The Discord AU Season One

by frostiwars

Discord's been stuck with Twilight and Spike for a month or so now, which means its time for fate to finally kick into gear! Let's go down to Ponyville for the Summer Sun Celebration and hope nothing goes wrong. Fate will try it's best to keep on track, but we'll see if that actually works out for anyone involved. It's recommended you read the prologue first.

2. Friendship is Magic Part 2

More notes and chapter art can be found on the Ao3 upload. However, since I have to wait to make chapter art to post on Ao3, you FFN users get to have the actual chapters (including this one) come out earlier. Lucky you!

...

"AHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Nightmare Moon's voice rang throughout the town hall, almost as if she was trying to force her way inside the citizens' skulls. Her hair spread out as if it were a creature unto itself, and began whirling around like a tornado, lightning shooting out of it at spastic intervals. Half of the crowd stayed frozen in horror while the other half started frantically trying to find an exit, running every which way and threatening to cause serious harm to someone. The panic and chaos was… invigorating.

The mayor finally composed herself, and tried to keep her voice steady as she ordered the guards. "Seize her! Only she knows where the princess is!" The pegasus guards flew forward, circling Nightmare Moon and trying to find the best angle of attack. But it was a fruitless effort. They never had a chance in tartarus of stopping her. They seemed to realize this a second too late as she flashed a deadly smile.

"Stand back you fools!"

Lightning flew from her hands, sending the guards careening to the ground in scorched agony. Nightmare Moon let out another laugh before spreading her enormous wings and crashing through the largest window in the building, right above the entrance. As she escaped into the night, she transformed into pure magic, back to that smoky blue cloud. The sound of her voice lingered with the humans, and the panic grew greater still.

But Discord felt a very interesting emotion inside him. He felt simultaneously incredibly calm and collected, and extraordinarily excited. He wasn't entirely sure why, not yet, but he knew what he had to do. His body swayed as he brought himself to his feet and spread his wings, his gaze locked on the shattered front window. Something was tugging his sleeve but he couldn't care less who it was. All that mattered was….

Twilight watched helplessly as Discord rocketed himself towards where Nightmare Moon just fled, scrabbling out the building and after her like a desperate animal. She tried shouting his name, screaming for him to come back, but he was already long gone. Why had-

No, there was no time for this! She had to get back to the library, she NEEDED to find the Elements, or even just some information about them! Hoisting Spike onto her back and hooking her arms under his legs, she pushed past Pinkie Pie and raced out the door, towards her residence.

Little did she know, someone noticed her sudden exit, and started following her.

….

"Mmn… we gotta stop Nightmare…." Spike moaned as Twilight tucked him into bed.

"You've been up all night, Spike. You are a baby dragon after all…" She quietly stepped out of the bedroom, shutting the door behind her, and waited a few seconds…. before spinning on her heel and tearing books off their shelves with a fervor that she hadn't felt in years.

"Elements, elements, elements- UGH, NOTHING. How am I supposed to stop her without the Elements of Harmony?!"

"And just what ARE the Elements of Harmony?" Rainbow Dash suddenly rammed into the unicorn, tackling her to the ground. The girl's anger was apparent and for a second, Twilight was seriously considering fighting back. "And how did YOU know about Nightmare Moon, huh? Are you a SPY? Is that why your little FRIEND back there was laughing so much? Did you KNOW the princess would- WOAH-"

Twilight gasped in relief as Applejack pulled Rainbow Dash off of her and stepped between the two. Still, she cautiously backed away as she realized all five of the girls had followed her.

"Simmer down, sally. She ain't no spy… But she sure knows what's going on." Applejack's expression turned slightly sour. "Don't you, Twilight?"

The girls were surrounding her on all sides, and she had no way out without making a bigger fuss than it was worth. It wouldn't… it wouldn't do any harm to tell them why she knew. After all, it had already happened. They had to believe her now. She sucked in a breath, hoping they would understand.

"I read all about the prediction of Nightmare Moon's return… Some mysterious objects called the Elements of Harmony are the only things that can stop her, but I don't know what they are, where to find them; I don't even know what they do!"

At some point during the explanation, Pinkie Pie had moved to the bookshelves and was reading the spines. "The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide."

Twilight shoved her out of the way. "How did you find that?"

"It was under E~!"

"Oh."

Twilight levitated the book in front of her, flipping through the pages as she read the brief description in the intro to the other girls. Even if she was to search them out by herself, she should tell them about it. In case she didn't make it, they might have the chance of telling someone else who could. The world couldn't stay this way forever.

"There are six Elements of Harmony, but only five are known: Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, and Loyalty. The sixth is a complete mystery. It is said that the last known location of the five elements was in the ancient castle of the Royal Sisters. That castle now resides within…..

….

"...the Everfree Forest?!"

The six girls stood right at the edge of town. The buildings had long since disappeared, leaving only a single dirt path that was quickly overtaken by the forest in front of them. The trees stretched high into the sky, blocking out all light as soon as it reached the foliage. It made for a very jarring cut off point, like someone had carved a forcefield into reality. But… this is where the Elements lay, so this was where Twilight had to venture.

"Whee! Let's go!" Pinkie Pie hopped forward.

"Not so fast. Look…" She tried to inject something genuine into her voice. "I appreciate the offer. But I'd really rather do this on my own."

Applejack nudged her slightly, and gave a gentle smile. It was annoying the way it made Twilight's heart race. "No can do, sugarcube. We sure ain't lettin' any friend of ours go into that creepy place alone." Ah. That lie of a word. It made Twilight cringe on the inside. But Applejack, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy were already walking ahead. "We're stickin' to you like caramel on a candy apple!"

Pinkie Pie elbowed Twilight, trying to get a smile out of her. "Especially if there are candy apples in there!" The blank look she got in return didn't deter her. "What? Those things are good!"

Twilight sighed. If any of those girls got hurt, it would be on her. Besides, she didn't need anyone else…..

But she had no choice now.

…

Discord crawled into the window of the crumbling stone castle. He felt like he should recognize this place. He honestly probably did. But if he never came back to it after everything, then there's no way it would register. But- ahaha- he came here chasing memories, not to get caught up in another one. He cracked his head backwards, watching as the cloud rematerialized into Her.

"Ehehe… I never thought I would see you like this, Luna."

Nightmare Moon turned around, seemingly unsurprised by his presence. "I am not Luna. You referring to me as such is akin to me calling you Eris again."

Discord tilted his head in confusion. "Hm?"

"Heh… It's an inside joke." A silence fell over them for a little while, and it was such a strange sensation indeed. They should not be here, together. They were both incorrect existences that should not be present in the current reality. And yet. And yet.

"What are your intentions, dracanthropos?"

Discord chuckled, his smile not quite reaching his eyes. "Isn't it obvious? We can conquer Equestria so much better if we work together! It can be just like old times!"

Nightmare Moon cracked her neck, her face revealing nothing. But then….

"AHAHAHAHA! Oh, oh you must be trying to kill me by drowning in my own tears! That is- AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA- You expect me to believe that?!"

"Whatever do you mean?"

"AHA- ahaha- I'm no fool, Discord. I'm not my sister, I know you too well. You'd betray me as soon as you got what you wanted, and leave me to rot."

"Hm…" Discord lashed his tail, a hint of malice leaching into his voice. "Sounds familiar, doesn't it." And that statement seemed to catch her off guard enough for him to regain a bit of ground. "Come now, you really want to be on the opposing side to me? Lord of Chaos? Surely you realize what I can do to you if I hear something I don't like? I'd say it's far stupider of you to reject my offer than to trust me."

After hearing that, another, far harsher laugh erupted from her. "You're really bluffing now? My, how you've fallen from grace."

"I'm afraid I don't know what you mean."

Nightmare Moon lowered her head, still laughing to herself, and stepped around Discord, in front of the window he'd entered through. A strange blue glass appeared in front of it, and Discord suddenly had the feeling he wouldn't be teleporting out anytime soon.

"Celestia already told me everything."

"Wh- what?! I mean- what are you talking-"

"I'm not entirely sure why. Perhaps she really didn't want you getting into any trouble. She's always been manipulative like that, hasn't she?" The woman smirked down at the man, who had fallen to all fours without realizing it. "I'm surprised though. I didn't anticipate her to still hate you that much."

"I… I didn't… I can still…"

"There's no use trying to help me anyway. I'm already on the precipice of victory. As we speak, that stupid little unicorn is leading a piece of me straight to the Elements. I will destroy her hope right in front of her eyes, taking her companions out one by one before destroying the Elements entirely, and then no one will dare oppose me."

Discord lashed his tail, his smile finally having fallen. A million ideas ran through his head for how he could possibly recover this situation, none of them particularly strong. But he knew one thing for certain. If Nightmare Moon won, he would lose his chance of conquering Equestria forever. She'd certainly have him done away with or imprisoned as soon as she took full control, and then it would all have been for nothing.

So… well… perhaps this wasn't the most well thought out plan, he thought as he watched her retreat to the other side of the room… But following her wasn't well thought out either, and yet here he was. Besides, he couldn't just do nothing…

Discord hurtled himself towards Nightmare Moon, summoning as many sharp objects as he could-

…

Twilight swallowed nervously as the group trudged through the thick forest. Everything's shadow felt as if it held a predator, every moment she felt as if something would jump out and attack her. But eventually, they spotted a rocky cliff face that allowed light to spill in for a stretch of land. It was better than nothing…

"So, none of you have been in here before?"

"Ugh, heavens no!" Rarity answered. "Just look at it- it's dreadful!"

The group stopped at the cliff's edge to take in a better look of the forest ahead, and Applejack began an explanation. "And it ain't natural. Folks say it don't work the same as Equestria."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Rainbow started floating lazily into the air, dangling herself as if being held by a string and speaking in a dramatic voice. "Nobody knows~ You know why?"

"Rainbow, quit it!"

Unbeknownst to everyone, something was crawling its way into the cracks of the cliff, teeming in and waiting to strike. Something that had been following Twilight for a very, very long time.

"Cuz everyone who's ever come in… has never… come… OUT!"

The ground collapsed beneath them, sending everyone but the pegasi careening down the side of the cliff! Rainbow Dash snapped out of her shock, quickly jumping into action.

"Fluttershy, quick!"

"Oh my goodness oh my goodness-"

The two raced forward, grabbing Rarity and Pinkie Pie. They hooked their hands under their arms and began slowly flying them down to safety, but that still left Applejack and Twilight. Applejack had managed to grip a lingering tree root, but that still left Twilight, who had nearly gone straight over the edge of the rock. There was no more slope after that- just a sheer drop! Applejack's heart sank at the sight, and she clenched her teeth, opting to let go of the root. She- she couldn't just leave her!

"Hold on! I'm a-comin!"

Applejack managed to grab Twilight's wrists just as she was about to fall over the edge, but she could feel the ground beneath her threatening to crumble too. If she didn't come up with a plan fast, both of them would fall-

"Applejack, what do I do?!"

Wait, that was it! "Let go! Rainbow'll catch you, but we can't stay here!"

A flash of fear and hatred darted through the unicorn's eyes as Applejack released her grip. "WHAT?! No- no that's not true- LIAR! You just want to drop me!"

"No, I don't! We don't have time to argue- please, I'm not lying! Let go and you'll be safe!"

The ground was already starting to collapse; Twilight had a split second to make her life or death decision- But….

But, for some reason, in her heart… Twilight wanted to believe Applejack.

She felt herself soaring through the air and for a half a second, she thought that this was it. That Applejack really did abandon her for her own safety. But then she felt Rainbow Dash's arms wrap around her, and all the tension roiling beneath the surface fell still. She watched from the safety of her pegasus companion's arms as Applejack skillfully scaled the side of the cliff, before the both of them reached the ground.

They'd be on a bit of a different path through the forest now, but at least they were safe.

….

As the girls wandered the unbeaten, hidden path, Twilight's mind wandered to her amalgamated roommate. Discord just… ran off like that… after her? That was the only thing that made sense, but why? Why did he..? And, if he really was with her now, was he… safe? By all means, she shouldn't be concerned for his safety. He was just an annoyance, a subject of her interest and study. She hadn't been worried about his wellbeing at all before now, so she had no reason to start that train of thought.

Besides, he probably chased after her for malicious purposes. Whether to bring her serious harm or join her side, his intentions couldn't be pure… But… that didn't mean she wanted him hurt. Right? But WHY didn't she want him hurt? She'd only known him for a month at the most, that surely wasn't enough time!

Those abating words were not enough to quell the anxiety swirling around in her stomach, so instead, she opted to bring her focus back to reality. Rainbow Dash was wildly recounting the cliffside perils as if they weren't all there, but it was kind of cute in a way. Endearing, perhaps.

Oh boy. They were turning her to the dark side, weren't they? If she kept up thoughts like this, she'd find herself sucked into their vortex of friendship, and then she'd actually feel wholly bad if- no, when something tragic occured. Celestia dammit.

"And once Pinkie and Rarity were safe, WHOOSH- I loop-da-looped around and WHAM." Rainbow slammed her feet against the ground as she landed next to Twilight. "Caught you right in the nick of time."

"Yes Rainbow, I was there. And I'm very grateful…" It struck her that it felt natural to say that for once. "But we need to-"

Without warning, a large animal crashed in front of their path, its jaw lolling open to unleash a roar. A lion, far more enormous than it had any right to be, with bat wings and a scorpion's tail-

"A manticore?!"

The girls jolted backwards, their hearts pounding out of their chests as they tried to formulate a plan. Twilight stiffened her legs and dug her feet into the ground. They weren't just gonna run. "We've gotta get past him!"

Wait…

Surprisingly, Rarity was the first to attack, rushing forward with a startling amount of speed. The manticore didn't even have time to react as she clamped her hands around its mane, jerked its head forward, and kneed it right in the jaw. It whimpered and stumbled backwards for a moment as she triumphantly announced, "Take that, you ruffian!"

The creature quickly recovered, however, and dashed forward, clamping its maw around her bangs, just barely missing her face. She frantically jerked her head away, tearing a chunk of her hair out. She let out a cry of pain as she scrambled away from its viscous jaws.

"Wait…"

Applejack went next, sliding under the manticore and hooking around, throwing herself onto its back. She grabbed its wings and started twisting them around, trying to get a steer of the creature. "YEEEEEEHAW! Git along, little dogie!"

She lasted a decent amount of time before losing her grip, the momentum sending her soaring through the air. As she flew past Rainbow Dash, she sent her a casual salute. "All yours, partner."

"I'm on it!"

"Wait!"

Rainbow circled the manticore, creating a blur of color in the shape of a tornado. If she could just produce enough force to send it off balance, they might be able to pass! All she needed was just a little more-

Something sharp crashed against her side, sending her straight into the dirt. Something had… agh- She curled in on herself, trying to stopper the weird sickly warm pain in her side. Everyone stared down at her in shock, before raising their gaze to the monster in front of them.

An anger boiled underneath Twilight's skin, in a way she'd never felt before. She was… upset that Rainbow Dash had been injured. Why was she…

Magic was escaping her fingertips, why couldn't she control it… She was running for the manticore, without thinking, without any plan. She just wanted to get back at it! The other three were running next to her, they were gonna tear this thing apart!

"WAIT!"

Fluttershy flew in front of the girls, her arms spread wide in protection of the animal. Everyone skidded to a halt, nearly stumbling over the dirt beneath them. Fluttershy sighed in relief, then turned around to tiptoe towards the animal. It backed away hesitantly, roaring to try and make her back off.

"Shh… it's okay…" She spread out her hands, gesturing calmly for it to relax. "Something's wrong, isn't it?"

The manticore paused for a moment before nodding. It carefully lifted its right paw, flipping it over to reveal a thorn embedded in its palmar pad. Fluttershy let out a gentle gasp. "Oh, you poor poor little baby."

"Little?" Rainbow protested from the ground.

"Now this might hurt for just a second…" She placed her hand on the thorn, making reassuring eye contact with the creature. "Three… two…"

The creature screamed, grabbing Fluttershy with its forepaws. Everyone's body froze up in shock, expecting her to be torn to pieces but-

"Awhahahawww… You're just a little ol' baby kitty, aren't you?" The manticore licked Fluttershy's long bangs, its rumbling purrs filling the clearing. "Yes you are, yes you are…"

Pinkie Pie pulled Rainbow Dash to her feet, allowing her to lean on her as they all walked past the manticore. Twilight watched in silent shock as Fluttershy eased herself out of the manticore's paws, her hair still mussed up from the saliva.

"How did you know about the thorn?"

"I didn't. I just knew something was wrong. And… sometimes we all just need to be shown a little kindness."

….

While their view had been clear for a while, it soon became obstructed once more as they entered a denser patch of trees. While a path was still semi-clearly cut out for them, it was much harder to see in front of their faces. Every step they took, it somehow seemed as if someone was turning down a brightness dial on the world. Before they knew it, the forest was nearly pitch black.

Twilight growled under her breath. "That ancient ruin could be right in front of our faces and we wouldn't even know it…"

You know what else could be right in front of their faces and they wouldn't even know it? A small, blue smog that was seeping into their skulls without them noticing in the slightest. After all, it was rather incorporeal, and you wouldn't typically notice that sort of thing unless you could see it. And sure, this was a bit of a stretch for Nightmare Moon, but if she could get them paranoid enough, she may be able to cause serious harm yet.

Look, she was a bit distracted at the moment…

The six girls stumbled over each other, trying to feel their way through the dense forest. They either bumped into each other or tripped over the foliage or rammed into trees and it was becoming progressively more difficult to focus, what with the overlapping voices and strange, low-pitched moaning that had suddenly appeared. It was… unnerving to say the least, and the sensation that someone or something was trailing the girls had crept into their heads.

Applejack abruptly halted at the feeling of her boot landing in something muddy, causing the others to ram into her.

"Oh wait, I think I stepped in somethin'."

A scream erupted from the group, likely from Fluttershy by the sounds of it. Applejack rolled her eyes. "It's just mud-"

A 90 degree head turn was all she needed to see the cause of the scream.

The trees- no, they couldn't possibly be trees! Many things were possible in Equestria, but trees, even Everfree ones, couldn't come to life- they couldn't grow faces, and they couldn't scream! The branches- the arms reached forward, grasping at the girls as they cried out in terror, ducking to avoid being snatched and facing some nebulously horrific fate! Twilight dropped to her knees in panic, clamping her eyes shut and trying to avoid eye contact with the creatures. The cacophonous shrieks of the others flooded her ears, jolting her heart rate higher than ever! She didn't know why- she didn't know how- she hated the way sweat coated her skin and her limbs felt like jello- how were they supposed to-

"Ehehehe! Oh, this is hilarious! Bleh~"

Twilight pried one of her eyes open to peer at Pinkie Pie, who was laughing and making faces at one of the monsters.

"Pinkie, what are you doing?! Run!"

A more nuanced smile fell onto Pinkie's face as she turned to face the other girls. It seems Nightmare Moon was very unlucky that she was part of the group, because she had experience with these sorts of illusions. Which is what tipped her off in the first place! She hadn't been nearly stressed enough to see these sorts of things, and the fact that her friends could see them too? Well, she knew exactly how to deal with a situation like this!

"Oh girls, don't you see?" She started bobbing her head up and down, as if listening to a song no one else could hear. "When I was a little girly and the sun was going down~"

Twilight's heart dropped at the realization. "Tell me she's not-"

"The darkness and the shadows, they would always make me frown~"

"She is," Rarity replied bluntly. At this point, the girls were too baffled by Pinkie's sudden musical number to be afraid.

"I'd hide under my pillow, from what I thought I saw! But Grandma said that wasn't the way to deal with fears at all!" She hopped up to one of the smaller trees and flicked one of the hands- branches… "She said 'Pinkie, you gotta stand up tall, learn to face your fears! You'll see that they can't hurt you, just laugh to make them disappear!' Ha, ha, ha!"

The tree… it was just a tree after all. The face, that distended, grotesque face- it was like it never existed! Indeed, the darkness from the foliage started to seep away as well, allowing the light of the moon to flow through the trees. Pinkie sucked in a breath as she continued the song that always helped her growing up.

"SOOOOO, giggle at the ghosty! Guffaw at the grossly! Crack up at the creepy! Whoop it up with the weepy! Chortle at the kooky! Snortle at the spooky! AAAAAnd tell that big dumb scary face to take a hike and leave you alone and if he thinks he can scare you then he's got another thing coming and the very idea of such a thing just makes you wanna- hahaha- ahaha- ehehehehehe!"

The song, despite its silliness, had the intended effect on the others. By the end of it all, they were laughing, rolling around on the ground at both the lifted atmosphere and the realization that they'd just been seeing things. There was nothing scary about those trees at all!

It can't hurt you… not really. So it's okay, right?

Pinkie smiled, her laughter fading first. It was nice, seeing her friends so happy! She couldn't wait to keep the adventure train going. Once they saved the world from this whole 'eternal night' ordeal, she'd have to throw the biggest party ever!

…..

Discord's body crashed against the stone floor, and he heard what sounded like bones cracking. Probably not too bad, he could probably fix it! But it was still a tiny problem in the moment. Still! He could deal~

"Ehehehehe- ehehe- it sure would be unfortunate if something bad were to happen to me-" he laughed under his breath. "That would be just horrid, wouldn't it."

Nightmare Moon scowled as she floated him into the air once more. "You are not taking this seriously."

Discord flipped around in the air to face her. "Oh, of course I am!" Then he jerked his arm backwards, sending a chunk of wall slamming into the back of her helmet before she could react. "In fact, this is the most serious I've ever been."

Nightmare Moon growled, readjusting her helmet. "I am going to kill you. I'm sure you'll be able to take that plenty seriously."

"Oh, don't be ridiculous. You wouldn't be able to kill me even in this state!" Now that was absolutely a bluff, but he just couldn't help himself! He really really really couldn't stop laughing, and it was doing wonders for stoppering that intense sense of dread running up his spine! Nightmare Moon rolled her eyes, and casually slammed him through the ceiling. Flying up to join him, she couldn't help the smirk that crawled onto her face at his injured form.

"I'd say this is the least you can do, since you have been so horribly distracting during this whole affair. If it weren't for you, doubtlessly that unicorn and her friends would be long gone by now."

"Happy to do my part," he wheezed out.

"Don't pretend like this is some act of altruism, you fool. I will guarantee you are not remembered as some martyr, not by the time I'm done with all of you."

"That's perfectly fine. I'd rather not be considered on the side of Celestia anyways!"

Oh, if only she could just kill him… She'd tried ignoring him for a bit to focus on the offensive, but he'd proven so persistent that it was truly impossible. She would kill him but… well, that tiny, tiny piece of her that still pretended to be Luna was being rather annoying as well. As a demon, she didn't understand human emotions, but she had to assume that pathetic princess still cared about him. For some reason. She couldn't quite remember.

Oh well. Time to continue the torment.

…..

The girls tromped through the forest, their spirits much higher than before. With every minute, Twilight was finding it much harder to be angry at these girls for tagging along. But that also meant she was more worried they might get hurt. Still, she tried to push that aside, and focus on the reality in the moment.

Huh. Everyone stopped. That reality seemed to be that an uncrossable river was in their path.

Well, uncrossable for basically everyone except Rainbow Dash, who was the only one who could fly high enough to avoid the massive waves. But that wasn't exactly helpful.

"How are we gonna cross this?" Pinkie sighed.

A distant sobbing drew the girls' attention, and they headed a little ways down the riverbed. What greeted them was an enormous sea (or I guess river) serpent, wailing around and thrashing, sending waves to-and-fro, and screaming about what a horrible place the world was.

Oh boy. Twilight stepped forward, trying to project her voice. "Excuse me sir, but why are you crying?"

"Well- I don't know! I was just sitting here- m- minding my own business! But this tacky little cloud of blue smoke just WHISKED right p- past me and tore half of my beloved mustache clean off! And now… n- now! I LOOK SIMPLY HORRID!" The serpent slammed himself against the water once more, sending a wave crashing against the bank and all over the girls.

Rainbow cursed under her breath. "Oh, give me a break…"

"THAT's what all the fuss is about?" Applejack asked. That couldn't just be it, right? But before anyone else could complain, Rarity stepped forward.

"Why, of course it is! How can you be so insensitive?" The woman waved her hand, gently gesturing for the serpent to come closer. He lowered himself dramatically, resting his chin on the riverbed. "Oh, just look at him… Such lovely, luminescent scales."

The serpent sniffed, choking back another wail. "I know…"

"And your expertly coiffed mane."

"OH, I know, I know!"

"Ooh, your fabulous manicure!"

"It's so true~"

Rarity's expression fell. "All ruined without your beautiful mustache!"

"IT'S TRUE, I'M HIDEOUS!" He jerked away, falling backwards and sending another wave over the girls.

Rarity straightened her back and clenched her fist in determination. "I simply cannot let such a crime against fabulousness go uncorrected!" She threw her arm forward, and her horn began glowing a radiant light blue. One of the serpent's scales peeled off his neck and flew into her hands.

"OW! What did you do that for?!"

"Rarity, what are you-"

SHING

The serpent nearly fainted at Rarity's bold action, for she had used the scale as a blade to chop off her elegant ponytail. Using her magic, she connected it to the serpent's stubby half-mustache, and blended it in perfectly, until it was as if nothing had ever happened at all.

"Oh- OH! Ohohoho, my mustache! How- how wonderful! I've never had anyone do something this nice for me in all my days! Thank you!"

But… well, what with the manticore attack earlier, and now this… Rarity's long, flowing hair had turned into something short and choppy. More akin to Rainbow's hair than anything else.

"Oh, Rarity…" Twilight brushed her fingers against the shredded tips.

"Ah… it's alright, dear. Short hair is in this season anyhow. Besides… It'll grow back…"

"So would the mustache," Rainbow whispered. But Twilight pointedly ignored her. Besides-

"We can cross now! Let's g- WOAH!"

The serpent spread his body out, making a perfect bridge over the river. "Allow me!"

…..

It took about another hour of trekking but… the sight that she'd been hoping for all night popped into view.

"There it is! The ruin that holds the Elements of Harmony- we made it!" Without thinking, Twilight burst forward. She could already feel the adrenaline pulsating through her veins, and she could hardly hear Applejack's protests for her to wait for the others.

Which she probably should've listened to because she nearly sent herself flying over the edge of an untethered bridge before Rainbow Dash pulled her back by her ponytail.

"What's with you and falling off cliffs today? You're not a pegasus dude."

Pinkie Pie groaned as she gazed at the seemingly endless abyss of fog that filled the chasm. "Now what?"

Rainbow flapped her wings, pointing towards the rope that still held the bridge together. "Duh."

"Oh, are you sure Dashie? You're not still hurt, are you?"

Rainbow's expression only faltered a little bit. "Pssh, nah. I got this guys, don't worry!" With that, she dove off the edge and soared into the fog, grabbing the other end of the rope and pulling it across the gap. Now all she had to do was retie it and-

"Rainbow~…."

"Who's there?!"

"Rainbow…"

The girl hardened her stance and lifted her fists. "I ain't scared of you! Show yourself!"

"Rainbow Dash, we've been looking all over for you!"

"What? Why- no, who are you?"

The voices chuckled coldly, piercing her skin. "You're saying you don't recognize our voices? We thought you were our biggest admirer!"

Rainbow's heart rate spiked. "Wait, no way- you're the-"

Three of the best flyers in the Wonderbolts stepped forth from the fog, smiling down on the shorter pegasus. "We've been trying to hunt down Nightmare Moon ever since she escaped, and we've been searching for the best flyer in all of Equestria! We need you to help us take her down!" The leader, Spitfire, reached her hand forward.

"WHAT!? No way no way no- oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh!"

Spitfire smirked and she took another step forward. "Will you join us, Rainbow Dash? If we succeed, you'd be qualified to join our ranks almost immediately."

"UH, OF COURSE I'LL JOIN! Just lemme tie this bridge real quick and then we can-"

The three Wonderbolts stepped around Rainbow Dash, blocking her way to the support beam. "I'm afraid that isn't possible, nor is it necessary."

"...Whaddya mean?"

"You need discipline to be a part of the Wonderbolts, and you must be able to make the right choices. You have to stick with us, or stick with them. There is no in between."

The fog around Rainbow grew thicker, and she could no longer see anything except the Wonderbolts and the ground beneath her feet. If she tried hard enough, she could maybe hear Twilight saying something… But…

No, this was too good to be true. And… and besides… she'd always stick with her friends if given the choice. It was just in her blood. She could join the Wonderbolts any old day, right? Even if this was real, even if her life's dream was standing just a few inches away, she…

"I… Thank you, for the offer… But…"

Spitfire's head twisted to the side a bit farther than it should have been able to.

"I'm afraid I have to say no."

With that, the Wonderbolts dissipated into blue smoke and launched themselves at Rainbow Dash. Thinking quickly (and ignoring the lingering pain in her side), she ducked down and slid under them, tying the rope around as fast as possible and bolting across the bridge, the flapping of her wings clearing the fog. She turned around to make sure the smoke hadn't followed her, but it was nowhere to be seen. She let out a sigh, and smiled back at her friends.

"You had me worried for a second there," said Twilight.

Rainbow gave her a big, cheesy thumbs up. "Nah, I'd never leave my friends hangin'!"

…..

The sight of the ancient castle stole Twilight's breath away. Despite all the crumbling stone, the raggedy, torn tapestries, and the scattered belongings, it still managed to hold a magical air about itself. It almost felt like a sacred place that she shouldn't step onto. But of course, all six of them walked inside.

An enormous, intricate stone pedestal stood in the center of the room. Five different sections jutted out from it, almost spoonlike in shape, each holding a stone sphere with an engraving on it.

Applejack nudged Twilight. "Come on, girl. Isn't this what you've been waitin' for?"

She nodded hesitantly, and silently began to float the spheres down one by one. They were quite heavy, so it took a significant amount of time, which was more than enough for Pinkie to notice something.

"One, two, three, four… there's only five."

"Where's the sixth?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"The book said 'when the five are present, a spark will cause the sixth Element to be revealed.'"

Applejack scratched her head. "What in the heck is that supposed to mean?"

"I'm not sure, but I have an idea…" A thought suddenly occurred to Twilight. "Um… I think you five should leave. I would rather figure this out on my own and… well, you've gotten me this far, but this is really my responsibility."

"What?" Rainbow flailed her arms. "We're not just leaving you alone in some old creepy castle! We said we'd stick together!"

""Yeah!"" Pinkie and Rarity agreed.

Twilight huffed out a sigh of exasperation. "Look, I get it. You really wanna help me out because you think I'm your friend-"

"We are friends, though, aren't we..?" Fluttershy interrupted.

"I…" Twilight's heart sank when she realized the answer to that question. "We are, but I don't need any more help. I don't want any more help. It's not your girls' job to save Equestria, and I don't want to drag this out any longer than I have to. I need to concentrate so I can summon the sixth element. So please just… go."

Rainbow was about to protest once more, but Applejack raised her hand to quiet her. "I understand Twilight. We'll… we'll be right outside the castle door if you're needin' us for anythin. Now come on, y'all… She needs her space."

Twilight nodded in appreciation and waited for the door to shut before falling to her knees, an inexplicable weight in her chest. She didn't have time to dwell on that feeling, or anything that was brought up in that short conversation. She had to… create a spark.

Her horn glowed a calming shade of magenta, and she felt the magic flow out from her heart and through her arms, into her hands. The energy crackled forth from her fingertips and hopped between each stone, bouncing back and forth, to and fro, searching for a host. But nothing seemed to be sticking. The vague magic had no set goal, nothing to reach for, so it simply fizzled and crackled aimlessly as Twilight tried to summon the final Element. Her eyes squeezed shut, and she tried to block out all senses except for the magic flowing through her.

The wind swirled, rustling her bangs and clothes, shifting the spheres against the hard ground. The unpleasant grinding noise forced Twilight's eyes open, and she realized the terrible mistake she'd made.

As the Elements swirled around in the dark blue tornado of starry smoke, Twilight had hardly any time to ridicule herself for leading Nightmare Moon straight to them. She let out an involuntary scream before haphazardly jumping into the swirling winds. As she was sucked into the eye of the ever-growing storm, it felt more and more as if the world itself was moving around her! She let out a cry of determination, letting more magic rip from her body in an effort to slow Nightmare Moon's attack. But that was swiftly cut off by the feeling of being teleported somewhere completely new.

The other girls rushed in a moment too late. Both Twilight and the Elements disappeared right before their eyes.

""NO!"" "What's going on?" "Where'd she go?" "Twilight?!"

Applejack clenched her fists. "C'mon girls. She couldn't have gone too far, right?"

"We don't know that though!" Rainbow protested. "For all we know, she could be miles from here!"

"Wait, no! Look, I see something!" Rarity pulled the others over to a nearby window and pointed out another tower in the castle, a little ways away. A bright, irradiant light flashed from within before quickly fizzling out.

Pinkie hopped up and down in anticipation. "Well what are we waiting for? Let's go save Twilight!"

….

Twilight crashed against the ground, landing hard on her shoulder. Violent coughs escaped her lungs as she sucked in the immense amount of dust she'd kicked up. But she had no time to worry about that! She forced herself to her feet, and was met face to face with an elated Nightmare Moon. She stood triumphantly between her and the Elements, which rested on a dias a few feet away. Lightning crackled around Nightmare Moon's fists, and her hair writhed eagerly through the air.

She only had one shot at this.

Twilight was still practicing teleportation, and it was only supposed to be accessible to extremely powerful unicorns or alicorns. But… this was her only chance. She stepped backwards until she felt the wall behind her, then dropped into a running stance. Nightmare Moon tilted her head slightly and cut off her maniacal laugh.

"You're kidding. You're kidding, right?"

Twilight rushed forward, acting as if she was going to attack Nightmare Moon head on. She considered screaming to sell it better, but that would just waste her energy. Nonetheless, it worked, and a wicked smile cracked onto Nightmare Moon's face as she rushed forward in return. Twilight's magic swelled like a wave and-

And just like a wave, it all had to come crashing down. She felt almost everything drain out of her body as she teleported in front of the Elements. But that didn't matter; she just had to create the spark!

A weak crackle of electricity escaped her hands and once more began its aimless bouncing. Nightmare Moon, having realized her mistake, swooped upwards and flipped through the air, landing hard in front of Twilight and the Elements. She casually brushed Twilight away with her telekinesis, hardly having to think about it. But- AHA! The Elements began to glow, the speed of the electricity picking up with every second. It was working!

"No- NO!"

A whirring noise rang out, the Elements began to float, and!

And…..

They returned to being rocks. Nothing changed, and the electricity fizzled into thin air.

"What?! But- but where's the sixth Element?"

Nightmare Moon threw her head back and cackled. A great force erupted from her arms, like a small shockwave, and shattered the Elements to pieces. The crystalline stone pieces clattered against the ground in front of Twilight's eyes, and she could no longer ignore every bit of pain and fear rocketing through her bloodstream.

That was… her only chance… the world's only chance… Bile swirled around in her stomach, and she felt it threatening to spill forth.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You little FOOL. Thinking you could defeat me?! Now, you will never see your princess, or your sun! The night… will last… FOREVER."

Blood rushed through her ears and her skull pounded louder than ever before. How… how could she have failed like this? Fate was meant to be kind to Equestria… There was no earthly way that such powerful artifacts had been lost forever, just like that… There was no way that this was her last day on earth, fully and truly!

"Twilight!" "Don't worry Twilight, we're coming!" "We're here darling!" "Don't worry, we'll be there!"

Huh..?

That was… Those girls, no… her friends. They'd come looking for her? How? And why? No, that was obvious why. They cared about her. Beyond all reason, and yet beyond a shadow of a doubt, they cared about her, her safety, and her as a person. They came looking for her!

And something struck Twilight Sparkle at that very moment. The realization that… after everything they'd been through tonight, after all the courtesy they'd given her the previous day, despite all she had claimed to hate about their behavior initially…

She would have done the exact same thing for them. And, almost as importantly…

Twilight forced herself to her feet, shoving her twinging shoulder back into place. "You think you can destroy the Elements of Harmony just like that? Well you're wrong. Because the Spirits of the Elements of Harmony… are right HERE!"

Twilight spread her arms wide as the other five rushed to stand by her side, and… to her surprise and amazement, the shards of the Elements began floating and swirling in the air. Nightmare Moon shook her head in shock.

"What?!"

One by one, the shards began floating around the other five, and bathed them each in a bright white glow.

"Applejack, who reassured me when I was in danger, represents the spirit of… Honesty!

"Fluttershy, who tamed the manticore with her compassion, represents the spirit of… Kindness!

"Pinkie Pie, who banished fear by giggling in the face of danger, represents the spirit of… Laughter!

"Rarity, who calmed a sorrowful serpent with a meaningful gift, represents the spirit of… Generosity!

"And Rainbow Dash, who could not abandon her friends for her own heart's desire, represents the spirit of… Loyalty!

"The spirits of these five girls got us through every challenge we came across on our journey here! And they will certainly help us defeat you!"

"Wait!" Nightmare Moon spluttered, "You still don't have the sixth Element! The spark didn't work!"

"But it did! A different kind of spark…" Twilight turned to face the others for just a moment. "I felt it the very moment I realized how happy I was to hear you, to see you… how much I cared about you. The spark ignited inside me when I realized that you all… are my friends!"

A crackling noise sounded off above Twilight's head, and a perfect, unblemished stone floated above her, releasing a brilliant light. She could feel it roiling inside her, not just the power of the Element linking with her very soul, but the utter joy and bliss that came with it.

"You see, Nightmare Moon, when those Elements are ignited by the… spark, that resides in the heart of us all, it creates the sixth Element. The Element of… Magic!"

All six girls were lifted into the air by the pull of their Element. The shards crashed against the first five, forming gems embedded on a necklace, while the final stone formed itself into the shape of a tiara. Each Element landed on its user, bonding with it, and taking over their bodies. In the moment, all their emotions were washed away by the raw, unadulterated sensation of their power. The girls had become nothing but conduits for the force of Harmony, and it shone through as they floated higher and higher into the air. Nightmare Moon stumbled backwards, unable to flee despite her overwhelming terror. No, she could only watch in astonishment… as… Twilight Sparkle opened her eyes… and they showed nothing but pure, blinding white light.

And then all grew quiet.

…

The first one to wake up was Rainbow Dash.

"Ugh… my head…"

But… wait, something was off. Oh! Oh, that's it! She didn't feel that weird pain in her side from when the manticore stabbed her! In fact, she didn't even feel tired or sore from the super long walk to the castle! Not the slightest ounce of pain seeped into her body! As the others woke up, they seemed to realize this as well.

Applejack spoke up next. "Everybody okay?"

"Oh, thank goodness!" Rarity exclaimed. Her hair had returned to its perfect, pristine state from before this whole affair had started!

"Why Rarity," Fluttershy gasped, "it's so lovely…"

"I know! I'll never part with it again!"

"No… your necklace. It looks just like your cutie mark." Fluttershy pointed between the purple necklace she wore and the blue gems in the exact same shape that were planted on her cheek.

"What? Oh! And so does yours!" And indeed, the pink butterfly necklace matched the three butterflies on Fluttershy's cheek!

"Look at mine! Look at mine!" Pinkie Pie tugged at the blue balloon gem around her neck as Rainbow hopped over to show off her red lightning bolt. Applejack and Twilight looked at each other's, an orange apple and a bright magenta six-pointed star respectively.

"Well gee, Twilight! I thought you were just spoutin' a lot of hooey to scare her off! But… I reckon we really do represent the Elements of Harmony."

An ethereal, soothing voice rang out from everywhere at once. A voice that Twilight knew most dearly.

"Indeed you do, my dear subjects."

As the sun rose beyond the horizon, the sunlight that flickered in through the window solidified into a corporeal form. The unearthly beauty that was the Princess of the Day.

"Princess Celestia!" Twilight rushed over, embracing her mentor in a hug.

"Twilight Sparkle, my faithful student. I knew you could do it."

"But… I thought you said it was all an old fairytale…"

Celestia smiled softly at her. "I told you that you needed to make some friends, nothing more." She released Twilight from her warm embrace and turned to gaze at the other girls. "I saw the signs of Nightmare Moon's return, and I knew it was you who had the magic inside to defeat her. I'd known for a very, very long time. But you could not unleash it until you let true friendship into your heart…" She turned around, staring at the smoldering remains of the dias, and the smaller woman who lay on it, still unconscious. "Now if only another will as well… Princess Luna!"

The girl, an alicorn, jolted awake and scrambled backwards anxiously. As Twilight took in her appearance, she noticed many things about her, such as her armored attire and the way nightly hair also flowed endlessly like Celestia's.

"It has been a thousand years since I have seen you like this…" The princess kneeled in front of the girl, and reached for her. Luna flinched, unsure of what to expect. But her eyes fluttered open in shock as she felt the taller woman's gloved hand rest against her cheek. "It is long time that we put our differences behind us. You have been gone for so long, you must realize what we have done wrong… We were meant to rule together, little sister."

The girls let out a silent gasp, "sister?" Twilight realized what Discord had meant all along. It really was- Her mentor was… over a thousand years old?! WHAT?

"Will you accept my friendship once more?"

The whole room sat with baited breath for the other princess' response. Her gaze fell to the floor, and her whole body shook as tears escaped her eyes. She hadn't meant to cry but… after hundreds of years of not being her true self, of not seeing her sister, or the grass, or the sky, or even smelling the air or hearing the chirp of birds or feeling the cool summer breeze or…

Luna broke into sobs, and threw herself against Celestia, wrapping her in the tightest hug she could give.

"I- I'm so so sorry! I- I've m- missed you so much- s- sister!"

Celestia lowered her head, resting her chin on her younger sister's head. Though she had never cried in front of her subjects before, she would make an exception just this once.

"I've missed you too…"

The girls each had different reactions, from applause, to mild sobbing, to congratulations. Twilight was still reeling a little bit from the fact that her beloved teacher was literally older than a millennium. Like. What was she supposed to do with that fact?! As the two princesses walked over to thank each Element, Twilight hardly responded at all as her mind raced. She couldn't believe Discord had actually been telling the truth about that and wasn't just being a crazy-

Wait…

Crap.

"Princess Luna!" Twilight rushed over, careful to give the still recovering princess proper space. "Where's Discord?! Didn't he follow you?"

Celestia's eyes widened at this, and Luna shrunk back, a guilty expression covering her face.

"He is… he is down the stairs, in the first room in the hall…"

Twilight nodded gratefully before spinning on her heel and bolting down the tower stairway. The other girls followed close behind, with the princesses following at a more leisurely pace. Twilight nearly tripped halfway down the stairs before Fluttershy stabilized her, and she swung around the corner and into the room Luna had pointed out. Which was uh… a bit worse for wear. In the sense that Twilight could tell it had been very recently destroyed.

Also Discord was curled up in the center with a massive head wound but, y'know, details.

"Discord!" Twilight slid to her knees and tried to shake him awake. The dracanthropos' eyes shot wide open and he jolted up at a 90 degree angle before collapsing into a pile of mismatched flesh once again.

"Ow."

"Oh my gosh, are you okay? Do you need help standing up?"

"What, afraid you'll lose your precious test subject?" he asked a little more bitterly than he meant to. But then he cleared his throat and forced his voice back to a more aloof tone. "No, it's quite alright. I'm simply suffering a minor case of serious brain damage and the smallest amount of severe blood loss."

"WHAT?!"

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding."

Twilight raised an eyebrow, but opted to take him at his extremely untrustworthy word and helped him to his feet. Applejack was the first to reach the room, and marveled at the general amount of destruction.

"Your buddy don't look so good, Twi. Well, nothing a good Apple family treatin' can't fix!"

Twilight smiled as the rest of the girls filtered in and swarmed around her and Discord. She turned back, looking him straight in the eyes. "Are you sure you're alright?"

"Heh, I can make it back to town, if that answers your ques….tion…." Discord trailed off as Celestia stepped into the room, and he subconsciously took a few steps backward.

"Discord."

"Heh… T- Tia… good to see you!"

"What are you doing here? Up to no good, I presume?"

"U- um, I was just-"

Twilight stepped in between the group and her mentor. "He was helping us!"

Celestia paused, clearly thrown for a loop by that statement. "He was… what?"

"Y- yeah! He went ahead of us after Nightmare Moon so he could stall for time! We never would've made it without him!" Twilight nudged Pinkie Pie and Applejack, who both started shaking their heads in agreement. Soon, all six of them were nervously vouching for the chaos spirit.

"L- Luna, is this true?"

Twilight shot Luna a desperate look behind Celestia's back, and she nodded as subtly as she could in acknowledgement. Truthfully, Luna had rather mixed feelings about the dracanthropos, but she owed Twilight and her friends a debt for freeing her from the evil in her heart… so…

"Y- yes, sister. It is true, that he helped the Element Bearers stop me."

"I see… In that case, I suppose we should all head back to Ponyville. The Summer Sun Celebration is long overdue."

The girls cheered, ready to get their party on for the festival!

…..

As everyone left the castle ruins and began the long trek back through the Everfree Forest, Discord held back, standing on the stone steps. His body felt light as it swayed back and forth against the summer breeze, and he wasn't quite sure what to make of the past thirty minutes or so. Twilight and those girls they'd met… were the Elements. There was no wishy washy way to look at it. No matter what Celestia had told them or what Twilight may have theorized, he could see the truth. They were infected with the Elements' magic now.

Maybe he should run while he still had the chance. If he found himself a nice, secluded place to hide until his power came back, maybe he had a better chance…

Twilight paused at the edge of the bridge as she realized Discord was no longer following her. She turned back, and walked up to the dazed looking man.

"What's on your mind?"

Discord was tempted to mask his thoughts in his typical enigmatic manner of speaking, but… for this, he absolutely had to know. And if he didn't ask the question, he wouldn't get an answer. His voice was uncomfortably deadened as he asked, "Why did you protect me from Celestia? You know I didn't follow her to help you. Even you're not that naive."

Twilight hummed in thought, before smiling.

"That's what friends are for!"

And she spun around, walking off like nothing was wrong. She didn't even turn to face him as she shouted, "I'll be waiting on the other side of the bridge!"

Friends.

Ha. That's… adorable. Truly, truly hilarious. It was so funny, so tragically, destructively, funny, that he forgot to laugh! She was… an idiot! She really thought- no, he'd simply overestimated her. She-

This is a good thing, Discord. How so? If an Element of Harmony, the most important Element, thinks that you two are friends, she'll be less likely to turn that power against you. Think about it for a second! You don't have to give up just yet!

"You're right."

…

The festivities, though delayed, were perhaps the most jovial event anyone participating had experienced in years! Residents of Ponyville celebrated the return of both the princesses, most instantly forgiving Luna for her actions upon her own repentance. An amazing parade, a brilliant orchestral display of music, performances, games, booths, foodstuffs, the banquet, the decorations- everything ended up going exactly as planned! Except even better! Spike woke up about halfway through the day, but didn't end up missing much at all. He still got to enjoy the festival like everyone else, with the added benefit of getting an excellent retelling of the events in the Everfree from the Elements.

Pinkie Pie ended up being the leader of the group through most of the day, dragging the girls between each different attraction whenever they weren't busy with their own arrangements. Twilight in particular had never felt this much excitement, nor had ever been this happy to spend time with someone that wasn't an immediate family member! Everyone, even Rarity and Fluttershy, ended up stuffing themselves with all the amazing food the Apple family had provided. Rainbow made it a competition to win as many booth games as possible within an hour, and very narrowly won with Discord in second place, who had begrudgingly agreed to join after he'd finished healing. That unwillingness soon faded away into annoyingly genuine happiness, though it was likely because he came so close to crushing Rainbow's victory. By the time the sky turned orange, and the sun was lowering into the horizon, everyone was drained from the most exciting day of their lives.

Twilight watched as the festival goers packed up their booths and took down the decorations. The other seven were still sitting around, or floating between the few remaining attractions. A bittersweet sensation filled Twilight's stomach as she watched the sun lower beneath the horizon.

"Why so glum, my faithful student?" Celestia walked up to Twilight, wrapping her wing around the younger woman. "Are you not happy that your quest is complete, and you can return to your studies in Canterlot?"

"Well… that's just it… Just when I learned how wonderful it is to have friends… I have to leave them."

Celestia chuckled, and waved over Spike. "Spike, take a note please. Ahem. 'I, Princess Celestia, hereby decree that the unicorn Twilight Sparkle shall take on a new mission for Equestria. She must continue to study the mysteries of the magic of friendship, and must report to me her findings, from her new home in Ponyville!'"

Twilight's jaw dropped. "R- really?! I can stay here? In the library?" Celestia nodded. "Oh, thank you Princess Celestia! I'll study harder than ever before! I've got to tell the girls this! I'll be right back!"

Twilight rushed off down the hill, barreling towards her new friends and shouting out the news. Celestia looked up at the night sky as the sun finally disappeared from view.

For the first time, it did not pain her to see her sister's beautiful moon.