A/N: This is my first attempt at an MLP:FiM fanfic so please keep that in mind. I do not own My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, which is © to Hasbro and Lauren Faust. Only the story line and original characters appearing within are © to me. Please enjoy.

Judgment of the Gods

Chapter I

"…and that is why friends sometimes decide that it's necessary to never discuss something that has happened, like the oatmeal incident, ever again." Twilight dictated to her purple draconic assistant. "Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle. Please send it when you're done Spike."

"No problem Twilight." He stuck his tongue out of the corner of his mouth as he scribbled the end of the message down. "Got it!"

"And send!" The unicorn beamed as the purple dragon took a deep breath and a green flame engulfed her scroll. "Great! I'm sure the Princess will be eager to read my report."

Spike quirked his brow at the young unicorn but said nothing. "So what's up for the rest of the day?"

Twilight levitated over her clipboard, complete with checklist, and a quill. "Well, let's see…at noon I'm going to have lunch at Sweet Apple Acres with Applejack and her family, then from one to two I penciled in some light reading, then at two I scheduled a snack with Pinkie Pie over at Sugar Cube Corner for twenty minutes followed by a thirty-eight minute spa appointment with Rarity and Fluttershy and I expect a group song will break out for three or four minutes sometime after four…" Spike rolled his eyes.

"Did you also schedule in when you'll yawn, hiccup, and stretch your legs?" He asked archly. Twilight chuckled.

"Don't be ridiculous Spike," she chastised him gently. "You make it sound as if I'm some sort of nut!"

"Well, we certainly wouldn't want that." Spike deadpanned. "So…what about Rainbow Dash?" He settled on asking, having wisely given up on the previous line of conversation.

Twilight frowned. "Ooh that pegasus…she refuses to make any plans for the day in advance! She just flies around and naps whenever she wants to, there's no rhyme or reason to it!"

"Imagine that," came Spike's dry response.

Levitating her saddle bags over her back, Twilight shook her mane. "It's okay. I already I made sure there's enough flexibility in my schedule to make up for Rainbow Dash's unpredictability."

"Uh-huh. Next you'll be telling me you've figured out how Pinkie Pie suddenly appears out of nowhere."

"Spike," the unicorn said with a smile. "She does not simply appear out of nowhere…"

Pinkie Pie nodded. "She's right you know."

"Exactly!" Twilight beamed at Spike. "Pinkie just—?" Then she paused and blinked, looking to the pink earth pony who had suddenly appeared next to her. In the middle of the room. And the door remained closed. "Gyaah! Pinkie where did you come from?"

She giggled. "Silly Twilight, didn't your parents ever tell you? When a mommy pony and daddy pony loved each other very much—"

"No!" Twilight stamped her hoof down. "I mean, how did you get here?"

"Well I have these thingies called legs, if I were a pegasus I would have wings and—oooh!—if I had flippers or a fishy tail I'd be a sea pony and that would be really neat 'cause we don't see enough sea ponies and—"

"PIN-KIEEEEE!" Twilight shouted in frustration. "What did—how did—GRAAAAAH!"

"Twilight?" Pinkie blinked, cocking her head at a weird angle. "This is fun, but you're not making any sense." The purple unicorn felt her eye twitch.

"I'm not making any sense?" Twilight repeated in sheer amazement.

Pinkie nodded. "Ya-huh. Good to know that we're in agreement! It's like we're on the same page! Oooh but if we're on the same page then that means that if you're not making sense, then I'm not making sense which is crazy because I always make sense! So I guess we're not on the same page after all. Maybe we're still in the same chapter?"

"I don't think you two are even in the same genre." Spike snerked as he headed out of the library to grab a snack. Might as well get a dinner to go with the show.

"How long do ya'll reckon they'll be?" Applejack asked, turning to Rainbow Dash as the two of them stood outside the library, listening to the ruckus within. The cyan pegasus shrugged, shaking out her wings.

"Meh, how should I know? When Pinkie gets on a roll, and when Twilight gets on a roll…ugh, it's like time stops for them!"

"Well, Twi was gonna mosey on over tah th' farm fer lunch but now…" The cowpony shrugged, tipping her hat back.

Rainbow Dash nodded knowingly dimly aware of the sounds of Twilight's frustration and Pinkie's giggling in the background. "So…" she started, pausing as she heard a crash come from the library. "How's that cousin of yours in Appleloosia doing?"

"Braeburn? He's fine I reckon. Why d'ya want to know?" Applejack raised an eyebrow. "Is there sumthin' I should know about between the two of you…?"

Rainbow Dash's eye quirked upwards. "Huh? What're you—?" Her eyes widened as her wings flared outwards in shock. "What? Me and Braeburn? No way AJ!"

"Why not?" Applejack asked with the barest trace of a smile. "Is mah kin not good enough fer you?"

With a snort, Rainbow folded her wings up against her flank. "Oooh no! You're not suckering me into that talk. Your cousin's fine, but I'd prefer a pony who can keep up with me. The fastest thing about Braeburn is his mouth." Applejack couldn't resist laughing at that.

"Yeah, he shore does have a way 'bout speakin'. Almost as fast as Pinkie Pie sumtimes. But if'n yer not interested in Braeburn like that, then why-?"

"I wanted to know if he'd heard from Little Strongheart lately." The pegasus looked at Applejack. "The buffalo aren't exactly big on writing mail. Anyway, they should be back from their annual stampede across the plains soon, so I wanted to know if Braeburn's heard from her. I use him to pass on messages for me."

Applejack nodded her head knowingly. "Ah see. But are you suuure—?"

"Puh-lease!" Rainbow snorted. "If I started dating one of your relatives I'd never hear the end of it! Not to mention the fact that I don't need Granny Smith giving me the stinkeye every time I go down to the farm." She shuddered for a moment. "Besides," she tossed her mane back, looking particularly dashing. "It wouldn't be fair to Apple Bloom to have such an awesomely amazing pegasus in the family, stealing your spotlight. I mean, it's not fair to you; how can you compete with somepony like me?" She gave a smug cocky grin, the type she knew drove Applejack nuts. "I think a little sister's idol should be her big sister…she couldn't do that when I'm around, after all."

Applejack snorted. "Whatever you say Rainbow…" she said, rolling her eyes.

There was a pause as the conversation seemed to have ended. Then Rainbow frowned in thought. "Hmm…you know? If I was gonna start bucking for somepony from the Apple family I'd have to go with Big Macintosh. I mean, have you seen the size of him? Now that's a stallion!"

"Rainbow!" Applejack looked at her in something between mild disgust and horror. "That's my big brother!"

"Eeyup!" She smiled. "Might be nice to have a little sister-in-law. I mean he may not be fast or anything, but is he ever strong! Plus he's quiet and you know what they say about the quiet ones…"

"RAINBOW MIRIAM DASH!" The orange pony whinnied loudly as she raised her forelegs up to push her hat down over her ears, her freckled cheeks blushing something fierce. The pegasus smirked and rubbed her right fore leg against her chest.

"I know, I know. I'm awesome."

"You're a—" Applejack's reply was cut off as she heard the sound of hooves clopping hard against the ground. Pushing her hat back up, she saw Pinkie Pie galloping towards her, a confused Twilight Sparkle in her wake and Spike plodding along after her. "Pinkie Pie? What's so gall durn important that y'all—"

"Bless you!" Pinkie Pie said primly, hopping in place.

"Huh?" Applejack blinked. "But ah didn't—AH-CHOO!" She sneezed. "Ugh, but how—?"

"My right back knee itched and I blinked twice." Pinkie Pie answered simply, as if it should be obvious; and perhaps it should have been. "I just hope Rarity and Fluttershy get here in time to greet her!"

"Greet who, Pinkie?" Twilight sighed, accepting the reality of her Pinkie Sense but still not loving the concept of something beyond her understanding.

"Princess Celestia!" Pinkie said, bouncing in place.

"But the Princess—" Whatever Twilight was about to say was lost when Spike belched up a familiar green fire that coalesced into a scroll with the royal seal on it. "A letter from Princess Celestia!" Twilight's horn glowed as she unrolled the scroll and read its contents aloud. "My dearest student Twilight Sparkle, I will be arriving shortly in Ponyville on a matter of the utmost importance. Please gather your friends and wait for me outside the library. Your teacher, Princess Celestia." Twilight blinked. "But how did you—?"

"Well," Pinkie beamed. "I knew we'd be getting a letter from the princess because my belly started getting itchy and I knew she'd be coming here because my left ear twitched, my front knees knocked and I felt a little bit gas—"

"Pinkie!" Twilight stomped her hoof, her face a bit red. "I think we get the picture."

Applejack sighed. "Well, there goes lunch. Ah'll go get Rarity. Rainbow could ya round up Fluttershy?"

"In ten seconds flat. Race you back here!" She tossed off as she flew off, leaving a rainbow contrail in her wake.

"Hey!" Applejack took off in a gallop.

"I wonder what the Princess wants." Twilight mused.

Pinkie Pie gasped. "Oooh! Maybe she wants me to throw her a super duper special royal party!"

"Somehow, I don't think that's it." The purple unicorn said in bemusement. No sooner it seemed than Rainbow Dash and Applejack had returned with Fluttershy and Rarity, respectively, in tow than Princess Celestia arrived. There was no chariot pulled by guard pegasi, no fanfare, indeed; no one but the princess herself. If anything, the princess' arrival without the usual guards and baggage and trappings of the court only seemed to underscore her seriousness and the importance of whatever had brought her out here from Canterlot.

"Princess!" Twilight gasped at her sudden arrival, leading her friends in bowing to her. Princess Celestia nodded, sparing only the briefest of small smiles for her beloved student and protégé.

"Hello Twilight Sparkle and hello to your friends too." Her smile waned as she went on. "I'm very sorry for my abrupt appearance but I need you all to come with me immediately. It's very important that you assist me."

"Of course, we'll do anything we can to help!" Twilight gasped. "What is it?"

Celestia stared at the bearers of the Elements of Harmony solemnly. "I need you to help me save my sister, Princess Luna, from a horrible fate."

In the heavy silence that followed only one thing flashed through the young ponies present and as usual, it was Rainbow Dash who blurted out what she was thinking without hesitation. "What, again?"