The Magic and the Night

The Magic and the Night

Chapter 1: Hearth's Warming Horror

“Boy, howdy! Canterlot sure is beautiful in winter!”

Applejack's claim was indisputable. A gentle snowfall coated the soaring towers, misting over the glass. Festive wreaths and trees decorated the frosty buildings, and fast candy canes lined the streets. Ponies of all kinds and colors bustled about for last-minute presents. The sky was spotless and clear, a warm yellow Sun glittering off the snow.

Hearth's Warming Eve was approaching, and Twilight Sparkle could hardly wait.

“Spending Hearth's Warming Eve with Princess Celestia!” Rainbow Dash cheered, flying loops in the air above her five friends. “How cool is that?”

“I'm just glad to be off that train,” Spike grumbled, flexing his tail as he walked beside Twilight. “This walk is just what I need.”

Rarity primped her lovely purple mane, adorned in shiny red and green ribbons. “It was fabulous being in last year's Hearth's Warming Eve pageant, but to spend this year shopping and relaxing with Caterlot's finest is splendid indeed!”

“All those crowds...” Fluttershy stated nervously, eyes darting about. “I...I think I'll stay inside, if I can help it...and drink some hot cocoa by a fire...If that's OK with everypony...”

“Candy canes! Balloons! Ornaments! Cakes! Cookies! Presents!” Pinkie Pie hopped along, her hooves crunching loudly in the fresh snow. “This is gonna be the best Hearth's Warming Eve ever! The biggest party of the year!”

Twilight beamed with joy. To think that Princess Celestia had found some time off in her busy schedule to celebrate Hearth's Warming Eve personally with them! Not only that but Shining Armor and Cadance were coming by too. The holiday was only two days into the future so it was going to be hectic, but Twilight was grateful just the same.

“Come on!” she urged the others. “Princess Celestia said she'd be waiting in the castle library! All those obscure, rare books...”

Admitted by the Royal Guard, Twilight and her friends made their way to the library, Twilight leading the way. A white Pegasus guard pushed the doors to the library open, revealing Princess Celestia...and Princess Luna?

“Twilight!” Princess Celestia greeted, a warm smile on her noble face. She and Luna were sitting at a round table, books piled up beside them. “Everypony, welcome to the castle!”

Luna smiled as well, somewhat awkwardly. “Yes, a good Hearth's Warming Eve to all of you! I hope we can enjoy this together!”

Twilight realized that Luna, having been banished to the Moon for one thousand years, hadn't celebrated Hearth's Warming Eve in a very long time.

That's putting it mildly, she thought. How much has changed for her since then?

“I'm glad to be spending Hearth's Warming Eve with my younger sister,” Princess Celestia announced. “All of us together shall make this an unforgettable celebration.”

“Yippee!” Pinkie hopped excitedly. The others voiced their excitement together.

“We would be honored in assisting your celebration,” Rarity told the princesses with a bow.

“Excellent!” Celestia beamed and her alicorn glowed brightly, levitating a series of scrolls to the friends. “Here's a list of ways to prepare.”

“Oh my!” Fluttershy exclaimed, reading her scroll. “Organizing a chorus with all the birds in the animal sanctuary? That would take some effort, but it would be amazing in the end.”

“A sonic rainboom in the middle of a huge snow cloud so all the snowflakes will glow like rainbows for an hour?” Rainbow asked, awed by the idea. “That's...that's just so unbelievably cool that I have to try!” Her wings trembled from barely contained excitement.

“Pinkie and me teaming up to bake the biggest Hearth's Warming Eve cake in the history of Canterlot?” Applejack asked.

“Yes! We'll do it!” Pinkie cheered.

“We sure will!” Applejack bragged. “You can count on us, Princesses!”

“Setting up a Hearth's Warming Eve fashion show is no problem at all!” Rarity told the princesses. “I would be delighted to do that.”

Twilight peered at the scroll, and nodded when she saw her role: Organize the others.

“Working together will make this fun and exciting,” she told Princess Celestia.

“I'm pleased everypony's so enthusiastic,” Princess Celestia said. “Your greatest strengths will be showcased in these events.”

“I can hardly wait to see,” said Luna.

“You won't be disappointed,” Princess Celestia replied. “These are some of the most talented subjects you will ever know.”

A warmth filled Twilight's chest, a deep sense of pride and gratitude. “Thank you so much, Princess Celestia.”

The sound of hoof beats approached the table, and an ocean blue Unicorn mare with a straight periwinkle mane combed to the left arrived, magic pushing a cart with glass case set on it, a large battered book inside with a red leather cover. The glass case had a large ruby padlock on the front. Around her neck was a large key carved from a ruby, and her cutie mark showed a hazy tan seashell.

“Here it is, Princesses,” the Unicorn said, nodding toward the book. Twilight squinted at the Unicorn. Something about her seemed familiar...

“Thank you very much, Aurora.” Celestia looked to Twilight. “Recognize your old classmate?”

Twilight blinked, the name registering in her head. “Aurora! Yeah, Aurora Mist! I remember you from school!”

Aurora smiled. “Twilight Sparkle,” she said, her voice refined and noble. “I haven't seen you since Princess Celestia selected you as her disciple.”

Twilight blushed a little, remembering how Aurora had bragged about how it was destiny that she would be selected by Princess Celestia. The last she had seen of Aurora was her look of grief upon hearing that Twilight had been chosen instead.

I hope she isn't still upset about that...

“Yeah; feels like ages ago, doesn't it?” Twilight joked.

“Oh, this job as the castle librarian is just as good,” Aurora told her. Her magic seized a feather duster to clean off the glass case with the book inside.

“That does sound great,” Twilight said. “Being surrounded by all these books all day. That great old book smell and all the time you need to read...”

“Pardon me,” Applejack interjected, “but what's with the book under glass?”

“This was just recovered,” Aurora told the guests. “The personal diary of Starswirl the Bearded.”

Twilight's eyes went misty, her heart skipping a beat. “The diary?” she asked reverently. “I've always wanted to see it. I've always dreamed of what Starswirl the Bearded saw during his travels!”

Twilight extended a trembling hoof to the glass. Aurora peered into the glass.

“Incredible, isn't it?” she asked.

“I'd do anything to read it,” Twilight whispered.

“Not yet, Twilight,” Princess Celestia tittered.

“There is much we still have to decipher and study,” Luna added. “Patience.”

“Until then I'm guarding the diary,” Aurora said, waving the key around her neck with her magic.

Disappointed, Twilight withdrew her hoof. “All right, I'll wait. It's not gonna be easy though.”

“That's the sort of curiosity that a good student should have,” Princess Celestia smiled.

Luna blinked and cocked her head, frowning. Her eyes seemed focused on something far away. Twilight raised an eyebrow. What was Luna doing?

“Sister?” Princess Celestia asked, concerned. Her smile faded. “Sister?”

Luna shook her head. “I'm sorry,” she answered. “I thought I heard something.”

Weird. I hope Luna's all right, Twilight thought.

“So what's your cutie mark for?” Rainbow asked Aurora.

“That isn't very polite to ask,” Fluttershy pointed out.

Aurora chuckled. “Oh no, it's quite all right. I'm very proud of my illusions.”

“Illusions?” Applejack asked. “How'd you mean?”

“Observe...” Aurora smirked. Her alicorn lit up with a bright blue light. An orange mist formed beside Aurora, solidifying into a second Applejack, down to the littlest detail!

A collective gasp rose from the friends as the second Applejack trotted about, smiling at them and taking a bow. “Hey y'all,” the illusion said in perfect imitation of Applejack. “I'm...erm...”

“Please tell me your name,” Aurora asked Applejack.

“I'm Applejack,” the Earth Pony replied.

“I'm Applejack!” the illusion imitated, but with more cheer.

The group resumed their gasps. “Impressive,” Twilight complimented sincerely.

“Thank you, everypony.”

“That's incredible.” Applejack poked the illusion with her hoof, but passed right through it. “Eh?”

“An illusion is only a trick on your mind,” Aurora said. “It hypnotizes everypony into thinking a second Applejack is standing here.”

“Sorry, I'm not real!” the illusion told them cheerily.

“Ooh! Do me next!” Pinkie requested.

“Can you make me with a different dress?” Rarity asked. “This is so much better than a mirror!”

Laughing, Aurora summoned illusions of everypony else, and they had fun for a long time.

“I hope this suite is to your liking,” Princess Celestia said.

Twilight and Spike peered at the luxurious accommodations: canopied beds, picture windows, balconies, statues.

“I've almost forgotten how fancy Canterlot can be,” Spike observed. Immediately he hopped onto a bed, bouncing once before sinking into the soft mattress.

Twilight turned to her teacher, her eyes sparkling. “Thank you so much, Princess. For everything.”

Smiling brightly, Princess Celestia knelt down to Twilight's level and nuzzled her cheek with her nose. “You're always welcome here, my faithful student.”

Blushing from the intimate contact, Twilight could only giggle a little. She just wasn't sure how to react to that.

Princess Celestia trotted off, her golden hooves echoing off the marble floor. “Please excuse me, Twilight. I must speak with my sister now. There are still many mysteries to solve.”

“I understand.”

Princess Celestia closed the door quietly behind her. Twilight walked in a circle, thinking about what she wanted to do.

What I really wanna do is read Starswirl the Bearded's diary!

“No! No! No!” she muttered. “Can't look at the diary yet!”

“You're still thinking about that?” Spike asked, his voice muffled by the covers of his bed. He had tunneled his way under the comforter, his stubby tail hanging out from the side.

“Spike, you know I can't resist something like that,” Twilight told him. “That's gonna be on my mind for months now!”

“Go take a walk or something,” Spike suggested. “Start thinking about getting those Hearth's Warming Eve projects organized.”

Twilight let out a loud sigh. “You're right,” she admitted. “I'm not gonna get anything done if I only think about the diary.”

She pulled the door open and stepped out. “See you later, Spike.”

“Bye Twilight.”

Beyond the frosty window snow was falling into a courtyard, blanketing various hedge sculptures. Luna gazed at it, her wings folded at her sides, her expression blank. A heavy, cold sensation sat uneasily in her stomach. Something was wrong, but it was maddeningly vague; she couldn't put her hoof on it at all.

I know I've felt this before, but where?

The door opened and shut, followed by Celestia's hoofbeats. “Luna?”

“Hello, Sister,” Luna answered flatly, not turning to look.

“My sister, I know we've gone over this many times,” Celestia said, faintly pleading, “but can you remember at all...?”

Luna shook her head regretfully, turning to her older sister. Celestia was sitting on the floor, her eyes sad. “I can't, no matter how I try.” She cast her gaze to the floor. “I only remember intense, consuming jealousy and hatred, wanting all of your subjects to cry and die in the night.”

“That wasn't you, it was Nightmare Moon!” Celestia insisted. She stood up, spreading her wings dramatically, dominating the room.

An overpowering grief overcame her, and Luna sobbed quietly, hot tears running down her cheeks. “Some of it must have been me,” she admitted. “I wanted them to love my night so much...”

“There was nothing of you left in that monster!” Celestia stated. “I called and searched for you all the while, trying to find you. Only when I was sure there was no chance of rescuing you that I resorted to banishing Nightmare to the Moon. That kind of transformation doesn't come from mere jealousy! Something changed you, and I need to know what so it can never happen to anypony again!”

Luna looked up to meet Celestia's eyes, and saw she was crying too. Luna felt sick, hating her inability to help her sister. She bowed her head in shame, bringing her alicorn to Celestia's.

“Sister,” Luna sobbed, “I've been hearing voices, whispering when nopony's there. What if it's Nightmare? What if I become her once more? Will you have Twilight Sparkle and her friends banish me to the Moon once more?”

Celestia was silent for a moment, then threw her forelegs around Luna, embracing her tightly. “I won't let Nightmare take you. We won't be separated again. I promise.”

Luna closed her eyes and rested her head against Celestia. “My sister...”

“We can do this together,” Celestia whispered. “We'll have a wonderful Hearth's Warming Eve with our friends, and our happiness shall drive Nightmare Moon from our minds.”

“I hope so,” Luna answered. “Oh my dear sister, I hope so.”

Twilight wandered the castle, its graceful beauty captivating her. She was becoming so used to the rustic charm of Ponyville that the magnificence of Canterlot had been renewed for her.

Still, I wouldn't give up Ponyville for anything now.

A loud, rapid clopping echoed down the corridor from behind Twilight. She turned just time to see a cloaked Pony come galloping down too fast to get a good look at, shoving her roughly aside. “Hey—!” Twilight crashed into a wall as the Pony escaped down the corridor. Twilight's eye caught a saddle bag on the Pony with something heavy inside.

A thief?

Without thinking, Twilight teleported to put herself right behind the Pony, falling into a gallop. It looked too small to be a stallion. Probably a mare. She allowed herself a smug grin. “I have you—“

The mare teleported to a few meters ahead of Twilight's reach and continued running.

“—now?” Stunned, Twilight wasted a few seconds trying to comprehend what she had just seen. A Unicorn capable of teleporting just like her? This was going to be difficult.

Twilight focused and teleported again, this time in front of the thief to startle her. Instead, the thief teleported behind Twilight without missing a beat and kept going.

“Hey!” Scowling, Twilight resumed her chase. It was one skilled teleporter she was pursuing.

A door suddenly swung open in Twilight's face, smacking her right on the nose. Reeling, Twilight came to a dead stop as the thief tore another door open with magic and escaped outside. Gritting her teeth, Twilight teleported herself outside. She found herself in a small walled garden, a frozen stream under a white bridge. Lying in the snow was the saddlebag with its contents still in place, but the thief was no where to be found. Frowning, Twilight scanned the area. There was no where to teleport to; the walls were too large for the thief to have jumped over them or teleported to the other side, and Twilight didn't hear the sound of any more teleportation spells. They were just too short-range to get past her at that point.

“Well even if she escaped her prize is still here.” Twilight trotted to the saddlebag and lifted it with her magic. Flipping it open, she spied a large tome bound in red leather.

No...

Heart pounding, Twilight sat in the snow and opened the book. The yellowed pages smelled very musty, and quill pen notes were scrawled across every page, listing herbs and spells that weren't familiar to her.

“The diary...”

She shook out the bag, and another heavy object tumbled out into the snow with a thud. The ruby key.

“Twilight Sparkle!”

Twilight looked up to see guards surrounding her, assembling on the ground, forming on the wall, and blocking the sky.

“Guards!” she sighed with relief. “Look, I recovered the—”

“Seize her!”

Something slammed into her back with tremendous force, knocking the breath from her and driving her face into the snowy ground. Heavy stallions pressed down on her, forcing something tight around the base of her alicorn. Her body quivered, jerking involuntary as a sickening draining feeling washed over her.

My magic...I can't feel my...

Her forelegs were cruelly yanked up, pulling her into a standing position.

“Wha...wha...” she tried to say.

“Twilight Sparkle, you are under arrest for attempted theft of a dangerous and fragile document!” a harsh Pegasus stallion barked at her.

Twilight twisted her head this way and that, eyes wide and teary. The world spun around her and she couldn't think straight. What was happening.

I didn't...I didn't...

“I didn't steal...!”

Her breast rose and fell rapidly. It couldn't be happening to her. There was a mistake. Surely everypony would see that...