Thanks to Wing Zero 032, Dratini4, AL3X TH3 H3DG3HOG, ganadoleader, Flightstar, Hubord68, Alex Leep, rederci939, Truebolt, Captainess Scout, Lhmac, Xk123x, hajjie, and ISliceYou for reviewing!

Sorry for the wait. I've had this chapter completed for a few days, but I wanted to release it alongside an epilogue. I've been too lazy to write it, though, so I figured I might as well give you guys the last chapter now and the epilogue once I get around to writing it (2-3 days? It won't be very long).

Because it's the last chapter (besides the epilogue), I've decided to omit the author's note at the end for dramatic effect. As such, this one will be longer. :D

I'll be repeating this again, but thank you guys so much for your patience and support. It's been an awesome journey. My one year brony anniversary is… sometime this week, I think. I can't remember the exact day, but I know it was the last week in February. Maybe it's today!

I've been uploading the chapters onto FIMfiction, though I sort of just remembered I haven't done that in a while. Once I'm finished this fic, I'll be working primarily on two multi-chapter fics, one of which should be published within the next week or two and the other idk when. Also I need to remember to update Conversions.

Oh, and if you like PMVs or mlp musical arrangements, you should check out my yt channel "TangyNeonz". Everything I've posted has been featured on either EQD or Everypony Sings, which I guess means it's good?

Without further delay: I do not own MLP.

…

Beep… beep… beep…

Twilight groggily opened her eyes in order to pinpoint the cause of the annoying sound. She realized she was lying on a bed in a room with white walls, and with a start discovered that the annoying noise was coming from a heart monitor.

Twilight sat up, her panic causing the heart monitor to beep more rapidly. She stared at her hooves and could find no way that she was attached to it, so she figured the device was magically powered. The cause of her stress was the fact that she was next to one at all.

"Twilight!" A familiar voice caused Twilight to gasp and turn around to meet the eyes of a very excited baby dragon.

"Oh, Spike!" Twilight cried as he jumped onto the bed to hug her. "I was worried about you! I thought you were going to come to the ceremony?"

He shrugged. "Things got kinda crazy; y'know, with the princess disappearing and everything."

Everything that had happened in Twilight's recent memory came rushing back to her, and her eyes widened exponentially. "Is the princess back? Did we defeat Nightmare Moon?" Before Spike could answer, Twilight's heart jolted as the absence of her friends became apparent to her. "Oh no, oh no… is everyone okay?! They aren't in here too, are they?" A sudden wave of exhausted caused her to flop onto her back, and she looked at the heart monitor in concern. "Uh, come to think of it, am I okay?"

Spike shot her a look. "Slow down! Jeez… yeah, you're fine. They just put you here to rest for a bit. After you defeated Nightmare Moon, the princess arrived and found you all unconscious. The others came to pretty fast, but you wouldn't wake up. You probably just passed out from using too much magic; it's common in unicorns."

"Oh. Then why are we in a hospital?"

Spike looked anxiously down at the bedsheets. "Rainbow was hurt pretty bad…"

Twilight's ears flattened. The scream Rainbow emitted when she was launched into the wall was not a sound that Twilight was going to soon forget. "How bad is it?"

"Well…" Spike wrung his claws together and glanced back up at Twilight. "They did x-rays and said that she broke a few ribs. No internal damage or anything, but there isn't a whole lot they can do for her…"

"W-what…?" Twilight tried to wrap her head around Spike's words. Images of injured racehorses came into her mind. "They… they aren't going to put her down, are they?!"

Spike gave Twilight a very confused look, then rolled his eyes. "I forgot how messed up your world is. No, of course they aren't! I just mean that you can't really bandage a broken rib like you can a leg or a wing, so they take longer to heal. They've performed spells on her to speed the process and reduce pain, but that's about it."

"Oh." Twilight gave a relieved sigh. "Can I see her? Are the others with her?"

Spike nodded. "Yeah. Hold on, I'll make sure it's okay if you leave." Spike leapt off of the bed and headed out of the hospital room. Twilight stared at the white ceiling for a few moments, but her eyelids felt exceptionally heavy. She fought against closing them, trusting that Spike would be back momentarily.

"Twilight?" A voice flowed through the doorway, and Twilight momentarily forgot about how tired she was. She quickly sat up and beamed as she saw the princess.

"Princess Celestia!" Twilight exclaimed. "Are you okay? What happened?"

Princess Celestia gave a soft laugh and went to Twilight's bedside, Spike following close behind. The white mare gently extended a hoof and guided the lavender unicorn back to a reclined position. "Rest, Twilight. You've been through so much… I couldn't be prouder." She smiled warmly, a few tears pricking at her eyes.

Twilight watched her princess curiously. "What happened? Where did you go?" she repeated, though obeyed orders and didn't sit up again.

"When Nightmare Moon returned, she banished the day and brought forth an everlasting night… Of course, because I am so closely connected to the day, she banished me along with it. Without the elements of harmony, I was powerless against her fury." Princess Celestia watched Twilight with a small frown, seeming to know what Twilight was going to ask next.

"It was us all along. We were the elements of harmony." Twilight watched as the princess gave a nod. "But then… why didn't you tell us that in the first place?" She tried to keep the accusatory tone out of her voice, but wasn't very successful. "You went through so much to prepare us, but you didn't tell us the most important thing we needed to know."

Princess Celestia bowed her head. "I did so in order to protect both you and the rest of Equestria. If I had told you outright that you were the elements of harmony, you may have ceased to exist altogether."

"W-what?"

Celestia gave Twilight a sad smile. "I know this is a lot to take in, and for that I apologize. You see, Twilight, one thousand years ago the elements of harmony resided in the very stable form of six gemstones. When my sister destroyed the element of magic and turned the other five to stone, I had thought for many centuries that they were gone forever.

I was wrong. Being the guardian of both the day and the night, I had little free time to research, but as the years flew by and my sister's escape came closer and closer, I became desperate. The rising of the sun and setting of the moon were often delayed as I travelled Equestria and used my magic at its fullest extent to locate the elements.

To my great surprise, I found the element of kindness in the form of an earth pony. Halfway across the country, I found the element of laughter in the form of a pegasus. Scattered throughout Equestria were the six elements in forms of different ponies. Over the years, these ponies would pass on, and the elements' power would be transferred to a new foal – though I was never aware of it until the foal had matured and secured his or her place in society; the element could not function properly within a body that wasn't sure of itself yet. Quite often, the foal grew up with the traits of the element that resided within them.

Living creatures are not very stable forms. I came to the conclusion that this was a temporary solution on the elements' part because they were no longer able to return to their original forms. Upon the defeat of Nightmare Moon, the elements would be able to channel energy through ponies to break the spell that had cursed them, and return to their stable forms.

There was a problem with this plan; my sister knew all of it from the beginning.

You see, Twilight, if I had not taken you out of this world entirely, you would have secured your place, which would have revealed you as the bearer of the element of magic - likewise for your friends. That spell that you saw Nightmare Moon perform would have revealed your true self, and she would have killed you on the spot.

Preparing you by informing you that you were all the elements of harmony created an even bigger issue. If you were aware that you were meant to represent the magic of friendship, wouldn't that change the way you saw yourself? Influence how you felt you were supposed to live your life? You would have changed the way the elements function altogether, and they, as well as you, would have disappeared forever."

"But… I'm here now!" Twilight pointed out. "If I know about the elements, shouldn't I be dead?"

Princess Celestia smiled. "You realized it in order to take down Nightmare Moon, Twilight. The elements reside comfortably within the necklaces and crown that appeared on you once she was defeated, but they also share a magical connection with the six of you. This connection is very stable, and I am not worried about it breaking."

Twilight slowly nodded. "What about Xanterlot University? Why were we all brought there?"

"In order to keep you, as well as the rest of Equestria, safe, I devised a plan. I removed the old Canterlot Library and its grounds from the city, and teleported it all the way to Earth. I purposefully placed it near where two great scholars lived, which gave them a major building block in the founding of what came to be known as Xanterlot University because the "C" in Canterlot was damaged beyond recognition during the transfer. This all happened about one hundred and fifty years before you were born.

I couldn't begin to feel the elements' presence inside of you six until you were the pony equivalent of toddlers. It was a weak presence, but it was enough for me to inform your parents of this plan. Unfortunately, if you remembered anything at all about Equestria, it would have been pointless… thus I gave them barely a month to say goodbye. Trust that I still feel terrible about it, Twilight. Many sleepless nights I endured wondering if I was doing the right thing.

When I teleported you to earth, I separated you six and drained nearly all of your magical power. The elements remained inside of you, but their power was undetectable. Using the tiny magical connection that I had left with the six of you, I watched you grow. You were all exceptional students in your particular fields of interest - a side effect of being born a pony, I would guess - and you earned the scholarships yourselves. At this time in your lives, the elements within you were subconsciously trying to find each other, which is the reason you all ended up attending Xanterlot University… in fact, you all submitted your applications on the same day, so you ended up on the same floor of the same residence." Princess Celestia smiled at the awed look on Twilight's face. "I have already informed your friends about everything I've just told you."

Twilight nodded, then rolled over and stood up. "Can I see them?" she asked hopefully, praying that the princess wouldn't argue any further.

"Of course, Twilight… but there's somepony that I need you to meet first." Princess Celestia smiled and over at the doorway entrance. "Luna?"

Twilight's heart caught in her chest as a familiar alicorn stepped into her hospital room. She was much smaller and bluer than Twilight remembered, and no longer donned the heavy plated armour, but Twilight could still recognize that it was Nightmare Moon.

Princess Celestia smiled. "It's okay, Twilight. I'd like you to meet my sister, Luna. You freed her from the evil mare she had become, and you no longer have reason to fear her."

Luna bowed her head. "Please accept my deepest apologies, Twilight Sparkle. Thou haste changed me, and I am in eternally in thy debt."

Twilight gave a small smile. If the princess could trust her sister again, then Twilight would try hard to forgive her too. "Well, as long as everyone's okay, right?" Immediately after she'd said it, she remembered Rainbow Dash and frowned.

Princess Celestia gestured her forwards. "Come, my faithful student. I won't delay you any longer." Twilight hurried to step off of the bed, and followed Princess Celestia out of the room. Spike and Luna stayed behind.

It turned out that Rainbow Dash's room was merely three doors down the hall. Princess Celestia stopped in front of it and gestured with her horn. "I'll leave you to be with your friends." Twilight nodded and started towards the doorway. "Oh, and one other thing, Twilight." Twilight hesitated and glanced back at the princess, who was pointing a hoof at her flank.

Twilight swiveled her head around and realized that she too had finally earned her cutie mark. Five tiny white stars circled around one large magenta six-pointed star. It represented astronomy, magic, and even friendship. Twilight smiled widely. "It's perfect."

Princess Celestia smiled back before she turned to leave. "I'll be nearby if you need me."

"Thank you, princess." Twilight used magic to turn the doorknob, then walked inside.

Predictably, Rainbow Dash was lying on her left side and looking extremely bored. There was a gruesome black bruise spread across the right side of her chest. Rarity was sitting near the pegasi's bed, and both of them perked up as they saw Twilight enter.

"Oh, Twilight!" Rarity exclaimed and rushed to embrace her. "Are you feeling better? Oh, I am so glad this ordeal is over…"

"I'm fine." Twilight reassured as she separated from her friend's grasp with a smile. "Where are the others?"

"Oh, just stretching their legs, I think… of course they're gone when you wake up, how typical." Rarity rolled her eyes and trotted towards the door. "Lovely cutie mark by the way, darling. I noticed it had appeared after we vanquished Nightmare Moon. Now, I'll go fetch the others, so don't you go anywhere on me!"

Twilight nodded and watched her leave before cautiously approaching Rainbow's bedside. She gave a small smile at her cyan friend. "How are you feeling?"

"I've been better." Rainbow Dash said, but grinned despite herself. "I broke my arm once, back when I thought rugby was a cool sport, but this is…" she paused for a few moments and winced. Twilight noted how shallow her breathing was. "Sorry. Talking kind of hurts… so does breathing." She slumped her head onto the pillow in annoyance.

Twilight's expression held nothing but concern. "I thought Spike said they were performing spells on you for the pain?"

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but they wear off too fast."

Twilight raised a hoof uncertainly. "I'll get a nurse." Rainbow didn't object, so Twilight turned to start walking out the door.

"TWILIGHT!" A pink blur came out of nowhere and knocked her to the ground. Twilight groaned and stared into the beaming face of Pinkie Pie. "I'm so glad you're okay! That was so cool what you did back there, well, what we did back there, with all of the lights and the magic and the rainbow and - "

"Pinkie!" Rarity scolded before going to help Twilight up. "Twilight's very tired; there's no need to be assaulting her."

Pinkie giggled. "Oh, right! Sorry, Twilight!"

"It's okay." Twilight grinned back. Fluttershy and Applejack were in the room as well, and were both giving her warm smiles. "I'm so glad you're all okay…"

"I'm not." Rainbow Dash reminded her in an annoyed tone.

"Oh, sorry Rainbow." Twilight quickly turned to head out the door, but a white unicorn with a nurse outfit was already walking in. Twilight watched curiously as the pink glow on the nurse's horn slowly spread across the bruise on Rainbow's side. The effect was immediate – Rainbow's expression glazed over in contentment, and she sighed in relief.

Twilight looked curiously at the nurse. "Thanks. How long do you think it will be until she's better?"

The nurse gave a sad smile back. "Based on what the doctors have said, she'll need to stay immobile for about two weeks: no walking, no flying. With the help of magic, she should be good as new within a month. Without it, it could take up to six months."

Rainbow Dash groaned. "Stop saying that! Two weeks is waaaay too long to not do anything. That's so not happening."

The nurse chuckled. "Well, you'll never be better then, will you?" Rainbow Dash shot her a glare as she trotted out the door.

"Odd…" Twilight mused. "In the human world, I don't think rib injuries require immobilization… though I guess the anatomy is different; being a quadruped must put a lot more strain on that area…"

"Whatever y'say, Twi," Applejack said, causing Rarity, Pinkie, and Fluttershy to laugh.

"Doesn't matter, anyways," Rainbow Dash growled. "There's no way I'll be able to sit still for that long."

"You've had enough excitement for one day, don't you think?" Fluttershy asked in a motherly tone that caused Rainbow to roll her eyes.

"Yes, quite enough, I should think." Rarity said, and turned to Twilight with a nervous smile. "I was really touched by what you did back there, Twilight. I'd just like to say that I consider you all my best friends… you've really shown me what the power of true friendship can conquer."

Applejack grinned and winked. "Ditto."

Pinkie Pie burst into tears. "I LOVE YOU GUYS! GROUP HUG!"

"H-hey! Pinkie Pie!" Rainbow argued as Pinkie leapt on top of the bed and wrapped her forehooves gently around Rainbow's shoulders. Rainbow gave an annoyed sigh as the rest of her friends giggled and joined in. "Okay, okay, yeah, I love you guys too. Can you get off of me now?"

Twilight smiled and stepped down. "I meant every word of what I said back there." The faces of her five friends turned gleefully toward her. "I don't know what comes next, but… as long as you girls are here with me, I'm sure we'll be okay."

Five ponies nodded in agreement, and Twilight couldn't be more grateful to have them. It had been a big journey in a relatively short period of time, and it was one that she could safely say had changed her for the better.

For the remainder of the day, the six ponies talked and laughed and enjoyed each other's company. For once, they didn't have any worries about Nightmare Moon, or mysterious magical illnesses, or even schoolwork (though Twilight had to admit she was starting to miss it). All they had was the prospect of a frightening new world, and the reassurance that they could get through it together.

Friendship truly was magic.