Long ago, two Princesses ruled over Equestria together. The elder raised and lowered the moon, and the younger did the sun. One day, the younger princess found that nopony would stay up during the night. She told her sister that night was worthless, as nopony stayed awake to enjoy it. The elder sister disagreed, arguing that her night replenished their subjects’ energy. The younger did not listen to her sister’s reasoning however, and when the older refused to vanquish the night, the younger became furious. Her anger caused great disharmony within her soul, and twisted her being into one of total contempt- Sinking Sun. Using her magic, fueled by her own rage, she forced the moon down and locked the sun in place at high noon. The elder, seeing that there was only one way to stop her corrupted sister, used the Elements of Harmony to seal her sister into the very moon that she despised . With her last waking breath, Sinking Sun swore that she would return and cause eternal day, promising to remove the moon completely. The remaining Princess took charge of both sun and moon, and Equestria has lived in peace ever since.

"The Elements of Harmony?" a purple dragon asked himself as he finished the tale, seated under the shade of a tree in the garden of a massive castle. "I know I read something about them once, but what was it?" Bearing this question in mind, the dragon stood up and walked into the castle, holding the book in his clawed hand.

He was the only dragon in Canterlot, probably the only one in all of Equestria. He was hatched and raised from an egg by Princess Luna and had earned her deepest trust. He practically considered her his mother, though she insisted on being referred to as his mentor. Teaching him about everything he would ever need to know, caring for him, being there when he needed her.

When he entered the castle, a couple of the servants nodded at him. He was about the height of an average pony, maybe a half a head taller. He had purple scales and he got his name, Spike, from the green spines running from his head to his tail.

It was hard for Spike, being a dragon in a world of ponies. If the staff, or anypony, had been in the castle for a long enough time, they had come to accept him and treat him as they would any other, since he did behave very much like a pony, not knowing how else to behave. New ponies, however, always stared at Spike before turning away quickly when they saw him looking. Everypony was afraid of him when they first met. But Spike had gotten used to it.

Spike went up to his room quickly, avoiding the darting gazes. He opened the door to the familiar room lined with books, his hammock swinging gently in the breeze.

"Twili- oomf!" Spike called as he entered the room, tripped, and fell on his face. He looked back to see what he had tripped on and a small, purple unicorn with a dark purple, straight mane and tail that had a pink streak running down the middle was laying under his legs. It was his assistant, Twilight Sparkle.

Princess Luna had made Twilight Spike's assistant once she had decided that Spike was ready to take on the responsibility. Spike loved Twilight and treated her like his sister. She was a great help, even though she was just a filly and could get really annoying sometimes. She only went up to his waist when she was standing up and didn't even have her cutie mark yet. Everypony got one when they found what their special talent was, and Twilight was around the age where that happened.

The little unicorn blushed slightly. "Yes, Spike?" she asked.

"Twilight," Spike groaned. "What have I told you about reading in front of the door?"

Twilight’s face reddened even more. "Sorry Spike, I just got really engrossed in this book and didn't notice where I was laying."

Spike rolled his eyes as he stood up; that filly was always getting lost in a book.

"So," Twilight said as she closed her book with her magic and set it on a desk. She was very good with magic, considering how young she was. "What did you want me for?"

"I need you to help me find that book on the Elements of Harmony."

"Oh, okay," Twilight said, a little confused.

"Great!" Spike ran over to one of the bookcases and started pulling books off the shelves. He would look at one, find it wasn't right, and throw it on the floor.

"Here it is!" Twilight called, holding a book with her magic.

"Thank you," Spike took the book from her and flipped through it. "Elements, elements," He muttered as he turned the pages. "Ah, here it is. Wait, 'See Mare in the Moon'?"

"That's just an old ponies’ tale," Twilight pointed out, completely bewildered now.

"I know, and it says in that pony tale that on the longest day, one thousand years after she was banished, Sinking Sun would return and make the day last forever." Spike started to pace, remembering what he had read. "The Summer Solstice Celebration, the longest day of the year, is in a couple of days. And do you know how many years it's been since Sinking Sun was banished to the moon?" the dragon asked his assistant.

"Um..."

"One thousand!" Spike answered his own question. He paused for a moment before declaring, "We need to warn Princess Luna about this impending danger." Spike raced out of the room with Twilight running to keep up.

..........

Spike took his familiar route to the Princess's chambers. When he got there, the guards didn't even blink as he knocked on the door; he was always talking to Luna when she wasn't busy.

"Come in," a voice called from inside the room. Spike pushed open the huge doors and walked in, Twilight just managing to squeeze in after him.

Sitting in a throne in the middle of the room was a deep, dark blue alicorn. She was at least a foot taller than Spike, and with her wings spread out she looked even bigger. She had light blue eyes and a mane and tail that reminded Spike of the night sky. Her cutie mark was a crescent moon, symbolizing her power over the moon and night itself. This was Princess Luna. Spike bowed to her and Twilight did the same.

"Rise, Spike, and you, Twilight. What is it you want?" Luna asked in a calm, friendly tone, but there was always power in her voice.

"Luna," Spike stood up. "It has come to my attention that in a couple of days we will have our thousandth Sun Celebration."

"Yes," Luna said, confirming this.

"I have also learned that Sinking Sun will return and make eternal day."

Luna didn't say anything for a moment before chuckling and asking, "Spike, do you really believe that old pony tale?"

Spike stared at her, speechless.

"Spike, I trust you," Luna reassured him, "but I think living with books and only having myself and Twilight as company has gotten to you. I didn't even think you read pony tales, and now you believe them? I think it is time you made some more friends."

"What?" Spike asked, "But...but the danger..."

"Isn't real," Luna finished for him. "But I think living alone has gotten to your head. You hardly ever leave the castle and you've never left Canterlot." That was true. Spike rarely left; he didn't even go outside his room that much. He didn't like ponies staring at him or running away. "I think you should leave Canterlot and go and see the world, make some friends."

"Ponies don't want to be friends with me," Spike huffed.

"You don't know that," Luna said kindly. "Tell you what, this Sun Celebration is to be held in Ponyville, a small town close by. How about I send you and Twilight there? You can supervise the preparations for me. I'll even arrange for you to stay in a library so you feel more at home."

Spike wanted to protest, but he knew that when the Princess made up her mind it was final. Besides, it was better than nothing; he could try to stop the danger by himself, especially if he was to stay in a library. "Fine," he grumbled and started to leave.

"Spike," Luna called. "Make sure you don't bury yourself in books, and actually try to make some friends."

..........

"Grrr," Spike grumbled as he trudged to his room, "doesn't she know that no pony wants to be my friend? They're all terrified of me."

"I'm not," Twilight added helpfully.

"You were when we first met; then you got to know me," Spike reminded her. "No one in that town will even come near me, let alone get to know me. If they do, it's just because the Princess sent me."

"Maybe the ponies in Ponyville are really friendly," Twilight suggested.

Spike just snorted as they entered his room. "Okay Twilight, Luna said we would be staying in a library, so we don't need to bring anything along. Grab the book on the Elements just in case, though; they might not have it in their library."

"But we're supposed to be going there to make friends," Twilight said.

"What's more important, making friends or saving Equestria? Now be sure to grab your Smarty Pants doll, we wouldn't want to leave that behind."

Twilight went to find her doll as Spike took down his hammock; he certainly wasn't leaving that. He wanted to make friends, it's not like he didn't, he just knew that nopony would want to be friends with him. He was a dragon, after all; they'd just run away. "That's not important anyway," he mumbled to himself. "What's important is finding the Elements of Harmony and stopping Sinking Sun."

..........

The chariot ride to Ponyville was boring for Spike, but Twilight was taking in the view. She had never been outside of Canterlot, so she took notice of everything going on. "Look at all the clouds, Spike! We're almost passing through some! The ground's rushing by so fast! It must be so fun to be a Pegasus and fly like this all the time."

Spike had tuned her out, trying to think of ways to make himself look less threatening. Then something Twilight said snapped him out of it.

"Do you think I'll get my Cutie Mark here?"

Her cutie mark had always been a touchy subject, so Spike picked his words carefully. "Maybe, Twilight. You get to do lots of different things when you're around other ponies."

"I can't wait to meet more ponies, then."

"A young filly like you should have lots of friends," Spike mumbled, looking anywhere but at her. He secretly felt bad about her being alone in the castle with him all this time. It was pretty much his fault that she was so lonely.

"So should you. Come on Spike, the ponies are going to love you."

"I doubt that," Spike huffed. "I just hope that they don't get so scared they evacuate the town."

Twilight rested a hoof on her mentor's shoulder. "I'm sure the ponies in Ponyville aren't that judgmental."

Spike just grumbled and leaned against the side of the chariot. It wasn't long before the town of Ponyville appeared below them. The royal guards descended to the town square. On the way down, Spike saw little humble houses that looked cozy and very well built lining the streets and ponies going about their day, enjoying the fine weather and each other’s company. Spike hated that he was about to ruin this pleasant little town. To his surprise, though, nopony panicked when he disembarked from the chariot and the guard ponies took off again.

"Come on, Spike! Just try to talk to somepony and be nice," Twilight told Spike, scanning the crowd for an especially friendly-looking pony. "How about her?" Twilight gestured to a pink filly about her age with an extremely messy mane.

Spike sighed. "Fine, I'll try." He walked toward the pink filly and began to fidget, then glanced back at Twilight, who nodded him forward, before continuing to approach the filly. The filly didn't run away as Spike drew closer, which made him feel a little more confident that this wouldn’t be so bad. "Er, um, hi there...I'm Spike and I..."

Suddenly, the pink filly gasped so loud that she practically jumped into the air. Then the filly ran off so quickly that Spike couldn't even be sure which way she went. Spike looked at Twilight with a 'see what I mean?' look before starting to walk off.

Twilight just sighed.

..........

"Where are we going first?" Spike asked his assistant.

"Where the festival is being held, Sweet Apple Acres. We need to see how the decorating is coming." Twilight was looking at a little checklist and map that she had suspended in front of her with her magic. The orchard was easy to find as it made up a fifth of Ponyville.

They walked through the gates and Spike had to admit that it was a great place for the celebration. There was a lot of space for ponies, food lined every table, and every tree was decorated with fine ribbons.

The two walked for a while before they finally came across somepony who seemed to be in charge. A yellow earth pony stood on top of a ladder, putting ribbons in a tree. Her straight, red mane hung past her shoulders, and a hammer adorned her flank.

Spike sighed. As expected, he would have to talk to ponies again. He approached the tree the pony was in and called to her, "Um, excuse me I'm from Canterlot; the Princess sent me. I'm here to see how the decorations are going."

"Be with ya in a moment," The pony called as she used her hammer to put a nail into the tree and pin up the ribbon. She slid down the ladder with ease and turned to face Spike and Twilight. "Now what can I do for yaaaaa...wow."

The purple dragon rolled his eyes. "I'm Spike, and this is my assistant Twilight. As I said, the Princess sent me to supervise the Sun Celebration. And unless I'm mistaken, this is where it's taking place."

The pony stood up a little straighter. "Of course, you just startled me, that's all. Ah'm Apple Bloom, and I run Sweet Apple Acres. You said you were here to see how the decoration’s comin’ along? Well let me show you."

Spike and Twilight followed Apple Bloom through the orchard. "The ribbons are arranged to lead the ponies to the barn, which has been spruced up for the celebration." She looked at Twilight for a minute before saying, "Yer Twilight, right? Ah have a sister about your age. Boy, can she be a hoofful sometimes."

"Aren't all fillies?" Spike asked.

Apple Bloom nodded. "They sure are. You would like mah sis, Twilight, she's a real nice pony. Her name's--Applejack!"

They had just walked into the barn, where an orange filly in a brown cowboy hat that was two sizes too big for her was hanging black ribbon from the wall. Her yellow mane and tail were tied up in pony tails. She looked behind her as her name was called.

"Applejack," Apple Bloom repeated, running towards the filly. "Don't hang the black ribbon; that's for funerals. And what did Ah say about wearin’ daddy's hat?"

"'Don't wear it 'til the festival,'" The little pony said, looking at the ground. "But Ah just really wanted to wear it, Apple Bloom."

"Well, you can't yet. It might get dirty or damaged and we wouldn't want that, would we?"

Applejack shook her head. Then she saw Spike and Twilight and changed the subject. "Who are they, big sis?"

"This is Spike and Twilight," Apple Bloom introduced them. "They're from Canterlot. The Princess sent them to see how we're doin'."

"What kind of pony is Spike?"

"I'm not a pony, I'm a dragon," Spike answered.

"Ain't dragons bad, Apple Bloom? They burn crops."

"Not this dragon. He's from the Princess."

Applejack apparently decided that was good enough, because she then walked over to Twilight and started talking to her. "You don't have a cutie mark? Neither do I! Look!"

As the fillies talked Spike, turned back to Apple Bloom. "So, do you run this farm with just you and Applejack?"

"Shoot, no," Apple Bloom chuckled at the thought. "Ah would never be able to do it on my own and watch Applejack at the same time. Naw, ah’ve got mah big sis Smithy. Hey, where is Smithy?" Apple Bloom started looking around, as if her sister was about to appear out of nowhere. "Smithy!" she called, with no response. "'S'cuse me for just one second." She went inside the house that was next to the barn. She was only in there a moment before coming out with another pony in tow.

The other pony was slightly bigger than Apple Bloom. She was a green pony with a yellow mane and tail that were tied into braids. She had an apple pie cutie mark on her flank and a little red foal on her back, playing with her bonnet.

"This is mah older sis, Smithy," Apple Bloom nodded at her, "and mah brother Lil' Mac."

Smithy narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "Who are they?" she asked.

"Smithy, this is Spike and Twilight. The Princess sent ‘em to see how we're doin’ on the decorating."

"The Princess?" Smithy asked.

Spike rubbed the back of his neck. "Um... yeah, Princess Luna sent me and Twilight here to supervise the Celebration."

"Well it's good to meet ya then, Spike. As Apple Bloom said, ah'm Smithy and this is little ol' Mac. Say hi, Mac." The little colt waved his hooves in the air and babbled something.

"Do y’all want to stay for lunch?" Applejack asked. She had finished talking to Twilight and now both fillies were standing there, listening. "Smithy can cook really well, but not Apple Bloom, she'll just burn all the food."

Apple Bloom looked at the ground. "Ah didn't get mah cutie mark in cookin’," she admitted.

"Can we, Spike? Can we? I'm really hungry," Twilight begged.

"Alright," Spike agreed. He was getting pretty hungry, too. "But we can't stay too long."

"Alright then," Smithy said. “Let’s get inside and ah'll whip up some pie."

Spike smiled as he followed the Apple family inside. Maybe these ponies weren't so bad, after all.