Watching Us Watching Them

Chapters

Day One: Knowing
Day Two: Learning
Day Three: Proper Introductions
Day Four: Scientific Method
Day Five: Strange Animals
Night, Part One
Night: Part Two
Night, Part Three

Day One: Knowing

The night sky reached out to grab her, drawing her to face a grin full of long, cruel fangs.

"You thought it was over, didn't you?"

There was no anger in the words, nor any hint of genuine curiosity. Instead, the dark mare's question rang with a sadistic kind of mirth. Her hold tightened until something cracked slightly.

"You thought you were safe, that you were home free. But you were a fool. Neither you, nor Equestria, will ever know freedom again."

In that wretched grip, the unicorn thrashed, fighting for her very life.

"There's no use trying to resist," the voice continued. "It's time to submit, Miss Moondancer. Well?" She lifted her victim to face her. "Submit! Miss Moondancer, are you listening to me?"

The words rang in the ears of young Moondancer as the dark blues and purples of the night distorted and slowly recomposed themselves into a new image.

The silvery filly jolted upright in her desk by the window, the face of her teacher looming over her. "Yes—I mean, no, I—what was the question?" she fumbled.

"I was asking you to submit your assignment," the professor chided. "I assume you were up all night completing it?"

"Er, actually..."

"She was building a Nightmare Shelter," a grassy-green filly behind her interrupted. "In case the world ends next week. I told her she'd probably get in trouble..."

A few of her classmates snickered at this, and Moondancer pointedly ignored them, shifting her sapphire eyes to the window. The professor leveled the destructive power of a sympathetic gaze at her.

"It's alright," the teacher softly assured her, raising a lavender hoof to stroke the fily's deep red mane. "These things happen. Why don't you just finish it over the break, and get it to me as soon as you can?"

Moondancer nodded. "Yes, Professor Sparkle," she agreed halfheartedly.

Professor Sparkle smiled and patted her student's shoulder lightly. She then returned to the front of the room and scanned the papers she had collected. Satisfied, she looked over the class, and cleared her throat. "I hope you all have a lot of fun over the upcoming break," she announced. "These moments will be precious to you for the rest of your life, so enjoy them. Class is dismissed!"

With a great chattering noise, the students all rose together and began filing out of the room. At the door, a small, purple and green dragon waved to them, offering a few short words of encouragement to each one in passing.

Moondancer paused to smooth her mane and straighten the powder blue bow she wore at the base of her tail before passing the teacher's assistant, and gave him a broad smile.

"Good luck, Moondancer!" he said, patting her on the back. "I'm sure you'll do great!"

"Thanks, Spike," she replied. "That means a lot." She trotted past him slowly, lagging behind her classmates as her eyes lingered on the dragon. He didn't pay any attention to her gaze, just giving her a small bow and walking away to talk to Twilight. Moondancer sighed sadly as she reached the door.

Distracted as she was, she didn't notice the two pairs of hooves reaching for her until they gripped her around the shoulders. With a small "awp", she was pulled quickly out into the hallway.

She spun to confront the grabby ponies. "What's the big idea, May?"

The green filly giggled in response. "We all saw you practically swooning over dragon-boy," she explained. "We just want to help you out." Her friend, a yellow colt with a shooting star cutie mark, nodded emphatically.

Coming from May Flowers, those words were slightly ominous. She was clever, certainly, and not particularly cruel, but she had a bit of a troublemaking streak. For all Moondancer knew, this could be sincere, or it could be some kind of weird setup for a prank. "Help me how?" she asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"By making you look pretty!" May pumped an enthusiastic hoof and tossed her buttery mane. "This is the only class Professor Sparkle teaches today. In ten minutes she and Spike will be back in her office, doing other work for the rest of the morning. Come with me and I'll have you ready by the time she gets back there, and you can go woo to your heart's content! We'll be a little late for Professor Blueblood's class, but I don't think that'll be a big deal."

The silver filly thought it over for a moment. "Well... I dunno..."

"Last chance before the Celebration," May reminded her. "If you don't do it now, you'll have to wait an entire week, just thinking about him, before you even get to try."

Moondancer groaned into a hoof. "Okay, okay," she said, waving at them. "Let's do this... quick. Before I change my mind."

~#~#~#~

"Hey, did you hear about...?"

"Could be the end for all of us!"

"Only a few days left, better make it count..."

Spike let out a tiny snort of disdain as he followed the professor out the door and into the school's courtyard. "Listen to them." He waved a claw around at the foals chattering about the latest rumor. "They're convinced something really bad is about to happen just because the year is a nice, round number. How can they take it that seriously?"

"I don't think they do," Professor Sparkle replied. "For most of them, it's just fun to pretend something that couldn't happen is about to. Don't tell me you've never done that?'

The dragon started to speak, but halted himself, looking slightly annoyed by his inability to answer in the negative. "Yeah, well," he managed, "I'll just be glad when the Summer Sun Celebration is over and everypony sees that there was no meteor or plague or ancient goddess coming to kill everypony."

"That would be nice," the teacher answered him, picking up her pace. Her bright violet eyes wandered a bit, distractedly.

There was something off about her reaction, he realized. "Twilight? You don't... actually believe it, do you?"

Twilight shook her head. "I don't know, Spike," she stated flatly. "This whole thing, there's something familiar about it, like I should know something that I just... can't remember."

Well, that was that, Spike decided. "We're going to have to do research, aren't we?" he asked.

"I think that's a pretty fair assumption."

"I understand this is how you cope with things, but as of right now we're on a break!" he protested. "You really wanna waste a whole week worrying when we could be having fun at a festival?"

"I need to know, Spike," she replied in a stern tone. "Just... help me research today. If we don't find anything, we can go do whatever you want for the rest of the week, I promise."

The beleaguered assistant sighed. "Alright, Twilight..." he agreed. "Just for today."

An aura of magic picked Spike up and set him on Twilight's back. "Thank you, Spike." She smiled back at him as she approached her tower.

A few steps later, she bumped straight into something and crashed to the ground, drawing a surprised yelp from her rider.

"Oof... what was—Professor Heartstrings?" Twilight stood slowly, using a hoof to steady her passenger. "Are you alright?"

"Oh, yeah, totally fine," the seafoam green harpflanked mare answered, springing to her hooves as if nothing had happened. "I was just looking for you, actually! I need to borrow one of your books, to confirm something. If my theories are correct, we're about to see an invasion from another world! It'll be catastrophic, of course, but if we survive, think about what we could learn from the experience! Imagine the technology they'll have... the culture... imagine what their very existence could reveal about the nature of life itself! So can I?"

"Sure thing, Lyra," Spike replied, while the unicorn under him was still attempting to process her colleague's theory. "We were just going to research something similar, so maybe you can help us."

"Great! Alright, let's get it started!" Lyra hooked a hoof around Twilight's leg and zipped up the stairs, dragging the confused mare along with her.

Twilight's office was located at the top of the tower, overlooking the whole of Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. The school had been one of the cornerstones of Equestria since it was founded, one of the three great magical academies. Like most who studied here, Twilight had lived on this campus since she was a little filly, and expected she would all her life. On an ordinary day, the professor might have paused here to look out over the courtyard and appreciate the sight, but at the moment, she was preoccupied.

"Okay, let's see," she began, trying to assume control again. She eased her way through the mess of books from recent research sessions, making a note that as soon as she had found what she was looking for, every shelf in the chamber was going to have to be re-alphabetized twice. "Spike, can you fetch me our copy of Predictions and Prophecies? That seems like a good place to start."

Her assistant saluted and made his way to a bookshelf on the far side of the room. He scanned the books on the lower shelves, then pulled an elephant ladder around to get a better look at the higher ones. Inspecting the top shelf, he found what he was looking for; an old, brown tome that was almost as big as he was. "Got it!" he called, pulling it out.

Between the weight and the sudden motion, Spike suddenly found himself completely overbalanced. Twilight gasped and reached out with her magic to hold onto the falling dragon and set him gently back on the ground. Lyra, meanwhile, caught the book, and instantly began leafing through it.

Twilight leaned closer and attempted to read over her shoulder. Here and there, she spotted predictions she recognized from history lessons or had seen fulfilled herself. An illustration caught her eye. "Hold on a moment, Professor," she said, pointing to the page. "What's that?"

Obligingly, the other mare passed her the book. "What? You mean this one about the Mare in the Moon?"

The lavender unicorn looked over the picture, a nighttime landscape, with a great equine shadow descending from the moon, obscuring the distant mountain. "It says... The Mare in the Moon, Nightmare Moon, The Mare of Darkness, Terror Born of Luna, Promise of Everlasting Starlight, The Cold Despair of... let's just skip the appelations... is the name given to the monster that attempted to overthrow the Princess and was sealed away in the moon. There she shall remain full one thousand years, until on the longest day of the thousandth year she will be free once more. Unless the heroes of the forest rise against her, the night shall have no end, til it be the end of all ponykind."

Neither pony could think of anything to say for a moment. Lyra recovered first, lip trembling pitifully as she spoke. "Does this mean no aliens?"

Professor Sparkle stared a moment longer, then began fumbling about telekinetically for some parchment and a quill. "Terror Born of Luna..." she mused. "Professor Heartstrings, history is your subject, not mine. Who is Luna?"

The seafoam professor rubbed her chin and thought for a moment. "Well, I'm not sure... you'd really want Professor Minuette for this, I mostly study dead or apocryphal cultures, and proto-Equestrian politics tends to be really complicated... and it was before the Decree of Historical Preservation, so most of what we know from that time is oral tradition or straight-up myth. All I can say for sure is that she was an alicorn princess, and she disappeared a thousand years ago."

"Hm." Twilight put quill to parchment, thinking carefully. "I guess there's only one place to turn for more information, then. Dear Princess Celestia... I have come across a prophecy regarding Nightmare Moon's return. As a Canterlot professor, it is my duty to protect the students and the city, and as your faithful student, I want to help you. In order to act on this, I need more information. Please send anything you can tell me about Nightmare Moon and her mother, Luna." With that written, she rolled up the letter. "Spike, can you send this for me, please?"

"Oh, yeah, sure thing." Spike took the missive in his claw, and it was consumed in a quick exhalation of emerald fire.

No sooner had the action been completed than a rapping sound echoed through the chamber. The ponies glanced at each other. "I'll get it," Lyra offered, trotting around a pile of books to get to the door.

"I still think this is a dead end," the dragon insisted. "You know these prophecies always have some kind of weird twist on them. The whole thing will probably turn out to be a metaphor for a mild flu outbreak or something."

Before Twilight could reply, Professor Heartstrings returned, escorting a young silvery filly wearing a glittering pink dress. Her red mane now had a mauve streak in it, and she seemed to be wearing a touch too much makeup. "Hey, uh, she says she's looking for Spike," Lyra explained.

Spike scratched his head. "Uh, hey, Moondancer. What's with the outfit?"

The filly rubbed her leg with a hoof. "Oh, this? It's borrowed, actually. May thought it would help." She looked down at the ground as she mustered her concentration. "See, I actually came to talk to you about the Summer Sun Celebration," she continued. "This year is supposed to be a big one. You know, the millenial fair and all. And, well, I was just thinking, I mean, my parents take me every year, but I want to do something special." She shifted her weight from her left legs to her right. "So I was wondering, would you... want... to..."

The dragon's cheeks were puffed out and he was making some kind of gagging sound, and Moondancer trailed off as she noticed. He turned away from her and released a fiery belch. The wisps of smoke from the flame coalesced into a solid shape, a simple roll of parchment, sealed with a red ribbon and the royal crest. "Sorry about that," he said. "I swear Philomena makes these things hotter than they need to be. Hey Twi, I think this is Celestia's reply." A claw cut the ribbon off, and he unrolled the letter. He read the first line, and immediately did a double-take. Moondancer watched his eyes scan the paper several more times.

"What's the matter, Spike?" Twilight asked, moving a little closer.

"I don't understand, is what. Listen to this." Her assistant shook his head and cleared his throat.

My Faithful Student, Professor of Arcane Theory, Researcher of Magitechnology, Chief Librarian, Sourceress Twilight Sparkle,

You don't need to know.

"What?" Twilight craned her head around, trying to get a look at the parchment.

"That's what it says here!" Spike cried, gesturing to the line. "I told you, it doesn't make sense! The rest of it isn't any better, either."

Preparations have already been made. I intend to see to the matter personally, so you need not concern yourself. I think it would be good for you to get out of the castle and go somewhere nice and sunny. Fillydelphia, maybe. Lots of ponies vacation in Neighagara Falls or Applewood. I've heard Manehattan is nice this time of year. Go anywhere you like and just relax.

Remember, my student, I care deeply about you and Spike. I have watched you grow from a filly who could barely control her magic into one of the most clever, skillful, and respectable professors Canterlot has ever seen. I have no doubt you will continue to grow for many years. For now, though, you must remember that there is a time when your duties end.

Sincerely,

Princess Celestia

Silence flooded the room as he finished reading the letter. Twilight's concerns had just been flatly dismissed by Celestia. That had never happened before. In the entire time she had been Celestia's student, no insight, no complaint, no minor worry had been ignored. Her entire body slumped slightly, and Moondancer, visibly uncomfortable with her teacher's condition, nuzzled her appeasingly.

'What does she mean, preparations have been made?" Twilight wondered aloud. "And... my duties end? How? Isn't this...?" Slowly, she looked down to the filly at her side. "Oh, by the way... about that assignment."

Her pupil blinked and looked up at her. "Yes, Professor Sparkle?"

The adult mare bit her lip. "How about we do something different? I don't want you to spend your entire break working, so if you can answer one question for me, you don't have to do it. What do you say?"

Moondancer hesitated for a moment. The professor's tone was odd, melancholy and grim. Something was definitely wrong. Still, to avoid upsetting her, she nodded. "Okay. I'll do it. What is it?"

Twilight closed her eyes and took a deep breath before delivering the question. "What is magic?"

This was simple. Perhaps some of the class might have forgotten, but they had been taught the answer to this question on the first day. The filly waited a moment, in case there was more. When nothing else came, she answered, "Magic is a force that acts on the interconnectedness between all things. By redefining logical connections, magic changes the way the natural laws express themselves."

Professor Sparkle smiled at her, though it wasn't a kind of smile Moondancer was used to or understood. "Very good," she said, embracing the filly. "You pass. Now, I think you should get going. You have somewhere else to be, don't you? Better get going. And I hope you enjoy the Celebration." Gently, she nudged her student, urging her toward the door.

Twilight relaxed when Moondancer took the hint and started out of the office on her own. She leaned closer to Spike as the silver filly disappeared around the stack of books. "Where is the Summer Sun Celebration this year?" she asked cautiously.

Spike scowled and scratched his head. "How should I know?" he replied. "I usually just wait for the letter." Every year previously, the Princess had sent them a reminder of the location. This time, though, she had mentioned several cities, and said nothing about the festival in connection with any of them.

"It's in Ponyville," Lyra chipped in. "I'm kinda surprised you two didn't know. My students have been talking about it all week."

"Well, you're lucky, then," the dragon retorted. "All I've heard is stuff about Nightmare Moon and zombies and earthquakes and tidal waves."

"Tidal waves?"

"In any case," Professor Sparkle said, "if we know where to go, then we should be going, don't you think? Come on, Spike, we've got a train to catch."

~#~#~#~

"What do you mean, no trains to Ponyville?"

"Sorry, Professor," the scrawny, ashen ticketing colt said apologetically, tapping his hooves together. "It's the Princess's order. No trains to Ponyville all week, from anywhere. No airships or carriages, either. And she ordered the Gate of Magic closed."

Twilight's eye twitched. The Gate of Magic was the only way into, or out of, Canterlot on hoof. It held a great deal of ceremonial importance to the city. Anypony wishing to study in Canterlot was required to walk through it several times a year, and so it was never closed, under any circumstances. There was only one possible reason for Celestia to have ordered such a thing; despite her claim that the situation was under control, Ponyville was now too dangerous to visit. Of all the worst possible things that could happen, she thought, this was... well, it was certainly on the list! Right above "the dead walk the streets" and right below "the library is on fire!"

"Bummer," grunted Lyra from beside her. "What are you going to do now?"

With a huff, the purple professor turned and stomped toward the exit. "I'll tell you what I'm going to do," she growled. "I'm going to go back to my office, and I'm going to create a long-range relative-target teleportation spell, because that's apparently the only way to get to Ponyville. Then I'm going to use it to go straight to Princess Celestia and ask why in Tartarus' name she didn't tell me anything! And then I—"

Twilight was jarred out of her indignant ranting when, for the second time that day, she collided with another pony.

"You really need to stop doing that," Spike remarked, elbowing her starburst cutie mark.

Her obstacle this time, a large white stallion wearing a solid-looking chestplate, barely flinched, but quickly turned to spot her. "Twily?" He offered a hoof to help her up.

Looking up at him, Twilight smiled briefly. "Shiny!" she exclaimed as she took his hoof and stood. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with the Princess?"

Shining Armor was Twilight's older brother, and shared the same highly magical bloodline that had made her the Princess's prized pupil. With his own power, he had ascended through the ranks of the Royal Guard, becoming Captain within a few short years of enlisting. This being one of the biggest holidays of the year, he should almost certainly have been in Ponyville by now.

Yet here he stood, shaking his head. "No, I'm with the rear guard," he explained. "We're set to leave by flying chariots in about ten minutes. I'm making my final preparations right now, so—"

"That's perfect!" Twilight exclaimed, nearly jumping on him. He backed up very slightly, raising an eyebrow. She took a deep breath and tried explaining herself slowly, gesturing to Lyra with a hoof as she did so. "Sorry, I mean, we actually need to get to Ponyville ourselves, but the trains aren't running right now. Can you give us a ride?"

Shining Armor thought hard about that one. "I dunno. I mean, I could get in a lot of trouble... it's against the Guard's policy..."

"You're the Captain!" she protested. "You can make your own policy!"

At this, he chuckled and shook his head. "Alright, alright. Ordinarily I'd object to bringing my sister along on an escort mission, but this is all ceremonial anyway. It's perfectly safe. There should be room in my chariot. We'll need to hurry, though." He thought about it for a minute as he started walking, the mares close in tow. At length, he added, "If you want, I could fix you up with my chariot driver, Flash. You'd really like him."

Twilight went crimson at this. "Shiny! I do not need your help getting a stallion!" she protested indignantly.

"Yeah," Lyra cut in, "she'd much rather have help getting a Trixie."

"That's not what—I don't have a crush on Professor Lulamoon!"

"Whoa, okay, talk about oblivious, I had no idea my little sister was into mares!"

"I am not!"

Lyra's snickering ceased as they arrived at a grassy lot where half a dozen chariots were lined up. Guards hurried to take their positions, either seated in the chariots or in front, ready to pull. One by one the chariots were filled and took off. The stallion offered his sister a hoof up into his own, then stepped in after her. Spike climbed in as well, but before Lyra could hop in as well, a pegasus guard placed a hoof on her shoulder.

"These vehicles are reserved for use of the Royal Guard," he calmly informed her. "You should go about your business and—"

"She's with me, Flash," Shining interrupted. "I'm giving these three my permission, personally, by my authority as Captain of the Guard."

The pegasus turned to give him a surprised look, then shook his head. "Well, that's fine then, I guess, but three ponies in one chariot will put us over the weight limit. She can't ride with you, unless you want to take the risk of all of us plummeting out of the sky."

"Oh, then I'll..." Lyra started, but as she looked around she found that no seats remained empty.

The captain sighed heavily. "I guess there's nothing we can do about that. But Twilight and Spike are okay, right?" he asked.

Flash scrutinized Twilight in a way she wasn't entirely sure she was comfortable with, then nodded approvingly. "Yeah, we're good to go."

"But, but," Lyra protested, "I have to go with you! Only me and Twilight know what we're dealing with here! Tell 'em, Professor!"

The purple unicorn, however, simply gave her an apologetic look. "I wish I could do something, Professor Heartstrings," she tried weakly, "but it looks like this is the only way. Don't worry, though, I promise I won't fail!" Beneath her, the wheels started to move. "I'll get to the bottom of this!"

Mouth agape, the history professor hurried after the chariot. "We were supposed to face this together, Sparkle!" she shouted, just as they lifted off. "We were going to be a team!"

Twilight took a sudden interest in studying the edge of the vessel.

"Too bad about Professor Heartstrings," Shining Armor offered as they cleared the city walls. "But hey, at least this'll give us time to bond. How have your classes been?"

They made small talk to pass the flight to Ponyville. The professor discussed her students, her own academic pursuits, and the latest issue of Unicorn Science Weekly, while the captain told her all about his assignments, his girlfriend, and his bumbling lieutenant ("No offense, Flash!"). The whole time, Twilight kept eyeing the horizon. She began to fidget slightly as the Princess's covered vehicle came into view.

~#~#~#~

As expected, they touched down in the town square without incident in the early afternon. Twilight sprang from the chariot and bolted toward Celestia's carriage. "Princess!" she exclaimed, sticking her head inside.

Where she had expected to see her mentor, however, she instead found an empty seat.

"I told you," Shining said, behind her, "this is all ceremonial. The Princess was already here."

"Where is she, then?" Twilight asked, withdrawing her head and looking up at him.

Her brother shrugged. "Having a look around with the vanguard. That's all I can say. Meanwhile, we're supposed to get set up in Town Hall. Where are you staying?"

"I'll find a room in a stable somewhere," she replied, shrugging.

He scratched at his neck uncomfortably before opening his mouth. "Uh, Twily, you do know this is the biggest festival of the year, right?" he ventured. "There won't be any rooms left by now."

Realization dawned on her face slowly. Usually, Celestia would have made a reservation for her, so she had never thought about how hard it was to get a room for the event. Her expression soured as she kicked at the ground. "Well, yeah, now that you mention it, there wouldn't be. What now? I can't sleep on the street for a week."

Shining Armor sighed. "Well, since you've come this far, I'm sure you could bunk with me," he offered, smiling. "It'll be easier to catch up that way."

Twilight smiled softly back and nuzzled against her brother. "Thanks, Shiny," she said. Then, quickly, she turned and took a few steps away. "Well, I've got a lot to do today! I'll see you tonight!"

He waved to her as she trotted off, Spike at her heels. "Alright, and be careful! Love ya, sis!"

Behind him, a shape slipped quietly out of the vehicle and scampered off.

~#~#~#~

"So... you're just gonna walk around the festival at random until you find the Princess?"

The unicorn clicked her tongue at the dragon's suggestion. "Now, Spike, you know me. Do you honestly think I wouldn't have a plan?"

He shrugged. "Well, where are we going then?" he asked, looking reasonably confused.

"Think about it. Everypony knows Celestia has a massive sweet tooth. So the first place she goes during every Summer Sun Celebration is..."

"The nearest bakery or sweets shop," Spike finished, understanding now. "Of course. So, do you know where that is?"

Twilight paused a second to glance around. "I saw a sign a minute ago for a confectioner's," she answered. "We should be going the right way, I think—"

"You're looking for something sweet?" a voice boomed a few feet to their left, drawing a stare from the pair. At a booth, an earth pony with a pink coat and an even pinker curly mane, wearing a boater hat and a pinstriped suit, leaned forward with her forehooves on the table in front of her. "Step right this way," she said, "I'll show you what you need!"

"You can take us to Sweetie Drops?" Twilight smiled. "That's perfect!"

At that, the other mare scratched her head, inadvertently pushing her hat down over one of her bright azure eyes. "Sweetie Drops? You mean Bon Bon's place? I guess I could, but I know someplace even better! Walk this way!" With that, she sprang into action, in a literal sense, hopping down the street like a massive pink rabbit.

"I don't think you could walk that way if you tried," Spike commented dryly. The professor gave him a stern look as they both followed the pink mare's path.

They wove their way through the crowds, taking twists and turns until Twilight suspected they were completely lost and knew that they had made at least three circles around various parts of the fair. Abruptly, however, their guide halted in front of a large building. The roof had the color of gingerbread with a white icing-like trim, and a tower shaped like a cupcake sat on top; the windows had an odd rosy tint to them. She turned on the spot and gestured wildly.

"Here we are, Sugarcube Corner!" she announced. "Whatever you're looking for, I'm sure you'll find it here! And if you can't find anything, you can just ask me, Head Apprentice Baker Pinkie Pie!" She ripped off her suit to reveal a uniform complete with an apron concealed underneath, and tossed her hat aside as a chef's toque seemed to spring from under it.

"Twilight Sparkle," the unicorn introduced herself simply. "And this is Spike, my assistant. May we speak to the owners of this shop?"

"Oh, sure! Just come right on in!" Pinkie flung open the front door and nearly dragged Twilight inside. "You can wait here while I go find Mr. and Mrs. Cake. Be right back!"

As the earth pony swept off to summon the proprietors, Twilight took a look around. The room seemed designed primarily for hosting events, with its long tables arranged close together and ample floor space left open. The small crowd inside was dissipating rapidly; it must have been the very end of a big rush.

At the counter, a blonde unicorn filly with a muted mauve coat was talking to a lanky rust-colored unicorn colt wearing a toque atop his turquoise mane. "Yes, that looks perfect," she was saying. "Thank you for your help, Snails!"

"Aw, it's just my job, eh?" Snails replied. "But I'm glad you're satisfied!" He closed the box and slid it to her, then spotted Twilight and waved. "Hey there, new customer! What can I do for you?"

As the filly turned to look, the mare moved closer. "Well, I'm looking for Princess Celestia," she explained. "Have you seen her?"

"Princess Celestia?" the colt repeated, scratching his head, his voice slow as if he had to consider each word as he said it. "Well, I don't really know. I've been busy in the kitchen up until that last crowd, so I haven't seen who's been here." He winced. "Sorry I can't help."

Twilight shook her head. "It's fine, I'm sure the owners will know. So you're the other apprentice baker?" she asked idly.

"Oh, yeah, me and my buddy Snips," he replied, stepping out from behind the counter to reveal a close-cut tail and a cutie mark of a snail. "Say, why are you looking for the Princess, anyway?"

"Oh, well..." She thought about this for a moment and decided it was definitely not a good idea to tell them everything. "I'm a professor from Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, and I have to talk to her about... important magic stuff. I can't really say any more."

The filly's golden eyes widened. "Really? Oh, wow," she gasped. "That must be so cool! I, er, was going to take the exam once, but I had to cancel... it would've been great to live in the castle."

Twilight chuckled. "Oh really? And what's your name?" she asked, patting the filly on the head. "I'm sure you'd be right at home in my class."

"Dinky Doo," the little one answered. "But I can't now. I've got too many responsibilities lately. Thank you, though!" She smiled warmly.

The bell over the door chimed. "Ugh, you're on duty today?" a voice sounded from the door. "I should probably just forget it. I don't want any of your charred cannolis."

The voice belonged to a little pink filly. A white stripe ran through her violet mane, on which a tiara identical to the one on her flank was proudly perched. Azure eyes narrowed at Snails mockingly. Snails, for his part, greeted her with a friendly wave. "Oh hi Diamond Tiara! I've got plenty of stuff that's not burnt," he called, while Dinky rolled her eyes and quietly huffed.

"And we're already here," added a bespectacled gray filly with a cutie mark of a spoon, trotting up alongside Tiara. "Are we really going to leave now?"

Tiara shrugged. "I'm just not looking forward to eating anything made by the Dopey Duo," she said with a snort.

"Hey!" Dinky spoke up now, looking suddenly irate. "Snips and Snails are great bakers! The only thing wrong is your taste buds!"

That was the moment smoke billowed over the saloon-style door that led to the kitchen. Tiara looked up at the cloud, then back to Dinky with an eyebrow raised. Then she burst into raucous laughter, her friend chuckling reservedly behind her. "Come on, Silver Spoon," Tiara said, turning and walking toward the door with her nose in the air. "We've got better places to be."

The gray filly looked like she might protest for a moment, but silently followed Tiara. As Tiara reached the door, Dinky took a step forward. "Why do you listen to her, anyway?" she asked. "You think she's your friend? Obedience isn't friendship."

Silver Spoon looked back at her for a moment, her expression oddly neutral. Without answering, she resumed her motion and slunk out the door.

Dinky sighed. "Well, at least they're gone now. I wish they wouldn't make fun of Snails like that."

"Aw, it's not a big deal," Snails protested. "Anyway, it's true, I did kinda burn their order last time."

A squat, teal unicorn colt rushed out of the kitchen and grabbed Snails. "You gotta help me!" he cried. "Everything's gone crazy since the Cakes left me alone here!"

"Uh, Snips... wasn't that five minutes ago?" the taller colt asked, his expression one of puzzlement. "How bad could it be?"

As Snips dragged Snails back into the kitchen, Dinky looked up at Twilight. "Well, it was nice meeting you," she said. "I have to be getting these back now." She scurried out of the room with the box balanced carefully on her back.

Running hooves sounded behind them as a yellow blur darted past and slammed through the kitchen doors. An apparently oblivious Pinkie Pie bounced over to the counter, followed by an extremely nervous-looking older blue earth mare.

"I found Mrs. Cake!" the pink pony declared. "And Mr. Cake is back in the kitchen putting out the fire!"

Mrs. Cake looked as though she might faint at that, but did her best to give Twilight a confident smile. "What can I help you with, dear?" she asked in a decidedly strained voice, her attention wavering between Twilight and the doors.

A stallion's voice could be heard from the kitchen, muffled as though he was speaking through clenched teeth. "Five minutes—we just needed five minutes to—"

Now was very probably a good time to finish her business here. "I just wanted to know if Princess Celestia had been here today," she explained quickly.

"And as soon as we turn our backs you nearly—"

"Oh, yes," the earth pony replied. "She said she absolutely needed a cake. But she didn't stay long."

"—to fill the sink with zap apple jam and—"

"Did she say where she was going?" the professor pressed.

Mrs. Cake thought carefully about that one. "I believe she was on her way to the school to talk to the foals there," she said, "but—"

"—contaminated the butter with an alligator—"

"I'm afraid I'm needed in the kitchen," the blue mare excused herself. "So sorry!" And with that, she was off.

The voices in the kitchen now became indistinct and confused, trying to figure out how in the world the pair of colts managed to make such a mess of things. Spike nudged Pinkie's hoof with an elbow. "Hey, do you keep any maps around here?"

"Oh, sure," said Pinkie, "we bought some for the Summer Sun Celebration, just like all the other shops. They're not as popular as we thought they'd be, though." She reached behind the counter and pulled out a pamphlet-sized map, which she presented to the two.

Twilight took it with a grateful nod and paid a silver bit for it. "Well, maybe I'll see you around, Pinkie Pie. Thanks for all your help!" She gave a small, polite wave as she trotted out the door.

She hoped she would not see Pinkie Pie around. Something was just not right about that mare.

~#~#~#~

According to the map, the school stood within an estate called Sweet Apple Acres. The apparent farmland was easily as large as the town proper, and Twilight found a sudden appreciation for the town's agricultural significance. The schoolhouse itself took up about three hectares of this land, which seemed a bit small, likely due to the popularity of apprenticeships as a method of education in this area. No doubt the school had simply remained the same size over the years while the town built around it had consistently grown.

As she approached, the professor felt her confidence waver. "Spike," she began slowly, "what do you see here?"

The dragon looked over the building and shrugged. "I don't know, Twilight," he admitted. "It looks like a normal enough school to me."

"Look at the windows," she instructed.

Obediently, her assistant scanned the windows of the building. "They're all closed," he observed. "What does that mean?"

"Well," she responded as they approached the front doors, "we're about to find out."

A violet earth mare with a slight red tint, with a cutie mark of three smiling flowers stood outside the school, taking down some decorations, accompanied by a stick-thin, cream-colored pegasus colt. As Twilight approached, the colt spotted her and tapped on the mare's foreleg. "Miss Cheerilee," he said, "somepony's coming."

Miss Cheerilee turned around to spot the unicorn. "Oh! I wasn't expecting anypony to come by just yet." She paused for a moment, thinking. "In fact, I don't think I remember you at all. Featherweight's sister usually picks him up. Are you his cousin?"

"Featherweight?" Twilight repeated. The colt waved to her, and she shook her head. "Oh, no, sorry. I'm Professor Twilight Sparkle, from Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. I'm looking for the Princess. I heard she was here?"

The local teacher seemed confused by the question, leaning to the left slightly as she processed it. "Er... yes, she was," she responded at length. "She gave a speech, but, Professor... class ended at noon because of the Summer Sun Celebration. She hasn't been here for hours."

"And here we go," Spike muttered.

The unicorn could practically feel her pupils constrict. "What? But that... but you're still here! With a student!" She was sure she would find Celestia here, and now she clung desperately to anything that might, however weakly, contradict the very simple truth that she was much too late.

"Well, yes," Cheerilee replied patiently. "We've had these banners up for weeks, but nopony's coming back here until the Celebration is over so I'm getting a head start on cleaning them up."

"And I volunteered to help," the colt added. "Somepony had to do it, after all."

Twilight hung her head. "I... see," she said. "I guess that's that, then. Do you know where she went?"

"I'm afraid not." Cheerilee shifted her weight slightly, offering Twilight a remorseful smile. "I wish I could help you, but I have no idea how."

"Thank you for your time," the lavender unicorn sighed. She straightened up and gave the two a nod, then turned and walked away without another word.

~#~#~#~

The rest of the day progressed in a much less hopeful manner than the initial two stops. Nopony had seen Celestia at all since she left the school, which was frankly unprecedented. Celestia wasn't one to hide from the public, and in fact loved to be seen during the festival each year. Many considered seeing the Princess to be a good omen, and spreading those was part of what the festival was all about.

If Twilight didn't know any better she'd swear her mentor was hiding from her, personally. Of course, since she hadn't arrived until some time after the last sighting, that was unlikely. And yet, as the sun set, she returned to Town Hall without having caught so much as a glimpse of Celestia.

As she reached the large double doors, she brightened slightly. If this was where the Royal Guard was stationed... of course, it was so easy, she hadn't needed to spend the whole day searching at all! With a renewed sense of purpose and a little extra vigor, she climbed the stairs.

The guards were quartered on the third story. As she set foot in the corridor, her brother's voice called out to her. "Hey, Twily! You all done for the day?" He trotted over and wrapped a hoof around her shoulders. "Come on, I'll show you where we're bunking."

"Actually," she said, extricating herself gently, "I've got one thing left to do. Where is Celestia's room?"

Shining Armor gave her a stern look. "Twily, did you bring your work with you on vacation?" he asked.

"No, nothing like that," Twilight replied, shaking her head with a halfhearted grin. "I just want to talk to her. I mean, she is my mentor and all."

He raised his eyebrow, but shrugged and waved in the direction of the stairs. "Okay, she's on the fourth floor. There's only one room up there, so it won't be hard to find. I'll just wait here until you're done."

"Think I'll wait here too," Spike said, slipping off Twilight's back. "I'm beat. All day we went back and forth. It was crazy."

Twilight hugged her brother once, then quickly climbed the stairs.

About a meter from the top of the stairs, there was a door; on either side stood a pegasus guard. The professor walked confidently up to the door, and found two crossed wings blocking her path.

"By the Princess's order, none may enter until the Summer Sun Celebration is over," the guard on the left intoned gruffly.

"Oh, it's alright," the unicorn responded. "I'm Twilight Sparkle, her personal protégé. She'll want to—"

"I'm very sorry," the guard on the right interrupted, "but our orders are very clear. We are not to allow anypony to enter. Not even you."

The words were a hammer to Twilight's barrel, and she stepped back, eyes wide. "What? That can't be. She wouldn't tell you to keep me out. There must be some mistake!"

"I'm afraid not. I'm sorry, Professor, you'll have to wait until after the Celebration."

She didn't catch which of the guards said that. It didn't matter, she supposed. Their message had been delivered. She turned around and slunk back down to the floor below.

Day Two: Learning

"One sees a small village huddled between the stream and the vertical slope of Smokey Mountain," the unicorn mused aloud, "and wonders at the cluster of rotting gambrel roofs bespeaking an earlier architectural period than that of the neighboring region." She trotted down the street, away from the stable where her room had been reserved, eyes sweeping the crowd. There were dark forces stirring within this town. She knew it was only a matter of time before its secrets were laid bare. "It is not reassuring to see, on a closer glance, that most of the houses are deserted and falling to ruin. It is always a relief to get clear of the place, and to follow the narrow road around the base of the hills and across the level country beyond till it rejoins the Haylesbury pike. Afterwards one sometimes learns that one has been through Ponyville."

"Wow," came a voice beside her. "That sounds like a pretty scary place."

"Oh, it is," she answered without thinking. "It may be the place where the end begins, unless I can do something about it. Equestria's hour of darkness has arrived, and I intend to be its light." She held her head high as she spoke the words.

"I never really thought it looked rotting and ruined, though. Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Oh. Okay. I guess I can see it."

Several seconds later, she realized that a chocolate-colored earth pony had fallen into step beside her and flinched. "Whoa! I mean, who are you? I mean... hi," she fumbled.

"Oh, hi. You looked like you had something on your mind, so I thought I'd see if I could help." He grinned a little more broadly than the situation really warranted, and presented her with something that looked like a business card. "Button Mash," he introduced himself with a small bow. "Sidequester."

She read as much on the card. What in Equestria was a sidequester? "Well, Button, it's nice to meet you. I don't know if you can help with this, though. It's kind of big."

"Well, how about you talk about it while we get something to eat?" he offered.

The suggestion reminded her that she had, in fact, just been on her way to get lunch. Having no particular reason to decline, she nodded. "Actually, that sounds really good right about now."

Pulsing music drifted from somewhere ahead of them, drawing a stream of ponies toward it while the colt led her in the same direction. The street they were on had tables lined up along either side, with vendors offering a wide variety of foods. Some were selling typical carnival fare, like fritters and funnel cakes. Others had more local flavors; apples, carrots, and celery stalks dominated the conversation, and without tasting them the unicorn could already imagine the distinctive tangy sweetness one could expect only from the produce of this region. Other vendors sold items that took to the holiday spirit, like cookies decorated with sunflower petals so that each resembled a miniature sun, or cored apples with muffins baked inside them.

Button Mash stopped in front of a simple table with a white tablecloth draped over it. Four other foals sat behind the table, where a portable stove was set up with a frying pan. A mare who must have been their teacher carefully supervised them as they cut holes in slices of bread, and fried eggs inside the holes—a simple dish, cheap and easy to make.

"Hey, partner," Button called, waving to a white unicorn filly. "It's about time for my turn, isn't it?" He dropped a few copper bits on the table. "I could use a bite first, though. And one for, uh..."

"Moondancer," the out-of-towner finished, opening up her saddlebag. "I'm new in town." She hesitated as she realized the only thing in her bag was unfinished homework. In retrospect, this had all been a very bad idea. The fact that her parents had been unable to cancel their reserved room in a local stable was the only reason she had a place to sleep. She wondered if she could get room service on their bill in order to have enough food for the week.

Button casually added a few more bits, and a pegasus colt set two paper plates down, each with an egg toast. Taking the plates with a grateful nod, Button offered one to Moondancer. "So what were you saying before?" he asked before taking his first bite.

Moondancer shot a sheepish smile to Button's classmates and cautiously took her plate. "I think first you should explain what a sidequester is," she suggested.

"Oh, well, basically, it's kind of like being a courier, kind of like being an engineer, and kind of like being a ninja detective," he explained unhelpfully.

Seconds ticked by as Moondancer attempted to unravel that statement. Did any of it even mean anything?

"He means he does odd jobs," the filly he'd identified as his partner clarified. "He delivers things and fixes stuff. And... I don't know what he means by ninja detective."

Button groaned. "Sweetie Beeeeeelle," he whined, "you make it sound so much less cool when you say it like that."

Sweetie Belle just shrugged and turned to help another pony.

"Well, anyway," the colt continued, "now that I've told you that, let's hear what your problem is."

Moondancer thought carefully for a moment about how to explain the problem. "I have reason to believe there's an evil cult in this town that plans to summon an ancient spirit and kill everyone, so I'm investigating to find any way to stop them," she said.

Button rubbed his chin thoughtfully, squinting at Moondancer with an unreadable expression.

"Yeah, that sounds really cool," he agreed. "I bet I could help you out. I know a lot of secrets."

At the very least, she needed to hear him out before dismissing the lead. "Secrets?" Moondancer asked hesitantly. "What kind of secrets?"

"Oh, all sorts of things. Things I know nopony else knows I know about. You know?" He grinned. "But the best are the seven secrets of Ponyville Elementary! Those are sure to give you a clue! There's the stairway to nowhere, the disappearing school paper, the mysterious bell—"

"Oh, this is going to go so wrong," the other unicorn at the table sighed. "Here, Button, maybe you should take over for me now. I'll help Moondancer out."

"Uh, well, alright," he said, finishing off his toast. "Thanks!" He bounded over to stand on a chair.

The unicorn stepped around the table with a nod, directing her attention to the newcomer. "Sorry about that. If you want to learn about Ponyville, you should try the library. I could take you there, if you want."

"Alright," Moondancer agreed. "I appreciate the help. What's your name?"

"It's Dinky. Nice to meet you."

Dinky led her down the street, winding her way toward a quieter area. Slowly, the crowd thinned.

"So what are you really looking for?" she asked.

Moondancer hesitated for a moment, a bit surprised by the question. "Um, what do you mean?"

The other filly chuckled. "I get it if you don't want to tell me," she said, "but that story you gave Button made me curious."

"But... that was the truth." Moondancer shrugged. "I came here from Canterlot to find out about Nightmare Moon and stop her from engulfing the world in darkness. And, well, it's an ancient evil from the moon. If anything I've read about ancient evils from the moon is accurate, there has to be a cult devoted to it, and stopping the cult will stop the evil."

The expression on Dinky's face was one that could not be described as simple disbelief. It was more like utter astonishment. "Wait a second. You're serious? You actually believe all that? I can guarantee you, there's nothing like that in Ponyville."

"That's not what I heard—"

"Look, I'll show you when we get there, just wait."

The library, identified by a sign outside as Golden Oaks, was almost deserted. There was a lot to see on a festival day, and the few foals who were hanging around were busy planning their next destination. As they trotted inside, the two fillies were greeted with the stern face of the librarian.

"And what, pray tell, are you doing here, Miss Doo?" she queried in a high-class accent. "It's admirable that you have so much enthusiasm for academics, but I'm certain you have other things to be doing this week."

"I'm actually here helping Moondancer out," Dinky replied, gesturing to the out-of-towner. "She needs books on the Y1K theories, especially Nightmare Moon. Do you have anything like that?"

The librarian snorted. "Yes, yes, that silly stuff... most of it has been checked out, but there are a few left on the shelves. Walk this way." She began to lead them toward a study area.

As Moondancer attempted to imitate the mare's stride, she shot a questioning glance to Dinky.

The native filly shrugged. "Ms. Harshwhinny is kind of... zealous, but she takes care of us pretty well," she said. "I mean, you couldn't ask for a better librarian."

On that point, the silver filly was tempted to argue, as she was certain that Professor Sparkle took better care of her books than anypony in Equestria, but Harshwhinny did seem to radiate a sense of perfect order, with her immaculately kept golden mane and her perfectly neat mulberry jacket, and Moondancer doubted she would find so much as a dog-eared page in this library.

"She also maintains these," Dinky continued, gesturing to a shelf of trophies. "She displays scholastic awards local foals have won, and so far there are at least fifteen shelves around town. Five in the school, six here. She started when my mom was a filly. In fact, that's how she got her cutie mark."

"Enough idle chatter," Harshwhinny interrupted, glancing back at the two. "The books you're looking for should be right here. Please, enjoy," she finished in a joyless tone, before heading back toward her desk.

The blonde filly picked up a book titled "The Nightmare Delusion" and sat at a table, starting it immediately. Moondancer looked over the shelves and found one called "Wars in the Mind", with a subtitle reading "How Nightmare Moon may have already won". She carried it to the same table and set it down, accidentally bumping a small statue out of place slightly.

Without looking up from her book, Dinky pushed the statue back into place.

Moondancer stared for a moment, then nudged the statue again.

Dinky nudged it back.

Over the next few minutes, while the two fillies continued to read up on the subject of the impending prophecy, Moondancer slowly became distracted with her efforts to find out just what displacement of the object would be minimal enough to avoid attracting Dinky's attention. The answer, as far as she could determine, was "none".

"Look," the other filly interrupted, pointing to a passage in the book. "In the opinion of Professor Bill Neigh, it is impossible for an entity like Nightmare Moon to exist. A pony's body is not built to contain that much magic. The creature Celestia fought a thousand years ago could only have been an instance of wild magic. It's a rare phenomenon that only occurs when ambient magic levels exceed a certain threshold, and if that mass of magic were to be sent to the moon, it would likely dissipate due to the lack of atmosphere. And stop doing that." She picked the statue up and set it back in place with a bit of force.

Almost instantly, the librarian loomed over them. "Is there a problem here?" she asked. "Do keep in mind that you're expected to observe a certain decorum in the library."

Dinky flinched. "Sorry, Ms. Harshwhinny. I guess I got a little carried away."

"Yes, well." Harshwhinny nodded. "I'll let it slide this time, since there's hardly anypony around to be disturbed by the commotion. Did you find what you needed?"

"Yeah, I think I've got enough here." The mauve filly stood, glancing at Moondancer. "Still need me to show you around? I've got time."

"Wait, but I haven't finished…" Moondancer flipped to the next page of her book. "What about aggregate magic theory?"

Dinky gave her a bemused look. "If that were the case, there still wouldn't be a problem. Unless you think a bunch of ponies from a thousand years ago are still hanging around."

"Oh, right." The Canterlot student shook her head and scanned a few more pages.

It was useless, she realized. Ponyville's library may have been impressive, but it couldn't compete with the wealth of knowledge the professors had available. If Twilight Sparkle couldn't find a way to stop the Descent Unto Nightfall in Canterlot, then a pair of fillies in a small town's library couldn't even hope to prove she existed.

Reluctantly, she stood, scooping the book up in her magic. "Alright, I guess we should quit wasting time, then," she admitted. At least if she went along with Dinky, she might get a stroke of that blind luck that always seemed to happen to legendary heroes at the perfect moment. "Let's go and—"

Her thought was cut off by a loud crashing sound from the direction of the entrance. All three ponies jumped slightly, and the adult spun in place.

"It seems nopony realizes the need to be quiet in the library today," Harshwhinny muttered to herself as she stalked away from the table.

Moondancer shrugged, picking her book up off the floor. "Well, we don't need to wait, right? We should just go."

Dinky didn't reply. She jumped to her hooves and hurried toward the entrance. Surprised, the other filly followed.

The librarian was talking to a gray pegasus mare with a bright yellow mane and a cutie mark of bubbles. "Miss Hooves," she was saying, "you cannot move with such haste that you slam into things whenever you enter a room. You'll bring the whole library down around you."

"S-sorry," the pegasus replied, holding up a book in front of her. "It's just, I found that missing cookbook, and I was in a hurry to return it before I got any more overdue fees."

Taking the tome cautiously, Harshwhinny shook her head. "This is the third time. Why don't you simply buy your own copy?"

The other mare looked away from Harshwhinny and grumbled something about money. Her amber eyes, a little unfocused, fell upon the two watching. A moment later, her face brightened and she flitted over to Dinky.

"Hey, muffin," she said, her voice suddenly full of cheer as she picked up the filly and hugged her tight. "You in here studying on a holiday? No wonder you're so much smarter than the other kids."

Dinky squirmed a little in the mare's grip. "Mom, I'm kinda busy right now. I'm helping Moondancer find her way around."

Ms. Hooves's eyes were drawn to Moondancer now. She regarded her with a blank expression for a moment. "Oh, are you one of Dinky's friends?" she asked, still a little loudly. She bent down and patted the filly on the head. "It makes me so happy how everypony wants to be my little girl's friend. I'd love to talk a while, but I've gotta get going now!" She looked back to Dinky. "Later, muffin!" she called, waving as she turned and swooped out the door.

The pale filly looked to her guide. "So, that was your mom, huh? She seemed nice."

"You think so? Most ponies who meet her just talk about how awkward she is." Dinky thought for a moment. "I guess you could talk to her more later. Maybe you and your family could come over for dinner."

"Oh, uh… hold on." Moondancer raised a hoof. "I think my parents are going to be busy this week, you know, Summer Sun Celebration and all. I could make it, though, if you want."

"Well, okay then." Her hostess nodded. "You can meet my sisters, too. It'll be great."

Moondancer walked over to the area where she'd found Wars in the Mind and slid it onto a shelf. "For now, let's just go ahead and move on to something else."

Dinky pulled it back out and returned it to the correct place.

~#~#~#~

The feeling of dread was undeniably growing with every step Moondancer took. Now that the library was definitely ruled out as a source of information, she was confronted with the fact that not only did she not know where to look, she didn't even know what she was looking for.

Dinky was leading her on a tour of the festival. The road they were on had games of various kinds set up alongside it. The fillies passed everything from horseshoes to balloon darts. A minotaur running a Ring the Bull game waved enthusiastically at the two, and Dinky quickly moved on.

At the local filly's insistence, Moondancer looked around for something fun to take her mind off her fears. She settled on a cup toss game, which Dinky paid for.

Her aim was shaky, and her first three balls barely touched the cups at all. To her surprise, though, the effort of focusing did help, and her last throw was almost graceful. She didn't win anything, but she felt calmer.

"Never seen you around here before," came a voice from behind her. "Here for the festival?"

The silver unicorn turned to see who had spoken. A pink ribbon had approached while she was distracted, riding atop the crimson mane of a yellow earth filly.

"Oh, hey," Dinky said. "Apple Bloom, this is Moondancer. I'm showing her the fun parts of the festival."

"Nice to meet you," Moondancer greeted her.

"Same t'yew." Apple Bloom glanced down the road. "You headin' to Carousel Boutique? Rarity's set up a hall of mirrors, lots of folks're talkin' about it."

Dinky glanced at Moondancer and nodded. "Oh, yeah, that sounds perfect," she agreed. "You should come with us."

The earth pony scratched the back of her neck with a hoof and gestured to her apple-emblazoned saddlebags. "Well, Sis sent me on an errand. Wouldn't wanna keep her waiting."

"You're always on errands," Dinky replied. "Both of you need to have some fun. I mean, look around, isn't that the point?"

The other two locked eyes and slowly nodded. "I guess so," Moondancer answered.

"An' ah suppose one little game couldn't hurt anythin'," Apple Bloom agreed. "Ah'm headed that way, anyway."

"Great! And Moondancer, the Apples know more about Ponyville than anybody else," the blonde filly added. "I bet they could show you more than I can."

"Is that so?" The words gave her a sense of hope. Maybe the day wouldn't be a total waste after all.

"Yeah, we practically built the place," the newcomer said. "It's our town, an' we're mighty proud of it."

"In that case, maybe you can pick our next destination after the hall of mirrors," Moondancer suggested.

"Sorry, still busy. But you can come with me," Apple Bloom countered. "We're settin' up in Town Square."

Slowly, Moondancer nodded. She wasn't sure it was a good idea to linger around Town Square, in case Professor Sparkle noticed her, but since the teacher was surely busy with her task somewhere in town, the chances of that might be mitigated somewhat.

Dinky cleared her throat officiously. "And now, onward! To Rarity's!" she announced.

~#~#~#~

The Carousel Boutique was a large, round building with a sloped purple roof, just at the end of the street. In front of it stood a matching unicorn mare, her coat almost pearly white but with a tinge of blue and her violet mane done in an elegant curl. She wore what appeared to be a glazier's smock, but the entire garment shone in the light with varied hues. At first glance, it seemed like an illusion, but a faint cloud of colorful dust billowed from it when the mare moved. Moondancer could guess that this was Rarity. She beckoned the trio closer as they came into view.

"Oh, if it isn't young Apple Bloom," the mare commented. "I had heard you were going to be busy with your family all week. I don't suppose they're all waiting around the corner?"

The earth filly rolled her eyes. "Nah, but AJ asked me to give ya this," she said, producing a box from her saddlebag and proffering it to the unicorn, who took it gently in her magical aura.

"Well, thank you for the delivery. Do let her know that I'll have hers ready by the end of the Celebration," said Rarity.

"Will do," Bloom agreed. "First, though, can me an' mah friends have a run through yer maze?"

Rarity looked delighted at the request. "Oh, of course," she said. "Just step this way." She led them to a table, where she set Apple Bloom's box beside a bowl. From the bowl, she lifted three gems, which floated over to the fillies: An emerald for Apple Bloom, a sapphire for Dinky, and a ruby for Moondancer.

Following this, her aura brightened, and the stones sparked with a bright magical light. "A little detection spell," she explained. "I put some of my own aura in them, so if you get lost, I can trace it to your location."

"Has anypony gotten lost in there?" Moondancer asked, eyebrow raised.

"It never hurts to be on the safe side, dear."

Apple Bloom paid for the three to enter, and Rarity opened the door to the Boutique. Behind that, the entrance appeared to be covered by a giant mirror, the surface of which rippled occasionally with some form of magic. Dinky led the way, and when she placed her hoof against the glass, it sank in easily. The fillies soon vanished completely into it.

On the other side was a winding track lined with mirrors, curving away from the three in both directions. Moondancer took a few steps to her left and was halted by the sight of her reflection.

"Wow, Rarity really went all out, didn't she?" Apple Bloom commented. She was clearly holding back a laugh, and doing it poorly.

The fillies reflected in the mirrors looked nothing like the ones standing in the maze. Each appeared to be dressed in an elegant gown, designed to match their eyes and decorated with gemstones. Moondancer's was a brilliant blue with strategically set rubies, Dinky's was gold with sapphires, and Apple Bloom's was orange accented with emeralds.

Moondancer scratched her head. "Aren't these mirrors supposed to make you look weird?" she asked.

"I don't think she could even do something like that," Dinky answered, chuckling. "She only makes beautiful things. Anything else would just seem wrong from her."

At the very least, it was evident Rarity had put a lot of work into this setup. Moondancer could see that each mirror reflected her wearing a different ensemble, different colors, always with their gemstones carefully and tastefully worked into the design. Her mind wandered back to the previous day, and suddenly, she regretted afresh not having brought any bits with her.

Shaking her head clear of that thought, she looked down the mirrored corridor. "Rarity seems pretty skilled," she mentioned. "Is she a teacher?"

"Nah, she's just a seamstress," Apple Bloom replied. "She might teach ya sewing, though, if ya wanted to be her apprentice."

The maze was intricately crafted, and the three wandered through its gentle loops, a sense of relaxation settling on them. Eventually, though, it occurred to Moondancer that they had passed the entrance several times, and still seen no sign of an exit.

Suddenly, Dinky halted, staring at one of the mirrors. "Wait, this one is funny," she said distractedly, walking toward it.

"Funny how?" Apple Bloom peeked, and Moondancer followed suit. Dinky's reflection wore a stunning gown, gold as the first one, with diamonds upon the barrel and hip. It was, by all accounts, as magnificent as any of the others.

"If anything," Moondancer ventured, "I'd say this is my favorite one yet. What's so weird about it?"

"Here, take a look at yourself," Dinky insisted, stepping aside. The other two looked at each other, and the earth filly shrugged and stepped in front of the mirror.

Again, she seemed to be dressed in a ballroom gown, this one as fiery red as her mane. And, again, it had diamonds dazzlingly displayed in just the right places.

"I think I get it," Moondancer said slowly.

"Huh? Get what?" Apple Bloom looked more befuddled now. "Mind fillin' me in?"

Dinky shook her head. "There's been a pattern ever since we walked in here. The mirrors show us in dresses made with the gems Rarity gave us. But this one only shows…"

"Diamonds!" Apple Bloom whinnied. "Ah never woulda thought! Ain't that just like Rarity?"

"Yeah, totally," the unicorn agreed, approaching the mirror again. She gave it a tap, and it shimmered and vanished. Sharing a triumphant glance, the three fillies stepped through the gap, out into the open air again.

Rarity was waiting for them behind a portable wooden counter, the bowl of gems set before her. "Congratulations!" she greeted. "I hope you three enjoyed yourselves."

Dinky dropped her stone into the bowl, and the others followed suit. "It was fun," Dinky affirmed. "I liked the trick at the end."

"And since you solved it," the mare added, "you each get a prize. Voilà!" From under the counter, she picked up three large plush toys, all shaped like Princess Celestia. Moondancer blinked at hers, bemused, while the other fillies giggled happily.

"Thanks, Rarity!" Apple Bloom said, draping the doll over her back. "Applejack must be wonderin' where ah am by now, though."

"Oh, yes. Well, you'd best run along, then." Rarity nodded. "Have a cheerful Celebration!"

"You two comin'?" the Apple asked, turning to the unicorn fillies.

"Oh, actually." Dinky shrugged. "I have some things to do myself. Before I go, though, Rarity, can I have a map?" She levitated a copper bit onto the counter. "And I need to borrow a pen."

Agreeably, Rarity fished out the items and rolled them toward the filly. Dinky unfurled the map and quickly wrote something on it, then put the pen back. She presented the map to Moondancer.

"This is where I live," she explained. A street in the northeastern part of town was marked with an arrow, with a street number written below. "Just come by any time. I'll let Mom know you're coming."

Studying the map, the Canterlot filly nodded. She folded it up and tucked it into a saddlebag. "Alright, I'll be there."

Dinky waved to the other fillies, then hurried off.

"So, I guess now we should head for Town Square, huh? I can't wait to learn all about Ponyville," Moondancer said eagerly.

~#~#~#~

"Sorry, Apple Bloom, but we don't have time to entertain guests," the orange mare stated flatly.

Apple Bloom replied with a noise of protest. "But Applejack, she needs somepony ta—"

"You can do all that on yer own time, but we got a lotta work to do." The older sister, a powerfully-built orange mare with a cutie mark of three apples and a cowpony hat set atop her straight blonde mane, was busily building a booth directly across the square from the front doors of Town Hall. "We already volunteered ta get everything ready for the Mayor's fireworks and Cheerilee's planet-watchin' exhibition, an' then help put together the emergency supplies in case the Mayor's fireworks set somethin' on fire again an' build the activity center for foals who don't wanna watch Cheerilee's exhibition, and extra supplies in case the fireworks burn down the activity center, an' that's before we can even think about our own stuff. We've got two and a half buffets to prepare, what with family comin' in for the last day an' ol' Green Greens bein' green around the gills, an' then there's plannin' out Mac's route like every holiday, an' then we…"

The mare's words were starting to blend together at this point. Moondancer's mind began to drift to wondering what she would sound like if she had an accent as thick as these two ponies. It sounded very strange and awkward in her head. Some ponies admired such accents, but she couldn't agree with that mindset and really just wished she could properly understand what was being said.

"Alright, alright," Apple Bloom said with a sigh. She looked to the unicorn. "Sorry, Applejack says we can't help ya."

"Isn't there something? Somepony else I can talk to?" Moondancer had really been hoping this would be the breakthrough she needed.

"Well," Applejack said, pausing for a moment, "there is Granny Smith." She trotted across the square, to a rocking chair that had been placed by the Town Hall stairs.

Just barely in the chair was the slumped form of an elderly green mare, her flesh sagging and her false teeth trying to escape every time she snored. She looked like she might be hundreds of years old. The chair seemed to be rocking under the motive force of the mare's snoring.

"Granny!" Applejack called. "There's somepony here who wants ta talk to you!"

Granny Smith snapped awake at that. "Huh, what?" She glanced around and spotted Moondancer approaching. "Oh, well, howdy, youngin! What can I do ya for?"

"Well, um," Moondancer replied, "I was hoping you could tell me about the history of Ponyville."

"Izzat so?" The old mare chuckled. "Well, it's good to see yer interested in history, an' I reckon I'm the best pony to ask, since I was there and all. Let's see, now, where do I begin…"

She cleared her throat. "Y'see, when I was young, my family was always on the move. The road was our home, an' we didn't see any prospects ta ever leave it. Pa an' Uncle Julius lived off the land all their lives, an' Ma an' her brother Lone Prairie were yer typical starvin' artists.

"Pa worked on plenty a' farms, which hardly got him enough for all of us ta live by. Julius was a trader, an' he just barely came out ahead. Ma sold her designs, but it was a hard time for seamstresses. An' Prairie, well, he played his music. Folks would gather ta hear it, an' he sang good songs about what he'd learned travelin', so he made as much as any beggar. I did what I could, but that was the way it was for us an' we were resigned to it.

"Only, apparently while we had our eyes on the road, somepony had their eyes on us, an' especially Uncle Prairie. He started ta get a reputation as a travelin' teacher. Who said that, I dunno, but it spread all the way up to Canterlot.

"Couldn'ta been luckier timin', because it just so happened, there was a royal initiative ta build a whole mess a' new schools. Most of 'em were already bein' completed, but there was one place they really wanted ta build that they couldn't get anypony ta go teach at. I'm guessin' you can figure it was smack dab in the middle of the Everfree Forest, darkest hotbed of wild magic in the world.

"Well, at first we didn't want anythin' ta do with it either, but they cut us a better deal than you could dream. To this day, I dunno why they were so eager, but long story short, we had land ta do whatever we wanted with, as long as we put a school there too. At first we didn't know what ta do, but soon we found that wild magic worked its way into the plants an' caused strange fruit ta grow in the deep, dark places. 'Course, Pa started clearin' land for the farm that same day, an' the school was done not long after. Then came new neighbors, an' before ya knew it, we had a whole town on the spot.

"It's too bad we lost most a' that special fruit. Uncle Julius took some rare breed of oranges off ta see what he could do with it, got set up in the north. The rest, well, we still don't know what happened to it, really. But what we did manage ta harvest got the town goin' strong an' it's kept us to this day."

The filly listened intently. That strange fruit sounded promising, but there wasn't exactly a way to go track it down. "Who else did you know back then?" she tried. "And what about Prairie?"

"Well, let's see." The elderly mare rubbed her chin. "It's been so long, most of the folks I knew are dead now. There was this young entrepreneur, they gave him a big grant ta come find a way to attract ponies to the town. I used ta foalsit his kid, Filthy. Then there came the Hooves and the Spices and the Spoons, an' most of 'em weren't much better off than we had been. We also did business with a farm out east, run by a mare called Bedrock Pie. Her daughter Crusty Pie an' me were thick as they come, too, 'til she passed away recently. I could tell you all about the crazy adventures we got into, but, hm... well, some other time.

"As for Uncle Prairie, he taught for the rest of his life. Got married, had kids, lived happy. His kids taught, too, but they also took to travelin'. They still come back for every holiday an' reunion, and… oh, wait, that reminds me, we were doin' something, weren't we? Applejack! You let me doze off, consarnit!"

The mare fiercely stood and charged toward her granddaughter at a blistering snail's pace. Moondancer stared after her, but decided not to stick around, seeing a look of panic cross Applejack's face. Instead, she edged slowly toward the street that led back to the stable.

~#~#~#~