FiC: Twilight's Devotion

Twilight's Devotion

Chapter 2.

After cleaning all the books from the library and sorting them in alphabetical order, Rarity finally finished opening the chest.

“I'm done everypony!”

“Yippee!” Pinkie blurted, she hadn't said anything for ages and now she was jumping around madly. She was probably going to knock all the books down again.

They all entered Twilight's room after their unsuccesful attemot to calm her down.

“Ready?” Rarity asked smiling as she laid a hoof on the chest.

“READY!” Pinkie shouted.

“Alright then.” Rarity replied. She slowly lifted the cover of the chest up, everypony gathered around, staring at the chest waiting for a burst of light to come out...

“What's in it?” Applejack asked. Rarity looked inside the massive chest.

“I don't see anything.” She started scrambling inside the chest for anything small. “Oh!”

“What is it?” Applejack repeated.

Rarity stood up and showed them a piece of paper she was holding.

“Well then, what does it say?!” Spike demanded.

Rarity began reading it...

My dearest friends,

I hope you find this message when the time is right.

I am in another world, far away from here. The Ponyverse is on the brink of destruction.

A pony far away told me to leave, I do not know how I did, but I left you, and I am sorry for that.

What I am doing and why I have left, it all is for a good cause and you need not worry about me.

Keep Ponyville safe in my absence, it is all I have left. And make sure Spike gets some fresh air, he's been begging for it for a long time.

Your devoted friend,

Princess Twilight Sparkle.

“Oh dang, Twilight's got herself into a heap of trouble again.” Applejack moaned.

“Is there anything we can do?” Fluttershy asked solemnly.

“I have one idea, it won't get us very far but hopefully somewhere to begin with,” Applejack said, “we could go visit Zecora.”

Rainbow Dash flew onto the chest and closed it.

“Zecora? I can't stand her! All she does is blabber on about things nopony understands!”

“Well, she did cure the Cutie pox...” Fluttershy added.

Pinkie hopped around “If she could help finding Twiley, then I'm in!”

Pinkie and Rainbow Dash flew and jumped in front they didn't seem afraid of the Everfree.

“I've been here so many times, but it always scares me...” Rarity cried.

“Don't worry sugarcube, it'll be all right.” Applejack comforted her.

Fluttershy flew behind Rainbow Dash quietly. She was the least afraid or them, probably because she lives not far from here.

“Not far from here, let's go faster!” Rainbow complained.

“I thought it was your idea not to come here in the first place.” Rarity said.

“Yeah, but you ponies are so slow!”

They arrived eventually at Zecora's hut.

Pinkie happily knocked loudly at Zecora's door.

“Hello, Pinkie Pie here!” She giggled. The door opened and Zecora stood in the doorway.

“Ponies five and dragons one, what brings you all to here without sun?” Zecora rhymed.

“Zecora Zecora, Twilight has gone missing and we think something baaaaad is gonna happen, we think you might have a clue to it.” Rainbow Dashed rushed.

“I do now know what bothers you, and help I shall without a clue.” Zecora signalled everypony to go in (including Spike) and they obediently followed. She set out seats around the cauldron and began to stir the green liquid with a long wooden stick. A foggy mist showed up clouding the room.

“Twilight's reach is beyond your hand, for there she stays in a foreign land. Twilight's reach is in your arm, for going there shall yield no harm.” Zecora stopped stirring. She rubbed her eyes.

“Twilight is in another world?” Pinkie asked.

“Yes your friend is at a world away, there she will be, and there she will stay.” Zecora answered.

“How can we get there Zecora? Do you know how?” Applejack asked.

“The land that you seek, was given by dreams. Twilight was chosen to go there it seems.”

Everypony sighed.

“But fear not, little ponies, follow her hoofsteps you shall, you will end up at a place rational. See what she sees and know what she knows, you will then find to go where she goes.”

“Thanks Zecora, even though you could have explained it a little faster.”

Rarity left quickly.

“Goodbye Zecora.” Fluttershy said and fluttered away. The others said goodbye (or nor good, in Rainbow Dash's case, she was bored from sitting) and left.

“So I guess we can't do anything but sleep on it, and hopefully find something out about this crazy world affecting phenomenon about to happen. Good luck sleeping tonight.”

“How do you know something is about to happen?” Rarity said. “Maybe Twilight is just hiding away from everypony in a bush or in Canterlot, maybe this entire thing is a dud or a trick on us.”

They had an awkward silence.

“Come on! Twilight has played a few lame and rare tricks on us, but she would never do something as big as this to us, would she Pinkie?” Rainbow Dash said.

“Nopey dopey lopey!” Pinkie replied as she happily hopped around.

They all went back to their homes, but Spike couldn't go home until the house came down. He wondered if a perma-spell was keeping it up otherwise it should have fell. Or maybe Twilight's magic was powerful enough to go so far as to here when she could be so far away. Spike found a bush next to a pile of boxes and jumped in them.

“Home sweet home.” He said, and quietened himself to sleep.

Next morning he awoke to Applejack's loud clopping past where he was sleeping.

“Wake up everypony, I know at least one of ya is around 'ere!”

Spike exited his bush and stretched his eyes. He slowly staggered towards Applejack's disappearing  shadow far away. Applejack was heading for Fluttershy's house.

“Hey Fluttershy!?” Applejack desperately knocked. “You in there?”

Fluttershy opened her door.

“Applejack...” She said swaying from her spot, she didn't get enough sleep according to her eyes rolling and her wings being down too far instead of by her side neatly tucked in.

“I saw something last night, like some kind of a vortex in my sleep. A swirling portal dragging me in, I was getting pulled in slowly but I felt as though I was struggling away from it, like whatever was at the end was dangerous.” Applejack took a breath.

“Applejack... I also had a dream... but for now, come in.”

Spike ran over.

“Fluttershy! Let me in too!”

Fluttershy opened the door again.

“Oh Spike...” Fluttershy nearly fell over. “Come in.” She dreamily said.

Spike entered and Fluttershy closed the door, they then heard everypony else shouting from outside.

Fluttershy opened her door, again. Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Rarity squeezed in through the small door and panted on the floor.

Fluttershy sat on a chair, she had remodelled the room so that there were spaces for guests to sit as animals kept on coming. A lot of accidents were happening around the forest and she was the best for support.

Pinkie sat by the window, Fluttershy by the fireplace, Dash by the piano, Rarity on the stairs and Spike in the centre rug. Everypony was trying to talk over each other, except Spike and Fluttershy.

After one and a half minutes of waiting the others finally came to realise they weren't getting anywhere.

“Now everypony, one at a time. Dash, how about you first.” Fluttershy took leader role and was calm about it. Everypony understood that they needed somepony to calm them down, and that was one of Fluttershy's best skills.

“Me? Alright!” Rainbow Dash spun and flew around the room.

“Dash, please. We need to get through all of us.” Fluttershy informed her.

“Oh fine.” Rainbow Dash sat back down again. “Like anypony I went to sleep last night. Except I had one dream like no other. I was like... inside it...”

“Carry on.” Fluttershy said.

“I was inside this multi-coloured freaky-deaky cloud like place that I had never known of, except everything seemed familiar in some sort of way.”

Applejack stood up.

“Hey, I had a dream just like that!”

Everypony started another argument.

“Calm down everypony, calm down.” Fluttershy ordered. “Now this clearly isn't a coincidence, I also had a dream like yours. I was in a swirly portal made from butterflies surrounding me, blocking my exits on either side. The only way was forward, but I couldn't go. Something was there, repelling me.”

Everypony stood silent.

“And what about me? Am I yet again the only one left out?” Spike cried. Nopony answered him. Spike sighed and left the house with his head low.

“Alright everypony, this may sound like another crazy idea coming from me again, but this time don't hold back. Don't be afraid of whatever is stopping you from going to the end of your tunnel. Once, a very wise pony told me: 'Faith Applejack, you need to have faith. And I think that is what we need.'”

They thought silently.

“Well right now we are just like sitting ducks, we aren't getting anywhere and nothing is getting done. We haven't found Twilight and her Anniversary is tomorrow. She's going to miss it!” Rarity screamed.

“All true Rarity, but I think saving Twi is more important than having a party.”

“After all those decorations...” Pinkie sobbed.

Everypony left back home, except Fluttershy. She was at home. She tried to stay awake for as long as she could until night time by listening to the birds practising outside. It would hurt to say that their practising had been for nothing. Maybe they could save the tune for another time, next year perhaps.

Apple Bloom ran up to Applejack and hugged her.

“Where were ya big sis? Runnin' off and not telling anypony?”

“Ah...” Applejack thought. “I needed to have surprise meeting with some friends, sorry Apple Bloom.” Applejack put Apple Bloom down and entered the barn. She sat trying to think of ways to make things go faster so that night would hurry up and arrive.

Applejack started eating the hay, she nearly puked on it once but at least that was better than hanging around waiting for night time.

CHOMP CHOMP

Apple Bloom entered the barn and saw the hideous sight of Applejack munching away at the pile of hay she had gathered.

“Applejack what are you doing?”

Applejack had gotten so into it that she hadn't realised the door was open.

“Oh!” She said trying to hide the massive pile of hay. “I was just resting!”

“Yeah, you might need some, Twilight's big day is tomorrow and it is nearly night time.”

Applejack felt sorry that she hadn't told Apple Bloom about Twilight's disappearance, or that she may do too.”

“Hey Apple Bloom,” she said before Apple Bloom could leave, “make sure that Winona gets a good dress, I don't want to see her scruffy and nopony hardly understands my language in dresses.”

“Sure, will do.” Apple Bloom winked and exited the barn, closing the door behind with a gentle but fast slam.

“Alright Princess Luna, what is causing these dreams to all us innocent folk? You are the Princess of the Night, so why do they happen?” Applejack realised she was taking to a Princess Luna figure she made out of hay.

“Alright, I'll play your game. I'll go along and you keep on throwin' surprises at me, just keep Twilight safe is all I'm asking.” She put down the Luna figure. “Time to go.”

She closed her eyes and felt time pass, visions of apples, red and green lines whizzing past her as she slowly drifted off into the vast emptiness of what could be in between worlds. Her body became weightless, her eyes became lighter as she saw waves of light spiral around her just far enough to reach and feel with the tip of her hoof. Soft and hard. It felt soft and hard.

The only way was forward, but this time she wasn't going to hold back. She stood on the invisible platform that was the black floor, blew her ponytail onto her right side of her face and galloped into the tunnel of white light shining into her eyes, nearly blinding her.

Not long to go now, just keep on flying.

Rainbow Dash dodged countless parasprites blocking her path, why were they here in her dreams?

Are the others seeing what I am seeing?

The light grew bigger, the darkness behind her was fading into non-existence.

What?! Ribbons attacking me?

Rarity was constantly being chased by a flock of ribbons, ironically. She was walking like a tortoise before it and asked for more fun in walking, instead now she was running.

WEEEEEEEEE.

Pinkie needed no encouragement, whatever was held in store for her couldn't stop her. Pinkie's spirit was unbreakable and optimistic.

And there it was, the end of the tunnel. Silky soft but rock hard. What lies through it? They all had thought that question, but now there was no turning back, for Twilight's sake.