Watching Us Watching Them

by Little Jackie Papercut

Rating: everyone
Tags: Twilight Sparkle, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Alternate Universe, Spike, Dinky Hooves, Adventure, Shining Armor, Pinkie Pie
Length: 36549

Let's play the same game but with a new rule...

It's the year 1000 CE. Everypony is in a stir over the upcoming Summer Sun Celebration. Surely, there must be something important about that number.

Professor Twilight Sparkle certainly seems to think so. Enough, in fact, to leave her tower in Canterlot, to travel to a town full of secrets and danger. Maybe, if she's lucky, she'll be able to put a stop to everything before it's too late.

Whether her boss likes it or not.

Published 2014-04-22 00:20:01 UTC
Last updated 2024-07-15 04:22:39 UTC

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.

~#~#~#~

The plushie sat on a chair, smiling emptily at her.

"Oh, don't look at me like that," Moondancer huffed, rolling onto her other side. "I know, I get it, I'm helpless. I should've left it up to the Professor. Now I'm chasing useless leads and basically just waiting for the end to come."

The plushie sat on a chair, smiling emptily at her.

"I know! I know it's sad and I have nobody to blame but myself! But your pity isn't helping!"

With a huff, she rolled off the bed and stood up on her hindlegs to look out the window. The sun was trailing into the distance, casting shadows into the street. Those shadows made her wince, and for a moment she thought she saw them reach out for her.

Reluctantly, she looked over her shoulder to the doll. "And why didn't you help her? If you've got everything under control, why not explain yourself?" She set her hooves down on the floor again as she turned. "Is it a test? Was she supposed to come here? Or was she supposed to trust you and stay in Canterlot?"

The plushie sat on a chair, smiling emptily at her.

Moondancer considered it carefully for a moment. "I'd probably get in trouble for saying this, but… I don't trust you. Things are being hidden, ponies are being manipulated."

The plushie sat on a chair, smiling emptily at her.

"How long have you been preparing, anyway? Ten years? A hundred? A thousand?" She tilted her head. "Maybe you already know what's going to happen. Maybe you even wrote that prophecy. But then why don't you share? I'm sure she's in the needs-to-know category."

The plushie sat on a chair, smiling emptily at her.

"But if it's true that you're ready for everything, then maybe I'm worrying about nothing. I can't help, so maybe I really should just try to relax and figure it out once it's over." She glanced toward the northeast. "Dinky said I needed to relax. Do you think she's right?"

The plushie sat on a chair, smiling emptily at her.

"Then I guess I will. This isn't my assignment. You said you'd take care of it, so I'm sure you will. And if you don't, I know Professor Sparkle will. But right now, I've got somewhere to be." She picked up her key and stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her.

A moment later, the knob turned and the door swung inward. "I still don't trust you, though," Moondancer added. The hinges slowly creaked shut again.

The plushie sat alone in the window-lit room, exposed to the creeping shadows, its expression stoic.

~#~#~#~

Moondancer checked the map again. This was the address she had been given.

She knew in the back of her mind how silly it was that she was now hesitating in fear of not being afraid. Yet, that didn't stop her from reflecting and fretting and checking and double-checking everything she could think to check to delay this.

There was a broken window on the second floor. What was that about? Should she be worried? It was probably just caused by some local colts playing hoofball or something.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a loud and high-pitched crashing sound—the sound of a gray mare flying straight through the other second-story window. "I'm okay!" the mare's voice filtered down from above.

Definitely worried now, but more for the pegasus than anything else, Moondancer hurried forward and knocked on the door.

It opened a few seconds later, and Dinky happily waved on the other side. Behind her, her mother was descending the stairs, looking completely unfazed as she shot a smile toward the fillies and turned away to the kitchen.

"Is everything alright?" Moondancer asked. "I just saw your mom crash... is she hurt?"

Dinky shook her head. "She does worse than that all the time. Nothing ever hurts her. Anyway, come on in!" She stepped back, beckoning Moondancer inside.

Tentative despite herself, the Canterlot filly accepted the offer and trotted inside. The Hooves home was sparsely decorated. A single couch occupied the middle of the living room, facing the door. A smaller pegasus filly sat upon it, with a book open at her hooves, looking intrigued by the newcomer. She looked quite a bit like Dinky, but with a grayer coat and violet eyes, and Moondancer guessed she must be her sister.

"Chippy, this is Moondancer," Dinky said to the pegasus. "Do you want to introduce yourself?"

Mouth forming a small "o", the filly called Chippy hopped off the couch and quickly bowed politely to Moondancer. "I'm Banana Chip! It's nice to meet you!" She spoke slowly and with a very slight lisp, as if she was still learning to speak.

"Well, it's nice to meet you too, um… Chippy? Can I call you that?" Moondancer scratched her head.

Excitedly, Chippy nodded. "Sure, lots of ponies call me that. Do you want to help me read this book?" she asked.

Moondancer glanced at the open book and shrugged. "Okay, sure," she answered, trotting closer. As Chippy climbed back up onto the couch, the unicorn followed her and settled down.

The couch felt strangely lumpy, and she looked down. Beneath her was something white and pony-shaped. It took a few seconds to register as Chippy pulled the doll out from under her, bracing it between the two of them.

"My sister brought it back for me," the pegasus told her, grinning. "Isn't it the best?"

The guest was not quite certain of that. "Yeah, sure," she replied uneasily. "So where were you?" She leaned closer to look at the current page of the book. Her eyes settled on a line, and she read it aloud. "'We shall not say this day our tribulations were vain, for we know the glimmer of Magic's Beacon, and we know it betides all things good, if only our fortitude can hold.' Wait, what is this?"

"Oh, that's actually mine," Dinky explained. "It's a historical drama by Past Tense, about Canterlot. I've been reading it to Chippy, she really likes it."

That sounded interesting. For an instant, Moondancer thought she was on the verge of something important.

Whatever the thought was, it was lost the very next instant as a voice from the kitchen called, "Dinner's ready!" Dinky and Chippy nearly dragged Moondancer off of the couch at that.

The table was set for five, and Moondancer found herself seated between Dinky and a unicorn mare. The mare had a dark violet mane and light pink coat, and her eyes matched the younger of the sisters; she bore a cutie mark of several gemstones.

"Hey, you're Moondancer, right?" the mare asked, smiling. "Pleased to meet you, I'm Amethyst Star. I'm Dinky's older sister."

"Sparkler makes fireworks!" Chippy interjected, cheer blazing on her face.

Amethyst rubbed her forehead. "Yep, that's what I do. And believe me, this is the busiest I'll be all year. Mayor Mare always puts on a big fireworks show on the fifth night, plus there's smaller ones every night of the Celebration. So I'll be working all week, but in the end I'll make…"

To her right, Ms. Hooves cleared her throat. "Let's not talk about work at the table," she suggested, smiling warmly at her eldest daughter as she spooned some greens onto Chippy's plate. "Since we have a guest, why don't we ask her about herself? If that's alright with her, anyway." One of her eyes focused on Moondancer curiously.

"Me?" Moondancer was a little surprised by the request, and took a moment to think about it. "I'm kind of an average student in Canterlot. There's really not much to tell."

"What do you like to do?" Dinky prompted.

"Well, I do like to dance," Moondancer replied with a giggle. "And, well, I guess I like horror stories. Twinkleshine gave me some, and I read them cover to cover."

"Who's Twinkleshine?" Chippy piped in.

"Oh, right, she's my older sister." The silver filly nodded. "She studies at Celestia's too. She's also a singer. She even performed at last year's Celebration."

"Wow, nice," Amethyst remarked. "Think she'll perform this year, too?"

"Oh, I don't think so." Moondancer squirmed a little as she tried to dodge the question. "I'm sure she'd love to, but she's taking a break."

"That's too bad, I bet everypony would've loved to hear her," Dinky said.

"My parents are still hoping she'll join the Royal Guard," the Canterlot filly added. "They're both ex-Royal Guards, so they say it'll be good for her. The way she's going, though, I think she'll get famous way before then!"

Ms. Hooves giggled, smiling at Moondancer with her hooves folded under her chin. "Well, I really hope so," she said. "I can't wait to hear her perform in Ponyville."

~#~#~#~

Dinner passed in much the same vein, with small talk about Ponyville and Canterlot being exchanged, but Moondancer began to find the details of the conversation less and less important. She felt calmer now, steadier than she had been. It was true, she realized, that Professor Sparkle probably had everything under control. She should relax, enjoy the festival and her new friends.

After dinner, she volunteered to help Ms. Hooves—Derpy, the mare informed her—to clean up. One of the mare's eyes remained on her the whole time, and the filly thought it had an appraising look to it.

"Thank you for having me over," Moondancer offered. "I'm really glad I came."

"Anything for Dinky's friends," the pegasus replied, her smile perking up a bit. "You can come back any time you want, so don't hesitate, okay?"

Moondancer nodded. She turned to Dinky. "And thank you for inviting me." She raised her hoof, and the other filly gave it a bump. "I hope we get to hang out more before the week is over."

"Yeah, me too," Dinky replied. "Need somepony to walk you to the stable?"

"No, I can get there on my own. Thanks." She waved as she trotted to the door. "Good night, everypony!"

On the way back, she thought over the day's events. Even now, something tugged at the back of her mind, but she ignored it. The ponies she had met here were wonderful, and she felt like she was safe.

As she opened the door and saw the plushie, still sitting where she had left it, she was certain that everything would be fine.

Author's Note

The opening narration is almost word-for-word from Lovecraft's "The Dunwich Horror". Like many of Lovecraft's short stories, it is in the public domain. I'm legal!

Day Three: Proper Introductions

Everything was not fine.

Twilight Sparkle was slumped over the counter, face buried in a basket of hay fries. She wasn't moving. She didn't feel like it.

Three days ago, the Princess trusted her unconditionally. Now she was basically an outcast, forbidden to even try to stand at her side for this crisis. There was no point even budging from this spot until the week ended and the world was plunged into darkness everlasting.

"Whoa, you okay? You look like somepony literally threw you in the trash," somebody commented.

Twilight groaned, grudgingly shifting her eyes to look up at the speaker.

A white unicorn had occupied the seat next to her, and was staring at her from behind a pair of dark violet glasses. She ran a hoof through her forward-sweeping electric blue mane, frowning.

"I mean, no offense or anything, it's just, you kinda stick out, right?" she added, gesturing around the small restaurant, where everypony was still abuzz with the usual holiday excitement. "I was just wondering what was up."

The professor started to appraise her questioner, but after a moment she realized it didn't matter anymore. Nobody could help her, but conversely, there was no reason not to trust anybody, since it couldn't very well make things worse.

"Mmntr dmphn trs mmnw mrtll dasun," she explained.

The other mare scratched her head. "Uh… sorry, I don't speak Undercommon. What's that mean?"

With a weary sigh, Twilight removed the basket of fries from her maw and lifted her head just barely off the counter. "I said Celestia is hiding something, and we're all going to die," she explained.

"Oh." The white unicorn raised an eyebrow. "Wow, I really need to learn Undercommon."

"And I came all the way here to try and help her, but she! She told them not to even let me visit her room! What did I do? Why can't she trust me?"

"Hey, hey, easy now," the mare said, patting her shoulder. "Back up a little. Care to try working through this from the beginning?"

Twilight shook her head. "Not really. If she doesn't want to see me, there's not much I can do about that. I've been trying to figure out what I can do on my own, but so far, it just looks hopeless."

"You really should tell Vinyl about it," a new voice suggested as a blue head with a blue-and-white mane peeked around the other one. "If you've done all you can by yourself, it's time to seek help."

Seconds ticked away as Twilight processed those words. Slowly, she straightened up on her stool, taking in the new interloper. Once she was in a completely upright sitting position, her jaw began to unhinge bit by bit and she gaped uncomprehendingly.

"Professor Minuette?!" Twilight barely kept her balance as she cried out. "How did you get here?"

The cobalt mare glanced in the other direction momentarily. "What, me?" she asked, pointing to herself. "No, no, I'm Doctor Colgate, local dental hygienist and nutritionist. Minuette would be my sister. You know her?"

"Hey, whoa," the alabaster mare said, holding up her forehooves. "So does that mean you're a Canterlot professor, too? Radical! I'm a teacher myself, y'know." She hesitated for a moment. "Oh, wait, right, how did this go? Ahem. 'I am DJ-PON3, The Mare in Shades, Rhythmic Evocation Instructor of Ponyville. My name is Vinyl Scratch, and Sea Moon, and Spin Beat. A pleasure to meet your acquittance.' And who are you?"

"First, I'm pretty sure 'The Mare in Shades' isn't a proper title," Colgate pointed out. "Second, I know you don't pay much attention to current events, but that's Twilight Sparkle, one of the highest-ranking professors in Canterlot and the direct apprentice of the Princess. And third, it's 'a pleasure to make your acquaintance'."

"Yeah but we already know each other, though," Vinyl replied, earning a frustrated groan.

Twilight shook her head. "You don't need to be formal. No need for titles and appellations, not now."

"Okay then, Twi?" Vinyl lifted her glasses away from her face to reveal concerned cerise eyes. "How about you stop vaguebooking us and tell us what's actually going on so we can help you?"

"Whatbooking?" Colgate asked.

"You know, it's like when some hack writes a story and leaves something deliberately vague for a plot point so ponies will be all oh cliffhanger I have to find out more but it's totally contri—"

"Okay, okay!" the lavender mare interrupted. "I'll tell you all about it, alright? I probably should have anyway, since it's going to be your problem soon enough." She took a deep breath.

"I actually work directly for Princess Celestia. I became her student when I was six, and I'm now one of her most trusted professors… or so I thought. I came across a prophecy about Nightmare Moon. A real prophecy, in one of the books that are usually kept carefully archived and out of sight, the kind you'd need to be a professor to even see the cover of. It said she was returning at the end of the week, and would bring everlasting darkness unless 'the heroes of the forest' rise up, whoever those are. And when I asked Celestia about it, she just said it was under control. Ever since then she's been trying to keep me away from her, so I kind of wonder if it's really under control."

The other two mares stared blankly at her.

"So are you sure she's this Professor Sparkle?" Vinyl turned to her companion. "'Cause this sounds like a hoax."

Colgate shrugged helplessly. "I don't know. I mean, she looks like the pictures, but for all I know she could be a spriggan."

Twilight groaned again. "Look, you two don't have to believe me," she said. "I mean, you should, but don't have any way to convince you." She stood up stiffly. "But you're right. I do need help, and I know exactly where to turn first. If you decide you want to help too, you can ask for me at Town Hall. It's where I'm staying all week." The professor gave a quick bow, then turned and trotted out the door.

A moment later, she returned, wrapped her hay fries in a napkin and left the bits for the meal on the counter. With a sheepish chuckle, she exited a little more slowly.

~#~#~#~

"Wow, you really did need this vacation," Shining Armor commented.

Twilight sighed into her hoof. She had known convincing her brother was going to be difficult, but from the look he was giving her, he probably thought she was just plain crazy.

"I'm not crazy," she protested, "Nightmare Moon is actually going to kill us all, and I did read an actual, Celestia-commissioned prophecy about it. Professor Heartstrings saw it too!"

"Professor Heartstrings is still in Canterlot."

"And why do you think that is?" She glared at him. "Didn't you think it was weird at all that Celestia herself ordered every route out of Canterlot shut down on a major holiday?"

The captain pondered that for a moment. "Yeah, okay, I guess that's a little strange," he admitted. "Still, I'd like to verify that story with Professor Heartstrings."

"You could just ask Spike, you know," the mare pointed out. "He was there, too."

"He was?" Shining Armor turned to the bunk where Spike was curled up on a pillow, snoring softly. "Should we wake him up, then?"

"As much as he needs his sleep, I think he'd want to be part of this conversation too," Twilight agreed. "Besides, I need him to send a letter back to Canterlot." She stepped quickly over to the bed, and gently nudged the dragon with a hoof.

Squirming a little, he gave a loud yawn and rolled onto his side. His eyes slid open, blinking a few times to clear the sleep from them as he looked up at the ponies.

"Mmph." He rubbed one eye with the back of a claw. "What is it, Twi?"

Twilight gestured to her brother. "I was just telling Shiny about that book we found, and I was wondering if you could clarify what was in it for him," she explained. "And I need to write a letter back to Canterlot. Who can we reach at this hour?"

Spike thought about it for a moment. "Well, Trixie has that salamander. I think she's probably the best bet."

The professor grunted. "Of course she is."

"Trixie?" Shining Armor blinked. "Isn't she the one Lyra mentioned? The one you—"

"I don't have a crush on Professor Lulamoon!" She stamped a hoof. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go write a very flattering letter about how she's the only one who can save us, because she'll probably ignore anything else!" And with that, Twilight stormed out of the room. Behind her, she heard Spike beginning to recount the events to the captain.

Twilight proceeded down to the records room, muttering to herself all the way. This room was massive, taking up a good chunk of the first two floors with filing cabinets lining both walls. Her eyes wandered over the walls of steel and the high windows for a moment before snapping back to their quest. There was a desk in the front corner. A mousy-looking mare behind it seemed deeply engrossed in her work. Twilight approached, still a little tense.

"Excuse me, Miss," she said, putting on her best smile, "Could I borrow some parchment and a quill? I need to write a letter."

The records mare looked up, and immediately flinched at the sight of the unicorn's somewhat demented grin. "Okay, okay, you can have it!" she cried, pushing the requested items toward her and scuttling away. "Just please, don't hurt me!"

The attempt at geniality gave way to an unamused scowl as the professor picked up the materials. "Thank you," she managed, before stalking off to write her letter in peace.

Professor of Advanced Evocation and Transmutation, Chief Metamagic Advisor, Beacon of the One Hundred Stars, Great and Powerful Trixie Lulamoon,

She paused to shake her head. Trixie would probably be insulted that somepony dared not to use all her titles and appellations, but most of them were self-declared and Twilight couldn't spare either the paper or the time.

I need you.

She scratched that out.

I desperately need you.

She crumpled the paper up and threw it away, starting afresh.

You are my only hope.

She was about to scrap this one too, but it actually sounded alright.

I am in Ponyville, trying to thwart a prophecy, or possibly make sure it comes true, I'm not exactly sure at this point. Professor Heartstrings knows the details of the situation and will be able to explain face to face, so first, you should ask her about it. I also need you to deliver an apology for me. I would have brought her with me if I could have, but there was no time.

Right now, though, I need any information available about the "heroes of the forest", as well as anything else you can unearth about Nightmare Moon. You're the only one I can ask to save us all. Without your help, I'm struggling blind down here.

I know that you'll come through for us. I believe in you, Professor, and I'm counting on you.

Sincerely, Twilight Sparkle

She scowled appraisingly at the hastily written letter for a minute. That last period looked a little misshapen, could it be mistaken for a heart? She shook her head and prepared to start over.

Somepony cleared their throat nearby, and she whirled in place, instinctively hiding the letter behind her.

Flash Sentry stood there, inspecting her. He was armored—not the regalia the guards had worn on the flight into Ponyville, but a chainmail vest, as if he was about to go into battle. "Little jumpy, aren't you?" he asked. "The Captain wants to see you. He sent me since he's still discussing your problem with your familiar."

"Assistant," Twilight corrected him.

"Lizard," he amended. "Follow me."

He turned and started up the stairs, and, with a moment's reluctance, the mare complied.

"What's your problem?" she asked as they ascended. "You act like we're under some kind of suspicion."

"Oh, yeah, nothing suspicious at all about this prophecy business coming out of nowhere, is there?" he replied with a glance backward. "Although Celestia's the one who restricted that book to the top of the top school staff, when it should've been required reading for the Guard. Still, I'd think you could do better than to withhold the information until three days before the end of the world."

Twilight winced. "Okay, so that wasn't my best move. I panicked. Getting answers from Celestia was the only thing on my mind."

The guard returned his attention to the stairs with a snort. "Yeah. We'd all like some answers right about now, wouldn't we." He went quiet for a beat as they reached the third floor. "Sorry about the lizard thing," he added at length. He pushed the door to the Captain's temporary quarters open and marched inside, giving a salute as he halted. Twilight took a deep breath, then followed him in.

Shining Armor's eyes met hers. "At ease, both of you," he instructed, his expression sternly fixed. "Twilight, your letter?"

Nodding, she levitated the letter she had written to Spike. The dragon took it and checked over it once. Then he sent it off on the Canterlot leyline.

"Spike showed me the letter Celestia sent you," the Captain continued. "I decided the best course of action was to inquire directly with Celestia."

The professor perked up slightly. "What did she tell you? How bad is it?"

"I'm not allowed—"

"Of course." Twilight sighed, feeling a bit heavier. "Of course she wouldn't allow you to repeat it to me, she's determined not to have me anywhere near this."

"No," he clarified, "I'm not allowed to see her. I can't get in." He gestured toward the floor above. "Apparently, I'm included on the 'not even you' list. The guards I myself posted outside Celestia's room told me they had been instructed to keep me out."

He pawed at the floor anxiously. "Of course, it was a matter of Celestia's own security, so I was able to override that order. But when I opened the door, all I saw was a shield of the sun spell. And I couldn't break it."

Shield of the sun was a spell of Shining Armor's own creation, and the thing that had gotten him into the Guard in the first place. It was a barrier that emitted an intense, blinding light. It was typically used in short pulses, as it was less efficient to sustain than a regular shield spell, but it was unlikely that energy would be a problem for the Ruler of the Heavens.

"So I'm giving the order officially now." The Captain turned his attention to Flash. "Celestia's behavior warrants a full investigation. I want you to immediately assemble a task force to investigate these 'heroes of the forest' from the prophecy. If nothing turns up before the Sunrise Ceremony, we can consider it a dud, but meanwhile I'm going to be doing everything I can to tighten security."

Flash gave another salute, then stiffly marched out of the room. The rustling of his mail echoed back to them as he went door to door through the makeshift bunks.

"As for you," Shining continued, turning to his sister again, "I need you to keep trying to contact Celestia. So far, that may be our best hope."

"Really?" Twilight grimaced. "I thought you'd want me to stay out of it. I've only made a mess of things so far."

"Yeah, you have," he agreed.

A moment passed, and the mare gave him a quizzical look, cycling a hoof in front of her to indicate that he should go on.

"Right now, what matters is protecting Celestia," he added. "Under normal circumstances you'd probably be in some trouble for hiding this, but we might be facing the end of the world, so this would be a pretty bad time to throw away assets. Besides, I'd say I know you well enough that I'm pretty sure I can trust you with this, even if you've made some mistakes. Right, Spike?"

"You kidding?" Spike shrugged. "Among the teaching staff, Twilight's ability to fix her mistakes is legendary."

"It's true, I—wait, what?"

"Listen, Twily," the stallion continued, sidling close and putting a hoof around her. "Maybe Celestia doesn't trust us, and maybe we're up against an apocalyptic horror created by an ancient god-queen, but honestly, I'm not all that worried. I've seen what you can do. If worse comes to worse, you and me can hold our own, and we've got the rest of the Guard, plus the professors back in Canterlot. And hey, maybe Celestia really does have a plan."

She slowly relaxed. "Yeah, you're right." It took a few seconds for her to really work it into her mind, but she knew he was right. "Nightmare Moon will have a surprise waiting for her when she gets here. We'll make sure of that."

Day Four: Scientific Method

"Would you mind explaining again what it is we're actually looking for?" Professor Blueblood asked for the eighth time, flipping through another meandering tome in the archives of the Canterlot Castle library.

"The origin of the Nightmare Moon stories," Professor Heartstrings replied automatically, without glancing up from her own book. "I have some theories I need to confirm. Just because I'm stuck here instead of where the action is doesn't mean I'm going to sit by and watch helplessly."

The blond stallion frowned at nobody in particular as he smoothed some wrinkles in his suit. Once he had done quite enough of that, he put a hoof to his temple. "Is this like the time you said the little fillies' room was haunted?"

"It was!" she insisted. "I mean, it still is, no thanks to a certain Astrology professor, but that's beside the point. Look." She levitated a book she had set to the side so that he could see it. "This is a modern foals' version of the legend."

Reluctantly, he moved closer and read the story she indicated.

One day, a shadow monster came down from space and took control of the pony Princess Celestia loved most. In its new body, it called itself Nightmare Moon. The sky turned dark, and Princess Celestia fought Nightmare Moon. She couldn't hurt the monster without hurting her loved one, so she sent them both to the moon.

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever read," Blueblood stated flatly.

"Yeah, obviously they've dumbed the story down," Lyra agreed. "And... changed literally everything. That's why most foals who aren't just learning to read prefer a different version." She set the book he had read aside and held up another.

It is said that certain magics rolled over the land during the Years of Darkness like a thick, choking cloud. Some malevolent hoof took this shadow-stuff and crafted it into the perfect form of a pony. It looked, walked, and talked like a pony, but darkness and malice writhed within. It drew the evil magic into itself, and let loose magic that could rival Celestia's own. Likely its creator was its first victim, as is usually the case with such reckless experiments, but many more would follow before Celestia was able to isolate the thing.

The soap-white stallion regarded that one carefully. "Okay, that sounds more plausible. So what's so important about it?"

"About this story? Nothing at all." Lyra tapped the rest of the books she was searching through. "The important thing is that it's at least the fifth major version of the story."

"Stories change over hundreds of retellings. That doesn't seem strange to me at all."

"Well, true," she accepted, "except that the farther back I go, the more heavily restricted the book is." She gestured toward the town proper. "These two were available in the public library. Then there was the one that said Nightmare Moon was created by Discord by showing Celestia a magic mirror, that one was in the castle library. The version that said she was created by Celestia herself was in a restricted section, students need special permission to read that book. And this one," here she indicated the book she was reading at the moment, "was on that shelf over there—no students at all can see it."

It was clear that Blueblood was trying very hard to be disinterested. It had been so much more genuine when he had joined Professor Heartstrings on this errand. In the end, though, no Canterlot professor could resist the urge to ask questions; it was something they were taught early on in life, and living by it was what made them successful. "Very well," he said, succumbing, "what does it say?"

"It reads like a long, complicated mathematical equation," Lyra answered. "It's the most logical and detailed interpretation possible of the question, 'What is Nightmare Moon?' It's not helpful at all, except that it's another link in the chain."

The stallion put a hoof to his lips in an oddly dainty sign of thought. "I see. But if that's the case, why are you wasting time here? Didn't you already look through Professor Sparkle's books? I can't imagine anypony would have access to more restricted documents except for Celestia herself."

"Yes, that's the problem I'm faced with," Heartstrings agreed. "I assume that means you don't have anything for me."

"Hardly." He snorted. "This still sounds like a foal's errand, though I'm sure you'll accidentally discover something interesting in the process."

"Well, then, I should get going," she said, standing up. "Time is of the essence. I'll let you know when I've found what I'm looking for."

With that said, Lyra stepped out of the archives and into the library proper.

As the students had mostly gone home for the holiday, the library was nearly deserted. At one table an odd trio sat—two colts playing chess as the filly with them pored over Canterlot: A History. The professor paid them no mind as the main door to the library opened.

In walked a filly with a coat of burning gold, her mane the reds and yellows of an inferno. She moved with a sense of purpose—she was rarely observed to act otherwise. When she saw Professor Heartstrings, she stopped. "Professor, are you working on something?" she asked, her cyan eyes brightening.

Sunset Shimmer was a favorite student of Lyra's. She was well-known among students and teachers alike as a prodigy; even at her young age, it was sometimes whispered that she may be the next Twilight Sparkle in the making. She also had a reputation for an attitude as fiery as her blazing sun cutie mark. While her temper had gotten her into trouble on occasion, Lyra liked to think she had the filly's trust, and tried to direct that anger to better ends.

There were rumors, of course, that Sunset had some secret troubles at home, but she never spoke of them even when asked. All she ever showed was a singular drive to improve in class. And while she excelled at history, as she did with nearly every subject, she threw herself with passion into assisting the professor with her research in her other area of specialty, planar magic.

"I am," the seafoam mare confided, "but I need a little more time to gather data. Why don't you come by my office later? We can interpret my findings together."

Excitedly, Sunset nodded. "I'll be there," she promised. "Send me a note when you're ready?"

Lyra smiled. "Then I'll see you later. It'll be fun. For now, I'm going to meet with Professor Lulamoon."

~#~#~#~

"Behold! Trixie is the greatest!" Professor Lulamoon declared as the door to Celestia's office swung open. "Now, why did I do this?"

"Because I'm looking for something only Celestia is allowed to see," Lyra replied, trotting inside. "And you're the only one sneaky enough to break into her office."

"Oh. Is this like that time you said there was a mind fungus overtaking the hedge maze?" the azure mare asked.

Professor Heartstrings was, by this point, sifting through the papers on Celestia's desk. "It's completely like that, because I was right then and I'm right now. Could you check for hidden compartments, too?"

"Already on it," said the other mare, inspecting a hidden nook.

"How did you—"

"They always hide things behind paintings." Professor Lulamoon nudged the painting she had removed from the wall. "It's like Celestia didn't even want it to be a secret."

Lyra was about to join her and take a closer look when she noticed one of the desk drawers was ajar. She pulled it open, and lifted out a book. The title read "Records of the Alicorns", and it had a silver bookmark in it with the royal seal on the end.

Her mind swam with the implications of this book's existence. What lost secrets might have been kept hidden within its covers? It was only after considering the question that she realized that the tome might very well include the solution to her problem. Flipping it open to the marked page, she scanned for anything important.

Funny, it was written in Draconic. The dragons used an ancient language that Lyra was well acquainted with, and it was unlikely any other professor could have translated the words as quickly as she could.

The Starlit Princess, youngest of the alicorns, is laid in state within the tallest tower. The August Princess remains to keep vigil alone; the rest withdraw, each to her home. The Lord of the North Wind travels with them, for a shudder has gone through the planes. Something stirs at the loss of two alicorns. A great battle is coming.

"Heavy stuff," Trixie commented.

Professor Heartstrings glanced at the unicorn reading over her shoulder. "Isn't it? I think it's the clue we need, too." She shut the book. "So what did you find?"

The blue mare held up a glass bottle with her magic.

"Sweet Apple Cider. One of their more, let's say, interesting brews."

Lyra sighed. "We're going to have to have a talk with her later," she remarked wearily. "Right now, I've got to see about a tower."

As she trotted out of the office, she heard the sound of a bottle being opened behind her.

~#~#~#~

Blueblood unlocked the door to the Astrology tower. Lyra gave him a polite nod and together they ascended the stone stairs. The air grew warmer as they climbed, heat filtering down from the sun-warmed observatory chamber.

At the top, she began combing through the room's equipment. She checked the telescope, flipped through the charts and records, and felt along the walls with her magic, but found nothing.

"And you're sure the book said it was here?" Blueblood asked, leaning against the wall.

"This is the tallest tower in Canterlot, and has been since the castle was built," Lyra replied. Despite that, the astrologer's doubts seemed well-founded. There was no evidence that anything was amiss, no matter what spells she swept the room with. "You could help look too."

"I've cast every relevant divination spell that I know of." The stallion shrugged. "Not that there are many, mind you. Ancient corpses may be of archaeological value, but they're not something that most ponies tend to misplace. Really, that mostly just leaves detect secret doors, and there are none."

She stalked to the window that looked out toward Ponyville, grumbling to herself. She was close, she could feel it. Far, far below, she surveyed the lush, forested landscape…

"Gather everypony you can," Lyra said, turning and nearly sprinting down the stairs. "Meet in my office, we've got a lot to discuss. And bring a map."

~#~#~#~

The route from the library to the professor's office was by now familiar to Sunset. She trotted hurriedly down the corridor, wondering what the mare had in store. The office door was slightly ajar, and she pushed it open.

"Are you sure this isn't like the time you said that Honey Sweet was from another planet?" a voice inside asked. As she entered, Sunset could see the speaker was Professor Minuette, seated beside Professor Heartstrings at the desk.

"The filly has antennae!" Professor Heartstrings replied, gesturing wildly with her hooves. "I can't be the only one who noticed them! Look, was there a castle here or wasn't there?" She tapped a spot on the map that was spread out in front of them.

The room was looking a little crowded. Professor Blueblood was seated by the door, eyes halfway glazed over. Professor Gingersnap and Professor Inkwell were paying closer attention, while Professor Lulamoon kept trying to touch things, only stopped by the hawkish glare of Professor Arpeggio.

Minuette examined the map. "On that spot?" She consulted a book levitating beside her. "I'm not sure..." She checked over the page several times.

"No hurry, we've got all the time in the world." Professor Heartstrings sighed, rolling her eyes. Turning, she noticed Sunset's entry. "Oh, hello. Glad you could make it, and sorry we couldn't meet one-on-one today. Honestly, this has gotten a little bit out of hoof."

"What is all this?" Sunset asked. "I thought you needed my help with something."

The green mare's eyes drifted away from the filly. "Well... I do, sort of," she said. "I wish I didn't, though. See, we've kinda hit a breakthrough, but now we've got a bigger problem." Her horn lit up, and a scroll floated onto her desk. "To really make sense of everything, we need to get to Ponyville. But there's no way out. There are no chariots left, the trains aren't running, and the Gate of Magic is closed, which prevents normal magic from passing."

The scroll unfurled in front of the student. "Is this a spell?" She scanned it over. It was fragmented and confused, almost unrecognizable as anything functional.

"I don't believe it," Minuette whispered, her attention still on the book.

"It's a new application of planar magic," the professor informed her. "I call it dimension door. It would allow the caster to completely ignore both physical and magical obstacles by creating a demiplane that only consists of the origin point and destination. But I'll need your help to finish it in time. Do you think you can help?"

Sunset suddenly realized that all the professors in the room were now watching her curiously. She returned a brief glance to each of them. "I... yeah, maybe. It might take a day or two, but if the theory holds we can probably get it done before the Summer Sun Celebration is over."

"Perfect." Lyra nodded. "In that case, let's get to work."

Day Five: Strange Animals

“You’re drooling, you know.”

Moondancer jolted out of her reverie, wiping her mouth. “It just looks so good,” she replied. The hot food displayed under a glass covering was tantalizing to her. “I’ve been eating dry oats for three days. I don’t have the money for anything else.”

“Really?” Beside her, Dinky raised an eyebrow. “Why don’t your parents give you some?”

“They’re, uh, saving it,” the Canterlot filly replied. “For the Sunrise Ceremony. Anyway, what have you got there?” She gestured toward the local’s bulging saddlebags.

“Oh, these? I do some part-time delivery work for the grocery. Mr. Greens had a delivery to make in the park,” she explained. “I should hurry, actually.”

“The park, huh?” Moondancer tilted her head to one side. “Mind if I tag… along…?” She trailed off, staring past Dinky.

The mauve filly glanced backward. She surveyed the crowd from one end to the other, then returned a questioning look to her guest.

Obligingly, Moondancer pointed at the mass of metal moving toward a nearby workshop. It walked on two solid hooves of ruddy orichalcum, clanking heavily against the road. Its body somewhat resembled a smallish minotaur, with a well-defined chest and a pair of muscled arms. Its head, on the other hoof, was pony-like in shape, with a rune engraved into its forehead and gems socketed where its eyes would have been.

“I didn’t know you had Sunforged around here,” she explained. “My mom used to work with them, but I never met one. It’s just surprising.”

“Oh, yeah.” Dinky turned and waved to the construct. “We’re all so used to seeing him around, I didn’t even think about how few ponies have met one. How are you today, Mountainhoof?”

The metallic being looked in the direction of the pair and returned a friendly wave. His stoic expression had been fixed on his face since its creation, yet he almost seemed to smile back. “Just getting a little tune-up,” he replied, with a rumble like stones grinding against each other.

A broadly built white pegasus stallion with a short black mane greeted him at the workshop door, with a younger mare and a small colt beside him, both lightly-colored with brown manes. “And what a tune it will be,” the stallion remarked, picking up a guitar that matched his cutie mark. He gave it a few strums.

Everypony needs a Sunforged

Something I have always said

Everypony needs a friend who’s got a—

“Dad, don’t.” The mare rested her hoof on his guitar. “We can’t afford the royalties.”

“Oh, right. Thanks, Zippy.” He patted her on the head. “Alright, walk this way.” He stepped inside, followed by his guest. The daughter rolled her eyes and joined them. The colt spotted the two unicorns and waved, before following his sister.

“Okay, enough quirky interludes,” Dinky declared. “We’ve got places to be.”

~#~#~#~

The fifth day of the Summer Sun Celebration was sometimes called Morning of the Dews. Traditionally, pegasi misted the streets every hour through midmorning. It was supposed to be symbolic of something, certainly, although as far as Moondancer was aware, nobody actually knew what that was.

She was going to have to look into all of these traditions once she got back to Canterlot. Sometimes she felt like she was missing a very intricate joke.

In the early afternoon, the ground had dried well enough, and the rain-cooled air felt relaxing on a pony’s coat. The park was abuzz with activity, as it was considered a good day for a picnic. It was to one of the spread-out blankets that Dinky’s delivery was due. This meal was for three ponies, two wearing full fencing gear and engaged in a match. Off to the side, a few other colts and fillies watched quietly.

Dinky looked to the bespectacled third pony, a gray earth filly with silvery hair, who greeted them with a nod. “You’re just in time. I’m pretty sure Apple Bloom is about to flip out.”

Sure enough, the yellow filly’s voice came from one of the fencers, who Moondancer now recognized by her mane and giant pink bow. “Ah don’t care what Rainbowshine said, ah’m not wearin’ that thing,” she declared, making a few inexpert lunges toward the other.

“Excuse me, Rainbowshine is a professional,” her companion objected. She responded with a flashy twirl away from the foil, her violet-and-white mane flaring out and then falling back into place, improbably perfect. “She even managed Silver’s mom’s election campaign. She knows about image, and she thinks we should match. What’s wrong with that?”

“You’ll have to excuse them,” the filly who greeted Dinky said. “You know how Diamond Tiara can be when she gets an idea.” She cleared her throat loudly. “Hey, you two, Dinky is here with the food,” she announced. “And we already all match, don’t we, Tiara? We’re, like, the only three fillies in town who even accessorize at all.” She gestured to the pearl necklace she wore.

Moondancer shot her guide a questioning look.

“They’re all the daughters of well-known local families,” Dinky explained quietly. “Apple Bloom’s family owns a lot of land, Diamond Tiara’s has money, and Silver Spoon’s is in politics. They kind of stick together, usually.”

Apple Bloom’s fencing partner turned her attention to their friend. She unclasped the straps on her mask and it fell away, somehow not disturbing the tiara that had been perched atop it, revealing an amused expression on her pale pink face.

“Well, that’s true, and we are good at it,” Tiara agreed. “Still, I don’t see why we shouldn’t update ourselves. Don’t you think we’d look cuter that way?”

The gray earth pony shrugged. “Well, if she doesn’t want to wear it, that’s up to her. Although I’m a little surprised too. I’d think she’d do it in a heartbeat.”

Apple Bloom removed her mask as well. “What’re you gettin’ at?”

“Oh, nothing,” Silver Spoon replied with a wink. “Just that it might help you with a certain something that I wouldn’t know anything about.”

The farmfilly looked nonplussed at the suggestion, but Tiara snickered a little. “Oh, right, I keep forgetting to ask. Are you going to—”

Whatever she was about to ask was cut off by the sound of a cheer from the audience. The trio turned toward the mass, and Moondancer followed their gaze.

There she caught a blur of motion as an orange-and-blue mass launched itself into the air from the handrail of a bridge. It hovered there for a split second, allowing a clear view of an orange pegasus filly holding onto a bar with her forehooves; the middle of the bar was connected to one end of a longer perpendicular bar, and at the other end was what looked like a roughly cut board with wheels attached. Device, filly and all began to spin and flip in midair, drawing oohs and aahs from the assembled.

Then the contraption began to plummet. The filly let go completely for a moment to pose dramatically as she fell, before the wheels finally touched down. It sped forward a short distance, then twisted hard to the right and ground to a stop right before the admirers.

With a great clamor, all the locals gathered around the performer, with the exception of the pink earth pony. She simply watched with a flat expression.

“Thank you, thank you,” the pegasus called out. “Just taking a spin on the latest in radical technology, the Scootaloo Board! You can pick one up for yourself at, uh…”

She trailed off as the device began to shake underneath her. A wheel popped off, and she was forced to step aside as the whole thing collapsed into a pile of parts.

“Ha!” Diamond Tiara called out, the crowd parting as she stepped forward. “Yes, by all means, get your rickety deathtraps from the worst inventor Ponyville has ever seen!”

The pegasus went rigid. “Don’t you dare,” she warned.

Across the bridge, Moondancer spotted Sweetie Belle charging to the scene. Even from a distance, the white unicorn looked alarmed.

“What happened?” Sweetie Belle asked breathlessly as she arrived.

“The board is…” The rider clenched her teeth. “A failure,” she admitted.

“So it’s perfectly fitting to name it after you,” Tiara taunted. Silver Spoon anxiously tapped her on the shoulder, but was ignored. “Your daddy must be so proud.”

“What the hay?” Apple Bloom shook her head. “Tiara, that’s too—”

“Hey!” Scootaloo stomped forward, over the remains of the board. “You can insult me all you want, but you don’t know anything about my dad, so leave him out of it or else!”

“Don’t do this, Scootaloo,” Sweetie Belle urged. Scootaloo waved her off.

“Or else what?” Tiara sneered. “You’re going to make even more noise? Maybe collapse in my direction?”

Apple Bloom snorted. “Ah guess y’all are just determined ta do somethin’ stupid,” she declared. She turned, scowling, and stormed past Moondancer and Dinky. “Ain’t gonna put up with this from either of ya,” she muttered before she was quite out of earshot.

The pink filly didn’t even notice. She raised a hoof and flicked Scootaloo’s dark purple mane. “Just more empty words. That’s all you’ve got. Go ahead, prove me wrong.”

That was all the invitation the pegasus needed. She sprang forward, hooves outstretched, and tackled the other.

Hooves flew, the two fillies trading blow for blow. Tiara rolled out from under her attacker and threw a kick that took Scootaloo off her feet. Scootaloo responded by practically bouncing into the air as she hit the ground, landing ready for a charge. A blow reached Tiara’s jaw, then Scootaloo’s stomach, and the air began to fill with indistinct shouts, of pain and anger from the combatants, of surprise from the crowd. Sweetie Belle glanced helplessly at Silver Spoon, who for her part looked mostly unsurprised.

In the melee, Scootaloo had managed to knock Tiara to the ground again, and pin her down. Just then, from somewhere above, someone shouted, “Hey! What’s going on here?!”

The onlookers collectively gasped. Scootaloo froze, seeming to lose all color, while Tiara just stared past her, up at the sky, her smug expression totally replaced with one of panic.

“Coach!” The pegasus filly was off of her opponent in an instant, and the earth pony climbed unsteadily to her hooves, trying to appear calm and collected despite the hoofmarks clear on her coat.

A pegasus landed before the two combatants, her mere presence seeming to send a shockwave through the park. She wore a blue-and-gold tracksuit and a military manecut, the conservative cropping doing nothing to diminish the distinctiveness of its wild coloration. Bright blue wings flared as she stared down at the fillies.

“Cadets!” She stamped one hoof. “Which one of you started this?”

The two seemed paralyzed with fear for a moment. Tiara sputtered uselessly, trying to figure out how to answer the question. Scootaloo, meanwhile, hung her head, trembling.

“I’m waiting!”

The pegasus filly took a deep breath, then stepped forward.

“I threw the first punch,” she declared. “I’m sorry.” She glanced back, wincing. “Sorry, Diamond Tiara.” She then knelt before the coach. “It’s my fault, Coach Dash.”

“How many times are you two going to have to learn this lesson?” the mare barked. “You know the drill. I’m going to contact your parents. Get yourselves looked at and report to the track in an hour.”

Everypony stood silently for a moment.

“Now move out! Before I put you both on ditch-digging duty!”

Startled into action, the two fillies nearly tripped over themselves as they hurried out of the circle of foals.

“And that’s about a normal day at the park,” Dinky commented as the coach took to the air.

Moondancer stared at her wide-eyed. “That’s normal?”

“Oh yeah. Scootaloo tries out her dad's inventions all the time. And Coach Rainbow Dash, well, there are stories about her and I don’t know which ones are true.” The local filly considered for a moment. “They say she can lift seven students, you know.”

Somehow that statistic seemed like a completely reasonable thing that must have been measured at some point.

“Anyway, I guess there’s nothing left to see here,” the blonde filly concluded. “Think we should try to catch up with Apple Bloom?”

“Yeah, I guess—”

“Wait a minute.”

Moondancer spared a glance to the source of the interruption. It was the earth pony trio’s gray filly.

“Can you come to the school with me in an hour?” she requested. “I need to check on Diamond Tiara, and I know you’re friends with Scootaloo.”

“I’m not sure I’d say that,” Dinky replied hesitantly.

“Scootaloo will listen to you, at least. And I need to ask her about something.”

“I think we should,” the Canterlotite suggested. “There’s something I want to see there, too.”

“It’s not those Seven Secrets Button was going on about, is it…?” Dinky asked cautiously.

Silver Spoon looked over Moondancer. “I don’t think we’ve met,” she commented, expression rather neutral. “Nice to see a new face. We can do introductions later. So, Dinky? How about it?”

The blonde snorted. “Fine,” she agreed. “I’ll talk to Scootaloo for you, but I can’t guarantee she’ll want anything to do with any of you.”

~#~#~#~

Time was pretty tight for Twilight Sparkle. Now that a plan was in place, she needed to use every last second to the fullest.

The next step was to meet with the local rangers, to arrange travel to the deer village. She was just passing through the crowded area around the park, on her way to their station, near the northern edge of town.

As she passed the local schoolteacher, and absentmindedly waved to her, she reflected on the past few days. Celestia liked routine, and followed roughly the same path every year, which was why Twilight had been so dismayed at her failure to find her shortly after arrival. After missing her despite making all haste at the bakery, the school, the library, and the amphitheater, she had concluded that Celestia was consciously altering her routine specifically to avoid being followed.

This, coupled with being specifically denied an audience with the princess, had led her to a dark place. She now trotted by that musician, grimacing at the memory of drowning the pain in ketchup and cheap soft drinks. She shouldn’t have allowed herself to be deterred. She could have used that time to get ahead.

Someone bumped into her, and she snapped out of her reverie in surprise. The pony was already hurrying off. It was the lieutenant, busy with his own preparations. At least she had allies. The entire Guard was now on high alert, prepared to defend Celestia from herself if need be. She resumed her path, resolving that the plan had to work. There were backup plans, but all made with the understanding that if the first plan failed, everyone might already be dead.

No, she had to protect everyone, be it Cheerilee, Vinyl Scratch, Flash Sentry, or Moondancer—

She halted midstep. Had she just walked past Moondancer? Whirling around, she scanned the street, certain she’d glimpsed the young unicorn. She spotted a trio of small figures slipping through the crowd to her right, and dashed in that direction.

“Official Canterlot business!” she called as she pushed through the throngs of ponies. She thought they must be just up ahead. The wall of ponies reacted sluggishly, but gradually allowed her through.

On the other side, she twisted around, trying to catch sight of the filly, but if Moondancer had been there, she was long gone by now. Instead, she found herself face-to-face with a small colt.

“Hi, Professor,” he said, waving jovially. “She’s not here right now, but could you wait a minute?”

“Um… sure?” Twilight was just confused enough to not see any particular reason to say no. At least the colt was polite. “Wait for what?”

“My sister. She went looking for you, even though I told her we should wait.”

This answer wasn't quite as helpful as she would have liked. “And why is she looking for me? How did you even know where I was?”

The colt shrugged, looking as though he thought nothing of the question.

“Pinkie Pie told us you’d be here.”

Twilight drew back in surprise. The strange pony she had met after arriving in town? Why would she know that?

“Pound!” The shout came from close by, and followed itself with a yellowish blur nearly slamming into the colt. The blur resolved into a filly who Twilight could guess was the colt’s sister. “You weren't supposed to tell her about Pinkie! That’s too dangerous!”

“And what exactly is dangerous for me to know about Pinkie Pie?” Twilight questioned.

The filly whirled to face her, and Twilight compared the two side-by-side. He was a creamy pegasus, and she a buttery unicorn. From context, and by the soft features they shared, they were almost certainly siblings, and they looked familiar; Twilight hadn't seen them before, but she might have met their parents.

“You shouldn’t know anything about her at all,” the filly insisted.

“She’s feyblooded, isn’t she?”

The filly glared, first at Twilight, then at her brother, who simply raised an eyebrow in response, then back at Twilight again. “Okay, what makes you say that?”

The professor shrugged. “My best friend is feyblooded, and Pinkie Pie has all the signs. Even so, I didn’t catch on until you made such a big deal about her. That’s mostly my own fault, though. So why were you so desperate to hide that from me?”

“We’re her apprentices,” Pound offered immediately. “We take that very seriously, but Pumpkin has a slightly different interpretation than I do.”

“Apprentices… to the Cakes’ apprentice?” As soon as she had said it, Twilight had an impression that a question she hadn’t asked was answered.

Now the two siblings exchanged a slightly bemused look. Pound nodded, Pumpkin shook her head, and soon they seemed to be deeply engrossed in a conversation comprised entirely of head-gestures.

Eventually, Pound jerked his head away and stated simply, “She’s not actually a baker. They call her that so nopony will question her teaching us. You know how ponies can get about fey. She’s actually training us to become—”

“That’s enough,” Pumpkin interjected. “Have you forgotten that we’re talking to the enemy?” She pointed an accusatory hoof at Twilight.

The professor reared back in surprise. “Me? What did I do?”

Pound sighed and shook his head. “I’m sorry, I think my sister has the wrong idea. You see, Pinkie told us you would be coming. If her fey sight could tell her about you, then you must be important.”

“She also said,” Pumpkin added sternly, “that you would play a role in the events to come, but not the one you think you will. So whatever it is you were planning to do, now you’re warned, it can only make things worse.”

~#~#~#~

“Well, I’d say this effort was a complete success,” Silver Spoon remarked, tossing her friend a smirk.

“You think so? I'm pretty sure I lost that fight,” Diamond Tiara replied, stretching her legs.

“Oh, the fight, sure. I told you rivalries would get you in trouble. But I learned something from it.” Silver rolled a hoof toward the pegasus across the track, who was currently chatting with the unicorns. “The two of you should be friends.”

Her pink companion nodded along with the suggestion. “I see. You said she's from Canterlot, right? That could be useful to us. And a new player could...” A moment later, she realized who Silver had actually meant, and quickly shook her head. “Wait, what? Me, be friends with that overblown, hotheaded… pudgy idiot?”

“...you have a lot in common?” The gray filly shrugged. “I’m not saying you should do anything crazy, or even that I like her, just that you’re going to want her on your side sooner or later.”

Tiara groaned. She pouted and kicked the dirt petulantly. “After everything she’s put us through, do you really think ponies in our position should reach out to her?”

“I think,” Spoon replied, eyes glinting behind her glasses, “that you should have a little faith in my advice. Don’t forget, we met because of our parents, but I stick by you because you're my friend. Same with Apple Bloom. So at least think about trying it our way, okay?”

With that said, she paused to give her friend a moment to think. Then she turned and made her way over to Scootaloo.

The orange filly glared at her as she approached. She responded with a casual wave, and didn't stop. Scootaloo turned her attention rather pointedly to the unicorns.

“You made quite a scene today,” Silver said, ignoring the gesture equally pointedly.

“Yeah? So you want to get in my face now because I took a swing at your friend?” Scootaloo asked.

“Not at all. I just wanted to know how it felt.” Silver held up a perfectly pedicured hoof. “Call it curiosity. Fighting isn’t my thing.”

Moondancer blinked in confusion. “Wait, really? This is what you wanted to talk to her about? I figured you’d be, I don’t know, mad.”

The earth pony shook her head. “Mad isn’t my thing either. That’s more Scootaloo. What I am... is curious.”

A moment later, Scootaloo leaned back as Silver Spoon began inspecting her a little too closely. Eyes scanned, hooves prodded. The bespectacled filly even pried open Scootaloo’s mouth and looked inside.

“Diamond Tiara is right about one thing, at least. You really are out of shape,” Spoon commented.

“Hey, that’s none of your business!” the pegasus snarled, pushing the other filly away with a hoof. “What’s the big idea?”

Silver adjusted her glasses and cleared her throat, her posture straightening to the fullest formality any of them had ever seen. “Well, if you must know… telling you isn’t really my thing either. Sorry.” She didn't look particularly sorry. “But meet up with me at the Sunrise Ceremony, and everything will be clear.”

Night, Part One

A flash lit up Ponyville’s Town Hall, then another.

A pegasus colt grinned as he presented the couple with their photograph. The stallion dropped a few bits in the colt’s proffered cap. Featherweight then returned to where his friends were gathered, and they passed the camera around among themselves, taking pictures of one another.

Warm night air and lively celebration was a hallmark of the Summer Sun Celebration, but the tense energy Twilight felt was almost the same as the dead of winter. She and Shining Armor had checked every room and every point of entry twice and found no sign of danger. Still, Celestia’s shield remained in place.

She glanced at the window again to see that it was still early. With her thoughts racing the way they were, it seemed like it should be near midnight by now.

Her brother must have noticed, because he nudged her shoulder with a hoof. “Hey, while we’re waiting, how about I finally introduce you to my girlfriend?” he offered.

She glanced up at him, then nodded. “In all the excitement, I totally forgot you told me she lives around here.”

Spike jumped off her back. “While you do that, I’m going to mingle,” he said. “I thought I saw some pretty mares over there.”

Chuckling, Shining Armor patted him on the back. “Alright, then. Just don’t forget to introduce yourself later.” He then turned and led the professor toward a small gathering.

~#~#~#~

Spike made sure their attention was elsewhere, then turned and ambled toward the group of foals, doing his best to look stern. He crossed his arms and cleared his throat, waiting for them to notice him.

He quickly received the confirmation he was looking for as a colt stepped to one side and allowed a familiar filly to spot the dragon.

“Oh, Spike! It’s, uh, funny running into you here,” Moondancer offered with a small giggle.

He kept his stare fixed on her. “Oh, yes, very funny. Especially since you’re not supposed to be here.”

The filly blinked a few times. “Neither are you,” she pointed out.

One of his eyebrows shifted indifferently.

“...uh, I mean, I’m sorry. Please don’t tell Professor Twilight?” She clasped her forehooves together in front of her, affecting an apologetic pout.

The dragon sighed. “What’s going on right now is way over my head,” he admitted. “I kind of have to tell her, I just don’t want to interrupt her now. It’s not like there’s anything we can do for now anyway.”

“Hey,” interrupted a magenta pegasus beside Moondancer, “you’re a dragon, right? Can we see your treasure hoard?”

A brief moment of silence fell on all of them as they processed that request. The first to break it was her mauve friend.

“Really, Ruby? What have you been thinking about this whole time?”

“That’s not important right now.”

“In any case,” Spike asserted, pulling the conversation back on track, “treasure or no, I’m just going to have to stick around and keep an eye on you for now, if you don’t mind having a chaperone.”

Slowly, Moondancer smiled. “Alright, that’s fair,” she agreed.

~#~#~#~

“So all this time, that was the big secret?” Diamond Tiara huffed. “Well, I guess it makes sense now.”

“And we’re very happy to be a part of this,” Silver Spoon added quickly. “In fact, the timing couldn’t possibly be better. I've prepared something I think you'll like.”

“Yeah,” Tiara continued, “what good is it being us if we can't help make your dreams come true?”

“Uh… are you two sure you’re okay?” Apple Bloom asked, taking a step back. “It’s great you’re bein’ so supportive, but it’s also kind of weird and Tiara looks like she’s in pain.”

“Oh, she always looks like that.”

“Now that you mention it, yeah, kinda.”

The bejeweled filly sighed and rubbed her brow. “Don’t let me rain on your parade, enjoy yourself.”

A hoof on her shoulder presaged her friend’s reply. “We’d enjoy ourselves more if you’d loosen up and join in,” Silver said. “You can cheer for the fireworks just like anypony else.”

Diamond took a deep breath. “Okay. But I’m not letting my guard down.”

“If you insist. I’m going to get four cups of punch. Be right back!” the gray filly said as she slipped away.

~#~#~#~

“Easy, Lily!” Daisy advised, as her successor’s youngest apprentice nearly tripped over herself. “The night is young yet. Don’t spend all your energy before the Ceremony.”

Lily Valley spun around, a pinkish blur of motion. “Look, Madam Daisy! Town Hall is so beautiful tonight!” she called.

The filly could easily have been mistaken for Daisy’s granddaughter. Certainly, aside from the golden mane and eyes, she looked a great deal like Daisy had in her youth. Perhaps that was one reason the two had as close a bond with each other as they did with Roseluck, and why Daisy had taught Lily so much. The three of them had worked hard on the floral arrangements that brought a glow to the dusk tonight.

Roseluck smiled at her apprentice’s behavior. “It will be beautiful all night. There’s a lot left to see.” A primrose-colored ear perked, and she turned her head to scan the room. “Speaking of which, here comes the best part.”

“Ooh,” Lily intoned. “This is the one you’ve been talking about, right?”

“Just wait,” Rose replied, patting the filly on the head. “I promise you won’t be disappointed.”

~#~#~#~

“Oh, Mr. Mountainhoof,” said the freshly-starched voice, “I’m glad to see you here. I wanted to thank you for your help yesterday.”

The sunforged nodded. “It was a pleasure to assist, Ms. Harshwhinny. Is your regular assistant well?”

“Yes, but I’m afraid she’s not up to the task,” the librarian replied. “It can’t be helped. Few are, for tending a library is among the most sacred of all duties.”

Mountainhoof stood still, his posture not noticeably changing due to a lack of the complete system of nerves and soft tissue that would be found in a pony. “Then you will require more help.”

Harshwhinny waved off the idea quickly. “Oh, no, I’m planning to interview a new assistant tomorrow. One by the name of Albert. It’s a strange name, to be sure, but I must judge character before anything.”

“Albert, you say…” Mountainhoof considered the name, gazing out the window. “Perhaps I should be present, after all. You never know what to expect with Alberts.”

~#~#~#~

The figure in the cloak stood like an ill portent in the center of the room, not an eye resting upon it. Beside that, two smaller ponies stood, keeping a watch in either direction.

The unicorn filly stood fiercely on guard, keeping the unwary masses at bay. Across from her, the pegasus colt wavered drowsily.

“Hey, so, I don’t want to sound dumb, but why the costume?” he asked.

The larger pony turned her head in his direction, but did not look down. “Costumes are for ponies who are going to put on a show,” she answered.

He nodded slowly. “Yeah, okay, I see what you’re saying, but I don’t think that answers my question, exactly.”

“It means the show is about to begin.”

“Oh.”

A few moments of silence passed between them. Pound Cake focused his eyes on the group of foals talking with the dragon.

“But hypothetically, you know, if I still didn’t understand what you were saying,” he added, “what show are you talking about, exactly?”

“I’m going to fire off fifty party cannons at once,” Pinkie replied, her tone still as serious as a feyblooded pony who specializes in revelry and mischief could possibly be.

Pumpkin blinked and turned to her mentor. “Is that... safe?”

“Only one way to find out,” Pound ventured.

~#~#~#~

Shining Armor drew himself up, looking over the crowd.

“This is going to be so great,” he mused. “Hey, Rosie!” He waved as he pushed through the crowd toward her.

As soon as the way was clear, Roseluck hopped straight into a hug. “Hey, big guy,” she purred, meeting his lips with her own.

He gave her a squeeze and they parted as he turned to Twilight. “Twily, this is Roseluck. Roseluck, meet my sister, Twilight.”

“Ooh, finally I get to meet the genius sister.” Roseluck gave a little curtsy. “I met your brother at a county fair when he was on leave. Not to sound corny, but it was kinda love at first sight.”

“So I’ve heard,” Twilight said, nodding to the earth pony.

“You should come by our shop sometime,” Roseluck added. “You're part of his family, so I'll treat you like part of mine too.” The warmth of her smile echoed the invitation.

Lily slid up to them now, beaming up at Shining Armor. “Hi, I’m Lily Valley! Miss Roseluck told me all about you. You’re so cool! Here, I made you something!” She turned to a nearby table where she had placed a few small wreaths. Throughout the branches were woven daisies and lilies, but each prominently bore large roses. She scooped them up and placed one atop his head like a crown. “I’ve also got one for Miss Roseluck and one for Miss Twilight!”

Twilight couldn’t help a smile as she took the offered crown. “Thank you so much. It’s great to meet all of you. I’d love for us all to spend a little time together after the ceremony."

On the stage, the mayor tapped on the microphone. “Welcome, everypony, to the Summer Sun Celebration! It’s almost time for the fireworks display. I know most of you have been waiting for this, the millennial Celebration, and I assure you it will be–"

She froze halfway through her thought. The room had just gotten darker. None of the lights had gone out, but all the same, something had changed. She wasn’t the only one to notice, either.

“Is it time?” Shining Armor asked. Twilight nodded slowly. He gestured to the girls. “You three might want to get out of the room. Looks like that prophecy was the real deal."

The mayor tapped at one of the stage lights, as if hoping it would brighten the room again. She stopped when she noticed that in the center of the stage, a spot of shadow was deepening, and slowly but surely swelling upward. Then, as if disgorged from a cocoon of darkness, a towering mare emerged.

Her appearance was majestic and horrible in equal measure. She wore a helmet and breastplate of what must have been mythril, but dull and tarnished as though it had spent years steeped in the deadliest of poisons. The boots on her feet were much the same. Her face was as reminiscent of a dragon as a pony, with slitted eyes and cruel fangs. Her mane and tail were like living shadows twisting around her. And though she could not possibly have been mistaken for a normal alicorn, she nevertheless bore mighty wings and a long horn. As the mayor narrowly avoided falling off the stage, the tall mare sneered down at her. "Such a beautiful gathering," she intoned in a booming voice. "Who is it for?"

Nopony in the crowd could doubt who stood before them.

"Now!" Shining Armor roared. From the stage curtains erupted a mighty stag. His antlers caught the creature by surprise and delivered a crushing blow, which he followed with a twist into a full leaping buck.

The dark mare slid away from the attack and attempted to turn toward her attacker, but found she could not. A doe had emerged and was in a deep stance, a glow from her hooves tracing a twisting path to the vines that had just broken through the floor, wrapping around Nightmare Moon's legs and holding her in place.

An arrow struck her flank now, and she looked up to see a third deer taking aim from the balcony. With a wrenching motion she pulled herself free, only to be struck by a magic missile spell from one of the royal guards present.

Despite all of this, she remained standing. Her face slowly cracked from a snarl to a sneer once more. Her shadowy mane moved as if it was a separate entity, looking for something. Then with incredible speed it stretched out toward the archer and grabbed him from the balcony, fifty feet away, then whipped around and slammed him straight into the doe.

The rest of the guards joined in now, all charging at once. the three deer swiftly recovered and added their own strength to the offensive. A wave of flesh and metal engulfed the dark mare, pressing down on her. For a few moments she was hidden from all onlookers. Then a rumble came from the dogpile, and with a roar of anger Nightmare flung them all away. She looked over the defeated deer and ponies, and cast a spell. Shadows crept over them, and they seemed to sink into the floor.

“Enough,” she declared, advancing toward the crowd. “You should have known better. I am Nightmare Moon. Equestria is mine now. If you resist me, you will join these defenders of yours.”

Before she could leave the stage, the air in fromt of her seemed to solidify. Shining Armor and Flash Sentry had leapt up to oppose her.

“Two-one-two,” Shining Armor suggested, and Flash nodded in agreement. A second later Flash rocketed toward the enemy, winding up a punch, but feinted high, going right over her head to instead deliver a fierce stomp. At the same moment, the captain rushed in and hit her forelegs. Under the combined assault she stumbled forward, but managed to launch herself with her hindlegs, taking to the air.

Flash wasn't done with her yet. As she turned to face him he surged forward, hitting her square in the chest, the sound of his armor clashing with hers ringing throughout the building.

His momentum proved to be greater, and knocked her backward, only to collide with a new shield placed behind her by Shining Armor. The shield jerked suddenly, throwing her off of it, directly at Flash who met her with another kick and sent her right back.

Again the shield threw her, and again Flash caught her. Slammed back and forth like a ball, she let out a grunt each time as air was forced from her lungs. As she hit the shield on the sixth repetition, her horn lit up. This time, the shield didn't budge. The captain struggled, putting all his strength into pushing the shield against the enemy.

The only change was that now, the shield began to crack.

A few seconds more, and the shield shattered. The dark mare continued her path into the wall, and the wall crumbled on impact.

She came crashing back in through a window, now free of the barrier around the stage. As she landed, a powerful force like a hurricane seemed to push every pony in the hall back a step.

“Now,” she said, as calmly as if she hadn't just taken dozens of brutal blows, “Who will be the first to serve me?” Her eyes fell across Dinky's group. “Ah, it should always start with the little ones. I promise you will be happy as my subjects.”

Hooves approached swiftly, and in a moment, Diamond Tiara threw herself between Nightmare and Dinky. “Never,” she proclaimed as she raised herself into a bipedal fencing stance. She seemed to have picked up a sword dropped by one of the fallen guards, and pointed it right at the enemy. “I don't care about promises or threats. I have a duty to these ponies, and if you want them, you'll have to go through me.”

“Tiara, wait!” Apple Bloom rushed in now. Skidding to a halt, she raised a second sword. “This is stupid. You cain't possibly win this. And ah cain't letcha do it alone.” She assumed her own stance.

“My, the two of you certainly have some nerve,” the armored mare said. “That will serve you well when I make you submit.”

She reared back to strike, but a sudden blast of force pushed her back. Twilight had interposed herself now between the monster and the fillies. “Don't get ahead of yourself, Nightmare,” she taunted. “You aren't even close to winning. I've made sure of it.”

As she said that, an archway carved itself out of thin air a few feet away and emitted the glow of a fireplace. Out of the light stepped Professor Heartstrings, followed, one by one, by the Canterlot teaching staff.

“You think this scares me?” Nightmare scoffed. “Let me show you… what true fear really is!”

The air rippled with waves of dark, and from those ripples emerged hooves. Out of nothing crawled the shadowy forms of the recently defeated royal guards, and three deer. No eyes could be seen, but they turned their heads about as if looking at the assembled ponies.

The attack was easy to anticipate. Twilight sped toward the nearest creation, blasting its side as it raised a blade. It stumbled, and now there was a hole in its torso. Twilight gasped in shock, afraid she may have used too much power. A moment later, though, the hole filled itself in.

The other professors all engaged the monsters, as did Shining Armor and Flash Sentry. There were more attackers than defenders, but with the caliber of magic the professors had, one pony could wipe out several monsters at once. Professor Heartstrings had turned her lyre into a special weapon by attaching a spell-storing gem to it. Professor Lulamoon turned everything around her into an impromptu weapon of confusion. Somehow enemies seemed to be ignoring Professor Blueblood, which he exploited ruthlessly. And Professor Minuette was a blur of motion, her magic constantly speeding her up.

The locals were putting up a fight, too. The stronger ponies among them were simply plowing into the enemy, which seemed effective enough, while the rest were fighting in groups, ganging up on the enemies. Some of the pegasi began constructing weather systems indoors to unleash lightning.

Despite the apparent fragility of the enemy, though, their numbers seemed to remain constant. Something was up, and Twilight was beginning to get a good picture of what. This situation was definitely unsustainable, and she drew back.

Professor Heartstrings empowered her gem with a shatter spell, then strummed the lyre. The resultant sound hit the surrounding shadow ponies like a blade, causing several of them to dissipate instantly. Behind her, she heard the sound of heavy hooves landing, and she turned just in time to see a shadow deer’s incoming kick. The force flung her backward to the ground.

“Ugh, did anyone see the owner of that cart?” she asked, dazed. As her vision focused again, she saw an earth pony, a creamy yellow mare with a pink-and-blue curly mane, standing over her looking concerned.

The earth pony offered her a hoof up. “Um, thank you for helping us, but please try not to die,” she requested. She reached into a saddlebag and offered a small wrapped chocolate. “You’ll need this. I’ll start a tab for you.”

Heartstrings blinked in confusion. “Uh, sure, thanks,” she said. “I’ll settle that later, I’ve got to find somepony.” She popped the treat into her mouth as she hurried off and the bruise from the kick instantly faded.

“I’ve figured it out, Twi,” she said, drawing up alongside the purple professor. “There’s a castle in the forest. If we can reach it, the answer is there, in the tallest tower.”

At that moment, a scream rang out. The shadow creatures were grabbing ponies and pulling them down into their own shadows. They were going after the foals first, but anypony who got in their way was a target. A dozen foals had been taken already.

“Stop right there!” Flash Sentry yelled out as he rushed in, aiming for the back of Nightmare Moon’s head. He was too slow, and she grabbed him with her amorphous mane, She dangled him in front of her for a moment, then slammed him into the ground.

“Oh, it’s nearly over,” she assured him as the darkness began to swallow him. He glared back, unflinching.

Some distance away, Apple Bloom cried out as she slowly sank into the ground. Applejack let out a wail of sorrow as her sister disappeared, which quickly turned to a scream of fury as she too charged at Nightmare Moon. Rainbow Dash swooped down from above to join her, and they leapt through Nightmare’s defenses, striking rapid blows from multiple directions.

Unable to keep up with their movements, Nightmare Moon opted to put a stop to them altogether. Her horn lit up, and a wave of dark fire washed out from her in every direction. The flames clung to the two, and quite unlike regular flames, seemed to actually weigh them down, stopping their movements and pulling them into the dark.

And now a shadow version of Flash Sentry appeared. It made a beeline for Professor Blueblood, grabbing him and tossing him into a wall. The shadow Flash then dove into the ground, disappearing like it was diving below the surface of a liquid—and moments later it erupted from the wall behind Blueblood, tackling him to the ground.

As Blueblood slipped into the shadows, the creature went after Professor Gingersnap. The older mare fired a single blast of raw magic, but didn’t make much effort to resist otherwise. Inkwell was next, and by this time, the shadow Applejack and Rainbow Dash had emerged as well, now dragging foals away themselves.

“This is out of control,” Heartstrings said. “We need to go, now.”

Twilight took a deep breath and looked at her apologetically. “I’m sorry, Lyra, you’re going to have to finish it on your own,” she said.

In the next instant she was charging. “Spike!” she called, and the dragon jumped out of the crowd and onto her back. She knew he was smart enough to know what was about to happen. If Lyra pulled this off, she would make sure to thank him properly. She leveled her aim at Nightmare Moon and didn’t slow down.

She saw the attack coming, and she wasn’t about to go down without a fight. As the wave of darkness threatened to slam into her, she tossed Spike into the air, and then teleported. Spike soared directly over Nightmare Moon’s head, letting out a plume of emerald flame as he went. Twilight materialized behind Nightmare and fired a huge blast of magic, before catching Spike on her back once more.

By the time Nightmare turned to counterattack, Twilight was already in a new position, above her and to the right, and she already had another blast ready. The second shot visibly shook the dark mare, but failed to so much as dent her armor. Anticipating the next move, Twilight spun in a neat circle as she fell, and Spike created a fiery spiral around her, which repelled the dark creatures that attempted to surround her.

She went for three more teleports now, and three more shots, all in rapid succession. The next teleport was directly in front of Nightmare Moon’s face, where Twilight remained only long enough for Spike to breathe fire into it. Finally, she gave herself some distance, and a much needed moment to catch her breath.

Nightmare Moon scowled as she stomped toward Twilight. The motion was short lived, as a powerful jolt went through her body. She looked down in surprise to see a blank piece of parchment under her foot. “What… was that? A spell scroll?” she asked aloud.

“One of my personal catalog,” Twilight affirmed. ”And while your eyes were on me, Spike was helping me scatter them.”

It was true, around Nightmare Moon there was a carpet of spell scrolls, and as she watched, they all began to glow.

Twilight’s horn burned as she activated all the scrolls at once and packed them around Nightmare Moon in a giant sphere. The energy within the sphere continued to build, and the subsequent explosion lit the hall in blinding white for a full minute.

Nightmare Moon actually looked hurt now. For the first time it was clear that she was taking damage. But she was still standing.

It hurt, but Twilight had to keep teleporting. She was jumping from one position to the next so fast now that each time she hit Nightmare, the larger mare was still reacting to her position two or three teleports ago, and all the while Spike kept his flame trained on the target. But it wasn’t enough.

Of course it wasn’t. Nightmare Moon had already been hit with speed blitzes. She had already been hit with big spells. She had, in fact, been hit by both at once. She was simply beyond the scale of anything any of them had ever encountered.

And so after one final blast, Twilight tossed Spike into the air again, aiming him directly toward Shining Armor. “Keep him safe!” she shouted. Then Nightmare Moon finally caught up with her.

“You’ve got nothing left,” Nightmare purred. “But that won’t be a problem. Soon you’ll give me everything I need.”

Her bellowing laughter filled the hall as Twilight was consumed by the darkness.

Night: Part Two

The gloating of the dark horse faded from Twilight Sparkle’s ears. Slowly, cautiously, she opened her eyes.

She wasn’t in Town Hall anymore, but rather appeared to be in the middle of Sweet Apple Acres. It seemed like everything was bathed in an eerie red light, except for the blue moon overhead. From somewhere nearby there was a smell of decay. The wind howled all around her as she made her way back toward town.

As she marched on into the orchard, she felt she was being watched. She could barely take ten steps without checking over her shoulder. So at first she didn’t notice when her shadow began to bulge in front of her, a piece separating and taking up position in front of her. Only once that shadow began to gain mass, towering over her, did she stop.

It was like the figment of Nightmare Moon, just as she had made her entrance during the mayor’s speech, but like the shadow ponies, it never gained the definition of the real thing. It lunged, and Twilight responded with a burst of magic, a mistake she realized too late. This was not the real Nightmare Moon, but a feeble shadowy replica, and it dissipated instantly upon being hit. However, the action sent a streak of pain through Twilight's horn. She had used too much magic too quickly.

The attacker was gone now, at least, and she could continue. Now the prospect of being attacked at any moment had her even more distracted than before. Shadows seemed to flit through the trees just at the edges of her vision, and she found herself turning one way, then another. Without the ability to fight, her only option, if one of the unknown things in the orchard got too close, would be to run.

Through some trees up ahead, she saw a big mass of the same shadowy substance as the dark ponies, weaving like a spider’s web around a pony’s unconscious form. Cautiously, Twilight approached the weblike shadow, and was able to identify that the pony trapped in it was the blonde earth pony she’d seen attack Nightmare Moon.

Then it was like a dark bubble formed from her, as a shadowy shape separated itself, becoming a full duplicate in a matter of seconds. This was good, because it pointed toward an answer to Twilight’s questions, but it was also bad, because Twilight was now under attack by an actually threatening opponent and didn’t have any means to fight back.

She ducked out of the way of a huge roundhouse kick, jumping back and watching the shadow carefully. A lasso lashed out at her legs, and she leapt over it, before grabbing the rope with her teeth and giving it a yank, catching the enemy by surprise.

As the fake stumbled, Twilight ran past it and grabbed the real mare, pulling to separate her from the shadow web. This was more difficult than she expected. The web wasn’t very strong, but just touching it made her hooves go numb. With a hard yank, she freed the earth pony.

Once they were out of contact with the web, the shadow pony hissed and rubbed its head, as if it had been dealt a blow. It recovered quickly and continued its assault, and Twilight didn’t have the energy to dodge the next attack..The charge sent her sprawling.

As she rolled away from the creature and clambered to her hooves, she could see the shadow was a little less… shadowy than it had been a moment ago, as if it was fading bit by bit. Clearly it had realized this as well, and it was in the process of picking up its real counterpart.

“No you don’t,” Twilight grunted. Looking around herself for a weapon, all she could see was that the ground appeared to be littered with rotten apples, fallen from the trees. Grimacing, she scooped one up with a hoof and hurled it at the shadow.

The mushy projectile scored a direct hit, causing the thing to jerk forward. Then it whipped around and charged at Twilight once again. Twilight braced herself for impact, but the shadow was rapidly fading, wisps of black rising like smoke as it lost its form. By the time it reached her, only strands of dark thread remained to billow at her menacingly.

Once it was gone, Twilight shook the blonde. “Miss, are you okay?”

The earth pony stirred, pulling herself to her hooves with some effort, and adjusted her stetson cap. “Yeah. I’ll be alright. Might take a few though. What is this place? And… who are you? Mah name’s Applejack, thanks for gettin’ me free.”

“Professor Twilight Sparkle,” Twilight replied. “And I think this is part of Sweet Apple Acres?”

“Heck no,” Applejack scoffed. “Ah know every tree on the farm an’ ah ain’t never seen any of these before. Besides…” she wrinkled her nose as she indicated the rotten apples by her hooves. “That never happens on our watch.”

Twilight considered this carefully. “Then this must be a fake version made by Nightmare Moon,” she decided. “And that web you were in, it must be how she creates the nightmare ponies that she attacked us with in Town Hall.”

Applejack looked at the ruined web for a moment, then tapped her head, frowning. “Yeah, okay, but how did ah wind up in there?” she asked.

“There’s something else in here that attacked us.” Twilight thought back to her earlier fight. “If it caught you off guard it might have been able to put you in there.”

Then it happened again. Both Twilight’s shadow and Applejack’s flexed outward from them and disgorged additional shadows that rose into view. Once again Twilight was confronted by Nightmare Moon,, while Applejack’s opponent was an earth pony filly, one wearing some kind of headdress or—

“Apple Bloom!” Applejack gasped, ducking as the filly leapt straight at her face.

“No. Just a shadow of her,” Twilight corrected, backing up as the pseudoalicorn approached. “Can you fight? I kinda need a gallon of coffee before I can cast any more spells.”

Applejack gave her an uncertain look. “Really don’t wanna hit mah sister, even if she’s a fake.”

“Then we’ll have to run.” Sidestepping the alicorn, Twilight summoned her strength and rushed past the Nightmare, and Applejack joined her, keeping pace.

The shadows were on their heels, and Twilight was already tired. She looked around for any kind of escape, and through the trees, she caught a glimpse of the elementary school.

“What kind of defenses does the schoolhouse have?” she asked. “Any cannons?”

“What? Uh, probably, gotta have somethin’ for dealin’ with Everfree critters an’ rival schools,” the farmer replied.

“Good enough!” Twilight swerved to the right, and emerged through the treeline onto a steep hill, almost more of a cliff. Bracing, she managed to remain upright as she slid down the incline. Applejack followed a moment later, and the shadows came after her.

Upon reaching the bottom the two took off in the wildest sprint yet. The professor reached the front door first, and as soon as her companion was inside she slammed it shut. With Applejack's help she lifted the bar into place, locking it.

The shadows pounded at the door fiercely, but it stayed firm.

“Just as I thought,” Twilight said. “Not only is that not the real Nightmare Moon, it's not even a convincing imitation. She would have broken through the door in one try. Or maybe the wall.”

“Then what is it?” Applejack asked, sounding extremely frustrated. “And where is the real Apple Bloom? How did we get here? None a’ this makes any sense!”

“My hypothesis is those are representations of our biggest fears,” Twilight ventured. “My big fear is failure, and I guess Nightmare Moon embodies that for me. Your fear is losing your sister, so… that seems pretty direct.”

“Yeah. Okay.” Applejack sighed. “So what now?”

“Now,” said Twilight, “we find the cannons. Since we're in no position to fight, we need weapons.”

Applejack shook her head. “Whoa whoa whoa. Hold on there, Professor. Yer plannin’ ta fight our worst nightmares with cannons?”

~#~#~#~

“NIGHTMARE MOON!” a bubbly high-pitched voice screeched around Town Hall. “Are you ready to par-tay?!”

Every single head turned to the source in confusion.

Then, directly underneath Nightmare Moon, fifty party cannons exploded at once.

~#~#~#~

“We have to use whatever we can get,” Twilight confirmed.

“Cannons are big and heavy and slow,” Applejack retorted. “And it's not gonna do us any good ta hunker down here. We need ta see what else this place has.” The door shuddered. “And, uh, quick.”

The two stepped away from the door and made their way into the entrance hall. Immediately, Twilight gasped and pulled Applejack aside to hide behind a large bust of Celestia.

There was a pony patrolling the hall. The same stuff of darkness that made up the nightmare ponies clung to him, but his aged gray face was unobstructed. Had it not been, it would have been easy to identify him anyway thanks to his massive hat.

“What is Starswirl the Bearded doing here?” Twilight hissed.

“Ah dunno,” Applejack responded, “but ah think we're gonna hafta fight him, Twilight.”

“Darn,” Twilight sighed ruefully.

She had seen paintings of Starswirl the Bearded in Celestia’s office, and been told much about his wisdom. He had been Celestia’s teacher before she ever became the ruler of Equestria. Supposedly the theories originally drafted by Starswirl were the basis of most modern magic, even alicorn magic. He’d even dabbled in bardic magic at one point. He was certain to be more than a match for a farmer and a unicorn who was already out of magic.

Applejack leapt out from behind the statue and rushed the old unicorn. With an evident lack of surprise, he lashed a bolt of dark lightning to her, stunning her in place.

“Useless little fillies,” he bellowed. “Why must I always be stuck teaching the stupidest foals?” He stalked toward the now-helpless mare as she tried her best to drag her hooves away from him. “To think that I, Starswirl the Bearded, mightiest and cleverest of all unicorns, would be wasting my talent on… you,” he spat. He was nearly in her face now, and his horn was lighting up to cast another spell.

“Applejack!” Twilight yelled, darting out from behind the statue. Too late. She would never make it in time to—

The stallion staggered dramatically to the left as he cast his spell, and the statue Twilight had just been hidden behind had all of its parts randomly rearranged. He swayed on one hoof for a moment, then seemed to regain his balance. “What—what was I shaying?” he asked nobody. “Oh yeah. You two. Why did I even shtart teashing you two? Sheleshtia’sh bad enough, but you!” Here he pointed a hoof dramatically at Twilight. “You’re alwaysh late, you don’t do your work, and you don’t know how to show your eldershshshshalittlerespect!”

He wound up to cast another spell, but Applejack had just barely regained the use of her hooves and gave him a light tap. In response, he fell over on his side, babbling incoherently.

“Uh, jus’ so we’re clear, that was weird, right?” she asked.

Twilight nodded. “Big time. For one thing, he’s supposed to be dead from being a thousand years old, and for another, I don’t remember ever hearing about him being so aggressive. We’d better go, before he gets back up again.”

The two stepped cautiously around the insensate Starswirl and headed down the nearest corridor. The place was much plainer and more utilitarian than Castle Canterlot, which was a relief. There wasn't anything in particular that could come to life and attack them or otherwise hinder them, just classrooms lit in the same blood red.

“There,” Applejack announced, pointing at a large door. “Pretty sure that way leads to the gym, maybe they got some archery equipment we can borrow.”

The duo approached the door cautiously, and Applejack placed her hooves on it, pushing it inward. The door groaned in protest. The wood was warped, pushed too tight into the doorframe, and the hinges produced the telltale sound of rust scraping against rust. Bit by bit, though, it began to give way.

~#~#~#~

The noise was absolutely deafening, and the smoke and dust filled the hall. The pegasi who were still standing began flapping their wings to clear the air. When they could see again, they could see that a change had occurred. Nightmare Moon no longer stood over the crowd. Instead, an indistinct mass of something that looked like a piece of the night sky floated, twisting.

It shaped itself roughly into a ball, and a pair of eyes opened on one side of it. The dark parts of it flickered and roared, expanding as if they were a burning fire before being pulled back into the center of the mass.

Lyra charged forward, ready to seize on the opportunity to contain the threat, but the ball flattened itself again and rolled into a snakelike wisp, which blew away out the window.

The unicorn took a step back and looked around. It seemed like the shadow ponies had stopped appearing. Most of the professors who had come with her were gone. She could only see Trixie and Minuette still assisting the locals. That might not be enough of a party to contend with wild magic. Lyra turned her attention to the pony who had set off the blast. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, the pink mare appeared right in front of her out of her peripheral vision, somehow, despite also being some twenty feet away and directly in view at the exact same moment.

“Oh, heya, you’re probably wondering about the cannons, right? Don’t worry, I have a license,” she said, producing a card from… somewhere. Lyra leaned to the side to peer around her, and found that there was, indeed, only one of this pony. Unwilling to waste time on that train of thought, she scanned over the card.

“This just says ‘I’m Pinkie Pie and I can do what I want’,” Lyra observed, before dropping the card and shrugging. “But actually I did want to speak to you about that. Did you prepare those cannons specifically for Nightmare Moon?”

“Well, duh,” Pinkie scoffed. “That’s why I had to wait for her to stand in juuuuuust the right place!”

Lyra nodded in agreement. There just wasn’t really any way to argue with that. “Okay. Can you help us finish the job?” She waved toward the window. “We’ve got to go into the forest to find something, and I’m guessing she’s trying to beat us to it.”

“Sure!” Pinkie replied. “But first, I’ve gotta talk to somepony. Important business.”

Lyra nodded. “We’ll meet outside once you’re ready,” she agreed, and trotted away to look for another recruit. She could make do with four, but she would still be more comfortable adding to that number. And there was one pony she obviously needed to speak to.

“Captain,” she called, approaching Shining Armor. “I’m forming a party to pursue the enemy. Terrain uncharted, wild magic active, ambushes expected. We need you to join us.”

“No,” he refused bluntly. “I’m needed here. I’m all that’s left of the Royal Guard after that assault, and the town has lost a big chunk of its own defenders. I need to prepare in case there’s a second wave. And anyway, my specialty is fortification, not scouting. If we still had Flash I’d send him with you. Sorry.”

On his back, Twilight’s assistant remained silent, staring at the spot where the professor had disappeared.

“All the same,” Shining Armor added, “if we can support you in any other way, we will. It would mean the world to me if you could get my sister back.”

Lyra bowed her head. “Understood,” she agreed. Then she looked up at the small dragon. “Then can you update us if the situation here changes?”

Spike still gave no response. “Of course,” said the captain. “Now, get a move on.”

Lyra gave a small salute and turned around. “Trixie! Minuette!” she called out. “We need to get going now!”

Her fellow professors fell into step beside her.as they made their way out of the large doors.

~#~#~#~

The inside of the gym was very dark, which was actually kind of a relief compared to the ominous red illumination everywhere else. That relief was cut short, however, when a hoof connected with Twilight’s barrel, followed immediately by the sensation of being lifted off her hooves and quickly flung to the ground.

The attacker was visible by virtue of being darker than the surrounding darkness. It bore the shape of a pegasus, and there was little time to tell anything else. Knowing this, however, made it easy to spot the shadowy tendrils of a dark web.

“Applejack!” Twilight called. “Somepony’s in the web! Free them quick!”

Applejack charged in, and the black pegasus turned to chase her, but Twilight had anticipated that and flung herself on top of the enemy. This maneuver technically succeeded in preventing the attacker from shifting focus, but not quite in the way she had hoped, as it was still easily able to launch into the air, zigzagging and twisting in an attempt to throw Twilight off.

Applejack barged into the web and was able to punch cleanly through it, to the left of the trapped pony. She got some distance and came around for a second go. With two massive holes in the web, the victim now dangled by a thread. Applejack produced a lasso from somewhere and with a wide sweep, caught the pony and pulled them free.

Twilight grinned as the shadow pony began to spasm, but the grin quickly faded as she realized it was still in control of the situation. In an instant, it swept out the door—and straight up.

Soon it would be no more, and there would be nothing holding Twilight up. The school began to shrink as they flew higher. Twilight swallowed a knot in her throat and looked down toward Ponyville, then trailed her eyes up toward Mount Canterlot. “Well, then, the rest is up to you,” she said, feeling her ride begin to disintegrate.

She closed her eyes as they climbed higher and higher. She faintly wondered if they might reach the moon. She didn’t have to wonder long, though. Like an unraveling sweater, the shadow pony she was clinging onto was quickly losing substance.

Their trajectory continued for a moment even when there was nothing left to hold onto. It felt a little like being weightless. Eventually, though, the arc of her motion did turn downward once again, and all that was left was to wait for the ground, and the end of her duties.

She was surprised when she felt something slip around her waist, instead of a sharp pain and then nothing ever again. Her eyes snapped open and she looked down to see a pair of cyan hooves. The deafening sound of the wind rushing past her ears lessened as her fall began to slow.

“Wow,” a voice remarked in her ear, “you are way heavier than a filly.”

The professor started to twist her head around, but the voice barked, “Don’t move! Don’t thrash, we’ll be on the ground soon enough.”

The angle of their descent was changing slightly as well. They seemed to be gliding in the direction of Ponyville, and below, Applejack was galloping along the road, keeping pace with them.

They swooped down into the streets of the town. Eerie and deserted as it was, finally being here was a relief.

“Y’all good?” Applejack asked, trotting closer to them.

“Miraculously, yes,” Twilight responded. “And, uh, who…?”

“Name’s Rainbow Dash,” the pegasus replied. “I teach PE at the school. That also means I have some responsibility for the safety of those foals who got kidnapped. You’re trying to find them too, right?”

“Among other things,” Twilight said with a nod. “I’m hoping Princess Celestia left a clue in her room at Town Hall.”

“Then to Town Hall it is,” Rainbow agreed, and the three set off.

Once they were moving, Twilight cleared her throat. “Um, something has been manifesting our fears to attack us with. So, just to be ready, what’s your biggest fear?”

Without hesitation, Rainbow Dash replied, “Boredom.”

All three of them looked around, but no new shadow ponies had appeared.

“Well, I guess we’re lucky our fears are relatively tame… and abstract,” Twilight observed.

Town Hall loomed ahead, and the three picked up their pace. The door stood open as it had been earlier that night. But once they rounded the corner of the building and were able to see inside, the difference was startling.

All the ponies who had been celebrating earlier were gone. The sole inhabitant of the main room was Flash Sentry, suspended in another dark web. His shadow duplicate prowled the perimeter, and froze at their approach.

Without hesitation, Applejack ran for the web, but the shadow Flash was in front of her before she could make half the distance, and knocked her aside. Rainbow Dash was off like a streak now, going in to attack the shadow pony. Her punch came fast, but the shadow pony moved to one side, allowing her to expose her back to it and striking down at her.

Twilight was nearly to the web, but the shadow Flash was too fast. It caught her and flung her right back to the door.

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight called. “Free Flash! It’ll stop the attack!”

Rainbow Dash was standing again the instant after Twilight had spoken. “Got it!” She angled herself at the pony caught in the web, and took off like a rocket. The shadow pony moved to block, but as fast as it was, it was nothing compared to the coach. She punched right through the center of the web, forcefully ripping out the unconscious Flash Sentry.

She scraped away the web holding him, then winced, shaking her hooves. “That feels so weird,” she complained.

“Watch behind you!” Twilight shouted, just in time for Rainbow to dodge the shadow’s attack. Instead, it struck the real pony across the face.

Flash’s eyes shot open and he began to pummel the duplicate, which was too busy trying to see where its opponent had gone to defend itself until too late. Dark wisps shot out of it with each blow, until finally he threw it to the ground and stomped on it, causing it to violently pop.

He took a few deep breaths. “Okay. What’s the situation now?” he asked, eyes still fixed on where his duplicate had been.

Behind him, his shadow had elongated and twisted into a new shape.

~#~#~#~

“Here we are. The forest is just ahead,” Pinkie said, waving down the road. “We just need to wait a reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeal quick second.”

Minuette raised a hoof. “Did you mean to hold that word for more than a second?”

Pinkie giggled. “Okay maybe. Hey look, somepony’s coming.”

A white unicorn mare with an elaborate purple coif was indeed approaching the group. Lyra stepped forward to meet her.

“Take me with you,” she said simply.

Lyra looked at the other professors, then back to the local. “Who are you?”

“Rarity. I’m this town’s tailor. And that monster took my sister. Take me with you so I can destroy her. I won’t hold you back.”

“I… guess I’ll take your word for it,” Lyra replied. “Okay everypony. We’re looking for an ancient castle that isn’t on any map, so this should be quick and easy. There’s no turning back until it’s all over. Let’s go.”

With that, they marched into the forest.

Night, Part Three

There was a very good reason the untamed Everfree was still so large. Wild magic was not something to trifle with. Even at the entrance of the forest, the change could be felt. To step into a wild magic zone was to step into the maw of a great beast. Magic was its breath, its blood, and its bones, and it was aware of every step taken inside of it. There was just no shaking the feeling that it didn’t really welcome the intrusion.

Something in the distance howled.

The vigor of the forest, the might of this creature, was evident in the density and color of the foliage. They were surrounded by walls of the deepest green, so tight it was difficult to move sometimes.

Pinkie didn't even pause her chatter as she bounced along. “Wow, this is looking like a crazy start. Four unicorns doesn’t seem like an optimal team for this run, but Rarity is a super lucky pull, and I think that could carry us all the way to the bridge, easy. Right? But you can’t tune out just yet. Who knows what we could still be missing.”

“Pinkie, darling, who are you talking to?” Rarity interjected.

“Anypony who’s keeping track,” Pinkie stated simply. “Trust me, it'll make more sense when we get there. Oh, look, we’re coming to a clearing.”

With no further elaboration, they stepped into a pleasant glade. Above, the stars were once again visible, and beautiful flowers sprouted all around them. The air felt less oppressive, and seemed almost to shimmer.

None of this made it any more relaxing to see, in the center of the clearing, a long banquet table with a luxurious golden tablecloth, with seven ponies seated around it, all facing the new arrivals. Throughout the space was the sound of strings and what sounded like an almost familiar foal’s voice singing softly, an indistinct tune. The ponies may have looked familiar to the locals, but they were unmistakably off; all appeared to be noticeably shorter than an average pony, and their faces and bodies were lumpy and asymmetrical, the obvious signs of a spriggan’s disguise.

At the head of the table was a light tan mare with a hot pink mane. She looked like she was feigning an air of authority and perhaps laughing to herself about it. Next to her was a white pegasus stallion, the oldest looking of the bunch, who nodded to them welcomingly. Next was portly blue earth pony mare wearing an apron, smiling gently.

At the other end, a purple unicorn stallion tipped his hat to them. A cream-colored mare beside him locked eyes with Lyra, holding a cup out to offer it. The next was a cerise earth pony mare whose eyes were fixed on the pony seated beside her at the middle of the table. And that pony was a gray pegasus mare with a blonde mane, who stood on two legs with her wings spread wide as she gestured to the table before her.

The pegasus mare’s eyes weren’t fixed on anything, and indeed seemed to be staring in different directions, yet her full attention was unmistakably on Lyra’s group. “Oh, welcome, welcome,” she said. “You’re all just in time for the feast.”

The uncanny sight might have been funny under other circumstances, or perhaps if the audience knew what the joke was, but here and now, it was terrifying. Ponies had lots of contact with spriggans, and it was quite common for spriggans to live among ponies, performing as funny caricatures of their hosts for little more than the affection of the ponies. Spriggan revels, on the other hoof, were never to be interrupted, least of all at midsummer. In the dark of the forests, they played games that would leave hapless ponies who wandered into them irrevocably changed.

“So,” the pegasus mare was saying, “we wish to honor the brave heroes of the forest. Come, sit, eat and drink to your—oh, but this won’t do. Where are the rest?”

Lyra looked around at the others with her. Pinkie Pie seemed to be hanging back, trying very hard to pretend she was a bush or a rock. Minuette and Rarity exchanged uncertain glances, each taking half a step back. Trixie met Lyra’s eye and nodded. Lyra was pretty sure Trixie didn’t know what to do in this situation, but there wasn’t really time to make a plan.

A sudden rustling of bushes interrupted Lyra’s thoughts as a life-sized plushie of a butter-yellow pegasus with a pink mane emerged. For some reason, this caused Rarity and Pinkie Pie to breathe an audible sigh of relief.

The yellow pegasus quickly, but daintily, positioned herself between Lyra and the table, facing the center figure. “Forgive my intrusion,” she said with a small curtsy, “but I must ask that you allow all the ponies behind me to come with me.”

The revelers looked around at each other in apparent confusion.

“In return,” the pegasus added, “I offer my gratitude, my affection and my appreciation. Is that enough?”

The spriggan in the middle made a clicking noise, then nodded. “Very well. Go, then. And keep us in your memory!” All seven of the revelers raised a toast, and the yellow pegasus beckoned the group to follow her.

Soon they had left the clearing well behind. The sound of merriment didn’t seem to have faded, almost as if the music of the glade was following them. “Thank goodness you came along, Ranger Fluttershy,” Rarity commented. “I’m afraid we were quite at a loss.”

“I’m glad I could help,” Fluttershy said, bowing her head in response. “But why were you out here in the first place? This is one night when everypony should know to avoid the forest if they don’t want to get caught up in a spriggan feast. And anyway isn’t the town hosting the Summer Sun Celebration?”

Rarity sighed. “Oh, dear, you’ve been out here all night, haven’t you? I’m afraid Ponyville is much worse than the forest right now. The legend of Nightmare Moon turned out to be quite true. We’re on our way to the castle because the professors here,” she gestured to Lyra, “think there’s a clue to stopping her there.”

“In that case, I’ll see you through,” the ranger replied. “And I should teach you a song that keeps the fey away. I teach it to all the foals of Ponyville, but I guess I didn’t ever think the adults would need it. Here, sing with me. Oh, um, is that okay, Pinkie Pie?”

Pinkie nodded silently. The pegasus took a deep breath and began to sing.

Thank you for inviting me, my friends,
Thank you for inviting me, my friends,

But I'm starting to feel homesick, and I must go for a run,
I left the puppy in the wash,
The kitten stole my iron,

I've got to bring some sugar
To a neighbor who's alone,
And oh my gosh, you're just so posh
I fear I'd drag you down.

I must brew a pot of tea
That I can share with the bees
No matter how I’d like to stay,
Now I must really flee

But still thank you, thank you, thank you,
Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you,
Thank you, thank you for inviting me my friends

Falteringly, the group began to sing along, each making up new excuses on each repetition of the song, except for Pinkie, whose eyes seemed to become a bit unfocused.

It seemed like a very short time after that when their progress was halted again. This time, a physical barrier lay in front of them. They stood before a ravine, with the posts of a rope bridge on either end. The bridge itself clung to the near posts, the boards smacking wetly against the cliff somewhere below.

“Oh, my, somepony’s going to have to fly over there and repair the bridge,” Fluttershy wisely observed.

The others all stared at her.

“O-oh, right,” she said, realizing she was the only one present with wings.

“Before you go, there’s one thing we should take care of,” Trixie interrupted, and her magic seized hold of a bush about ten feet behind the group. She ripped it out of the ground, and six small ponies tumbled out, sprawling flat. “What do we have here?”

“Oh, um, did you not know you were being followed?” Fluttershy asked sheepishly. “I’m sorry, I should have mentioned it, I just thought they were with you.”

“Ow… did you have to be so rough?” Scootaloo complained, rubbing her head.

“We came to get our friends back,” Snails answered, shaking off the impact. “We overheard you saying you had a plan, so we followed you.”

“That’s right!” Button Mash proclaimed. “We’re adventurers, we can’t just leave this up to somepony else!”

Silver Soon adjusted her glasses. “The way I see it—oh, I think that’s a smudge.” She took the glasses off and began cleaning them as she continued, “As long as there’s hope, we all have to rally against the darkness, just like our friends did.”

Rarity shook her head. “It’s far too dangerous out here. I’ll escort you all home at once.”

This provoked Scootaloo to leap to her hooves and bound to the front of the group. “No way,” she declared. “Even if you force us to go home, we’ll just sneak back to the forest ourselves, and then we’ll be in even more danger. If you’re that worried about us, you need to keep us with you.”

“We’re willing to take whatever risk,” Featherweight spoke up. “But we’d rather take the one that gets our friends back.”

The unicorn filly among them swapped places with Scootaloo, giving her an appreciative nod. “We all talked about this,” Dinky said, bowing. “Every one of us has friends and family who risked their lives for us tonight, and we have to return the favor, no matter what any of you say. So please, help us, or at least don’t try to stop us, because none of us are as scared of what could happen if we do this as we are of what could happen if we don’t!”

Rarity took a step back. “I… well…” She glanced uncertainly to Lyra.

Lyra looked Dinky in the eye. “You remind me of somepony I know,” she said slowly. “Somepony who cares deeply and doesn’t give up. Let’s be clear about this, we don’t know what’s on the other side of that bridge. There might be ghosts. There might be traps. We might find ourselves face to face with Nightmare Moon again, and she might even be more powerful than before. It’s not just that one of you could get taken or hurt. We might actually die. Or worse. One of you could die, and the rest will have to live with that. So I’ll give you a chance to decide. Are you ready to face something like this?” She looked over all the fillies and colts. “All of you?”

What she saw in their faces was not the steely resolve of a group of experts and fighters. If it had been, this would have been an easy decision. What she saw instead was desperation. Every one of these foals was scared out of their mind, and despite that, they all nodded frantically.

“They’re coming with us,” Lyra decided.

“Actually, Trixie would like to go home now.”

“Offer does not apply to Canterlot staff. Fluttershy, get that bridge in shape.”

“I’ll be right back.” The yellow pegasus mare dropped out of sight over the cliff, and with some effort managed to lift the end of the bridge up. About halfway across the ravine, however, a strong headwind suddenly kicked up. She tried flying faster, but the wind exactly matched her speed, stopping her motion entirely.

“What’s going on?” Rarity called out. “Where is that coming from?”

“It must be wild magic,” Lyra said. “Fluttershy, come back!”

The roar of the wind kept her voice from reaching Fluttershy, but the ranger seemed to have gotten the idea to do just that. However, as she turned around, the direction of the wind also changed, now preventing her from returning.

The pegasus’s eyes widened in fear as she realized the situation she was in. She frantically tried to fly in every direction, forward, backward, up, down, left and right, but the capricious wind kept her trapped there.

“Uh-oh,” Pinkie remarked. “Fluttershy’s never been a strong flyer. If this keeps up, she’ll get exhausted and then she’ll…” She risked a look over the edge of the cliff, and then flinched away. Fluttershy was beginning to slow down, hovering in place, and turned to look at the group.

Minuette’s horn lit up with a deep blue glow now. “Fluttershy! I’m going to cast haste on you!” she called. “Maybe the extra speed will be enough to break through!”

Fluttershy nodded and started flying toward the other end again as Lyra’s spell enveloped her. But although she was now flapping her wings at double speed, the wind speed still increased to stop her. As she realized she was making no more progress than before, she once again slowed down, shaking her head sadly.

Behind the unicorns, a pair of pegasi were watching intently. “Featherweight, you know what we’ve gotta do, right?” Scootaloo asked.

“Only one thing to do,” Featherweight agreed. He passed his camera to Button Mash. “Here, keep an eye on this, it’s, uh, on loan.”

The two charged forward. “Hey Fluttershy! Fly as fast as you can toward us!” Scootaloo shouted.

Fluttershy blinked, her eyes focusing on the voice, and suddenly gasped as she realized what the two were about to do. With a sudden panicked burst of speed, she strained to reach the edge she’d started from in time to stop the two foals, but it was too late.

Everyone was caught by surprise as Scootaloo and Featherweight leapt off the edge.

~#~#~#~

“Ground sharks?!” Twilight shouted, shaking Flash Sentry by his shoulders. “How can your biggest fear be ground sharks?!”

“They can burst from the ground to swallow you whole!” Flash protested.

“You can fly!” Rainbow Dash reminded him, flapping her own wings slightly more dramatically for emphasis.

“They’re unnatural!”

“That’s because they’re not real!”

“Girls,” Applejack interrupted, standing with two legs on a chair and her back against the wall, “not that y’all aren’t makin’ excellent points, but is this really the time fer this conversation?”

The shadowy fin of the ground shark protruded from a bulge in the floor that was circling the room. Suddenly, without warning, it rushed straight toward Twilight and Flash.

“Fly, now!” Twilight yelled, grabbing securely onto Flash. He in turn scooped her into his forehooves and launched into the air, just in time for the monstrosity leaping from the ground to barely brush his hoof.

“I don’t care how smooth you are,” Flash yelled at the monster, “you’re not getting anypony under my protection!”

Twilight stared at him flatly. “Sharks are rough. Their skin is covered with sharp bits called denticles, which makes their whole body like a giant cheese grater.”

“What? No way, sharks are smooth as hay,” Flash replied matter-of-factly. “I just touched one, it was the smoothest thing ever. That’s how they move through the ground so fast.”

“Can we just let it eat him?” Rainbow Dash complained.

“Hold on. Ah think he might have a point.”

“Not you too, AJ!”

“No, ah mean, this creature is based on his fears, right? So if he’s scared of smooth sharks, then this shark’ll be smooth.”

Everyone was silent for a moment, including the shark, which was particularly impressive as it was actively destroying the marble floor.

“Okay,” Twilight conceded, “so what does that mean for us?”

“It means,” Applejack explained patiently, “that we can wrassle ‘im.”

“Or we could just fly to the stairs.”

“Rather not find out what happens if this thing tries ta follow us upstairs, if it’s all the same to you.”

Careful not to move too much, the farmpony took her hat off and tossed it with as much force as she reasonably could. The room went silent once again as the hat sailed to the ground with a gentle “fwomp”.

The fin paused, twisting as if looking around. Then it disappeared under the ground. Everypony waited, holding their breaths for what they knew was about to happen.

With a deafening sound of shattering stone, the ground directly under the hat exploded outward as the shark breached the surface, its jaws clamping down on the cap. No sooner had it done so than a lasso slipped around its nose and bound its mouth shut.

“Ponypile on the shadow monster!” Applejack called, rushing in to secure the bonds. The pegasi remained stunned for exactly one second before they joined the attack, Flash releasing Twilight in the process.As Applejack turned and bucked the shark in the stomach with both hindlegs, Twilight landed on top of it and stomped.

Flash angled a punch directly between the shark’s eyes. When it recoiled, he grinned and began slamming its head repeatedly with his hooves as if he was playing the drums. Rainbow Dash swooped in for flyby hits as she darted around gathering up bits of moisture that she was able to condense into a cloud.

“Clear the way!” she called, giving the cloud a mighty kick and sending a bolt of lightning crashing down on the shark. The beat promptly began dissolving into its constituent shadows.

“Well, now that I’ve punched my fear in the face, I feel pretty good about it,” Flash remarked.

With a sigh of relief, Twilight straightened up. “Okay, now. No more distractions. We’re going straight to the top. Nothing’s going to delay us any further.”

~#~#~#~

“No, not even that,” Twilight declared as she approached the door to Celestia’s room. Unlike the solid but standard office door Celestia hid behind earlier in the day, the door now resembled a palace door, grand and imposing and very very heavy. But while Twilight had fired off so much magic tonight she’d need to down a bottle of Etherium to so much as turn a screw, one thing her magic was very good for at the moment was opening doors.

Only three ponies, by Twilight’s count, knew how to unlock Celestia’s chamber door, including the princess herself. Twilight was fortunate enough to be one of the other two. It wasn’t really a matter of power, but of resonance. All she had to do was match the magic she had remaining to the shape of Celestia’s locking spell. She knew it well enough.

However, even this meager feat still gave her quite the headache. To alleviate some of the strain on her magic, she elected to instead move her body, which would redirect her magic more naturally. She stood on her hindlegs, forelegs outstretched in an arcane pose as she focused her attention on making contact with the lock.

She got the odd impression that it was staring at her. In a way, she supposed, it was, watching for the correct magic. After a minute, just as her legs were starting to feel a little bit tingly and she found herself shifting positions to stay focused, the sigil on the door flashed and it grinded slowly open. She dropped to all fours again.

“Princess Celestia?” the professor called out as she trotted inside. The room looked, as she expected, exactly like the Princess’s private chamber in Canterlot. Luxurious bed, fireplace, and grand balcony were all exactly where they should have been. And on that balcony stood the princess.

But something was wrong. She looked taller than Twilight remembered, thinner, and as she turned to face the door she seemed in some way hauntingly beautiful. She seemed almost like a brilliant reflection of Nightmare Moon.

It took a moment for her eyes to focus on the mare standing in the darkened doorway. “Oh, it’s you,” she said. “What is it this time? Sniveling about some trifling fear? Some made-up story?” She shook her head. “Are you here to tell me lies about the castle again? Or maybe you just want to complain about some perceived insult? I’ve heard enough from you!” Her wings snapped wide open as she stalked forward and her mane seemed to become a roaring fire.

Twilight backed away as Flash rushed in and interposed himself between them. “Alright, that’s far enough. We’re not looking for a fight.”

Two balls of fire launched in an arc directly toward Flash, and he covered his face. The fireballs landed short and a wave of heat washed over him, and Twilight behind him.

“Okay, I guess you’ve got your own ideas,” he said. “In that case, I guess we’re doing this your way.”

As Flash launched himself through the fire, he spun rapidly, gathering up the flames onto himself. Cloaked in flame he impacted the fake Celestia, and used his full body to try and scorch her with her own heat. It wasn’t very effective, but it at least seemed to annoy her.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack ran to join in. Applejack swung her rope, grabbing a diamond chalice off the mantle to use as an improvised weapon. Rainbow Dash darted straight for the far end of the room, closing Celestia in as she began raining down strikes.

Twilight kept to the edge of the room. She had spotted a chest beside Celestia’s bed that she knew wasn’t in the castle. That difference might be the key.

Flash Sentry had somehow managed to suplex the princess, who made a very distressed “awp” sound. Applejack’s chalice was making clear hits as well, while Rainbow Dash kept pressing forward.

But now Celestia appeared to be getting even angrier. “You dare?!” she bellowed. The fires from her mane and tail soared higher, almost filling the large room. The walls were burning.

“Yeah, as a matter of fact I do!” Rainbow Dash replied, leaping and striking her in the head.

Twilight crept the remaining distance to the chest and put her hoof on it. Locked. That wasn’t an issue. After doing some quick calculations in her head, she turned and kicked it at a precise angle and the lock popped open, its bolt having fractured perfectly as predicted. She reached into the chest, and found that all it contained was a single raggedy doll.

It looked like a gray earth pony wearing blue shorts with white polka-dots. There was no telling if it had been brightly colored once or if it had always been this shade of gray. Its mane and tail were made of thick loops of yarn that resembled wild dreadlocks, and its eyes were two mismatched buttons, one purple and one blue.

It had to have been locked away here for a reason.

“Princess!” she called out. All four combatants froze in place, staring directly at Twilight as she held the doll aloft.

The Celestia nightmare’s eyes widened at the sight of the doll and she shrank back. “What are you…”

Although the power of the alicorn had faltered slightly, the fires seemed to spread even faster. The pegasi and Applejack were forced to back off, and Twilight eyed the approaching flames nervously. “This is important to you, right?”

The alicorn thing snarled and charged through the fire and took a massive leap. A hoof struck Twilight, shoving her back as the doll was ripped from her grasp. Gripping it tightly, the princess retreated and huddled in the middle of the room, hugging the doll tightly, tears streaming down her face.

“I’m so sorry, Luna,” she whispered to the doll, over and over, growing slowly louder and more pained. The flames surrounding the room seemed to react, flowing toward her. Then she threw back her head and sobbed openly. “I’m sorry for everything I’ve said, the way I’ve pushed you. I’ve ruined everything.”

She gave a wail of complete despair as the fire formed a tight vortex around her, completely obscuring her from view.

At the top of the spiral, the flames coalesced into a familiar shape. First they flowed into an oval shape, forming a striking red-and-yellow egg. From this egg burst two brilliant wings, with fiery feathers of the same color, and a bird’s head, a regal, dignified creature that looked down upon Twilight with a sagely gaze. All of the fire flowed into the bird, revealing the fake Celestia and her doll were gone.

In a last dazzling burst of flame, a scroll materialized and landed right in front of Twilight.

Fumblingly, the professor scooped up the paper with her hoof, tore the seal and unrolled it.

To the weary traveller,

If you are reading this, you have vanquished a bitter enemy and ended a long nightmare. There are greater troubles still to come before we can be free of this place, the Nightmare Dreamscape, but for now, my familiar, Philomena, will guide you to a place where you can rest safely. I will see you there. I have a selfish request for you when you arrive, and I hope that you can forgive me for it.

Princess Celestia

Twilight looked up at the phoenix, and then back down at the letter. “Finally, we’ll have some answers,” she said. “But before we go, Philomena, can you send a letter to Spike? I need him to know that I’m okay.”

The bird fluttered slowly down and settled onto the bed. With her beak, she opened the princess’s nightstand and produced paper. There was no ink, but Philomena had a solution for this. With the paper removed, she immolated the nightstand, reducing it to charcoal, then broke off a piece decently sized for writing. Twilight took it gratefully and began.

~#~#~#~

“Rose!” Shining Armor called out as Roseluck entered Town Hall. “I was about to send somepony to find you. It looks like the second wave of attackers is incoming, and we need to get you to shelter.”

“No,” Roseluck said, firmly.

“So if you’ll just follow… what?”

“Before taking Daisy and Lily to safety, I stayed long enough to see what those things were and what they’re capable of,” she said, tensing up slightly. “If you fight, I might never see you again.”

“That’s my job,” he reminded her. “I risk my life fighting things like that so that others can stay safe.”

Roseluck pressed her face into his shoulder. “Shiny, you know this time is different,” she pleaded. “I think I’ll be sick if I have to cower in a bunker knowing you’re fighting those endless shadows. Flowers have magic, and I want to use that magic to defend you.”

The captain put a hoof around her to draw her into a hug. “C’mon, think about what Flash would say if I let my girlfriend fight my battles for me.” That got at least a halfhearted chuckle from her. “But you’re right. I don’t have the soldiers I need. If you’re determined to fight, then we’re just going to have to watch each other’s backs. And I promise you we’ll get through this, together.”

On Shining Armor’s back Spike suddenly began to convulse, making a retching noise. “Oh, now you’re part of the conversation again?” the stallion asked. “If the mushy stuff is bothering you then you should—”

With a loud belch Spike coughed up a letter. It fell directly into his claw. “Blame Philomena’s rotten timing,” he wheezed. “And worse taste. What’s this about?” The letter, oddly, wasn’t sealed, so Spike simply unrolled it and began reading.

To my number one assistant,

“It’s from Twilight!” he shouted, nearly leaping from his seat in surprise.

The ponies who were taken by Nightmare Moon are safe. We’re in a place called the Nightmare Dreamscape. They’re trapped here, and I’ve only found a few of them, but they should all be free soon. For now, please just try to keep everypony there safe. I miss you,

He stared at the letter, and a look of determination came across his face. “Roseluck? I hope you’ve got a lot of flowers. We’re gonna need all the help we can get.”

Author's Note

Fluttershy's song takes its meter and most of its inspiration from Shel Silverstein's poem "Always Sprinkle Pepper". You may imagine whatever tune you like.