Lavender

Chapters

Part 1: Family Tradition
Part 2: In Between
Part 3: Welcome

Part 1: Family Tradition

“Where does somepony’s magic color come from?” asked Sweetie Belle.

Such an innocuous and seemingly random question, it caught Twilight and Rarity a mite off-guard. What your magic looks like isn’t something you think about, even when you’re actively using it to, say, sort out piles of fabrics. It’s like if someone asks you why you step first with your right foot over your left. You’ll need a moment to really grasp what they’re asking, even if the answer is something simple like 'I guess I just feel like it more often.'

Twilight and Rarity exchanged a look, then gave Sweetie Belle their combined attention, leaving the bolts in piles for the moment.

“Well, Sweetie Belle,” said Rarity. “It’s quite simple, really.”

Twilight picked up seamlessly: “It’s part of who somepony is. Like her cutie mark.”

“Exactly. Or perhaps the color of her coat, mane, or eyes.”

“In fact, somepony’s magic color usually matches the color of her eyes.”

“Or cutie mark,” Rarity pointed out.

“Or maybe sometimes a little of both,” Twilight finished matter-of-factly. For added emphasis, the two picked up the next pair of fabric bolts and held them by their respective sides, so Sweetie Belle might get a better look for comparison.

The curious filly sat gawking for a moment, oddly entranced by such a simple gesture.

“You’d think she’d never seen magic before,” Rarity whispered; Twilight held back a quiet snicker.

“Oh, oh!” Sweetie clamored over the pile of fabrics she had rested on, scattering a few here and there much to her sister’s dismay.

“Sweetie Belle! Be careful!” There wasn’t much of a point to trying to stop an excited filly; Rarity knew that. Still, it was probably better to try before she got hoofprints on half of Rarity’s future designs.

Sweetie halted a short bit before the two, looking them up and down. Honestly, Twilight was a tad creeped out. And she wasn’t the only one.

“W-well,” said Rarity. “If that’s all you had to ask, then I think me and Twilight had best—”

“Does it ever change colors?” Sweetie Belle blurted out. “Like, if something happens? Like a spell gone wrong or if somepony gets old?”

Twilight scoffed. “Of course not.”

“Sometimes, sure.”

Just from that one statement, for a moment, Twilight had looked as if she had good reason to believe Rarity was going to sprout another head. “Yeah, right. Good one, Rarity!”

Rarity simply returned the look, with a hint of concern added on for good measure. “Oh, please. Tell me you’re the one who’s joking.”

“What? Don’t tell me you actually know somepony that’s happened to!”

“As a matter of fact, I do,” said Rarity. The look of concern just grew more intense as she tapped Twilight on the shoulder. “You.”

“Wait, huh? What?!” Twilight backed away. By her face, Rarity and her sister could tell, Twilight was unsure whether or not to smile. “No, no, that can’t be true! I’d have noticed, right? I mean, I use my magic all the time.”

Rarity shrugged. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of. When I first met you, your magic was purple like your eyes—” For demonstration purposes, and with Sweetie Belle still around, Rarity physically pointed at Twilight’s eyes as she spoke “—and now it’s pink, like your cutie mark.” Again, she pointed. “You’re still following the ‘rules’, but you’ve just sort of, if you’ll pardon the expression, ‘flip-flopped’ at some point.”

In sheer disbelief, Twilight sat down and stammered to herself. “Wh-wha... no, that...” Yet when she tried to test the claim, passively lighting the aura on her horn, she could only furrow her brow and frown at the sight. Yes, it’s pink. I’ve seen that, it looks familiar, but—I used to have purple. I remember that. But when in the world could it have switched?

Rarity shot a glare at Sweetie Belle. “Sweetie Belle! Look what you’ve done. Here we were having a nice conversation, then you—”

“Rarity, it’s fine,” said Twilight. “I just... wow, how did I miss that?”

“I’m sure it could happen to anypony.” Suddenly Rarity’s tone was back to pleasant and conversational, rather than conveying her wrath. “For all I know, it’s already happened to me, but, well...” With a little flourish, Rarity showed off both her eyes and cutie mark, the complementary blues seeming indistinguishable compared to the glow on her horn inbetween.

Sweetie Belle took the moment of distraction to get her “vengeance”: sticking her tongue out at Rarity while nopony was looking.

Twilight snickered as Rarity fluttered her eyelashes. “Okay, okay, I see that now,” she said. “Fine, I believe you. It’s normal. Nothing to worry about.” That last bit was perhaps the most blatant white lie Twilight could ever tell, and judging from her skeptical expression, Rarity sure knew it. The number of things that didn’t worry Twilight could be counted on a pony’s front hooves.

Still, as any filly, Sweetie Belle was quickly growing bored of sharing the spotlight. “Well what if it didn’t make sense? Like if you got blue magic? Or yellow? Green? White?”

“Sweetie Belle, that’s enough!” said Rarity. “Now you’re just making these up as you go along.”

“I am not!”

“Please, Sweetie Belle?” asked Twilight. She never had any younger siblings, but she remembered how her brother used to talk to her when it was important: soft, comforting, yet firm and confident at the same time. It was an art form, one that Twilight was glad she didn’t have to truly master to get a message across.

Sweetie half-sighed, half-groaned on her way out.. “Fine, I’ll just go do something else!”

“Have fun!’ Rarity called after her. “Be careful! And don’t forget to be back by supper!” It wasn’t until they heard the door shut behind Sweetie that she dared break her facade. But when she did, all the words pent-up and saved from the last five minutes came rushing out at once; Twilight had to recoil from her sudden excitement.

“Oh, Twilight, aren’t you excited? I know Iam. I spent the whole month working on your dress, and I know you’ll just love it. Pinkie Pie’s been hard at work setting up most of everything else of course, but everypony else has been hard at work helping get ready. Well, at least today., I—”

Oh, no... Twilight winced at each new word, each new promise of her friends’ hard work. “Rarity, I’m sorry, but this is—”

“Oh and Happy Birthday, darling!” Rarity reached out, offering a hug; Twilight sighed, yet accepted the offer out of courtesy despite the unease so visible on her face.

Just as Rarity pat her on the back and began to break off of the hug, Twilght couldn’t bear it anymore. “I’m not going to make it!”

Startled, Rarity took a step back. “What?”

“I-I—” Twilight took a deep breath to finish, “I can’t come to my party tonight.”

“I’ll say again: what?!” Rarity gasped. “Why in Equestria couldn’t you make it to your own birthday party?”

“I swear, I didn’t know.” Twilight began. “I just got the letter today, from my parents back in Canterlot.”

“Your parents? Did something happen?!”

“No no no, nothing like that!” A smile started to form on Twilight’s face; the realization was slowly dawning on her that, just this once, she might be making a bigger deal out of something than she needed to. “They’re just inviting me to a family party.”

Rarity frowned, puzzled. “Well, couldn’t you tell them that you already had plans? I know it’s Canterlot, and family, but we’ve been planning this party for you for a month. Is it really that urgent?”

Twilight shook her head. “Considering Mom and Dad sent me a letter for the first time in years, it probably is. Besides, it was regular mail, not through Spike. There’s no way I can say no.” Then she added, at a more hushed tone, “And ‘party’ might not have been the word they used.”

If out of nothing more than empathy or curiosity, Rarity, too, hushed her voice. “What do you mean?”

“Their words were ‘family tradition’. And I think it has something to do with a coming-of-age type thing. I’m pretty sure my brother had the same kind of party a few years ago when he was my age.”

“Well does it matter who comes?” Rarity’s eyes lit up. “I don’t care how often we’ve visited, I’d love to visit Canterlot again. Even for one night.”

“Sorry, but no,” said Twilight. “Family means family. That’s Daddy’s rule. Always has been.”

“Please?” Rarity asked in perhaps the most desperate and pathetic tone manageable by a grown mare. “I’ll be good! You won’t even know I’m there, I—”

Twilight snickered and shook her head. “Rarity, I know you girls are my best friends. And you’re like family. But let me put it this way: my brother’s wife isn’t allowed to come.”

“Oh.” Rarity hesitated a moment or two to think, and soon her excitement faded to several levels of disappointment at once. “I-I think I understand. Family tradition and all, I can respect that.” She sighed, turned away and hanging her head in defeat. “Have fun, I suppose. I’ll just tell the others to call of the party...”

“Wait!” said Twilight. She could barely bear to look at her friend’s heartbroken expression. “Could you ask them to just move it to tomorrow? This is family, but you’re my friends. Believe me, the last thing I want to do is abandon anypony.”

Rarity offered a smile, if a weak one. “It’s your birthday. And I’m sure everypony will understand.”

“Thank you,” said Twilight, glancing passively out the window behind herself. “I can’t thank you enough for—oh sweet Celestia is it dark out already?!” Caught between logical moves, Twilight settled for something inbetween as she dove for her saddlebags in the corner and started hovering out the contents, one-by-one, until she found the envelope she was looking for. A small slip peeked out, and after one look, Twilight’s heart sank. “I’m gonna be late for the train!”

Rarity, too, gasped and jumped to action; she rushed over and helped Twilight get her bags together and secure. “I’ll tell everypony else, just go!”

Twilight rushed for the door in far too much of a hurry to so much as look at Rarity, but she at least managed to say “Thank you! You’re the best!” before the door slammed shut behind her.

“Wait! Wait! I’m here, I have a ticket!” Twilight shouted at the conductor not moments before the train would’ve left the station. Her heart pounded in her chest as she gasped for breath, in stark contrast to the calm and collected pony who took her ticket, marked it, and escorted her to her seat.

Once inside, Twilight set her bags down on the empty seat facing hers. Finally, I can relax for a bit, she thought. I’m on my way home. I’m coming home, just for a night. Nothing fancy, nothing too exciting, just my parents wanting to see their little girl all grown-up.

Her eyes shot wide open. That’s not what it says though. What if something did happen? What if this isn’t about my birthday? Are my parents okay? Is my brother okay?! What if he—

Twilight shook her head. Let’s just calm down, take a deep breath, and re-read the letter, shall we?

And so she did just that; after sifting through her bags once more, albeit in a more calm and less throwing-everything-out manner, she produced the envelope from before. The ticket replaced the letter, and she set he envelope back down in between the two bags, pinching it in place in case of any bumps on the tracks.

Let’s just see here... ‘Dear Twilight,’ something something ‘family tradition’, ‘just you, your brother, and us... for your birthday.’ There, it says it. ‘Birthday.’ There’s no need to freak out. Just relax. I’m going to my birthday party for crying out loud.

She shifted closer to the window, seeing no harm in it so long as nopony else had that seat. And it’s not that weird. Shining Armor had a birthday like this, and back then not even I was allowed to come. And... I guess I might have blamed that on him at the time. Wow, I can be such a bad sister sometimes. Note to self: make sure big brother knows I’m sorry.

Is that why I stopped talking to him? Now that I think about it—no, that was earlier. That was just rubbing it in, or I thought it was. But now? I need to visit more. I need to tell him I’m sorry, that I shouldn’t have mistrusted him so badly. Do I need to though? I mean, we were talking after his wedding and all of that ‘incident’.

I was so right about ‘Cadence’. Actually—well, now that I think about it, wouldn’t that have been obvious? Her magic isn’t green. Real Cadence, that is. How did nopony see that? Or maybe somepony did, but they didn’t think anything of it? I mean, my magic changed color, and nopony even told me until today.

Maybe that does happen more often than I thought.

Her thought process came to a screeching halt, literally, as the train’s brakes grinded against the rails. Her ears stung from the harsh cacophany, but even as she ducked down to shield them, she noticed nopony else onboard seemed to care. Out of curiosity, she looked outside her window, only for the surprise sight of the Canterlot train station. Wow, time flies when you’re daydreaming.

Carefully, she put the letter away and gathered her things, taking a break from gathering her thoughts. Rather, she took a look around herself as she exited the train at the wonderous night time skyline and lights of Canterlot. She felt a tug of sorts, harkening back to her youth. Not much had changed since then, short of a few patched-up roads and street lamps, though that was just from what she could see from the train station.

Suddenly, her problems just seemed so much more distant. I miss it here, sometimes. I know Rarity sees the glamor and the beauty, but to me, this is still a lot like home. It’s... safe. I feel welcome. Maybe even more than in Ponyville.

I don’t know what I was worried about. This is just going to be a nice evening, a nice birthday with my family. No danger, no bad news, just a trip back down memory lane.

Ironically, she thought this just as she turned down her parents’ street.

— — —

Twilight had no problems getting through the streets of the city at night, or even with finding the place. It wasn’t until she was about to knock on the door that her anxiety came back. Am I late? What if they forgot? What if there was a mistake? What if—

She wasn’t quite sure after the fact whether she was even the one who knocked on the door, as it immediately opened afterwards. Her brother stood there with a knowing smirk on his face.

“Good evening, Sis.”

Twilight practically tried to tackle him over in her sudden hug. “I’m so so so sorry!”

“Whoa, whoa,” he said with a chuckle. “It’s okay! It’s a little late, but at least you made it, right?”

“Huh?” Twilight blinked. “Wait—no no no, I meant—well I’m sorry if I’m a little late, but now I get it! I’m sorry I got mad at you when I couldn’t come to your birthday.”

“But you could’ve always come to—oh! You mean when I—” Shining Armor took a deep breath and looked around outside, behind Twilight. “Come on in, it’s kinda cold out tonight.”

“Oh, sure,” Twilight mumbled. A part of her wanted to take a look herself, but her brother nearly shoved her inside before slamming the door behind them. Of course, most of her curiosity stemmed from the fact that it was barely even chilly outside, but she dismissed the thought once she was inside: “Do we have a fire going in here or something?”

“Nah,” said Shining. “it’s just small house for four ponies.”

Body heat, thought Twilight. Duh. “So what’s this ‘tradition’ about anyway?”

“Look, don’t worry about it,” Shining snapped. He caught himself, and with a smile added, “Just enjoy yourself, okay? It’s your birthday, that’s all.”

“Are you sure? What about when you—”

“It’s not my birthday, Twilight,” Shining joked. “Come on, relax. Enjoy yourself. And most importantly—” He stopped her with a hoof pointed at her chest. “Stop. Worrying.”

Good luck with that. Twilight smiled uneasily. “Okay, okay, I will!”

“Happy Birthday!” exclaimed her parents, causing both Twilight and her brother to jump; they had reached the dining room, which, while smaller than Twilight remembered, housed just enough chairs and table space for the four of them, a small cake, and a stack of strangely similar-looking presents. Of course, each one being a perfect rectangular shape, Twilight had a good feeling she knew what she was in for.

“Oh, thank you!” said Twilight. She smiled and giggled to herself; it felt like she was five again. Of course, the decor certainly helped. “Uhh, streamers?”

Her father shrugged. “We thought it’d make it feel more like home.”

“I never said I mind,” Twilight said quickly. “Frankly, I’m used to it. Pinkie Pie—my friend back in Ponyville—I think she thinks every party is some foal’s birthday or something.” She snickered. “I think she tried bringing balloons to the Grand Galloping Gala.”

Her parents and brother shared a quick laugh.

“Sit down, dear,” said her mother. “You must be tired after your trip.”

Well she’s not wrong, but she could at least askrather than order it. “You’re probably right,” said Twilight. Her mother’s magic pulled out the nearest chair for her, and Twilight plopped herself down without hesitation.

“So,” said Shining, “shall we get started?”

“You still like sprinkles on your ice cream, right Twilight?” asked her mother.

Twilight nodded. “Wow, I can’t believe you remember after all this time.”

“We’re your parents,” said her father, fishing out a shaker of sprinkles from under the table. “Of course we remember!”

“Just like we remember the first time you tried ice cream.”

“Hah!” said Shining; he immediately clapped a hoof to his mouth as Twilight hung her head.

Please don’t get the family photos, please don’t get the family photos, please don’t get the family photos...

Her mother already had gone into the living room and back, just to retrieve the album. “I think we still have that picture here somewhere...”

“Please no!” Twilight blurted out. “I still don’t know if I got all of the ice cream out of my hair or not, and I really don’t want another reminder!”

Her parents froze, wide-eyed. “I’m... sorry,” said her mother.

Huh?

“He-here,” her dad stammered. “Let me just add the sprinkles and—”

“Are you alright?” Twilight asked. “I was just joking around, you know. It’s embarrassing, but I’m not really that upset over it or anything.”

Her parents sighed with collective relief. “Sorry, honey,” said her father. “We haven’t seen you in a while, and we just want to make sure you’re happy is all.”

“Don’t worry about that.” Twilight forced a huge grin. “It’s my birthday!”

Shining quickly took his seat between Twilight and their mother. “Hey! Hey! Birthday, right? Normal, happy, fun birthday. Come on, let’s get this show on the road!” His tone was less than convincing, and his eyes darted between Twilight and their parents.

Is he alright? Twilight knew him; this was uneasy, even for the Captain of the Guard. “What’d you have in mind, big brother?”

He groaned. “You mean besides a birthday party for my little sister without this awkwardness?”

Stop. Worrying. It all makes sense eventually.

After another quiet moment, Shining cleared his throat. “Cake. Candles. Come on!”

Their parents nodded, then set to work, sparking each candle on the cake with magic before hovering the whole thing over in front of Twilight. Their every movement seemed forced, almost jerky and most certainly clumsy, so much that Twilight was glad the cake made it to her side of the table in one piece.

She stared at the candles, then her parents and brother; they all smiled and stared at her, waiting for her to make a move.

“Oh, right!” said her father. “Happy Birthday to you...”

Everypony else picked up the song; Twilight sighed and turned back to the cake. Sprinkles, vanilla ice cream, and just enough striped candles, each sparked with magic yet burning a very real flame. Not everypony can cast spells like that, Twilight thought. I guess I know where I get it from, if my parents could—

“Happy Birthday to you!” the others finished.

Twilight took a deep breath and blew, extinguishing all of the candles in one pass. Her parents clapped their hooves, and Shining sighed with relief.

“What’d you wish for?” he whispered to her while their parents took the cake back for cutting.

“For everypony to just relax already.”

By way of somepony’s magic, Twilight’s stack of presents slammed down between the two on the table. “Go ahead, Twilight,” said her mother. “We can eat after your presents.”

“It’s no trouble, I can wait,” said Twilight.

“We insist.” Her parents’ unison would’ve been eerie if they weren’t a couple.

“Well in that case...” Twilight started at the top, hovering each present down and stripping the paper in one motion: five books, just as she expected. What she didn’t expect, however, were some of the titles. “‘Advanced Arithmetic’? ‘Bones and Biology’? You’re not sending me back to school, are you?”

“I’m going to level with you, dear,” said her father. “We sort of just went with whatever seemed ‘smartest’ at the bookstore.”

Twilight giggled to herself. “Well, thank you. I’ll be sure to give them all a good read.” She smiled, though that started to fade as she looked at the size of one of the books. These are like textbooks, aren’t they. Oh well, beggars can’t be choosers, but really... who wants to read all those citations?

Oddly enough, the title on the cover of the books she was looking over started to drift out of focus. What—whoa, I’m getting... must be more tired than I thought.

She yawned and set the book down. “Sorry, everypony. That ride must’ve drained me or—”

Her parents and brother were staring at her again, with a similar, unnerving smile. And all of their horns were alight with their own pinkish-red magic.

“What are you doing?” Twilight half-slurred. Her vision blurred further, and she started to hear a ringing in her ears. “W-what... is this the family... tra...”

Her eyes failed her, narrowing her vision down to a single fuzzy point before shutting completely. The last sense she had left besides hearing let her know, just briefly, she had fallen off of her chair. What’s going on?! Why can’t I move? Why am I so tired? I’m not—the spell, it's a spell, I can fight it, I can—

“Relax, Twi,” said the distant voice of Shining Armor. “It’s going to be okay. Don’t worry.”

I am worrying! And with good reason! Why are you—why are my parentscasting a sleep spell on me?!

“I had to do it, and so do you. It’s just easier this way, I promise.”

Do what? What’s happening? Why won’t... anypony tell... me? Why am... I... fading...

Part 2: In Between

Her eyes shot open, but she could barely tell the difference. Blackness. Shadows. Nothing. And, if only, silence, instead of a wet dripping echoing somewhere nearby. Her body ached all over, like she’d been tossed against a wall all night. Her heart pounded painfully in her chest; breathing was a struggle, and she even felt some dull pain digging into her side.

Where am I? What happened to my family? Why am I alone? What’s that—where in Equestria am I?!

A frigid breeze washed over her, bringing the sound of a faint wooden creak with it. Twilight gasped and looked for the source of the sound; a rickety wooden door stood at one end of the darkness, with just the faintest of light shining through. Bluish-white light.

Moonlight. So it’s still night. Unless its the next night, which means—

Another drip behind her, and Twilight curled back into a frightened ball.

No, no! Think! Dripping, water seeping through the roof. But this isn’t some building. The floor isn’t flat. It’s rough, hard, uneven—rocky!”

Slowly, she rolled over, off of her side; the pain faded away from her side, and she gasped for a breath. The air was damp, but refreshing nonetheless. In fact it was that sense of rejuvenation that let Twilight work up the courage to inspect the cave more closely; there was the door, with a few rocks nearby in the moonlight, but also a dimly lit lantern, off to the corner, with something pinned beneath it.

Twilight focused her magic, not so much an easy feat as she shook off the remnants of numbness, and managed to grab hold of the lantern and the slip of paper it held in place. Pink magic. Really pink. Not the slightest bit purple. How did I not notice this until today?

Or yesterday, or—

Between the light of her magic and the lantern, Twilight could read the runny ink printed on the page once it got close enough.

“‘Dear Twilight,’” she began. “‘You had a rough time last night. Don’t worry, you’re safe. Head outside and go South. You should see Ponyville from the door. Your presents should be in the library. ’”

When she saw the last line, her jaw dropped: “Love, Mom + Dad”.

My parents brought me here. They left me in a cave. My parents. Why? What purpose could this possibly serve?

They’re not going to lie to me, though, right? I mean, they didn’t tell me what was really going to happen, but still.

And so, on nothing more than blind trust, Twilight carefully stepped through the cave, using the lantern to look for any sharp rocks in the way. At the door, she paused to take a quick look outside between the boards. All clear, she thought; she took a deep breath before pushing through to the outside.

A pine forest running down a steep slope stood before her, the tips of the trees cutting off just low enough that she could see around the horizon. Wherever I am, I can’t be that far from Canterlot. My parents brought me here, and, well, the mountains... Where’s the moon?

Despite the beautiful greenish-blue pine trees before her, there wasn’t a light in the sky. No stars, no moon that she could tell, or at least none she could see, with the rest of the mountain behind her.

Not a moment later, the sun crested over the horizon, facing the entrance to her cave.

Oh, sweet Celestia, my eyes!

Twilight dove instinctively for the nearest shadow, cowering and covering her eyes. The blinding afterimage persisted for several seconds, while the sudden warmth lingered throughout the air around her. Once her eyes adjusted, however, the bright colors of the grass and the trees and the rocks around her were still painful to look at. She squinted, even in the shadow, and groaned. Stupid cave. I was in there way too long.

Still, there was one upside; there, just over the tops of the needly trunks, Twilight saw colorful buildings rising up out of the plains and hills well out in the distance.

Sun rises in the East, Twilight recited in her head. Ponyville lies to the South. So if nopony’s lying to me, thats where I need to go.

She stood up and trotted straight ahead, only to stop in the sunlight. “Ouch!” she yelped. The bright light not only burned her eyes, but felt something like the steam off a boiling pot. Okay, so I can’t just jump in. That’s fine, I can go around. Plenty of trees, and by the time I run out, my body will have adjusted.

Almost without thinking, she took off running, following the bend of the shadows until she had a straight path through the wood. Just the motion, with the wind whipping her mane back out of her face, and the cool shadows around her... it felt good. Nice. Relaxing.

Maybe this is all Mom and Dad wanted. To get me out of the library for once. Twilight smirked as she gracefully weaved between tree trunks. So maybe I’ll have something to thank them for after all.

At the Ponyville train station, the clock struck noon, complete with the tantalizing twelve chimes that went with it. Each one sent a shiver of dread down everypony’s spine; Rarity, Pinkie Pie, all of Twilight’s friends.

“She did says she’d come back today, right?” asked Rainbow Dash.

“I’m almost positive,” said Rarity. “Well, either today or last night.”

“W-what if something happened to the train?” asked Fluttershy.

Rarity shook her head. “I’ve already seen six trains since last night. Besides, if there was anything like an accident I’m sure we’d have heard something about it already.”

“Oh, I hope she didn’t get in trouble with her parents,” said Pinkie Pie, biting her lip.

Applejack scoffed. “It ain’t like she’d get ‘grounded’ for it. Come on, she’s just runnin’ a little late. I’m sure she’ll be on the next train, just you watch.”

Everypony else, except Fluttershy, said at once, “You said that three times already!”

“Said what three times already?”

Twilight’s voice behind them all was as unexpected as it was sudden; Everypony jumped together in a gasp. That is, until they settled down and realized who had spoken.

“Twilight! You’re alive!” said Pinkie Pie.

“Yes, I am!” Twilight said, mirroring Pinkie’s excited tone. “Sore, but alive.”

“Where were you?” asked Applejack. “You had us worried sick!”

Fluttershy skipped over and gave Twilight a closer look. “Are you sure you’re okay? A-are you hurt?”

“Twilight, you umm—” Rarity hesitated, motioning around the front part of her mane.

Twilight took a deep breath, then set to work: “Okay, in order: Canterlot, then the woods, yes I’m sure I’m okay, and I’m not hurt.” She looked up; a pine branch twig had broken off in her hair at some point, something she easily removed with a little magic. “I hope I didn’t worry you all too much.”

“Oh, no, not at all,” said Rarity.

“M-maybe a little,” said Fluttershy.

Rainbow Dash hovered above the others and glared at Twilight. “Alright, what gives?”

“I’m sorry?” Twilight took a step back.

In sheer disbelief, Rainbow looked around at the others, then back to Twilight. “Okay, fine, I’ll do it if nopony else will. Twilight, what’s with the freaky eyes?”

“Rainbow Dash, have some manners!” said Applejack.

“What about my eyes?” Twilight gasped. Before anypony could say another word, she rushed over to the ticket booth.

Sure enough, in her reflection on the glass, her eyes were... different. It was hard to pick out details without a proper mirror, but Twilight had a hunch. She turned sideways and readied a glimmer of magic, and sure enough, they all matched: her cutie mark, her magic, and now her eyes.

All reddish-pink.

What’s going on? Why are my eyes—what, did my parents get me eye surgery overnight? Did they giveme eye surgery?

“What happened last night?” asked Applejack.

“I don’t...” Twilight mumbled, then shook her head. “I mean, it’s uhh, sort of one of those family secret type things. You know, like, uhh...”

Applejack chuckled to herself and waved her hoof. “Say no more, I understand.”

By their faces, the others seemed a little less convinced. “Are you sure you can’t just give us a hint?” asked Rarity. “You leave town for a day and come back not on a train but from the woods, and we’re not even allowed to know why your eyes changed color?”

“Well if magic can change color...”

“Hey, her business is her business,” said Applejack. “I for one am just grateful she made it home safe ‘n’ sound.”

“Mm-hmm!” said Pinkie, bouncing over and grabbing Twilight in a sort of half-hug. “Welcome home, birthday girl!”

Twilight gently shoved her off. “Uhh, thanks. That reminds me though, you weren’t too disappointed yesterday, were you?”

Everypony else spoke up at once, but the general consensus of “Oh goodness no!” was fairly easy to make out. Twilight smiled, feeling that warmth of being around friends once more. This is even better than the woods. Definitely better than my party last night. Maybe I should’ve just—

“Twilight!” shouted a young, desperate voice; Spike rushed onto the platform and leaped onto Twilight for as strong a hug as he could muster. “I missed you so much!”

“Spike, it was just one night,” said Twilight. Although that’s a lot longer than you’ve ever been left alone for before...

Just then, she felt a strange shudder. Or perhaps a shiver. And as she looked at Spike, her vision seemed to go fuzzy again, just like when she fell asleep, but only for the briefest of moments. Sounds quieted around her, and the beating of her own heart pounded in her ears.

But it was all for but a moment, as it soon came all back to normal.

“...light? Hello?” asked Pinkie Pie, right in Twilight’s ear. “You in there?”

“Who—What—” Twilight paused to collect herself. “Umm, yes?”

“Ugh!” Pinkie crossed her forehooves. “I said, ‘So when do you wanna have your real friendly friends birthday party?’”

“Since you’re home, how ‘bout later today?” asked Rainbow, still looking uneasily at Twilight.

“No no!” said Twilight. “Uhh, I mean, I’m just so tired, you know? And I’m pretty sure this eye thing might be a part of that.”

Applejack scratched her head. “Sleepy eyes don’t change color... do they?”

“B-besides, I had a long night,” said Twilight. That’s right, I’m not lying yet. No need to worry them, just tell them what they need to hear.

Pinkie’s expression deflated, leaving her with a quivering lip. “Well when do we get to have your party? And don’t say never, ‘cause that’s too sad to even think about!”

Never. There, was that so hard? “Tomorrow? If not the next day. I don’t think I got much sleep, and I don’t want to just pass out in the middle of my party or anything!” Yeah, not again.

“Do you promise?”

I would if I could, Pinkie. “Well, I, you see—”

“Oh, hush!” said Applejack, prying Pinkie away from Twilight. “You know she’s good for it, right everypony?”

The collective nod from the other three brought that welcoming warmth back to Twilight.

“Now go, get some sleep,” said Applejack with a wink. “See you in the mornin’, ya hear?”

Twilight smiled and nodded. “Mhmm,” she said. “That goes for everypony, I’ll see you all tomorrow! Now come on, Spike. Let’s go home.”

“Wait, but I—Whoa!” Spike was jerked off his feet and onto Twilight’s back by a quick magical ‘nudge’ as she ran by.

Once again, the others all tried to speak at once, although this time the general idea of “Good... bye?” pretty much fell on deaf ears. By the time anypony had the chance to speak, Twilight had already bolted off towards the exit.

“Now do you think something’s up with her?” asked Rainbow.

Applejack shook her head. “Oh, hush. She’s just tired and really wants some sleep, that’s all.”

“If you say so...”

— — —

“Twilight?”

“Yeah, Spike?”

“What was that all about?”

Twilight groaned, hanging her head as she trudged through the thick heat of the sunny air. Words were difficult, both to speak and to hear. “Okay, Spike, do you really want to know?”

“Twilight, I’m worried about you. Everypony is. You need to talk to someone.”

“Fine,” she snapped. “I’ll save some for when we get home, but... I don’t know, what do you want to know?”

“Well for starters, where were you last night?”

“Canterlot. My parents’ house. You remember there, right? I think you and I stayed there until I was old enough to stay at the Canterlot archives.”

Spike put a claw on his chin. “That dinky old place?”

“It’s not dinky!”

Ponies around them paused whatever they had been doing for a moment to stare at the crazy pony screaming for no reason. Twilight took one look at their judging glares and groaned. “I’m sorry, I just didn’t get much sleep.”

“I’ll say,” Spike mumbled under his breath.

“You’ll say what?” Twilight growled.

Spike’s eyes widened. “You heard that? I-I mean—”

“Oh forget it,” said Twilight. “Long story short, I woke up... outside town.”

“What, like in the woods?”

“Basically.”

Spike smirked. “I bet you got a better sleep than I did at least.”

“How do you figure?” Twilight snapped. “I woke up with a rock halfway lodged in my side!”

“At least you didn’t try to sleep near Owloiscious’ stand.’ Spike shuddered. “I uhh, I thought he might want some company, so I—”

“You were scared of the dark, and...” Twilight corrected.

“Okay fine,” said Spike. “I wanted some company, but he took that as an invitation to try to nest on my head.”

“Hah!” said Twilight. “So did he lay an egg, or what?”

Spike gently rubbed his forehead. “He scratched my scales a lot, that’s for sure.”

Finally, they reached the library’s front door; Twilight let Spike hop off, then said, “Well next time you won’t disturb him, right?”

“Next time, he can sleep outside.”

“Oh, Spike, remember we have to share our home.” Twilight jiggled the doorknob, but it barely moved. She groaned loudly. “Spike! Did you lock the door behind you?”

Spike shyed away. “No, I swear! It just sticks sometimes.”

Twilight tried the doorknob with magic instead of her mouth this time, only to find the same resistance. “That’s locked, Spike. Don’t worry, I can get it—” Focus, Twilight. magic in the lock, find the tumblers... there’s a combination in here somewhere, it just might... almost... gah!

“Oh forget this!” Twilight shouted. She hopped back, leaned over and aimed her horn; in one clean blast, the door slammed open, almost breaking the hinges completely loose.

Spike bit his lip as Twilight stomped inside, warily following her and inspecting the immediate damage: One hinge was bent, the other nearly snapped, yet the door was still capable of gently closing shut, if it ended up a little catty-cornered. “Please, Twilight, calm down! You’re scaring me even more now.”

“I am calm!” Twilight stopped and sighed. I... actually am? She opened her eyes slowly; no more blur, no more haze. She took a deep breath. The air inside felt cool. Crisp. Much better than the thick, heavy air outside.

“Spike, I’m sorry. I think the heat was getting to me.” For now, we’ll call it “heat”. Despite any other hypotheses.

She took a step forward and nearly tripped; a stack of books lay before her, neatly wrapped in a bow with a small tag sticking off the end.

“Yeah, okay,” Spike grumbled. “Oh, and those showed up this morning sometime.”

Twilight gasped. “Who brought them?”

“Some mail pegasus, I don’t know,” said Spike. “Nopony I ever got to know, that’s for sure.”

Not my parents? Well, mail makes a little more sense given the timeframe, but— Twilight snapped the tag off of the packaging and took a closer look at it. Much to her dismay, it only had “To: Twilight Sparkle” and “From: Mom + Dad” written on it. On a hunch, she compared it to the cave note; unfortunately, the hoofwriting wasn’t any different, disproving her theory before it even had a chance.

“So what are they?”

“My presents, from the party last night.” Twilight shuddered. Why could they send my books home, but not me?

Spike scratched his head. “So, do you mind if I ask what happened last night?”

“Do you mind keeping it secret?”

Spike shook his head and “zipped” his lips.

“I missed most of it. I—”

“That’s your big secret?”

Twilight glared at him for a moment, just enough to get him to apologize and back down for her to tell the story. “Last night, it all started pretty normal. My parents acted a little odd, but that’s just to be expected since they haven’t thrown me a birthday party in years. But they never mentioned that ‘tradition’ that was in the letter. Until, of course, they cast aspellon me that put me to sleep until sometime around the break of dawn this morning. When I woke up in a cave in the middle of nowhere.”

“Whoa,” Spike mumbled. “Th-think that has anything to do with your eyes?”

“Maybe,” said Twilight. She snapped the bow off the stack of books, then swirled them around herself, glaring at each one in turn. “I figure there’s got to be clues of some kind. Something they wanted me to know. So I can figure out what’s going on on my own.”

“And you said your brother already went through the same thing, right?”

“Yup! So, no offense to him, but it can’t be that hard to figure out.” Let’s see here, just by the titles... Advanced Arithmetic, Bones and Biology, Quantum Queries, Science Compendium, and Mundanity vs. Magic...

“Maybe the titles spell something, if I arrange them just so... no, the Q’s make that impossible. Unless maybe I—or, A is the first letter of the alphabet, so on the first page—or the first page of the index, I—”

Spike popped up between Twilight and her books and waved his claws in her face. “Twilight! Hey, Equestria to Twilight!”

Twilight just glared at him. “What?”

Once again, as she looked into his eyes, Twilight felt an odd shudder. There was no mistake, this time it was real. And her sight of him distorted further while the sounds around muted. He was out of focus, but at the same time... off. Nothing she could put her hoof to, but most certainly not like himself.

“...’t care what kind of genius you are! Have you seen the bags under your eyes?”

“Wha...” Twilight glanced around; again, her reflection in the mirror showed her striking new eyes, yet also the deep purple shadows that were visible beneath them. “But I feel fine.”

“You don’t look fine,” said Spike. He grabbed her front hoof and started trying to drag her towards the stairs. “Come on, you’re going to bed.”

“But it’s the middle of the day!”

“So sleep in tomorrow! Whatever happened to you, it’s not going to change by morning. And worrying about it is only gonna make you worse!”

Hopefully. Hopefully it won’t be any different tomorrow. Twilight sighed as she resigned herself, setting the books down where they came from. “Are you sure I can’t do just a little investigating? Maybe some research? I could—”

“No!” Spike led her straight up to her bed. “Go to bed, you crazy bookworm! You’re just going to drive yourself crazy if you keep this up.”

Says Spike. To me. I’m not losing it, am I?

The moment Twilight touched her bed, a wave of weight washed over her limbs, and she collapsed into the covers. It was as if she’d had sandbags strapped to her legs and chest, and possibly even her eyelids. Nothing wanted to move, and every inch of her wanted one thing; rest.

So this is the backlash from a sleep spell. Such a screwed-up sleep schedule that any familiar bed feels like a sanctuary.

All she managed to say was, “Backlaa... sleep... spell...” It took only that long for her eyes to refuse to open anymore.

Spike pulled the covers over her and whispered, “Goodnight, Twilight.”

Yet even as he spoke, she began to drift off and out of consciousness...

Darkness surrounded Twilight once more, as in the cave, but not quite the same. This wasn’t the same kind of darkness. It wasn’t even real. Combined with a misty fog and the frantic ramblings of her thoughts, this was deep sleep. Dreaming, without the dreaming. Only when something substantial came about, rationalized as “plausible” by her subconscious, would she have anything to make of this.

For most, it would be an object. Or somepony. Or a place.

But for Twilight, it was a color. Two colors.

The white mist glowed with these colors. Alternating, and faint at first. Twilight’s mind began to settle as she “saw”. Rational thought back, all she could think of, all she could identify of the images was where they came from.

Purple... and pink... my magic... my eyes?

The blinking and the mist became more distinct; the light didn’t just shine over the mist, but rather it acted as a filter. Even the darkness tinted in Twilight’s vision, ever-so-slightly.

Had she been awake, Twilight would’ve twitched her ear at the faint sound building up in the distance. What seemed like quite the distance, anyway. Voices, two of them. Both so familiar... similar, yet different. One left, one right.

“Just do it. Do it and see what happens.”

“You know what’ll happen, and you know why we won’t.”

Both voices sounded exactly like Twilight’s own. More importantly, as the first spoke, the pink filter was visible, while the purple appeared for the second.

What are you talking about? Do what?

Pink spoke up again, “Nothing’s certain. We want to. And we won’t know until we try.”

If you don’t take risks, you’ll never accomplish anything. But what are we talking about?

“Absolutely not,” said Purple. “Just because we want to doesn’t mean we should. What would Mom and Dad say?”

There’s no need to rush into things. With a little careful analysis of all the potential consequences—

Pink’s voice dropped to a sinister muttering: “You know damn well what Mom and Dad would want.”

“The Mom and Dad who raised us, not the ones who left us in a cave!” Purple snapped. “They’d want the best for their little girl, and for all the good they’ve done us, we owe them that.”

Twilight finally tried to speak for herself: “Why are we fighting?”

“They don’t own us! We’re our own pony. We’re all grown up now. Nopony gets to tell us what to do. Nopony!” Pink summarily ignored Twilight.

“Are you saying we just ignore everything they’ve done for us?” asked Purple.

“Hey!” Twilight screamed.

In but an instant, the colors faded and the fog began to dissipate. Silence filled the empty darkness. The empty air. But it wasn’t empty, and it wasn’t quite silence.

— — —

Twilight blinked her eyes open; she found herself standing, not laying. As her eyes adjusted to the light—the dull pink glow off her horn—she dared not move her gaze. Before her was Spike, resting sound asleep in his bed.

Pink was beginning to be an understatement, with how vibrant this glow appeared in the otherwise pitch-black room. Red. That was a better word.

Yet she stared at Spike, swathed in the magical glow, and watched him breathe. Each inhale, each exhale stood out of its own significance. The only other thing in the world, it felt, was her own heart, racing violently. Maybe even dangerously.

Thoughts escaped her. Breathing, her racing heart; and the subtle lick of her lip—

Finally, she shook off her staring as the shock of the sudden awakening wore off; outside, the moonlight glowed softly over the town, yet even the street lamps had been doused for the night. In this light, she saw her own bed, by the balcony. The covers were curled up and thrown aside in a mangled mess.

What time is it? Normally, she would’ve immediately thought “too late”, but this evening, she had no sense of time on her own. She could’ve slept for twelve hours for all she knew, in the pitch black of the library.

I had a weird dream, she thought. And... maybe I’m sleepwalking now. I can look into that in the morning. I need to get some sleep.

She slinked through the shadows, silent as she could manage so as to avoid disturbing Spike, and slipped back into bed. She tossed around uncomfortably on the sheets. But I’m not tired. In desperation, she opened the window, letting in a cool, refreshing breeze. She even tried straightening out her blanket and fluffing her pillow, but it was all the same.

I’m wide awake in the middle of the morning. Tomorrow is most definitely going to hurt.

Part 3: Welcome

“Twilight! Wake up, its morning!” Spike shook her through the covers. “Come on, Twilight. Let’s go get breakfast.”

He’d never seen anypony move so fast, especially not just to sit up in bed. Twilight nearly threw Spike back off onto the floor. What really made him gasp was her face, peeking out underneath the blanket she held curled over herself. “Jeez, Twilight, did you get any sleep?”

“I slept... until three in the morning,” Twilight growled. “Then I couldn’t get back to sleep. Whatsoever.”

Spike frowned and shook his head. “Do you want to go see a doctor?” he asked in a hushed voice.

“No—well not yet,” Twilight sighed and let the back of the covers down; the sunlight beat down on the back of her head like a jet of flame. “Ugh, why’s it so hot lately?!”

Spike helped drag the rest of the blanket off of Twilight, then offered help getting down. She refused, jumping out of bed herself and making way for the stairs. As he was brushed aside, Spike sighed too. “Twilight, I feel like you’re not telling me something. Like you’re mad at me.”

“What’d make you think that?!” Twilight exclaimed. Oh no, was he awake? How could he—better question: what was I doing at his bed?

“Look, I’m sorry if I did anything wrong. And I’ll take better care of Owloiscious if I’m ever here by myself again, I promise.”

Twilight hesitated to respond, and Spike’s heart sank right before her eyes. “Wait,” she said. “Spike, I’m not mad at you. I’m just confused, and my sleep’s all messed up, and...”

“You sure?”

Twilight snatched him up in her magic and returned the favor of his hug from the day before. “I’m sure.”

Spike snickered happily in her hooves. “S-so does that mean you want breakfast?”

Breakfast? Oh, right, morning! Let’s see, what do I—but I’m not hungry. At all. Why am I not hungry? “Well, what do you want?”

“Forget about me, Twilight, you know I’ll eat anything. What about you? It’s sort of a belated birthday for you, after all.”

Drat. Twilight shifted her eyes. “I, umm, well I’m not that hungry...”

Spike tapped his foot impatiently. “You gotta eat sometime, Twilight. You missed dinner yesterday, too!”

And lunch and breakfast, too. “W-well, I, uhh, the umm, birthday cake, and uhh—”

Spike tugged on her leg. “Why don’t we just walk around town until we see something that looks good?”

“Yes!” Twilight blurted out. “That! Let’s do that! I-I’ll just get my bags.”

She hurried past Spike, down the stairs and for the door. That is, until she came across an open window; she slowed down and carefully hopped around the sunlight shining through, then continued on her way.

Spike laughed at the top of the stairs. “I know it’s hot, Twilight, but what are you so afraid of? You think you’re gonna burn up or something?”

“You know what they say: If you can’t take the heat...”

Twilight froze; she didn’t think that. Pink Twilight did, complete with a colored filter re-appearing on the fringes of her vision.

It happened once, Twilight told herself for the twentieth time since they left the library. I imagined it. It won’t happen again.

Oh, but for the love of Celestia, I could do without this scorching sun.

Twilight miserably trudged through the streets, with Spike acting as a lookout on her back. She favored the shady side of any given street, but there wasn’t always one. Whoever built a perfect East-to-West street oughta be set on fire themselves.

Or I’m just overreacting. Clearly I’m not thinking straight, anyway. Maybe I caught something in that cave? If there was water, there could’ve been bacteria—

“Oh hey, Twilight, look over there!” said Spike, tugging on her ear.

She expected something like another donut shop, or perhaps someplace selling imported fruit, not, as it turned out, the sight of half her friends sitting around the same table. Rarity, dressed unusually formally as usual, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy all took their place around a table in the small patio of some fancy place with a name written in too flowery of a script for Twilight to even bother trying to interpret. But the best part was something much more subtle and simple; the tables at this restaurant were each equipped with their own umbrella.

“Yes,” said Twilight. “Yes, there.”

“Well, lead the way, Twi—whoa!” Spike barely held onto Twilight’s mane as she galloped over to the patio.

Between their conversations, Pinkie Pie spotted Twilight coming; she bounced and waved, nearly knocking Rarity and Fluttershy out of their seats. “Oh, over here! Over here!”

Twilight hopped up on the fence without thinking, knocking Spike off her back. “Hey girls!” she called.

“Oh, just hop the fence,” said Pink.

“Wait. Ask if they have room. What if they wanted to talk about your birthday?” said Purple.

The voices’ interruption was visible unsettling for Twilight, if but for a moment. “Would you mind if I joined you?”

Rarity and Fluttershy smiled and waved once they caught sight of Twilight. “Oh, of course we don’t mind!” said Rarity. “Come on in, the gate’s over there.”

“Thanks! Come on, Spike.” Twilight hurried off, leaving Spike in her dust.

“My way was quicker,” said Pink, pouting as much as a disembodied voice could.

Your way was impolite, Twilight thought, rolling her eyes as if that might help her face the voice. You lost. Get over it.

An employee of the restaurant opened the gate for Twilight and Spike, and they both rushed inside. Twilight was careful not to bump into anypony, while Spike had to make sure he wasn’t bumped into, being shorter than anypony there.

Rarity pulled out a chair for Twilight, who happily took the spot. It wasn’t until she settled in place that she noticed the direction of the sun; despite the umbrella, sunlight was still beating down on the back of her head.

“So,” said Rarity. “Fluttershy? Where were you?”

“Oh, yes, umm, so I was out by the chicken coop, when...”

“Swap places with somepony else. We have enough power. You could even teleport them out of the way.”

Purple chimed in immediately. “Ask to switch. They’re our friends, why wouldn’t they understand?”

“So whose dog was it?” asked Pinkie Pie. Twilight shook her head, trying to find her way back into the conversation. Only Spike, snickering and shaking his head by her side, seemed to notice her daydreaming.

“Um, excuse me,” said Twilight. “Could I please switch places with somepony? This sun is killing me.”

“Oh, sure!” said Pinkie, hopping out of her chair. “I don’t mind, go ahead!”

“Thanks, Pinkie.” The conversation went on hold for a moment as Pinkie and Twilight squeezed by the chairs and tables on either side of theirs. Once Twilight sat down, the searing heat gave way to a cool, soothing breeze.

And accompanying this, that same shudder passed over her as when she had seen Spike; sounds muted, colors faded... only every one of her friends looked different, not just Spike. Their colors faded completely, short of a faint pink, in an odd pattern projected over each one. Something of a shimmery conglomeration of cobwebs, criss-crossing white and pink.

Just as quickly as before, however, the visions faded. Twilight felt her heart pounding in her chest, still barely able to hear their voices. In disgust and panic, she winced and turned away, blinking her sleepy eyes repeatedly. What was that?! That’s too many times not to be real. And the voices, and my eyes, and... and...

“Whoa, ahh!” Before her, one of the waiters carrying a platter of food slipped; it wasn’t clear whether it was because of the grass or his uniform, but he fell face-first, while the platter and all the food smashed into the dirt.

“Hah! Walk much?” said Pink.

Rarity gasped. “Twilight!”

Fluttershy and Pinkie both stared at Twilight with raised eyebrows.

Even Purple gasped. “Now just think how embarrassed he must feel!”

Yet Twilight felt her mouth shut. She hadn’t just thought those words. But I didn’t say any... I mean she, no, Pink, not—

“I’m sorry, I—” Twilight began, only to once more lose control: “Sorry I zoned out and missed the beginning of that. That was hilarious!”

“Don’t you dare go any further. Just think of the damage you’ve done. You should be ashamed!”

Twilight managed to catch herself just before literally kicking the poor colt, but not before garnering the uncomfortable attention of half the ponies in the patio area.

“My apologies,” the colt muttered. “I-I’ll just go...”

“We couldtrip him again...” said Pink.

Twilight managed to perfectly predict Purple’s response. “No, we won’t!”

“Well?” Pinkie demanded, grabbing Twilight’s attention. “What’s got your panties in a bunch today, Ms. Meaniepants?”

“Th-that was funny?” Twilight didn’t know what to think. Fluttershy cowered away, just slightly.

Pinkie shook her head. “While true, the faceplant is a classic in the art of the slapstick, it’s not funny when you keep rubbing it in!”

“Were we still laughing? Of course it’s funny! He was an idiot!”

“This has gone on long enough. Just apologize already before you make it any worse with our friends.”

“I-I’m sorry,” Twilight stammered. “I don’t know what came over me.”

“Liar,” said both voices at once, Pink’s considerably more snide than Purple.

Quiet!

“Well I wish you’da said that sooner,” said Pinkie. “Tell ya what, I’ll go find him later so you can tell him yourself, okay? I mean, he’s the one you should be saying ‘sorry’ to.”

“That’s fine,” said Twilight. Might get my conscience off my back.

“I’m just trying to help us,” said Pink.

“I’m just trying to help us do what’s right,” said Purple.

And I’m just trying to live my life without being crazy. Or mean!

“... she’s here, perhaps we might discuss a little of Twilight’s birthday party.” Rarity looked at Twilight, awaiting an answer.

The voices silenced so quickly it left Twilight a little disoriented. “Oh, umm, I’m sorry? I-I didn’t quite catch that.”

Rarity rolled her eyes. “Please tell me you remember what you said yesterday. At the train station?”

“Oh! Uhh, asking if you could hold my party off, right?”

Pinkie jumped in, almost literally if not for the table in the way. “So can we have the party today? Huh? Huh?”

Twilight shuddered at the thought. Not so long as I’m hearing voices, we can’t. “Well, as you can see, I’m still not feeling so good...”

“Are you sick?” asked Fluttershy. “Maybe you should see a doctor. If you’re still not feeling good, that is.”

Probably. “No, don’t worry. I’m just having a hard time sleeping.” Twilight smiled uneasily, but nopony was buying it. “Okay, a horrible time sleeping. I can’t think straight, I can’t see straight, and sometimes I can’t even listen when I really want to.”

“And you’re sure you don’t want to see a doctor?” asked Rarity. All of her friends, even Spike, gave her a sympathetic look like she was some poor lost puppy.

Pinkie groaned. She couldn’t quite look Twilight in the eye herself, but still asked, “Are you sure you don’t want to just call the party off?”

Twilight couldn’t bear to see the looks on their faces. “Look, if I’m still feeling bad tomorrow, I’ll go straight to a doctor. But I am not going to call of my birthday party.” Pinkie looked up, a glimmer of hope in her eye. “You’ve all put too much work into this. I don’t want to miss it, even if I have to have my party next week.”

“You’re sure?” asked Pinkie.

“Yes!” Twilight insisted.

Pinkie shook her head. “I mean, are you sure you’re all right? A party’s one thing, but if you’re sick—”

“No, we’re not ‘fine’. You know that.” said Pink.

“Why worry somepony who can’t do anything about it?”

“I’m fine,” said Twilight. She winced, trying to fight down the voices. Go away! It’s all your fault this is going so wrong!

Spike made his way to Twilight’s side and put his hand on her shoulder. “Twilight, what’s wrong? Did you get something in your eye?”

“I’m not hungry,” she said. “Please, excuse me.” There’s got to be a book on this. Back at the library. Voices in my head, something like that. Best case, sleep deprivation. Worst case, family ritual thing that defies half of the known laws of magic.

Without a clear path around the table, Twilight took the easy way out; teleporting to the nearest clear spot. Spike hurried on his way after her, but when Twilight turned to watch him, she felt another shudder coming on. Just as the sounds began to fade, she violently shook her head.

Spike shyed away. “Twilight, what’s wrong? Talk to us!”

I’m going crazy, that’s what. Spike was close enough, so with another flash of her magic, the two teleported away, leaving a crowd full of bewildered, confused ponies.

Long after the sun had set for the evening, Twilight frantically swirled some thirty or so books around herself. She read snippets of each, in turn, with nothing but the light of her magic to see by.

“Those presents are useless,” she groaned. “Nothing to do with this... this... thing in my head.”

Spike peeked his head down from the top of the stairs. At the sight of the swirling magic, he rubbed his eye and groaned. “Twilight, it’s late! What happened to sleep?”

“I’m wide awake, and sleep makes it worse!” It makes sense to me, that’s good enough. She passed over a few books on psychology and stopped, flipping all of them open somewhere in the middle and scanning down each page. “No, no, no—”

“Seriously, you’re scaring me. What could be so important to lose even more sleep over?”

Even more sleep. Hmm... “Spike, not now!”

“Look at yourself, Twi! You’re a wreck!”

He wasn’t far off; her hair was beyond disheveled from the frantic swirling of all the books around her, and the bags under her eyes had doubled in intensity from just yesterday. “I’m trying to fix that, so if you don’t mind—”

Spike sighed. “Come on, Twilight. I’m tired, you’re tired... We don’t have to fight.”

“Good, we’re in agreement,” Twilight snapped. “Now go get some sleep! I’ll come up when I’m done!”

Spike stomped his foot. “That’s not what I meant, and you know it!”

“Oh, what, you were expecting me to just drop what I’m doing and make time for whatever it is you want? This is important!”

“So’s talking!”

With a wave of her hoof, Twilight turned back to her books. “Just go to bed already. This conversation is over.” Spike, if only you knew...

This only incited Spike to come stomping downstairs. “No! You’ve gotta talk to somepony about this, Twilight. You’re not yourself! Everypony can see that.”

Twilight grit her teeth and glared at him. “I’m fine, I’m fine, for the love of Celestia I’m fine!!”

“Listen to yourself for crying out loud! You keep telling me you’re fine, but you look like you haven’t slept in days!” He paused to take a deep breath. “I’m worried about you, Twilight...”

“Listen to yourself. Please, you sound like such a nosey little brat right now. It’s always what you want, not what I want!”

Spike’s jaw dropped. “No, that’s—I-I am not!”

“Spike, just stop it. You’re a whiny little baby dragon. This is an adult matter. See the problem yet?”

“But I—Twilight, why? This isn’t—

“Isn’t like me? I’ll tell you why: I’m done sugar-coating these things for you. You wanna act grown-up, but you aren’t. I can handle the situation on my own, and I don’t need your help. Frankly, you’re just getting in the way. Moreso by the second!” As she finished, she stomped her hoof on the hard wood floor, swinging the circle of floating books along with the motion.

Spike gasped, but bit his tongue. “W-well... fine!” He turned and stomped his way back up the stairs, trying and failing to hide his tears.

Twilight waited until he was out of sight, then nearly stomped her hoof again in her frustration. Great, now I’m lost. Where was I, psychology? Magical mishaps?

One book floating in front of her caught her attention: ‘The Magic of Sleep’.

Or perhaps Spike has a point. I’m running on... nothing. No sleep, pretty much. Just a hallucination-like dream.

She set the book down in a stand and flipped through to the table of contents, yawning before she found the word “deprivation.” Page two-oh-six. Two-oh-six, four, five, six. There. Sleep Deprivation.

“Stop reading, and slam the book shut. That’ll get more accomplished than any more of this stupid research.” Pink had returned at an inconvenient time, with the visual filter so intense that it clouded out the text on the page.

“Take the book to bed,” said Purple. “That way you won’t disrespect Spike, and you can still—”

“Oh shut up already!”

Pink’s outburst startled Twilight, not only due to the sheer volume, even in her head, but as the filter left her completely blind.

“I beg your pardon?!”

“You are the most useless side I’ve ever heard, you know that?”

“There is no need to be insulting—” Purple’s color faded almost immediately.

“No need to be insulting? What, and there’s a need to spare somepony’s feelings? Or some... dragon’s feelings. You have got to be kidding me!”

“Far from it, I—”

“Stop. Just stop. It’s your fault we’re in this mess. Always trying to do the ‘right thing’, eh? Ever think that’d be a problem?!”

Stop it, both of you. There’s got to be—

“Quiet!!” Pink screamed. Twilight felt the breath knocked out of her.

“Please, don’t do this to her, she doesn’t know—”

“The only reason you know is because I do,” Pink growled. “It’s about damn time we all did, don’t you think? Instead of all this fighting, why not agree for once?”

Isn’t that what I tried to say? Twilight thought softly.

“If we stand true to our morals, it doesn’t matter.” Purple’s voice and color finally matched Pink’s for intensity, but only for a moment.

“Shut up. Just, shut up. Morals? They’ll get us killed, do you understand that? Standing for what’s right... that’s a joke. Nightmare Moon? Discord? If not for our brother, trying to help Canterlot through his wedding would’ve gotten us killed before we ever had a chance! I wanted us to run. I wanted us to be safe. To leave. But no, you had to have your way!”

You were there then... so you’ve always been here.

“Bra-vo, Twilight! Now you’re getting it! Or are you? Do you understand why we’re going to get ourselves killed? We’ve become surrounded by idiots. Weak, unsensible idiots.”

You mean my friends.

“Our friends, Twilight. But to save them before ourselves? Are you kidding me?!”

I’d never abandon them.

“No, that’s Rainbow Dash’s job. But think of the day you can’t save them. What happens then? One day, it will, and you know it. Time’s cruel. And if you just wait, it’ll catch you with your guard down.”

Stop it! I’m not going to leave them, or abandon them, or—

“I never said that.” Pink paused, then started to chuckle. A low, sinister chuckle, that slowly rose up to focus. “As you are, you’re sad. You’re ten times more powerful than the next unicorn. That’s in your blood. But you hold yourself back for... what? Others’ feelings? For Celestia’s sake, Twilight, you’re letting yourself get bossed around by a baby dragon!”

Spike’s my—

“A juicy little runt, he is...”

The pink filter dominated Twilight’s vision, but small movements caught her eye. The subtlest changes in the mist... but it wasn’t mist.

It was a spindling mass of pinkish-red spiderwebs.

No. No, please, no, don’t! Leave him out of this, I—

“Do you see it now, Twilight? What I’ve been trying to tell you?”

You’re a monster! Get out of my head! Get out!!

The pink light before her now completely constricted her vision, and from the feel of it, her throat as well.

“Shut up! You idiot! Don’t you get it? I’m not a monster,—”

— — —

Twilight blinked her eyes open; she found herself standing, not laying. As her eyes adjusted to the light—the dull pink glow off her horn—she dared not move her gaze.

Her lips moved of their own accord, finishing the phrase as she saw, reflected in the far window, nothing but the glowing red-pink of her eyes.

“I’m me.”

Her eyes finished adjusting; before her lay some gray, shriveled mass, buried under shredded linens. A deep red, wet sheen glimmered on every surface around her, here and there: the window, the floor, the blankets...

Her lip.

I’m... me. Twilight’s tongue subtly lapped up the liquid off of her lip; the taste sent shivers down her spine. Just one drop, that’s all it was, yet one would never know with how she savored the moment. She danced it around in her mouth, around a line of jagged teeth, then, only once the flavor filled her mouth, dared swallow. It was bitter and metallic, yet sweet. The sweetest, most fulfilling sensation...

Blood... Twilight shivered at the thought. His blood. I just—but it was so... No, I can’t, I—but I...

She stared into her reflected eyes, haunted by their glow, that unnatural glow that only served to accentuate the stains around her. But after a moment, she began to smile. A faint smile, but a true one nonetheless.

I am one. My family... this is what they wanted. This is where I get it from. With another shudder, she shut her eyes. And it all just makes sense, in hindsight. The sun, the nights... now the blood...

Twilight glanced around warily at the other spots and stains. There’s so much. Everywhere. And he... all because he...

The glow on her horn intensified, and the aura spread around to each wet drop; it pulled up and out of the walls, the carpet, the fabrics in the bed, all extracted gently and silently as it funneled into a quivering sphere, glowing rich red through the magic that held it in place.

Twilight smirked, licking her lips. “He was a juicy little runt...”

As the sun began to set, street lamps turned on just outside the library in Ponyville. Balloons and streamers hung from the doorway, while a table with fruit punch and cups could be seen inside, among other decorations.

Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash were already inside, finding somewhere to put their presents that wouldn’t get punch on them. Meanwhile, Twilight Sparkle stood at her door, welcoming her remaining three invitees one-by one.

“Welcome, Fluttershy, come on in!”

“Oh, thank you,” said Fluttershy, accepting a party hat on entry. “I’m so glad to hear you’re feeling better.”

“Thanks,” said Twilight. “Now go on, get some punch.” She waved Fluttershy on, then turned towards her next guests.

“Likewise, Sugarcube,” said Applejack. “A little sleep does wonders for ya, am I right?”

Rarity snickered behind a polite hoof. “Well she did sleep the whole day away.”

Twilight smirked and nodded, providing both of them with party hats. “Come on in, Applejack. And you too, Rarity.”

“Don’t gotta tell me twice,” said Applejack as she trotted on in. “Happy birthday, Twilight!”

“Why yes, happy birthday,” said Rarity, watching Applejack go. But after Applejack was out of earshot, Rarity turned to Twilight and sighed. “You didn’t have to do this you know. We would’ve found a way to host it ourselves sooner or later.”

“Hey, you girls are like family, right? It’s my treat,” said Twilight, waving Rarity in.

Rarity sighed and headed inside. “Next year, Twilight. Next year we’re going to do something special.”

“I’m sure we will,” Twilight muttered under her breath. She looked outside, to either side of her home; this late, barely anypony was out and about. Perfect.

The blinds closed all over the library and the door shut tight behind Twilight, lock stuck tight with a magical bind.

“Well girls,” said Twilight, passively running her tongue over her sharpened teeth, “I think it’s time I taught you all an old family tradition.”