Mary Sue’s pace had slowed considerably. Getting past the guards had been easy of course. All she had to do was ask and they let her in, promising her an audience with the princess and money and love and sexual favours and devotion and their first born and you get the general idea. It was laughable, she hadn’t even met those guards before and yet they still just let her right in as if she was royalty.

However, upon entering Mary had found the place was deserted. There were no guards patrolling, no palace staff hurrying around, no nobleponies squabbling. There was only that distant rumble. The earth pony had only been in the palace once before, but it had been a bustling hub of activity then, and despite her lack of experience in the grand halls, the difference was enough to get her slow her confident trot to a reserved, cautious walk.

There was an unnerving inconsistency to the walls. Last time Mary Sue had visited, her impressions of the palace were that of a well-kept estate that had a visible, and reassuring age to it. Sure the walls and floors had been spotless, but they had a charming antique quality to them.

However this quality had now seemed to have been taken over by a strange patchwork one. Parts of the palace retained their antiquity, whereas others had the sterilised gleam of brand new material. The effect was almost nauseating and Mary Sue had to stop at irregular intervals to regain her bearings.

The vomit-inducing jigsaw corridors made it much harder for the mare to remember her way around. What was previously a lesiurely stroll became an extended lesson in how not to do orienteering. Eventually, and without any noclipping, Mary found herself once again before the entrance to the expansive throne room.

However, unlike the more subtle changes of the palace halls, the doors were now totally unrecognisable. Gone was the golden door, and in its place was a much smaller, much more modest, much more wooden one. There was no gold in sight, not a single gem was to be found on its dull surface. Much more strangely however, it only depicted one monarch.

The elder alicorn had the two celestial bodies at each hoof. She was suspended by her wings and her head was bowed in a gesture that seemed more modest than grandiose. Considering the show that the two princesses had put on during Mary’s last visit she was surprised that Celestia was even aware the concept of modesty existed. The idea of her displaying it seemed like a jump too far. A bit like when you try to jump over a fence and end up actually escaping the orbit of the planet you had, up until that point, been occupying. That kind of jump.

Mary Sue began to list the oddities that had occurred thus far in an attempt to make sense of it all. There were visible repairs on the castle, the door didn't depict Luna, the night lasted longer and it ended when a Rainbow flash occurred which ended up with something travelling to the moon. Mary considered all of this before it finally clicked. Something had happened, something big.

Could Luna had miscalculated the night’s duration? Could the rainbow flash be just a coincidence? Could the palace merely be in the middle of the world’s most inconsistent renovation? Yes, all of the strange occurrences could very well just be that, strange occurrences all borne from simple causes, all happening to fall on one day.

But it wasn’t very likely. What was likely was that all of this was due to something big, something involving Luna, something that caused this massive damage to the palace, extended the night and caused the nobility to mix with the serfs in their sky-glaring.

Mary Sue started to back away from the door, a thank-you could wait. She needed to go back, wait until things had died down. Wait until news had spread and wait until she was sure she wasn’t going to receive a grief-motivated axe to the face in place of a polite 'You're Welcome'.

Small, quiet hoofsteps back down the hall quickened. Tiptoeing became a trot, and once she had turned around a trot tried to become a gallop. The endeavour was quashed before it could begin though. As soon as she stopped moving backwards like some sort of children's fiction character (Perish the thought!) and oriented herself correctly her muzzle impacted against a soft, fluffy blanket of pure white.

Mary fell back on her haunches and could have sworn that small animated canaries actually phased into existence simply to fly around her head whilst chirping, before bidding this dimension farewell once again. However upon shaking the sense back into her head, Mary knew that was preposterous. This was a world full of magical candy-coloured talking cartoon horses! Nothing ridiculous happened here!

The dazed earth pony looked up, and found that her obstacle was peering down. A vacant looking Celestia towered over her, a small twinge of amusement in the monarch’s eyes held back something infinitely more serious.

Vacant, as well as a much more modest looking monarch it should be stated. Gone were all the gems, gone the mannerisms someone who had just consumed fourteen cans of energy drink before being given a rubber stamp that reads ‘I ARE THE QUEEN!’ and more importantly, gone was that stupid fucking crown.

Celestia was the lesser form of her previous self, a simple golden necklace around her neck, a comparatively insignificant tiara with but one gem. A set of horseshoes that would have been dwarfed by her previous set, and an air of calm contemplation that was one hundred percent absent but a few weeks ago. None of them spoke for a while. Mary was paralysed and made mute by her ignorance of the current situation, whereas Celestia was simply confused.

And moreso, she didn’t really care. Whatever exchange went on between her and Mary Sue would be fleeting, it would be lost in time and forgotten though it would still not make the coming millennia any easier. So why should she care about whatever asinine conversation was about to take place?

“Enjoying the boon… Mary Sue was it? Let me guess though, you’re going by a different name now aren’t you? Allow me to guess perhaps? Shooting Star maybe? Glorious Nebula, Prismatic Shining Hope? Any of these sounding familiar.” Celestia lightly teased without an ounce of humour in her voice.

“Erm… no your majesty, just Mary Sue.” The earth pony said whilst recounting the intricate bow she learned a few weeks prior.

However before she could even get to the street dance/whistling the national anthem part, a hoof on the shoulder stilled her.

“I don’t think that’s necessary now, and Princess is fine. Celestia’s fine too… call me whatever you think I deserve to be called.” Celestia said distantly.

“Deserve, Princess? What do you mean? You’re our ruler, you deserve whatever you think you deserve to be called. I will call you whatever you wish,” Mary asserted, now more than a little worried about the monarch. Her desire to flee the monumentally uncomfortable situation was fighting a losing battle with her worry for the alicorn before her. That alicorn seemed not to be listening, her eyes were fixed upon a cracked glass window a few feet away. It seemed to be one of the very few parts of the castle that was not undamaged or already replaced, and it depicted the royal sisters' triumph against the chaotic serpent Discord.

“What would you call someone who all but killed a Princess?” Mary’s eyes snapped to their widest, and she began stammering uncomfortably,

“I’m sorry princess, I don’t think I-”

“You heard me,” Celestia interrupted softly, yet firmly enough to promptly shut the earth pony up “What would you call someone who all but killed a princess, someone who never helped the pony they loved the most and ground them down. Further and further down until one day, when they finally snap under all of your dead weight. What would you call a person who did all of this, and to insult to injury, will lap up praises and hero-worship like a fat tabby with milk, until and after everyone you know is nothing but ash and dust? What do you call someone who does nothing right, and gets everything at the expense of she who did her job with dignity?”

“I don’t know anypony like that,” Mary immediately replied, pieces of a horrible puzzle beginning to fit into place. Celestia cocked her head toward the smaller pony.

“Then you shouldn’t have any problem answering the… the hypothetical. What would you call them Mary Sue?” The Princess said, this time meeting the mare’s eyes. Mary Sue stuttered far too long for the Princess’ liking, who took a step forward.

“Would you call them a traitor? Would you hate them, and want their head on a pike? Maybe you would want their entrails paraded around in the streets for the serfs to revel in, hmm? Maybe you want their wings bound and broken, pelted with rocks and their horn smashed with house bricks. Put out their eyes with hot pokers and watch them crawl around on the floor, writhing and begging as we can all take out our righteous anger on them, we could make a day of it…” The Princess stopped her rant as soon as she saw Mary Sue fall to the ground and cover her eyes. Celestia felt her throat prickle uncomfortably, and only then did she realise she had been shouting.

Mary shook before the alicorn, a small bundle of fear and confusion. The Princess sighed, not out of anger at Mary Sue, but because she was doing it again. Bearing down on someone with her sheer force of presence. She bent her old limbs and eased herself into a sitting position next to the alabaster earth pony. She draped a wing over Mary’s body, the massive appendage easily covered her.

‘I’m Sorry’ was never said, and this was for many reasons really. The fact that she was sat here, comforting the one she had frightened seemed gesture enough, and she didn’t think speaking was really the best thing right now. However the main reason was that ‘I’m sorry’ was the last thing she had said to her sister. Just before the rainbow beam enveloped the corrupted alicorn to send off to the moon, not to return until everything had changed and forgotten her and everyone she ever called a friend was dead, Celestia had said ‘I’m sorry’.

If saying those words was what Celestia's attempt at conveying her regret at ruining her sister's life, it seemed like this situation was unfitting for the phrase. She didn’t want to the type of pony to offer trite, measly sentiments to her sister, and she didn’t want to be disingenuous to her subjects.

She was probably both.

Mary Sue looked up at Celestia with uncertain eyes. For her part, the monarch sighed, and swept and errant lock of hair off of the smaller pony’s face.

“Call me what you think I deserve to be called,” the alicorn repeated to her silent partner. Mary Sue swallowed her fear.

“Princess,” She began, making sure to emphasise the word, “I came to say thank you for my boon. It has improved my life more than I ever imagined.”

The first smile Mary could describe as genuine appeared on Celestia’s face.

“I’m glad to hear it my little pony, not many ponies come back to thank me when the boon is done. But it's Luna you should be...” Celestia faltered after realising what she had just said. Not again. She didn’t want to have to tell anypony, not again. Not hear things like ‘Traitor’ and ‘Usurper’ said about her sister, not Luna. However, Mary Sue was not a stupid mare.

“Are you sure Princess?” the white pony urged. Celestia replied with a teary smile,

“No,” she choked out, “Maybe it can wait.”

The two of them sat there together, and the hall felt a bit bigger than it had done before.

“Now just one more dearie,” Rarity cooed to a disgruntled Applejack.

Once the fashionista got her drunk friend in the house, she had gone into full-on doting mode. Firstly, she drew a lukewarm bath and cleaned the farmer up, making sure to give the (adult, it should be mentioned) mare a small rubber duck to play with, who humiliatingly squealed in a fit of drunken delight that would have been adorable if it weren’t so unbelievable embarrassing for everyone in the room who wasn’t either totally wankered or in mummy-mode. By which I mean Twilight.

It was embarrassing for her. And no one else.

AJ had been immediately clad in a bib and sat at the table after a gentle towel dry. A plate of two apple fritters was placed in front of AJ who began munching happily. Rarity had stroked her mane and whispered gentle words of encouragement… and then the saga of the coffee had begun.

The saga of the coffee was an odd chapter of Ponyville history that no doubt foals would one day sing about, probably. At first it was a cup of coffee. Not too surprising at all really considering this was ‘The Saga of the Coffee’. If someone were to ask you, what would be a surprising thing to happen in ‘The Saga of the Coffee?’, ‘Someone having a cup of coffee’ would likely not be your reply.

So Rarity had given Applejack a nice cup of coffee, all the while encouraging her charge to drink up. Then came another cup of coffee, but black this time. No milk, no sugar, none of that foam stuff on the top that you always think will taste a lot nicer than it actually does. Nope.

Just a big cup of coffee, blacker than Rarity’s ‘Alone Time Cloak’. Applejack had downed that, and although she seemed to enjoy it a loss less than her much sweeter previous cup, she was slurring less. Her eyes had also stopped rolling into the back of her head, so you can't really doubt progress.

But then came the raw coffee… on a big wooden spoon… and Rarity wanted Applejack to eat it. At this point in the saga, Twilight, the voice of reason or spoilsport depending on which singing foal you were going by, decided to get involved.

“Rarity, I really don’t think that’s going to help,” she asserted.

“Twilight darling, just how much experience do you have nursing a hangover? And no, that time you got drunk of sparkling water Shining Armour told you was wine does not count,” Rarity replied without missing a beat.

“The placebo effect is a well-documented scientific phenomenon! And furthermore… you know what forget it. What I do have is an extensive knowledge of drugs such as alcohol’s effects on brain chemistry and I know that what Applejack needs is just a rest. All of these extra chemicals won’t help.”

Rarity looked at her for a moment before immediately barking with some very unrefined laughter. She soon corrected herself though and giggled girlishly into a hoof. Much to Twilight’s chagrin she was sure she heard the phrase ‘Oh my, how quaint’.

“I’m sorry dearie,” Rarity said once she had gotten her laughs in control, “But this is what I always do when I’ve ‘indulged’ a bit too much. A few cups of coffee would do her fine but if we want to get out and find the others we’re going to have to be quick. Ergo…” the spoon full of coffee was gestured too with a quick flare of Rarity’s magic “…Drastic measures,”

“Rarity I really have to put my hoof down here,” Twilight said. Rarity gave her an indescribable look, before setting down the spoon on Applejack’s plate.

“I see,” the two of them carried on with their staring before Rarity quickly added, “Applejack darling, that spoon has apple flavoured coffee on it,”

Twilight didn’t even have time to shout the word ‘no’ before Applejack grabbed the spoon and ingested its contents. The farmer grimaced at the bitter taste but did not spit out the coffee. She swallowed before emitting a gurgle and setting her head down on the table.

“There we go sweetie, one more of those and you’ll be right as rain!” Rarity said proudly.

“Are you my momma?” Applejack croaked in a haze that could have been caused by alcohol or a lethal caffeine overdose. Rarity brought her hoof to her chin and considered this before replying ‘Yes!’ with a thoroughly satisfied disposition.

“No Rarity, I can’t allow this to continue.” Twilight snapped, and before Rarity could grab the coffee tin Twilight snatched it out of her reach. Rarity gave her a blank look for a couple of seconds. Her eyes turned to the tin in Twilight’s magical grasp.

“You of all unicorns know you about the finer points of telekinesis Rarity.” Twilight began, “You can’t take anything that’s in my grasp, even if it’s just a tin.” The element of magic said with barely contained smugness. Rarity might know more about drinking, but magic was her area of expertise-

Why was the coffee tin suddenly lighter?

Twilight looked up to see Rarity levitating all of the actual coffee from the tin. The coffee that Twilight didn’t bother to… grasp… oh hell.

“You’re right Twilight, I can’t get that tin off you. Whatever will I do now?” Rarity deadpanned in a tone more sarcastic than a… erm? A really sarcastic bloke.

Twilight was quick on the retort though, and immediately grasped all the cutlery in the kitchen. Everywhere from the table to the draws were pilfered.

“You might have the coffee Rarity, but you’d never feed her without a spoon would you? That’s too likely to cause a mess.” Twilight smirked.

“I could just feed her with my magic Twilight, it’s not like she can get my magic dirty… is it?” Rarity tried and failed to cover her uncertainty.

“Are you willing to take that chance?” The friendship student grinned. Rarity’s cheeks reddened and puffed as her temper rose. However as soon as the anger became visible. It retreated and was replaced with a look of malevolent calm.

“Wow, your right Twilight,” she said. The purple pony’s eye twitched.

“I should have listened two you’re advice. I really overstepped the mark their,” She said while inspecting one of her immaculate hooves casually.

“Hold on wait, that was wrong… no wait don’t” Twilight begged.

“Its amasing you where able too picc up on that Twilite,” Twilight fell to the ground and covered her ears.

“That was a verbal, out-loud sentence. How is speaking in typos even possible, and more to the point why can I hear it?!” She shouted. In her delirium the unicorn dropped a couple of pieces of cutlery. Rarity spied her wooden spoon falling, and wasted no time in immediately seizing it and piling it with coffee.

“Now just one more dearie,” Rarity cooed to a disgruntled looking Applejack, who eyed the spoonful warily.

“You sure this is apple flavoured?” she slurred at her carer. Rarity considered this and then replied,

“Would momma lie?” Applejack racked her brains, and decided this off-white coated, purple maned unicorn of only a couple of years her senior was definitely her biological mother, and therefore swallowed the intimidating mountain of caffeine with no complaints. Rarity smiled proudly and Twilight managed to audibly roll her eyes. She dropped the cutlery which was rather impressively caught by the fashionista before it hit the ground.

“Do you realise what that’s going to do her?!” Twilight shouted. Rarity didn’t seem to listen though and simply gestured with a hoof.

“Wait Twilight, look,” Applejack began shaking on her seat. Her trembles became more and more noticeable until her plate began to clatter. And then, just before it passed physiologically impossible and ventured into ‘Early 20th Century Cartoon visual gag’, the shaking stopped.

Applejack looked at Twilight, then Rarity, then her surroundings, then her bib. She tore the offending item off and immediately placed her hat back atop her blonde-maned head.

“Thanks fer the pick-me-up Rares, now are we gonna be off to find the others?” she said in a voice so sober that all the alcohol in Rarity kitchen actually went down by 2% proof. Rarity grinned, whereas Twilight’s jaw hit the floor, broke through and began a fascinating excursion of the local worm residences.

“How. On. Earth. Did that-”

“Country cures Twilight,” Rarity interrupted, “Much like Pinkie sense, just ‘Roll with it’ as ponies say. No-one really knows why precisely 231 grams of Ponyville coffee cures any hangover or drunkenness but… here we are.”

“My God, sometimes all of you are so scientifically impossible. I hate scientifically impossible things,” Twilight began, her stern disposition being betrayed by a small grin and the odd chuckle, “Now all huddle round me while I telekinetically levitate our bags and teleport us outside with my magical powers.” Applejack and Rarity complied and the trio were gone in a magenta flash, each more ready than ever to find their friends.

“I never did speak to subjects in that preposterous voice again, I used normal words as well. I didn’t wear that laughable regalia you saw me in Spike. I acted like a Princess for the first time, in the longest time.” Celestia had her head down as she talked to the dragon, who kept a respectful silence.

“All it took for me to care again, for me to do my job and stop my subjects living in filth, to consider them my equals and not subordinates was for me to destroy the one I loved the most. I eventually let my advisors shirk all blame onto her and let her name die out as a traitor. And no matter how many times I tried to convince people of Luna’s innocence, those forked tongued advisors would be there, telling the public of my grief-stricken delirium making me speak lies. I attempted to focus on other things, like trying to let people forget my sister rather than remember her as a monster, a monster she never was.

I poured money into night related activities, passed legislation on 24 hour businesses. Championed astronomy. Monuments and legends and useless, useless things to try and get them to see her as I did… You know information very few are privy to Spike, and it’s not because I need any sympathy,” She took a moment to gently brush Luna’s hoof from her shoulder, “But because everything I do is my sentence. I make up for my failures by being who I am.” Spike was speechless,

“Princess, why are you telling me this?” Celestia's head quivered slightly and her look hardened.

“Because to show you the story of Mary Sue you needed to be shown me on that day, I thought the context would help, that is all,” before anyone could press the matter the images eased back to life and the conversation was considered closed.

“So you say you’ve enjoyed your boon?” Celestia enquired. Mary’s head snapped up, the two of them had remained in a contemplative silence for the last few minutes. The sudden question took the smaller pony by surprise.

“Oh yes Princess.” She replied with a wide smile.

“Hmm, I suppose having ponies fawn after you must be a good way of living,” Celestia said. She seemed absentminded and fairly melancholy. Mary decided it was better this way though. She did not know what had happened between the two sisters exactly, but she could hazard a guess. Much better to continue with innocuous nattering to distract the alicorn from her problems, if even just for a bit.

“Well, I can’t say I don’t enjoy the extra attention,” the mare giggled, “However this is not the reason I felt so moved to come and give thanks today,”

“Oh?” Celestia replied. Her voice was soft, and slightly detached. It reminded Mary Sue of the aimless, hovering feeling of being in a dream, and maybe this was apt. Celestia would have to wake up to cold truths soon

“It’s my father. He used to be such a selfish, awful stallion before this magic took hold,” Mary gushed.

“Awful, my little pony? How was your father awful?” Celestia enquired,

“He was selfish your majesty. I would have to provide everything for us on my clerk’s wage. He would never listen to me. He got the two of us into an awful debt with the one of the local merchant families with his constant consumption of ale. But worst of all of this, he never appreciated me. Never treated me like a father should his daughter.”

“And I suppose you’ve been getting your own back?” Celestia laughed lightly,

“Oh no Princess. He’s been ever so attentive since the boon took hold. My main use of the magic, if not my only real use has been building the relationship I’ve always dreamed with him. We’ve made such progress,” Mary replied happily.

Celestia froze. It wasn’t her choice really, and it wasn’t Mary’s. It was also neither of their faults, just an unfortunate outcome of the dream, but it was time to stop dreaming.

“Mary, how long have you been away from your father?”

“I took a sky chariot this time. I never knew how much of the journey it managed to cut off, but we got here in just three quarters of an hour. Of course the stallions were working harder than usual considering-”

“How long have you been away from your father Mary?” Celestia urged again, causing the earth pony to uncertainly reply.

“Well, in total I’d say about an hour, maybe an hour-ten at the most,” Celestia looked at the pony like she had two heads.

"Have you finished with your relationship building then. You now have closure, yes? This is you letting go?"

"What?!" Mary Sue spluttered, "No Princess, I came to say thank-you. Then I plan on getting home to continue my relationship building." There was a moment of unbearably tense silence. Something seemed to click in Celestia's eyes

“You need to get back home Mary Sue. You need to get back now,” the princess said urgently.

“Wait, why? I don’t understand.”

“After an two hours of being over a mile away from someone will make them forget you Mary, if you don’t get back he’s going to forget who you are,”

“Why would that be a part of the boon?” Mary yelled.

“It’s a precaution, we can’t have everyone who ever meets you fauning over you for the rest of their life. Did Luna honestly not tell you any of this? We always warn people with regards to this type of boon.”

"I definitely wasn't told..." the earth pony trailed off, and her blood began to feel like ice water. Luna had meant to tell her something. Before Celestia had crashed the conversation with all the subtlety of hot pink hearse complete with large speakers playing Blood on the Dance Floor on a loop, Luna had said there was a further warning she needed to give. Mary had left that hall when the sisters started arguing. What warnings exactly did Mary Sue miss. There could have been all manner of side effects and technicalities about the magic she had allowed to alter her body that she wasn't even aware of.

“Hold on I don’t understand!” Mary babbled desperately in the hope that if she made sense of this out loud, it might stop the situation before it began, “My father knew I was his daughter when we met, he was just different to me,” Celestia paused and considered this for a moment.

“My only guess could be that Luna knew you wanted your father to appreciate you. You wanted that as your boon at first didn’t you, before I…” Celestia faltered before moving on, “Maybe she worked that into the spell as an extra clause. But think Mary, did anyone else know you, did anyone else really know you? Or did they just love you Mary?” The gears visibly grinded in Mary’s head before a cold sense of realisation spread in her gut.

“But surely if Luna worked that into the spell then… would it matter if I left my father for two hours?” she said, her tone fervent and pleading. Celestia didn’t reply, she was opening up the cracked stained-glass window.

"I don't know," the alicorn eventually muttered. Mary Sue resisted her urge to shout indignantly considering who's presence she was in, “I can’t promise your father won’t forget you just like everypony else when you’re away. I couldn’t save my sister, but I can maybe save you,” Celestia said while undoing the various catches holding the window in place. “Today I can stop being the ruler that does nothing while her people are in pain, now get on my back,”

“…What?!” Mary cried.

“You heard me, I can fly faster than any chariot. Even if it's just by a little, you could do with the help. Now get on,” Mary walked up to the ruler and visibly tried to fathom a way to mount the princess (Oh come on now). This went on until Celestia decided levitating her on with a sharp eye-roll was the most efficient option. The princess undid the last few catches and the window flew open. The alicorn walked up to it and peered out over the sheer drop below.

“You always cared a lot more about them than me sister. If I’m raising your moon, doing your nightly duties then I need to learn from you, consider this the start of that. I’m doing the right thing, just like you would. I’m sorry for everything,” Celestia muttered like a prayer, before throwing herself and Mary out into the sharp alpine air.

“After what happened with Mary Sue, we did some research into this particular type of boon spell, Spike. We found something interesting,” Celestia said as her past counterpart pumped her wings in front of them.

“And what was that?” Spike croaked, his mouth uncomfortably dry.

“The nature of the spell is totally dependent on its recipient. That’s why Mary’s was much stronger than yours. Your resentment had been building for a while, however hers’ had defined her entire life. The love and appreciation she craved dwarfed your own. That’s why your friends would have the most adverse reaction to the spell, because you didn’t really have anything against the Ponyville residents did you? Nothing major anyway. Not like you did against Twilight and the others. But this is still nothing like Mary’s deep anger against the whole world. She had been mistreated by her father for such a very long time that she was convinced she needed the fanatical love of everypony."

There was a moment of shared silence in the trio, almost to mourn the poor, lost, deluded mare's mistakes.

"That's not all we found you know," Spike silently urged the princess to continue, and uttered a tiny ‘What?’ after the pause grew too long for his liking.

“It’s rather bound by the laws of the saying ‘Absence makes the heart grow fonder’. Every time forget and are reintroduced to you, it increases the effect of the spell by an order of magnitude. It would be minor in your case, at first. You’d probably have to meet and re-meet somepony several times for it to even reach the strength of Mary’s first incarnation of the spell. It would be easier with your friends obviously, but still not like Mary. What you are about to see is the second time she was introduced to everypony, the effect increased by several times… the results were worrying.”

“Why does being away from someone make the spell stronger?” Spike enquired. His reply was issued by Luna this time.

“We called it the trade-off. We make someone love you more as compensation for them forgetting you. No matter how much Celestia sings my praises Spike, we were both irresponsible back then. We didn’t consider just how bad these boons could turn out. Most people who took a boon like Mary Sue's were just like you, just having a bad time and wanted more ponies to appreciate them. They weren't like Mary. Not that far gone.

It takes a certain type of pony to do something worthy of claiming a boon. Someone suitably bold and brave. An adventurous rough and tumble type. Mary wasn't one of these ponies. Her catching of the blue tail bandit was nothing more than fluke spurred by anger. These adventurous ponies were never as maltreated as Mary. By virtue of their personalities even the most overlooked commanded a certain degree of respect. Not like that poor mare. We’d never considered just how jaded Mary was. Because she’d spent her entire life getting walked all over, too meek to speak out, the spell went haywire in its strength.

Celestia filled me in on just how powerful this particular boon really is earlier today. We didn’t know just how much it could affect ponies. It turned the elements of harmony into a bickering group of foals earlier today and your boon is dwarfed by Mary’s. We'd never seen the affects of the spell strengthened properly.

I added the trade-off without thinking it would be used. Back then, you were either a traveller or not, Spike. The ponies who had received a boon like Mary's either stayed in their village or wandered the land. But they rarely encountered the same pony twice. That trade-off almost never came into effect." Luna bowed her head for a moment, as if recovering the explanation.

“What happened sister?” Luna asked nervously, "I only ever saw the trade-off in affect once, all it did was make the ponies around the boon-carrier think he was more enamouring, but certainly nothing dangerous. Just how bad was Mary's effect on them,"

If Celestia heard her sister, she didn't really show it. Here eyes were fixed, brimming with awe, on the images coming to life around them

“I’d never seen anything like it,” she muttered.

Celestia had unfortunately been right when she said she could be only a little faster than a chariot. The journey had felt longer to Mary Sue, though that could have easily been due to the discomfort of riding the princess bareback (you can do better than that) or the feeling of sick worry sitting like a tepid puddle in her stomach.

After an unfairly long wait, the two of them eventually came to a hover above the small village. Mary Sue began to frantically gesture to her house. Celestia squinted in the direction of Mary's hoof-waving.

“It’s the mud hut Princess, that mud hut there! That mud hut Princess!”

“Which mud hut?” The Princess snapped, “We are hovering above a veritable mud hut metropolis for pony’s sake!”

“Drop the girl,” came a rough stallion’s voice from the right. Mary and her steed turned to see the earth pony’s chariot bearer’s from before. Their nostrils were flared and their wings were snapped out the fullest possible extension, coming into a show position of span before every lazy flap. It almost looked like they were preparing for a fight. But of course that was ridic-

“Don’t make this into a fight alicorn,” one of them spat.

Oh.

“Alicorn?!” Celestia replied incredulously.

“Princess, it’s me, they’re not themselves,” Mary urged to deaf ears.

“Listen to me soldiers. I am your ruler, and after last night I am in no mood to indulge your silly little crush. So you will listen to me, and you will stand down,” no sooner had the words left Celestia’s mouth when two heavy pony’s came ramming into her. Her flank endured the full force of their rock hard skulls and Mary was sent hurtling toward the ground.

The shrieking wind stole her screams and her spinning obscured the princess’ dogfight. Her position shifted, the princess became a distant dot in her periphery and the floor raced up to meet her. Then it happened again, she lurched in the air. The spin stole the ground from her view and her eyes burned in the glare of the sun. Before she could splatter against the ground in a way remeniscent of a small dog thrown into a combine harvester however, a pair of hooves knocked the wind from her and she felt herself being carried downwards.

When she touched down the first chariot-bearer wasted no time in straightening her mane and asking her a barrage of questions. ‘Are you alright dearest?’ ‘Did we do well?’. Mary regarded him with disgust and shoved him with both hooves.

“Get away from me,” she shrieked. He looked confused for a moment, before shaking it off and starting to trot toward her. However he was interrupted as Celestia’s formidable form smashed down between he and the temptress. The unconscious form of his comrade was under her wing, and her eyes were a terrifying, blazing white.

“In a time not nearly far gone, I would have executed somepony for a tenth of this,” the monarch snarled, before firing a grey beam into the guard’s chest. The stallion fell into the dirt and Mary Sue feared the worst, which was until she heard snores coming from the pegasus.

“Do you know the way home from here?” Celestia yelled as she began to prepare for the inevitable throng of peasants investigating the commotion.

“Yes, I don’t think it’s far,” Mary hastily replied. She took the hint and began to gallop down the alley that lead to her hut, ignoring or just point blank not registering Celestia’s yell for her to wait. Before she could head down the alley she found her path blocked by several ponies.

Several, wide-eyed, insanely grinning ponies.

“She’s beautiful,” one of them said in a tone that was half-mystified and half-seething. They began their advance.

“Erm, please move?” Mary said. The two equines seemed to struggle visibly with the question. A confounding paradox that made no sense to hear. Why was she telling them to move? She was their one true love, and they hers. Why didn’t she want to embrace them as they did her?

Mary would one day curse herself her short-sightedness, for ignorance and complacency. She’d curse herself for so many things, and this was one of them. She’d curse herself for not knowing what sort of magic coursed through her veins, for knowing next to nothing about it.

Because if she’d known something about it then she would have known that everytime she got a pony to do her bidding, an internal battle was being fought. She’d know everypony had to fight their own urges to try and take Mary for their own, and fight them with their desire to do anything she wanted.

Mary would have known that at this level of strength, asking them to do anything was asking them to leave her proximity for even a second, and that was simply impossible for ponies so enamoured. Mary didn’t know these things, and so she didn’t know why her two antagonists began advancing on her instead of doing what she asked,

Celestia did know however, and Celestia knew enough about the spell to be aware that Mary was a heartbeat away from being a part of the world's best visual demonstration of the phrase 'Love Hurts'. She knew what was going to happen, and that was why she didn’t wait to pump her wings. The gust that the massive appendages created stirred the bodies of the slumbering guards but did not wake them. Celestia shot like a bullet and covered the distance in less than a second. Her hooves wrapped around the mare's body and they took off into the sky once more.

Mary screamed various pleas for release, assuming her captor to be some very large, very enamoured pegasus. Celestia shouted at the mare to be quiet and open her eyes but the wind masked her words. The commotion was too risky, in fact the monarch could already see several pegasi beginning to notice the hubbub. Everypony who looked up began to wince, a few looked around in desperation, trying to find the source of the unbearable buzzing noise that rang in their ears.

It was hard to see from their current altitude, but Celestia could have sword cartoon hearts overtook their eyes, and their chests ballooned out to absurd proportions. In fact, maybe if a few of their heads became those of wolves, and they each emitted a howl while stamping their feet then the whole word would just shrug, accept facts and become the stupid black and white cartoon this was all rapidly turning into.

Celestia’s horn lit up and she opened Mary’s eyes for her. The mare blinked rapidly against the sunlight. Her pupils shrunk to pinpricks and they darted around desperately, arriving far too late on Celestia's stern face. She smiled apologetically while Celestia just sighed and deposited the siren on her back. There was no use getting angry now. To the deluded folk below, the scene was not their princess helping one of her subjects. It was a beast stealing their beloved away, and this was something they were prepared to fight against.

In fact, the airbourne among the zombies were already beginning to do so. Their wings were paltry in comparison to Celestia’s but still they climbed, and the princess couldn’t ascend forever. Her horn flared up with a rich golden light and the earth pony gasped as the sounds of rushing wind and shouting from below were silenced. Every little thing that was insignificant before felt amplified. Her own heartbeat, the prickle of cold on her coat and the feeling of the princess between her legs (this needs to stop).

“Mary Sue, direct me to your house now, it’s very important you are quick.” Mary nodded before gesturing with her hooves.
“It’s that one there, a hut. In fact I think it’s one of the best in town, we upgraded after I got my boon. It’s the cleanest in town, and a lot bigger than the others.” Celestia’s eyes narrowed as she scanned the village beneath them. This became harder every second due to the monarch’s constant gaining of altitude. With each wing flap they ascended and the town became smaller.

“That one there?” Celestia asked, her horn creating a small beacon on the corresponding abode,

“Close, just a few to the right, it’s just a bit bigger than that other one,” Mary replied.

“There?” the princess repeated the procedure and was met with a vigorous nod, “Okay then.”

Celestia began to beat her wings to get across. They were approaching being directly above her house. But the monarch still devoted half her energy to climbing higher, and the air was so much thinner up here. The whole process felt agonisingly slow compared to their speed merely five minutes prior.

“Mary, I’m going to drop down in a moment. This will build momentum and allow us to meet the pegasi. They are going to ram me, do you understand, and you will fall.” Mary’s pupil’s shrank as she took in the information. “However, your power does not just apply to ponies. You can bend the world if you will it. Trust me when I say, if you do not will to fall to your demise, then it will not happen. However, as scared as you might be, you cannot let one of these drones get ahold of you. The moment one of them even makes contact you kick, do you understand, you kick and do everything to get them off.

Your father was the last pony you had contact with before you left for Canterlot. I do not know exactly when you left, but if you can salvage anyone's memory it will be his. I can’t promise you he hasn’t already forgotten, but this is the quickest way to get to him. No more running, we're going to have to fall now. ”

“Princess, why are you doing all of this?” Mary said with a quiver in her voice.

“Helping my subjects is my job my little pony... It took something awful for me to learn that,” the two of them stared into each other’s eyes for a few seconds, and then it happened.

Celestia’s wings snapped back to her sides and they were held aloft for a second and then they were falling and the spell wore off and the wind rushed and the screams of the villagers shocked her to her senses and everything was suddenly slow.

The first pegasus rammed into Celestia’s side, if it hurt she did not show it. Then the second came, then the third and then the fourth, then the seventh then the tenth and then the fifteenth. Whatever small chance Mary had at staying atop Celestia were reduced to nil within seconds, and as the monarch had predicted Mary was knocked into the air.

The earth pony reached out for the princess. There was no slow-mo period when their hooves almost touched. No, Celestia was far too busy fending off the drooling slaves to Mary’s boon for that. The siren simply reached, missed and then she was falling faster and farther than she’d ever fell before.