt none of the tell-tale swirling of her magic answering her call.

It was then that she finally recalled the glowing yellow eyes of her attacker. A horrible realization swept over her, and she was unable to contain her mortified whimper.

“My magic…” she croaked in despair. “He… he t-took my magic…”

How could it be possible? She didn’t understand. Magic was an integral part of every pony - of every living being. It shouldn’t have been possible to rob a pony of their magic without killing them. And yet, here she lay… empty. Hollowed out and cast aside like a banana peel.

Groaning in pain, her head screaming in protest at every movement, Twilight tried once again to stand. In the darkness of the storm and the night, without her magic to light the way, she had no choice but to grope with her hooves for something to pull her up. She eventually found a wall, and she realized with some small relief that she was still in the alleyway. Bit by bit, she pulled herself up to all four hooves.

Her legs trembled weakly beneath her, burning from the strain of supporting her weight. Her wings hung limp and lifeless at her sides, a pair of useless dead weights. She tried to pull herself along for the alley’s exit, her every step bringing a surge of agony. She wasn’t even sure where she was going, or what she was going to do. She just knew she had to move.

Some part of her was confused, however. Why wasn’t she dead? That centaur, Tirek. After robbing her magic, he stomped on her head, declaring he had no more use for her. Maybe he hadn’t gotten as much strength as he had thought. Or maybe something forced him to flee and leave her for dead. Or maybe he had simply thought she was dead but neglected to make sure. He was in the middle of Ponyville, after all, and it would not do to get caught standing over the body of a freshly murdered mare. She shook her head a moment later, dismissing such concerns. What mattered was that she was alive, and she needed to get home.

The silence was starting to eat at her, though. As she emerged onto the streets, she huffed impatiently. “Alright. Go ahead,” she snarled at Midnight as she went, desperate for something to speak to and focus on. “Make fun of me. Mock me. Insult me. You were right. I should have listened to you, and I didn’t.”

She expected Midnight to tear into her with gusto, to go on a long-winded tirade about how big of an idiot she was, to criticize her every decision since waking up that morning. She expected Midnight to appear in front of her with that smug smirk that she so hated and verbally rip her apart.

All she got was a blast of thunder.

A lump formed in Twilight’s throat. “...Midnight?” she asked in a low whisper. “I know you’re there. Say something.”

But there was nothing. Twilight leaned against the wall of the house she was using as support and turned her senses inward, trying to find the malignant parasite that had been such a thorn in her side for so long, for once actually wanting to hear its voice, hear what it had to say.

She found only emptiness. An empty alcove in her mind.

Midnight was gone.

Twilight froze, barely daring to even breathe. She should have been happy. She should have been jumping for joy that she was finally rid of that monster. Midnight was her enemy, and just about every major decision Twilight had made since getting her memories back had been done to refute, counter, or just spite Midnight. This was supposed to be a victory. But instead, all she felt was alone. Alone and scared.

Twilight’s chest suddenly tightened as she realized just how much Tirek had taken from her. Gasping for breath, she fell away from the wall and collapsed onto the muddy street. She tried to inhale, but it was like her lungs were rejecting it. She felt numb in her hooves, and her heart was pounding so hard she feared it may burst.

“H-help!” she tried to call out to the pegasi overhead, or to anyone who might hear her. “S-somepony, help me! Please!”

But her words were lost to the wind and the rain. And without her magic to create a light, none of them would be able to see her, especially when they were so focused on the storm. She would receive no aid from above.

“Focus, Twilight!” she thought to herself, putting a hoof to her chest. It was hard, it was so hard to breathe through her own panic attack. Her every effort to inhale was stifled by her own gasping and the pounding of her heart. Images flashed and cycled through her mind until she saw Rainbow’s face staring back at her with that signature cocky grin.

She latched onto it for all she was worth, and finally, she was able to take in a breath. She recalled those days when she was first learning to fly when Rainbow had reminded her of the breathing exercise Cadance had taught her when she was little. She filled her lungs, focusing on the feeling, and slowly pushed it out with her hoof pointing away.

Slowly but surely, her panic began to subside, and a clear goal fixed itself in her thoughts. Rainbow. She had to get to Rainbow. She had to warn her. If Tirek was still at large, then everypony was in danger, and Rainbow had more power to do something about it than anypony else in town.

Stifling another whimper, Twilight forced herself back to her hooves. She wobbled on her hooves and tilted to one side, her shoulder slamming into the wall of the house again. She grunted, shivering from the cold and her own weakness, but was able to stay standing. With a groan, and keeping her weight up against the wall, she started inching down the street, bit by bit, slowly but surely. She hadn’t been too far from the library when she found Tirek. She knew the way. All she had to do was get there.

“Just keep walking,” she whispered, panting for breath.

Rainbow paced around the room, her ears flat and her teeth grinding together in agitation. It had been a while since she had made it back, and the storm was still raging outside. It wasn’t nearly as bad as it had been, but there was still next to no visibility out there. But worse than that, there was still no sign of Twilight.

Her mind was buzzing, racing with countless imagined scenarios about what may have happened, and each was more upsetting than the last. She knew she was probably working herself up into a frenzy and making things worse in her head than they probably were, but she couldn’t help it. This wasn’t normal!

Spike was sitting on the stairs to the loft, cupping his chin in his palms and watching Rainbow pace. He hadn’t said a word since she’d gotten up, and she knew he was just waiting for her to give the word so he could go get his raincoat.

Rainbow made another lap of the room.

“That’s it,” she decided, coming to an abrupt halt. “I’m sick of waiting. Spike, grab your raincoat. We’re headin’ out!”

Spike jumped up and threw a sharp salute, his face clearly relieved at not having to wait around anymore. “Aye aye, princess!” he said before turning and scrambling up the steps. Rainbow watched him go, pleased by his enthusiasm, then turned to the closet to fetch her own coat.

Knock knock knock!

Rainbow froze mid-step, her heart skipping a beat. She turned to the door and waited, holding her breath. She heard the handle fiddling, and could see it turning and rotating, but not far enough to open. A moment later, the knocking came again. Rainbow practically threw herself at the door. She reached out and tore it open, hoping to see some good news.

What she saw almost made her heart stop in her chest.

Twilight stood before her, but she was clearly in a bad way. She was caked in a thick layer of mud running in thick rivulets down the side of her body. She was sopping wet, shivering horribly, and sagging in place. Her wings hung lump, and her legs trembled as if they barely had any strength left in them. The worst part was her eyes. Where once Rainbow would have expected to see two bright, intelligent purple orbs staring back at her, all she saw were grey circles that disappeared into despairing darkness.

Rainbow recoiled, her ears pinning back in shock. “Twilight?” she asked in disbelief.

“R-rainbow…” Twilight murmured, taking one step forward. That was the last straw. Her legs gave out under her, and she fell forward.

“Woah! Tw-twi? Twilight?!” Rainbow exclaimed, reaching out just in time to catch Twilight. She felt brittle in her hooves, fragile like glass, and she was shaking like a leaf. Twilight crumpled limply, and Rainbow felt a surge of absolute panic. She looked Twilight over, searching for some sign of injury or some clue of what happened. When her eyes drifted over Twilight’s flanks, she felt her heart skip a beat.

Twilight’s cutie mark was gone.

“SPIIIKE!” she hollered at the top of her lungs, pulling Twilight inside and out of the rain. “Spike, get in here right now!”

She heard something crashing upstairs, but she could not care less. She tried to help Twilight stand, but the alicorn had fallen unconscious. Swearing under her breath, Rainbow knelt down and quickly moved Twilight onto her back just as Spike was emerging into the room.

“What the- TWILIGHT?!” he shouted, and Rainbow heard his raincoat falling to the floor.

“Towels, NOW!” Rainbow shouted, already turning for the couch. “She’s shaking and cold!”

Spike stayed rooted in place. “W-where’s her mark?!” he exclaimed, taking a step forward. “Rainbow, what’s-”

“SPIKE!” Rainbow snapped, giving him a hard glare. “Towels. MOVE!”

Spike yelped, backpedaling from the ferocity in her voice, then quickly went to obey. Rainbow felt guilty for only a moment before moving on. She needed to focus and keep him focused. They could ask questions later, once they were sure Twilight would be alright. She carried Twilight over to the couch, doing her best not to jostle the whimpering mare on her back.

“Since when was Twilight so light-weight?” Rainbow wondered as she set Twilight down on the couch. She knelt beside her and ran a hoof over Twilight’s mane. A moment later, Spike came running in, an eclectic collection of towels and blankets torn from the bed upstairs dragging along the floor behind him.

“I was gone for five seconds!” Spike said in a trembling voice as he passed them to Rainbow. “What the heck happened!?”

“I dunno!” Rainbow replied, quickly moving to dry Twilight off, moving gently so as not to damage her. “She just knocked on the door. I opened it up and found her like this. She passed out on the spot.”

“What could have done this?”

Rainbow shook her head. “No clue…”

A moment later, Twilight moaned softly before opening her eyes just a crack. “Rainbow…” she whimpered, lifting a hoof out to her.

“Twi,” Rainbow said, quickly taking Twilight’s hoof and squeezing. “Don’t say anything. Y-you’re gonna be okay. We’ve got ya. You’re safe.”

Spike, however, had other ideas. “What did this to you?”

Twilight winced, hissing in pain through tightly clenched teeth. Her eyes screwed shut for a few seconds, then slowly opened again. She stared into Rainbow’s eyes, and the pegasus could see the gravity behind them.

“Tirek,” Twilight breathed. “H-his name was Tirek… Stole my magic… t-tried to… kill me…”

“Twilight, stop talking,” Rainbow urged gently, giving Twilight’s hoof another firm squeeze. “Please. Save your strength.”

“Still… out there,” Twilight continued, her voice growing weaker and weaker with every word. “Not… safe…”

“Twilight,” Rainbow urged, leaning in.

Twilight, however, had nothing left to say. She let out a quiet sigh and settled limply into the cushions of the couch. Her hoof in Rainbow’s fell slack, and for a fraction of a second, Rainbow feared the worst. Twilight was still breathing, though, and her fear dissipated.

Without a word, Rainbow gingerly tucked Twilight’s hoof close to her body. She leaned back, frowning in discontent. Beside her, Spike shifted on his feet, clearly uneasy. He looked up at her, uncertain. “W-what do we do?” he asked.

Rainbow’s frown deepened. She stared down at the exhausted, pale, bruised face of the most important mare in her life. She recalled the name Twilight had uttered. Tirek.

Rainbow had no idea who this ‘Tirek’ was, but if he did this to Twilight, then one thing was certain in Rainbow’s mind. She was going to make him pay.

But first thing was first.

“Spike, send a letter to my mother,” she instructed, rising to her full height and once again sliding Twilight onto her back. “Let her know what’s happened.”

Spike stood up and dutifully ran for the nearest desk. He stared after Rainbow as he ran. “What about you?” he asked as he picked up a quill and a sheet of parchment, his eyes lingering on Twilight.

Rainbow made her way to the door and pushed it open before looking back at him over her shoulder. “I’m taking Twilight to the clinic,” she said simply. “She needs help, more than we can give her here, and I’m not waiting for a transport. I’ll come get you once she’s safe.”

She didn’t for Spike to answer. She simply turned, unfurled her wings, and jumped into the air as fast as her wings could carry her without throwing Twilight off of her. She felt Twilight stirring on her back, and she could just hear the afflicted mare whimpering over the wind and rain rushing through her ears.

“Just hang on, Twi,” Rainbow said through grit teeth as she shot through the rain, kicking up a strong enough wind to part the rain around her as she flew. “I’m not letting you down. Not this time.”

Thunder boomed overhead, and Rainbow vanished into the darkness in the direction of the Ponyville clinic.

Author's Note

Fun fact: The final scene of this chapter has been in my head for years.

Deja Vu

An odd feeling of deja vu came over Twilight as consciousness slowly came back to her. Memories of a long time ago, of when she was still a filly living in Canterlot, waking up in the castle infirmary after a seemingly endless barrage of visions of a life she lived in another incarnation. Warm sheets, the beeping of a heart monitor, and the unmistakable sensation of weakness. Shriveled muscles, shortness of air, a head made of helium and lead at the same time.

But it was different, this time. This wasn’t the atrophy of months in a coma. There was a tingling under her fur and skin, a crawling sense of violation. Deeper still, where once she might have found the beating pulse of her magic, she found only a dark and empty void. Hollow. The silence echoing in her mind like the tranquil stillness of a cave that knew only death. And in her mind, a deeper silence, till.

And then she remembered. The sudden storm. The coughing in the alley. The hooded figure. Those awful eyes. And then the devil on her shoulder, for once, screaming in her defence rather than belittling and demeaning her.

Midnight.

Midnight.

Twilight’s eyes snapped open as she sucked in a sharp gasp of air. She looked around frantically, her sluggish mind trying to make sense of her surroundings. It only took her a few moments to identify her surroundings as an emergency room in the Ponyville Clinic. She was hooked up to all of the usual machinery monitoring her condition. And she wasn’t alone. Four others were in the room with her.

“She’s awake,” Luna was the first to speak, her voice just loud enough to alert the others. At once, Rainbow Dash’s eyes locked onto hers, and Twilight’s heart twisted at seeing the raw, primal fear in them.

“Twilight!” Rainbow exclaimed, visibly tensing, as if fighting to keep from lunging forward. “How do you feel?”

Twilight lifted a hoof to rub at her head where Tirek had stomped on it. She winced, sucking in a sharp breath through clenched teeth as her hoof found a large and impressively painful bump. It took her mind, still struggling to fully wake up, a few seconds to realize she had been asked a question. In answer, Twilight let her foreleg drop and stared up at the ceiling. “Ow.”

Despite the scenario, Rainbow Dash managed a small laugh. The others in the room, however, were not so easily amused. Spike, in particular, leaped onto the bed before anyone could stop him. Twilight squeaked as his claws hands gripped the edge of her sheets as if he were trying to hoist her up by an imaginary collar. “Why?!” he exclaimed at her, his eyes glistening and his voice thick. “Why do you all have to keep scaring me like this?!”

“Spike,” Celestia chided softly.

The small dragon’s teeth were visible for a moment, the tension in his shoulder never abating. Then, with a small whimper, he allowed himself to crumple against Twilight’s chest. She felt him shaking against her, the spines atop his head nestling into the crook of her neck. She lay there for a moment, paralyzed by surprise.

“I’m sorry,” Spike blubbered into her chest floof. “I just… I just want you guys to stop getting hurt.”

Twilight sighed softly and gingerly wrapped her hooves around him, pulling him into a tight hug. “No. I’m sorry. But if it’s any consolation, I don’t go looking for trouble like this,” she managed to lightly quip.

“And yet it is remarkably capable of finding you,” Luna noted, finally drawing Twilight’s attention. It was only now dawning on her just who all was in attendance.

“Luna? Princess Celestia?” she asked in dumbfounded surprise, looking between the two. “When did you get here? And how long have I been out?”

“We’ve been here for about half an hour,” Celestia replied simply. “As for how long you’ve been out, a little over double that.”

“We came as soon as we got word,” Luna added. “My niece deserves much credit. Her first instinct when she learned of your condition was to have Spike send for us even as she hauled you here on her back.”

“I wasn’t just gonna sit around while she shriveled,” Rainbow replied firmly. “And I dunno the first thing about treating severe head trauma.”

Twilight half expected a quip from Midnight about how surprising that was, given Rainbow’s history with head injuries. But there was only that accursed silence, and it made Twilight sick.

“What about the others?” Twilight asked after a moment. “Fluttershy? Applejack? Everypony else?”

“Spike got ‘em all up to speed,” Rainbow said. “They’re all out in the waiting room. But, well…” she glanced expectantly at Celestia. “Mom wanted to talk to you alone first. Said she didn’t want to crowd you.”

Twilight focused on the alicorn in question as she rose from her seat. A lump formed in her throat, and she involuntarily tightened her hold on Spike as if he were a plush toy. If her grip in any way made him uncomfortable, however, he did not say it.

“Rainbow told us what you said to her,” Celestia began. There was an odd edge to her voice. It wasn’t fear, but the princess was unquestionably uneasy. Her brow was furrowed, her jaw set, her wings pressing tightly against her barrel. “But I want to hear the story from your lips. If you have the strength, then please, tell us what happened. Do not omit a single detail.”

The lump grew larger, and Twilight’s muscles began to tense and tighten. She felt like a coiled spring, ready to snap. Her heart beat a little faster in her chest at the memory of what happened. She swallowed hard, tried to find her voice a few times, before at last, the story began to spill out of her. “There isn’t much to say. When I was walking home, I thought I heard somepony coughing in a nearby alleyway. I went to see who it was. I found somepony under a hooded cloak. He sounded old, weak. I asked him if he needed help. He…”

Twilight shuddered. “He looked at me hungrily. Like he thought I’d make a good meal. He seemed surprised to learn that there were more alicorns besides you and Luna. Then he opened his mouth, and…”

“Stole your magic,” Luna concluded.

Twilight bit her lip and nodded. “Yes. I couldn’t stop it. It all happened so fast. And when he was done, he got bigger. Then he stomped on my head…”

“Trying to kill you, no doubt,” Luna said slowly.

“His name,” Celestia pressed, leaning forward somewhat. “What was his name?”

Luna shot her a look. “Sister, you know who it is as well as I.”

“I have to be sure, Luna.”

Luna shrugged, but said nothing more. The lump in Twilight’s throat grew bigger. If Celestia was worried, then this was even more serious than Twilight had imagined. She licked suddenly dry lips and spoke. “Tirek. He called himself Tirek.”

Celestia almost flinched. She nodded slowly, her expression darkening considerably, and Twilight’s dread only grew. “Then he has returned…” the princess finally said, falling back to her haunches.

“You know him, don’t you?” Twilight asked, not surprised at this point. It seemed her mentor often had some sort of past experience with the evils that kept making her life harder than it had to be. “Who is he?”

“I’d like to know that, too,” Rainbow said, her own voice lowering into a hateful rasp.

Luna and Celestia shared a glance before the latter began to speak. “Tirek was… is a despotic prince from a distant land, a kingdom governed by centaurs.”

“It should be noted that we were on cordial terms with that nation at the time,” Luna added solemnly. “The king was a stern, severe, but ultimately fair and just ruler. The same can not be said for his son. A lust for power and a lack of satisfaction with his station led Tirek to studying forms of forbidden dark magic. Who he went to and how he learned these powers, we do not know for certain. But they enable him to wrench magic, in all its forms, from those who are either weaker than him, or those who had no chance to raise their defenses, and absorb them into himself.”

“Great, more dark magic,” Rainbow scowled. “He doesn’t brainwash ponies like Sombra, does he?”

“No, thankfully,” Luna assured, her face twisting as if she just bit down on something bitter. “Sombra was powerful, but his greatest evils were of a far more subtle nature. Tirek is direct. Blunt. Ruthless.”

“For those traits, and for his abuse of these forbidden magics, Tirek was banished from his homeland,” Celestia continued. “Not that his banishment mattered, for he left of his own accord, coming here to Equestria. For our magic.”

Twilight nodded along. “It makes sense. Ponies tend to have more inherent and varied magical potential than any other creatures we know of.”

“Exactly. And in the end, the alicorns were to be his primary prey,” Luna added, her scowl deepening. “Oblivious to his powers and distracted with rebuilding in Discord’s wake as we were, we likely would have been unable to stand up to him when he came for us. Were it not for his brother, Scorpan, the devil may well have succeeded.”

Rainbow lifted her head, her ears perking with interest. “Scorpan? Whose that?”

“Tirek’s adopted younger brother,” Celestia supplied, and an actual, tiny sparkle of a smile crossed her face. “A sweet, gentle-hearted creature, too passive for his own good. When he arrived in Equestria with Tirek, he found kindred spirits in ponykind. He discovered the magic of friendship.”

“A friendship that would spell the end of Tirek’s incursion,” Luna continued. “For when Tirek refused to abandon his plans, Scorpan came to us, warning us of his brother’s intentions and of his powers.”

“And then you beat him up,” Rainbow finished with a nod. “Elements, right?”

Celestia nodded. “Yes. The power of the Elements imprisoned him in Tartarus, where he has remained for many centuries.”

“But now he has escaped,” Luna added, her lips twitching up to show her teeth for a moment. “We believe it happened during the changeling occupation. It would have been easy for Cerberus to be distracted away from his post during the chaos caused by Chrysalis’ swarm.”

Suddenly, Spike came away from Twilight and spun to face the alicorns. “Wait, hold on a minute! If Tirek’s been in Tartarus for centuries, then how the heck is he even alive?! Don’t ponies, or centaurs, or whatever, you know, die when they get old enough!”

Celestia flinched, then nodded. “Tartarus is a powerful place. The very stone is thick with magic as old as the world itself. I do not doubt Tirek gorged himself on what scraps and shreds of magic fell at the base of his cell to preserve himself.”

“But a millennium of imprisonment will have left him mad,” Luna pointed out. “Which makes him even more dangerous than he was before.”

“Which means we need to take him out pronto,” Rainbow declared, slamming her hooves together with a resounding clack.

Celestia nodded and rose to her full height. “On that, we are in agreement. Spike?” she said, her voice turning firm and authoritative.

Spike stood at attention. “Yes, princess?”

“Write a letter to Princess Cadance in the Crystal Empire. Though it is doubtful Tirek will be able to reach her anytime soon, it would be best if she and Shining are aware of the threat as soon as possible. Just in case,” Celestia commanded before turning to Luna. “Sister, I want you to return to Canterlot. Appraise Squall of the situation and coordinate with the Solar guard with my full authority. In the event that he cannot be apprehended quickly, then word must be spread as quickly as possible that this thief is on the loose.”

Spike threw a sharp salute and leaped down from the bed, scampering out of the room. Luna rose as well, nodding gracefully. “And what will you be doing, sister?” she asked curiously.

Celestia held her head high, her jaw set, and a quiet fury blazing in her eyes that made Twilight gulp. “I will speak with the ponies in Ponyville. Somepony must have seen what direction Tirek was heading. Once I know that, I will track Tirek down myself and bring him down.”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “What?! After what he did to me?! Are you—” her words cut off, replaced by a string of violent coughs as her shriveled lungs struggled to accommodate her voice. Rainbow was beside her at a moment, a hoof on her back and soothing words whispered into Twilight’s ear.

Celestia gave her a reassuring smile when the fit passed her by. “Have no fear, my faithful student. Tirek is strong now, yes, but by all accounts, he fled as soon as he feasted upon you. Given your youth and early development as an alicorn, the power he obtained from you will not be sufficient to overpower me. So long as my defenses are raised — and they will be raised — he will be unable to steal from me.”

“In theory, any of the other Alicorns could manage the same,” Luna pointed out. “But my sister does have the best chance out of all of us.”

Twilight swallowed hard. She still didn’t like the sound of this, but she had to trust that Celestia knew what she was doing. And besides, she was too tired to argue. So she slowly lay back down in her bed with a glum nod. “Alright. Just be careful, Princess. This feeling… I wouldn’t wish this even on my worst enemies. It’s awful.”

Celestia nodded. “I will take every precaution. I know my foe. He will not get the better of me.”

Before anypony could say anything else, Rainbow Dash zipped into the air, smacking her hooves together again. “I’m coming with you!” she declared. “No way am I sitting this one out! Not after what that jerk did to Twi!”

Celestia’s expression hardened. She gave Rainbow a fierce look that almost instantly slaughtered the pegasus’ bravado. “No, Rainbow Dash. You are not fit to fight this foe. You need to remain here in Ponyville and keep the peace. We do not want anypony to panic, and the sudden departure of Ponyville’s resident princess will only cause unrest that Tirek can take advantage of.”

Rainbow opened her mouth to protest, but the words died quickly. She slowly lowered back to the floor, closing her eyes. Twilight watched as she took in a slow, deep breath, before releasing it in a tired sigh. She opened her eyes. “Yeah… Yeah, you’re right,” she admitted glumly. Then she turned to Twilight, an apologetic look on her face. “Besides… somepony’s gotta look after Twi, right?”

Celestia nodded. “Precisely.”

Rainbow gave a small nod before focusing on Celestia again. “Just give him a few good knocks from the two of us, would ya?”

There was a look in Celestia’s eye, then, and it sent chills crawling up Twilight’s spine. “I promise.”

Rainbow nodded sharply. “Well, then let’s get to it! Tirek has a big enough head start on ya as it is. I can help ask around if you think it’ll speed things up.”

“I would welcome the aid,” Celestia said before giving Twilight another look, this time a tender smile. “But tend to your other duties, first. Twilight needs you more than I do right now.”

Twilight hummed softly. She spotted Luna already heading for the exit, her features grim and unreadable. But then something occurred to Twilight, and before she could stop herself, a question rose unbidden to her lips. “W-wait. Can I talk to Luna for a minute? In private?”

Everypony stopped, giving Twilight a curious glance. Luna was the first to answer, turning to Twilight and offering her full and undivided attention. Rainbow frowned, looking back and forth between the two of them. “Twi? What’s up?”

“Confidentiality, my niece,” Luna reminded her. “If Twilight does not wish you to hear this…”

“She can stay,” Twilight quickly added, giving Rainbow a tender smile. She raised her hoof, once again startled by how frail and shriveled she was. “Please. Stay.”

Rainbow came around the bedside and took Twilight’s hoof in her own. The two shared a quiet few seconds, holding one another's gazes while Celestia silently saw herself out. Once the door slid shut, Luna cleared her throat, breaking the moment. “I do not wish to rush you, but time is a limited commodity at the moment. Be brief, if you can,” the lunar alicorn urged gently.

Twilight nodded and quietly nudged Rainbow back. She turned to Luna, trying to find the words to express what was on her mind. But the silence in her mind was louder than a thundercrack and twice as deafening. She waited, on impulse, for the berating remarks. There were none. Finally, she found two words that could at least get her started.

“Midnight’s gone.”

Rainbow’s eyes flew wide. “Wait, what? Gone? Whaddya mean, gone?”

Twilight looked down, her brow furrowing. “The last time Midnight said anything to me was when Tirek stole my magic… She told me to run. She hasn’t said anything since then. She’s gone. It’s so… quiet.”

The silence within spread to the room around her, and a part of Twilight regretted bringing it up. She’d grown so used to a never-silent voice commentating on her every move. Its absence was growing more and more unsettling by the moment.

“But… isn’t that a good thing?” Rainbow asked, tilting her head. “Midnight sucks.”

“She does,” Twilight agreed, curling in on herself. “But… it’s not right. I feel wrong. M-maybe it’s Stockholm syndrome, but…”

“No,” Luna said in a low, soothing whimper. “The way you feel is only natural. Tirek stole a part of you. And Midnight, whatever your opinion of her, is one of your voices. And now he has deprived you of it, deprived you of a piece of your self. There is no other way you could feel. No other way you should.”

Rainbow’s frown deepened. “Wait, so, does this mean that Tirek has that snarky little tick causing grief in his head?” she asked, scratching her temple.

“Midnight is not Tirek’s shadow,” Luna provided. “He will hear nothing.”

Rainbow scoffed. “Oh, she’ll love that, I bet. Attention seeking little—”

“W-will she come back?” Twilight cut her off, and she flinched when she heard how hopeful she sounded. Stars, she really did have Stockholm syndrome. Beside her, Rainbow’s glower faded, replaced with a more tender look. The pegasus reached out to take a hold of Twilight’s shoulder, comforting her.

Luna afforded Twilight a soothing nod and reassuring smile. “Yes. When your alicorn magic is returned to you, its light will once again cast Midnight’s shadow,” she said before her expression hardened. “But be warned. The violation you feel now will morph into fury and rage. Midnight will want blood. She will want revenge. No matter how much you despise Tirek, you must not feed those impulses.”

“I try not to feed any impulses she sends my way,” Twilight said with a nod. “I’ll be ready.”

Luna studied Twilight a moment longer, searching for something. Twilight met her gaze steadily, and that seemed to satisfy the larger alicorn. Luna nodded. “Good. Rainbow Dash, see to it that Twilight Sparkle is well tended to. The attention of the clinic will not do her any good, I am afraid. Her affliction is beyond conventional medicine. At home, in the company of those she loves, is where she will find the greatest peace during this ordeal.”

Rainbow gave Luna a slow nod, her hold on Twilight’s shoulder tightening. “Like you had to ask.”

Luna gave the two a small smile, then a small nod of her head. “I will send the doctor in,” she said before stepping out through the door, leaving Twilight and Rainbow Dash alone. Several seconds ticked by, each one longer than the last.

Finally, Twilight gave Rainbow a small smile. “Thank you, Dash,” she said quietly, lifting her hoof to turn the pegasus’ head toward her by the chin.

“For what?” Rainbow asked.

“Getting me here.”

Rainbow smiled and nuzzled into Twilight’s neck. “I keep tellin’ ya, don’t I?” she whispered, hugging Twilight as well as she could from her awkward position beside the bed. “I ain’t lettin’ ya down. Not again. You needed help, I got you help. Simple as that.”

Twilight’s heart bloomed warmly in her chest, the first positive sensation she’d had since this whole ordeal started, and she drew the other mare into a quick, if uncoordinated, kiss. When the two came away, Twilight spoke in a low whisper. “When we get back, do you mind getting a notebook and writing some things down for me?”

“Sure. Whaddya need?”

“We should do something nice for Spike. To make up for, well… you know. This.”

“You know none of this is your fault, Twi,” Rainbow pointed out, furrowing her brow.

Twilight shrugged. “I know. But… I feel like we keep forgetting that he’s still a baby dragon. He’s so strong for us so often, and whenever these bad things happen, he’s a rock for both of us. But he shouldn’t have to carry so much of the burden. I feel awful for him.”

Rainbow nodded along quietly. “Yeah, I hear ya. He was basically my best friend back when we were trapped in the Empire. Dude was my little confidant. Thanked him a bunch, but… You’ve got a point.”

“So we should brainstorm ideas. Make a checklist of all the things he really likes.”

“Belly rubs,” Rainbow said automatically. “Minuette’s belly rubs.”

Twilight might have protested were she not so tired. But as it was, she could only laugh quietly in exasperation. “Donuts. Can’t forget those.”

“Can import a bunch from Joe’s, probably.”

“Probably, yeah.”

The two traded soft-spoken ideas with one another for a short while longer, before eventually being interrupted by the arrival of the doctor. By Twilight’s estimation, he was remarkably unfrazzled by the whole ordeal. But then again, he’d been here for basically everything that their little friend group had gone through.

This doctor is basically a war veteran at this point, she realized as she was being discharged and given her instruction paperwork. Then, a small bottle of painkillers and Rainbow supporting her weight, Twilight left the clinic room and made her way out to the waiting room. As she had been told, the rest of their friends were waiting there for her. She was too tired to truly internalize the things they said as they quietly crowded around her. Most of them were questions, and rightly so. None of them had been given the same info dump she had. But just hearing them, seeing their concerned faces staring into hers, took away the worst of her discomfort.

“Hey, girls,” she finally said with a weak, crooked smile. “Sleepover at the library?”

Author's Note

Right, so, it has been a WHILE since I've been here doing this. If Y'all could keep an eye open for any spelling errors or continuity errors I missed, please let me know.

Fire And Rage

It had been such a long time since Tirek had felt such strength in his body. It did not reach the same heights he had attained during his initial foray into Equestria. He could only assume the alicorn he had stolen from was young. Given her smaller stature and incredible naivete, it was the only conclusion that he could reach. It was disappointing, in a way, but even so. The ability to walk tall and proud without his every joint and muscle shrieking in agony, to fill his lungs full with air without releasing it all in a fit of coughs, to be able to lift his own body weight, or lift anything. It was exhilarating, and he couldn’t wait to put it all to use.

The land around him was largely more of the same nondescript green hills. Under the first rays of morning sunlight, the rain having ended and the clouds parted, he saw that it was all largely unchanged from how it had been before his imprisonment, though considering how much time had passed, he was certain that plenty had changed. In particular, he couldn’t help but cast his mind back to his homeland. A barren wasteland it had been, more rock and rust-colored dirt than anything else. But it had been home, at least. A land he was destined to inherit…

Had Scorpan not betrayed him.

Tirek came to an abrupt halt, his hands clenching into fists. With a wild roar of rage, he turned and swung his arms back through the trunk of a nearby tree. Wood bent, cracked, and splintered under the force of the blow, and sharp tingles of pain raced up and down his muscles like a swarm of burning insects. His chest heaved a moment as he took a series of deep, calming breaths to try and bury his fury.

It had been a millennium, Scorpan was dead. Their deadbeat father was dead. He had been denied his vengeance upon any of them. He could only hope that they had died early, and look forward to the chance to rip down everything they ever built.

He looked down at his hand. He cringed when he saw a splinter buried into his crimson flesh. “Bah. Still weak,” he snarled, plucking the splinter free between the tips of his fingers. He scowled at it and flicked it away into the shrubbery at the tree’s base before focusing ahead.

In truth, he did not yet know where he was going. He likely could have rampaged through that little hamlet to his heart's content, draining all the magic from its inhabitants. With the alicorn already drained, there would have been precious little anyone could do to stop him. But the capital was right there, in plain view, less than an hour’s flight from Ponyville. If he was to be strong enough to deal with the greater Alicorns who called that city home, he needed more power, and there wouldn’t be enough ponies there to meet his target. And causing too big of a commotion there would only draw attention he was in no position to deal with.

A small voice reasoned he should have thought of that before murdering an alicorn. He killed that voice.

With a small sigh, he decided to press on and search for another sign of civilization, then find a road, and follow it to some far-flung corner of Equestria. He could begin harvesting what he needed from far away, and slowly work his way inwards. By the time the alicorns knew it was him, he’d be more than a match for—

A flash of light up ahead brought Tirek to a halt. He grunted, raising a hand to shield his eyes from the brilliant white light. It was as bright as the sun itself, and he could feel the warmth of the morning on his face. A tingle of dread crept up his spine. There was only one pony that could create a feeling like this.

“Tirek,” Princess Celestia greeted in a cold, passionless voice. “You’re out of your cell.”

Tirek lowered his arms and immediately spread his stance, his teeth gnashing together in frustration. He felt his heart skip a beat, but was quick to catch himself. He forced a firm glare, and put on a confident smile. “Princess Celestia. Consider me surprised. How is it that you found out about me so quickly?” he asked.

Celestia narrowed her eyes. She was taller than he remembered, albeit not by much, and her eyes had deepened with something considerably more than age. “You are not so subtle — nor as thorough — as you think.”

Tirek’s smile faltered. Then he snarled in agitation. “The runt lives, then,” he deduced.

“Twilight Sparkle,” Celestia corrected. “Her name is Twilight Sparkle. You will use it when you speak of her.”

“I do not take orders from you, Celestia,” Tirek rumbled back, risking a look to either side.

“You are a prisoner of Tartarus,” Celestia rebuked, flaring her wings. “So yes, you do. And you will obey this one. Return the magic you stole from Twilight Sparkle and surrender yourself to my custody. You will be returned to Tartarus and carry out the remainder of your sentence.”

Tirek’s blood boiled, and he took a threatening step forward. “You mean until the day I die?” he challenged her. “That is all that awaits those who are sent to your ‘prison for evil.’”

Celestia remained unmoved by the barely concealed accusation. “I have given you my command. You will obey.”

What little remained of Tirek’s smile died, replaced with a hateful glare. He cracked his knuckles together, his mind spinning, and a cold sweat breaking out across his back. He tried to keep his face even and level, to keep the twitched and tiny trembles from showing. I’m not ready for her. Not yet, he thought, his eyes shifting once more in the hopes of finding an escape.

A plan was beginning to form, though it would be risky. But, with no other options presenting themselves, he decided it was better than merely going along with this demented sun goddess’ commands. He grinned widely. “No. I won’t,” he said, cracking his knuckles over his chest. “In fact, I think I’ll just take from you what I want — since you were kind enough to present yourself to me yourself.”

Celestia didn’t react to the threat. She held her head slightly higher. “You misunderstand,” she stated. “I don’t care what you think. You will answer for what you did to Twilight.”

Tirek had to fight to keep his surprise from registering on his face. Celestia visibly tensed, her voice raising. She appeared to be genuinely angry. He’d understood her to be always in control. To see that something about that runt of an alicorn had touched a nerve… Tirek’s grin widened. “Ah, I see. So the puny thing was your daughter, then?”

“No,” Celestia said, lowering her stance as her horn glowed with radiant magic. “But she is dear enough to my heart for this to be personal.”

And then a beam of blazing sunfire was tearing through the air at Tirek. His eyes widened, drying from the heat, and with a yelp, he hurled himself to one side. The searing beam ignited everything in its path, leaving a charred trench in its wave. A pressurized shockwave of superheated air slammed into Tirek from the side, smashing the air from his lungs and throwing him even higher. He tried to right himself, legs and arms flailing. Finally, with a grunt of effort and a burst of his newfound power, he managed to stabilize himself. Looking down, he saw Celestia standing where she had been before.

She was staring at him. Her expression hadn’t changed. She almost looked bored.

She’s not taking me seriously, Tirek thought, a vein bulging in his throat. Let’s fix that. With a roar, he gathered magic between his horns before releasing a return blast of his own at Celestia. She held her ground, though he did see her bracing somewhere before the tidal wave of black-tinted flame struck her. The explosion caused by the blast was pitiful compared to the volcano she’d released mere moments ago, but Tirek could be satisfied that he’d scored a hit.

That was what he thought, at least, until he heard a familiar pop behind him. His heart dropped. He spun around to see Celestia matching his flight through the air with steady, even wing flaps, utterly unscathed.

“What?!” Tirek yelped.

Celestia’s horn glowed. “This is for Twilight.”

Tirek only had time to blink before he was enveloped in a devastating wave of fire. He screamed at the top of his lungs as pain far beyond any he was used to permeated every fiber of his being. If seen from ground level, the resulting blast might have resembled a star being born.

Tirek was only able to regain a sense of the world around him when he crashed into it, smoking and sizzling. He groaned, dragging himself up to his feet as quickly as he could. He looked up to where he’d just been and saw only a cloud of smoke. He fired a retaliatory beam into it, clearing the smoke. Once again, Celestia was gone.

Realizing what was about to happen, Tirek spun in place, bringing the back of his fist around to clear the area around him. A good instinct, as Celestia had just appeared in another burst of teleportation magic. His fist almost connected with her cheek, but she pulled back at the last second. Tirek shouted and turned with the force of the original swing, bringing his other fist around. His hand was wreathed in golden magic, and he screamed when they squeezed, crushing his hand.

But he was close. He could see the whites of her eyes. Deciding to take a risk, he opened his mouth, focused on where her magic met his skin, and tried to take it into himself.

Celestia’s grip on his hand tightened, and something broke. Tirek’s inhale was expelled in a breathless wheeze, his lungs seizing. Then Celestia twisted his arm back, forcing his chest up. Her expression continued to be unchanged. Cold, passionless. But he could see the fury buried in her eyes.

“This is for Rainbow Dash,” she declared before raising one of her own hooves and driving it down into Tirek’s exposed chest. He had already been struggling to regain his air, and it was driven from him all over again as ribs bent and skin bruised. Ripples traveled all through his body, muscles spasming and nerves burning in pain.

When he did get his air back, Tirek roared, pouring as much power as he dared into his hooves and kicking forward. His shoulder bent at a painful angle, but he powered through it. Celestia took a step back, her eyes going wide in alarm, as finally, finally, Tirek landed a punch. Her head jerked to the side alongside a sickening crack.

Seeing an opportunity, Tirek pressed the offensive, punching the alicorn in the face over and over again as hard and as fast as he could. She withdrew, but he matched her retreat, and his angered shout became a manic laugh. “You should have taken me seriously, Princess!” he declared. As he moved for another punch, he snapped open his fingers and slammed his open palm into Celestia’s throat. She gasped, then went silent as he gripped. Her forehooves flew up to grip at his forearm as he lifted her up, before he drove her down into the earth hard enough to crack it.

Gathering more magic, Tirek unleashed it into her face in a barely concentrated torrent. He laughed maniacally as he did so, thinking for a moment that he actually had her beat, and that he wouldn’t have to fall back on his original plan after all.

And then a golden aura wrapped around his hand on her throat, and that got crushed, too.

“GAH!” Tirek roared in pain, backpedaling, the pain breaking his concentration on his magic. He held his ruined hands close to his chest, panting for breath. Then he looked up.

Celestia stood from the crater he’d put her in. Her makeup was ruined, and her face was a little singed. But otherwise, she did not appear to be terribly bothered. She took a slow, deep breath, then smiled. “You know? After all the evils I’ve been unable to fight properly since my sister returned, I’d almost forgotten what it was like,” she said almost dreamily before affixing Tirek with a wide grin. “Thank you for reminding me.”

Tirek’s entire body clenched, and his fear turned to another surge of blinding rage. “You dare mock me?!” he demanded before kicking back and away from her. He gathered energy between his horns, every drop he could spare. “I’ll grind you to dust!”

Celestia’s smile only grew.

Unable to contain a furious roar, Tirek released a beam of flame at Celestia, displacing air and igniting the nearby grass. The alicorn braced herself, and Tirek knew she was going to attempt to teleport away again. So instead of relying on the impact to carry the force of his attack, he sent a signal down the length of the beam just before impact, commanding it to detonate early. The beam crackled, bulged, and burst like a ruptured blood vessel. He heard a startled shout from Celestia, and cackled in delight as the force of the spell obliterated the nearby tree, reducing it to a scattering wave of ash.

Tirek panted for air, his adrenaline slowly starting to subside. Silence followed the explosion, long and profound. He did not imagine that actually worked, but he could still take comfort in the fact that he’d caused the alicorn some pain.

And then there was a surge of wind, and the smoke cleared. Tirek’s heart dropped. Celestia was still there. Her feathers were ruffled, she was smoking, and she had raised a now-blackened hoof to protect herself. Slowly, she lowered it, and her glare bored into him like that of a hungry predator sizing up its next meal.

And then she was gone again, vanishing in a flash of light. Tirek spun around, trying to repeat the trick that served him before, but Celestia was nowhere to be had. Blinking in confusion and rattled with dread, Tirek formed a barrier around himself, as well as he could with so much of his power already used up, and looked around.

The sun rose higher into the sky, the world growing brighter and warmer as it did. It took Tirek a few seconds to realize, the world tinted by his barrier as it was, that it was getting too bright. And too warm.

“No…” he breathed before looking up.

Celestia was high in the air above him, a sphere of barely contained, unstable magic gathering on the tip of her horn. Her head was held high, her eyes glaring down her nose at him, as if he were a bug to be squashed.

She didn’t say anything, and Tirek had no time to move. Celestia lowered her head and dropped the sphere on him. He only had time to brace and channel as much power as he could into the barrier to defend himself before he felt the full power of the sun.

“Perhaps I went a little too far,” Celestia mused to herself in the aftermath of the explosion. The fields all around her for almost half a mile had been cleared of grass, all of it having been ignited from the heat of her spell. She cringed, worrying she might have just killed Tirek. She couldn’t reclaim his stolen magic if it died with him.

With a flap of her wings and another burst of magic, Celestia cleared away the smoke and the debris. A large crater had been punched into the ground where the spell had met Tirek’s barrer. She saw him there at the bottom, partially buried in rubble, blackened with soot and burns. She felt a small sigh of relief escaping her when she saw his chest rising and falling, albeit unsteadily.

May he remember this the next time he gets any ideas, Celestia thought, flying in slow, arcing circles down, inspecting the damage around them. Thankfully, she saw no signs of any wildlife getting caught in their little scuffle. They had all probably cleared out after her first attack. Finally, she came to a landing by the edge of the crater and peered inside.

Tirek’s breathing was audible from here, shallow and labored. Cringing in disdain, Celestia realized she was probably going to have to heal him. She slowly descended into the crater, her eyes never once leaving Tirek’s prone form. She came to a stop beside him and stared down at him, her ears lowering.

“What manner of creature might you have been, had you not allowed such malice to pollute you?” she wondered. “Your father was good, kind, and firm. He was a good leader and a valued friend. If only you could have been more like him…”

She lowered herself to her haunched and lit her horn. A pair of chained manacles decorated in arcane runes appeared beside her. She had hidden them away before the battle began. With a sigh, lowered them to bind Tirek’s wrists.

The Centaur’s eyes suddenly snapped open, and his jaw unhinged. Celestia’s heart skipped a beat, and she felt the tugging on her horn. For a moment, magic began to drain out of her and toward Tirek’s ugly mouth.

Growling in frustration, Celestia jerked her head back, raised her hoof, and drove it into Tirek’s teeth with all the force she could muster. Tirek’s eyes flew even wider, then rolled back into his skull as the force of the blow drove his head into the hard earth of the crater, making it just a little deeper. Deep cracks spiderwebbed out from the point of impact, and teeth, freed from their gums, scattered across the charred earth.

The drain on Celestia’s magic ended, and Tirek fell still.

She waited a moment longer to ensure he would not try anything else. Then she scoffed. “And that was for me,” she declared.

Tirek was beaten.

Not far from Celestia and Tirek’s brief but explosive confrontation, a shallow bluff nestled in a copse of now-dead trees concealed the battle’s only spectator. They looked on, curious about this centaur and his abilities. They noted his attempts to take something from Celestia — her magic. They felt excitement as he enacted his ploy, and then disappointment as it ended as soon as it began. As ever, the Princess was not one to take lightly.

“A foolish gambit,” they thought to themselves, their voices joined together. “Doomed to fail from the start.”

“But bold. With guidance…”

“We would waste our time on this brute?”

“His strength is misguided. But with aid, it could make for a very useful tool. We need only grant him direction.”

“Too risky. We would expose ourselves.”

“But will that matter if we get what we want?”

Their internalized debate fell silent. They watched, their mind spinning, discussing, arguing, and finally coming to an agreement as Celestia carried away the now-bound Tirek. Silent as the grave, they followed.

Author's Note

Musical accompaniment for Celestia's epic beat down of Tirek.

It has been a bit since I wrote a proper fight scene in this series. And it was a lot of fun! And Celestia WON!

That's weird. She doesn't normally win. Hmmm.

I will admit, I was tempted to write a different chapter between this one and the last one, and I might just go back and do that, but I just for the life of me could not think of anything I could put there that would be particularly meaningful. (I also did a LOT of trimming of filler in my outline, so I expect this final arc of Keys will have much faster pacing than the rest of the story. Writing my novel taught me a few things about pacing.) If I ever do go back and do that, I'll probably double back and get rid of this part of the author's note.

Too Easy

The flight back to Canterlot was long, dull, and uninteresting. Tirek did not stir for the entire journey, being little more than a mass of weight in Celestia’s magical aura. Not that she would be particularly concerned if he did awaken. A tiny part of her, one she tried not to pay attention to, almost wanted it to happen so that she could have the excuse to beat him some more.

It had felt good to be on top again, to thoroughly defeat her enemy as she had done in the past. But now that the battle was over, it was dawning on her that the way she had fought had been unbecoming. She was growing increasingly glad that Rainbow hadn’t been present to witness the confrontation. Setting aside the potential risk of her coming to harm, there was just the fact that Celestia did not want Rainbow to see that side of Celestia come out. Not again. She recalled for a moment how it had felt to become Daybreaker. This had been a similar feeling, if thankfully far less intense.

Still, just to be sure, she kept her mental guard up, and another fire spell ready to go at any moment.

In time, the clouds of the darkening sky parted before her, and Canterlot became visible. One layer of tension was shed, but another replaced it. Tirek needed to be contained while they worked out how to relieve him of the magic he had stolen. There were few places in the city that could house him for long. Only one came to mind, and she didn’t much care to return to it. But with no other options coming to mind, she grit her teeth and began her descent.

She didn’t waste time with formalities. Not wanting the civilians to see her hauling a big red centaur around, she lit her horn and started channeling magic. The moment she was in range, she focused and flung both herself and her limp prisoner into a teleport. The world snapped, surged, and flashed around them, before the two emerged in a new environment.

It was dark, dreary, cool, damp, and immediately oppressive. The light from Celestia’s horn beat back the darkness, revealing a corridor made of stone blocks and bricks as old as the city itself. Doors made of ancient stone and steel, their surfaces etched with warding arcane runes, lined the walls, each one leading to a claustrophobic, heavily enchanted cell. Torches set in sconces at even points along the walls blazed with eternally bright magical flames, but those flickering fires seemed to be losing their forever war against the darkness of Canterlot’s oldest, deepest dungeon.

A pair of alarmed yelps greeted her as she appeared. Looking up, she beheld a pair of lunar guards standing before her, already pointing their spears away from their princess as they realized who she was. Their faces were contorted with shock, eyes wide and jaws agape. “Your highness?!” one of them exclaimed before dropping into a low bow. Her fellow hesitated for only a fraction of a second before bowing with her.

Celestia turned to them both. “Rise and listen. My sister will be somewhere in the castle. I need you two to retrieve her and send her to me at once. I need to speak with her.”

The mare lifted her head, tilting it to one side. “Is it urgent?”

“It is time sensitive,” Celestia replied before glancing back at Tirek. She scowled. “And hazardous. Do as I command.”

The two guards did not need to be told twice. Standing tall, they threw salutes before turning and galloping off down the corridor. Celestia watched them go until their fluttering tails vanished up the stairs heading to higher levels, then turned and scanned the doors for one that would be empty. She shuddered, a tingle of old disgust creeping up her spine.

I wish I never had a need for this place.

Most of Canterlot’s detention centers and dungeons were of a considerably nicer make in the modern day. Criminals needed to be contained, but the brutality of the olden days had fallen out of favor as the centuries had dragged on. In Celestia’s experience, chains and shackles did little and less to bring a common bread thief to a better place. But there were some evils that just couldn’t be handled conventionally. And as such, the deepest, lowest levels, where the truly irredeemable and dangerous were kept, had not been changed in centuries, save for increasing security measures.

Celestia’s eyes lingered on the cell at the far end, in particular. Additional arcane runes had been carved into the frame around the door, each one faintly pulsating with light. Containment runes. Within that secured vault, Discord’s statue lingered. Celestia did not imagine that those additional runes would do much to contain him when he eventually escaped from stone again, but it made her feel better. And it kept the nobles of Canterlot from getting on her case.

Tearing her eyes away from the sealed vault, she approached the nearest cell and tossed Tirek inside. He groaned quietly as he hit the old stones, but did not otherwise rise. Satisfied, Celestia quickly secured his chains to the walls. Once she was certain that he was as secure as she could make him, she stepped back and closed the cell door with a deafening clang. A quick twist of her magic later, and the several layers of locks clicked into place. With that, Celestia breathed a sigh of relief.

And then it was quiet and still. Celestia did not move from her spot, staring at the door and allowing the chaotic blur of the last few hours settle over her shoulders. A knot of tension between her shoulder blades began to unravel, but there was no relief to be had in its absence. Instead, she felt only a growing pit of something she did not want to consider. She licked her lips and took a step back from the door.

Minutes passed, and with each one, her discomfort redoubled again and again. She tried to dismiss it as the nerves of the dungeon getting to her, but found she could take no comfort in that idea. She had not felt like this when she’d sealed Discord away, or any other time she came down here.

The hairs on the back of her neck suddenly stood on end.

Her horn lit and flared with magic, casting bright sunlight through the entire dungeon. She spun on her hooves, sweeping the glow around to locate the intruder. Her eyes narrowed, her teeth grinding together. But there was no sign of anyone. Not even a mouse.

She frowned, maintaining her vigilance for a few minutes more before letting the magic fade. She rubbed the side of her head, taking a deep breath. “Gah! Get a hold of yourself, Celestia. You caught him. It’s over,” she mumbled, trying to convince herself.

“What are you ranting about, sister?” Luna’s voice suddenly called from down the long hall. Celestia jumped in surprise, then turned to face her. Her sister approached at a brisk pace, followed closely by Squall Dreamer, his lunar guard armor rattling quietly with every step.

Celestia gave a smile that did not reach her eyes. “Nothing. Just nerves,” she assured, not wanting to worry her sister — or worse, jinx anything.

Luna quirked her brow, but thankfully did not press the matter. She approached and glanced at the nearby cell door. “He is contained?” she asked.

“By chain, stone, steel, and spell, yes,” Celestia replied, turning to follow her gaze.

Luna’s lips twitched up into an impressed smile. “That was fast.”

Celestia huffed. “I was not going to give him the chance to hurt anypony else,” she said before nodding to the cell. “Especially not after what he did to my student. She has enough to deal with as it is.”

Luna glanced at Celestia, sizing her up with a grim frown. “By the looks of you, he did not come quietly,” she noted.

Celestia’s wings ruffled against her side, and she twitched when the growing bruise on her face reminded her of its presence. “He tried to resist. He failed.”

Luna approached the cell door and popped it open with her magic to peer inside. She gave a low whistle that echoed in the room and around them in the hall. She pulled her head out and closed the door, giving Celestia a questioning look. “Are you quite certain he is alive?” she asked incredulously.

“I showed restraint,” Celestia assured.

“He does not look like someone who received your restraint, Tia,” Luna noted.

“He breathes,” Celestia replied, allowing a small note of venom to creep into her voice. “And he will trouble us no further.”

Luna narrowed her eyes disapprovingly, and Celestia realized what she was doing. She mentally chastised herself for the moment of anger, lowering her head.

Nearby, Squall looked between the two of them. He must have sensed the tension, and wanted a way out. He bowed his head at Luna. “Your majesty, is there anything you need me to do? It looks like the threat is ended, so…”

Celestia hesitated, the words catching in her throat. She wanted to say ‘yes,’ but…

“So it would seem,” Luna assured him, beating Celestia to the punch. “That said, he still bears the magic he stole from Twilight Sparkle, and at least one other. I do not need you here just now, but I do need you to organize a defense of this room. I want two ponies guarding this door at all times, one near, one far. In the event our prisoner breaks free, nopony is to engage him. They are to withdraw and notify myself or my sister at once. Understood?”

Squall shot to attention and threw a sharp salute. “Yes, princess! Right away!” he said before turning and cantering off at a brisk pace. Celestia watched him go, and a genuine smile appeared on her face.

“I recall when he was just a fresh-faced recruit shortly after your return, sister. He has come far in such a short time,” she noted, remembering briefly the youthful thestral when he joined them against Sombra in the Crystal Empire.

“He is a capable soldier and has proven himself to me time and again,” Luna replied before staring at the cell door. Her smile vanished, and she gave Celestia a sidelong glance. “But do not think to distract me with compliments directed at others. You are troubled. And you allowed yourself to submit to your anger, didn’t you?”

Celestia flinched and looked away in shame. “I… did not realize it in the heat of the fight,” she admitted. “But yes. I was angry at him for what he did to Twilight. For how much he scared and angered my daughter, too.”

Luna sighed and stepped closer, lifting a hoof to gently lift Celestia’s chin. “You are truly a mother bear when it comes to those two,” she said softly. “I suppose we should just be grateful you did not submit fully.”

Celestia nodded. “I am in no danger of Falling, sister. I felt it once. Never again.”

Luna nodded quietly, then stepped back, apparently satisfied. “Good. But something else troubles you… does it not?”

Celestia returned her attention to the door, narrowing her eyes. “Is it that obvious?” she asked.

“I know your tells, sister. What is on your mind?”

Celestia hummed quietly, trying to think of the best way to put the feeling into words. After several long seconds, she sighed, shook her head, and turned to face Luna directly. “I do not know. But I somehow fear that the threat has yet to fully pass. Tirek is defeated and contained, and yet my heart is not at ease. I feel… dread, sister.”

Luna hummed quietly, her eyes lowering in thought. “Though I am loath to admit it, I fear I am enduring a similar feeling. When last Tirek stalked our lands, it was a struggle to contain him. And every threat that has come for us since my return has pushed us to the brink. But this?”

“It’s too easy,” Celestia finished, giving the door a stern glare. “He ruffled my feathers when we fought, but little more. It was invigorating to finally feel powerful again, but that elation passed quickly. Perhaps I am simply too used to having to let my daughter and her friends spearhead the charge against danger.”

“I would not think it is so trivial,” Luna countered, stepping closer to Celestia’s side. “You and I are both sensitive to the habits of fate and history, you especially. If your experience tells you we are not done, then we are not done.”

Celestia nodded grimly, then took a step back from the door. “Well, regardless. Nothing will be accomplished if I stand here, moping in the dark,” she relented before flashing a small, teasing smirk in Luna’s direction. “That was always your habit, anyway.”

Luna blinked, then huffed in mock offense. “I do not mope. I contemplate.”

“Ah. Sophisticated moping, then.”

“Sister.”

Celestia chuckled, at least one layer of tension falling from her shoulders in that moment of normalcy. She leaned over to draw Luna into an affectionate side-hug, nuzzling her. “Forgive me. I needed a chuckle.”

“Must it always be at my expense.”

“You are my little sister.”

Luna’s deadpan glare deepened. Celestia did not press the matter any further, and the two shared one more giggle. They disentangled from the embrace, and Celestia turned for the stairs. “Either way, I will feel much better about all of this once Twilight has her magic back and Tirek is chained in Tartarus again. I will begin preparations. As you’ve already started, would you mind—”

“I will ensure Tirek does not get free,” Luna assured Celestia with a nod. “Squall is capable. He will put the very best of the Lunar guard on the project, and I will observe from the safety of the shadows. This foe will not escape my sight. If he should try, he will find my wrath waiting for him.”

Celestia paused. “I… almost fear what that might look like,” she said before turning to face Luna one more time. “Just promise me you will be careful, sister. All it takes is one moment when your guard is down.”

Luna nodded. “Fear not, Tia. I shall remain vigilant. Now go. Sparkle will want to know the thief has been apprehended.”

Celestia tried to think of something more to add to the discussion, but nothing was forthcoming. And so, with a shallow nod, she turned and trotted quickly out of the dungeons.

In the darkness of the dungeon, concealed in the shadows that filled the gaps in the brickwork, they watched. A squirming sensation of irritation came over them as Luna took up a position nearby Tirek’s cell. They spoke.

“She watches. We can do nothing, for now.”

“She is alone. We can bring her down.”

“And reveal us to them all in the wake? Foolishness. We wait.”

“We are sick of waiting.”

“We have waited a long time. We will wait as long as we must.”

They shifted, then settled.

“Fine. But only as long as we must.”

Luna’s ear twitched, and she glanced toward the wall, but the shadows had gone.

Author's Note

This chapter was tricky to get up to where I needed it to be. A shorter one, with a lot of peering at Celestia's thought processes. And that shadow...

Nightmares at Midnight

The pitch-black sky laughed at her.

Twilight Sparkle grit her teeth and tried to shut out the sinister chuckling of her own voice. Her hooves pummeled against a compact dirt road, carrying her along for the city of Canterlot up in the mountains. It was a beacon; a safe haven from the madness that chased her. No matter how hard she ran, though, the city never seemed to get any closer.

The sky laughed again. Twilight felt a presence by her side, a sickening chill that sent her heart racing and tore a frightened whimper out of her throat. “What do you think you’re doing?” a voice jeered, crawling up and down her spine.

“Go away!” Twilight snapped, forcing herself to run harder, no matter how much it made her legs burn or her lungs heave. She had to get to Canterlot. She had to get away from this thing that kept haunting her every thought.

“Where do you think you’re going?” the voice pressed on, undeterred. “To Canterlot? Do you really believe the ponies there will take any pity on you?”

There were... things by the sides of the road. Shadowy lumps and shapes that she dared not turn to look at. She didn’t want to see the bodies. She didn’t want to remember the ponies she had hurt. She couldn’t bear it.

“Or maybe you’re not looking for pity?” the voice asked, snickering into her very soul. “Maybe you’re looking for more memories to steal?”

“Sh-shut up!” Twilight barked, screwing her eyes shut and pouring every ounce of power she could into her throbbing legs. “That was you, not me!”

“For one so smart, you really are a willfully ignorant fool, aren’t you?” the voice cackled, slithering into her ears like a mischievous snake.

“I said SHUT UP!”

“You think you and I are any different?” the voice carried on, whispering into her ear, its cold breath howling in her skull like a blizzard. “Truly? Open your eyes, little girl. You can’t be rid of me. I’m a part of you.”

“NO!” Twilight’s eyes flew open. There it was! The front gates of Canterlot rested just ahead, at long last. They were closed, but she could get through them if she had to. “Even if you are a part of me, I will fight back! I refuse to be a monster like you!”

“Adorable,” the voice cooed. “Absolutely adorable. She’s so intent on denying the truth…”

Twilight shook her head, trying to force the voice out of her head. Just a little farther…

She slid to a stop by the gates, trying to open them with her magic. A spark of confusion shot through her when her horn did not respond. She lifted a hoof to rub at her forehead, only to discover that her horn was missing. Her eyes went wide, terror grabbing her already panicking heart in an iron grip. “W-what?! Where’s my horn?!”

“If you are going to deny yourself,” the voice whispered in her other ear. “Then I guess you don’t need all of yourself, now do you?”

“G-give my horn back!”

The voice gave no answer. Twilight’s pupils dilated. She reared up on her hind legs and pounded on the gates with her hooves. “Princess Celestia! Princess Luna! Please, let me in! I need help!” she screamed at the top of her lungs. Her own voice reverberated all around her, echoing in the silence of the night.

There was no answer. No matter how hard she beat on the gates or how loud she screamed, her desperate pleas for aid were left wholly and completely unanswered. She was left well and truly alone, stranded in the open with that thing.

“Did you forget?” the voice taunted her from behind. “You’re not welcome in this city anymore. The Princess of the Moon saw to that. They won’t help you. Nopony will. All you have is me. All you will ever have is me...”

Twilight dropped back onto all fours, coat bristling. The voice was right. Luna had cast her out of the city. She had banished her. Twilight was all on her own, no matter how cruel or unfair it was. Swallowing heavily, she unfurled her wings and rotated to face the owner of the voice.

She blinked. “Huh?”

Instead of the owner of the voice, she instead saw a tree made of blue crystals staring back at her, the Elements of Harmony set into its branches with hers set into the trunk. It glowed brilliantly at her, almost blinding. At the base of its trunk, rising from its roots, was a pedestal that opened like a flower to reveal a six-sided crystal chest. Each face was host to a keyhole.

Twilight swallowed heavily. “The… the Tree of Harmony?” she asked, looking up at the tree with her ears drooping. A hoof subconsciously lifted up to rub at her throat. A phantom pain danced across it, and she shuddered at the memory of having the literal life crushed out of her by its will when she had come back to it, Rainbow’s limp form in tow.

She wasn’t sure how she had moved from the road outside of Canterlot to the cave in the Everfree, but she supposed it didn’t matter now. The voice was gone for the moment. Twilight took a deep breath and slowly began to advance towards the tree.

Suddenly, gouts of flame erupted from the soil around the tree, creating a pressurized wave of heat that rolled over her and seared the interior of the cave. Twilight gasped, lifting a hoof up to cover her nose and mouth while her eyes widened. “My friends! Rainbow Dash!”

Illuminated by the firelight, Twilight could make out the prone forms of five mares and a baby dragon: Spike, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack. All of them were unconscious and the flames were drawing closer to them. Twilight’s heart skipped a beat when she saw something moving in those flames. It was enormous; moving slowly and deliberately with malevolent confidence. Thunderous steps rocked the earth as it went, betraying the raw physical power of the owner.

The flames surged, reaching for Twilight’s friends like a million tiny hands.

“NO!” Twilight cried out, charging forward and reaching out for Rainbow.

Thunk.

“Gah!” Twilight gasped and fell back to her haunches as she ran face-first into an invisible wall. She rubbed a hoof over her nose before looking up in confusion. The air before her shimmered, rippling like the surface of a pond before a mirror materialized before her. She could see her reflection in its surface.

Something was off about it, though. Her eyes were all wrong. Her pupils had narrowed into draconic slits, her fur had darkened considerably, and her wings had turned curved and imposing like poisoned daggers. Peeling back her lips, she saw sharpened teeth and vampiric fangs, and trails of wispy, ghostly blue magic were leaking out of her eyes.

She took a step back. “W-what is this?!” she asked fearfully, her eyes glued onto those of her reflection.

Her reflection smirked at her.

The flames coiled around the bodies of her friends. Twilight cried out as they were all silently yanked back into the flames over the span of a single beat of the heart, vanishing from sight.

Shrieking with grief and confusion, Twilight hurled herself at the invisible barrier again, slamming into the mirror in the hopes of knocking it aside. It held firm, sending her back to the ground.

She rose again, her wings unfurling in a display of aggression. “Get out of my way!”

“Who says there’s anyone in your way?” the reflection asked with a cold laugh. A moment passed before a sharp pain shot through Twilight’s skull. Gasping, she fell to her haunches and clutched at her head.

She screamed in a mixture of pain and fear as she felt her horn growing out again. It wasn’t right, however., being pale blue and aglow with ghostly magic. She could feel her wings contorting and teeth sharpening in her mouth. “No! NO! STOP!”

“Midnight Sparkle is a part of you,” the voice whispered inside her mind, clawing at her senses like an angry lion. “I have always been a part of you. You can never truly get rid of me… you can deny it, and run from it, but you can never be freed of the truth.”

“Stop! Stop it!” Twilight shrieked, tears leaking out of her eyes as her pupils narrowed into slits. “Please, stop!”

“You cannot run from who you are.”

Twilight threw her head back, a long, guttural scream tearing past her lips. Her vision was flooded with darkness, and her soul went dark.

“Twilight, snap out of it! You’re having a nightmare!”

Twilight’s eyes finally snapped open, her terrified scream dying in her throat as the familiar and raspy voice of Rainbow Dash yanked her from her sleep. Rainbow was above her, looking to have just woken up herself. It was dark in their bedroom, and a quick glance confirmed that it was still night outside.

Twilight took several deep breaths to calm herself down, her hoof finding one of Rainbow’s and holding on tight. “R-Rainbow…” she whispered.

“It’s okay, Twi,” the pegasus whispered, leaning down to give her an affectionate nuzzle. “It’s alright. You’re alright. I gotcha.”

Twilight returned the nuzzle, glad for the display of affection and the comfort it gave her. It was just a nightmare. She was safe.

“...Thank you,” she finally whispered, allowing herself to relax into the mattress again.

Rainbow smiled and darted in to plant a quick kiss on Twilight’s lips. “Anytime,” she replied after pulling back.

Twilight blushed. “H-heh. Not used to you starting that…”

“I’m not used to even having it as an option,” Rainbow shot back with a roll of her eyes before flopping with no grace at all back to her side of the bed. Twilight noted that she kept both hooves on her though, effectively primed to yank her into being a little spoon at a moment’s notice.

“Heh. Fair enough,” Twilight mumbled, shimmying back and allowing Rainbow to embrace her fully from behind. The two fell quiet for a short while, giving Twilight the time she needed to calm down the rest of the way.

“So… do you want to talk about it?” Rainbow asked in a softer voice, nuzzling into the back of Twilight’s head.

Twilight didn’t answer right away. In truth, she wasn’t even entirely sure what any of it meant. Dreams were hard to parse at the best of times, especially without Luna’s help, and somehow, a spiteful part of Twilight felt that Luna wasn’t going to be helping her out anytime soon.

After a moment, Twilight sighed and shook her head. “No… no, I don’t. I just want to get back to sleep.”

Rainbow nodded into her mane. “M’kay. If ya change your mind, though…”

“I know, Rainbow,” Twilight said, looking back at her with a tender smile. “Thank you.”

Rainbow returned the look before cuddling a little closer and closing her eyes. “Gnight, Twi.”

Twilight closed her eyes and set her head down, trying to relax. She took in a deep breath and let it out, taking comfort in Rainbow’s hooves curled around her barrel and the pegasus’ fluffy chest warming her back.

“Goodnight, Rainbow. Sweet dreams.”

Butterflies and Bugs

Twilight may not have had amnesia anymore, but it seemed she had forgotten just how much she truly enjoyed the taste of a well-crafted, cheesy, gooey hayburger with just the right amount of hay, lettuce, and tomato. As soon as hers had arrived, she had lost herself in demolishing them, bathing her taste buds in the rich, wonderful flavor that chased away her fears and her doubts.

Then she had noticed the looks Rainbow and Spike were giving her, and suddenly no amount of good taste could smother the red tint that had covered her cheeks. Not for a lack of trying. She had tried to make sure some tomato sauce got on her cheeks to hide her blush, but Spike, being the ever- attentive assistant he was, was quick to pass her napkins and the like so she could clean herself up.

Of course, she knew full well they just wanted to tease her about it later. It would be miserable, but if she were being honest with herself, she really wouldn’t have it any other way.

Once they had wrapped up their meal, they made their way to Carousel Boutique. As they wound their way through the streets of Ponyville, Twilight noticed a few ponies giving her sidelong glances of confusion or concern. No doubt word of her little meltdown up in Canterlot had spread around in the days that followed, and those who knew her even slightly were unable to hide their feelings on the matter as she passed.

She did her best to ignore them, however, focusing instead on the boutique as it came into sight. A few of the windows had been broken down by the vines, but other than that, the shop appeared to be more or less the same as always. Twilight took a series of deep breaths to ease her mind and focus on the task at hoof. She went over the steps in her head as if it were a checklist. “Get Fluttershy, go into the forest, find a useful book to help me deal with the chest.”

Spike pulled ahead of the group and excitedly knocked on the door, an eager smile on his face. Twilight came to a stop a few paces behind him, waiting for an answer. Several seconds passed, and some rustling was audible on the other side before the door was opened by a pale blue magic aura. Rarity was on the other side, appearing disheveled, but nevertheless pleased by the surprise visit. “Oh! Twilight, Rainbow, Spikey-wikey! I wasn’t expecting you. Do you want to come in? I have some tea brewing.”

“Aw, heck yeah!” Spike agreed enthusiastically. He went to enter, but Twilight pulled him back by his tail with a roll of her eyes.

“Heh. Nice try, little guy, but we’re here for a reason, remember?”

Spike crossed his arms and huffed. “Hmph. Killjoy.”

“That’s my line,” Rainbow jabbed before looking to Rarity. “But Twi’s right, we’re not gonna be here for long. Is Fluttershy in right now?”

Rarity deflated somewhat at the news. She shook her head, eliciting a frown from twilight. “I’m afraid not. She went out a short while ago to meet up with a friend of hers, though she neglected to mention who,” she explained, gesturing vaguely. “She’s been very quiet lately. Even more than usual. Oh, the poor dear… she just hasn’t been herself since she lost her cottage...”

“Can you blame her?” Spike asked with a sigh. “A lot of things got messed up by those stupid vines.”

“You can say that again,” Twilight thought, reaching a hoof up to idly rub at her temple.

“Oh, don’t remind me,” Rarity complained, cringing back into her store. “Have you any idea how many of my dresses got torn to shreds by those horrible things? I’m going to have to close down for weeks just to get all the needed supplies to do my job properly again!”

“Well, I’d love to help clean up,” Rainbow said, scuffing the dirt at her hooves. “But I kinda gotta run up to Canterlot here in a bit. I’m just tagging along with these two to make sure they got everything covered, then I’m going.”

Rarity’s eyes shimmered with interest, and she poked her head farther out of her store. “Oh? Canterlot, is it? Do you mind if I ask what business you have up there? Important princess matters, no doubt.”

Rainbow winced, her eyes darting sideways at Twilight for a second. “Er… you could say that, sure,” she said carefully.

Twilight’s ears drooped slightly, her brow furrowing in mild irritation. At least Rainbow was being vague, for her sake.

Rarity seemingly caught on to something. She gave off a quiet, thoughtful hum before pulling back. “Say no more. I can tell a personal matter when I stumble across it. I shan’t pry!” she said in understanding. She offered Twilight a smile. “So, you are looking for Fluttershy, yes?”

“Yes, we are,” Twilight said, latching onto the distraction. “You said she went out with a friend?”

“I did indeed. I may be wrong, but I think they were making their way to the ruins of her cottage. Maybe you can begin your search there?”

“Sure thing. Let her know we were looking for her if she comes back, okay?” Twilight requested.

Rarity nodded. “But of course, darling.”

“Right. Thanks, Rarity,” Twilight said before turning and trotting back down the street. She could hear Spike and Rainbow moving to follow her. She glanced back between them at Rarity. “We need to be going. We’ll see you later!”

“Take care, dears!” Rarity called after them, giving a few waves of farewell before retreating back into her home.

Her voice could just be heard through one of the absent windows. “Opal! That is one of the only sheets of silk I have left! Off! And no claws!”

She was answered by an angered hiss.

Rainbow snickered under her breath. “Yeah, that seems about right.”

Twilight winced when Fluttershy’s cottage came into view a short time later. While she had seen plenty of broken down homes so far, she had yet to lay eyes on the quiet, isolated house that had housed one of her oldest friends for the last few years, and none of them had prepared her for the scene of obliteration that now sat before her.

The cottage had been reduced to a pile of rubble and splinters. The walls had all been broken down and shredded, piled haphazardly around in a wild fashion. The chimney had been broken mere feet from the base, sending pieces of brick and stone scattering over the remaining ruins. The earth all around it was torn and shredded, to the point that the little stream that once wound its way through the front yard had actually been partially dammed, creating a muddy waterfall that flowed over a mound of dirt in the heart of the stream while dampening the surrounding soil.

The damage extended beyond the yard or house. Trees had been uprooted and broken in half, lying scattered all over the area, or even jutting up from the torn soil with the roots turned toward the sky, as if they had been thrown like javelins. Boulders and stones had been thrown as well, as could be seen by the trenches many had at their bases. All in all, it looked almost like a detonation of an impossible scale had erupted not far away, and the poor hovel had been caught in the blast zone.

Of course, the truth was nothing quite so flashy, though no less grim. Supernatural vines created by Discord a thousand years ago were the culprits, and they had surely done their job in sowing chaos and destruction.

Twilight stopped at the top of the hill just before the yard, sweeping her eyes slowly across the scene of devastation with a limp jaw. She labored to fully grasp the enormity of the damage, her mind stalling as she took in every little detail. “This is what happened to Fluttershy's house…?” she asked in barely even a whisper.

“Told ya,” Spike said glumly from her back. “Those vines messed up everything.”

“Yeah…” Rainbow agreed, her muzzle scrunching up in disdain. “...Kinda makes me wish I could beat the tar outta the guy who made ‘em.”

“Oh, I’d love to do a little more to him than that,” Twilight’s voice said inside her head. “A simple beating is too good for that worthless creature! Total destruction, like what I had to suffer, would suit him far better-”

Another pang of pain in her skull. Twilight grit her teeth, forcing herself to ignore the bitter voice and countering it with her own. “No! I’m better than that! Discord’s a monster, but that doesn’t mean I should let myself become one because of him!”

Twilight stood still for a few seconds. The pain in her skull faded, and she took a slow, gentle breath to soothe herself. Spike and Rainbow were already pulling ahead. With a quick shake to renew her senses, she cantered after them. The ground squelched and bled water as she went, a by-product of the excess water seeping into the soil from the dammed stream.

The bridge that crossed over the stream was, for a mercy, still intact, although it was far from being in perfect condition. Small chunks of it on the right side had crumbled away, leaving a jagged gap for anypony not paying attention to step in and fall through. There were cracks and marks scattered across it, but it was otherwise fine, by the looks of things.

It was as she crossed that small bridge over the stream that Twilight noticed Fluttershy. The yellow pegasus was sitting in front of the cottage, her face hidden from view by her long pink mane. The vast majority of the animals that had once taken residence in her home were nowhere to be seen - either temporarily relocated to trusted caretakers, or scattered to the wilds. The only one that remained was Angel Bunny, who was sitting by her side with an uncharacteristically sullen appearance.

Fluttershy didn’t appear to have heard their approach yet, her attention fixated solely on the broken remains of her home. Oddly enough, though, Twilight didn’t see anypony else. Her only company was Angel...

“I thought Rarity said she came here with a friend…”

“Hey, Fluttershy,” Rainbow called as they drew closer, causing the other pegasus to jump with a startled squeak.

Fluttershy sprang to her hooves and spun around to face them. The alarm on her face immediately gave way to a warm smile. “Oh! Rainbow, Twilight, Spike!” she greeted. She looked down at the ground, shrinking back shyly. “Um… you startled me.”

Angel glanced back at them with an uninterested frown before focusing back on the ruins.

“Heh, sorry,” Rainbow apologized, ruffling Fluttershy’s mane. “Had to get your attention somehow.”

Fluttershy puffed up her cheeks in mild annoyance before pulling herself together and offering her company a warm smile. “I guess. Um… so, uh, can I help you?”

“We’re heading into the Everfree Forest,” Spike proclaimed before Twilight had the chance to. “Was wondering if you wanted to tag along.”

Fluttershy’s eyes widened. “W-what?! The Everfree Forest?!” she squeaked in fear.

Rainbow gave Spike a flat glare. “Real smooth, buddy.”

“What?” he asked with a shrug. “She asked.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Ugh. Fluttershy, we’re specifically going to the Castle of the Two Sisters. Spike and I are going to be doing some research in the library there, and we were hoping you could come along.”

“Um… c-couldn’t you go with somepony braver?” she asked quietly. “Instead of, um, me?”

“We could,” Twilight acknowledge quietly. “But we figured we’d ask you first. Rainbow can’t come; she’s heading for Canterlot as soon as we leave, and Rarity’s, well, Rarity. You’re between things right now, what with… well…” she gestured at the cottage solemnly. “But more than that, you’re really good with animals. If there are any that don’t like us in there, I’d rather deal with them peacefully, and you’re our best option for that.”

“If you don’t wanna go,” Spike added, speaking more gently than before. “That’s fine. But we’d really like your company and your help.”

Fluttershy took those words in, her anxious posture slowly relaxing. She idly reached a hoof up to her throat, wincing. “Um… I guess I can go if you really want me to come… but, uh… can I bring someone with me?”

Angel glanced up at her in mild disapproval.

Rainbow frowned. “Ya know, that reminds me… Rarity said you came out here with a friend, but I don’t see anypony else. You were all alone when we showed up,” she said, glancing around. “Did they go away or something?”

Fluttershy perked up and shook her head. “Oh, no! He’s inside!” she said excitedly. She quickly rose to her hooves and spun around. “Thorax! Can you hear me?!” she called out.

Twilight’s eyes widened. “Thorax?!” she echoed in surprise. Thorax was here?! That was news to her.

In response to Fluttershy’s call, a long, lanky mouselike creature with black fur and blue eyes poked its head up from the rubble, holding what appeared to be a square of paper in its mouth. It was about three feet long and moved with speed and agility fitting for a creature of its stature. It scurried across the rubble, then jumped down to land in front of Fluttershy.

The moment it did, it was consumed in a swirl of green flames. Sure enough, Thorax the changeling emerged from the embers, the square of paper in his mouth turning out to be a photo, now that Twilight could see it.

Thorax pulled the photo out of his mouth with his magic and passed it to Fluttershy. “Here ya go. It’s the only one I could find,” he said.

Fluttershy reached up and took the photo in her hooves, a tender smile on her face. Twilight looked at the photo over her shoulder. It was a shot showing Fluttershy as a young adult surrounded by her family. Zephyr, as a mid-teenager, was off to the left side of the photo, leaning casually against Fluttershy’s side with a big, dorky grin on his face. Their parents were seated behind them, smiling gently at the camera.

It was a pleasant scene, all in all. If Twilight had to crack a guess, it was the last one she had taken before moving for Ponyville.

“Thank you, Thorax,” Fluttershy said quietly. She reached down and tucked the photo into a small sack that was at her side.

Thorax beamed at her turning to face Twilight and the rest of the new arrivals. “Hey, guys! I wasn’t expecting to see any of you here,” he said in greeting, his wings buzzing briefly on his back.

“Heh, ditto,” Rainbow remarked with a friendly smile. She gave Thorax a clap on the shoulder. “What are ya doing here, man? I thought you’d be up in Canterlot with Wind and Squall.”

“Well, I would be, and I was up until earlier today,” Thorax said. “But once I heard about Fluttershy’s house and everything that happened, I had to come down and make sure she was alright.”

“That right?” Rainbow asked with a raised eyebrow, her friendly smile morphing into a knowing smirk.

Thorax’s eyes widened as a tiny bit of red came onto his cheeks. His eyes turned up somewhat, and Twilight got the impression that he was seeing something the rest of them couldn’t. “...Uh… y-yes?”

Angel covered his face with his paws in a failed attempt to stifle some very high-pitched giggles, an evil look in his eyes.

“Rainbow, Angel, don’t give him a hard time,” Fluttershy scolded lightly. “He’s come a long way to spend some time with me, so be nice!”

“Hey, I didn’t say anything,” Rainbow said innocently.

Angel made a squeak that could only have meant “You should!”

Twilight looked between them all for a few moments, working through the interaction in her head. Thorax was suddenly very bashful looking, Fluttershy was standing up to the tiniest hint of a perceived threat, and Rainbow had the most malevolent of teasing smirks Twilight had ever seen on her.

“She only ever gets that look when she’s poking fun at me,” Twilight thought, frowning. “And she only gets away with that because she’s known me for so long. That and we’re in a… oh… OH.”

It clicked in her mind with the resonance of a cannon blast. Twilight’s eyes darted back and forth between Fluttershy and Thorax in surprise, her mind reeling. It was hard to imagine, but now that she thought about it, it was actually kind of obvious, in retrospect. She probably would have figured it out a lot sooner if she hadn’t been an amnesiac for the last two years.

Thorax, no doubt sensing her realization, was quick to change the subject. “S-so! You three! You’re here! You weren’t a minute ago! Eheh, uh, explain?”

“They want to go into the Everfree Forest,” Fluttershy explained. “To the big castle there. You remember?”

Thorax blinked and nodded. “I think so… why?”

“We have some research to do,” Spike explained. “Twi and I are going for sure, but Rainbow’s gotta go up to the city. We figured Fluttershy’d be a good pony to have along.”

“Mhmm,” Fluttershy acknowledged. “And I’m going with them. But, uhm, if it’s alright with you, I was wondering, Thorax, if you’d like to come with us?”

Thorax stared at her for a second, then at Twilight and Spike. She could practically see the gears turning in his head before he nodded along. “Ah… okay, sure. Yeah, I can come along. When are we leaving?”

“We can go at pretty much any time,” Twilight said, glancing up at the sky. “If we head out now we should be able to reach the castle before the sun starts going down.”

“Oh,” Thorax said, blinking. He turned to Fluttershy. “Uh, is there anything else we wanted to do, or…?”

Fluttershy shook her head. “No, I don’t think so…”

Thorax nodded. “Then… I guess we’re ready when you are.”

Angel reached up and tugged in irritation on Fluttershy’s man, drawing her attention. He glared up at her expectantly, his forelegs folding over his chest. Fluttershy giggled and lightly picked him up. “Oh, and of course you can come too, Angel.”

Angel nodded as if there was literally no other answer Fluttershy could have given him.

“If that’s the case,’ Rainbow piped up, spreading out her wings and giving them a few slow flaps to stretch them out. “I should probably be getting a move on. Canterlot’s right there, and I don’t wanna keep mom waiting for too long.”

Twilight turned to face her, feeling some disappointment at having to watch her friend go. “Right… fly safe, Rainbow,” she said softly, glancing down at the pegasus’ wing. It had been injured during the Plundervines incident, and while it had recovered, she had the feeling it was still kind of tender. “And be careful with your wing.”

Rainbow grinned confidently. “Don’t worry, Twi. I’m not that dumb.”

“We wanna put that to a vote?” Spike asked with a cheeky grin.

“Nah. We all know you’d totally rig it against me,” Rainbow snorted. She stepped forward, focusing her attention on Twilight. “If anypony needs to be careful here, it’s you, Twi. Don’t stress yourself out too much, okay?”

Twilight winced at the reminder of Celestia’s advice. She offered up a small nod before reaching out and pulling Rainbow into a gentle embrace. “I’ll try not to…” she whispered.

Rainbow nodding into her shoulder. “Good… if it all starts getting to ya, just have Spike whack ya or something,” she said, a small edge of mirth creeping in at the end there.

Twilight snorted. “Heh. Sure. I’ll get right on that.”

Rainbow leaned back with a smirk.

Twilight capitalized on the moment to lean in and press her lips against Rainbow’s. It was short-lived, as the pegasus immediately yanked her head back with a furious blush the moment she regained her faculties. “T-twilight! Not in front of others!” she protested weakly.

Twilight lidded her eyes at Rainbow and spoke in a low purr. “Aw, but why not? You’re cute when you squirm.”

Rainbow’s blush grew several times more intense. “B-but, y-you, I… GUH!” she groaned before backing out of the hug and flapping her wings, launching herself heavensward. “I’ll get you for that!” she shouted back at Twilight as she disappeared into the sky.

Twilight laughed heartily. “I look forward to seeing you try!” she called after Rainbow, though she had the feeling the pegasus did not hear her as she disappeared into the sky.

Author's Note

Fun fact: Angel was not originally meant to be here, but my editor made it a point to ask, and now Angel is gonna be in the whole story arc. Yay for me!

Fun fact 2: I imagine you've noticed, but I will not be highlighting plot arc names this time around: At least not on an individual basis. We have one arc for each of the keys in this story, but i will not be naming them so as to avoid spoiling which one is which and any other relevant details.

However, if it appeased anyone with OCD like me, up until we get closer to the end, we can just call this collection of arcs

The Sealed Chest Arc

Moonlit Assurances

“I’ve seen this before…”

Twilight’s breath came in heaving gasps as she galloped down the road toward the gates of Canterlot. The world was shrouded in darkness, and a sickening, twisted perversion of her voice was following her wherever she went. She could just make out the shadowy lumps that, after a glance, she discovered were pony bodies scattered by the roadside, the face of each one flashing through her mind. Their screams of pain and terror as she tore their memories of her out of their minds echoed in her ears, eliciting a terrified whimper.

“Help me!” she cried out as she reached the gates, throwing herself against them with everything she had. Pain exploded across her shoulder from the impact, and she went falling back to the ground with a grunt of pain. Scrambling, she rose back to her hooves and began to hysterically beat on the gates. “Celestia! Luna! Cadance, somepony! Anypony! Please, let me in! Help me!”

“Oh, how easily you forget…” her voice cackled ominously from behind her, sending a chill down her spine. “Will this little scene start repeating itself, I wonder?”

“Mom! Dad! Somepony open the door! PLEASE!” Twilight went on, trying and failing to tune out the sadistic malice in her counterpart’s voice.

“Nopony is coming, Twilight,” the voice cooed, right into her ear. Twilight went rigid, her heart turning to ice as she felt its breath tickling her ear. “Not from here. You’re alone.”

Twilight growled as anger and rage swelled inside of her, like a swirling bonfire. She turned and spun on her hooves, her horn flaring to life with a burst of magic. “SHUT UP!” she shouted at the top of her lungs.

To her surprise, the scene before her was different. In the moment she had taken to turn around, the world had completely changed. No longer did she stand in front of the sealed gates of Canterlot. Instead, she was in the cave that housed the Tree of Harmony. She could see the ancient growth standing on the far side of the cavern, glowing softly with divine light.

Twilight took a few seconds to collect herself. How had she gotten here? She knew she had been outside of Canterlot just a moment ago. Had she been teleported? She hadn’t felt the familiar sensations, though. Maybe a portal?

Whatever the case, she was here, now. The air had fallen completely still; even the sound of wind outside was inaudible. The only things making any noise were her trembling breathing and the furious thumps of her heart pounding wildly against her ribs. She swallowed heavily and slowly began to approach the tree, the scrape of her hooves on the stone floor sending a chill down her spine with each step.

The air before her shimmered as she drew near. Slowly, but surely, a mirror wall manifested into existence in front of her, barring her passage. Her reflection stared back from inside of it, looking exhausted and tired. Her reflection’s mane was frazzled and messy, her eyes were drooping and bloodshot, and her fur had darkened considerably.

“What… is this?” she asked softly while raising a hoof out to the mirror. Her heartbeat sped up in her chest, and it felt as if her ribs were constricting her lungs. Some primal part of her began to cry out and scream, demanding that she turn and leave the mirror behind right now, but she just couldn’t stop herself.

Her hoof made contact with the mirror. It was like ice to the touch.

Her reflection then grinned at her.

Twilight gasped as the image suddenly burst into cyan flames, and when they parted, the ghostly, haunting visage of Midnight Sparkle stood before her, eyes narrowed with sadistic delight.

“Embrace me!” the reflection called, stepping through the mirror and reaching out for Twilight.

Twilight staggered back, a frightened scream tearing past her lips. “No, NO! Go away! You’re not real! I got rid of you!”

Midnight lunged after her, faster than she could respond. Before she knew it, she was completely enveloped in a strangling embrace of hooves and blade-like feathers. The world was soaked in darkness and wisps of ghostly magic. She struggled and squirmed, but to no avail. She was held tight.

“You can never be rid of me…” Midnight cooed into her ear almost as if a mother to her child. “Never. Now, embrace me.”

“Go away…” Twilight whimpered, her struggles starting to weaken. Something was pulling the strength from her body. “Just leave me alone… please…”

Midnight giggled softly but otherwise did not deign to answer Twilight’s pathetic plea. The embrace grew tighter and tighter. Twilight screwed her eyes shut, biting back the urge to scream as the tendrils of ghostly magic began to probe at her head as if to burrow inside. She jerked and thrashed a few more times with the last vestiges of her strength, but to no avail.

As if for no reason, though, the dark was lifted. Twilight’s eyes flew wide open as a wave of cool, refreshing air washed over her. The apparition of Midnight faded, and the rest of the scene was rapidly joining her in doing so. Everything lost its shape and form, dissolving into little more than faint wisps of smoke that soon bled away to reveal an open night sky. A million stars shown down on her, each one a brilliant lantern against a curtain of obsidian. An ocean of clouds spread out before her, and she felt herself resting in them as if they were pillows.

She blinked a few times, confused. “Wha… what? What’s going on…?” she asked, looking around.

After a few moments, her eyes found a disturbance in the surface of the clouds, and the sound of hooves trotting slowly and gently across a hard surface reached her ears. Twilight sprang to her hooves and assumed a defensive stance, her wings spreading out. Whatever was coming for her this time, she would not afford it the same luxury of catching her off-guard as she had with Midnight.

To her shock, however, no threat emerged from the smoke. Instead, trotting up, as if from an invisible staircase, the full moon rising into the night sky behind her, grand and majestic, was none other than Princess Luna.

Twilight’s wings sagged, her eyes flying wide open. “Wha… Princess Luna?” she breathed, shocked by the display.

Luna nodded, a small smile on her face. “None other, Twilight Sparkle.”

Twilight blinked, taking a few steps back. She folded her wings up at her sides and assumed a defensive, withdrawn tone. “You… what are you doing here?” she asked. She then looked around again before gesturing vaguely. “And where is here?!”

Luna gave off something between a sigh and a laugh before turning to face the moon in the distance. “I had forgotten how long it has been since I spoke to you like this… This is a dream, Twilight Sparkle. Your dream. and I am here because you need me to be.”

Twilight paused, looking around. “A… a dream?”

It made sense now. The world changing so rapidly around her, the mirror just appearing out of nowhere, Midnight’s impossible emergence, and then the sea of clouds. None of this would be possible in the waking world. Where else could she have been?

“Indeed. You were having a rather disturbing nightmare,” Luna explained, trotting forward a few paces. “And so, here I am, to chase it away and offer you guidance on how to avoid it in the future.”

As the realization dawned on Twilight, so too did a cold irritation. She turned to face Luna directly, a bitter scowl replacing her initial shock. “I don’t buy it.”

Luna blinked. “I… pardon me?”

Twilight stalked forward, the back of her skull starting to burn with frustration. “I’ve been having nightmares like this for weeks, Luna, and you’ve never once shown up before! You’ve always left me to my own devices! Yet suddenly now you decide to show up and help me out?! What’s the catch?”

Luna flinched away from Twilight’s outburst, her ears drooping, and immediately Twilight’s heart withered with guilt in her chest. She quickly lifted a hoof to her mouth, her ears drooping. “I… I’m so sorry, I… that wasn’t-”

“No, Twilight. You need not apologize,” Luna comforted her softly. She looked away and slowly fell to her haunches with a tired sigh. “Your hostility is understandable. You are right. I have been neglecting your dreams. But please understand, it was not out of a desire to see you suffer, nor was it out of laziness.”

Twilight lowered her hoof from her lips. “Then why was it?” she asked slowly, careful not to let herself lash out again. “Why did you ignore me? I really could have used your help a few days ago, Luna, but you weren’t there. What changed?”

Luna took a deep breath before facing Twilight again. “...I… was not aware of the severity of your condition, I am afraid. I was made aware when I spoke with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy in their dreams this night. Fluttershy expressed an unsettling amount of worry and concern for you and your mental health. She replayed for me the moment she and the others found you slumped against a pillar in the old castle, gasping for breath after scaring away Spiracle. Rainbow regaled me with her recollections of your shortened temper and sudden, seemingly unprompted outbursts of violent anger…”

Luna rose to her hooves, her wings ruffling against her sides. “They both bade me come to you and offer you my aid, and so here I am. I am sorry that I have neglected you for as long as I have, Twilight Sparkle, and I mean to earn your forgiveness by making amends for that neglect.”

Twilight stared at Luna for several seconds, her jaw agape. Fluttershy and Rainbow had both asked for Luna to help her? It made sense, of course, as Fluttershy was one of the more vocal voices in asserting that she needed help of some kind.

She took a deep breath and looked away. “I… I’m not sure I want your help, Luna… and I’m not sure you even want to help me. Looking back on our history, all of that animosity…”

“I was unfair to you,” Luna acknowledged regretfully. “I was so blinded by a desire to defend my niece that I harmed you. I was a hypocrite, I was a fool, and I accept full responsibility for my part in the events that transpired in Canterlot… but if you do not desire my help, then I cannot force you to accept it.”

Twilight turned to Luna again, her ears perking up, just slightly. “But… how can I be sure that those old habits are dead?”

Luna’s lips curled up into a tiny, gentle smile. “...Because neither my sister nor my niece would ever let me live it down if I hurt you again. But more than that…” her smile faded, and a more solemn expression came over her. “...I know what it is like to struggle with your dark side, and so I know full well the psychological torment you are suffering. It is an agony I would wish on nopony… So if I am presented with an opportunity to lift that agony, then I shall do all in my power to do so. There has been enough pain.”

Twilight stared at Luna for several moments, considering her and her words with great care. It didn’t sound like the Alicorn of the Night was lying. However, at the same time, she made it sound far easier than it probably was to bury their old animosity and carry on unobstructed. Part of her wanted to deny the offer, if only out of spite.

Before that train of thought could continue any further, though, her mind wandered to Rainbow and Fluttershy: two of her oldest friends and one of them was actively her girlfriend. They had been watching her crumple in on herself for a while now, and if Luna was being honest, they had asked Luna to set aside their differences and help her. If she denied Luna, didn’t that mean she would be denying them?

Besides, who else could she really turn to for aid in this scenario? Standing before her was the first alicorn known to have undergone a Fall, and from all accounts, she had stayed in that state for far longer than any of the others. Celestia had fallen for mere moments in the Crystal Empire in a desperate bid to defeat Chrysalis, and Twilight had only been that way for a single night…

Given the nature of dreams, as well, Luna was uniquely positioned to be an incredible help. She had accomplished wonders with Rainbow in their dream therapy if Rainbow’s outward behavior was any indication.

There really wasn’t a choice here.

Twilight sighed and met Luna’s gaze. “...Okay. Fine… How can you help me?”

Luna visibly relaxed, as if a great weight was lifted from her shoulders. She gave Twilight a grateful smile before turning to look out at the sea of clouds again. “First, I must know the severity of your condition. I presume, judging by the testimony of your loved ones, that Midnight has spoken frequently?”

Twilight grimaced. “Er, yeah, you could say that. She was really talkative up until we brought Spiracle back to the castle. She’s been kind of quiet since then, only piping up here and there.”

“As is to be expected,” Luna said thoughtfully. “As you know, becoming a Fallen Alicorn requires an influx of immense emotional stress to surpass the pony’s capacity to cope with it. Now that you have imbibed in that part of yourself, it has a voice. As such, as your stress and emotional turmoil rise, so too shall Midnight become ever more vocal and eager to pull you back into the darkness.”

Twilight blinked in surprise. “Oh… so, there’s a predictable pattern to it?”

“Predictable, no. But it can be moderated,” Luna clarified, turning to face Twilight directly. “So, for the duration of this struggle, my most prominent source of advice would be to do your best to avoid stressful situations. Find your peace wherever you can and hold onto it for whatever it is worth. Breathing exercises, personal meditation, enjoying hobbies. Make use of whatever you have at your disposal to dispel your stress and to soothe your heart and mind. The more at peace you are with yourself, the quieter Midnight shall become.”

Twilight hummed at that, her brow furrowing in thought. “Find my peace, huh…? Well, that would be a lot easier if I didn’t have an exile from my home city and the most cryptic task Celestia has ever given me looming over my head all the time!”

“Do not dwell upon those.”

Twilight stared at Luna in shock. “...What? But you’re the one who banished me from Canterlot!”

Luna sighed and came forward. “Please understand. You did cause great harm to the population of that city. Though you returned their memories, their minds are yet scarred by the experience. The nightmares they have suffered have been numerous and severe, and as one’s dreams are haunted, so too shall their neighbors’ be. It is my duty to dispel such fears, and it is my fear that allowing you back into the city so soon after that night would only invite pain and tension on ponies who are yet still reeling from the night of the Plundervines.”

Twilight gave off a quiet grunt of frustration. While Luna’s argument made a bit of sense, it was still upsetting. “I mean… I understand that, but that’s my home, Luna.”

“I know, and I am sorry,” Luna said softly. “But if it is any consolation, the city isn’t going anywhere. There is no time limit on opening the chest, either. You must not force yourself to open it when doing so has evidently done naught more than cause you stress and anger. Take your time… relax. Worry less about your future and instead focus on the present.”

Twilight blinked. Celestia and Luna’s old journal wandered into her mind, and before she knew it, she and Luna were suddenly seated in the secret room in the Castle of The Two Sisters. The journal sat in front of her, open to the page about the Organ to the Outside.

Luna peered down at the page, seemingly undeterred by the shift in scenery. Her expression flattened. “Ah. I see you found our old journal…” she mumbled dryly. “Tia’s old writings fill the majority of the pages, I assume you noticed.”

“Yeah, you didn’t write much in it,” Twilight observed, lifting the book to her face. The words were blurry and muddled, impossible to make out. Probably because she had only read the thing once, and so didn’t have it all memorized yet.

“For I had my own,” Luna elaborated with a distant smile. “I cherished the privacy of my own thoughts and ideas. As much as I love my sister, she was perhaps a bit… too nosy in our youth. Especially since I am the little sister. She abused that authority far, far too often.”

Twilight hummed quietly, tracing a hoof over the page. “...Celestia didn’t worry much about the future, back then.”

Luna was quiet for a few seconds. “...No, she did not. She was a very energetic and carefree filly. Easily the more reckless between us in those early years.”

Twilight smiled at that before gently closing the book. “...Maybe you’re right… Maybe I should focus more on the now…” she mused quietly. A thought occurred to her, and she looked curiously up to Luna. “What did you do, out of curiosity? To find your peace when dealing with Nightmare, I mean.”

Luna’s smile faltered. She looked away for a moment, her brow furrowed and her lips drawing into a thoughtful line. Suddenly, the world twitched and blurred, and the secret room was replaced by a majestic forest scene. The moon hung directly overhead, shining its light down upon a small island in the center of a serene pond. A gracefully curving tree rose from that island, its leaves a vibrant pink in color and its trunk a rich, midnight blue. A bed was positioned by the base of the trunk while a great harp sat off to one side. Surrounding the pond were more trees of varying gentle colors, each swaying softly in a subtle breeze. Dragonflies and fireflies danced across the surface of the water, while the air was filled with the distant calls of owls and crickets.

“...I came here,” Luna said quietly, rising to her hooves. Twilight watched as she walked down to the water, and then across it as if it were solid. “I spent much of my time after you and your friends turned me back to normal in a coma-like sleep while my adult body restored itself. In that time, my struggle with Nightmare Moon was… far more real. Far more tangible. To escape her cloying voice, I would come here…”

She sat by the harp and placed a hoof on the frame. A calm smile came over her. “...And I would play the most wonderous melodies I could imagine. I basked in the quiet and the shade; in the light of the moon and the stars I so love. I gave myself to thought, and song, and story. I weaved a world of peace, and it was mine. My world… just me. Me and all the dreams I could imagine.”

Twilight blinked several times, her eyes wide. Slowly, afraid to disturb the serenity of this sanctuary, she unfurled her wings and gently flew across the pond to join Luna on the island. “Wow… I had no idea…” she whispered. Her eyes fell on the harp, her ears perking up. “And… you taught yourself how to play the harp?”

Luna laughed, idly plucking a few of the strings, giving off the most heavenly notes Twilight had heard from such an instrument. “To say I taught myself would, perhaps, be an exaggeration. Were you to present me with one in the waking world, whatever melody I played would be… less than impressive. But in a dream, anything is possible.”

The Princess of the Night plucked the strings a few more times, teasing Twilight’s ears with the promise of a wonderful song, before cruelly turning away from the divine instrument to face Twilight again. “But what of you, Twilight? What makes you happy? What brings you your peace?”

Twilight paused, but only for a moment, for that was all it took to find her answer. “My friends. Especially Rainbow Dash.”

Luna hummed at that. “Ah, yes. And with your memories thus restored, your relationship with my niece is, at least, devoid of obstructions,” she observed quietly. She then rose to her hooves and stepped forward until she was directly in front of Twilight. “Then for you, Twilight Sparkle, I suggest you simply take this time, and this opportunity, to be with her. Forget your obligations to the chest. Forget your obligations to the Tree or my sister, at least for now. Pursue the love you and her so fervently share. You have waited long enough, I feel.”

Twilight blushed at that, not quite sure how to respond to Luna’s poetic way of putting it. She coughed awkwardly into her hoof. “Ahem! W-well, I, uh… I’m not sure, uh… how.”

Luna’s expression flattened. “...I beg your pardon?”

“Hey, give me a break!” Twilight whined, her blush dialing up to eleven. “I’ve never been in a romantic relationship before, okay?! The way Rainbow and I found out we loved each other was in the middle of a massive, world-shattering crisis! We already live together, too, so have we just skipped the dating stage?! How can I gauge where I am at with her? I’ve never done this before and I have no idea how to do it!”

“Have you considered contacting your sister-in-law?”

“I… have not!” Twilight squeaked, her eye twitching.

Luna laughed at that before stepping back. “Well, far be it from me to encroach upon her domain. But if I may offer at least one small piece of advice…”

Luna then lifted from the ground, as gravity had just stopped pulling on her, allowing her to drift up into the air. “Your relationship with Rainbow Dash is one of a kind… but much like there is no time limit upon your quest to open the chest, there is similarly no rush to figure out all of the tiny details about your relationship. Just do what feels right and natural, and your heart will lead the way.”

Twilight stepped after Luna, her eyes widening. “I… I guess so, but… where are you going?”

“Alas, I am afraid there are yet more dreams for me to tend to this night,” Luna said apologetically. “Though you are a priority, yours is but one mind in a sea of literally countless… I cannot always be here for you.”

Luna’s expression softened considerably at that, her wings slowly spreading out. “However, you need not rely upon me alone. You are a fortunate mare indeed to have such a wonderful group of friends at your side…”

As she said this, spectral depictions of Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Spike, Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie all faded into reality under her wings.

“Where I cannot, they may help ease your burdens. All you need do, Twilight Sparkle, is call on them to do so.”

Twilight’s lips slowly curved up into a tiny smile. “Right… I will. Thank you, Luna.”

Luna nodded. “You are welcome, Twilight. Now, I bid you sleep well. I shall speak with you again when next your dreams require it.”

And with that, the princess disappeared, fading away into the full moon behind her. Glowing now with its pale glow, the sky swallowed Twilight’s vision whole, soothing her mind and her muscles.

And then she woke up.

Sister's Guidance

Twilight’s breath was coming in heaving gasps as she sprinted through the darkened streets of Ponyville. The sky had gone dark, and what few stars there were filled her with nothing but dread. They were like eyes, haunting eyes, that watched and judged her every decision with cold, calculated contempt and disdain. The windows of the homes were dark and much the same. She could feel the eyes of their inhabitants on her, just waiting.

She had to find her friends. She didn’t know what was endangering them, but she knew that something was coming for them, and she had to get to them first. If she didn’t… she dared not think about what she might do if she lost them to whatever was coming. She poured more strength into her legs and even gave her wings a few flaps to speed her along.

“Girls!” She called out at the top of her lungs, raising her head to throw her voice as far as she could. “Applejack, Rarity! Pinkie, Fluttershy! Rainbow! Anypony! Where are you?!”

She rounded a bend, and her eyes widened with relief. The Golden Oak Library lay just ahead and, unlike in the shadowy homes of the rest of the town, the windows were glowing with golden light; her beacon in this shadow-smothered world. She gave her wings one more mighty flap, covering the remaining distance and throwing her weight against the door.

The wood splintered and buckled easily from the force, and she came to a sliding stop in the middle of the warm, lit interior. For a moment, she stopped, letting herself relax in a familiar environment. The soothing quiet, the smell of books, paper, and wood… She took a deep breath and opened her eyes.

Her friends were all here, looking back at her with wide eyes from the far end of the room. Twilight heaved a massive sigh of relief and went to approach. “Oh, thank Celestia! Girls, you’re okay!” she said, cantering forward.

She stopped in her tracks when Rainbow suddenly stepped forward and fanned out her wings in a defensive manner, her ears drooping. “S-stay back!” She barked out in warning, but the tell-tale tremble in her voice betrayed her fear.

Twilight paused, tilting her head to one side. “Wha… Rainbow? It’s me, it’s Twilight,” she said gently, lifting a hoof and taking a few tentative steps forward. “Come on, it isn’t safe here. We need to go-”

“I said STAY BACK!” Rainbow said more forcefully, scraping her hoof along the floor. “Just get away from my friends!”

Twilight took a step back, her heart feeling as if it were about to shatter in her chest. “Wha… Dash?” she choked out. “What are you saying? It’s me… Why are you acting like this?”

Rainbow’s hardened expression did not last long. Fear and grief began to creep into her eyes, and the strength in her posture and voice evaporated like a drop of water in a desert. “Please… j-just go away. You’ve done enough…”

Twilight’s wings ruffled at her sides. “But… Rainbow… c-come on, you… you know me!” Twilight exclaimed, her eyes starting to mist over. “I’d never hurt you! Never! You’re all my friends! Rainbow, I love you! Why would I-”

“I don’t think she can hear ya, sugarcube,” Applejack muttered solemnly, slowly taking her hat off her head. “The filly’s long gone…”

Rainbow spun around to face the farmer, her coat bristling. “Don’t say that! She’s just-”

A bolt of pale blue magic shot past Twilight from the door, moving faster than anypony could react. Rainbow’s words died in her throat, replaced by a harrowing scream as the bolt made contact. She was thrown against the wall, snapping the shelf leaning against it and sending books scattering to the floor.

“Rainbow Dash!” Fluttershy shrieked, quickly diving after the fallen pegasus and checking her over.

Applejack quickly put herself between them and where the spell had come from, ready to charge. “Alright, that does it!” she snapped.

Twilight backpedaled, her confusion only growing worse. What in the world was happening?! Her eyes lingered on Rainbow’s still body, and the swiftly rising panic in Fluttershy’s face. “Rainbow isn’t breathing…” she realized in growing horror.

She spun to face the attacker, only to come face to face with herself. Another Twilight stood in the door, wings wide, and her eyes glared into the room of frightened mares. But there was something else. Something wrong. This wasn’t Twilight, she soon realized. The wisps of blue magic coming from her eyes, the sharpness of her teeth… this was Midnight.

Midnight smirked at her. “Well? What are you waiting for?” she taunted.

Twilight’s pupils dilated. A swell of anger and hatred flooded her veins, causing her blood to boil. A sphere of unstable magic formed on the tip of her horn, and the image of Rainbow’s motionless body filled her mind.

“You…!” she seethed, pouring more and more power into the blast. When she was through, there would be nothing left of that parasite! That monster! That demon!

“I’LL MAKE YOU PAY!”

“Twilight, STOP!” Fluttershy’s panicked voice shrieked. Too late.

Twilight unleashed the spell. There was a flash of light and a deafening boom. Twilight blinked involuntarily. When they opened, she was suddenly standing in the doorway, and her spell was flying into the center of the library.

Right for her friends.

Twilight’s heart felt as if it stopped in her chest. Panic overrode everything else, and she desperately tried to pull the spell back into her horn before it could reach its mark, but she was too slow. The spell was already loose. It struck the horsehead sculpture in the middle of the room, and everything went white.

“GIRLS!” Twilight screamed, her throat going raw from the volume as the deafening roar of the explosion filled her ears. It was accompanied by the blood-chilling screams of her friends, the roar of fire, and the burning of an immense inferno. When at last she could see again, she realized she had been thrown onto her back from the force of the spell.

She lifted her head slowly, not wanting to see what she had done, but forcing herself to regardless. She didn’t want to know. She had to know. She didn’t want to. She had to.

The library was gone. All that remained was a hollowed husk, blackened and charred, and still burning with intensely hot flames that painted the world and the sky a sinister, sickening shade of orange.

“No… No…” Twilight whispered, barely able to think through the haze of shock and horror that had filled her mind. She stiffly rose to her hooves, her jaw agape, her eyes distant and unfocused. “I didn’t… I wouldn’t… I couldn’t have…”

“But you did.”

Twilight gasped and turned around. Midnight stood before her, her body fully corrupted. Razor-thin pupils glared back at her with a cold, sadistic glee, while dagger-like teeth glistened in the firelight. Ghostly magic seeped out of her eyes like tears, and her darkened wings spread wide in a show of dominance.

Twilight inhaled sharply. “No… no, you did this!” she retorted, channeling more magic into her horn.

Midnight’s smile widened. “...You say that as if there is a difference.”

Twilight screwed her eyes shut. “SHUT UP!” she bellowed, unleashing another beam of magic. She felt the heat against her skin and the wave of pressure rattle her bones, and her hearing cut out as the deafening blast entered her ears. She could smell the world burning, and she could taste the ashes left in her wake. She opened her eyes.

As quickly as everything had descended into madness, it had ended. Twilight gasped in shock as she realized that the fires were gone, and the entire town of Ponyville had seemingly vanished. All that remained were the stars overhead, still watching her. But somehow, she did not feel judged by them anymore. All she felt was… sympathy. It was as if they felt sorry for her.

Slowly, the stars began to grow brighter, and Twilight’s eyes widened when she saw them travel across the sky. They spiraled in the heavens, slowly weaving together into one point overhead. All the while, they grew brighter, and brighter, until they were blinding. She shielded her eyes from the light with a hoof while still trying to get a look at what was happening.

Finally, the light flared, then dimmed. Twilight lowered her hoof, her heart soaring in awe and relief when she saw the full moon staring back at her. Ponyville was gone, and indeed so was the whole world. Her hooves were now placed firmly upon an infinite ocean of perfectly still water that reflected the now-gorgeous night sky perfectly.

“It’s a dream,” Twilight breathed out in relief as her senses fully came back to her. She gave off a weak laugh, placing a hoof against her temple.

“So it is,” another, familiar voice said from behind her. Twilight turned to it. Princess Luna was there, standing a few yards away with a sympathetic smile. “And it seems I came not a moment too soon. Any longer and you might have plunged into the depths of despair.”

Twilight sighed and shook her head. “You could have come sooner…”

“Time in the dream realm is unpredictable, Twilight,” Luna said, walking slowly toward her. “Until I enter a dream, I cannot know how far it has progressed. The blink of an eye in one dream could measure a century in another. Rest assured, I came as soon as I could.”

Twilight nodded slowly, then turned to look up at the moon again. She remembered now. Rainbow had sent Luna a letter via Spike before they went to bed, just as she had said she would. Now, here Twilight was, ready to continue her own dream therapy.

“Now… let us discuss what you have just experienced,” Luna said, her horn lighting up. The still ocean around them became disturbed with gentle ripples. The waters contorted and shifted, bending and taking solid form. Grass faded into existence, and rivers in the air twisted together to become beautiful trees.

In a matter of moments, the endless ocean had been replaced with the serene grotto from their first meeting. Twilight could already feel her lingering tension fading away at the familiar locale, and the fresh air helped to soothe her thoughts. She took a long, deep breath before turning to face the princess again. “Well… where do I start?” she asked weakly, rubbing her hoof against her shoulder.

Luna gave her a reassuring smile. “You may begin by telling me of this incident that has served to frustrate you so, and of Midnight’s thoughts on it.”

Twilight nodded. That was simple enough, she knew. She turned and began to walk toward the island in the center of the pond. As she approached the water, she willed her hooves to cross the surface, and to her delight, they did just that. As she walked across the pond, she began to speak. “Well, recently, Pinkie’s big sister, Maud, came to Ponyville to check in on her and make sure she was alright before she went to get her rocktorate.”

Luna paused, raising an eyebrow. “...Forgive me, but her what?”

Twilight giggled and turned back to Luna. “Her doctorate in rockology. It’s a field of science that sprung up a few centuries ago.”

Luna blinked. “It sounds absurd.”

“It kind of is,” Twilight replied. Her hooves crossed from the water to the grass. “But that’s beside the point. Maud was worried about Pinkie because of… well… Midnight.”

Luna nodded in understanding. “I see. Word of your actions as a fallen alicorn has no doubt spread far and wide by now. ‘Tis only natural that your friend’s elder sibling would be concerned for her well-being after such a tale.”

“Right, and Pinkie wanted to show Maud, without question, that she was in good hooves with us. And to do that, she wanted us all to become friends with Maud… me, especially,” Twilight explained, finding a comfy spot under the large tree in the center and sitting down. “But it didn’t really pan out that way. My friends and I tried, we really did, but we just couldn’t connect with her. We just didn’t click.”

“An unfortunate outcome,” Luna said apologetically, taking a seat by Twilight’s side. “But not unreasonable. Ponies across Equestria are cut from a wide range of cloths, and much as your friend Rarity would insist, not all fabrics match with one another.”

“Insist is a word to use,” Twilight grumbled. She shook her head before she carried on. “After a few attempts, we decided it would be better to be honest with Pinkie about it instead of faking it. And besides, even if we didn’t tell her… Maud would. And then Pinkie would be even more upset because we lied to her. But she was upset anyway… so much that I guess she just stopped thinking.

“See, the morning after we told her that it just wasn’t going to work, Pinkie got the idea into her head to try and make this big obstacle course... thing, with all of our favorite things in it. The idea was for us all to run it at once, and it would bring us all closer together.”

Luna’s eyebrow flew up once more. “That is perhaps the most socially oblivious plan I have ever heard,” she said slowly. “And I have heard of a few… The things foals can think of…”

“Well, Pinkie can be like a foal sometimes,” Twilight noted with an exasperated roll of her eyes. “But… anyway. She went ahead and began to go through it to show us, and it just… It collapsed while she was in the tallest tower. It all happened so fast… none of us had a chance to stop it from falling apart. Pinkie was caught in the middle. She was badly hurt, and it could have been so much worse… she was incredibly lucky.

“We got her to the hospital, of course, and we learned that she’d be fine. The doctors had her well taken care of. But then…” she trailed off, her mind returning to that moment when Midnight had first started goading her into examining the wreckage.

Luna hummed. “...Midnight spoke to you, didn’t she?”

Twilight nodded. “Yeah… she did. She made me think that there was something more to the collapse than met the eye. She convinced me to go and study it, to look it over. And the more she talked, the more I felt she was right. I got scared of what I might find, and… I just…”

“You poured yourself into it,” Luna finished for her with a slow nod of understanding. “You devoted yourself to the task of ascertaining the truth of the matter, and it consumed you.”

Twilight closed her eyes, her ears lowering. “...Yes. I was so absorbed in it that I shut the rest of the world out… and then… when Rainbow, Spike, and Maud came to check on me, they… I...”

“I know,” Luna cut her off gently. “This part Rainbow explained in detail in her letter. I know. Say no more.”

Twilight nodded, her chest starting to tremble from the guilt of the whole incident. She expected Luna to chastise her for heeding Midnight’s words as she had. While she wasn’t supposed to ignore Midnight outright, she knew better than to take her advice. Midnight was a parasite. An unwanted remnant of her greatest mistake. No good could come from playing along with her, no matter what she said.

But to Twilight’s surprise, Luna merely draped a wing over her back and pulled her against the larger alicorn’s side in a soft side-hug. “Oh, Twilight Sparkle… I am so sorry you must bear this weight as you do,” she said softly.

Twilight looked up at Luna, sniffling. “What do I do?” She asked in a meek whimper. “I almost killed them, Luna. I don’t want to hurt them… What do I do?!”

Luna gave a gentle shushing noise, silencing Twilight’s rising voice. Once the calm and quiet had been restored, Luna leaned back and smiled at her. “First, you must put the ruins out of your mind. Even if Midnight was correct, and there was somepony else present who wished your friend harm, you may be sure that they have long since departed. And, knowing you, if you have yet to find any evidence, then there is none to find. To pursue this matter any further would be folly.”

Twilight opened her mouth to object, to protest, but Luna lifted a hoof, silencing her. A moment passed before Luna went on. “Lest you worry that the threat remains, however, you may take comfort in this. Rainbow Dash trusts you, and I trust my niece. Though I doubt the presence of such a villain, I shall take no chances. I will have some of my finest Lunar Guards sent to Ponyville to watch over you and your friends from the shadows the moment I awake. If there is a threat, they will never be able to get close enough to make another attempt on your or your friends' lives.”

With that promise given, a weight was lifted from Twilight’s shoulders. She breathed a long, heaving sigh of relief before leaning into Luna’s side. “Thank you… that actually makes me feel a lot better,” she said quietly.

“As I knew it would,” Luna said with a slow nod. “Midnight may be the darkest part of your thoughts given a voice of its own, but she yet speaks with your voice and your fears. If she fears there is a threat, then you fear there is a threat, however irrationally.”

Twilight nodded, but she did not offer any response. The two sat in silence for several minutes, the sound of the water gently lapping at the shore filling their ears. Twilight closed her eyes, doing her best to relax. With her anxieties so softened by Luna’s pledge of protection, she began to feel herself drifting off…

“Hold, now, Twilight Sparkle,” Luna said, nudging her with a hoof and drawing her back. “This dream is not yet ready to end. There is more I would yet say to you.”

“Then why didn’t you?”

“I was allowing you to relax,” Luna replied simply. “To find your peace.”

Twilight blinked. “Oh. Right… thanks,” she said before sitting upright and shaking herself to chase away the drowsiness.

Luna giggled under her breath in amusement before her expression became more serious. “Now, the matter of how to handle the fallout of your outburst remains… From Rainbow’s account, Maud told you in no uncertain terms to stay away from her sister. Is that not so?”

Twilight’s ears drooped, her bad mood coming back in full force. She shifted uneasily on her haunches. “...It is. I can’t blame her. I almost turned her into ashes… If she didn’t think I was dangerous to Pinkie before, she sure does now.”

“Perhaps she does,” Luna acknowledged with a slow nod of her head. “...But I would not discount Pinkie Pie’s influence over her. For just as surely as the elder sister commands and looks after the younger, so too does the younger sister restrain and redirect the elder when they become too overbearing for their own good.”

Twilight slowly smiled, looking back up at Luna. “Heh. I guess you would know, wouldn’t you?”

Luna nodded. “Indeed. When Tia and I were very little, I was scared of everything. I was small, weak, shy, and sickly. She was large, strong, passionate, and beyond protective of me. I remember, in some of our darker days, when Discord disrupted the peace of Equestria and the throne sat empty, before we found the Elements and faced him… she was almost a different pony. She became hostile towards others, protecting me to a fault. At first, I did not question her actions nor her commands, for I felt she knew better.

“But in time, I grew. I learned. And I saw that her own fearful desire to defend me was doing us both more harm than good. Her own actions in trying to keep me safe were sowing the very seeds of Discord’s namesake that had torn our land apart, to begin with. And so I challenged her behavior and her actions. And we argued. And we fought. But in time, she began to see her mistakes, and I was forced to grow out of my shell of fear to make her see.”

“I see…” Twilight whispered, her eyes wide, trying to imagine Celestia as being so overbearing. She couldn’t even begin to imagine the serene princess of the sun acting in such a manner… until she remembered how Celestia had acted when she had seen how horribly Rainbow had been brutalized by Chrysalis’ hooves.

“Pinkie Pie is your friend, and I know she holds you in high regard,” Luna said with a soft smile. “So do not discount her in making Maud recognize her own overprotectiveness. If Maud trusts her sister, as I am fortunate mine did, and if Pinkie truly sees you as her friend, she will help her see.

“But this cannot fall on her shoulders alone,” Luna went on, her smile fading. “For though your actions were aggravated by Midnight’s words and influence, the fact remains it was yet your conscious decision to heed them and fire off that blast in retaliation. You did allow your serenity to slip, and what has come now is only the natural fallout of your loss of control. While it falls to Pinkie to ease Maud’s anger, and it falls to Maud to recognize her own overreach, it likewise falls to you to prove her wrong about you.”

Twilight looked down, her ears drooping. “But… how? I almost killed her, Rainbow, and Spike. How can I prove her wrong about me when that was the note we parted on?”

A moment later, Luna’s hoof came into view from the side. Twilight’s eyes widened when she saw the cupcake Pinkie had made for her, undamaged and whole, held in the princess’s grasp. She took it in her hooves and looked up to see Luna smiling back down at her.

“...By being there for her sister when she needs you,” she said softly. “And making up for the time you missed.”

Twilight had forgotten to go to Pinkie’s get together, hadn’t she? She had been so absorbed in her investigation that it had completely slipped her mind. She turned to look up at Luna, her eyes narrowing with resolve. “How do I begin?”

“It is simple,” Luna said, leaning down to meet Twilight’s gaze. “Bring to her what she has always brought to you.”

Twilight stared at her for several long moments. An idea then slowly began to come to her, and hope lit up in her breast. She gave a sharp nod and held the cupcake closer to her chest. “I think I have an idea…”

Luna nodded and leaned back with a sage nod. “Very good. Then, if there is nothing else, I do believe it is time I left you to your slumber. The night is yet young, and there are many more dreams that yet cry for my attention. Sleep well, Twilight Sparkle. And if you have need of me again and I am not there, have your dragon reach out to me. I will answer the call.”

Twilight nodded and watched as Luna then lifted up from the ground. The moon in the sky was already glowing brighter, and the dream around her starting to dissolve. “I will, Luna. And thank you again for your help.”

Luna nodded down at her, smiling. “Of course, Twilight Sparkle. Sleep well.”

And with that, the dream ended, and Twilight fell, oblivious, into the next.

Author's Note

Fun fact: The incident with Twilight almost blowing everyone up last chapter was not actually in my outline. But I recognized there were some problems in my outline and so instead did that to help nudge things in the right direction. I think this works better. The chain of events is unchanged, but the circumstances are.

Old Mistakes

“Twilight, can you hear me?”

Twilight blinked as something shook her by the shoulder, bringing her out of her trance and allowing her eyes to drift up to meet Rarity’s. The other mare was looking down at her with concern in her eyes. She had a hoof placed on Twilight’s shoulder.

“Rarity…”

“Are you alright?” Rarity asked, glancing bitterly over her shoulder after where Moondancer had gone.

Twilight let her eyes drop again. “I… n-no. I don’t think so,” she mumbled, rubbing her shoulder absently.

Rarity gave a gentle sigh and helped Twilight back to a standing position. “Come now, darling,” she said softly. She gave Twilight a reassuring smile. “Why don’t we go back to your house, hm? Cool off a little?”

Twilight was quiet for a moment longer, her mind a swirling mess. Eventually, though, she gave a weak nod. “Sure… home sounds good,” she mumbled.

Rarity gave her a small smile. She draped a hoof over Twilight’s back and guided her away from the thoroughfare. Other ponies were still looking their way, and Twilight flinched guiltily under every look of dismay or suspicion she received. Try as she might, she could not help but wonder how many of these ponies she had hurt. Her rampage had been short-lived, maybe, but it had been swift and indiscriminate, too.

They had all been strangers, though. Moondancer had been her friend, once. How much had it hurt when it happened to her…?

“Who cares what she thinks?” Midnight spat from the depths of Twilight’s mind. She apparated next to Twilight, her eyes locked onto her in a disapproving manner. “You were only taking back what was rightfully yours. And even if we put that aside, there were many ponies you took from that night. What’s one more voice added to the chorus?”

Twilight turned to Midnight, her teeth grinding furiously behind her lips. “Don’t you dare…!”

“Don’t I dare what?” Midnight asked cheekily. “State the obvious?”

“She’s my friend, Midnight!”

Midnight laughed. A horrible, sadistic laugh that made Twilight cower back. When her doppelganger affixed her with her gaze again, her eyes were dilated with delight. “Oh? Really? Then pray tell, Element of Magic; why didn’t you tell her you were leaving for Ponyville?”

Twilight looked away, her ears drooping. “I…”

“And in all the years that followed, why did you never once write to her?” Midnight pressed on, stalking up until her side was pressed against Twilight’s. It was like a sheet of ice against her skin, and it made her shiver.

Rarity whispered something next to her, but her voice was lost in the tumult of Twilight’s thoughts.

Midnight pressed on, leaning in so close that her lips were right next to Twilight’s ear. “Why did you never stop in for a visit? Why did you never check in on her after the changeling invasion? Why didn’t you even recognize her until she looked into your eyes?”

Twilight screwed her eyes shut, her body quivering with emotion. Whether that emotion was rage at Midnight, or guilt at the fact Midnight was right, she didn’t know. “Shut up! Shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!”

“Maybe she was your friend, once,” Midnight purred, her voice like a snake slithering between the folds of her brain. “But that was long, long ago. Now she’s just another worthless bystander, shouting insults and reprimands at a pony who stands head and shoulders above her. She is nothing to you. She was never anything else.”

That was the last straw. Twilight turned to Midnight with a frustrated shout, lashing out with a hoof as if to punch her shade in the face. But the apparition parted around her hoof like mist, vanishing into the cool morning air with little more than a mocking cackle.

“Twilight!” Rarity exclaimed, placing her hooves on Twilight’s shoulders and holding her in place. “Calm down! What’s wrong?”

The concern in Rarity’s voice was what finally snapped Twilight back to reality. Looking around, she became painfully aware of the few other ponies on the street suddenly backing away. A couple that was out on a walk with their foal ushered them away protectively, casting suspicious glances in Twilight’s direction.

Her heart twisted painfully, and it was all she could do to keep from shouting at them next. She screwed her eyes shut and took several deep breaths, inwardly chastising herself for letting Midnight get under her skin like that. “Deep breaths, Twilight. In and out, in and out…” Slowly but surely, she managed to regain her composure. She turned to Rarity with an apologetic look. “I’m so sorry… it was Midnight again.”

Rarity winced, then scoffed at where Twilight had struck. “Now you listen here, Midnight,” she whispered just loud enough for Twilight to hear. “I do not know if you have noticed, but Twilight has more than enough on her plate for one morning! So do yourself a favor and shove off into whatever putrid corner you hide in, or Celestia as my witness, I will personally sit Twilight down and dress her up in the most frilly and poorly designed outfits I can find just to make you uncomfortable! Do I make myself clear, you shameless ruffian?”

“It’s adorable when the marshmallow thinks she’s threatening,” Midnight cackled in the back of Twilight’s head. “But very well. I wouldn’t want her to asphyxiate you with a long out-of-season corset, now would I?”

And with that, Midnight fell silent, withdrawing into the depths of Twilight’s psyche.

Twilight relaxed, loosing a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding. She turned back to Rarity with a weak smile. “I think you scared her off. Thank you,” she said. “But, uh… you do realize that would be a punishment on me just as much as her, right?”

Rarity chuckled weakly. “Well, perhaps, but it was all I could think of on such short notice, you understand. Now! Shall we return?” she nudged Twilight back into motion. “There are eyes on us when they should rightly be minding their own business.”

She raised her voice just a little at that last part, and the message was clear. The gawping bystanders were quick to pick up their own business and scurry along, leaving the two mares to turn and begin the return journey.

Alas, they did not make it two steps before somepony else interrupted them.

“Pardon me, you two,” a gruff stallion’s voice cut through the companionable silence. Twilight went rigid and turned to see two members of the city watch approaching at a measured pace. Both were stallions. The one who had spoken stepped closer, an older, graying stallion who clearly had a fair few years of experience under his belt. “We saw a mare shouting at you two a few moments ago, and one of you lashing out at the air.”

Rarity heaved a quiet sigh. She turned to Twilight. “Let me handle this,” she whispered before turning to the guards with a respectful smile and nod of her head. “My apologies, sirs. It’s nothing you need to worry yourselves over. Just a little misunderstanding and personal drama, I am afraid.”

The first guard quirked a brow. “Misunderstanding?”

“Yes. It’s all rather personal, however, like I said. I would rather not get into it if I don’t have to. It is not my place, and there has been enough drama for one morning as it is.”

There was a moment of silence before the first guard nodded his head. “Alright. Try to keep your personal matters off the streets from now on. You two have a good day-”

“Sir, wait,” the other guard, notably younger, suddenly interjected, his eyes narrowed suspiciously. A second passed as all eyes were on him, and Twilight realized with a lump forming in her throat that he was looking right at her. He blinked, and then his eyes widened, his posture shifting to something more defensive. “Sir, that’s Twilight Sparkle! The one who went mad!”

Twilight flinched back, her eyes darting this way and that. Her mind was still scrambled, and she didn’t have the words ready to defend herself. She swallowed heavily. “I… I…”

The older guard’s serious stance returned in a heartbeat. He turned back to the two mares, now focused on Twilight. “I thought you looked familiar…” he said slowly.

Twilight didn’t bother to question how this guard had failed to notice her status as an alicorn until now. She simply shook her head. “I’m just… I’m just trying to spend some time with my friend. I don’t want any trouble, honest!”

The older guard stared her down for what felt like forever, sizing her up. Twilight shrank down under his glare, fidgeting awkwardly on her hooves. She only just noticed Rarity shifting to place herself protectively between them. After a moment, however, the stallion slowly nodded, seemingly placated.

The younger one, however, was not.

He narrowed his eyes again. “Then what was all of the shouting about?” he demanded. “Ponies don’t tend to start hollering like that unless there’s a problem!”

The elder guard turned back to his subordinate with a scowl. “That’s enough, private. No matter what their past record is, a shouting match that already ended is not grounds to harass a citizen.”

“With respect, sir, you weren’t there when she started snatching memories! I was!” the younger shot back with a stomp of his hoof. “I saw what she did first hoof! Hay, she almost got me, too!”

Twilight gave off a weak whimper, flinching as if she had been struck. The reminders of her misdeeds just kept coming…

“I’m sorry,” she choked out.

The young guard glared at her. “Sorry? Do you really think an apology makes up for anything?!” he demanded.

“PRIVATE!” the elder finally snapped, shoving his underling back. “That is ENOUGH!”

“Yeah, it is,” a new, distinctly unexpected voice suddenly chimed in. Twilight blinked, looking back the way she and Rarity had just come from to see Rainbow Dash marching toward them with a furious scowl on her face.

She blinked. “What is Rainbow doing here? I thought she was asleep.”

The two guards immediately snapped to attention and bowed their heads low in the presence of their princess. The elder spoke up immediately. “Your Highness! A thousand pardons for my subordinate! Rest assured, he will be properly disciplined for his misconduct!”

Rainbow snorted, coming up to Twilight and Rarity’s side. “I should hope so! I don’t know if you gentlecolts were aware of this, but Twilight Sparkle is here under my authority, my supervision, and is my responsibility. Not yours. So don’t let me catch any of you getting on her case again. Do I make myself clear?!”

Twilight blinked again. Since when did Rainbow talk in such a formal fashion, even when exercising her authority like this? And more than that, why was her mane undone? She never went out in public without doing up her ponytail these days…

The odd discrepancy didn’t seem to register with the guards, who both bowed low. “Of course,” the elder said before grabbing onto the younger’s shoulder and starting to drag him off. “Again, a thousand pardons, Your Highness. It will not happen again!”

“Good!” Rainbow called after them, keeping her eyes fixed on them.

Twilight and Rarity watched, confused until the guards faded from view around a nearby corner. Rarity turned to Rainbow with a relieved sigh. “Oh, thank you, Rainbow. But, uh, what are you doing out here-”

“Shh!” Rainbow suddenly silenced her by holding up a hoof. Her eyes darted left and right for a moment, almost as if she were checking to see if they were being watched. Then, without a word, she beckoned for them to follow and slipped into a nearby alleyway.

Twilight looked to Rarity, now more confused than ever. “...What was that all about?” she asked quizzically.

Rarity shrugged. “I haven’t the faintest. But, I suppose there is only one way to find out,” she said before starting after Rainbow at a brisk canter. “Rainbow, dear, slow down!”

Twilight went to follow Rarity but halted momentarily by the alley entrance. It was a narrow space, wide enough for two ponies to walk side by side, three if they didn’t care for personal space. Dumpsters and large recycle bins were scattered haphazardly around the space, along with old discarded cardboard boxes and bits of trash that would likely be gone by the end of the hour. It was dimly lit in the early morning hours, sending a chill of foreboding down Twilight’s spine.

Something wasn’t right, here. But Rarity and Rainbow were already heading deeper in. Not wanting - and not able - to be alone, Twilight cautiously slipped into the alley after them.

She didn’t have to follow them long before Rainbow stopped at a T-section. She looked this way and that, her eyes still narrowed.

“Rainbow, what is going on?” Twilight asked nervously as she came up to Rarity’s side. “What are we doing here? For that matter, why are you up so early? And where’s your hairband?”

Rainbow blinked, then glanced down at her mane. A moment passed before she gave off a weak chuckle, her posture relaxing. “Oh. I forgot she had that. One sec.”

Twilight yelped as Rainbow Dash was suddenly enveloped in a swirl of green flames. When they parted, there was no cyan pegasus, but a certain changeling drone grinning back at them.

“Hiya!” Thorax said, his wings buzzing on his back.

Rarity was the first to speak. “THORAX?” she asked in a practical shriek, her hoof flying up to her chest. “Good heavens, what are you doing here?!”

Thorax chuckled. “Getting those guards off your back, obviously,” he said with a good-natured smile. “You alright? That little guy was grilling your hide pretty hard there, Twilight.”

Twilight blinked, her brain going into overdrive as the last few minutes suddenly made perfect sense. She shook herself a moment later and put on a small smile. “I uh… I’m alright. Thanks, Thorax. I owe you.”

Rarity nodded. “Indeed. Your intervention is most welcome. But - and I do not mean to sound ungrateful when I say this - I am not certain it is entirely legal to pose as a member of the royal family in such a manner...”

Twilight shrugged. “To be fair, Rarity, he’s done it before.”

“I was under orders to do it the first time,” Thorax confirmed with a nod. “And I just thought it wouldn’t hurt here. I mean, everything I said was the truth. You’re here under Rainbow’s authority, right?”

Twilight nodded. “Yeah, I am… But I wouldn’t go doing that again unless you absolutely have to. I don’t like the idea of you ending up behind bars for my sake.”

Thorax was quiet for a moment, then nodded. “Alright. Fair.”

“I’m guessing Fluttershy told you we were coming?”

At that, Thorax’s face was split by a massive, infatuated grin. “Er, yeah. In one of her letters,” he confirmed, scuffing a hoof along the ground.

Rarity cooed. “Aw. So adorable...”

Thorax’s cheeks immediately turned several shades brighter, an impressive feat considering his chitinous body. Seeking a distraction, he shook his head and turned to Twilight. “A-anyway! It’s been a while, huh? How are you doing, Twilight?”

Twilight’s amused mood soured at the question. She glanced back over her shoulder. Moondancer’s voice echoed faintly in her ears. “...Better than I was a minute ago,” she admitted with a shake of her head.

“The poor dear was shouted at in the middle of the street,” Rarity explained, her brow furrowing in dismay. “By the very pony Twilight had just helped, no less. Such a lack of tact! Hmph!”

Thorax’s smile faded away. “Yeah… we saw all of that. We wanted to come and say hi sooner, but the guards showed up first. Then we saw it wasn’t going well and we figured we ought to help you.”

Twilight frowned, turning back to Thorax. “Wait. ‘We’?”

Somepony cleared their throat off to one side. Twilight looked and all but jumped out of her skin when she saw that they had been joined by a new mare. She walked to stand by Thorax’s side. Twilight’s eyes widened. She recognized that mare. It was one of the ponies that had been watching as Moondancer yelled at her. Where had she come from? Twilight hadn’t even heard her move.

Another snap and swirl of green fire later, and another changeling revealed herself. Spiracle offered her a tentative smile. “Hello, Twilight. It’s, uh… It’s good to see you again.”

Twilight’s eyes widened at the sight of the changeling mare, and her troubles with Moondancer were momentarily forgotten. A large smile appeared on her face, and she stepped forward. “Spiracle! You’re here, too?”

“Of course,” Spiracle said with a bow of her head. “Thanks to you.”

“Spiracle’s request for asylum was granted pretty much as soon as I vouched for her,” Thorax explained with a happy smile. “She’s been staying with me in Squall’s place while she gets caught up on Equestrian culture. We were out looking for places that are hiring when we saw you two helping that mare, and we were gonna say hi.”

Spiracle’s smile faded. “...And then, well… you know what happened next.”

Twilight’s face fell. “Yeah…”

A moment passed in silence. Thorax stepped forward. “I know it probably isn’t our business, but… who was she?” he asked quietly. “And is there anything we can do to help?”

Twilight didn’t answer right away. She wasn’t sure if there was any way to set this situation right. She wasn’t even sure if she should try.

Rarity spoke up a moment later. “I feel like this is not a discussion to be had in a dank—and frankly, creepy—alleyway. We were just heading back to Twilight’s family’s home in the city. If you’d like, you can come with us. I’m sure they would be happy to let you visit with us for a time, being the friends you are.”

Thorax glanced at Spiracle with a nod. “You alright with that plan?”

“Uh, I think so, yeah,” she said, a small hint of anxiety in her voice. “Are they nice?”

Rarity gave a small, happy nod. “A touch eccentric at times, but they are very nice ponies, yes. Come along, dears! We have a little ways to go before we arrive!” she said before once more draping a hoof over Twilight’s shoulders and starting back the way they had come, the two changelings falling into step behind them.

The journey back to Twilight’s home was made in relative silence. As they walked, Twilight occasionally looked toward Spiracle, trying to see how the mare was doing. Her posture reminded her of Fluttershy in a lot of ways. She carried herself lower than Thorax did, and she seemed to be easily startled. Not surprising, given how far from home she was.

Spiracle noticed her staring, and a moment later offered up a small smile. Twilight returned it, feeling some of her earlier guilt vanish. If nothing else, there was somepony in this city that she had helped…

It was getting late in the morning when, finally, Twilight’s family home came into view. She felt a surge of relief, subconsciously picking up the pace to close the remaining distance and get back inside.

The warm scent of freshly-cooked pancakes greeted the group the moment they were through the door. Twilight’s mouth watered, and she felt a tug toward the kitchen. She could hear Rainbow and Spike chatting with each other in low, casual tones. Following her nose, Twilight stepped into the kitchen.

Sure enough, Rainbow and Spike were at the table and having a breakfast of pancakes, though there wasn’t any sign of Velvet or Night Light. Rainbow looked to have only just awoken. There were still bags under her eyes, and her expression was the spitting image of early-morning grumpiness. She barely even seemed to register the fact that Twilight and Rarity had returned, merely continuing to nurse the cup of steaming coffee held in her hooves.

Spike, on the other hoof, noticed their arrival almost instantly. He shot up from his spot next to Rainbow with his eyes flying wide. “Woah! Twi, are you okay?” he asked in concern. “You look terrible!”

That drew Rainbow’s attention to the new arrivals. Her bleary-eyed expression was swiftly replaced with one of concern. She rose to her hooves, her coffee altogether forgotten. “Twilight? What happened?”

The swiftness with which Rainbow became attentive stirred a brief feeling of warmth in Twilight’s breast, but it didn’t last long. She sighed and looked down. “There was… an incident.”

“To put it mildly,” Rarity agreed, glancing around for Night Light and Velvet. “Where are the parents? I was hoping to ask their permission for these friends of ours to join us…”

“They went for a walk. Velvet’s idea. I think she’s trying to get him back into shape,” Spike said, glancing past Rarity at the two changelings. His face lit up. “Thorax! Hey, man! And, uh… Spiracle, was it?”

Thorax gave a flutter of his wings and a friendly grin. “Hey, Spike.”

Spiracle shrank back slightly. “Y-yeah, that’s my name.”

Spike’s grin grew. “Thought so. Any friend of Twi’s is a friend of mine. Same with the parents. You wanna sit down? I have a few spare pancakes, I’m sure I can whip something up for ya.”

Thorax shook his head. “Thanks, Spike, but you know your food doesn’t really do anything for us. Besides, we already ate.”

Spike shrugged as the arrivals sat and made themselves comfortable. “Suit yourself.”

Twilight was only half-listening to the discussion. She slumped into her seat, then pitched forward to bury her face in her hooves. She took several deep breaths, trying to put her mind back into some semblance of order. She felt a hoof on her back and looked to see Rainbow looking at her.

“What. Happened?” The pegasus pressed.

Twilight was quiet for several moments. She looked down at the table, tracing the grain of the wood with her eyes. “...Where to start?” She asked a moment later.

“How about with whatever made you look so upset?” Rainbow suggested, her voice firm and direct. Twilight glanced at her again, seeing a certain fire burning in her eyes. It was the same look she got whenever she was being just a little overprotective.

An endearing quality of hers… if, at times, a bit bothersome.

Nonetheless, Twilight took a deep breath before launching into a recounting of the events of the morning. From her and Rarity’s early departure to their run-in with Moondancer, and Thorax’s subsequent act of espionage. As she spoke, a grim, solemn atmosphere settled over the room, reflected in the sullen frowns of everypony else.

When she was done telling the tale, Twilight could only shake her head and set it down on the table. “...She has every right to be angry with me,” She concluded.

“Maybe she does,” Rarity gently conceded, picking her words with care. “But that is no excuse for her to treat you in such a manner! You’ve already been—er… admonished, for what happened. Her shouting and accusations will do nothing to make things any better.”

“But she’s still right,” Twilight pressed, her face resting against the table while her hooves raked through her mane. “I stole her memories, Rarity. And it hurt to do it…”

“That’s enough,” Rainbow cut in, giving Twilight a squeeze. “Beating yourself up over it isn’t gonna make things any better either. Besides, moping’s my job.”

The lighter tone of that last remark was enough to make Twilight smile, if only for a moment. There was a quiet pause, and Twilight took the chance to calm herself down. Rainbow was right. But knowing that academically did precious little to make her feel better.

Eventually, the silence was broken when Spiracle gingerly cleared her throat, drawing all eyes to her. “I’m sorry, but I’m a little out of the loop here. Would somepony mind filling me in? How do you know this pony, Twilight?”

Twilight sighed, sitting upright. It all seemed so long ago, now, it was almost hard to pick out the details. “...Moondancer and I went to Celestia’s School together when we were fillies. We had a few other friends we hung out with, too, but Moondancer was the one I spent the most time with. We were always butting heads in this sort of competitive, scholarly way. Or, well,” she chuckled gently and shook her head. “As scholarly as foals can be.”

Twilight’s ears drooped as she thought back on her old friend. “She was a genius. She was so much smarter than everypony expected her to be. But she was shy, too. Quiet. She had a hard time talking to ponies besides her small circle of friends. And, looking back… I never really paid her any attention back then. Not the way a true friend should, at any rate.

“And then, Rainbow and I moved to Ponyville… I understood friendship so badly at the time, and I was so enamored with the new friends I had made fighting against Nightmare Moon, that I just… I… forgot the friends I already had. And, the next time I saw her…”

“Was when she was unlucky enough to be in your way when you became Midnight,” Spiracle concluded with a solemn frown. “I see…”

There was a long moment of silence. It was eventually broken by Rarity carefully clearing her throat. “So… what do we do, then?” she asked.

Twilight shook her head. “I don’t think there’s anything for us to do, Rarity,” she lamented. She rested her face on the table in defeat. “Moondancer made it pretty clear she wants nothing to do with me… And I was doing a perfectly good job of not being in her life before. So just… back to business as usual, I guess.”

“Are you sure, dear?” Rarity pressed carefully. “If she was your friend before…”

“Before, Rarity,” Twilight emphasized. “She was my friend before. But not anymore. I ruined any chance of getting that back when I let Midnight take over. I don’t want to hurt her anymore, so… I should just leave her alone, right? Just back off and leave her be so I don’t cause any more damage.”

To Twilight’s surprise, Spiracle spoke up almost immediately. “Are you sure that’s the right thing to do?”

Twilight turned to the drone in confusion. “Huh?”

Spiracle shifted in her seat, not quite able to meet Twilight’s gaze. “Look… I’m not going to pretend that I really understand the gravity of everything that’s going on here. I get that you hurt Moondancer, and in ways I doubt I could ever understand. There’s no taking that back, but… isn’t the right thing to do to reach out and make amends for what you did wrong?”

Twilight’s eyes widened. “Spiracle…”

Spiracle finally met Twilight’s gaze. “I would never presume to tell you what to do, Twilight. I don’t have the right. Not after all of the horrible things I did serving Queen Chrysalis…” she paused, her expression slowly lighting up. “But even after everything I did—spying on Canterlot and opening the way for the invasion—you encouraged me to come here and make amends. You gave me the chance to make things right for everything I did, and I was your enemy at the time.”

There was a brief pause. Spiracle suddenly seemed to realize the eyes that were on her and looked away sheepishly. “I-I mean… I guess I just want to understand… what is the difference between you and me? Why am I deserving of a chance to make things right, but not you?”

Twilight went quiet for several seconds. She looked down, her mind racing. She recalled vividly the day she had met Spiracle, with equal parts shame for her initial conduct and relief for their eventual reconciliation. She had hurt Spiracle by turning her away and threatening her, albeit under the influence of Midnight’s biting commentary.

The guilt that had followed her had been soul-crushing… Just like right now. It had spurred her on to go behind her friends' backs just to try and make up for her mistake, to show some kindness to a lost, lonely changeling. Because someone had to.

It had been longer, but on a fundamental level, what was different between what she had done to Spiracle and Moondancer?

And so, Twilight couldn’t help but smile slightly. Maybe this was part of what the Tree of Harmony wanted? It wanted her to prove herself worthy of regaining the power of her Element of Harmony; to prove she still knew what friendship was all about, right? At least, that’s what it seemed to want. And how could she ever claim she was worthy if she didn’t at least try to put right what she had done wrong?

“Alright,” she finally said, sitting upright and nodding her head. “I can offer her an olive branch, at least. I owe Moondancer the effort, at least.”

Spiracle’s wings twitched on her back while her lips pulled up into a small smile.

A brief silence followed. Suddenly, Rainbow piped up. “So… how do we do that, then?”

Twilight frowned. “I… have no idea. I don’t know where she lives.”

Spike groaned, facepalming. “Ugh.”

Several seconds passed as everypony present thought things over. Twilight thought back on what she knew of Moondancer, hoping for some inspiration. She knew Moondancer had been just as bookish as her, if not more so. She remembered that Moondancer often shied away from their other friends’ boisterous antics…

Wait.

Twilight’s eyes widened as the inspiration she sought came to her with all the subtlety of a sonic rainboom. “I got it!”

All eyes were on her for a moment. She didn’t even register and pressed on. “Our other friends! Minuette, Twinkle Shine, Lemon Hearts! They still lived in Canterlot when we moved to Ponyville, I think! Maybe they can help us!”

Rainbow’s eyes lit up, and she shot up in her seat. “Aw, yeah! I remember Minuette! I spent some time at her house a ways back, so I know where she lives! I can take us right to her!”

Twilight turned to Rainbow, her grin growing wider. “Rainbow, I could kiss you!”

“Please do, but later.”

Spike gave a small snort of laughter. “Ha! Love birds…” his grin became more genuine. “But hey, mind if I come along, too? It’d be an excuse to see Minuette again. And get belly rubs. Minuette always gave the best belly rubs.”

“When you were a hatchling, maybe,” Rainbow commented.

“Still a baby dragon,” Spike rebuked with a wry smirk.

“You’re in your teens.”

“I’m waiting for your point.”

Spiracle frowned. “Is… Are belly rubs important to this?” she asked, bewildered.

“Yes!” Spike answered instantly.

Thorax just chuckled, shaking his head and nudging Spiracle in the ribs. “Just roll with it.”

Twilight listened to this exchange, and at that final remark, she was unable to keep herself from laughing. After the stress of the day, it was a welcome relief. She turned back to Rainbow, and in spite of her earlier prompt, leaned over to give Rainbow a quick, sneaky kiss on the cheek.

She giggled as Rainbow began blushing before lowering her voice. “Thank you, Rainbow. I mean it.”

Rainbow blubbered uselessly for a moment, before turning back to. Her blush diminished, and a more determined frown spread on her face. “Always. I never leave my friends hanging. And Moondancer was my friend, once, too. If I can help patch things up with you - even just burying the hatchet - I will.”

“What about us?” Thorax piped up after a moment. “Do you want us to help at all?”

Twilight turned back to them, thinking. In the end, she shook her head. “I think it’d be for the best if you two stay out of this; at least for now. This is a personal matter, and if anything goes wrong, I’d rather you two be out of the crossfire. You have enough to worry about already.”

Thorax looked disappointed by her answer but nodded in understanding. “Alright. But if you need us for anything, you come and get us, alright?”

“Don’t worry. I will,” Twilight answered.

Rarity suddenly shot up to her hooves, slapping a hoof against the table for dramatic emphasis. “Well, I for one, am coming along, regardless of what you have to say on the matter!”

Rainbow quirked a brow. “Er, you sure? You seemed about ready to rip Moondancer a new one a minute ago.”

Rarity hesitated, her determined expression melting into something more thoughtful. “Well… yes, but… I was there when she shouted at Twilight. And, I confess, my own response to her outburst did not help matters in the slightest. I’m invested now,” she said, though it sounded as if she was grasping at straws. A moment passed, and Twilight leaned in slightly, curious. After another second, Rarity sighed and shrugged. “But, more than that… I don’t know. I just feel like I have to be there for this. Call it intuition.”

Twilight studied Rarity. There was a strange blend of raw determination and strained hesitation in her eyes. It was not an expression she often saw on the other mare. Twilight eyed her for a few moments before nodding her head. “Well, I won’t say no. You’ve always had a good eye for social matters.”

Rarity nodded, relieved. “Thank you, dear. Now, when shall we depart?”

Twilight rose from her seat, wanting to get underway before she had a chance to lose her nerve. “Right now.”

A pitiful whine came from next to her. She turned to Rainbow to see the pegasus staring longingly at her plate of pancakes and her unfinished coffee mug. She then turned those bright, big, beautiful cerise eyes to look into Twilight’s, pleading, and Twilight found that there was no force of will she could ever muster that could let her say ‘no’ to that look.

“Pathetic,” Midnight gagged.

“Shut up.”

Twilight rolled her eyes. “Okay, never mind. We go just as soon as Rainbow finishes her breakfast.”

Thankfully, Rainbow was a fast eater.

Author's Note

Sorry that this chapter is a day late. I totally forgot about it yesterday. Had a lot going on. ^^;

Anyway, I spent a solid few hours performing tweaks on this one before I was satisfied enough to put it up. Once again, though, I am self-editing, so if y'all spot any typos or weird problems, please let me know and I'll go in and tidy things up.