Inside the school gym, there was a welcoming party for the Crystal Prep students. The rival school students stood on their own sides, glancing to their competition, only few offered friendly smiles with the opposing side. Sunset found the other Humane Six as they reunited with Mo and everything was broken down to them and they were walking down the hallway all together now.

"What do you mean the portal's gone?" Applejack asked.

"She means it gone closed and not there anymore." Patch told them after changing into his human form.

Sunset opened the gym doors so they could join the others.

"How'd that happen?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"We don't know, but it has something to do with that Twilight." Sunset replied, pointing to Sci-Twi as she accidentally ran into a few balloons.

"Um, Twilight, maybe you should also watch out where you're going?" Atticus suggested.

"Sorry, trying to focus." Sci-Twi replied nervously.

"What in tarnation is she up to with Atticus?" Applejack didn't like the look of this.

---

Indigo was talking with a boy and growled to the two as Sci-Twi was snooping around.

"Let's stay as far away from these classmates as possible." Atticus whispered to Sci-Twi, referring to the Crystal Prep students besides Cherry.

"Guys," Sunset sharply came right behind them which frightened Sci-Twi slightly. "What have you been up to?"

"Me?" Sci-Twi smiled nervously. "Oh... We were just-"

"Who wants to know?" Indigo got in Sunset's face.

"Why don't you mind your own business?!" Atticus glared at Indigo.

"Oh, no, you didn't!" Indigo got at him. "You're one of us!"

"Hey, leave him alone!" Rainbow Dash sneered.

"All right, everyone," Applejack tried to settle this. "Let's not get too competitve before the Games even start."

"Applejack's right, let's all just calm down." Patch said.

"The games aren't really competitive since we've never lost." Sugarcoat stepped in.

"That's not a very nice thing to say." Fluttershy frowned.

"Sorry, deary, but these games aren't about being nice." the short-haired girl with a flower brooch spoke up.

"Well, you must use a little tact." Rarity smiled simply.

'Okay, this is getting a little intense.' Atticus thought to himself.

Sci-Twi backed up and flinched once she saw who was right behind her.

"Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie!"

"Oh, hi," Sci-Twi smiled and extended her right hand. "I'm Twilight."

Pinkie smiled and shook Sci-Twi's hand very vigorously enough that it made Sci-Twi's glasses fall off and her hair was down to the Twilight that everybody knew in this dimension. "I know... You look just like my friend. Her name is Twilight too."

"That's, uh, weird." Sci-Twi said, fixing her hair back into the way it was before.

"What's that?" Pinkie looked at the pendant.

"It's sort of a spectrometer," Sci-Twi explained. "I built it to track EM frequencies, but it can also contain anomalies."

Pinkie grinned, slowly blinking, then looked to Atticus, knowing he would know that and put it in simple terms for her to understand.

"It measures things." Atticus explained.

"Like the party?" Pinkie Pie asked.

"Yeah," Sci-Twi shrugged and looked to see the other guests. "Though, it doesn't look like much of a party to me."

"I know..." Pinkie agreed. "Something's definitely missing..." she then thought of something before running off with Sci-Twi and Atticus in her arms. "COME ON!"

"We're going to get your party cannon, aren't we?" Atticus asked.

"Yep!" Pinkie smiled.

"What's a party cannon?" Sci-Twi asked.

"You'll see!" Pinkie giggled.

---

Teller, Cherry, and Mo came into the dead party right as Principal Celestia was about to make an announcement.

'Wow, this party is not close at all to being a party.' Mo thought to herself.

"I've seen livelier folks in a funeral home." Cherry mumbled.

"I've seen casinos livelier than this." Teller also mumbled.

Cherry and Teller looked to each other, then looked away blushing about their comments.

"Hello, everyone," Principal Celestia greeted. "I'd like to take this opportunity to greet all of our visitors from Crystal Prep Academy and welcome them to CHS."

Sci-Twi, Atticus, and Pinkie Pie were pushing in the party cannons that were wrapped up in boxes like birthday or Christmas presents.

"What the heck is in these?" Sci-Twilight asked.

"Party cannons of course!" Pinkie told her.

"Trust me, these will get the party started." Atticus assured Sci-Twi.

"And lastly, I would like to recognize the twelve students that CHS has elected to compete." Principal Celestia continued, showing the students. "I don't think a better group could be chosen to represent the excellence, sportsmanship, and friendship the Games stand for."

Pinkie came behind a vegetarian snack table and replaced the boring healthy snacks with frosted cupcakes.

"Next, the lights." Atticus whispered.

"Kill 'em." Pinkie smiled, determined.

Atticus turned the lights down and made a disco ball appear in the gym. The others looked, very curious and wondered where that came from. Pinkie then came next to Vinyl Scratch and gave her a disc to play. And where she played it and where it seemed liven everyone up even getting them to socialize with each other. Atticus and Pinkie Pie then removed the present boxes to reveal two party cannons.

"Um, are you guys sure this is a good idea?" Sci-Twi grew nervous.

"Absolutely." Pinkie smiled before pulling the strings and made an explosion of confetti fill the room.

And where it all seemed to bring everyone in the party into a happy and party kind of mood. Sci-Twi fell on the floor from the party cannon and looked as everyone was really happy and enjoying themselves now.

Pinkie smiled at this, her pony ears and tail seemed to appear as a hot fuchsia glow surrounded her and she floated in the air. "Ooh, floaty!"

Sci-Twi's pendant opened up and the glow was now escaping into the pendant as it opened up.

"Huh? More? But where's that stream of energy coming from?" Atticus asked.

Pinkie suddenly was on the floor and looked exhausted, which seemed oddly out-of-character for her to do so. "Aww... I am party pooped!" she groaned.

The pendant did not close, but it sent a white spark behind the bleachers. Sci-Twi looked to the bleachers and saw a portal open up to a spooky forest area.

'That looks like a part of the Everfree Forest in Equestria.' Atticus thought to himself after seeing the same thing under the bleachers.

Sci-Twi closed her pendant which made the portal close up and she wondered where it could had come from. The party was going well until Principal Cinch tapped on the microphone and made the lights come up and the microphone gave that horrible feedback noise and she stopped the party.

"Party pooper." Patch groaned.

"Shh." Teller shushed the former puppy.

Principal Cinch cleared her throat. "I'd like to thank Principal Celestia for her unconventional welcome," she started as she pushed her glasses off to clean them. "It's been four years since the last Friendship Games, but it feels as though nothing has changed. Canterlot High continues to pick its competitors in a popularity contest and Crystal Prep continues to field its top twelve students. It is a comfort to know that even after so many years of losses, your school remains committed to its ideals, however misguided they may be," she then gave a smile, that was more icy and bitter than warm and friendly. "I wish you all the best of luck, regardless of the inevitable outcome."

"Oh, I would just love to bite her right now." Patch growled quietly.

"Oh..." Pinkie looked very weary once the party was over and the two schools started to hate each other again.

"I'm sorry, Pinkie," Applejack soothed her friend. "I thought your and Atticus's party additions were really swell!"

"Totally broke the ice." Mo agreed.

"Yes," Rarity frowned while folding her arms. "If only that Principal Cinch hadn't frozen it again, not even Cherry would do something that cold-hearted and she's an emo."

"A perky goth." Patch corrected.

"Yeah, she's awful." Pinkie said, sounding exhausted.

"Wow, Pinkie..." Sunset noticed how weary the pink girl seemed. "What happened to you?"

"I don't know," Pinkie shrugged. "Everyone started having fun after Twilight, Atticus, and I fired the party cannons, and I ponied up-"

"Of course you did." Mo smirked.

"But then, the magic just drained right out of me." Pinkie continued, looking rather depressed.

"Wait, what do you mean drained right out of you?" Sunset asked her.

"Hey, where are Atticus and that other Twilight?" Applejack asked.

"Oh, they're-" Pinkie pointed, but she saw Sci-Twi and Atticus were no longer in the room. "Um... Well... They were right here!"

"Well, wherever they are, they must be somewhere around the school." Patch said.

Since it was close to the end of the school day, Teller took Cherry's phone and texted Atticus and Mo to meet at her house for a sleepover. And where they agreed that they would meet there and so did Patch.