Dubious Temporal Duplicates
Twilight Sparkle gazed at the dandelion sandwich on her plate with a melancholic expression. It was lunch and all that was available had to be dandelions. They were the most tasteless of culinary experiences. School lunches in general happened to be lackluster.
The young mare needed to study, Celestia's Summer Sun Celebration was on the horizon drawing ever closer. Twilight hoped to make a breakthrough soon, one that could cement herself as a most faithful student.
She wasn't sure why, but the answers dealt with an old mares tale.
The Mare In The Moon.
Without warning a blinding light filled the dark corridors of her humble astronomy tower. Twilight lifted her hoof to block out the fiery blaze, Spike curled up in his bed after an all-nighter snoring away during such an amazing occurrence.
"Twilight Sparkle?" A silhouette of an alicorn stepped from the light, her voice that of elegance and eternal wisdom.
"Celestia!?" Twilight shielded herself from the light.
"No, it is I! You!!" The voice giggled with satisfaction.
"Who?" Twilight scrunched her muzzle confused as the light faded back into the abyss, leaving only a gangly long version of herself standing before her.
"Sweet Celestia, when did I become anorexic!?" Twilight gasped at such a horrid glimpse into her future.
"I'm not anorexic, I'm an alicorn." Her future self spoke in a cocky tone of self-superiority.
"Uh-huh? Does alicorn magic mutate the host?" Twilight jumped off her seat and slowly walked around this odd temporal creature with much interest.
Future Twilight glared growing ever annoyed at the foolish child before her. "No, I'm just a tad older!" She swatted away the child as her muzzle scrunched up embarrassed by the inspection.
"You're more than just old, I mean my skeletal structure shouldn't enlarge like that?" Twilight shuddered thinking how painful such a change could be.
"Just shut up!" Future Twilight snapped as her younger self let a loud horse noise escape her lips in shock.
"Whatever, Celestia recolor." Twilight blew a loud raspberry.
"Listen, I'm here to help you impress everypony around you." Future Twilight grinned slyly to herself.
"Uhh, why?" Twilight gave a stone-faced expression.
"Because I noticed how simple I acted as a child, especially with this dumb ticket ordeal!" Future Twilight sighed as she slapped her forehead in dismay.
"So you're cheating me out of important experiences?" Twilight tilted her head to the side confused.
"Well, I rather the future remember me as a perfectionist! Besides, you'll still get the gist of everything, just not by looking dumb." Future Twilight let a loud squee escape her lips.
"So future me thought it wise to jeopardize the Space and Time Continuum, to look more impressive?" Twilight sighed with a true sense of defeat from such callous actions.
"I've been so prosperous as a ruler, that I've run out of present problems to look impressive with." Future Twilight flashed a nervous smile.
"How is that even possible?" Twilight stumbled over her words.
The sickly creature wrapping a boney hoof around her shoulder."Peace, peace everywhere!" She pointed off to nothing in particular in the room.
"I've metamorphosed into a Mary Sue!" Twilight shuddered at such a bleak future.
"You have not!" Future Twilight snorted.
"Have we solved every problem we come across?" Twilight swallowed a large lump in her throat.
"Yes."
"Are we all powerful?" Twilight shivered.
"Yes."
"Did we simply lock away our villains instead of dealing with them, therefore passing up vast amounts of character building?" Twilight felt her chest tighten in fear.
"We turned them to stone."
"Do I have a rip-off or spinoff version of myself across several universes, neigh one perhaps a chibi version?" Twilight chattered her teeth in despair.
"Several." Future Twilight grinned like the corporate husk she had become.
"Ahhhh!" Twilight screamed as she darted over the window in terror.
"Now let me make you perfect, by extension making myself perfect." Future Twilight towered over the poor child intimidatingly.
"Never, I'd rather live a simplistic life than risk becoming bland over time!" Twilight's eyes darted over the room for an escape plan.
"We're not bland, we own a school." Future Twilight coughed in a lackluster fashion.
"I will not make these horrible mistakes!" Twilight smiled as a truly impressive idea hit her.
"You don't have a choice, you're destined to become an Alicorn Princess." Future Twilight scoffed with satisfaction.
"So you think, but you're no longer in your own time!" Twilight puffed out her chest proudly before standing up to her doppelganger.
"So?"
"This is my time and nothing is set!" Twilight grinned.
Future Twilight suddenly widened her eyes in absolute shock at such a rookie mistake. Time travel was indeed such an unforgiving mistress, lashing any pony out of existence if not respectful of her power.
"You wouldn't dare, you care too much about impressing those around you!" Future Twilight tried to light her horn up and cast the return spell.
"Not anymore, in fact, I'd rather just make ponies happy." Twilight clapped her hooves together excitedly.
"No, my accomplishments!" Future Twilight felt herself vanishing into a dark light, the world around her turning bleak as her whole body started to become transparent and see-through.
"Twilight The Amazing, or The Incredible!" Twilight let her mind run free with thoughts of traveling around Equestria.
"My accomplishments...ments...ments...ments!" Future Twilight suddenly faded into a faint echo of a time forgotten.
At that moment Twilight Sparkle felt a new spark of excitement enter her life, the bleak grey walls of her astronomy tower suddenly lit up with the vibrant colors of unknown possibilities.
"The Great and Powerful Twilight!" Twilight Sparkle ran over to her full-length mirror in excitement beaming from ear to ear.
"Twilight loves the sound of that!" Twilight cantered across the room to wake up Spike, barely able to hold back her excitement.
Before she could reach her little dragon friend, she stepped atop the old book of legends and adventures. With a sigh, she felt it was time to move on and find something new, with a swift toss the book was sent out the window.
A light blue unicorn passing by underneath couldn't help but be pelted atop the head by the falling tome, she rubbed her hoof through a frazzled snow white mane in defeat. She wasn't the most popular of ponies with hardly any real friends, but things just seemed to never work out for one Trixie Lulamoon.
"Traveling isn't all it's cracked up to be," Trixie mumbled just knowing that tome was going to leave a bump, her eyes falling over the book with a thin raised brow.
"The Mare In The Moon?" Trixie felt an odd shiver run down her lower back, the night slowly engulfing the day around her as everything grew dim.
Arching her eyes upward to the sky, she could make out the ominous silhouette of a dark creature stretched across the moon.
"Oh my!" Trixie bit her lower lip and gathered up the book.
Celestia must be warned.
