My Little Pony:

A Crimson Tale

By HawkeyenNextGen

Prologue:

Once upon a time, there was a far away land beyond of what we can see. That land was not much different than ours, expect for its origin and those who live in that land. Some say it left this world long ago. Others think it is just of myth and legend. But to young hearts, it is anything but just a fantasy. This was the land of Equestria. And this is the tale of a journey that was so far and so long, friendship still had to reach its most majestic.

Chapter 1

A butterfly flapped its wing in the cool April breeze. It abruptly smelled the scent of tulip on a bush. The butterfly descended and landed there. Most of the leaves on it were bursting out with life and others still were enclosed in warmth; waiting to bloom. Unfortunately, none of the open flowers consisted of nectar in them. Then it smelled something else, the presence of another animal. It flew down to a nearby dirt trail which the bush was near. As it landed it noticed the scent was right above it. It looked up to see a pink ponytail. That tail belonged to a bright yellow pony with light pink hair and the patch of a butterfly on her right back leg. The pony's name was Fluttershy and she was a winged pony. Facing her, a purple unicorn pony was introducing to her a young green and purple dragon.

"*gasp* A baby dragon!" Fluttershy exclaimed. Her sudden movements made the butterfly startled and eventually fly away along with other neighboring butterflies. In the meantime, Fluttershy ignored the fact that she was running straight towards the purple pony in her desire to see the dragon up close. The purple pony's name was Twilight Sparkle and she was sent into the air and tumbling onto the ground.

"I've never seen a baby dragon before!" said Fluttershy. "He's sooooo cute."

"Well well well." said the dragon as he turned his head towards Twilight. His name was Spike. His is preferably 8 years old (in dragon years). He was lost from his parents when he was much younger. He was found in a basket near the mountains and brought to Twilight's home when she was a little girl. When the news was heard throughout her home, Twilight decided to make him her little helper. As of right now, Twilight needed help standing on all four legs.

"Twilight?" That was the word of a pony attempting to make another respond. "Twi, wake up." The voice said again. The voice headed to a purple unicorn sleeping in a bed. It was Twilight. She was talking in her sleep. "Wakey wakey!" the voice said once more. Twilight smacked her lips twice and opened her eyes slowly.

"Huh, whaa… who are?" she sputtered as she rubbed her eyes. "Grandma?" When her vision became clear she saw an orange pony with blonde ponytailed (obviously) hair with the patch of an apple on her right back leg. The pony was also wearing a cowboy hat.

"Applejack?" said Twilight.

"Howdy." Applejack responded. Applejack is a country pony that lives on an apple farm, the only and best apple farm in Ponyville, and possibly Equestria.

"What time is it?" Twilight asked.

"About eight-thirty."

"WHAT?!"

"Looks like you'd better hurry."

"Hurry? I should pulverize! I am late for my new job!"

"And for the third time. I honestly think you need a new alarm clock. I know you cherish it, but that ancient thing goes cuckoo every now and then." Applejack suggested. Twilight hurried over to the cupboard to get her supplies. She was in a state of panic that made her hands miss a couple of objects and dropped them to the floor.

"And I thought Pinkie Pie was the only one who could get all wound-up like this." said Applejack.

"Very funny." Twilight said sarcastically.

"So what was all that talking in your sleep about?" Applejack asked.

"Oh, I was dreaming about the time Spike and I entered Ponyville. It was when we met Fluttershy. I don't know why it is still in my head. Maybe it is because I am too stressed out." said Twilight.

"Or maybe it is because of the knock on your noggin that keeps knockin'." Applejack teased.

"Oh, be quiet." Twilight said as she packed up her materials necessary in a bag and clopped down the stairs into the living room.

"Hey, I'm just sayin'. Even that shy somepony can still pack a punch." Applejack tried to reason.

"Whatever." Twilight said without thinking as she darted out the door of her home which was basically built in a tree. In the meantime, Spike woke up and rose from his bed downstairs.

"What was that racket?" he asked to whoever was in the house.

"It was nothing partner." Applejack answered as she stepped out the door.

The streets of Ponyville were packed. Twilight was surprised. This was unusual for the streets to be this crowded on a hot day like today. Twilight thought for this to be a case of a tradition. But as she overheard the conversations in the jam-packed streets, she eventually spotted where the commotion was taking place. She saw a wooden stage with purple curtains to her left. She thought she saw that particular curtain before, but started doubting what she was thinking of. But when she saw an advertisement on the billboard of the community center, she brought herself to a standstill. Her eyes widened. Now she was certain about the familiarization with that stage. It was the stage on the night where her arch-rival duel her in a battle of magic performances. It was Trixie's stage. Oh no, not again! Twilight thought. She already had enough of Trixie and her performances. Trixie calls herself the Great and Powerful, but she was also a troublemaker and full of mischief. During her shows, she can turn good things into bad things. For example she can turn a baby's lollipop into a scarecrow. Yep, she is that mean. Not only that, but she has her own rules. And according to them, she challenges Twilight to a magic duel at every single performance. All of these things were running through Twilights head. And it made her very angry. It's just not right! She thought. This is against Celestia's will!Celestia is one of the two immortal sisters who rule and watch Ponyville and the world from above. Twilight was an orphan found near a pond by Celestia and her younger sister Luna. Together, they preserve the natural balance of darkness and light. However Celestia lives in a castle on a mountain while Luna lives on the moon. So Celestia was in charge in taking care of Twilight in her palace. When the time was right, Celestia sent Twilight and Spike down in a balloon so they could both make friends, understand the value of teamwork, and one day discover their origins. But then Twilight realized she was late for work. The thought of Trixie made her forget about rushing to work, so she conuntide and soon arrived at the main hall of the post office. There were rooms on the side full of ponies writing letters to be sent out. There were also ponies making newspaper around the left corner of the hall. Yes, this was the home for the newspaper Equestria Daily. Feeling nervous, she walked up to her boss's office. His name was Mr. Steinbeck. He was a fair boss but pretty strict when it comes to a "faithful student" like Twilight being late. She stopped in her tracks at the door. She gulped and had a feeling Mr. Steinbeck would scold her. She slowly opened the door and peered inside. She was relieved to see that he wasn't there. Maybe she was just looking in the wrong place.

"TwwiiiiLIGHT!" The purple unicorn's skin jumped. She turned around panting. It was Mr. Steinbeck.

"Miss Sparkle," he said in a serious but worrying tone. "How come you are late for the third time a single row?"

"My sincerest of apologies Anthony I…oop!" Twilight sputtered as she caught herself accidentally speaking her boss's first name. She first heard it at her first job interview with Mr. Steinbeck who introduced his wife to her. Mrs. Steinbeck obviously called her husband Anthony. That name made Mr. Steinbeck's left eye twitch a little.

"THAT'S MR. STEINBECK TO YOU!" he said in an outrageous tone. Twilight bowed her head and whispered a number of apologies to him. Mr. Steinbeck rolled his eyes. "Get off the floor." He said in a calming tone as he sat down in his chair. Twilight stood in front of his desk. "Now tell me again why you are late."

"My alarm clock malfunctioned again." she said. "Applejack took the time to wake me up. I hope I won't forget again."

"You better not." Mr. Steinbeck replied. "But why don't you do it before you go to bed?"

"Well…" Twilight hesitated. Sweat was trickling down her neck.

"Is it because you were staying up late with some of your friends again?"

"Sort of," she tried to justify. "But I also have to take some care of Spike, write a letter to Celestia, put away my books, and…" She paused, for she became overwhelmed by Mr. Steinbeck ctirizing. Looking down on this, Mr. Steinbeck sighed and comforted Twilight.

"Look Twilight," Mr. Steinbeck interrupted. "I apologize for the way I yelled at you. I truly do. I do admit that I can be oversensitive sometimes."

"I.. I appreciate your apology sir." said Twilight. "But I don't know how I can improve on this." She started to doubt that she chose the right job.

"Twilight, I trust you in this. I wouldn't make you a messenger if I hadn't found out that you were Celestia's faithful student. But as far as I know you sometimes can be overzealous."

"Overzealous?" asked Twilight. She had no idea what that meant.

"It means overdoing things." said Mr. Steinbeck. "When you mess up while being overzealous, you sometimes can be hard on yourself. When you do, it can affect your friends as well as you. You wouldn't want them to think you bully yourself." Twilight understood her train of thought. She then made a commitment to herself that she with the help of her friends would improve.

"Thank you." said Twilight.

"You're dismissed." Said Mr. Steinbeck. Twilight walked out of her office with her messenger's bag, got the messages and letters she needed, and set off in Canterlot to deliver them.

An ember crackled and landed on the ground from the grill which was being used that night. Twilight's friends were having a cookout near her house. Applejack was making sliced apples dipped in honey and smoking corn with her age-old grill that has been in her family for generations. Braeburn too was invited. He took the train all the way from the old west to Ponyville. Spike was having a nice conversation with Rarity. Vinyl was scratching some records on her portable Disc Jockey turntable. Dr. Hooves was reading a book on exquisite flora and fauna when his partner Derpy came along and surprised him. Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash was having a blindfold punt on her face.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" she asked.

"Of course it is! If it wasn't I wouldn't consider it as fun and wouldn't want you do it at all!" exclaimed Pinkie Pie.

"I'm not that big of a fan of Marco Polo." Rainbow Dash said.

"Me neither." replied Fluttershy. "I don't know if I will end up here or there."

"Oh come on!" Pinkie Pie shouted. "Pretty pretty please?"

"Alright fine, I'll play your little game." said Rainbow Dash in a sarcastic tone. Pinkie put a blindfold counted down as she spun her three times.

"*sigh* Marco!" Rainbow shouted. Pinkie Pie ran to the side of Twilight's house and shouted, "Polo!"

"Marco!" Rainbow shouted back.

"Polo!" Pinkie replied. As Rainbow walked to the source of Pinkie's sound, she felt that she was standing on something wooden. She lifted up her hooves and felt a metal bar brush against her skin. Her eyebrows moved perpendicular to each other. What am I standing on? A seesaw? she thought to herself as she cried out, "Marco!" That question wouldn't go unanswered for long. Pinkie Pie looked up Twilights home tree and nodded her head. On one of the branches, Big Macintosh, Applejack's big brother lay upon. He knew what Pinkie Pie's nodding meant. It was the signal. Then he left his hooves loose and shouted, "Look out below!"

"Mar… wait. Who said that? What do you mean look ou…" sputtered Rainbow before she was suddenly propelled up into the air by Big Mac's weight on the seesaw. Twilight had arrived just in time to see Rainbow Dash imbedded in the ground, her head swirling with stars. Before she arrived, she could smell the cookout all the way from the community center. But she could also smell the essence of the dry summer air felt by herself and her friends, whereas the setting sun was almost the same color as the sky surrounding it. She had a sense of stillness in her mind that gave her a feeling that the sun was descending much slower than usual. As a matter of fact she felt that everything was moving slower around her, yet there was something she sensed moving at a faster pace. The air was letting her thoughts run about while she stood there like a statue watching them, guarding them. The only words she could think of to describe the afternoon was serene. And the air was without a doubt a bit smoky from Applejack's grill. While Spike went to hang out with Rarity near the table that had the fruit punch bowl, Twilight went off to talk to Applejack cooking.

"So, I heard ya got into quite a few of them ol' monkeyshines with your boss Mr. Steinbeck." She said.

"Yeah, I guess so." She responded.

"Tell me honey," said Applejack. "How come you an that ol' bronco of a boss don't get along very well?"

"I don't know." Twilight replied. "Anyways what's cooking?"

"Well I'm certainly glad you asked! I got all ya some honey dipped apples. Oh, and did I mention that Braeburn brought some corn all the way from Apploosa for me to smoke up a little?"

"No." said Twilight. She looked over her shoulder to see Pinkie Pie, Braeburn, and Octavia playing Blackjack. Braeburn, having learned how to play card games in the Saloon back at his town, had the most poker chips. Pinkie due to her desire to play games was consistent on catching up with him. Octavia was bored out of her brain, and she was almost bankrupt. Meanwhile, Soarin and Spitfire were having a good gossip. Then Soarin said something to Spitfire that made her blush. Thus he received a peck on the cheek which before his legs began to wobble nervously. Those two were always a good team. Twilight thought. Just then, Applejack sounded the dinner bell as she yelled, "Come n get it!"

"Yo Spitfire! Can you pass the corn?" asked Rainbow Dash. The group was sitting in a large rectangular wooden table next to Applejack's grill. The honey-dipped apples and smoked corn were placed in a big bowl that Fluttershy made. She didn't make that much pottery, but learning a few tricks from Rarity and Pinkie Pie made her feel confident. Meanwhile, Twilight was pondering why she took a job as a messenger, not to mention she also wondered why she needed a job in the first place. A while ago, she thought to herself that even though she was in the high ranks of being a princess, she still possessed a mortal heart. Maybe she wanted to know what it was like living amongst those who work in their everyday lives. Another reason why is because she never abandoned her old treehouse in Ponyville. It still possessed that charm which made her fell at home, even though home is where your heart is. Then she remembered, she wanted to practice humbleness. Because to be humble means to be vulnerable, and to be vulnerable means to be open; open to the world around you and embrace it.

"What's wrong Twilight? Is something on your mind?" asked Rarity. Twilight came back to her senses.

"It's nothing. I'm fine." she said. But fine, was the last thing she was about to feel as an arrow landed right in front of her. She saw a small note taped to the arrow. Startled, she unfold and read the note. It said, "Guess who?"

"Oh no." Twilight whimpered as she turned her head toward a crowd of ponies. There was a bright blue aura on the stage. Everyone near the stage gazed in wonder at the sight. Then from the platform came a booming voice shouting, "I am the Great and Powerful!"

Trixie was standing onstage like she was the biggest brag you'll ever see. Her eyes were closed and she smiled as she made her usual entrance. The crowd once again couldn't resist staring at her glamourous features. Twilight stepped into and out of the crowd right in front of Trixie's stage. She told the rest of her friends to stay at the table. She didn't want them to get into any more trouble with a queen egotist.

"Let me guess. You are here because of me?" asked Twilight. Trixie, keeping her eyes closed in a rude manner said, "I never said that at all. You just assumed it."

Condescending little… Twilight thought. "What do you want to challenge me to this time?" she asked.

"A self-levitation contest." Trixie replied with overwhelming self-pride. Twilight was shocked. No magician or those who could wield magic could attempt such a trick. Twilight thought she was bluffing, she had to be.

"What's the bet?" Twilight asked.

"You win and I will gladly accept defeat and leave." Trixie responded. "But if I win, I banish you from ever coming back here!"

"And if I refuse?"

"You don't want to know what happens to your friends if you do." Trixie said. Twilight had to get help, but then before she knew it, a wave on energy came from Trixie. Her cape started to flap. Then an aura surrounded her. Then, to Twilight's startled eyes, Trixie's body started to float above the stage, then above the curtain lines as well. Twilight was stunned. How in the name of all that is magical can she do that!? she thought. But before she could finish that thought Trixie landed her four feet on the stage. She made a sinister laugh which made Twilight start to feel doubt. No. She thought, I have to believe that I can, after all, believing is what helped me through all those challenges. So without any regrets, she created an aurora around herself, and began.

Thank's for all your patience! Next chapter is when things will get down for real! By the way you might want to study some Latin phrases for the next chapter! See you then!