Forte was sitting next to Sunset in a packed auditorium, Principal Celestia having called an assembly to make an important announcement. Quite recently though, a matter of concern was brought to the attention of Forte and the girls by Sunset who had witnessed an unknown figure lurking around the Wondercolt statue and showing an unusually intensive interest.

The mood inside the auditorium however, was less than enthusiastic.

"The pessimism is contagious," Forte said aloud.

"Yeah," replied Sunset, "It's no wonder CHS keep losing."

"You going to compete this time?"

"Maybe, but I think participants get selected. So, maybe I'll get chosen."

"Well I certainly won't."

"Now who's being pessimistic?" Sunset teased, giving Forte a playful elbow in his sides.

"Oh shush you."

Everyone's attention was diverted to the stage as they saw the two sisters head to the centre. The chattering amongst the students quieted down into little more than a murmur until stopping completely, allowing the Principal to speak.

"As I am sure you all know, tomorrow," Celestia began, "Canterlot High School will be hosting our fellow students from Crystal Prep Academy as we join together in the spirit of excellence, sportsmanship, and fidelity to compete in the Friendship Games."

An almost non-existent smattering of applause could be heard of you listened closely.

"Since the games only happen every four years, I'm sure you're all curious what goes on."

"You mean other than us losing?!" shouted Flash.

Both Celestia and Luna dead-panned, not amused at the outburst.

Despite it being accurate. Nonetheless, Celestia continued.

"And that is exactly why I've asked Rainbow Dash to come up and give you all a little, um... context."

Rainbow walked up onto the stage and confidentially took the microphone off of Celestia.

"Thank you, Principal Celestia," Rainbow replied, clearing her throat, "I know a lot of you might think there's no way we can beat a fancy school like Crystal Prep at anything."

"Unless it's a 'losing to Crystal Prep' competition! 'Cause we're really good at that!" Pinkie yelled, much to the agreement of the other students.

Rainbow groaned but carried on with her prep talk, "And I know that CHS has never won the Friendship Games even once."

"Oh, dear. I hope this speech isn't meant to be motivational," Rarity said.

"She's not exactly lifting our spirits," Forte added.

Despite the lacklustre interest from her fellow students, Rainbow continued, determined to awaken the inner Wondercolt inside every CHS student, "Crystal Prep students are super athletic, super smart, and super motivated. But there's one thing they aren't. They aren't Wondercolts!"

Without warning, Rainbow suddenly burst into song and was joined on stage by the schools very own marching band.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8yvbLJ0C2g

After the song ended, cheers erupted around the auditorium once more from the students, a fair number of them clad in pony ears. Forte and the girls rushed over to meet Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy being unusually confident.

"Rainbow Dash, that was amazing! Even I feel like we can win!"

"I feel like my school pride is at an all-time high!" Rarity added.

"Is anybody else wonderin' how Dash ponied up without playin' her guitar?" Applejack asked, being straight to the point as usual.

"I know, right? It's probably because I'm so awesome!"

"Maybe," Sunset replied, though being quick to follow up to not damage Dash's ego, "I mean, you are awesome, but there's gotta be more to it than that, right? It just seems so random."

"Well, it would be nice if you girls could get a handle on it."

Everyone looked to an approaching Vice Principal Luna, as stern faced as ever despite being in a good mood, "We'd like to keep magic as far away from the Friendship Games as possible. We don't want to be accused of cheating."

"We don't need magic to defeat those hoity-toity Crystal Preppers," Rarity replied confidently.

With the exception of Sunset and Luna, the others hummed in agreement, their new found confidence giving them the belief that this time will be the time they finally win.

"Still, the Friendship Games are serious business," Luna replied, "We don't want any surprises. Especially the kind that could cause us to forfeit. Sunset Shimmer, you came here from a world of magic. Perhaps you can get to the bottom of our magical development."

"I'll do my best."

Without another word, Luna left. Rainbow enthusiastically turned to the girls, giddy with excitement for the upcoming games.

"Okay. Anybody have any guesses what the events are gonna be?"

"Pie eating? Cake eating?" Pinkie asked before gasping in awe and hope, "Pie-cake eating?!"

"They won't even let us see what they're doin' to the field. You think they'd at least tell competitors what they're competing in."

"It could be anything."

"Anything?! How will I ever pick the right outfit?!"

"I really wanna help,"Sunset replied, "But I think I better go focus on figuring out why Rainbow Dash ponied up. See ya later!"

"Want me to come with you?" asked Forte.

"Sure."

Forte turned to the girls, "See you girls later."

"Bye Forte!" Pinkie squealed.

Forte soon caught up to Sunset and gently took her hand in his, "You OK?"

"I'm fine, just a little worried about Rainbow ponying up."

"You think it's serious?"

"I think we shouldn't take it lightly. Especially with the Friendship Games coming up."

"It looks like we're in for interesting times again. By the way, where are the Dazzlings?"

"They'll be around somewhere," Sunset replied, before smiling slyly, "Why? Missing Aria?"

Forte rolled his eyes, "Very funny."

Sunset giggled, "There'll be somewhere. Anyway, how's things going at work?"

"Well enough. Flash is OK to work with. What about you at your place?"

"Well enough also. It's quite hectic at times, but I'm learning."

"Any plans for later? After school?"

"No. Why?"

"Wanna go with the girls into town for Pizza?"

"Sure."

"How are you going to look into all this magic stuff?"

"I'll use the science labs."

"You're not going to write to Twilight?"

Sunset shook her head, "No. We can't keep getting her involved every time we have magical incidents."

"I suppose so."

*LATER IN THE DAY*

"I hope the Friendship Games have a music competition, because we would totally rock it!"

"Um, we're supposed to keep magic out of the Friendship Games, remember?" Sunset said.

Rainbow scoffed, clearly not impressed at having to reign in her magical awesomeness.

"Easier said than done, darling. I'm sure in Equestria, magic does whatever you want. But..."

"This isn't Equestria," Sunset finished.

"Well, when it comes to magic, I'm sure you'll figure it out," Applejack added, trying to be supportive.

"And while Sunset works on keeping the magic out of the games, I've been working on what to put in!" Rarity giggled.

"Rarity, what'd you go an' do?"

"Well, I had a littletime on my hands, and since we don't know what the Friendship Games' events are, I made a few options for uniforms!"

Out of nowhere, Rarity pulled out a trolley containing several new outfits, presumably to be worn at the games by whoever as taking part.

"You really didn't have to do that," Rainbow replied, slightly disbelieving at the sight.

"I know."

"No. You really didn't have to," Applejack reiterated.

"I know!" she giggled again, losing herself in her own little world.

Applejack sighed and rubbed her temple, "Uh, Rarity, these outfits are great, but why would you put so much time and effort into clothes we might not even wear? You're gonna exhaust yourself before the games even start."

"Oh pff kch fff ts!" Rarity replied with a dismissive wave of the hand, "Don't be silly, darling! Putting effort into clothes is what I live for, and spending time on my friends fills me with energy!"

Without warning, Rarity suddenly began glowing and levitated up into the air. Magical energy began swirling around her and in a quick flash of magic, pony ears sprouted out of her head and her hair extended into a ponytail.

"And magic, too, I guess," Sunset added.

As quickly as it started though, the magic surrounding Rarity fizzled away and she descended back to the ground, looking drained.

"Actually, Applejack, now that you mention it, I suppose I could use a tiny break."

"I told you."

All of a sudden, the door to the music room opened and much to the shock of everyone, a familiar looking girl stood in the doorway. Albeit in a more serious appearance.

"Twilight?"

"Uh, yes?" she replied, confused.

"Well, I'll be. You shoulda told us you were comin'."

"Darling, those glasses. What are you wearing? It's so... severe."

"My uniform?" Twilight replied, unsure as to how they couldn't know.

"Your uniform for what?"

"For... Crystal Prep. But why does everyone at this school know who I am?

"Did you just say 'Crystal Prep'?" asked Rainbow.

Any answer was cut off by the bark of a dog.

"Spike!"

"You know my dog's name, too?"

"And our music program has especially taken off," Celestia said, her voice getting louder as she passed the music room. As she did, she saw a familiar figure out of the corner of her eye, "Twilight?"

"This is getting ridiculous!"

"I must apologize for the curiosity of my prized student," the other woman said, walking over to 'Twilight'.

"Your student?"

"The smart ones are always curious. I'll return her to check in with the rest of her classmates."

Everyone watched as the pair left, waiting until they were out of earshot before talking again, "I didn't know Twilight had a twin sister."

"She doesn't!" Pinkie squealed, "That Twilight is obviously the Twilight from this world since it couldn't possibly be the Twilight from the pony world since the Twilight from the pony world doesn't go to Crystal Prep or wear glasses."

Celestia went to reply, but perhaps wisely, changed her mind, "Nevermind."

Sometime later in the school gym, CHS and CPA students were mingling amongst their own groups and not getting along with the other side. Forte, Sunset and the girls, including the Dazzlings, were once more with each other, also dressed up in more smart clothing provided by Rarity. All of them though, became gravely concerned after Sunset informed them of what had happened with Twilight and the portal.

"What do ya mean the portal's gone?"

"I mean it's gone," Sunset answered sharply, "It's closed. It's not there anymore!"

"How'd that happen?"

"I don't know," Sunset replied, gravely concerned, "But it has something to do with that Twilight."

"What in tarnation is she up to?"

Everyone looked to where Applejack was looking and sure enough they saw Twilight wandering around with a strange looking device around her neck, bumping into her fellow CPA students and annoying them in the process.

"Leave this to me," Sunset replied, walking over to her, "Twilight, what have you been up to?"

"Me?" Twilight replied, startled, "Oh, I was just, uh—"

"Who wants to know?!" one of the Crystal Prep students asked, seeing the commotion.

"Um, we do," Rainbow answered.

"All right, everyone," Applejack said, getting between Rainbow and her counterpart, "Let's not get too competitive before the games even start."

"The games aren't really competitive since we've never lost," replied another Crystal Prepper.

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

"Sorry, dearie," yet another Crystal Prep student said, "But these games aren't about being nice."

"Well, you might use a little tact," Rarity replied.

Twilight tried to back away and extradite herself from the group, but only succeeded in bumping into someone else.

"Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie!"

"Oh, hi. I'm Twilight."

"I know. You look just like my friend. Her name is Twilight too."

"That's... heh, weird."

"What's that?"

"It's sort of a spectrometer. I built it to track EM frequencies, but it can also contain anomalies," Twilight answered confidently, relishing in explaining complex devices, though Pinkie's slightly glazed expression told her it just went over her head, "It measures things."

"Like the party?"

"Yeah, though it doesn't look like much of a party to me."

"I know. Something is definitely missing. Come on!" Pinkie yelled, grabbing Twilight by the arm and taking her away.

"Aah!"

As Pinkie took Twilight away to liven up the party, Principal Celestia took to the stage and soon gathered everyone's attention.

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

To the side of the stage, near the doorway, Pinkie and Twilight were returning with some assets.

"What in the world is in these?" Twilight asked,

"Party cannons, of course!"

"And lastly," Celestia continued, oblivious to Pinkie's antics, "I would like to recognize the eighteen students that CHS has elected to compete. I don't think we could have chosen a better group to represent the excellence, sportsmanship, and friendship the games stand for."

"Remind me again how we got chosen?" Adagio muttered, looking to her sisters.

"Because we've been really good goody two shoes since we became besties with Forte?" Sonata suggested.

"I wonder what I'll be chosen to do," Forte wondered aloud, "Not that I'll win."

"Less pessimism please Forte," Rainbow replied, "This year is going to be our year!"

In the meantime, Pinkie was stealthily going around the room, 'Pinkiefying' the dreary 'party' up to her standards, placing large piles of iced muffins and cakes of all sorts around the room, dimmed the lights and gave Vinyl a disc to play on her sound system. Like Pinkie, Vinyl too wanted to liven things up so was only too eager to play Pinkie's CD.

As soon as the music started, students from both schools immediately began mingling together, forgetting about their rivalry and enjoying the occasion. Meanwhile, Pinkie had finished setting p her party cannons, much to Twilight's consternation.

"Um, are you sure this is a good idea?"

"Absolutely!"

In an instant, she fired the cannons, showering the gymnasium in confetti and streamers, much to the delight of the students, Canterlot and Crystal Prep alike. Like with Rarity, Pinkie began to glow as her magic began to ponify her, levitating her up into the air as Twilight watched on in astonishment.

"Ooh, floaty!"

As Twilight watched, the device around her neck began to whir and light up, sucking the magical energy from Pinkie. As the magic was absorbed, Pinkie slowly floated back down to the ground feeling drained of all energy.

"Aw! Oh. I am party pooped."

As the device closed and shut down, the music suddenly stopped and the lights were switched back on, the tapping on the mic getting everyone's attention.

"I'd like to thank Principal Celestia for her unconventional welcome," Principal Cinch said, "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 eighteen 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. I wish you all the best of luck, regardless of the inevitable outcome."

Stuck up bitch, Forte thought.

The good spirits between the students quickly evaporated, with the Crystal Prep students soon going back amongst themselves before leaving the gym. Forte and the girls went over to Pinkie, hearing her groan from a distance.

"Oh."

"I'm sorry, Pinkie," Applejack said to her consolingly, "I thought your party additions were really swell."

"They definitely broke the ice," added Fluttershy.

"Yes," Rarity replied, "If only that Principal Cinch hadn't frozen it again."

"Yeah, she's awful."

"Wow, Pinkie, what happened to you?" asked Sunset, noticing her slightly dishevelled appearance.

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

"Of course you did," Sunset replied, unsurprised by Pinkie's antics.

"But then the magic just drained right out of me."

"Wait, what do you mean 'drained out of you'?"

Before she could answer, Applejack butted in.

"Hey. Where is that other Twilight?"

"Oh. She's right... Uh, well, she was right here," Pinkie replied, looking around for her.

"Well we're sure to see her again," Forte said, "And school's over, so why don't we head into town?"

"Sure," replied Sunset, "Nando's?"

Forte nodded, "Unless anyone else wants to go elsewhere."

"We're fine with that," Aria replied.

"Us too," Applejack added.

It was morning the next day, and the students were currently watching the latest contest that had narrowed down to Sunset against not-Twilight. The maths on the blackboards went way over the heads of most of the students, including Forte, though to Sunset it seemed to come naturally to her. They both soon finished the question, just in time before the buzzer went off.

"Incorrect!" Cynch said, pointing at Sunset.

"That means the winner of the Friendship Games' first event is Twilight Sparkle and Crystal Prep!" Luna stated firmly into the mic, much to the disappointment of CHS students.

The Shadowbolt students cheered in delight, but noticeably didn't congratulate Twilight, and couldn't resist mocking the CHS students. A disappointed looking Sunset walked down from the stage and immediately found herself in the embrace of Forte.

"Don't worry Sunny, you're still the smartest girl in school."

"Thanks Forte," she replied with a smile, returning the hug.

"That was as close to winnin' as Canterlot's ever been," Applejack added, "We might just have a chance this year at NOT getting our arses kicked into the ground."

"Hey, I think they're announcing who goes through to the next stage!" Pinke yelled.

The girls and Forte moved towards the stage to hear the announcement, to be made by Luna who was joined on stage by Celesta, Cadence and Cynch.

"From CHS, the students who will be proceeding to the next stage are, Sunset Shimmer, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Forte Heldentenor, Aria Blaze, Adagio Dazzle, Sonata Dusk, Flash Sentry and Lyra Heartstrings."

A loud roar of cheering erupted throughout the auditorium, though only from the CHS students. The Crystal Prep students could barely muster the effort to look in their direction.

"If you could all come up on stage," Luna continued, "And we will now announce the twelve Crystal Prep students who will be joining you."

Some time later, Fluttershy met up with the girls and Forte again, and informed them of what had transpired between herself and Crystal Prep's Twilight.

"All I did was hand Twilight a bunny," Fluttershy said, "Then I ponied up."

"I just don't get it," Sunset replied, "Rarity's magic came out when she made us outfits. Pinkie's when she fixed the party and now Fluttershy."

"And then Twilight's pendant thingy just pulled the magic right out of me," Fluttershy continued, "I couldn't even stand up."

"Like me at the party!" Pinkie yelled.

"Or me right before we met Twilight!" Rarity added.

"So she's stealing magic?" asked Sunset

"I don't know," Applejack replied, "She doesn't seem like the magic-stealin' type."

"Yeah, but she had something to do with closing the portal," Sunset pointed out, "If her pendant can pull in magic, maybe it stole the portal, too."

"How?" asked Fluttershy

"I don't know. And the pony or person or princess who could help me figure this out is completely unreachable now."

"Which is too bad," Pinkie replied, "Because Twilight knows everything about magic and portals and magical portals and portable magics!"

"For now, let's just focus on beating the Shadowbolts. And as long as this event puts me in a playing field, I don't think we've got anything to worry about."

"Oh, it puts you on a playin' field, alright," Applejack replied, looking on in shock at the sight before them.

The entire group stood still in shock at the sight of the playing field, now transformed into a motocross course complete with jumps and tight turns.

"Am I the only one who thinks this is overkill?" asked Sunset.

"I don't suppose you made motocross outfits?" Applejack asked, looking over to Rarity.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous. Of course I did!"

The race was scheduled for the following day. There would be four competitors competitors for each event; archery, motocross and roller skating. Forte found himself, much to his surprise, in the motocross with Sunset, Aria and Rainbow. Forte finished fastening up his figure hugging outfit Rarity had made, gold and blue like Rainbow's, and got on his bike, starting in 3rd, opposite Indigo Zap.

"You may as well give in now," she said, looking Forte over, "You clearly don't know how to ride a bike."

Whilst not entirely inaccurate, Forte had ridden dirt bikes in the past, though in an empty field with no one in sight to distract him.

"You clearly don't know what I'm capable of."

"Like being a loser?"

"Ignore her Forte," Sunset replied, waiting in pole position, "She just trying to get under your skin."

The sound of a klaxon indicated the race was due to start very soon. Students took their seats in the bleachers and waited eagerly for the best contest yet to begin. While the CHS students were eagerly cheering on their fellow students, waving CHS memorabilia and most wearing pony ears, the Crystal Prep students watched on with boredom, as though winning was already assured to them and no cheering was required.

The sound of the tannoy blared throughout the field, with Dean Cadence the voice at the other end.

"Welcome, everyone to the Friendship Games Tricross Relay! In this event, our qualifying competitors will face off in archery, speed skating, and finally, motocross. So if the competitors are ready. Each competitor must hit a bullseye before their team-mates can start the next leg of the relay."

Each of the motocrossers each gave test revs of their engines, each one waiting for the moment to speed off.

Before they could though, they could only watch as the archery and roller skating went first. Sour Sweet, Twilight, Fleur, Fluttershy, Adagio and Applejack start off the archery event. Sour Sweet immediately scored a bull's-eye, much to her smug satisfaction, and waited for Twilight, who stumbled as she made her way to the podium. She took an arrow out of her quiver and pulled it back against the bow, but found herself unable to get a steady balance and shot the arrow off target.

Fluttershy had some difficulty in getting a bull's-eye, but with either luck or actual skill, she scored a direct hit. Applejack stood up and hit the bull's-eye first time with casual ease.

That allowed Rarity, Sonata, Lyra and Pinkie to begin the speed-skating round, much to the ire of Twilight's team-mates.

"If CPA can't hit another bullseye soon, they'll be out of this race," announced Dean Cadence over the tannoy.

"You're really bad at this!" Sugarcoat yelled from the starting grid.

"You're a really bad team-mate," Forte replied, looking at her with disgust.

"No-one asked for your opinion, loser!"

Forte ignored her, his attention turned back to the archery. He watched on as Applejack assisted Twilight to score a bull's-eye. Quicker than a blink of an eye, the Shadowbolt roller-skater's set off like a bat out of hell, making up for lost time.

The lead Rarity, Pinkie, Sonata and Lyra had built had soon been wiped away and the competitors crossed the finish line almost at the same time.

That was the cue for Forte and the others. A loud roar of engines erupted from the corner of the field where the motocrossers waited. Almost exactly at the same time, they set off. Rainbow quickly took the lead, with Sugarcoat occupying second, Sunset in third, Indigo Zap fourth and Forte fifth, the rest following behind.

Approaching a corner, Forte saw Indigo Zap too wide at the corner and moved in on the inside to overtake, much to her ire. Now in fourth, he now had the dangerous task of overtaking his girlfriend, which may or may not have disastrous consequences later on.

Unbeknownst to the riders, an incident had taken place near the archery stands. Rifts had opened up and large vines were poking through and attacking the competitors. Whilst Rainbow managed to evade them, and ultimately cross the finish line in first place, followed by Sugarcoat in second; Forte could only watch on in horror as one of the vines struck Sunset, knocking her off of her bike.

Unable to stop in time, but able to evade, he continued onwards, due to it being dangerous to stop on a track with speeding bikes and travelling the wrong way, and because the vines were trying to attack him. The other riders, both CHS and Crystal Prep, had either been knocked off or their bikes were being eaten by super-sized hungry plants.

He crossed the line in third place and looking back, he saw that Rainbow had ponied up, much to her delight.

Almost as quickly as it happened, the plants disappeared back into the portals, leaving a calm stillness over the field as the students made their way to the gym. Forte and the others all grouped together again, exhausted over what has transpired.

"Is everybody all right?" Applejack asked, approaching the group.

"Better than all right! We won!" Rainbow enthusiastically replied, seemingly oblivious to what else had happened.

"Yeah, we won, but somebody could've been seriously hurt," Sunset replied, deeply unnerved by it, "The magic is going haywire and I have no idea how to fix it!"

"Um, excuse me," Twilight said, approaching the group looking sheepish, "I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I just wanted to learn about the strange energy coming from your school. I didn't know that it was magic or... how it works."

"That's okay. Neither do we," Rainbow replied.

Before anyone else could say or act, Twilight's pendant opened and began absorbing the magic from Rainbow. The purple magic swirled around into the pendant as Twilight struggled in vain to prevent it, only snapping it shut after the magic was absorbed.

"I'm sorry! It just started absorbing energy on its own! But I'm not sure how!" Twilight pleaded, almost in tears.

"What do you mean you don't know how?!" Sunset snapped, attempting to force the device closed.

Before she could though, it opened again, shooting up a bolt on magic and opening a portal what Sunset recognised as Equestria.

"It also causes these corresponding rifts to appear! I don't know how that works either."

"Is there anything you do know?!" Sunset snapped again, her anger continuing to rise, "Like how to get our magic back?! Or how to fix the portal to Equestria?!"

"Equestria?"

"You're supposed to be so smart, but did you ever think that you shouldn't be messing around with things you don't understand?!"

"But I want to understand!"

"But you don't! And worst of all, you put the lives of my friends in danger!"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to!" Twilight sobbed, tears falling freely down her cheeks.

Unable to bare another scolding from Sunset, Twilight ran away in tears, chased after by Spike.

Forte watched on, caught in two minds. One to go after Twilight and make sure she was OK, the other staying with Sunset for the same reason. Rainbow had managed to calm her by simply placing a hand on her shoulder, and Sunset seemed to realise she acted too harshly, almost shedding a tear in shame. Before Forte could decide however, the group was approached the principals of the two schools.

"You can't possibly call that a fair race," Cinch moaned.

"Principal Cinch, we all saw what happened. You can't think CHS had some kind of advantage."

"Can't I? Even without your trained attack plants, your students have wings!"

"Well, the race certainly had some... extenuating circumstances. Perhaps we should end the games now and declare a tie."

"A tie?" Cinch asked in disbelief, "Was this your strategy all along? To force us into accepting you as equals? I think not. The games will continue and Crystal Prep will prevail despite your antics and whatever performance-enhancing regimen your students are on."

Cinch walked off in a huff, making way for the girls and Forte to approach Celestia.

"I'm sorry I couldn't stop all this from happening."

"It's not your fault, Sunset."

"Isn't it? I should know how to control the magic I brought here. But I don't. I let everyone down. And now Principal Cinch thinks we're cheating."

"It doesn't matter what Principal Cinch thinks," Celestia replied, trying to comfort her strident.

"But it does. The students here at CHS don't just want to win. They want to beat Crystal Prep. It isn't going to count if the other side doesn't really think they lost. Crystal Prep is never going believe we won fair and square if there's magic around. And that magic is only around... because of me."

Forte walked up to Sunset and wrapped his arms gently around her, pulling her into a hug which Sunset returned.

"Come on Sunny, you're not to blame for what happened."

"But magic only came through when I did."

"Are you sure about that?"

"What do you mean?" Sunset asked, letting go of Forte.

"Well, if you brought magic with you, then what about the magic that created this end of the portal?"

"It wouldn't have the effect we've been witnessing," Sunset replied, "I'd explain but it's quite complicated, and without a basic understanding of magic you may not understand. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you're stupid, but it would be like trying to explain nuclear fission and fusion to ponies, they just don't understand the underlying concepts behind it."

"I guess that makes sense. Anyway, how about we get changed?"

"Sure," Sunset replied, before punching Forte in the arm, "But don't think I didn't see you continuing to ride on during the race after I was knocked off!"

"Rainbow came back for you."

Sunset frowned severely, "There will be reprisals for this."

Later, during the early evening, the students and teachers of both schools had gathered in front of the school for the final game of the tournament. Forte and the girls were on one side, while Crystal Prep were on the other. The Dazzlings had decided to mingle among the other CHS students, having not qualified for the final round. The voice of Dean Cadence was once again heard over the tannoy.

"Since the score's tied, the final event will determine the winner of the Friendship Games."

"Somewhere on campus," Luna continued, "A pennant from each school has been hidden. The first team to find their school's flag and bring it back wins."

"And as soon as our teams are ready, we'll begin," Cadence finished.

Back near the bleachers, the Wondercolts were in a less than enthusiastic mood.

"I don't feel like playing these games anymore," Fluttershy said, feeling glum.

"But we have to play," Rainbow countered urgently, "This is the last event!"

"It's a little hard to focus with all the magic stealing and portal opening," Rarity replied.

"And I feel awful about what I said to Twilight," Sunset added, looking ashamed.

"Especially since she obviously didn't mean to do all the stuff she did. She's actually really nice," Fluttershy added, before realising that the comment had the opposite effect of what she intended.

Sunset could only facepalm in shame, the encounter with Twilight running through her mind again.

"Let's just get through this last event and prove we're not a bunch of cheaters," Applejack added, "Then you can go over and apologize."

Applejack's suggestion seemed to lift Sunset's spirits a little as she managed a small smile.

After a few moments, the group watched as Twilight, on her own, began to walk towards them, holding her magic absorbing pendant.

Stopping in the middle of the courtyard, Twilight opened her device. A small ball of white purple magic appeared,before soon erupting rapidly and lifting Twilight up into the air. All the students and teachers of the schools watched on in shock as Twilight continued to rise further and further upwards before the ball of energy began to envelope her.

"HELP ME!" she pleaded, only to see her fellow students and principal just stand there and watch.

The magic suddenly engulfs and corrupts Twilight, transforming her into a monstrous creature with large wings and a large horn protruding from her head.

The magic quickly dissipated, and shocked by what she was seeing, Cinch cowardly back tracked away from the courtyard.

Looking around the yard, the transformed Twilight soon found Sunset.

"You were right! I didn't understand magic before, but I do now!"

'Twilight' sent a blast of magical energy at Sunset who managed to duck out of the way in time. Falling to the floor and looking back, Sunset saw, to her horror, that a rift had been opened. 'Twilight' sent other blasts of magic elsewhere, opening up multiple rifts.

"Equestria! Twilight, you can't do this!"

"Why not?! There's a whole other world right there, and it's just filled with magic!"

"But you're destroying this world to get it!"

"So what? There's more magic there, and I want to understand it all!"

Mad with dark power, 'Twilight' unleashed bolt after bolt of magic, opening up a massive rift in the ground to Equestria. Students ran around the yard both trying to avoid being hit with magic and avoid falling through the rifts. Some CHS students almost did, but were saved from doing so by Crystal Prep students, all signs of rivalry forgotten.

Meanwhile, Sunset was still focussed on Twilight, desperately trying to prevent further damage, both to the world and Twilight. With Twilight's magic absorbing pendant in hand, she approached the raging dark demon.

"This isn't the way! I know you feel powerful right now, like you can have everything you want! I've been where you are, I've made the same mistake you're making! I put on a crown and, just like you, I was overwhelmed by the magic it contained! I thought it could get me everything I wanted!"

"Oh, you're wrong. Unlike you, I can have everything I want!"

"No, you can't. Even with all that magic and power, you'll still be alone!" Sunset passionately pleaded, "True magic comes from honesty! Loyalty! Laughter! Generosity! Kindness! I understand you, Twilight, and I want to show you the most important magic of all..."

Almost on cue, her friends all began glowing with magic, including Forte, and to the amazement of all of them, the Dazzlings also. Magic, coloured to reflect that of each individual, began flowing from them to the pendant. Sunset, and Forte holding her hand beside her, held up the pendant with her other hand and the pair began levitating into the air. After the pendant had finished absorbing magic, it snapped shut and Sunset slammed it towards the ground, exploding in mid-air, and enveloping Sunset in a magic bubble.

Like Twilight, Sunset was transformed into super magical being, complete with magical wings and horn and yet another new outfit. Golden boots that reached up to her mid shins, and a strapless and sleeveless light pink dress with a light green skirt underneath, flame like additions above her breasts and a necklace with her cutie mark as a pendant, Forte once more could help but blush at how beautiful she looked.

"...the Magic of Friendship!"

Stretching her arms outwards, Sunset unleashed her own magic and closed the rifts with ease, much to the ire of Twilight, who launched herself forward in anger at Sunset. Sunset, launched herself forward to meet Twilight, a massive ball of white magic erupting upon contact with each other, momentarily blinding everyone in the area. The battle between the pair continued with everyone else watching on helplessly as blasts of magic shot across the yard.

Their magic blasts soon met in the middle and remained in a stalemate for several tense seconds before Twilight got the upper hand and pushed her magic energy closer to Sunset, much to the worried onlookers, fearing what would befall them from the seemingly inevitable.

"Twilight!"

Just before Twilight could push her magic all the way to Sunset and defeat her, her attention was distracted by her only true friend. Looking down, she saw the terrified look of her four legged companion, and for a brief moment, her true self re-emerged, as shown by her eyes returning to their normal appearance. Capitalising on the distraction, Sunset unleashed her own magic salvo once more, completely engulfing Twilight just as her alter-ego re-emerged.

Sunset and Twilight found themselves in an ethereal place, surrounded by flowing white energy, and floating in place. Sunset, sympathetic to what Twilight was going through, understanding all to well the emotions she was feeling, extended her hand.

"Take my hand, Twilight. Let me show you there's another way... just like someone once did for me."

Ironic, Sunset thought, Considering it was Twilight.

Though initially hesitant, Twilight, with tears forming in her eyes, reached out to accept Sunset's offer. Upon holding her hand, a small ball of golden energy spiralled its way up Twilight's arms and up her head and above. A few seconds later, the pair, now back in normal form, touched back down on the ground in front of CHS, both looking a little worse for wear.

"I'm so sorry," Twilight said quietly, still in tears, "I didn't mean for any of this to happen."

"I know," Sunset replied, "And going by my own experiences, they'll forgive you."

Before anyone else could say or do anything, the grating voice of Cinch could be heard, after her being seen coming out of hiding.

"Principal Celestia, on behalf of Crystal Prep, I demand that you forfeit the Friendship Games! Clearly, CHS has had unfair advantage for quite some time! And it's certainly obvious that your students have been using magic for their own benefit!"

Unbeknownst to Cinch, every student was giving her harsh, unimpressed glares, her own students included, having now seen her for what she truly is.

"I'd like to think that saving the world benefits us all," Celestia replied.

"At least they didn't manipulate Twilight into releasing all the stolen magic and turning into a power-crazed magical creature that tried to rip the world apart just to win a game," Sugarcoat stated matter-of-factly.

"Wow! That's a lot to take in when you say it all at once," Pinkie replied, unaccustomed to being on the receiving end of her own kind of antics.

"That's ridiculous!" Cinch replied, insulted at the accusation.

"Nope, that's pretty much what happened," Spike replied, garnering a few shocked looks.

"Actually, we're all to blame," Soursweet replied softly, before suddenly becoming harsh in her tone, "Mostly it was her!"

Shocked at the behaviour of her students, Cinch angrily turned to Celestia, "Obviously my students have been infected with your magic, but I plan on taking all of this up with the school board!"

"Good. I'm sure they would be very interested in hearing all about the magical students with wings," Celestia mockingly replied.

"Oh, and the portals to different dimensions," Luna added, joining in the fun.

"And don't forget to tell them about the talking dog," Cadence added, not missing out a chance to take a long overdue swipe at her boss.

"Because that would never ruin your reputation" Spike added, further adding to Cinch's mockery and humiliation.

Looking around at both sets of students standing united against her with smug satisfaction on their faces and on the brink of rage, Cinch unexpectedly and suddenly, almost at the flip of a switch, said nothing and calmly walked away.

After she had left, Celestia approached the gathered students.

"Well, I know these Friendship Games haven't been what any of us expected, but given what we've all just been through, I think it's fair to declare us all winners."

A round cheers erupted from all students, clearly satisfied with the result. Almost all, as Twilight was still looking a little upset over what had transpired.

"You OK Twilight?" asked Sunset.

"I'll be OK, I think."

"I meant what I said, I am here for you...whenever you need me."

"Thank you."

The pair shared a quick hug, before Sunset moved on to other matters.

"Twilight, I'd just like to apologise for what I said to you after the motocross event."

"Oh that...don't worry about it. You had every right to be angry."

It doesn't justify what I said or for how I acted. I'm sorry."

"Well, if it means that much to you, I accept your apology."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

The following morning, next to the ruined CHS Wondercolt statue, most of the girls were gathered together hving a chat as they saw Forte and Sunset approach. Forte, still recovering from his night of hell, walked in with a refreshed looking Sunset, holding his hand. They quickly found the girls sitting at the table and joined them.

"Morning girls," Sunset said, "How are you all today?"

"I feel wonderful darling. And I must say, you look particularly radiant today."

"Thank you, well I did have Forte spend the night with me."

"I bet you both had a night of fun," Rainbow snickered, "Forte certainly looks worn out. What exactly did you do? Ride him l like a pony and make him scream like a banshee?"

"Rainbow Dash!" Rarity scolded.

Rainbow stifled laughs, while the others looked away, slightly embarrassed. Though not as much as Forte.

Well let's not rule anything out, thought Sunset.

"No," Sunset replied, "But I think he learned his lesson from yesterday."

"Indeed," Rarity replied, looking unimpressed at the individual in question, "Imagine, leaving your girlfriend behind like that. Such ungentlemanly."

"Rainbow went back for her," Forte replied with a shrug of the shoulders, "I would have but it was too dangerous."

Sunset gently shook her head, "Oh Forte..."

"Why don't we have a rematch?" Forte suggested, "The bikes are still here, I'm sure if we asked nicely we would be allowed."

"Sure," Sunset replied with a smile, "Loser has to do whatever the winner wants."

"Agreed," Forte replied, "Hey Pinkie, are you throwing one of your parties after the ceremony?"

"Of course I am," Pinkie replied, "And this time there won't be a meanie Principal Cinch to ruin it!"

"Still no word from Princess Twilight?" asked Fluttershy, noting the magical journal in Sunset's hands.

"Not yet. But I think I may have figured out how magic works in this world."

Everyone looked at Sunset with keen interest.

"We pony up when we're showing the truest part of ourselves. I was so busy waiting for someone else to give me the answers that I gave up looking for them myself. I'm sure there will be more magical problems that pop up in this world, but like Applejack said, Princess Twilight has her own problems to worry about in Equestria. We can't expect her to always be around to help us."

"But maybe I can be?"

Everyone looked to where the familiar sounding voice was coming from, and where slightly shocked to see their world's Twilight approach with Principal Celestia.

"It seems we have a new Wondercolt here at Canterlot High!" Celestia said, beaming with delight.

"I'm not sure how much help I could be," Twilight said nervously, "But I'd like to try. If you would all give me a chance."

"I'm sure I can count on you girls to help her feel at home," Celestia added reassuringly.

"You sure can," Sunset replied, welcoming their new friend into the fold.

Celestia left Twilight with the girls and Forte, Twilight still feeling a little nervous.

"Hiya new bestie!" Pinkie said, bursting forward and hugging Twilight tightly, "Are you coming to 'Yay-For-Finally-Having-A-Proper-Friendship-Games-Friendship-Games later?"

"Errr...what?" Twilight asked, not understanding what she was asked.

"Usually," Applejack intervened, "When Pinkie gets like this, it's usually in yer best interests to just say 'yes'."

Twilight looked back to Pinkie who was still looking at her with a big cheesy grin.

"Errr....yes?"

"YAY!"

It was now afternoon, and the bleachers were packed to the rafters with CHS and Crystal Prep students, some of the latter even sporting pony ears headbands, for a rematch of the motocross race. Forte, Sunset and Rainbow were once more donned in biker gear, as were Sugarcoat, Indigo Zap and Lemon Zest. The latter standing in instead for Crystal Prep. The racers started on the grid according to where they finished in the games. Sunset was on pole position while Forte was fifth and Rainbow fourth.

"Attention racers and students," Dean Cadence announced over the tannoy, "This will be sixty nine lap race, starting at the sound of the klaxon."

A few seconds past as the crowd cheered, and the racers waited tentatively for the klaxon to be blasted and the green flag to be waved.

Smalls beads of sweat formed on Forte's forehead, the nerves starting to get the better of him.

The klaxon sounded and the racers set off, unfortunately however, Forte was slow off the line having been preoccupied as to what Sunset would have him do. So slow off the line he found himself a second behind the fifth placed Lemon Zest approaching the first corner, while up ahead, Rainbow had already climbed to second place.

Five laps in and Forte's position had barely improved, though he had closed the gap so he was right behind the fifth placed Sugarcoat. Sunset and Rainbow were still neck and neck, though they had pulled out ahead with a significant five second lead.

They'll lap me before the halfway point of the race if I don't get a move on, Forte thought.

Two more laps, and Forte finally had a the chance to overtake.

Sugarcoat had approached the corner at too high a speed and too narrow an angle, having to brake hard, they locked causing her to miss the apex and Forte, taking his chance, passed on the inside into fifth place, quickly gaining ground on the fourth placed Lemon Zest.

Five more laps, and Sunset and Rainbow were still in the lead, even further ahead. Forte was also neck and neck with Lemon Zest, the lime haired girl proving quite tricky to get past. She knew she couldn't hold Forte off for much longer, as he was quicker, but she was able to hold him long enough for Sugarcoat to catch up.

Approaching the corner before the long straight, Forte tried to risk taking the corner at a wider angle and cutting in on the inside, by braking earlier but lighter. He approached the corner as planned and applied moderate braking force, causing Sugarcoat to go past. She and Lemon Zest though, having approached the corner at a higher speed, braked harder and took the corner slowly, allowing Forte to catch up almost straight away. Coming out of the corner and onto the long straight though, Forte, still going at a higher speed than the girls, floored it and sped off a full throttle down the long straight, much to the delight of his fellow Wondercolts.

The race continued, and by the time the race was on the 42nd lap, Forte was in a solid third place, behind Sunset and Rainbow, the latter now in the lead due to Sunset having been slow to accelerate coming out of a corner on the 35th lap.

Fortunately though, the racers behind hadn't been lapped.

On the 43rd lap, after crossing the start/finish line, Rainbow approached the corner, went to apply the brakes but somehow, her fingers slipped off of the brake lever causing her to approach the corner too fast. Fortunately, she managed to quickly recover and apply the brakes, but not before Sunset, Forte and Indigo Zap zoomed past.

Forte, was now on the heels of his girlfriend, while Rainbow was very quickly on the brink of overtaking Indigo Zap.

To say the crowd were excited was putting it mildly. Teachers and students alike were cheering the racers on, not caring particularly who won, but enjoying the race for the spectacle that it was.

By the time of the 67th lap, Sunset was marginally ahead, a second-to-slow decision or wrong decision away from losing first place. Rainbow trailed behind Indigo Zap in fourth, while Lemon Zest and Sugarcoat trailer 5th and 6th respectively.

Forte's heart pounded like never before, his front wheel almost touching Sunset's rear end.

Approaching the penultimate corner of the lap, Sunset locked her brakes.

Seeing his opportunity, he gunned it.

Unfortunately, he gunned it too soon and took the corner too fast, taking him out wide on the exit of the corner and going off of the track for a few seconds. He could only watch in dismay as Sunset, Indigo Zap and Rainbow sped by, Forte unable to gain speed quick enough. In his attempt to go for first instead of settling for second, he was now in fourth place with only two laps to go.

Sunset was now firmly in first place with the race all but won, Indigo Zap in second with Rainbow close behind in third. Lemon Zest and Sugarcoat trailed behind Forte, close but unlikely to overtake him with the time left, unless Forte came off of his bike or made another costly mistake.

Approaching the last corner of the last lap, Forte could only watch as Sunset crossed the line in first place. Two seconds later, Indigo Zap and Rainbow crossed almost at the same time in 2nd and 3rd respectively, five seconds after that, Forte crossed the line.

Fourth.

Had I not been impatient I would have finished second.

Forte slowed to a halt with the others, and were followed a few seconds later by Lemon Zest and Sugarcoat.

"You OK Forte?" asked Sunset, approaching him and removing her helmet.

"Yeah," he groaned, removing his own helmet, "Good race. You deserved to win."

"Thank you. You raced pretty well yourself."

"Not well enough. I muffed it up trying to overtake you."

"So? it's nothing to feel bad about."

"Sunset's right," Rainbow said, pounding a fist into the palm of her hand, "You raced awesomely!"

"GOOD RACE FORTE!"

Forte suddenly felt himself being hugged tightly and nuzzled in the face by a familiar blue haired girl.

"Calm down Sonata," Aria groaned, but making no attempt to pry her off of him.

After several more seconds of intense hugging, much to the amusement of the other students, she finally let go.

"You were awesome out there, Forte!"

"I suppose so."

"Don't be such a grumpy guts," Pinkie added, bouncing over to him and hugging him, "Besides, you won 'Best Racer'!"

"Indeed," came a voice from the opposite direction.

"Vice-Principal Luna," Forte said, "'Best Racer'?"

"Indeed," Luna repeated, "The winner of a race isn't necessarily the best racer of the race.Now, if you'll follow me to the podium, we give you your rewards."

"Rewards?" questioned Sunset, "I thought this race was just for fun?"

"For fun?" queried Luna, "My dear Sunset, what is the point in having a competition if there is nothing to win?"

Before anyone could answer, Luna walked away, her point made. The students followed her to the podium, were the top three took their places. All three receiving a medal corresponding to their place, meaning gold for Sunset, silver for Indigo Zap and bronze for Rainbow, in addition to having headpieces made of flowers placed on their heads, much to the slight embarrassment of Indigo Zap and Rainbow. Sunset didn't give a damn.

"And of course," Celestia continued, "The award for best racer goes to Forte Heldentenor."

Please don't put flowers in my hair
Please don't put flowers in my hair,
Please don't put flowers in my hair,
Please don't put flowers in my hair.

Forte walked up to the podium to receive his award, also a medal, made of stainless steel. He began to walk away, until he was called back by his Principal.

"Not so fast Mr Heldentenor," she said, holding another item.

"Is this necessary?" he asked quietly.

"It's this or a speech."

"I'll take the flowers," Forte replied quickly, considering it the lesser of two evils.

Celestia placed the flower headband on his head, consisting of white flowers, and Forte turned to Sunset and the others. Sunset looked like she wanted burst into giggles, while Indigo and Rainbow were barely holding themselves together.

The teachers left the students be, having announced the school day over, leaving them to do whatever they pleased, it being a Friday also meant they mutually agreed to start their weekend early.

"You look quite cute with that, Pony Boy," Sunset said, giving him a hug, "You should wear flowers in your hair more often."

"No thanks," he said, taking it off, "I look absolutely ridiculous in them."

"I'm the fashion expert darling," Rarity said, approaching them, "Leave those judgements to me."

"So," Rainbow said, "What's everyone doing now?"

"Well," Forte replied, "Sunset and I were headed into town later to get pizza, anyone want to join us?"

Before anyone could respond, the sound of the portal activating caught everyone's attention, even more so when they saw who came out of it.

"I'm so sorry I didn't get here sooner! I didn't get your messages until just now because I was caught in this time travel loop and, honestly, it was the strangest thing that's ever happened to me!"

Silence permeated the air as everyone looked from Princess Twilight to Twilight then back to Princess Twilight.

Princess Twilight, to her credit, realised fairly quickly her friend's odd reaction, or lack of, soon noticing why.

"Make that the second strangest."

"Princess Twilight," Sunset said as she walked over to her, "Meet...Twilight Sparkle."

Princess Twilight looked between Sunset and her doppelgänger, "I think an explanation is required."

Author's Notes:

What did Sunset do to Forte?

If I said what I may have had to change the rating to mature.

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