Chapters To Live, Love, and Forgive
"Well I think that's all the time we have for today my little ponies," Cheerilee's soothing voice flowed out of the classroom towards Twilight. "Good work everypony, have a good afternoon and I'll see you tomorrow." Twilight could just feel the smile on Cheerilee's face from those words.
Soon, the air was filled with a clamorous din as the fillies and colts shuffled outside. They left in groups, happily walking and chatting with their friends, Twilight even managed to catch sight of Apple Bloom with her two friends, but they failed to notice her. Most likely they were too engrossed in their next scheme to get their cutie marks. She didn't mind though, she wasn't here to see them.
Behind the last of the students, a lone gray colt stood in the doorway, hesitating as he watched the rest of his classmates walk away. A small smile came to his face as he saw Twilight.
"Hello Sunny, did you learn a lot in school today?" Twilight asked, walking up to young colt.
"Well...something like that," Sunny replied, he eyes flicking towards the ground. "You didn't need to come pick me up though Twilight, I mean, cousin Twilight." He corrected himself.
"You know, you don't need to call me 'cousin.' Just Twilight would be fine," she said to him. Twilight couldn't get over how strange this situation was. She was picking up from school, and advising, a pony that had once been the caretaker of all the souls in Equestria. Her and her friends had used the Elements of Harmony to separate him from the dark world of death in order to give him a chance at life.
Somehow, the elements had transformed him into the colt in front of her, and had taken away almost all of his memories from before. He had no idea the he used to be a part of death, at least...that was what he had told them.
To try and ease him into Ponyville, and to prevent a possible riot, they had decided to introduce him as Twilight's cousin. The last thing they wanted was Sunny being associated with the...attack in Ponyville. The ponies of Ponyville had generally come to accept that the terrible monster that had wandered through the town, actually Sunny in a moment of desperation, had just been a random creature from the Everfree Forest.
Since she was the newest to Ponyville most ponies didn't know about her extended family, and as long as the news stayed out of Canterlot they could keep up the charade. After all, what were the odds of that happening?
"And I was coming here anyway to talk to Cheerilee, so there's no need to embarrassed. Just wait here and I'll be right back." Twilight finished. Sunny nodded and she trotted inside the school building.
Passing by all of the desks Twilight briefly wondered what it would have been like to have gone to school in Ponyville rather than Canterlot. She might have managed to make some friends sooner...but thinking back on her study habits, that was unlikely.
Pushing those random thoughts away Twilight walked up to the teacher's desk. Cheerilee didn't even realize she was there, the purple earth pony was so intent on grading her student's school work.
Twilight stood silent for a few moments before coughing slightly. Startled, the school teacher looked up.
"Oh! Hello Twilight," she greeted happily. "What brings you to the schoolhouse today? Do you need to borrow the chalkboard again?"
"Not today Cheerilee," Twilight shook her head. "I actually wanted to ask how Sunny is doing in your class."
"Your cousin? Hmm, now that is a tough question. I was a little worried that he might need some help catching up when you enrolled in the class last week, but that hasn't been much of a problem. He's doing just fine with math and spelling, it's History that's the problem," Cheerilee replied, absentmindedly arranging the papers on her desk into a neat stack.
"What do you mean?" Twilight asked.
"Well, it's almost like his last teacher had no idea what they were doing. Sunny won't know the first thing about the basic history of Princess Celestia, but he knew ever minor detail that led to one of our obscure treaties with the Griffon Empire. He even corrected me on the proper pronunciation of on of the diplomats names," Cheerilee explained. "It's like...his teacher taught him by opening a history book to a random page every day and only teaching him what was on that page. Do you happen to know who his teacher was?"
"Oh um...well no. I'm afraid his parents didn't give me that much information before they left on their journey around Equestria," the lie came easily to Twilight, though a small part of her worried that Cheerilee might notice. "Was there anything else?"
"There are two more things, I've noticed that Sunny tends to be a bit of a...day dreamer. I'll be giving a lecture and he'll be staring off into nothing. I'll have to stop right in front of his desk before he goes back to paying attention. Also...he's been having some trouble making friends. He's very quiet, and spends most of his free time at his desk," Cheerilee smiled to reassure Twilight. "But I'm sure it's nothing a good talking to from his cousin couldn't fix."
"You're probably right, thanks Cheerilee. Don't work too hard now," Twilight gave her a quick wave and walked away. The friends thing she wasn't overly worried about, it was Sunny's daydreaming. He claimed that all he remembered from 'before' was a few memories of her and her friends, nothing of his time spent in the other world. But sometimes, she would catch him staring off into nothing so intently she would nearly have to shake him to get him out of it. He never said what is was that he saw, it was always that one simple word.
"Nothing..."
She was tempted to press him on the matter, but she figured there was a good reason for his silence.
"I'll try not to. Hope to see you again soon Twilight," Cheerilee called after Twilight, snapping her out of her thoughts.Twilight found Sunny still waiting for her, relaxing against the open doorway.
"C'mon Sunny, lets go home," the colt quickly fell into step beside her.
That had been another problem when Sunny had appeared in front of them, exactly where was he going to live?
Pinkie had been the first to offer up her home, but they had to remind her that it was actually the Cake's house, and it was running rather short on space with the arrival of the twins.
Rarity quickly shook her head, she barely had room to house Sweetie Belle when her parents dropped her off, much less another young pony.
Applejack most certainly had the room at Sweet Apple Acres, but bringing him there would probably mean informing Big Mac, Apple Bloom, and Granny Smith of the real story. While that might go over well, it was safer to keep the number of ponies who knew as low as possible.
Fluttershy said that her cottage might be big enough, but she spent so much time caring for all of her animals, she wasn't sure if Sunny would get all the attention he needed.
Finally, Rainbow Dash lived up in the clouds, hardly a proper place for an earth pony.
The Princess herself had actually stepped forward to bring up the option of housing him up in Canterlot, but Sunny had shied away from that. He explained, in as few words as possible, that he didn't want to leave Twilight and her friends.
Finally, Twilight gave the only logical solution, he could stay with her and spike at the library. There was plenty of room, and books he could read to help him acclimate to life in Ponyville. Plus, though she didn't say this out loud, she was still curious about Sunny. You don't see a pony that had once been Death every day.
Her friends accepted her idea, but not before offering their own modifications.
"Just because you're staying with Twilight doesn't mean you have to spend all day in that stuffy library. I'll make sure you get out of there to have some fun!" Pinkie promised Sunny.
"Yeah, somepony's got to show you what cool is," Rainbow Dash added.
"And I'll always be there for you if you feel overwhelmed Twilight," Rarity said to her friend. "Who know, if I watch Sunny he may be able to entertain Sweetie Belle long enough for me to get some work done." Rarity smiled at her small joke.
"And I bet that Apple Bloom would like a new friend to play with now and again," Applejack joined in.
"Actually, I'm not always busy with animals. If you need me, I can look after Sunny too," Fluttershy finished.
"Wow, thank you everypony!" Twilight beamed at her friends, then turned to Sunny. "Does that sound good to you?" The colt paused for a moment before quickly nodding.
"Well done my little ponies," Celestia told them all. "But Twilight, may I have a word? In private?" Twilight, worried, looked to her friends before walking away from the group.
"What do you need Princess?" she asked once they were far enough away so that nothing could be overheard.
"Since Sunny will be staying here in Ponyville, staying with you specifically, I'm going to need you to keep a close eye on him and to send me a report in case...something happens," Celestia explained to her.
"In case...Princess you don't think that he might..." Twilight realized.
"I would like nothing more than for Sunny to be just a regular pony, but it never hurts to be a little cautious. Just send me a report if things seem...out of the ordinary," Celestia clarified.
"Very well, you have my word Princess," she agreed. Her teacher smiled back at her and together they walked back to her friends.
Time had seemed to move so quickly after that. She brought Sunny back to the library where Spike immediately began questioning her about the new pony. It had taken a while, but eventually she told him the whole story and what the new situation would be. Spike was a little annoyed that he had missed so much, but he took to Sunny very quickly, bringing him several of his favorite books as a 'house warming gift.' Twilight suspected he was happy to finally have another boy to talk to, even if Sunny didn't say all that much in return.
Pulling away from her thoughts, Twilight realized they were nearly back at the library. She opened the door for Sunny and let him head indoors.
"Spike, we're home!" she announced, walking inside. The young dragon was there in a moment, walking down from the second floor to greet them.
"Well hiya Twilight, and hey Sunny, did you have a good time at school today?" he asked them.
"It was nice," Sunny replied. "Ms. Cheerilee is a good teacher." Always so neutral, like he was afraid you might find out what he was thinking.
"Actually, about that. Spike, I'm going to need a book a good or two," Twilight leaned down and whispered the titles into his ear to prevent Sunny from overhearing.
"Sure thing Twilight, your number one assistant will be right back!" he announced, charging off into the library.
"You talked to Cheerilee about me, didn't you?" Sunny asked warily once Spike ran off.
"There's no need to worry Sunny, you're not in trouble," Twilight consoled, though she couldn't help but wonder why he seemed worried. Had he actually done something bad that Cheerilee hadn't noticed? "I just want to-" she paused. She could have sworn she heard something coming this way. Something very fast, and very high pitched...that could only be one thing.
"Heeeeeeeey Sunny!" a pink blur rushed into the library, quickly forming itself into the exuberant form of the earth pony Pinkie Pie. "I heard you were done with that boring school stuff which means it's time for you to have some fun!" With no warning she picked the surprised colt off of the ground and began spinning him around the room.
"Actually Pinkie, I was-" Twilight tried to interrupt, not even bothering to wonder at how Pinkie knew that Sunny was done with school or how she had gotten to the library so fast.
"So what do you say?" Pinkie asked, finally setting Sunny back down. As she did, Twilight was able to notice a silly smile on his face. Maybe it was because Sunny remembered her best, but Pinkie was always the best at getting him to bring out his emotions.
"Well, what kind of fun do you mean?" he replied.
"What else? The best kind of fun, pranks!" Pinkie declared. Sunny stared at her, confused.
"And...what are pranks?" Pinkie could only gasp at his question.
"Well they're fun little tricks! You can play them on your friends, or on ponies you want to be your friends. The most important thing is that they're funny without hurting anypony," Pinkie's gaze slide over to Twilight. "For Twilight a really good prank would be to replace all of the reports she was going to send to Princess with love letters for Prince Blueblood. Like I did a few days ago!" Pinkie's face was all smiles.
"What!" Twilight screamed, running upstairs to where she kept her reports. How many had Pinkie changed? If she was lucky then maybe Spike hadn't sent any of the forgeries...but what if he had? She would have to start a draft right now about how the whole thing was meant as a joke and while she didn't mean the Prince any disrespect personally she-
"And another good prank," Pinkie's voice reached her from the floor below. "Is tricking somepony into thinking you've done something and making them freak out over nothing!" Twilight dropped the scrolls she had pulled from the shelves with a huff. Pinkie had done all this on purpose, she probably even knew she would hear her talking from upstairs. But she had to admit...that was pretty good.
"Good joke Pinkie," Twilight said, a small chuckled escaping her mouth as she walked back down the stairs. "But unfortunately, I was hoping to talk with Sunny for a little while. You'll have to come by later."
"Oh darn it, but hey, that means I have something to look forward to! Seeya later everypony!" Pinkie gave one last ruffle to Sunny's mane before skipping back outside, humming a silly tune.
"I got your books Twilight!" Spike said, walking back into the room. "I didn't miss anything while I was gone, did I?"
"Just Pinkie with her usual Pinkie-ness," Twilight told him, levitating the two books out of his grasp. 'The Proper Guide To Raising Your Foal,' and 'What Not To Do: The Problems All Worried Parents Make.' While Twilight was reasonably sure she could help Sunny without these books, it never hurt to have a reference guide. Setting the books to the side she nestled down in front of Sunny, who's smile quickly faded.
"So you know I spoke to Ms. Cheerilee, she said that you were having some trouble making friends in class," Twilight paused, waiting to see how he would respond.
"It's not that I'm having trouble...it's just that...I haven't really been trying," he admitted slowly before her gaze.
"Well...why not? Don't you want to have friends?"
"Yes, well...I think so. I'm just not sure...how. I have you and Pinkie Pie and everypony else, but that just sort of...happened. I don't know how to make friends with other ponies," Twilight was surprised at how straightforward he was being, he must have been worried about something else.
"It's actually easier than you'd think," Twilight said, remembering her first day in Ponyville. "Just try talking to some of your classmates, I bet you'll end up with friends before you know it." Talking to him, Twilight was reminded of when Sunny had first come to Ponyville, asking her to teach him about friendship. A strange little sense of déjà vu.
"Okay, I can try that," he agreed, then shifted his gaze away. "Is that all?"
"Not yet, Cheerilee also said that you were having trouble paying attention...like you were focused on something else," she continued. Sunny continued to stare at the floor, staying silent. Twilight was temped to ask again when he spoke up.
"Bad dreams," Sunny murmured. "They started a few days ago. I can't remember them...but they scare me. That's why I haven't been very focused..."
"Oh!" Twilight had a good guess on what was causing the bad dreams, his old memories might be bleeding through. Unfortunately, she doubted her books had anything on how to deal with that. "Well you know that Spike or I are always here if you want to talk. You can stay in my room tonight too if you think that might help." She was glad to see him smile at the offer.
"Thanks Twilight...I hope it does help," he accepted.
"Good, and I think that's all I wanted to talk about for now. I think you've earned some fun. You should go find Pinkie Pie at Sugar Cube Corner." She waved a hoof a the door.
"Okay, thanks again Twilight," Sunny quickly headed out the door, leaving Twilight with Spike.
"Spike," she said slowly. "Take a letter, I think the Princess would like to know about these nightmares."
"Um...are you sure Twilight?" Spike hesitated as he pulled out a scroll and pen. "I'm not sure I like sending things about Sunny to the Princess behind his back."
"Well...no, but I promised the Princess I would keep her updated," she looked after the small figure of Sunny vanishing into the distance. "We just have to hope Sunny doesn't find out..."
Life was very odd for Sunny, especially when his first memory was waking up on a hill surrounded by several ponies, all of which he some vague recollections of. All he knew was that he should trust them because they had saved him from...something. Something...terrifying.
All he wanted was to stay with them and be happy. Which was easy enough, especially after he got to move in with Twilight.
But then the nightmares had started.
He hadn't been entirely truthful with Twilight about them...he did remember parts of them. Just occasional flashes really, but that was enough. There was the Princess, thrown away by an unseen force, and then there was Pinkie Pie and her friends. They were staring at something, completely terrified.
He hadn't told her because...he didn't want to this happy life to stop. He knew that he never wanted to find out what that something was.
To Live, Love, and Forgive
The sun was out.
That was a good thing. He didn't know why, but whenever Sunny looked up to see the sun beaming down at him, he knew the day was going to be good.
Of course...the only reason the sun was out was because the pegasus had decided on nice weather for today. He wondered what that would be like, soaring through the air, able to control all of the clouds and weather. He'd have to ask Rainbow Dash the next time he saw her.
But that was enough thinking for now, he had to get to one of his most favorite places in Ponyville, Sugar Cube Corner. It was one of the first places he'd been to in Ponyville, it was where Pinkie had thrown him his first party.
Well, maybe 'party' was too big of a word. It had only been him and the six other ponies. Pinkie had thrown out a few streamers and balloons and put out a small plate of cupcakes for him, it had barely lasted an hour.
He didn't care though, it had been fun, bright and cheerful. It felt right, like it was something he put off for a long time, too long. Plus, it was with Pinkie, and he could never stop himself from wearing a silly smile whenever she was around. It actually embarrassed him a little bit.
And now, whenever Pinkie invited him over to the sweets shop it was to teach him something new about having fun. One day had been on the best way to give hugs, another had been on making cupcakes, which had been his favorite so far. He hadn't been successful at all in following the recipe, but Pinkie had plenty of her own cupcakes left over for him.
Pinkie Pie...she was one of his favorite ponies to be with, but there was always...something about her. She was as nice he could be, all smiles while making sure he had a good time too, but he always got the feeling that she was watching him. Watching...and waiting. It was like she constantly expected something from him, but he had no idea what...
Or maybe he was just overthinking things, that was something he did a lot. Other ponies confused him, he wanted to understand them, but he really didn't know how. He tried doing what he thought Twilight would do, analyze all the available information. He would try to work them out from their words and actions, and while that would give a few pieces of information, he always felt that he was missing something.
Then there were the times his thoughts would go on journeys of their own. When Ms. Cheerilee would start talking about history, sometimes a name would grab his attention. He didn't know why, but he would start to think about that name. Who were they? What had they done? What had life been like for them? As those question went through his mind...he would suddenly know the answers! Information would flood his head, their history, their family, exactly what they had done. It was almost too much to bear, and if he wasn't careful he would end up blurting out random facts. Luckily, if he was able to keep control long enough, the thoughts would leave his head, draining out and leaving only a few brief recollections.
With all that, and his nightmares, Sunny was surprised he could pay attention at all in school.
"Excuse me," a voice shocked Sunny out of his musings. He'd been so caught up in himself he'd almost run into another pony.
"Oh, I'm sorry!" he quickly apologized, shaking his head and continuing down the street. He really needed to pay more attention, just like Pinkie had told him before their first lesson. A 'precaution' against living with Twilight.
"Less thinking, more fun!"
"Hello?" Sunny asked, gingerly stepping into Sugarcube Corner.
"Oh hello Sunny," Mr. Cake greeted from the front counter. Sunny like the Cakes, no matter how bogged down they were with orders or the twins they would always find time to give him a kind word or two. "Does Pinkie Pie have another of her lessons for you today?"
"Yes, she said today's going to be about pranks," Mr. Cake's eyes widened slightly.
"Well okay...but can you promise to to keep the lesson outside of the store? Mrs. Cake just put the twins down for their afternoon nap, which means that she just laid down for a nap too," he asked.
"I promise," Sunny agreed. The last thing he wanted would be to upset them.
"Good, I'll go get Pinkie for you then," Mr. Cake headed upstairs. "Oh Pinkie, Sunny's waiting for you downstairs." He called softly into the hallway. In a second Pinkie had rushed down the stairs, though without her usual extravagance. Even she knew that interrupting the twins nap would be a bad decision.
"C'mon Sunny, let's get started!" Sunny was only able to get in a quick nod before she dragged him outside. Eagerly, he followed as she led him outside to a small field where she sat him down and struck an imposing stance in front of him.
"Now, I'm sure you remember the basics of pranking from earlier. Do you have any questions?" she asked in a manner eerily reminding him of Ms. Cheerilee.
"Well...earlier you said it was important that nopony got hurt. How do you know which ponies will get hurt? Who are the right ponies to prank?" Pinkie rubbed her chin, thoughtful.
"Hmm...well try to go for the tough ponies, like Rainbow Dash or Applejack. They're some of the toughest ponies I know! A bad choice would be Fluttershy or maybe Lilly. They might take it too seriously, and if that happened that it's just not fun anymore, for us or them," Pinkie explained. She obviously relished being a teacher.
"Why is it so important that the prank's fun for them too?" Sunny asked.
"Because it has to be! You don't do pranks just for yourself, you do them for the other ponies!" she motioned for Sunny to follow her. "That's why today, we're going to Sweet Apple Acres." She walked off again, Sunny quickly following.
"Did you know that I used to live on a farm? It was a big rock farm where I worked by my mom, dad, and sister. It was really tough work that got super boring sometimes," Pinkie said, seemingly at random. "I bet that harvesting apples is more fun than getting rocks, but Applejack spends so much of her time working, she needs to take a break and have some fun! She'd never admit it, but that's why she's got Pinkie pie!"
"So, we're going to prank Applejack?" he guess.
"You got it! And you're an integral part of the plan!" Pinkie's silly grin grew wider.
"Hello Applejack," he said, walking up to the orange earth pony. It looked like she had just finished a long day of harvesting apples, several carts were filled to the brim behind her with the ripe fruit. Applejack paused as she noticed him.
"Well hey there little guy, what brings you 'round these parts?" she asked. "Did Apple Bloom invite you down here?" This would be his first time visiting Sweet Apple Acres, but Pinkie had made sure he would have a suitable explanation.
"No, me and Apple Bloom don't really talk much at school," he admitted, but that wasn't part of the explanation. He needed to stick to plan, he would hate if he disappointed Pinkie by ruining the prank. "I just thought it would be nice to see you, Pinkie's always saying that I can't spend all my time in the library." He did like seeing Applejack, she never seemed to hide anything from anypony. But sometimes he wondered if that just meant she was better at hiding things than everypony else.
"That's a good lesson to learn. I'm all fer sitting down with a good book now and again, but there's nothing that can match goin' out to experience the world first hoof," Applejack nodded. "You fittin' into life in Ponyville all right so far?" She started forward again towards the barn. That was fine, as long as she kept her attention on him.
"It's...okay," he replied. "School has been good so far, but I haven't really made any friends yet."
"No friends? Well that's no good, every little colt and filly should have some friends. You especially," he wondered what Applejack meant by that last comment, but a loud rumble from his stomach interrupted his thoughts.
"Sounds like another thing yah need is a snack," Apple observed with a laugh. "Here, why don't you help yourself to an...apple?" As she turned to grab one of the fruits she was greeted by a view of her carts filled, not with apples, but with pears.
"Wha...buh...how'd yah," Applejack could only stammer. With a giggle, Pinkie burst out of the leaves of a nearby apple tree, hanging upside-down as she chewed triumphantly on an apple.
"Got'cha!" Pinkie declared before descending into another fit of laughter. Face with such a silly sight, Applejack couldn't help but join in. Sunny found himself laughing too. Pinkie had been right, a good prank brought fun to everypony.
"You know, one day I'm gonna get yah back for all these pranks Pinkie," Applejack said once she had control over her laughter. "Or at least find out how you manage to pull them off so quickly."
"Ooh! That would be great! If you did than you'd be the best pranker in Ponyville!" Pinkie replied, dropping out of the tree. "Sometimes I'm not sure how I can do all these pranks."
"Well do yah at least know what happened to my apples?" Applejack asked.
"Where else? I put them in the trees!" Pinkie shook the tree she just jumped out of and a cascade of apples rained down, quickly filling up the empty baskets below it.
"Of course yah did," Applejack sighed, though the smile remained on her face. "Well how 'bout you help bring those, and these pears, to the barn? You mind giving us some help Sunny?"
"Sure!" Sunny agreed, going over to one of the buckets and grabbing the handle with his mouth. He hoisted the bucket up, nearly stumbling from the weight, but he managed to right himself. Together, they all set off for the barn, Pinkie happily hopping in front of them, somehow managing to balance the two baskets on her side and a third one on top of her head.
Stepping inside the large barn they gently set down the gathered fruit. Applejack looked like she was about to thank them when a fourth pony rushed in.
"Applejack, Applejack! Quick, ah need a map, some snacks, an' twenty feet of rope. No time for questions!" Sunny recognized her from school. Her coat, mane, and accent were unmistakeable. She had to be Apple Bloom.
"Woah there, anything you don't want me to know about is probably gonna lead to a heap of trouble," Applejack replied, raising one of her eyebrows at her sister. "Is this another of your crusading adventures?"
"What? No..." Applejack continued to stare down at her little sister. "Well...not yet. We're just planning out our next idea fer our cutie marks. Scootaloo said we should try being Cutie Mark Crusader Explorers, and she said that one thing every adventurer needs is lots'a rope." She admitted.
"And where exactly where yah planning to go exploring?" Applejack continued.
"The...Everfree Forest. But we were gonna be super careful about it, an' we were gonna talk to Zecora first so we knew the safest places to go," Apple Bloom's eyes slid away from her sister and landed on Sunny. "Hey, I know you! You're that new pony from school!"
Sunny guessed Apple Bloom was glad there was a reason to change topics and distract her older sister.
"Oh, you know him! That's great!" exclaimed Pinkie Pie. "You just missed a great prank you know! You should've seen it, he helped me replace all of your sister's apples with pears, it was the best!"
"Yeah, it was a good one. But..." Applejack paused for a moment, thinking. "How about you bring him along to your clubhouse? I think it'd be mighty swell for him to meet Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, and maybe he could talk some sense into y'all about this silly adventure of yours." Applejack was not so easily distracted.
"Well...okay," the filly agreed. "But can I at least get some rope?"
"Fine, but I want all of this rope back y'hear?" Applejack grabbed a coil off a nail and threw it at her sister, easily settling around her neck.
"Thanks sis!" Apple Bloom turned back to him. "C'mon Sunny, the others are waiting at the clubhouse." She happily trotted outside and with one wary look back at Pinkie, followed after.
"Bye Sunny! Have fun and don't cause too much trouble," Pinkie waved after him.
"Now why'd yah have to go and say that Pinkie? Haven't you ever heard of jinxes?" he heard Applejack ask.
"Of course! You don't want the day to be boring do you?" Pinkie Pie's reply was the last thing he heard before he and Apple Bloom stepped into the thick groves of apple trees.
"So...yer living with Twilight and Spike in the library aren't you?" Apple Bloom asked, breaking the silence between them.
"Yup," he answered.
"Is that how you know all those fancy history facts? I think even Ms. Cheerilee was surprised you knew so much," he was surprised she had even noticed.
"Something like that," Sunny replied, thought he wished he could think of something more to say.
"Do you know my brother Big Mac? You kinda talk like him," Apple Bloom observed. Sunny wasn't sure how he was meant to reply to that. Twilight had said the easiest way to make friends was to talk to other ponies. well he was finally talking to one, and he had no idea what to say!
"What are the Cutie Mark Crusaders?" he blurted out, recalling what Apple Bloom had said earlier.
"Oh! Well the Crusaders are a group of me, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. We're on a quest to discover our special talents an' get out cutie marks," she explained, obviously proud of their group. "We've tried almost everything to find our special talent, so we have to be gettin' close. Do you have any idea about what your special talent might be?"
His special talent...he'd never wondered about that before. Of course, maybe his special talent was just thinking...but he had no idea what that cutie mark would look like. He shook his head no.
"Have you even been to the Everfree Forest before?" he asked.
"Just once. We were chasing after one of Fluttershy's chickens and ran right into a cockatrice! Luckily Fluttershy was there to save us. That's why we only go straight to Zecora's now if we ever enter the forest, it's the safest route," Apple Bloom said.
"Wow..." Sunny said with wonder. What would it be like to go into the Everfree Forest? He knew a little about it, mostly through warnings from Twilight and her friends to never go in there. The Cutie Mark crusaders must be the bravest ponies in Ponyville!
"Um...who's Zecora?" he asked after another moment of silence. "I didn't know a pony lived in the forest."
"Well that's cause she's a zebra silly," Apple Bloom laughed. "She knows all kinds of mystic stuff, stuff even Twilight doesn't know about. She gathers a lot of herbs for her potions from the forest, that's why she live there. But I think she sometimes gets lonely out there, so I try to go visit her whenever I can."
And they knew a zebra? Sunny wondered just what else the Cutie Mark Crusaders had accomplished. The more he learned, the more amazing they sounded.
"An' right here's the clubhouse," Apple Bloom announced, pointing towards a clubhouse built into into a massive apple tree. She headed up the walkway towards the front door, boldly stepping inside. "I'm back, and I got the rope."
"I still don't know why we need so much rope," a lighter voice replied. Sunny still stood outside, unsure about following Apple Bloom inside. What would Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle think of him, what if they didn't like him?
"Ugh, haven't you read any of the Daring Do books?" an annoyed, slightly gruffer voice answered. "What if we find a maze and don't want to get lost, or a big hole in the ground we need to go down, or a cliff to repel down? Or what if a big nasty monster attacks us and we need to capture it? Rope! The answer is always rope!"
"Okay Scootaloo, we get it," Apple Bloom tried to calm the loud filly down. "We're lucky I was able to get any rope. If Sunny hadn't been there ah..." Apple Bloom stuck her head out the door and saw Sunny waiting outside.
"Well what're you doing out there? C'mon inside!" she called. Sunny quickly walking inside, keeping his head low. "Everypony, this is Sunny. Applejack said we should try to bring him along."
"Really? Well it's nice to meet you! I'm Sweetie Belle," the white unicorn filly greeted with a wave and smile.
"Woah woah woah," a young pegasus mare interrupted, getting right into Sunny's face. Probably Scootaloo, the back of his mind guessed as he tried to figure how he was supposed to respond. "When did we start taking in new members into our group? How do we even know he's Crusader material?"
"Well, he doesn't have a cutie mark," Sweetie Belle pointed out.
"I mean what else? Like for when we go into the Everfree Forest, do you know anything about adventuring or exploring?" Scootaloo questioned. Sunny found himself taking a few steps backwards.
"Um, Scootaloo? We don't know that much about adventuring or exploring either," Apple Bloom said. Sunny was happy to hear her trying to support him.
"Well...yeah. But that's why we need all the help we can get," Scootaloo replied, backing off a little from Sunny.
"Actually, Sunny lives with Twilight in the library. He might know some things about the forest or the creatures that live there," Apple Bloom said.
"That's great! What do you know about forest? Do you know the best way to fight off timber wolves or manticores?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Do you anything about its history?"
History...that was word that made him think. Before he had a chance to control himself, he had already started talking.
"It is home to the ruins of the castle of the royal pony sisters, where the Elements of Harmony were used to banish Nightmare Moon, and then to purify and return her to Princess Luna a thousand years later," the Elements...those were important to him, but he wasn't sure why. "Ponies once lived in the forest in small villages. The woods have been out of control of the weather ponies for even longer. Ever since...ever since." The information just...stopped and his mouth closed, leaving him standing awkwardly before the three fillies.
"See?" Apple Bloom finally spoke. "Sunny knows lots'a stuff."
"Well that's obvious," agreed Scootaloo. "How'd you even manage to memorize all of that stuff? I can barely pay attention once Ms. Cheerilee starts talking about history."
"So...can he be a Crusader?" Sweetie Belle asked hesitantly.
"Hmm...okay. Welcome aboard Sunny, you're an honorary Crusader," Scootaloo held out a hoof. Sunny stared for a moment before he realized he was supposed to shake it. Quickly, he complied.
"Well now that that's out of the way, are we gonna plan out any more of our adventure tomorrow?" Apple Bloom said.
"Aww come on, we already spent so much time on that. We've got the rope, and once we see Zecora tomorrow we'll have everything we need. Let's take a break and do something fun!" Scootaloo replied.
"Yeah! How about we play with that new ball Twilight got for us?" Sweeite Belle offered.
"That sounds like fun!" Apple Bloom agreed. "C'mon Scootaloo, c'mon Sunny." She called before heading outside. Scootaloo quickly followed with Sunny close behind. He wondered what kind of game they would play, and if he would be any good at it. What if he messed up and broke their ball? What if he...
"Less thinking, more fun!" Pinkie's voice yelled in his mind. He needed to remember that, had to remember that. Shaking his head, he followed after his new friends.
"Twilight? I'm back," he called as he opened the door to the library.
"Sunny, you're home late," Twilight was waiting for him in the entryway, a large book open next to her, as always. "Did you lose track of time with your new friends?" She was right, time had passed so much more quickly than he'd expected. By the time he and the crusaders had realized how long it had been, the sun had almost dropped below the horizon.
"Sorry Twilight," he apologized, hoping she wasn't disappointed at him.
"Oh, I'm not upset Sunny, it's just something you need to be aware of next time. If you lose track of time too much all your schedules are ruined!" she told him, but Sunny really didn't know what she was talking about. "Well...I guess you don't have to worry about those things yet. How about you head upstairs and get some sleep? I already moved your bed up there earlier today."
"Really? Thanks Twilight!" he had almost forgotten about that promise, but the chance for a night with no nightmares would be the perfect way to end the day. He trotted over to the bedrooms area, closing the door behind him and walking up the stairs. He saw that his bed was nestled next to Twilight's.
A great yawn escape from his mouth, he really was tired, but there was one thing he had to do before he went to sleep. He stuck a hoof under his pillow and pulled out what was hidden underneath, a small blue stone. He had asked Twilight to enchant it and a soft light now emanated from it.
It was his night light, and even with his eyes closed he could feel its light. He didn't like the dark...the dark was lonely...
He crawled into his bed, keeping a tight grip on his stone. His heavy eyelids closed.
He hated being lonely...it scared him.
He didn't want to be lonely...
Not again....
To Live, Love, and Forgive
Where are you running?
Sunny's hooves pounded into the ground, pushing him forward, pushing him away. His chest burned with pain as he gasped for air, but he couldn't stop, couldn't hesitate, not even for a moment.
Where are you running?
The voice haunted him, asking the same question over and over. He didn't answer, never had the breath to answer. All he could do was run in the suffocating darkness. Run towards...towards...
Where?
Away! Sunny screamed in his head. Away from this lonely darkness, away from you!
You don't even understand what you're running from. You can't even see...
He didn't want to see, didn't want to be here any longer. He didn't care if he didn't understand what he was running from, all he understood was that it was...wrong, and that was enough for him. He kept running.
You need to see, you need to open your eyes...
The voice in the dark was louder now, and closer...in front of him! He turned to run away, when he felt the ground fall away from underneath him. He fell into the shadows, and he didn't even have the breath to scream...
With a jolt, Sunny's eyes snapped open and he found himself nestled safely in his bed. His hooves were still tightly gripped around his glowing stone. Seeing its gentle light helped soothe his rapid breathing.
Everything was fine, it was just a bad dream, everypony gets them...right? He couldn't be the only colt with dreams of being chased through darkness by...something. He wasn't the only colt with dreams that sometimes felt like old memories, memories he would give anything to forget entirely....
Just don't think about it, don't worry about it. They'll have to stop eventually...
Sunny rolled over to see out of the window, it looked like the sun hadn't even started to rise. He thought about trying to get a bit more sleep, but knew it was useless. Going back to sleep might mean dreaming again, and he didn't want to risk that. Slowly, he pulled himself out of bed, making sure to store the stone beneath his pillow, and observed the quiet forms of Twilight and Spike in their own beds.
He wondered again if he should tell Twilight the truth about his dreams...but a part of him, deep down, knew that was a bad idea. He stepped away from the bed and headed downstairs. Maybe he could find a few books to help pass the time before school started. Maybe a few adventure books...yeah...those were always fun. Plenty of action to help distract his mind.
He quickly gathered a small stack of books, mainly Daring Do books, and had settled down in the kitchen when a noise grabbed his attention. Looking up, Spike walked into the room, pausing as his gaze met Sunny's. The two of them stared at each other for a few moments.
"Uh, morning Sunny, why are you up so early?" Spike finally asked, breaking eye contact and heading for the fridge.
"I thought I would do some reading before school," Sunny replied, partially true. "I didn't wake you did I?"
"What? Nah, don't worry about that. I figured I'd get an early start on today's breakfast. It's the most important meal of the day, you know?" after rummaging for a moment he pulled out a random assortment of food from the fridge, precariously perched on his small arms. "Do you want anything?"
"No, I'm not hungry," Sunny said before going back to his book.
"Hmm..." Spike pondered. "You aren't awake just for the books are you? Was it the bad dreams again?" he asked.
"How did you-?" Sunny started to ask.
"Hey, I've been Twilight's personal assistant for almost as long as I can remember. You don't come away from that without learning a few things," he replied, a bit smug, but his expression quickly softened. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not really," Sunny admitted. "I mean...they're only dreams after all."
"Yeah..." Spike paused, a sandwich halfway to his mouth. "But still, bad dreams have a way of getting under your skin. Just...don't get too caught up in then, you know? Me and Twilight are always here if you want to talk about it."
"I know...thanks Spike," to talk would mean to admit it was a problem, and it wasn't. Just don't think about it....
He returned to his book while Spike gave him one last glance before digging in to his breakfast.
Another day in school, luckily today was focused more on mathematics, something he could think about without any problems. Cheerilee had just announced recess, but Sunny had stayed at his desk, puzzling over a few problems Ms. Cheerilee had assigned. He considered going to talk to Apple Bloom...but he had spent so much time with her yesterday, he didn't want to take the chance of annoying her.
"Psst," he heard someone whisper to his side, probably Silver Spoon trying to get the attention of Diamond Tiara. He ignored it and focused on the work in front of him.
"Psst," there it was again, he wondered what was so important. Maybe the two of them were throwing a party, but it wasn't really his business, back to work.
"Sunny!" he jumped in his seat and turned to see Apple Bloom standing next to him. "Sheesh, I never thought a pony could find math so interestin'. Are yah ready to go to Zecora's after school?"
"To try and get cuties marks in exploring?" he replied. He hadn't been sure the group would go through with it, especially after Applejack had scolded the idea.
"A'course, but we have to make sure mah sister doesn't find out," Apple Bloom explained. "Jus' tell Twilight we're gonna be at Sweetie Belle's house and then meet us at the entrance to the forest, got it?"
"Yeah," Sunny agreed, nodding at her. A surge of excitement flared up in his chest, he was going exploring in the Everfree Forest! But...he'd have to lie to Twilight to do it...
Well, it was just a small lie, and he'd be with the Crusaders! They were the toughest ponies around, nothing bad could happen while he was with them.
"Okay, I'll see you there with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. An' remember, ixnay on the lettin' mah sister find out about this...ay," Apple Bloom paused awkwardly and then walked away.
Well now all he had to do was wait for school to get out...
Sunny didn't understand why Ms. Cheerilee had taken that moment to start teaching everything so slowly. It had felt like years had passed by the time she had let them all trot out of the school doorway.
Free of the room, he had run off to the library as fast as his hooves could carry him. He stuck his head into the house, quickly telling Twilight what he was doing, and ran back off before she had a chance to respond.
Now he was headed for the forest, already imagining the amazing thing he might discover within there with the Crusaders. Still, he made sure to stay off of the main roads, if somepony saw him walking towards the woods they might tell Twilight who might tell Applejack, and then the whole adventure would be ruined!
Finally, he arrived at the edge of the woods, appreciating the coolness that the shade of the trees provided. Following the treeline he was soon able to hear the Crusaders.
"Okay!" announced the tough voice of Scootaloo. "Do we have rope?"
"Check!" he heard Sweetie Belle say.
"Snacks?"
"I got some apples from the farm," moving forward he was able to see the three fillies.
"And our Crusader cloaks?"
"Check!" they all agreed at once.
"So I guess we're ready..."
"Cutie Mark Crusader Explorers! YAY!" Sunny was almost driven back as the group yelled as loud as they could. Clearly, they weren't as worried about stealth as he was.
"Um, hello everypony," he greeted, walking closer towards the group.
"Hello Sunny!" Sweetie Belle asked. "Are you ready to go exploring?"
"And go into dark scary caves and face the most dreadful of Equestria's monster?" Scootaloo added, a gleam of anticipation in her eyes.
"Uh...something like that," Sunny replied.
"Well that's good enough," Apple Bloom accepted. "Now c'mon, we better get to Zecora's soon." The group of fillies started into the forest, Sunny himself walking alongside Apple Bloom.
"Oh yeah! Here you go Sunny, some rope, this way we all have some," Apple Bloom pulled out a short coil of rope from her saddlebag and passed it to Sunny. He grabbed the rope and quickly stored it in his own saddlebag...well, one of Twilight's older saddlebags. The clasp on it was still shaped after Twilight's cutie mark, but he didn't mind, nopony had ever made fun of him because of it.
Under the trees, he was surprised as how darker the world appeared, if he didn't know better Sunny would have guessed int was near nighttime, rather than mid-afternoon. Also, everything seemed...quiet, like the the world was holding its breath in anticipation.
"So...is there anything else in the forest to worry about besides the monsters?" he asked in an attempt to break the silence.
"Well there's quicksand and mosquitoes and thorns and sharp rocks," Sweetie Belle started to list off.
"An' don't forget about the poison joke," she turned to Sunny. "It's a bright blue flower that grows in big patches. Whatever you do, don't touch it. It's all weird and magicky. It could turn yer coat bright pink or shrink you down to half yer size, anythin' that's sure to get other ponies to laugh at you." Apple Bloom explained, and Sunny quickly found himself scanning for any flower that could be remotely described as 'blue.'
"Just don't worry about it Sunny, if you spend this whole trip being afraid we won't get any exploring done," Scootaloo chided.
"I'm not afraid, I'm just...cautious," Sunny muttered, but Scootaloo didn't seem to notice. The group of them continued to follow the path and soon Sunny spied a massive tree with a door set into the front of it. Strange ornaments hung from its many branches, swaying in the gentle breeze. The whole thing looked rather...ominous.
Undaunted, Apple Bloom waked up and knocked at the door. In a moment, the door swung inwards to reveal a surprised looking zebra staring down at them.
"It is good to see you little Apple Bloom," Zecora said. "But I did not expect to see you this afternoon."
"Well me an' the Crusaders wanted to get our cutie marks for exploring, we thought, since yah live out here, you could help us," she explained.
"To help with that task I surely could," Zecora looked over Apple Bloom's shoulder. "But who is this new pony you bring into the wood?"
"That's Sunny, he's Twilight's cousin and we're helping him find his cutie mark too," Sweetie Belle said. Zecora continued to stare at him, her gaze strange and...powerful.
"You have seen much, haven't you Sunny? You've many stories to tell, and I doubt they are funny," the zebra observed before shrugging and looking back to the crusaders. "While I can help you explore this wooded zone, I believe your talents lie closer to home."
"Please Zecora? We went through so much work to get ready for this, couldn't you just give us a tiny bit of help?" Scootaloo asked, staring at her with pleading eyes.
"If I say I no, you will continue anyway. I will help you but listen close to what I say," Zecora leaned down and intensified her gaze. "As the woods go deeper the dangers grow stronger. You must stay close to me or you may not be around much longer. Stay close and stay silent is what I ask of you, you must swear to me that what I have said, you will do." The four young ponies back away slightly, cowed by Zecora's serious tone.
"We swear," they all said in unison.
"Good, this is not something at at which you should scoff," Zecora's mood brightened immediately. "Let me gather a few things and we will be off." She stepped back into her hut, grabbing a large empty bag and a scroll of paper, probably a map, Sunny guessed, before joining them back outside. She started off down the trail without a word while Sunny and the crusaders quickly followed.
Trotting behind the strange zebra, Sunny began to question exactly what he had gotten himself into.
"While the forest is not completely safe in the light, the real dangers come out at night," Zecora narrated quietly as she led them along. "Many creatures come out of their dens, for they can see you, while you can't see them." Sunny was starting to suspect Zecora was deliberately trying to frighten them, but he wasn't sure. He felt that there was some truth in everything she was telling them.
Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle were completely enraptured by the zebra, hanging on to her every word. Where exactly was Zecora going to take them? Was it going to be a-
What was that noise?
Sunny stopped immediately and began looking around. He could have sworn that he'd heard a rustling noise very close by, but he couldn't see anything. The rest of the group quickly noticed and turned to face him.
"What is it?" Sweetie Belle whispered, glancing around. "Did you see something?"
"Was it a...a monster?" Scootaloo guessed, sound just a little bit excited.
"I don't know," Sunny replied. "Just...though I heard something."
"Well then stay close now little ponies, you don't want to be caught by those hiding among the trees," Zecora said with dark chuckle. The four of them quickly obeyed, circling around her, though Sunny still found himself glancing into the thick forest. He knew there was...something nearby. He focused his ears, just in case there was something to hear...
He was falling behind, but not that far, nothing to worry about...
There it was again, fainter now, but it was there. Close...very close. He steps slowed and he fell further, but he was still close, close enough to the group. No need to worry...
The noise...so near he would guess that it was...
Right next to him!
He turned his head and saw that his bag was open, and snaking out of it, was his rope! He tried to shout, to do something to grab his friend's attention, but it was too late, the rope was too fast. It wrapped over his mouth, snapping it shut before any noise could escape.
He tried to run to run, to catch up to the group, but the rope seemed to sense what he was thinking. His front legs were immediately tied together, sending him crashing to the ground. His back legs quickly followed, leaving him helped less on the forest path. Then, the rope began to drag Sunny away, towards the trees.
He tried everything he could, struggling beneath the rope, trying to scream through his gag. Surely one of his friends would turn around, would notice him.
They'd all run over, free him from the possessed rope, and everything would be good again. Any moment, they would have to see, why couldn't they see?
He was pulled further and further, until he could no longer see the path, only the trees and their thick foliage. The plants blocked nearly all of the afternoon light, Sunny couldn't see a thing. Still he didn't stop moving, the rope continued to pull, eventually dropping him down in what felt like a soft patch of grass. Terrified, he tried to turn his head, tried to see just who, or what, had taken him here.
"I've got you..it's okay..." a voice reached his ears, a voice he didn't recognize. "Everything's going to be okay again..." he heard hoofsteps, they were walking towards him. What was happening? What were they going to do to him? Why was this happening to him?
Something tapped against his forehead, and everything went silent. Silent...and completely black.
He was alone.
"Hey...where did Sunny go?" Apple Bloom asked quietly. She could've sworn he'd been right next to her a second ago, how could she had missed him moving away?
"He's right...here..." Sweetie Belle turned her gaze and just seemed to notice that Sunny was no longer among them. Zecora, hearing them, stopped and turned, obviously worried.
"Sunny, please come back if you are near! Let us know there is nothing to fear!" Zecora called into the dim lighting of the woods, but there was no response.
"Sunny, you can stop hiding now, this isn't very funny!" Scootaloo yelled, warily watching the foliage for any sign of movement.
"Ah don't think Sunny is the type of pony to make a joke like this..." Apple Bloom said. "He probably just got...lost or somethin.' Isn't that right Zecora?"
"While I wish that that was true, I cannot bring myself to agree with you," Zecora replied, doing little to lighten the mood. "We must continue to search these woods, but we may need help before he is lost for good. Strong and fast, Apple Bloom and Scoot, from the town bring all the ponies you can recruit." She ordered the two fillies, who only nodded.
"And what about me?" Sweetie Belle asked.
"Your eyes will join mine as we look though the wood. To start searching now would truly be good," she explained.
"Okay Zecora, you can count on us, come on Apple Bloom!" Scootaloo promised.
"Sure thing Scootaloo. Be careful Sweetie Belle, we'll be back as soon as we can, I promise!" Apple Bloom told her friend before charging off down the path, straight towards Ponyville.
Just what was going on? Where had Sunny disappeared to?
And worst of all...what was her big sister gonna do when she found out what happened?
Shadows...it was a world of nothing but shadows...
But that didn't make any sense, for there to be shadows there had to be light, there was no light here...
Wait, there was something, a small light in their arms. They looked down, and held in their arms were tiny orbs of light. The lights almost seemed to dance in their grip. The orbs were beautiful, happy, they wanted to hold on to their radiance forever.
But that wasn't allowed, the lights were not meant to remain here, remain with them. They released their grip, letting the lights flow onward, and letting the shadows fade into blackness.
They were alone now, alone until their next chance to experience something...more...
"Twilight! Twilight!" Spike loud voice woke Twilight from her nap. Groggily, she was surprised that she had managed to doze off over one of her books...
And that dream of hers, something about it had been...hauntingly familiar. She could swear she had seen that place before, if she could just have a moment to focus she could...
"Twilight!" Spike called again, breaking her concentration. He ran up next to her and Twilight noticed that Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were close behind him.
"I was going over to Rarity's when I ran into them-" Spike started.
"We were exploring the Everfree Forest with Zecora-" Scootaloo continued.
"Please don't tell Applejack! We just wanted to get out cutie marks," Apple Bloom begged.
"Zeocra said they needed as many ponies as we could find to help-"
"I'm pretty sure there were monsters everywhere and-"
"I though we were all gonna be safe with Zecora but-"
"Everypony, stop!" Twilight finally shouted, making all three of them quickly close their mouths. "I can't focus with all of you talking at once. Now, Apple Bloom, start at the beginning." she ordered. Apple Bloom looked around for a moment, nervous, before letting out a sigh.
"Well ah guess you could say it all started yesterday..." she quickly explained the story, looking even more nervous as she explained what had happened in the Forest. It didn't help that Scootaloo kept jumping in to explain just how creepy and dangerous the woods were. Finally, as Apple Bloom finished, Spike started talking.
"I ran into them coming out of the woods, they told me what happened so I brought them to you right away," he said.
"Good job Spike, using my magic, finding Sunny should be no problem at all," Twilight stood up, shaking away her drowsiness. "But just in case, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, go and gather up Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Dash. With all of us together we'll be able to fund Sunny even without my magic."
"Right, I'll get Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, Apple Bloom, you get your sister and the others. We'll meet you back at the forest!" Scootaloo declared, quickly running back out of the library.
"I'm so sorry this happened Twilight, but ah promise we'll find Sunny!" Apple Bloom said before running after Scootaloo.
"Okay, Spike, you're coming with me. We need to get to Zecora as soon as possible," Twilight said, heading for the front door herself.
"Okay, but don't you think we should send a letter to the Princess?" Spike asked.
"No, this is just a lost pony, nothing to worry the Princess about. Nothing to worry about at all..." she trailed off before walking out the library, Spike following behind.
Twilight broke into a run, heading directly for the woods. She wanted to believe, really wanted to, that Sunny had simply gotten lost while exploring. But, given who he was, or rather, what he had been, that was unlikely. This whole situation just seemed...wrong. Traveling in the forest, with Zecora as a guide, shouldn't have been dangerous at all...
She silently wished that Sunny was safe.
Sunny opened his eyes, and it was still dark. It was dark, and he was alone.
Sunny reached out, searching for his light stone, when he remembered. He wasn't safe back in the library, he was lost in the Everfree Forest!
The darkness seemed to grow with the realization, growing heavier, choking him. He needed something, something to drive the shadows away, something to prove that he wasn't alone out here!
His hooves scrambled across the ground desperately looking for something, pulling himself across the grass. He had made it a few feet when he heard something nearby. It was a tearing noise, tearing, and muttering.
"Stupid mark, doesn't mean anything, thought she was so great, but she was nothing," somepony was muttering to themselves...it sounded like a mare. Sunny stood up and inched toward the voice. "Just need a little more time, and then we'll show her, we'll show everypony. All we need is that colt..."
His eyes began to adjust to the darkness and he was able to make out the shape of a unicorn ripping something apart with their hooves.
Was that his...saddlebag? Why was she doing that?
Sunny wasn't sure if he should move any closer, but the unicorn was the only pony around, he didn't think he would be able to find his way out of the woods on his own.
"Uh...hello?" he said, walking up to the pony. "Who are you? Can you help me?" Her head snapped to face him, her horn igniting in a blaze of light, illuminating the area. She was a blue unicorn with a startling white mane. The expression on her face was nothing short of commanding.
"You dare ask who I am? Who else could I be? I am Trixie! The Great and Powerful!" she glared down at him. "And you are the one who's going to help me."
To Live, Love, and Forgive
"W-what do you mean?" Sunny asked, taking a step backwards. Trixie did not allow him to gain any distance, quickly walking towards him. "What are you going to do to me?"
"Me? Trixie will do nothing to you, as long as you do as Trixie says," her eyes narrowed, as if daring him to disagree with her. "And right now, Trixie wished for you to follow alongside her." She motioned with her glowing horn, waiting for him to start walking. Sunny stood silent for a moment, he bet that if he started running now, he might be able to get away before Trixie grabbed him with her magic. But all that would lead to would be him, still lost in the forest, and completely alone. Traveling with Trixie at least meant some safety...right?
At least...that's what he could hope for. Sunny quickly fell into step beside her, and together, they started to make their way through the quiet woods.
Sunny couldn't help but watch Trixie as they walked. She followed no definite path, going straight at one moment, then swiveling around at certain plants, sometimes even stopping completely, just to mutter to herself. She kept her voice low, but Sunny still caught a few of the words.
"Right, yes? It has to be...just get him there...no more...no more..." Sunny had no idea what the words meant, and he guessed that asking her about them was not a good idea.
The talking wasn't the only thing he noticed about her. Her mane and coat were in taters. He hadn't seen it before, but as his eyes adjusted to the low light from her horn he saw just how desolate she appeared. Thorns and burrs were scattered through her fur, and she seemed skinny, skinnier than any pony he'd seen before. Under her eyes, there were bags that seemed so deep it looked like it had been weeks since she'd had a good night's sleep, or any sleep at all. Trixie looked so haggard that soon Sunny's curiosity got the better of him.
"Have you been living out here? In the woods?" he asked.
"Of course not!" Trixie shouted angrily. "This is merely a...temporary arrangement. Just a little more time and Trixie shall be back to my exemplary status as the most powerful pony in all of Equestria!" She declared, keeping her head forward, making sure to not lose the path she was following.
"You were the greatest unicorn in Equestria? What happened?" now that he'd started, Sunny couldn't stop the question from coming out.
"I...Trixie does not want to talk about that, it is not important anyway. It doesn't matter, not anymore," Trixie grew quiet, contemplative, but Sunny risked another question.
"Where are you taking me?" he hoped that 'out of the woods' was part of the answer.
"Far, and very deep into the woods. You need to walk faster, we need to get there before dark," her contemplative mood was over, the last part had been an order.
"What happens at dark?" Sunny wondered what the woods would be like once real night had descended over them.
"You'll see...in fact, you'll do much more than that..."
Celestia had started the sun's descent over the horizon, and still nopony had found any hint of what had happened to Sunny. He had completely vanished like...well, like magic. But even magic left some traces behind! She'd tried every spell she could thing of, but they always brought back the same result, nothing.
"Sorry Twilight, me and Fluttershy haven't found anything," Rainbow Dash reported, the two pegasi soaring down between a gap in the trees. "There's hardly any clearings in the trees, and the one's we find are aren't giving us anything!" Her and the rest of Twilight's friends had shown up soon after she and Spike had made their way to Zecora. They'd quickly split into groups of two, using every skill at their disposal to track Sunny down.
"I tried talking to some of the little critters, but none of them have seen Sunny," Fluttershy added.
"Nothin' on our end either Twi'. We tried following Sunny's tracks on the path. It looked like somethin' strong had drug him off into the trees, but the plants grow too thick out there fer any good tracks to be left behind," Applejack said. Pinkie and Apple Bloom were part of her group, and Twilight wasn't sure which of them looked more miserable.
"I should've listened to you Applejack, you told me not to jinx it, but I did it anyway. I just wanted Sunny to have some fun, I didn't think something like this would happen," Pinkie had thrown all of her energy into searching, but the longer they went without finding anything, the harder it seemed for her to stay upbeat.
"Don't blame yourself Pinkie," Apple Bloom stepped in. "I should have been more attention when we were walkin' together. Shoot, I should'a never gone to the forest in the first place."
"Listen you two, we ain't gonna get anywhere playin' the blame game," Applejack said, rounding on the two of them. "Pinkie Pie, you didn't cause this with just a silly sentence, and Apple Bloom...well I got plenty of time to be sore at you later. What's important right now is findin' Sunny, right Twilight?"
"Right," Twilight agreed, glad to see that Applejack was able to keep a calm mind in this situation. "Once we find him we can all go to being mad at each other, though I hope we can just be happy Sunny's okay, if it's not to much to ask." A small joke, one she was glad to see bring a small smile to her friend's faces.
"I just can't believe you took them, my little sister included, on a tour of the Everfree Forest, surely you must have known how dangerous these woods can get," that was Rarity, walking towards them with Zecora, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. Rarity had not been happy when she had heard what the Crusaders had been up to.
"It was the path I walk to gather herbs every day," Zecora explained, trying to calm her down. "There should have been no troubles to stand in our way."
"Well something grabbed him. Do yah have any idea of what sort'a creature could'a snuck up on yah, grabbed Sunny, then ran off without anypony noticin'?" Applejack asked.
"These woods have not divulged all of their secrets to me, parts of this forest will always be a mystery," Zecora replied, shaking her head.
"Well we've got to do something, and fast!" Rainbow Dash declared, stepping forward. "I don't want Sunny spending the night out here, you all know how he hates the dark."
"I know Rainbow Dash, but I get the feeling that the dark might be the least of Sunny's worries," Twilight said. Suddenly, she felt a light tugging on her tail. Spike was trying to get her attention.
"Uh, Twilight, do you think now might be a good time to send a letter to the Princess?" Spike too had noticed how rapidly the sun seemed to be setting.
"I...I don't know," the last thing Twilight wanted to admit was the Sunny had been taken, while under her and her friends watch. She wanted it to be a simple misunderstanding, that Sunny had just gotten lost...but the evidence against that was overwhelming. All of her friends were working together, and they had uncovered nothing. To stop now, to ignore a power that could help Sunny, was just selfish.
"No, I do know. Take a letter Spike, to the Princess."
"We're here," Trixie stated, stopping in a small group of weeds. Sunny was glad for the moment to rest, his legs ached and he wasn't sure just how much longer he could go on walking. They'd been moving for hours, and the woods had grown darker and darker. Sunny guessed that if he closed his eyes it wouldn't seem so dark...
Hey, that was a good joke. Sunny wished Pinkie was there so he could tell it to her.
He was wishing for a lot of things at the moment...
Trixie's horn began to glow, and with a groaning noise, a wooden trapdoor opened out of the ground. Moving closer Sunny saw a long stairway descending into the blackness.
"Get in," Trixie ordered, pointing down the hole with her hoof.
"But...can you go first?" he asked? If he went first, then he would be away from Trixie, away from the light of her horn.
"And risk you running off? Trixie doesn't think so," she sneered.
"Can you at least give me a light stone? Something to see with?" Sunny asked, desperation creeping into his voice. Trixie raised an eyebrow at him.
"I...I'm afraid of the dark," he admitted. "At home...I had a stone, Twilight enchanted it to-"
"That upstart unicorn?" Trixie interrupted. "I'll show you some real enchantment!" The blue mare immediately grabbed a pebble from the ground, focusing her magic on the rock. Soon, a bright blue glow began to emanate from it.
"There! Trixie is sure that outshines any enchantment Twilight could cook up!" Sunny grabbed the stone in one of his hooves and stared at it. The light the stone gave out was sharp and bright, it seemed even Trixie's magic was somewhat boastful. But...it brought him comfort to look at it.
"Thank you Trixie," he said, then began his descent down the stairs. The steps didn't go too far down before reaching a dirt floor. Sunny held his stone up, trying to see if there was anything else down there.
There wasn't.
Trixie followed him down, slamming the door shut behind her, trapping the both of them below the earth.
"So...what is this place?" Sunny asked.
"What does it look like? It's an old basement, probably for one of the old houses that used to be in the forest," Trixie replied, pacing around the edges of the room, inspecting the old wooden walls. Odd, she almost seemed...nervous.
"Well, why are we here?"
"This is where...they like to come. They are always here, but it's night where they're the most...aware," she rounded on Sunny. "Now listen to Trixie, when the time comes you must do whatever they ask! If you do...you can go home. Do you understand Trixie?" Sunny just nodded.
"Good...now stay still little colt. It is almost time," Trixie fell silent, her eyes closing as the light of her horn dimmed to nothing. Sunny backed into a corner, his hoof gripped around the stone. Who was coming? What were they going to do?
All of a sudden he felt...something , pass through the air, settling around Trixie. She let out a shuddering breath, and all of a sudden, she began to change.
In the dim light it was hard to notice at first, but soon the chance was unmistakeable. The color was draining from her coat and mane, fading away to dull bland gray. Trixie opened her eyes, but the tough, haughty spirit that had been in them was gone. They stared blandly ahead; dull, gray, and dead.
Sunny tried to back away, but quickly collided with a corner of the basement. There was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.
"He's here...he's here," Sunny heard Trixie whisper, but her voice was low, scared...defeated. "Trixie found...I found him, like you asked...just make it stop, please. I can't...I won't take it anymore..." Her head began to slowly turn, observing the room, but then her eyes noticed his light, and her gaze locked on him.
"You are the one," she said, but it wasn't her voice, it wasn't any one pony's voice. She spoke with a dozen different voices, layered together in a cacophony of noise. "You remember, you will help us remember." Trixie began to move forward, her eyes never leaving his.
"What are you talking about? I don't know what you're talking about!" Sunny scrambled at the walled, trying to shift away. But he couldn't. Trixie's eyes had trapped him, he couldn't move, couldn't away.
Trixie stopped, a few mere inches away from young earth pony.
"But you do. You have seen everything, you know everything, and you will help us," the voices told him. "With you, we will know it all once again!" The voices stopped...
And then the pain began.
The cellar faded away, and sunny was back in his nightmares. He was trapped in a void of black, nothing to see, nothing to hear.
Where is it? We know it is here, where have you hidden it?
Every word from the voices was a lance of pain through his body. He screamed, but could not even hear his own voice..
Where!
The darkness shifted, and then vanished. He was standing on a grassy hill, in front of him stood the imposing figure of Princess Celestia. He felt different, strange.
"Changing the rules..." the words hissed from his mouth, but it wasn't his voice. it wasn't him saying them! What was happening?
A memory...a mistake...
That was only one voice that time, and its words brought no pain. Sunny's relief didn't last long though. The hill faded back to black, and the voices began to yell.
You cannot hide it from us!
The darkness was gone, and now he was standing before Twilight and her friends in the middle of Ponyville They were all staring at him, transfixed with horror.
"I'm going to change the world for the better, don't you understand?" That voice again, rough and gravely. Sunny was speaking, but it couldn't be him, that wasn't him!
He yelled, shoving against the memory, pushing himself back into nothing. The voices were angry. They tried again, pulling up another memory, but Sunny refused to look at, shoving it away,
"That's not me..." he whispered to himself. "It's not me, not me, not me, not me, not me!" He ignored the pain, pushing every image away. It was all a trick, all a lie, none of this could be real!
"Please...just make it stop," he said, but he knew the voices would not listen. "These pictures, these memories...they're not mine...they're not mine.
They're lost, and they can't get what they want from you, not when you're like this...
That single voice again, hearing it brought a little comfort to his pain.
It is too late...it isn't here!
In an instant, Sunny found himself back in the cellar, lying on the dirt floor. The pain remained, refusing to fade from his mind.
"Our time is up...but we will be back when our strength is greater," the voices spoke from Trixie. She shuddered, and Sunny felt the presence fade away. Trixie's legs shuddered for a moment, then she too joined Sunny on the ground, her coat and mane remaining gray.
Sunny was hurt, tired, and all he had was an unconscious unicorn and a shiny rock that didn't protect him from anything. He couldn't help it.
He cried.
"Was the Princess always this slow in getting to Ponyville? I could swear she was way faster the last time she came to visit us," Pinkie yammered as they they all sat awkwardly in the main room of the Golden Oaks Library. Twilight and the other just ignored her, they knew she was talking mainly in an attempt to distract herself.
Celestia's reply had been almost immediate, ordering them all out of the woods and to head back to Ponyville. The Princess would meet them all in the library. Quickly, they had said farewell to Zecora and made their way back to town. They dropped off the Crusaders at Applejack's where Big Mac could keep an eye on them. They guessed that the three of them wouldn't do anything else tonight, but you could never been entirely sure.
Twilight wondered just what Celestia was going to tell them, the wording of her response had been nothing short of urgent. Maybe she knew more about the monsters that lived in the woods, maybe she knew just what had taken Sunny...and she was scared.
But that couldn't be right, nothing scared the Princess...well, nothing but Discord, but he had been a literal god of chaos! Surely nothing in the forest could be as bad as him...
"Argh! I hate waiting around like this!" Rainbow Dash yelled, hovering in circles over their heads. "We should be outside, searching until the Princess shows up!"
"I don't like it much neither Rainbow Dash, but it's Princesses orders," Applejack said. "There's always some reason fer everythin' she does."
"Still, it wouldn't hurt her to tell us just a little bit ," Rainbow Dash grumbled.
"Don't worry, I'm sure it will all make sense once the Princess gets here," Fluttershy comforted.
"Yeah! And then she'll go grab Sunny all lickety-split!" Pinkie Pie added. "Then everything will be all back to normal, right?"
"Of course darling," Rarity trotted over and rested a hoof on Pinkie's shoulder. "The princess would never let us down, isn't that right Twilight?"
"Absolutely, I'm sure the Princess knows the perfect spell to find Sunny," Twilight quickly replied, hoping her voice sounded confident enough. She wanted to be right, but she doubted that things would be so simple.
It seemed things had stopped being simple the very moment she stepped into Ponyville.
"My student, I have arrived," The soothing voice came from the front door, and before Twilight had a chance to react, Princess Celestia walked into the room. Like always, just seeing her radiance seemed to bring up everyponies mood.
"Nice to see yah Princess," Applejack greeted, bowing her head. "I think we're all wonderin' why you called us out of the Everfree Forest."
"Yeah, do you have some super-duper spell that'll teleport Sunny back home?" Pinkie jumped in.
"While I will happily devote all the power at my command to help bring Sunny back, there was another reason I ordered you out of those woods," Celestia took a deep breath. "I was hoping to protect you."
"What do you mean?" Twilight asked.
"What took Sunny not only took him without anypony around him noticing, but also destroyed almost any traces of the attack. Whoever did this, planned it, prepared for it. The most likely reason for that it...they know what Sunny is," Celestia explained.
"But...what does that have to do with us?" Rarity wondered.
"Yeah, if they know what Sunny is then we should be focusing on finding Sunny as soon as-" Pinkie cut off with a yell, clutching at her head. Twilight stepped forward, trying to see what was wrong, when her own mind erupted in pain.
It was like a fire was spreading throughout her brain, searing through the tissue. Twilight blinked back tears in an attempt to control the pain. Barely, she was able to see the rest of friends succumbing to the strange attack. Rarity and Applejack leaned against each for support while Fluttershy tried to stop Rainbow from crashing against the floor, even while suffering herself.
Twilight didn't have a chance to see anymore as the pain seemed to double, forcing her to the ground.
Just what was happening?
Twilight managed to force her eyes open, it looked like Celestia was trying to say something to them. What could it be? It had to be important, but she couldn't hear, it just hurt too much...she let her eyes close again.
She was back in the world of shadows, lost and alone. Trapped within the pain.
It was hopeless...
Suddenly, the pain began to lessen, and as it did, she noticed a growing light. Instinctively, Twilight opened her eyes to see the Princess standing over all of them, her horn glowing a radiant gold as it projecting a glittering shield over them all. The pain was weaker now, merely a dull throb in the back of her head.
"I wanted to protect you, because all of you share a connection with Sunny," Celestia said, concern etched in her face as she helped Twilight stand. "Whatever is happening to Sunny right now...all of you are feeling it."
"Well just what is happening to Sunny?" Rainbow Dash asked, weakly pushing herself up. Twilight wondered if she had been the only one to see the other world...
"Was he getting...hurt...like that too?" Fluttershy looked like she was on the edge of tears.
"We can't let them do that! We've got to save him!" Pinkie announced bravely, though she looked more worried than any of them.
"That's just the problem though, if you go out there, you'll be giving whoever took Sunny exactly what they want," Celestia said. "You all share a connection, you all share a part of what Sunny used to be."
"Princess...do you mean..." Twilight realized, putting the pieces together in her head.
"When you took Sunny out of the void, you each took a part of him with you, and he got a piece of each of you. If whoever took Sunny gets all of you in one place, they may be able to turn him back, and take his powers..." Celestia paused, looking over all of them.
"They may be able to gain control over the powers of death..."
To Live, Love, and Forgive
Sunny opened his eyes...had he fallen asleep?
Sunny couldn't believe that the comfort of sleep had manged to find him, he had never expected to be able to sleep again. If he let his mind wander he could swear he heard the voices whispering in his ears, bringing back phantoms of the pain into his mind.
And then there was Trixie. Her own eyes had opened not long after the voices had left. But she had begun talking, muttering to herself. Always the same phrases, over and over again. Sunny had listened for a little while, but her mutterings had brought him no comfort.
He was trapped, alone, and even though he wouldn't give up on his friends coming to find him, he wasn't sure they were going to find him in time.
He wasn't sure how long the tears had fallen from his own eyes, but eventually the pain had begun to fade, along with the light from his stone and Trixie's voice...
Surveying the room, it seemed like nothing at all had changed, he wasn't even sure of the time of day, though he hoped it wasn't nearly nightfall yet...
Wait...there was something, Trixie's coat and mane had changed, closer to their original color. Even looking at it now, it seemed to be shifting, she might be back to normal soon...
Not that that would be any help to him. Sunny turned his back to her, facing one of the blank walls. He needed to think, to try and come up with some way to escape, to get back home. But...he had no idea where to begin. In the end, he was just a colt, a weak little colt.
Not quite...
A voice, so quiet Sunny thought he had imagined it, hoped he had imagined it. But in the next moment, he was back in the void. Only this time...he wasn't alone.
He was surrounded by six different light, each one warm and comforting. It felt like they were...carrying him somewhere, giving him the strength to leave. And...he was happy, completely and utterly happy. The last thing he saw was a giggling pink light...
It ended, and he was back in the real world.
Those memories were supposed to stay in his dreams...but now he was seeing them even while he was awake! The voices had changed things, changed him, trying to draw out those false memories...
Couldn't they just go back to being dreams?
Even if that memory had been happy, it couldn't be real. They just couldn't be real.
But no matter how many times he muttered that to himself, he was finding it harder and harder to believe.
"Ugh..." a groan drew his attention away from his thoughts, it seemed Trixie had finally come back to her senses.
"I...I am here...everything is fine. Nopony else but the colt and I..." he heard her mutter to herself, probably had something to do with what she had said earlier. There were a few scuffles as she pulled herself up from the ground, then a few hoofsteps.
She was walking towards him.
"Are you...awake little colt?" her voice was almost soft as she asked the question.
"What do you care?" Sunny snapped, determined not to look at her.
"Because...Trixie is not heartless. Because Trixie knows that they hurt you..." she replied. Thought she sounded unsure, like she wasn't sure how to continue.
"They hurt me because of you!" he rounded on her. "You brought me here, you said everything would be fine...you said I would be able to go home after 'they' came..." his eyes stung with fresh tears.
"It wasn't supposed to hurt, they said it wouldn't-"
"They lied!" Sunny yelled, surprising himself with the fury in his voice. It even seemed to push Trixie back. "Why would you believe them? Why would you kidnap me from my friends? What reason could you possibly have to do all of this?" Trixie finally averted her eyes.
She took an unsteady breath.
"Trixie did it for myself, Trixie did it...I did it because they would help me," she said slowly. "Just a few hours...and I would have everything back again."
"Right, so you could stop being so lonely," Sunny hissed.
"Lonely?" Trixie sniffed, regaining her arrogant attitude. "Trixie will have you know that she has friends and fans all over Equestria just waiting for her return! Why Trixie cannot even return to some towns for fear of being overrun by overeager ponies! What would ever give you the idea that Trixie is 'lonely?'"
"You did," Sunny told her. "While you were lying there, all gray. All you did was mutter to yourself..."
"Please, somepony, look at me..."
"Don't leave me alone..."
"I'm right here, can't you see me?"
"Look at me!"
Sunny repeated every little phrase he had heard from her, and he saw that it hurt her. He wasn't that sad about it.
"How much did you lose, to where taking me was the only option you had left?" Sunny finished, though he wasn't sure why. He was so angry at her, yet a part of him...a part of him wanted to understand. What could drive a pony to do this? Trixie hesitated, she obviously didn't wish to have a heart-to-heart with a colt.
But...at this point, he doubted she had a choice.
"Everything...I lost everything, and it all started with Ponyville...with Twilight Sparkle and the rest of her friends," she began. "I am...was a performer. I did great feats of magic, told wondrous stories of my exploits." She paused.
"Some of the stories may have been...elaborated, but I am meant to do that, to make the crowds believe in the impossible! It worked before, it made me friends in so many cities..." she fell silent again.
"Did something happen to them?" Sunny asked. Trixie smiled, a pained smile.
"As an entertainer I have to travel all over the land. Equestria is a very large place, even for a unicorn such as I. By the time I would return, they would have forgotten about me...or moved on..."
"They left you behind," Sunny muttered. Trixie continued like she hadn't heard him.
"Soon, it was easier to make the act...rougher. Then I could still perform, receive my bits, and there would be...fewer friends..." Sunny couldn't believe what he was hearing. Friendship had been too hard for her, so she had pushed it away.
"I found that worked too, I was still happy. But then in Ponyville that silly rainbow Pegasus started to boo me, and everything just came crashing down..."
"I showed her, and her friends, how wrong her accusations were. But then some silly fans got the ridiculous notion to try and prove one of my fantastic stories, so they goaded an Ursa Minor into attacking the town. I was helpless against it. It destroyed my wagon, my home, and then your friend Twilight stepped up. With a wave of her horn, she banished the beast back to its cave, and the only choice I had was the leave the town, disgraced," Trixie lowered her head. "But my troubles had only just begun..."
"I was left with nothing, and I was forced to perform on the sides of roads. Cheap parlor tricks to get enough bits to survive until the next day. I wasn't without hope thought. If I could make it to another city I might be able to put on a full show, start saving up for a new wagon. Trixie never gives up!" her face fell.
"Of course, then the world fell to madness," she looked over to Sunny. "Do you even remember Discord? I bet your friends were able to protect you from his power, probably put you to sleep for the whole attack." Sunny had no idea what she was talking about, so he simply shook his head. Trixie seemed to accept that.
"That...thing, showed up, happily skipping along the road. Everywhere he landed the world...changed. Trees would sprout wings and fly, the dirt would melt into soap, and chocolate would rain from the sky."
"Then there were the ponies. He would just look at them, and they would change as well. Their coats would turn gray and they would just stare blankly into the distance. All that monster did was laugh and laugh..."
"Finally, he reached me. Discord towered over me, the power of chaos at his fingertips...and he did nothing!" Trixie yelled, startling Sunny. "He left me behind, passed over me like I was worthless. I thought I was lucky at first...but then I realized that just what he'd done. Nopony could notice me. I ran to the nearest town, but no matter what I did, how I harassed them, nothing would work. They would just turn and walk away, leaving me alone..."
"No one would look at me!" Trixie took a deep breath. "I ran, I ran as far I could, to try and find somepony that would see me. But...soon I had no idea where I was. The sun refused to stay bright for more than a few seconds at a time, the ground would split apart, evaporating into bubbles, fires would leap up from nowhere, freezing the land around them. Eventually, I could not go any further, I could not handle any more of that world of madness. I collapsed."
"By the time I awoke things had returned to normal, I suppose Twilight had saved the day. But I opened my eyes to the trees of the Everfree Forest, that was where they found me."
"But who are they?" Sunny finally asked.
"I do not know, but they can do to me...what Discord did. They make me remember, they make it so all I can is those ponies again, ignoring me. They make me worthless, they make me nothing with absolutely no effort," her voice grew lower and lower, and as Sunny looked closer, it looked like her coat was...changing.
"Trixie?" Sunny stepped away from the wall, moving closer to her.
"They wouldn't stop! They wouldn't let me leave! Just the same message, repeated over and and over in my mind. 'Bring him to us, bring him and and we will make things right. You will be safe, you will be strong again," she stared directly at him, her eyes wide and crazed. "Don't you see? It's just a little pain to save me. Then they'll let us go, you can go home, I can perform again, we can all get what we want!" Her mane and coat grew dimmer.
"But what if they're just lying? What if don't let us leave? What if..." he winced at remembered pain, Sunny didn't know how much more he could take of what they had done to him.
"They can't be lying, this is my only choice, don't you understand?" Trixie's gaze grew wider.
"But...but what if it wasn't?" Sunny said desperately, moving back. "What if...what if...what if Twilight helped you?" Trixie stopped, and Sunny thought he saw a bit of color return to her.
"Twilight? Why would Trixie ever accept help from that upstart unicorn?" she asked. "Why would...why would she even agree to help Trixie? Trixie has never done anything for her..."
"That's just..." Sunny searched for the right words. "That's just how Twilight is, it's how all of her friends are. They help because...they can."
"But I took you from them, you were hurt because of me," Trixie said, more color returning to her. "They would never accept me." She stepped away from Sunny. He couldn't let her do that!
"They accepted me!" the words fell out out of his mouth, making Trixie pause. "They accepted me despite what I had been, what I'd done."
"And what was that? Did you bully one of their little sisters?" Trixie scoffed.
"I used to be something...terrible, something dark," Sunny did not know where these words were coming, but part of him knew that they were true. "They saved me, and they can save you too." It seemed like Trixie might believe him, but...
"I do not know," Trixie finally said. "I will not be tricked by false hopes, not now...just give me time to think." She walked away from him, over to the far wall. She closed her eyes and once again left Sunny alone.
Sunny absentmindedly rolled the glowing stone between his hooves, his thoughts now focused on the words he'd spoken to Trixie.
What he'd been, that dark...thing who's memories would not leave him alone. The voices wanted him to remember...but why?
With the pain silently throbbing in the back of her mind as Celestia's golden shield glimmered around them, Twilight figured this was the best time to get as much information as possible.
"How did you find all of this out Princess?" Twilight asked, massaging her temples. The rest of her friends were scattered around the room in obvious pain. Twilight wished she could do more for them, but she really had no idea what was happening to them.
"I haven't been relying on just your reports on sunny Twilight, I have been keeping a few tabs on him with several of my own spells. I began to notice that is...something between you all and Sunny. I could only see it when all of you were gathered together. It was some sort of...magical anomaly, a connection, I suspect it has been there ever since you used the Elements," Celestia explained, going around to Twilight's friends and tapping her horn to their foreheads. As she did the pained expressions on their faces seemed to soften a little.
"But how?" Twilight continued. "The elements are supposed to be perfect, there should have been no need for a link between us." Celestia gave a small smile to her.
"Because nothing in this world is perfect Twilight, no matter how much we may wish it to be, not even the Elements. Sunny needed a part of all of you, a piece of true life, and what was left of death was divided among you all," the Princess told her.
"But we used the Elements to purify Princess Luna, are you saying there's a chance she could go back Nightmare Moon?" Rainbow Dash asked, a hint of worry in her voice.
"No, while I was...was unable to purify her the first time," Celestia's voice wavered, surprising Twilight. "Her powers had been weakened for a thousand year, she was unable to fully recover them when all of you were able to save her with the Elements. There is nothing to fear from my sister." The Princess's tone quickly hardened, showing that her judgement was absolute.
"So whoever is doing this to Sunny, they won't succeed as long as we aren't there?" Pinkie Pie brought up, rubbing her head.
"Right, but...the pain you felt, what Sunny is going thorough, may be even worse," Celestia replied.
"What...what if they keep trying? Is there a chance Sunny might..." Fluttershy couldn't finish her sentence.
"I am not sure," Celestia said after a moments hesitation. "But there is a chance...there is always a chance."
"And you expect us to just stay cooped up in the library and hope everything turns out all right?" Rarity asked, incredulous.
"I ask this for your own safety as well my little ponies, I do not know what may happen to you if they succeed in their task, plus I must think of the safety of all my subjects. I do not like this, but it is the best option," Celestia said in a soothing tone. "I can send several of my guards from Canterlot to scour the woods, and my sister may lend her magic as well. Together, we may be able to find Sunny."
"Ain't there anythin' we can do to help Princess?" Applejack asked.
"Once this pain had passed, I ask for you to go home, and stay safe. This is one problem I do not require your help to solve, take some solace in that," Celestia told her. It looked like Pinkie wanted to say something more when a fresh wave of pain flowed through them. The last thing Twilight was able to focus on was Celestia pouring more strength into her shield before the pain became too much.
Eventually, as the night outside grew darker and darker, the pain stopped and Celestia was able to remove the shield protecting them. The Princess had left the library, but not before making sure Twilight and her friends promised to leave finding Sunny to her.
With Celestia gone, her friends had soon retired to their own homes, and Twilight couldn't blame them. After running through the woods for Sunny and suffering through that strange...attack, the first thing she wanted to do was crawl into her bed.
Well...maybe not the first thing.
Twilight wanted to start some research, look for a way to help Sunny, look for a way to do anything! But the Princess had been very insistent that they stay out of it.
Celestia knows best, right?
That had been her last thought before snuggling beneath the covers of her bed. Maybe she could think up a good idea after a few hours rest. With one last look at the starry sky from her window, Twilight drifted off to sleep.
But of course, she wouldn't be allowed much of that either.
"Psst," a small noise roused her from her bed, accompanied by a light tapping noise. Twilight was determined to ignore it, rolling away from the sound and keeping her eyes closed.
"Psst!" the noise repeated, louder now, while the tapping continued. "Twilight..over here !"
"Wha...Pinkie?" Twilight said groggily, recognizing the voice. Slowly, she opened her eyes and turned towards the window.
"Good late-morning Twilight," Twilight simply stared in shock. Pinkie had plastered her face against Twilight's bedroom window. How long had Pinkie been sitting there, waiting for her to wake up?
"Pinkie, what are you doing here? Rather, why are you standing at my window, why didn't you just use the door?" Twilight pulled herself out of the bed and unclasped the window lock, letting Pinkie tumble inside.
"You can't use a door when you're trying to be sneaky Twilight, everpony knows that silly-willy," Pinkie replied with a grin, pulling herself off of the ground. "I can't take the chance that one of the Princesses helpers might see me."
"What are you talking about Pinkie?" Twilight asked, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. "Wait...you're not thinking of-"
"Yup! We should go and look for Sunny in the woods," Pinkie stated. Twilight sighed.
"But we've already tried and found nothing, the Princess has her guards out right now looking through the forest and most importantly," she paused. "You promised Celestia that you wouldn't get involved!"
"Well that wasn't a Pinkie Promise," Pinkie defended herself. "And I promised that just I wouldn't go out, I never said anything about going into the woods with you ."
"Pinkie, that's not even close to a good reason for disobeying the Princess, and you know it," Twilight groaned. "Now why don't you tell me the real reason why you want the two of us to go off into the forest?" Twilight stared down at Pinkie, who finally shrugged and looked away.
"It's just...sometimes things are more important the promises, you know?" she admitted. "Sunny is out there, alone and...hurt. I really really think we have the best chance to find him."
"Better than any of the guards from Canterlot, and the magic of both the Princesses as well?" Twilight couldn't help but feel skeptical. Twilight wanted to be there for Sunny, but she had always felt that Pinkie had a stronger connection to him than any of her friends. Perhaps those feelings were clouding Pinkie's judgement.
"Of course, we have something that they never will!" Pinkie exclaimed.
"And what would that be?" Twilight asked.
"Come on, don't you remember? Celestia told us herself. We've all got that special connection to Sunny ever since we brought him to Equestria," Pinkie explained. "I was sitting in my bed at Sugarcube Corner when I thought that maybe you could use one of your fancy spells to find Sunny with that connection."
"You know magic isn't that easy Pinkie, it takes a base spell, intricate focus, enough energy to shape the matrix into-" Twilight stopped, the inner workings of magic would be lost on the earth pony. "It's really hard okay?"
"Well, can't you at least try?" Pinkie pleaded, clasping her hooves together.
"...okay, I'll give it a try. But don't expect anything, okay?" Twilight said, Pinkie just smiled at her. Twilight stepped away from her towards the center of her room. She took a few breaths to steady herself then began to focus her magic. Celestia had said it was a magical anomaly, so if she used enough power she should be able to find it...
The magic flowed through her, scouring through her pores, searching for that connection.
After a few tense moments, Twilight let out a gasp of air, there was nothing.
She was going about this the wrong way. She was actively looking for something she expected not to find. It was like...going through the entire library for book she knew she didn't own. Not only would she have no idea where to start, she'd probably become distracted by all the other books she owned.
She needed to try something else...
Something like...something like...
Looking at the world, from the outside in...
A deep blackness invaded her vision as the low voice echoed in her head, Twilight was immediately reminded of the dark daydream she had earlier. And then...she could see.
The tiny little lights held within them all. The beautiful spark called life. It looked so simple, but there was so much power, so much wonder held within everything.
But then Twilight saw herself, saw Pinkie. There was something strange about them, an anomaly held by nopony else. Nopony but her and her friends. She could see it stretching between them all, throughout Ponyville, and there was one thin lonely strand snaking its way into the Everfree Forest.
"I think...I think I see it Pinkie," Twilight said, though her voice sounded odd, out of place in this world she was looking at.
"So you can find Sunny?" Pinkie asked, her eyes shimmering.
"Maybe, but shouldn't we inform the Princess, her guards?" she dropped the gaze and opened her eyes, happy to see the world return to normal. But she could still feel that odd vision...waiting. Now that she'd found it, Twilight doubted she'd ever be able to lose it.
"There's no time Twilight! Sunny's waited long enough, we can't waste time trying to find the Princesses of their guards," before Twilight could reply Pinkie had rushed begin her and began pushing her downstairs towards the front door.
"Pinkie, wait!" Twilight shouted, bracing herself against the doorway. "If we do this, you need to make a promise to me, a Pinkie Promise, understand?" Pinkie Pie stepped away and nodded, though it was obvious she wanted to keep moving.
"Once we're in the forest if anything seems wrong or dangerous and I say we need to run, you run. No staying behind, not even for a second. We can't risk being captured by whoever took Sunny as well, okay?" Twilight told her.
"Hmm...okie dokie lokie. Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye, I promise," Pinkie recited, easily going through the motions. "Now c'mon let's go!" And with that Twilight was yanked out into the cool morning air, the two of them galloping off at top speed towards the forest.
Thump.
Sunny shoved again at the trapdoor, not even a little budge. He darted his gaze over to Trixie, but she hadn't even noticed. Her eyes were closed tightly, maybe in deep thought, or maybe she was just trying to ignore him.
Thump.
Still nothing, at this point he was only keeping it up so he had something to do, something to stop his mind from wandering. As long as he stayed focused on something there was no worry of that voice showing up.
Thump.
"Even if you do get that door open, what would you do next? You don't even know how to get back to Ponyville," Trixie's voice startled him. She'd finally opened her eyes and was staring at him with a strange expression on her face.
"It doesn't mean I shouldn't try, besides, I bet Pinkie Pie and everypony else are out there right now, looking for me. If out I get out of here, it should be easier for them to find me," Sunny replied. Trixie just blinked at him.
"You really trust them that much? How do you know they haven't given up? That they haven't just left you behind?" she asked.
"Because...they're my friends. They saved me before, I know they'll do it again," Sunny answered.
"I have been thinking...I remembered my old ponyfriends. I remembered what it was like to be able to rely on somepony like you do...it was nice. Even if they forgot about me, the time I spent with them were some of the best moments of my life..." she paused. "Strange...until now I could hardly remember them..."
"Wait, does that mean..." Sunny started.
"It means that Trixie is going to give your friends...a chance. Of course, Trixie can hardly expect to be on good terms with them if I leave you out here in the woods. So it seems Trixie must escort you back home," pulling herself up off the ground, Trixie gave one gracious wave of her horn and the trapdoor flew open, allowing a rush of fresh air into the room. "Now then, let us be off!" With a coy grin Trixie trotted up the stairs to the outside. Sunny followed behind, joyful anticipation giving a spring to his step, but not before grabbing the rock Trixie had enchanted for him, storing it in the fur of his tail.
Together, they found themselves among the thick trees of the forest.
"Quickly now, this way," Trixie ordered. Sunny nodded and started to walk alongside her.
They hadn't made it far when Trixie stopped in her tracks, every hair on her coat standing on edge.
"Trixie...Trixie what's wrong?" Sunny asked. There shouldn't be anything, by the light he could see it was still too early for the voices to be here, right?
"I was so foolish..." she looked over at him. "I thought I may have had a chance, that there might have been enough time. But...part of them is always with me. They know what we're doing...and they're angry. They've been gathering their strength, and they're going to be here soon."
"Twilight, look look!" Pinkie exclaimed, pointing at something ahead of them. They'd been walking through the woods for a long time...almost too long. Twilight kept thinking that they should head back soon, but something kept pushing her forward. Maybe it was Pinkie's attitude, the way she bounced along you might guess Sunny was just behind the next tree. Or perhaps it was the strange sight she was using. It seemed to be pulling her along, almost like it wanted rejoin Sunny.
Either way, she had no seen of real danger yet, they could search for at least a little longer.
"What is it?" she asked, walking after Pinkie.
"It's a saddle bag! Well, what's left of one," Pinkie picked up a few scraps of cloth from the dirt. Looking at them, twilight recognized a symbol on one of the pieces.
"Wait, that's my cutie mark!" she grabbed the piece with her magic and pulled it closer. "This was the saddle bag I gave to Sunny!"
"So we're on the right path then?" Pinkie asked, gathering up more pieces of the saddle to scrutinize.
"It seems that way," she admitted.
"Good! That's great! That's really really great," Pinkie nodded furiously. But the way she said it seemed...off.
"Are you okay Pinkie?" Twilight found herself asking.
"Of course not Twilight! Sunny is lost somewhere out here, why would you ask that?"
"You've put so much into finding him, you didn't even give a second thought to disobeying the Princess to go find him," Twilight explained. "All of us are worried about Sunny, but you...what makes you so determined?" Pinkie lowered her gaze to the forest floor, the scraps of cloth slipping from her grip.
"Did you know the old Sunny? Back before we took him from the void?" Pinkie asked.
"Honestly...no, I think he spent most of his time with you or Princess Celestia," Twilight replied at the strange question.
"He was such a sad pony...but he was really nice too, a great friend. Sometimes, when I look at new Sunny, I try to see it. Some of old Sunny is there...but it's just not the same. Sometimes I think...it'd be nice to have the old Sunny back..." she fell silent.
"Pinkie, you can't think that this is your fault," Twilight told her, placing a reassuring hoof on her shoulder.
"I know it's not Twilight...but I still feel bad. I've got to tell New Sunny that I don't want him to go anywhere. We just need to find him first," Pinkie said, placing her own hoof over Twilight's.
"Well we will, don't worry about it, okay?" Twilight reassured her. "Now come on, we've got to be getting closer." Pinkie gave her a smile and they were off again, though Twilight doubted the matter was completely resolved.
"But...we can run right? If we start now we can make it out of the woods, and then they can't catch us!" Sunny tried to argue, desperately pulling on Trixie's hoof, but she refused to budge.
"We are nowhere near the edge of this forest little colt. They would catch me, and through me they would take you," Trixie said, her voice calm an eerie.
"There has to be something!" Sunny cried.
"There is nothing we can..." she paused. "No, that is not true, there is something I can do."
"Really? What is it?" Sunny asked with renewed hope.
"I shall...stay behind. I will hold them off while you, are you listening to me? You will pick a direction and run!" Trixie's voice was suddenly filled with determination as she turned and gripped Sunny by his shoulders.
"What? What do you mean? You can't hold them off...they'll hurt you again. You can't do that for me, you should run too, c'mon!" Sunny stuttered, he couldn't believe this unicorn, who'd captured him, was ready to throw herself at those voices for him.
"Don't you know who I am little colt? I am the Great and Powerful Trixie! And there is nopony who tells Trixie what to do. Not strange voices, not upstart purple unicorns, and certainly not sad little earth ponies!" She shoved him away as her horn began to glow brightly. Sunny didn't know what to do, couldn't know what to do.
"Before you go little one, Trixie would like to know your name," she asked, the glow of her horn increasing.
"I'm S-Sunny, Sunny Harvest," he stammered.
"Then run Sunny Harvest, and do not worry," she turned away from him, staring into the darkness of the forest. "This shall not be Trixie's last performance!" Seeing her strength, her determination, Sunny couldn't let her sacrifice be for nothing, he turned and ran.
He hoped he wouldn't hear her scream.
Hours...it had been hours since they'd found the saddle bag, but the sight pulled Twilight onward. They were close, so very close.
Twilight perked up, a new sound reaching her ears. It almost sounded like...somepony was running through the woods. She wasn't the only one to notice either.
"Is that you Sunny?" Pinkie shouted. "It's me and Twilight, we're over here!"
"Pinkie! Hush, we don't know who that might be," Twilight scolded, but it was too late. The noise shifted, and soo whoever it was was headed towards them. Instinctively, Twilight moved in front of Pinkie, preparing a shield spell.
Then, out of the gloom, galloped a tiny shape, colored black and gray. Could it be?
"Sunny!" Pinkie yelled happily, rushing forward to envelop him in great hug. Sunny didn't give the chance, quickly squirming out from between her hooves.
"Pinkie, Twilight!" he said, his face haggard and grief stricken. "Please, you have to save Trixie!"
To Live, Love, and Forgive
You've Got To See The Funny Side
"Please, you have to do something!" Sunny repeated desperately.
"Wait, Trixie? You mean that unicorn magician? Just what's going on here Sunny?" Twilight asked, completely lost.
"There's no time! She's trying to hold off the-" Sunny was cut off as the sound of a massive explosion echoed through the forest. In the distance a brilliant burst of magical light illuminated the trees, and in the middle of it all, Twilight thought she saw something...
A unicorn, falling to the ground.
"Pinkie, stay here with Sunny!" Twilight shouted. If anything, she could trust Pinkie to keep him safe. Twilight charged off towards the light, hoping she might get there fast enough to provide help. Her step slowed as she approached where she guessed the light had originated.
Surely, if based on the intensity of the light and the projected shadows it had to be right...
Her front hoof caught on something and sent her hurtling to the ground. Quickly, she pulled herself back up, brushing the dirt off of her face.
What had she...oh...
Lying on the ground form was the still body of a unicorn, their expression locked in pain. Twilight ignited her horn to try and get a better look. What she saw didn't help.
"Oh no..." she whispered into the still air.
No color remained on the unicorn except for a uniform gray. So dull it almost seemed to be drawing the color out of the grass and trees surrounding them. Just looking at her felt wrong, unreal.
This was very bad, the last time Twilight had seen something like this it had been because of...
Discord.
Twilight quickly glanced around, suddenly noticing the sensation of being watched. She focused more power into her horn as she crouched closer to the downed unicorn. She could feel something, circling closer and closer to them, but then it stopped. Twilight sensed the presence waiting before them both...yet it did nothing.
Well she wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth. In a moment she lifted the unicorn off of the ground and placed her over her back. In the next moment she was off, running back to Sunny and Pinkie. She found the two of them holding on to each other for comfort, Pinkie smiled down at the young cold while Sunny...Sunny just looked tired.
"Trixie!" he yelled as Twilight drew up alongside them. "Is she all right? She isn't..."
"She's okay Sunny...well, she's breathing at least," Twilight answered, setting Trixie down on the grass. "But I'm not sure how long she may stay that way. There's something out there...something strong. But it's not attacking us yet."
"Why wouldn't they...oh," whispered Sunny, softly nuzzling Trixie's head, as if trying to wake her. "They're hurting her...but she's still fighting them with everything she has. She's protecting us...protecting me..." His gaze shot up to Twilight.
"We need to get out of these woods, right now!" he told her. "She can't last forever, not against that sort of pain. But if we get out of the woods...she might get better."
"Good idea Sunny," Pinkie said. "Twilight, can you use your magic to get us all back to Ponyville?"
"Maybe..." Twilight replied, unsure. The last time she'd done a teleportation like that was when she had to send herself, Spike, Rarity, and Rainbow all the way from the Dragonlands to back home. It was possible, but putting such a strain on her magic was always dangerous...
Then again, from the look on Sunny's face, staying here was going to get very dangerous.
"Okay, stay close everypony," they all gathered around her as she began to focus her spell. As her magic grew, she felt the presence gather around them as well. It was pushing forward, struggling against something. It seemed so desperate, so strong...
So terrible.
In its strength Twilight saw her friend captured, pulled screaming into the woods, but the screaming didn't last. The gray spread along their bodies until they stared blankly into nothing, lost to the world.
"You're not going to get my friends, any of them!" she shouted. Twilight felt the presence surge forward, almost angry, but it was too late. The spell broke loose, consuming them in the brilliant glow of her magic.
The next instant, they were all standing outside of the woods, staring out across the homes of Ponyville.
"We made it...that's...good," Twilight said, when all of a sudden, the world began to swim before her eyes.
"Twilight!" Pinkie exclaimed as the unicorn slumped over, joining Trixie on the ground.
Twilight didn't mind though, her friends were safe, that was all that mattered.
I have seen them, running through the woods.
That voice echoed though the void where Twilight found herself. She knew this place...she'd been here before.
It was...it was...the knowledge eluded her.
They live, every mother, father, and child. They have lived through all these years.
So deep and monotonous, the voice continued to speak.
"Who? What are you talking about?" Twilight tried to ask, but the words were muffled in the blackness, and the voice seemed not to notice.
They are lost, and there is nothing anyone can do...
"Who?" Twilight called again, but the voice was growing more distant. Something was pulling her away, another voice.
"Twilight? Come back my student," startled, Twilight's eyes shot open to see the worried face of Princess Celestia. Glancing around, Twilight saw that she was back at the library, laying on one of the couches. Pinkie and Sunny were standing off to the side while Trixie had been settled on a hastily assembled bed of pillows.
"It seems I am being called down to Ponyville quite often these days," Celestia observed, stepping back. "I suppose there's a good explanation for why you deliberately disobeyed me? I was very surprised to receive a message detailing your latest adventure into the Everfree Forest."
"It's my fault Princess," Pinkie said, moving forward. "I thought that there was a way Twilight could use our connection to Sunny to find him in the woods. And um, well...I was right." She gestured to the colt who simply glanced away, hiding behind her. Sunny was never comfortable around the Princess.
"Yes, but you put yourselves in considerable danger. Dangers of the likes," Celestia waved her head towards Trixie. "I had hoped to never to see again."
"What is it Princess? There was some sort of terrible presence in the woods, it didn't want any of us to leave there. Discord hasn't escaped again has he?" Twilight asked.
"No, there would be quite a bit more pandemonium if that were the case," Celestia replied. "But as for the real reason...I have no idea. The only being capable of using chaos magic is Discord himself. Something like this should be impossible..." She sighed.
"Though I hate to admit it...the only way to find out more, would be to ask Discord himself..." she admitted.
"Is that even possible?" Twilight questioned.
"Yes...Discord is always watching, always aware. I think he would relish the chance to talk to another pony," she focused her gaze on Twilight. "I'm afraid my lecture on disobeying will have to wait until later my student. Right now, I will need you to accompany me to Canterlot, to speak with Discord alongside me."
"What? Why do you need me?" Twilight exclaimed.
"You have personally faced down whatever is haunting the woods, at this point you know more about it than anypony. Well...other than Sunny," Celestia leaned forward, whispering. "But I feel that letting Discord learn about him would not be the wisest decision." Twilight couldn't help but agree.
"So, when are we going to leave?"
"Right away, and we should take Trixie with us as well. Something tells me Discord will hate that something is spreading chaos without him knowing about it...and he may give us a clue as to how to return her to normal." Twilight nodded. With her friends she had been able to use her magic to awaken their memories, their old selves. But she had no such connection to Trixie, she could not define the unicorn with the scarce memories of her stay in Ponyville.
She stepped off of the couch as Celestia gathered up Trixie with her magic. The gray unicorn settled on to Celestia's back, her closed eyes never wavering as her sleeping body weakly drew in breath.
"Pinkie, can you watch the library and Sunny while I'm away?" Twilight asked as she and the Princess headed for the door. "And can you keep an eye out for Spike? I think he's at Sweet Apple Acres with the Cutie Mark Crusaders." She added as an afterthought.
"Of course Twilight, you can count on me!" Pinkie agreed immediately, saluting her. "And Twilight...be careful okay? Even as a statue you don't know what kind of weird tricky wickies Discord might be capable of."
"I will Pinkie, and one more thing," Twilight leaned closer. "Be careful with Sunny, even if not showing it, he's been through a lot." She glanced down at the colt. Twilight didn't think she'd seen him move since she'd opened her eyes. He just sat their, leaning against Pinkie's legs and staring at the ground.
"You can trust me Twilight," Pinkie smiled. "Now go, figure out how to save the world like you always do." Twilight grinned back, reassured, and stepped out of the library with Celestia.
Okay, Twilight had just left to go talk to Discord, nothing to worry about, and left her in charge of the library...
Exactly how did pony run a library? Pinkie had heard that sometimes libraries would lend books out to ponies...but the only pony she could remember ever borrowing a book was Rainbow Dash. And since Rainbow Dash wasn't here that meant...
Her work was done! Hooray!
Which meant she could focus on Sunny! She turned around to look at the small earth pony.
"So Sunny..." she paused, there had to be something she could say to bring up his spirits. "You okay?" The unimaginative words fell from her mouth before she had a chance to think of something better.
Sunny just shrugged.
"Yes...and no," he replied, keeping his eyes down. "Pinkie, who was Discord?" Sunny asked after a short pause. Pinkie was surprised, Sunny had been paying more attention to Twilight and Celestia than she'd realized.
"He was...like an evil version of Celestia," Pinkie started, hoping that was a good comparison. "He may seem nice and do really cool things at first, like giving us chocolate rain and cotton candy, but he doesn't stop there. He can turn friends against each other with a snap of his finger! He made me think that everypony was laughing at me, then I turned all gray and super angry. I didn't think anything was fun anymore, can you imagine that?" She finished with a little giggle.
"Then, how did you stop him?" Sunny continued.
"Well he almost won, Discord had made Twilight give up on her friendships with all of us, but the Princess was able to bring back her faith in us. Twilight broke the spell and was able to bring us back to normal with her magic. It was so amazing! You should have seen us try to catch Rainbow Dash, it was all zoom! And then Fluttershy went super fast and then we got the Elements of Harmony which shot out a big huge blast of super powerful magic that...." Pinkie stopped, realizing she had started to ramble. "But the important thing is that you can't give up on friendship, it always wins out in the end, and it stopped Discord." She poked Sunny in his belly, which she happily saw brought a tiny smile to his face. Though it didn't last long.
"But enough about boring history, we still have some time left in the day. We can do whatever you want. Oh! Do you want to try pranking again? I've got some good ideas for Rainbow Dash or Rarity," she prodded his belly again but he brushed her away.
"Not really Pinkie...I'm sorry, I still don't really understand pranks. Is it all right if we just stay here for now?" Pinkie could simply not stand how gloomy he looked. He almost reminded her of...nope, don't think about that. New Sunny is Sunny and that is that.
"Of course, do you want me to read you a book or something?" she asked, hoping to do something for him.
"No...I just...I just..." he looked away. "Trixie was so ready to protect, to stand up to those voices, even if they were going to hurt her...and I couldn't do anything. I could barely even run. I don't know what I'm supposed to do anymore..."
"Sunny..." Pinkie glanced around, hoping somepony would show up to help her out, no such luck. "What happened to you in the Everfree Forest?" Sunny looked back at her, then took a deep breath.
"There were voices...Trixie brought me to them. They wanted something from me...and it hurt. They made me see things, my nightmares over and over again. I can't stop seeing them...and the more I see them, the more I think they may not be dreams..."
"What...what kind of dreams?" Pinkie found herself asking, though she figured she already knew the answer.
"I'm lost Pinkie...lost in darkness. Sometimes, there are a few lights, but they never last long. I am always trapped, no light, no sound, no anything. It all seems so real, like I was actually there..." he stared at her with pleading eyes. "Please Pinkie...they're not real are they? Please tell me they're not real."
Pinkie knew she had to be careful when answering him. She had to do that thing Applejack and Twilight were always telling her to do. Think before she spoke.
She thought for a few moments and came to a decision. She jumped forward and wrapped her hooves around Sunny in a great big happy hug. Actions could always speak louder than words, she learned that from Rainbow Dash.
"They're just bad dreams Sunny. You are you, and I don't want you to be anything else," she pulled back slightly and ruffled his mane. "And whatever you do, don't get captured again, I don't want you going anywhere." Another smile, good. Pinkie always prided her self on bringing smiles out of Sunny. In fact...she was good at bring smiles out of almost anypony!
"I'll try Pinkie," Sunny promised. "Thanks." He rested his head against her chest.
"That's what friends are for," she whispered to him, hugging him closer.
Everything was going to be okay...
"Are you sure that putting Discord back in the gardens was a good idea Princess?" Twilight asked as they trotted along the outside of the garden.
"To tell the truth, I'm not sure there is a perfect place to put Discord, even trapped as he is. At least last time his imprisonment lasted for over a thousand years, we can only hope it will do so again," slowly, the statue came into view. "Though I must say that I do enjoy this expression far more that the last one." Twilight couldn't help but agree with her, Discord's mocking face was permanently locked into a look of abject terror.
Very fitting.
They stopped before the statue, and Twilight felt her confidence waver slightly. Even as a statue, she could feel the power radiating from him. Pure chaos, held in check by the Elements of Harmony...but only just.
"So, how are we supposed to talk with him?" she wondered.
"It's a simple spell actually, the real problem is in what he says. He twists your thoughts with every word, as is his way," Celestia explained.
"But that shouldn't be a problem right? I was able to break through his magic before," Twilight said.
"Yes, but he never tries the same thing twice, Discord always has new tricks to try. Just know that I will be there with you."
"Of course Princess...start the spell please," Celestia nodded and waved her horn at the statue, the effect was almost immediate. Like a great wave crashing down, his presence surrounded them, crawling into her brain like a slimy, wriggling worm.
"Oh my my my, what do we have here? Oh look, I've finally got some company. Please tell me that Twilight's failed one of her tests and she'll be joining me in the garden, that would be so perfect," Discord's deep voice seemed to echo all around the glade, Twilight could almost imagine him slowly pacing around her, like a cat. "She'd at least help add to the feng shui."
"It is nothing like that Discord, we've come here with very important matters to discuss," Celestia stated from beside Twilight.
"Well now, how very serious, which means something very boring. Tell me Celestia, don't you ever think of taking a break from this whole 'ruling' thing? Just let the sun stay set for a day a two, what's the worst that could happen? You must be so tired after ruling for over a thousand years," Twilight could almost feel the anger from Celestia as she glared at the statue.
"I would never shirk my duties, you know that Discord," the Princess took a steadying breath. "And I think this will interest you. There is something out there using chaos magic, your magic." Gently, she laid Trixie down on the grass before the statue.
"Hmm...hmm...now that is most certainly...boring," Discord finally concluded after a few seconds.
"What? How can this be boring? There's something using magic to hurt ponies, your magic! How could you-" Twilight exclaimed before discord cut her off with a burst of laughter.
"I mean look at this, such shoddy work. Too much brute force, no fineness at all, they just tore out her spirit and left," another chuckle. "I could have done so much better."
Suddenly, Twilight felt his power gathering, focusing on her.
"But I suppose this finding is of some interest to me, where exactly did you find this poor pony?" he asked, his words seeming to circle smoothly around Twilight's mind.
"We were in the Everfree Forest looking for..." Twilight stopped before she said anything about Sunny. "Looking for new species of magical flora when we found her instead."
"The Everfree Forest? Now that is interesting. There should be nothing in those woods capable of this, unless..." Discord paused. "Oh, don't tell me you didn't...you did! Oh this is just delicious!" Laughter burst out of him, curling around Twilight and the Princess, blotting out any other noise.
"Enough Discord!" Celestia commanded, breaking through the laughter. "Exactly what are you speaking of?"
"Oh you know I just can't tell you that Princess. This joke has been building up for over a thousand years! At least let me enjoy the punchline," Discord almost seemed to plead, but his mocking tone betrayed his true feelings.
"I am losing my patience Discord," Celestia warned.
"But what exactly will you do if I don't tell you? Call up Twilight and her friends to turn me to stone again ?" He gave a long over-elaborate sigh. "Still so boring. You sister was much more fun. She really knew how to cut loose and enjoy life, especially with that stunt of her a thousand years ago. A little shaky, true, but she has so much potential." Now Twilight could picture a grin on Discord's face, growing larger with every word.
"Enough..." Celestia repeated.
"Did you ever wonder about those thousand years Luna spent on the moon? How long she waited, hoping for her sister to come save her? Growing lonelier and lonelier as no help came? Did you still remember that day when you couldn't save her?" Discord's voice was a low hiss now. "Do you still remember how the Elements fell away from you, turning into dull stone as your sister was pulled away? Do you remember how weak you truly are?"
Celestia looked down, her eyes shut tightly. Twilight wasn't sure what to do, but before she could think of something the Princess's eyes blazed open, a deep fire burning within them.
"I remember that every day of my life Discord. Everyday I wish I could have done things differently, been a few moments faster, a little bit stronger. That I could have had that extra something needed to save my little sister. But I cannot let that dictate my life. My sister has been returned to me, and if those thousand years have taught me anything, it is that I can never falter in my duties again," she smiled, a fierce smile. "Not even when mocked by an overconfident bully."
"Aww," Discord sighed, pulling away. "No matter, I'll find your breaking point one day Celestia. But as for your little gray friend here...you and your sister really should have tried getting out of the palace more often." Discord took a deep breath.
"Before the two of you arrived to knock me off my throne, this whole land was joined together in wondrous chaos! Every day I brought something new to my subjects, great fireballs rolling through their little homes, taking away their little pegasus wings just as they learned to fly, and once giving them directions to food, but by the time they had arrived, it had all spoiled!" he could not control himself, descending into a fit of laughter. "But there was one day I was particularly proud of, the first day."
"I came upon a little village of ponies, nestled deep within the Everfree Forest. It was so happy, so carefree, so...bland. I just couldn't let them be. And that's when a wonderful deal came to my mind. I'd give them a new world, my kind of world..."
"I gathered up every little pony and trapped them together in a world of my making, a world within their own minds."
"Now I couldn't just make it that easy, oh no, I added a fun little spin to it. By day they would run through the twisted terrors of their hearts, gleefully accepting the madness. But at night...I would let them remember. Remember who they were, who they had been, and more importantly, what they'd lost. They would scream and wail, try to find ways to save themselves or their families, but as the sun rose, they would be lost again."
"And then, the best part, with every day, they would lose a bit of themselves to the madness. The night would never restore everything. Soon, there would be nothing left of them at all!"
"Isn't it just grand? It took quite a bit of my power, but every second of it was perfect!" More cackling, loud and relentless.
"But when you were sealed by the princesses...your magic should have been cancelled," Twilight whispered.
"You'd like to think that wouldn't you? But magic is finicky like that. Oh I can just picture it now, those ponies trapped in endless madness for a thousand years, until even their spirits forgot what they were meant to be."
"All those years Celestia, and you never managed to find them, you are truly an example for all rulers," he mocked. "Then, to bring something new to the story, you and your friends came along Twilight Sparkle," she could sense his smile again, wide and cruel.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"When I was freed last time you hardly allowed me any time for fun, the chaos had barely begun to sink into the land before the power of the Elements tore it away. Perhaps because of that, their power sought out my old little spell in the woods. Still, I would guess the Elements were still not strong enough to break it. Instead, they simply loosened it a little, let something flow back..." a quick chuckle.
"You made them remember what they had been, that there was something other than their madness. But, this is just too great, they were still trapped! You gave a starving pony the scent of food, but no way to reach it! They spread outwards, looking for some shred of hope with the only thing they had, my chaos. It's so funny it you just stop to think about it..." Twilight couldn't believe what she was hearing, she and her friends had caused this to happen? "They must've found this one and moved a little too rashly..." Discord's presence fell back to Celestia.
"You know, I could probably tidy this up in an instant...with a little leeway..." he offered.
"Not a chance," Celestia replied in a instant.
"Right, we can just use the Elements to stop that spell!" Twilight added.
"Oh Twilight, and here I thought you were supposed to be the smart one. If you use the Elements to break that spell, to seal away my chaos, what happens to all those ponies? Won't they be sealed away as well? Will you put them in the garden here with me? Though the new scenery would be a plus..." Discord paused, as if musing on the picture of dozens of terrified pony statues.
"Is...is that true?" she turned to Celestia, who just shook her head.
"We can focus on a solution to this later Twilight, away from prying ears," she glanced back at the statue. "Thank you for your assistance Discord."
"Of course Princess, but allow me some parting words," the last part Twilight sensed was directed at her. She looked over at Celestia, but it seemed that she couldn't hear. "Do be careful now Twilight. Celestia has lived for so many years, you are not her first apprentice, and I doubt you shall be her last. Her little 'tests' can be...well I'm sure you'll find out for yourself. Run along now." Twilight wanted to ask him her a few more question, but the spell broke away, and he was back to being a simple hunk of granite. Still, Celestia made sure they had moved far away before starting any conversation.
"So, what do we do now Princess?" Twilight asked.
"We plan...and we prepare. Anything involving Discord, even distantly, is something to fear. I will send a message to the other Elements bearers and bring them to Canterlot. Before that though, we should make Trixie comfortable in the castle infirmary. Please keep a watch on her until your friends arrive," Celestia replied.
"Of course Princess, you can always count on me!" Twilight assured her. Celestia simply gave her a gentle smile.
"I know Twilight," she couldn't help but smile back at the Princess. Discord didn't know what he was talking about, he simply couldn't understand the connections they all shared together.
With all of her friends and the Princess, they'd be able to save those ponies, they'd be able to stop the chaos.
And then maybe, she could have a week in Ponyville without something disastrous happening. Happily, she followed the Princess as she gathered up the still form of Trixie.
Alone in the garden, a certain statue sat alone, and it laughed, a sound heard by no one but itself.
"Oh, how delightful, it looks like I'll be able to have fun this millennium after all!"
To Live, Love, and Forgive
Infirmaries, hospitals, those creepy places for sick ponies...
Whatever you called them, nopony ever liked going to them. Going to them always meant being poked and prodded while strange ponies decide on the shots you might need. Or you went to see your loved ones, to see them so sick and weak. Sometimes, if you were lucky, you could watch them get better. But...not everypony was that lucky.
All in all, you were almost always happier leaving, than going in.
Yet, here she was, watching after the former magician Trixie, who was nestled quite comfortably in a pristine white bed. Yet...the expression of pain had not left her face, as if she was in constant torment.
"Oh Trixie..." Twilight whispered in the lonely room. The Princess had left her here to watch over Trixie while the rest of her friends were gathered. But, to tell the truth, she would have done so anyway. "Did you know I never expected to see you again? I mean...there was always some chance, but I thought you'd make your way in another town, learn from your mistakes, and Ponyville would become nothing but a memory..."
"Oh, what am I doing?" she sighed, stepping up beside the bed. "I don't even know if you can hear me. Discord said they'd taken away your spirit...left nothing behind. Plus...even if you could hear me, I don't know what I'm supposed to say...I don't even know how I'm supposed to feel about you."
"When you first came here you were so rude...so callous. Then, the moment you come back, you kidnap Sunny, a colt that is very important to me and friends. You took him into the woods...and because of you...he was hurt, me and my friends were all hurt. Yet...Sunny says you tried save him later, that you sacrificed yourself to give him a chance to escape those tormented ponies. He says you were so brave...and I believe him...but...part of me is still angry with you."
"I know I shouldn't be, but I am. If you had been a little bit stronger, a little bit braver...or just a bit faster. Me and my friends might have been able to pull you out of the woods with Sunny. We could have protected you, nopony would have had to been hurt..." Twilight shook her head.
"I'm sorry, I'm judging you...and I don't even know you. Maybe...after all of this is over and you wake up, we could have a real conversation? We could start over...well, at least would could start off a little bit better than before?" Trixie gave no reaction, but Twilight could have sworn she saw the expression on her face soften slightly.
"And maybe I can help you earn the title of 'Great and Powerful,'" she added with a smile.
Okay, Sunny was in his bed taking a nap, boy that had been tough to set up. He'd looked so tired, but when she mentioned a nap, terror seemed to fill his eyes. Pinkie couldn't let him be scared, so she made sure to promise that she would stay close and she would be right there as soon as he woke up. Even with that, Sunny had been as slow as possible going up the stairs in the library. And then, before settling down into his covers, Sunny pulled a glowing rock out from his tail, how long had he had that, and an extra one from under his pillow. Placing them beside him on the sheets Sunny had taken one last look at her before closing his eyes.
So now here she was, nestled down on the floor beside Sunny's bed.
"You know Sunny...one day we're gonna have to find that right balance of 'safe' and 'interesting' for life in Ponyville. That way we can have exciting days without having to worry about thing like 'impending doom for every pony.' Wouldn't that be nice?" suddenly, a yawn escaped her lips. Golly-wolly, when had she gotten so tired? Maybe it was all that running in the Everfree Forest, followed by less than a hours sleep, followed by more running around in the forest...
Well that probably explained it.
Plus she'd been super-duper worried about Sunny, and being worried was just exhausting.
Well a little nap wouldn't hurt right? Even if she was sleeping she'd still be next to Sunny and he could wake her up if he got up before she did! It was the perfect plan. Satisfied, Pinkie let her head droop down to the floor and closed her eyes.
"It's nice to see you again Pinkamena," well that wasn't very nice. Somepony was bugging her just as she was trying to get to sleep. But...that was weird, she didn't even feel tired anymore.
In fact...as she opened her eyes she saw that she wasn't even in the library any more. Oh, she knew this place! It was the hill outside of Ponyville, the hill she made sure had a story with a happy ending. Yet...even though she was on top of the hill, she couldn't see any buildings. The ground just seemed to get all...blurry the further to looked.
Yet...all of that wasn't the most important thing.
"Who's calling me Pinkamena? Almost nopony calls me that but mom and dad, and I'm pretty sure you're not..." Pinkie stopped as her gaze traveled along the hill and a pony came into view, a stallion to be precise. He was just standing there, looking up into the sky as the bright sun shone down on his gray coat and dark black mane.
"No way! Is that..." she paused as it seemed he'd heard her. He pulled his gaze away from the sky and focused on her. He took a deep breath, seeming to almost relish the air as it flowed into his lungs.
"It's good to see that you're still smiling," he told her, the expression on his face remaining flat as the words rumbled out of his throat.
"It is you Old Sunny!" Pinkie exclaimed, rushing up in front of him with glee simply radiating from her body. "Nopony could sound as gloomy and rumbly as you!" She almost threw a hug around him, but stopped herself, pausing in midair.
"Hey...wait a minute," she reversed away from him. "There's no way you can be here, this is just a dream isn't it?" Pinkie knew what would happen next. Dream Sunny would say yes and the whole place would crumble around her.
To her surprise, Sunny shook his head.
"Something like that, and yet...not," he told her. "This is something that should have been forgotten, pushed back into the darkest reaches of the mind, made into something even less than a memory."
"What do you mean?" she asked, settling down into the grass. Explanations like this always took way too long!
"All of you brought me out of that dark void, saved me from the fate bestowed upon me, and in return, took a part of me with you. All of those parts were meant to fade, dissipate into nothing. But something stopped the process, something...drew them back out," he explained.
"Oh, that scary thing in the forest! The Princess told us it was trying to get you back from new Sunny and wanted to get all your spooky powers!" Pinkie spoke up, then gasped loudly. "Did you feel it when the tried? Did it hurt you too?"
"Something like that," he replied. "Pain does not really have a definition here. Still...the fact that I am able to speak to you like this means that they were partially successful. So listen closely, what I'm about to tell you is very important." He stepped forward and Pinkie made sure her ears were pointed towards him.
"I need to remember, you can't keep me locked up in the dark, you can't just tell me everything is going to be okay and push away my fears with a hug. If you do...the memories are going to overwhelm him," Sunny told her, somehow looking even more serious.
"Okay-hey wait a minute? How do you know what I told to new Sunny?" Pinkie asked suddenly, rubbing her chin in confusion.
"How else? I am the part of Sunny that has been in your mind. It has been an...interesting experience to say the least.," Pinkie nodded, understanding. "But please, you have to do this. At this point, I cannot afford to be lost anymore."
"Well...how am I supposed to tell him? That's not something you can just sort of bring up," she wondered.
"I do not have all the answers, but you will figure something out. You were smart enough to help me last time...I know you can help me now," he nodded while Pinkie was just surprised. She didn't think any pony had as much confidence in her as Sunny did.
"O-okay," she agreed. "But isn't there anything else you can tell me? Like, what was that thing in the woods? Is this whole thing going to have a happy ending? And...will I ever see you again?" Sunny closed his eyes for a moment, focusing.
"I am only a part...I do know I know that presence...but nothing more. The ending will be decided by you and your friends, but I trust you'll find the right path. As for your last question...you have to understand Pinkie, there is no 'Old Sunny' or 'New Sunny.' In the end, it's just me, even if I'm just a little bit smaller. I will see you again, of that, there is no doubt," Pinkie could swear she saw the ghost of a smile on his face, but maybe it was just the lighting.
"So...time to wake up then?" Pinkie asked.
"Yes...but don't worry. It's not lonely here. It's bright, happy, everything I could want. Now...goodbye," Pinkie blinked, and in the next moment she was back in library. The only noise being the quiet snores of Sunny next to her.
"Oh boy," she sighed, looking over at him. "This just keeps getting more and more complicated doesn't it?"
"Pinkie Pie?" a new voice called from the doorway.
"Is that you Spike?" she called back, keeping her voice low.
"Yeah," the young dragon replied, stepping into the room. "I just got a letter from the Princess. She wants all of the Element bearers, plus me and Sunny, to go to Canterlot. She's sending a carriage for all of us really soon. I guess it's really important," he explained, waving the letter around.
"See what I mean?" Pinkie said to no one in particular.
Once again, the bearers of the Elements of Harmony were gathered together, but this time, within the very throne room of the castle of Canterlot.
Here, they would discuss how to bring an end to the darkness within the Everfree Forest. They would speak directly with the Princess, and with her vast knowledge of magic, a solution would quickly be found. It would be quite an amazing thing for anypony to witness.
"Now Sunny, you need to stay outside with Spike," Twilight informed them. All of her friends stood behind her in the throne room while Celestia herself sat in the throne and nodded wisely.
"Aww, how come?" Spike complained. "You brought us all the way up here only to tell us we don't get to a part of it?"
"Sorry, but you need to trust me," the unicorn explained. "It's better, and probably safer, if you just stay outside. Why don't you show Sunny around the Castle Spike? Just be sure no to go too far."
"Hmm...well okay Twilight," Spike accepted, crossing his arms across his chest. "C'mon Sunny, let's go check out the castle library or something."
"Have fun Sunny!" Pinkie waved after them as the doors to the throne room slammed shut. Sunny followed after Spike, surprised at how quickly Spike had agreed with Twilight, and very confused as to why he'd been brought up here.
Spike trudged along in silence, past the royal secretary and several royal guards who all gave him friendly smiles, obviously recognizing him. It was only when they had passed into an empty hallway that he stopped, rounding on Sunny with a huge grin plastered on his face.
"Good, do you think Twilight bought the act?" he asked quickly, keep his voice low as his eyes darted back and forth.
"I w-what?" Sunny stammered, now even more confused than before.
"Oh come on, you know that I would give up this easily, especially over something this interesting! I almost never know what's going on around Ponyville, and now I finally have a chance," he said, his eyes glistening with excitement.
"But...even if they thought your act was real, we're still locked out of the throne room," Sunny argued.
"Please, I've been exploring this castle since I was hatched. You can't have expected me to sit around all the time and watch Twilight read her books. It started out innocently enough, but there are so many little passages hidden throughout this place! It thought about telling Twilight once or twice, but I don't think she'd appreciate like I do. Probably give me a big speech on 'being responsible' and that I should 'inform the princess.'" He shook his head. "Anyway, there should be something right over...here..." Spike started to run his claws over a nearby wall, inching behind a displayed set of armor.
"I'm...not so sure about this," Sunny murmured.
"C'mon, if they brought us here then whatever they're talking about has to involve us...or at least you. We've got to take the initiative, show them that we're strong, that they can trust us," Spike explained. "We're gonna be big and strong one day too. Besides...it's not a good idea to hide things from your friends, or to distrust them. Twilight should know that more than anypony...here we go!" His claws clicked against the wall and panel slid away, revealing a small opening, barely big enough for him and Sunny.
"So, are you ready?" Spike asked. Sunny paused for a moment thinking.
Just what were they talking about...something told him it probably involved him, but why? It seemed he was a part of so many things, but no one would explain to him why. The only response he'd gotten was pain and nightmares...
But he had to know...he had to understand.
"Okay," he replied, and stepped into the small tunnel with Spike.
The pathway refused to get any larger, but at least it wasn't pitch black. The path seemed to slope upwards and ahead of them Sunny could see a few small openings that allowed a few rays of light in. Slowly, the two of them crawled forward, reaching the pinpoints of light.
"We should be right above the throne right now," Spike whispered. "These holes should let us hear and see what's going on. But be careful if you look out of them, you never know when somepony might be looking up here." Sunny just nodded, worried that someone might overhear them.
"So you're saying that this is some sort of crazy thing with Discord and trapped ponies," Rainbow Dash's voice floated up to them. "But that still doesn't explain why they tried to capture Sunny."
"I'm still not sure about that," that had to be Twilight. "Maybe they want some of the powers he used to have...maybe it's got something to do with Discord's spell making them..." Twilight's voice dropped and became inaudible.
Powers...what was Twilight talking about? He inched closer towards the opening in the wall, hoping to hear more.
"But why does that even matter?" Only Pinkie Pie had a voice that pitch. "Can't we just use the Elements to release the ponies from that mean old Discord's spell?"
"But that would just release the chaos magic, and I don't know what that might do to the nearby environment. And we can't just try to seal the magic away because that could trap the ponies too," Twilight explained.
"Well why don't we try and do both then?" somepony with an accent offered, had to be Applejack. "First we use the Elements to free all them ponies, then seal up all that chaos magic right quick?"
"That may not be wise," Celestia's majestic tones reached Sunny's ears, and he subconsciously stepped back, earning an odd stare from Spike. He did not know why, but he was never comfortable around the Princess. At first...he though she was simply intimidating, but as he thought about it, Sunny realized it was something more than.
Staring up at the Princess, her regal gaze looking back at him...he felt...regret.
It was like...remembering an old mistake. Something he never wanted to remember again.
He hated that feeling...he hated seeing her face, hearing her voice.
She broke the illusion...
"Using the Elements is an exhausting task, as you all well know, their magic draws greatly on your own strength and vitality. Normally, it is easy enough to recover from, but using them several times in a row can be dangerous...if not deadly," the Princess advised.
"I must say, this sounds like something Discord planned when he cast that dreadful spell," Rarity observed. Sunny noticed Spike moving closer to the openings as he heard the unicorn's voice.
"Ugh!" Pinkie groaned. "This is terrible! It's like trying to put together a super hard puzzle, but we don't have all the pieces and even if we solve part of it somepony comes along to scramble it all up!"
"Yeah Pinkie...hey wait a minute...that actually made some sense!" Rainbow Dash commented. "Well, more sense that usual at least."
"But that still leaves us with all those missing pieces," Twilight grumbled so that Sunny could barely hear her. "Wait...missing pieces...we're not the only ones missing something...I've got it!" she finished with a shout.
"Mind cluin' us in on your revelation there sugar cube?" Applejack asked.
"There is a way we can stop the spell and free the ponies!" Twilight exclaimed. "We're just have to give them exactly what they want!"
"What!" that was several ponies at once. They quickly descended into wild yammering before Pinkie's voice broke out over all of them.
"You can't do that Twilight! If you give Sunny to them they're just going to hurt him again! They'll...they'll..." her voice fell silent.
"They'll turn him back into..." it seemed so quiet, but the words reached Sunny's ears all the same.
"Don't worry Pinkie, I won't let anything happen to him. The plan is..." Twilight quickly replied, but Sunny didn't hear the rest.
Turn him back into...what was Pinkie talking about? Did it have something to do with those memories? But Pinkie had told him they were just bad dreams.
Pinkie wouldn't lie to him...right?
The tunnel suddenly seemed far darker, the shadows were almost swirling around him, choking him.
You need to open your eyes...
He was shaking...why was he shaking? It had just been a simple little comment, why did it eat away at him?
"Sunny? Sunny are you okay?" he felt Spike's claw rest on his quivering shoulder. He just shook his head, he didn't want to hear any more. Without another word he turned and crawled back through the tunnel, pulling himself back out into the empty hallway.
Sitting there, he rubbed his temples, trying to push back the voice, push back the memories.
"It's nothing, it's nothing, just a trick, a joke...a prank," he muttered over and over.
"Hey, snap out of it Sunny!" Spike was next to him again, trying to stop him from shaking. "What happened? Are you all right?"
"I...I'm..." Sunny took a deep breath. "I'm okay Spike...It's nothing." He tried to brush Spike away.
"No it wasn't," Spike stood his ground. "This is something Twilight and the others should know about. You should try to talk to them about it."
"No!" Sunny exclaimed, before forcing himself to calm down. "No. Please Spike...they can't know about this." He couldn't acknowledge it, couldn't admit it might be real.
"I don't know Sunny..." Spike shook his head, but it was obvious he didn't want to force Sunny into something he wanted to avoid.
"Just trust me okay? Just trust me..." Sunny told him. Trust him, like he trusted Pinkie.
"...okay," Spike agreed hesitantly. "Now come on, we can go act like we were in the library this whole time." He waved his hand and Sunny followed him once more.
They had hardly begun to wander around the vast library before Twilight and the others, each equipped with their respective Element, had burst in with an announcement.
"Get ready you two!" Rainbow Dash boldly ordered. "We're heading back to the Everfree Forest!"
"Hopefully full the last time," Rarity added. "That place is absolutely dreadful!"
"But you've got the Elements, why do you need us?" Spike asked.
"Spike, we need you to be able to send a message to Princess at a moment's notice, in case something goes wrong," Twilight explained, the jewel of her crown glimmering in the light of the castle. "And Sunny, you're the most important part of the plan!"
"Umm, you know, if that's all right with you," Fluttershy muttered.
"Will...will it hurt?" Sunny found himself asking.
"Not at all," Pinkie gleefully answered. "As long as Twilight's right about her theory."
"Trust me girls, this is the perfect plan," the unicorn reassured.
"Well c'mon then everypony. No use sitting here wasting time. I'd rather get this done sooner than later," Applejack joined in. "So let's get over to the chariots." Everypony agreed with that, and they all set out, ready to put an end to all of this.
At least, Sunny hoped it would finally be at an end.
"Okay Sunny, so you understand what your part of the plan is right?" Twilight asked him. They had landed just outside of the forest and were now walking through the thick trees.
"Something like that," he replied. "Just keep walking until you tell me to run for cover."
"Right, and once that happens I'll-"
"Twilight no!" Pinkie interrupted. "You can't tell him the plan here where everyone can hear it. Everypony knows if you do that something will go wrong!"
"Pinkie, that's only how things work in stories, not real life," Twilight groaned.
"But you don't know that!" Pinkie replied, her eyes growing wide. She turned towards Sunny. "You just need to trust us, even the Princess said this plan should work. Also, after this whole this whole thing is over, I've got something important to tell you."
"Important how?" Sunny asked.
"You'll see," she promised. "Now let's go! It's time to save the world!"
The group forged forward, the underbrush rustling beneath their hooves. With every step, Sunny was liking the plan less and less.
Eventually, he knew when it was time.
The noises of the forest stopped, like all the animals had been frightened away. He could feel the voices drawing closer, he could feel their eyes hungrily watching him, and this time, he couldn't sense anything holding them back.
They had beaten Trixie.
"They're here," he whispered, and then he could hear them.
We can see you now, all of you. It's all here, and we will take it!
The voices shouted in his head, but he wasn't the only one who heard. He noticed Twilight and her friends shuddering as the presence drew close.
We can finally be free!
With those words Sunny felt their icy grip close in around his mind. He tried to back away, but there was nowhere to go.
The grip tightened and he couldn't move. Sunny knew what was coming next...pain.
But before the pain could start, Twilight and her friends were there, forming a protective circle around him.
"Not if we have anything to say about it!" Pinkie stated.
You can't stop it! We will take back what is ours!
The voices yelled, but Twilight's horn ignited with magic and seemed to drive them back.
"I don't think so! You're using magic, and if there's one thing I know, it's magic! Even chaos magic!" Twilight shouted into the woods, her horn glowing brighter.
"You're trying to take all the pieces of Sunny, all those puzzle pieces, and put them together and then separate them. But that you don't know is that every spell, if understood, can be turned against it's user!" she stepped forward, the light around her horn focusing.
What are you doing? Stop!
"I'm pulling you all together, and then I'm going to separate the chaos magic from you!" as Twilight said that, sunny felt the grip on his mind being pulled away, drawn towards Twilight's horn. "And then we can seal away the magic with our Elements. After that...we'll be able to help you."
The magic was finally released, shooting from her horn in a beam of light. It slammed into...something floating in the air, a dark presence.
The voices screamed, but it didn't hurt, not anymore.
The voices grew quieter and quieter as the magic began to envelop of them.
"Get ready girls, as soon as this spell is done we're going to have to use the Elements," Twilight announced.
"Right!" they all agreed, gathering next to Twilight. They stood prepared as Twilight's magic grew brighter.
Sunny just stared in awe. He'd been so terrified of this presence, yet Twilight had figured out a way to defeat it so easily...
The spell stopped and the last traces of the screaming faded into nothing.
"Alright, n-" Twilight was cut off as a brilliant white flash blinded them all.
And accompanying the light...was laughter. Harsh, deep, mocking laughter.
"No...it couldn't be..." Sunny heard Twilight mutter, his eyes still closed from the light.
"Well done, my little ponies!" a menacing voice chuckled, just hearing it unnerved Sunny.
"I think it's time we had some fun!"
To Live, Love, and Forgive
The glare in his vision finally managed to dim to the point where he could open his eyes. Sunny saw what had frightened Twilight and her friends, and he wished he had kept them closed.
At first he thought it was a dragon...but no, that was a lions paw, and an eagle claw. A pair of mismatched wings spread from its back, not flapping, yet he still floated in mid-air. It had what might have been identified as a pony head, but it was topped with two strange horns.
Yet, the one thing that stood out to him the most was the single vicious fang that jutted from its mouth as the creature laughed at them.
Just looking at it, Sunny knew what it was.
It was madness, it was chaos...
It was Discord.
"I must admit I had some doubts that you'd be able to pull this off," he continued. "But it looks like I was right in putting my faith in you all. Again, well done!" He mockingly clapped his eagle claw and lions paw together.
"Discord?" Twilight gasped, stuttering for a few moments. "How did...where did...why are you...you're supposed to be stuck in stone back in Canterlot!" She finally managed to say.
"Oh Twilight, and here I thought you were supposed to be Celestia's prize student," Discord shook his head. "Don't you pay any attention at all? I am chaos and chaos is me! All chaos magic is simply a part of me. I've been trapped with those sad little ponies for so long, but now I'm free thanks to all of you." He spread his arms open wide, as if intending to wrap them up together in a giant hug.
"Well not for long!" Rainbow Dash shouted, stepping up next to Twilight. "Didn't you notice? We've got the Elements ready this time. Hope you like gathering moss as a statue!" Her words emboldened her friends as they gathered together. Discord merely raised an eyebrow at them.
"Oh really? Perhaps you should all take a closer look," he snapped his fingers and there was another flash of light. As the light cleared, the ponies couldn't believe what they saw, the Elements had vanished! "You really should keep better track of your things, but don't worry, I'm here to pick up the slack." Out of nowhere he hefted a large brown sack, stuffed full with what had to be the Elements.
"Give those back you ruffian!" Rarity shouted at him.
"Well...I'm not sure if I should," Discord replied. "Whenever I'm around, you ponies always seem to lose these important items. I think it would be best for everypony if I stored them away somewhere safe. But where's the best place..." he rubbed his chin for a moment.
"Aha, I've got it! It's someplace you should know very well Twilight. It's where your precious princess stored her little sister when she became too much to handle," he announced.
"No...you don't mean..." Twilight muttered, shocked.
"Absolutely! Full points to the purple unicorn!" Discord pulled his arm holding the bag back.
"The moon!" he gleefully shouted, launching the bag up into the sky faster than Sunny could have believed. For only a moment it was a tiny speck in the air, and then it vanished.
Nopony knew what to say.
"I don't...did he jus'..." Applejack finally broke the silence.
"I-I think he did," Fluttershy added.
"Oh the looks on your faces, just perfect." Discord chuckled. "But I've got so much to catch up on! So much chaos to bring back to this world, oh I bet Ponyville has missed me just as much as I've miss ed. Still, I think I'll take a quick souvenir." He eyes scanned their group quickly before falling on Sunny, even as the small earth pony tried to hide himself in the foliage of the forest.
"Oh no..." Sunny whispered.
"Oh yes," Discord replied, and Sunny suddenly found himself being yanked from the ground, levitating over to the cackling god.
"Well then my little ponies, arrivederci!" he gave them all one last mad grin before vanishing in another burst of light with a snap of his fingers.
"This...this..." Pinkie was too stunned to form a single sentence.
"This is really bad, isn't it?" Rainbow Dash finished for her.
"Yes," Twilight flatly agreed. "Spike, are you still here?"
"Over here Twilight!" Spike called, pulling himself out from behind some trees. "Sorry, I just...well...it was Discord!"
"I understand Spike, but listen, we need to send a letter to Princess," she quickly told him.
"Right now."
Now where was he?
Sunny had imagined countless horrors the second he head Discord snapping his fingers. The last thing he had expected was...this.
He stood, alone, in a field of tall grass with the bright sun beaming down at him. Straining, he could barely see over the top of the grass.
Sunny wondered for a moment if he had been pulled back into his dreams, but this felt too different...too off.
The grass was rough and coarse, it almost seemed to be reaching out towards him. And the sun...while before its light had always comforted him, now it seemed so harsh, nearly blinding him wherever he looked. And it almost seemed to to burn him through his coat.
Sunny had never known the sun to be like this...
He had to get out of here...wherever here was.
Sunny started moving forward, his progress hindered by the grass which seemed to take every opportunity to yank at his mane or get tangled around his hooves.
But he had to keep moving, something in the back of his mind told him to keep moving.
It wasn't long before he was utterly exhausted, drawing on every bit of strength simply to drag his hooves forward. Yet...he noticed that the grass seemed to be thinning...and there was something ahead.
Sunny squinted, trying to make out what it was, but he couldn't see anything through the sun's glare.
A few more steps forward and he was able to recognize something. It was...another pony. Somepony was walking towards him.
Sunny tried to call out, but his throat was so dry he couldn't get out anything more than a whisper. Instead, he tried to wave, and the other pony immediately waved back, almost completely in sync with him...
Wait...was that...
He drew closer, and he recognized the pony heading towards him.
It was him...rather, it was a mirror. He raised a hoof and placed it against the surface of the reflective glass. It stretched out to the sides, Sunny couldn't even it ever stopped. The glass simply stood in the middle of the field, no border or anything. It was just...here.
"Why?" he found himself whispering.
"Why not, my little faker?" a claw fell on his shoulder, digging in to his skin. Shocked, Sunny turned his head and Discord was standing next to him, but he gave no reflection in the mirror. "But I suppose it's because you don't always need to go big or go home. Sometimes, all you need to do is start with something small, just a hint of chaos. You'd be surprised at how many ponies lose themselves if they're forced to see what they really look like. Except... there's something wrong here, you're still seeing what you want to see, have you really deluded yourself that much? We should fix that..." Discord rapped his knuckles against the glass, and Sunny's reflection seemed to blur, growing hazy.
"Now there we go! Let's get rid of all those little extra pieces, the parts of you that you borrowed," Discord commented.
"What are you talking about?" Sunny tried to step away from him, but Discord's grip tightened further, locking him in place.
"What else? You've got to see exactly who you are. I mean, let's face it, This whole time, you've just been pretending to be something you're not, borrowing aspects from those silly ponies who you call friends. I mean look at this! You've got your bravery, happiness, friendliness, inquisitiveness, every single little part of it stolen!" with every one of those words Sunny felt something brush through him and his image became more and more hazy, losing color, losing focus. "And still under all of that, we haven't found the real you!"
Sunny could barely see himself in the mirror now, if he looked closely he thought he could recognize the outline of a pony...the simple idea of one.
"You're just made of so many little thoughts and dreams! Under it all, are you even a pony? Are you even alive? Or are you just a simple dream that's been going on for far too long?" the outline wavered and collapsed in on itself, becoming nothing more than shadows. "I think it's time for the dream to end, my little faker."
Sunny could not pull his gaze away from the image in the mirror, subconsciously, he drew his hoof up, moving it closer and closer towards the image. He could almost touch it...
No...
Sunny managed to stop himself, forcing his eyes away.
"My friends told me about you Discord," he said. "They said how you turn friends against each other with your lies. Well it won't work, I trust them."Sunny defiantly stamped his hooves into the ground
"Oh, there's that silly notion of the 'Power of Friendship' again, don't you people have any other songs to play?" Discord stared down at him for a moment, before finally giving a shrug. "Well how about this, let's take a look at your friends right now." He snapped his fingers and the image in the mirror shifted again, this time clearing to show Twilight and her friends walking through the forest. Twilight and Pinkie Pie were in the lead, talking among themselves while Twilight levitated a letter in front of her.
"So what did the Princess say Twilight? She knows some amazing magic that'll bring back the Elements and Sunny and save the day right?" Pinkie asked, trying to lean in front of Twilight to read the letter. Her voice sounded so desperate, and it almost looked like some of the brightness had faded from her coat.
"Not exactly Pinkie...not even the Princess can stand up to Discord. Even though this is only a part of Discord, we don't know just how strong he is. All she and Princess Luna can do right now is erect a barrier around the statue in Canterlot. Hopefully, they can stop Discord from regaining his full power," Sunny thought he heard Discord chuckle at that. "Right now we're heading back to the library. I've got to do the only thing I have left."
"And...what's that?" Pinkie asked hopefully.
"Research! There's got to be a book or something in the library that can help! Something about Discord. I don't know what, but something about what he did just doesn't seemed right..." Twilight explained.
"He's a crazy god a chaos! Nothing he does is right!" Rainbow Dash called up from the back.
"I mean aside from that...oh, I don't know how to explain it. But we've got to do something," Twilight rolled up the scroll, exasperated.
"Well what about that spell you used to find Sunny last time, since we're all connected and everything?" now Applejack was joining it.
"I already tried that, but I couldn't find anything. Either Discord took him too far for the spell to find or...or he simply can't be found..." Pinkie seemed to grow even gloomier upon hearing that.
"But we've just got to find him! Sunny's got to know...he's got to know that...I lied to him," that last part Pinkie barely whispered.
"What are you talking about Pinkie?" Twilight questioned.
"Before, we I was a sleeping, I talked to older Sunny...well actually it was dream Sunny...or maybe memory Sunny makes more sense. Anyway, he told me that I needed to tell new Sunny that...that his nightmares are real! That...that he's not what we told him he is..." with that the mirror shifted back to his dark reflection.
Sunny didn't know what to do, what to say. All he could do was stand, stunned, as he felt his gaze being drawn further into the shadowy mirror.
"My my, you really have the best of friends don't you? I wonder just how many lies they've told you..." Discord mused.
"Y...you're lying!" Sunny finally managed to force out. "That wasn't real!" Discord just laughed.
"This story needs no more lies little faker. I will add none...and neither should you," Sunny could no longer feel the claw on his shoulder...in face, he could barely feel much of anything anymore. "It does no good to run from the truth, especially when its staring you right in the face."
The shadows in the mirror seemed to be growing larger...or was his vision simple growing darker?
"The dream is over, I think it's time for you to return to the shadows. It's where you belong, and deep down, you know you always wished to return there." Discord's last words sounded...strange. They reverberated and echoed around his mind, growing louder and pushing away any thoughts he might have against them.
Discord was right...
Why should he stay here...those nightmares were true. That darkness, the endless void...all of that had been real. All of the pain, loneliness, and torment. It was where he had be born...
No more lies, no more false friends...
It was where he belonged...
He stepped into the mirror and wished for the dream to end.
"Anything yet Twilight?" Pinkie asked, digging herself out from a pile of books. "Please tell me you've found something..." Their other friends were spread throughout the library, desperately searching through the collection of books. The entire situation was filled with dreaded anticipation, as if they expected Discord to burst through the front door at any moment.
"Sorry, Pinkie," Twilight answered, reading four separate books from her own impressive pile. "I'm looking into everything I can, old mythology, studies on the Elements from Canterlot, even books on foreign magic from Zecora. But none of them can explain what happened."
"Exactly what're yah talkin' bout Twilight?" Applejack questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"When Discord attacked last time all he did was hide the Elements from us," she waved a hoof at her books. "Everything I read says that Discord can barely stand being near the Elements. He can grab them with magic, but never for very long, and he can't physically affect them. That's why he just hid them. But this time, he not only took every single one in an instant, he sent them to the moon! It shouldn't have been possible."
"But it has to be possible Twilight! He tossed the Elements away no problem and then grabbed Sunny," Rainbow Dash argued.
"That's the other thing," Twilight continued. "Why just take Sunny? Even when he hid the Elements last time he still stayed around to make sure that we wouldn't be able to use them. He used his magic to turn us against each other."
"You don't have to remind us about that darling," Rarity said, averting her gaze to the ground. "Personally, I still hate to think about it."
"I understand Rarity, but why didn't he do that again? I don't like this..." Twilight returned to her books for a few more moments when she felt a light tap on her shoulder. Turning, she saw Fluttershy meekly standing behind her.
"Twilight, I don't think this research is going to do us any good. Um, I think the best thing right now would be leave the books and try to get Sunny back. If Discord took him, then the last he would want is for us to get him back," the Pegasus explained. "Don't you think that's a good idea?" Twilight paused, looking over all the books in the library. It held so much knowledge, yet so often brought them little help.
"Well...you might be right Fluttershy, but how would we find Sunny? We've still got no idea where Discord took him," Twilight finally told her.
"Actually, I thought about that too. Don't you think it would make sense for Discord to hide Sunny away like he did all those poor ponies from the forest?" Fluttershy quickly replied.
"Of course!" Twilight exclaimed. "That explains why I wasn't able to sense Sunny with my magic!" Twilight grinned, happy to understand at least part of the mystery.
"But we still don't know how to find Sunny!" Pinkie added dejectedly.
"I was thinking...um, what if there was a pony that had a connection to those lost pony spirits. You could use your magic to follow the connection to Discord's world," Fluttershy said, trying to reassure Pinkie.
"Wait, you don't mean...Trixie?" Twilight realized. "That's...brilliant Fluttershy!" Twilight wrapped up Fluttershy in a hug.
"It's nothing that great really, I just thought about what you would think of," Fluttershy said, a small blush forming on her face.
"Well who cares who thought of it first, we need to get up to Canterlot!" Pinkie yelled, shoving all of her friends towards the front door.
The first thing Twilight noticed as she was pushed outside was Canterlot, or rather, the massive magical force field covering the royal city. Could that be...Shining Armor?
"C'mon girls, to the balloon!" Pinkie called out. Twilight looked around at her firends. They'd been running around so much these past few days. The woods, Canterlot, Ponyville, back to the woods...she wondered if anyone was as exhausted as her...
Hopefully, they were almost done with all of this.
Gray...
Everything was was a dull gray, like he had been trapped within an endless fog. That seemed...wrong.
No...no. That thought was brushed aside. He was exactly where he was meant to be. Everything would be quiet now. No more lies, no more shadows or memories.
For the first time that he could remember, everything finally seemed right...
What are you doing?
Part of the gray shifted to black, and Sunny could feel something heading towards him.
"No...that's not fair, leave me alone! How are you able to find me? I'm finally happy here..." he yelled at the shadows. The something in the darkness seemed to pause for a moment before moving forward again.
All Sunny could do was sit there and watch as...himself stepped out of the blackness.
He was taller, stronger, older...and he looked angry.
"If there is one thing you can never escape, it is your own shadow," his voice was so rough, so grating. Sunny covered his ears, he did not want to hear anything this other him had to say.
But then the other him was in front of him, pulling a hoof away from his ear.
"Have you finally let fear decide our fate?"
Author's Note
Humble grumbles...
And this image/comic/thing was a great piece of inspiration.http://imgace.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/life-asked-death.jpg
To Live, Love, and Forgive
"Uh oh..."
The mutter was barely a whisper, but Twilight heard it nonetheless, along with its tone of worry. The balloon had just risen to the height of the clouds and looking around she saw the only pony who attention was focused far off in the distance. It was Rainbow Dash.
"What's the problem Rainbow Dash?" she asked, though she wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer.
"Well...I was looking out away from Canterlot, and I may have seen a cotton candy cloud..." Rainbow Dash replied after a moment.
"Oh no...where exactly?" Twilight moved next to the Pegasus, straining her eyes as she scanned the horizon.
"I don't know, I think it's hiding behind some of the normal clouds. But it's not that bad right? The clouds were just the beginning of Discord's chaos last time, and it's only one." Rainbow Dash said.
"I don't think Discord will do the same thing twice. To tell you the truth...I think he's taunting us, letting us know that he's still out there while we scramble around trying to find out what to do," Twilight explained, her expression growing dark.
"Well ah jus' can't stand it!" Applejack shouted, pacing back and forth in the small space allowed to her. "I wish Discord would jus' let it all loose, at least then we would know what we were up against!" Rarity placed a hoof on the earth pony's shoulder in an attempt to calm her.
"Don't worry dear, we'll put an end to that ruffian. Once we get Sunny back from his clutches we'll find a way to get the Elements back and give him a piece of our minds!" They all could not help but smile at Rarity's bold declaration.
"Good point Rarity. Now hold on everypony, we're almost at Canterlot," the balloon drew closer to the shining city, right up next to the shining shield. Twilight was worried it might block them, but they passed through like it wasn't there.
The shield must be for blocking Discord and his magic only, she realized.
They rose up to the air docks, and with a rather unceremonious thump, landed on the solid wooden platforms.
Twilight and her friends quickly stepped off into the harbor, worriedly looking around at the empty docks.
"Um...shouldn't there be more ponies here Twilight?" Fluttershy asked.
"Well...maybe the Princess asked them all to return to their homes for safety?" Twilight guessed.
"Yeah, sounds good. Now come on everypony, we need to get to Trixie!" Pinkie shouted before rushing off, forcing her friends to follow quickly after her.
The group of them stampeded through the empty streets, their hoofsteps echoing eerily around them. Twilight found herself scanning the homes, trying to find some hint of life.
The only things that greeted her were locked doors and shuttered windows.
Finally, they reached the entrance of the castle. Thankfully, someone was already there waiting for them.
Her midnight blue mane flowing out behind her, Luna, the Princess of The Night, smiled at them upon their arrival.
"Ah, Twilight Sparkle. It is a pleasure to see you and your friends," she greeted happily.
"And it's great to see you Princess!" Twilight gave a quick bow. "Where's Princess Celestia, and is it my brother who's making this shiled, and what are you doing to prepare, and can we..." the Princess raised a hoof, stopping twilight's questions.
"My elder sister is standing guard by Discord, she is the last line of defense. As for your brother, he is projecting this shield from the top of the castle with all of his strength. We have done all we can to prepare. Celesita expected all of you to arrive at any moment and placed me here to wait for you. So I ask, why have you come to Cantelot?" she lowered her hoof, allowing Twilight to respond.
"We need to see Trixie as soon as possible, is she still in the castle infirmary?" Twilight answered after taking a few moments to focus her thoughts. "She may help us stop Discord!"
"And how could she do that?" Luna questioned.
"There's no time to explain everything Princess!" Pinkie Pie cut in. Twilight simply stared in horror at the pink earth pony. "We have to stop Discord as soon as possible!" Surprisingly, Luna gave them a quick nod.
"That is wise indeed Pinkie Pie. As for Trixie, we moved her to a private room, something safer. I can lead you to it if you follow me," Luna replied.
"Of course Princess, lead the way," Twilight agreed, and then they were off into the castle.
Still there were no other ponies to see. No maids, secretaries, or guards. It almost felt as if they were in another world entirely.
"So princess, what'd you tell those other ponies to keep them safe while Discord is roamin' the countryside?" Appplejack spoke up as they ran through the castle corridors.
"Celestia informed them all that a 'training exercise' is currently is currently in progress. She figured they would believe such a fable due to the recent changeling attack, but I myself don't believe it will last very long," Luna answered.
"Well I guess a lie is better'n panic in the streets," Applejack offered. "Anyway, where'd you end up moving Trixie to exactly?"
"She is in one of the upper floors, you will see soon enough," the Princess replied vaguely. They continued to follow her, up a flight up stairs, then down a hallways.
Up another flight, then another hallway.
Another flight, then a hallway...
Again and again and again...
How many floors did the castle have? Twilight could not believe the castle reached such heights. Yet Luna led them to even more stairs.
"I don't mean to complain," Rarity finally said. "But is it going to be much further?"
"Not much further, do not worry. We shall all be there soon..." Luna's voice suddenly seemed...distant somehow. "You can talk to Trixie and find out a way to bring the Elements back from the moon."
"Uh, Princess," Applejack slowed down slightly. "How did you know that's where the Elements were? I don't recall Twilight putting that in the letter to Celestia." Applejack's words seemed to cut through to Twilight's mind. She found herself stopping in the hallway, like a fog had been removed from her eyes.
Slowly, her gaze traveled over to a window, and looking through it, she realized there was nothing beyond it. It was just glass framed up against a wall.
Something was wrong.
"Princess Luna...if you knew we were coming to Canterlot, you probably saw the balloon rise from Ponyville. Why did you not meet us at the air docks, rather than the castle?" she made herself ask.
Luna almost seemed to freeze in place, a cold shimmer traveling through her body. Slowly, her head turned to face them, staring them down with dark powerful eyes...
And wicked grin curled around her face.
"Oh, I would recognize that tone of questioning anywhere. You've finally seen through the illusion haven't you?" the voice was still Luna's but underneath it were the tones of someone far more sinister. "About time, I was wondering how far you silly ponies would let me lead you on." Her smile grew wider while her body started to shimmer, blurring away to nothing. Replacing it was the long serpentine body of...who else?
Discord.
"Isn't there anything that can keep you away?" Rainbow Dash complained. "How did you even get through the shield?"
"Oh yes, now that was a very good spell. Your brother actually impressed me Twilight Sparkle," Discord upper half faded into a wall, his head popping out next to Twilight. "A shield to block anything even related to chaos magic. Anything even slightly me. Of course there was only one solution, I just had to stop being Discord."
"But that doesn't make any-"
"Now there you go again with that whole 'making sense' nonsense. When are you going to learn..." he face shifted into a perfect replica of Twilight's. "That your rules don't apply to me?" His face changed back to normal as he pulled the rest of himself out of the wall.
"But I guess it doesn't really matter what you think, because I need your help to answer a question of mine," he said, crossing his arms across is chest.
"Is it...a nice question?" Fluttershy asked warily.
"I guess that's for you to decide. The question is...can two Pegasus ponies save four of their friends from crashing into the ground at terminal velocity?" Discord tapped his hoof against the floor of the hallway, which immediately began to fold away, revealing to them exactly where they were standing.
High up in the empty air over Canterlot with nothing nearby, not even clouds, to support them.
"Toodle-loo," he waved goodbye right as they began to fall.
Twilight could not stop the piercing scream that escaped her throat as she approached the increasingly solid looking ground. She was barely able to register the screams of Pinkie, Applejack, and Rarity joining with her.
After a few seconds Twilight managed to shut her mouth. She needed to focus! Discord hadn't taken away her magic this time, is she could just prepare a spell she'd be able to-
Unconsciously, she glanced back at the ground and her spell fizzled.
This was not good...
Thankfully, she felt two powerful hooves wrap around her body, slowing her descent.
"Now would be a good time for another of your plans Twilight!" Rainbow shouted over the rushing wind. "I think Fluttershy might have a panic attack over choosing from the other three!"
"O-okay," Twilight replied, tearing through her brain in an attempt to figure something out. "Just hold me steady and point me towards everypony else. I should be able to grab them my magic and slow their falls. If Fluttershy can get a hold of them then we might be able to land without getting hurt!"
Rainbow didn't even respond, simply angling her to get a better view of her friends. Fluttershy was frantically flying around her other three friends trying to grasp at their hooves, but it was obvious she wasn't strong enough. Her wings barely supported her when she held two hooves, and reaching for a third only made the first slip free from her grip.
The ground didn't care, seeming to move towards them faster than before.
"Okay...just need to try and relax..." Twilight took a deep breath, remembering her old lessons with Celestia. Her horn ignited with magic as the spell traveled over to her friends. It wrapped around them all and began slowing their fall.
She wasn't sure if the spell would be enough, they were so close now...
Twilight gritted her teeth slightly in concentration, pushing that thought aside. She needed to keep this spell even or one of her friends might fall free...
Fluttershy, thanks to the spell, managed to grab hold of everypony. She flapped her wings furiously, slowing them down even further.
It wasn't quite enough.
They crashed into a small field of grass outside the city. Not at a dangerous speed, but certainly not a safe one either.
"Oh no..." Twilight muttered as her spell evaporated. "Get over there Rainbow Dash!"
"Don't need to tell me twice," the Pegasus agreed, flying over to their collapsed group of friends. "Is everypony okay?" She asked, dropping Twilight off and skidding to a halt in the grass.
"I think I'm okay," Fluttershy replied weakly, pulling herself out of the pile. Gingerly she stretched out her wings, everything seemed to be in working order.
"'Fraid I can't say the same sugar cube," Applejack said, pulling herself off of the ground while awkwardly holding one of her fore-hooves up in the air. "I didn't land quite right and twisted this leg somethin' fierce. Still, could've been a lot worse, all things considerin.'"
"I just can't believe we fell for that meanie Discord's trick!" Pinkie bounded forward, apparently unhurt. "It wasn't even a good trick, some of us could have been seriously hurt!"
"I think that was the point darling," Rarity moved much slower, limping on one of her back legs. "And I must agree with Applejack, that could have been much worse."
"What I don't understand is why Discord let us keep our magic and our wings," Rainbow Dash said, walking back towards everyone. "He wasn't nearly that nice last time."
"Well...maybe he was trying to be more fair? We were awfully high up," Fluttershy offered.
"Or maybe...maybe it's because he couldn't!" Twilight said. "He's still only a part of himself, he has to be missing some of his power, enough so that he can't affect us directly, he can only fool us with his illusions."
"That doesn't seem to have made him any less dangerous though Twilight," Applejack said.
"But it means that we still might have a chance! Since Discord tried to stop us from going inside the castle, it probably means that he hasn't moved Trixie. So if we can just get back there everything should work out!" Twilight looked hopefully around at her friends.
"But what if Discord stops us and traps us in another of his crazy tricks?" Pinkie asked. "What if he makes us think we found Trixie but really it's just an empty room!"
"Well we've seen it once already, so we should be able to resist it a second time," Twilight replied.
"But what if we can't Twilight? What if we end up trapped for good? 'Should be able to' don't sound that reassurin' to me," Applejack said, shaking her head.
"Well do you have a better plan?" Twilight snapped.
"Actually, I think I've got something," Rainbow Dash stepped in. "But I don't think you're gonna like it..."
Ninety six...
This was a terrible plan!
Where had Rainbow Dash gotten this idea from, a Daring Do novel? Yes it made sense, but it was never a good plan to split the group up!
Ninety seven...
Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were taking the long route through the city while Rarity and Applejack were taking a more forward route towards the library library. They were going to serve as a distraction for Discord, and as an extra precaution, Twilight had cast an illusion spell on Rarity to disguise the fashionista as her.
Ninety eight....
"Can we move now?" Pinkie whispered, wearing an uncharacteristically serious expression on her face. Even her mane had flattened into a more streamlined shape. She had demanded to go with Twilight and she really couldn't refuse.
Ninety nine....
"Just a little bit longer..." she looked down at her own hooves which were temporarily enchanted to blend in with their surroundings just like Pinkie. Luckily the spell allowed her to see, at least a little, those under the safe effect. Rainbow Dash had told them to count to one hundred and then make a mad run for library. Hopefully, not even Discord would be able to keep up with them...
One hundred!
"Now!" Twilight ordered, and they were off, charging back into the silent city. Her eyes glanced back and forth among the houses, looking for any sign of Discord and his magic. But there was nothing...
The only thing she did notice was...Pinkie's hoof steps were falling further and further behind. The pink earth pony seemed to be stumbling along the stone roads. Was she...
"Pinkie...are you okay?" Twilight slowed down, trotting back next to Pinkie while keeping her gaze focused on the buildings around them.
"What...oh! Yeah, I'm fine Twilight. I just thought I saw...something..." the glimmer of Pinkie shook her head.
"Pinkie, this could be important, what did you see?" Twilight insisted.
"It was nothing Twilight, now c'mon, we need to go save Sunny!" Pinkie pushed ahead of Twilight.
"Oh Pinkie, how many times are you going to save Sunny before you realize just how pointless it is?" a deep voice sang out from empty streets. "I learned so much about Sunny from the minds of those sad little ponies. You saved him from death, from the Everfree Forest, and now you're trying to save him from me. Don't you think it would just be easier to just give in to the chaos?"
"Stay quiet Pinkie, he shouldn't be able to see us but he can-"
"Hear you? Oh absolutely, it's so funny how you unicorns always forget to take into account those little details with your spells," a deep chuckle. "But Pinkie, do you think it's ever going to stop? Do you really think Sunny is ever going to be completely safe?"
Discord couldn't tell where they were...Twilight guessed that he was trying to get Pinkie to talk to reveal their location. She hoped Pinkie would be able to figure that out too.
"This world is so dangerous! I mean look at all the monsters that surround your little home of Ponyville, it's practically a death trap!" his laughter surrounded the both of them. "But how about this? A little deal of mine. You silly ponies stop in your ridiculous quest to stop me and I promise that little colt Sunny will be safe. Sounds very fair to me..."
Twilight kept her mouth shut, slowly moving down the street while trying to stay as quiet as possible. Looking back she was able to notice Pinkie right behind her, though her steps did not seem to be as sure.
"Oh...it is not wise to simply leave like that, you're going to have to give me an answer..." the stones in the road began to rise up and stack together, forming rough duplicates of Discord which blocked every exit available to them. "Because if I hear a no...well, I think I'll let your own imaginations fill in the rest..."
Twilight looked back and forth, looking for some escape. Maybe she could teleport both of them one of the roofs or...no, that wasn't stealthy at all...
If they were both careful they might be able to slip past on of the barriers...but a single slip up and they would be lost...
Pinkie had stepped away from her...
"You haven't learned a single thing have you Discord?" Pinkie yelled out, moving further away from Twilight.
"And what do you mean by that my silly little pony?" Another stone Discord rose up out of the ground, lazily stepping towards Pinkie's voice.
"Equestria can be so dangerous and scary sometimes. We had to face down Nightmare Moon, dragons, a changeling army, and even you. We always prevailed thanks to our friends...we won't ever give up them, or ourselves. We'll fight with everything we've got to protect Sunny! We'll succeed like we always have, and nothing you do can stop us!" Pinkie said triumphantly, waving one of her hooves at Twilight.
She really wasn't planning to...
"We'll just see about that..." Discord growled before suddenly leaping forward, his arm slicing toward Pinkie. Wish a gasp, Pinkie was able to dodge out of the way, running past another statue down an empty alleyway. Several of the statues leapt after her and all Twilight could do was stand there and watch.
"Can't even catch one little pony! Some master of chaos you are!" Pinkie's far off cry shook Twilight out of her stupor.
Pinkie had given her a chance, she had to take it.
With a deep breath, she charged down the now empty street, right for the castle...
The front door of the castle stood before her, and she saw no sign of Discord. That was good right? It meant that her friends hadn't been captured yet...
Or that Discord was just toying with her...
Still, she didn't really have much of a choice right now. Twilight ran as fast as her legs could take her to the castle infirmary. She found it soon, the strong smell of disinfectant burning her nostrils.
Now, just step into Trixie's room and-
The sound of hoofsteps reached her ears, somepony was walking this way! She frantically looked for a place to hide when she spied a pink mane at the end of the hallway.
"Pinkie?" she whispered.
"Twilight? Twilight I'm here!" Pinkie called. "Oh, there you are Twilight!" Pinkie ran down the hallway, enveloping Twilight in a warm hug.
"Pinkie! This is amazing, how did you get away from...wait..." Twilight quickly pushed her away. "How do I know you aren't some trick from Discord?"
"Oh...that's a good question..." Pinkie Pie paused for a moment. "Ask me anything, something only Pinkie could answer!"
"Okay...I've got a question," Twilight took a deep breath. "Who is Pinkie's best friend?"
"That's it? that's an easy one!" Pinkie smiled. "Everpony is my best friend!" Twilight couldn't help but smile too.
"Absolutely right, and absolutely something Discord couldn't have figured out on his own," she waved her hoof forward. "Now come one, Trixie should be right over here." Twilight tentatively pushed the door open, a small part of her mind expecting another setback.
But as the door swung inward she was rewarded by the sight of a blue unicorn calmly sleeping in bed. A look of quiet serenity completely covered the magician's face.
"Is she there, did we make it?" Pinkie asked, moving next to Twilight.
"Yes, we made it," Twilight replied.
"Oh...good," Pinkie made it a few more steps into the room before abruptly collapsing on the ground.
"Pinkie!" Twilight ran over to her friend. The earth pony could only grin weakly up at her.
"I guess I never answer Applejack earlier...I wasn't really okay after that fall. My back hurt a lot, but I could still run if I tried...but I don't think that made it any better. And Discord...he's really good at magic that hurts..." she said.
"Well why didn't you say anything Pinkie?" Twilight nearly shouted. "You could have stayed behind, we could have helped you!"
"I didn't want to worry any of you. I couldn't slow us down, not when we were so close to helping Sunny," Pinkie explained. "I'm not strong like Applejack...I can't fly like Fluttershy or Rainbow Dash, and I don't have magic like you or Rarity. All I've got is laughter...and my promise to see Sunny again...not a lot against Discord..."
"Oh Pinkie..." Twilight murmured. "Don't say that. You keep us all together, you keep us all smiling. Don't you think you can make Sunny smile again?" Pinkie's grin grew a little wider.
"Of course silly...I'll always have enough energy for that. But I'm going to need you help with the magic. Now hurry up and cast your spell," she said.
"Right," Twilight nodded, moving over to Trixie's bed. "Well Trixie, it looks like we need your help to save Discord. That should make you a little bit happy at least..."
Twilight closed her eyes, her spell already searching for the link between this body and wherever her soul had been taken.
She found it quickly...so very quickly. A golden lifeline between soul and body. Perhaps Sunny's influence was aiding her...but she wasn't sure.
Reaching out, she grabbed a hold of Pinkie and pulled the line, closing her eyes.
Just what sort of world would she open them to?
"Fear?" Sunny glared back as his other self. "It wasn't fear I just...accepted the truth. I'm not real...just a fake filled with so many memories I can't call my own..."
"I am happy here...this is where I belong..." Sunny said again. His other self's gaze seemed to burn at that.
"If that were true...then I would not be here," the other said, keeping his voice even.
"And what does that mean?" Sunny said, looking away from him.
"Discord is very strong...he changes your thoughts, makes you believe what he wants to believe. But he can't stop it all...there is always one small part he can't break. Enough to save them..." again he was in Sunny's face. Sunny didn't even hear him move. "I am that part, the part of you that still wants to fight, that wants to live."
"I am you, and you are me. If you would just remember you would realize how...wrong this all is. We broke our laws... changed ourselves to finally get away from the loneliness. We became you to have a real chance at living..." he rested a hoof on Sunny's shoulder. "You need to remember..." Those words were so quiet...so pleading.
"But I am afraid. I've seen those memories...they are so dark, so lonely and afraid. If I remember them all...remember what I was...what will happen to me? I don't want to be lost in it all..." Sunny drew back into the gray surroundings.
"You won't be, you will still be you. We will simply be...one," the other said.
"But how do you know that?" the gray began to warp itself around Sunny. "You said you're a part of me, the old memories. How do you have any idea of what's going to happen to me? You could be lying! Maybe you just want to be in control!" The other just stared at Sunny for a few moments before finally shaking his head. Her reached hoof out and the gray receded.
"You are right...there is no real way I can know what will happen to you...but I am still right," a step forward. "All the memories you have buried, and there are so many, are of simply watching life. Of watching it end, of watching the world change while doing nothing to affect it. The memories you have are of experiencing life. You have lived ."
"These older memories..are nothing compared to that..." another step. "Your view of the world may be different...but you will not change."
"And then what?" Sunny asked.
"And then...we will have a choice to make..." the other replied.
"What kind of choice?"
"We'll have to choose our own dream...what we want from life," he paused. "What do you want?"
Sunny wasn't sure what to say. His own dream...what did he want...
"Happiness..." the word slipped from Sunny's mouth.
"For you?" the other said.
"No, for my friends...I want them to be happy no matter what..." Sunny replied, pictures of his friends coming to his mind.
"They won't be happy as long as Discord is here," Sunny nodded at the other's words.
"So I'll stop him then," Sunny declared.
"And do you know how?" the other stared directly into Sunny's eyes...and he knew the solution. He wasn't sure how...but he knew.
"That's...not very fair is it?" he whispered.
"Life rarely is," the other said back. "But it is that, or leave our friends in Discord's hands. Could you really do that?" Sunny stared down his other and Pinkie 's smiling face rose to the front of his mind. Her saw her smile fade as everything turned to gray...to nothing.
He could not let that happen. Not to her...not to anypony.
"If I need to remember to stop him...then I will remember..." Sunny accepted. His other self simply nodded, stepping forward and resting his forehead against Sunny's.
It didn't hurt...not even a little. That surprised him. It was more like...opening the blinds on windows he'd never noticed before.
The new memories shone through his mind...all those long years of darkness and loneliness. They were painful...but only an old echo, nothing truly real.
Through all of it, one image stayed constant in his mind. Pinkie and her friends, all gathered around him, supporting him.
His other self vanished...but then again, he had never really been there to begin with. It was only ever him...right?
"Something like that..." Sunny muttered, but now in the rough voice he used to have. He opened his eyes and the gray was gone, leaving only a white void with a simple door.
"Time to go..."
Author's Note
Back on schedule, as it were.
Can you see the ending from here? I think I can.
Either way I think I'll be happy to be done with story.
To Live, Love, and Forgive
It might have been safer to stay in Canterlot with Discord...
Just what kind of world was she looking at now? No...'world' was the wrong word to use for this place. It had too much...thought, too much definition for the utter madness staring her in the face.
Nothing made any sort of sense to Twilight, and once she had managed to figure out at least one constant, it would go and change. At first there had been two suns, swirling around the sky in a devious sort of dance. She had just started to follow them when they had collided together into one massive orb of fire. Now it stayed locked in the sky, casting not light, but shadows over the land.
But land was not an appropriate word either. The dirt and grass rippled underneath her hooves like a massive ocean, constantly reforming itself or dropping away in deep black pits. Twilight had passed by several of those, and she could swear the shadows inside were reaching out for her.
She made a point to stay as far away from them as possible.
She'd lost Pinkie Pie almost as soon as they had entered this place. A massive hills had sliced through the ground, growing up out of nowhere right between them, forcing the two of them apart. Then, it had simply continued moving up, lifting off the ground and up into the sky. Soon it just sat there, like some strange miniature moon, and Pinkie was nowhere to be found.
Twilight had tried to call her name but she had given up on that approach soon. This place would probably make her voice sound like it was coming from the wrong direction and force the two of them further apart.
In desperation she finally tried a spell, hoping against everything that her magic would still work here. The spell should have produced some light, making this crazy landscape at least a little bit easier to navigates.
She focused, her horn gaining its characteristic glow. But instead of condensing into a glowing ball of light, the magic flew from her horn and shaped itself into a cloud of butterflies that began to swirl around her...
And then promptly exploded into bunches of confetti.
The worst part was the laugh she couldn't stop from bursting out of her mouth. This whole place was just crazy! She was just so desperate for something normal to show up, just one thing! Then maybe she'd have enough peace of mind to figure out what to do next.
Strangely, she found herself wondering if this was what is was like for Discord in their world. If every single little peace of order, the streams flowing downhill, the birds flying safely through the air, or even the changing of day to night tore away at him like everything here did to Twilight.
No wonder he wanted to bring chaos over all of Equestria...
Still...she shook her head, that didn't matter. Even if it would make things better for Discord that didn't make it right, it didn't excuse all the pain he brought to Equestria.
Right now, she needed to focus on finding Pinkie, and then Sunny, and then getting out of here as soon as possible.
But to do that, she needed a sign, just some symbol of what to do next.
As if on cue, the ground next to her began to rumble, the dirt rippling and throwing her off balance. Twilight thought that maybe another hill was going to rise up to join its brother in the sky, but of course it wouldn't be that simple.
Whatever was rising up now looked like it was made of solid wood, and it had a perfect rectangular shape. In fact, as more and more of it was revealed Twilight could swear it was...
No...
Not even this place would do something like that...
But she could not deny what was staring her in the face.
It was a gigantic wooden sign, carved and sanded down to smooth perfection, towering over her diminutive form. Painted on the front, in thick black paint...at least, Twilight hoped it was paint...was a simple phrase.
Only Hope For Escape? Nowhere In Sight!
Twilight had just finished reading the mocking phrase, when an ominous creaking noise came to her ears.
The sign was tipping forward!
Immediately, she tried to get out of the way, to dash to the side. But she wasn't standing in a patch of grass anymore. The grass had lengthened into a patch of vines, wrapping around her legs and trapping her to the ground. She tried to pull herself free, but the more she struggled the tighter the vines gripped her.
She could not nothing except watch as the sign fell, filling more and more of her vision.
The paint on the sign shifted around, forming a new message.
Come Again Soon!
Twilight couldn't help herself, she closed her eyes, turning away from the inevitable.
Only to feel something very heavy crash into her. The vines released her almost at once, like they had simply given up on holding her.
Twilight couldn't believe how far and fast she was moving, but she didn't know if it would be fast enough...
Finally, she and whatever was pushing her collapsed on the ground. Or at least...a piece of this place that had decided it wanted to be ground.
Still, she could still feel the rush of air and the powerful crash as the sign finally collapsed to the ground.
"I really don't want to be here any more..." was all she could think to say.
"You know, I believe a thank you is in order..." a voice to her side said. A very recognizable voice...
"Trixie?" Twilight said, opening her eyes to see the very smug face of the former magician. "Please tell me you're real and not the next crazy thing this place is going to throw at me..."
"What? How could you even suggest such a thing. Nothing, not even Discord's magic, could copy the perfection of the Great, and Powerful Trixie!" Trixie reared back on her hooves, trying to add some flair to her words. Though without her distinctive hat and cloak the effect was diminished.
"Yeah, it's you..." Twilight said, shaking her head while pulling herself off the ground. "But you're right. Thank you for saving my life. I don't think I've ever felt so powerless."
"You are welcome," Trixie settled back to the ground, nodding her head. "And do not feel bad about your powerlessness. Nothing here has any real power."
"But what about what just happened?" Twilight replayed her rescue in her head. "The vines just let go of me, and we flew way too far for a simple jump, you had to use some magic for that."
"Well...do you remember those ponies in the woods? How they could use Discord's magic? Well they brought me here, brought me to them and..." she paused.
"You can use this places magic as well?" Twilight said, her eyes widening.
"I can't not. They made me a part of this place, just as they are. But chaos magic is very dangerous, even for one such as I..." Trixie paused again. "Every use cuts away at my mind. It makes me forget things...and remember others. It doesn't last long but I know it won't stay that way." She shook her head.
"Trixie used it to find and save you. With that out of the way, Trixie needs to know something, what are you doing in this place of madness?"
"We came here to save Sunny," Twilight said quickly. "After you saved him in the woods we thought we could help those ponies in the woods, but you accidentally released a part of Discord."
"You what?" Trixie could only stare in horror.
"We didn't mean to, it just sort of happened! Anyway, as soon as he was free Discord took the Elements away from us and grabbed Sunny in the blink of an eye!" Twilight tried to explain.
"Well how did you even get here?"
"We used you since you'd already been taken. I came here with my friend Pinkie Pie. We were going to try and pull Sunny out of here," Twilight continued.
"You jumped into a world created by Discord, with no plan, to save Sunny?" Trixie said after a moment. "You really would do anything for your friends." A small smile touched her lips.
"Of course. Do you have any idea where I could find them? I was separated from Pinkie as soon as I got here, and I have no idea where to look for Sunny," Twilight said.
"I...may have an idea of where to look," Trixie told her. "It's the one place here that everything is drawn to eventually..."
"Where?" Twilight said softly.
"The resting place of those sad forgotten ponies..."
Even with Trixie leading them the dangers refused to let up. Snow would fall from a cloudless sky, only to ignite anything it landed. The only solution the could find for that was to run as fast as they could hoping the snow would stop eventually.
They made it out, barely, with a few new scorch marks covering their coats.
"I thought you said you knew the safe way to this place!" Twilight couldn't stop herself from saying.
"Trixie said it was the safest way, not that it was completely safe. We're lucky we're able to travel at all in this place," Trixie replied, trying to brush some of the ash from her mane.
"What do you mean?" Twilight said back.
"Those things I told you about earlier...the things I remember if I use chaos magic? This place was so much worse before you and your friends used the Elements. I saw a place where you were lucky to be able to walk for only a few steps before the gravity would shift or the ground would change into a gaping maw, dragging you down into blackness," Trixie shuddered. "It's no wonder they look like they do now..."
"What do you mean?"
"You'll see, we're almost there. The one place here that stays constant..." Trixie brought Twilight over over to the edge of a hill and gestured with her hoof.
Below them rested a simple town...or at least, what used to be one. The homes stood empty, but whole. Not a single brick or roofing tile was out of place, yet the entire place was covered with a thick layer of dust. It seemed as if nopony has set hoof in there for a long time.
Slowly, the both of them edge their way among the houses, staying silent.
"I don't understand, where are the ponies who-" Twilight started to say, and that's when the noise started.
It seems like just a simple hum at first, but then it began to grow, burrowing deep into her mind. It dragged her down, filling her with dark emotions. She'd tried to cover her ears, but it was no use.
The wracking sobs of an entire village echoed around them.
Soon the noise became bearable, but only just. Twilight began to notice small shapes moving around the buildings, like heat shimmers in the air. Some became more distinct, gaining color and form...
Becoming ponies...
They didn't lasted long, becoming stable just long enough to focus on Twilight before dissipating back into the air. One pony formed, first with wings, then a horn, and then with neither. He constantly shifted between the forms, completely unsure of what he was supposed to be.
Another pony, barely half formed, would wander to the various homes. Her eyes would scan the front entrances but she never seemed satisfied with what she saw.
In one corner of the village she saw a pair of ponies, a young colt and what may have been his father. Whenever one formed the other would disappear, looks of desperation frozen on their faces. They were locked in an endless cycle of reaching out for something they'd never be able to grasp...
Twilight couldn't bear to watch them.
"How long...how long do they keep this up?" she tore her eyes away, focusing all of her attention on Trixie.
"I...I don't know," was all the magician could say. "They all simply gather here, trying to remember who they were, in any way they can. They try to find their families, their homes...even their simple race. They think that if they can just remember one thing...it'll all come back."
"But it won't, the memories of Discord's magic are too strong, too ingrained in their minds. Eventually, they lose everything again, and fall into madness." Twilight had never thought to see Trixie like this. Exactly how much time had she spent with these forgotten ponies?
"And there's nothing we can do to help them?" Twilight couldn't help but ask.
"Not unless you've got a book with the names and histories of every pony who's ever lived in that library of yours. Sunny was their only hope, for some reason they thought that he could remember everything for them. But looking at them now...I'm not sure it would even be enough..." the ponies were starting to fade completely away now. As they did the sobbing began to die down, until the two of them were left once again in an empty village.
"So now...we just wait?" Twilight said after a few moments.
"This is the safest area to be in this madness. Eventually your friends will find us..." she paused.
"I hope."
So many thoughts...so many memories to go over, to relive.
There were still a few blank spots scattered everywhere, little blinks that continued to elude him. But even with that it was almost overwhelming.
But he couldn't let that happen, he couldn't let himself be weak anymore. His friends had given so much for him, now it was time he gave something back.
The door in front of him opened so easily, like it had been waiting for him. He quickly stepped through and was immediately greeted by...
Laughter?
He stood in a small room absolutely covered in garish decorations. There were no less that a hundred balloons obscuring the ceiling along with streamers of every color spread from wall to wall. It even looked like there was rainbow colored paint smeared over anything else. It was all so obnoxious and bright he could barely stand to looks at it.
But the laughter wasn't coming from this room, it was from the room next to it. Sunny stepped through a small doorway, pushing past the multiple decorations blocking his path.
This had to be the main room of whatever house he'd walked into, and somehow, the decorations were even worse. The balloons and streamers were still there but now they were joined by a pile a presents stacked in a corner of the room, and opposite it was a cake that looked ready to topple over at any moment from the thick layer of frosting and candy covering it. It was like somepony wanted this to be the greatest party in Equestria...and hadn't known when to stop.
In the center of it all, a lone pony sat in a crumpled pile of confetti. Her normally vibrant mane lay flat against her head as a collection of photographs fluttered in front of her.
The laughter in here was so much louder, and Sunny somehow knew it wasn't directed at him...
Pinkie didn't even notice Sunny as he stepped into the room. All her eyes were focused were the pictures.
Sunny found himself walking to her side, his own eyes drawn to the strange pictures. They hovered in the air, shifting and moving around each other. Looking closer, he saw that the pictures were of something he knew very well.
Twilight and her friends.
Each picture contained an image of those ponies accomplishing some great feat. There was Twilight using her magic to carry an Ursa Minor out of Ponyville, Fluttershy staring down a fully grown dragon, Rainbow Dash breaking into a sonic rainboom to save her friends, Rarity outwitting an entire tribe of Diamond Dogs, and Applejack bravely riding on the back of a crazed manticore.
It was a strange collection of their achievements, of the great things they'd done.
But there was a problem...not a single picture showed Pinkie Pie.
"There's more to me..." a small quiet plea escaped the earth pony. "I'm not just parties and laughter..."
"Really?" the miniature Twilight in the picture began speaking, turning her gaze towards Pinkie. "Just what have you done besides following everypony around with you annoying endless parties?"
"Have you ever done anything worthwhile? Anything with meaning?" now Fluttershy was joining in.
"Don't you remember? I was there with you when we stopped Nightmare Moon and Discord!" Pinkie said in desperation.
"Psh, only 'cause you had to be to make the Elements work," Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, frozen in mid-flight. "And when Discord showed up, you didn't even want to stop him! You were happy with all the crazy stuff he was causing. You wanted everything to stay that way!"
"No! I'm not like that! I'm not just a crazy party pony...I'm your friend. I just want everypony to smile..." Pinkie was so quiet now. Sunny tried to get her attention, raising a hoof to place on her shoulder, but something stopped him. A strange force surrounded Pinkie, keeping him away.
"Well frankly, I ain't ever seen any proof of that," Applejack said. "Just what have you given us? There's nothing special about you! To tell you the truth, laughter ain't worth anything..."
"Quite true, you even got injured running away from Discord. How could you hope to protect Sunny if you can't even protect yourself!" Rarity said with a huff.
"No, it...you're wrong. You're wrong, you're wrong..." Pinkie's voice fell into a near whisper, repeating that same phrase over and over again. The laughter grew louder, closing in around them. Pinkie Pie just kept repeating her phrase, as if somehow it could drive away her friends, drive away the noise.
No, Sunny could not stand to look at this any longer. He moved forward, but still the barrier stopped him...
Well...not for much longer.
He was old, older than anything in this world, and with that age was his power. He had seen things considered timeless fall to dust...
Everything would fall before him...
He tapped the barrier with his hoof and it shattered, allowing him to reach Pinkie.
"Pinkamina..." he said, and her surprised gaze snapped towards him. That was the one word he knew would always grab her attention. "You are so much stronger than this. Your laughter...you unending need to see the world smile, it saved me."
"Sunny..." was all she could say.
"Remember what you taught me? As long as you have friends that care about you..."
"You can't have a bad day," Pinkie finished. "It's really you..." She turned back to the photos.
"I know I'm not that powerful, but I still make a difference. Every pony I bring a smile to...it's another pony whose life I make just a little bit better. It's another chance for friendship. And you know what they say about friendship..." The photographs had no response to make, simply falling to the ground with a gentle sigh as the laughter came to an abrupt halt.
"Oh well, I think I've heard it enough times anyway," Pinkie shook her head, her mane fluffing back to its original state. "So what now?" She said, looking to Sunny.
"We get out," he said simply, gesturing towards an open door that had appeared on a far wall. Pinkie nodded at him and together, they stepped out of the mad party.
And right into Twilight and Trixie.
"You're okay!" Pinkie and Twilight said simultaneously, quickly coming together in a happy embrace.
"Sunny..." Trixie raised an eyebrow at him. "You certainly look different."
"Had to grow up sometime," he shrugged.
"I suppose that is one way to put it," she turned to Twilight. "But it seems that you can leave, now that you've found your friends."
"You're right!" said Twilight, pulling away from Pinkie. "We can all go back home now!"
"Yes, you all can go back," Trixie muttered.
"Well there's no need sound so down. You're coming with us too Trixie," Pinkie said back to her.
"No...I'm not," the blue unicorn shook her head.
"What do you...oh," Twilight paused.
"You remember...I'm a part of this world. I can't leave here, no more than...they can," she waved a hoof around at the village.
"So there's..."
"Nothing we can do, not now," Sunny interrupted. "But soon, the end of this is almost here...just stay strong for a little while longer."
"That should be no problem. Just make sure you don't forget about Trixie," she gave them all a small smile.
"You have our word!" Pinkie promised. "But Sunny...just what is your plan?" The question was barely a whisper.
"You'll see, it's all almost over," he nodded at Twilight. "Now please, take us home."
"Okay...I hope this works," she said.
"It should, this is the one place where things actually work the way they are meant to," Trixie reassured her.
"Okay, stay close everypony..." her horn began to glow, its light engulfing them.
The last thing Sunny saw was Trixie giving them a final nod.
One last wish of good luck.
Then the world faded to white.
"Hey, I think they're coming around...and now there's another pony with them," Twilight opened her eyes to see Fluttershy staring worriedly down at them.
"Wait, do you mean than-"
"Yes Rainbow Dash, they brought me back," Sunny said, looking around the room. With eight ponies inside it was now quite crowded.
"Yup, and he's back to being his grown-up self," Pinkie said, struggling to pull herself off the floor. Sunny immediately walked over and helped pull her up.
"What about you girls, did you manage to get away from Discord okay?" Twilight asked them.
"That was no sweat, me and Fluttershy didn't see a single scale from that guy as we flew over here," Rainbow Dash said, a smug look on her face.
"Applejack and I fared about the same," Rarity said. "Though I could have sworn I'd heard that brute's terrible laughter, he never showed himself to us."
"Well that's good at least. He tried to track me and Pinkie down, we were able to get away, but Pinkie was hurt..." Twilight gave a worried glance towards Pinkie.
"I'll be fine Twilight, just as soon as I get a chance to nap..." she put on a reassuring grin.
"Okay, so what's the plan now Twilight?" Applejack squeezed her way through the crown to stand in front of the unicorn.
"We confront Discord," Sunny spoke up before Twilight had a chance. "He's expecting all of us to run now that you've saved me, he would never think we would face him now.
"But doesn't that seem a bit dangerous? We don't have the Elements, how are we supposed to stop him?" Fluttershy said.
"Don't worry, I have a plan. It's all going to be over," Sunny told her, keeping his expression flat.
"Well...if you're sure about this. But where will we even find Discord?" Twilight asked.
"Oh come on Twilight, that's easy. He's a crazy all powerful dragon-thing in the middle of Canterlot. Where do you think he'd be?" Rainbow Dash said, rolling her eyes a bit.
"...the throne room."
This throne had to have been the most uncomfortable thing he'd ever sat in. That silly Celestia must have never thought that she'd be overthrown and that the new ruler would want a comfortable throne of their own.
How inconsiderate.
Discord spent another few moments shifting around in the chair before letting out an angry hiss. This rotten throne was a perfect symbol of how his plans were going.
He was finally where he should be, he had power over all of Equestria from here, but he couldn't even enjoy it! His plans were proceeding wonderfully, but there was always one thing that ruined their perfection.
Those foul little ponies had escaped his grasp, roaming freely throughout his city, and those two princesses still held up that barrier to the rest of his power.
Still...he snapped his fingers and a soft cushion materialized on throne, that didn't mean thing weren't going to change.
He looked out one of his windows to see a formation of cotton-candy clouds happily doing figure-eights throughout the sky. Every second he sat here, a little more chaos leaked into the world. Every moments those ponies spent wondering about the horrors he may unleash on them, he grew stronger.
Soon he would have enough power to shatter the princesses and regain all of his wonderful glory. He could shut those six ponies away for good, and then reform the world into its rightful image.
Pure glorious chaos...
Oh how beautiful it would be.
"Discord..." a small voice reached his ears.
"Eh, now what's this?" a small surprise stood before him. It looked like his birthday presents had come early! Those silly little ponies had saved him the trouble of looking for them. And with them was that seventh strange pony...the one he'd been worried about.
"Your fun is over. You should go and rejoin yourself back in the statue," the gray earth pony stepped forward. His voice was so low and even, giving away nothing.
How boring.
"Or what? Do you really think you can do anything against me?" Discord transported next to them, lifting that strange pony up into the air with his eagle talon.
"Discord!" Pinkie Pie yelled, but he simply slammed the rest of them to the side with a thought. He wanted to focus all his attention on this fake pony.
"You know, I was actually worried about you at first. Those lost ponies I used to be trapped with knew quite a bit about you. They knew all about what you used to be..." he grinned, tightening his grip. "I thought that you might be able to hurt me with those powers of your. But in my spare time I saw a memory that had been stolen from you..." He hurled Sunny across the room, slamming him into a wall.
"You had the power to change the world, and you just gave it up!" he pulled Sunny back with a flick of his finger, surrounding him in a magical grip. "I bet you could stop me right now, but you won't."
"You...you are right. I can't stop you..." Sunny's face was twisted with pain. "But that doesn't mean there's nothing I can do."
Sunny took a deep breath.
"It is time I finally put those ponies to rest, the ponies you locked away so long ago," Discord felt...something reach out from Sunny and wrap around him.
It felt...cold.
"How many years did you torment them? Over a thousand...you still have a connection to them. Something that could never be broken by a simple unicorn spell..." as he continued to speak Discord felt something else move. Something from those ponies across the room. The fake pony was pulling something from them!
"My last few bits of power..." Sunny told him, and the Discord felt that cold aura begin to pull at him, dragging him somewhere he knew he didn't want to see. "Those ponies bodies would have fallen to dust so long ago. It is time for them to move on, and you are going with them."
"I don't think so," he hissed, once more slamming Sunny against a wall, holding him down by the throat. "I am still stronger than you. I am the god of chaos!" Sunny did not struggle against the grip, only resting his hooves against Discord's claw.
The cold spread to Discord's limb, pulling his strength away.
"All strength ends, and even gods must die," Sunny whispered.
"But you're cheating! You said you would not stop me!"
"I gave you a chance, and I am not stopping you, not directly. It is your own actions that have brought you to this fate..." Sunny gently pushed the claw away. "But don't worry...you won't go alone. Someone has to be there to guide those souls."
Discord could not move at all, the cold had spread through his entire body. His limbs went numb and he collapsed to the floor.
He couldn't believe this, he could not be beaten so easily!
"I will not be beaten by a loophole in your rules!" he tried to push himself off of the ground, but his body refused to move. He was completely powerless.
"It seems you will be. Now then, it is time to go," Sunny stepped closer, his aura growing stronger, colder.
When suddenly...he stopped.
Pinkie was there, her hooves wrapped around his neck.
"I'm going with you Sunny!" her voice was so determined, just daring him to refuse.
"Pinkie...this is not a place you should go," he said to her.
"I know that, but somepony has to go with you to make sure that you come back!" her grip tightened.
Sunny just sighed, closing his eyes for a moment.
"You really are something else Pinkie...very well," Pinkie positively beamed. "But please, loosen your grip, you're hurting me."
"Oh, right," Pinkie complied, releasing her grip.
And in that moment, Sunny shoved her away. Pinkie's expression turned to pure shock, she tried to run back but Sunny's form, along with Discord, had begun to fade away.
"I got you, I guess I'm the master prankster now," a sad smile formed on Sunny's face.
"But you forgot...pranks are never supposed to hurt anypony..." Pinkie said, reaching out towards him. Sunny only shook his head.
"Sorry...I guess I never really understood then. I am sorry Pinkie..." and with that, he was gone.
Back into this world of shadows. He was not happy to be back...but he could not deny that it somehow felt...right.
He was not alone here, he could feel the crowd of souls surrounding him. They were so confused, so lost...and in the center of it all, they pulled Discord with them.
Those poor souls needed to join the river, to be taken along, but they could not find their way.
They needed to remember.
He could help them, give them back their lost memories. But it wouldn't be enough, they needed more. They needed that spark of life.
The spark he'd been allowed to see.
He shared it with them, opening his mind to them. The images and emotions flowed outwards, spreading to all of those souls.
There was the sun, the way its radiance brought beauty to any day.
There were his friends, helping him along, giving him a place to live. Giving him a family.
There was everything! Every moment of every day. Every chance he had to live, ever second so filled with love and beauty.
Every second he would miss...
Finally, there was the simple image of Pinkie smiling down at him. The smile that had saved him...the smile that he'd taken away in the end.
But he'd saved...he'd saved all of them in the end, and he would take solace in that.
The souls seemed to pause, taking all of this in...and then they understood. They began to move, now knowing where they were meant to go.
They faded into blackness...all but one.
A stubborn boastful soul, a soul whose time had not yet come. He gathered that one up in his arms.
"Trixie..." he whispered in the black. "It's time you went home." With a thought he sent her back, leaving only one thing left.
Discord.
The god sat in the black, not moving, his eyes closed. Sunny moved up next to him.
"Open your eyes," he commanded. "This is the one thing you can't hide from."
The god obeyed.
"Now tell me, what do you see?"
"I see...I see an ending," Discord whispered, his eyes lost in the shadows.
"Good...then let's face it together."
Author's Note
So that happened.
I wanted this chapter to end on that specific line, but no matter how much I wrote I just couldn't get it there. So that's why it's a day late.
One more chapter to go, want to get it up before the new episode airs and destroys any possible canon this story may have in regards to Discord.
To Live, Love, and Forgive
The hill...
It always came back to that lonely hill outside of town. The place Pinkie had hoped to give a happy story to.
It was where Sunny had first stepped into this world, into their lives. It was where he had disappeared when he'd realized there was no place for him among the living...
And it was where Pinkie and her friends had proven him wrong. They had dragged him back, giving him a real chance at life...a chance that should have lasted so much longer...
If anything...this was where Sunny would come back....
Pinkie just hoped she was right.
She didn't know how long she had been waiting out here in the dark. She could barely see anything, there was a thick layer of clouds in the sky, blotting out any light that may have been given by the moon and stars.
But she couldn't leave, no matter what.
She had to be here for Sunny.
Pinkie started to walk, making a quick circle around the hill on the off chance she might see Sunny approaching...no such luck.
"Sunny, you gotta hurry and get back home to Ponyville," she muttered in the dark. "If you get back too late everypony is going to be too tired for your party..." Pinkie pulled herself back to the top of the hill.
Oh why did staying up super late have to be so tiring? It felt like her eyelids were going to snap shut at any moment. She just needed a few more minutes...
Just needed to see him one more time...
So she could yell at him for leaving them all again...
"Pinkie Pie?" a voice, so rough and grumbly it could only be one pony, came from behind her.
"Sunny!" Pinkie tried to stay grumpy at him but the second she turned and saw him standing there, looking so very tired and alone, all such thoughts vanished from her head. "I knew you'd come back! I mean, there was never any chance you would leave us behind forever! I've already got a party planned and everything, we can invite all your friends and any ponies who want to be your friend and any other pony who wants to come!" Pinkie couldn't hold herself back, she jumped forward, wrapping him up in a great hug.
Then something amazing happened, he hugged her back! His strong hooves wrapped around her and he actually lifted her in the air!
He started to twirl her around and a bubbly laugh escaped her throat, soon to be joined by Sunny's own deep laughter.
He was laughing! Oh Celestia, Sunny was actually laughing! Pinkie didn't think she'd ever heard him laugh like this before, a laugh that surrounded her like a soft cushion.
It was just so amazing...
Eventually the hug had to stop, Sunny had to put her back on the ground. But that was okay, there would always be time for hugs and laughter later.
"Come on Sunny, let's go home," she said, waving her forward. Sunny didn't move.
"Of course, but can you do something for me first Pinkie?" Sunny turned his gaze skyward, almost like he could see through the clouds. Pinkie tried to follow his eyes, but could see nothing but black.
"Sure thing, what do you need?" she looked back at him.
"I need you to wake up..."
Her eyes shot open to a dimly lit room. She was lying in a surprisingly soft bed, but it wasn't her bed. No, it smelled way too...not like a cake here.
She sat up and had a quick glance around. The first thing she noticed was the window next to her letting in the light from the morning sun. Turning to her left she was greeted by a curtain hung up on a railing, blocking the rest of the room from her.
Oh...that's right...
She was in the Ponyville Hospital, recovering from Discord's attack.
Funny how memories work right when you wake up.
But they all came flooding back now.
Discord and Sunny had vanished so suddenly, but Pinkie had still reached out for him, expecting him to pop back any second wearing an apologetic smile.
But of course he didn't.
What had happened was that reality had snapped back to normal. The various clouds in the sky had shifted back to their original colors, taking the feeling of dread that had been following them the moment they'd stepped in Canterlot.
Everything finally seemed sane again.
And then there was the throne. The air shimmered around it for an instant and there they were, hanging off of the arms and back like discarded old toys.
"The Elements!" Twilight had cried out.
"He had them with him the whole time," Applejack added, "That whole moon nonsense must have been an illusion."
"Well at least we have them back now," said Fluttershy. "Maybe we should try to find a way to stop them from being taken away from us so easily. What do you think Pinkie Pie?"
"I...I think..." she shuddered, even if Discord's magic had gone, its effects still remained. She could still see those stone Discords dismantling themselves to throw at her. She tried to dodge them, but she just wasn't fast enough.
She didn't think there was a single part of her that didn't hurt.
Her legs thought that the ground looked like a nice place to lie down, and the rest of her body seemed to agree. She had let her knees buckle, sending her straight to the ground.
"Pinkie!" Rarity had been right next to her, slowing her fall. "Somepony get some help!"
"Right! I'll go grab the Princesses. They should be at the Discord Statue in the gardens, right Twilight?" Rainbow Dash hadn't even waited for an answer, leaping into the air and rushing away as fast as her wings would take her.
"Don't worry dear, everything's going to be okay," Rarity said to her.
Pinkie had hoped that was true. If everything was going to be okay, that meant all of her friends would be safe and happy...
That Sunny would come back...
She had closed her eyes and had next opened them to unicorn doctor hemming and hawing over her while flipping through a medical report.
"Hello?" she'd mumbled, and them immediately gagged. The inside of her mouth tasted like dry cardboard, which even though it may look promising, did not taste anything like chocolate. The doctor had smiled slightly at her antics, something that had brightened her spirits just a little bit.
"Good to see you awake Ms. Pie. You've been through quite the event haven't you?"
"You can say that again," she shifted around in her bed, wincing slightly at the pain. "Don't suppose you've got any good news for me?"
"Good enough I suppose. All your injuries should heal in time, but there are a few tests I still want to run. Until I get the results back my prescription for you is extended bed rest," he'd given her a nod and walked off, probably to check on the other patients.
Extended bed rest...any other time she would have said that was her least favorite form of bed rest. Sleeping was nice and all, nopony could party forever, but staying too long in bed meant a greater chance of missing out on all things fun!
But right now she could easily say she wasn't in the mood for anything fun. She'd decided to try and follow the doctor's prescription to the letter. Maybe that would make things better...
But it seemed that assumption had been wrong, even her dreams were against her.
Unsure of what else to do, Pinkie just sat in her bed staring at the far wall as if it might give her some answers...
The sun slowly traveled through the sky, bringing a little more light to her room. Suddenly, there was a knock at her door, jolting her our of her stupor.
Who was here to see her? Was it the cakes? Did they bring Pound and Pumpkin with them? If they were here she had to put on a smile, had to make it look like everything was okay.
She just needed to think of a happy thought, something cheerful, something bright, something...sunny...
Well darn it.
The door opened slowly and Pinkie made one last attempt to smile. The first thing through her door was the tip of a magnificently curled purple mane.
"Oh, good morning Rarity," she said, hoping her smile was good enough. The glamorous unicorn stepped inside, a jeweled saddlebag thrown over her back.
"It's good to see you awake darling, the doctors told us you needed your bed rest but they decided to let me in after...are you okay Pinkie? You look like you're in pain," Rarity stared at her, a worried expression on her face. Pinkie guessed her smile wasn't exactly working out.
She dropped it.
"Oh, it's nothing. Sorry Rarity," Pinkie paused for a second. "So what brings you here?"
"Well I know you're probably still feeling a bit under the weather so I thought I could bring you some soup. I've found that nice warm soup helps in almost any situation. Plus I know how much you hate to be kept out of the loop so I'm also here to bring you the news from all our friends," she levitated a covered bowl of soup and settled it on the drawer next to Pinkie.
"They're all still okay, right?" Pinkie couldn't help but ask.
"Of course they are dear. Twilight is spending some time with her brother right now, did you know he hadn't even realized Discord had gotten past his shield? He was absolutely ashamed before Celestia was able to calm him down. Speaking of the Princess, she and her sister wanted to come and visit you but they're rather busy at the moment taking care of all the high class ponies who realized they sat through a Discord assault," Rarity started to walk around the room, absentmindedly adjusting everything with her magic to make it appear a little more presentable.
"Twilight told me that she and the Princesses had tried to speak with Discord in the garden but he simply won't respond. Of course, it may be because he simply can't..." she moved the curtain by Pinkies bed, making all of the creases and folds symmetrical.
"I was surprised when Celestia suggested the Ponyville Hospital, but I suppose the doctors in Canterlot are more suited for magical problems rather than physical. Also, it seems that most of the ponies here didn't even know Discord was back. A few noticed the cotton candy clouds, but it was all over before they really had a chance to panic. I believe Fluttershy's animals simply slept through the entire incident..."
Pinkie just leaned back against her pillows and listened to Rarity talk. She took some comfort in how easygoing her friend was able to sound. She could go from ready to fight a pure force of chaos to making dresses with almost no effort.
All of her friends were truly amazing...
"...and Applejack is back at her farm with the crusaders. I hope they're going to be okay. As far as they know Sunny was lost in the woods...I hope Applejack can think of the right thing to tell them..." Rarity stopped, staring out of the window.
"Do you think he was happy? In the end when he took Discord away?" Pinkie finally said, picturing Sunny's last face.
"I think in a way...he was happy, and sad..." Rarity said slowly, turning to face her. "I don't think he wanted to be taken away from us, but by taking Discord away, he saved us. He sacrificed himself, knowing that we would all be safe because of it." Pinkie nodded at Rarity. It made sense, but it still didn't make her feel better.
"Did you know that when me and Twilight went looking for him in that weird place Discord made, I got lost? That place trapped me and I couldn't escape no matter how hard I tried. In the end Sunny actually saved me! Isn't that silly? We were supposed to save him, not the other way around..." her head dropped down.
"Well you saved him before, maybe he was just returning the favor. We all need help sometimes," Rarity smiled at her and Pinkie tried to mirror it.
"Thanks Rarity, for everything," Pinkie smiled, a real smile, thought not a big one.
"Oh there's no need for that, you're my friend. Just give me a call in case you ever need anything. Right now I think I'll head over to Applejack's. She'll probably need all the help she can in dealing with Sweetie Belle. I'll be back later Pinkie Pie," Rarity gave her a quick pat on the shoulder before heading for the door.
"Okie dokie loki! Tell everypony I say hi!" she waved as Rarity stepped outside, leaving her alone in the room.
Happy and sad at the same time...maybe that was something she should try for.
With Rarity gone Pinkie realized just how hungry she was. She tried a bit of the soup, sighing in content at its amazing flavor. Just a few bites and she felt absolutely content.
She leaned back against her pillow, closing her eyes. It was things like this. Soup brought to her by a friend, a friend that belonged to a group of the greatest ponies she'd ever known.
That could make her happy.
She set the bowl back down, feeling quite a bit better, when someone new knocked at the door. Maybe it was the doctor! Maybe he was here to say everything was great and she could go home!
The door swung open.
Or maybe it was Trixie...
"Trixie! When did you get out of the Canterlot infirmary?" Pinkie was tempted to jump out of bed and give her a hug, but she knew she had to follow the doctor's orders. She settled for a happy enthusiastic wave.
"About the same time you got yourself checked into one," the magician wore a small grin. "Trixie was worried the ponies in this town would not be happy upon seeing her again. But surprisingly, an attack from Discord followed by a changeling invasion followed by Discord again will drive out the memory of a Ursa Minor."
"Ooh yeah, that's a good point," Pinkie agreed. "So what brought you here? Oh! Do you want some cupcakes? I bet I could make you some as soon as I'm out of here."
"No, nothing like that," Trixie sighed a bit. "Trixie...I came here to apologize. I already spoke a little to your friends but you...I think you deserve this more than anyone." Pinkie immediately knew what she was talking about.
"You're mean Sunny aren't you? How you took him while he was going through the Everfee Forest," Pinkie said.
"Yes...if I hadn't done that, if I had just been a little bit slower, if I had been able to do something none of this would have happened..." Trixie looked down. Pinkie decided to risk angering her doctor and pulled herself out of bed. She walked over and lifted up Trixie's head with one of her hooves.
"Hey, don't say that. You don't need to apologize, I'm not mad at you," she said to the unicorn.
"Really? But he was your friend. If I had just been a little stronger this-" Pinkie held up a hoof, stopping her.
"I am grumpy that this happened, but you're not to blame. If those ghost ponies hadn't found you they would have grabbed some other poor pony. And then, even after anything, you tried to save Sunny. You gave yourself to give him a chance to escape. Even if I wanted to angry at you I couldn't," a little giggle came from her throat. "After all, who could be mad at The Great and Powerful Trixie?"
Trixie laughed with her. "I cannot argue with that. And it seems Sunny agreed as well...he saved me in the end."
"Wait, what do you mean?" Pinkie asked.
"After you, Twilight, and Sunny left me in that place of chaos I sat in that lonely town for a short while. Then in a second, it all vanished. I was tumbling through a void of of near darkness, in it I could see those lost ponies swirl around that terrible shape of Discord. I could sense something pulling at all of us, something led by an immensely powerful presence. I was dragged along, almost lost, when that presence grabbed me. I felt so calm, like I was being held by my own mother, and I heard one little phrase..."
Trixie closed her eyes, remembering.
"It's time you went home..." her eyes opened back up. "The next think I knew, I was in a bed in Canterlot and very very confused."
"Did you see anything else while you were in that place? Did you...did you see what happened to Sunny?" Pinkie had to say.
"I am afraid not," was all Trixie could say in return.
"Oh, well...do you think there's a chance he could come back?" Pinkie started to climb back into her bed.
"I don't know. I learned long ago that sitting and wishing for things...doesn't help anything. Sometimes...the world does not work out the way we wish it to," Trixie said, looking away slightly.
"Okay," Pinkie said after a quiet moment. "Thanks for coming Trixie, it was nice to see that you're okay."
"You are welcome. I should be staying in Ponyville for a while longer. I think I shall visit you, if my schedule allows it. Get well soon Pinkie," Trixe backed off towards the door.
"I'll try my best!" she waved at the closing door, already thinking on Trixie's words.
If the world always worked out, Princess Celestia would have never had to banish Princess Luna to the moon, Discord wouldn't have escaped, changelings wouldn't have attacked...
But if Nightmare Moon hadn't happened, would she have met Twilight or the others? Battling Discord and the changelings showed her just how powerful her friendship with all of them was, and it made her a hero.
All those things, no matter how bad, had brought her some good.
Maybe the good from this just hadn't happened yet...
Maybe...
At the end of the day the doctor had returned to her room with a heartening smile. She'd apparently passed all the tests and was allowed to go back home, providing she took it easy for a few more days. Pinkie had happily agreed, skipping out of the front doors of the hospital straight back to Sugar Cube Corner.
She was so excited to see the Cakes again, but by the time she arrived they'd all gone to sleep. Resigned, she crawled into her own bed.
And the natural pattern of her life resumed.
Not even an assault from Discord would stop ponies need for sweets and Pinkie found herself trapped under a remarkable deluge of order. Ten cakes for a massive birthday party being thrown next week, and a beautiful five tiered cake for somepony's wedding a month from now. Pinkie was happy with it, she could lose herself in the work, focus hard enough on it so the sad part of her happiness didn't overwhelm her.
Her friends stopped by every now and then, sometimes to help her bake, other times just to talk. She saw quite a bit more of Trixie than she realized. Pinkie found herself wondering if she was lonely and offered her a party, a chance to make new friends.
The magician had declined almost immediately, and that was okay, big parties weren't for everypony. Pinkie gave her a free cupcake anyways.
She'd offered a smaller party, just her and her friends, but Trixie had said no to that too.
"It will just make things harder..." the unicorn had said. Pinkie finally understood what she meant a few days later on the outskirts of Ponyville.
"You're leaving? So soon?" Twilight said, standing before Trixie with all of her friends.
"I am a show-pony, traveling is the only life I know. I kept telling myself I would leave earlier, but you ponies just made it so hard," Trixie shook her head at them. "I don't think I've ever run into a friendlier town."
"Well we aren't planning on changing anytime soon!" Pinkie shouted.
"Are you sure you don't want to stay? You could stay at the library and I could teach you some magic," Twilight gasped. "We could even have study parties!" Trixie just laughed.
"I think not Twilight Sparkle. I will earn my magic through my own travels and studies...thank you though, for the offer," she smiled at Twilight.
"Well I can tell you surely got your mind set on this," Applejack tipped her hat towards Trixie. "But that don't mean we're gonna let you walk outta here with nothing, c'mon Rarity!" the two ponies quickly ran off back towards the town. They returned a few minutes later, carrying two large bags.
"I stitched up a darling little cloak for you and I was planning to give it you as a gift but now it seems I won't get a chance," Rarity tossed her back over Trixie's back. "There should be a few more changes of clothes in there, enough to keep you warm and give your show a little more spark."
"And I've got some apples from back home, don't want to think about you getting hungry out there," a bulging bag joined Rarity's.
"You ponies...just too nice," Trixie said after a few moments of silence, notably turning her face away.
"That's jus' what friends do," Applejack replied.
"Yeah, and you better stay out of trouble this time," Rainbow Dash added.
"Trust me, Trixie shall do her best to avoid any and all Ursa Minors or magical forests," Trixie straightened, rubbing her eyes a bit as she looked back at them. "But Trixie thinks she won't be away for long..."
"You should write to us!" Pinkie suggested. "Then we can hear about all the cool towns outside of Ponyville!" Trixie pondered it for a moment.
"That sounds like a good idea, and," she moved closer to Pinkie. "I will also try to look for any news I can on Sunny...just in case." Pinkie just nodded at her.
"Thanks," she whispered back.
"Now I must be off or I get the feeling you ponies will not let me leave," Trixie started to walk along the road. "And be sure to listen for any new tales of The Great and Powerful Trixie!" With that she started running, making her way away from the town.
Pinkie waved at her, even though she knew Trixie wouldn't be able to tell.
She said a quick goodbye to all her friends and trotted back to Sugar Cube Corner. Stepping inside she found herself struck by a spark on inspiration.
She was going to bake a cake.
She gathered up all the ingredients and place them out on the kitchen counter. She always found it funny the sort of things that went into baking a cake. There was butter, eggs, milk, flour, baking soda, and sugar. The only yummy thing there was sugar, you'd never think such a great thing could be made from mixing all those ingredients together in the right combination.
She went through the motions, throwing everything together in a mixing bowl and churning it up with all of her strength.
Pinkie poured it all into a circular pan, being very careful not to spill anything.
This had to be perfect.
She pushed the pan into the oven, setting the timer and working on some other orders while it baked, mainly decorating.
The sweet shop had an endless rainbow of frosting colors available, letting them decorate almost anything on their cakes.
But she wouldn't need that many.
Finally the oven dinged, letting her know the cake was ready. She put on a pair of oven mitts and carefully pulled the pan out, setting it on the counter next to the frosting.
She started with white, slowly spreading it over the top with a rubber spatula, making sure it was completely smooth.
Next was the black. Pinkie squeezed the tube, slowly making the outline of a pony. She colored him in with some gray frosting, not the most appetizing, but it somehow fit.
As an afterthought, Pinkie added a small black smile to the pony's face.
To finish it all off she wrote two words beneath the picture with thick black frosting.
Welcome Home!
She paused to look over her creation. It seemed so small, so plain...
She knew he would love it.
It was quickly covered with a plastic lid and transported to the kitchen freezer. It wouldn't last forever, but it would last...well...
It would last long enough.
It had to.
Happy and sad at the same time...
That was something she'd have to get used to.
Far away, the shadows were silent and unmoving...
But not alone.
Author's Note
Here it is, the final chapter.
I wanted it to be a happy ending, I really did, but the words just wouldn't fit. I tried to write what did fit, and I got this.
For now, that's all the Sunny I've got in me. It's time to go back to some nice one-shots. Back to basics as it were. I'll probably do a nice little blog post on it.
I think I'm happy with this fic. It went on for much longer than I thought it to, and while I felt several parts were weak, the scenes I wanted to write flowed out perfectly.
Thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the ride.
To Live, Love, and Forgive
To Understand Life...Or Is It Death?
Back in the garden, back among the carefully grown flowers, the expertly shaped hedges and trees, the finely crated stone walls...
And one could not forget the statues of course.
It was oddly calming, walking through the bastion of tranquility that contained what had once been her and her sister's greatest foe.
Perhaps it was the quiet serenity of it all, mainly due to the fact that nopony but her ever seemed to visit. Of course there were the occasional, and rare, field trips headed by the schools, but after what happened with the last she wasn't quite sure about letting them continue...
She shook her head of that thought, those three fillies were in no way responsible for the shattering of the seal, it had begun to weaken long ago when the Elements had left her and her sister's control. Their fight had merely been...the final push.
However, she knew the calm did not originate from the silence of the garden, if she wanted silence to match this there were countless areas in the castle should could retreat to, and if she was truly desperate there were several spells to dampen all the noise around her, which she often put to good use when the endless needs for foreign dignitaries were too much for her..
What really brought her peace of mind was the simple view of a statue situated in the very center of the garden. Discord, his face frozen in an expression of pure shock and terror.
It was a constant reminder, a wonderful truth, which showed that even against a god of chaos, one of the most powerful creatures in all of Equestria, the magic of friendship could still prevail.
That the world was in capable hooves, that if she fell...somepony would be able to rise up after her.
But she was not here in an attempt to achieve some sort of zen, she was here for something far different.
"Good afternoon Discord," this was not the first time she had attempted to contact the captured god. Ever since the events with Sunny he had been completely silent. A very strange development. "Are you ready to talk yet?"
Silence.
"I know you're in there Discord. I'm not going to let you hide in there forever," her horn sparked as the spell intensified. "I am very tired of waiting. I you I could make you talk if I wanted to..." she waited for a few seconds before she felt something shift inside the stone. Almost like a great yawn.
"Would you really do it Celestia? Would you use your magic and 'make me talk?'" Discord's smooth voice droned from inside the stone. "More likely you would think better of it and continue to drone on and on about you precious little students like you have for far too many days. Though to be honest, that would probably be worse. Will you just explain why you've been keeping this up and be done with it?"
"Well...why do you think I've come?" a tiny smile crept onto her face as Discord groaned.
"Don't you even start with that Celestia. Forcing someone to find a lesson for you? Only the lowest sort of teachers resort to that kind of tactic," a long sigh. "But I'll humor you, if only to end this faster. I'll bet that you want me ask for forgiveness for what I did? The thousand years of torment I put those ponies through, followed by my latest attempt to take over Equestria? You want to hear some hint that I'm not 'completely lost.'"
"That...that would be encouraging to here," Celestia admitted.
"Well you're not going to!" the sudden shout startled her, the statue almost seemed to shake with it. "I have nothing to answer for, nothing to beg forgiveness for.,,"
"You tormented the citizens of the Everfree Forest for over a thousand years, you then conspired to break a part of yourself free in order to take over Equestria!" her shouted echoed through the garden. "How can you sit there and claim there is nothing to answer for?"
"Well first off, you haven't left me much choice in the matter. Secondly what else did you expect me do besides configure a plot to escape this prison?" she could almost feel him shrugging. "I am Chaos, it's in my nature to rebel."
"You really think that's enough? When you were freed you immediately attacked my student Twilight and her friends. It was because of you that they lost one of their newest companions," Discord's rumbling laugh echoed throughout her head.
"Truly? I remember being stuck here for all of that, relaxing in the glow of that silly magic shield you thought would protect you," another short laugh. "As the Princess of the Sun I really thought you'd be a bit more observant."
"It was still you that committed those crimes, even if it was just a part of you," Celestia tried to argue.
"If you remember, that was a part that was locked away from me for over a thousand years. He may have been me...but I was not him. It's not my fault he went a little...power mad," Discord said. "You leave someone alone too long with no supervision and a great amount of power, there is quite a high chance they may give into some...temptation. I believe your sister is very well versed in that subject." Celestia stared at the statue in silence for a few moments, her gaze stern.
"We are not talking about my sister..." she finally said, her tone low.
"No...I suppose not. You wanted to hear me apologize for something I was not at fault for, a part of me got loose, caused some havoc, and your little ponies stopped it," Celestia could picture Discord shaking his head at her. "But...I don't think you ever really expected to get anything..."
"No..." a short pause. "But I had some hope for it..."
"Hope is a dangerous, foolish notion," he seemed to turn away from her. "I'll bet those silly ponies are hoping their friend is going to come back."
"He won't you know..."
"And how can you be so sure of that?" her voice held a hint of desperation. Sunny's fate had been on her mind ever since his and Discord's disappearance.
"I can see many things in this world, even trapped within this cold stone. When that part of me was freed from the Everfree Forest I found that I could see through his eyes as well. I saw all of his actions, up until the very end." his tone turned dark.
"They...you saw when Sunny took-" she started.
"Yes, I was there when that fake pony gave himself up to stop a part of me. I was there to see what waits...beyond," he finished almost with a sneer.
"I don't suppose you may have had some revelation after seeing what awaited-" she stopped at Discord began to laugh again. He laughed and laughed and laughed, deep and loud, directly at her.
"Don't even try playing that card Princess. How old are you exactly? A thousand? Two thousand? Probably more at this point, you wear your years better than most, but not nearly as well as I do," Celestia felt a small frown form on her face. "Still, as the centuries drag on and on and on...creatures like us always find ourselves wondering what happens when it all comes to an end. What is waiting for us afterwards?"
"Well I'm pleased to say...I knew what awaited me long ago. So many tried to warn me of the punishment that awaited...and I didn't care one little bit. If the world sought to punish me for following my nature, then it could go ahead and try." Discord sounded so sure of himself, but a part of his speech seemed...off.
"And what you saw, it was what you expected?" Celestia found herself asking.
"Hmm...not entirely, and I've yet to decide if that is a good or bad thing," Celestia felt his gaze focus back on her. "But I will tell you one thing...one thing I've still yet to puzzle out."
"What would that be?" There were few things Discord was ever puzzled about.
"That impostor pony, Sunny or whatever silly name he called himself, must have thought he was so clever. He had to have known that making that part of me look into his fate would have had echoes in the real world, but what he didn't realize is that I could see what awaited him as well..."
"You know what that faker was made of don't you? All those final hopes and dreams...all that hatred and love that passes through the mind in its final moments bound up together by your silly magic of harmony. I suppose it could be called a life, in a loose definition, but there is one thing it could never be called," he paused like some dramatic story teller.
"A soul. A true soul like those the rest of your subjects happily carry around, hardly even realizing it. It may pretend to be...but it can never truly be that. And do you know what awaits something with no soul?"
Celestia did know.
"Nothing..." after all, what else could it be? "Sunny...when he took that part of you away, did he know?"
"Yes!" Discord nearly shouted. "That is what refuses to make any sense to me! Not only did he give himself up, but he gave himself up to nothing. You may try to imagine such a fate, but you can never grasp the enormity of it. He will be trapped for all time, beyond time, in an abyss of nothing. Nothing to see, hear or touch. He will reach out for help, for someone, but no matter what he tries, there will still be nothing!"
"Why would he do that? He could have waited, escaped with your student and those silly friends of hers, they may have even been able to bring up a plan to stop that part of me." he was almost fuming now.
"Would they have stopped you without any difficulty? Without any chance of harm to themselves, or to the ones they cared about?" Celestia cocked her head to the side.
"That would be...very unlikely. That part of me was rather...determined to win this little game of ours. But facing such a small chance is still better than where he sent himself."
"If what you said is true, then what is faces truly is terrible. But my student was able to rescue his from a similar situation before."
"You did not see what I saw, there is nothing like this. He is trapped there for no good reason."
"He is trapped there...because he wanted to protect his friends, because he thought his sacrifice would be worth it," she tried to argue, but even as the words left her mouth, Celestia knew Discord would not listen.
"There you go again, prattling on and on about friendship. I'm never going to believe somepony would do anything just for the sake of a silly connection like that."
"It is far more than just a connection...it's..." she stopped herself, staring silently at the statue. Continuing this conversation right now would be pointless. "Never mind." She stood up from the soft grass, turning her back to him.
"Oh don't tell me you're leaving already? Surely you've got more to say about 'The Magic of Friendship,'" Discord called as she began to walk away.
"Not today, but I thank you for telling me what happened to Sunny," she gave him a quick nod.
"You shouldn't, now all you know is that he's not going to come back." Discord's presence pulled away from her, he was done talking.
"We'll see...until next time Discord."
"Until next time Princess Celestia."
With a final flash from her horn Celestia broke the spell between them, and the garden fell once more into silence.
"Perhaps, if you can still find yourself trying to question friendship, you aren't completely lost yet..."
Satisfied, at least somewhat, she left the garden behind.
Author's Note
Mostly because I like the idea that Discord could still be redeemed in this strange spin-off thing of MLP I've created and secondly because it contains an important plot element for the next, and most likely last, part of this story.
This was interesting to write...but I really wish it was better. I am never ever satisfied with my writing, and I should really get a proofreader...ah well, maybe next time.
Also, while writing this I accidentally hit the publish button early and now I feel very very badly about all the new views for this story and the last. I apologize greatly to you all.
See you, most likely, in the final story of Sunny.
