The Crystal Carriage landed just outside Unicornia, and Rarity and Pinkie Pie got out. Star Catcher flew beside them, and they looked at the village and Crystal Rainbow Castle with worry. Without the cheer of the unicorns, it seemed lonely and even intimidating—and the threat from Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo hung over them like a dark cloud.
"Well, we're here," Star Catcher said. "But how do we get in?"
"I live there, so I know the place pretty well. You could fly to the ball room window, and—no, there are bars in the way, and the door locks from the outside. We'd have to get in through the front gate," Rarity said with a frown.
Star Catcher nodded flew up to get a better view, and gasped. "That will be hard. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo are right by the door! How can we get by?"
"Hmm. I think a squink," said Pinkie Pie, initiating a Pinkie Squink. As the others watched, in the puffy magic clouds were images of a grand entrance—Pinkie Pie and Star Catcher would ride in on and fly beside the Crystal Carriage, distracting Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. Then Rarity snuck in behind them, freed the others, and together a rainbow was created, saving the day—though this part was vague, as Pinkie Pie wasn't exactly sure what the rainbow would do.
The Pinkie Squink faded, and she smiled. "What do you think?"
"It sounds like it could work," Star Catcher said.
"Yup! Hop in and the birds will do the rest," Rarity said with a wave of her wand, unlocking the door.
Pinkie Pie stepped in, and Star Catcher flew above them. The Crystal Carriage was pulled towards Crystal Rainbow Castle, and Rarity followed a bit behind, waiting for her cue.
Then the birds stopped, chirping weakly. One wiped at her face with a wing, and Pinkie Pie frowned. "Are you okay?"
The bird nodded and tried to pull them forward, but the carriage wouldn't budge.
"Oh no! They're tired from carrying us here! I'm so sorry," Rarity said, running up to the birds and patting them with her hooves. "What are we gonna do now? Cheerilee and the others are counting on us!"
Before either of her friends could say anything, Rarity raised a hoof to look at the castle gates—and raised her magic wand high.
"I have to do this myself!"
Rarity charged for the gates, waving the wand and producing a small rainbow. While very pretty, it was also very small, and was unfocused without a target. Before it even reached Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, the rainbow faded—and the magic noises it made drew attention.
Scootaloo saw the remnants of the rainbow, then Rarity, and gasped.
"Look, Sweetie Belle! We missed a unicorn! And she has a magic wand!"
"You're right," Sweetie Belle gasped. "Quick, let's catch her!"
Sweetie Belle looked around and saw an unused string of lights. Her horn glowed and the lights unraveled, floating towards Rarity and wrapping around her. Scootaloo grabbed one end of the lights and tugged Rarity forward, causing her to drop the wand.
It landed on the ground and skidded towards her two aggressors. Sweetie Belle picked it up, curious, and Rarity let out a cry. "Let go! That's my wand—or Cheerilee's wand! It's my responsibility to help pick the new princess!"
"A princess? Cool! This is going right in my box of stuffy stuff," Sweetie Belle said happily, tucking the wand into her own mane.
"It is so weird to hear you say Cheerilee," Scootaloo commented, pulling Rarity closer to the castle gate. "Now quit struggling!"
Just then, Star Catcher and Pinkie Pie ran forward and grabbed the other end of the lights, beginning a tug of war. Rarity grimaced as she was yanked back and forth, and Sweetie Belle stopped and stared at the new arrivals.
"Who are you," Sweetie Belle asked. "And how did you get here? The others were supposed to have caught all of the ponies!"
"I'm Star Catcher," the pegasus said. "And Pinkie Pie and I are here to help our friends."
"That includes you, too," the earth pony added with a bright smile. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo looked confused, and even upset.
"Uh, hello? We're not your friends. We just invaded your castle and tied everyone up," Scootaloo pointed out with a shake of her mane.
"Yeah! And I'm gonna add Rarity's wand to my stuffy stuff," Sweetie Belle added, indignant.
"I know," Rarity said, wrenching herself out of Scootaloo's grip. "But you had fun before! And fun is better than fighting, if you ask me!"
The Forgotten Ones glared at the other ponies, Scootaloo looking ready to charge and Sweetie Belle's horn starting to glow. Rarity frowned and readied herself to run at them if need be.
Suddenly, Star Catcher flew between them with a shout.
"Wait! I have an idea!"
"You do," Pinkie Pie whispered.
Star Catcher thought a moment, then nodded.
"We can use a game to settle this argument," Star Catcher said with a flourish. She smiled at Pinkie Pie.
"A game? Sounds fun!" Sweetie Belle squeaked.
"What kind of game," asked Scootaloo, still eyeing them suspiciously.
Pinkie Pie looked around and spotted the string of lights—and remembered Rarity jumping rope with Lily Lightly at the last Rainbow Lights Party.
"How about jump rope? Whoever jumps the longest wins. You're good at that, right, Scootaloo?"
The orange pony nodded, jumping up and down
"Of course I am, and so is Sweetie Belle!"
The white unicorn blinked. "I am?"
Scootaloo cleared her throat. "So, what are the stakes?"
"It's simple," Pinkie Pie said. "If we win, you have to let Cheerilee and the other unicorns go, and return Rarity's magic wand to her."
Scootaloo seemed uncertain, but nodded. "And if we win—uh, when we win?"
Pinkie Pie's face was serious.
"If you win, Rarity, Star Catcher, and I will leave Unicornia without arguing. Deal?"
Scootaloo thought…and extended a hoof. Pinkie Pie shook it.
"Deal."
###
The ponies gathered in Unicornia's square, ready to decide the city's fate. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo stood on one side, while Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Star Catcher stood on the other. The jump ropes were ready, waiting to be used.
But before beginning, Pinkie Pie had one additional rule.
"No magic or flying allowed," she said, looking at Star Catcher, Rarity, and Sweetie Belle in turn.
"Why's that," asked Scootaloo. "Are you scared of Sweetie Belle's awesome magic?"
"Magic or flying would be an unfair advantage," Star Catcher explained. "And friends earn each others' trust."
The Forgotten Ones scowled at the mention of friends, but Sweetie Belle seemed confused. She pointed at herself and Scootaloo, then at the other three. Satisfied, she spoke.
"You said no cheating, but there's one, two, three of you…and only two of us! That's not fair."
"You're right, Sweetie Belle. But we'll make it fair for you!" Rarity said. "Star Catcher, why don't you be the judge?"
The pegasus nodded, and turned around, twisting her tail with her friends'. "I pegasus promise to not free the unicorns during the game, interfere in any way, or make an unfair call."
Pinkie Pie smiled. "Does that work?"
Sweetie Belle nodded. "You really do play fair!"
"Now let's play," Scootaloo grinned, readying her jump rope. The others followed suit.
"Ready…begin," Star Catcher cried.
Immediately, the ponies began to jump rope. Rarity and Scootaloo, being the most athletic of the ponies there, jumped rope at an even, equal pace.
Pinkie Pie was doing well at first, but she wasn't used to jumping for extended lengths of time,a nd went too fast to keep up. After 25 jumps, she stumbled and flopped onto her rope.
"Pinkie Pie's out," Star Catcher called. Seeing her friend looking glum, she added, "Rarity's still in the game."
Giggling over Pinkie Pie's fall, Sweetie Belle lost her concentration and forgot to jump as the rope came down. The jump rope hit her hooves, and Sweetie Belle was knocked onto her backside from the impact.
"Sweetie Belle's out as well, leaving Rarity and Scootaloo," Star Catcher said. The two remaining contestants stared at each other and upped the pace.
"You can do it, Scootaloo," squeaked Sweetie Belle. "Remember your sister, Cheerilee!"
"You go, Rarity," Pinkie Pie cheered. "Uh, remember your Cheerilee, and your responsibility as the rainbow princess!"
Rarity and Scootaloo continued to jump, faster and faster until the ropes were a blur. It was clear neither pony wanted to lose.
They continued to jump, their manes and tails bouncing more and more every second. It was clear, however, that both Rarity and Scootaloo were beginning to tire. Sweetie Belle saw a chance.
"Give up! Your friend lost," Sweetie Belle called.
"There's no way I can give up! This is for all of my friends," Rarity cried, and in that moment Scootaloo's legs gave out. She fell in full view of Sweetie Belle and the other ponies. Rarity followed a second later, but it was that single second that counted..
"Rarity wins," Star Catcher cheered.
Panting, Rarity stood and helped Scootaloo up. "That was fun! Now you let my friends go," she said.
Scootaloo shook her head. "Nuh-uh! I can't let them go even if you won. Our Master wouldn't allow it, and besides, you cheated!"
"No they didn't," Sweetie Belle said. "They won on their own. I'm sad you lost, but keeping a promise isn't hard! I'll show you!"
She tugged the magic wand out of her mane and handed it over. "Here, Rarity! This is yours."
Rarity thanked her and put it in her own mane. "Now it's your turn to keep your promise, Scootaloo!"
Scootaloo nodded, suddenly frightened.
"I-I know... I really hope he's not too angry…"
She turned to the others. "Alright. We'll let them go. Come on, Sweetie Belle."
Pinkie Pie, Star Catcher, and Rarity cheered and hugged—but they had all noticed Scootaloo's fear.
###
Scootaloo opened the castle door and led the ponies to the ball room. Sweetie Belle used her horn on the lock, and it opened. Rarity stepped forward and into the room—and all the unicorns there gasped. "Rarity," they cried in unison. "You saved us!"
"How did you do it? We were so worried," Cheerilee cried.
"It wasn't easy, but I had help from my friends," Rarity said, inviting Pinkie Pie and Star Catcher in with a wave of her hoof.
"Pinkie Pie! Good to see you," said Brights Brightly, wiggling a hoof free to wave at her. Pinkie Pie smiled and waved back.
"Wow! You can fly," said Whistle Wishes, staring at Star Catcher.
The pegasus nodded. "I'm Star Catcher! If all goes well, maybe you can meet my pegasus pony friends—after they've been rescued," she said, moving to untie Whistle Wishes.
"Did they get captured too," asked Lily Lightly, looking worried.
"Yes. And so did Pinkie Pie's friends in Ponyville. The Breezies are in trouble too," Rarity said. "And to help everyone out, we're going to make a rainbow, right now! Come on, Cheerilee!"
A startled cry interrupted them; every pony turned to look.
It was Sweetie Belle. She looked very nervous, and almost frightened.
"Um…Um…"
"Yes," Cheerilee asked.
"Please don't make a rainbow," she said. "At least wait until we can get back to Willy-Nilly Mountain!"
Scootaloo nodded. "It's not as bad as the light and all, but…please! We'll leave without any trouble! We promise," she added.
Everyone gasped.
"Willy-Nilly Mountain? Is that where you live," asked Star Catcher.
"Uh huh. It's in the Black Mountains! Right near the old volcano," Sweetie Belle said. "Whimsey used to live there by herself, but now we all do!"
Cheerilee looked very concerned. "Rainbows bring joy and color to the land. Why don't you want to be around one? And what was that light you mentioned?"
Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle said nothing, only staring up at them.
"…Alright," Rarity said. "We'll wait til you leave. I hope you have a safe trip home," she added.
"…Thank you," Scootaloo said quickly, running out.
"Thanks," Sweetie Belle squeaked. "Rainbows are really scary, but the light's worse," she added, running after Scootaloo.
The unicorns, Pinkie Pie, and Star Catcher watched them go. True to their word, the young ponies caused no further mischief and left without incident.
"Wow," Rarity said. "I wonder what that was all about."
"I'm not entirely sure," Star Catcher said, "but they were certainly acting nicer than before. They even thanked us."
"Yeah! And they kept their promise. That's a good first step to making friends," Pinkie Pie said with a smile.
"Now we can make a rainbow," Cheerilee said with a smile. "Follow us to the Crystal Dome!"
###
Cheerilee, Bright Brightly, Whistle Wishes, and Rarity were all gathered under the dome. The other ponies crowded around them, watching and waiting as Pinkie Pie and Star Catcher brief them on the situation.
"We want this rainbow to go to the Rainbow Waterfall," Pinkie Pie explained. "That's the entrance to Butterfly Island!"
"Do you want anyone to come with you? It sounds dangerous," said an orange unicorn with bubbles for a cutie mark.
Star Catcher smiled. "Help is always welcome. It might be hard talking with Toola Roola and Starsong at first, since they're about as shy as my pegasus pony friends…"
"If that's the case," Lily Lightly said, "I'll go! I used to be shy, but I became braver with help from my friends. I can relate to them," she said, giggling and making her horn glow.
"That would be great! Thanks, and welcome aboard," Pinkie Pie said, pulling the purple unicorn into a hug.
"That's very brave of you, Lily! I'm proud of you," Cheerilee said.
"Make us prouder," Brights Brightly said with a wink.
"I will! Is the rainbow ready," Lily asked.
Rarity concentrated, leaning forward so her horns touched the other unicorns' horns. "Almost…"
She opened her eyes.
"Now!"
Multicolored beams of light fired form the unicorns' horns—yellow for Brights Brightly, blue for Whistle Wishes, purple for Cheerilee, and pink for Rarity. The four colors came together and sprang from the dome as a beautiful, magical rainbow that flowed around the room. Everyone gasped at the breathtaking sight, but there was work to be done.
Star Catcher, Pinkie Pie, Lily Lightly, and Rarity all jumped on the rainbow. The unicorns waved goodbye, and the rainbow, with them on it, flew out the window. Soon it was out of Unicornia entirely.
"Butterfly Island, here we come," Pinkie Pie cried.