The Prince Of Stars

by Judaskiss

Rating: teen
Tags: Princess Celestia, Human, Main 6, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Other, Princess Luna, Original Character, Tragedy, Adventure
Length: 6078

A story about the rise and fall of my interpretation of a third royal pony, Prince Accretion.

Over a thousand years ago Princess Celestia banished her sister Princess Luna to the moon. What most pony's don't know is that Celestia also had a twin brother Prince Accretion, the Prince of Stars. Jealous of the fact that his twin sister could control the sun, the one star he could not control, he manipulated Luna into becoming Nightmare Moon and together tried to destroy Princess Celestia. After failing to beat her because of the Elements of Harmony they were both banished from the kingdom. Luna to the moon and Accretion to the Frozen Nurth. Accretion meets a human man and together they travel to Canterlot to wreak havoc on Princess Celestia and all of Equestria.

Published 2012-08-25 18:34:02 UTC
Last updated 2012-09-26 10:00:35 UTC

Ch.1 Killer of Light

Chapter 1:
Killer of Light

We all have heard the story of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. The rules of day and night. One raises the sun in the morning and puts it away at night telling the ponies of Equestria to wake up and start their day of work and play. The other brings out the moon in the evening when the ponies are tired of the light and want to go to sleep for the next day. But next to that moon are an incalculable number of bright lights. Many ponies have looked at them and quickly forgotten about them, others say they are the work of Princess Luna as a gift to them and yet others still question the meaning of them. ''Did Luna actually put them there?'', ''How many of them are there?'', ''How do they hold such a perfect pattern?'' It was to easy to call it coincidence or some other ponies work. But no pony ever questioned the existence of a third royal pony. A great and powerful pony to control the stars of the sky.

Far beyond the city of Canterlot, in the frozen wastelands of the Frozen Nurth lived an alicorn with just such powers. He lived in a tiny shack that did not do justice to his greatness. He lived there all alone forever spiting his sister Celestia for casting him out into this...this Hell. He never deserved this! NEVER! His mind now twisted from the cold and the pain can only focus on the revenge and destruction of that one pony.

But the stars! Oh, how could he forget the stars! His beautiful children. They would never betray him. Every night they smile down on him from high above believing that soon they will be reunited with their father, but...but he can never see them again. Not while Celestia has her hold on him. That spiteful bitch. She would never understand him. Still in his home...if you could call this pathetic excuse for a building a home... he builds his children. Putting together all the elements needed to create a star. He can extract hydrogen from the water in the ice around him and his magic can fuse hydrogen into helium. By condensing these elements so tightly eventually they ignite and another beautiful star is born from him. He needn't travel far to make one.

But no matter how many stars he creates Celestia never leaves his mind.

''Celestia, my sister, I will have my revenge, I will not rest until you know the pain you put me through, I WILL have my revenge!''

Every night the air around him is a chorus of his pain. Screaming these words as though they will be carried straight to her ears in Canterlot. Eventually when the alicorn's throat was sore, or his eyes were heavy he would retreat to his fire to warm his numb body. But his heart would remain as cold as the ice outside. In the light his emerald mane and tail shone brightly and his dark gray coat seamed to draw the light away from the room into himself. His cutie mark was white in the shape of a four pointed star, one for each point on the compass. Never forgetting about Celestia. He could feel his mind breaking. He was called Prince Accretion when he lived in Canterlot. The creator of stars and planets. He liked that. It meant power. It meant respect. But all that is gone now. No power, no respect. Nothing. He could no longer do that name justice. He did not deserve a name that meant everything when he had nothing, he only deserved nothing. No name. That is all he has now.

Some thousand years or so have passed since his banishment. Maybe more. Years mean little when there are so many to count. During one seemingly normal day the alicorn formally know as Prince Accretion was collecting materials for a star when he noticed something...different. The air was slightly warmer than usual. Ignoring it he pressed on collecting ice. But he could not shake this feeling. Something was watching him, he said 'something' because it didn't feel equine, but it felt...wrong.

As he returned to the shack he saw something outside, as he got closer he noticed it was a creature of some sort. This creature was large but it stood on two legs unlike anything the pony had ever seen, even in Canterlot. He felt no fear however as being a Prince it is extremely bad manners and even worse strategy to show fear to a potential adversary. He cantered straight up to the creature and put his carry baskets to one side. The creature did not move. The Prince decided to speak first.

''Excuse me, are you a creature of this land?'' he asked as nobly as possible.

The creature stood up slowly, on its hind legs of all things, still looking straight ahead. The creature was about as tall on two legs as the pony was on four. It had no hair on its body except on its head and under it's armpits. It wore some coverings on its legs. The pony would have been amused by his appearance if he wasn't shocked and furious at its presence at his home. The Prince was about to ask the creature to kindly leave the premises but looking at the shack reminded him that he was not a prince and was about to say something much ruder when the creature spoke.

''In that direction, there is life there, correct?'' The pony gaped at the creature.

''Y-you can talk?''

''Of course I can talk. Now in that direction, is there life?'' it asked again.

''Yes'' said the pony bluntly.

''And why are you here and not there?'' it asked.

''You ask a lot of questions for such a strange creature. Please leave me alone.'' he picked up his baskets, placed them on his back and began to walk away. The creature followed. The pony was quickly becoming annoyed with the creature.

''You would leave a civilization behind you, millions of creatures like you, just because one of them told you to. Hmm, I'm not far off am I?'' The pony spun around and looked the creature dead in the eye.

''Look I never asked you too come here and interrogate me. What in Equestria are you doing here in the middle of the Nurth, huh?'' the pony retaliated. His wings were flared upwards ready to go at a moments notice, his horn was lowered threateningly pointing at an upward angle, enough to show that he meant business, but still keeping the creature in view.

''If you want to go to the other pony's so bad then go on.'' The creature ignored the question.

''Do you have a name?''it asked. The arrogance! In Canterlot no pony would ever ignore a question asked by a royal pony!

The alicorn snorted. ''I gave up my name a long time ago. I was a prince but a prince without subjects has no place in royalty.'' The creature considered this a moment.

''Why don't you go back to your subjects? Surely they need you.''

The pony found this strange, not because of what he asked, but the way he asked it. He seemed to say it to himself rather than to the pony. He answered anyway.

''Of course they need me, but they don't want me. They have a ruler anyway... Enough of your questions, you showed up without warning and expect me to answer all these questions. Who do you think you are?'' the pony asked rhetorically.

''Fair enough. What do you want to ask?'' it said. The pony was slightly surprised it didn't put up a fight or change the subject.

''We...well what are you, first of all? Where did you come from?'' he asked.

''I believe I am a human. That word sounds familiar to me. I do not know where I come from. My only memories are of this wasteland.'' it replied very 'matter of fact'-ly. The pony considered the word human.

''Uman? I have never met a creature called that before. I'll call you Uman for lack of a better name.''

The creature laughed. ''Ha ha ha ha. Well then it is only fair that I get to name you as well. Not after your species though. I'm much more creative.'' The pony snorted. Was that an insult?

''What are your goals in life?'' Uman asked. The pony thought, he shouldn't really tell Uman anything. After all he's a strange creature and they just met. On the other hand if Uman was meant to harm him he would have done so already. Celestia already knew about what he wanted, she would have nothing to gain by sending a spy.

''Very well, I'll tell you.'' The pony sighed. ''Ever since I was banished here the sun has been mocking me, toying with me. It is the one star that would not bend to my will. Every single star in the sky belongs to me, but this one, heh, this one LAUGHS at me. The insolence!'' The pony was getting really angry now.
''But my sister could control it. Oh the great Celestia master of the sun! She was worshiped, but our little sister and I received nothing. I've tried to make a sun myself but nothing I make comes close to that.'' He pointed a hoof to the sun.
''If that star won't obey me then I want to block it out. Get rid of it altogether to stop it from forever laughing at me.'' The pony was furious by this stage. He wasn't even really talking to Uman anymore so when he spoke the pony started.

''There is a word I heard before long ago, it means the cutter off of light, a killing planet. The word is abscissor. That is you. You are Abscissor!''

The pony thought about the name he was given. He could not be called Accretion any more. Royalty comes with that name and he was not royalty. But Abscissor, that was different. That to had power. A power earned not inherited. But also dark and threatening. He liked that. It was a name that sounded like it would whispered in fear not spoken with confidence.

''Abscissor. That's got a ring to it. I like it.'' the alicorn said.

At that moment a historical change occurred in the pony, now called Abscissor, a change that would affect the future of Equestria. His cutie mark changed from pure white to the darkest of black. Of course neither Uman nor Abscissor noticed this physical change, Abscissor long since forgotten the mark was even there, but Abscissor knew deep down that Uman would become a great ally to him. He knew that he would finally get his revenge on Celestia and the sun for there disrespect and arrogance towards him. It would be good and Uman would help him. Abscissor will destroy the sun and become the ruler Equestria forever! That would be his rightful place. Beside Luna his beloved little sister.

The pony looked at Uman. ''It is quite cold out here. Will you join me inside my home for lunch. We have much to discuss.''

''Very well, I am very hungry.''

And so a friendship was born. A friendship that could potentially destroy the sun and Equestria. But don't blame Abscissor. He is simply a broken pony and this is just the beginning of the story. There is much more to tell about the Prince of Stars.

Ch.2 Sister Dreams

Chapter 2:
Sister Dreams

Abscissor and Uman prepared overnight for the trip to Canterlot. They packed food into large pouches that could be slung over their backs. They decided that they would walk the whole way, for Abscissor would never let somepony climb on to his back. He was annoyed that he could not fly with Uman, but he did not want to leave him behind. He had a feeling he would need him again.

They discussed much the night before they left: where exactly they were going, how long it would take, and which path was best. However, they did not talk about what they would do when they got there. They both assumed that confronting Celestia was their main goal.

''I have never gone past these mountains, so I have no idea where we're going. I am relying on you to guide me.'' Uman stated.

''It has been about a thousand years since I went south of those mountains, so I wouldn't be surprised if a lot has changed. I'm hoping Canterlot will be in the same place it has always been, which is…” He consulted a roughly drawn map. “…almost directly south from here. It should take between five and seven days to get there,'' replied Abscissor.

''So we just head straight south?'' Uman questioned.

''No. It's much too easy to get lost. We can't see Canterlot from here because the Crystal Mountains are blocking the way. Cloudsdale is easier to see from here because of its height. If we head towards Cloudsdale while bearing east, Canterlot will come into view eventually. Luckily, it's mostly green plain between here and Canterlot, so hopefully we won't be confronted on the way.''

''And if we are confronted?''

''We kill the ones doing the confronting. Simple as that.'' Abscissor slipped the map and a compass in his bag with an air of finality.

*

Before the two partners in revenge left, Abscissor took a bath and brushed his emerald mane and tail one hundred times each, for the least one can do when exacting revenge is look good. Once he had sprinkled some stardust in his mane and tail, the human and the alicorn embarked on the most life changing journey both of them would take.

Once they exited the shack, they turned around and took one last look at it. Abscissor pointed his horn at the shack. The horn glowed momentarily, and the shack burst into flames. The windows shattered and were fired out from the house in an explosion of glass. The front door was ripped off its hinges. Immediately afterwards, the roof collapsed into the house. The snow around the house melted in the unbearable heat. The two friends watched this happen, and then turned around, never to return.

*

From where Abscissor was standing, the Crystal Mountains were just about in view through the foggy air. Those mountains were their first goal. There was a slightly smaller hill in the mountain range which they could climb easily, after which Cloudsdale will be right in front of them—according to the map. It would take a day to get to the mountains, and then another day to pass through the narrow gap, after which they would truly be in Equestria.

''Abscissor, I have a question. Why did you never try this before? Why are you going to get revenge now, when you could have gotten it hundreds of years ago?'' Uman asked.

Abscissor thought about this for a moment and then smiled at Uman.

''Because waiting a thousand years is poetic, don't you think?'' he answered.

Uman, satisfied with that answer, nodded. The truth was that the alicorn was frightened. Celestia had beaten him once before, but she had had the Elements of Harmony then. He was still frightened even now, but there was something different in him. There was a new power that excited him and gave him motivation. Having Uman by his side gave him the courage to go the whole way. He had a power that he knew, deep down, was at least as powerful as the Elements, if not greater. This power was inside him, not given to him by some external objects.

If he could find a way to separate the Elements from Celestia, he would have a tactical advantage. Celestia wouldn't stand a chance. He could almost see it now…

His sister would beg him for forgiveness. She would give him the sun, and he would be the prince, no, the king of Equestria. His sister Luna, now Nightmare Moon, would rule by his side. Uman would be given a prize: his heart’s desire. Yes, that was a classic gift from a mighty king.

As night began to fall, they approached the foot of the smallest mountain of the Crystal Mountains. They would need to climb the mountains during the daylight.

''We may as well sleep here tonight and climb the mountain in the morning,” Uman proposed. “It's getting a bit dark.''

''I agree,'' replied Abscissor.

They had no sleeping bags to give them comfort, but Abscissor would be able to keep them both warm. He gathered some snow from the area and began to create a small star. Once he had gathered enough materials and the star was about the size of a football, Abscissor used his magic to keep it afloat about three feet off of the ground. Such a roughly made and small star would only last a few hours, but it was enough to keep them warm for the night. The snow on the ground around Uman and Abscissor quickly began to melt, and soon they were able to sleep on warm ground.

Uman was surprised by what he saw. This was the first time he got to see Abscissor's magic firsthand. He thanked him for what he did and quickly went to sleep. Abscissor fell asleep soon after.

*

In the morning, when Abscissor had destroyed his home, the sound may as well have carried all the way to Canterlot. For, at that moment, the revered Princess Celestia awoke with a start. That night, her mind had been flooded with images of her twin brother. She had been very disturbed with her dream, for it had been as vivid as reality.

Celestia was standing in a white room. Her brother, the Prince of Stars, was in this room with her. She was looking at Accretion. Behind him was a black abyss. He was speaking, but Celestia could hear no words.

''I apologize, brother, for I cannot hear you,'' she said to him. He did not acknowledge her words, but his mouth kept opening and closing. He stopped after he mouthed 'goodbye', then he bowed his head and began to drift into the abyss.

''Wait stop, I need to talk to you!'' Celestia shouted. She galloped after him, but every step she took seemed to make him fall farther and farther away. Soon, he was nothing but a white speck, and then he was nothing.

She slowed to a trot, but kept going in the direction in which she had seen him disappear. She realized she was surrounded by darkness on almost all sides, but when she looked behind her, she saw that the white room was little more than a glowing dot in the darkness.

The very last part of her dream was what had scared her most of all. After walking for what seemed like forever, she saw a star. But this was no ordinary star. It had four points and was pitch black. It seemed to absorb the darkness and made the area look gray around it.

The princess’ fear was increased when the star spoke to her. It spoke eight words.

''Your brother is dead, he cannot come back.''

At that point she woke up.

Celestia got up and combed her hair. She couldn't understand why she was thinking about him so much now. He had always been in the back of her head since that night a thousand years ago, but was never as clear in her mind as that day. She had never dreamed of him so lucidly, either.

Now that she was awake, however, she could think about the dream with a clearer head. The star she saw looked identical to Accretion’s cutie mark. The only exception was that the color was all wrong, for his mark was white, not black. Also, the sentence it spoke to her was terrifying, and also very strange. The first part said he was dead. The other part indicated he was still alive, but lost somewhere. She would have to talk to Luna about this, which would not require much waiting, for she would soon raise the sun, and Luna would be back from her nighttime duties.

Celestia flew into the night to begin the day for the ponies of Equestria. Her white body stood out in the dark night, and her bright pastel colored mane shone in the starlight.

The fiery ball that ruled the day rose reluctantly up out of its comfortable valley bed, and the moon, seeing this, backed down into its own valley to rest. The sun coughed and blazed brighter, shining a brilliant yellow that spread over Equestria, peeking through curtains and laying on sleepy ponies’ faces. Equestria woke up to a sun that seemed brighter than ever.

After raising the sun, Celestia flew back to Canterlot. Princess Luna was already there. She looked just as troubled as Celestia felt.

''Sister!'' Luna boomed. Realizing her mistake, she covered her mouth sheepishly. ''Sorry, I have yet to master this 'speaking quietly' art.''

''It's quite alright, Luna,” Celestia amended. “Are you all right? It looks like something is bothering you.'' Somehow, she knew exactly what it was.

''It is unimportant. Don’t concern yourself with it.'' She began to trot away, but Celestia stopped her.

''It's about our brother, isn't it?'' she asked. Luna looked ashamed.

''Yes.''

''You can't keep blaming yourself about what he did. It was not your fault he manipulated you.''

Luna still looked sad.

''I know, but still…I should have seen that he was using me. At least you were always good to me, even if you were gone a lot.'' Luna sniffled. ''I had a dream about him before I left to raise the moon. It was…strange, to say the least.''

Celestia had been afraid of this. She told herself it was a coincidence, but still…something was troubling her about this.

''We were in a white room and he fell into a black space. I followed him, but I couldn't keep up. Eventually I saw a...'' Luna couldn’t finish.

''A black star that looked like his cutie mark?'' Celestia put forward.

''Yes,” Luna answered, surprised. “How did you know?

''Because I had the same dream last night. Tell me, Luna, did the star tell you he was dead and not coming back?''

Luna thought hard. ''No, it didn't. It said that…that I should follow it, and…join it.” Luna began to look scared. “Sister, this is so strange. How could we have the same dream? Why did the star ask me to join it?''

Celestia did her best to stay calm, but inside she was terrified. Nothing like this had ever happened before. Wait…that's not true. That did happen once before.

Just after her sister became Nightmare Moon, Celestia had had a similar dream. Luna had been in the same situation as Accretion. The black star had even said a similar thing: Your sister is gone. She will not come back.

Snapping out of her reverie, Celestia looked over at Luna and tried to piece together the facts. ''I think that our brother is connected to that star somehow, even though he has been exiled to the Frozen Nurth and showed no sign of leaving there. If he left there then Equestria could be in serious trouble. We should be careful.” Seeing Luna yawn, Celestia remembered that she had been up all night. “You should go to bed, Luna. You look tired. We will talk some more later.”

Luna nodded and yawned again as she headed towards her room. Celestia watched her go, then walked out onto the balcony and looked out at Canterlot. Her mind was not on the bustling city, however, as her mind worked to piece together what happened.

It wasn't long ago that Luna was Nightmare Moon, thought Celestia, and if she interacts with her brother again, the Nightmare could come back. I have to investigate this on my own. If my instincts are correct, and Accretion was coming back from the Nurth, I need to prepare. And that would mean… Here Celestia paused in her train of thought. …I need to warn the Elements of Harmony . But I can’t bring Twilight and her friends to Canterlot on a hunch. What I need is information. Luna and myself are the only ones to know about Accretion, and I can’t let anyone else learn about him. I would go to the Frozen Nurth, but it would take days, and I can’t just leave my subjects. My only choice is to wait and see what happens.

Perhaps letting Twilight and her friends know wasn't such a bad idea, whispered a part of her mind. At least there would be an extra layer of protection if I’m right. Maybe they don't even have to know. If they were just in the area for a few days, that would let me have peace of mind.

''Okay,” she said aloud, “It's decided. I'll invite Twilight and her friends to stay for a while. They could use a break anyway. I'll send Spike a letter today inviting them all.''

And so, she went to her room to write the letter.

*

By this time, Abscissor and Uman were on their way under the guiding light of Celestia’s sun. In his own head, Abscissor was preparing for his sisters…

He and Nightmare Moon were laughing over their sister’s broken body. The sun was above them, totally in King Abscissor's control. His subjects were giving him the respect he always deserved. The kind of respect he never got as the mere Prince of Stars.

Abscissor smiled to himself. That day was going to be perfect.

Ch.3 Hope

Chapter 3
Hope

In Ponyville, Twilight was awake even before the princess rose the sun. She was suddenly fascinated with the magical properties of the Elements of Harmony. Even though she knew how to use them she was still unsure of how they worked.

''Ugh,''she exclaimed, ''why is there so little information on the elements. It's as if no own knows about them.'' She was sitting at her desk drowning in a sea of old dusty books. Only a few concerned the elements however. At some point she wound up reading books about herbal remedies, the magical properties of pegasus hooves and a particularly disturbing one about the construction of rainbows.

She consulted her notes where she compiled her own existing knowledge of the elements.

The Elements Of Harmony

There are six Elements of Harmony, Honesty, Reliability, Generosity, Laughter, Kindness and Magic.

All six elements must be within a close range in order to function properly. If one is missing all are rendered useless.

The elements respective ''owners'' must be conscious, fully capable of personifying their element and most importantly, they must be close friends.

While it can be assumed that the energy produced from the elements is of magical nature, the source of the magic is not fully known since the ponies in the process do not need to have any magical power. The power is also greater than any other magical ability seen to date.

This was all she could think of. She noted all of these from their encounters with Nightmare Moon and Discord.

Sunlight began to crawl across the floor of the library as the Princess rose the sun. This was completely hidden from Twilight as she was concealed behind her book fortress. It did not however go unnoticed by her pet dragon Spike, who was rudely awoken by the light. With a yawn he dragged himself out of his bed.

''Mornin' Twilight.'' He greeted in the direction of Twilight's empty bed. Without noticing the untouched bed sheets on his friends bed he made his way down stairs to the library. As he made his way to the kitchen he noticed the tower of books. He shook his head. Twilight was up all night again.

''Twilight, did you stay up all night again? Y'know you'll wear yourself out. Plus you're supposed to meet the guys for lunch today.''

''Oh Spike, how am I supposed to think about sleep when I have so many problems to think about. And I haven't forgotten about lunch. When have I ever been late?''

''You were supposed to help Applejack in her orchard last month and you never showed up.''

''Well, yeah. But I meant recently.'' Spike opened his mouth to reply but Twilight cut across him.

''C'mon, it's time for breakfast.'' Spike sighed but his stomach was eager to follow the word 'breakfast' and Spike wasn't about to get in the way of it.

When they entered the kitchen there was a small cake on the counter, iced with vivid pink frosting.

Twilight was confused. She didn't bake a cake. She didn't even bake.

''Spike, did you...''

Before she could finish her sentence the cake exploded and both Spike and Twilight were covered with cake and icing. Where the cake stood there was now a pink pony, as pink as the icing on the cake.

''Hi Twilight! I baked a cake as a surprise for my bestest friend, and then I thought 'hey, why don't I bake myself into the cake' so I did and then I brought myself here and waited for you! What'd ya think?''

The purple unicorn was still in shock. Pinkie Pie wiped the icing off of her friend with a hoof, and then shoved the icing covered hoof into her mouth.

Twilight snapped out of her confusion. She didn't know why she couldn't expect this kind of thing. It happened on a daily basis. She didn't bother to ask how she got herself here when she was in the cake, she knew better.

''Hi Pinkie, this certainly is a surprise.'' Twilight giggled as she pulled a piece of cake from her mane. Spike began to clean himself off with a towel. ''It's a surprise alright.'' he mumbled.''At least I didn't straighten my spikes yet.''

''It was soooo hard to stay in the cake for so long without eating it.'' Pinkie explained. ''Anyway are ya ready for lunch? Are ya? Huh? Are ya? I'm so excited about it cos it's gonna be in Sugar Cube Corner! And I LOVE Sugar Cube Corner! Even though I work there and live there and we have lunch there EVERY week I'm still SOOO exited!''

Pinkie Pie could be...eccentric at times.

''Me too Pinkie. Um are you hungry? Spike and I were about to have breakfast.'' Twilight asked.

''Oh, do you have any hay bacon strips? I LOVE hay bacon, almost as much as cake.''

''I'll see what we have.'' Twilight said as she trotted to the fridge. Pinkie Pie went quite.

''Someone should put hay bacon in a cake. That would be awesome.''

The three friends sat down to to their bacon of breakfast and eggs. Thankfully Pinkie wasn't talking as much as her face was stuffed with food. That didn't stop her from trying however.

''Mmmmph, mmmmmph mmmphh mmmmmph mph mmmppphh.'' Was the sound that came from her mouth.

''Uh, sorry Pinkie, I didn't quite catch that.'' Said Twilight.

The pink pony swallowed, the food made a bulge in her throat.

''Guh...I said 'Mmmmph, mmmmmph mmmphh mmmmmph mph mmmppphh.'''

Twilight sighed. ''I know, but what did you mean?''

''Oh! Then, I said 'Twilight, this bacon is delicious.'''

''Oh. Thanks Pinkie. I do try...''

At that moment Spike, who was next to Twilight, belched. Unfortunately because he was a dragon he belched flames and accidentally singed Twilight's fringe.

''Gaaahhh, Spike, be more careful!'' she screamed as she put out her mane.

''Aw, sorry Twilight I couldn't help it.'' Spike apologized.

Pinkie hoofed Twilight a letter she found.

''Here ya go, I think it's from Celestia.''

''Thanks Pinkie.'' She opened the letter with her magic. Her mane looked okay but burning hair still filled her nostrils as she read the letter aloud.

''To my faithful student, Twilight Sparkle,

I have noticed that you have been studying friendship for some time now and I am worried that you may be over working yourself. Spike tells me that you've been losing sleep lately. I think that you should take a break every now and then. Which is why I would like to invite you and your friends to stay a while in Canterlot with Luna and I.

You can sleep in the castle if you wish. I have enough rooms for each of you. It has been quite some time since I saw you last. Since the royal wedding I think. Luna and I are so looking forward to seeing you again.

Please write me your answer as soon as possible. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Princess Celestia.''

When Twilight finished the letter Pinkie did a cartwheel.

''Yay! I love Canterlot! I can't wait to go again and meet the princesses. I better start packing. See ya later Twilight. Bye Spike.''
Twilight did not seem quite as happy as Pinkie Pie.

''Oh no, I'm so close to finding out more about the Elements. I don't have time to visit the princess for a week. What am I going to do?''

''You should go Twilight. You need a break. We've been working so hard lately.'' Spike pointed out.

''But Spike, I can't afford to get distracted at this stage. I'm sure I'm about to make a break through with my studies.'' she argued.

''Well maybe you should go anyway. You can get back to it with a fresh head. Besides, I'm sure Celestia would want to hear about what you've learned so far.'' Twilight thought about this for a moment. Spike had a point. It's true that he hadn't been sleeping much and she felt worn out, and she hadn't been making as much progress as she hoped. Maybe a break would help.

''Your right Spike, a break would do us all good. Besides Pinkie has probably told everyone already, you know how she gets around, I couldn't let them all down now.

Might as well start packing now. I'll send Celestia the letter later after we meet the girls for lunch. We can leave tomorrow morning''

''What do you guys even need to pack? It's not like you need much clothes, you don't wear anything!'' Spike asked. Twilight ignored the question.

*

Later, around lunch time, the six ponies and the dragon met in Sugar Cube Corner. Rainbow Dash was the first to comment on the news.

''Aww, I can't wait to go to Canterlot again. It's been so long since we saw the princesses. Not since Twilight's brother's wedding.''

''Yeah, and you could use this as an excuse to surprise your brother Twilight!'' suggested Applejack. Rarity piped up.

''Applejack isn't it harvest season? Who will collect all the apples.''

''Aww, Big Macintosh is more then capable o' buckin' them trees. And Granny Smith can help too. She might not look it but when she wants too she's got a mighty buck in her legs.''

''Ooh, I can't wait.'' exclaimed Fluttershy. ''But I'll worry about Angel and the others while I'm gone. I always imagine that they would be sad to be without me for so long.''

''Don't worry Fluttershy, they have always been okay without you. Angel always seemed to be the type that can take care of himself anyway.'' said Twilight. ''Okay, so will we meet tomorrow morning at the train station?''

All the ponies nodded in agreement.

''ROOOOAAADDD TRIIIIIP!'' exclaimed Pinkie Pie, once she had finished her lunch. The only time she can seem to be quite is when there is food in her mouth, and even then that's rare.

''We're all going to Canterlot!'' she sang as the ponies began to leave.

It wasn't long until the ponies and Spike left the cafe and headed home to pack. They agreed that they would meet the next morning at the train station. Little did they know that hundreds of miles away in the north, at this time, the alicorn and the creature were already well into their travels. They were also unaware of the ulterior motives of Princess Celestia in bringing them to Canterlot. It would not be long until the true reason why they were being asked to come to Canterlot became clear to them.