“Stars above Aspect!” Midnight said with a biting tone. She paced up and down the room while Rainbow took a shower. “Have a good think about those last words of yours. ‘You will have to convince me that you want me for my services again. Because I’m not going to get all worked up for nothing time after time’?”

The thestral took a breath and sighed. “You pushed too hard. And I know you did not mean it as such. But it made Miss Twilight feel cheap and that she was using you. I convinced her that you are not angry with her. But, I believe tensions might be… strained somewhat.” She folded her twitching wings and sighed again. “Perhaps… we should assess our relationship and what we all want from it before something as… final as marriage happens.”

“I…” Aspect sighed. “...I really didn’t mean to push her away…”

“I imagine you did not,” Midnight agreed. “You are… unaccustomed to a relationship no? I believe we must talk about this with the others. And if you are serious about Miss Twilight, we should include her.”

“It’s more...I want her to know what it means to have a stallion,” Aspect replied, waving his hoof around as he sought the words. “I’d rather I be a practice relationship for her so that when she finds one that she wants, she knows what to do, rather than be completely awkward at it.”

“Why?” Midnight asked. “Why her specifically? Nopony goes into a relationship prepared. What is so special about her that requires your hoof?”

“She’s...meant for great things, I can all but feel it around her,” the stallion replied. “Like Tia and Lulu before they awakened thanks to the Elements of Harmony. She’s meant to be a mover, a shaker. Like a seed waiting to sprout. I’d appreciate it if at least somepony of that caliber, besides Cadance, knew what they were doing in finding a significant other.”

“Then should that not be her prerogative?” Midnight pointed out. “Mistakes are how we learn after all. If we never do anything wrong, how will we know when we do?”

“That’s why I’m offering to be her practice stallion,” Aspect smoothly continued. “Besides. My eldest daughter is still a virgin, and Luna didn’t get any action until she got back from the moon. I always wanted more of a family than the one I made out of magic, and if I have to rely on Twilight to give me something I might be able to call a grandfoal, I’ll bloody take it.”

“Oh my stallion, you are hopeless,” Midnight giggled and pet his withers. “But keep on this path and she'll give you a child, not a grandchild~”

“Well I mean, I wouldn’t say no, but I just want her to know the ins and outs of a relationship...without subjecting her to the torture that is Cadance’s lecture,” the stallion replied. “If she actually chooses me, that’s her choice. But I do want her to at least understand what it’s like to be cared for, loved...even if it is just a mockery of what I hope she finds one day. Maybe she’ll finally pull her muzzle out of a book every now and then and look at what life has to offer.”

“This coming from a stallion that spent a thousand years in a self inflicted exile and had never had a relationship until six months ago,” Midnight pointed out. “And if I'm hearing you correctly. You don't want her to turn out like the Sun Princess she idolizes.”

“Alone despite everyone wishing her well? No, no I do not,” Aspect nodded once. “Celly needs to find a stallion, or heck, just a pony that can see her for her and not her crown.”

“And Twilight requires love… I think I see a solution,” Midnight grinned wider.

Aspect merely raised an eyebrow.

Midnight raised a hoof. “Sun Princess.” She raised another. “Miss Twilight.” Then she put her hooves together.

“Hmm...that could work,” Aspect mused. “We’d have to desensitize Twilight to seeing Celestia as the ruler of a nation, her teacher...get her to see the pony behind the crown. That...could take a while. And then we’d have to get Celestia to see Twilight as something other than the student she probably thinks of as a daughter...it’d be a lot of work.”

Midnight smiled and shrugged. “Hmm. You are right. No way in Tartarus could you pull that off. Este absolut imposibil.”

“By the time I did, unless Twilight bloomed, she’d probably be an old mare,” Aspect sighed. “And I’m really not in the mood to wait.”

“So what will you do I wonder?” Midnight replied.

“Well Celly is still busy on reforming the government to not need her or the nobles, something we could really use Chryssy for-” he held up a hoof to forestall Midnight’s outburst. “-I know, she’s the queen of the Changeling race, and you don’t have any love for them, but if there’s one thing she’s good at, it’s the politics game. If she were friendly, Celestia would only have one day of work a week, because everything else would be automated thanks to Chryssy cutting out the useless, unnecessary things.”

Midnight said nothing, choosing to sip her drink.

Whatever she might have said was cut off from the door bursting open and Twilight Sparkle rushing inside in a panic, an exhausted Twilight Velvet close behind.

“Aspect! We have a huge problem!” she yelled.

“I doubt it’s huge, probably moderately sized, otherwise I would have felt it,” the stallion replied. “What is the nature of the emergency?”

“This morning,” Twilight panted. “I got a visit from… well, myself!”

Aspect paused. That...was different.

“Okay, you have my attention,” the stallion admitted.

“I used a time travel spell designed by Starswirl apparently,” Twilight said as she paced in a tight circle. “A huge disaster is going to happen soon. And apparently I came back to warn myself. You should have seen me Aspect. I looked like I traversed a war zone!”

“She's telling the truth,” Velvet gasped as Midnight fetched them some water.

“Time travel is a tricky subject,” Aspect replied. “The old Starswirl never could be sure about the nature of time. If it was like a river, and fighting the current was inevitable, or if it were like a pond, and every splash created a ripple. It could very well be that by coming back to warn yourself of the danger, we can avert the danger. On the other hoof, it might be that warning yourself of the danger causes the danger. We can’t know for certain.”

“Well, we should prepare none the less!” Twilight said and pulled out a list. “I have a plan to Disasterproof Ponyville. And you're gonna help. Your Rune magic is integral.”

“You do realize that overtaxing that magic starts pulling on my very life force, yes?” the stallion asked. “I can only do so much before I fall unconscious. Rewinding time to save those houses the other day is about the limit of what I can do before I have to take a break. Too much more and I might not wake up for a few days while I recover.”

“What if this disaster is bigger than a few lost homes!?”

“Then I’ll get serious,” Aspect replied. “It’s not like I can’t. But you have to remember, Twilight. I’m not your only friend you can turn to.”

Twilight sighed but nodded. “Right. This involves Ponyville? I'll get Ponyville involved!” And with that declaration, she charged out of his home.

“I am much too old for this,” Velvet groaned.

“So’m I, but a warning from a future self is not to be ignored,” Aspect nodded. “I’ll be on the lookout for anything suspicious.”

Twilight Velvet nodded… only as Sparkle reappeared.

“I almost forgot something,” she murmured as she lit up her horn and a second later, Starswirl was getting dragged out from wherever he was. “You can help,” she grinned as she hauled him away.

“...Please remember to have your daughter return him sooner or later,” Aspect eventually said. “If only so we can be sure he’s okay.”

“Yes…” Velvet sighed as she followed Twilight out the door.

“Well…” Midnight smiled once they left. “That was fun.”

“It was certainly interesting,” Aspect nodded his assent.

“So…” Midnight leaned over the table. “What's this I hear about you and Rainbow?”

“It was a game, I didn’t actually turn up my fertility, I just wanted to have a little fun with her,” Aspect replied. “I know better than to do that after the fun has started. That’s not informed consent.”

“But you still turned it off yes?” Midnight asked with a raised eyebrow.

“That spell I used wasn’t even turning it on, it was a lightshow,” Aspect replied. “It was never on to begin with.”

“So she asked me how does a mare know if she is pregnant for nothing?” Midnight giggled. Ohh, she could have fun with this.

“Pretty much, yeah, I know better than to turn it on unless you were to specifically say you wanted a foal before we started,” Aspect replied.

“I'm shocked, the stallion is learning,” Midnight mock gasped.

“It’s a point of honor, thank you,” Aspect huffed. Midnight giggled harder and leaned across the table, kissing his nose.

“You know…” she hummed. “There are many rooms not broken in in this mansion. Should you and I spend the day fixing that~?”

“Other people come around here, you know,” the stallion huffed. “We can’t just screw anywhere.”

“Your point?” Midnight challenged. “Unless of course, my stallion cannot keep up.”

“I can keep up, I’m just pointing out we shouldn’t,” Aspect countered. “As well, there are way more rooms than I think you would have stamina for.”

“Oh, I can last,” the bat mare smirked as she stood up and sashayed from the room. “Guess I’ll break them in with Bon Bon instead~”

“Good luck with that, she’s at work,” Aspect called after her.

Midnight paused and he heard her curse. “Fiu de curvă!”

Aspect hummed as he finished off his tea, before going upstairs to his own bedroom. The bat would know where to find him if she were serious about some fun.

After an… exhausting bout of fun, Aspect headed into town to do some grocery shopping. He was out of a lot of things apparently. Looking around. He saw boarded windows. Trees had been trimmed to prevent falling branches. Paths swept and cleaned of any and all debris.

Was that bubblewrap on the sharp edges of… well… everything?

...Twilight had been serious about getting the town disaster-proofed. Still, he had shopping to do. He turned a corner to head to the markets and…

And that was Cerberus.

In the middle of town.

And not guarding the Gates to Tartarus.

This was not a good thing. Someone would need to lead the dog back to the gates, and someone would need to check beyond them.

The only problem was, the only one he could reasonably call on to get past the myriad traps beyond the gates, meant to keep the prisoner inside...was almost always on the job. After all...you can’t kill Death.

He saw Twilight panicking too, maybe this was the disaster her future self predicted?

In any case, before he took even a few steps, Fluttershy already had Cerberus subdued, now giving the great mutt belly wubs.

Well...that...was a thing. The great dog was supposed to be the fiercest guard dog that ever lived. Lord knows what would have happened if somebody smacked him with a newspaper.

Twilight was leading him away, presumably towards Tartarus, a squeaky ball in her magical grasp as Cerberus started to follow, wagging his stubby tail.

Welp...Aspect was definitely going to look at the protections around Tartarus after this latest disaster had passed. Because clearly, they needed updating.

“Was that, Cerberus?” a voice asked, before Bon Bon approached him, a pair of blue-rimmed glasses on her face.

“That was, yes,” Aspect nodded once. “I need to have a chat with one of my sons sooner or later...assuming he ever gets time off from his job to answer me. Tartarus needs to be checked again.”

“Great… if Celestia finds out then there’s a chance I’ll be sent too,” Bon Bon sighed, adjusting her glasses. “So, what’s got you up and about?”

“We need things back at the mansion, I’ve apparently run low on a lot of foodstuffs and need to restock,” Aspect replied. “Specifically, mangoes. Feeding a bat is hard work.”

“Ahh, I thought as much,” Bon Bon giggled as she walked with him. “Well, it’s a safe bet the market’s closed thanks to that. So Barnyard bargains is your best bet.”

“Mmm, well, we’ll see what’s available,” Aspect mused as he kissed Bon Bon on the cheek.

“Remember that her mother is still there, so you might wanna get extra,” the mare said helpfully as she nuzzled him.

“True...might need a few carts worth,” Aspect mused. “Good thing I have my saddlebags.”

“Best of luck,” she said and smirked. “Zap Spoiled Bitch for me if you see her~” She gave him a kiss and… ooh, she had a chocolate in her mouth. Tasty sweet kisses~

The stallion was still in a good mood from that as he arrived at the shop, humming a little tune to himself as he picked out a cart and began heading to the foodstuffs section. They really did have an amazing selection here. Though he got a few odd looks when he loaded up an entire cart with mangoes. He’d pretty much cleaned Rich out of his entire stock.

He heard a voice that soured his mood somewhat, over in the distance, Spoiled Rich was talking with that daughter of hers. And from the sounds of it, with teachings like that, no wonder the kid was a total brat. So he elected to do what Velvet had done, and simply ignored them as he made his way to the register.

The colt behind the counter spied the cart of mangoes and sighed… this was gonna be a loooong shift.

On his way home… he’d now seen everything.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders. Each one wearing a crash helmet, floaties and a suit of duct tape bound bubble wrap.

Seems Twilight had at least curbed the greatest disasters the town had. Really, though, it was only a matter of time before somebody did that.

Aspect shook his head and sighed at the getup they’d been forced to wear. Hopefully sooner or later this scare would be over.

“This is SO not cool,” Scoots pouted.

“Maybe we’ll get a Cutie Mark in it?” Sweetie asked hopefully.

“In whut, lookin’ like a couple’a dorks?” Applebloom deadpanned.

“Don’t worry little ones, the scare will be over soon, then Twilight will realize that she can’t really contain you three,” the stallion called after them.

Sweetie blinked and tried to facehoof. “Oh… duh!”

“Whut?” Applebloom asked, as Sweetie started to bob her head.

“~Bindings of plastic, tape and glue. Give us our freedom, I beg of you~” She sang as their Safety Suits literally came apart at the seams, falling to the floor.

“Inventive use of your talents,” Aspect noted aloud. “Better not let her catch you~”

“Time to bail!” Scoots cheered as she grabbed her scooter and wagon, the other two jumping in. Then with a gust of wind, they rocketed off down the road.

“Yup, those three are just a pony-sized bundle of chaos waiting to happen,” Aspect chuckled as he made his way back home.

He got home to see his kitchen rather lively. Twinkle was cooking up some lunch, with Artemis, Pupal and Realm— the former attached to the latter as usual— waiting at the table.

“Oh, afternoon Christopher,” Twinkle waved at him. “I was wondering where’d you’d gone.”

“Just restocking for who knows how long,” the stallion said as he walked into the kitchen, dropping his saddlebags to the floor before pulling out some food from both sides.

“Ahh, well pass me some carrots if you bought any,” Twinkle said as she stirred the stew she was making. “Realm dear, can you check the bread in the oven?”

“On it!” Realm said as he all but bolted from his seat to check the oven. Aspect, meanwhile, just reached in a little deeper before pulling out a bundle of carrots and hoofing them to Twinkle.

“My thanks dear,” Twinkle smiled as her magic diced them up and put them in the pot. “Sorry for my absence around here. I’ve been studying up on history and learning a few new spells. I swear, how ever did I get by without telekinesis?”

“Most unicorns made do with their hooves,” Aspect replied, wiggling his at her. “But yeah, magic’s changed over the years. Nowadays, winking’s all but forgotten, while light and moving things with your mind aren’t rare at all anymore.”

“How odd,” Twinkle chuckled. “Well I can’t teleport yet, but winking seems far less strenuous anyway.” She looked at Realm and smiled. “I’ll have to teach you how to do it young lad. Now you have a horn on your noggin.”

“Meh, unicorn magic’s overrated,” Realm shrugged it off. “I mean, I’ll learn from miss Twilight about it, but I made do with my pegasus magic. It’s more intuitive to me. I didn’t become a near master at the Gale King for nothing you know.”

“Oh yes, because you thought it was ‘cool’,” Twinkle giggled, making air quotes with her hooves. “Ah, you idolized Christopher back then. Still have that adorable crush on Clover?”

“No…” Realm sighed. “And it wasn’t fair to miss Twilight for me to take it out on her, treat her like Clover. They’re...two different mares. And miss Twilight deserves someone her own age.”

“Ah, such a mature lad,” she smiled and pet his head before leaning down. “What about that cute little bugpony there?” she whispered. “She seems taken by you~”

“We had a...tiff already,” Realm replied. “We’re...working past it.”

“H’oh?” Twilight Twinkle smiled and ruffled his mane. “Well, best of luck then lad.” She checked her soup and smiled. “Ahh good It’s done. Realm, cut up that bread and place it on the table. Lunch is ready.”

“Yes’m!” Realm replied as he used the little unicorn magic he knew to do the task. He pulled the bread out of the oven, pulled it apart into its separate parts, and dumped it in a basket, before carrying the basket to the table.

“Christopher, there’s some dipping oils in that cupboard,” Twinkle pointed with a serving spoon. “Ahh, a good old family lunch. Been a loong time since I had one.” She eyed a painting. “Clover! Come join us. You too Hurricane! And the rest of you lot.”

“Of course,” Pansy nodded as they moved to gather the other founders. Aspect hummed happily as they all made their way back to the main room, dipping oil in hoof as he joined all the family that was here for a good lunch.

For the following few days, Aspect was starting to get concerned. Twilight was getting more and more paranoid about her future self’s warning. And when he decided to go and pay the mare a visit…

He reached Golden Oaks only to pause. His gut churned as a feeling made itself known. Similar to the one he felt at Pinkie’s birthday…

Still, he had to know. Was the mare okay?

So he tentatively reached a hoof up to knock on the door.

After three quick raps he started talking to himself. “Ohwellguessshe’snothomeI’llbegoingno—”

The door opened and a magenta aura dragged him inside.

Oh his god. That… was a lot of charts, blackboards and piles of parchment. Twilight sat at a monstrous telescope as her magic danced around a dozen quills at once.

“Heeheehee,” she giggled. “If I can’t figure out what will happen,” her grin widened. “I’ll just observe everything~”

“...Yup, leaving now,” Aspect replied as he turned back to the door. His gut had been right. He didn’t want any part of this until she got over her little future self’s visit.

“Leave… THAT’S IT!” Twilight teleported in front of him. “My future self left before she could tell me!” Why was she wearing an eyepatch? And covered in scratches… and her mane was pushed back and burnt. “So the solution is easy! I’ll go to Canterlot, break into the Starswirl Wing of the Archives and find that Time Travel spell. Then I can go back in time and give past me all the data I have so far, it’ll save loads of time!”

“That’s...sure thing,” Aspect replied with a wide smile as he eased the door open. The tiniest crack was all he needed…

“And you can come with me!” she smiled as she snared him in a magic bubble. “In case of guards, I need a meat shield… I mean, an assistant.” she hummed happily as she teleported to the train station.

“Twilight, the moment you drop this bubble, I am leaving,” Aspect replied sternly. “I am not going to be paraded around like a trophy. I have mares to go back to.”

“It’ll only take a few hours,” she snorted as she looked at the setting sun. The day was almost done. She didn’t have time. Her horn blazed as she started channeling enough power it made his fur stand on end. How did a single unicorn have such a monstrous amount to draw from?

He would not be drawn into this.

With a burst of white light from his form, her bubble shattered like shards of glass. Before she could reform it, he was already gone, a breeze the only remnant of his presence there.

“Wheeeee! Why are we running?” Pinkie said, keeping pace with the gusty stallion next to her.

“Twilight’s gone loco!” Aspect replied, only now turning corporeal to answer her.

“Ooh, fun!” Pinkie said as she bounced towards the unicorn. “Wheeeeeeee!”

“Well, I’m not getting involved with that,” Aspect muttered as he showed up on his own doorstep. After making sure he’d done it right, the stallion walked inside and firmly shut the door after himself… and threw up a magical barrier just in case. Hopefully he’d eluded Twilight.

Why was he glowing?

Wait, was that a magical tag?

“Clever gi—”

His world shifted as he found himself in Canterlot gardens, along with Pinkie and Twilight, the pair wearing black catsuits.

“Oooh, Aspy joined us after all,” Pinkie cheered, hugging his barrel.

“Not cool,” the stallion muttered. “I am going home now,” he proclaimed, raising a hoof. “I am not going to get involved with this.”

“But it’ll be fuunuafunfuuun~” Pinkie sang. “You know, unless you wanna leave us alone in a room full of dangerous and unstable magic scrolls. Your choice I guess.”

“...Why do you have to make reasoned arguments?” Aspect sighed. “Fine. I’ll supervise for once. But the moment it gets too crazy for me, I’m leaving.”

“Shhh! Guards!” Twilight hissed and jumped up onto a platform, posing like a statue, Pinkie giggled and did the same. Aspect merely froze in place, seeing as how he’d appeared on a platform.

And… how did an they not get noticed? Seriously?

“Let’s go,” Twilight said, sneaking off towards a tower a few dozen feet away.

“Stealth-based games are fun,” Pinkie beamed as she bounced after her. “Oh, we shoulda brought a box.”

“Eh, it’d be easier for me to go unseen, what with this ability and all,” Aspect replied, before disappearing into thin air. He then reappeared next to Twilight and sighed. “I dislike being dragged away from my home so suddenly like this, you know this, right?”

“You’re a hero and this is for the good of Equestria,” Twilight countered. “You weren’t too busy to seduce me the other day.”

“Ohh, gossip,” Pinkie gasped. “How scandalous~”

“It’s only seduction if it worked,” Aspect countered.

“Well you wouldn’t know if it did or didn’t, with the way you stormed out,” she said as her horn glowed and the guards at the door fell asleep on the job.

“Ooh, Twilight used Sleep Spell, it was Super Effective,” Pinkie giggled as she poked the guard, who was asleep standing up.

“Forgive me if I wanted you to be sure before you did anything,” Aspect replied. “I don’t want you to feel pressured into doing something you might regret.”

“Well maybe if a handsome stallion wasn’t insisting on making me squirm!” she snorted. “I’m sorry if the only other ponies to hit on me were a mare and a foal. My deepest apologies if I don’t know how to react!”

“And how do you feel about this Aspect?” Pinkie asked, her mane in a bun as she held a pand and pencil.

“This is why I offered to teach you,” Aspect replied. “Be a sort of practice stallion for you so that you can pick out a stallion later and avoid any awkward trips along the way. Granted, I think we could both use some teaching. But you shouldn’t have to learn the hard way how to date. Books can’t tell you how to live your life, after all. They’re only waymarkers from somepony who came before you. It’s up to you to actually live.”

“So why me?” Twilight replied with a scoff. “Just because I helped Luna? Is that why you’re dating Rainbow Dash?”

“Dash chose to date me, not the other way around,” Aspect pointed out. “She likes the fact that I take time out of my day to help those that can’t stand on their own four legs...or in Scootaloo’s case, two wings. I might have to look into why her wings are so small later. She likes my sense of loyalty. As for you...well, I’d be lying if I said you weren’t attractive, Twilight. And, I know somepony that once tried to apply the things others told her towards getting a stallion of her own. It took a lot of work, and she’s still awkward about it, but maybe one day she’ll actually manage getting a date. I don’t want to see you trip and fumble. Everypony deserves to be happy, to be loved. That’s all I’m offering. Training wheels until you learn how to do it yourself.”

“Aspect…” Twilight stopped, her voice lowering. She decided to use Midnight’s advice. Brutal bluntness. “Are you in love with me?”

“Honestly?” Aspect mulled it over. “Probably not, no. But I still want to see you happy. To know that when you’re smiling, it’s because you’re confident in yourself. And if I can help that, then that’s what I want to do.”

She nodded once. “Alright… and thank you for telling the truth. I’ll… consider your proposal.”

“That’s all I ask,” the stallion nodded his head once. “So, why are we here again?”

“Huh… oh right, Time Travel spell, save the world,” Twilight said, though she did look slightly less crazy than before.

“Aww, are you friends again?” Pinkie asked him, reclining on the stallion’s back.

“Hopefully,” Aspect replied. “We’ll see, won’t we?”

“I think you’ll be alright,” Pinkie said and rolled over so she was hugging his neck. “Sooo. Does that teaching offer extend to all her friends~?” she said in a surprisingly seductive tone.

“All the ones that need it, and from that tone of voice, I can safely say you don’t,” Aspect firmly replied.

“Aww, I’m just teasing anyway,” she giggled and booped his nose. “And I’ll have you know that nopony has plundered my pie yet!” She declared as she chased after Twilight. Well… that was more than he needed to know. Like, ever.

Okay then, time to figure out just how a time travel spell could save the world.

He caught up to the pair and rounded a corner, just as two grey unicorns in armor bumped into them. Twilight froze, her eyes widening. She was so busted…

“Oh, hey Twilight!” the stallion greeted her happily. “Here for some late night study sessions? Haven’t done that in a while.”

“O-Oh… um, yes?” she replied hesitantly.

“Cool, I’ll unlock the door for you,” he beamed as he did just that, letting her access the sealed wing. “Night Twi. Don’t stay up all night.”

“S-Sure…?” the mare blinked as she gave an awkward wave to the retreating stallion.

“So, we could have asked for access, and they would have given it?” Aspect asked.

“Looks like it,” Pinkie giggled as she cartwheeled through the door. “But this was more fuuun~”

“...And it helped us work through some issues too,” the stallion sighed.

“Funny how things work like that,” Pinkie called.

“Okay,” Twilight ignored the banter. “We need a time travel spell. It should be in here somewhere.”

“Just be careful with it, Twilight,” Aspect warned her. “You wouldn’t want to disprove Starswirl and actually change history.”

“As long as it’s a small change, I should be fine,” Twilight said as she looked around. The moon was already beginning its decline as she panicked. “We’re running out of time. The world’s gonna end with the next sunrise!”

Aspect merely raised an eyebrow. Surely Yggdrasil would have warned him if it was going to happen so soon.

Pinkie was just aimlessly pulling scrolls off of the shelf, while Twilight tried a more methodical approach to it. But try as they might, they couldn’t find the spell. During one of Pinkie’s… exuberant searches, a scroll landed at Aspect’s hooves, one bound in a gold clasp with Starswirl’s insignia on it.

“Twilight, I think this might be the one you’re looking for,” the stallion called out to her.

“Yes!” Twilight said as she grabbed the scroll. She opened it and looked inside. “Ohh wow, it looks hard. I can only go back for a few minutes and it only works once per pony.”

“So you’d better make it count,” Aspect noted aloud as he read it. Wait, was that…

Oh that bastard had promised to never use runes in his magic!

“Okay, let’s give it a whirl…” Twilight said then looked out the window. It was getting awfully bright out… side.

“We’re too late…” she whispered, Pinkie grabbing her as the two hugged, waiting for the ‘disaster’ to come.

Aspect merely counted down until they realized nothing was happening.

“Good morning Twilight,” a voice said as Celestia walked in, a cup of coffee in her aura. “A fine morning we’re having isn’t it? Love your new style by the way. Very… modern.”

“...Wha?” Twilight opened one eye and looked around.

“Yup, this was not the end of the world,” Aspect informed her.

“No fire and brimstone? No rampaging demon armies or great pony wars?” Twilight looked out the window at the… perfectly peaceful day.

“Father… have you been telling her stories from the bad old days?” Celestia softly chided him.

“She might have asked a few questions, I might have answered,” Aspect replied as he looked out the window.

“Oh dear,” Celestia said as Twilight looked at the scroll and an idea formed.

“I know… I’ll go back and warn myself not to worry about it,” she beamed as Aspect took her appearance into account as she powered up the spell and vanished in a crack of light.

“Three, two, one…” the stallion counted out.

Twilight reappeared, a confused look on her face as she headed to the wall… and started banging her head against it.

“It. Was. A. Self. Fulfilling. Paradox.” she groaned, each word punctuated by a solid thunk.

“And that is why I don’t mess with time,” Aspect noted aloud. “Well, except for rewinding it to fix things if I can get to the site in time.”

“Ahh, so she’s learned a Time Travel lesson,” Celestia chuckled. “Remember when Luna and Clover teamed up to try and steal cookies? Then they’d keep leaping back in time to get more.” The alicorn chuckled and wiped her eye. “Mother wondered how two fillies got so fat from just one cookie.”

“Time is always picky about how you meddle in it,” Aspect told the mare. “At least you learned your lesson.”

“I’m never touching it again,” Twilight groaned and rubbed her head.

“Well, I think I know what lesson you learned today,” Celestia giggled.

“Mhm,” Twilight nodded. “From now on, I'm gonna solve problems as they come, and stop worrying about every little thing!” She looked at Aspect. “And, make sure to have all the facts and a clear idea, before jumping to conclusions.”

“A good lesson indeed,” Celestia chuckled and looked at her father. “One you could both use I’m sure.”

“So sometimes I swing first and ask questions later,” the stallion huffed.

“Yes, only after you swing, there’s nopony around to respond to those questions,” Celestia nuzzled him. “Now, would you like to join me for breakfast. Luna has been… absent lately, ever since discovering a new place that opens all night.”

“Oh boy,” Aspect chuckled. “Fine, we can make time for breakfast. Though I should send my home a quick missive about being ponynapped into this adventure.”

“I’ll send one,” Celestia chuckled. “Though I don’t think they’d be worrying too much…”

“Okay, that’s about everything,” Bon Bon said as she slung her Lightning Bowgun over her back. Her belt loaded with other gadgets and whatnot. “I’m going to find him. His trail shouldn’t be too cold. I promise I’ll bring Aspect back okay!” She cocked the gun back with a satisfying click. “Whoever took him and Twilight is gonna pay with their blood.”

There was a puff of smoke, that congealed into a scroll, before it landed right in front of Bon Bon. That...was dragonfire magic.

Bon Bon picked up the scroll and opened it, setting her gun down.

Dear Bon Bon,

Hey, it’s Aspect here. Just letting you know, Twilight basically ponynapped me for her latest crazy adventure. I tried escaping when I saw the crazed look in her eyes, but she tagged me with a tracer spell.

However, all’s well that ends well. I think we became better friends because of it, and Twilight definitely learned to not muddy around with time. She basically just gave herself her own prophecy about last week.

Just letting you know I’m fine, and we’ll all be back after breakfast. Since I know you all are probably worrying about where I am. And I will sleep all day afterwards.

Love,
Aspect.

“ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?” Bon Bon yelled and groaned. “For… crying out bucking loud.” She tossed the note aside and packed away the gear she’d spent a half hour getting out. “False alarm guys! He’s just suffering a Ponyville Tuesdayitis!”

“Ooohhh,” came the understanding voices of Lyra and Twilight’s friends.

“Well, seems like you’ve all had quite the experiences over the last few days,” Celestia said and looked at her father. “While I am… less than amused at you soliciting Twilight. She is a grown mare, and her decisions are hers to make. I will say this…” She looked at him with a glare that chilled him. Hell, that look could have frozen Gelgeth! He had no idea Celestia could get this angry. “You hurt her in any way. And Luna’s banishment will look like a foals timeout compared to what I’ll do to you.”

“I would never hurt her,” Aspect replied, putting a hoof over his heart. “I’m doing this to help her. Think of me as the training wheels for her first real relationship. Once we’re satisfied she can find one on her own, I stop and she rides out to steal the hearts of the masses.”

“You bloody would too,” she groaned and facehooved. “Well I trust Twilight to be mature about this.” Then she smirked, one that her father didn’t trust in the slightest. “If he gets to be too much, go and find the portrait of my mother and tell her…” She leaned over and whispered into the unicorn’s ear.

Twilight’s eyes widened… then she smiled.

Then she snorted.

Now she was rolling around on the floor laughing.

“I don’t want to know,” Aspect deadpanned before shaking his head.

“In anycase,” Celestia giggled as she sipped her coffee. “You really should visit again sometime. I have Friday’s free now!”

“Oh, nice!” Aspect smiled at her. “Well done, you.”

“I’m rather proud of it,” Celestia smiled. “And Luna cut her Night Courts down to three nights a week. So she’s free every other evening.”

“How’d she do that?” Twilight asked, finally recovering enough to speak.

“In her words exactly…” Celestia gave a deadpan sigh. “Buck them all. I’ll do what I want. Long Live the Night.”

“Not the most inspiring speech of taking back your free time, but it’ll do,” the stallion chuckled.

“Luna in a nutshell, brutally effective,” Celestia sighed. “Well in any case. Do you all require a chariot home?”

“That might be nice, I think I burned out teleporting here, and the time spell,” Twilight groaned.

“You teleported here? From Ponyville?” Celestia’s raised an eyebrow. That… and she brought two more with her. That was rather impressive. Between this and the Ursa incident, Twilight’s power was just getting better and better.

“And I can only ride the wind because of reasons,” Aspect waved a wing. “I could be home in a flash now.”

“Yes yes, you will miss that when Arabus is finally gone won't you?” Celestia said with a slight roll of her eyes.

“Not really, it’s a trick I made up,” Aspect chuckled. “I’ve been replacing all his tricks with mine over the years, redefining what it means to wield Air. Hell, he’s mostly quiet these days.”

“Aside from that slip up in Cloudsdale,” Twilight reminded him as the door opened and two ponies entered.

One was Celestia’s assistant, Raven Inkwell. A rather pretty unicorn mare with a chocolate mane and a white coat. The other was a mare Aspect hadn’t met yet.

She was tall, with long, slender legs. a smooth, sleek dark gray, almost black coat. Her mane was a soft teal and her eyes a rich green. Her long horn had a very slight curve to it, as well as some very nice curves in all the right places.

“Ah,” Celestia gestured with a wing. “Aspect. Twilight. Allow me to introduce my legal specialist, Miss Emeraldas.”

“Charmed,” Aspect nodded his head at her.

Her eyes looked him over, the mare exuding that old unicorn superiority. “So, this is the famous Balanced Aspect.” Her voice was like dripping honey, it made his fur stand on end for some reason.

“Famous is overdoing it,” the stallion chuckled. “I’m retired. Mostly, anyways.”

“Hmm yes, no more monsters to slay hm?” she said as she looked at Twilight and licked her lips. “Well, I should be off. I have many more important things to take care of.”

Aspect waited for her to leave before speaking up. “I’m not sure if I should be offended that there are things more important than me and Twilight or not,” he observed aloud.

“She's a busy mare, who is helping me with many a thing,” Celestia chuckled. “Why's that father? Getting an ego now?”

“I blame Rainbow’s influence,” Twilight giggled.

“It’s likely,” Aspect agreed. “Well in any case. Why don’t we all have breakfast together before we have to go back?”

Celestia nodded as she rang a small bell, a series of cute maids soon bringing out a variety of breakfast foods, including two mugs of rich coffee for Twilight and Aspect.

“Oohhh, I need this in my life,” Twilight moaned as she nuzzled the mug.

“Celly, just what did you teach her?” Aspect raised an eyebrow as he pulled his own mug close and sipped from it.

This was perfection in a mug, pure and simple. A flawless mug of coffee with the perfect blend of bitterness and sweetness and at juuust the right temperature.

“Nevermind, clearly she has the right of it,” the stallion replied as he kept drinking his liquid, perfect caffeine.

“Mm, somepony’s gone to Donut Joe’s,” Twilight said as she drank. “Only he makes coffee like this.”

“And he won't part with the method either,” Luna said as she entered the room, flopping down next to Aspect and placing her head in his lap. “Lulu demands cuddles,” she pouted.

“An easy request to fulfill,” Aspect replied as his free hoof rubbed Luna behind the ears.

“You spoil her too much,” Celestia chuckled as Luna purred at the scritchies.

“I spoiled both of you, too late now,” Aspect returned. “Couldn’t change either of you if I wanted to.”

And then he heard Twilight giggle. The stallion turned to her with a raised eyebrow.

“Sorry,” the young mare chuckled. “It's just...cute. To see the Princesses acting like this.” She seemed to catch herself and put a hoof to her mouth to silence herself.

“Yeah, some ponies fail to realize that my daughters are ponies first, princesses second,” Aspect replied, kissing the crown of Luna’s head. “At least, that’s how I treat them.”

Luna looked up at him, her teal eyes wide and and glimmering, her bottom lip jutting out in thought as she added a slight tilt of her head to complete the effect. “I'm cute?” she asked in a light tone.

Aspect carefully put his coffee down...before making a ‘hnnng’ noise and falling back, clutching his chest.

“Dramatic much?” Twilight deadpanned as Luna got up, giggling to herself.

Aspect then heard Celestia whisper… And as he got up to see what she was planning…

All three mares wore the same look as Luna before.

The stallion locked up, barely breathing or even blinking as he stood there.

And then a light breeze entered the room and tipped him over onto his side.

“Huzzah! We hath defeated him,” Luna cheered and smiled.

“Seriously?” Twilight hardly sounded convinced as Celestia just tittered softly. Aspect just lay there, for all the world unresponsive due to the sheer amount of cute that had overloaded him.

“Well, guess we get to keep him a little longer,” Celestia giggled.

“PONYPILE!” Luna shouted as she landed on the stallion, dragging Tia, Twi, and even Raven along with her magic, cackling loudly.

“Tell my mares I love them,” Aspect croaked out, before going limp and making a ‘bleh’ noise.

“Oh dear,” Celestia giggled as she and Luna nuzzled him, Raven and Twilight blushing as they got off of them.

“You two really test his immortality huh?” Twilight said, trying not to think about what she was just apart of. She'd had enough freak outs for one week. She looked over at the fallen stallion and before she could stop herself. “You think he'd be used to being under a pile of mares…”

Celestia and Luna just stopped and slowly turned to look at her, Twilight squeaking and wilting under their gaze, before the lunar diarch burst out laughing.

“Great, she’s learning how to gang up on me,” Aspect moaned as he lay there.

“Twilight is a fast study,” Celestia giggled as she put a wing around the purple mare. “Don't be afraid to tease him. He secretly likes it.”

“Ah… but… I could never…” Twilight flustered.

“Somepony has to keep me humble, otherwise I’ll go mad with power,” Aspect replied, sitting up and stretching his wings.

“Or start seducing all the mares,” Twilight rolled her eyes. Oooh, the snark was strong with this one.

“You’re sure she’s not adopted?” Aspect asked Celly. “She snarks like family.”

“Nope, she's all natural,” Celestia mused as she nuzzled the mare, eliciting a blush from the unicorn.

“Better snap her up quick, then, before I try my hoof at her again,” Aspect teased Celestia.

“Hmm?” Celestia tilted her head, not getting his meaning.

“Eh, you’ll find out sooner or later,” the stallion waved it off. “So, back to eating breakfast,” he said, picking up his coffee and sipping it again.

Luna just rubbed her hooves. She knew what he meant and wanted in on this.

Twilight looked as lost as Celestia.

Regardless, the ponies resumed their breakfast and Celestia soon saw Twilight, Pinkie (Whom had been raiding Canterlot bakeries all morning) and Aspect off.

“You joining us?” Twilight asked him. “Or are you cheating your way home?”

“I’ll get back faster than anypony,” Aspect chuckled, waving a wing at her. “Take care. I have mares to go calm down.”

And with a rush of wind, the stallion disappeared into thin air.

“Guess it's just us,” Pinkie said and looked at the guards. “And our strapping escorts of course~”

Twilight just sighed and shook her head as they took off. This was gonna be a looong ride.

Aspect reappeared in front of his house and sighed, before walking in. “I’m baaaack~” he called out.

“Catch me if you can half pint!” Nightmare Filly cackled as she ran past him, Realm’s paintbrushes in her magical grip.

“Death is too good for you!” Realm shouted back as he chased her, a bit of lightning on his wings as he streaked after her.

“...So, Tuesday then?” the stallion asked.

“She's been distracting him,” Bon Bon said as she walked up to him, kissing his cheek. “He's been locked up in his room for a few days, so he could use the exercise.”

“Ah, so she’ll be of a help to us as long as we can channel her,” Aspect nodded once. “Got it.”

“I heard that!” Nightmare said as she ran under him, the electric colt following her…

Realm snarled as he tried pouncing the filly to get his brushes back, not willing to zap someone other than his target.

She turned into a starry mist, the colt phasing through her as she chuckled. “So close, yet so--”

*Splatsplatsplatsplat*

Nightmare found herself stuck to the floor with green goo, Pupal standing a few feet away, her fangs dripping with the same substance.

“Oh come on! That's cheating!” the tiny alicorn raged.

“So!” Bon Bon said to Aspect, ignoring all that. “How's your day? Enjoy Canterlot did we?”

“It was...entertaining,” the stallion replied. “Though I think I’m going to have to nap off the stress of being ponynapped and helping Twilight break into the Starswirl wing.”

“Oh yes, being ponynapped by Twilight must have been a horrendous experience,” Bon Bon giggled and rolled her eyes. “You could have escaped if you actually tried.”

“I did, she tagged me with a tracer spell,” Aspect replied. “The moment I turned corporeal, she dragged me with her to Canterlot.”

“That's… actually quite genius,” Bon Bon blinked. “Huh.”

“HMMFMMRFLE!!!!” Came a muffled scream of pure rage and filled with murderous intent as Pupal finished binding Nightmare in a translucent pod.

“Yeah, if there’s one thing Twilight can do, it’s work around a problem,” Aspect nodded. “Still, we eventually found out that her warning from the future was a self-fulfilling prophecy. She tried to tell herself not to worry about it, and she couldn’t manage to get the warning out before she was dragged back to the present.”

“Oh dear,” Bon Bon chuckled and shook her head. “That must have been quite embarrassing for the poor dear.”

“She got over it,” Aspect replied. “...After beating her head against a wall about how she couldn’t see it coming.”

“Time Travel is bothersome to say the least,” Bon Bon agreed and looked at Pupal. “Release Nightmare dear. We do not put friends in pods.”

Pupal seemed to be considering her words before replying. “I know, I didn't.”

“...I walked into that one, didn't I?” Bonnie sighed.

“Yup,” the stallion agreed. “What you should have said was, we don’t put family in pods.”

“Ergh…” Bon Bon sighed again and shook her head. “Pupal. Please?”

The Changeling nodded and using her fangs, tore a hole in the pod as Nightmare spilled out, coughing up some green liquid.

“And maybe that will teach you a little respect for Realm and his minion,” Aspect chided the filly.

“They *cough* shouldn’t mess with the *hack* Aspect of Dreams and Nightmares,” she warned them.

“You messed with the Aspect of Art, and one of the Aspect of Battle’s daughters, how did you think that was going to go?” the stallion replied.

“Way to help me out by the way,” she snarked at him. Then she looked down at her body, coated in green goop and grinned…

Before latching onto his chest with a hug.

“Well you’re clearly the sort that won’t listen to me when I tell you something anyway,” Aspect replied, not phased. “So if you want to be so independent and not listen to somepony that is older than you and perhaps just a wee bit more world-wise than you, fine. You can have your freedom. I won’t judge or stop you.”

“Woow, no wonder Celestia has a stick in her plot,” the tiny alicorn mused as she let go… or tried. “Uhoh.”

“Calm down,” the stallion said. “Pupal, would you care to remove us from each other?”

“No don't,” Bon Bon raised a hoof as the biggest shit-eating grin crossed her muzzle. “They could use the--”

“Don't you dare!” Nightmare warned.

“Bonding experience,” Bonnie finished.

“...Pupal, you have my permission to stick Bonnie in a pod for that one,” Aspect deadpanned.

Bon Bon just giggled as she scooped the Changeling up and trotted away.

“She's seriously gonna leave us here!?” Nightmare yelled.

“Some soap and water should see to getting rid of this,” Aspect mused as he began walking towards his bathroom. “Guess it’s bathtime for you and me.”

“Wonderful,” Nightmare deadpanned.

The rest of the day was pretty quiet. Aspect found out Bon Bon was ready to wage a one-mare war against Canterlot in his absense though.

“Oh shush,” the mare blushed as she smothered the blabbermouth Rainbow with a pillow as they all lay in bed.

“It was amusing,” Midnight smiled.

“Good thing I remembered I have a dragon form up there,” Aspect replied as he lay in bed with his eyes closed. “Otherwise Tia might have done something in response to you coming for me.”

“Huh… how would a dragon have solved it?” Rainbow asked, shoving the pillow off of her.

“Probably by flicking Twilight out of its cave and not being able to be teleported out thanks to its anti-magic scales,” Aspect replied.

Rainbow just blinked.

“Nevermind,” Bon Bon pet her head. “Anyway, let's sleep okay? It's been a looong day for some of us.”

“Agreed,” the stallion said as he pulled the nearest mare close and snuggled her, that being his pretty Bonnie lass.

…

Screaming, that was the first sound he heard. Followed by the roaring winds. He reached the top of the hill, as a scene of destruction played out.

Ponyville being torn apart. Fierce winds shredded houses and shops, picking up ponies high into the air, only to fling them away to certain death.

Pegasi tried… but they couldn’t combat the multiple tornadoes and hurricane force winds. Their wings broke under the strain, their shattered bodies hitting the ground with a wet thud.

This...this...how? How? He controlled Air, this...should not be happening!

Above it all, a lone figure cackled. A mad stallion beat his wings as another street was obliterated.

Balanced Aspect. His power over Arabus at full effect.

No...no...no no no! The old bastard was quiet now! He would never do this!

He saw something streaking towards the figure, a dark blur as he made out Midnight Song, her blades gleaming.

Then a scream… the stallion laughed as Midnight fell… her severed wings falling away in the winds.

This couldn’t be happening! He wouldn’t ever do that! He had to stop it!

His hooves refused to move, like he was glued to the ground as the sky exploded, a rainbow spreading out as Rainbow Dash tore towards ArabusAspect at ridiculous speeds…

Maybe that was why she never saw the blade of wind pierce her chest… the mare dead before she even realised…

No! He refused to believe this! He had to make this stop! The stallion struggled to do something, anything to get close to this vision and put an end to it.

He seemed to be in town now… his doppelganger moving through the streets like a stormy wraith.

Until a bolt of plasma hit him, and both stallions saw Bon Bon at the end of the street, that weird weapon of hers in her grip.

Arabus smirked as stalked towards her…

No!

Aspect did his best to move, to throw himself in the way, to do something, anything, to put a stop to this terrible vision...to prevent what he knew was about to happen…

The stallion turned towards him, looking right at him as he smiled.

“Isn't this fun?” he chuckled in his own voice, even as a wave of a wing started to draw the air from the mares lungs, as she literally started to suffocate.

No...no no no...not this. Not...not all of them. No…

“It's too bad she can't...I bet her screams are delicious,” he laughed… before a beam of light cut him off.

“Honestly,” a voice said. A tall mare stepped out next to him. Her coat as black as pitch, her starry mane waving in the wind. “Quite the imagination you have here.”

“N...Nightmare?” Aspect whispered. “Then...this?”

“Obviously,” she snorted as Arabus charged at her, only to be frozen in the air. “You have no power here,” she snarled as a burst of power exploded from her horn, the stallion and the horrific scene he created vanished, replaced with a white void.

“I...it’s something Arabus sometimes does,” the stallion whispered to himself. “He tried over the years to make me see scenes that weren’t there. Images of me destroying the world. Those...those were easy to fight. But this...this is low, even for him.”

“You avoided getting close to anypony for so long,” Nightmare said calmly. “And you haven't slept in a while. Avoid doing so again.” She looked at him. “Now come here.”

Aspect nodded numbly as he walked closer to the mare, just glad she’d stopped what was about to happen.

Then she leaned down, her horn to his forehead as he found himself in his human form, her wings wrapped around him in a surprisingly gentle hug. The human didn’t question it for a second, wasting no time in returning it and thanking her for what she’d done.

“Tell anyone and I'll spike your coffee with hot sauce,” she mumbled and blushed, then winced in pain. “Dammit…” Her horn shone. “Stand still… I'm going to craft a dream for you.”

“You don’t have to—” the human replied, or tried to. Her horn thrummed with power as the white void was replaced with a familiar valley. Friends of a time long past waited.

And three mares also joined them.

“I...thank you,” Aspect replied, hugging Nightmare again. “You’re...not as bad as I thought.”

Nightmare just snorted as she winced again, before fading away…leaving him to enjoy the dream.

Nightmare Moon awoke, coughing as she grabbed her aching head. Just entering his nightmare had taken a good deal of power, along with suppressing Arabus. Then the Dreamcraft… something she hadn't done before.

She panted heavily. Being the good guy was fucking exhausting.

Author's Notes:

Yeah I definitely prefer uploading them early. I'll try to make sure to do that now.

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