by G. M. Berrow
Twilight tried to imagine taking such a terrible path. She couldn’t dream up any reason that would make her act like Sunset Shimmer had that evening.
Spike stepped forward, grasping the fake crown in his claws. “She replaced Twilight’s crown with this one.”
Princess Celestia inspected the impostor tiara. It was very similar to Twilight’s indeed. Shaking her head, she turned to Twilight.
“I suppose Sunset Shimmer thought you wouldn’t notice right away that this was not yours. And by the time you did, it would be too late to go after your crown and the Element of Harmony that adorns it.” Celestia sighed, clearly troubled by the situation at hoof.
Even after everything Celestia had explained, there were still so many questions that remained unanswered. The crown had disappeared into a mirror, and Sunset Shimmer had gone right in after it. That part made no sense at all.
“But I don’t understand,” Twilight piped up. “Where did she go? Where did she take the crown?”
Princess Luna and Princess Cadance, who had kept quiet through all this, exchanged a look of concern. They didn’t say anything.
“You’ll soon know more about this place than even I do,” Celestia replied, looking dreamily off into the distance. Her mind was somewhere else. Somewhere mysterious. Somewhere that a golden Unicorn and a missing crown probably were. And Twilight had a sneaking suspicion that she was about to go there, too.
Twilight’s stomach was a ball of nerves. First, she’d gotten herself so worked up about the Princess Summit, and now she was about to visit a strange, unknown place to retrieve her irreplaceable Element of Harmony? It was almost too much to handle. But Twilight tried to remain brave. Brave like Princess Luna, who was now trying to explain the mysterious magic mirror in the corner of the room where they’d last seen Sunset Shimmer.
The ponies and Spike all gathered around Luna. The dark princess of the night looked especially regal in the moonlight. Her starry-blue mane sparkled, and the dark midnight hue of her coat looked extra shiny.
“This is no ordinary mirror,” she explained. She pointed her hoof at the glass surface without touching it. “It is a gateway to another world.” Everyone’s eyes grew wide with intrigue—except for Pinkie Pie’s. Pinkie’s eyes had already been wide before Luna began speaking.
Princess Luna looked directly at Twilight. “It’s a gateway that opens only once every thirty moons.”
“Ooooooohh. Sparkly,” Pinkie Pie cooed. She leaned in a little bit closer and reached her hoof out to try and touch the surface of the mirror. Luna shook her head as a warning, and Pinkie pulled her hoof back, only slightly pouting at being stopped.
Luna explained that the mirror was usually kept in Canterlot Castle but had recently been brought to Princess Cadance in the Crystal Empire for safekeeping. Apparently, only a few nights before, Cadance had observed signs that the portal was opening again.
Princess Celestia looked into the mirror with a trace of sadness in her eyes. Twilight had never seen her this way. Celestia looked as if she were learning a hard lesson, even though she was usually the one doing the teaching. “I had always hoped that Sunset Shimmer would someday use it to return. To come back to Equestria seeking my guidance.” She lowered her head.
“Twilight,” Princess Cadance cut in, “you must use the mirror to go into this other world and retrieve your crown. Without it, the other Elements of Harmony have no power and Equestria is left without one of its most important means of defense.” Cadance looked Twilight straight in the eye.
Twilight nodded. She knew that Cadance was right. The Elements of Harmony had protected Equestria on more than one occasion. Without her crown, everypony back home in Ponyville and everypony else in the Kingdom was left completely vulnerable. What if Queen Chrysalis somehow came back again? Or King Sombra? Or somepony even worse? It was a horrible thought.
It was as if Princess Luna were reading Twilight’s mind. “In her possession, your Element of Harmony will no doubt be used to bring harm to the inhabitants of the realm that Sunset Shimmer now calls home,” explained Luna. “They will not have the power to defend themselves.”
Twilight didn’t want to think about it too much, but she was starting to understand just how important her mission was to everypony. If the other princesses trusted her to do it, then there was no way she was going to let them down.
Celestia stepped forward. “You must go at once.”
The young princess swallowed hard and nodded in agreement. But before she could step any closer to the mirror, Rainbow Dash blocked her path.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Rainbow said, holding up her hooves in protest. “Strange new world. Crazy former student wants to use an Element of Harmony for evil…” Rainbow cocked her head to the side. “… and you wanna send her there alone?”
Rainbow puffed up her chest and looked back to the Ponyville ponies for backup. “If she’s going, we’re going with her! Right, girls?”
Applejack stepped up to meet her, nodding. Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy joined in as well. The only pony who looked happy about it, though, was Pinkie. She grinned, inspecting the shimmery glass once more. Twilight felt a bit safer knowing her friends would be by her side.
“I’m so nervicited!” Pinkie said to Applejack, who must have been a little less thrilled with the idea of going through the portal.
“You do know that’s not a real word, right?” she retorted at the pink pony. But Pinkie ignored the statement and continued to grin at the mirror.
“I’m afraid I can’t let you all go,” Princess Celestia said to Rainbow Dash, who looked annoyed at being told what to do. “It would upset the balance of this alternate world, making it impossible for Twilight to get the crown back from Sunset Shimmer.”
Celestia turned to her faithful student. “This is something Princess Twilight must do alone.”
It was time. Twilight knew that she had to leave now, or risk losing her crown forever. She looked to each of her friends, who had begun to gather around her. It was going to be so scary to go to a new world without them.
“You can do this, Twilight,” encouraged Applejack, giving her a hug.
“You’ll be back before you know it,” added Fluttershy, giving a little smile.
“Time is of the essence!” Princess Luna interrupted the good-byes, eager to see Twilight off on her quest. She placed a bag on Twilight’s back, presumably for hiding the crown once it was recovered from Sunset Shimmer. Luna’s face was serious as she spoke. “Remember, on the third day, when the moon reaches its peak in the night sky, the gateway will close. Once it does, it will be another thirty moons before you will be able to use it to return.”
Rainbow Dash and Rarity looked to each other in concern. Three days wasn’t much time at all. Twilight nodded, taking it all in.
Just when Twilight was about to step through the swirling mirror, Princess Celestia gave one final warning. “Twilight, things will look very different where you are going. Even you will look different.”
Twilight wondered if maybe her wings would disappear again, then brushed the thought away. She really had no idea what to expect of this new world. Wings were the least of her problems right now.
“But if you use what you have learned here in Equestria,” Celestia continued, “I am sure you will prevail.”
“I’ll do my best,” Twilight replied sincerely. And with one final glance back at her friends, Twilight took a step through the filigreed arch of the shimmering frame.
Through the Portal
In the last moment before she left the Crystal mirror room, Twilight thought she heard the ponies screaming Spike’s name. But now that she was tumbling through the air, twisting and flipping through some unknown vortex, it was hard to tell. She couldn’t focus on anything, let alone figure out what had happened to him. Ouch! Twilight thought as her body contorted and stretched. She couldn’t see much. Just flashes of light, colors, and a blurry green-and-purple thing…
“Spik
e!” Twilight tried to yell, but nothing happened. He tumbled alongside her, squishing and stretching. But maybe she was dreaming and he wasn’t really there at all. FLASH! A white light flooded Twilight’s vision.
Twilight blinked. Spiky green things everywhere. Grass. It was just grass!
She felt a bit like she’d fallen from the top spire of Canterlot Castle. In fact, her whole body was sore. It was probably some aftereffects from the bumpy ride through the portal. Twilight leaned up and took in her surroundings. Green grass. Blue sky. A marble statue of a pony rearing up on its hind legs, in front of a massive red castle. So far, the strange new world seemed pretty much like Equestria.
Twilight noticed that the base of the statue looked shiny. It was almost as if it were made from the same mirrored material as the portal back in the Crystal Empire. Judging on where she was now sitting, it was a good bet that this was the other end of it! Three days, she reminded herself. Or thirty more moons.
“Uh… Twilight…” Spike’s voice was coming from somewhere. So he was here after all. The little stowaway!
“Spike, you’re not supposed to—” Twilight scolded, looking around for her dragon companion. Twilight gasped when she saw the creature next to her. It wasn’t a dragon at all!
“Spike? Are you a… dog?” Twilight said to the little purple mutt wearing a spiked collar. His tail wagged involuntarily.
“I think so,” the dog version of Spike replied. He scrunched up his face. “But I have no idea what you are.”
Before Twilight could ask him what he meant, she reached out her hoof to prop herself up. Only it wasn’t a hoof!
“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!!” Twilight screamed, looking at the things on the ends of her limbs. They were flat and had five sticks extending out from each of them. She wiggled them back and forth. They worked! Were these… “hands”? She had read about them somewhere before.
Twilight brought her new hands to her face to muffle her cries. She needed to get it together. If her hooves looked like this—she couldn’t imagine what the rest of her body looked like. She looked down at her torso. She was wearing a light blue shirt and a poufy purple skirt. On the left side of her skirt, a picture of her cutie mark—a large pink star with five little white stars—was stitched into the material! Interesting.
“You look like you. Only not you. Your muzzle is really small,” Spike observed, trying to calm her down. Twilight reached up and touched her face. He was right—her muzzle had completely shrunk down, and now she only had a small nose, high up on her face. What sort of dark magic was this? Twilight needed to find the crown and get back to normal as fast as possible. This was just too weird.
“Are you going to scream again?” asked Spike, looking a little too amused for Twilight’s liking. She shook her head. It was time to focus.
“So, I don’t know where we are,” she said. “But that must be the gateway back to Equestria.” She pointed to the base of the statue. “We need to get back here as soon as we find the crown. I suggest we start searching the castle first.”
Twilight stood up on all fours and tried to trot toward the castle. It was really hard to do with these new hooves. She felt like a foal learning to walk. It must have looked really odd, too, because Spike was giving her a funny look.
“Yeah, I don’t think that’s how the new you is supposed to…” Spike tried not to laugh. He was enjoying this a little too much. He pointed out a two-legged creature nearby, walking a dog like him on a leash. “See? I walk on all fours, while you walk on two,” he said.
Twilight leaned back on her hind legs. This actually felt a little more comfortable. Twilight took several steps forward on just two legs. She started to move across the grass with ease. How peculiar.
Thinking back to the night before, Twilight couldn’t believe she’d been worrying so much about just wings. Now she was in a completely unknown realm, stuck in a strange body that she didn’t even know how to work! The sooner she found the crown, the better. Twilight did not want to be this weird creature for longer than she had to.
As she hobbled up to the castle entrance, she observed the large main doors. This castle, with its many windows and golden spires, looked very important. It was probably locked. She knew what she had to do. Twilight lowered her head to use her horn to magic the doors open. It was a really simple spell, but nothing happened. Her magic wasn’t working! Celestia hadn’t mentioned that part!
Spike joined her at the top of the stairs. “Uh, Twilight? Hate to tell you this, but you don’t exactly have your horn anymore.”
Storming the Castle
Once she’d gotten over the initial shock of being completely hornless, Twilight realized that the main doors had been unlocked all along! She just needed to give them a push. She and Spike entered the castle, careful to avoid being seen by any royal guards. This kingdom and everything about it was mysterious—there was no way Twilight was risking being thrown in a dungeon and trapped for thirty moons. Not in this body!
Twilight and Spike approached a glass case just inside the main entrance. Twilight tried to ignore the reflection of herself that she could now see. Her face was flat, and her body was tall and thin. What in Equestria was she? She shuddered and turned her attention back to the mission.
The case in front of them appeared to be protecting a bunch of golden relics. Most of them were shaped like goblets with elaborate handles. Some of them had names engraved into them, and others just said CHS. Twilight didn’t see the crown in the case. That would be far too easy.
“What do you think, Spike?” Twilight said, looking for clues. “Other artifacts that Sunset Shimmer has stolen from Equestria?”
“Checking out my trophies, huh?” The sound of Rainbow Dash’s voice made Twilight jump. She turned around and was met with the sight of one of her best friends. Well, sort of.
She still looked like the same old Rainbow Dash in a way—sporting a multicolored mane, a light blue hide, and a smug expression. The only difference was that this Rainbow Dash had a strange body just like Twilight’s new one. She was even wearing a cool outfit consisting of a red skirt, tall blue sneakers, and a cobalt-blue shirt. Rarity would have approved of the sporty look.
“Rainbow Dash?” Twilight asked, unsure.
“The one and only!” Rainbow replied, with a familiar little smirk on her short-muzzled face.
“What are you doing here?” Twilight asked. Rule breaking always made Twilight uneasy. Apparently, even in this realm. But unlike Twilight, it wouldn’t be the first time Rainbow had broken the rules. “Princess Celestia said I was the only one who could be here,” Twilight scolded. Twilight was still trying to figure out how both Spike and Rainbow Dash had managed to jump in through the portal after her.
“Princess Celestia?” Rainbow looked at Twilight like she was completely nuts. “You mean Principal Celestia?”
“I… well… I don’t…” Twilight stammered, trying to make sense of what that word even meant. Maybe principal was some sort of new nickname for princess that she hadn’t heard yet. She raised an eyebrow at the bizarre version of Rainbow Dash.
“I’m totally allowed to be here. I’ve got a hall pass,” Rainbow retorted, holding up a small wooden paddle. She gave Twilight a sideways look. “Better run. Catch ya later, new girl!”
As she watched Rainbow run off on her two hind legs, Twilight marveled at the similarities between the new Rainbow and the old one. Everything she said and did seemed just like pony Rainbow Dash—but she obviously had no clue who Twilight was. It was fascinating.
BRIIIIING! Bells began to ring from every direction. Twilight and Spike stiffened, worried that they somehow set off some sort of magic castle alarm. But before they could hide themselves, hundreds more creatures like herself—girls and boys—poured into the hallway through every door in sight. It was more crowded than the Apple farm on Cider Day!
The creatures shuffled back and forth down the corridor, shoving into one another carelessly. They were all in such a rush.
Twilight swayed back and forth, fighting to stay standing on her new legs amid all the commotion. She was still a little wobbly.
A sudden push from a girl with light purple hair (who strangely resembled Diamond Tiara from back in Ponyville) sent Twilight stumbling directly into someone else. Twilight soon lost control and continued to ping-pong through the bodies until a helpful arm reached out to break her fall.
“You okay?” the blue-haired boy creature said through a concerned expression. It was all she could do to nod a response and back away from him. This was the busiest castle she’d ever seen. Twilight was completely overwhelmed.
As if he’d read her mind, Spike whispered, “I don’t think this is a castle.” As she watched the girls and boys all around her—talking, laughing, and slamming tiny metal doors on the wall—Twilight silently agreed that the dragon turned dog might just be right. But if it wasn’t a castle, then why did it need a crown?
The hallway crowd was starting to thin out, so Twilight didn’t feel as panicky. She had been so busy getting used to this strange realm with its two-legged animals, she was wasting precious crown-finding time. She took a couple of deep breaths and tried to determine her next move. Twilight surveyed the area with caution, peeping in all directions like a spy. Spike just shrugged and thumped his new tail.
“I’m really sorry,” whimpered a tiny voice from around the corner. “I just found it and thought I should give it to her.” Twilight would know that soft voice anywhere—there was no doubt that it was Fluttershy! And it sounded like she was in trouble.
Twilight leaned around a set of the green metal locking doors that lined the walls to get a better look. Sure enough, a girl with vibrant red-and-golden hair leaned over someone who was definitely this world’s version of Fluttershy. Twilight recognized her friend immediately—her light pink mane and demure expression were unmistakable. “I didn’t know that you dropped it,” Fluttershy explained to the other figure, whose face was hidden.
