Despite staying up well into the early morning hours while researching as much as she was able from the Royal Canterlot Archives and Library, only to come up empty, Twilight Sparkle was awake and heading back to the hospital where Dusk was. She wanted to speak to him again, hoping that he knew something that she did not, or missed in their talk yesterday.

Once again, the day was bright and cheerful, yet with her mind elsewhere, she did not acknowledge it. Sending a letter to Spike last night, wondering how he was getting along with Starlight back in Ponyville, had helped alleviate some anxiety, certainly. She really needed to return back to her Castle of Friendship and relax, yet she couldn’t simply leave Dusk hanging as he was currently. It may sound crazy to others, but Twilight wanted Dusk around her.

She did like him, although why she didn’t want others to know. Especially her sister-in-law, Princess Cadance. No, Cadance would see right through Twilight’s emotions, and at this time, Twilight was not ready to admit it that she had feelings for her counterpart, despite his often-grating manners and overall meanness. He would be a real challenge to reform, more than Starlight had been. And that was if he would permit Twilight to try.

Somehow, she doubted that Dusk would ever let himself be reformed. He was too into himself, and with his background that Luna had spoken of, Twilight knew that he was beyond any simple reformation of character. He had grown up with such hate, it would be too hard to change him.

No, it might be easier just to let Dusk be Dusk for now. After him seeing what real friendship could be, perhaps he might turn around eventually, but it would probably take more than a few days or weeks, certainly.

Then there was his quick gravitation to Starlight when he’d been there in Ponyville at the castle. Twilight had been quite eager to see if Starlight might help, but instead she and Dusk had slept together. Or so Starlight bragged, as did Dusk. That thought had rankled Twilight for a time, and she only now understood why. She had been jealous. Oh, sure, she still felt some resentment with the irritating manner that Dusk had treated Twilight herself, yet it had only acted to increase her interest in him. Still, she would let him see how friendship worked, and perhaps he’d calm down and become a better pony. Only then would she permit Dusk to attempt any seduction of her.

It was far from anything she was ready accept, yet she did want to be with him eventually, and perhaps not just friends. He represented something else beyond her experience, something to learn and explore…

Upon entering the waiting room, Twilight spoke to the receptionist and signed in, then sat down and waited, thinking what she would say to Dusk. She expected that it might take some time, yet before she was comfortable in the seat, his doctor came out and called her name. Twilight was instantly up on her hoofs and trotted to the doctor.

“How is he today, Doctor?” she asked as he let her into the hospital corridor.

“Same as yesterday, Princess,” the stallion replied as they began walking. “His vitals are still the same, as is his magic level. His temper, though…” And the doctor sighed.

“Perhaps I could help cheer him,” she said with a reassuring smile. “He is probably just lonely.”

“Maybe,” the doctor cautiously said.

Nothing else was said and at the door, the doctor let Twilight inside. “I’ll be near, Princess,” he said to her. “If needed, that is.”

“Thank you Doctor,” she said, then turned to Dusk laying on the bed, still hooked up with wires and tubes. Dusk seemed to be asleep, as he had yet to acknowledge her presence.

“Dusk?” she asked in a small voice. “Are you awake?”

He slowly opened his eyes and stared at her for a moment. “Princess,” he spoke in a flat tone. “Why have you come?”

She approached the bedside, then glanced at the various machines before returning to look at him with a frown. “I just wanted to tell you that I am searching for an answer to your problem,” she said with a flick of her tail. “How do you feel?”

Dusk closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again, only to not look at Twilight. “I don’t want you here, Princess,” he said, sounding quite forlorn. “Go away. And as far as my horn, don’t bother. Nothing matters anymore.”

“Why is that, Dusk?” she asked, her frown deepening. “Is something wrong?”

Dusk did not reply for a few moments, still not making eye contact with her. Soon, he sighed and spoke. “If you must know, I had a visitor last night after visiting hours, one I was sure to expect. It told me that I am a bad pony, and I was only being kept alive while they figure out what to do with me. But what it told me after that is why I no longer care for anything, Twilight Sparkle. It told me that my world where I am from no longer exists, and that I am marooned here.”

“Who told you this, Dusk?”

“The Guardian,” he replied, still in his flat voice, a tone that spoke of resignation. “What you know as the Harmony Tree. It told me that all of the Guardians agreed to remove my world to prevent any further incursions by the Void creatures.” His voice trailed off for a moment or two before speaking again. “They simply destroyed my world, Twilight. All of the ponies there are…gone. Everything I knew is no longer. My mother, Big Daddy, Twinkle… Dear Faust, she was my wife, and I will never see my foal. All of it, gone.” And he lapsed into silence, closing his eyes.

Twilight blinked as she could hear the pain in his voice. He was broken, unable to reach magic, and now being told that his life was gone…Yeah, she could feel for him.

“But, Dusk, you are alive yet,” she said, trying to cheer him.

He grunted. “If you could call it that, Princess,” he mocked. “And if you were a friend to me, then simply kill me. Right now, here in this sterile room. I have nothing else to live for.”

“As a friend, Dusk, I cannot do as you want me to,” she said with a small snort. “I am the Princess of Friendship, not a killer.”

Dusk sighed, then closed his eyes. “Then we are not friends, Princess,” he said with finality. “Go away. I have no use of you any further. Good bye, Princess.”

Twilight stood there, thinking what she could say to reconcile this. But as the moments passed and the silence grew with Dusk ignoring her, Twilight sighed and turned away to leave. Before she got to the door, she paused and said, “I will fix this, Dusk. I promise.”

“Don’t bother,” he said with resignation. “I’m not worth it.”

“Yes, you are, Dusk,” she retorted and stomped out of the room.

Thinking furiously, she teleported to the castle and spoke to Celestia, informing her of what has transpired overnight. She also told the princess her determination of finding a cure for Dusk’s current state. She then took her leave, and left Canterlot, returning back to Ponyville and her castle via Celestia’s carriage, as it would be quicker than the train. She had a goal in mind, and wanted to reach there as soon as possible.

Once the carriage landed close to her castle, Twilight quickly alit and thanked the two pegasi guards, then sent them back. Turning to go into the castle, Twilight was grasped by Spike, who held her close.

“I’m glad that you are back, Twi,” he said with sincerity. “What now? Some more research?”

She shook her head. “No, Spike,” she told him. “I am only here for a moment to pick up something before I go speak to the Tree.”

He looked up at his sister, his big green eyes full of wonder. “The Tree?” he asked. “Can I come along?”

Twilight rubbed the top of his head with a hoof in a placating manner. “Not this time, Spike,” she said. “I need to discuss things with it regarding Dusk.”

“Oh,” he said, sounding disappointed. “Can you take Starlight with you at least? I’m sure that she would like to go with you.”

“No, Spike,” she told him firmly. “I must do this myself and not be distracted. Now, if you please let me go, I can get what I need and then go to where I must to rescue Dusk.”

The dragon sighed and released her, disappointment clearly in his manner. “At least stay and have something to eat, Twi,” he said as they turned to enter the crystal castle.

“No time for that, Spike,” she replied with a huff. “I’m in a hurry. Dusk’s life may be in danger.”

“What do you mean, Twilight?” asked Starlight, as she looked on with concern when Twilight and Spike entered the castle. “Is something wrong?”

“Other than Dusk not having any magic?” Twilight retorted as she trotted past her friend and starting up the stairs. “And him telling me that he wants to die, even asking me to kill him? What other else could be wrong?”

“Calm down, Twilight!” Starlight cried, struggling to keep up to Twilight’s hurried steps. “Why don’t you tell me what is wrong? Maybe I could help.”

Twilight paused and glanced back to Starlight with a frown. But then, she again started walking onward. “When this is done, I will tell you about it,” she stated with a huff. “I simply have no time to explain it. I must hurry before Dusk…”

Twilight reached her room and went to a case standing by a wall, where she pulled out her crown and set it on her head. With a flick of her tail, she held her head high. “Listen, Starlight,” she said to her friend. “This is very important. Dusk’s life hangs in the balance, and I need to rectify it. And if you want him back so you can have,” and she paused to glance down at Spike, “more fun with him, then let me try to talk some sense to that whom I must speak to. Please understand, Starlight, I’m not trying to be mysterious or silly. I like Dusk, even if he is a stupid stallion and so darn hurtful. He needs guidance, and between both you and I, we might be able to reclaim what he should be. But I cannot if he is dead, so please let me go and attempt to correct it.”

Starlight gave Twilight a long stare, yet soon relented. With reluctance, she yielded and said, “I hope that you know what you are doing, Twilight. For your sake, please be careful. He is not worth your life if something goes wrong.”

“What could go wrong, Starlight?” Twilight shot back with a frown. “I am only going to talk to the Tree of Harmony, that’s all. I wish to speak to it and discover what can be done to help Dusk recover. I’m not going there and simply sit and look at it with a hope that it would tell me what I wish.”

“But, it is in the Everfree!” Starlight cried stubbornly.

Twilight grinned at her friend. “Don’t worry,” she said calmly. “I’ll be flying there. Surely I can handle any threat in the sky. I’ll tell you what, though. When I am finished, I will return and sleep here tonight. Is that acceptable, Starlight?”

The other mare nodded, but only just so. She still had her doubts, yet had to accept that Twilight knew what she was doing. “Like I said, Twilight,” Starlight said. “Please be careful.”

Twilight chuckled and swept a wing over Starlight companionably. “I’ll be back before you know it, Starlight,” she reassured her friend and former antagonist. “I should be back before dinner, so we can all sit down and have a nice meal.”

They left Twilight’s room, and Twilight suddenly teleported herself and Starlight outside of the castle. Extending her wings, Twilight grasped Starlight in a hug, then turned and quickly ascended into the air, flying towards the forest outside of Ponyville. With her mind on what she would talk to the Tree about, Twilight winged her way to that large canyon where the Tree stood.

It was rather swift before she spied the canyon not far from the old abandoned castle that stood forlornly within the forest, broken and left to rot. It had been a quick journey to the Tree this way, as she never had to deal with any threat on the ground, which always made the trek not only hazardous, but took up a lot of time having to dispense with any threat, whether from a manticore or a Timberwolf, or some such. In addition, it was long enough that Twilight came to a firm decision.

Softly landing within the canyon with a sigh, Twilight then trotted to the bend where the Tree was. Here she could sense its warmth and friendly feeling, bathed in the light that was both golden and argent at the same time. It remained silent as she approached, yet she could sense that it was watching her, as once she was close enough, she felt a welcoming sensation.

The tree never moved, yet it was ready to hear why she came to it. Twilight reached a point close to it, then sat on her haunches and stared at the magnificent Tree, a crystal tree of silver, filling the nook which the Tree encompassed. The five branches, each ending with large globes, each bearing a cutie mark of her friends, while a sixth globe was astride the trunk amongst the branches and having her cutie mark, all seemingly reach out towards Twilight, yet remained still. The Tree was not just a plant, but a Presence, and the source of all Harmony in the world.

She waited, knowing that her arrival would be met with a greeting from the Tree. And that greeting soon came.

“Ah, Element Bearer, you are welcomed,” spoke a voice seemingly from everywhere about her. It continued with, “You have been expected, Bearer. What would you like to learn from Us?”

A pony figure appeared from behind the Tree and approached with an unblinking gaze, only to stop a few paces away and stood waiting. Twilight stood and faced the avatar, her face set. “Dusk,” she stated flatly. “What and why did you do what you did to him?”

A moment or two of silence, then: “Who?”

“The other me from a different universe,” she said, her tail quivering.

“Ah, yes,” it said without emotion. “The Bearer that unleased the Void beast here. Do not be concerned with it. We will remove it soon. Once that failed Bearer passes, its essence will be used to recreate a better world.”

“No!” Twilight cried, stomping a hoof. “As long as he lives, he is a pony! You cannot simply allow him to die. That is so wrong!”

Another long silence with the ghostly avatar that appears exactly like Twilight staring back, still unblinking. Soon, it spoke again. “Wrong? That one is wrong. It is not worth your time, forget about that one, Bearer. It has at least some use to Us.”

“Dusk is a pony!” Twilight again cried, becoming upset. “I will not let you simply let him live like this until he just ‘passes away’! He has a life! He isn’t something that you can merely use like a puppet! I demand that you allow him to return back to an active life!”

“Calm yourself, Bearer,” the avatar said without moving its mouth. “It is not worth your worry, nor does it belong here. It is a failure, and needs to be removed. Why are you so passionate about keeping that one alive? It is a threat that cannot be allowed to continue.”

Twilight flared her nostrils and stood firm. “Dusk is no threat to you or any other pony like this!” She tried breathing deeply to calm herself. Once she settled, she spoke again. “Dusk is a life. He can be made better, if you let me. Please, I beg, bring him back. He deserves at least some respect. And he didn’t ‘unleash’ that thing. He had it contained until Princess Luna went looking into his memories.”

Once again, silence fell between Twilight and the tree’s avatar. The silence lengthened for several minutes with the only change being that the avatar’s eyes closed, perhaps communicating, but to whom or what, Twilight wasn’t sure. Until:

“No. Bearer. It has been decided. The failed Bearer will pass. Its life is forfeit.”

Anger grew in Twilight, her nostrils again flaring ominously. “Fine,” she spat, only to remove her tiara from her head and drop it between herself and the avatar. “I quit.”

The avatar looked down at the discarded crown, then back to Twilight. “You are the Bearer of Magic,” it said. “You are not permitted to quit.”

“Try me,” she spat back vehemently. “I will not be a party to another pony’s death.”

The avatar merely stared back for a few moments. “You have feelings for the failed Bearer, yes?” it said. And it closed its eyes again, falling silent once more.

Twilight stood unmoving for a short time before having to once again sit on her haunches as the time lengthened while the avatar kept its eyes closed and spoke no further. She still felt her emotions hot, yet as the minutes passed, she seemed unsure what is transpiring. The avatar was still present, yet it was not talking to her.

The sun had moved perceptively before the avatar opened its eyes again and spoke. “You are adamant to have the failed Bearer live, yes?”

“He deserves to live out his life, yes,” she said, regaining her hoofs and nodding. “I will fight for his life, if need be.”

“So be it,” the avatar intoned without emotion. “If you want it to live, you must bear part of its failure. We have a proposal in that regard, Bearer. Your agreement will allow the failed one to remain alive and live out its existence. If you refuse, the failed one passes away.”

“I don’t like the sound of that,” she said with a huff. “However, I will listen to what you are proposing and consider it.”

A root sprang from the ground, and once it broke the surface, a slender branch grew out from the root, only to end with a blue flower, the petals all closed together and intertwined tightly. When the flower was large enough, the Tree spoke.

“This flower will be the key that will allow the failed bearer to return to its universe,” the Tree explained. “However, the flower is not ready to be used. It will only mature once you have done what is needed, Element Bearer Twilight. For the flower to mature, you must cross-pollinate with the failed one and bear its fruit. Only then will the flower bloom, and the gem inside may be plucked and used to recreate a new universe for the failed one to return to. Do you agree to these terms, Element Bearer?”

Twilight’s eyes bugged out with disbelief. “Wait!” she cried, her heart pounding. “Let me get this straight. Are you telling me that in order for Dusk to live again, you want me to — ugh! — have sex with him? And bear his foal?”

“Yes.” The avatar simply stared back at Twilight, still unblinking, patiently awaiting her reply.

Twilight began thinking furiously. It wasn’t about the notion of her and Dusk as lovers. She would have gradually allowed that to perhaps occur. However, this was now being pushed upon her, regardless of her feelings. She was initially wanting to refuse, yet her refusal meant Dusk would die. Trading her sanctity for his life, only to accept having a foal that he may never see nor share in raising, was just too much to fully comprehend, let alone agree.

“May I have some time to think about it?” she asked hopefully. “Like, a day or so?”

“You have all the time you need, Element Bearer, as long as you never depart before giving your answer. We must have your acceptance or denial soon. There is no other option here. Yes, or no.”

Twilight stared at the ground for several moments, considering every option available to her. Yet, the fact remains: she must either have sex with her counterpart, or let him die. And in the end, there truly was no choice. Still, she would not simply lift her tail for him easily. He needed to change before she let him sleep with her. It was months before she would go into heat. which would allow time for him to become a better pony. Time to work on his character. And with help from not just Starlight, but also her friends, and even the princesses, it could be possible.

Twilight sighed and held her head straight, then peered at the ghostly avatar, which was then holding up her crown in its magic, yet still having a blank look. She took the crown in her magic and once again set it upon her head.

“I accept your proposal.”

Author's Note

Well, that happened.