Eclipse and the stallion did not speak as they walked down the street.  They were illuminated only by moonlight, and occasionally a light from one of the homes they passed.  Their faces, cutie marks, and anything else identifiable were covered by their hooded cloaks as they made their way to the Ponyville Schoolhouse.  It was the learning place of all, but now served a different purpose to Eclipse, Cher, and the few others in their group.  Eclipse spoke up for the first time as they got near the school. “Thanks for coming to pick me up again Palm Branch.”

"Not a problem.  You’d be late all the time if I didn’t do this.” His words carried both friendliness, and seriousness.  That was part of why Eclipse liked him so much.  She enjoyed their walks, even though they both never really said anything.  Palm just seemed to be there to comfort Eclipse when she needed it.  And he never seemed to be all that bad either.  “Thanks again, Palm."  They made a turn, and approached the door to the schoolhouse.   Palm went slightly ahead, and knocked on the door for them.  Eclipse made her way to the top of the hill just as the door was answered.  The pony inside opened the door slightly, and said,

"Password."

"None Hail Celestia and Luna, former rulers of Equestria." A brief pause.

"You may enter."  The door was opened in full, and Palm and Eclipse entered the dimly lit building.  At this time of night, the school was illuminated only by small candles in the hallway.  The ponies entered the main classroom, and were greeted by another cloaked figure at the teacher's desk.  Yet another pony, this one with a grey coat similar to Eclipse's, took his seat back at the front of the room.  Palm took his own seat at the front, as did Eclipse.

"I'm sorry to delay everypony, but the meeting will begin in four minutes now." The pony at the front of the classroom stated, "Or when our last member arrives.  Whichever comes first."  This spurred some quiet discussion between Palm and the grey pony.  The minutes ticked by, and just when they were about to start, the final member walked in. She wore her traditional attire, the one outfit she never seemed to change.  One with a hat and cloak of stars.

Trixie had finally made her way to the meeting, her first one in ages.  She rarely came to them, if at all, and when she did, there was always some kind of argument between Palm and her.  "The Great and Powerful Trixie has arrived.  We can now begin this meeting!"

"Thank you very much Trixie.  Can you quietly take a seat?" Palm Branch asked.  She reluctantly obliged, and took a seat in the second row.

"Thank you to all, and special thanks to you Trixie." The purple pony at the teacher's desk said,  "You actually made it to the meeting!  I'm very proud of you."

"Really, it was no problem at all!  Remember, I have defeated an Ursa Major!  Surely I can make it to a meeting or two!" Trixie certainly had her usual confidence.  Her ego seemed to have received a huge boost.

"Except for the fact that she actually didn't." Palm whispered to Eclipse.  They giggled, and turned their focus back on the front of the classroom.

"As you all are aware," The purple pony started, "our takeover plan is progressing rapidly.  I should hope that your preparations being completed accordingly." Everyone in the room nodded.  They had progressed, and Eclipse had gotten her hands on the study materials they had been using.  She was progressing more than anyone else had expected, and no one had found out.  At least not yet.  "We have another month before we take this plan into action.  I presume you all remember the details?" More nods. "Good.  As for the topic of this meeting, Princess Celestia is rumored to be coming to Ponyville within a few days, possibly this week."  Trixie spoke up,

"Oh wonderful!  A chance to show my magic, and true power, to the Princess!"

"Maybe not Trixie.  Not after your last show in Ponyville.  Everyone hated you with that bragging of yours." Palm Branch interjected.

"Perhaps you are right.  I should tone down the boasting this time.  That might impress everyone." Trixie hated to admit it, but she had gotten out of control last time she was in Ponyville.  She knew she would have to regain some trust to be back in Ponyville again.  The purple pony spoke again.

"As I was about to say, we will need to keep away from the Princess.  No doubt she will detect some sort of evil magic rising off of us.  Or the remnants of any past spells we have cast."

"The Great and Powerful Trixie will follow your directions.  I will need a place to stay for the time being.  Anypony have a room I can use?  I don't have my trailer here this time." Eclipse had nothing at her house, but maybe she could conjure something up for Trixie.  She though about the idea for second, weighing the risk of her finding out about the book against leaving Trixie outside and alone.

"I can take her in." Said Eclipse.

"That settles it then. Eclipse will attend to Trixie this week, while we all stay out of the sights of Princess Celestia." The purple pony declared.  

"Thank you so much Eclipse! Though you really should feel honored to have The Great and Powerful Trixie as your guest."  Trixie boasted.

"Can you shut up already?  You're giving me a headache." Palm Branch said, clearly irritated by the insanity that was Trixie.

"On a secondary note, I would like to show you all a little something I've been working on.  Scootaloo!  Come here please!" The purple pony called.  Scootaloo rounded a corner into the room.

"Yes master, you called?" Something wasn't right about Scootaloo.  They all knew the filly from around town, and this wasn't like her.

"Good girl.  Now come over here."

"Yes master."   It became clear that the pony at the desk had used some sort of control spell on the filly, forcing Scootaloo to obey her every command.  Eclipse figured that the purple pony had told Scootaloo's parents that she was staying behind to do extra work with her today.  Regardless of how she had done it though, Eclipse was very concerned.

"What is this?" Eclipse said.

"Just a little magic I've been practicing.  I've gotten it to work on a filly, but I haven't tried a full grown pony yet.  I'll find a test subject soon enough." The purple pony paused, "And then we can try it all as part of our plan." Collective nods again.  The other ponies certainly didn't want to become test subjects at this stage.  Not if the purple pony could control them like that.

"How long will she be like that?"

"Until I snap her out of it.  She'll be home for that though, and she won't remember a single thing.  Speaking of which, I need to leave!  Her parents are probably getting worried after all!  So with that, I adjourn this meeting." The purple pony, proceeded to leave the room, followed closely by the others, and finally Scootaloo.  Everything had gone according to plan, and the purple pony had demonstrated her spell with ease.  "Let's get you home now, Scoot.  I've got homework to mark for tomorrow."  The purple pony grinned before locking the schoolhouse doors and walking to Scootaloo's.

===============

Eclipse, Palm Branch and Trixie were all heading towards the home of Eclipse.  Palm and Trixie were at each others throats, as usual, and Eclipse was on the sidelines, quietly walking home.  She hoped that Trixie wouldn't drive her crazy when they finally got to her home.  

"So, what makes you better than the great and powerful Trixie?" Trixie asked Palm Branch. "You don't have any magical powers, you're just an earth pony!"

"You think earth ponies can't have magic, is that it?" Palm asked.  "I'll have you know, many years ago, there were experiments done on some earth ponies.  Some terrible, others not so bad.  One of those experiments involved a group of about 10 ponies, who had been given magical powers by the experiments."

"And that's in the past!  Nothing to do with these times!  The Great and Powerful Trixie wins again!" Trixie near shouted.  She held herself back only because of the sleeping ponies in the town.

"I wasn't finished." Palm stated, now with irritation in his voice.  That was something Eclipse had rarely heard. "I am the descendants of one of those ponies, as is Master Cher.  And now, here I am helping this group out.  While my magic isn't very strong, it can be used to heal your injuries, and turn you invisible, among other things."

"Nothing like what I can do."  Trixie was right.  Palm's magic was on a small scale compared to the magic of a unicorn.  He could only think of one response to that statement.

"Just shut up, you egomaniac." Eclipse chuckled, and they all continued along the road, making one last turn before Eclipse's home.

"Well, we're here." Eclipse said, "Thank you, Palm, for walking me home."

"You're welcome.  Any time." He leaned in, whispering to Eclipse, "Just try and keep her," He tilted his head towards Trixie, "away from me."

"Alright, I'll walk in the middle next time."  Eclipse replied, smiling. Palm chuckled.  He said goodbye to the two ponies and walked to his home, further down the way.  Eclipse unlocked her door and went inside.  She had about 2 seconds to hide her study material from Trixie before she would notice.  Eclipse quickly cast an invisibility spell on Malicious Magics; ironically, it was a spell that she had picked up from that book.  That didn't matter though.  The book disappeared.  She had cast the spell just in time, but she wouldn't be able to hide it for long.  At least she had it hidden until Trixie looked away, when Eclipse could tuck it into her saddlebags.

"You certainly spruced up the place." Trixie said sarcastically. She had only been there once before, but she wasn't a fan of simplicity.  She had told Eclipse to add more to her house last time she was here, but Eclipse had obviously ignored her.  Both ponies removed their cloaks, placing them behind the door.

"Thanks.  I did nothing, just like you told me to." Eclipse said, with a slight grin and sarcastic tone.

"Do you have bedding for the Great and Powerful Trixie?"

"I don't have a spare bed. You should be able to create one in this room, especially because you're soooo great and powerful." Eclipse knew this would frustrate Trixie, but she also knew that Trixie would stay here anyway.  She needed to hide, especially if Celestia was coming to town, as did Trixie.  They would have to put aside their differences and live together for these next few days.

"Alright, fine!  I will!  You would be useless to the Great and Powerful..."

"Egomaniac?  Yeah, I know."  Trixie was now showing visible signs of anger.  She raged inside for a few seconds, before managing to collect herself and calm down.  She started to cast her creation spell, and after a few seconds a bed appeared.  A large, luxurious looking bed with thick blue blankets.

"There!  A bed fit for me!" Trixie jumped onto the bed, and Eclipse saw her opportunity.  She quickly grabbed her book off the desk.  Trixie landed on the bed, and Eclipse stuffed the book into her saddlebags.  Just as she closed the bags, Trixie turned around and said "Would you mind leaving the room?  I would like some privacy while I sleep."

"Okay, Trix.  I'll see you in the morning." Eclipse grabbed her saddlebags and went upstairs.  She entered her bedroom, placing her saddlebags down on the floor, and with one more motion, she got into her bed, quickly settling under the covers.  Her thoughts drifted towards magic, and she eventually started to read in her bed.  After about an hour, she had read herself to sleep.

===============

Dawn broke across Ponyville.  Fluttershy was already awake, out looking at the sunrise from a balcony.  Twilight Sparkle was also awake, but she wasn't watching the sunrise.  She had hardly slept a wink last night, as she was more concerned with her book.  She had no idea who had it, what they could do with it, or anything else about it for that matter.  But she did know one thing.  Someone was using it.  She could feel it, and that feeling made her uncomfortable.  She put it aside for now, and continued to work in the library.  Rainbow Dash started to stir, finally waking up a little.  Eyes adjusting to the light, she saw Twilight was already awake and looking out the window.  But she could tell that something was up with Twilight.

"Hey Twi, what's up?" Twilight turned around.  Rainbow Dash saw just how tired Twilight was.

"Oh, good morning Rainbow Dash!" Twilight replied, smiling nervously, struggling to keep her mind off the book. Dash stood up from her bed, and carefully stepped around the two other ponies on this floor, Applejack and Pinkie.

"Something wrong?  You look kinda funny."

"Oh, it's nothing.  I'm just a little tired."

"Didn't sleep well?

"Nope.  I'm probably going to have to have a nap at this rate."

"Twilight, it's more than that.  I can tell.  What's up?"  Twilight came to an internal conflict.  Should she tell Rainbow Dash, or just keep it away from her.  It didn't concern her after all.

"You don't need to worry about it.  I'll be fine."

"If you say so." Rainbow Dash turned around, towards her bed. "Hey, when's breakfast?"

"Once everyone's up." Twilight replied, "I'll get Spike to help me make something when that happens."

"Okay.  I think I'll go back to bed for now.  But if you need anything, let me know!  It'll be done in 10 seconds flat." Rainbow Dash stated.  She moved across the room to her bed and settled into it.  She closed her eyes, and drifted back to sleep.  Twilight sighed. If only I could do that right now... she thought.  Tiredness was beginning to overtake the poor pony, but her mind was still racing with the whole book incident and all.  Spike came down the stairs, bearing a scroll with a royal seal.

"It's from the Princess." Spike said, "Just came in now.  Kinda early for this sort of thing, if you ask me."  He placed the letter near Twilight, and went back upstairs, clearly tired, be it from the lateness of the night, or the amount of work he was doing.  He hopped back into his bed, and drifted off as well.  Twilight opened the scroll and began to read.

Dear Twilight Sparkle,

I finally have the chance to sit down and write to you.  It's been very busy here in Canterlot, and throughout Equestria as well.  I have put some time aside to visit Ponyville in a few days, and also would like to have a chance to sit down and talk with you for a bit.  We haven't been able to do that much since you moved into Ponyville.  I look forward to seeing you and hope that you continue to discover the magic of friendship.

Your Teacher,

Princess Celestia

The letter certainly came as a surprise, but it's contents even more so.  A visit from Celestia was a big deal around Ponyville, and often involved a lot of preparation.  Twilight knew this, but it sounded like the princess just wanted a low key visit, especially if she wanted to sit down and chat with Twilight.  Still, Twilight would have to let everypony know about the impending visit, and get preparations going for the visit, even if it was to be low key.

====================

Everypony at the library was awake.  Fluttershy was talking about the sunrise and her walk afterwards, and Spike was making breakfast.  After Fluttershy finished her story, Twilight spoke up about the letter.

"Thank you, everypony, for hanging out with me tonight.  I'm happy to be done with my studying for now!" Twilight was putting on a brave face.  She was tired, but afraid to show it.

"Aw shucks, sugarcube.  You don't have to thank us," Applejack said, "that's what friends do for each other."

"Yeah, especially awesome friends like us!" Rainbow Dash smiled.

"Now, I do have something to talk with you all about though." Twilight paused. "This morning, I received a letter from Princess Celestia.  She has said that she is coming to Ponyville in a few days."

"The Princess is coming?  Sounds like a reason to PARTY!"  Pinkie was already jumping off the floor in excitement.

"I would say so!  Any time the princess is here, there's always a party!" Rainbow Dash piped in. "Especially when Pinkie is around!"

"Should I start preparing the birds for a song?" Fluttershy asked.  She had done this on multiple occasions, including for the Summer Sun Celebration.

"I don't think we should worry too much about it.  Maybe some simple decorations,  some food, nothing too big.  Let's make it more of a low-key visit." Twilight suggested.  All of the other ponies seemed to agree.  "We have that to look forward to then!  We should also tell everyone in Ponyville about this."

"We sure as sugar wouldn't want anypony to miss out on this!" Applejack said.  "I'll go around town to tell everypony, but I'll need a helper if I'm going to cover all of Ponyville with the news."

"I'll help with that." Twilight said, "Rarity, what will you do?"

"I think that I will help Pinkie make some fabulous decorations!" Rarity's knack for design was always killer, so Twilight was happy to see her helping.

"Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, what do you think you could do?" Twilight asked.

"I don't know yet!  I'm sure we'll find something to do." Rainbow Dash stated.

"Maybe I should work with the animals on something for the visit." Fluttershy said.

"Then it's settled.  We know what we're doing, so now let's do it!" Twilight enthusiastically said.  Tiredness started to take a hold of her again.  The ponies all left the library, save for Applejack and Twilight.

"So, how 'bout this.  We split Ponyville in two, and then go tell everyone in that half."

"That's what I was going to suggest.  It's the easiest way to do it!" She hid her tiredness very well.  Not even Applejack noticed it now.

"So, I'll take the south side, and you take north,  We'll meet up at Sugarcube Corner after we're done." Applejack smiled, and Twilight smiled back.

"Done.  I'll see you at Sugarcube Corner!"  Applejack left, and Twilight felt just about ready to fall flat on the floor.  Staying awake all night had made her feel like a total train wreck.  She had a task to do though, and that came first.

==================

Twilight had made her way to the outskirts of town and had already started knocking on doors, telling everypony about Celestia's planned visit.  Just a few doors down from Twilight, Eclipse had just woken up.  Trixie had already been up for a while, brushing her mane.  Eclipse trotted down the stairs and went towards her kitchen.

"Morning." She said, passing Trixie by.  Trixie ignored Eclipse, continuing to look in the mirror.  "Nice to see you too." Eclipse muttered under her breath. She continued on to the kitchen.  Debating what she should have for breakfast, she defaulted to her normal breakfast. Toast and apple jam, the latter being fresh from Sweet Apple Acres.  She began cooking her toast and got the jam off a shelf in the kitchen.

Ding Dong!

The doorbell rang.  Normally, Eclipse wouldn't get the door, especially when under orders from Cher to lay low.

Ding Dong!

It rang again, followed by knocking on the door.  Eclipse caved, and went to answer the door, only to be instantly greeted by Twilight Sparkle, the pony she had stolen her book from.

"Good morning!  I was just dropping by to let you know that Princess Celestia will be in Ponyville a few days from now." Twilight said, smiling the entire time, "There is going to be a celebration in Ponyville town square, and Pinkie Pie is working on games and party stuff.  It's going to be a lot of fun!"

"A few days from now?  Goodness," Eclipse started, "I don't think I can make it."

"Why not?"

"I've got plans already for that day." Eclipse lied.  She had gotten especially good at it in the past little while, what with being involved with The Shades and all.  She had to be a good liar to keep all that a secret.  "Me and some friends were going to go study in the Everfree Forest with that zebra, Zecora.  She was going to teach us about some of the plant life in Everfree."

"Sounds interesting!" Twilight paused. "It sounds like a lot of fun, I wish I could join you.  Zecora knows a lot about the Everfree, so she will teach you very well."

"I think it will prove very interesting indeed." Eclipse said. Twilight nodded in agreeance.  She loved studying, and it was clear to her that Eclipse also did.

"I don't think we've met before.  I'm Twilight Sparkle."

"And I'm Starry Night." Eclipse said, lying again,  "Pleased to meet you." Yet another lie.  Eclipse was irritated with this pony’s visit, even if it was well intentioned.  She was under orders to lay low, and that didn't involve talking with any ponies outside of The Shades.

"Same.  Well, if you have plans, Starry, I really shouldn't stay around for long.  I have a lot of homes to get around to!"

"Thank you Twilight.  See you around!" Twilight turned towards the next house and walked away.  Eclipse shut the door quietly, and Trixie turned towards her, looking away from the mirror for the first time since waking up.

"Did she say she was Twilight Sparkle?" Trixie asked, with a confused look on her face.

"Yeah, why?"

"She's the most powerful pony in Ponyville, that's why!" Trixie shouted.  Outside, Twilight turned towards Eclipse's house again, after hearing the shouting.  She quickly disregarded it though, turning her mind back on to the task at hand. "She defeated an Ursa Minor with her magic, and has probably mastered more than that by now! She might still be able to beat me in a magical battle, no matter what I try!"

"Trixie, could you possibly be any louder?  She's right next door, you know."

"Good point.  I don't want to blow my cover.  You on the other hand, are expendable."

"Expendable?!?! " Eclipse shouted, "How about I expend you into the streets?!  I don't have to let you stay, especially if you are going to continue to be so rude!"

"Well, you have no magic that we can use, so you are expendable in the end."

"Do me a favor, and shut up!" Eclipse's horn began to glow, and Trixie was transformed into a small cat. "Now stay here, okay?"  Using more magic, Eclipse created a cage around Trixie.  This forced Trixie to shut up, and kept her from doing anything, let alone moving.  She approached the cage, bending down to have a look inside.  "I'll turn you back when you promise to be nice. Or after two days.  Whichever comes first."  Trixie angrily swiped her paw at Eclipse, but to no avail.  "And something tells me that the two days will come first." Next Chapter: Chapter 3 - Unfinished Decorations Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 46 Minutes