Curiosity (The Midnight Series)

by Notowa

Rating: teen
Tags: Adventure, Equestria Girls, Violence, Sunset Shimmer, Twilight Sparkle, Main 7 (EqG), Profanity, Twilight Sparkle (EqG), Human, Romance, Drama, Cutie Mark Crusaders
Length: 52665

Sunset Shimmer has not heard from princess Twilight Sparkle in a long time, and as Sunset's worry begins to grow, it causes some dysfunction within the Mane Seven.

After the Rainbooms decided to separate, they had to deal with their internal loneliness and struggling through high school without the support of their friendship. During the time spent away, some decided to be with one another to share their burden and developed intimate relationships. Regaining trust and care for their own lives, they've returned. However, there was a time when Sunset was not able to contact Princess Twilight Sparkle. This began to worry her, and the others try to help her through her struggles to find out why.

Published 2020-08-31 02:10:01 UTC
Last updated 2020-08-31 02:10:01 UTC

Chapter 1: Worried

Preface

Dear Princess Twilight,

Hey, it's been awhile since we've last spoken to each other, and I wanted to check in again. I know you may be busy being a princess and all, and fighting against evil, so that you may not be able to reply as soon as I have hoped. And I've been meaning to ask if it was okay to enter through to visit, but I'm afraid of popping in at a bad time, so I'll stay where I am until you let me know if it's okay. I miss you Twilight, please write back soon. I will always have this book by my side!

Your best friend,

Sunset Shimmer

Chapter 1: Worried

Opening

Shadowy gray clouds hovered above in the sky, wispy winds blew as the decayed, autumn leaves flew off the branches and onto the sidewalks of Canterlot High School. Students walking to class, feel the breeze sink through into their sweatshirts as they gaze at the dreary skies, daydreaming of a brighter day.

Something was on Sunset Shimmer's mind that day, as she looked out into the gloomy weather outside. It was, in fact, just the right setting. She was sulking throughout her day, sitting in her classrooms, feeling this clouded morning set in her heart as she lost contact with a close friend. With her streaks of flames of her hair streaming down her face and her whole back. Her eyes were dull unlike her usual glow like the ocean waves, wearing her leather jacket, with studs appearing on each side of her sleeveless shoulder pads, unzipped, to reveal a red t-shirt underneath that had a yellow sun symbol appearing on her chest. A yellow pencil skirt with a red and orange streak on each side, and double strapped leather boots, with both the zippers and belt buckles to arise up to her knees. After each class, she would feel this sinking cloudiness dragging in on her deeper and deeper. It made all her other classmates feel the mood of something uneasy and unpleasant.

Sunset did not pay any attention to her teacher's lectures on the whiteboards, ignoring all the notes and information they need to study for this next upcoming exam. Sunset's mind was in the clouds, hoping something would come up, to help her, in her time of despair.

Meet the Rainbooms

The lunch bell finally rang for the student's to head for the cafeteria. Sunset walked there without having to look up from the floor, as if it was second nature to her. She sat down at some random lunch table, not having anything to eat because she wouldn't be able to digest any of the "nutritious" meals on an upset stomach. After a few moments, a group of girls took a seat at the table, surrounding her.

Pinkie Pie sat next to Sunset, with a plate of spaghetti and meatballs all covered in condensed spray canned cheese because she loved random things put together to her delight. Her hot pink, fluffy curls, and enlightened attitude which gleamed happiness in her indigo eyes. She wore a simple, plain white t-shirt, a fluffy cotton candy-colored skirt, white leggings with matching Velcro sneakers.

Rainbow Dash sat next to Pinkie Pie, with her plate of a couple of ham and cheese sandwiches, with a 20 oz. water bottle sitting beside them. Hydration and decisive meals to keep up her strikingly healthy physique, as her rainbow flash barely caught up to her as she ran up to the table. Her full length, colorful hair wisps around, nearly knocking over everyone else out of their seats. She was wearing a bright sky blue jacket with her symbolic rainbow lightning bolt on the chest, black yoga pants with streaks of outlined rainbow lightning bolts to the sides of her thighs, and a pair of blue and white Jordan's.

Twilight Sparkle sat across from Rainbow Dash with a packed lunch of everything her body needs for the day. Deriving from a daily nutritional structure that has been approved by the FDA, which she recently read about. She adjusted her thick black glasses as she caught wind of Rainbow Dash running up to the table, which blew her long violet hair, soaring in the air, making it a bit ruffled and frizzy. She wore a simple school uniform and a pair of black high-heeled tops.

Rarity sat beside Twilight, across from Pinkie Pie. She placed a shiny blue glassware bowl full of luscious greens and tomatoes upon the table. She was wearing a gorgeous white tank-top and sparkling blue skirt, a pair of diamond encrusted, purple high heels, that matched her painted nails and glamorous sparkling hair, with the ending streaks, spiraling to accommodate a proper length.

Applejack sat next to Rarity, across from Sunset, with a tray of delectable delights from the cafeteria's array of foods. With an apple in the corner of her tray. She was wearing a red flannel dress shirt, with long blue jeans, cowgirl boots that had three apple patches to the sides, and with her hair in a single braid, draped along the side of her left shoulder, toppled with her signature cowgirl hat.

Then came Fluttershy, sitting next to Applejack, with a tray filled with almost a little bit of everything with the amount of choices for food to her liking. She was wearing a white t-shirt with a couple of butterflies on the front, with a common ruffled green skirt and pale pink boots that matched her long, faded pink hair. The gathering of the Rainbooms during lunchtime.

As the girls were eating, they were discussing some of the material they needed to review for the upcoming exams, as they failed to notice Sunset's sappy mood. It wasn't until Applejack took a glance in front of her, taking a bite of her apple in which she picked up from her tray.

"Y'all alright, Sunset?" Applejack asked, as she took a bite of her apple, which made the others turn their attention toward Sunset.

"I'm fine." Sunset replied, with a very monotone voice. "I'm not feeling well today."

"It is quite a gloomy day." Fluttershy added, as she chewed on her food.

"Sunset, you have nothing to eat!" Pinkie Pie yelled. "Here, have this!" She gave Sunset a cupcake, with a little frosted face drawn on it, from her hair. Sunset looked up at Pinkie, she gave her a passive smile.

"Thanks Pinkie, but I'm not hungry." Sunset said, as she returned the cupcake back to Pinkie Pie. Pinkie was saddened, as she turned away her friendship cupcake. "I think... I'm gonna go get some fresh air..." Sunset got up from her seat and slowly walked away from the table, with her hands inside her pockets, as she exited the cafeteria. They all looked at each other, puzzled. They all thought of what might be wrong with Sunset.

"I hope it's not the flu!" Rainbow Dash addressed, slamming her arms to the table with enough force to gather their attention. "I hate the flu... if you have the flu!" She sat back, crossed her arms, and placed her feet on the table.

"I don't think it's the flu." Twilight replied, as she ate. "She doesn't seem to have any of the other symptoms of the flu, if she has the flu. There is definitely something else going on." she looked up at the cafeteria doors, thinking of what it could be.

"Should we go to check in on her?" Rarity suggested. "Maybe if we ask, she could let us know."

"Am sure it's going to be fine." Applejack assured. "If we give her some space, she might let us know later on." The others seem to agree.

"You girls want any of this?" Pinkie Pie interrupted, holding the cupcake in her hands, acting as if this was the main source of the problem.

"No." The girls replied, as the girls continued on with their previous conversation. Pinkie Pie was eating the cupcake instead. Twilight got up from her seat and walked out, to catch up with Sunset. The others were unsure of what to make of it, as they watched her walk out the doors.

"Should we be worried about it now?" Applejack commented, while the others shrugged it off.

Sunset and Twilight

Sunset sat down on the stairs in front of Canterlot High's main entrance, facing the mirror and stallion statue. She looked at it, contemplating on walking through to see what had been going on. As the freezing breeze brushed up against her face and body, but could not feel the cold. She took out her book, her only connection to the other side, however, there was still no reply. Sunset believed she may have been forgotten, or something terrible has happened to her friends. She worried about them, there was no telling what was going on. If she were to enter during an event that could be dangerous, she may not return. She may even be putting all the other girls at risk as well, if she told them about it. So, she remained sitting alone, hoping for a reply.

Moments later, Twilight walked out of the front doors, walking towards Sunset. She sat down next to her. She placed her hand over Sunset's shoulder, giving her a sense of comfort.

"Hey..." Twilight said softly. She looked at her, but she was not looking back.

"Hey..." Sunset replied. Her tone remained the same since her time in the cafeteria. It worried her.

"I came to check in on you, are you okay?" Twilight asked. Her brows narrowed, trying to get close enough to know.

"I'm fine." Sunset said, as she let out a heavy sigh of discomfort.

"It's going to be okay." Twilight addressed. She sat back, and waited for her to say something.

"Thanks Twi, but I'm afraid things don't seem that way as of now."

"I understand." Twilight said, as she lifted her hand away from Sunset. She felt the chills sprinkling down from her fingertips to her abdomen.

"I appreciate you coming to see if I was okay though." Sunset replied, to relieve Twilight's worry. Sunset was hoping Twilight would take it as a reassured response for her to leave her alone. "You've always been so thoughtful." She looked at her with a weak smile, not enough to convince her.

"The others should know what's going on too."

"I-I don't know, it's personal."

"Okay..." Twilight looked away from her, and couldn't bear the intense cold.

"Sorry Twi, I'm not feeling it today." Sunset admitted, as she crossed her arms over her knees. She was curled up, and was not wanting to continue.

"That's okay, I hope you'll feel better soon." Twilight said, as she got up from the stairs. She was about to head inside to be shielded away from the chilling wind. But as she got up, a single ray of sunshine lifted from the clouds, pointing towards Twilight with the sun's glare reflecting from the mirror and stallion statue, which faded shortly after. Twilight looked at Sunset and it appeared that she looked up at the mirror as well. She decided to cheer her up with something funny about her own interest in that world beyond. "You know..." Twilight said, to break the awkward silence between them. "That pony world still interests me."

"Oh, yeah?" Sunset replied, feeling like she needed to respond with something other than an annoyed grunt.

"Ever since we've entered through during our Spring vacation, I've always wanted to go back to learn more, you know, about the magic and science, the endless possibilities to learn from." Sunset gave a slow, short nod. "It was such a fun assignment in our English class, the teacher laughed at how creative I was to include everyone with a talking pony counterpart." Twilight chuckled. She looked back at Sunset, and she had her head buried at her thighs with her arms covering her face. Twilight's smile faded, as she went back down to comfort her.

"Sunset...?" Twilight said calmly, as she patted her hair.

"Twi... please stop." Sunset said, as she lifted up her head, making Twilight remove her hand away. "I'm not feeling well."

"Does it have something to do with them?" Twilight continued. She said it softly and slowly to not make Sunset upset. She took a wild guess since Sunset had her book sitting beside her. She nodded. "But, you have that book to help keep in touch, right?" Twilight asked. "Unless it's used up, but you could go back and get another one, can't you?"

"That's just it, Twi!" Sunset yelled, adding more to her discomfort. "I haven't remained in contact! I've received nothing!" Twilight looked away from her.

"I'm sorry Sunset." Twilight answered, feeling a bit crushed by Sunset's fierce tone. Looking down to the pale, cemented stairs, but she got why she was upset. Sunset looked away, she regretted throwing her anger at Twilight.

"I'm sorry, Twi." Sunset said, to relieve Twilight's stunned look on her face. "I didn't mean to snap at you like that."

"No, I'm sorry. I was being pushy." Twilight replied, looking back at her. "I shouldn't have crossed a line into your personal space like that."

"Well, I guess it did help getting it out. I suppose." Sunset added, she looked at her with relief.

"How long has it been since you've last spoken?" Twilight continued, as she felt her coming back.

"A few months." Sunset replied, she looked back at the book she placed.

"Are we still able to go through? We should check to see." Twilight got back up and headed toward the mirror.

"No, Twi..." Sunset got up, and stopped Twilight from going any further by grabbing her arm. She let go of her arm as soon as Twilight looked back at her.

"Why? Is there something wrong?" Twilight was a little frightened by her action. "Have you already checked?"

"No, it's not about that." Sunset shook her head. "I think there is something going on, to where they haven't said anything."

"Why are you keeping this a secret from everyone?" Twilight concerned. "If anything, we should check to make sure of it."

"Because it could be dangerous!" Sunset flustered, and was worried. "It may not be a good time to barge in unannounced!"

"What difference does that make? We've faced plenty of powerful enemies before, how is this any different?" Twilight asked, playing off as some sort of test. "And why is Twilight the only one who could enter through anytime?!"

"You just don't get it, Twi!" Sunset crossed her arm, and looked away. The conversation was ticking her off.

"If we get the girls together, we'll be okay!" Twilight assured, trying to get her on the same page.

"No!" Sunset countered.

"I don't see why you won't consider going through to help them?!" Twilight argued, as she gestured to the mirror.

"That's not the point, Twilight! If we happen to go through during a crisis, what if we don't make it back?!" Sunset was showing her serious concern for their safety, but Twilight looked as if she was not buying it.

"It's not about that, isn't it? You'd rather go alone?!" Twilight continued. Sunset was angrily silenced. "Is that what this is about?!" Twilight said, raising her voice. "To go all by yourself? To have it all for yourself?!"

"Is that right?!" Sunset yelled. "What are you trying to say?! What are you even talking about?!"

"You know what I mean!" Twilight looked away, and pouted.

"You know what?!" Sunset was throwing her arms as she argued, placing her hand on her chest. Her voice started to crack due to stress and sadness. "This argument is pointless, because I'm just a little concerned for my friends in Equestria, you all of a sudden turn this against me?!"

"Yes, you're being selfish!" Twilight pointed out. "You're basing this on the assumption that they're in danger! What if they aren't? Why don't we go in to find out together?!"

"No! There has to be a reason they haven't said anything to me!"

"Then, let's go find out" Twilight calmed down, and held out her hand to see if Sunset would listen to her. "Together?"

"I..." Sunset was at a loss for words. "I-I don't know..." as she looked away, ignoring Twilight's friendly gesture.

Twilight took her hand away, looking down at the ground again. She was not convinced that Sunset knew how to respond to her with this complex decision. She tightened her hand, gripping them hard, and decided to let out something she held back.

"It's not fair, you know?" Twilight questioned. "Comparing me to a princess..." Twilight said, softly under her breath, as she crossed her arms in anger. "...I could never measure up to her... not in the slightest..." Sunset was devastated by what Twilight said. She ran up to her, shouting in her face and pointed out to her.

"Don't you even say that! How can you…?!" Sunset stopped yelling for a moment to catch her breath, as she began to have tears falling from her eyes. Twilight grasped what she said, regretfully aware that she didn't mean it. "Don't say stuff like that... you... you all mean so much to me... after all we've been through... why? Just why?!" Sunset didn't hold back her pain and weakness any longer. She stood back, looking away from Twilight. Twilight cried as well.

"I'm so sorry Sunset..." Twilight said, looking down at the ground, her eyes fell as the winds began to pick up. "I'm so sorry..."

Sunset turned to look back at Twilight, she headed towards her direction. Twilight looked up to see her walking to her, and held onto her. They both wrapped their arms around each other, encapsulating them tightly, as they sniffled their last remaining tears.

"I'm sorry." Twilight repeated. She was sincere in her words, regretting everything she said. "Forgive me."

"I'm sorry too." Sunset replied, as she whispered in her ear. "We both got a little too carried away..." They both unlatched their arms to firmly grasp their frozen hands together, as they stared deeply into each other's eyes of sincerity, and blushed with their eyes gleaming with water.

Special Guest

The front doors of the school open, to which they both turned their attention to whom it may be, walking out of the door, and they quickly wiped away their tears.

A boy, with spiky blue hair, wearing a zipped leather jacket with a ring of red and white surrounding it. Grungy blue jeans, with a pair of black and blue sneakers. It was Flash Sentry.

"Hey Flash!" Sunset and Twilight said simultaneously.

"Hey!" Flash replied. "I heard some fighting going on, I came to make sure that no one was hurt."

"It's okay. No one is hurt!" Sunset suggested, with a passive smile.

"Thanks for taking the time to check." Twilight added. Flash blushed, as he scratched the back of his head.

"Yeah, of course!" Flash continued, with a bright smile on his face.

Even Special-er Guest

Moments later, at the mirror and stallion statue, came a person from inside the mirror. Which made its way towards the three students having a conversation at the front entrance of the school. They haven't noticed anyone coming out of the mirror. It reached out onto the two girls shoulders, and gave a heavy tug, which made them become utterly shocked with adrenaline.

"Surprise!" A girl yelled, as she tugged at Sunset and Twilight's shoulder.

"Whaa!" Sunset and the other two screamed, as they had a near panic attack, catching their breath.

Sunset looked at the girl. Her long violet hair, with a couple streaks of magenta extending past her waist. Her cutesy blue dolly shirt, and purple skirt with a large six-pointed magenta star surrounded by smaller white stars at each point, and her pair of long purple, belt-buckle boots that reached to her shins. The glowing twinkle of her galactic eyes. She caught a glimpse of a familiar face.

"T-Twilight?!" Sunset questioned herself, as she focused. "Twilight!" Sunset yelled, as she grabbed Princess Twilight with her arms locked to her sides. She picked her up with all her excessive, adrenaline fueled strength.

"Hey... Sunset... can't... breathe...!" Princess Twilight pleaded, as she gasped for air and her arms falling asleep. They were clamped tightly under Sunset's arms, and her legs being lifted off the ground, as she waved them around, trying to get Sunset to put her down.

"Oh!" Sunset said, as she chuckled. "Sorry!" Sunset let her go, and Twilight was already trying to readjust to her bipedal form.

"That's okay." Princess Twilight suggested, as she smiled. "It's been awhile!" Sunset smiled back.

Twilight saw how Sunset lifted Princess Twilight up from off the ground with such happiness and love. It made her squint her eyes with a sense of envy. Flash walked up into focus, with his face in confusion and excitement.

"T-Twilight?" Flash said, as he simultaneously looked back at Princess Twilight and Twilight Sparkle, trying to configure seeing double, contemplated that doppelgangers were real. "Ha-How are there two Twilights?!" The girls looked at each other, as they tried to come up with an explanation for the two Twilights, however, there was one thing they could say that would avoid needing much explanation.

"Um..." Twilight froze in confusion.

"W-were twin sisters!" Princess Twilight said, as she went over to drag Twilight to her side by wrapping her arm around her neck, smiling awkwardly.

"Yeah?!" Sunset added.

"Okay...?" Flash replied, as he slightly nodded his head, trying to piece it together.

"W-we used to go to the same school, at Crystal Prep, but I was the one that transferred to Canterlot High, while she stood back at the other school." Twilight said, as she gave an awkward, passive smile. She had Princess Twilight let her go from her awkward hug.

"That would explain why we don't see her as often." Sunset assured.

"Yeah?" Flash said. "Are they both named Twilight?"

"R-right, but my full name is Twilight Velvet." Princess Twilight answered, while Sunset and Twilight looked at each other, they knew that was the name of Twilight's mother's maiden name.

"Okay, well... I-I think I'm heading back inside, the bell is about to ring, so..." Flash said as he awkwardly chuckled, blushing, and slowly heading for the door.

"Okay, see you!" Sunset and Twilight said simultaneously, again.

"See you, Flash!" Princess Twilight whispered, as she waved at him leaving for the door.

Who Is She?

As Flash went back inside, he contemplated on which Twilight he had a crush on.

"So... which Twilight did I like...?" Flash panicked. "No, no! Which one danced with me at the Fall Formal?!" Flash questioned himself until he met up with his group of friends, and they noticed how steamed he looked, with his face all red and sweaty.

"You alright, bro?" One of Flash's friends said.

"I-I'm fine!" Flash answered, as he chuckled, frightening his friends.

Re:Connected

Sunset and Twilight continued their discussion on Princess Twilight's surprise appearance.

"Twilight...?" Sunset questioned softly, to break the silence between them. "How have you been? What's been happening?"

"Well..." Princess Twilight said hesitantly. "A lot has happened, but I suppose you want to know why I haven't said anything... for a really long time."

"What has happened?" Twilight asked.

"I'm so sorry I caused so much worry over the past few months..." Princess Twilight said, as she looked away from both of them, closing her eyes in shame. "My efforts to reply or to come visit has been very difficult for me... after all that has been going on..." Sunset and Twilight looked at each other, as they both had sympathetic faces. Sunset went over to Princess Twilight to comfort her by placing her arms over her shoulders.

"Tell me everything, please!" Sunset said, with much enthusiasm. "I want to know all about it! I want to help in any way I can!" Princess Twilight shed a single tear, she wiped it away and looked at Sunset. Sunset's determined eyes made Princess Twilight gain the courage to say what she needed to her. She took hold of Sunset's arm and gave her a firm hand grip to Sunset's hand. Sunset let her arm down from off her shoulders to hold her hand in place.

"Well..." Princess Twilight said softly, as she looked away again, trying to think of what to say. "Okay!"

"I want in too!" Twilight said, as she stood at a distance quietly, but after what she said, she walked over to Sunset and Princess Twilight, eager to jump into the conversation. "We're all friends, right?"

"Of course we are!" Princess Twilight assured. "We're sisters after all, right?" Princess Twilight gave a wink to Twilight, confirming that they are not only friends, but officially sisters from two different dimensions.

"This is great!" Sunset said, with much happiness and reassurance. Her sadness was suddenly lifted, and so were the clouds above, they felt less heavy and dark, as they began to clear up for the afternoon sun, at its peak, to give it's radiance warmth and light upon the previous, dreary morning. "But, before we get into explaining, let's go meet up with everyone in the cafeteria! I'm sure everyone would love to see you again!"

"Oh, that would be great!" Princess Twilight said, eager to see all her friends once again, after a long time. She missed them, however, she still felt worried about what she would need to explain to them. "Let's head on over!" Princess Twilight was worried, but she won't let it get in between meeting with her friends. Sunset picked up her book from off the stairs, and opened the front door for Twilight.

"Thanks." Princess Twilight commented. "I'm terrible with doors here." As Sunset and Princess Twilight headed inside, Twilight walked right behind them, but as Twilight held the door, she stopped for a moment. Before entering through, she took one last glance over to the mirror and stallion statue. She squinted at it, as she was in much thought of it.

Chapter 2: Jealousy

Chapter 2: Jealousy

Twilight Reunited

Sunset and Princess Twilight entered the cafeteria. She held the door and Princess Twilight walked in, but she immediately shut the doors, not looking to see if Twilight entered through or needed the door open to enter. As they walked toward the lunch table with all the other girls, Pinkie Pie sensed her presence first. Pinkie Pie got up, gasping and inhaling a tremendous amount of oxygen before she turned around to see Princess Twilight with Sunset.

"TWILIGHT!" Pinkie Pie yelled, as she pounced onto Princess Twilight like a feline catching its prey. She held Princess Twilight like how Sunset did. Her strength carried Princess Twilight in the air, as if she was light as a feather. "I missed you so, so, so much!"

"Pinkie... please...!" Princess Twilight said, slowly detaining oxygen in her lungs, as well as signaling with her legs that she was not exactly comfortable being held so high without breathing. Pinkie Pie let her go, and Princess Twilight nearly fainted. She was captured by Rainbow Dash, as she got up from her seat to grab her, holding her arms from behind.

"Jeez Pinkie Pie, miss her much?!" Rainbow Dash said sarcastically.

"Ah better go help!" Applejack said, as she got up from her seat, to carry Princess Twilight with Rainbow Dash to an empty seat at the table.

"Goodness, give her some space to breathe!" Rarity suggested. "You alright, darling?"

"Yeah..." Princess Twilight replied, breathing heavily.

"Oh... oh my." Fluttershy added. "Where's our Tw..."

"Sorry! But, of course I miss her!" Pinkie interrupted. "I can only be away from friends for so long! By the way, where's our Tw..."

"I guess that's true." Rainbow Dash interrupted. "It has been a long time since we've seen you Twilight! Speaking of which, where's our Tw..."

"Yeah..." Princess Twilight said, as she smiled. "Sorry..."

"It is good to see ya again!" Applejack commented.

"I agree!" Rarity added.

As they spoke, Sunset looked around and saw the whole cafeteria staring at them. It was not long until they continued on with their own conversations when things began to quiet down.

"Okay girls, I think we should let Twilight rest for a moment." Sunset suggested. "We'll have all day today to ask her anything after class, right?!"

"Oh my, you're right!" Rarity panicked. "Class is in like, five minutes!"

"Yep!" Princess Twilight confirmed. "I'll be here all day! We could totally hang out later!"

"Oh splendid!" Rarity said.

"Awesome!" Rainbow Dash shouted.

"Great!" Applejack agreed.

"Yay!" Pinkie Pie yelled, as Fluttershy nodded with joy.

"By the way." Fluttershy whispered. "Where is Tw..."

"So it's decided!" Sunset interrupted, with her voice raised with glee.

Ongoing Thought

At the cafeteria doors, Twilight saw through the small windows on the doors, peering through to see her friends huddling around Princess Twilight, giving her a group hug, in which she was not invited in. She watched her friends instead of walking though. She couldn't move with the thought of how others may see two Twilights, but she also was starting to feel a little jealous of Princess Twilight. The way the others are around her, the way Sunset and Pinkie Pie picked her up from the ground. It sparked something in Twilight to feel envious of her.

"C'mon Twilight! Why are you thinking like this? They're your friends, of course. They're her friends too, you know?!" As Twilight spoke to herself in the echoing, empty hallways. "They just miss her. She was the Twilight before me, she was the one who brought them all together... who wouldn't miss her…" Twilight signed, over the fact that she was probably overthinking about the situation, so she decided to enter through to be with her friends. As Twilight was about to enter through, the door swings right open, smacks her in the face. The force of the door pushed Twilight to the floor. Princess Twilight walked out from the cafeteria, as the other girls walked out, they didn't even notice that they hit anyone.

"I'm so terrible with doors!" Princess Twilight commented.

"I don't even know why that was necessary..." Sunset said. "You literally kicked the door open."

"Yeah..." Princess Twilight apologized with a slight chuckle. "Sorry..."

"Should we look for our Twilight?" Fluttershy whispered to Pinkie Pie.

"I know, it is like we conveniently forgot about her." Pinkie Pie said, directly to the reader, skipping down the hallway with excitement.

The girls asked Princess Twilight what they wanted to do after school, as they continued to walk down the hallway. Twilight got up from the floor, rubbing her face. She was pissed off that they didn't notice her. It sent all of her pain receptors to be circulating around her face. Twilight was about to yell at them, but she had a funny itch in her nose. She sneezed. It alerted everyone in the hallway. The girls immediately turned toward where the noise was coming from. They saw Twilight, with her hands covering her nose.

"Oh, there you are Twilight!" Pinkie Pie said.

"Hey Twilight!" Rainbow Dash added.

"There you are!" Sunset commented.

They all headed their way to meet with Twilight. As they came up to her, they saw her hands covered in blood, with traces of it streaming down from her nostrils. The girls were utterly stunned to see that much blood dripping from her hands and nose unto the floor.

"Ah shit!" Applejack yelled, as she quickly grabbed a handkerchief from her jean pocket to place over Twilight's nose. Applejack's reaction to instinct. Everyone regained focus and rushed Twilight over to the nearest girl's bathroom.

Oops

The bell rang, but the girls were helping Twilight with needed medical attention in the girl's bathroom.

"We're so sorry Twi..." Sunset apologized.

"It's fine." Twilight replied, as Rarity was cleaning her up, and putting on some make-up to hide the bruise on her nose.

"We really didn't mean to slam the door in your face." Rainbow Dash assured. "I can't believe we didn't even notice."

"All done!" Rarity expressed. "You alright sweetie?"

"I think." Twilight replied, with a slight smirk on her face. She had a couple of tissues stuffed in her nostrils, which made her voice muffled in the echoing restroom.

"I'm so sorry!" Princess Twilight confessed softly. "It was my fault that happened, I opened that door..."

"You kicked it..." Pinkie interrupted.

"Yeah... thanks Pinkie." Princess Twilight said sarcastically.

"You're welcome!" Pinkie Pie said sincerely.

"It's okay." Twilight said. "I'm fine. Besides, you all are missing class to help me, right?"

"Of course!" Sunset said. "We all would skip class for each other, under any circumstance!"

"That's right!" Applejack commented.

"Yep!" Pinkie Pie added.

"You betcha!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"Of course!" Rarity added.

"Oh... yes!" Fluttershy said quietly, as she nodded.

"I agree!" Princess Twilight said, as she placed her hand on Sunset's right shoulder. Sunset smiled back at Princess Twilight, putting her hand on her's.

"Thanks, everyone!" Twilight said.

They all headed for their classes. The girl's were eager to hang out with Princess Twilight. It gave them the incentive to focus and study harder than before. Princess Twilight headed for the library. It was her favorite place to be in Canterlot High.

Out With Friends

Later on that day, after school, the girls headed out to the best known hang out spot for teens and friends, the mall. Everyone was excited to go look around with Princess Twilight, as they had a lot of catching up to do. The first thing they did together, they went to the food court to have something sweet while they conversed with Princess Twilight. They each ordered small fries with either a cherry or blue-raspberry freeze. Then, they all headed for a large circular table, in which they all could have a seat.

"School of Friendship?" Sunset asked. "That sounds like fun! And you were the main instructor?"

"I was." Princess Twilight enlightened everyone with the recent developments of spreading the study of Friendship to anypony. "I gave the role of principal to Starlight Glimmer after she graduated. We've also expanded to a university in a much larger city in Equestria."

"That's amazing Twilight!" Sunset replied.

"This Queen Chrysalis with her Changelings and King Sombra sounds like real trouble!" Rainbow Dash added. "I can totally take 'em!"

"Yeah, Chrysalis has become a real pain lately, but her Changelings have actually reformed to be good guys, relinquishing Chrysalis's throne of power! And King Sombra is another story." Princess Twilight responded.

"That sounds good that they have changed to be better." Fluttershy replied. "The Pony of Shadows sounds frightening though."

"Yeah, I agree." Rarity added. "I hope not to tangle with any of them!"

"Even so, I agree with Rainbow Dash on taking them down!" Applejack commented, as she gave something warm for Pinkie Pie to eat as she got a brain freeze from sucking down her cherry freeze. Twilight laughed.

"After all that you had to go through." Sunset said. "I guess that is why it's been hard to keep in contact?" As Sunset said that, Princess Twilight felt like she needed to confront them about how things may turn out in the future.

"Yeah, it has been quite busy." Princess Twilight said. "I'm sorry for not visiting you all in so long. My job over the safety of everypony, and to help with friendship studies... it's been rather difficult... with also the occasional villain." Princess Twilight was starting to tear up, as the other girls sympathized with her. "On top of that... I've been asked to be the next ruler of Equestria, with our other two princesses stepping down from the throne, to retire." Princess Twilight expressed with worry and sadness. "I-I don't think I'm good enough... o-or ready..."

Sunset got up from her seat and comforted Princess Twilight as she began to cry. The others began to surround her, gathering closer to her.

"Twilight...?" Applejack asked softly. "You're more capable than what you give yourself credit for..."

"Yeah, after everything you've been through, you have done what previous princesses have never done before." Sunset added.

"You are the sweetest, most powerfulest pony I know!" Pinkie Pie said with much enthusiasm.

"You kick all kinds of bad guys behind, just like me!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"Not good enough? Please!" Rarity shouted. "You're the most caring, the most trusting, and most generous! The fact that you took time off for us, it's spectacular!"

"You help not only our people, or pony, but also every living creature!" Fluttershy added softly.

"Thank you... everyone..." Twilight cried, trying to speak with her heart racing in her chest, as the tears fell rapidly in which she couldn't control.

The girls got up to once again give Princess Twilight a group hug. They all huddled together, embracing the strong friendship they shared, a bond that can't be broken. However, Twilight did not move from her seat, she was once again outside of the group hug they did for Princess Twilight. This time tears streaming down her face as she saw how absolutely heartwarming it was to witness, and she decided to take a photo, a memoir of best friends showing their love and support.

Amused

As Twilight took the photo and saved it to her phone, the others started to leave the table, heading toward another direction. They threw away half empty plastic cups and cartons into the trash. They left Twilight back at the table. She was beginning to question this repetition of being left behind, although she thought of how she did purposely step out to observe instead of engaging along with them. Twilight threw away her leftovers and headed their direction to catch up with them. She was behind them, and she overheard what they all planned to show Princess Twilight around the mall. To explore and experience her new surroundings. Princess Twilight agreed to have the girls take her anywhere throughout the mall, to whatever destination they desired.

Their first stop was at a music store, with a lot of instruments on display in the furthest left corner of the store. Endless rows of CDs, records, with an array of critically acclaimed movies, and some random music station playing through the ceiling speakers. The girls mingled around, while Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash took Princess Twilight over to the instruments to try out a few new gadgets at the store. Applejack was looking around the country section, she would laugh at some of the crazy titles that were on display.

"This one is labeled "Old Town Road," interesting..." Applejack commented on one of the newest hit singles, while stroking her chin as she was examining the CD.

Rarity was looking around the pop section, even though she was not into the music as she was for the interesting fashion design of their costumes.

"Definitely no sense of style these days!" Rarity said, while looking at a "Wow, greatest hits" CD.

Fluttershy was strumming her fingers through each CD under the label "S" in the metal section of the store.

"Yes!" Fluttershy raised her voice in excitement. "Skull Cruncher's latest album is in!"

Sunset was walking by Fluttershy, she rolled her eyes as she smiled of how much of a metalhead Fluttershy was, compared to herself. Twilight was walking around, not necessarily looking at anything, but trying to keep up with everyone. They all eventually met up with Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash, fooling around with some of the instruments they were on display. Princess Twilight was playing with them, trying out a new interesting electronic synthesizer.

"I love how this one sounds!" Princess Twilight said.

"Listen to this!" Pinkie Pie said, as she was jazzing out with a saxophone. Everyone crowded around her, clapping their hands to the beat, pushing Twilight to the edge of the store. As Pinkie finished, everyone cheered, and went their own way. Twilight smiled, but they all exited quickly as people started exiting the store. She was going to wait outside until everyone was ready to leave.

"Pinkie, that was amazing!" Princess Twilight said with much amazement. "You always have a way with all instruments!"

"Thank." Pinkie Pie yelled.

The Game Block

The next store they went to was a video game lounge. They had all sorts of new and old games meant for multiple platforms and consoles, with many available demos to play. Sunset and Princess Twilight jumped on an interesting "All-Stars" racing game. The girls gathered around to see them play.

After a few moments, many gamers and the store clerks were surrounding the girls, yelling and cheering on Sunset and Princess Twilight's gameplay. The others began to really get into it as well. As Sunset was about to beat Princess Twilight and make it to the finish line, the game cuts off before the finish line and states: "PURCHASE FULL GAME." The gamers and store clerks were saddened by cleverly placed advertising. While the girls began to laugh, Sunset and Princess Twilight laughed so hard, the tears swelling up in their eyes from being blocked from finishing the game. They all enjoyed the game so well, they all haven't noticed Twilight's absence.

Twilight was blocked by many gamers surrounding the girls as they played. She tried to get past them, but the amount of people crowding them made it as difficult as it was in the music store. The yelling, screaming, and excitement made it difficult to ask for her to get through. So, Twilight ended up sitting in an empty seat in the store. Before she was able to get past them all, the girls left along with the crowd. Twilight found them heading toward Rarity's suggested destination, which was the fashion boutique shop.

Dress To Impress

Rarity made Princess Twilight try on a few of her choice, favorite dresses and shoes to really spark the royalty in her.

"So delightful!" Rarity enlightened Princess Twilight, with the glamour and style of many different designs and presentations for a person of royalty. "You should really wear more stuff like this darling! It really shows that you are a princess!"

"Yeah..." Princess Twilight replied hesitantly. "Looking too fancy is not really my thing." Princess Twilight humbly said.

"Hmph, modest as always!" Rarity shouted. "Perhaps something with a little more, simplicity!"

The other girls were looking around the shoe aisle. They all were trying on a few of the one's on display, but they all were a little too glamorous for their taste.

"These aren't even shoes!" Rainbow Dash yelled, holding onto a pair of high heels. "They're practically a weapon!" The others rolled their eyes and smiled.

Twilight was circling around the store, as she was being blocked by endless racks of clothes, like going through a maze to find the correct path that leads to her friends, although she watched her friends exit the store soon afterwards.

"Now to find the exit." Twilight said, under her breath.

Left Out

Twilight sighed of how quickly this day has gone by, as she tried to keep up with everyone.

After they went to a few more places, Twilight was exhausted. She stopped and took a breather by the window on the third floor, where there was plenty of room to relax, with much comfortable seating. As she peered out of the window, she saw the sun barely touching the horizon, giving it a soft glowing flame, almost ready to burn out for the night. There was a slow breeze blowing through the leaves of trees, and clouds surrounded it, looking as heavy as they did this morning. The city in the distance was lit up, with many passing vehicle headlights and backlights coursing throughout the streets.

"As much as I was trying to not make this about me, it hasn't felt the same since earlier today." Twilight admitted to herself. "Like how I feared the Midnight inside, coming back to haunt me, to think so irrationally, to act so violently and feel enraged at every instance of fear or turmoil."

Twilight sat there for a moment trying to figure herself out, as the girls tried out the new photo booth. It was a tradition to use one before leaving any central place that gathers friends together. After they all exited the photo booth, Sunset took the picture frames, and she noticed Twilight was not with them.

"Hey, where's Twilight?!" Sunset asked.

"I'm right here!" Princess Twilight replied, as she pointed at herself in the picture. She took a second glance at the photo, and she noticed what Sunset was talking about. "Wait a minute. You're right! She is not in the photo!"

"What?!" Pinkie Pie yelled. "We have to find her!" Pinkie Pie took a quick glance in a couple of directions. "Oh wait, there she is!" Pinkie Pie responded, as she pointed at Twilight, sitting by the window. The girls made their way to Twilight, while Sunset handed the pictures to the other girls to look at.

"Tuckered out there, sugarcube?!" Applejack addressed Twilight. Twilight jumped, snapped into focus, after Applejack cleared the silence around her.

"Oh yeah... crazy day, huh?" Twilight casually replied, as she smiled. Sunset was concerned for Twilight, but she seemed to be acting like everything was okay. Rarity bumped Rainbow Dash's arm with her elbows, as Rainbow Dash looked at Rarity. Rarity signaled her to ask Twilight something.

"Well... we're off to get something from somewhere. You want to join us?" Rainbow Dash requested.

"No thanks. I think I'm good. Whenever you are all ready to head out, let me know." Twilight said, as she yawned loudly.

"Oh, okay!" Rainbow Dash responded. "Who's all ready?"

"Didn't you say you were going to get something?" Twilight asked. "I can wait until you're done!"

"Uhh..." Rainbow Dash panicked. "Right... but it's not that important!"

"Okay then." Twilight said. "Ready whenever you are!" The girls gathered together and started heading out the door. While Rarity was chuckling at Rainbow Dash's embarrassed face.

Confront

As they continued on, Sunset was walking slowly to be by Twilight's side, to speak with her, while the others made Princess Twilight lead the way. Twilight was in the back of the group, she met up with Sunset trying to get her attention.

"Hey..." Sunset said softly.

"Hey..." Twilight responded.

"I came to check to see if you're alright?" Sunset asked.

"I'm fine." Twilight replied, as she let out a sigh of discomfort.

"Twi, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. Just tired." Twilight continued. Sunset paused, she felt that Twilight was trying to ignore her. They both stood still, in the middle of the parking lot.

"Twi...?" Sunset said softly.

"Sunset, it's okay. I'm fine." Twilight said.

"Were you with us the whole time?"

"I-I was being blocked the whole time. I just got tired, so I went to sit down."

"Blocked? Why didn't you say anything?"

"I don't know. I didn't want you guys to worry about it. You all were having so much fun, so I stepped out for a minute."

"Twilight." Sunset said, with a more serious tone.

"What?" Twilight questioned.

"I know things have been crazy, with everything going on, but don't think we are ignoring you, or pushing you away." Sunset assured. Twilight was angrily silenced.

"Why do you care so much about it?" Twilight started to get angry with Sunset. "I stepped out, that's it. I'm fine."

"Of course I care! Why are you getting all upset?"

"Because... if you did care, you would at least notice!"

"You're the one that stepped out!"

"Oh, am I supposed to cry to you, and beg for attention?!"

"You know what? If you're going to act like this, why hang out at all?!"

"Because I didn't expect you to completely throw away your friend like that!"

"Oh really? After all we've been through together, you think I'm going to leave you?!"

"I don't know."

"I can't notice everything Twilight!"

"Yeah. That is why I backed away, because I did not want to make this all about me!" They both took a deep breath while looking away from each other. The sun was about to be out of sight, the winds picked up, and the clouds appeared to cover the last remnants of the light. The street lights began to flicker on. They both looked at each other.

"I'm sorry." Twilight said. "I just... didn't want to ruin your time with her. It's what you wanted, right? I just wasn't feeling it today."

"I'm sorry too, Twi." Sunset responded. "I appreciate that, but I want us all to enjoy it together."

"Yeah, I suppose it wasn't anything to argue about." Twilight agreed.

"Yeah." Sunset agreed. They both came together, wrapped their arms around each other. They both let go, and they continued walking, however, the others were not in sight.

"You know?" Sunset asked. "We should ask Princess Twilight to spend the night at my place."

"Oh?" Twilight said, with a tinge of excitement. "That would be fun."

"Yeah!" Sunset said with much enthusiasm.

Evening Drive Back

It took another few minutes for them to reach the other girls, out to the parking lot, inside Applejack's pickup, with the lights on, and the engine running like a motorboat. The pickup was a tough piece of metal. It survived many years of climbing mountains, drifting through snowy and muddy trails, and carrying tons of apples and apple cider throughout the town. Applejack couldn't live without it, it was her precious.

"There ya are!" Applejack yelled. "It's freezing out here! Get in!"

Applejack was driving the truck, sitting next to her was Rarity and Rainbow Dash to the right with Fluttershy on her lap, being somewhat uncomfortable. In the backseats was Pinkie Pie on the right with Princess Twilight on her lap, hugging her a little too much for comfort, and Sunset sat in the middle, with Twilight on the left. As they all were packed in the truck, Sunset asked Princess Twilight if she was going to spend the night. Princess Twilight said she could, in which Sunset asked if the others would join in.

"Ah can't, ah got to work tomorrow on the farm." Applejack commented.

"I can't either, I'm babysitting!" Pinkie Pie added.

"I don't think I could either, Angel has a vet appointment." Fluttershy said softly.

"What's wrong with him?" Twilight asked.

"I think it's common cold!" Fluttershy replied.

"Or the flu? If he has the flu..." Rainbow Dash responded.

"Again with the flu?" Rarity questioned. "Seriously?!"

"I hate the flu, if you have the flu..." Rainbow Dash added, while Rarity was disgusted with Rainbow Dash.

"What about you Rarity or Rainbow Dash?" Sunset asked.

"I think I'll be fine, not tonight." Rarity replied.

"Okay." Sunset said.

"Yeah, I think I'll be good as well." Rainbow Dash said, while Rarity elbowed her in the side of her gut. Rainbow Dash returned the favor. Rarity squealed, which made Applejack jump and turn the wheel a little to the left, then to the right, to adjust back to the lane.

"What in tarnation...?!" Applejack yelled.

"Sorry, sorry..." Rarity replied.

"You tryin' to make me wreck or somethin'?!" Applejack grunted.

"No..." Rarity said, with a little sense of guilt.

"By the way, am droppin' you off first, Rarity, then Sunset and Twilight." Applejack assured. "Since your place is closest."

"Okay!" Sunset, Twilight, and Princess Twilight said simultaneously.

"Fine." Rarity replied, crossing her arms with disgust.

Later To Be Dealt

Applejack dropped off Rarity first. As Rarity exited the vehicle, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash got out, Fluttershy took Rarity's spot while Rarity gathered her stuff from the back of the truck. Rarity waved at them, while the girls replied with waving their hands and said goodnight. Applejack drove off while Rarity was greeted by her little cat Opal, as she opened the door. Applejack came to Sunset's stop. Pinkie Pie, Princess Twilight, Sunset, and Twilight got out of the vehicle. Princess Twilight thanked them for such a great time. Pinkie Pie gave her another tightly compressed hug that lifted her off the ground.

"In case we don't see each other tomorrow..." Pinkie said. "I'm giving you another big, lovey-dovey-huggy-wuggy!"

"Pinkie... please..." Princess Twilight gasped, as she was once again feeling light-headed and bruised from being held too tight. Pinky let her down. Princess Twilight held onto Twilight's shoulder, Twilight held her to make sure she didn't fall.

"Goodnight girls, thanks!" Sunset said.

"G'night! We'll try to see ya again before ya go back!" Applejack yelled, from the front seat of the truck. Pinkie climbed in the backseat and waved at them.

"See you, Pinkie!" Princess Twilight said.

Now We're Getting Somewhere

As the truck left, the girls entered Sunset's house. Sunset's house was tall, however, it only had 2 rooms, a bedroom above a couple flights of stairs, where a few guitars were mounted on the wall, which was also part of the living room, and a bathroom to the left of the door. The kitchen was furthest from the door. Underneath the stairs was her computer and library, with a small fridge toward the side. The living room was a single futon set in front of a 50" TV screen with a couple of video game consoles.

"So..." Sunset said, to break the silence. "You two can sleep up there!" Sunset pointed up at the single bed above.

"Okay." Princess Twilight and Twilight said simultaneously.

"I'm crashing on my couch tonight!" Sunset added.

"Oh Sunset...?" Twilight asked.

"What's up?" Sunset replied.

"I'm going to quickly head back to my place to grab a few things, and to make sure I feed Spike."

"Are you going to need us to go with you?" Sunset asked.

"No, it's not far." Twilight suggested.

"Okay. See you in a little bit." Sunset said, as Princess Twilight waved.

"Yep, see you!" Twilight said, as she went out the door.

"You have a pretty cool place Sunset!" Princess Twilight determined, as she browsed with her eyes around the room.

"Thanks." Sunset said, as she went through her stuff above the stairs. "I know you don't have something to wear to bed, so I hope you don't mind wearing this." Sunset pulled out a matching silk and trim lace tank top and cami shorts.

"Oh!" Princess Twilight said. "Thanks!"

"You're welcome!" Sunset replied. "Bathroom is over there." Sunset pointed toward the right side, the door was slightly opened. Princess Twilight entered, and shut the door. While Princess Twilight was in the bathroom, Sunset was undressing into her usual long sleeved purple shirt, which had her symbolic red and yellow sun, and matching pajama pants. They both have a couple of streaks of orange and red on the sides. Princess Twilight walked out, Sunset turned around and was astonished.

"That looks so good on you!" Sunset said, trying not to blush.

"Really?" Princess Twilight responded, as she looked at it from the mirror. "Thanks."

What?

Twilight opened the door of her house. She turned on the living room light, and walked through.

"Spike!" Twilight yelled. "C'mere Spike!" There was no sign of him anywhere. Twilight went into her kitchen, and she took out a can of chopped meat and vegetables, mixed and simmered with gravy. She placed a bowl, full of water on the floor with his food.

Twilight went to her room, she got undressed. As she picked out her clothes from her dresser, she touched a couple of large streak marks from her back. Pausing to think about it, before slipping into her buttoned sleep shirt and matching pajama pants. She packed extra clothes with hygiene supplies, and she thought about bringing extra clothes for Princess Twilight. She packed one of her favorite shirts and jeans with a couple of colored socks.

As she began to head out, she noticed Spike's food was untouched, however, she looked at her locked closet near the front door. She touched it, reminiscing about the past. Twilight headed out the door.

"I'll be back Spike!" Twilight assured, as she locked the front door. Inside of Twilight's house, there was a slight growl, emanating from her room closet.

A Confession?

"There is something I've been meeting to ask you..." Princess Twilight said softly, as she awkwardly scratched the back of her head, and looked in the opposite direction.

"What is it?" Sunset replied.

"How would you feel about coming back to Equestria, with me, to be a part of our kingdom?"

"Going back? Tomorrow?"

"Yeah."

"For how long?" Sunset asked, as Princess Twilight shook her head. "Oh, you mean... for good?"

"I never anticipated my life to be so busy, being caught up with everything. Remember, you asked me if you could before?"

"I know, it's just... things have changed since then... I wasn't friends with everyone, which took a lot of time to do so... I'm not sure if I can."

"I understand."

"Are you sure it is going to be difficult for you to reply back, or to visit?"

"I think so. If you did come back with me, you would have the freedom to visit anytime."

"Why can't we go visit you?"

"You could, but you wouldn't be able to know if anything were to happen, it might be too dangerous to keep the portal open."

"Oh."

"I know, but you would be a great help for all of us. Just think about it, I won't hold it against you if you say no. I'm letting you know that, because I may not be able to visit anytime, anymore."

Just as Sunset was about to say something, she heard a knock at her door. It made Princess Twilight jump. Sunset went to open the door, and there was Twilight in her sleepwear, with a full backpack.

"Hey!" Twilight said.

"Hey, Twi!" Sunset replied. Twilight entered through the door, and she placed her backpack on the floor, by the couch.

"Hi!" Princess Twilight said.

"Hey! So I've brought you this to wear for tomorrow!" Twilight replied, as she took out an outfit for Princess Twilight to wear. Princess Twilight looked at the clothes Twilight bought for her.

"That's cute!" Princess Twilight admired. "That's really cute! Thank you!"

"Yeah." Twilight responded. "I figured you and I both fit the same size and everything."

As Princess Twilight was smiling with her eyes closed, Twilight looked at what she was wearing to sleep. She was not surprised to see that Sunset would give her something a little sexy to wear. Her cleavage was wide open, to where most people at first glance would peak down instead of meeting at her eyes. Her legs were exposed, seeing the full curves of her upper thighs, to a pair of skimpy short shorts.

How? Twilight thought to herself, as she went to put her clothes back into her backpack. Why does she have that? Twilight thought again, trying to process the purpose of buying really cute lingerie sleepwear. She never saw Sunset wear it, so it might have been for... on occasion…

"Uh, Twi?" Sunset said, which snapped Twilight back into focus.

"Huh?" Twilight replied, actively listening.

"I said, would you like to play the next game?" Sunset repeated, as she held one of her controllers in her hand, while the other controller was in Princess Twilight's hand. They both were playing that racing game they played earlier. Which Twilight missed entirely.

"Sure...?" Twilight said, to show participation.

"While you go up against Twilight, I would make us all something to snack on?" Sunset asked.

"O-okay!" Twilight said.

Sunset finished the first game with Princess Twilight. Sunset won, but she made Princess Twilight feel confident in her gaming skills. Twilight picked up her controller, and she began to go against Princess Twilight. Sunset got up to head to the mini refrigerator, underneath her bed and stairs. There were some drinks in the mini fridge. She headed for the kitchen, the opposite side of the room. She was thinking of what to make for everyone. After a few moments, Sunset came with a bowl of popcorn and homemade nachos. Princess Twilight and Twilight were excited to partake.

The Parallel

For the rest of the evening, the girls played games for an hour, then switched on a movie marathon, until they all got tired.

"I'm beat!" Princess Twilight said.

"Me too!" Twilight added, as Sunset yawned. They all helped in cleaning up the living room, and headed for bed. Twilight and Princess Twilight both walked up the stairs to lay down. Twilight slept on the left, Princess Twilight on the right. They both laid the exact same way, but posed in opposite directions, like a mirror image of one another. Princess Twilight couldn't sleep because of what happened earlier.

"Hey, Twilight?" Princess Twilight whispered, Twilight turned to face her.

"Yeah?" Twilight said.

"Well... it is weird to say my own name..." Princess Twilight added. "But, how are you feeling?"

"I'm okay." Twilight replied.

"I'm still concerned, because of what happened earlier. I'm sorry if I made you feel outcast... and about the nose bleed..."

"No. You're fine! I'm fine! Don't worry about it."

"Alright. Thank you though."

"Okay, for what?"

"Thanks for making sure everyone was okay, and having a great time together!"

"Of course!" Twilight chuckled.

"Hey, Twilight?" Twilight asked. "Wow, it is weird to say my own name..."

"Yeah?" Princess Twilight replied.

"From what I've heard earlier, since you're a princess... is it going to be difficult for you to visit?"

"Yeah, I think it would. With everything that has happened, and to become the new ruler, I fear it might take up more of my time than I had anticipated."

"I see..."

"I asked Sunset if she could be the one in charge of it, in case anything happens."

"Oh, really? That sounds great!"

"Yeah, but it would involve her... moving back to Equestria..." Twilight was stunned with what Princess Twilight said.

"Oh..." Twilight whispered.

"Yeah, it is an option."

"It might be okay. Because, I've always wanted to go back. Since the time we've spent together during our Spring vacation. I was so thrilled."

"Oh? That would be something fun! It would be helpful and it would mean a lot, since you and I share that same passion for learning!"

"Yeah, it would be easier, but it is her decision to make."

"Yep." Princess Twilight said, as she yawned, signaling that she would like to sleep.

"Night!" Twilight said.

"Night!" Princess Twilight replied.

An Itch In My Sleep

Meanwhile, downstairs on the futon, Sunset overheard the conversation. The thought of herself leaving for Equestria kept her up, whether she would be helping or dismissing her friends with her decision, it would be hard to make that choice. Leaving or staying, helping or disregarding? Sunset thought to herself as she tried to close her eyes to sleep. Her mind kept worrying about it. Those same thoughts also kept Twilight up. As she laid opposed to Princess Twilight, she thought of Sunset leaving them. It made her worry much more. Twilight was also thinking about the other world, the studying and research she could accomplish for her own, but at the cost of her dearest friend.

Chapter 3: Inseparable

Chapter 3: Inseparable

Wakey-wakey

The air was chilly, it rained throughout the night. And the sun rose from the mountains, only to be covered behind in the light clouds hovering above the peaks.

Princess Twilight snuggled in the covers for a little longer as she started to awake. She stretched her legs to the other end of the bed, before she realized she was laying with her twin. She curled back to her side, although, the moment she did, she felt the other side of the bed empty and cold. Princess Twilight turned around to see that the left side of the bed was vacant. It seems that Twilight was up, leaving her side of the bed and pillow, wrinkled and disorganized. Princess Twilight sat up, and yawned as she stretched her arms out at full length. She got up to fix the bed, but as she was laying the foundations of the sheets, she felt something under the sheet crumble like paper. She uncovered the sheet from the bed, and saw a piece of paper that seemed like it was ripped from a standard subject notebook. Princess Twilight picked it up, she read:

Dear Soon-To-Be-Ex-Princess:

I thought a lot about what you said last night, and I think things would be easier if I switched places with you! Relieving your tensions of being the next ruler, in which I will take over! And Sunset would be with you, to help you get settled in... Have fun!

Sincerely,

Twilight Sparkle, Princess Twilight Sparkle II

Princess Twilight had a shivering feeling running down her spine. She rubbed her eyes to make sure she read it all correctly. Princess Twilight was hyperventilating, she bolted to the stairs, but she kicked her pinkie toe on the side of the railing of Sunset's bed.

"Aaaaoooowww!" Princess Twilight whispered, as she was hopping on one foot, with the other foot in her hand, trying to ease the pain. "That hurts!" Princess Twilight decided to casually walk down the stairs.

Sunset was still sleeping, as Princess Twilight was awake, quietly whimpering in pain. Sunset was laying on her front side with her right arm, underneath a pillow, to give extra support for her head, and the other draped along the side of the couch. Her legs spread apart with one of them underneath the blanket, and the other outside the blanket, over the side of the couch like her left arm. Princess Twilight came over toward Sunset.

"Sunset!" Princess Twilight whispered. "Sunset?!" As she tapped her shoulder. Sunset tossed over to face the other side of the couch. "Sunset! Please wake up!" Princess Twilight continued to tap her shoulder, even shaking her a bit. Sunset was snoring loudly. Sunset turned to face the ceiling, her mouth wide open and gargling her saliva. "Wake up!" As Twilight came closer to whisper in her ear.

Sunset's phone alarm went off.

"Whaa!" Sunset jumped, bashing her head against Princess Twilight's.

"Ow?!" Princess Twilight said, as they both put their hands on where they verbally came into contact.

"Ow yourself!" Sunset yelled. "What were you doing?" Princess Twilight focused on the subject of matter.

"Sunset! It's Twilight!" Princess Twilight yelled.

"Yeah?" Sunset yawned. "You're Twilight!"

"No, your Twilight!" Princess Twilight responded.

"I'm not Twilight!" Sunset replied.

"No!" Princess Twilight grunted. "Look, Twilight has run off to the mirror!"

"What?!" Sunset yelled, as she got up from the couch.

"It's Twilight! She left for the mirror!" Twilight handed her the paper. Sunset read the note that was left.

"Dammit Twi!" Sunset yelled, crumbling the paper in her hands angrily. Before they were able to react, they heard a faint laugh coming from one of Sunset's cupboards in the kitchen. They turned toward where the noise was coming from. Sunset opened one of her cupboards, and Twilight was sitting inside of it, giggling to herself.

"Twilight, what the hell are you doing in there?" Sunset yelled.

"Watching the both of you fail!" Twilight said as she chuckled.

"What?!" Princess Twilight said. Twilight got out of the cupboard, and handed them her phone. They watched themselves get hurt when they got up this morning.

"Oof..." Princess Twilight said under her breath, while Sunset looked at her, not necessarily happy about Twilight's prank.

"I set up a small camera right here, and waited until you two got up!" Twilight said.

"But, I didn't set an alarm on my phone?!" Sunset argued. "Did you hack my phone and put the alarm on?"

"No...?" Twilight responded.

"Twi?!" Sunset asked.

"You forgot to turn it off." Twilight replied, taking a wild guess.

"I did?" Sunset looked at her phone. "Oh..."

"I did max out the volume though..." Twilight added.

"Why? What was the meaning of this?" Sunset asked, as she handed Twilight the note she left.

"Like I said, it was a prank!" Twilight is enlightened, however, the girls seem upset. "I'm sorry if it was a terrible one, but I wanted to wake you two up!"

"What for?" Sunset commented.

"Well, I wanted to see if Princess Twilight would like to see a movie, before she leaves!"

"Really?!" Princess Twilight answered with excitement. "I would like to go! Can we go? Please?!" Princess Twilight asked Sunset.

"Okay, okay, sure!" Sunset responded.

"Yay!" Princess Twilight yelled as she jumped for joy, like Pinkie Pie would.

"What time is the movie?" Sunset asked, as she was relieved and was excited for this event.

"That depends on what you would like to watch?" Twilight was searching through her phone, and handed it to Sunset and Princess Twilight to view.

"How does this one sound?" Sunset asked Princess Twilight while pointing at the screen.

"Ooh!" Princess Twilight replied. "Okay!" Sunset handed back Twilight's phone. "We would like to see, "The Last House on the Left in the Woods on a Haunted Hill" ."

"A horror movie?!" Twilight confirmed. "Okay! The next showing is in 30 mins."

"Got it!" Sunset and Princess Twilight said simultaneously. The girls rushed to get ready.

The Movie Date

They were on their way to the movie theater. It was not a far walk, a couple blocks down the street. The winds were circulating, the air felt cold and smelt like the earth sprung out a new foundation. The sun was above, however, it was blocked by endless streams of clouds, gliding toward the same direction as the wind. The sun being covered was not enough warmth to evaporate the remnants of the rain on the concrete pavement and sidewalks. The girls made sure to dress appropriately for this type of weather.

Twilight walked out of the house first, she was wearing a light purple jacket, underneath was a striped buttoned purple and black dress shirt, matching black jeans, and her usual black high-heeled tops.

Princess Twilight walked out, wearing what Twilight packed for her last night. A purple t-shirt with the trims laced with magenta, light blue jeans, and her pair of long boots.

Sunset walked out to shut the door and to lock it. Sunset was wearing a different leather jacket, which had a faded orange ring at the center crease of her arms, with a matching pair of leather boots. Underneath the jacket was a light blue t-shirt with a long white tank top underneath, which hung lower than her blue t-shirt, and light blue jeans nearly identical to what Princess Twilight was wearing.

When they arrived at the movie theater, Twilight purchased the tickets for the movie. They weren't asked if they were old enough to watch the film, in which a couple of other teens came in to watch the same thing, they were unable to get past the security. Twilight and the others made their way to the snack bar, and Sunset suggested they purchase one of the couple's deals, which was a large bucket of popcorn and two medium drinks. Twilight ordered it, with an extra medium drink for Princess Twilight.

Settled In

They were seated at the top, furthest from the screen, to the far left corner. Sunset sat between the two Twilights. Twilight was in the left corner, nearest to the stairs. Princess Twilight sat a couple seats away for Sunset to sit between them.

"Comfortable?" Sunset asked, as she walked up to the seats.

"Yep!" Princess Twilight and Twilight said simultaneously.

"Okay, who wants the popcorn first?" Sunset asked while handling the bucket full of popcorn.

"I'll take it!" Princess Twilight replied.

"She can take it!" Twilight added.

"Alright!" Sunset responded, as she sat down.

They all were sitting there watching some familiar faces pile in as the theater was showing an endless playlist of advertisements, which was replaying more than half of them at a time.

One Or The Other

The movie began, the lights dimmed out into complete darkness, the ambience of music played, and the screen extended its reach further near the right and left exits. Princess Twilight got excited and shoved a handful of popcorn in her mouth before letting Sunset take over on it. Sunset looked at Princess Twilight, and she chuckled when she saw her cheeks bubbled like a chipmunk with a mouthful of nuts. She handed the popcorn to Twilight. Twilight indulged in the popcorn, not paying any attention to Sunset and Princess Twilight.

As they were viewing the movie, Princess Twilight kept getting freaked out over the amount of jump scares they would encounter. Sunset was laughing the entire time, while Twilight was continually chugging down the popcorn. Princess Twilight was huddling over to Sunset, holding onto her arm for comfort. Sunset held out her hand, in which she immediately grasped her hand tightly. Sunset smiled, blushing. Twilight was finished with the popcorn bucket and she tried handing some over to Sunset, but she saw that Sunset was preoccupied with Princess Twilight. She placed the bucket on the floor, but Princess Twilight accidentally kicked the bucket over and landed on top of a person sitting below them. The person who was sitting next to the person, who the popcorn dropped all over him, laughed and picked off a few to eat. Only Twilight saw the popcorn fall into someone, so she sat back down, and sat up, shriveled up in her lonely corner. She crossed her arms and squinted her eyes, as her jealousy rose over Princess Twilight, holding onto Sunset like how a couple would when watching a movie together. Twilight rolled her eyes in disgust, and tried to continue on with the movie.

It came to a part in the scene where a person was about to look underneath an old wooden bed, the camera slowly turned to look at it from the main character's point of view, it was an incredible build up of a creepy scene until the character saw nothing under the bed, relieving tension of their audience. The person got back up, only for the audience to see the creature standing right behind him. Princess Twilight squealed in terror, in which she pulled Sunset closer to her by the neck. She let her go, when she realized what she was doing. Sunset laughed, while Princess Twilight was smiling as she blushed. They both looked at each other, and they both didn't realize they were holding each other's hand. They were captivated by each other's eyes, even with the only light source was the movie in front of them to see each other.

It was until Twilight interrupted, when she tapped Sunset's shoulder. Sunset turned around to look at Twilight.

"Hey, I'm going to use the restroom!" Twilight whispered.

"Okay!" Sunset whispered back. With Sunset's focus cut off, she went back to viewing the movie. Princess Twilight was watching the film, but continued to have her arm underneath Sunset's as they both continued to hold hands. Twilight got up from her seat, and started walking down the stairs. Before she was about to exit the theater room, she took one last glance at Sunset. She saw the two leaning against each other so calmly and close. She could see the two falling in togetherness. Twilight slowly turned around as she shut her eyes, and walked out.

Something's Missing

Twilight was in the bathroom, inside one of the stalls. She thought about everything, the signs were true about them, she didn't want to believe it. A voice came from inside the bathroom, it echoed like another person was there with her.

"Told you..." the voice whispered in her ear.

"No!" Twilight held her ears, trying to block any sense of hearing.

"They're both... ponies..." the voice added.

"Stop!" Twilight yelled, as she began to tear up, with one tear falling down from her left eye to the floor.

"Let go...!" the voice continued.

Twilight ran out of the stall, she punched the shit out of a paper hand towel dispenser until she began to feel the burst of pain in her knuckles. She backed away, she started to fidget her hands and couldn't stop shaking with blood dripping down to the floor. She turned the faucet as far as she could to wash her hands. It stung. Twilight grunted, and she pulled her hands away to turn the sink off and grab what she could from the towel dispenser. She wrapped the towels around her hand, she would press down on it until she couldn't hold it anymore. The cheap paper towels started to stick to her knuckles and she tore it off, making it even worse.

The Motive

Twilight cleaned herself up and walked out of the bathroom, casually trying not to make a scene, until she was stopped by security.

"Stop!" The officer demanded. Twilight was confused, but she stopped and the officer bent down to meet Twilight at eye level. "You're in violation of littering and disruption of viewers in the theater!"

"What?!" Twilight yelled. "But..." Twilight held her tongue and she looked a little past the security officer and saw the person who had popcorn dropped all over him, in which he still had some to prove his case. "But... I didn't do it!"

"Liar! You sat right above me!" The person yelled, pointing at Twilight.

"I'm going to escort you out of the movie theater!" The officer said, "You may return tomorrow, if you'd like, but for today...!" The officer led her to the door, and slightly pushed her out of the theater.

"Asshole!" Twilight said as she walked away. She stopped for a moment to think about what she said. "I'm sorry..." Twilight pushed her back to the wall, kneeling to the concrete sidewalk, and she took off her glasses to rub her eyes, wiping away her tears.

The voice came back to taunt her.

"You meant it!" The voice crackled.

"I did not!" Twilight yelled.

"They're probably making out by now!"

"No! Stop!"

"Listen! Now's your chance! To gather the info you need!" The voice suggested.

"You're right!" Twilight admitted. "I can't stop thinking about her... after I saw that... I just couldn't..." Twilight stood up, putting on her glasses. She regained control of herself.

"Maybe it was for the best that I was kicked out of the theater." Twilight spoke to herself. She took out her notebook, the piece of paper she ripped out this morning. "I've got other plans..."

Chapter 4: Curiosity

Chapter 4: Curiosity

Missing Someone?

About an hour later, Sunset and Princess Twilight headed out the door of the theater.

"That was a pretty crazy movie!" Princess Twilight said.

"Yeah, I've seen better, honestly." Sunset commented. Sunset noticed something was off as they walked out to the bitter cold winds outside.

"Twilight?" Sunset asked.

"Yeah, what's up?" Princess Twilight responded.

"Where's Twilight?" Sunset added.

"Wasn't she with you?" Princess Twilight with determination.

"She told me she was heading to the bathroom, but I'm not sure after that."

"You don't think... she is in trouble?!" Sunset went back into the theater, she checked the bathrooms, and looked around to the people entering and exiting the theater rooms, while Princess Twilight looked for anyone who recently exited the theater. Sunset met up with Princess Twilight to see if she found her.

Sunset began to worry about Twilight. She took out her phone, in which she apparently received over five unread messages. Two of them were from Applejack, the other from Pinkie Pie within their group chat, however, there was one from Twilight. Sunset chose what Twilight wrote:

Hey Sunset, I got really sick from eating a lot of popcorn, so I'm heading back to my place. Please be careful, and I'll be alright! See you 2 later!

Sunset was immediately relieved that Twilight was okay.

"Twilight is okay!" Sunset said to Princess Twilight.

"Oh, that's good!" Princess Twilight responded. "She is safe?!"

"Yeah!" Sunset added, as she read what the other's were texting about. "It seems the girls want to meet up for lunch somewhere!"

"Oh, really?!" Princess Twilight replied. "That would be fun!"

Sunset and Princess Twilight both head over to a nearby burger joint, and Sunset asks the girls to meet them there. Sunset text Twilight about bringing her food later on.

Confirmed

Twilight opened her phone one last time before she entered through the mirror. She sent a text to Sunset back about her being sick from eating too much popcorn. After she confirmed that with Sunset, she was ready to enter through. Twilight looked all around her to make sure no one was there to witness. She entered.

Oof

Twilight was teleported, and she arrived in a dark room. She struggled to be on all four limbs.

"Uh-oh!" Twilight yelled, as she tumbled to the floor. "Okay, baby steps!"

Twilight rose to her hooves and began to walk, slowly for the door. However, she looked back at the mirror.

"I guess I should buy us some time!" Twilight said, as she examined the mirror. She kicked the mirror, it fell over, and it shattered. "Whoops... I hope no one heard that..." Twilight walked out, not seeing anyone around.

"Okay, time to find a source of information." Twilight said, as she was walking toward the many doors of the castle. Twilight opened a few, but they appear to be bedrooms. Twilight walked through a few hallways, until she reached a suitable spot to research. "Perfect!" Twilight walked through to find many books, numerically and alphabetically in order, three stories high above the level floor.

"Let's begin!" The voice whispered.

Ponies and Burgers

Sunset and Princess Twilight met up with everyone at the burger joint, they arrived within 15 mins. since the time Sunset text everyone. She looked at her phone to see Twilight responded with an okay, when Sunset asked if she'll bring her something for later.

"Hey guys!" Rainbow Dash yelled, as she came walking in, and the others exchanged greetings while entering in.

"Where's Twilight?" Applejack asked, as she looked around.

"Twilight is home." Sunset replied,"She had gotten sick from earlier."

"I see, she was a little distant yesterday!" Applejack responded.

"She was..." Fluttershy added. "I hope she's okay..."

"She is, don't worry!" Sunset assured.

"I hope it's..." Rainbow Dash was interrupted by Rarity, pinching her lips with her nails before she could say a word.

"If you mention the damn flu one more time, I will strangle you!" Rarity whispered in her ear, she let go of Rainbow Dash's lips. Rainbow Dash gave her a mean look, as she rubbed her lips. Since they were clamped by Rarity's fingernails, it brought a little pain to her mouth.

"Calm down Rarity..." Applejack intervened.

"Hmph!" Rarity shrugged off and walked away. The others gathered around the table, taking a seat. They each ordered, and they were talking to Princess Twilight about any of the recent difficulties that were nearly life threatening. Princess Twilight had too many to name, but she mentioned Tempest Shadow, and she went on to explain one of the toughest missions she has yet.

Where Is This Going?

Meanwhile, Twilight was reading for an hour, gathering all the information she needed for her next project, however, she was interrupted by a familiar voice.

"Twilight?" A voice said. Twilight turned around to see a young purple dragon with green horns and green spikes.

"Spike?" Twilight said. "You could talk?"

"I guess I can! When did you get back?" Spike asked.

"Umm... a little over an hour ago?"

"Oh, you're early!" Spike assured.

"How long did you think I was going to be there for?" Twilight asked.

"You said a couple days, at least, last time I heard."

"Oh, interesting..."

"Not really. But, when did you start wearing glasses?"

"Oh, umm..." Twilight paused to think for a moment. "They're reading glasses?"

"Hmph... I never knew... We'll probably because I sleep all day and night!"

"Yeah?"

"Oh, since you're back, I suppose you are ready for your upcoming lecture?"

"What lecture?"

"A lecture you have to give at the School of Friendship? Are you okay? You seem a little off today?"

"It's good! Just a little dazed from being away for a while."

"Oh, I hear ya! Well, I suppose you should start heading there!"

"Right..."

"Alrighty then!"

"Yeah? You wouldn't mind helping me out, would you?" Twilight asked.

"I would, but... I have stuff to do." Spike replied.

"Very well!" Twilight started to head out to explore. "Great! Now what do we do?" Twilight asked herself.

"You haven't really scratched the surface yet, you might want to try thinking about using your resources!" The voice yelled in her head.

"I know, but I figured... I would have enough time to gather the info I need."

"In time!" The voice reassured.

Twilight walked out of the castle, where she would see many ponies walking about, attending to their own business. The air was warm, glistening with brightness, reflecting each of the colors of the grass, leaves of trees, and even the buildings seemed radiant and welcoming. So, Twilight went ahead to explore her surroundings, gathering information on anything in particular toward her own scientific research.

Before she was able to accomplish anything, she heard that dragon's voice gasping and yelling out her name.

"Twilight!" Spike yelled.

"I hope he didn't find out about the mirror..." Twilight said to herself.

"Twilight, I decided to come with you!"

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah!"

"What happened? What made you change your mind?" Twilight asked.

"Well, I figured, it's been a while since we've done anything together. And I wanted to ask you about what happened back in the hooman world!" Spike replied.

"Okay?"

"Let's go!" Spike led the way to the School of Friendship. Spike told Twilight it was not a far walk to the school. "So, anything new with the girls? What was it like? Did you encounter any kind of danger? Did anyone mention me?..." Spike asked Twilight. Spike went on, asking questions, which made Twilight become somewhat annoyed. "We're here!" Spike announced. Twilight looked at the institution, a large building, lots of purples and blues that has Princess Twilight symbolic star, surrounded by streams and waterfalls in which gleamed a rainbow by the sunshine.

"Whoa!" Twilight yelled.

"What is it?" Spike asked.

"Nothing." Twilight replied, realizing that she was already supposed to know about it. Twilight and Spike entered through the doors. They passed through the offices and into the lecture halls.

The instructor announced Princess Twilight's arrival to the lecture room.

"Everyone, please give a warm welcome to 'The Princess of Friendship!'." Everyone in the classroom cheered and clopped when Twilight entered through the doors. She was heavily greeted, which made Twilight smile, but also nervous to be speaking in front of class in which she had no idea of what to say or do.

"Well... hi everybody!" Twilight said hesitantly. The students were quiet and all chatted to each other about Twilight. Twilight thought about what she said, she realized she said 'everybody.' "Sorry, sorry... I've been to a different dimension recently, so what I've meant to say is ' hello everypony!'."

The class laughed and started to become mildly interested in her lecture. Twilight was also starting to become less anxious to continue with the lecture.

"So, before I do get started with the lesson? Are there any questions regarding friendship?" Twilight said intuitively. One student raised her hoof to the air, in which Twilight called on her.

"So, what is it like in the other dimension? Did you make friends there too?" The student asked.

"I did make great friends there. So, in this other dimension I traveled to, there are creatures called humans! They don't have hooves or look like any particular animal. They walk on two legs, and have a thing called hands!" Twilight said.

The classroom was fascinated by Twilight's answer. Another raised her hoof, adding onto the other question that was answered.

"So, what was your experience like in the other dimension?"

"It is quite a shock, because when you enter through this dimension, I change my form entirely. Having to walk on two legs like the others!" The whole class was astonished by Twilight's answer.

"I made great friends there as well... there was one in particular I was close to..." Twilight began to quietly go off on a tangent, she started to cry in front of everyone. "I mean, I've done my best to be there for them. I've changed my ways for them. I've done all that I can to be supportive... and they throw me away... especially the one I called my best friend... who would rather be with someone else... after all that I've done... I'm never good enough! I've changed how I look, I changed my hair to how she likes it! I've been less of a know-it-all for her... using less big words... I would always be by her side... and she throws me away!" Twilight ran out of the lecture room, which the class was utterly shocked by this turn of events. Spike ran after her, and the instructor dismissed class for the remainder of the day.

"Twilight! Wait?!" Spike yelled, as Twilight ran off into the distance, Spike ran out of breath, and tried to fly his way to her. "Twilight!" Spike couldn't catch up, as she was nowhere in sight.

Twilight cried, she slowed her pace and took a moment at a quiet sight by the riverside. She looked at herself in the river. She didn't mean to hurt anyone, or shock anyone during class. Twilight sat there, hoping no one would see her like this.

Spike thought about what could have made Twilight so upset, so he wanted to take it out on the others in the human world.

"Something made Twilight upset, and I'm going to get to the bottom of this!" Spike said, as he puffed up his chest and straightened his tail and marched on back to the castle to meet up with everyone.

Spike arrived at the room where the mirror should be, however as he turned the corner and gently opened the door, he saw the mirror shattered into a million pieces.

"Holy guacamole!" Spike yelled. "This is bad! I have to tell Princess Celestia!" Spike ran off to write a note to Princess Celestia.

A Kindness Given

Twilight sat by the river, sulking and contemplating if coming to Equestria was worth it. She had done so much damage that it may not be safe to stay, although she would not be able to make it back. As she was there, she heard a familiar voice, singing beautifully, nearby an oak tree. Twilight got up to see who it was. A pegasus with a faded pink mane and tail, yellow coat, and three colorful butterflies right above the flank.

"Fluttershy?" Twilight questioned.

"Oh? Hello Twilight!" Fluttershy replied. "Back from your talk with Sunset?"

"Yeah..." Twilight responded.

"You seem upset, is everything okay?" Fluttershy asked.

"Well, not really... I came back earlier than expected... and I went to a lecture which I was unprepared for..."

"Oh, that's too bad... I'm sorry that happened." Fluttershy said softly.

"Thanks... what are you up to?" Twilight asked.

"Oh, I'm just doing my usual rounds of teaching these young-lings how to fly." Fluttershy assured.

"Oh, you could do that?" Twilight said without hesitation.

"Of course! Don't you remember I showed this to you before?" Fluttershy responded.

"Right... sorry..." Twilight said.

"You do seem a bit different than usual..." Fluttershy commented. "When did you start wearing glasses?"

"Oh, uhh..." Twilight was at a loss for words.

The Meat Of The Story

Meanwhile, Sunset and the girls walked out of the burger joint after an hour passed of them talking about stuff Princess Twilight did while she was away. The others shared videos they have done over the past few months as well. Princess Twilight was amazed by how popular they have become in their community. She also ordered Twilight a meal before they all left to see Princess Twilight head back home. Sunset text Twilight about coming over to drop off her food and seeing if she would like to join them to see Princess Twilight one last time. Sunset received no response, but she figured she was resting, so they all headed for Twilight's place.

No Response

The girls arrived at Twilight's house, and Sunset rang the doorbell, but she received no response. After a few tries with dead silence, Sunset picked up an odd object sitting next to her door mat, and found a spare key. Sunset opened the door.

"Hello? Twilight! I got food!" Sunset yelled inside an echoing living room. Sunset and the girls entered her house. Pinkie Pie wanted to surprise Twilight by jumping on her while she was in bed. Sunset headed for the kitchen. "C'mon Twilight!" Sunset continued.

Applejack and Princess Twilight looked at a suspicious locked closet in the living room.

"What do ya recken that is?" Applejack commented. While Princess Twilight shrugged.

"C'mere Spike!" Fluttershy was yelling for Spike.

"Surprise!" Pinkie Pie jumped onto Twilight's bed, but as she removed the covers, there were pillows laying where Twilight should be. "What?!" Pinkie yelled.

Sunset walked into the kitchen and accidentally stepped into some uneaten food left for Spike.

"Gross!" Sunset said, as she began to smell the meat from her boots.

"What is going on?" Fluttershy was worried. Rarity, Applejack, and Princess Twilight headed for the kitchen to meet up with everyone.

"Twilight is not in her room!" Pinkie Pie entered.

Moments later, Sunset looked on top of the counter, and there was that same note left by Twilight from this morning. She dropped Twilight's food onto the floor, as she lost grip and function for a split second. Everything was slowed down inside Sunset's mind, it took a few seconds for the food to hit the floor, and the sounds of sloshing meat from her boots, and the food bursting out of the take out box as it impacted the floor. Sunset was stunned for a moment, she ran for the door, disregarding the tracks she left behind from not cleaning her boot from the meat. The girls were stunned by the weight of the food hitting the floor, and Sunset taking off without warning or making any sound. The girls wanted to catch up with Sunset, but before they could, they looked at what Sunset was looking at. They picked up the note, and once Princess Twilight caught a glimpse of it, she ran out to catch up with Sunset, while the girls continued to read.

"Oh my..." Applejack added. Eventually, they all headed straight for the mirror, but Applejack stopped the girls before they left the house and shut the door, so that she would drive them to the school. Sunset and Princess Twilight were already too far ahead to stop them, so the girls hopped on board with Applejack to keep up with Sunset.

Chapter 5: Double Trouble

Chapter 5: Double Trouble

A Misunderstanding

Twilight and Fluttershy were casually walking along the open paths of Ponyville. As they were walking, Twilight looked to observe her surroundings, embracing the scenery, ponies mingling around the shops, and the ponies conversing with one another. It felt welcoming, close with nature, and open to join in with anyone.

"Uh, Twilight?" Fluttershy asked softly.

"Oh, sorry..." Twilight replied. "What was that?"

"Oh, I just was wondering how Sunset was doing?"

"Oh, she's fine. Everything was good!" Twilight replied, feeling a bit hesitant to lie, but tried to not make Fluttershy upset. If she was anything like her Fluttershy, talking to her about problems was not a way to go.

"Oh, that's good. I'm glad you two made up!" Fluttershy responded.

"What? Did we have a fight or something?" Twilight asked.

"Oh no, you were afraid that Sunset was upset at you for not responding for so long..." Fluttershy replied.

"So, you knew about that?"

"You told everyone, remember?"

"Sorry..."

"Oh, that's okay Twilight! I'm glad everything worked out!"

"Why didn't we notify Sunset about anything?"

"Well, you said since we've been busy, we should leave the book back at the library for safekeeping. Until you suddenly remembered where you left it, after we've recently dealt with the Mean 6, and the building of the School of Friendship, and University."

"Right..."

"You okay Twilight? You're acting a little funny..."

"No, I'm fine. I ...just to remind myself of something."

"Oh, I'm glad I could help."

"Of course, thanks! Usually, I'm on top of everything..."

"I understand."

Twilight and Fluttershy continued on walking through the streets, and waved at passing ponies when they greeted them. All the while, Fluttershy was talking about what she was doing while Princess Twilight was away. They came across a unicorn with a glossy white coat, sparkling purple mane that curled a most fashionable embrace, pulling a huge cart of colorful jewels.

"Rarity?" Twilight questioned.

"Oh, Rarity is back?!" Fluttershy added.

"Yeah, she is carrying a huge cart full of... gemstones?" Twilight commented.

"Oh, that must be important!"

"Do you want to meet with her?"

"Sure!"

Familiarity

Twilight and Fluttershy both headed for wherever Rarity was heading to. Rarity was seen walking into a very prestigious looking building.

"Rarity's Boutique?" Twilight said to herself. Observing the place, in which her Rarity planned to accomplish herself at some point. "How remarkable, the resemblance is uncanny!"

"You coming in Twilight?" Fluttershy asked.

"Oh, yes!" Twilight replied.

Twilight entered the shop, and she saw many fabulous dresses, all of differential colors, styles, for all ages and for everypony. Fluttershy went behind a curtain in which was probably Rarity's work room. Fluttershy entered, and Rarity was putting her jewels away.

"Hi, Rarity!" Fluttershy whispered.

"Oh!" Rarity screamed, awaking her cat Opal. "Oh, Fluttershy, I didn't hear you walk in."

"Sorry... I saw you coming back, and I thought I would stop by to say hi..."

"I see! I came back from scouring the mountainside. Spike was supposed to meet with me at the bridge, but he didn't show up."

"Oh, sorry to hear about that."

"Oh, that's quite alright! I still managed to get what I needed! My next seasonal line will be dazzling!"

"Wow!" Twilight said, as she walked in, taking a look around Rarity's workshop, with drawing boards, cupboards of fabrics of all types of textures and colors, tool kits laying around the floors, and some of her newest designs all lining up across the room.

"Twilight darling!" Rarity yelled. "When did you return?" As she went over to give Twilight a hug.

"Oh, she came back earlier today!" Fluttershy commented. Rarity noticed something as she unlatched her arms from Twilight's neck.

"When did you start wearing glasses?" Rarity asked.

"Uhh..." Twilight couldn't find the words to say.

"Oh, I simply love it! You look so... sophisticated!" Rarity implied.

"Right..." Twilight said.

Rarity began to talk about what she has been up too, and her plans for her newest additions to her outfits. Fluttershy and Twilight both were intrigued with Rarity's newest designs, in which she planned to work on during the week. Rarity mentioned being hungry after all the trouble she went through to gather the gems, and Fluttershy suggested visiting Pinkie Pie. To announce Twilight's return and to get something to eat. Twilight was also feeling hungry, now that Fluttershy mentioned it.

A Chill Ran Down The Spine

The girls walked a few blocks toward an interesting, colorful building. It felt and smelled oddly similar to Sweet Snacks Café back home, as Twilight approached the building. She felt the energy and hype like having a sugar rush, and the smell of sweet baked goods aroused her senses like a fresh baked pie sitting on a window sill.

"Sugar Cube Corner..." Twilight said to herself. "Interesting..." Twilight continued walking with the girls, and entered.

"Hi everypony!" Pinkie yelled, as the girls walked into the shop, with Pinkie Pie behind the register. "Hi Sci-Twi!" Twilight perked up when Pinkie called her out.

"Uhh... hi..." Twilight said, awkwardly trying to look elsewhere around the shop, focusing too hard on the stacked pies, plates of decorated and colorful cupcakes, with many types of sweets, that spread around the glass cases, observing like she was window shopping.

"Try this!" Pinkie yelled, as she shoved a colorfully bright cupcake in Twilight's mouth. Twilight was having a hard time eating the full cupcake in one bite, but she enjoyed it. Her tongue was swimming with flavors, as she swallowed. Crumbs and some frosting were still all over her mouth.

"Pinkie, that was delicious!" Twilight replied with a muffled voice, swallowing the rest of the cupcake, and whipping her face.

"Thanks! It's a new flavor I'm trying out called "Rainbow Flash!"." Pinkie added. "What brings you all here?" Pinkie asked.

"Oh, we wanted to see if you're good for a lunch break?" Fluttershy asked.

"Ooh, let me check in with Mr. Cake!" Pinkie said, heading for the employee's room. Pinkie hopped out and was excited. "He said 'yes!'."

"Splendid!" Rarity amused. As they were about to leave, a mare with an orange coat, yellow mane and tail with a cowgirl hat, with one small ribbon wrapped at the end of her tail. She came walking in. She was carrying a case of apple pies.

"Applejack?" Twilight commented.

"Howdy there Twilight!" Applejack responded. "When did ya get back?"

"A while ago." Twilight replied. Applejack nodded and headed for the glass case full of goodies and placed down her apple pies.

"Hey, Pinkie Pie!" Applejack said. "Ah have the apple pies, Mrs. Cake ordered!"

"Sweet! I'll let her know!" Pinkie yelled.

"There's no need! You go on ahead Pinkie!" Mr. Cake commented.

"Okay, thanks!" Pinkie said. Afterward, the girls headed out and Applejack asked Twilight the same question. Rarity was discussing where to go as far as finding some place to eat.

As they were walking, a pegasus from above, on a cloud decided to pay a visit. She had a blue coat, a rainbow mane and tail. She took the opportunity to scare prank Twilight while they weren't looking. Rainbow Dash quietly swooped in on Twilight. She tapped her tail, and she quickly vanished before Twilight turned back to look to see what hit her tail. Twilight saw nothing. But, as she turned around, Rainbow Dash screamed in her face.

"Hi Twilight!" Rainbow Dash yelled. Twilight screamed and fell to the ground, alerting the girls and turning back to see Rainbow Dash and Twilight.

"Rainbow Dash?" Twilight questioned as she got up, dusting herself off. The others were glad to meet up with each other. Rainbow Dash was laughing at how shocked Twilight looked. Rainbow Dash noticed something was different about Twilight, but she couldn't figure out what it was. Then it hit her like an object falling to the floor at an excelled rate, smashing on impact to the floor.

"Whaa-what happened to your wings?!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"I-I... don't know!" Twilight muttered, as sweat began to break from her mane, trying to not be noticed or anything suspicious.

"Oh, you're right! I can't believe I didn't notice until now!" Rarity commented.

"You guys didn't notice the whole time?!" Pinkie Pie questioned. "I noticed that before I noticed the glasses!"

"Ha-how do you lose a part of your own body?! Twilight!" Rainbow Dash added. She began to be furious with Twilight. "Twilight?!" Rainbow Dash came closer to Twilight trying to corner her to the side of a building.

"What are you...?" Applejack commented, as she looked back to see Rainbow Dash in her attacking stance against Twilight.

"Oh... oh my..." Fluttershy whispered to herself. They all watched Rainbow Dash corner Twilight to the building. Twilight's back was against the wall, and Rainbow Dash placed her hoof to the side of her, close enough to impale her face.

"Who are you?!" Rainbow Dash questioned, proudly standing her ground against the imposter. "Well?!" As Rainbow Dash pushed her snout against Twilight's. Twilight looked deep into her determined, crimson eyes. Twilight sighed, Rainbow Dash let her down to speak.

"I'm sorry..." Twilight said sincerely. "I'm not Princess Twilight... I'm Twilight... from the human world..." The girls gasped.

"You guys didn't notice that?" Pinkie yelled, making everypony feel stupid.

"W-wait?!" Applejack questioned. "If you're not our Twilight,where is our Twilight?"

"She's fine! Don't worry! I decided to come here, while your Twilight with everyone else!" Twilight expressed.

"Oh, why didn't ya just say so?" Applejack responded, feeling relieved.

"Why did you come here?" Rainbow Dash added to her question.

"I was... curious..." Twilight answered. "Since, you're Twilight can come and go, I figured... I take the opportunity while I can."

"Okay, I believe you." Rainbow Dash responded with a chuckle.

"Is she returning soon?" Rarity asked.

"Yeah, I think so..." Twilight whispered.

"Great!" Rarity replied. The girl stood idle in the middle of the street.

"So..." Applejack said to break the silence between them. "Food?" The girls agreed and started to walk once again to a suitable restaurant. The girls asked each other where to go. Rarity suggested a nice place to visit since they have a guest with them. However, when they asked Twilight, she wanted to go to where they would suggest to be a good place.

The Parallels Of Twilight

They arrived at a place called the Ponyville Café. Indoors, the place felt like a classic country-side family owned restaurant, with a bunch of fairly old photos of Ponyville of settlers and the Apple family establishing livestock and barns within the first ever town built, mounted on the wooden walls with various old antiques, placed around the area for aesthetic purposes. In which, Twilight was amused by the historical artistry the place held. They all took a seat at a table, and ordered a special meal for Twilight. Twilight was glad they've been so kind to her after the day she was having yesterday. It is no wonder Princess Twilight enjoyed crossing over to theirs, the simple treatments, the feeling of being loved and valued. While they were eating, the girls asked Twilight about the other world. Twilight shared her stories and interactions with their human counterparts. They were overjoyed to know that their other dimensional-selves were more or less the same. They were also seeing what differences their Twilight had with her. They each joked around and Twilight was enjoying being with them.

After they finished lunch, they decided to show Twilight around Ponyville, to feel as welcome as they made Princess Twilight in their world.

"Around the Town"

Performed by: Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight Sparkle.

[Chorus-Together]:

Let's get down (let's get down), we'll show you around (we'll show you around).

Hear the sound (hear the sound), we'll sing as we take you,

Around the town!

[Rarity]:

I have all the fashion of today.

My Carousel, swinging by your way.

How are you doing? Where are you going?

C'mon tell your story.

Start a party? Or going exploring?

No need to worry.

You could have it all.

Relaxing time at the spa.

Need to shine? Gleaming so fine.

The jewels you could wear.

Making all the others stare.

[Rainbow Dash]:

From Ponyville to Cloudsdale.

Became a Wonderbolt without fail.

I would be in charge of the weather.

Protecting ponies from any danger.

Loyalty is my greatest treasure.

Being the fastest without measure.

(Chorus)

[Applejack]:

Sweet Apple Acres of the Apple family.

Gatherin apples all throughout my history.

No time's a wastin, of all the cider ah be makin.

Of all the things to be tastin, somethin to sink your teeth in.

[Fluttershy]:

I care for nature, all throughout our adventures.

My love for every creature, hide away from any danger.

Every place, everywhere.

I made the Animal shelter.

Some disowned, I have a place to call home.

(Chorus)

[Pinkie Pie]:

Let's break it down.

We got games and theater.

Cottages, City hall Mayor.

Toy store, gag store,

Quills and couches,

Library and lounges,

Play store, old store,

School house, treehouse, a place for a mouse.

I could go all day, but I almost forgotten.

Sugar Cube Corner topped with frostin!

Your old pal Pinkie, now how to party!

[Twilight]:

How wonderful, how wondrous.

So beautiful, and so joyous.

I'm happy I came.

No regrets.

And that I made, such great friends.

If I had the time, I would spend the day.

Everyday, to a world that would take me away.

(Chorus)

The Crux

They took her to a few of the tour hot spots, like the arcade, in which many kids decided to surround Twilight as she was playing, the tea shop which was relaxing as was the Day Spa, and Applejack's farm on Sweet Apple Acres. The last stop, which took the longest was Twilight going through the library books at the Golden Oak Library.

They enjoyed Twilight's visit, she was almost like their Twilight. They all loved her the same. It was soon after, Spike rolled in, to steal the spotlight as he was running toward them.

"Twilight?!" Spike yelled, out of breath and was panting while kneeling to the ground, taking a moment to breathe.

"Spike?" Twilight questioned. "What is it?" Spike inhaled to say what he needed to say.

"Twilight! The mirror! It shattered!" Spike yelled, throwing his arms around like a maniac. The girls gasped, as they began to worry about their friend trapped in another world.

"Wha-what do you mean shattered?!" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I went to see the mirror, after what happened with Twilight, but when I saw the mirror, it was tipped over and was shattered all over the floor!" Spike answered.

"No way!" Rarity commented. The girls were shocked by the turn of events, however, they turned to Twilight for help.

"How?!" Applejack asked Twilight.

"I-I don't know..." Twilight answered.

"What do we do now?" Applejack asked the girls. "Can't you fix it?" Applejack asked Twilight.

"I don't know if I can." Twilight answered.

"W-wait, are you saying this is not our Twilight?" Spike asked, as he was conversing with Rarity.

"Yes, I'm afraid our Twilight is stuck in her world." Rarity said. Spike was surely worried about it now.

The others believed that Twilight wasn't initially the cause of the mirror breaking, but they continued to ask Twilight if there was any way they could help in fixing it.

"Ah don't believe it for one second." Applejack yelled. "Twilight said that you were intelligent! In like science and stuff!"

"Applejack, your world is different though. The laws of science and technology are different in my world. I can't work here the same way." Twilight suggested.

"You're kiddin'?" Applejack added. "I see..."

"I'm sorry, I can't help..." Twilight assured. The girls were convinced that Twilight couldn't have done something like this because she would be trapped as well. Spike burped out flames of green and out came a written message.

"Princess Celestia summons us!" Spike said. The girls' heads perked up, and were relieved that Celestia's name came up. "She wants to help us in getting Princess Twilight back!"

"This is great!" Rainbow Dash said. "If anypony could fix our problem, Princess Celestia would know what to do!"

"Good thinking Spike!" Rarity said.

"Yeah! Let's head there immediately!" Spike suggested.

The girls made their way to meet with Princess Celestia, however, Twilight was worried, things got more complicated than she had hoped.

"This situation went from bad to worse?!" Twilight said to herself. "What have I done?!"

Juxtaposed

Meanwhile, at Canterlot High School. Sunset was throwing her fist at the mirror and stallion statue. Her anger fueled her with adrenaline, to suppress the pain in her knuckles as she continually punched the mirror. Princess Twilight came in, and tried to get Sunset away from the mirror.

"Sunset!" Princess Twilight yelled. "Sunset, stop!" Princess Twilight held Sunset's waist trying to pry her away from the mirror, however, she was weak against Sunset's rage. "Stop it! You're going to break the mirror!"

"Get off!" Sunset yelled intensively, pushing Princess Twilight to the ground. Princess Twilight's rump hit the ground hard, making her unable to mask the pain she felt from the cemented path. She ended up scraping her hand across the walkways, and so she rubbed her hands, wiping away the blood and ripped skin. Sunset looked back at Princess Twilight. Sunset fell apart when she saw Princess Twilight in pain. "Twilight?!" Sunset said sincerely, as she kneeled down to comfort her, by holding her hand where she was torn. "I-I'm so, so sorry Twilight!" Tears fell from Sunset's eyes, she finally lost it when she couldn't enter through the portal. "I'm so sorry..." Sunset continued.

"I'm okay, are you?!" Princess Twilight said calmly. Princess Twilight adjusted herself to her knees, to meet Sunset directly.

"I-I... can't go through..." Sunset sniffled. "I-It's closed..."

"It can't be..." Princess Twilight said softly, becoming worked up of the situation, as she held Sunset's bruised and bloodied knuckles.

The girls finally arrived, parked in front of the school. They all ran toward them, and they saw Princess Twilight and Sunset saddened and hurt. Rainbow Dash ran to see if she could go through the portal. She placed her hand, and she felt the mirror as a hard surface, making her hand sit firmly on the glass. Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Fluttershy saw as Rainbow Dash looked back at them. The situation got worse.

"Okay..." Applejack commented. "We need to find a way to get in some other way."

"I have an idea..." Fluttershy said.

"There is no other way!" Sunset argued, as she interrupted Fluttershy unknowingly. "Unless we are able to get across the ocean to that island again?! There is no way we'll be able to find a portal in time..."

"Maybe it is almost time for the portal to re-open on it's own?" Rarity suggested.

"Hey..." Fluttershy attempted again to grab her attention.

"No, it's not." Sunset denounced. "It's only every 30 moons, we are barely in the middle of the month."

"Okay, how about we use an artifact that transports us there instantly?!" Rainbow Dash added.

"What are you talking about?!" Sunset yelled. While the girls argued over their options as far as getting Twilight and Princess Twilight back home.

"Hey!" Pinkie yelled. The girls turn toward her. "Okay Fluttershy, go ahead."

"Oh, um... we could try to use our elements to open it back up?" Fluttershy suggested.

"Will it work without Twilight?" Sunset asked Princess Twilight.

"I'm not sure, it's worth a shot. But, can I use your book to see if I can contact anyone?" Princess Twilight asked.

"Of course." Sunset handed over her book to Princess Twilight.

"Unfortunately, I can't be much help, I don't have my element on me to do anything." Princess Twilight said.

"You're fine, Twilight." Sunset suggested. "Okay, let's try it !"

The girls gathered together, held hands, and shouted: 'Friendship is Magic!'. They stood there for a moment, they looked at each other to see if they had any changes to their clothes, if they have the pony ears, or hair suddenly growing longer.

"It didn't work..." Sunset said. "Now what?!"

An Ongoing Worry

Meanwhile, back in Equestria. The girls took the train to Canterlot. Twilight sat by the window, she was trying to ease herself by observing the scenery.

"Y'all alright Twilight?" Applejack asked, as she was the one sitting across from her from the other seat.

"Yeah..." Twilight sighed.

"I know you're pretty worried, gettin' homesick and everythin'..." Applejack added. "But, we'll figure this thing out together, right?!" Twilight gave a passive smile.

"Yeah, you bet!" Rainbow Dash added. The others joined in the conversation as well.

"What are you doing Spike?" Rarity asked.

"The book is glowing!" Spike said. "They've sent a message from Sunset's book, hoping to see if any of us would reply!" Twilight perked up, and started listening in to their conversation. The girls gathered together as well.

"Oh, that is great news!" Rarity expressed. "What does she say?"

"She was asking about the mirror, they can't enter through!" Spike responded.

"Well, let them know we are on our way to see Princess Celestia to figure this out!" Applejack added.

"Got it!" Spike replied.

The Arrival

They arrived at Canterlot, and they were escorted to the castle by the guards. They were hoping for more of a warm welcome, however, the situation at hand was urgent according to Princess Celestia. The castle was massive and full of luxurious fabric and silk curtains, painted glass windows, in which Twilight only a chance to glance at, they entered to the main corridor where the Princess would be. The red carpet showed the way to Princess Celestia, as they opened the doorway. There she was, an alicorn, wings and a horn, her radiant white coat, her fading and flowing sparkling rainbow mane and tail, with her golden horseshoes, and crown upon her head with a golden necklace. Sitting beside her was an alicorn with a much darker coat, mane and tail, she was much smaller, and seemed to have an opposite aura than the other.

Meddler

They entered, and stood a close enough proximity from the stairway leading to the throne. The girls bowed their heads toward Princess Celestia. Twilight was a little late to bow, since she was nervous and watched the others first before taking action. Princess Celestia stood proudly, welcoming them and asked them to raise their heads.

"Step forth, visitor!" Princess Celestia said, pointing out Twilight from the group. "According to Spike, the mirror that bridged both worlds has shattered." Princess Celestia announced. "Is this correct?" Twilight gulped in fear of her, and she hesitated to answer her.

"Y-yes... your highness..." Twilight whispered.

"Speak up, please!" Princess Celestia demanded.

"Yes." Twilight said.

"You are not our Princess Twilight, you are another Twilight from that world?"

"Yes."

"Please, tell me what caused the mirror to be shattered?"

"I-I don't know..."

"There were no witnesses I presume?"

"I was the only one who found out, your majesty." Spike said.

"I see." Celestia continued. "Well, a few guards went and checked on it themselves, and they concluded that it was no accident."

"Did somepony else do it? Applejack asked. "Can they fix it?"

"I would normally assume there would be somepony or something behind this, however the only ones who should know about the mirror is you all, and our kingdom." Princess Celestia said. "But, unfortunately it will take up a couple days to fully repair the mirror. Have you informed Princess Twilight?"

"I have!" Spike announced. "With connections using Sunset's book!"

"Good!" Princess Celestia said. "Now you!" Princess Celestia pointed out toward Twilight.

"You came here, under what circumstance?" Princess Celestia asked.

"I... I was curious..." Twilight answered.

"Did Princess Twilight grant you authorization to come through to our world?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Y-yes..." Twilight responded.

"According to my connections with the School of Friendship, you impersonated Princess Twilight during a lecture. And caused an disruption among the students and forced the class to be dismissed. Is this correct?" Princess Celestia added.

"Y..."

"W-wait, Princess, she didn't know..." Fluttershy interrupted softly. "Sorry... but it was on short notice and she barely came from the mirror..."

"Did any of you know that this was not our Twilight?" Princess Celestia asked the girls. They all were quietly chattering.

"No, your majesty, we didn't." Applejack said softly. "At first..."

"Spike?" Princess Celestia asked.

"N-no..." Spike said.

"So, you came, but you didn't announce to everyone that you weren't the princess." Princess Celestia asked Twilight. "And that you did not let anypony know that you were given permission to be here?"

"Yes..." Twilight said.

"So, you lied to us about being Princess Twilight?"

"Yes..." Twilight responded.

"Are you lying about what happened to the mirror?" Princess Celestia asked. Twilight was breaking into tears.

"Yes..." Twilight said softly. "I... I broke it..." The girls were all saddened and angered by Twilight for trapping their friend in the other world, but they were also growing close to Twilight. "I'm so sorry... I'm so sorry... your majesty... everyone..."

"Spike, be sure to let Princess Twilight know of this." Princess Celestia requested. "The mirror will be fixed, but it will take time to recover it. For now, in the meantime, I'm afraid I will have this Twilight being kept on watch in the dungeon."

"What?!" Rarity questioned.

"Oh please, Princess, can we watch over her?!" Applejack asked.

"That's a little extreme, right?!" Rainbow Dash added.

"I understand, I'm sorry, but I cannot trust her with all that she caused." Princess Celestia announced.

Twilight was hyperventilating, and she ran for the door, but the door was immediately guarded by the royal guards. The girls were shocked to see Twilight run away.

"My ponies, please bring her to me." Princess Celestia requested. "I won't harm you Twilight, I promise..." The girls hesitated for a moment, but they all came toward Twilight.

"It's okay, Twilight..." Applejack assured. "You can trust Princess Celestia..."

"No... no... no, no, no NO!" Twilight said to herself. She noticed the horn on top of her head started to glow, in which she took one last glance at everyone. Then, she vanished.

"What?!" Princess Celestia yelled. "How did she..." The girls were as surprised as Princess Celestia was.

"My guards and ponies, please keep an eye out for Twilight. You must bring her back, I don't want anymore trouble to be caused. Understood?"

"Yes, your majesty!" The girls said simultaneously.

"Spike?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Yes, your highness?" Spike said.

"Please inform Princess Twilight about what has happened, and if at all, if she could find a way to return." Princess Celestia requested.

"Yes!" Spike said, as she picked up the book and started writing.

The Problems Left Behind

Meanwhile, back at Canterlot High School.

"Hold on!" Princess Twilight yelled. "I'm getting something!" The girls went to Princess Twilight. They saw the book glow, the words appeared on the book within minutes. Princess Twilight was reading into it.

"Okay, it is from Spike!" Princess Twilight said, as the girls gave a short relief. "Oh no!"

"What is it?!" Sunset asked.

"The mirror on the other side..." Princess Twilight hesitated. "Was shattered... by Twilight..." The girls gasped.

"What?!" The girls said simultaneously.

"Twilight is on the run, and they are searching for her!" Princess Twilight said. Princess Twilight began to shiver, and breathing heavily over the amount of stress she was encountering.

"I can't believe this..." Sunset said.

"What isn't there to believe?" Applejack asked Sunset. "She said it was Twilight."

"There has to be something else..." Sunset suggested. "This isn't Twilight!"

"Well, what else could it be?!" Princess Twilight asked.

"I don't know. There is something wrong with her!" Sunset responded. "We have to go back to her place!"

"Why would we do that?!" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I have a feeling that we might be able to find an answer there!" Sunset added.

"We don't have time to snoop around on a hunch!" Applejack commented.

"I hate to say this, but I think Applejack has a point, what if she really is going crazy? We have to focus on bringing our Twilight back and Princess Twilight home!" Rarity added.

"Please." Sunset asked. "I don't want to believe that this is entirely her fault!"

"I was a little worried that Spike was not there when we went over." Fluttershy added.

"Well, if you make you feel any better, they are going to fix the mirror, but it will take a while until it is finished." Princess Twilight assured.

"Alrighty..." Applejack said. "We'll go look, but afterward, we have to find a way to get them back."

"Thank you, everyone!" Sunset said sincerely. They all came together, hopped on Applejack's truck and headed for Twilight's place.

Chapter 6: The Mystery Revealed

Chapter 6: The Mystery Revealed

Let It Rain

As they drove to Twilight's house, the clouds above were heavy, and it began to pour. The winds felt like it was carrying the truck to a whole different direction than where they were destined. They could hear the thunder outside, but no traces of light were seen in the skies.

Applejack parallel parked toward Twilight's house, and the rain was starting to drizzle down, which made Rarity hesitant to walk out, her makeup would be ruined by the rain. Luckily, Applejack had spare umbrellas in the truck, allowing Rarity to use it. The girls couldn't care less about the weather, but to find the truth about this destructive side of Twilight.

A Mystery

Sunset opened the door, allowed everyone in and shut the door. The girls sighed of how cold it was inside Twilight's house. Fluttershy went to find Spike, she was calling out his name. The girls started to search Twilight's place for any clues as to how she became this way. Sunset was looking through Twilight's room, into her drawers and dressers to see if anything stuck out to her. Sunset was feeling a bit uncomfortable looking through Twilight's stuff, but she was hoping that she would find something to make Twilight seem less villainous. Applejack was looking around the other rooms like the bathroom, or other closets. Scavenging through boxes and cabinets or drawers, but she could not find anything remotely useful or helpful in this situation. Pinkie Pie was scouring the couches in the living room, she ended up finding some pocket change during her search, but she rendered them useless. Fluttershy kept trying to call out for Spike, even crawling around the kitchen cabinets for any traces of fur or activity. Rarity was cleaning up Sunset's meat-shoe traces on the floor, which led up to looking at the suspicious locked closet, trying to find a way to open it. Rarity tried to lockpick the lock of the closet. Princess Twilight was with Sunset, more or less, looking around with her, but was also making sure she wasn't missing any updates in the book. Rainbow Dash was trying to look like she was helping in searching, but she was focusing on the meat that was left out on the floor.

"Shit!" Rarity yelled as she failed to open the lock, alerting everyone around the area. "Excuse my language, but there's nothing here!" The girl began to return together in the living room. Fluttershy, however, was still on the search for Spike. Applejack was convinced she was right, and they were wasting time, uncomfortably searching through Twilight's personal belongings.

"This can't be..." Sunset said under her breath. "T-there has to be something we're missing!"

"C'mon Sunset, we looked everywhere!" Rainbow Dash said, disgusted to look anymore.

"We've tried, Sunset." Applejack assured. "There's nothing here. We've been wasting time, when we could be across town for the other portal." Sunset rage was coming back to bite her.

"You're not looking hard enough!" Sunset yelled back to Applejack. Applejack drew back, but she returned fire, the thunder rages, allowing the lighting to strike the trees or the surface, making the very ground shake. The girls stood back and watched them go off on each other.

"What are we even looking for?!" Applejack asked.

"I don't know!"

"What if all this time, this wasn't a problem we can find, but something we did?!"

"So, you're saying it's my fault?!"

"No! Am saying what if we did do somethin' to upset her?!"

"Like what?!"

"Maybe, for example, ignorin' her?!"

"So, you are blaming me?! Don't act like neither of you were listening in for her?!"

"She's spent the most time with you, hasn't she?! And I am not blamin' 'you', I said 'we'!"

"Whatever! You are all thinking about it, right?!" Sunset yelled. Princess Twilight tried to calm both of them down.

"Girls, please stop. This is helping no one..." Princess Twilight said calmly.

"Okay, fine! I'm the problem! I admit it!" Sunset said, cooling off a little. She started to tear up. "I-I ... ignored her... when she was the one... there the whole time... for me... I'm sorry..." The girls began to feel sad for both of them. Pinkie Pie got up and put her hand on Sunset's shoulder. Sunset pulled her in for a hug.

"We all ignored her, when she probably needed us the most!" Pinkie suggested. The others drew closer.

"I'm sorry Sunset..." Applejack said sincerely. "I didn't mean..."

"I know..." Sunset interrupted. Sunset Wiped her eyes. "These past couple days, I just felt... emotional..."

"I understand." Applejack assured. Princess Twilight stood back, and watched them all hug it out with each other, she smiled, they had a lot to discuss. But, she noticed that one of them was not present.

"Where's Fluttershy?" Princess Twilight asked the girls. The girl turned toward Princess Twilight, and they all headed for the other rooms to see where Fluttershy was.

"Fluttershy?" Princess Twilight whispered. She found her in Twilight's room in her closet.

"Shh!" Fluttershy angrily whispered.

"Sorry!" Princess Twilight whispered. "Girls, in here!" As Princess Twilight went back to normal volume. The girls headed for Twilight's room.

"Shht!" Fluttershy whispered back, started to get pissed off at them, continually digging through a mountain of clothes in Twilight's closet.

"What's going on Fluttershy?!" Rainbow Dash yelled. Princess Twilight quickly went to hold down Rainbow Dash's mouth. The girls saw how quick she was to cover Rainbow Dash's mouth, they held their own mouths as well. Fluttershy got up, and stormed at them, looking at them with her captivating and hypnotic angry eyes.

"If you guys won't shut up! And let me concentrate! I will make sure that you all suffer and I'll have your hides hanging on my wall in my shed! UNDERSTAND!" Fluttershy yelled. The girls nodded gently, not saying a single word, and still having their mouths covered. Princess Twilight was so scared, she was gripping onto Rainbow Dash tightly, she began to suffocate, turning into a darker tint of blue of her skin. "Umm... thank you... sorry..." Fluttershy returned to being her usual self, and continued to dig through the clothes. She heard a faint whisper coming from the closet, ontinued to dig through, she found Spike lying beneath the clothes, he was wrapped up in strings. "Spike!" Fluttershy cried. Spike quickly ran out of the room. She followed, the girls were relieved and let go of their mouths. Princess Twilight finally let go of Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash kneeled to the floor, trying to catch her breath, coughing.

"I'm so sorry Rainbow!" Princess Twilight said sincerely.

"I swear, we keep doing this to each other..." Rainbow Dash commented while breathing heavily. "We are not... going to accomplish... anything!"

"You're right..." Sunset said. "We need to stick together, and not hurt each other."

"Yeah, I'll forgive you this time Twilight!" Rainbow Dash said as she got up, feeling normal again. "We have to make sure we don't piss certain people off!"

"Okay...?" Princess Twilight responded. The girls headed for the kitchen, where Fluttershy was at, watching Spike eat Twilight's meal on the floor. He also was drinking all the water that was left in the bowl, as well as eating the food that was left out for him yesterday.

"Poor Spike, what could have done this to you...?" Fluttershy added. Fluttershy tried to comfort him, but he was hostile, and growled whenever she came near him. Fluttershy examined him, and it seems that he was in there for the past couple of days, underneath the clothing, wrapped in strings. All compressed tightly, he showed signs of struggle, but he knew that if he continued to resist, he would strangle himself and stopped breathing altogether. Fluttershy was traumatized by the look of Spike, he clearly was hidden and suffered for a long period of time.

"What happened to Spike?!" Applejack asked.

"Sunset... I don't think Twilight would do this... why would she...?" Fluttershy said as tears streamed down her face. Fluttershy held onto Rainbow Dash for comfort.

"There, there..." Rainbow Dash patted Fluttershy's head, reluctant to give her a full hug.

"It's alright darling..." Rarity commented, holding onto Fluttershy's shoulder. "You found him!"

"Yeah... I did..." Fluttershy sniffled, and she smiled.

"Okay, that is one mystery solved, now how about this closet?" Applejack questioned, pointing at the locked closet in the living room.

"It must have something, since it is locked." Sunset added. "Let's try to not break it."

"We clearly don't have a lot of time to look for a key." Applejack assured. "We need to find out what's in there!"

A Good Boy

Moments later, Spike came along, and sat on the head rest of the couch to get everyone's attention. Spike was happy, and was allowing Fluttershy to comfort him. Spike was patting his collar, the dog tag he had on. Fluttershy went to see what he was doing, and she took it off, and it was an oddly shaped metallic tag. Fluttershy turned it over and it was the closet key.

"Girls, Spike had the key!" Fluttershy yelled in excitement.

"Open it!" Applejack said. The girls gathered around to see what was in store for them.

Where We Left Off

Meanwhile, back in Equestria.

Twilight was well covered beneath layers of thick trees and bushes of all types of odd colors. There were thorns and briars everywhere, which was making it harder to walk through, or to find a path that leads somewhere outside the heavy and moist environment. The ground with each hoofstep felt like she was sinking into it, the air was hard to breath, and she could barely see where she was going, because her eyes felt watery over the smell of a swampy gas filling her senses.

"Where am I?" Twilight asked herself, as she was trampling over a thicket of thistles. The voice came back, and was loud in her ears.

"Idiot!" The voice yelled. "How can you have possibly made things worse?! You had one simple job to do!"

"Shut up!" Twilight yelled back. "It's not like you were helping at all?!"

"I offered you guidance! Use your damn head for once! You are supposed to be the smart one!"

"Yeah? I can't lie!"

"No shit?! You're a terrible liar! I would have made the situation better myself!"

As Twilight was dragging around her hooves, she fell, not before she heard a loud screech. Twilight looked above her, she saw a large carnivorous bird diving to pick her up. Twilight ran, and before the bird could latch it's talons into her, Twilight dodged the bird's catch. Twilight, out of breath, fell to the ground, and she saw it circling back around to attempt another hunt. Twilight ran, regardless of the pain in her legs from scraping it against the thorns. Twilight took some cover under a burrow, but not before a small creature, startled, and growled at Twilight. Twilight ran the other direction, but before she could think, the bird swoops in, Twilight dodged once again in time. The bird took hold of another prey, as it flew away, back to it's home.

Twilight struggled to breathe, but she was relieved, laying on the ground ready to pass out. It was not long until she saw a flash of a rainbow that flew past her gaze in the sky. Twilight got back up, and headed for another place to take shelter. Twilight contemplated on being captured by them, it would be less of a pain and she at least won't be eaten for dinner. Before Twilight thought of anything, she tripped and fell into a great depth of darkness, screaming as she fell deeper and deeper.

Nothing But More Questions

Meanwhile, back at Twilight's place.

The girls unlocked the closet, and opened the doors. They found stacks of boxes that had papers filled to the top and with notebooks with separate files. The girls dug into them to see if they could find anything regarding her insanity.

The girls dug through their own separate pile of papers and files, but they were all Twilight's past school work. Even the answers to the exams they all studied for, in which Rainbow Dash found and decided to take pictures of it while nobody was looking.

"This is hopeless!" Sunset yelled, pushing a box to the corner with her boot. "There's nothing useful to finding out why Twilight is crazy, or getting Princess Twilight back home! You guys were right... I just wasted our time!" As Sunset sat down on the box, with her hands in her face.

"It's okay, Sunset..." Princess Twilight assured Sunset. While she went to take Sunset's hands away from her face. Princess Twilight smiled, and Sunset smiled back. Spike went over to the closet, to point at something. Applejack went over to him to see what he was doing.

"What'cha doing there, sugarcube?!" Applejack commented. Spike grabbed a book from the closet, it was hard to grasp with his paws. Applejack grabbed it, it was stuck, until she pulled it. It opened a secret walk-in compartment within the closet.

"Everyone, you're not going to believe this!" Applejack yelled. The girls surrounded Applejack, and they all headed inside.

They entered through an open storage unit, they were surrounded by Twilight's science equipment and boxes full of chemicals, paperwork, blueprints, and samples of some sort.

"Man, is Twilight breaking bad in here, or what?!" Rainbow Dash commented.

"Let's hope not!" Sunset said. "This looks promising!" As she picked up a recently used blueprint of a familiar object. While the girls went through some of the interesting finds Twilight kept.

"Don't do drugs, kids!" Pinkie said directly to the reader.

"I see..." Princess Twilight said. "So, a locket that could absorb Equestrian magic!"

"Wait, again?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Didn't she have that same thing during the Friendship Games?!"

"She did, the first time we've ever met each other!" Sunset commented. "She had a device that would absorb our element's magic, that's when she became... Midnight!"

"Midnight?" Princess Twilight asked. "So, is it like a darker side of herself?"

"Yeah, you could say that, she almost sucked our entire school into Ponyville." Sunset responded.

"Oh my..." Princess Twilight said.

"Twilight, what do you think these are?" Rarity asked, holding a few odd samples inside containers.

"Are they labeled?" Princess Twilight asked.

"Not that I can see." Rarity added.

"Bring them over here." Princess Twilight suggested as Rarity brought them over and set them on a table with a lamp that Sunset turned on. They each examined the samples, they all looked like they were pieces of some objects, they each were colored differently, and were made out of rock or gem stones. Then, it hit Sunset.

"I know what they are!" Sunset yelled, alerted everyone in the closet. "They are the pieces to her locket, she used parts of it to remake another one!"

"Hey guys, I found something else too!" Applejack said, as she read on the blueprint Pinkie Pie pointed out. "It seems she was in the middle of experimenting with the remake on various subjects"."

"How could she absorb Equestrian magic from anyone?" Sunset asked.

"It reads..." Applejack continued. "Twilight has been gathering it from people who acquired magic, under various circumstances. She contained them before they were to use the magic for themselves."

"Well, that explains why we haven't seen any trouble for the past few months..." Rainbow Dash added.

"Yeah, and so she would use it for herself?" Princess Twilight asked.

"It seems like she hadn't used it for any other purpose, but to gather magic from enemies." Applejack added.

"Well great..." Sunset said.

"That's not all!" Fluttershy said. "It seems the locket does absorb the magic, but it can be filled with darkness as well. She said, it can cause her to have nightmares, and hear "voices"..."

"So the Midnight inside of her, is starting to have more control over her as she continues to use it." Sunset concluded.

"Why didn't she take it off, or put it away?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I have no idea." Applejack added. "The rest of it is unreadable..."

"She could be using her own element to gather the magic." Sunset theorized.

"Okay, so we did find out what has been going on with Twilight, however, how can we return to Equestria now?" Sunset asked.

"No idea..." Princess Twilight said. "But, if we can, we should move this to the living room. It's getting stuffy here."

An Inside Joke

They all were crowded in there, for everyone to see anything, and after breathing all over and talking, the air felt dense and warm. They all went out of it, and closed the doors. They all felt the cold, breathing down their arms and necks as they approached near the door. The weather outside was still drizzling and thundering.

"So what now?" Applejack asked, as they all sat on the couch, surrounding each other talking about how they were going to get Twilight and Princess Twilight back home. Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash sat in one couch, Princess Twilight and Sunset sat in another, with Fluttershy on the floor sitting criss cross so she can comfort Spike after all that he has done for them, and Pinkie Pie came laying right on top of Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash.

"I don't know, but I guess you can say... we all came out of the closet?!" Pinkie Pie said, as she held her phone out with the comical drumbeat playing. Rainbow Dash was the first one to laugh, they all started to laugh, calming themselves down a little, with all that they have discovered about Twilight's experiments.

"Pinkie, you're so random!" Rainbow Dash enlightened.

Rock Bottom

Meanwhile, back in Equestria.

Twilight continued to fall, she would skid across some branches and vines, and she would try to grab them, but with her hooves she could not latch on tightly enough to reduce her fall. As she came closer to the ground, she was stopped immediately in mid-air, by the use of a spell. Twilight looked around, but she saw darkness, she tried to see what saved her from what could have been a fatal accident. Twilight dropped to the floor, and a light flickered from somewhere in the darkness by a nearby creature. The light was a bright green, which matched whatever was laying there within the place Twilight landed.

Twilight's heart was racing, breathing heavily, she tried to find an edge or something to find light among the dark. Until, a large horn glows in the darkness, brightening up the area. She looked and saw an alicorn, that was mangled and covered with holes, sharp fangs like a bat, a transparent and faded light blue mane and tail, black coat, and her eyes were bright green. The alicorn was circling her, making Twilight's rump hit the edge of some rocks and moss, pinning her up against a corner like how Rainbow Dash did to confront her.

"Princess Twilight..." the alicorn said. "No, you're not Twilight! No wings?!"

"I'm not!" Twilight answered.

"Interesting... I see you're on the run. Why?!" The alicorn yelled, her words echoed in the dense place, returning to her like it circled back to haunt her again.

"I-I don't know what you mean?" Twilight responded.

"Running from the others, why?"

"How do you know about that?!" The alicorn smiled.

"You clearly don't belong here! Who are you?!" The alicorn asked.

"Twilight..."

"Imposter! Although, I could use you to finally get back at those pesky mares in Ponyville!"

Who is she?! Twilight questioned herself. Twilight remembered a specific creature, one from Princess Twilight's stories she told back at the mall, the way she described that particular creature in the story.

"You're... you're Chrysalis, aren't you?!" Twilight asked, hesitantly.

"How do you know my name?!" Chrysalis yelled.

"My sister told me..."

"Hmph, smart pony!"

"Let me go!"

"No, since I can't have the real Twilight, I will have to make do with you!"

"What are you...?!" Twilight was picked up from off the ground with Chrysalis's magic, and she was tossed around the cavern. Chrysalis crackled at how weak and vulnerable the imposter Twilight was.

"I'm having way too much fun!" Chrysalis said while laughing. "So weak!" As she put Twilight on the ground.

Twilight got up from the ground, and she stood her ground against her. Before she could react, Chrysalis's vision in the dark gave her the advantage of beating Twilight down with her hooves. Twilight laid on the floor, bloodied, weak with bruises. Twilight was blind, she could not see without her glasses, possibly broken from the impact, and fell off somewhere.

"Stop... please..." Twilight cried. Chrysalis flashed the light again to see where Twilight was.

"Poor little pony..." Chrysalis said sarcastically. "What?! Can't use that horn of your's?!"

Search Team

Back in Ponyville.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash met up together, continuing the search for Twilight.

"Ah found no traces of her here!" Applejack yelled, as Rainbow Dash was flying in the air.

"No luck with me, either!" Rainbow Dash added.

"The place I haven't checked in Ponyville was the Everfree Forest." Applejack commented.

"Yeah, good luck finding her in there!" Rainbow Dash said sarcastically.

"What do we do now?" Applejack asked.

"I don't know, but we should meet up with the others!" Rainbow Dash suggested.

"Gotcha!" Applejack responded.

Deus Ex Machina

Back at the Everfree Forest, inside a disclosed cavern.

"C'mon, just one more trip to the other side?!" Chrysalis teased. Twilight couldn't say anything as she was beaten badly. Being picked up with Chrysalis magic and tossed around like a rag doll. Chrysalis laughed, and she thought of bringing her out to show the other ponies to surrender and get her revenge on them. Chrysalis opened up the cavern, throwing Twilight aside, as she was too weak to get up. She could see the warm sun up to the sky, and breathing the vapor of the Everfree Forest's swamp gas. It made Chrysalis disgusted, being reduced to this since the Mane 6 destroyed her kingdom.

Before Chrysalis picked Twilight up, she found an odd object, almost sticking out of her body, where the heart would be. Chrysalis, forcibly took it out, and it was a powerful object. Afterward, Twilight began to rapidly heal from it being removed. She took it, and could feel the power inside was dark and forceful. Chrysalis placed it on herself, it sunk into her skin, she could feel it nearly sticking out of her body. She crackled of how much more powerful she felt. She blasted a fiery green wave of light which signaled all nearby villages and areas of ponies, a warning to her destructive capabilities. It was waved that shook the ground, it made the trees whistle and blew to the ground, it made the winds circulate back the other direction. Everyone in Ponyville was screaming and crying for what they thought was an earthquake, but it was much worse. Applejack and Rainbow Dash on their way to meet up with everyone was seeing the green flames burst from the Everfree Forest. Rainbow Dash couldn't stabilize her flight in the sky and was taken down. Applejack fell to the ground. The green flames flashed and were teleported to where they were. They saw Chrysalis laugh and started to wreak havoc on the innocent ponies' cottages and shops, making everypony run for their life. The rest of the group on the search for Twilight, gathered, and was devastated that Chrysalis rose up once again to cause destruction.

Chapter 7: Race Against Time

Chapter 7: Race Against Time

Food For Thought

In the distance, beyond the Everfree Forest, lived many ponies in peace thanks to the Princess of Friendship and her best friends. They were known together as the Elements of Harmony. Together they took down some of the most powerful and darkest enemies, who want to enslave, destroy, and manipulate all life in Equestria. Their sacrifice and friendship was what saved many lives. Almost nothing could have separated such a powerful bond between friends and loved ones. However, a connection could be lost due to the loss of one's mind, becoming the enemy themselves, being trapped in another world, or even death…

Who could have been mad enough to break such a bond?

Relieved As Tensions Rise

Twilight awakened to the sounds of screams, the shaking of the ground, and the smell of smoke and swamp gas filling her senses enough for her to choke. Twilight was unable to see much of anything, when her eyes set to focus, but blurred without the use of her glass lenses back inside the cavern. She could barely see the smoke rising to the skies, above countless rows of trees, grass, and ridges of endless colorful bushes. It didn't help as the dense air made her eyes water as she had trouble adjusting to see. As she had trouble being able to stand firmly upon the rocks outside the cavern, she felt a sense of relief and a release of a huge burden upon her shoulders that was suddenly lifted. How was it possible? The situation at hand was inexplicably terrible, but the feeling of a massive weight being taken off, was making Twilight feel reassured and energetic. She was utterly powerless against this creature she released. But the voice in her head was silent, and her wounds of being beaten were healed.

Twilight took a moment to regain focus, retracing her steps of how it came to be:

She became overly jealous of Princess Twilight. Her curiosity of the pony world made her become in trouble with everyone because of the choices she made.

A Little Lore

Before that, however:

Twilight, after the Friendship Games, gathered pieces of her locket back at Canterlot High, as a memento of finally finding friends. It was only recently when the pressures of the upcoming exams came, pushing all students to be loaded with school work to study for them. She had no choice but to use any means necessary to eliminate any potential victims of the use of Equestrian magic to their own desires. To avoid causing disasters upon the citizens and the student body. Twilight didn't discard any of her previous blueprints or projects from before, so she gathered them to modify another locket. One that could relinquish a person's Equestrian power. Twilight would show up at any event of someone about to lose their grip of themselves into a darker form of themselves, in which Twilight absorbed their power, saving many people's time, and the person who was being influenced of dark magic would see a whole new perspective of life, when they saw that they had taken it too far. Twilight was relieved for having more time to study, to hang with friends, and to participate in any other extra curricular activities she may enjoy, without some occasional bad guy ready to disrupt their everyday lives. However, there was always a price to pay when using the type of technology that gathered magical power. Something inside her, hungered for it, even wanting to use the power herself for her own studies. Her curiosity, her desire, allowed herself to peek into the greater unknown. The power she gathered, the strongest was darkness to which she awakened a familiar friend.

Twilight regretted ever trying to learn about it, instead she opened Pandora's box, and released something she tried so desperately to keep away from ever reaching the surface of her mind. She tried to not be sidetracked by small things that would annoy her, or cause her to be sad. Because inside, a voice would whisper, making it a bigger problem than it was. She also became restless, awaking in the middle of night due to nightmares that would haunt her. The voice became more frequent when Twilight tried to get rid of it. She was driven mad, and tried to absorb it out of her, using the locket and her Element of Harmony. But the magical power synchronized together and formed into one object. Twilight held onto it, but it sunk into her skin and was engraved inside her heart. She became infested within the mysteries of Equestrian magic. Twilight was not herself. Her own companion, Spike, was troubled being around her. He was reluctant to be near her. Twilight tried to comfort him, but he scratched her from behind, opening her skin which later became a couple of large streak marks down her back. She did not know what happened to Spike after he attacked her, but she was pained by Spike ever being violent with her. She grew scared of Spike ever coming near her again. She has tried to keep her distance since. There was one other person the Midnight inside of her would use to manipulate Twilight for her delight. Her love for Sunset Shimmer. Twilight would unknowingly allow herself to be involved in a matter that was not her's, carrying it to the extreme by even replacing her own sister and trapping her into another world. Last thing she needed was some foolish, power-hungry being or creature to find out about it, and use it to spread darkness among the innocent lives of people, or in this case... ponies.

A Sign

Twilight's distress over the choices she made. She made everything worse. She may never even be welcomed as a friend anymore. Twilight cried. She can't help them even if she wanted to, her Element was still gone, still inside the locket. Somepony overheard from a distance, Twilight's cry.

"Who might you be?" Somepony said. "The princess I knew is not who I see." Twilight turned toward where the voice was coming from, she had a tough time finding where because she had trouble seeing. The voice was a mare. She could not see vividly of who it was, but only saw the outlines of black and white. Twilight squinted to try and focus.

"Who's there?" Twilight asked.

"I am Zecora, the infamous witch docta." Zecora explained. "Who are you, so we may have trust too?"

"I can't be trusted." Twilight said, as she put her head down. "I'm sorry..."

"I'm afraid there are bigger things to fear, than a single mare." Zecora spoke. "I can help you see, but only if you would help me."

"You can?!" Twilight got up to see her closely. "What is it that you need?"

"Follow me, if you want to see." Zecora said. Twilight could see her moving forward, so she walked along with her, trying not to bump into her, or lose balance of her hooves. "I can feel you are troubled, and what has been caused has doubled."

"Yeah, it is all my fault..." Twilight said. "I've done more harm than good."

"I know what you don't mean, of what I've seen." Zecora added.

"What?" Twilight asked.

"It's not you that caused harm, but something inside that has been alarmed." Zecora said.

"How do you know about that?" Twilight asked.

"I sense the feeling in you of empathy, for everypony." Zecora responded. "The things that have been released, an evil that cannot be ceased."

"How do I stop it if I can't see...?" Twilight added.

"If sight is what you seek, I will help in regaining meek!" Zecora continued.

"What did you want me to do?" Twilight asked. "And thank you."

"I see that you are kind, and left the bad behind." Zecora said. "So I will need you to gather a special plantation, so I can brew a sight potion!"

"Got it!" Twilight said, as she walked off, but before she could think of it, she went back to Zecora. "And exactly where might that be?"

"It is inside another cavern, it is a glowing blue flower with a large green stern." Zecora said. "The cavern is deep, than the one you awakened from sleep. You are unable to see so you will not be afraid of what lies beneath, you will succeed and recover it from underneath.

"Alright!" Twilight said, determined to do what she can to help. They continued along, and they approached a small opening into the ground.

"We are here, the flower you need to see is near!" Zecora continued.

"Okay!" Twilight said.

Trust

Twilight walked to it and pushed through. It was like a burrow underneath the place, it seems it was the one she came across earlier, unfortunately the creature that lived there has been taken by a large bird. She continued along, and it started to get narrower. She was beginning to feel the cold, she felt like there was a mist in the air as if it were like a sprinkle of rain, and the ground felt moist. The darkness surrounded her, as if she was walking into endless space. She felt her back, being dragged down as the cavern got denser with rocks that felt wet and chilling, making her shiver. Twilight would feel the sting of feeling the ice touch her skin, raising her fur and mane, making her squeal a little to the touch of it. She crawled her way through, and Twilight felt like she could barely even breath, the chance for her to become claustrophobic would be now, but she continued on. She came across a huge opening inside the cavern. She feared falling into another vast and empty void, and crashing down into the floor. She placed a hoof down to where she could feel the ground. Twilight caught sight of the glowing flower, and the amount of vines and moss it covered inside, making it almost unnoticeable. She started to walk, but felt an empty spot, which made her stunned with anxiety of falling off a possible edge. Twilight kept reaching out with her hooves to make sure she could not feel the floor sink or be an edge. Even divots made Twilight think it was not safe to place her hooves down into. The mist grew stronger, and Twilight could hear movement within the cavern. She could hear a water stream, Twilight went forth and she felt something wet beneath her. It was freezing, and Twilight brought her hoof to smell it, and she licked it when she smelled no scent from it.

"Fresh spring water..." Twilight said. "A water source is how many plants are able to grow and be nurtured, but what about the sunlight?" Twilight questioned, but she continued on. Twilight crawled through back to the outer burrow and met up with Zecora.

"I see that you have the flower, now I may make a potion to extract its power!" Zecora said.

"It must be really special to grow inside a dense and dark cave!" Twilight enlightened.

"It is a rare plant that grows when there is darkness, very much like a fungus." Zecora added. "It not only enhances your sight, but it also helps you see in the night!"

"That's cool, but you don't have to waste it on me..." Twilight said.

"Nonsense my dear pony, with this I can make many!" Zecora said sincerely. Zecora and Twilight both headed for her small hut within the forest, and Zecora got to work on the potion.

Building Support

After she finished it, she gave Twilight a swig of the potion. It was a very bittersweet flavor to swallow, but as soon as Twilight focused on her sight, it became the finest it's ever been.

"Wow!" Twilight amused. "You're a zebra?!"

"A zebra I am, not a donkey or a lamb." Zecora commented.

"Thank you so much, Zecora!" Twilight said.

"You're very welcome, and welcome to my home!" Zecora replied. "And thank you for getting the plant for me, the cavern was too small for me to squeeze." The minute they shared gratitude, the ground once again shook from the on-going battle ahead. "The path that's ahead, will lead you straight to your friends as I said."

"Alright! I'll head there now!" Twilight said.

"Be safe my friend, I don't want you to meet a bitter end." Zecora said. Twilight nodded. Twilight headed out for the path that led to Ponyville. Twilight stopped for a moment, and turned back to Zecora.

"By the way, I'm Twilight, hopefully we'll see each other again!" Twilight said, as she ran for Ponyville.

"A familiar name and pony wherein, perhaps she is a twin?!" Zecora commented.

The Fury

Meanwhile, in Ponyville.

Chrysalis used her newfound powers to burn down the cottages, making it hard for everypony to run or fly away by making the winds circulate at intense speeds, and the ground unstable to lose balance frequently. She was wanting to make everypony suffer, but what she wanted most was to destroy the Elements of Harmony.

It took a few moments for Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie to arrive at the scene, they gathered and were ready to fight her. Chrysalis toned herself down from everypony else to focus on the main ones who destroyed her kingdom.

"Where did all this power come from?!" Applejack asked.

"Why don't you ask your little imposter Princess?!" Chrysalis crackled.

"Imposter Princess?!" Rarity asked. The girls thought for a moment, and they realized that she was talking about Twilight.

"What did you do with her?!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"I left her to be scavenged by the creatures of the Everfree Forest!" Chrysalis chuckled. The girls were angrily silenced. They all wanted to find Twilight and take her to safety, but they needed to deal with Chrysalis first.

"I'm going to get her!" Rainbow Dash said to the girls.

"No, we need to deal with her first!" Applejack said. "We won't find her in time!"

"But..." Rainbow Dash couldn't finish her sentence, she knew it was true, that they needed to deal with her first. The hurt and sorrow they felt, fueled their determination to stop Chrysalis. The girls went ahead and began to fight.

Is It Possible?

Meanwhile, at Twilight's house.

The girls were settled inside Twilight's house, and tried to think of how they could get to Equestria as quickly as they could. The storm outside made crossing the ocean feel like a terrible idea, given the yacht they were on broke down through a storm.

"I would make another way, but I'm not sure how your technology works without magic." Princess Twilight said.

"I guess that's true, the only reason we have magic was because of me..." Sunset added. The girls thought about it since Sunset was a pony who originally belonged in Equestria.

"Girls!" Pinkie yelled, alerting everyone. The girls turned toward her.

"What is it Pinkie?!" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I found Twilight's journal of where all victims of Equestrian magic came from!" Pinkie said, as she came out of Twilight's closet.

"Okay...?" Sunset said. "How is this relevant?"

"Take a look!" Pinkie said. "If we look closely, there seems to be groups of people within the same area."

"So?!" Rainbow Dash asked.

"So... you'd think if there are a lot of people having Equestrian magic, there would be some sort of leak nearby?!" Pinkie said. The girls looked at each other.

"Are you saying, there are more rifts nearby where Twilight gathered magic from?!" Rarity asked.

"Yep!" Pinkie said.

"Pinkie, that's brilliant!" Princess Twilight said.

"Thank you!" Pinkie enlightened. "It also says it right here in her journal!"

"Wait, if Twilight knew about it, why didn't she use it to go through to Equestria?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Time constraints?!" Sunset questioned. The girls somewhat agreed, pressures of school made them prone to study the majority of their spare time, and Twilight probably didn't have the time to find out if it were true. It was not long after that Sunset's book glowed. Princess Twilight went to pick it up, only to be met with Sunset's hand.

"Sorry... force of habit..." Sunset said, as she blushed.

"That's alright, it is technically yours!" Princess Twilight added, as she smiled. Princess Twilight looked inside of the book, her smile went away, and she started to panic.

"What is it Twilight?!" Sunset asked. Princess Twilight gasped for air, as if she was trying to breathe in a dense environment. "Twilight?!"

"We have to go now!" Princess Twilight encouraged.

"What's going on?!" Applejack asked.

"It's Chrysalis! She came back, and is wrecking Ponyville!" Twilight cried.

"Oh Twilight..." Sunset said, as she went to her to comfort her. The girls gathered and were ready to hop in Applejack's truck for the hot spot, but Fluttershy went back to grab Spike and took him with her. Sunset had the book of where Twilight used her locket, and they pin-pointed to where there was a hot spot of victims using Equestrian magic.

No Time To Enact

Meanwhile, in Canterlot.

"My Princess, Chrysalis has unleashed an assault on Ponyville!" A Royal Guard said.

"This is not good!" Princess Celestia said.

"My sister, allow me to counteract with an army of guards!" Princess Luna asked.

"I can't allow that!" Princess Celestia said.

"What about the ponies?!" Princess Luna asked.

"I'm aware, but we can't risk another ambush coming to Canterlot for an attack." Princess Celestia added. "I'll send the guards to gather them!"

"Your Highness!" Spike came in through the inner gate.

"What is it Spike?" Princess Celestia asked.

"Twilight might have found another way to come back to Equestria!" Spike said.

"Let us hope it works, and if they are able to reach it in time. Due to Chrysalis's attack, the ponies that were helping in restoring the mirror to flee." Princess Celestia added. "Spike, help in gathering the Elements once again and bring it to them!"

"Right! Yes, your Highness!" Spike said as he flew off to Ponyville.

Let's Go

In Ponyville.

Twilight arrived, and she saw many ponies still trying to flee from the terror being unleashed upon them. She ran into the midst of town to see if she could find the others. Twilight was stopped when she saw a building ready to collapse to the ground. She saw a young mare, with an orange coat, and purple mane, she was screaming for help as she was stuck in being tied to a carriage. She ran up to her, the building came crashing down, Twilight was going to block the impact by laying above the young one. Before she felt the building crash down, her horn glowed again, and it stopped the building from falling on top of them. Twilight focused and was able to release the young mare from the carriage. Twilight also teleported to her after she let go of the building. The building fell, and destroyed the carriage.

"Thank you Twilight!" The young mare said.

"No problem!" Twilight replied. "Run, get to safety!" The mare took off in the other direction. Twilight ran further into the green inferno, green flames infesting many of the shops, cottages, and nearby trees. Twilight found the girls, and they were caught up in battle with Chrysalis.

"What?!" Chrysalis yelled. "Alive?!" The girls looked back, and found Twilight coming in.

"Twilight!" Applejack yelled. The girls banded together, and were ready to fight against Chrysalis. Chrysalis laughed.

"You will not be able to stop me!" Chrysalis yelled.

Chrysalis swooped in on them, and crashed to the ground, the impact caused a wave of green flames to surround her and burst out to them, causing them to become separated from each other. The girls swung into the skies and fell into debris of places remaining engulfed in flames, or to the ground. Rainbow Dash picked herself up, and flew right back to She to punch her directly at full force and speed. Chrysalis sensed it coming at a split second before her hoof made impact, and she lifted her legs to retaliate against Rainbow Dash gunning at her at full speed. Rainbow Dash felt a shock wave of Chrysalis's hooves slamming into her stomach and chest, making her feel an intense, sudden pain burst into her abdomen causing blood and saliva to burst out of her mouth. The force was strong enough to cause the winds to circulate and pound as the sound barrier broke. Rainbow Dash slammed into a nearby building within seconds of Chrysalis's kick.

Applejack came in and roped Chrysalis's front hooves, causing her to fall. Applejack went in to slam her to the floor. But, Chrysalis stopped her in midair with her magic, and tied the rope around Applejack. She dropped Applejack to the ground. Chrysalis picked up the rope with her mouth, and began to swing Applejack around, making her hit every nearby building. When she had enough speed, she let the rope go and saw Applejack fly to the sky, landing somewhere further away.

Rarity sneaked around and placed heavy fabric she could find around Chrysalis's head, blinding her to see. She began to quickly wrap her with more things she could find to restrain her full body. Chrysalis became angered and set it all into flames, Rarity stood back. She focused and brought Rarity into the air. She used her power to burn her. Chrysalis was laughing at Rarity's reaction to the pain of being burned alive. Twilight rushed through and kicked Chrysalis straight at her face. It caused Chrysalis to fall to the ground, and lose her focus on Rarity. Rarity dropped to the dirt, her hair was still burning, and her coat was starting to recover. Rarity quickly put it out at the nearby fountain garden. She screamed. Rarity was enraged with Chrysalis, and so she went in to attack her. She got up and tried to blast her away, but Twilight made her occupied by kicking her and making her lose her focus and accuracy. Chrysalis picked up Twilight and flung her to compact into Rarity. Rarity took it to save Twilight from being terribly injured.

Pinkie Pie used her party cannon, and she blasted it into Chrysalis's face, making her blind to see. Pinkie unlatched a bowling ball tied by a rope above a slanted building. She tied it to a post, so she could use it like a wrecking ball. The ball came swinging right into Chrysalis's face as she got out from all the streamers and confetti from her view. She fell into piles of sticky glue as she hit the ground, and Pinkie rolled her up quickly, as she placed her into another huge cannon and blasted her into a target. Chrysalis was stuck for a moment, having her arms clamped to her sides. She burst into flames, burning the ring around her, but Pinkie gift sitting in front of her. She took one look at it and it blasted her again. Pinkie had another present on her, but Chrysalis fired at her from her horn and hit Pinkie directly, making the present blast into her instead.

Fluttershy called forth many forest creatures brave enough to attack Chrysalis. Birds flew in to peck at Chrysalis's eyes. Chrysalis swung them around making them fall away. Bears and wolves came by to try and stop Chrysalis. They clawed her and bit her as much as they could to make her stop. Fluttershy went in to help them. The animals surrounded Chrysalis and they almost had her completely restrained down, but Chrysalis focused and teleported away from them. Chrysalis flew to the sky and blasted them with her magic from her horn and made them spread out across the town. The animals ran off as she was too powerful. She requested they find shelter immediately. Fluttershy's anger of Chrysalis hurting her animals' friends, made her fly up to her as quickly as she could and bash her in the chest. She continually used her hooves to hit anywhere the animals did the most damage, the traces of bite marks and ripped skin from claws allowed Chrysalis to be weakened and vulnerable to hit. Rainbow Dash rose up from the building to the sky, she still had blood gushing from her mouth, but she was ready to launch another attack. Rainbow Dash landed a kick at full speed, and made Chrysalis bash into the ground. Rarity got up to attempt again to restrain her, Applejack came and ran to her as well. Twilight saw that many ponies still were around, in shock of the events happening. She went to them and begged them to run away to find safety. They didn't move in which made Twilight focus on getting them somewhere safe.

Somewhere Near The City

The rain was still coming down, but was starting to come lightly, as clouds continued to pass by. The girls bundled up for a little expedition.

Applejack had a hard time finding a place to park her truck without having it being towed or fined for illegally parking. Having her truck being taken away was the last thing she should want. The girls walked out and followed Sunset to where the place might be. They walked around, the place seemed to be a small park in the distance, and they were in the middle of a wide open field. Sunset stopped for a moment and was starting to look around for any traces of light or anything remotely looking like a magical portal.

"It should be here!" Sunset yelled.

"Okay!" Princess Twilight confirmed. The others nodded.

The girls mingled around trying to see if they could feel any difference in atmosphere. Applejack found a manhole into the sewers below. She went back to the truck and grabbed a couple of tools to open it. Applejack got the manhole open, and went inside to see if anything stood out to her. Sunset and Princess Twilight walked around, even digging a little into the ground to see if they somehow opened into a rift. Rainbow Dash ran across the park using her speed. Fluttershy brought her attention to any animals nearby to see if they felt any unnatural presence nearby, Spike also sniffed around for clues. Rarity stood back out of the rain by the restrooms and concession stands, but she looked around inside the buildings. Applejack continued down the sewers and found an empty place beneath, until she felt the place become brighter. The further she went down, she came across an odd looking spring of water coming down, there were no pipes or leakage anywhere near it. Applejack placed her hand through it, and her hand went through the wall as if there was something else inside.

"Everyone!" Applejack yelled. "Ah think ah found somethin'!" Applejack was barely coming out of the ground, and everyone saw her head poke up from where she was. "In here!" Applejack continued.

"Ugh, I'm not going in there!" Rarity said, disgusted with having to go into the sewer. "Tell me you're joking!"

"Am not, ah need you all to see this!" Applejack added.

"Grr... fine!" Rarity said. "At least I'll be away from the rain!" The girls followed Applejack to where she found the stream of water, coming from nowhere. The other saw it too. Sunset placed her hand inside. It went through the wall.

"Applejack! I think you found our rift!" Sunset suggested.

"Are you sure?" Fluttershy asked.

"Yeah, this could lead anywhere!" Rainbow Dash added.

"Only one way to find out!" Sunset said. Sunset held out her hand, Princess Twilight was the first to hold her hand, Pinkie Pie held onto Princess Twilight. Then they all gathered and held their hands together. They went through the stream together.

Back Into Ponyville

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy flew down to where Chrysalis was, Rarity and Applejack came together to meet up with them. Pinkie rose up from the debris from one of the places that fell nearby. Chrysalis got up and screamed, making the ground shake again. She focused and charged up the power so she could blow the entire surroundings into nothingness. The girls stood back, Rainbow Dash went ahead, but when she touched the aura around Chrysalis, it set her flying back to where she was. It was until they saw a light coming from above the smoky black clouds above them. The light crashed down into Chrysalis making her lose focus and blasting her away from the others. The light slowly faded, revealing Sunset Shimmer and Princess Twilight with the others along by her side. The girl saw themselves, and felt so relieved to see them. Spike was trying to figure out what new form he took. The girls only took a minute to get used to walking on all four limbs, and the others came to help.

"Twilight?!" Applejack asked. Princess Twilight looked back to see Applejack, who was mangled up and was fighting Chrysalis alongside her friends.

"I'm so sorry it took so long..." Princess Twilight said, softly.

"Twilight!" The others said after Applejack mentioned her name.

"Don't worry about that darling, you're here now! Rarity reassured. "That's all that matters!"

"Where's our Twilight?!" Sunset asked.

"She is here, but not with us right now." Rarity said.

"Alright. Let us help!" Sunset suggested. Princess Twilight did a slight healing spell for her friend's wounds, as they came in for a hug for the return of their beloved friend. Rainbow Dash spat out the last of the blood left in her mouth. The girls gathered, together, side by side. Chrysalis came up, and saw that there were two of each kind and Princess Twilight along with them, and an unfamiliar pony that had a red mane and tail with yellow streaks, and an amber colored coat.

"It's not possible..." Chrysalis said to herself. Chrysalis hovered above them. She tried to regain focus and continue with her plans to wipe this place out of existence. "It doesn't matter how many of you show up! You're too late to stop me now!"

"We'll see about that!" Sunset said. The girls charged at her, and Chrysalis stopped focusing and flew towards them. Princess Twilight using her horn to blast Chrysalis back. Both the Rainbow Dash's planned to synchronize their attack by punching her from both sides. They flew at their top speed and succeeded in thrusting their hooves into her face. Rarity came and gave Applejack a boost into the air using her diamond shield to walk on, to buck Chrysalis to the ground. The others took a swing as she came crashing down. She slammed into the ground. She got back up, heavily injured, as she was too enraged to quit. The others stood back and watched Chrysalis becoming too weak to stand up.

"Twilight!" A voice came from the skies. It was Spike with a bag. "I came to bring you guys your elements!"

"Thank you Spike!" Princess Twilight said.

"Twilight! You're back, for real this time!" Spike enlightened.

"Yep!" Princess Twilight said, as she smiled at him. Another Spike that approached Spike.

"Whoa, another me?!" Spike questioned. "Awesome!"

Chrysalis hovered to the skies again, she forced herself to focus on exploding the area, and hopefully everypony within the vicinity.

The girls put on their Elements of Harmony, and with Princess Twilight taking over the other Twilight's role, she was able to make the others transform as well. The girls came together and were ready to finally end Chrysalis's madness.

The girls gathered and put their strength and power to stop Chrysalis. They were all suddenly healed within their transformation. Making them strong and ready to fight.

"Go!" Princess Twilight said, and the others concentrated on Chrysalis and blasted her with the Element's magic.

Chrysalis saw it coming, but did not try to move or stop it. The power struck her, and was engulfed in light. However, it did nothing to Chrysalis. The girl shrouded in confusion. She laughed, as she was healed from all her wounds, and felt like she was able to regain her strength. The girls focused again and blasted her, but Chrysalis was unmoved and untouched. Chrysalis laughed maniacally, as she felt the magical powers surging through her more and more.

The girls were devastated by what happened. Sunset remembered something about Twilight's locket, how it was able to absorb Equestrian magic.

"Does Chrysalis have Twilight's locket?" Sunset asked everyone.

"I don't see it on her!" Princess Twilight said.

"How is she absorbing our power?!" Sunset added.

"Back up, what's this about?" Applejack asked.

"Our Twilight had a locket that could absorb Equestrian magic, it is how she became crazy in the first place, and she must have it on her." Sunset replied.

"So that's what she meant!" Rainbow Dash added.

"What is it?" Princess Twilight asked.

"We asked her how she got her powers, and she said to ask the "imposter princess"." Rainbow Dash replied.

"So she does have it." Sunset concluded. "But, where is it?" The girls now were afraid to attack her again, risking feeding power more into her.

"What's the matter?!" Chrysalis crackled. "Afraid of me now?!" Chrysalis focused and threw herself and blasted them all away. They all got up from the ground.

"What do we do?" Rarity asked.

"I don't know?!" Sunset replied. Chrysalis laughed at their weakness.

"Now that I have this power, I will use it to wipe all of Equestria, starting with this pathetic hick town!" Chrysalis charged up herself and was ready to lay down a powerful bomb that could destroy everything around them.

"We have to do something!" Applejack yelled. Sunset kept thinking about it, how do they stop Chrysalis now? Sunset asked herself.

Answered

"Sunset!" A voice came from the distance. She was not able to see who it was since there was smoke all around them. Their eyes came into focus that it was Twilight.

"Twilight!" Sunset yelled. She went over to Twilight.

"I'm so sorry for everything... I'm so sorry..." Twilight said sincerely.

"We'll apologize later, now we need to find a way to stop Chrysalis from destroying everything!" Sunset added. "We know about your locket!" Twilight was shocked by how caught up they were on everything.

"She does have my locket, it absorbed my Element along with it, so I won't be much help, but I will tell you this... there is a limit!" Twilight said.

"A limit?" Sunset asked.

"Yes. There is always a limit of how much it can contain, the reason you can't see it, it's because it's absorbed into her skin! That's why I was unable to take it off and act like my normal self." Twilight added.

"Twilight, get to safety! I'm afraid, if we don't make it in time..." Sunset said.

"You will!" Twilight assured. As Twilight left, she took the two Spikes with her and she vanished into the smoke. Sunset ran back to the others.

Countered

"Everyone, we need to continue to let her absorb our power!" Sunset requested.

"What?!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "Are you crazy?!"

"Listen! We need to destroy it from inside of her, and by doing that is to let it absorb into her, it will eventually be too much for her to control!" Sunset added.

"Alrighty then!" Applejack said. The girls gathered one more time to strike another attack on Chrysalis.

"Haven't you idiots learned?!" Chrysalis yelled from above. "You can't beat me!"

"You want more power?" Sunset asked. "You've got it!" The girls focused and burst their power into Chrysalis. Chrysalis laughed of how foolish they were to hand over and surrender their power to her.

"Fools!" Chrysalis yelled. "You have destroyed yourselves!" The girls kept feeding into her, they began to feel weak and tired of pushing their powers into it.

"Are you sure this is going to work?!" Princess Twilight asked.

"Just trust me!" Sunset yelled. "Keep at it!" The girls continued, Chrysalis laughed, but it was until she felt her own body feel less out of her control. Chrysalis was starting to get worried of how much she had absorbed, and it became too much.

"No, no." Chrysalis said. "Stop! Stop it!" Chrysalis kept feeling like her body was not her own and started to feel like her body was breaking apart. Her body started to crack open. She screamed of how she feared being broken apart, and fading away. Her chest opened up and broke the locket she was inside of her. Chrysalis fell to the ground. The girls stopped for a moment, and saw that Chrysalis was not damaged or hurt, but was weakened from being overloaded with power. Sunset picked up Twilight's Element, as it was still in one piece. The girls cheered and hugged each other as they finally defeated Chrysalis.

Is It Over?

The girls cheered, but suddenly felt like the sky was somehow getting brighter. They looked up and saw a huge ball of energy ready to fall directly on them.

"Oh no!" Fluttershy yelled. Princess Twilight focused and used her horn to stop it from falling, but it came closer and closer. She used a magic spell to somehow pop it in the sky, but it absorbed it.

"Damn!" Sunset said. "All the power Chrysalis focused on and the power Twilight gathered..."

The ball came crashing down, within seconds, the entire area was engulfed in a light so bright, it made everything blank and unable to see anything. The crash blew everything in its path so quickly, the impact and sound of it came later. It burst everything away, almost nothing escaped the impact.

Chapter 8: Apology

Chapter 8: Apology

Saved

The skies were empty and void of any clouds, the smoke was removed due to the powerful winds the bomb blew, and all the debris of the majority of cottages and shops that once were Ponyville's greatest attractions, were disintegrated down into dirt and ash.

There was a crystallized dome that hovered above a certain area in Ponyville. It appeared to be coming from Rarity. She unknowingly used her powers from her horn to generate a shield to protect all her friends and Chrysalis from the blast of the bomb. Rarity stood by in shock of how much of a close call it was. She stood idled with her eyes wide open, looking into the distance as she was caught, frozen and stunned. The girls got up, as they all banded together to huddle into one group, protecting each other, including Chrysalis, out cold on the ground. They saw Rarity standing straight. Applejack got up to see her.

"Rarity?" Applejack asked. "Hey, Rarity?" Applejack waved her hoof in the air trying to grab her attention away from staring into emptiness. Rarity did not move a muscle once Applejack got up to see her. Rainbow Dash and Sunset both tried to awaken her out of her trance by bumping her on the head and body. She was stiff like a statue. Princess Twilight with everypony else got up to help with Rarity. Rarity went up to her counterpart to do the same thing to help in waking her up. Princess Twilight asked everyone if she could put her to rest, with a spell so she may wake up later on. The others agreed. Princess Twilight focused and made Rarity fall to the ground, with her eyes closed and the shield around them vanished.

Astray

The girl walked around what was left of Ponyville. It was an isolated wasteland of a place that once had colorful and friendly ponies, gathering around together and enjoying their daily lives, doing what they do best. They all traveled while carrying both Rarity and Chrysalis with their magic. They could not see anything beyond the dust and ash that carried on with an after wave of winds coming into their view. There were no sounds or signs of life or survivors. Princess Twilight knelt in tears because she felt like she failed to reach them in time to save everypony from danger. They dropped Rarity and Chrysalis, when Princess Twilight lost focus.

"I-I... it's... all my fault...!" Princess Twilight sniffled. "I-I... I'm not worthy to be... to be... a princess...!" She fell over, with her whole body on the ground, wallowing and hiccuping her moans of despair. The others watched, and their faces planted on the ground, they couldn't see Princess Twilight put herself down so harshly. They all were afraid they were the only ones to have survived a blast like that. That meant that everypony could have been vaporized. Their families, their friends, and their homes. Destroyed, with little to no trace of them left. The others had stars in their eyes as well, they gathered around Princess Twilight, and tried to comfort her, she held out her hoof for somepony to grasp and make herself feel a bit comforted. Sunset held out her hoof to her, and they all sat down with Princess Twilight. Sunset felt something under her and it was Twilight's Element. She held it close, as she was not present with them.

Silence

A moment after, Chrysalis grunted and slowly got up from the ground. The others stood up, Princess Twilight and Sunset stayed seated. The girls took a stance against her, readied, if she were to attack.

"What the hell happened here?!" Chrysalis asked.

"You know damn well what happened!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "You caused all of Equestria to be... destroyed!" Rainbow Dash hesitated as she couldn't take in how dreadful it was to say.

"I wish..." Chrysalis said. "I could never pull off anything like that!"

"You're lyin'!" Applejack said, with her eyes filled with tears, but was hesitant to not drop a single tear down her cheek. "This is your fault!"

"Idiots!" Chrysalis yelled. "I don't know what you're all getting at?!" Rainbow Dash fastened her wings to take off, but before she could get up from the ground to attack her, Sunset held her tail with her mouth to stop her.

"What are you doing?!" Rainbow Dash yelled. Sunset spat out her tail.

"She is right, it is not her fault!" Sunset assured. The others looked down at her, as they all were too enraged to feel any kind of sympathy for Chrysalis. "It was Midnight. Remember?"

"If it hadn't been for Twilight as well!" Applejack yelled back at Sunset. "Lying to us, allowing herself to be impersonatin' one of my dearest friends... it is her fault!" Sunset got up to see Applejack eye to eye. Chrysalis watched them tear each other apart, she was slightly enjoying it.

"Stop it! We all concluded it was Midnight who was behind everything!" Sunset responded. "You think I don't know how you feel?!"

"No you don't Sunset!" Applejack cried. "My family is dead, because of her! My life is ruined, all because somepony had to trespass into our world!"

"Stop it guys!" Rarity spoke.

"Please, stop..." Fluttershy added.

"We didn't even know about it, until way later!" Both Pinkie Pie's said, getting in between them. "So stop blaming each other, before we all do something we'll regret!"

"Ah already regret ever letting this go! Ah should have stopped her before this all happened, but ah didn't because ah felt bad for her! What kind of friend are you, for letting her get this bad?!" Applejack yelled at Sunset.

Sunset out of rage, tackled her. In which they both got into a fight with each other. They pulled each other's tail, ruffled their faces by kicking and bucking, head budding like a couple of rams, and punching each other, having at each other's throats when they fell to the ground. The girl watched in horror seeing their two friends fight each other. Princess Twilight still laid on the ground, hearing them fight and argue over whose fault it was, but she already blamed herself for not replying to Sunset in the first place, and for interfering with their personal lives. Rarity stood by her sleeping other self, as she begged for Applejack and Sunset to stop hurting each other. Fluttershy huddled with her other self, trying to avoid being involved in the fight, but was constantly trying to yell at them to stop their fighting, but her voice was blocked with grief and sadness. The Pinkie Pies were standing by. Applejack was watching her other self getting tangled up with Sunset. She would have done the same with Rarity trying to break up the fight, but she was simultaneously keeping an eye out for Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash was ready to join in the fight with the other Rainbow Dash, as they both believed Chrysalis was the cause but Rainbow Dash also thought Applejack was right about Twilight, in which the other Rainbow Dash was going to defend Sunset's stand on the issue. Chrysalis smiled and chuckled of how they're tearing apart their friendship from the inside. She couldn't have planned it better herself.

Applejack and Sunset were both tired and bruised from all their fighting. It was a stalemate. But they still stared each other down like a couple of alphas ready to throw a showdown of who's the authority.

"If we are the last ponies, alive, we have to stay together!" Rarity yelled. "We are all we have left..."

"You're right..." Sunset replied, dropping her guard. Rainbow Dash stood down, and the other Rainbow Dash thought of how Rarity was right.

"Am not spendin' the rest of my life with her!" Applejack yelled.

"Why?!" Applejack's other self questioned. "Twilight is not even here for you to be mad over." Applejack heard herself say something that made her stop looking at Sunset, and plot down a little bit away from Sunset and the group, facing a different direction from them.

Applejack looked away from everypony, and she began to cry. She hated crying in front of anypony. She was silent, when it came to sorrow or grief, not showing anypony any sign of weakness. Only when she was alone, would she be sensitive toward anything, allowing herself to cry and be emotional. The only one who would know about it was Pinkie Pie, but Pinkie promised she would not tell anypony, and would occasionally occupy ponies or steal the spotlight for Applejack to have some time for herself. Applejack laid down her hat over her face to block her tears from anypony seeing. The Applejack that stood by Rarity also did the same thing, she knew why it was hard to let go, even for herself, not being able to go back to their own world.

"A-am... sorry..." Applejack cried. "Am so sorry... a-ah didn't mean it..." Sunset went over to her. Sunset placed a hoof on Applejack. Applejack shook like she was frightened of anyone near her, when she felt Sunset's hoof on her.

"I'm sorry too Applejack... we all lost something... I'm sorry..." Sunset said sincerely. Applejack hugged Sunset. She held onto her tightly, and Sunset let Applejack's pain sink into her as well. "I didn't mean to hurt you or anybody... anypony..." Sunset assured, as she held onto Twilight's Element.

"How?!" Chrysalis questioned herself. "These ponies, sicken me!" The girls gathered together, Rarity and Applejack laid the other Rarity by Princess Twilight, who was still silently laying on the ground.

"We're all here for each other." Rarity said. "Remember?" Sunset looked up at Rarity.

"Yeah... I do..." Sunset replied. Sunset smiled.

Where Do We Go?

"What now?" Princess Twilight said, as she got up. "I'm sorry... I couldn't be there..."

"Twilight..." Rainbow Dash said. "You did everything you possibly could..." Rainbow Dash went over to see her.

"The fact that you have found a way to come back home, without the mirror, was amazing Twilight!" Pinkie Pie enlightened.

"I agree with Rainbow Dash, Pinkie, and Rarity." Fluttershy added.

"But... at what cost..." Princess Twilight commented. "There's no home without everyone..."

"We're here for you Twi." Sunset said.

"We all are." Applejack said, as she was cooling off from being upset. She went over to join Rainbow Dash with Princess Twilight.

"I... I'm glad... I'm at least, not alone..." Princess Twilight said. As she cried and held onto Rainbow Dash and Applejack by her side. "Thank you... everyone... and everypony..."

"Well, I'm leaving!" Chrysalis said, feeling bored of everypony being all apologetic and lovey-dovey.

"Where do you think you're going?!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"Away!" Chrysalis responded, as she spread her wings out, and flew off. As she was in the air, something struck her down, causing her to crash back down onto the ground. She was knocked unconscious. The girls were frightened and came together.

"Sunset?!" A voice came from the distance. Sunset looked out toward the empty valleys, and the dirt and ash slowly drifted back to the ground. All around them, the girls looked and saw the sun at its peak, and the green pastures and trees were visible out further in the horizon. The girls smiled. "Sunset?!" The voice continued. Sunset walked out of the group.

"Sunset, Princess Twilight, everypony!" Rarity said. "Look!" Rarity pointed with her hoof outward. Sunset, Princess Twilight, and the others looked toward the direction Rarity pointed to. They saw Twilight, she was walking along with everypony that lived in Ponyville. Princess Twilight was so enlightened she teared up. Twilight ran up to Sunset and the others. Twilight hugged both Princess Twilight and Sunset. Sunset gave back Twilight's Element. Twilight smiled.

Hope?

Applejack ran up to a mare, who had a yellow coat, red mane and red tail with a cutesy pink bow.

"Apple Bloom!" Applejack cried.

"Big sis!" Apple Bloom yelled. They both hugged, Applejack cried along with Apple Bloom. "Ah missed ya big sis!"

"Ah missed ya more!" Applejack responded. While Applejack was holding onto Apple Bloom with love and care, a stallion with a red coat with an orange mane and tail came up with one of the eldest mares in Ponyville. She has a lime green coat and a long faded white and silver mane and tail tied up in a bun, holding onto a cane for support. "Big Mac! Granny Smith!"

"Well, in all my years of living in Ponyville, this has to be one of most devestatin' disasters I've lived through..." Granny Smith said.

"Eeyup!" Big Mac commented.

"Rarity!" A young mare with curly white and light purple mane and tail with a white coat said.

"Oh, Sweetie Belle!" Rarity said, as she gave her a hug. "You're okay!"

"Of course I am!" Sweetie Belle added.

Surrounded

Rarity awakened to see too many ponies surrounding her, causing her to squeal. Applejack was there with her to see her awake.

"Applejack!" Rarity yelled. "The bomb! It's coming!" Rarity held onto Applejack, freaking out with her coat covered in dirt and her hair messy.

"Rarity, calm down." Applejack assured. "We're all safe now!" Afterward, Rarity hugged Applejack, Applejack blushed and did the same.

Making Me Blush

The mare with an orange coat and purple mane and tail walked over to Rainbow Dash. Although, she stopped once she saw two Rainbow Dashes standing by each other.

"Who is who?" The young mare said.

"Right here, Scootaloo!" Rainbow Dash said.

"Scootaloo?!" Rainbow Dash asked.

"How are there two Rainbow Dashes?!" Scootaloo asked.

"Well... it's kind of a long story...!" Rainbow Dash replied.

"Cool!" Scootaloo said. "Now I have two big sisters!" They both looked at each other, and smiled.

"Hey everypony!" The Pinkie Pies said. "Guess who's got another twin sister!" The crowd went wild over the fact that Pinkie Pie could have possibly gone through the mirror pool again to clone herself another Pinkie Pie. But, they cheered nonetheless.

Fluffy

Fluttershy saw Angel with a few other little critters running towards the Fluttershys. Fluttershy thought of how cute they all were, and the other Fluttershy agreed, and she shared them with her.

How?

Everypony gathered around the Rainbooms and the Elements of Harmony. They all focused on the two Twilights that stood before them all. Twilight came up to both Sunset and Princess Twilight, she hugged them and went over towards the others.

"Twilight?" Sunset asked. "How? I thought everyone was..."

"Gone?" Twilight interrupted. "Well, before you came here, I helped a few ponies to Zecora in the Everfree forest to provide them shelter. She asked me to bring as many I could to her. I went everywhere in Ponyville and gathered them altogether using my new teleportation technique. It was a little difficult to get the others to trust me and help them after all the damage I did, but Scootaloo helped the others to see that I was here to help guide them to safety after previously saving her from a falling building. Afterward, Spike went to Princess Celestia to notify her of everything..."

"And so she did." Princess Celestia interrupted, she came in from a large chariot of white and silver with a couple of pegasi carrying it. She walked onto the ground, and saw that there was much damage done to the central area of Ponyville. Twilight gulped. She was surely afraid of what would come. Spike walked out with the other Spike, as they both came to Twilight.

"Princess Celestia!" Sunset and Princess Twilight said simultaneously. They both kneeled in her presence. All of the ponies surrounding the area did the same.

Twilight stepped forth to Princess Celestia. She kneeled in front of her. Princess Celestia stood proudly. Princess Twilight and Sunset feared Twilight. The other girls and both Spikes gathered where Sunset and Princess Twilight were.

"Princess Celestia..." Twilight said cautiously. "I-I'm sorry for running away... causing so much... chaos in Ponyville." Princess Celestia was listening in. Twilight was scared to be in her presence. "I-I'm sorry for lying to you... and everypony else." Twilight continued, she said it all, before she lost herself in tears. "I'm sorry for trespassing into your world without permission! I'm sorry for trapping Princess Twilight into another world! It is all my fault... I'm so sorry..." Princess Celestia came to her. Twilight flinched and backed up away from her. Twilight had tears running down her face.

"Twilight, from the other world. You have caused such destruction in our world, and for that, you will be punished for it." Princess Celestia requested. "However, for your bravery and selflessness to save and gather all my ponies to safety..." She assured, and slowly came up to Twilight to meet her in her eyes. "I forgive you..."

"Thank you, your highness... but I wasn't the only one..." Twilight said humbly, and she walked on over to Zecora hidden in the crowd. "Zecora helped as well!"

"It is true, it was the right thing to do!" Zecora said as she bowed her head. "We both did what we could to help everypony, making sure we got them to safety!"

"I did help in making sure that blast couldn't have reached any further than the center of Ponyville." Princess Celestia admitted. "There's many places still standing. The Castle of Friendship is one of them. So, the mirror will be fixed, but in the meantime, I will have you, Twilight, under community service as punishment, help in rebuilding the partial of Ponyville that was destroyed."

"Your highness..." Sunset asked, as she walked up to Twilight, Zecora, and Princess Celestia. "Could we be there to help Twilight?"

"Of course!" Princess Celestia responded. "Just let this be a lesson for her. To be honest, and to be careful when entering into our world."

The girls came together, and they rejoiced.

"My little ponies!" Princess Celestia said. "Let us all give thanks to our heroes of Equestria. And the newest members of the Elements of Harmony!" Everyone clopped and cheered. "We will rebuild Ponyville, as they've shown us that together we can accomplish much greater!"

Silver Lining

There were some places that still stood, as to anywhere nearby Ponyville, such as the Everfree Forest, Sweet Apple Acres, and a few miles before entering towards the Castle of Friendship, they remained in decent condition.

A Place Built Together

With the last couple of days, the girls helped all the ponies in Ponyville rebuild the towns' cottages, and shops back to how it was. Replanting a lot of vineyards, grass, and trees. Fluttershys helped the animals build new burrows, nests, and houses, in which they also rebuilt the animal shelters. The girl's got to know each other, and grew to like each other a lot while they were working on construction. They also gave Twilight plenty of time to learn a few tips and tricks for her research, which helped her reconstruct a few shops much quicker.

Back Again?

Within the last day, the mirror was fully repaired and was working as it should. Ponyville was still working in some places, but Twilight had done enough to make the place feel like home again. The girls gathered and asked them to visit again. All but Sunset and Twilight were left, saying their goodbyes to them. The others left Princess Twilight to Sunset and Twilight.

"Twilight?" Sunset asked Princess Twilight.

"Yeah?" Princess Twilight responded.

"As much as I would like to stay. I'm afraid my place is there. We all need each other, but I need them... more..." Sunset replied.

"I understand." Princess Twilight said, as she smiled. "With everything going on, I will have to let you know when the portal will be open, but I should be able to reply in the book like always!"

"Great!" Sunset said. "So, I guess this is goodbye?"

"No, for now, we will visit again soon!" Princess Twilight assured.

"Alright!" Sunset said, as she walked through the mirror. Twilight went over to Princess Twilight.

"I'm sorry for being a bad sister." Twilight said.

"It's okay, I forgive you!" Princess Twilight said. "We are like family. We mess up, cause each other trouble, but in the end, we are here for each other, no matter what!"

"Thank you!" Twilight said. "I guess we'll see you some other time." Twilight said, as she was about to head out.

"Hey, before you go, I want to tell you something!" Princess Twilight asked Twilight. Twilight stopped to listen and went back to Princess Twilight. "Well first maybe, don't do any experiments without letting them know..."

"Yeah, no kidding!" Twilight said, as they both chuckled.

"Secondly... You are a leader, that means you're responsible for the whole team." Princess Twilight added. "But, promise me, you'll take care of them. Especially Sunset. I know you may feel that I'm more special because I'm a princess with numerous gifts, or even because Sunset and I talk a lot to each other, but I don't want you to think that. We may be similar in many ways, but we are different. I don't want you to feel jealous or hateful towards me. I want you to be better than me! Please, will you promise me that you will take care of Sunset and the others? For me?"

"I... I will!" Twilight replied.

"Thank you!" Princess Twilight said. "I know you could be a great leader!" Twilight walked out, and looked back toward Princess Twilight, watching her fade away by diving deeper into the portal.

Open-Ended

Twilight arrived at the mirror and stallion statue, in front of Canterlot High, and went back to her bipedal form. She saw the others struggled to get on their feet. All, but Sunset managed to make the first step. Twilight giggled as she saw Applejack holding onto Rarity, as she tried to get up on her high heels.

"Rarity, just take them off!" Applejack said.

"I'm not getting my perfect feet dirty!" Rarity replied. Rainbow Dash was laughing and was able to walk again. She ran across the lot to regain her control and ability. Fluttershy brought Spike with her, as he was mad at being a dog again.

"Spike?" Twilight said, as she got up from the ground. Spike ran up to her, and she hugged him. He was no longer afraid of her. He licked her, and Twilight smiled to have her companion back.

"So, what did Princess Twilight have to say?" Sunset asked.

"Oh, just to be safe!" Twilight said.

"Okay." Sunset said. Twilight got up and everyone met up with her. Twilight was sad, as she held onto Spike.

"I'm sorry everypony..." Twilight shook her head and chuckled. "Everybody! Sorry!"

"It's fine!" Applejack commented. "At least everypony in there is safe and okay!"

"Yeah..." Twilight said. "What about you... I'm sure you're all mad at me for being secretive and conniving?"

"Yeah?" Rainbow Dash said. "What was all that stuff in the living room? By the way, it's a mess!"

"Oh that's alright. But, I've been stupid. I was so worried about passing the test and was curious about everything, that I... awakened something inside me. I regret ever hurting you all." Twilight continued. "I'm sorry!"

"It's all right Twi." Sunset said. "We all make mistakes, but we got through it together, like you said! I should have listened and waited, but I was too eager and afraid that I let it all go!"

"Same!" Rarity said. "We're all sorry we didn't see if anyone had any problems to work out!"

"Yeah..." They all agreed.

"Thank you, so much everyone!" Twilight said. "I guess we should have checked in with everyone, instead of separating again?"

"Agreed!" The girls said. They heard a phone go off. Applejack felt her pocket vibrate.

"Oh shoot!" Applejack yelled.

"Language darling!" Rarity said. "Seriously, have I taught you nothing!"

"No, it's Granny Smith! She left me 50 messages!" Applejack yelled. "Ah better go! Does anyone else need a ride?"

"I'm good! I better stretch my legs out! And run back home!" Rainbow Dash said.

"I do!" Rarity said.

"I'll be with Rainbow Dash!" Fluttershy said.

"Aww man!" Rainbow Dash said, as they both headed out on the sidewalk. "Oh well, I guess I could walk with you!" Fluttershy looked at her with puppy dog eyes and nodded.

"Sunset? Twilight?" Applejack asked.

"No, we're good!" Sunset said after confirming with Twilight.

"Alrighty then, see ya later!" Applejack said, as she headed for her truck, Rarity got in with her and drove off. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy waved and walked on the sidewalk to their house. Leaving Sunset and Twilight with Spike alone.

C'mon...

Sunset was by the mirror, she placed her hand on it, and felt the mirror cold and solid, as her hand was placed flat on the surface. Twilight looked back, and placed Spike on the ground. Twilight walked over to her.

"Hey..." Twilight said, as she placed her hand on Sunset's shoulder.

"Hey." Sunset replied. They both smiled at each other. "I guess, we both have something to hide..."

"What do you mean?" Twilight asked.

"I did like her, but I guess it would be hard, being in two different worlds." Sunset said.

"I suppose so..." Twilight said.

The sun was behind the mirror, it was evening time and the clouds had continually drifted, and the sun was peeking through an opening, shining brightly at the ground.

"Sunset..." Twilight said.

"Yeah?" Sunset said. Twilight hesitated to say anything. She gripped her hands tightly, and gritted her teeth. Looking down at the cemented ground, seeing the sun's light growing closer.

"It's getting late, huh?" Twilight said.

"Oh, it is." Sunset said. "Want to walk back home together?"

"S-sure..." Twilight said. They both walked side by side, and saw their shadows getting even flatter, reaching near the school yard, with the sun at their side. Spike followed. "Thank you..."

"What for?" Sunset asked.

"For... always being there..." Twilight said, as she blushed.

"Of course!" Sunset said, as she smiled. They both arrived at their crossroads, with Sunset heading off towards the town, and Twilight heading to her place near Crystal Prep. They both hugged and waved back at each other, as they walked on their own paths to their homes.

Back To Normal?

Twilight opened her door, Spike ran inside and was happy to be home. Twilight walked in to see her living room, messy with all her papers laying around and her closet opened. Twilight closed her door and closet, and headed for the kitchen. Twilight got Spike some food ready, she sighed, getting back into her old life again. But, she smiled, as she saw Spike eating and feeling happy having his Twilight back with him. Twilight smiled.

"One day Spike..." Twilight said. "One day..."

Where The Hell Is Pinkie?

Meanwhile, in Ponyville…

There was a celebration going on in Ponyville. The place was lit, and fireworks were going off, the ponies danced in celebration of New Ponyville. They had an endless assortment of cakes, drinks, and party favors. In the center were both Pinkie Pie's singing "The Real Pink Pony" while the crowd got wild and hopped around to the beat! By the end of it:

"Thought you forgot me?!" Pinkie yelled to the crowd, and to the reader. "I'm Pinkie, everypony and everyBODY loves me!" The crowd cheered and went on with the party.

Roll Credits

The ending song of Curiosity.

"Sunset to Sunrise"

Performed by: Sunset Shimmer

[Verse 1]:

As the sun passes by, and the skies will burn away.

As the moon glistens by, with stars of the milky way.

Time is endless, and yet, ages through another day.

I couldn't find a better time to tell you, what I want to say.

[Pre-Chorus]:

Even as the sun sets, and all fall down to sleep.

Another journey awaits now, and it begins with you and me.

Walking through the endless earth, to find the sunrise again.

We'll see the sunrise again.

[Chorus x2]:

If you want in?

Come walk with me.

We'll find it.

Let us be free.

[Verse 2]:

As the moon enlightens the night, and the stars cover the sky.

As the sun peaks with the light, and the darkness fades by.

Time is endless, and yet, years continue to fly.

I couldn't find another time to tell you, what I want to try.

[Verse 3]:

As the sun passes by, and the skies will burn away.

As the moon glistens by, with stars of the milky way.

From sunset, to sunrise. We'll see the sunrise again.

(Chorus)

The End...

Extra: Dashie and Flutters

Extra: Dashie and Flutters

Prior To Curiosity...

It was the last of the soccer season, they finally made it to the winner's championship game. Unfortunately, all but Fluttershy was able to make it to the game. Sunset was having trouble when Princess Twilight all the sudden stopped talking to her, Applejack and Rarity were together somewhere, and Twilight could have been anywhere. Pinkie Pie was gone too. Although, at times like this, at least one of them showed up.

Fluttershy was there within the crowds, cheering on for Rainbow Dash, the fastest and strongest player in the game. She ended her basketball season with countless slam dunks, and made their school to the top ranks. Rainbow Dash has a huge reputation to keep, and made the school receive many sponsorships. She didn't care about the money or the fame, but loved being the absolute best. Pushing herself even beyond her own expectations, which always made herself feel awesome.

Fluttershy softly cheered on for Rainbow Dash, and the whole crowd cheered for her as well. After so much training and keeping herself in shape, all mattered at this very moment. Rainbow Dash made a few goals, with the opposing team under them by a couple of points. She was going back and forth in the field, a few of the players on the opposing side were actually good, but not as good as Rainbow Dash, as she would snatch their chances of ever making it to the goal.

Rainbow Dash had the ball, but her teammates were telling her to pass it back, to avoid the ball being taken away. She didn't listen as she was close to making it again before the timer of the last quarter would end the game. Even though they had enough points to win, Rainbow Dash wanted to make one more goal all on her own. The coach yelled at Rainbow Dash, requesting that she'd stop and listen to her teammates. Rainbow Dash was there at the goal, she kicked the ball toward the goal. The goalie caught the ball, the ball was thrown, and landed right toward the other team. They all bolted to the other side of the field. Within seconds of the clock, one of the players kicked the ball halfway to the goal, and the opposing team quickly gained enough points to win.

Everyone on Canterlot High's side was devastated. The coach threw down her hat and yelled. Rainbow Dash stopped for a moment, and turned to look at everyone on her squad. They all gave her a mean look, some turned away, and others yelled at her saying it was all her fault for losing the game. Fluttershy in the distance saw them put Rainbow Dash down, which made herself feel sad. Rainbow Dash didn't look sad or mad about anything.

A Starting Point

Moments later, in the locker room.

"The hell was that Rainbow Dash?!" The coach questioned. "What were you doing?!"

"I thought I could make it..." Rainbow Dash said. "My bad..." As she was seated on a bench, taking off her shoes.

"My bad?!" One of the girl's said as she was undressing into her normal outfit. "Is that all you can say?"

"What you did, cost us our game!" Another girl said.

"Whatever." Rainbow Dash replied.

"Look, next time..." The coach continued. "Just listen out for your teammates, that is why we are a team, we are all working together for the same goal!"

"I don't have the same goal as them!" Rainbow Dash yelled. Turning her head towards them all, and went back to getting dressed.

Everyone was silent. The coach shook her head, and rubbed her eyes, and went her way as she sighed. The girl left Rainbow Dash alone, and one of them slammed the locker to make it clear that she was not happy with her at all. Rainbow Dash sat there alone. She thought about everything. She put her hands in her face, and stopped herself from dressing into her casual clothes.

"After everything I've done for this school..." Rainbow Dash said to herself. "Win after win, but after one fail...pisses me off!" Rainbow Dash threw her school shirt to the locker doors. Rainbow Dash heard someone coming through the doors.

"Uh, hi..." A girl with a soft voice said. Rainbow Dash turned to look at who it was. It was Fluttershy, cowering in the corner, hugging an odd stuffed blue pony that had a rainbow mane and tail.

"What do you want Fluttershy?!" Rainbow Dash yelled, as her voice echoed throughout the locker room.

"I came to see how you were doing...?" Fluttershy replied.

"I'm not in the mood to ta..." Rainbow Dash looked again. "Where's everyone else?!"

"Oh, uh, they couldn't make it..." Fluttershy responded softly. "They ..."

"Don't care, it was probably for the best!" Rainbow Dash interrupted sarcastically, as she continued to get dressed.

"I'm sorry..." Fluttershy said softly.

"What are you sorry for?!" Rainbow Dash said. "Your reputation is not in shambles!" Rainbow Dash got up, and carried her sports bag. "If you even had one!" Rainbow Dash went down to the doors and exited without saying another word.

Fluttershy had her head down, her eyes drooped down, and her eyes slowly shut with tears. She gripped the stuffed pony.

"It's okay Fluttershy..." Fluttershy said to herself. "She is upset right now, she'll be okay." Fluttershy opened up her eyes again, and she saw Rainbow Dash's school shirt on the floor. Fluttershy took and held it close. "Oh Rainbow Dash..."

Bully

Within the next week. Rainbow Dash was getting all kinds of flack and was teased all over social media. Students walking to class would tap on her shoulders and ruffle her hair. Rainbow Dash ignored them. The other girls were silent during lunchtime, since they all had their own problems and ambitions to even know about what happened to Rainbow Dash. However, Fluttershy was the only one to see Rainbow Dash skipping meals and having her hand in her face to shrug off all the ridicule from the students. Rainbow Dash walked out of the cafeteria. The girls didn't notice, but Fluttershy. Fluttershy went to go find her. She found Rainbow Dash outside on the bleachers, sitting down and throwing some left over rocks on the steps.

"Hey... Rainbow..." Fluttershy said softly.

"What do you want?!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"I came to..."

"Go away!" Rainbow Dash requested. "Leave me alone!"

"But..."

"Go!" Rainbow Dash yelled. Fluttershy quickly walked away. Fluttershy was saddened, but she didn't want to give up on her.

Fluttershy asked everyone politely and individually to stop hurting Rainbow Dash about the game. A lot of the people finally stopped, but there were a few that carried it further. Fluttershy got mad at them, to the point where they feared in every crossing hall with her in between classes. Even though everyone stopped teasing Rainbow Dash, she was still silent and not feeling any better than she was before.

Solved?

During the weekend, everyone was not talking, wanting to hang out or be together again. Not even for a jamming out session with the band mates. Which was fine in Rainbow Dash's case since all she wanted to do was be home, alone. As Rainbow Dash laid in bed, after two in the afternoon, she heard a knock at her door. She wanted to ignore it, but she got up to see who it was, maybe it was Scootaloo coming by to see her. Rainbow Dash opened her door, and saw that it was Fluttershy, she immediately shut the door. She stood on the other side trying to ignore her.

"Rainbow?" Fluttershy said. "I have something of yours..." Rainbow Dash opened it again, and saw her school shirt, folded and washed from all the dirt.

"What did you do to it?!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"I-I washed it..." Fluttershy said softly.

"That's my lucky shirt!" Rainbow Dash raised her voice. "Why did you wash it?!"

"Y-you don't wash it?" Fluttershy questioned.

"Give it to me!" Rainbow Dash snatched it from her hands angrily. "You'd never understand!"

"If you would tell me..." Fluttershy suggested. "Maybe I could..."

"No!" Rainbow Dash attempted to slam the door again, but was stopped by Fluttershy's boot.

"Ow!" Fluttershy yelled.

"What are you doing?!" Rainbow Dash yelled. "What were you thinking?!"

"I-I'm sorry..." Fluttershy as she held onto her boot. "I-I wanted to see..."

"Whatever it is, the answer is no!" Rainbow Dash shut the door again. But, Fluttershy used her weight to stop it from closing. "Enough!"

"No! I have to tell you something!" Fluttershy replied, as she tried desperately to keep the door open. Rainbow Dash moved out of the way, allowed the door to open wide, and made Fluttershy hit the floor.

"What do you want?!" Rainbow Dash asked. Fluttershy turned to face her from the floor.

"Well, if you would give me a chance..." Fluttershy said, as she got up. "I wanted to see if you would like to go somewhere with me today? I know things have been quiet without any bad magical things happening, or anybody wanting to hang out... so would you like to do something?" Rainbow Dash gave an exhausted sigh.

"Fine." Rainbow Dash said. "If you'd finally stop bothering me!"

"Okay, great!" Fluttershy said. "I'll see you in an hour!"

"Whatever." Rainbow Dash said, as she carried Fluttershy outside, and slammed the door. Fluttershy jumped for joy, while Rainbow Dash was disgusted.

Surprised

About an hour later, Rainbow Dash got dressed in her casual clothes, however, when she opened the front door, she saw Fluttershy in a sparkling seafoam green dress, with matching high heels. She did her nails in that color, as well as a light green shadow in her eyelids, and sugary red blush on her cheeks. Rainbow Dash's face was in shock.

"What are you wearing?!" Rainbow Dash asked. "I didn't know we had to dress up!"

"Oh, you don't have to... I thought I looked nice, didn't I?" Fluttershy said softly. "Do you like it?"

"I-I..." Rainbow Dash couldn't say a word.

"Let's go!" Fluttershy said.

Fluttershy took Rainbow Dash to an aquarium near the city. They went through the first floor, and it brought many creatures from the sea. Which to Rainbow Dash's surprise was fascinating. Rainbow Dash never saw such creatures in real life.

Fluttershy would look at them and they would often respond when she was near them. The biggest part of the aquarium was the center tank of all assorted fish, sea turtles, stingrays, and smaller sharks. They both entered underneath the tank, and they were surrounded by all the sea life. Rainbow Dash was smiling for the first time throughout the week, Fluttershy saw, and she smiled. She turned to look at Fluttershy and she was glowing, with her dress, the area was illuminating with her shining dress. The sea creatures turned to look at her.

Rainbow Dash saw them turned towards Fluttershy. Fluttershy would wave and they would respond. As she walked, they would move along with her, as if she could control them, she would spin and they would circulate around her. Rainbow Dash was amazed by her. She turned to look the other way, a huge sea turtle was watching over Rainbow Dash. It responded only to her. Rainbow Dash placed her hand on the glass and the turtle placed a fin where her hand was. Turtle smiled, she smiled. Fluttershy watched her, she went over to her, and they both walked out. They continued along and went into the octopus room, and next to it, an area that had many small jellyfish.

At the end of the place, they went through a gift shop, and Fluttershy gave her a cute gift. Right next to the small alligators, in which Pinkie Pie already is, she bought Rainbow Dash, a large stuffed sea turtle. She held it close, but placed it back in the bag, to not make it seem like it was a big deal. Fluttershy smiled.

A Familiar Diner

They both stopped at a decent restaurant near the aquarium. They apparently don't serve seafood. But, it was a country-styled diner, with a lot of old fashioned photos of antiques of buildings and people during the time of the first town built in the area. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy ordered their meals and kept quiet. She would look around the building, the people were laughing, and talking, as well as enjoying their meals. Fluttershy wanted to ask Rainbow Dash something, but she didn't look like she wanted to talk. The way she was positioned in her seat, with her right arm giving her head rest by the table. Fluttershy wanted to try anyway.

"Rainbow?" Fluttershy asked.

"Don't ask..." Rainbow Dash said.

"Please..." Fluttershy requested. Rainbow Dash sighed.

"What is it?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Did you like the aquarium?" Fluttershy asked.

"Sure." Rainbow Dash replied.

"I know you're still going through stuff, but I wanted to hang out with you." Fluttershy continued.

"Yeah? Is there literally anyone else available?"

"Last time I checked... no."

"Why me?"

"You look like you can use some company..."

"Don't bother. I'm fine."

"I'm not sure if that's true."

"Look, I appreciate all this, but I can handle myself!"

"I know you can."

"I'm going home after this."

"Okay, thanks."

"Sure." Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, and continued to sulk.

A Walk Home

Throughout the rest of the time, it was quiet. They went home afterwards. Fluttershy wanted to thank her for going with her, but Rainbow Dash ignored her.

The Final Straw

Fluttershy consistently asked her to join her in some activity, and Rainbow Dash was finally fed up with Fluttershy's constant neediness. They both were on the field that day, away from everyone. She made Fluttershy follow her to tell her to stop.

"Okay, you need to stop!" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"I'm sorry..." Fluttershy said.

"Why are you even here?!" Rainbow Dash asked.

"I-I... why are you like this Rainbow?" Fluttershy responded. "You used to be happy and helpful... now I don't even know who you are anymore..."

"What are you talking about? What are you trying to say?"

"I missed what we did together, it's not like anyone else asked." Fluttershy said, as she started to cry. "Iwant us all to be happy."

"Too bad! Alright! I don't want your help!"

"Everyone stopped teasing you, so why are you continuing to sulk around?"

"I don't care what they think!"

"Why ?"

"It's none of your business! Now leave me alone!"

"I won't leave!" Fluttershy yelled. Rainbow Dash stopped for a moment.

"I'mtrying to help you, why can't you accept that?!" Fluttershy continued.

"I didn't ask for help! I Want to be left alone!" Rainbow Dash responded. "My happiness is not your problem, my problems are not your problems!"

"I don't care, I don't want you to do something bad!"

"Like what? Hurt myself, all because of a stupid game, yeah right! Get real!"

"Then why do you continue to sulk around?"

"Why do you need to know?!"

"Because I care!"

"Just stop bothering me!"

"Why are you so afraid to face your feelings and your problems?!"

"I'm not afraid of anything! You got that! I don't care if I lose! I don't care if people tease me! I don't care if anyone even cares about me!" Rainbow Dash yelled, as Fluttershy began to cry. She looked away from her. She tried not to shed any tears, but with all this yelling and getting it out, she couldn't help it. "No one cares about me... I do a lot for everyone, they all use me up... they don't really care..." Rainbow Dash started to cry. "I'm mad at myself... I always try to be the one to tough it out, but it hurts... It hurts so much... no one cares..." Rainbow Dash kneeled to the ground with her hands in her face. Fluttershy came closer to her, but was too shy to lay a finger on her.

"I care..." Fluttershy said softly. "I felt the same way too... I'm not taken seriously, everyone talks over me, and people walk all over me like I'm a doormat..." Fluttershy continued to cry. "I understand..." Rainbow Dash got up. She looked at Fluttershy. She smiled even with her eyes dripping with tears down her face. Rainbow Dash recognized that Fluttershy's strength was on the inside, with her soft exterior. While she knew that strong and independent facade herself only guarded her from facing her true feelings. She was the only one to notice it. Rainbow Dash went over to her, and she grasped onto her tightly. Fluttershy also did the same.

"I'm sorry Fluttershy..." Rainbow Dash said softly as she continued to stutter. "I'm so sorry..."

"It's okay..." Fluttershy said. "I'm always here for you..."

A Side Trip

Within the next few months, Rainbow Dash was opening up to Fluttershy little by little as they continued to hang with each other. She was starting to accept her, and herself more and more. Everyone else in their group was either extremely happy or completely falling apart from the inside. Hanging out with Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash started to pick up on everyone's state of mind. She called everyone to the band room. There she forced everyone to play a song, in which Fluttershy wrote, and wanted her to duet together.

Fluttershy's song:

"Last of Us"

Performed by: The Rainbooms

[Verse 1]: (Rainbow Dash):

We all have our moments,

When we sit alone.

Waiting and watching the time being wasted.

When it could all be gone.

Then you'd wished it all to come back again.

I'm not going to wait anymore,

I won't leave my heart aching sore.

I sacrificed everything inside,

Because this could be our last time.

Don't let me go,

Ah-Oh, Ah-Oh

Don't leave me behind.

Don't you say so,

Ah-Oh, Ah-Oh

Don't make me cry!

Don't leave me alone,

Ah-Oh, Ah-Oh

Don't tell a lie.

Don't you say no,

Ah-Oh, Ah-Oh

Don't say goodbye!

(Pre-chorus: Rainbow Dash)

(Chorus: Together)

Something That Happened

After they completed the song, they all finally came together and were happy. Rainbow Dash was back to being the top of her game, and Fluttershy praised and admired her confidence in herself once more. Everyone else was cheering on, and went to see Rainbow Dash beat countless games, winning back her title.

During Curiosity...A Problem Inside Another Problem

After a long day of being with Princess Twilight and the girls, Rainbow Dash couldn't stop thinking of Fluttershy. She was sitting on her lap. She didn't feel heavy at all, but rather squishy and soft. She might have felt uncomfortable since they both had a connection of something they both couldn't understand. Rainbow Dash took her mind off of it, and began to contemplate what Rarity's deal was all about. She couldn't figure out why? Rarity picking on her did make her feel a bit sad, in which she cuddled with her stuffed turtle for the rest of the night in her bed.

Before The Movie

Fluttershy came over to Rainbow Dash's house, the second day Princess Twilight Sparkle decided to visit. It was a time in which neither of them were in a deep and serious relationship. She went over to see how Dash was doing, after having some problem happening between her and Rarity. She wanted to make sure she was feeling okay. Although Dash was still a bit reserved to have her feelings show, it would be for Fluttershy to know and to look into.

Dash was in the shower, after doing her morning routine of stretching out her body. She heard the knocking of her front door, as she stepped out of the shower. As if, it was right on cue. She threw on a clean towel from the towel rack and went to see who showed up.

Fluttershy knocked a few times, until she heard the footsteps coming to open the door. Rainbow Dash answered, as her glossy blue skin was shining, the glare that sparked an exciting opening in Fluttershy's mind. Her hair was still wet, heavy, and glistened like a rainbow in the stormy sky. She always loved how long and beautiful her hair looked, especially when it was held down.

"Hey Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash said.

"H-hi... is this a bad time?" Fluttershy stuttered. She saw Rainbow Dash, her glowing skin and wet hair made her heart skip a beat for a moment.

"No, you could come in!" Rainbow Dash said.

"Oh okay..." Fluttershy said, as she entered.

"Yeah. Wait a moment while I get dressed!"

"Okay!" Rainbow Dash was delighted to see her, and invited her in. Fluttershy sat down, as Dash went to her room to change into some casual clothes. A part of her, was feeling a little too heated to see her in that thin towel. She looked down to the floor and saw her watered footprints, leading into her bedroom where she was dressing. She sat quietly, until she heard a knock at the door. It made her jump, having to snap back into focus. Rainbow Dash asked her to answer it for her. She answered, and it was Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo at the door. Fluttershy let them in. "Hey kids?"

"Who you callin' a kid!" Scootaloo stated.

"Oh, I'm sorry, young lady!" Fluttershy responded.

"Meh." Scootaloo said, as she walked in with the other two.

"How ya doin' Fluttershy?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Oh, I'm good!" Fluttershy replied. "You?"

"Good!" Apple Bloom said.

"What are you doing here?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"Nothing, hanging around." Fluttershy said. "What about you girls?"

"I don't know yet!" Sweetie Belle said.

"Yeah, we wanted to see if Rainbow Dash could come with us to watch a movie!" Scootaloo said.

"What movie?" Fluttershy asked.

"It's a horror movie called "The Last House on the Left in the Woods on a Haunted Hill"." Apple Bloom said.

"Oh my, a scary movie?!" Fluttershy questioned. "Aren't you a little too young to be watching such things?"

"Yeah? That's why we need Rainbow Dash!"

"Such brave girl's to go watch a horror movie!" Fluttershy said.

"Hmph, you've got that right!" Scootaloo smirked.

"What do you need me for?" Rainbow Dash said as she walked into the living room.

"I need an adult!" Scootaloo said.

"I am an adult!" Rainbow Dash said. "Kind of..."

"We need an adult to go watch the movie!" Apple Bloom said. "Or else they won't let us in!" Rainbow Dash turned to look at Fluttershy.

"Do you want to go Fluttershy?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Oh no, it is too scary..." Fluttershy said.

"Sorry girls..." Rainbow Dash replied.

"C'mon! Please?!" Scootaloo begged.

"Nah, but I could let you in on a secret!" Rainbow Dash whispered to Scootaloo. Scootaloo drawn closer to Rainbow Dash. Scootaloo's smile grew brighter as Rainbow Dash told Scootaloo what to do, and asked the girls to join her in the movies. The girls all exited the house, and were on their way to the movie theater.

An Inside Joke

"What did you say to Scootaloo?" Fluttershy asked.

"Oh nothing, something for them to do for now!" Rainbow Dash said. "So, what brings you over?"

"I wanted to check in with you, I noticed that Rarity has been getting angry with you yesterday." Fluttershy mentioned Rarity bullying Dash while Princess Twilight was visiting.

"Oh, you noticed..." Rainbow Dash said. "Yeah, I have no idea what that was all about!" Dash started to remember how squishy Fluttershy's ass felt having to sit on her lap during the ride home.

"I did think it was a little rude!" Fluttershy said. "Especially in the truck."

"I know, right? Almost made us all crash the vehicle!"

"Well, I'm glad everything might work out after all..."

"What do you mean?"

"Well... I saw Applejack's truck over at her house..." Dash agreed there was something with Rarity that day. Fluttershy assured it would not be long until Rarity would be relieved of her pissy attitude, as she told her about Applejack's truck parked outside her house.

"No way, really?!" Dash delighted the fact that Applejack and Rarity were a thing in secret.

"Yeah, I saw it on the way here, and same with Sunset with both Twilights."

"Talk about a love Twi-angle!"

"Yeah… haha..."

"What about us?" Rainbow Dash asked. Fluttershy was so shocked at the straightforwardness of Rainbow Dash's question.

"I-I..." Fluttershy stuttered and blushed.

"C'mon, if it's one thing you taught me, which was to open up my feelings!" Rainbow Dash added. "How about it?"

"Umm..." Fluttershy couldn't find the words to express. Fluttershy couldn't help but feel a loving connection. A connection she was not familiar with, and brought her to be overloaded with anxiety.

"C'mon Fluttershy!" Rainbow Dash said, as she sat down on the couch with her, making her jump. "Don't be shy, Flutters!"

"Pet names...?" Fluttershy said. "Does that make you... Dashie?"

"If you want it to be?" Rainbow Dash replied, as she came closer to her. Fluttershy squealed, and wanted to get closer, but her face was bright red. "Your nose is bleeding!" Fluttershy stopped for a moment, and felt her nose. Rainbow Dash rushed to the kitchen and grabbed a clean cloth and rushed it under some hot water.

Dash was thorough. She was careful to not pinch or scratch her roughly, but was delicate and slow. She felt the warmth she brought. Dash dropped her hand with the towel, but Fluttershy caught her hand, and wanted to keep the warm cloth at her neck. The sensation was soothing. She sat up, to come closer to her. Fluttershy closed her eyes, and allowed Dash to draw near. Dash came, closing in, and raised her lips to her's. She kept her eyes closed, until she saw Dash pulling in. At the very last second, Fluttershy dropped her face, and looked away.

"Oh Rainbow Dash, I just can't do it..." Fluttershy said. Dash was shocked, a little ticked off. As Fluttershy admitted to her cowardice.

"Oh C'mon!" Sweetie Belle yelled from the window outside. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy both were freaked out about the girls watching them the whole time. Apple Bloom went back to Rainbow Dash's place.

"Sweetie Belle! Hurry up! We are going to be late for the movie!" Apple Bloom yelled.

"Oh right!" Sweetie Belle said, as she ran up to Apple Bloom and took off the other direction.

"Well that was... unexpected..." Rainbow Dash said. Rainbow felt the awkwardness seeping in, as she saw Fluttershy feeling down about herself for not sharing their first kiss.

"I'm sorry..." Fluttershy said.

"It's okay..." Dash said. She came to her, and tried to lift her head up, to not feel bad about wanting to take things slow.

"No it's not..." Fluttershy said. She kept telling herself she was not happy with herself, after all they've been through, she could at least share this moment with her.

"Look, if you're not ready, you're not ready!" Rainbow said. "But, remember what we said, we only have so much time on our hands. No?" She felt even more ashamed, but Dash comforted her, telling her that if she wasn't ready then she wouldn't force her to be. She felt things were not taking off as she would have wanted, but she understood Fluttershy.

"I know... but I'm too..." Fluttershy said softly.

"Too sad? Too angry? Too embarrassed?" Rainbow Dash questioned.

"I'm sorry..."

"You're not in love with me?"

"I am!"

"Not like that though?"

"No... I mean, yes... no..."

"Flutters, what is it?"

"I want to be with you, but I... can't control myself..."

"What do you mean?"

"I've waited for so long for you to say that to me, but... I can't think straight..."

"That's not a joke, right?"

"No!"

"Right, sorry..."

"I'm sorry Dash."

"C'mere!" Rainbow Dash said as she held out her arms to her. Fluttershy came to her. She laid Fluttershy's head down on her lap, to calm her down, and run her fingers through her faded pink hair. "I think you might have been overly worked up about it. I understand, after all that you helped me go through somethings, maybe it's time to move on from being a friend to be there to help out, but someone much more closer. This time, you're not alone to help, I would be there too! I could help you out as well! Yeah?" Rainbow Dash continued as Fluttershy nodded her head. Telling her that she makes herself feel all worked up over everything, when she just needed to relax and let life flow. Dash told her now that every passing day, they will eventually have to move on, but they have the time to make things work between them. Fluttershy was used to handling everyone. Worrying over exaggerated possibilities, worse case scenarios, or even just letting fate happen when it comes. Her anxiety was something she wanted to help Fluttershy through, but this time, she won't have to be alone to face it. "Just think about it, but I'm here for you as much as you are here for me!"

"Thank you..." Fluttershy cried. "Dash!"

The Text

A little while later, when Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy continued to talk, they both received messages from Pinkie Pie and Applejack. Not much longer Sunset replied about heading over to the Burger Joint. They wanted to join in as they both were hungry.

A Jump To After The Events...Curiosity Resolution

As Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy headed home together.

"Did you see how awesome it was to have wings!?" Rainbow Dash yelled.

"I did!" Fluttershy said. "What an experience it was."

"I know, right?!" Rainbow Dash said.

"I thought you looked cool, as a pony." Fluttershy commented.

A Somewhat Development To A Memory

Back in Ponyville...

They both were helping in rebuilding Ponyville, and they came up with a little game as they placed wood down for construction. Whomever stacks ten planks on each side of the base for the house the quickest has to tell the winner their secret.

Dash was a little slower than the other, considering it was easier for the other who was a real pegasus. The other Rainbow Dash was impressed on how quickly the other caught on, making impressive time for everypony else to work on their part.

So, she wanted her to tell her something interesting about herself, as they both glided across Ponyville. Dash had to come clean, and told her about her relationship with Fluttershy.

"No way! Really?!" Rainbow Dash said.

"Yeah, it's... not too serious at the moment." Dash said, as she blushed.

"Huh, interesting. Never really thought about being with her." Rainbow Dash said.

"Really? Do you have a thing for the Fluttershy here?" Dash asked.

"Well, not exactly." Rainbow said.

"Oh?!" Dash asked. "Well, has anyone liked you?"

"Haha, you've got to beat me first!" Rainbow demanded.

"Alright, you're on!" Dash said.

This time, Dash was quicker than before, having the incentive to know her other self. They both got toward the end of the street. They rested for a moment, sitting on a small cloud above the library.

"Wow! I impress myself sometimes!" Rainbow said.

"Haha. Alright, tell me who!" Dash demanded.

"Alright. Well, I kind of have been thinking, someone does." Rainbow said.

"What, really?!" Dash said. "Who?"

"Well, think of it like this..." Rainbow said, as she dragged her along to show many ponies working around Ponyville. "They do a lot of honest work around Ponyville, while I take my work to the skies. But, I always found reason to come down and hang out with her. You know?"

"I see... I guess I could see how it could be difficult to know." Dash said. "How awesome!"

"Yep! Now, tell me, why do you have a thing for your Fluttershy?" Rainbow asked, as she swiped her tail into the air.

"Heh..." Dash thought about it, but it took her moment to think of why? "Same rules! You have to beat me!" As Dash thought of how she could respond.

"Oh-ho, someone's the life of the party! Almost as much as Pinkie Pie! You're on!" Rainbow said, ready to get on with helping the next street. Dash hesitated, but was ready to begin.

"Ha! Gotcha!" Rainbow yelled, as she came up to Dash. She cornered her at the end of the street, and was eager to ask her again. "So? How's the other Fluttershy? What do you like about her?"

Dash didn't have as much time as she thought on the matter, she also didn't have much to respond with.

"Well..." Dash hesitated. "She is like the other Fluttershy, where she takes care of a lot of animals..."

"Yeah?" Rainbow said enthusiastically.

"And..." Dash couldn't say, looking away from the other Dash.

"And?" Rainbow asked, as she had a worried look on her face. Dash looked away, trying to find the words to say. Until she saw a turtle in the sky, hovering with a small propeller on the shell.

"Who's that?!" Dash asked. Rainbow flew up and caught him.

"Oh, this is Tank!" Rainbow replied.

"You have a Tank?!" Dash squealed.

"I have a Tank!" Rainbow said, as she grinned. "Wait, you have a Tank?"

"I do have a Tank!" Dash yelled.

"Awesome!" Rainbow responded. "We both have a pet turtle named Tank!"

"Yeah, Fluttershy sometimes helps me take care of him." Dash said.

"Oh, so that's how you two got together?" Rainbow continued. "That's so awesome!"

"Yeah..." Dash agreed, unsure of what to say. "So, have you been serious with anypony?"

"Do you want to save that for our next game?" Rainbow asked.

"I don't know if I can handle another race..." Dash admitted.

"What?! Tired already?!" Rainbow shouted. Dash picked herself from the ground and darted back towards the wood planks. "Ha, I see! Trying to get a head-start! Not on my watch!"

Later on, after a few more trips back and forth, between each break, they talked about somethings relating to each of their worlds. Rainbow Dash explained her life in Cloudsdale, working from time to time with being a Wonderbolt, an Element of Harmony class instructor for the School of Friendship, and her previous job from the Weather Factory. Dash explained her life from school, athletics, and being a vigilante hero. They were both impressed, even from different worlds they managed to be heroes, working in school, and have a highly active background.

After they had time to have a break, and everypony having time to work on their respective roles, Fluttershy came around to see Dash.

"Hey Dash!" Fluttershy said.

"Hey Fluttershy!" Dash said. "How's Fluttershy?"

"Great! We both were making new homes for birds, as well as new burrows for all the little critters!" Fluttershy announced.

"Cool." Dash said.

"So, I hear you guys have been active!" Rainbow said sarcastically.

"Oh, I suppose so..." Fluttershy said, as she blushed.

"Haha... yeah..." Dash said.

"Dash here has been a little hesitant on the dets!" Rainbow said, slowly scooting closer between both of them. "Maybe you can weigh in!"

"Oh... uhh... What would you like to know?" Fluttershy said. Dash gave her a slight stomp of her hoof toward Fluttershy's hoof. "Ow!"

"Well, I'm kind of wondering, how you two started!" Rainbow asked.

"Umm... I guess..."

"Okay, I think I hear the other Fluttershy calling back for you..." Dash interrupted, as she scooted her away from the conversation.

"Wait..." Fluttershy said. Dash stopped, and Fluttershy turned around to hug her, she then walked back to help with the other Fluttershy. Dash slowly walked back.

"Well, that was weird..." Rainbow said. Dash didn't speak. "Is there something going on between you two?"

"Not really..." Dash said quietly.

"You did say it wasn't too serious..." Rainbow said. "What's up?"

"Nothing..." Dash said.

"Ah c'mon..." Rainbow begged. Dash flew back to her station to bring back more wood. Rainbow shook her head, not sure what that was all about. Dash continued on until she reached the end toward the Everfree Forest. It looked larger and much more dense than the one back home.

"I don't know if I want to go in there." Dash said to herself. She exhaled, and took a rest at the bridge. "Why is it so hard to find the words to say... I guess I'm not serious with Fluttershy..."

Dash was called by another group of ponies to help them out. Dash went to them and started to work.

What felt like hours, of setting up planks of wood, all the walls placed up, and straws above to the roof, Dash was exhausted. With everyone's help and having been appreciated for all the hard work, they were invited to stay at the Castle of Friendship.

Rainbow Dash was trailing everywhere Dash had gone to, with the annoyance of her asking her questions constantly, she left the castle.

It was late at night, Dash became lost and unsure of where she was going, she panicked and accidentally ran into the Everfree Forest. There she was tormented by screeches and growls, culminating from all directions, the swamp gas and marshes made it hard to breath and travel through. She couldn't take it much longer, she cried for help. She thought of everything from that moment on, what it would be like to not return, never to be seen again. It was, as if, nothing mattered, but she mattered. Who was it that made her feel welcomed, and who made it so that she was able to get through anything, even for herself? Dash thought.

Moments later, she heard a soft cry for her name in the distance. Dash ran towards the sound of that voice. She came to it, and it was her, Fluttershy, the voice of a softly spoken angel. The yelling had punctured her esophagus, and made her speechless when Dash came to her, and wrapped her hooves around her. She was the only one that came to find her, why? Dash asked herself.

"Dash... I was so worried..." Fluttershy whispered.

"I was worried too... I'm sorry..." Dash replied, with tears falling from her eyes. "I don't want to do that again..."

"Let's go back..." Fluttershy requested.

"Yes please..." Dash said.

They were guided by Angel and fireflies, to find their way back to the Castle, and everyone was there to see them return. They all surrounded them.

"Are you guys okay?" Princess Twilight asked.

"Never better!" Dash replied, as Fluttershy blushed as she looked toward her.

Afterward, they all headed to their rooms inside the castle. After a full day's work, they all were terribly exhausted. However, they each were placed with their other selves. From there on, Dash knew she would probably have to confront her misbehavior.

Later on that night, being restless, yet desperately wanted to shut her eyes, she had to come forward about it.

"Hey..." Dash asked, turning over to face her other self on the large bed.

"Hmm?" Rainbow grunted, having been awoken from her sleep.

"I just wanted to say..." Dash hesitated. "I'm sorry... I'm sorry for the way I was acting earlier..."

"Don't sweat it!" Rainbow said, oddly surprised, yet knew it was coming. "I know it's not everyday that we get to hang out with ourselves!" Dash chuckled.

"Listen... about earlier..." Dash said.

"Hey, you don't have to explain yourself... we're cool!" Rainbow said.

"But... I just wanted to say something...?" Dash asked.

"Okay?" Rainbow said, having drawn closer.

"The reason I ran out was because of a question you asked earlier. It was the one about Fluttershy, what did I like about her?" Dash said.

"Yeah?" Rainbow replied, listening more intensely.

"I-I didn't know how to answer that, because I'm not in a serious relationship. It was more of a close friendship, but I wanted to be something more..." Dash continued.

"Why didn't you just tell her?" Rainbow asked.

"I want to, but I had to make sure of it first... what really mattered to me the most, why I even want to be in this relationship." Dash said. "The truth is, she's always been there. Every game I had, every time I felt lonely, sad, or angry. Every time we were together, she always made me feel... special. Sure I receive a lot of praise and love for all of my talents, but she was the one that cared for me on what's inside. Who I really am."

"Huh?" Rainbow huffed, turning over to face the ceiling. She thought about Dash's words. "You know something?"

"Hmm?"

"I would have never shared something like that, even for myself."

"Really? I suppose, being around Fluttershy... I started to share more of what I feel...?"

"Definitely. Because, I never did anything like that... maybe we are not exactly the same." As Rainbow turned back to face Dash.

"You really think so?"

"Yeah, but we're not too different. I just hope that emotional stuff doesn't get in the way of your activities!"

"Me too."

"I'll admit, it's different having you around. It makes me feel like I have a sister. I mean, I do have Scootaloo, but having one near my age, it feels different."

"Yeah, same."

"But, I hear ya. Maybe you should let her know about how you feel. But, as a fair warning. If she's anything like our Fluttershy, maybe tone the emotional drama to a minimum."

"Why so?"

"Well, like I said, she would do anything to make you feel better. It's a nurturing effect she has, since she takes care of a lot of animals. She would treat you like an injured pet if she had to."

"Huh, okay."

"Yeah, I suppose... Thanks for clearing that up for us!"

"Yeah, I feel better now that it's over with!"

"So, what are you wanting to do tomorrow?"

Back To The Present

Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy continued walking down that path that led to Fluttershy's house.

"What about you?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Oh, that would be a story for another day." Fluttershy replied.

"Okay." Rainbow Dash said.

Even though Rainbow Dash didn't necessarily share everything, it was enough to make Fluttershy smile. That smile, she was happy that Rainbow Dash had fun, spending time in that world beyond.

"Yeah I know!" Rainbow Dash said, as she blushed. "I definitely would go back if I could!" Rainbow Dash continued as Fluttershy smiled passively. "You know... I've got to be honest with you... you did look really cute! But, you're always cute!" Rainbow Dash commented. Fluttershy blushed and tried to hide her face with her shoulders. "C'mon I admit it! No shame!"

"Thank you!" Fluttershy said. They approached Fluttershy's house first, and it was starting to get dark out. "Dashie...?"

"Yeah?" Rainbow Dash said. "What's up Flutters?" Fluttershy was unsure if she wanted to leave just yet, but as soon as they both reached her door. She came running toward her, and jumped into her for their first kiss. It was unexpected, but Dash loved being surprised.

"I love you!" Fluttershy said.

"Yeah I know!" Rainbow Dash said. "I love you too!"

"I know..." Fluttershy repeated. They both hugged and gave each other another kiss, and went home until they saw each other again.

Rainbow Dash asked Fluttershy if she could spend the night. But, she would have to get back to her animals. Even though they have a system where they would be able to be fed in case things like this were to happen, she didn't want them to worry. Dash let her go, and told her next time she will, and Fluttershy agreed. Dash ran back to her house, thinking their first time should be at her place anyway.

Extra: Pinkie Doodle

Extra: Pinkie Doodle

Prior To Curiosity...Again

After Friendship Games Pinkie Pie first switched places with the other Pinkie Pie. After a while, they would switch in between major events. This time it was after Spring Breakdown.

She Was There The Whole Time

Pinkie Pie was adjusted to her newfound life on the other side. The world seemed smaller, yet deserved more exploration. After she exited the mirror, she came across a huge building, she read the bolded letters along the side:

CANTERLOT HIGH SCHOOL

"Canterlot High School!" Pinkie Pie said to herself. "Cool!" She crawled along the cemented walkway to the doors of the school, there was no one to witness her odd behavior. looked around, and saw a picture of the student body. Pinkie saw that they were standing upright on two legs, so she forgot to try herself. She fell a few times, but laughed as she got back up to look at more pictures. She concluded that walking on two legs was way easier than on all fours. Pinkie continued to look at the pictures, she saw familiar faces on the board, it was the yearbook committee. She saw Sunset, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Applejack, the other Twilight, and herself on the board. On the side, she read:

Not pictured: Wallflower Blush

"Wow, we still look cool in our human form!" Pinkie Pie said. She continued down the left hallway, and was seeing all of the trophies, banners, advertisements, and interesting facts along the billboards. She was enjoying herself, as she skipped merrily to the other side of the building. She saw an empty classroom, the huge cafeteria, and made it to the back where the locker rooms are. She entered and found Fluttershy sobbing from the middle of the hallway. "Fluttershy?!"

"Pinkie Pie?!" Fluttershy questioned. "Where have you been?"

"I was out somewhere, looking around the school!" Pinkie said, as she was jumping around. "What's the matter?" Pinkie stopped and walked up to Fluttershy.

"Oh, it's nothing..." Fluttershy said softly. "It's fine."

"It's okay Fluttershy!" Pinkie said. "No need to hide anything!"

"Okay... promise you won't tell?" Fluttershy requested.

"Cross my heart, and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!" Pinkie said. "That is a Pinkie Promise, and I never, ever, ever break a Pinkie Promise!"

"Alright... it's Rainbow Dash, she lost a game and now she's really upset."

"Oh, I see." Pinkie said. "Where's everyone else?"

"They couldn't make it..." Fluttershy said. "I assume it's about their own relationships..."

"Hah..." Pinkie questioned. "Relationships?"

"Yeah..."

"Okay, are you worried about Rainbow Dash?"

"Well, of course, she lost a game."

"But, is it about the game?"

"I-I... I..." Fluttershy was at a loss of words.

"Haha, kidding!" Pinkie Pie yelled. "You should probably go and cheer her up!"

"Like how?" Fluttershy asked.

"Take her out! I'm sure she would like to have an active day with friends!" Pinkie Pie said.

"Oh, I suppose..." Fluttershy continued. "What should I do?"

"Hmmm..." Pinkie Pie was in much thought. "Take her to some place you'll like!"

"Why me?" Fluttershy questioned. "What if she doesn't like the place I like?"

"Nonsense! Anyone would enjoy anything as long as it's fun!" Pinkie Pie said.

"Oh, okay..."

"Besides, getting her to come out is not the hardest part!"

"It's not?!"

"Nope, coming forward about her feelings will!" Pinkie said.

"Oh..."

"Just be careful when you do!" Pinkie said as she was about to head out the doors.

"Wait Pinkie!" Fluttershy yelled before she left.

"Yeah?" Pinkie skipped to Fluttershy's house.

"I have her shirt, should I give it back?"

"Give her this one!"

"Why?"

"I don't know, maybe that shirt is special!"

"Okay...?"

"See ya!" Pinkie said, as she walked out.

First One To Notice

It was not long before Pinkie caught up with Applejack and Rarity. She decided to go look around the mall by herself. She found her two best friends being together.

"Hey, you guys!" Pinkie yelled, coming from behind Applejack and Rarity at the mall. She saw that Applejack was carrying a few bags from a very prestigious boutique, along with crossing her left arm with Rarity's right arm. "Wow, you move fast, faster than light!"

"What?" Rarity said.

"It's nothing!" Pinkie said. "How you doin'?!"

"Just shopping, nothing else!" Applejack said.

"I see it is just you two today, out together, doing stuff!" Pinkie added. "Sounds romantic!" Applejack and Rarity were embarrassed. "Nothing to be ashamed about!"

"You're alright... with me… an Rarity?" Applejack asked.

"Of course!" Pinkie said. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well... we haven't exactly... told anyone yet...?" Applejack said.

"Why not?" Pinkie asked. "I'm sure they won't make a big deal out of it."

"Look Pinkie, I appreciate you for understanding as well as accepting us, but... it's not time yet, you understand?" Rarity said.

"Oh yeah! I do!" Pinkie nodded.

"Thank you Pinkie, promise not to tell until we are ready?" Applejack asked.

"Cross my heart, and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!" Pinkie said. "That is a Pinkie Promise, and I never, ever, ever break it!"

"Thank you!" Rarity added. "Behave yourself now Pinkie!"

"You've got it!" Pinkie said, as she continued looking throughout the store.

A Little Help From Our Friend

After she left, she thought about paying Fluttershy a visit.

"Hey Fluttershy!" Pinkie yelled.

"Hi Pinkie!" Fluttershy said.

"So... how did it go?" Pinkie asked.

"It was amazing, Pinkie you should have seen it." Fluttershy said.

Meanwhile, during Fluttershy's first date with Rainbow Dash, the time at the aquarium, Pinkie watched them observe all the sea life there was to explore, however, she was the cause of the lights illuminating on Fluttershy's dress to make it glisten and make all the fish attracted to it. While she fed the sea turtle a nice snack for it to stay put by Rainbow Dash, so Rainbow Dash could see to soften her emotional hardships.

Back To The Conversation

"Yeah, I bet it was great!" Pinkie enlightened.

"Thank you Pinkie Pie, for helping me out with everything!" Fluttershy added.

"You're welcome Fluttershy!" Pinkie said.

"What should I do now?" Fluttershy asked. "I know it could be counted as a date, but I don't know how to carry on with the next one..."

"That's okay, do what you do best!" Pinkie said. "Calmly get her used to you being there, but not so often she freaks out!"

"Right!"

"See ya!" Pinkie said, as she walked away back home. As she was lying in bed, she thought about going to visit Sunset to bother her as well.

Who Brought Attention Towards The Problem?

The next day, Pinkie came crashing down the door.

"Hey Sunset!" Pinkie yelled, awakening her from her sleep. She jumped on her bed, with Sunset freaking out on what happened, while Pinkie simultaneously threw pillows at her face. She stopped messing around with Sunset, and stopped to look at her. "Wow, you look like shit!" As she smiled.

"Always nice to see you too Pinkie..." Sunset said, half awake, and about to go through a cardiac arrest. Sunset went back to sleep.

"Sunset, what's wrong, how come I haven't been seeing you lately?" Pinkie asked.

"It's nothing Pinkie..." Sunset said. She was on Sunset's bed, looked around the living room and saw all the trash Sunset left sitting around. She was in sorrow, overeating, and tissues crumbled up and piled in the small garbage can next to the table for her lamp. She was feeling uncomfortable, she looked and was lying on top of a book with a sun on it underneath her. Pinkie saw that she accidentally ruffled the pages, some of the pages even bent up. As Pinkie Pie held it up, Sunset turned around.

"What the hell Pinkie!" Sunset yelled, she was furious at Pinkie for ruining her book. "Get out, get off of my bed!" She was startled and headed to the living room. "Out!" Sunset said, as she pointed to the door. Pinkie was saddened by Sunset's rage, and walked out of her house.

Pinkie wanted to do what she could to help Sunset, but it seems she was sad about something.

Later that evening, Pinkie Pie had a visitor. It was Sunset.

"Hey, Pinkie, may I come in?" Sunset asked.

"Of course!" Pinkie said as she allowed Sunset inside her house.

"Pinkie, I'm so sorry for earlier, things haven't been as good lately..." Sunset said softly.

"What's wrong?" Pinkie asked.

"Twilight stopped talking to me..."

"The pony Twilight or Sci-Twi?"

"Both, I haven't been able to contact them, or anyone... I've been so lonely..." Sunset began to tear up. "No one... I'm sorry..."

"It's okay Sunset... I knew you didn't mean to..." Pinkie said, as Sunset stopped her from finishing her sentence to hug her tightly.

"I don't know what to do Pinkie." Sunset continued. "I miss them, I miss them all."

"I understand." Pinkie said. As she allowed Sunset to be comfortable with telling her everything that was on her mind. She made another promise to not tell anyone about it.

All throughout the evening, Pinkie made Sunset a bed to sleep for the night, and together they continued to talk. When things began to quiet down, Pinkie thought to herself, how she was going to bring everyone together. However, she thought maybe it won't be her doing, but it will be each of them, coming together in some way that will remind everyone the importance of friendship. So, Pinkie made a plan to help everyone.

How To Solve An Issue

Pinkie and Sunset awoke early that morning, and she walked Sunset home, Pinkie said to Sunset she was business to attend to. Sunset understood and went her way.

Pinkie went to go visit with Rainbow Dash. She arrived and Rainbow Dash opened the door.

"Oh hi Pinkie Pie!" Rainbow Dash said, when she opened the door.

"Hi Dash!" Pinkie said. "How you doin'?"

"Oh nothing, playing around with my guitar." Rainbow Dash said. "Wanna come in?"

"Sure." Pinkie said, as she skipped into the house. She sat on her couch. "Hey, Dash?"

"Yeah Pinkie?" Rainbow said.

"Remember you got that guitar when you battled against Trixie?" Pinkie asked.

"I do! I love this baby!" Rainbow Dash continued.

"Anything you've been playing lately?"

"Nah, I haven't come up with anything for a while."

"You know something? I think making a whole new song will make everyone happy!"

"What do you have in mind?"

"Well, have you been seeing Fluttershy lately?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, remember she mentioned her lyrics for the band?" Pinkie asked.

"I think I know where you're going with this... I definitely should ask Fluttershy, after all she did for me." Rainbow Dash responded with her cheeks red.

"What do you mean?" Pinkie said, cautiously.

"Well... I can't say..." Rainbow Dash looked away as she smiled.

"C'mon! Pretty please with a Pinkie Promise!" Pinkie suggested.

"Pinkie Promise?" Rainbow Dash questioned.

"I cross my heart, and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye! That is a Pinkie Promise and I never, ever, ever break a Pinkie Promise!" Pinkie said.

"Oh... okay..." Rainbow Dash said, as she scratched the back of her neck. "She's been helping me through some difficult stuff, and I think that using her lyrics may be what I need to kind of... give back!"

"Wow! That is absolutely, positively thoughtful of you!" Pinkie yelled.

"Thanks Pinkie! And you're serious about your promise though?"

"Yes!"

"Okay, I'll ask her about it!"

"Okay cool!"

"So, what did you come over for?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Just checking in, it's been awhile since we've hung out, and by doing this could be great for everyone!" Pinkie said.

"You really think so? That will be awesome! Thanks Pinkie!"

"This weekend?" Pinkie asked.

"Sure!" Rainbow Dash replied.

Hop Around

After Pinkie was visiting with Rainbow Dash, she ran for Fluttershy's house. She was so ecstatic and knocked down Fluttershy's door. Pinkie startled all of Fluttershy's pets.

"Pinkie, what are you doing?" Fluttershy said.

"Fluttershy! I was dropping in to see how you doin'?" Pinkie replied.

"Oh nothing...tending to my friends..."

"Great!" As Pinkie was looking around, and fixing her door. Fluttershy calmed her pets down, and she heard the phone ring. Fluttershy looked at the number and it was Rainbow Dash.

"Hello?" Fluttershy said.

"Hey Fluttershy?!" Rainbow Dash said.

"Oh hi, Rainbow Dash... what are you doing?"

"I wanted to see if you'd like to come over to help me with music?"

"Music? What did you need help with?"

"Well, you still have those lyrics for our band? I wanted to see if you want to help in creating some new material?"

"Oh! That will be great! Just give me a moment to get them ready!"

"Great!" Rainbow Dash said. Fluttrershy hung up the phone. Fluttershy was shaking with excitement and anxiety. Pinkie was walking to where Fluttershy was after she fixed Fluttershy's door. "Pinkie! I need help!"

"What is it?" Pinkie asked.

"Rainbow Dash,asked me to help her with her music!" Fluttershy responded.

"Okay? What do you have to do?"

"She asked me for lyrics... but... I don't know if they are any good?"

"Are you sure?"

"I don't know... I'm freaking out..."

"Hey, it's okay... did you want to show them to me first?" Pinkie asked.

"I... suppose I could..." Fluttershy replied softly.

"But, I think you're okay!"

"You sure?"

"Of course!"

"Thank you Pinkie!"

"Yep!"

Pinkie helped Fluttershy organize her notes and even looked at a few of them, and she thought they were pretty good.

"They are pretty good Fluttershy." Pinkie assured.

"Thank you." Fluttershy responded.

"I don't think you have to worry about sharing them!"

"Okay!"

Involvement

Afterward, Pinkie went over to Rarity's place. Rarity opened her door.

"Pinkie Pie, what brings you over?" Rarity asked.

"Hi Rarity!" Pinkie said. "Ya got a minute?" Rarity invited Pinkie inside her house.

"So, what's up?" Rarity continued.

"Well, you know we all haven't been together in a while? So, I was suggesting we should do some sort of collaborative work!"

"What do you have in mind?"

"Well, for you... I was thinking of some cool gear to wear for each of us for this weekend?"

"Oh, that sounds interesting!"

"Yeah, something to help us remind everyone that we are a team! To bring us back together!"

"Oh, Pinkie that's a brilliant idea! I suppose it's been awhile since I've worked on anything recently. Okay!"

"Yeah! Great!"

"I need to get started!" Rarity said, as she went to her studio to work.

Included

After Pinkie gave Rarity a boost in creativity, she thought Rarity could use some help. She ran over to Applejack's farm. She knocked on the door.

"Hey Pinkie Pie!" Apple Bloom said.

"Hey there sweet little Apple Bloom!" Pinkie yelled, as she ruffled her hair. Apple Bloom giggled. "Applejack available?"

"She's out back!" Apple Bloom said.

"Thank." Pinkie said, as she hopped to the back of the house. Applejack was sitting around with a small mini pony.

"Hey! Applejack!" Pinkie yelled. Applejack was startled.

"What in tarnation!" Applejack yelled. "Pinkie?!"

"Hey!" Pinkie said with a huge smile.

"What's up?" Applejack asked.

"Oh nothing, but I have something to ask?" Pinkie added.

"What is it?" Applejack continued.

"Are you busy today?" Pinkie questioned.

"Not too much, why?"

"Well, I think Rarity may need your help!"

"She does? What's happening? Is she okay?"

"She's okay, but she is working on something that would be really, really fun for the both of you to work on!"

"No offense Pinkie, but am not fashionable like Rarity. Ah be in the way..."

"Oh no, it's not that! She is working on something fashionable, but what I would suggest is be a helping hand! Like, if she needs any heavy lifting, you would be there!"

"Hmm... ya know, that might not be a bad idea!"

"Really?"

"Yeah, ah think she'll like it!"

"Great!"

"Thanks Pinkie, am glad you came to let me know about it!"

"You're welcome!"

Back Again

After Pinkie was done visiting with Applejack, she went over to Sunset's place again, and Applejack went to Rarity's. She arrived at Sunset's place, and she knocked on her door, instead of barging in. Sunset opened the door.

"Hi Pinkie Pie!" Sunset said.

"Hey Sunset!" Pinkie replied.

"What brings you over?" Sunset said, as she allowed Pinkie inside to sit down on the couch.

"Well, I wanted to see if there's anything new with contacting Twilight?" Pinkie asked.

"Well, for either of them, no response." Sunset responded. "But, perhaps they're both busy at the moment."

"I see. But, how do you feel about meeting up with the girls this weekend?"

"Oh, they asked?"

"Not officially, but I wanted to see if you're up for it!"

"Of course I would!"

"Great! I'll see you there!"

"Wait Pinkie, what's this all about?"

"Kind of hard to explain, but it's been a while since we've done something, so why not make a plan to do so?!"

"Okay?"

"Yeah, In fact?!" Pinkie said, as she held out her phone, and texted Rainbow Dash to see if it was okay for Sunset to join her. Rainbow replied saying yes to it. "Okay, why don't you go over to Rainbow Dash's place?"

"Alright." Sunset said, as Pinkie walked out to the door. "For what?" Sunset Received a text from Rainbow Dash saying to bring over her guitar. "Band practice?"

"Cool, you should join!" Pinkie said.

"Okay." Sunset said, as she went to grab her guitar off the wall. "You going with?"

"Nah, I still have business to attend to!" Pinkie suggested.

"Okay , I'll see you." Sunset said.

"Yeah, see you around!" Pinkie replied.

A Person We Would Soon (Not) Forget

Pinkie and Sunset went separate ways, but Pinkie went over to Twilight's house. She knocked on the door. Nobody answered, so she went over to an object and unlocked the door.

"Twilight?!" Pinkie called. She walked in and shut the door. She quickly looked around, until she saw Twilight lying in her bedroom. She walked slowly and quietly to her bed, she got up without waking her up, and she pounced on Twilight. Twilight screamed and Spike in the corner marked as Twilight struggled in her blankets, and Pinkie crawled around. Twilight got up from the bed. Spike was by her side ready to attack. She got up from underneath the blanket. "Surprise!" Pinkie yelled. Spike fainted.

"Pinkie Pie?!" Twilight said, with a little disgust. "What are you doing?!"

"I came to check in on you!" Pinkie replied. "How are you?!"

"Tired..." Twilight said, as she yawned. "What is it?"

"Where have you been?!" Pinkie asked.

"Nowhere,been working... on homework." Twilight responded.

"Okie-dokie-loki!" Pinkie said as she got up from the bed. "Oh, just letting you know, the girls want to hang out this weekend!"

"Where?" Twilight said.

"Nowhere in specific,be ready to be there!" Pinkie replied.

"Okay?"

"Good seeing you again!"

"Yeah... I suppose I have been too busy..."

"It's okay, meet up with us this weekend okay?!"

"Alright, I will!"

"Wait Pinkie, before you go... I want to ask you something..." Twilight said.

"What is it?" Pinkie added.

"Well, it's about Sunset..."

"Yeah?"

"...nevermind..."

"Tell me, I won't tell anyone!"

"You promise?"

"Cross my heart, and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye! I never, ever, ever break a Pinkie Promise!"

"Okay... I know Sunset's been worried about me, but I don't know what to say sometimes. What would you do if you were given the chance to confess but was too afraid to say it?"

"You like Sunset?"

"I...I" Twilight was at a loss for words.

"Well, I never really asked for those types of feelings before... I can't say! Now, we talk about something like sweets or delicious food,I always say what's on my mind!" Pinkie replied.

"You think she'll accept?"

"I can't say."

"Okay."

"But, don't ignore your opportunity to do so! Okay?!"

"Okay... thanks Pinkie!"

"Yep!"

Who Knew About Things Before, And Had Done It Again?

After Pinkie reconciled their friendship, the girls gathered that weekend, and they played a song written by Fluttershy. Rarity made gifts for everyone, in which they wore and performed in front of the school. The crowds cheered, seeing them back together again.

During Curiosity... An Issue Within An Issue

After Pinkie hung out with everyone, she rested. The next day, they woke up early to meet up with the children and their parents, and they were to return before 11 am. So, she entertained them, singing songs, blowing up party balloons and making the kids so crazy they passed out, and was sleepy. Afterward, Pinkie cleaned up the rooms, and made sure nothing was broken in the house. She would check on the kids, making sure they were comfortable and tucked into bed. It was still early before the parents would arrive, but she was feeling a bit different today.

"I can't shake this feeling in my head?" Pinkie said to herself. "I'm not bored or anything, or feeling sick... what is it?" Pinkie contemplated what this feeling was inside her. Something felt off to her, within her usual state of Pinkie Pie. She looked around to see if she could find a book to read or a movie to watch to get her mind off of it. She picked up a story book that had something to do with a lost duck. Pinkie read it, and was sad about the lost duck, but was glad it found its way home. "Lost..." Pinkie found out, she felt lonely. It was weird because she hung out with everyone yesterday, but she realized they each were practically in love with each other, making her the only one without a love interest, so it made Pinkie feel a bit disoriented. She never looked for someone, nor has anyone looked to her as a preferable date. Nearing the end towards Senior year, she never was with anyone. Just Pinkie. How odd, that she knew of everyone else's feelings but her own.

A couple of hours later, the kids were settled and watched TV for the remainder of time. Their parents arrived, and gave Pinkie a fairly generous amount for making their kids so settled, and the house was cleaned. She went her way, she never favored money all too much,only when she needed it for food, but the thought of her loneliness made Pinkie text everyone seeing if anyone wanted to meet up for lunch, and she was paying. Pinky went home, and rested.

Who Was The One That Sent The Text?

Later on that day, Applejack text back saying she was in, and not longer after Sunset replied saying where her and Twilight were heading to. Pinkie got up, and headed there.

Who Was The One That Brought Friends Together?

As Pinkie walked to the shops, she met up with Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom.

"Hey girls!" Pinkie yelled.

"Hey Pinkie!" Apple Bloom said.

"Yo, what's up!" Scootaloo added.

"Hello Pinkie!" Sweetie Belle replied.

"Whatcha girls up to?" Pinkie asked.

"Nothing... we're bored!" Scootaloo said, while the girls nodded.

"Well... I'm about to meet up with everyone at the Burger Joint, wanna come with?" Pinkie said.

"Been there, done that!" Scootaloo responded.

"Oh, well, how about... the movies?" Pinkie suggested.

"Already did!" Scootaloo answered.

"Wow, okay..."

"Look, Pinkie you don't have to help us, we understand, we'll figure something out!" Apple Bloom said.

"Wait!" Pinkie yelled. "Since it's the weekend, why don't you girls have a sleepover, you know, like build forts, watch movies all night, talk about the newest stuff on the internet?" The girls' faces lit up with excitement.

"Hey, you know that might actually be a good idea!" Sweetie Belle responded.

"Yeah! I'm the best at building forts!" Scootaloo said.

"Yeah, and I got tons of movies I like to watch over and over again!" Apple Bloom added.

"Thanks Pinkie!" The girls replied.

"Aww, you're welcome girls!" Pinkie said. Afterward, the girls headed off to make a plan, and Pinkie saw their free-spirited nature, and youthfulness, which made her feel confident in being okay with who she is.

A Side Trip

Pinkie sang a song while she was on her way to the Burger Joint.

"Cross My Heart"

Performed by: Pinkamena Diane Pie (Pinkie Pie)

[Verse 1]:

I heard the voice, I played it safe.

More than twice, I kept them safe.

The secrets, their stories.

The decisions, their choices.

All in me, they trust in me.

[Verse 2]:

I'm here for you, you're there for me.

I love you too, the smiles I see.

Bring me joy, and down to tears.

Easy to destroy, their trust and fears.

All in me, they count on me.

[Chorus x2]:

I cross my heart,

I hope to fly,

Stick a cupcake,

In my eye.

[Verse 3]:

My dearest friend, the love I felt.

Through the end, memories I held.

The troubles, the struggles.

Surviving and striving.

All in me, they remain in me.

[Verse 4]:

Thank you, for everything.

(Chorus)

After Curiosity...Where Was She In The End?

The pony Pinkie Pie asked human Pinkie Pie to stay a little longer to make preparations for a celebration of the rebuilt Ponyville. After she did they both held a party, singing songs, eating so much sweets, and did so until they could feel the break of dawn.

A Feeling Not Pinkie-Sensed

While both Pinkie's were tuckered out, they both stood under a tree.

"We both know how to party!" Pinkie said.

"Yes we do!" Pinkie replied.

"It's so great to have another Pinkie here!" Pinkie said.

"Yeah, it is!" Pinkie said, as she looked down.

"What's the matter?"

"Well, after being here, and going back home, does it feel weird to know everyone, their secrets and their lives?"

"Hmm... well, I always thought it was good to have a friend that understands and knows them."

"Yeah, but does it bother you to have so much information that may never be revealed."

"At times, it is a huge thing to keep, there are some that even made me question, but it is for a greater cause, they trust you."

"Yeah, I guess... but what about our lives? Do you sometimes forget to think for yourself?"

"Yeah at times, but it never bothered me because of everyone!"

"Have you pursued a love interest?"

"I thought about it, but in the end, what is important is being there for everyone, and not one or yourself, but how much more that matters!"

"They matter a lot, they mean the whole world to me!"

"That is why, it will all work out in the end! And, if you struggle with that, remember to always keep checking in of yourself, and myself of course!"

"Yeah, no doubt!"

"Thanks Pinkie!"

"Thanks Pinkie!"

They both hugged each other as they saw the sunrise from the mountains. Pinkie spent the day and night with the other Pinkie.

It's Not Over, Is It?

The night after that, Pinkie headed for the mirror. The mirror was closed, but Pinkie helped her return back. She arrived in the middle of the night at Canterlot High, she smiled coming back to being human. She got up, and hopped back to her home, however, as she walked back she saw a light flashing in the sky. She felt in her gut knew, it was not over yet.

Ending song of Pinkie Pie:

"Pinkie Doodle"

Pinkie Doodle went to town,

With little gator Gummy,

In Ponyville she stuck around,

To find something yummy.

Pinkie Doodle keep it up,

All the sweets you sought.

With the music and the mic,

And dropped it like it's hot.

The End of the End.

Extra: AJ and Miss Rarity

Extra: AJ and Miss Rarity

A Tinge Of Interest That Was Canon

Prior to Curiosity...

After the events of Rollercoaster of Friendship, Applejack was starting to become close with Rarity. She knew Applejack grew to like her, however, she did end up liking someone during the events of Spring Breakdown. But after they've reached safety on an island by going through the sinkhole portal to Equestria, Rarity made her decision to be with Applejack. It was no coincidence the guy she liked was oddly similar to Applejack with hair color, skin color, and having an accent. Rarity let the guy go, and realized he was doing his job rather than being a person of interest. Since that time, Applejack and Rarity started to see each other more often.

An Inside Joke

They went to each other's house, Applejack fixed up her studio and walk-in closet, which Rarity simply enjoyed. Rarity took a little more interest in how to take care of animals, and getting her hands constantly dirty. Rarity's favorite animal she would take care of was a mini pony named Li'l Sebastion. Applejack remembered the first time she spotted him inside the barn.

It was a hot summer evening, the sun was slow to set, and made all the livestock exhausted from the heat to find any shade. They all took refuge in the barn, and it was also time to be fed.

Applejack and Big Mac were out feeding the pigs. Rarity was there, sitting around the haystacks watching them taking care of their lovely animals. She was used to the muddiness it carried, the smell of animal shit, and stocks of apples with haystacks that surrounded the barn. She started getting used to it whenever Applejack invited her over, and she would observe and took note of everything.

Applejack was surprised by Rarity's sudden interest in farming, she insisted that she would like to be more involved.

"Who's this?!" Rarity squealed.

"Oh, that lil' fella?" Applejack said, as she was feeding the pigs outside through the gate. "That there's Li'l Sebastion!"

"I want it!" Rarity said. "It's everything!"

"Oh, well, he ain't for sale, but there were some folks coming around who do want him!" Applejack said.

"No! I simply refused to let anyone near him!" Rarity yelled. "Can't we keep him?"

"Well, ah would, but..." Applejack hesitated. "They did offer a lot for him, but ah personally don't want to because the poor fellas' got a lot of health-related problems!"

"Like?" Rarity questioned.

"Ah think it's mainly diabetes." Applejack said, as she stroked her chin trying to remember.

"That's... not right..." Rarity commented. "Poor little guy... I should give him my fleece to cover him with it!"

"Rarity stop!" Applejack said. "He's allergic to cotton! He gets really stuffy!"

"Okay..." Rarity said, as she put away her blanket, and was feeling sad for him.

"Don't worry Rarity, ah got Fluttershy helping me make sure he's safe and comfortable!"

"Oh, that's good..." Rarity said. "What's this between you and Fluttershy?"

"Oh c'mon! We're all friends, there's nothin' goin on!" Applejack said. "Besides, my eyes on you longer than you have on me!"

"Is that so?" Rarity continued. "Well, why don't you prove it!" Applejack grabbed her and raised her up to the wooden fence to sit on. Applejack held her close, and brought her in for their first kiss. Rarity blushed, and was surprised at her. She was impressed by her to make the first move. She went in for another, with her arms wrapped around her.

"Sweet Sarsaparilly!" Apple Bloom yelled, as she was in shock to see her older sister smooching up Rarity.

"Apple Bloom!" Applejack shrieked. "Wh-what a-are ya doin' in here?" Applejack stuttered, as she was red with embarrassment, and with sweat streaming down her face.

"A-ah came t-ta tell ya... foods ready!" Apple Bloom said hesitantly.

"Oh..." Applejack responded.

"Ain't Big Mac here too?" Apple Bloom said.

"Eeyup!" Big Mac said.

"What are ya doin' in here?!" Applejack said. "Oh, wait, you were helpin' me feedin' the animals..."

"Eeyup!" Big Mac continued.

"Why y'all green lookin' Big Mac?" Apple Bloom asked. "Are ya sick?"

"Eeyup!" Big Mac quickly ran out toward the trees.

"Aw C'mon..." Applejack stopped to think about it. "Ah guess cat's out of the bag..."

"E-yup..." Rarity added, feeling embarrassed as Applejack.

From that moment on, it was awkward to be around her family.

Okay?

Applejack wouldn't force her to be out there doing some work, but rather asked her to make some firm and tightly woven pants so she won't be ruining her good jeans for school. After Rarity was done with it, she delivered it to her, Applejack was in love with the jeans. She wore those jeans everytime she worked.

The First

Their first date was when Applejack invited her to her house to have an outside cook-out. Applejack treated her with her own cooking, however, Rarity does not eat very much meat, but rather a healthier option. She was convinced she could make a fine cuisine even Rarity would enjoy. After Applejack was done, she made Rarity, chicken stir-fry. Fresh peas, carrots, noodles, fried rice, and grilled chicken. Rarity was impressed, until she first took a bite. She was filled with such delight, it was light, but packed with much flavor. Rarity was in love with Applejack's cooking. Together they shared a meal, and gathered into the barn with Li'l Sebastian. Rarity loved being there. Together they sat on the haystacks listening to music. They danced together. They would have a formal dance and a dance to a pop song, but as they twirled around, they both accidentally tripped over a rope that was laying around the hay. Rarity was laying directly on top of Applejack, and they both laughed, blushed, and they both laid comfortably together, side by side. They kissed, but they also slept in the barn all throughout the night. Even though the haystacks were uncomfortable, they loved being there together. As they got up in the morning, they heard some other snoring going in the barn. They went to see who it was, and they found Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo in the hay sleeping. They both concluded they were snooping around and tried to ruin their date with the rope. Both Rarity and Applejack laid them down on the couch in the house. They went into Applejack's room to sleep some more.

Parent's Reactions

Around the same time, Rarity asked if her family was willing to spend time with both her and Applejack, however, since the time Rarity mentioned it to them, they thought Rarity was actually pursuing a possible relationship with a man named 'Jack.'

When they came over to see her, they opened the door and found out that her date was a lady named Applejack. Once they saw her and Rarity together, they stormed off, not saying a word, or even called to ask her anything regarding her decision.

That night they shared, Rarity was upset. She was bedridden, and didn't want to wake up. The thought of both of their families not accepting their love for each other made her feel ashamed, unwelcomed, and hurt.

"Rarity?" Applejack asked, as she walked into the bedroom. Rarity didn't get up, she laid in bed, staring straight at the blank and colorless wall. "Ah made ya a soup!" Applejack tried to lift her spirits up, but she was not responding. Applejack went over to her side of the bed, she sat down and would feed her silently, as she blew on every spoonful. Rarity would open her mouth, and slowly swallow it down. After she was done, Applejack placed the bowl down on the desk beside the bed, and would lay with her. "It's going to be okay." Applejack would say, as she would stroke her hair. She held her close. "Ah will always be there for you."

It took a week for Rarity to get back into work, but she made the suggestion that no one should know of their relationship. Applejack was against being dishonest toward her friends, but she had to for her.

The amount of time Applejack spent with Rarity, was making things back home quite difficult. Apple Bloom was a little overworked, and once had a heat stroke. The sudden change from just wanting a relationship, was taking a toll on everyone's life. Applejack felt like it was her fault for the cause, but none of them blamed her for anything.

O/O ...Wait?

Months after, they have been on a few dates such as going to the movies, and Rarity making Applejack try on a few outfits and even some cute lingerie. Rarity bought her two types in which she sold one of them to Sunset because Applejack favored only one of them, which was Rarity's favorite. She didn't question Sunset, but she wanted to get rid of it. Some ladies love comfortable and sexy sleepwear.

During Curiosity... Conflict Between Conflict

The two were a few months into the relationship, but every now and then, some fighting would erupt.

After Applejack dropped off the girls, she was working around the house, until around ten at night. She was ready to sleep after a long day with the Princess Twilight and the others. Later on that evening, Rarity called, to talk about some things that happened during Princess Twilight's visit…

Over the phone at two in the morning...

A: What?

R: What's with your tone of voice?!

A: Am tryin' to sleep...

R: Aren't we going to talk about today?!

A: About what?

R: Dropping me off first, not even saying anything about it. You didn't even come over to see me... What about Rainbow Dash's behavior, hmm? You could have at least said something?

A: Really... right now?

R: Yes right now! Why didn't you bother to call or text or come by to see me earlier?!

A: Ah was busy!

R: And another thing why is it that when you tend to know what everyone else is feeling, why can't you ever tell with me?!

A: Ah don't know... the others are too obvious...?

R: Well I guess I'll give you that. Both Sunset and Twilight need to get a room already!

A: Rarity please...

R: Don't you dare hang up on me!

A: Rarity look, we'll talk more tomorrow.

R: No, since you've been completely ignoring me. I've been dropping hints all over, and you couldn't see a single one?

A: What hints?

R: Can't you tell I was going through something, and needed you by my side?!

A: Ya did?

R: Yes?! I helped you in your time of need!

A: Ah don't want to talk about that, right now!

R: Fine, but I still needed you, and you totally ignored me?!

A: Rarity, can't you just be subtle with me?

R: Where's the fun in that?

A: Look, you almost made me crash today, can we not right now?

R: Oh, so you're blaming me, when Rainbow Dash has been the one poking me and annoying me all afternoon? Where's my knight in shining armour?

A: First off, that near-crash incident was your fault, and secondly, ah know ya always got to start somethin'.

R: I can't believe you would do this, blame me! Agh!

A: Rarity, ah got shit to do tomorrow, can't this wait?

R: Language darling!

A: You've heard me cussin' all the time, ya even do that yerself!

R: Yes... well, I have reason to! I have Opal here sometimes claws me up or nips at me every now and then. Sometimes I get caught in a stitch. Sometimes I have needles that all of a sudden have to prick me and my glorious fingers! Or sometimes I crack a nail, or if my make up is messed up. By the way, why didn't you tell me my lashes were off today?!

A: Rarity please, can ah go back to sleep, ah promise when am done gettin' everythin' together here, I'll come by!

R: So you chose work over me?! How selfish!

A: Rarity, if ah go a day without work, am a-be in trouble. Not only that! If ah stopped working altogether, am going to lose the farm...

R: So is that an invitation to finally come live with me?! Marvelous!

A: Dammit Rarity, am going to bed!

R: And you're not even going to tuck me to bed? Or lay with me, or maybe even...

A: No?! I'll come by tomorrow, okay?

R: Hmph, fine!... goodnight...

A: G'night...

R: Love you!

A: Love ya too!

During The Morning

The next day. Applejack woke up around six in the morning. She was doing a lot of work around the farm, tending to the animals, gathering apples, making sure she helped in fixing something to eat when everyone got up. She was done around eleven, which she wanted to head out to spend time with Rarity. She knew Rarity would be happy to see her. Applejack told everyone she was going to come back home sometime after one, but with Rarity, it could end up being the entire weekend. Apple Bloom said she was heading out to hang with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle at the movie theater. She drove up to Rarity's place. Applejack could have sworn, she saw Sunset with both Twilight's walking up that very street. But, they're doing whatever at this point.

Applejack walked up to Rarity's front door. Rarity opened the door, and she looked extremely exhausted, her hair was bushy, her clothes weren't put together, her eyes were red and watery, and it looked as if she didn't wash out her makeup from her face. Rarity was a complete mess, unlike her usual perfect self.

"Uh... Rarity?" Applejack asked.

"Oh, Applejack! You came!" Rarity enlightened.

"Yeah, ah said ah would, remember?" Applejack replied. Rarity pulled her into her house, as she looked around outside her front door. She squinted, and shut the door behind her and locked it. "What's goin' on Rarity?" Rarity hugged her, and her face fell on her shoulder.

"I had a bad dream last night..." Rarity said. "I couldn't sleep. Especially the way I was talking to you last night... you're not still mad at me... are you?"

"Of course not, Rarity." Applejack said. "Ah knew ya didn't mean it, but ah wasn't being good to ya either..."

"Oh, Applejack!" Rarity felt a little relieved, and hugged Applejack tightly.

"Ya look tired..." Applejack said. "Why don't we go lay down?"

"Okay..." Rarity said softly. "Carry me?" Applejack held onto Rarity with one arm behind her neck, and the other went down to the back of Rarity's knees and swung up to hold her tightly. She held onto Applejack with her arms around her neck, staring deeply into her eyes. The strength Applejack made Rarity tingle with excitement, as Applejack carried her to the bedroom. Applejack looked back at her, she loved handling Rarity, as if she was saving her from a life threatening situation, it made her feel empowered to protect her dear sweet Li'l Miss Rarity.

Applejack laid with Rarity, they snuggled together, maintaining a soothing temperature under the sheets and blankets. She faced away from Applejack, but her legs and toes curled up against Applejack's, with her soft right arm placed over Applejack's firm arm on top of her own waist and stomach. Applejack liked being the bigger spoon, when she would lay with her. She would feel her body, slowly breathing in and out of her small nose, her soft moans and movements of her legs, freezing toes, and arms adjusted to her sides. Rarity's hair in Applejack's face. Applejack could smell the sweet sensation of green apples and cinnamon. It wasn't Rarity's usual scent, but she knew it would arouse her senses. Rarity would often use it, whenever she wanted her attention. Applejack thought about it, maybe it was one of the hints Rarity tried to use to get her attention.

Applejack closed her eyes, and thought about what were the other moments she could have said something. She couldn't think of anything, other than, Rarity always sitting next to her every time they sat anywhere. Applejack was starting to get it, she was ignoring it the whole time. She thought about how annoying Rainbow Dash was with her stupid running gag about the flu. Neither of them said anything, but they both obviously didn't get the joke enough to care for it, so it became annoying for the both of them. Which is why Rarity was probably getting pissed off at Rainbow Dash, it seemed like Rarity had enough. Applejack thought about Rarity, the way she squealed in the truck that nearly made her crash. She said Rainbow Dash was poking her, so Applejack placed her finger where she was poked. Rarity jolted, as she was awakened from her rest. She was pissed. Rarity turned toward her.

"Applejack!" Rarity yelled. "What are you doing?!"

"Am sorry..." Applejack said sincerely. "Are ya sensitive there?"

"You know I am!" Rarity replied. Applejack couldn't say anything, she did not remember why.

"Am sorry..." Applejack continued. Rarity turned back to face away, and continued to rest.

"It's fine." Rarity responded. Applejack thought about it. Why couldn't she remember? It had to have been earlier that day. Applejack thought about it earlier that morning, they both don't have any classes together in the morning, lunch happened, and that's when Princess Twilight showed up. Something might have happened, since then, but what was it?

Applejack suddenly remembered Rainbow Dash running to the table, she was running, which made the table shift to the right, almost knocking everyone over. Rarity might have been trying to sit down, and the table ended up hitting her, possibly bruising her side. Which probably explains her being rude to Rainbow Dash all evening long. Applejack really missed out on everything. This drama could have been avoided if she had just listened and paid attention.

"Rarity..." Applejack said softly, as Rarity let out a moan. "Am sorry for earlier, ah don't know why ah didn't notice in the first place..." Rarity turned her whole body around to face Applejack.

"That's alright..." Rarity whispered softly, she was still exhausted. "As long as you are here now, that's all that matters to me."

Rarity was laying her head on top of Applejack's chest which was soft and comfortable for her head for support. Her right arm reached over Applejack's shoulder going under her neck, slightly gripping them for stability, and the other arm was placed over Applejack's stomach. Applejack adjusted her body to lay on her back, allowing Rarity to lay on top of her. She could hear her heartbeat, the heat and sensation of her vibrating breath, and heartbeat. The comforting relaxation Rarity had enjoyed so much. Slow breaths in which they both felt together, they both felt sleepy. Applejack closed her eyes, and allowed herself to sink into Rarity's motion of dreariness, within each breath she took. Their legs crossed each other, lying comfortably.

"Ah love ya Rarity." Applejack said to herself, as she fell asleep.

During The Movie

Moments later, Applejack heard the front door slam. It made her jump.

"Rarity?" Applejack asked, as she tapped on her shoulder. "Someone came through the door." Rarity muffled and moaned, she was too tired to get up and to hear what Applejack said. Applejack wanted to go see who it was. She slid her way through the sheets, but Rarity's grip tightened around her legs and chest, as if she knew about her wanting to get up. Rarity's reflex slowly got loose, Applejack was able to get up without awakening Rarity.

Applejack went into the living room. There she saw Apple Bloom with a mark on her head, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo sitting on the couch looking mopey.

"Apple Bloom?" Applejack questioned.

"Oh, hey big sis?" Apple Bloom said.

"What ya'll up to?" Applejack asked. "What's with that mark on yer head?"

"Nothing, got denied from watching a movie!" Scootaloo said.

"Yeah, we did." Sweetie Belle added. "We saw Twilight and Sunset over there wanting to watch the same movie!"

"What movie?" Applejack continued.

"It's "The Last House on the Left in the Woods on a Haunted Hill"." Apple Bloom answered.

"A horror movie?!" Applejack asked. "Ya know ya have to be 17 years old to watch such things, right?"

"Yeah, but we had a sick disguise though!" Scootaloo said. Scootaloo explained going to the movie ticket booth with Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom in one whole outfit, with Apple Bloom on the bottom and Sweetie Belle on top. While Scootaloo by their side, and tried to look like she was going there with an older sibling to watch it together. However, the ticket guy noticed straight away when both Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle started talking.

At The Movie Theater… (Added Detail)

"Sweetie Belle..." Apple Bloom said, as she struggled to have Sweetie Belle on her shoulders. "You're a lot heavier than ah thought you'd be!"

"Shut up!" Scootaloo yelled, as she elbowed Apple Bloom in the stomach. "The plan won't work if you're talking!"

"How dare you say I'm heavy!" Sweetie Belle said. They came up to the ticket booth. Apple Bloom tried to walk, but could not see where she was going. She ended up bumping into someone.

"Sorry!" Apple Bloom said. "Oh!" Apple Bloom opened up and saw Twilight with Sunset at the ticket booth. Twilight looked back.

"Hide!" Scootaloo said. They both turned around immediately before Twilight saw their faces. She went back to talking with Sunset. "Okay, we're good."

"Hey, was that Twilight?!" Sweetie Belle yelled.

"Shut up!" Scootaloo said. Their turn arrived, and the ticket guy looked at them. Scootaloo was trying to look mature and natural, while Sweetie Belle struggled to give the guy some money to buy the tickets. Apple Bloom walked over, but she head-butted the desk, and fell over. Scootaloo attempted it on her own.

"Can I get two tickets to see The Last House..."

"Nope!" The ticket guy interrupted.

"Why not?!" Scootaloo asked.

"It's rated "R," and you're clearly not old enough!" Ticket guy said.

"I have my older sister right here!" Scootaloo turned back to see them, and they revealed their identity as Apple Bloom got out to rub her head from hitting it against the desk. Scootaloo was mad.

"Security!" Ticket guy said. The girls were automatically kicked out of the theater, the security guy said they couldn't return until tomorrow. They got food, and headed over to Rarity's place.

Back To The Present…From The Past

"Ya tried to get into an "R-rated" movie by lyin'!" Applejack yelled. "Am very disappointed in you!"

"Am sorry, Applejack." Apple Bloom said sincerely, feeling bad about how she handled the situation. The other two comforted her, and also felt terrible.

"We're sorry Applejack!" Sweetie Belle added. "We've been wanting to watch this horror movie for ages!"

"Ah see." Applejack said. "Whatcha gonna do now?"

"I don't know..." Sweetie Belle said. "No plans so far..."

"We could try again tomorrow?!" Scootaloo suggested. Applejack went over and bumped her on the head. "Ow!"

"No bad deeds!" Applejack said to Scootaloo. "What would Rainbow Dash think of ya?"

"What are you talking about?" Scootaloo said. "She's the one that suggested it!"

"What?!" Applejack said. "She did not!"

"She did!"

"What did she say?"

"Uhhh..."

"Scootaloo, you're in big trouble!"

"Hmph!"

Moments later, Applejack heard something in the other room.

"Applejack!" Rarity said, from a distance.

"We'll discuss this later!" Applejack said to the girls. Applejack went into the bedroom. Rarity was sitting up, looking mad at Applejack. "Rarity... ya need somethin'."

"You've got out of bed!" Rarity said. "And what's with all the yelling?"

"Oh, ah had to check to see who came through the door." Applejack said. "It was Sweetie Belle and the other girls."

"Oh, are you mad at them?" Rarity asked.

"Well, they did try to sneak into an "R-rated" movie." Applejack said.

"Oh, that darn girl! But, come back to bed... please!" Applejack walked over to lay back down with Rarity.

"Sorry for wakin' ya!" Applejack said.

"That's alright. At least you were there to protect me, if there was a home invasion!" Rarity said.

"Yeah, I suppose so. But, yer not that vulnerable as much as yer playin at, ya know?"

"What, can I, at least, act like I don't?!"

"Oh..."

"Whatever!" Rarity laid back down, facing away from Applejack again. Applejack laid there thinking about it, and she saw the girls peeking behind in the corner. Applejack saw them, and the girls giggled and ran off. Applejack blushed. Applejack went to shut the door. She laid back down. She turned to face Rarity.

"Rarity..." Applejack whispered. "What was your dream about?" Rarity turned to face her.

"Well..." Rarity sighed. "My dream... it scared me. I thought I was fighting something or someone, but all of a sudden there was a blast of flames, and everything disappeared. I couldn't bear the thought of being alone last night... Which is why I called you in the middle of the night, to get my mind off of it. After I came forward with you about yesterday, and the way we spoke to each other, I thought you were getting bored of me..." Rarity began to tear up. "After we fought, I didn't mean to hurt you... I just wanted to see if you still... loved me." Applejack held her close.

"Am sorry Rarity..." Applejack said. "Ah wasn't there when ah should of been... nothing and ah mean nothing will make me change the way ah feel about you! Ah don't care if anyone accepts us. Ah don't want to leave you. Ever."

"Oh Applejack..." Rarity cried. "I love you!"

"Ah love ya too!" Applejack replied. They both began to hold each other tightly, as they laid side by side. When Rarity cried, Applejack wiped her tears, Applejack dragged her in for a kiss. "Ah miss our moments like this."

"I agree." Rarity added. "Then let's do it some more." They both continued to kiss. "Oh Applejack, that's not how you use your tongue darling! You filthy girl!" Applejack giggled. But, they heard giggling from the other room.

The Text

Meanwhile, in the living room, Apple Bloom was closing her ears trying not to hear anything, while Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were listening in, and laughing. Applejack opened the door, and yelled at them.

"What are ya perverts doin'?!" Applejack asked.

"Perverts?!" Scootaloo yelled.

"Rude!" Sweetie Belle said.

"You're the one's listenin' in!" Applejack said.

"So?" Scootaloo continued to taunt Applejack.

"Look, go find somethin' else to do!" Applejack requested.

"Like what big sis?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Ah don't know, go bother Rainbow Dash or somethin'!" Applejack said.

"Nah, I'd rather go sneak into the theater again!" Scootaloo suggested.

"No!" The girls said.

"Applejack!" Rarity yelled.

"What is it?" Applejack asked.

"Pinkie Pie sent a message!" Rarity replied.

"What she sayin'?" Applejack added.

"She wants to meet up for lunch!" Rarity said.

"How about we take ya with us?" Applejack suggested. "Then, you could figure it out from there?"

"We already ate though!" Sweetie Belle said.

"Ah don't know what else to say to ya girls?" Applejack admitted. "But, whatever it is, please stay out of trouble!"

"Fine!" Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle said.

"No promises!" Scootaloo said. Applejack went back to the room with Rarity.

"What did Pinkie suggest?" Applejack asked.

"Nothing so far..." Rarity said. "I guess we should wait on everyone else to confirm?"

Applejack mentioned to Rarity about how she saw Sunset with both Twilights, and they were talking about the relationship between them was like a typical love triangle.

The Continued Plot

After an hour later, Apple Bloom and the girls headed off to do something together, and Applejack and Rarity went back to lay down with each other. Applejack replied to Pinkie Pie about where they would like to go. Sunset replied saying Princess Twilight and she were going to the Burger Joint near the mall. Rarity was disgusted in having to go to a fast food place. Applejack said she could share a meal with her. Rarity was also not wanting to deal with Rainbow Dash at the moment, however, Applejack convinced Rarity to go since they may not see Princess Twilight for a while afterward, so Rarity went with her.

When they arrived, Rarity was not in the mood for this, but their friend might be away, so it will have to do. When they found out that Twilight was not there due to her being sick, Rarity was complaining.

"If I knew that, we could have just stayed home!" Rarity suggested.

"Sorry hun, but we are already here." Applejack said. Rarity was disgusted. That's when she pulled on Rainbow Dash's lips about the flu and threatened her if she mentioned it again. For the remainder of the time, they all were talking, only Applejack seemed a little more enthusiastic to hang with the others.

Afterward, they were in for an emotionally gripping ride when Twilight left for Equestria.

Applejack and Rarity were texting both Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom in making sure they were home safe and sound. Apparently, the girls were having a sleepover for the weekend at Applejack's place, which was good that they will be somewhere safe.

After Curiosity... Events After

After being gone for two straight days, when they arrived. School was happening the next day, so they practically had to get back into gear once they set foot into their world. After everything, they were going to let this feeling go since Twilight was already feeling extremely guilty over everything that has happened. Applejack looked at her phone, and saw everyone has been texting her, when she left on such short notice. She needed to get home, same with Rarity.

They both were riding home together. It was a tiring and stressful evening, with the skies still melting into the ground with rain and clouds. The day felt gloomy and bittersweet. Rarity sat close to Applejack as they came up to the house. Rarity was hesitant to leave the truck, after being in that whole situation, it felt like they didn't really spend much time this whole weekend. Applejack looked straight forward, and so did Rarity.

"Quickie?" Applejack suggested, as she looked back at her.

"Quickie!" Rarity said.