Second Thoughtsby starcoderChaptersApple BloomLyra HeartstringsTwilight SparkleCloudchaserFluttershy BreezeDiamond TiaraSpikeStarlight GlimmerPrincess LunaRainbow DashStarlight GlimmerApple BloomI run to the clubhouse, but I got no idea why. Scootaloo told us to meet up here today, and to make it at 6:00 a.m. sharp. And, although it's in Sweet Apple Acres, it still takes me a while to get there. Or maybe, it's just to get out of bed. Turns out I need my sleep. By the time I arrive at the clubhouse, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are already climbin' the ladder. "I reckon you had a good reason to call over here so bright and early. The rooster ain't even awake yet," I complain. I look at Scoot as she took my usual spot on the podium, sittin' down on the floor and eyein' Scoots warily. Sweetie Belle sat down beside me. "Yeah," she yawned, "why are we here again? If Rarity finds out, I'll bet you she's not going to be happy. And I can just blame it on you, you know." "Yeah, yeah, but I've got important business to talk to you about," Scootaloo dismissed with a wave of her hoof. Sweetie Belle and I exchange glances. "What important buisness?" Sweetie Belle questions, concern pushin' through her sleepiness. I nod in agreement, 'cause I wanna find out just as bad as she does what all the fuss is about. "You know how, like, a few months ago we helped Diamond Tiara change for the better good?" she asked. Sweetie Belle and I nodded simultaneously, not sayin' a single word. "Well, she's kind of started doing more... old her stuff." "Like what?" I question. "I heard she's spreading more gossip through the Foal Free Press," Scootaloo explains. Still too vague. "Like what?" I ask again. Scootaloo took a deep breath. "You know Princess Twilight's new student?" she asked. "You mean the really powerful unicorn?" Sweetie Belle asked, unsure of what to think. Scootaloo nods. "Oh!" I interject. "Applejack told me 'bout her. Starlight Glimmer, I reckon. I think she even traveled through time!" "And didn't she used to dictate that village?" Sweetie Belle adds. Scootaloo nods to that, too, but doesn't say anythin' more. Soon, I come to a realization. "The gossip," I finally say. "It's 'bout her, ain't it?" After a while, Scootaloo finally nods to that. I knew it! "So, are we gonna stop Diamond Tiara or... what?" "We have to stop her!" Scootaloo exclaimed. "We can't let her go back to the pony she used to be." I agree right away, but Sweetie Belle is a bit hesitant. "Shouldn't we tell Twilight? Or Rarity or Applejack? Or even Starlight?" she pleads. After our incident with Babs, y'all would think that I'd learned somethin' about askin' others for help. And I did, I'm positive! I'm just not sure that a bit of news is gonna hurt anypony... "It's fine, Sweetie Belle. It's not bullyin' or anythin' like that this time," I defend myself. Scootaloo walks over and stands beside me. "Yeah. Besides, if it gets out of hoof, we promise we'll tell Twilight this time." I'm pretty sure Sweetie Belle doesn't trust us, but she goes along with us anyways. We dash over to the schoolhouse and go into the publishin' corner. Like I expected, Featherweight is there, writin' stories and being lead newspony. It's been so long since the Crusaders had fun in the publishing business, so I have no idea what anythin' is called anymore. Don't blame me if the titles are weird. Diamond Tiara is sittin' at the front desk next to Featherweight. That's where she used to be when she was our boss. It's been so long seein' her up there, but it looks perfectly normal to see her leadin' everypony. I'm just 'bout to confont her, and I'm sure the girls are too, but then we realize somethin'. It's too late for that. The papers are already printed and ready to be sold. I almost smack my face in front of everypony here. "Hi, Cutie Mark Crusaders!" she greets us. But what surprises me most is that she used a nice voice, a real, friendly voice. So this obviously wasn't a bully's plan. It was her plan, but she didn't see anythin' wrong with it! "Diamond Tiara!" I say in a real cheerful voice. Maybe too cheerful, but still. "Are you... publishin' news 'gain?" "Yes, I am. I got bored being Vice Student President, so I decided to go back to a job that was fun," she explains. She obviously doesn't realize this is a bad thing, so I try a different approach. "Remember when you did that before you learned the true meaning of your destiny?" Clearly, she can sense somethin' is wrong, since she nods pretty seriously. "Well, it's still pretty bad this time around," Sweetie Belle explains. "I know you like this job and all... but..." "But it's not right to spread any gossip, no matter how harmless it seems," I finish for her. Diamond Tiara's face drops. She starts to stammer, "Oh. I didn't know it was wrong. I tried to make it as nice as I could, while keeping the facts. I was just trying to-" "It's fine," Scootaloo says, putting a hoof on her shoulder. Sweetie Belle does the same. I give her a respectful nod and the Crusaders walk outside with me. I give Featherweight a bit and a thank you, and we open up the newspaper we got in return. "It isn't so bad," Sweetie Belle says, her voice audibly inflecting. "It's not mean or anything." But I'm pretty sure we all know that no matter how "news-worthy" or factual it is, it still sounds just as bad. Princess Twilight's Pupil Starlight Glimmer is former dictator of the village "Our Town" and is the most recent bearer of Star Swirl's time travel spell. She had used the spell to travel back in time, creating multiple universes where Equestria was suffering. Even though she was once fighting with the Princess, Starlight is ready for redemption. Now, Starlight Glimmer is the new pupil of Princess Twilight Sparkle. Princess Twilight claims she just wants to teach the Magic of Friendship to her new, misguided student and friend. She hopes she will be sucessful, and so does her new student. The girls and I eye each other. This sounds awful, no matter how sweet she summed up the story. And how did she even get her information? When we ask her later, all she says is that she overheard Twilight saying those things yesterday after she returned from the past. Wow, a lot sure can happen in a single day. Lyra HeartstringsAuthor's Note I'm so sorry for the sudden change, everyone! This was supposed to go before Twilight's chapter, but I messed up the order a bit. Please, just imagine as if this chapter were here all along, published before Twilight's. Lyra Heartstrings I wave goodbye to Bon Bon. I know it's only for an evening, but when you have a best friend waiting for you, a few hours seems like a lifetime. I sort of feel guilty for making new friends in Ponyville, especially a best friend. After all, I was friends with Minuette, Lemon Hearts, Twinkle Shine, Twilight Sparkle, and Moondancer when I lived back in Canterlot. But it's still hard to say goodbye to Bon Bon. She's my best friend "five-ever," and that kind of friend is one that you keep by your side five-ever. I walk with Minuette to Sugarcube Corners. She's convinced it's the "Donut Shop of Ponyville," like how we used to have donuts together at a donut shop in Canterlot. I guess I can't blame her for being used to her home. I open the door, and Minuette is greeted with a "Hi!" from Pinkie Pie. We walk to our usual table, but there's something different about this time. "Moondancer!" I exclaim, giving her a hug. Moondancer stopped coming to Ponyville, and even when I was in Canterlot, she never hung out with us. "What are you doing here?" "Having fun with you girls," she shrugged. "Aw, come on," I prod her, "you know that's not what I mean. You never join us anymore. Why today?" "A few weeks back, Twilight came over and showed me the true value of friendship. Now, I have fun with the girls in between my studying," she explains. I guess Twilight really is the Princess of Friendship, no matter how bad a friend she was to us back then. We get some donuts from Pinkie Pie, and hastily eat them. Well, at least I do. We spend the rest of the day having fun, and I even feel like I feel a surge of magic or something, but now it's evening and I can get back to Bon Bon. Besides, the other girls have to catch today's train back to Canterlot. After I wave to them, they're on their way and so am I. Bon Bon said she would meet me at her house and we could have a sleepover, so I'm on my way there. At least, I am until I'm stopped by Twilight, who's near in front of her castle. "Hey Lyra!" she calls out. "Hey, Twilight!" I respond, waving at her. "You just missed the other girls," I tell her as she trots towards me. Twilight's probably too excited to even listen to me, though. “Guess what happened today?” “What?” I ask. Twilight wasn’t usually this energetic, so something must be making her happy. “I met this powerful unicorn. Her magic was about as strong as mine!” Twilight cheerfully informs me. “Really? A unicorn with alicorn level magic?” I play along. “Yeah. Her name’s Starlight Glimmer," she says, still seeming to keep a lot to herself. “So, what happened?” I ask, determined to hear another side of the story. “Well, she went through this time loop and brought me along with her, and she almost, well, caused a bit of chaos until she realized-” “Hold on. She almost destroyed Equestria?” I ask, seeing right through the cover-up. The other day, I saw a newspaper clipping of her. If she's Twilight's student, and Twilight decided that, then she needs to see a doctor or something. Starlight Glimmer is not the pony you should trust right off the bat. Starlight Glimmer is very demented, somepony you don't want to have around. “Well, yeah,” Twilight hesitates, “but she’s past that.” “So what did you do about it?” Twilight giggled. “Well, she’s my pupil now! My first student ever! And she’s learning about friendship!” “Wow. That’s not much of a punishment,” I complain. Starlight Glimmer. Just the name makes me all mad inside now. And I barely even know her. “I don’t want to punish her. I want her to learn about friendship so that she’ll never do that again,” Twilight argues. She seems pretty strong on the whole "friendship" side of the thing. I bet she didn't even think that someone like Starlight should get a punishment for almost destroying the world. “Hmm," I moan. "What did she look like?” I might have read some of the paper, but I only got a quick glance of the black-and-white image. “Well, she has a purple mane with a teal streak, and her cutie mark is a glimmer of magic. Huh, I guess that might explain why she’s so good at magic!” she thinks of other things, which I don't pay attention to. “Yeah, sure,” I grumble, walking away. I tell Bon Bon about the great times we had yesterday, even if it was, again, only three hours. We walk up to a craft stand in the market, and you'll never guess who we run into. Okay, maybe you can, since I've been angry at her ever since I first found out about her. Give up? It's Starlight Glimmer! We're standing in front of the stand, and I guess she's playing dumb and acting as if we're in line. Bon Bon and I look at her, and I want to give her a strict talking-to, but that would be uncivilized. Plus, Bon Bon already spoke up first. "Hello, are you new here?" she asks. It's clear she hasn't seen her before, in the paper or in person. "What's your name?" "Um, hi. Yeah, I’m… new? And my name’s Starlight," she stammers, her voice fading away. Like I'd buy that act. Bon Bon, on the other hoof, seems to. "Well, welcome to Ponyville! My name’s Bon Bon, and this is Lyra," she greets, motioning towards me. Do you want our spot in line?" I guess now that my best friend went with the "in line" act, I have to, too. Starlight shakes her head, anxiousness drawn all over her face. “You were here first and I can’t take your spot.” “Please do, we weren’t buying anything, just... looking at the options," I explain. I guess that's good enough for her, because she smiles. "Um, okay. Thanks!" I roll my eyes and take Bon Bon with me to a bench that's out of Starlight Glimmer's earshot. "You know that that's Starlight Glimmer? From the destruction news? Twilight told me more about her," I inform Bon Bon. "Uh, no. Really?" she asks, “Yeah, really! She’s been staying in touch with me more ever since a few weeks ago when she visited Canterlot. She said some powerful unicorn named Starlight Glimmer had her in this time loop,” I tell her. Bon Bon was kind, kinder than me, if I had to be honest. “Well, she seemed pretty nice to me.” “Yeah, she may seem that way. Twilight said that Starlight had come ‘a long way’ since when she had done all that,” I say, distrust scattered throughout my voice and mind. Bon Bon still didn't believe such a "nice pony" did such bad things. “Are you sure that was her? I know they have the same first name, but-” “Oh, I’m sure of it. Purple and teal mane, glimmery cutie mark, that definitely sounds like her. She was, apparently, pretty bad,” I say, recalling tidbits of the news clipping and Twilight's conversation with me yesterday. “Well, I’m sure she won’t do that again. She’s so nice!” Bon Bon argued. "Ponies can change," she adds in a soft voice for good measure. “Yeah, I know,” I say with a lot of sarcasm. Twilight SparkleStarlight walks back to the castle with the girls, Spike, and I. She's laughing, a clear sign that she's enjoying herself. Nailed it! I knew having her make friends was the right call. And Spike had his doubts. I'll make sure to tease him about it later. All that matters now is that my new student has gone from evil dictator to powerful friend. Wow, a lot sure can happen in one day. We all have dinner together, but after a few bites, Starlight doesn't seem to be feeling well. She probably just doesn't want to have any dinner because she still feels bad about what she did. Okay, probably terrible. I'll let her know that I won't dwell on the past tomorrow, but right now, she looks as if she could use some shuteye. Starlight lies down on her bed, which she refuses to own. I told her she could lay down on her bed, though she said it was just "the bed." Maybe I'll comfort her even more tomorrow. She could surely use it. After some rest, of course. I close the door to Starlight's room. Something tells me she'd want some alone time after a busy day like today. She wasn't really the "friendship type," anyways. At least not yet. She wouldn't be, not until I got her friendship lessons ready. I sprint to the library, bumping into Spike on my way there. "Woah, what's the rush, Twi?" he interrogates me. "No time for trivia, Spike," I push his question aside. "I've got to make friendship lessons for Starlight. Now that I have a student, no, a pupil, I have to prepare." Spike just chuckles. "Of course you do. Starlight Glimmer is going to have a whole lot of lessons, isn't she." My mouth straightens. He makes a pretty good point there. "Maybe you're right. I should probably narrow it down." Still, then, Spike shakes his head. "Knowing you, narrowing it down means a few thousand instead of a million," he giggles. I blush but roll my eyes playfully. "I'll be sure to get it closer to a hundred," I assure him. Spike motions with his claws, expecting more. Giving up, I sigh in defeat. "Fine, it'll be around five-hundred." "Goodnight, Twi," he responds, walking out of the library. I think he's mumbling something. "Poor Starlight Glimmer." My eyebrows lower in irritation. Starlight was lucky to have a teacher who was so well-prepared. Right? It's around 8:00 in the morning. Starlight should be up by now, right? If she's not, then too bad. She'd miss out on all the fun I have planned for her today. I'm probably dreamy-eyed, thinking of today, when I knock on Starlight's door. "Come in!" is the response from inside. I'm too excited. If she was going to open the door for me, too bad. I opened it already. As Starlight stepped away from her desk, where she was drawing something, I notice something different about her. Something better. "You look different," I note, the exact feature right at the tip of my tongue. Then, I have a mental light bulb. "I like the new bangs." Starlight smiled, blowing on them so that they flipped around. I think this version of Starlight Glimmer is a lot better than the old one. "I didn't like the old ones," she explains. "They kind of remind me of..." she starts to trail off, and then looks down at her hoof, which is digging at the ground. I don't think she wants to keep talking about her past, so I decide to change the subject. "How was your first night in the castle?" I ask. She finally looks up, but now I can see that she's biting her lip. "It was good. Thanks again for letting me stay here, Princess Twilight. I really don’t feel like I deserve such a thing." I wince when she calls me that. Who does she think she is, adressing me as a princess? "Please, don't call me Princess. I'm proud just to be your friend, and your teacher. I don’t care about what you did in the past," I say, and it might even come off as scoffing to her. Whatever, it better emphasizes the point. Trying not to sound stupid, I ask her something else. "So, do you want to join us for breakfast?" She looks so shocked, I feel like she's faking it. "I actually have an option?" I giggle. Maybe she is acting, and she's just really good at it. "What do you think I was going to do, let you starve?" Okay, now I'm sure she's not acting, since it's pure confusion being spoken. "Yeah?" I'm pretty shocked. She wanted to be starved to death? But then I realize the truth. She never wanted to starve, she only wanted what she deserved. And she believes starving is a good enough punishment. "Oh, Starlight. I’d never do that. We’re friends now, remember?" "Uh..." is all I hear in response. I roll my eyes playfully. Come on, Starlight. I don’t want you to be too hungry on your first day in Ponyville! We’re going to have some fun and get you used to the friendliest place in all Equestria!" I guess I finally let my excitement show. Whatever. I grab Starlight with my magic and trot to the dining room. Spike and I gather our friends as Starlight trails behind us. When all eight of us are here, standing in front of Carousel Boutique carrying a bag of towels, we head to the park. There was this pretty fun water section that I wanted us to go to. Starlight seemed to like flying, and swimming in the water seemed like soaring. Unfortunately, the pool section that was flying-ish was closed. So instead, we head to my favorite part. It's a place where passerby can shoot at people who want to play in the area with little seal-like motors. Of course, there were also automated ones that you could press a button to turn on. We turn on the water and run around like foals. Well, Fluttershy and Rarity sit out, but they're shooting at us, and each other, so it counts as having fun too. Even Spike plays around with us. The only one who isn't playing is Starlight. She's sitting on a rock, watching us. She's probably just too embarassed to join in. "Come on Starlight!" I call out to her. "Come join us!" She gets off the rock and joins us. She walks over to me, probably going to say something, when Fluttershy manages to hit her perfectly. She laughs at this, and eventually starts becoming as wild as we are. We stayed over there for a while, so we're probably going to have dinner sometime soon. As for now, we're sitting in a nice, scenic place, by choice of Fluttershy, drying our manes, relaxing, and enjoying the scenery. If this isn't considered a perfect day, then I don't know what is. I just hope Starlight feels the same way. CloudchaserI'm in the middle of Ponyville, laughing with Flitter. We just finished a great lunch, and we're now reminiscing about Ponyville's most recent attempt to break the water hurricane record. "I'm just surprised Fluttershy didn't run away from practice this time," she tells me. I chuckle. "Are you kidding? Last time, she totally rocked it! She was second best flier, only inferior to Rainbow Dash herself. Why would she not want to show up again?" Flitter shrugs. "It's kind of like her to be shy. To forget a big event and let fear take over." I nod in agreement. I might've been a little surprised if she didn't show, but it's not totally unlike her. Flitter stops me and points at our surroundings. What do you know, we're at the market now, so we might as well get birthday presents for each other. Flitter and I split up, promising to meet each other back here in an hour. I trot around, not sure what to get for her. I do run into a mailpony on the way. No, a newspony. A little filly from the school, and he's probably handing out the Foal Free Press. I might as well get one for Flitter, since she's a kind-hearted pony who likes to learn about her community and ways to help. I go through the next few stands, and finally end up at the crafts stand. I take a roll of pink ribbon and a few gems. I also take little cutout letters. I'll make her a homemade, personal bow. She has too many plain ones anyways. Surprisingly, it hasn't even been an hour yet, so I have some time alone. What to do, though? Well, I might as well read the newspaper I picked up. It's about time to go when I finish reading the paper. Actually, I only read one specific report, about a powerful unicorn who... fought Princess Twilight? It was probably a true story, since the Foal Free Press didn't lie anymore, not ever since the Gabby Gums incident. But hopefully, whoever she was, she didn't dare hurt me or Flitter. That would be so scary. She probably is just a faker. I mean, no one goes from ninja-dictator to friend of the Princess. That would be so crazy. I looked at the picture on the paper. She did look sort of familiar. But I have no idea where I remember her from. I stare at the paper, hoping that will give me an answer. It doesn't help at all. To be honest, I'm even more confused. She's so familiar, yet I have zero connection with her. How is this possible? I slip the newspaper into my bag since Flitter's going to show up anytime soon. After a few more minutes, Flitter flutters over to my side and we fly home together. It's almost dinnertime, so once we drop off our things at home, we decide to go on a stroll in the park. Flitter loves beautiful, scenic days like today. It makes it even more perfect when we get to enjoy it together, in person. So we walk through the park, watching all the young fillies play together. It reminds me of when we were fillies. We find a nice spot in the grass, only it's taken by the Heroes of Equestria. Flitter and I decide to look for another viewing place. And we find the perfect one, by the swing sets, only it's taken by somepony else. Somepony I recognize. Her name is Starlight Glimmer. She has a lilac coat and misty blue eyes. Her purple mane, tail, and bangs are all flowy and bouncy with a twisted curl at the end. They all have a streak of aquamarine running through them. Her cutie mark is a sparkly star with teal trails flowing behind it. Her name is Starlight Glimmer. Now I remember! Starlight Glimmer was that pony who sang a big song with, basically, all of Ponyville. It was about making friends or something like that. Now that I think about it, it was kind of hard to forget something like that. I keep staring at her. Flitter does too, but not as, um, fiercely as I do. I don't think she likes making eye contact with her, because her gaze suddenly darts away. "Isn't she that pony who lives with the princess?" I whisper to Flitter for confirmation. But I'm pretty sure I would know the answer better than she would. Luckily, we're not too close to Starlight Glimmer, so she probably can't hear us. "Yeah? So?" she answers, bewildered. She probably has no idea about this girl. "I heard she tried to destroy Equestria!" I tell her. Her eyes widen. "Really?" she asks, looking back and forth between me and Starlight Glimmer. Now, I think she's heard a bit about her, since she says, "Like the Newbie to Friendship?" "Mm-hm," I nod. "I think she also stole the cutie marks of a whole village. With just her magic." That last part I made extra quiet for suspense. Flitter gapes. "No way! If she has magic that powerful, just imagine what she could do to us!" My jaw starts to fall open as well. I am imagining what she could do to us with just her magic alone. "What if she fries our brains?" She just stares at me in disbelief. "Can she do that?" she asks uncertainly. “If she can fight an alicorn, she can certainly do something like that!” I reason. “Or worse!” Yup. Flitter is finally starting to believe me. We look each other in the eye, then turn our heads to look at Starlight for a brief moment. She's looking back at us, so we stop glancing towards her and quickly trot to the other side of town, where our home is. "So much for a scenic break," she mumbles. I giggle, despite how scared I am of Starlight Glimmer. What if she makes the sun explode? Then, Flitter's words would be more true than ever. I shake my head. Stop going crazy, I tell myself. But then again, everypony always told me that it was better to be safe then sorry. Does thinking ahead of time count as being safe? Fluttershy BreezeMy best friends and I are sitting in the grass. We were just having fun in the water with Starlight Glimmer. Honestly, I know she deserves a second chance. Everycreature does. In fact, if there were no second chances, our world would probably be at war with Princess Luna, Discord, and maybe even Starlight. There are probably a few more I'm forgetting. I'm sure glad that second thoughts are a thing. If you didn't know, Starlight's had quite an emotional past. When she was a filly, her best friend earned his cutie mark and left her behind. She grew bitter and angry, and eventually did some, well, mean things. But she didn't know any better! I mean, she's come a long way. Now, she's in a much better place, and she's one of my best friends. Speaking of Starlight Glimmer, where is she anyways? "Um, hey, Twilight?" I speak up. She turns her head towards me and stands up as she slips the last of our towels into her bag, since we're about to leave. "Do you know where Starlight is?" At the mention of Starlight Glimmer's name, she looks around. She's clearly concerned, but I can't blame her. "No! I hadn't even noticed she'd gone missing!" she panicks. "What if she's somewhere we can't find her?" I walk over to her and gently pat her hanging head. "It's okay, Twilight. We'll find her," I console. I look around at the others for confirmation. They nod and comfort her, too. "Don't ya worry, sugarcube," Applejack solaces, lifting Twilight's chin up. Rarity assures her with, "She'll surely be in Ponyville." I don't want to, but I doubt her. Starlight could go a long way if she wanted, considering the amount of magic she has. "Well, come on!" Rainbow Dash provokes. "Let's send out the search party as soon as possible!" Pinkie's eating a cupcake, but even through all the frosting, we can hear her clearly. "A search party? I don't want to miss that!" Other than Twilight, we all giggle a little, despite the fact that Starlight is literally missing. Pinkie Pie always has a way of cheering us up in even the darkest situations. Twilight's plan is for us to spread out across Ponyville. If we can't find her, then she says we can check the outskirts of Ponyville. I don't think we'll have to go to that extreme level, but if we do, I'm sure it will be for a good cause. I never realized it before, but Twilight probably cares about Starlight as much as I do for her. Maybe even the level of my love for Angel Bunny. I'm searching the side of Ponyville closer to my cottage, which is, unfortunately, closer to the Everfree Forest. It's home to all these wild creatures, and too wild even for me to tame. Rainbow Dash says that nopony who's gone in has ever come out. I still believe her, even though we left the forest just fine after finding the Elements of Harmony. Rainbow Dash has a way of making things very believable. It's probably way past dinnertime, because as I'm right outside my cottage, staying as far from the forest as possible, Angel comes to me and shows me his growling stomach. Oh my gosh! In all the commotion, I forgot to feed my critters! I hope Twilight doesn't mind if I take a short break from the search to feed everyone. I'm pouring one last, big bowl of birdseed when Twilight arrives at my door. "I found her," she pants. "You can stop searching, now." I nod and turn back to the bowl, which is overflowing with snacks. Luckily, the animals are all hungry, so most of them dig in. I finish a bit of cleaning up for the day and decide to follow Twilight back to the castle. When I arrive in the throne room, the others, and even Spike, are already there, discussing what happened. "I'm telling you, all she said was that she was tired!" Rainbow Dash shook her head. "That's impossible! The water should've kept her alert. And besides, not having dinner?" Climbing into my seat, I gape. It's one thing to unexpectedly disappear, but it's another to starve yourself while doing it. "I hope she's okay," I comment. Rainbow looks at me, her eyebrow raised. Okay, maybe not the best comment to make. I shrink back in my chair, but Twilight seems fine with my comment. "I hope she's okay, too," she says, covering her face with her hooves. Spike, the girls, and I rush over to comfort her. "Don't worry," I soothe. "We can check on her in the morning." The others nod in agreement, and I can only hope that I haven't made things worse, especially for Starlight. In her condition, she may not want to be around other ponies. Although, seeing Starlight is something that Twilight really wants. Sometimes, things just have to go the way that they do. The girls and I were sitting in the throne room, getting ready to eat pancakes. All we're waiting for now are Starlight and Twilight. I know it's probably wrong to eavesdrop, but I need to make sure that everything is fine between the two of them. I could barely hear, but was Twilight's voice rising? Was confronting Starlight really the right call? I couldn't hear much, so I pressed my ear to the wall. "I don't know," came a murmur from Starlight. The response was clear; Twilight had forgiven her. I guess all she wanted to know was that Starlight was safe. "Well, at least join us for breakfast." Twilight is a very caring pony sometimes. I hear hoofsteps, coming closer and closer to the throne room- Wait. I rush to my seat, and that's when I realize the others were listening, too. I guess I'm not the only one who's kind, but also not kind at the same time. Maybe my element doesn't really mean much. By the time Starlight comes in, we're all in our seats, breathing heavily. We're going to eat our pancakes, but we have to make sure Starlight's okay. I guess me being concerned for her doesn't help, because I must be looking at her worriedly or something. And I think that may be a bit offensive. She lifted her pancake up to her open mouth, but dropped it when she made eye contact with us. "I’m sorry, I’ll just have lunch instead,” she quickly says, leaving the throne room. Me and my stare, always ruining everything, huh? Diamond TiaraI sit up in bed. It's really early, even for a school day, but I think I need the time to think. It's been a few days since I first published that article about Starlight Glimmer. Now I wish I'd never done it in the first place, but some things can't come undone. I feel so terrible exposing her like that. Now that I think of it, I have a lot in common with her. And, spoiler alert, these are all connections with things I overheard about her, so I don't know if they're true or not. For one, we both used to be mean in the past, but want to change. Or at least I do. Second, ponies judge us based off of our past. I mean, the past is in the past, right? I wonder if the Cutie Mark Crusaders have told anyone about me and the paper. I don't think so, though, because no one seems to be giving me any strange looks or talking about me. Come to think of it, Starlight's probably not feeling great. I saw her running away from the park last evening. And she might've been a bit blurry, but I think I caught onto the fact that she was crying. And she was supposed to be as strong as Princess Twilight. I should maybe apologize to Starlight about publishing the papers. But then again, no one seems to know. Would I make a difference if I told the truth? I would, actually. A bad difference, that is. I'm sure Twilight and Starlight would be angry at me. The town may think something like Gabby Gums is back. The only ponies who would believe me would be the Cutie Mark Crusaders. I know they're nice, and great friends, but I think I already have a nice life. But what would happen if I didn't tell anyone? Starlight would have to suffer from other ponies pointing hooves at her. Twilight, and the rest of her friends, too, would have to take care of Starlight, and from what I've been seeing, it hasn't been easy. The other ponies would be accusing Starlight of something she wants to be forgiven for. Something she wants to forget. And I'm willing to forgive and forget, but I don't think the other ponies are. I want Starlight to stop sufferning, but I don't want to be in trouble, so maybe I'm just not ready to tell the truth yet. Yeah, that's it. I'll tell the truth when the time comes around. Just as I make that desicision, though, guilt gnaws at me until it's really hard to bear. Maybe I should tell the truth now. I can't choose between the sides. Although, I think I've already figured out which choice is the angel and which is the demon. It's a hard choice. Let someone else suffer, or suffer on your own? I should choose Option A, but something is telling me to not get yelled at. It's a really big problem. The school bell rings, dismissing all of us. I'm not usually a fan of school, but today, I was more desperate than ever to escape the heat. First reason is that it's really hot in the classroom, because spring just started a few days ago. Also, today, I felt guilty about publishing the paper, and I had no idea how to fix that. Today, I was going to need some serious advice. I run towards my destination, praying to Celestia that they are actually here. I desperately knock on the door in front of me and wait for about three seconds. Then I try again and see that they're coming right now, walking up the stairs. "Cutie Mark Crusaders!" I blurt out. "I need your help!" They eye each other cautiously, then nod, motioning for me to follow them inside. "What's wrong, Diamond Tiara?" Applebloom asks in her informal accent as she steps up onto the podium. Usually, that accent bothers me, but today I needed to know how to make the hole in my gut fill itself up as soon as possible. "You know how I published that paper a few days ago?" I frantically ask. They nod and wait for more. "Well, I don't think it's having the best impact on Starlight. And I feel really guilty about it, but I don't want to tell anypony in case I'll get in trouble. But if I don't tell anypony, Starlight will have to feel dejected. It's a hard choice I need you three to help me with," I spit out. The Cutie Mark Crusaders looked shocked, and then look back and forth between each other. They rub their chins and have a private discussion. Finally, after what feels like forever, they give me something that's not even an answer. "What do you think is the kindest, most friendliest thing to do?" Sweetie Belle asks. I feel my ears flap down. "Tell somepony?" Hearing this, they all nod in unison, and Apple Bloom asks me one more thing. Probably harder than When was Equestria founded? "Are ya gonna do the right thing or not?" I bite my lip and sink my ears down even lower. Will I do the right thing or not? The old me would've already stayed out of trouble and kept it to herself. But I'm friendlier and kinder now. So in my mind, I hear the question again: Will I do the right thing or not? Author's Note Last chapter for a while, for all of my stories, because of "The Inactivity." Sorry it's so short. My next story will be published on Halloween, I'll make sure of it. Thanks for reading, and I hoped you like it so far! For more info on "The Inactivity," look at my blog post, R.I.P. SpikeI step into the library and the first thing I see is Twilight surrounded by stacks of paper. "Uhh, are you okay, Twi? What are you doing?" "I'm putting together a few friendship lessons. I need them to be perfect! After all, Starlight's my first pupil and I don't want to fail her! And she might need proper lessons after everything she's been going through," she vented, sticking her muzzle in my face. I pushed her away, thinking. "So, then, what is Starlight going to do right now?" Twilight rubbed her chin, thinking for a moment. Then she got an idea. "Why don't you spend some time with her today? She could really use the sense that she has good friends, and you are pretty kind and welcoming. I bet she'll love having some company!" "I don't know Twilight," I stretch the words. "She's been seeming like she doesn't want to spend time around many ponies. Or dragons, for that matter. She seems to want some alone time." "Spike, just trust me. She probably needs it, no matter what she wants. Go wake her up and spend some time with her while I finish up a few friendship lessons for her, alright?" I sigh in defeat, knowing that I'll have to eventually spend some time with her, no matter what. As I walk towards her room, I think to myself. I eventually cross the realization that I'm actually a bit afraid of Starlight. She did almost destroy Equestria, multiple times. Maybe I'm just scared to spend time with her because I'm afraid she could hurt me or my friends in some way. But from what I've seen, she's more afraid of being judged on her past than I am of her harming me or my friends. I guess that shows that she really has changed a lot. Maybe I shouldn't distrust her based on her past. I got off easily with Luna, and even Discord, so why is it so hard with Starlight? I shake my head as I enter her room, trying to act casual, as if I wasn't scared of her. I'm honestly not sure if it works. But I notice that she's asleep right now, meaning she won't be able to hurt me. I back out of the room, remembering that I'm supposed to help her feel better and spend time with her. I mean, I can't ignore direct orders from Twilight. I sigh in defeat and, hesitating, I prod her hoof with my claw. She slowly opens her eyes and I'm honestly so afraid of what she could do. But then, she lazily asks, "Twilight?" “Uh, no, I’m Spike," I fearfully answer. "Twilight told me to get you out of bed and give you some time to have fun today.” Starlight groans. "Oh. Sounds great," she sarcastically says while closing her eyes. I bite my lip and pull her mane a little the way I do with Twilight when I want her attention. “Come on, Starlight. If you’re not going to spend time with me, at least have breakfast," I quietly say. I'm fine with her not spending time with me, but Twilight wants her to feel comfortable here in Ponyville. I could cook something for her. I bet that would make her feel more comfortable, right? She abruptly sits up. "With... you?" “Mm, yeah, Twilight’s putting together some friendship lessons, so I guess I’m going to spend time with you instead,” I summarize. She considers the offer with a slight smile. Hopping out of bed, her smile widens a bit. “Come on, then, Spike." I expect her to teleport us outside, or somewhere else she can fight me (what am I thinking?), but she walks outside instead. I stand there for a few seconds, then rush outside. Closing the door behind me, I see Starlight under a nearby tree, happily waving to me to come over. When I arrive, I help her set up a picnic blanket, where some food appears. It's a daisy sandwich and a crystal cupcake. I'm assuming it's for me, since ponies don't eat crystals. I grin and laugh, taking a bite. "Wow, thanks, Starlight!" I cheerfully exclaim. I take another bite and look back at her. Her eyes are closed and her head tilted upright. She takes a deep breath, opening her eyes and taking a bite of the sandwich. I smile; her happiness might be from the fact that she's spending time with friends. Or one friend. But it's great to see her smile. Maybe I've been wrong to judge and fear her. After all, I think that's what she doesn't like. That would be me being a bad friend, then. My gaze shifts to where a trio of ponies walks past us. It's Rose, Lily, and Daisy from the flower shop in town! I wave to say hi, but they seem more focused on Starlight. They lower their voices and I gape as I hear the words slip from their mouths. “I heard she stole the cutie marks of her whole village!” Rose says. “I heard she traveled back in time and almost wrecked time and space and Equestria!” adds Daisy. Lily looks between the two. “I heard she tried to kill Princess Twilight!” “Imagine what she could do to us! Oh, the horror." Rose faints. “The horror!” “The horror!” The other two start falling down too, and I blink a couple of times, shocked. Then, I shake my head and look to Starlight. Her hoof is covering her mouth and her eyes were holding in tears. I place a claw on her shoulder. “It’s okay, Starlight. These three can get like this pretty easily. It’s not your fault," I assure her, unsure if she really will be okay. She shook her head slightly and looked away from me so that I couldn't see how she reacted. I looked between the flower shop ponies and Starlight, knowing she needs help right now. “Just take it easy, Starlight," I tell her. She looks at me with a heartbroken glare and finally shouts, "No!" I jump back in surprise as she starts to run away. I take a few steps, but knowing that she can easily escape me, I decide not to go after her and instead tell Twilight and the girls. I find Twilight in the library, still making lesson plans. Slowly approaching her, I fumble with my options for the best way to break the news to her. I decide on, "Starlight ran away." She drops her papers and sticks her muzzle in my face, grabbing onto me. "What? To where?" Then, she steps back and lets go, sheepishly laughing. “I don’t know. I let her go because I know she needs space," I tell Twi. And because I know she's just going to run away from me, I think to myself. "But I have no idea whether she’s coming back or not." “Well, let’s pray to Celestia that she’s okay. Meanwhile, we need to look for her," she declares, clearly determined to find Starlight. It seems to me like she cares for her a lot. I wish I had been the same way in the beginning. Maybe then, none of this would have happened. But then, a thought comes into my mind. “Yeah, well, she could be anywhere. She’s got magic, remember?” I remind her in frustration. It's going to be near impossible to find her now! Twilight shakes her head. “But still, that won’t stop me. She’s my friend, and I’ll do anything to keep her from any danger.” Scared, this time for, and not of, Starlight, I reply, “Let’s just hope she’s not already in trouble.” Twilight looks just as worried as I do. If not, she looks even more troubled than me. I sure hope my friend is alright without us. Author's Note Sorry this chapter took so long to come out! Thank you so, SO much for your patience! Also, I'm sorry to break the news to you, but due to my joining Jinglemas 2022, I won't be publishing very many chapters for the next month. (Nov 25-Dec 25) Starlight GlimmerI hate myself. I'm a monster. A monster who starts a village and convices it to live in a way that makes her more powerful than everypony else. A monster who removes the cutie mark of a literal princess and shows no hesitation whatsoever. A monster who travels back in time and almost traps herself and the monster in the past, but also creates alternate, desolate worlds and worlds that have even been at war. Forever. I'm a plain monster. I peer from the rock I'm hiding behind. Seeing that everypony is distracted and won't notice me, I sneak past the village (like the criminal I am) and walk along a path I know all too well. I shouldn't have known it in the first place. After all, I can be dangerous—to extreme levels, even—when I get what I want. My steps slow down as every hoofstep feels heavier and heavier until it's near impossible to walk anymore. My steps slow way, way down. But I'm almost at the entrance. I should be able to make it. But for some reason, I have a nagging feeling as if something's tugging back at my heart and that I should just go back to Ponyville. I shake off the feeling and push myself to walk a few extra steps into the cave. When I finally make it, I frown as if something's missing. But what could it be? I shake my head and decide to just ignore the feeling. Looking outside, I realize that it's almost nighttime. I sit down on the frosty snow and lie down on it, and even cover my whole body, save my head, in the snow. I close my eyes, shivering like crazy. But I accept it. After all, I'm a monster who doesn't deserve a bed. Having a place to even stay in is amazing when you consider what I've done. I stay there, becoming colder by the minute. It eventually gets so unbearable that I can barely think straight. I sit up slowly and yawn, turning my head towards where I used to keep my town's cutie marks. The glass is broken, just like my heart is. It hurts to see the shards there, a reminder of my dark past. Grabbing the shards with my magic, I put them together like a puzzle and join them with a simple binding spell. I shouldn't have done that, though. Seeing the glass in its place reminds me of when I lead this village with an iron hoof, when I stole ponies' cutie marks and stored them here, in the vault I'm standing in front of right now. I have a flashback in reality as if I'm my evil self again. I see in the vault, so many cutie marks. A balloon animal, snowflakes, a cupcake. All sorts of things. I can't even remember whose is whose. That's how bad a leader, not to mention friend, I am and was. I shake my head and blink a few times to get rid of the cutie marks. But they stay there. As I turn around to ignore the cutie marks, I catch sight of my friends. Well, my enemies. Twilight and her friends. They look lifeless and dull, and that's when I notice their cutie marks. All equal signs. I turn back to the cutie mark vault and see their cutie marks there, centered. I look around me, realizing that I'm surrounded by all my old villagers. In desperation, I look around for something to help me escape this vision. But all I see is the staff of sameness. I sigh in defeat, walking to the edge of the cave despite everypony else. I catch sight of the village I used to lead, and realize how they all seemed so happy compared to when I lead them. I mean, it makes sense. I was a terrible leader. I look back, realizing that the cave is mostly empty. I sit back down, feeling tears well up in the corner of my eye and wiping them away. I say to no one in particular, "I just cause trouble for Twilight. I’m nothing but a bunch of overrated problems for her. I don’t deserve such praise. I deserve to live in this little cave and watch as my villagers have fun without me." The tears are heavy now, too heavy for me to hold in any longer. As I allow them to stream down, I whisper, "Sorry, Twilight. Sorry for everything I did to you." I look for somewhere to sleep tonight, deciding that the snow is far too cold for me to bear. I find a place with just rocks and lie down there, curling up into a ball, trying to warm myself and stand the rough ground. Despite my efforts, I have a lot of trouble falling asleep. I can't block out my thoughts that bug me all through the night. You have to be perfect for her, My inner conscience tells me. It was too much pressure. And you can’t ask her for help. You’d be imperfect. You’d be seen as demanding. You’d be hurting everypony else. I feel like I want a better life, one with friends, but I can't convince myself to go back to it. This is the life I deserve, no matter what anyone, including myself, tells me. I squeeze my eyes shut and try to block out all my thoughts. I hear the haunting voice of my conscience again. Nothing’s wrong, Starlight. You belong here. I start crying. I don't believe myself anymore. Yet, I still do. Princess LunaI finished hanging the lavender in the hallways and decided that it was time for me to start the night as usual. Walking to my room, I pass by Celestia who talks with a few other ponies. She even laughs with them. Well, it's nothing to be jealous of, really. Just something she does every day. Whether she ignores my flowers or not. I roll my eyes and walk to the porch, raising the moon. With a neutral face I walk to my room. Arriving, I close my eyes and cast the spell that comes off now as habit. When I open my eyes again, the whole world seems just to be a night sky, filled with stars. But looking closely, you can see that each star is actually a little orb containing visions. Visions of everypony's dreams. And nightmares, of course. I roam around the sky for a bit, searching for a bad dream. Somepony I can help comfort. Usually this part is easy. The pony with the nightmare has the bigger stars. Easy detection. Right now there aren't many nightmares. That's a good sign. And then I see it. A big orb in the far corner. As I approach it, I start to hear a voice become clearer. The first thing I can comprehend goes, "I just cause a bunch of problems." That's not a good sign. I walk closer and then I see the one with the nightmare. She's pretty new to me, but I recognize her because Celestia and Twilight had a little talk about her a few days back. Twilight discussed plans with Celestia, though I'm sure she was bent on giving her new pupil a home and some friends. Meanwhile, she sat in the room next door, listening to their faint whispers. Her horn was glowing too, so she was probably casting some spell that made things louder. I was rather surprised when I first met her. Twilight said she had been a super powerful dictator, that she'd almost destroyed Equestria by time traveling. But as of right now, she was reformed. And it seemed to me like she'd never even done any of it. She just sat there, listening to the conversation, her eyes dull and heartbroken. It felt terrible. I went up and introduced myself, but she didn't have much to say. She just bowed. I hadn't even known her name. Twilight later said "Starlight." I figured that was her name. I shake the memory from my head and look back into the ball. Starlight gazed down with tears that made the rain and walked away. I jumped into the dream and called after here, seemingly in the body of Twilight Sparkle. "Starlight!" I call after her. "Starlight, come back!" She looks back in my direction with confusion and fear. I burst the image of her mentor and reveal myself to her. I reveal my wings, too, waiting for her to say the first words. She stutters for a bit. "A-a-are you..." I stand there with amusement as she searches for her words. I tuck my wings again and wait for an answer. "P-princess Luna?" I nod and she stares at me with even more confusion. "Why are you here? W-what happened to T-t-twilight?" I see her oblivious to the obvious and tell her, “Starlight Glimmer, I am here to protect you from what is hurting you. Dreams are my specialty.” She seems very shocked. "A dream?" With a sting of nostalgia, I answer her with another nod. "Listen. I know of your pain. I was once cruel, as you were, but I am reformed now. Changed, because of six fine ponies." I think of when I first met Twilight and her friends. They had defeated me, and then I remember that Starlight had gone through a similar process. "I happen to know that the same ponies helped you change, too, and that they are now your friends, are they not? You know, friends can do a lot, and can be hurt if their friend is hurt.” She almost breaks down after hearing that, but she takes a slow, deep breath. I hear the guilt in her shaky voice as she starts speaking again. “Yes. They are. I think they are hurt because I was. But mostly because I ran away. And I feel... guilty that I did something bad to my friends.” I think of myself and how Twilight and her friends helped me overcome as much guilt as Starlight is currently experiencing. “Well, as friends, they will surely be able to help you, no matter how much you think you can’t live up to her." I know for a fact that she is very lucky to have them as her friends. "Just tell them how you feel. I know for a fact that they can help you.” The advice feels lame, but I hope it's enough to help her manage. Author's Note I may or may not have inserted a few song lyrics into here ;) Been a while since I've last updated this, so I hope it was a good way to get back into the story. Rainbow DashHonesty isn't my thing. It's Applejack's. Which is why I'd been lying about accepting Starlight as a friend. Sure, I showed a bit of hesitation at first, but I eventually learned to act it out. I'm sure Twilight would want that, despite what Applejack says about always being honest. Anypony successful has to remember that honesty really isn't always the best policy. For, (how long has it been?), around three days, I've acted like I forgave and forgot Starlight Glimmer and her past (evil) deeds. And I did. Kind of. Well, not nearly as much as everypony else clearly has. I'll probably never forget what she did: stopped my rainboom, stole my speed, nearly destroyed my home. Hah. That's pretty hard to forget if you ask me. Maybe, one day I'll find the heart to forgive her. That's what I'm thinking right now, “Thanks for coming, everypony." Those are the first words of the meeting. But they're spoken by Twilight, who's Twilighting hard. Her breaths are uneven and heavy. I'm sure we could all tell, but Applejack was the first to speak up. “What’s wrong, sugarcube?” “Well, it’s about Starlight," she starts. I consider the possibilities. Her past three days have been a bit rough and emotional. She's done a lot of things, too. “Did she stop eating?” I wonder first. “Or maybe she’s stopped having fun," Pinkie sadly suggests. Fluttershy runs her hooves through her mane. “Oh no!” Is her way of contributing to our conversation. Spike shook his head. “We actually have no idea.” We all stare at Spike in confusion. I turn my head to Twi, opening my mouth to speak, when Rarity says somthing first. She tilts her head, asking “Then why did you bring us here?” Twilight takes a deep breath as she and Spike exchange nervous glances. “You see,” she started, “Starlight’s, well, she…” Seemingly, Spike can't take the suspense, so he clutches his ears and yells, “SHE RAN AWAY!” We all gasp. Well, except Twilight and Spike. Twi lowers her head and then looks into our eyes. I lock my gaze with her, too. “We have to find her," she and I say at the same time. It's funny, though. I thought it would be a while until I could forgive her. Well, I was wrong. After hearing this conversation, I realized she was probably hurt by herself and her sinister past. It's hard to move on from something as scarring as that, huh? I should've been a better friend before, well, all this happened. I wish I could make it up to her somehow. Some way to make her understand that she is wanted. But I don't see how to do that. For now, my only way to apologize to her is to find her. To show her that she does matter. If only she'd seen me this way a while ago. Twilight starts to make a plan for us to find Starlight. She would stay here, in Ponyville. Fluttershy and Pinkie would search in some rural area I don't exactly care for or know of. Applejack would check her barn and orchard. Rarity would search the big cities, Manehattan and Fillydelphia and such. Spike would visit Starlight's old village. And I'd be scanning Las Pegasus for her. Normally, I'd be really excited for an opportunity like this, getting to visit Las Pegasus. But this time, I wouldn't be going there for fun. Which isn't good, I know. I mean, who goes to a casino to not have any fun? Boring. But it has to be done. That's what it means to be loyal and friendly. I zoom to Las Pegasus, not fast enough for a sonic rainboom, but almost that level of fast. When I arrive, I burst through the doors and dash from place to place—the buffet, the roller-coaster line, the audience at a magic show, and even the magician himself—asking them all if they had seen anyone fitting the description of Starlight: a lilac unicorn with periwinkle eyes, a purple mane with a teal streak that ran through her hair. Everpony I asked said no. I groan in frustration and pull on my mane. I fly out of Las Pegasus and head for home. When I arrive at Twilight's castle at around the same time as the others, we all discuss what happened in the throne room. Applejack speaks first, saying, "She wasn't in the orchard." I roll my eyes. I spurn, "Why would she be? It’s not like she’s a fan of farming. She always struck me as more of the adventurous type. I checked in Las Pegasus, and she wasn’t there." Honestly, she seems like half adventurer, half bookworm. Not that I'd say that to Applejack, though. It would come off as disliking Starlight, which I can't bear the thought of anymore. “Doesn’t she like attention? I checked Manehattan and Fillydelphia, but no one I asked had seen Starlight," Rarity announced. Fluttershy disagreed. "I thought she’d be trying to avoid attention, actually. Wasn’t she trying to hide and run away from anyone who had anything to say about her? I checked this open space, and the area around it, because it’s calm and peaceful and somewhere you can go to avoid ponies." She even adds, "That's why I want to start a sanctuary there someday." Pinkie waves her hooves, grabbing our attention. She becomes visibly sadder as she notes, "Hey, wait! I checked there too! Fluttershy and I didn’t think she wanted to be around anypony, but I couldn’t find her under any rocks." I stare at her. I mean, being under a rock would give you a lot of isolation, but it doesn't seem like anywhere to go when seeking solitude. Luckily, Twilight interjects, "I don’t think Starlight would be under a rock. But I agree with you. Starlight wouldn’t want to be around anypony, not after the way they talked about her. Spike and I checked in the Everfree Forest, but we couldn’t find her. Also, I sprained my wing, so I had to rush to the doctor’s office. But Zecora said she would keep an eye out for Starlight, and we don’t have any new news back. Yet." Boy, was that a load of information. I'm sure we all think so, because nopony else has anything to say. That's when we hear a faint clattering sound coming from upstairs. Nopony even says a word as we rush to the second story, hoping that it's our lost friend. Friend. There, I said it. I really do believe Starlight is my friend. I think today is the day I've completely forgiven her. And that's a good thing despite the situation we're currently in. Starlight GlimmerI wake up, scared, sitting on cold snow. I shiver and think of the last words Princess Luna said to me. Just tell them, Starlight. They will listen. She helped me realize I was wanted, and that by running away, I've been hurting a bunch of ponies. Just as much as I have myself. I glanced at the village below me. Just one look at the scene is enough to tear my heart to pieces. They're all having fun together, and I even see Spike having fun with them. Wait, Spike? Gosh, they're all looking for me! This makes me start crying as I now see that I matter more than I thought. MUCH more than I thought. You know, friends can do a lot, and can be hurt if their friend is hurt. Honestly, it hurts just to think about it. I can't take it any longer, and so teleport away from any of this. Landing on the bed in the room that's mine, I let the pillow soak up the rest of my tears. I feel like there are more tears, so I hop off the bed and walk towards the bathroom to maybe clean myself up. With a torn expression, I stare at myself in the mirror. That's when my face of disgrace suddenly turns to shock. I'm a mess! My mane is covered in snow, my face is tear-stained, and I look really tired for some reason. I splash my face with water and brush off the snow with my hooves. It doesn't exactly work, though, so I grab a hairbrush and use it to straighten and clean my straggly hair instead of using my hooves. It's a lot more efficient. After a while, my hair looks decent again, in its new, unequal form. I walk back to my room and sit on the bed for a while, messing with things and arranging the room to look more like my own. Call me greedy, but it feels pretty good to accept what Twilight generously offered me. I hop off the bed as I hear a sound coming from the entrance of my room. As I turn around, I realize that the door is open. Standing there are six friendly ponies and their sweet dragon. I smile and run to Twilight, embracing her, as tears of joy start flowing down my cheek. She returns the hug and I feel everyone else join in, too. I hear the familiar voice of Princess Luna in my ears again. They are now your friends, are they not? Oh, yeah. Big time, I think in response. "You're okay!" she exclaims, making me blush lightly. After a short pause, she asks, "Are you okay?" With a slight laugh, I shake my head no. Although, my words do contradict my actions. "Mhm," I reply. "A lot better now that you’re all here. Ever since I had that nightmare, I’ve been wanting to talk to you." They probably don't know what I'm talking about, but Twilight starts stuttering out of the blue. “Are you… Did you…” "Did I what?" I ask, tilting my head. Maybe something about where I'd gone. Shoot, I was going to have to fill them in on everything eventually. “Have you left your room ever since you came back from wherever?” she finally asks. This relieves me. I don't know why, but I really don't want to tell Twilight about any of what happened. Either way, my blush deepens and I nod, facing away from her. I'm sure this is going to lead her to ask about where I went. Ugh. She was rather suspicious, still. "Really?" "To use the bathroom," I clarify. She still seems to want more details, so I answer, "Only to use the bathroom." "When did you return, exactly?" Man, she's not holding back with these questions. "Um, around a few hours ago?" Twilight opens her mouth. I'm almost dreading the next words, but luckily, Spike intervenes. I breathe a sigh of relief as I listen to his next question. "Woah, woah. Hold up. You said you wanted to talk to us about something?" With a bit of reluctance in my voice, I anser him. "Yeah. I feel like I’ve been upsetting you lately. All that shouting, all that running away business. I’m... sorry." My gaze shifts down to my hooves, which are poking at the ground. Twilight lifts my chin up and looks me in the eyes. She wears a warm smile on her face, and I can tell it's authentic. "Luckily, we all forgave you for what you did in the past. Which means we can forgive you again. Those are things you shouldn’t have to feel sorry about. All that matters now is that you’re back." "It’s good to be back," is all I have to say. I figure I'll supply all the details during lunch. Oh yeah. I'm going to have lunch with them and not feel guilty about it. I'm sure in due time, all that guilt will go away. Right now, I know I'm going to just accept whatever ~~Princess~~ Twilight throws at me. I'm her friend now. I know for a fact that they can help you. Came the voice from Princess Luna. And I know for a fact that this was true.
Apple BloomI run to the clubhouse, but I got no idea why. Scootaloo told us to meet up here today, and to make it at 6:00 a.m. sharp. And, although it's in Sweet Apple Acres, it still takes me a while to get there. Or maybe, it's just to get out of bed. Turns out I need my sleep. By the time I arrive at the clubhouse, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are already climbin' the ladder. "I reckon you had a good reason to call over here so bright and early. The rooster ain't even awake yet," I complain. I look at Scoot as she took my usual spot on the podium, sittin' down on the floor and eyein' Scoots warily. Sweetie Belle sat down beside me. "Yeah," she yawned, "why are we here again? If Rarity finds out, I'll bet you she's not going to be happy. And I can just blame it on you, you know." "Yeah, yeah, but I've got important business to talk to you about," Scootaloo dismissed with a wave of her hoof. Sweetie Belle and I exchange glances. "What important buisness?" Sweetie Belle questions, concern pushin' through her sleepiness. I nod in agreement, 'cause I wanna find out just as bad as she does what all the fuss is about. "You know how, like, a few months ago we helped Diamond Tiara change for the better good?" she asked. Sweetie Belle and I nodded simultaneously, not sayin' a single word. "Well, she's kind of started doing more... old her stuff." "Like what?" I question. "I heard she's spreading more gossip through the Foal Free Press," Scootaloo explains. Still too vague. "Like what?" I ask again. Scootaloo took a deep breath. "You know Princess Twilight's new student?" she asked. "You mean the really powerful unicorn?" Sweetie Belle asked, unsure of what to think. Scootaloo nods. "Oh!" I interject. "Applejack told me 'bout her. Starlight Glimmer, I reckon. I think she even traveled through time!" "And didn't she used to dictate that village?" Sweetie Belle adds. Scootaloo nods to that, too, but doesn't say anythin' more. Soon, I come to a realization. "The gossip," I finally say. "It's 'bout her, ain't it?" After a while, Scootaloo finally nods to that. I knew it! "So, are we gonna stop Diamond Tiara or... what?" "We have to stop her!" Scootaloo exclaimed. "We can't let her go back to the pony she used to be." I agree right away, but Sweetie Belle is a bit hesitant. "Shouldn't we tell Twilight? Or Rarity or Applejack? Or even Starlight?" she pleads. After our incident with Babs, y'all would think that I'd learned somethin' about askin' others for help. And I did, I'm positive! I'm just not sure that a bit of news is gonna hurt anypony... "It's fine, Sweetie Belle. It's not bullyin' or anythin' like that this time," I defend myself. Scootaloo walks over and stands beside me. "Yeah. Besides, if it gets out of hoof, we promise we'll tell Twilight this time." I'm pretty sure Sweetie Belle doesn't trust us, but she goes along with us anyways. We dash over to the schoolhouse and go into the publishin' corner. Like I expected, Featherweight is there, writin' stories and being lead newspony. It's been so long since the Crusaders had fun in the publishing business, so I have no idea what anythin' is called anymore. Don't blame me if the titles are weird. Diamond Tiara is sittin' at the front desk next to Featherweight. That's where she used to be when she was our boss. It's been so long seein' her up there, but it looks perfectly normal to see her leadin' everypony. I'm just 'bout to confont her, and I'm sure the girls are too, but then we realize somethin'. It's too late for that. The papers are already printed and ready to be sold. I almost smack my face in front of everypony here. "Hi, Cutie Mark Crusaders!" she greets us. But what surprises me most is that she used a nice voice, a real, friendly voice. So this obviously wasn't a bully's plan. It was her plan, but she didn't see anythin' wrong with it! "Diamond Tiara!" I say in a real cheerful voice. Maybe too cheerful, but still. "Are you... publishin' news 'gain?" "Yes, I am. I got bored being Vice Student President, so I decided to go back to a job that was fun," she explains. She obviously doesn't realize this is a bad thing, so I try a different approach. "Remember when you did that before you learned the true meaning of your destiny?" Clearly, she can sense somethin' is wrong, since she nods pretty seriously. "Well, it's still pretty bad this time around," Sweetie Belle explains. "I know you like this job and all... but..." "But it's not right to spread any gossip, no matter how harmless it seems," I finish for her. Diamond Tiara's face drops. She starts to stammer, "Oh. I didn't know it was wrong. I tried to make it as nice as I could, while keeping the facts. I was just trying to-" "It's fine," Scootaloo says, putting a hoof on her shoulder. Sweetie Belle does the same. I give her a respectful nod and the Crusaders walk outside with me. I give Featherweight a bit and a thank you, and we open up the newspaper we got in return. "It isn't so bad," Sweetie Belle says, her voice audibly inflecting. "It's not mean or anything." But I'm pretty sure we all know that no matter how "news-worthy" or factual it is, it still sounds just as bad. Princess Twilight's Pupil Starlight Glimmer is former dictator of the village "Our Town" and is the most recent bearer of Star Swirl's time travel spell. She had used the spell to travel back in time, creating multiple universes where Equestria was suffering. Even though she was once fighting with the Princess, Starlight is ready for redemption. Now, Starlight Glimmer is the new pupil of Princess Twilight Sparkle. Princess Twilight claims she just wants to teach the Magic of Friendship to her new, misguided student and friend. She hopes she will be sucessful, and so does her new student. The girls and I eye each other. This sounds awful, no matter how sweet she summed up the story. And how did she even get her information? When we ask her later, all she says is that she overheard Twilight saying those things yesterday after she returned from the past. Wow, a lot sure can happen in a single day.
Lyra HeartstringsAuthor's Note I'm so sorry for the sudden change, everyone! This was supposed to go before Twilight's chapter, but I messed up the order a bit. Please, just imagine as if this chapter were here all along, published before Twilight's. Lyra Heartstrings I wave goodbye to Bon Bon. I know it's only for an evening, but when you have a best friend waiting for you, a few hours seems like a lifetime. I sort of feel guilty for making new friends in Ponyville, especially a best friend. After all, I was friends with Minuette, Lemon Hearts, Twinkle Shine, Twilight Sparkle, and Moondancer when I lived back in Canterlot. But it's still hard to say goodbye to Bon Bon. She's my best friend "five-ever," and that kind of friend is one that you keep by your side five-ever. I walk with Minuette to Sugarcube Corners. She's convinced it's the "Donut Shop of Ponyville," like how we used to have donuts together at a donut shop in Canterlot. I guess I can't blame her for being used to her home. I open the door, and Minuette is greeted with a "Hi!" from Pinkie Pie. We walk to our usual table, but there's something different about this time. "Moondancer!" I exclaim, giving her a hug. Moondancer stopped coming to Ponyville, and even when I was in Canterlot, she never hung out with us. "What are you doing here?" "Having fun with you girls," she shrugged. "Aw, come on," I prod her, "you know that's not what I mean. You never join us anymore. Why today?" "A few weeks back, Twilight came over and showed me the true value of friendship. Now, I have fun with the girls in between my studying," she explains. I guess Twilight really is the Princess of Friendship, no matter how bad a friend she was to us back then. We get some donuts from Pinkie Pie, and hastily eat them. Well, at least I do. We spend the rest of the day having fun, and I even feel like I feel a surge of magic or something, but now it's evening and I can get back to Bon Bon. Besides, the other girls have to catch today's train back to Canterlot. After I wave to them, they're on their way and so am I. Bon Bon said she would meet me at her house and we could have a sleepover, so I'm on my way there. At least, I am until I'm stopped by Twilight, who's near in front of her castle. "Hey Lyra!" she calls out. "Hey, Twilight!" I respond, waving at her. "You just missed the other girls," I tell her as she trots towards me. Twilight's probably too excited to even listen to me, though. “Guess what happened today?” “What?” I ask. Twilight wasn’t usually this energetic, so something must be making her happy. “I met this powerful unicorn. Her magic was about as strong as mine!” Twilight cheerfully informs me. “Really? A unicorn with alicorn level magic?” I play along. “Yeah. Her name’s Starlight Glimmer," she says, still seeming to keep a lot to herself. “So, what happened?” I ask, determined to hear another side of the story. “Well, she went through this time loop and brought me along with her, and she almost, well, caused a bit of chaos until she realized-” “Hold on. She almost destroyed Equestria?” I ask, seeing right through the cover-up. The other day, I saw a newspaper clipping of her. If she's Twilight's student, and Twilight decided that, then she needs to see a doctor or something. Starlight Glimmer is not the pony you should trust right off the bat. Starlight Glimmer is very demented, somepony you don't want to have around. “Well, yeah,” Twilight hesitates, “but she’s past that.” “So what did you do about it?” Twilight giggled. “Well, she’s my pupil now! My first student ever! And she’s learning about friendship!” “Wow. That’s not much of a punishment,” I complain. Starlight Glimmer. Just the name makes me all mad inside now. And I barely even know her. “I don’t want to punish her. I want her to learn about friendship so that she’ll never do that again,” Twilight argues. She seems pretty strong on the whole "friendship" side of the thing. I bet she didn't even think that someone like Starlight should get a punishment for almost destroying the world. “Hmm," I moan. "What did she look like?” I might have read some of the paper, but I only got a quick glance of the black-and-white image. “Well, she has a purple mane with a teal streak, and her cutie mark is a glimmer of magic. Huh, I guess that might explain why she’s so good at magic!” she thinks of other things, which I don't pay attention to. “Yeah, sure,” I grumble, walking away. I tell Bon Bon about the great times we had yesterday, even if it was, again, only three hours. We walk up to a craft stand in the market, and you'll never guess who we run into. Okay, maybe you can, since I've been angry at her ever since I first found out about her. Give up? It's Starlight Glimmer! We're standing in front of the stand, and I guess she's playing dumb and acting as if we're in line. Bon Bon and I look at her, and I want to give her a strict talking-to, but that would be uncivilized. Plus, Bon Bon already spoke up first. "Hello, are you new here?" she asks. It's clear she hasn't seen her before, in the paper or in person. "What's your name?" "Um, hi. Yeah, I’m… new? And my name’s Starlight," she stammers, her voice fading away. Like I'd buy that act. Bon Bon, on the other hoof, seems to. "Well, welcome to Ponyville! My name’s Bon Bon, and this is Lyra," she greets, motioning towards me. Do you want our spot in line?" I guess now that my best friend went with the "in line" act, I have to, too. Starlight shakes her head, anxiousness drawn all over her face. “You were here first and I can’t take your spot.” “Please do, we weren’t buying anything, just... looking at the options," I explain. I guess that's good enough for her, because she smiles. "Um, okay. Thanks!" I roll my eyes and take Bon Bon with me to a bench that's out of Starlight Glimmer's earshot. "You know that that's Starlight Glimmer? From the destruction news? Twilight told me more about her," I inform Bon Bon. "Uh, no. Really?" she asks, “Yeah, really! She’s been staying in touch with me more ever since a few weeks ago when she visited Canterlot. She said some powerful unicorn named Starlight Glimmer had her in this time loop,” I tell her. Bon Bon was kind, kinder than me, if I had to be honest. “Well, she seemed pretty nice to me.” “Yeah, she may seem that way. Twilight said that Starlight had come ‘a long way’ since when she had done all that,” I say, distrust scattered throughout my voice and mind. Bon Bon still didn't believe such a "nice pony" did such bad things. “Are you sure that was her? I know they have the same first name, but-” “Oh, I’m sure of it. Purple and teal mane, glimmery cutie mark, that definitely sounds like her. She was, apparently, pretty bad,” I say, recalling tidbits of the news clipping and Twilight's conversation with me yesterday. “Well, I’m sure she won’t do that again. She’s so nice!” Bon Bon argued. "Ponies can change," she adds in a soft voice for good measure. “Yeah, I know,” I say with a lot of sarcasm.
Twilight SparkleStarlight walks back to the castle with the girls, Spike, and I. She's laughing, a clear sign that she's enjoying herself. Nailed it! I knew having her make friends was the right call. And Spike had his doubts. I'll make sure to tease him about it later. All that matters now is that my new student has gone from evil dictator to powerful friend. Wow, a lot sure can happen in one day. We all have dinner together, but after a few bites, Starlight doesn't seem to be feeling well. She probably just doesn't want to have any dinner because she still feels bad about what she did. Okay, probably terrible. I'll let her know that I won't dwell on the past tomorrow, but right now, she looks as if she could use some shuteye. Starlight lies down on her bed, which she refuses to own. I told her she could lay down on her bed, though she said it was just "the bed." Maybe I'll comfort her even more tomorrow. She could surely use it. After some rest, of course. I close the door to Starlight's room. Something tells me she'd want some alone time after a busy day like today. She wasn't really the "friendship type," anyways. At least not yet. She wouldn't be, not until I got her friendship lessons ready. I sprint to the library, bumping into Spike on my way there. "Woah, what's the rush, Twi?" he interrogates me. "No time for trivia, Spike," I push his question aside. "I've got to make friendship lessons for Starlight. Now that I have a student, no, a pupil, I have to prepare." Spike just chuckles. "Of course you do. Starlight Glimmer is going to have a whole lot of lessons, isn't she." My mouth straightens. He makes a pretty good point there. "Maybe you're right. I should probably narrow it down." Still, then, Spike shakes his head. "Knowing you, narrowing it down means a few thousand instead of a million," he giggles. I blush but roll my eyes playfully. "I'll be sure to get it closer to a hundred," I assure him. Spike motions with his claws, expecting more. Giving up, I sigh in defeat. "Fine, it'll be around five-hundred." "Goodnight, Twi," he responds, walking out of the library. I think he's mumbling something. "Poor Starlight Glimmer." My eyebrows lower in irritation. Starlight was lucky to have a teacher who was so well-prepared. Right? It's around 8:00 in the morning. Starlight should be up by now, right? If she's not, then too bad. She'd miss out on all the fun I have planned for her today. I'm probably dreamy-eyed, thinking of today, when I knock on Starlight's door. "Come in!" is the response from inside. I'm too excited. If she was going to open the door for me, too bad. I opened it already. As Starlight stepped away from her desk, where she was drawing something, I notice something different about her. Something better. "You look different," I note, the exact feature right at the tip of my tongue. Then, I have a mental light bulb. "I like the new bangs." Starlight smiled, blowing on them so that they flipped around. I think this version of Starlight Glimmer is a lot better than the old one. "I didn't like the old ones," she explains. "They kind of remind me of..." she starts to trail off, and then looks down at her hoof, which is digging at the ground. I don't think she wants to keep talking about her past, so I decide to change the subject. "How was your first night in the castle?" I ask. She finally looks up, but now I can see that she's biting her lip. "It was good. Thanks again for letting me stay here, Princess Twilight. I really don’t feel like I deserve such a thing." I wince when she calls me that. Who does she think she is, adressing me as a princess? "Please, don't call me Princess. I'm proud just to be your friend, and your teacher. I don’t care about what you did in the past," I say, and it might even come off as scoffing to her. Whatever, it better emphasizes the point. Trying not to sound stupid, I ask her something else. "So, do you want to join us for breakfast?" She looks so shocked, I feel like she's faking it. "I actually have an option?" I giggle. Maybe she is acting, and she's just really good at it. "What do you think I was going to do, let you starve?" Okay, now I'm sure she's not acting, since it's pure confusion being spoken. "Yeah?" I'm pretty shocked. She wanted to be starved to death? But then I realize the truth. She never wanted to starve, she only wanted what she deserved. And she believes starving is a good enough punishment. "Oh, Starlight. I’d never do that. We’re friends now, remember?" "Uh..." is all I hear in response. I roll my eyes playfully. Come on, Starlight. I don’t want you to be too hungry on your first day in Ponyville! We’re going to have some fun and get you used to the friendliest place in all Equestria!" I guess I finally let my excitement show. Whatever. I grab Starlight with my magic and trot to the dining room. Spike and I gather our friends as Starlight trails behind us. When all eight of us are here, standing in front of Carousel Boutique carrying a bag of towels, we head to the park. There was this pretty fun water section that I wanted us to go to. Starlight seemed to like flying, and swimming in the water seemed like soaring. Unfortunately, the pool section that was flying-ish was closed. So instead, we head to my favorite part. It's a place where passerby can shoot at people who want to play in the area with little seal-like motors. Of course, there were also automated ones that you could press a button to turn on. We turn on the water and run around like foals. Well, Fluttershy and Rarity sit out, but they're shooting at us, and each other, so it counts as having fun too. Even Spike plays around with us. The only one who isn't playing is Starlight. She's sitting on a rock, watching us. She's probably just too embarassed to join in. "Come on Starlight!" I call out to her. "Come join us!" She gets off the rock and joins us. She walks over to me, probably going to say something, when Fluttershy manages to hit her perfectly. She laughs at this, and eventually starts becoming as wild as we are. We stayed over there for a while, so we're probably going to have dinner sometime soon. As for now, we're sitting in a nice, scenic place, by choice of Fluttershy, drying our manes, relaxing, and enjoying the scenery. If this isn't considered a perfect day, then I don't know what is. I just hope Starlight feels the same way.
CloudchaserI'm in the middle of Ponyville, laughing with Flitter. We just finished a great lunch, and we're now reminiscing about Ponyville's most recent attempt to break the water hurricane record. "I'm just surprised Fluttershy didn't run away from practice this time," she tells me. I chuckle. "Are you kidding? Last time, she totally rocked it! She was second best flier, only inferior to Rainbow Dash herself. Why would she not want to show up again?" Flitter shrugs. "It's kind of like her to be shy. To forget a big event and let fear take over." I nod in agreement. I might've been a little surprised if she didn't show, but it's not totally unlike her. Flitter stops me and points at our surroundings. What do you know, we're at the market now, so we might as well get birthday presents for each other. Flitter and I split up, promising to meet each other back here in an hour. I trot around, not sure what to get for her. I do run into a mailpony on the way. No, a newspony. A little filly from the school, and he's probably handing out the Foal Free Press. I might as well get one for Flitter, since she's a kind-hearted pony who likes to learn about her community and ways to help. I go through the next few stands, and finally end up at the crafts stand. I take a roll of pink ribbon and a few gems. I also take little cutout letters. I'll make her a homemade, personal bow. She has too many plain ones anyways. Surprisingly, it hasn't even been an hour yet, so I have some time alone. What to do, though? Well, I might as well read the newspaper I picked up. It's about time to go when I finish reading the paper. Actually, I only read one specific report, about a powerful unicorn who... fought Princess Twilight? It was probably a true story, since the Foal Free Press didn't lie anymore, not ever since the Gabby Gums incident. But hopefully, whoever she was, she didn't dare hurt me or Flitter. That would be so scary. She probably is just a faker. I mean, no one goes from ninja-dictator to friend of the Princess. That would be so crazy. I looked at the picture on the paper. She did look sort of familiar. But I have no idea where I remember her from. I stare at the paper, hoping that will give me an answer. It doesn't help at all. To be honest, I'm even more confused. She's so familiar, yet I have zero connection with her. How is this possible? I slip the newspaper into my bag since Flitter's going to show up anytime soon. After a few more minutes, Flitter flutters over to my side and we fly home together. It's almost dinnertime, so once we drop off our things at home, we decide to go on a stroll in the park. Flitter loves beautiful, scenic days like today. It makes it even more perfect when we get to enjoy it together, in person. So we walk through the park, watching all the young fillies play together. It reminds me of when we were fillies. We find a nice spot in the grass, only it's taken by the Heroes of Equestria. Flitter and I decide to look for another viewing place. And we find the perfect one, by the swing sets, only it's taken by somepony else. Somepony I recognize. Her name is Starlight Glimmer. She has a lilac coat and misty blue eyes. Her purple mane, tail, and bangs are all flowy and bouncy with a twisted curl at the end. They all have a streak of aquamarine running through them. Her cutie mark is a sparkly star with teal trails flowing behind it. Her name is Starlight Glimmer. Now I remember! Starlight Glimmer was that pony who sang a big song with, basically, all of Ponyville. It was about making friends or something like that. Now that I think about it, it was kind of hard to forget something like that. I keep staring at her. Flitter does too, but not as, um, fiercely as I do. I don't think she likes making eye contact with her, because her gaze suddenly darts away. "Isn't she that pony who lives with the princess?" I whisper to Flitter for confirmation. But I'm pretty sure I would know the answer better than she would. Luckily, we're not too close to Starlight Glimmer, so she probably can't hear us. "Yeah? So?" she answers, bewildered. She probably has no idea about this girl. "I heard she tried to destroy Equestria!" I tell her. Her eyes widen. "Really?" she asks, looking back and forth between me and Starlight Glimmer. Now, I think she's heard a bit about her, since she says, "Like the Newbie to Friendship?" "Mm-hm," I nod. "I think she also stole the cutie marks of a whole village. With just her magic." That last part I made extra quiet for suspense. Flitter gapes. "No way! If she has magic that powerful, just imagine what she could do to us!" My jaw starts to fall open as well. I am imagining what she could do to us with just her magic alone. "What if she fries our brains?" She just stares at me in disbelief. "Can she do that?" she asks uncertainly. “If she can fight an alicorn, she can certainly do something like that!” I reason. “Or worse!” Yup. Flitter is finally starting to believe me. We look each other in the eye, then turn our heads to look at Starlight for a brief moment. She's looking back at us, so we stop glancing towards her and quickly trot to the other side of town, where our home is. "So much for a scenic break," she mumbles. I giggle, despite how scared I am of Starlight Glimmer. What if she makes the sun explode? Then, Flitter's words would be more true than ever. I shake my head. Stop going crazy, I tell myself. But then again, everypony always told me that it was better to be safe then sorry. Does thinking ahead of time count as being safe?
Fluttershy BreezeMy best friends and I are sitting in the grass. We were just having fun in the water with Starlight Glimmer. Honestly, I know she deserves a second chance. Everycreature does. In fact, if there were no second chances, our world would probably be at war with Princess Luna, Discord, and maybe even Starlight. There are probably a few more I'm forgetting. I'm sure glad that second thoughts are a thing. If you didn't know, Starlight's had quite an emotional past. When she was a filly, her best friend earned his cutie mark and left her behind. She grew bitter and angry, and eventually did some, well, mean things. But she didn't know any better! I mean, she's come a long way. Now, she's in a much better place, and she's one of my best friends. Speaking of Starlight Glimmer, where is she anyways? "Um, hey, Twilight?" I speak up. She turns her head towards me and stands up as she slips the last of our towels into her bag, since we're about to leave. "Do you know where Starlight is?" At the mention of Starlight Glimmer's name, she looks around. She's clearly concerned, but I can't blame her. "No! I hadn't even noticed she'd gone missing!" she panicks. "What if she's somewhere we can't find her?" I walk over to her and gently pat her hanging head. "It's okay, Twilight. We'll find her," I console. I look around at the others for confirmation. They nod and comfort her, too. "Don't ya worry, sugarcube," Applejack solaces, lifting Twilight's chin up. Rarity assures her with, "She'll surely be in Ponyville." I don't want to, but I doubt her. Starlight could go a long way if she wanted, considering the amount of magic she has. "Well, come on!" Rainbow Dash provokes. "Let's send out the search party as soon as possible!" Pinkie's eating a cupcake, but even through all the frosting, we can hear her clearly. "A search party? I don't want to miss that!" Other than Twilight, we all giggle a little, despite the fact that Starlight is literally missing. Pinkie Pie always has a way of cheering us up in even the darkest situations. Twilight's plan is for us to spread out across Ponyville. If we can't find her, then she says we can check the outskirts of Ponyville. I don't think we'll have to go to that extreme level, but if we do, I'm sure it will be for a good cause. I never realized it before, but Twilight probably cares about Starlight as much as I do for her. Maybe even the level of my love for Angel Bunny. I'm searching the side of Ponyville closer to my cottage, which is, unfortunately, closer to the Everfree Forest. It's home to all these wild creatures, and too wild even for me to tame. Rainbow Dash says that nopony who's gone in has ever come out. I still believe her, even though we left the forest just fine after finding the Elements of Harmony. Rainbow Dash has a way of making things very believable. It's probably way past dinnertime, because as I'm right outside my cottage, staying as far from the forest as possible, Angel comes to me and shows me his growling stomach. Oh my gosh! In all the commotion, I forgot to feed my critters! I hope Twilight doesn't mind if I take a short break from the search to feed everyone. I'm pouring one last, big bowl of birdseed when Twilight arrives at my door. "I found her," she pants. "You can stop searching, now." I nod and turn back to the bowl, which is overflowing with snacks. Luckily, the animals are all hungry, so most of them dig in. I finish a bit of cleaning up for the day and decide to follow Twilight back to the castle. When I arrive in the throne room, the others, and even Spike, are already there, discussing what happened. "I'm telling you, all she said was that she was tired!" Rainbow Dash shook her head. "That's impossible! The water should've kept her alert. And besides, not having dinner?" Climbing into my seat, I gape. It's one thing to unexpectedly disappear, but it's another to starve yourself while doing it. "I hope she's okay," I comment. Rainbow looks at me, her eyebrow raised. Okay, maybe not the best comment to make. I shrink back in my chair, but Twilight seems fine with my comment. "I hope she's okay, too," she says, covering her face with her hooves. Spike, the girls, and I rush over to comfort her. "Don't worry," I soothe. "We can check on her in the morning." The others nod in agreement, and I can only hope that I haven't made things worse, especially for Starlight. In her condition, she may not want to be around other ponies. Although, seeing Starlight is something that Twilight really wants. Sometimes, things just have to go the way that they do. The girls and I were sitting in the throne room, getting ready to eat pancakes. All we're waiting for now are Starlight and Twilight. I know it's probably wrong to eavesdrop, but I need to make sure that everything is fine between the two of them. I could barely hear, but was Twilight's voice rising? Was confronting Starlight really the right call? I couldn't hear much, so I pressed my ear to the wall. "I don't know," came a murmur from Starlight. The response was clear; Twilight had forgiven her. I guess all she wanted to know was that Starlight was safe. "Well, at least join us for breakfast." Twilight is a very caring pony sometimes. I hear hoofsteps, coming closer and closer to the throne room- Wait. I rush to my seat, and that's when I realize the others were listening, too. I guess I'm not the only one who's kind, but also not kind at the same time. Maybe my element doesn't really mean much. By the time Starlight comes in, we're all in our seats, breathing heavily. We're going to eat our pancakes, but we have to make sure Starlight's okay. I guess me being concerned for her doesn't help, because I must be looking at her worriedly or something. And I think that may be a bit offensive. She lifted her pancake up to her open mouth, but dropped it when she made eye contact with us. "I’m sorry, I’ll just have lunch instead,” she quickly says, leaving the throne room. Me and my stare, always ruining everything, huh?
Diamond TiaraI sit up in bed. It's really early, even for a school day, but I think I need the time to think. It's been a few days since I first published that article about Starlight Glimmer. Now I wish I'd never done it in the first place, but some things can't come undone. I feel so terrible exposing her like that. Now that I think of it, I have a lot in common with her. And, spoiler alert, these are all connections with things I overheard about her, so I don't know if they're true or not. For one, we both used to be mean in the past, but want to change. Or at least I do. Second, ponies judge us based off of our past. I mean, the past is in the past, right? I wonder if the Cutie Mark Crusaders have told anyone about me and the paper. I don't think so, though, because no one seems to be giving me any strange looks or talking about me. Come to think of it, Starlight's probably not feeling great. I saw her running away from the park last evening. And she might've been a bit blurry, but I think I caught onto the fact that she was crying. And she was supposed to be as strong as Princess Twilight. I should maybe apologize to Starlight about publishing the papers. But then again, no one seems to know. Would I make a difference if I told the truth? I would, actually. A bad difference, that is. I'm sure Twilight and Starlight would be angry at me. The town may think something like Gabby Gums is back. The only ponies who would believe me would be the Cutie Mark Crusaders. I know they're nice, and great friends, but I think I already have a nice life. But what would happen if I didn't tell anyone? Starlight would have to suffer from other ponies pointing hooves at her. Twilight, and the rest of her friends, too, would have to take care of Starlight, and from what I've been seeing, it hasn't been easy. The other ponies would be accusing Starlight of something she wants to be forgiven for. Something she wants to forget. And I'm willing to forgive and forget, but I don't think the other ponies are. I want Starlight to stop sufferning, but I don't want to be in trouble, so maybe I'm just not ready to tell the truth yet. Yeah, that's it. I'll tell the truth when the time comes around. Just as I make that desicision, though, guilt gnaws at me until it's really hard to bear. Maybe I should tell the truth now. I can't choose between the sides. Although, I think I've already figured out which choice is the angel and which is the demon. It's a hard choice. Let someone else suffer, or suffer on your own? I should choose Option A, but something is telling me to not get yelled at. It's a really big problem. The school bell rings, dismissing all of us. I'm not usually a fan of school, but today, I was more desperate than ever to escape the heat. First reason is that it's really hot in the classroom, because spring just started a few days ago. Also, today, I felt guilty about publishing the paper, and I had no idea how to fix that. Today, I was going to need some serious advice. I run towards my destination, praying to Celestia that they are actually here. I desperately knock on the door in front of me and wait for about three seconds. Then I try again and see that they're coming right now, walking up the stairs. "Cutie Mark Crusaders!" I blurt out. "I need your help!" They eye each other cautiously, then nod, motioning for me to follow them inside. "What's wrong, Diamond Tiara?" Applebloom asks in her informal accent as she steps up onto the podium. Usually, that accent bothers me, but today I needed to know how to make the hole in my gut fill itself up as soon as possible. "You know how I published that paper a few days ago?" I frantically ask. They nod and wait for more. "Well, I don't think it's having the best impact on Starlight. And I feel really guilty about it, but I don't want to tell anypony in case I'll get in trouble. But if I don't tell anypony, Starlight will have to feel dejected. It's a hard choice I need you three to help me with," I spit out. The Cutie Mark Crusaders looked shocked, and then look back and forth between each other. They rub their chins and have a private discussion. Finally, after what feels like forever, they give me something that's not even an answer. "What do you think is the kindest, most friendliest thing to do?" Sweetie Belle asks. I feel my ears flap down. "Tell somepony?" Hearing this, they all nod in unison, and Apple Bloom asks me one more thing. Probably harder than When was Equestria founded? "Are ya gonna do the right thing or not?" I bite my lip and sink my ears down even lower. Will I do the right thing or not? The old me would've already stayed out of trouble and kept it to herself. But I'm friendlier and kinder now. So in my mind, I hear the question again: Will I do the right thing or not? Author's Note Last chapter for a while, for all of my stories, because of "The Inactivity." Sorry it's so short. My next story will be published on Halloween, I'll make sure of it. Thanks for reading, and I hoped you like it so far! For more info on "The Inactivity," look at my blog post, R.I.P.
SpikeI step into the library and the first thing I see is Twilight surrounded by stacks of paper. "Uhh, are you okay, Twi? What are you doing?" "I'm putting together a few friendship lessons. I need them to be perfect! After all, Starlight's my first pupil and I don't want to fail her! And she might need proper lessons after everything she's been going through," she vented, sticking her muzzle in my face. I pushed her away, thinking. "So, then, what is Starlight going to do right now?" Twilight rubbed her chin, thinking for a moment. Then she got an idea. "Why don't you spend some time with her today? She could really use the sense that she has good friends, and you are pretty kind and welcoming. I bet she'll love having some company!" "I don't know Twilight," I stretch the words. "She's been seeming like she doesn't want to spend time around many ponies. Or dragons, for that matter. She seems to want some alone time." "Spike, just trust me. She probably needs it, no matter what she wants. Go wake her up and spend some time with her while I finish up a few friendship lessons for her, alright?" I sigh in defeat, knowing that I'll have to eventually spend some time with her, no matter what. As I walk towards her room, I think to myself. I eventually cross the realization that I'm actually a bit afraid of Starlight. She did almost destroy Equestria, multiple times. Maybe I'm just scared to spend time with her because I'm afraid she could hurt me or my friends in some way. But from what I've seen, she's more afraid of being judged on her past than I am of her harming me or my friends. I guess that shows that she really has changed a lot. Maybe I shouldn't distrust her based on her past. I got off easily with Luna, and even Discord, so why is it so hard with Starlight? I shake my head as I enter her room, trying to act casual, as if I wasn't scared of her. I'm honestly not sure if it works. But I notice that she's asleep right now, meaning she won't be able to hurt me. I back out of the room, remembering that I'm supposed to help her feel better and spend time with her. I mean, I can't ignore direct orders from Twilight. I sigh in defeat and, hesitating, I prod her hoof with my claw. She slowly opens her eyes and I'm honestly so afraid of what she could do. But then, she lazily asks, "Twilight?" “Uh, no, I’m Spike," I fearfully answer. "Twilight told me to get you out of bed and give you some time to have fun today.” Starlight groans. "Oh. Sounds great," she sarcastically says while closing her eyes. I bite my lip and pull her mane a little the way I do with Twilight when I want her attention. “Come on, Starlight. If you’re not going to spend time with me, at least have breakfast," I quietly say. I'm fine with her not spending time with me, but Twilight wants her to feel comfortable here in Ponyville. I could cook something for her. I bet that would make her feel more comfortable, right? She abruptly sits up. "With... you?" “Mm, yeah, Twilight’s putting together some friendship lessons, so I guess I’m going to spend time with you instead,” I summarize. She considers the offer with a slight smile. Hopping out of bed, her smile widens a bit. “Come on, then, Spike." I expect her to teleport us outside, or somewhere else she can fight me (what am I thinking?), but she walks outside instead. I stand there for a few seconds, then rush outside. Closing the door behind me, I see Starlight under a nearby tree, happily waving to me to come over. When I arrive, I help her set up a picnic blanket, where some food appears. It's a daisy sandwich and a crystal cupcake. I'm assuming it's for me, since ponies don't eat crystals. I grin and laugh, taking a bite. "Wow, thanks, Starlight!" I cheerfully exclaim. I take another bite and look back at her. Her eyes are closed and her head tilted upright. She takes a deep breath, opening her eyes and taking a bite of the sandwich. I smile; her happiness might be from the fact that she's spending time with friends. Or one friend. But it's great to see her smile. Maybe I've been wrong to judge and fear her. After all, I think that's what she doesn't like. That would be me being a bad friend, then. My gaze shifts to where a trio of ponies walks past us. It's Rose, Lily, and Daisy from the flower shop in town! I wave to say hi, but they seem more focused on Starlight. They lower their voices and I gape as I hear the words slip from their mouths. “I heard she stole the cutie marks of her whole village!” Rose says. “I heard she traveled back in time and almost wrecked time and space and Equestria!” adds Daisy. Lily looks between the two. “I heard she tried to kill Princess Twilight!” “Imagine what she could do to us! Oh, the horror." Rose faints. “The horror!” “The horror!” The other two start falling down too, and I blink a couple of times, shocked. Then, I shake my head and look to Starlight. Her hoof is covering her mouth and her eyes were holding in tears. I place a claw on her shoulder. “It’s okay, Starlight. These three can get like this pretty easily. It’s not your fault," I assure her, unsure if she really will be okay. She shook her head slightly and looked away from me so that I couldn't see how she reacted. I looked between the flower shop ponies and Starlight, knowing she needs help right now. “Just take it easy, Starlight," I tell her. She looks at me with a heartbroken glare and finally shouts, "No!" I jump back in surprise as she starts to run away. I take a few steps, but knowing that she can easily escape me, I decide not to go after her and instead tell Twilight and the girls. I find Twilight in the library, still making lesson plans. Slowly approaching her, I fumble with my options for the best way to break the news to her. I decide on, "Starlight ran away." She drops her papers and sticks her muzzle in my face, grabbing onto me. "What? To where?" Then, she steps back and lets go, sheepishly laughing. “I don’t know. I let her go because I know she needs space," I tell Twi. And because I know she's just going to run away from me, I think to myself. "But I have no idea whether she’s coming back or not." “Well, let’s pray to Celestia that she’s okay. Meanwhile, we need to look for her," she declares, clearly determined to find Starlight. It seems to me like she cares for her a lot. I wish I had been the same way in the beginning. Maybe then, none of this would have happened. But then, a thought comes into my mind. “Yeah, well, she could be anywhere. She’s got magic, remember?” I remind her in frustration. It's going to be near impossible to find her now! Twilight shakes her head. “But still, that won’t stop me. She’s my friend, and I’ll do anything to keep her from any danger.” Scared, this time for, and not of, Starlight, I reply, “Let’s just hope she’s not already in trouble.” Twilight looks just as worried as I do. If not, she looks even more troubled than me. I sure hope my friend is alright without us. Author's Note Sorry this chapter took so long to come out! Thank you so, SO much for your patience! Also, I'm sorry to break the news to you, but due to my joining Jinglemas 2022, I won't be publishing very many chapters for the next month. (Nov 25-Dec 25)
Starlight GlimmerI hate myself. I'm a monster. A monster who starts a village and convices it to live in a way that makes her more powerful than everypony else. A monster who removes the cutie mark of a literal princess and shows no hesitation whatsoever. A monster who travels back in time and almost traps herself and the monster in the past, but also creates alternate, desolate worlds and worlds that have even been at war. Forever. I'm a plain monster. I peer from the rock I'm hiding behind. Seeing that everypony is distracted and won't notice me, I sneak past the village (like the criminal I am) and walk along a path I know all too well. I shouldn't have known it in the first place. After all, I can be dangerous—to extreme levels, even—when I get what I want. My steps slow down as every hoofstep feels heavier and heavier until it's near impossible to walk anymore. My steps slow way, way down. But I'm almost at the entrance. I should be able to make it. But for some reason, I have a nagging feeling as if something's tugging back at my heart and that I should just go back to Ponyville. I shake off the feeling and push myself to walk a few extra steps into the cave. When I finally make it, I frown as if something's missing. But what could it be? I shake my head and decide to just ignore the feeling. Looking outside, I realize that it's almost nighttime. I sit down on the frosty snow and lie down on it, and even cover my whole body, save my head, in the snow. I close my eyes, shivering like crazy. But I accept it. After all, I'm a monster who doesn't deserve a bed. Having a place to even stay in is amazing when you consider what I've done. I stay there, becoming colder by the minute. It eventually gets so unbearable that I can barely think straight. I sit up slowly and yawn, turning my head towards where I used to keep my town's cutie marks. The glass is broken, just like my heart is. It hurts to see the shards there, a reminder of my dark past. Grabbing the shards with my magic, I put them together like a puzzle and join them with a simple binding spell. I shouldn't have done that, though. Seeing the glass in its place reminds me of when I lead this village with an iron hoof, when I stole ponies' cutie marks and stored them here, in the vault I'm standing in front of right now. I have a flashback in reality as if I'm my evil self again. I see in the vault, so many cutie marks. A balloon animal, snowflakes, a cupcake. All sorts of things. I can't even remember whose is whose. That's how bad a leader, not to mention friend, I am and was. I shake my head and blink a few times to get rid of the cutie marks. But they stay there. As I turn around to ignore the cutie marks, I catch sight of my friends. Well, my enemies. Twilight and her friends. They look lifeless and dull, and that's when I notice their cutie marks. All equal signs. I turn back to the cutie mark vault and see their cutie marks there, centered. I look around me, realizing that I'm surrounded by all my old villagers. In desperation, I look around for something to help me escape this vision. But all I see is the staff of sameness. I sigh in defeat, walking to the edge of the cave despite everypony else. I catch sight of the village I used to lead, and realize how they all seemed so happy compared to when I lead them. I mean, it makes sense. I was a terrible leader. I look back, realizing that the cave is mostly empty. I sit back down, feeling tears well up in the corner of my eye and wiping them away. I say to no one in particular, "I just cause trouble for Twilight. I’m nothing but a bunch of overrated problems for her. I don’t deserve such praise. I deserve to live in this little cave and watch as my villagers have fun without me." The tears are heavy now, too heavy for me to hold in any longer. As I allow them to stream down, I whisper, "Sorry, Twilight. Sorry for everything I did to you." I look for somewhere to sleep tonight, deciding that the snow is far too cold for me to bear. I find a place with just rocks and lie down there, curling up into a ball, trying to warm myself and stand the rough ground. Despite my efforts, I have a lot of trouble falling asleep. I can't block out my thoughts that bug me all through the night. You have to be perfect for her, My inner conscience tells me. It was too much pressure. And you can’t ask her for help. You’d be imperfect. You’d be seen as demanding. You’d be hurting everypony else. I feel like I want a better life, one with friends, but I can't convince myself to go back to it. This is the life I deserve, no matter what anyone, including myself, tells me. I squeeze my eyes shut and try to block out all my thoughts. I hear the haunting voice of my conscience again. Nothing’s wrong, Starlight. You belong here. I start crying. I don't believe myself anymore. Yet, I still do.
Princess LunaI finished hanging the lavender in the hallways and decided that it was time for me to start the night as usual. Walking to my room, I pass by Celestia who talks with a few other ponies. She even laughs with them. Well, it's nothing to be jealous of, really. Just something she does every day. Whether she ignores my flowers or not. I roll my eyes and walk to the porch, raising the moon. With a neutral face I walk to my room. Arriving, I close my eyes and cast the spell that comes off now as habit. When I open my eyes again, the whole world seems just to be a night sky, filled with stars. But looking closely, you can see that each star is actually a little orb containing visions. Visions of everypony's dreams. And nightmares, of course. I roam around the sky for a bit, searching for a bad dream. Somepony I can help comfort. Usually this part is easy. The pony with the nightmare has the bigger stars. Easy detection. Right now there aren't many nightmares. That's a good sign. And then I see it. A big orb in the far corner. As I approach it, I start to hear a voice become clearer. The first thing I can comprehend goes, "I just cause a bunch of problems." That's not a good sign. I walk closer and then I see the one with the nightmare. She's pretty new to me, but I recognize her because Celestia and Twilight had a little talk about her a few days back. Twilight discussed plans with Celestia, though I'm sure she was bent on giving her new pupil a home and some friends. Meanwhile, she sat in the room next door, listening to their faint whispers. Her horn was glowing too, so she was probably casting some spell that made things louder. I was rather surprised when I first met her. Twilight said she had been a super powerful dictator, that she'd almost destroyed Equestria by time traveling. But as of right now, she was reformed. And it seemed to me like she'd never even done any of it. She just sat there, listening to the conversation, her eyes dull and heartbroken. It felt terrible. I went up and introduced myself, but she didn't have much to say. She just bowed. I hadn't even known her name. Twilight later said "Starlight." I figured that was her name. I shake the memory from my head and look back into the ball. Starlight gazed down with tears that made the rain and walked away. I jumped into the dream and called after here, seemingly in the body of Twilight Sparkle. "Starlight!" I call after her. "Starlight, come back!" She looks back in my direction with confusion and fear. I burst the image of her mentor and reveal myself to her. I reveal my wings, too, waiting for her to say the first words. She stutters for a bit. "A-a-are you..." I stand there with amusement as she searches for her words. I tuck my wings again and wait for an answer. "P-princess Luna?" I nod and she stares at me with even more confusion. "Why are you here? W-what happened to T-t-twilight?" I see her oblivious to the obvious and tell her, “Starlight Glimmer, I am here to protect you from what is hurting you. Dreams are my specialty.” She seems very shocked. "A dream?" With a sting of nostalgia, I answer her with another nod. "Listen. I know of your pain. I was once cruel, as you were, but I am reformed now. Changed, because of six fine ponies." I think of when I first met Twilight and her friends. They had defeated me, and then I remember that Starlight had gone through a similar process. "I happen to know that the same ponies helped you change, too, and that they are now your friends, are they not? You know, friends can do a lot, and can be hurt if their friend is hurt.” She almost breaks down after hearing that, but she takes a slow, deep breath. I hear the guilt in her shaky voice as she starts speaking again. “Yes. They are. I think they are hurt because I was. But mostly because I ran away. And I feel... guilty that I did something bad to my friends.” I think of myself and how Twilight and her friends helped me overcome as much guilt as Starlight is currently experiencing. “Well, as friends, they will surely be able to help you, no matter how much you think you can’t live up to her." I know for a fact that she is very lucky to have them as her friends. "Just tell them how you feel. I know for a fact that they can help you.” The advice feels lame, but I hope it's enough to help her manage. Author's Note I may or may not have inserted a few song lyrics into here ;) Been a while since I've last updated this, so I hope it was a good way to get back into the story.
Rainbow DashHonesty isn't my thing. It's Applejack's. Which is why I'd been lying about accepting Starlight as a friend. Sure, I showed a bit of hesitation at first, but I eventually learned to act it out. I'm sure Twilight would want that, despite what Applejack says about always being honest. Anypony successful has to remember that honesty really isn't always the best policy. For, (how long has it been?), around three days, I've acted like I forgave and forgot Starlight Glimmer and her past (evil) deeds. And I did. Kind of. Well, not nearly as much as everypony else clearly has. I'll probably never forget what she did: stopped my rainboom, stole my speed, nearly destroyed my home. Hah. That's pretty hard to forget if you ask me. Maybe, one day I'll find the heart to forgive her. That's what I'm thinking right now, “Thanks for coming, everypony." Those are the first words of the meeting. But they're spoken by Twilight, who's Twilighting hard. Her breaths are uneven and heavy. I'm sure we could all tell, but Applejack was the first to speak up. “What’s wrong, sugarcube?” “Well, it’s about Starlight," she starts. I consider the possibilities. Her past three days have been a bit rough and emotional. She's done a lot of things, too. “Did she stop eating?” I wonder first. “Or maybe she’s stopped having fun," Pinkie sadly suggests. Fluttershy runs her hooves through her mane. “Oh no!” Is her way of contributing to our conversation. Spike shook his head. “We actually have no idea.” We all stare at Spike in confusion. I turn my head to Twi, opening my mouth to speak, when Rarity says somthing first. She tilts her head, asking “Then why did you bring us here?” Twilight takes a deep breath as she and Spike exchange nervous glances. “You see,” she started, “Starlight’s, well, she…” Seemingly, Spike can't take the suspense, so he clutches his ears and yells, “SHE RAN AWAY!” We all gasp. Well, except Twilight and Spike. Twi lowers her head and then looks into our eyes. I lock my gaze with her, too. “We have to find her," she and I say at the same time. It's funny, though. I thought it would be a while until I could forgive her. Well, I was wrong. After hearing this conversation, I realized she was probably hurt by herself and her sinister past. It's hard to move on from something as scarring as that, huh? I should've been a better friend before, well, all this happened. I wish I could make it up to her somehow. Some way to make her understand that she is wanted. But I don't see how to do that. For now, my only way to apologize to her is to find her. To show her that she does matter. If only she'd seen me this way a while ago. Twilight starts to make a plan for us to find Starlight. She would stay here, in Ponyville. Fluttershy and Pinkie would search in some rural area I don't exactly care for or know of. Applejack would check her barn and orchard. Rarity would search the big cities, Manehattan and Fillydelphia and such. Spike would visit Starlight's old village. And I'd be scanning Las Pegasus for her. Normally, I'd be really excited for an opportunity like this, getting to visit Las Pegasus. But this time, I wouldn't be going there for fun. Which isn't good, I know. I mean, who goes to a casino to not have any fun? Boring. But it has to be done. That's what it means to be loyal and friendly. I zoom to Las Pegasus, not fast enough for a sonic rainboom, but almost that level of fast. When I arrive, I burst through the doors and dash from place to place—the buffet, the roller-coaster line, the audience at a magic show, and even the magician himself—asking them all if they had seen anyone fitting the description of Starlight: a lilac unicorn with periwinkle eyes, a purple mane with a teal streak that ran through her hair. Everpony I asked said no. I groan in frustration and pull on my mane. I fly out of Las Pegasus and head for home. When I arrive at Twilight's castle at around the same time as the others, we all discuss what happened in the throne room. Applejack speaks first, saying, "She wasn't in the orchard." I roll my eyes. I spurn, "Why would she be? It’s not like she’s a fan of farming. She always struck me as more of the adventurous type. I checked in Las Pegasus, and she wasn’t there." Honestly, she seems like half adventurer, half bookworm. Not that I'd say that to Applejack, though. It would come off as disliking Starlight, which I can't bear the thought of anymore. “Doesn’t she like attention? I checked Manehattan and Fillydelphia, but no one I asked had seen Starlight," Rarity announced. Fluttershy disagreed. "I thought she’d be trying to avoid attention, actually. Wasn’t she trying to hide and run away from anyone who had anything to say about her? I checked this open space, and the area around it, because it’s calm and peaceful and somewhere you can go to avoid ponies." She even adds, "That's why I want to start a sanctuary there someday." Pinkie waves her hooves, grabbing our attention. She becomes visibly sadder as she notes, "Hey, wait! I checked there too! Fluttershy and I didn’t think she wanted to be around anypony, but I couldn’t find her under any rocks." I stare at her. I mean, being under a rock would give you a lot of isolation, but it doesn't seem like anywhere to go when seeking solitude. Luckily, Twilight interjects, "I don’t think Starlight would be under a rock. But I agree with you. Starlight wouldn’t want to be around anypony, not after the way they talked about her. Spike and I checked in the Everfree Forest, but we couldn’t find her. Also, I sprained my wing, so I had to rush to the doctor’s office. But Zecora said she would keep an eye out for Starlight, and we don’t have any new news back. Yet." Boy, was that a load of information. I'm sure we all think so, because nopony else has anything to say. That's when we hear a faint clattering sound coming from upstairs. Nopony even says a word as we rush to the second story, hoping that it's our lost friend. Friend. There, I said it. I really do believe Starlight is my friend. I think today is the day I've completely forgiven her. And that's a good thing despite the situation we're currently in.
Starlight GlimmerI wake up, scared, sitting on cold snow. I shiver and think of the last words Princess Luna said to me. Just tell them, Starlight. They will listen. She helped me realize I was wanted, and that by running away, I've been hurting a bunch of ponies. Just as much as I have myself. I glanced at the village below me. Just one look at the scene is enough to tear my heart to pieces. They're all having fun together, and I even see Spike having fun with them. Wait, Spike? Gosh, they're all looking for me! This makes me start crying as I now see that I matter more than I thought. MUCH more than I thought. You know, friends can do a lot, and can be hurt if their friend is hurt. Honestly, it hurts just to think about it. I can't take it any longer, and so teleport away from any of this. Landing on the bed in the room that's mine, I let the pillow soak up the rest of my tears. I feel like there are more tears, so I hop off the bed and walk towards the bathroom to maybe clean myself up. With a torn expression, I stare at myself in the mirror. That's when my face of disgrace suddenly turns to shock. I'm a mess! My mane is covered in snow, my face is tear-stained, and I look really tired for some reason. I splash my face with water and brush off the snow with my hooves. It doesn't exactly work, though, so I grab a hairbrush and use it to straighten and clean my straggly hair instead of using my hooves. It's a lot more efficient. After a while, my hair looks decent again, in its new, unequal form. I walk back to my room and sit on the bed for a while, messing with things and arranging the room to look more like my own. Call me greedy, but it feels pretty good to accept what Twilight generously offered me. I hop off the bed as I hear a sound coming from the entrance of my room. As I turn around, I realize that the door is open. Standing there are six friendly ponies and their sweet dragon. I smile and run to Twilight, embracing her, as tears of joy start flowing down my cheek. She returns the hug and I feel everyone else join in, too. I hear the familiar voice of Princess Luna in my ears again. They are now your friends, are they not? Oh, yeah. Big time, I think in response. "You're okay!" she exclaims, making me blush lightly. After a short pause, she asks, "Are you okay?" With a slight laugh, I shake my head no. Although, my words do contradict my actions. "Mhm," I reply. "A lot better now that you’re all here. Ever since I had that nightmare, I’ve been wanting to talk to you." They probably don't know what I'm talking about, but Twilight starts stuttering out of the blue. “Are you… Did you…” "Did I what?" I ask, tilting my head. Maybe something about where I'd gone. Shoot, I was going to have to fill them in on everything eventually. “Have you left your room ever since you came back from wherever?” she finally asks. This relieves me. I don't know why, but I really don't want to tell Twilight about any of what happened. Either way, my blush deepens and I nod, facing away from her. I'm sure this is going to lead her to ask about where I went. Ugh. She was rather suspicious, still. "Really?" "To use the bathroom," I clarify. She still seems to want more details, so I answer, "Only to use the bathroom." "When did you return, exactly?" Man, she's not holding back with these questions. "Um, around a few hours ago?" Twilight opens her mouth. I'm almost dreading the next words, but luckily, Spike intervenes. I breathe a sigh of relief as I listen to his next question. "Woah, woah. Hold up. You said you wanted to talk to us about something?" With a bit of reluctance in my voice, I anser him. "Yeah. I feel like I’ve been upsetting you lately. All that shouting, all that running away business. I’m... sorry." My gaze shifts down to my hooves, which are poking at the ground. Twilight lifts my chin up and looks me in the eyes. She wears a warm smile on her face, and I can tell it's authentic. "Luckily, we all forgave you for what you did in the past. Which means we can forgive you again. Those are things you shouldn’t have to feel sorry about. All that matters now is that you’re back." "It’s good to be back," is all I have to say. I figure I'll supply all the details during lunch. Oh yeah. I'm going to have lunch with them and not feel guilty about it. I'm sure in due time, all that guilt will go away. Right now, I know I'm going to just accept whatever ~~Princess~~ Twilight throws at me. I'm her friend now. I know for a fact that they can help you. Came the voice from Princess Luna. And I know for a fact that this was true.
