"I'm sorry..."A voice cried within the darkness"We're sorry. We didn't mean to do this to break everything. We just wanted to be protected. Loved, but don't worry; you'll be part of us and live on within. We'll break everything! SHOW THEM ALL OUR PAIN!"

Twi heard the voice as it faded away, and she opened her eyes. She couldn't see well, but she could make out she was in a hospital bed in a large white room as she looked around. She could see machines hooked up on her body as the beeping was going off, and there were also no other beds, just hers.

"You're awake at long last," said an icy voice from the corner of the room.

Twi could feel her body still hurting, but she looked to the corner and saw a dark blue female unicorn figure wearing a doctor's uniform as she sat in a chair. It was dark in that corner, but Twi immediately knew who it was.

"Luna?" asked Twi.

The unicorn doctor looked at her in surprise and confusion. "Luna? No, my name is Nanna, the second command of the Canterlot Island."

"Nanna? Canterlot Island," replied Twi as she noticed "Nanna" standing up, taking out a tablet, and touching it.

"Canterlot Island is a pharmaceutical company that treats infected people who caught the chaos disease and also works as a mercenary group on the side. That is all you need to know," said Nanna, as her eyes showed no emotion.

"Chaos disease? What happened to me?" asked Twi, trying to stand up.

"We rescued you; Nova got you good on your chest, but we were able to fix you up," explained Nanna as she put the tablet down. "Chaos disease, it a disease, well, is a cell parasite that can mutate its host to evolve, giving the host different animal parts and allowing them to use infected magic, but at the cost of going insane... See, Layla, our leader, is infected by this sickness, but our readings are showing you are clean; there are no signs of it at all, yet all our readings are saying you are her, but you aren't her. I can tell my daughter apart from a fake. That's why..."

Twi could see the whole room's light source fading away as the light was sucking into the darkness that Nanna was in. Soon, she could see it. A moon-like light appeared behind her, and within that moon, an ink-shadow creature appeared and stared right into her eyes with its green eyes.

"Who are you, and what did you do to my little dawn?" asked Nanna in pure rage while the creature roared and quickly attacked Twi but stopped inches away from biting her face. "Crescent, stand down." The creature listened to its master, quickly returned to her, and waited behind her. She is waiting for its master to unleash it on her.

Twi only gulped and quickly explained everything, hoping she believed her, that she came from a different universe, and that the multiverse was in danger. The room started to light back up, and the shadow creature vanished, but Nanna stood there and put her tablet on her belt; she didn't say a word as she exited the room.

"She didn't believe me?" asked Twi in disappointment as she looked at her bare chest, seeing it had been completely healed. "There's no scar? It didn't even look like I was cut!"

Twi sighed as she closed her eyes and fell asleep. She wants to return home and be with her friends and family. She missed them so much; they had no idea she was on this wild adventure and how everyone and everything was in danger. She lay on the bed and slowly went to sleep.

It had been an hour or two since Twi fell asleep. She could hear a knock on the door and slowly woke up.

"Come in," she said, sitting up and yawning, stretching out. She heard her bones pop and crack. She rubbed her face and blinked as she saw Light peeking in the doorway.

"Yo, Green Belly, how are you doing?" smirks at Light as she looks out of the room for a second and back to Twi. "You're ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm a little sore, but that's all," Twi replied, as she didn't feel anything from the cut on her chest.

"Good, good! Here, catch," said Light as she threw a bag at her, but Twi wasn't quick enough to react as it smacked her face and almost knocked her over. It was a bag of her clothes but with a new T-shirt.

"I got you a new shirt, which shocked you so much that you started wearing normal clothes. Taking my advice, I see," said Light as she smiled at her and rolled into the room, slowly crawling toward her. Twi can see that Light was wearing a hoody and regular shorts rather than the gear she was wearing before.

"What are you doing?" asked Twi as she watched Light sneak around like a ninja.

"Nanna might have put in laser alarms or something! I don't want her to know I'm sneaking you out of here, so sit tight and get dressed! We're blowing this place!" replied Light as she kept crawling.

"We?" questioned Twi.

"Yes, we," said Spitflame, wearing a t-shirt, jeans, and boots, as she entered the room and walked up to Twi, making Light piss and confused.

"What!? There isn't any alarm system!!" growled Light as she stopped and stood up.

"There was; I just disabled it," replied someone else who entered the room.

Twi quickly knew who it was, but she looked so different now in this universe. It was Penny Pie's oldest sister, Lime Pie, but she's a Catwoman. She was wearing a casual outfit like Light's. She also had a pair of pink shades on her head.

"Damn it, Ringing Rock, why didn't you tell me before I entered the room and looked like an idiot? Not cool." pouted Light as she put her hands on her hips and gave her a look.

"Because it was freaking funny!" replied Ringing as she covered her mouth and started to laugh hard.

Light blushed in embarrassment as she sighed and sat on a chair in front of Twi. Spitflame walked over and placed a hand on Light's shoulder.

"It was funny," laughed Spitflame as she smirked at her as Light growled.

"Anyway, are you ready to go or what?" asked Ringing Rock, as she could see Twi almost done changing into her clothes as she was doing it under the sheets.

"Done," said Twi as she removed the blanket, wearing her outfit.

Light whistle as Twi looks down at her clothes.

"I didn't notice it, but you look good. Also, you can rock that jacket; who gave it to you?" asked Light as Twi looked at it.

"Someone special to me." blushed Twi as she held her jacket with pride.

"What?" said Light and Spitflame in shock that their little dawn was looking in love with someone.

Twi didn't reply, so she quickly walked over to Ringing. They exited the room, leaving the two behind.

"We heard that right, right?" asked Light.

"Yeah, I heard that loud and clear!" nodded Spitflame, who quickly followed the two.

As the girls exited the room, glowing eyes appeared on the ceiling and landed on the ground. It was this universe's version of Ocellus, but she was wearing a Ninja military hybrid outfit. She pressed a button on her earpiece and spoke to Nanna.

Nanna answered the call in a laboratory section of the ship and heard the report.

"Get the rest of the SWEEP squad and get her back. She's the only person who can get Layla back. Over," replied Nanna, as she was overwatching a group of lab workers as they were testing on not one but two rainbow shards. "I remember we found one of these rocks two years ago, but no signals were coming from them...until now."

The group walked down a long hall until they were in the central lobby hub of the whole ship. Twi could see tons of people hanging around or heading somewhere. There were dragons, ponies, cats, dogs, and so on. Few wore military, police officer, firefighter, knight armor, and other outfits. Twi looked around, but she didn't see any familiar faces, but Light did.

"Oi, Red!" shouted Light as the group could see a red-hooded figure behind a bush behind a group of talking girls. Soon, the female dogs, cats, and foxes quickly screamed and ran with their tails in their hands.

Twi knew right away it was her. The group soon approached her as the red-hooded girl quickly stood up and raised her hands in the air. It was this universe, Matilda Pie, but she was a wolf girl wearing a red winter/mountain climbing hoodie and outfit.

"I surrender. Don't arrest me," said Matilda in the most monotonous and dry tone ever, making Twi smile.

"I'm off duty right now," smirked Light as Matilda sighed and lowered her hands.

"Look, I don't have time for this. I'm in the middle of Fluffy Tail watching. I can't help you," replied Matilda as she turned and saw Twi, and she soon recognized her. "Oh, hey, Layla! What are you doing here? I'm watching-"

"Fluffy tails?" replied Twi in confusion.

"Yeah, fluffy tails!" Red smiled as she raised her hand and showed Twi a tablet with photos on it, and it was nothing but fluffy tails, ranging from foxes to wolves. This confused Twi even more...until Matilda started to explain how each tail was different in fluff and how soft each one was.

Soon, a small police officer, looking like Applebloom, quickly grabs Red by her hood and drags her away from the group, which causes no one in the group to panic but Twi.

"Hey. I wasn't finished showing my collection," said Red in a monotonous and dry tone of anger.

"Don't worry, Red, I'll let you off when I get back on duty," replied Light, watching Red being dragged off to the police station of the ship.

"Come back soon, Fluffy Tail Aficionado Red!" shouted Twi, which made her happy and smirk.

The group then quickly walked down the ship and soon emerged from a giant metal door, where they could see the night sky as they were in the park area of the ship. Light led everyone to a small gathering. She jumped on the table and shouted, "Welcome back, our leader! Take on Nova and her forces alone! Let this welcome party start!"

Everyone cheered as they raised their drinks in the air and cheered; some of them whistled. The girls stood behind Twi, and the crowd started talking to her, asking questions she didn't know, but Twi quickly noticed something. Like Nanna told her—almost everyone here had extra animal parts from another creature. She looked at Light and saw her with pony ears above her dragon ears. Spitflame had an extra tail, but it wasn't noticeable at first since it blended well with her other tail, making it look bigger. Even back in the lobby, many people had extra animal parts.

"Oi, what's wrong?" smiled Light as she patted Twi on the back.

"It's just your sickness. Sorry if I sound rude, but it seems you're in good health," Twi replied, making Light's smile fade a bit as she looked away, and Spitflame sighed.

"Just like Layla, worrying about us and everyone else—it's not something we can easily hide from people. At least my tails can be easily hidden from each other. See?" said Spitflame as she bent over and moved her tails as one, and they blended and became one big fluffy tail.

"Wow!" said Twi in awe as she got closer.

"Still, I was fouled!" Spitflame stopped talking as she felt her tail being touched. She believed it was Twi, and she blushed deeply. "Squire! What are you doing?"

"It's not Layla," quickly smirked and giggled Light as Spitflame looked behind herself, seeing Red touching and fluffing her tail.

"RED!" shouted Spitflame as she removed her tail from Red's hands. "What are you doing?"

"Sorry. I can't help it. You're so fluffy and nice to the touch," replied Red as she stood up and took out a notebook to check something off. "Spitflame tails done!"

"How are you here? Did someone let you out?" asked Ringing as she opened a beer can.

Red put away her notebook and remembered why she was there.

"Oh, right, I forgot. I'm here with the SWEEP squad," said Red as she took out a combat knife. "It was hard to sneak out of the police station when I got the orders, but I could. Anyway, we're here for her."

Within seconds, members of SWEEP jumped out of the shadows, and all went after Twi. Red was almost on her within those seconds, but Light, Ringing, Spitflame, and others quickly blocked them and pushed them away.

"WHAT THE HELL!" yelled this version of AJ, but he was a wolf and taking out a thin yellow sword. "WHY IS THE SWEEP UNIT ATTACKING LAYLA?"

"What are you doing, Red? Same with the rest of you!!" shouted Light as she prepared herself for a fight along with everyone in the party as they faced off the six members of the SWEEP squad. "There's a ton of us and six of you! You have no chance! Fight or flight?"

Red needed clarification. Why were they doing this? It was not right.

"Why are you doing this? This fake Layla isn't Layla. We came with orders to."

Suddenly, alarms started to go off across the whole ship. The park lights went red, and a voice from a speaker spoke.

"CODE RED! I REPEAT, CODE RED!"

Everyone turned to the speakers, but soon, someone pointed to the sky, and everyone could see a bright, glowing light heading toward them. Light and Spitflame knew who it was as the parking area started to be sealed with a metal dome.

"Everyone! Get out of here!" ordered Light as something slammed into the hull of the park walls, and soon, an orange spot started to melt through them.

"Light and Spitflame! Get your gear! We'll hold her off!" shouted Red as she and the SWEEP unit headed to the melting wall. "Someone take fake Layla to Nanna! She wants to see her!"

Soon, everyone was gone, and they quickly ran off in different directions. A few stayed with Light and Spitflame as they looked at the glowing figure coming through the hull; it was like a burning sun, and they could hear her talking.

"LAYLA! FACE ME!"

"Damn, it's Nova!" said AJ, taking out a cigarette-looking candy and putting it in her mouth. "We'll join SWEEP, go!"

"Don't die, Tex!" shouted Spitflame as she and others ran to the armory.

Meanwhile, Nanna watched all this on the cameras and turned to a lab worker.

"She said if both shards are near, they should be fusing. Why isn't it happening? Are they not the same shards?" asked Nanna, as she could see the shards lying on the research table until they hit her. "Unless they need the owner to turn them on?" Nanna quickly ran to the radio system and contacted Light and others.

"Light! Spitflame! Listen to me!" shouted Nanna from the hallway speakers.

"It's the big cheese?" said Light as everyone stopped running.

"The girl behind you isn't Layla. She's from another universe. Something about the universe can't have two of the same people in it. Bring her to the lab; we need Layla back. Only she can fight Nova, as Nova is falling into the Chaos sickness. She's reaching the final level before dying. We can still save her, but we need Layla to make it work." Nanna explained as she watched them enter the armory and the metal door close, sealing it off.

"I will do that," replied Light as the group got into formation and turned to Twi. "If you're not Layla, who are you?"

"Yeah, you look like her," whispered Ringing, taking her sound cannon from the wall.

"My name is Twi Night Spark," said Twi as she started to explain herself.

Meanwhile, Nova blasts through the ship-sealed doors and walks out of the parking area, which is entirely on fire now. Her body was burning like the sun as the metal walls started to melt from her heat. She looked up and saw Canterlot Island's logo and growled at it.

"WHERE'S THAT DAWN? That you promised me all those years ago!" shouted Nova as she blasted the sign and walked off as she looked for her prey.

"So you are telling me that the multiverse is real? I was once the leader of the Wonderbolts in your world. Asked Spitflame as she and others headed towards the lab.

"Red and I are sisters? Man, that sucks," replied Ringing as she was running and checking on her weapon.

"What about me?" asked Light as she bumped into Twi. "Someone famous?"

"No, I never met you before in my world.

"You think?" smiled Light as she quickly pressed the button on a wall that opened up and showed the lab.

"Yeah, I keep meeting you in another universe, which tells me you... no, "her "is" the person I forgot and need to remember. She's very important to me," replied Twi as they ran inside the room, which was dark but had a lot of tech stuff and people working on different things.

Nanna saw them running inside and could see the shards reacting with Twi in the room and starting to float.

"I was right," whispered Nanna as she saw the shards fusing and the reality in the room start to fall apart, but soon Nova was heading their way, as she was quickly passing through the metal blast doors as they melted within seconds.

"Damn, is she having a meltdown?" asked Ringing, as everyone could see Nova's body was burning too brightly as her clothes were gone.

Nanna quickly ran to them and looked at Ringing. "When this girl is gone and Layla returns, tell her what's happening. She needs to go all out to stop Nova. We'll try to hold her off."

Nanna summoned her monster and left the room with Light and Spitflame.

"I hope you find and remember her! See you!" grinned Light as the door closed and the bunker door shut behind it.

"Where is she?" screamed Nova from behind the sealed door. Soon, the ship started to shake as Nova started to fight Nanna and the others.

"You better get going! I don't think they're going to last long," replied Ringing as she pointed her weapon at the door.

Twi nodded and hurried over to the shards. She could feel herself being blasted with more of her memories and soon engulfed by a rainbow pillar of light.

Soon, Twi found herself back in the garden, and standing near the tree was Nightfall.

"Welcome back!"

"You?" said Twi, holding her head as she could feel a headache.

"Me," smiled Nightfall.

"What's going on?"

"Your home."

"Home?"

"Our home. Our reality."

"No!" shouted Twi as she blasted Nightfall, destroying her. "You won't make me become someone else! Not like you did with Sky!"

"You won't reach "her" in time. I won't let you," said a female voice.

Soon, the garden changed into a sea of black slime, and the slime pony, with a beaming white halo above its head, emerged in front of Twi.

"You need to stop this. We're trying to help you. Join us," the black slime said as it approached Twi.

Twi summoned a spell, but a white force field blocked it.

"Stop!"

"Let us go!" growled Twi, as she was getting mad at the creature before her.

The two fought each other, using magic to break apart the world around them. They were clashing magic, and Twi was losing. The slime pony had the upper hand here; this was their world. Twil could feel her movements slowing as the slime under her feet started to wrap around her. She tried to blast it off, but she was quickly hit by the slime pony, sending her to the ground, and soon the slime was covering her whole body.

"You are ours now. Now we'll be together again."

"I said, stop! GET OFF ME!" screamed Twi, as she could feel her mind slipping away, but within herself, she could feel something. It was warm—so warm. She felt safe. She felt love and kindness; someone was holding her and comforting her. Twi knew who it was.

"I won't let you become her."

The slime pony turned away but suddenly sensed something. It turned, and I saw a purple light slowly reaching the slime's surface until it blasted out and hovered. There was Twi, as she was using the element of magic. Her eyes were pure white, and a purple orb shone brightly within her chest. It was another element of magic.

"You think an element of magic can stop me?" smirked the slime pony as its chest glowed with a blue orb.

Twi didn't say a word as her hand started to glow. She raised it, and a bright purple silhouette of an alicorn appeared next to her. She rose its hoof and placed it next to Twi's hand. Soon, they created a huge purple orb. Within the purple orb, a bright rainbow of shards appeared.

"What!" shouted the slime pony as it realized what Twi was doing. "You are using the rainbow shards!?"

"Wait for us; we're coming soon." whispered between all three versions of Twi and fired off all three beams, two purple elements of magic and the rainbow beam from the shards. It passed through the slime pony, removing its slime coating and revealing its small body before the world vanished into the white void.

Twi could hear voices as she opened her eyes. She could see three small anthropomorphic koalas wearing cute maid outfits. She stood up and looked around the area. It was a substantial royal bedroom with a bed and bedside table.

"Hello? Can you tell me where I am? Who was the person who was here before I came here?" asked Twi. They didn't say a word as they rushed over to Twi and bowed before her.

"My princess." said the group as one.

"...what?" asked Twi as she tried to get them to talk.

"My princess, you changed; is it because of the Harmony Diamonds?" a maid asked, still bowing.

"I am a princess? In this universe as well?" asked Twi as she looked at them. "Harmony Diamonds?"

The maids looked up at her and nodded as one. They pointed to a mural to the side. Twi could see a painting of a purple pony with a purple jacket with seven diamonds of different colors. Above them, there was a scepter with a jewel on top.

"Are those the Harmony Diamonds? What's the scepter called?" asked Twi, but soon, she could hear someone calling out to her and saw the maids shaking with fear. She turned to the window and could see Discord!" shouted Twi in surprise, but his colors were different. His fur was black and yellow.

"Hello there, Heat...or should I say Twilight...or whoever is in control of that body," said Discord as he walked towards her.

"Heat? What's this universe version of "me" called? What are you doing here, Discord?" asked Twi as she watched Discord jump over and jump on Heat's royal bed.

"I wasn't invited to the Discord Con, so I'm here to help you," replied Discord as he looked around the room, looking at the royal jewels on display.

"...Discord Con? Explain yourself," ordered Twi.

Discord looks at her and grins with an evil smile. "Do I need to?"

"Yes," replied Twi in a deadpan tone.

"Really?" smirked Discord as he snapped his fingers, and suddenly he was wearing a Twi outfit. "Because I would rather talk about doing a Twilightx-static-con; I mean, the author is a big shipper of you two."

"W-What? You know the person I forgot?" asked Twi in surprise.

"Well, of course, but she goes by Bolt in her universe. She doesn't exist in this universe for some odd reason," replied Discord as he put on a Twi hat and started to write fanfic on his MLP theme laptop. "Maybe it's the "rules" reasons. Who knows?"

"Rules?" questioned Twi as she sat down next to Discord.

Discord put away his laptop and looked at Twi with a serious face. "You see, there are many multiverses out there, but one of the most important ones is the prime universe. The center of the multiverse. The prime universe is basically the roots and main tree of all life in the multiverse. It creates branches. The further the multiverse branches from the prime universe, the different outcomes will be. Different takes from the prime universe events, different people are telling different stories."

"I see, that makes sense," whispered Twi.

"Here's the thing: the more it branches out, the more the universe starts to drop, change, or add things completely. They become different, completely new—a completely new take on someone or everyone's life. For example, Heat is a princess and a hero in this universe whose fate is to watch over the Harmony Diamonds and Spark Scepter and stop me from destroying this world. Still, in the prime universe, we're friends because of a certain yellow Pegasus," said Discord as he looked at the picture of Heat on the wall.

"I see. Then, who am I in the prime universe?" asked Twi, unsure why she was asking such a question.

Discord smiles a bit. "In the prime universe, you're the most important person ever. The most powerful, the most special, and the most loved person that anyone could ever ask for. Do I need to say it? You already know. That hasn't changed, but I can tell you, some events in your life are a bit different, like Fluttershy not being there with you when you visited "her," Spike not being with you after leaving AJ Farm on your first day in Ponyville, or how your talk with "her" is completely different than in the prime universe. But this is where the "rules" come in," said Discord as he tapped on his open laptop and showed her a screen, showing her what he was talking about.

It was a map of the multiverse; he zoomed in on this universe, showing them looking at the laptop. They turned and saw a film crew filming them while Discord was in the director's seat. Twi turned to Discord on the bed, realizing it was a man in a Discord suit.

"NEXT SCENE!" shouted Discord.

Discord zoomed out and randomly into a universe of badly drawn ponies of Twi and her friends. "The multiverse has rules. Things need to happen, no matter what." He zoomed out into a world where naked Anthro Twi faced off against Tirek. "That's what makes you "you." In every universe and every reality, there's an infinite amount of possibilities. There are an infinite number of versions of "you" across the multiverse, but that's not the main point." Discord zoomed out into a universe where human Twi and her friends were facing off against Nightmare Moon and beating her. "The point is, you can't change your fate, as it's written in stone. You and your friends stop a world-ending event in one universe, but..." Discord zoomed out into an anime-looking picture of Twi and her friends losing to Nightmare Moon and the Nightmare Moon aura taking over Twi. "But another, you don't. It's how things work. That's the rule; don't change things."

"Why? Why do we have to follow rules?" Twi asked in anger as she saw the awful fate of the anime-looking version of herself. Shouldn't we be allowed to change someone's fate?"

Discord could see her angry face and quickly smile. "Nightfall, you need to calm down, okay?"

"What!? How?" asked Twi before Discord covered her mouth with a cake.

"If you try to change or go against fate, it creates an infection. Something that shouldn't exist. Even if it's a good thing, it can still cause trouble. The universe will start to break down and die. But sometimes, it can be far worse with an awful fate for someone. Like "her," explained Discord before being held by Twi magic with rage in her eyes.

"She deserves to live! Both of them!" shouted Twi, as Discord was suddenly choking.

"I...know that...Nightfall...please, you need to calm...down." panted Discord as he tried to breathe.

Twi quickly let go of Discord as she saw Discord holding his throat and breathing. "But it was her fate. to destroy your universe and die that day, but something happened, and she didn't. She became a living threat and was able to break the walls between them. She's fighting the others, and if you don't join them soon, "she" will spread her anger and pain across other universes, killing them. She became an infection that can infect and create dead branches, which will spread throughout the tree and kill the roots."

"Roots, you mean the prime universe, right?" Twi asked, looking at Discord in surprise. "Can the infection really spread out and kill the prime universe?"

Discord nodded his head and frowned. "If the prime universe dies, then everything will end. No more multiverse."

Twi quickly sat up and jumped off the bed as she was trying to make herself believe what Discord was telling her.

"Why are you telling me all this?"

"Because I want to stick it to the other Discords. They're going to seal off the "Twilight" and "Twilah" universes as they become fused as one and stop "her" from spreading into other universes. You need to hurry back and help the others reunite with Bolt and her group. You'll need this for heat," said Discord as he snapped his fingers and gave Twi the Spark Scepter. "She can use it to go hyper like Bolt."

Twi looked at Discord and nodded. "We'll save her and stop her. She fought against fate and won. This should tell the universe, or whoever controls us all, that she proves nothing is written in stone. There's always a way; you need to find it." said Twi as Discord smiled at her.

"She needs to hear that then, Nightfall," said Discord as Twi smiled.

Discord reached into his pocket, took out a considerable rainbow shard, and watched it float as Twi shard did the same.

"Hurry, make your other selves remember "her." Time is running out," whispered Discord as he could see the sky becoming dark as two white eyes appeared.

Twi nodded and was soon engulfed by the rainbow pillar, leaving Discord and the maids alone. Discord snapped his fingers and was on top of the castle, overlooking the island and surrounded by the ocean. He looked up and could see his universe's walls breaking.

Twi walked into the white void and felt warm water on her shoes. The sky was pure white, and she was walking on a stream of rainbow colors.

"I wonder if they can even hear me," said Twi to herself as she slowly closed her eyes. Soon, Twilight and Twilah walked out of her and kept walking, as Twi stopped and smiled. "Go. Remember them..."

Twilah was wearing a T-shirt with shorts and flip-flops as she was walking somewhere in the summer. She remembered how hot it was this week. The sun was blazing down on her, and she was sweating like a storm. She finally reached the house she remembered from before and was about to knock when she heard her name being called.

"Twilah! Up here!"

Twilah looked up and could see the girl she had forgotten, but her face was almost as clear to her as before. She waved back, and the girl's mother opened the door and let her in. Twilah headed up the stairs, entered the girl's room, and looked out the window. The girl and her father were fixing the roof and cleaning it. Twilah could also see the girl wearing a t-shirt, shorts, and a cool baseball cap. Twilah remembers talking about seeing a movie with her and the girls when the girl's father asked them if they were thirsty.

"Oh, I'm fine, sir," said Twilah as she waved her hand and sat on the girl's bed. The girl was cleaning her window from the work they were doing.

"What about you, kiddo?"

"Hmm, just water, dad."

"Alright, be right back."

As the father was gone and in the house, Twilah got up from the bed, poked her head out of the window, and said, "Need help out there with the cleaning?"

"No, no, it's okay."

"Come on. It's not a big deal."

"I know, but you're my guest. I'll do it. Just relax and enjoy this hard-working girl in her element!" replied the girl as she flexed her muscles.

"Pfft, sure," blushed Twilah, trying to hide how she liked the girl showing her muscles off.

"Seriously, I'll clean it. You go and relax or something."

"I'm helping!" replied Twilah as she stepped onto the roof through the window, moved next to the girl, and could see that the sun was blasting the roof.

"Okay, just be careful. We'll clean it together then."

"Sure," smiled Twilah.

Twilah could see the sun was getting hotter, and she felt her body sweating even more. She covered her face with her hand and walked forward but didn't see the nail until the girl called.

"Wait! There's a."

"Ahh!" screamed Twilah as she dodged the nail but stepped on the wet rag and started to fall off the roof.

"Look out!"

Everything went slow for Twilah, as she could see the girl quickly grab her and spin her body around. The girl would use her own body to break the fall for her. Twilah closed her eyes and could feel the girl's arms around her body. Within seconds, Twilah could hear the body hitting the driveway.

The memory froze as Twilah dropped to her knees and started to cry. She remembers this memory fully now. I remember the father and mother screaming and calling out the girl's name and remembering the red flashing lights and police cars. She remembers it all. After being cleared, she waited in the lobby with the girl's parents as they waited on the news to see if she would be okay. She remembered her friends coming and staying with them. She remembered what happened next.

Twilah didn't move from her chair while the parents and her friends kept moving around, as it had been an hour, and there was still no news. Then she heard yelling coming from down the hall and could see it was her parents, who clearly got the call from the hospital and were here to pick her up.

"Where is my daughter?" shouted her father as he pushed through the twin doors with a nurse and saw her in the chair.

"Sir, we told you the results, but she is fine," said the nurse as Twilah's parents quickly approached her.

"You're alright, baby?" asked her mother as she held her head and looked her up and down.

Twilah didn't say anything and kept looking at the ground. She was scared of her parents right now; she'd always been scared of her father, as she knew he'd hit her again when they got home.

"Baby, look at me!" said her mother, but Twilah didn't even look her in the eyes.

"How did this happen? I knew your damn daughter shouldn't be trusted around my baby girl!" shouted her father at the girl's parents, as they just stood there in shock.

"Sir! What the hell are you doing!" shouted the nurse, quickly pushing the man away from the group. "You can't just say these things to her parents!"

"My baby could have been dead because of her! Well, I got a thing or two to say, like I should have never trusted them with my baby girl!" shouted her father as he was getting ready to charge at the girl's parents.

"Fuck you! Our daughter saved Twilah's life and is in there fighting for her own life, and you come in here, yelling at us." shouted the father, as he was getting ready for a fight as well.

"I'm glad my daughter is safe and even more glad your daughter might be." Twilah's father was interrupted as a fist smacked him in the face, making him fall to the ground. Everyone was shocked who tossed the punch.

Twilah had tears in her raging eyes as she stood over her father with her bright red fist. She started to breathe heavily as she unleashed all her anger at her father for saying the person who meant the world to her should be dead.

"HOW FUCKING DARE YOU! DARE SAY SOMETHING SO FUCKING EVIL! YOU OUGHT TO BE GLAD THAT MY FRIEND SAVED ME BECAUSE IF SHE DIDN'T, I WOULD BE DEAD RIGHT NOW! I'M NOT SORRY ABOUT PUNCHING YOU!" screamed Twilah, clutching her fist harder. "WHY!? Why do you despise her so much when she is always kind to me? I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU SO FUCKING MUCH FOR SAYING SOMETHING SO HORRIBLE ABOUT SOMEONE WHO MEANS THE WORLD TO ME!"

Twilah's parents were taken aback by her actions and anger; they had never seen her like this. Even her friends were shocked by her actions but agreed with what she said.

"Twilah," whispered the girl's parents, as they were also shocked.

Twilah dropped to her knees and shouted, "It should have been me! Not her! She always puts me first in everything—always has! She always picks me up when I'm down and helps me when I'm sad or depressed! She even brings me food when I'm not feeling well!" cried Twilah as she slowly looked at the girl's parents, who were crying. "She's always happy, always brave, and consistently strong. She always smiles and never cries. I'm sorry.

The girl's parents and friends surrounded her and told her it wasn't her fault, while her folks just looked on without saying anything as they realized how well-loved their daughter was.

The memory froze as Twilah kept crying on her knees. She didn't move an inch. She kept her eyes on the memory and cried even more. She needed to remember her, now and ever. She shouldn't forget her face or name and should be ashamed of what she did in the first place.

"Remember "her"!" demanded Twilah to herself as the memory skipped forward to the point they got the news she was going to be okay, but they didn't know when she'd wake up. She remembers staying with the girl's parents and visiting the girl every day until she woke up when she and the girl's mom visited her. She was okay and always smiled and joked about what had happened.

"Why?" cried Twilah as she jumped on the girl's shoulder, shouting, "Why are you acting like nothing bad happened?"I almost lost you!"

The girl kept on smiling as she rubbed her cheek against her, and Twilah smiled and sobbed.

"You can't ever scare me like that again, you got it?" whispered Twilah as she smiled at her and wiped her tears.

"I don't regret it. I'll always do it, saving you, Twilah. You're my world," whispered the girl. "I can't ever think of a world without you."The girl started to cry, finally letting her feelings out. "I know you are always doing your best, always trying to be there for others, always bringing out the good in everyone. I don't want a world without you in it because...I love you."

Twilah was surprised by this, but the girl noticed this, turned red, and said, "AS A GREAT FRIEND!"

"Yeah, you mean it? Like...like a "best friend" kind of love?" asked Twilah in surprise, as she blushed along with the girl, who was nodding and keeping her mouth shut while her mother was face-palming at how stupid her daughter was right now. Twilah's face turned a bright red. She didn't know what to say but said, "I love you too, as my greatest best friend!"

The girl nodded slowly but was looking at the bed sheet, clutching it in her hands. "Yeah, best friends."

The memory froze, and Twilah started cursing at herself and clutching her knees in anger.

"STUPID! STUPID! Why didn't you notice it?" yelled Twilah to herself. "She didn't mean that."

Twilah screamed and cried out loud in rage, as she couldn't stand herself for being so blind. The girl told her real feelings, and she didn't see them. She didn't realize how she felt for her until now. All the good and evil they had with each other. All the beautiful memories they made as they grew up with each other, she watched as everything around her turned into the park—the same park they first met in. She was sitting there, smiling at her. Twilah reached out, touched the girl's cheek, and smiled as the prism lights faded away from her face. She could see her beautiful blue eyes and smile.

"Dashiell Reinbold, when I see you again, I'll tell you my feelings," whispered Twilah as her hand left Dashie's face and onto her chest. "And better not chicken out in saying it back!" laughed Twilah as the world was engulfed with blue lights.

Twilight walked on the clouds and sat down. She closed her eyes and used her magic to lower the sun slowly, but she heard someone landing behind her.

"Don't toss the sun or the moon into next week, like you did last time," joked the female voice as Twilight could hear the mare sitting next to her, which made her smile.

"That was one time!" laughed Twilight as she faced where the voice came from.

The sun lowered until it was below the horizon, making it look like nighttime, but there were no clouds in sight and no stars in the night sky yet, as the moon needed to be raised next.

"You know Twilight? I always admire how you do this. You make it so simple. It's nothing hard at all. Just sit back and have the sun and moon do what you want." said the mare as Twilight turned to her with her eyes still closed. "But that's not how real life works. I'm still working on what I want in life, even though I have already gotten into Wonderbolts. There's still more to work towards and less time to reach it. That's why I don't mind if you toss the sun or moon. It doesn't take that much time for you to put them back where they belong. You will always have time to reach what you want."

Twilight listened to those words and shook her head, making the mare notice.

"There's always time; everyone has enough time to reach their needs or dreams in life. Even to help those who need it, you never really notice it when it comes to yourself," whispered Twilight as she lifted her hoof and placed it on the mare's back, rubbing it. "I know what I want, but the world today is different. Some creatures live in different eras than we do, so to some, it may look like we're getting things done faster or slower than they think, but they need to understand that we're working at our speed and pace. Like you, you have your own pace. That's how you got where you are in life—not because of your friends, not because of me, but because you were you, which made you so special. I don't know what's wrong, but your friends will always be there. I'll always be here."

The mare didn't say a word, but she turned and looked at Twilight, and Twilight smiled at her.

The memory froze as Twilight was crying.

"I remember this memory. You were having a mid-life crisis. You felt like you were running out of time to reach whatever you wanted. I can't imagine what's going through your head, as you always hide your feelings from us, but then you told me what this talk was about months later," whispered Twilight as the memory unfroze.

"But there will be a time when you and other girls won't be there, Twilight. Then what? You said I got here on my strength and talent, not because of you or the girls. I disagree. Without you guys, I wouldn't be here, right here and now," sadly said the mare.

"You would have..." whispered Twilight.

"You're the ones who helped me get back up and keep running. Without you, I wouldn't be here today. I wouldn't be a Wonderbolt or the captain of said group. You taught me I can be anything I want to be," replied the mare as she slowly reached out her hoof to touch Twilight's cheek but quickly touched her shoulder. "I'll always be thankful to you because of that, and..."

"And?" whispered Twilight.

"...I don't know." sighed the mare as she pulled back her hoof. "Sorry, maybe I'm having a midlife crisis or something. Let's drop. The mare stopped talking as she felt her hoof being covered in magic and pulled into Twilight's embrace, who hugged the mare with love and warmth.

"I don't know what's wrong, but I will do everything I can to help you improve. I will always be there to support you. That's what a good friend does. I'll always love you no matter what," whispered Twilight into her ear. "Even without us, you always keep going, flying further than us and shining brighter than the rest of us. You said you don't feel like there's enough time, but you always make time for whatever you put your mind to. I know you, and I'll always believe that you will find your path again, find your goal and that no matter what, you will always have help, maybe not from the girls and me but from others. Others who love you the same as we do."

The mare kept silent and just hugged Twilight back. Soon, Twilight could feel tears on her shoulder and a soft, sad moan.

"Thank you," whispered the mare, as she didn't let go.

"No need to thank me; just make sure you remember..."

The memory froze as Twilight suddenly remembered the mare's name and face. How could she have forgotten her? One of her best and closest friends? She was like a sister to her in some ways. Twilight stood up, walked into the memory, and took over her past self.

Twilight finally set the moon high on the starry night, and she slowly opened her eyes as the mare finally let go. Twilight could see the prism lights fading away until she could see her face again. I saw her incredible pink eyes, as her eyes were red from all the crying.

"Remember who you are, Rainbow Dash," smiled Twilight as she hugged Dash and started crying as well.

Twilight could see the world being engulfed in a rainbow light.

Twi could see Twilight and Twilah looking back at her with tears. Tears of joy.

"You remember them, right?"

Twilah nodded as she held her hands on her heart. "I remember Dashie. always there for me, always supporting me, always putting me first, and caring about me, even if it means she'll get hurt. She loves me, and I love her back; she's my everything, and I won't ever forget that again. She wants something more than running—maybe it was me the whole time? No, it is me! I'll give her what she's looking for and make her happy!" whispered Twilah. The memory turned into rainbow lights, and Twi held the shard.

Twilight nodded as she closed her eyes. "I remember Dash. She was always there for me and the rest of the girls, always standing by us and never letting us down when we needed her the most. She's my best friend in the world, and I won't ever forget it. I felt like everyone was moving on so quickly and not having enough time for each other—until she had time for me—because of our talk. She will always make time because that's who she is," whispered Twilight. The memory turned into a rainbow of lights, and Twi held the other shard.

"I'm proud of both of you. Remember the people or ponies you love and treasure. Always tell and show them that."

Soon, a memory from Nightfall appeared, and all three watched as Sky and Nightfall were having a birthday party in the garden. The two were laughing and talking.

"Happy birthday to you!"

"Happy birthday to our pride and joy!"

Twi started to cry as she watched the wonderful family before her.

"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to Rainbow Blitz!" cheered both mares. Between them was a small dark blue filly pegasus with a black mane and tail, but both had a bit of rainbow in them. She opened her present, saw different blue jackets, and smiled at them all.

"I'm going to be 20% cooler like Mom now!" Blitz happily said as she smiled at Sky.

The memory froze as Twi felt another tear down her cheek.

"We'll save her. Promise," said Twilight and Twilah at the same time. They fused with Twi and looked down at their hands, seeing a completed rainbow orb necklace. She put it on and remembered where she got it from.

"Blitz always asks about these rainbow necklaces. We told her it was our symbol of our love being real. When we walk during the night, it will look like a comet flying across the night sky. She always called it a rainbow comet."

A rainbow pillar engulfed the world, and soon, Twi found herself in the crater where this all started. She looked at her body and could see she was a pony now and wearing only a red jacket. She looked up and saw different versions of herself and Rainbow as they hurried over to her. The Twilight in a lab coat asked her for her name.

"My name is Nightfall."

...to be continued in "Your name across the multiverse" and "Dash side (if you haven't already read it).

Author's Note

WOOOOOOO done. I really hope I did the RD having a mid life crisis well enough, since there was another reason she had it(which is explained in Dash Side) and first time writing something like it.