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garebare65:
Bill: That's the thing; it was like a subconscious movement.

Dovahdog: Go right on for it!

ponylover: Good for you.

RenaTamer: Mark didn't know it.

Dragon'z Wrath: Will!

LexiconHuka: That means I'm doing a good job!

Author's Note: Here's another chapter to sate your hunger, you bloody jackels!

Now, the ride will never end (until it crashes into the mountains)! MiE is officially back!

[Third Person, Dawn and Max]

"Max, I don't think you quite understand," the death prince shook his head and tried again. "Over a thousand years of standing up to her, and yet… I've never seen Celestia back down so quickly from a potential conflict, how did you do it?"

"What can I say, I'm just good with horses…" He smiled, again shrugging it off as he opened the book before him. Dawn decided to not take that as an insult.

Dawn stood there for a few more minutes, his sharp eyes watching the young man as he went back to studying… Deciding to ruin his conecentration for a moment by acting like a colt, Dawn leaped up onto the table, landing directly on the book Max was reading.

.
Dawn stood there for a few more minutes, his sharp eyes watching the young man as he went back to studying… Deciding to ruin his concentration for a moment by acting like a colt, Dawn leaped up onto the table, landing directly on the book Max was reading.

"Umm, do you mind?" Max blinked in confusion.

"No, I want answers and you are going to give them to me." Dawn persisted, frowning a little.

"Look," Max sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "I'd like to tell you how I calmed Sunbutt down, but to tell you the truth, I don't know."

"Yes you do, even if you don't realize it…" Dawn said as his horn lit up. "And I'm going to get to the bottom of this."

Before Max could do or say anything there was a flash and…

"Where in the seven layers of…" the death pony stood in a black room with several empty picture frames, each the size of Luna (Think of the place Sunbutt took Twi after the Elements zapped her). As he watched on, the frames began to slowly float about him and play bits and pieces of Max's life…

"Momy, Daddy…Look out!" Spinning around, Dawn found himself facing a frame that had a blue sedan being slammed into by a huge semi, and the screams as 5 year old Max watched his parents die. He was about to look away when a new, but strangely familiar, voice issued forth. "Sssh… It's ok little one, I've got you…"

For a moment his mind went blank and Red Dawn found himself frozen to the spot. Before him a tall white alicorn with deep red mane and tail, was holding little Max with her wings, gently nuzzling the frightened boy. "Yes," she smiled warmly while slowly rocking the child, "I think you will do nicely…"

"Wait, what the hell?!" Dawn suddenly cried out when the picture faded away.

"That's it, you want to be firm to get the tangles out, yet gentle enough as to not pull the hairs out of her tail." Looking to his left, a different frame showed Max, now age 12, was brushing the tail of a young foul, while the white alicorn stood next to him, giving tips.

"Who are you?" he asked as he moved closer to the frame, his eyes locked on the unknown alicorn. He swore he knew her from somewhere, but he couldn't put a finger on it, even if he had fingers.

"Are you sure about this?" Again, Dawn turned and found another frame with the same alicorn, only this time Max was 18, drunk off his ass, and standing in a tattoo parlor. "Well, if you insist on going through with this, may I make a suggestion?"

"So that's how Max got the sun tattoo on his ass…" Dawn couldn't help but snicker.

"Max, it's time," another frame began to play, but when Dawn turned toward it he found the human bent over a cargo strap while securing a HMMWV. All around him the lights of the C-5 Galaxy flickered as a storm buffeted the plane. "I'm sending you to Equestria, I'm sending you to Celestia…" After finishing, her horn flared as she cast a spell. Dawn barely noticed this.

"Say what now?" As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the strange alicorn suddenly looked up past Max and gazed directly at Dawn. "Oh crap…"

"Greetings Timeithian," the alicorn flashed a sweet, calming smile as she stepped from the picture frame and stood before him. "It has been a long time. Seven thousand, eight hundred and fifty-seven years, to be exact."

"Do…Do I know you?" He asked, taking a step back. There was a voice in the back of his head, nagging at him that he did, in fact, know this mare.

"Maybe this will help," she gave him a wink as her red mane and tail shifted… becoming more like Luna's, filled with stars… only this alicorn also had planets and super novas and… and that was when he saw her cutie mark.

"Queen Mother Faust…"

"It is good to see you again Timeithian," she nodded as she bent down and kissed him on the forehead. "Or should I call you Red Dawn now?" The first thought that came through his addled mind was that she could call him by his birthname, but he was unable to voice it.

"I…I… you," realization suddenly slammed into his brain. "It was you, not 'Tia who brought Max here… all this time I thought… But why?"

"Two of my own were hurting, one had forgotten what it was like to love and be loved, becoming closed off and alone." She sighed as she drooped a wing down and placing it on his shoulder. "While the other had to forfeit ever finding love…or die." Gently she pulled him close, into a motherly embrace. "So I sent two humans to Equestria, two humans that I watched over and quietly instructed, two humans that I gave the power to help my lost ponies…"

"Two?" Dawn blinked in dismay. "I know of Max, but who is the other?"

"Jane Shepard," the Queen simply said as she slowly moved away.

"JANE?!" He stood there dumbfounded. "But we, I can't… I'll die!"

"The family's curse stated that if you ever bred with another pony, that you would die after the foul was born." She stated as she began to fade. "But Jane is not a pony…"

"WAIT… Please don't go… I have so many questions…" Dawn begged as she turned around, still fading.

"Dawn," she smiled as she glanced back over her shoulder at him.

"Yes?" He asked, his eyes watering for the first time in centuries.

"Time to wake up."

"No!" he rushed forward, only to tumble off Max's desk and right into the human's lap.

"Dude, are you ok?" Max asked, a worried expression showing on his face. Instead of answering Max, Dawn teleported out as fast as he could. The last thing Max saw was something that nobody would've expected to appear on Dawn's face; twin streaks of tears.

[Dawn's POV, 2300]

"Should I tell her?" I quietly contemplated as I paced the floor of my room in Canterlot. Quietly, since I didn't want to wake up Jane, who was halfway curled up in m-... our bed.

My guards that were posted outside knew that something was troubling me, since I only use this room when I'm thinking about something depressing.

"Tell who?" Jane asked, making me jump a little in shock.

"Did I wake you?" I asked, my ears flattening a little from embarrassment.

"Maybe..." She said with a sly grin, then her face went neutral. "Tell who?"

"Tell Celestia." I sighed, levitating a bottle of whiskey and taking a sip. The burn in the back of my throat made me continue. "While... Browsing through Max's memories, I stumbled across someone."

"Who was it?" She asked, accepting the bottle and taking a swig.

"Mother..." I quietly said, looking down. "I haven't seen her since Father died, and it turns out that she was in the past this whole time."

"What happened?" Jane asked, pulling me close after sitting on the couch that was smack dab in the middle of the room. I took another sip before answered.

"We... talked." I hesitantly said.

"About?" Jane pressed.

'Should I tell her? That she was brought here, just because I was lonely?' I questioned myself. After looking at Jane, who was patiently waiting for an answer, I decided.

"Max, and why he ended up here." I sighed. Technically, I wasn't lying, but it still hurt a little to keep this from her.

"Mother, since he was five, more or less raised Max up to be Celestia's husband. Of course, she won't marry, but it's what Mother would want, if she could." I explained, flicking some dust off of the back of the couch.

"How do you know?" She asked.

"I saw... Visions, of important events of his life that lead up to the C-5 crashing." I answered. "All of them had Mother speaking to him." After a moment, I recognized something in the last vision. "Now I know why he didn't mention her!"

"What do you mean?" Jane asked as I bolted out of her lap.

"Mother cast a memory spell on him, so he wouldn't remember her! But he still kept the knowledge that she gave him!" I somewhat excitedly said as I started pacing again. "If I can reverse the spell, I could learn more about all of this." Looking at her, I also knew that I could just glimpse into her hidden memories...

No, she can't even think for a minute that she was there only to be my wife. It would hit her hard, and I didn't want to see her in pain, if it be mental, emotional, or physical.

But, I think I could talk to Lunacae and see if she's been visited by our Mother while banished onto the moon.

"I'll be back!" I shouted to Jane as I raced out the door, scaring the hell out of my sentries.

Author's Note: Most credit goes to RenaTamer, who I'm officially naming my co-author for select events, 'cause he's awesome like that.

Keep it up, bro! (This is also an invitation for your plot bunnies to work on this some more)

"Burnt juice tastes really bad, though it does wonders to wake you up." General Mark Durnkinscoff, commenting on how badly he cooks with anything other than coffee.