A Witch in Equestria

Willow woke up early the next day. She glanced in at Twilight’s room and saw her snoozing figure laid out on the bed. She smiled; she was very cute in her curled up innocent sleeping posture with her fore-hooves wrapped around a book.

She left the room and took a seat on the floor in the middle of the library. She had to improvise a meditation posture with her new four-legged form, but she eventually found something she was comfortable with.

She focused on her magic. It was a pool inside of every part of herself that extended into the metaphysical. In her self-diagnosis she could see the imbalance that occasionally manifested as an aura of death. Her work with Giles had been to correct this critical flaw, but the unstable state of her magic was like a tumor that coursed through her entire being.

Part of that imbalance was mental; no outside interference would be able to help her, even if she had thought to ask her new friend. It was why she meditated every morning to attempt to find some peace of mind. She operated normally day to day, but she still hadn’t quite gotten over the death of her lover and her rampage that ended in the death of her murderer.

It should’ve been easy to shut all thoughts away, to become one with the Earth.. it’s not like she was unpracticed in the art of meditation; but it wasn’t. Her thoughts always came back to Tara. She could sooner put her out of her mind than turn the sky green.

A knock at the front door interrupted her thoughts. She got up, stretching languidly. Her meditation hadn’t been going all that well, anyways. She trotted over to the entrance and opened the door. On the other side was a winged unicorn with a deep midnight blue coat and an imperious stare. “Hello?”

When the visitor saw who had answered, she immediately became aggressive. “Foul demon! What have you done with Twilight?” Her horn lit up and she fired a blast of magic directly at Willow.

Willow hastily deflected the assault and shouted, “Nothing! She’s inside, sleeping! I can go get her for you!”

Luna’s countenance darkened further. “‘Sleeping’ indeed! We shall see you punished for your transgressions!” Her horn’s luminescence began intensifying.

Willow’s eyes flashed ominously. “I don’t have to take this! Screw you, lady- I mean, pony!” She brought her own magical might to bear and prepared to crush the insolent pony in front of her.

Their scuffle was interrupted by a third party. An enormous barrier materialized between them as Twilight came storming out of the house, her expression livid. “What the hay do you think you’re doing?! Princess, the creature you’re here for is the pony you’ve been attacking. Did Celestia not warn you..?”

Luna opened her mouth to speak, then closed it, deflating. “‘Tia would do something like that, wouldn’t she..”

Twilight glanced at Willow, who was heaving from the effort of defending herself. “I know she most likely attacked you first, but if you want the ponies around here to trust you, you should probably refrain from attempting to blast one of our Princesses.”

Willow looked like she wanted to argue, but acquiesced and turned to Luna. “I’m sorry, Princess...?” She trailed off inquisitively.

“I am Princess Luna. Do not trouble yourself. The fault is mine. I should’ve realized my sister wouldn’t send me here if you were truly the Nightmare.” She looked over at Twilight. “I trust I will get an explanation for this, surely?” She nodded her head in Willow’s direction.

“Yes. Let’s get back in the house, first. Spike should already be putting on some breakfast.” She moved back into the house, and Luna and Willow followed, eyeing each other suspiciously as they walked.

Spike looked up from his cooking when they entered the kitchen. “Hey, Princess! Are you here because of not-Nightmare Moon?”

“I have a name, you know..” Willow muttered.

“Indeed. ‘Tia thought Twilight could use some assistance, and I could use a chance to get out of the castle.” Luna took a seat and asked Twilight, “Continuing our earlier discussion?”

Twilight sat across from Luna and Willow was observing Spike preparing a daisy sandwich with interest. “As Willow tells it- that’s her name, by the way- she was asleep in her own world when she woke up and her surroundings had changed. When she reached a nearby town, they directed her here when she asked for assistance. As for her appearance.. Willow, could you cancel your spell again?”

Willow turned a bored gaze over to Twilight and complied wordlessly. Luna looked on in fascination as her body rapidly transformed into her natural human state. “‘Tis a most curious circumstance. If I knew more about your magics I might be able to figure out why you take on that appearance. Can you redo your transformation so I can watch your magic in action?”

Willow was feeling rather like a guinea pig, but took her request in good grace and chanted her Latin aria as she focused her power. Luna was intently watching as the energies coalesced and shaped her form into the visage of Nightmare Moon. Luna’s brow furrowed in thought as she thought over what she saw. Spike took the lull in conversation to serve food to everyone. Willow’s face was expectant.

“..I have a theory.”

Willow looked at her with an expression that said, ‘well, get on with it!’

“First off.. the imbalance in your magic; yes, I can see you’re aware of it. I believe your spell synchronizes with the primordial life-stream of the planet- copying the essence of a pony and rewriting your appearance with it. The disruption in your soul causes your pony disguise to be similarly disrupted. Nightmare Moon is an abomination of life, so your form takes after it.”

Willow seemed slightly miffed. “..you didn’t have to be quite so rude about it. Besides, I think it’s pretty.” She started self-consciously examining herself.

Twilight spoke up, addressing Luna, “Disruption in her soul? I can’t see anything wrong.”

Luna shook her head. “‘Tia and I have advanced magical senses. We can see beyond what is possible for normal ponies..” She trailed off, turning to Willow. “..and apparently, so can she, if she was aware of it already.”

Twilight nudged Willow, who was distracted by her self-appraisal. “Hm? Oh! Yeah, I’m a witch. That’s what we call people who can use magic where I come from. There aren’t that many of us, actually.” She spotted the daisy sandwich in front of her and took an experimental bite before her face lit up. “This is.. good!”

Twilight grinned. “I like them, too.” She became more serious. “Princess, do you know of any way Willow could’ve been transported here?”

Luna nibbled cutely on her sandwich as she replied, “I can think of a few ways. I brought some books on the subject to share with you. Hopefully we can solve this together before anything..” She glanced apologetically at Willow. “..unfortunate occurs.”

Twilight was gleeful at the prospect of obscure magical tomes. “That’s great! I can’t wait to dive into them.” She calmed down a little. “I thought I’d take Willow to meet my friends today, since she’s bound to come across them at some point.”

Luna bowed her head. “A sensible notion. Might I accompany you as well?”

Twilight smiled. “Of course you can, Princess. Can I have those books before we leave?”  Luna answered by materializing about a half dozen decent-sized volumes and levitating them onto the table.

Twilight finished up her food and addressed Spike, “Put away the Princess’s books and finish cleaning up breakfast. We’re going to head out now. We should be back by dinner.”

Spike gave a clawed salute. “Yes, ma’am!”

Twilight took in Willow’s worried expression and reassured her. “Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll get along great with my friends. They’re all wonderful ponies!” She moved to leave.

“Yeah..” Willow replied distractedly. Luna gave her a pointed look and she snapped back to attention and followed Twilight out the door.

--

She was confused.. she was dead, but she wasn’t. Celestia’s sun set her aflame unless she hid in the shade, and a look into the nearby river showed no reflection. She was faster, stronger, and had better reflexes. Her teeth were now sharp. She had a deep hunger that she needed to sate. She knew what she needed instinctively; the blood of a pony. The thought of killing should have disgusted her, if it occurred to her at all.. but now she wondered what the big deal was. She needed something, so she took it. What was wrong about that?

She discovered another facet of her existence. When she went to break into a pony’s home, an invisible wall prevented her from entering. It didn’t seem to apply to all buildings, but she couldn’t figure out the pattern. She would need to wait for somepony foalish enough to wander at night.

It didn’t take long to find somepony. She used her enhanced abilities to dart from the shadows and grab the pony in a vice-like grip. She ignored its feeble struggles as she closed her fangs around its neck and drank hungrily. The rush of power, of being so far above these tiny beings, was intoxicating. She tossed aside the corpse of the pony like trash and a mad grin stretched across her deformed features. She stalked off into the night, hoping to find another victim before dawn broke.