The Star

Cadance paced the wooden floors of the warm cottage, contemplating their predicament. It was still dark outside and would probably remain that way forever. Without the shining city, the world had fallen into a deep slumber. Princess Luna sat regally atop a cushion, watching the hearth. She held a warm cup of tea to her muzzle and silently sipped it.

“But why me?” Cadance asked. “Why not just do it yourself?”

Luna sighed. “Perchance, thou findest thyself in peril most grave, who wouldst thou have come to thine aid? Thine friend or distant royalty?”

Luna levitated two sugarcubes from a tray on the table. The sugary stuff was alive, each one with a tiny, snoring face. She pushed them down into the cup as tiny screams of death squeaked across the room. Luna sipped her tea again, sighing in comfort.

“I am not to Twilight, what thou art to Twilight.”

Cadance nodded her head and went back to pacing.

“Well, you were right. Twilight was in danger. A lot of danger. I can’t put my hoof on it, but there is something wrong about this world.”

Luna never tore her pensive eyes from the fire.

“Aye, these aged wood walls hath seen decades of malice. I pray thine’s spoken peril hath passed. I know Twilight Sparkle dreameth no longer. She hath awoken?” she asked quietly.

Cadance hesitated.

“Not exactly...”

Luna pursed her lips. She had sent Cadance to save Twilight, not push her farther away.

Her form rose and fell quickly in a sharp sigh. “Princess Cadance, I expected greater results from thou. Thou hast asserted thyself fatally over Celestia’s prized pupil. She passeth beyond my domain now.”

Cadance chewed her bottom lip.

“Where did she go? Can’t we can go after her?” she asked.

“Nay. I lack the talents to fulfill thine’s foolish desires. I also must refrain from sending a crown princess to her demise,” Luna replied sardonically.

Cadance glared at the back of her starry mane. ‘Since when did saving Twilight become foolish?’ she thought.

“Excuse me, but that wasn’t exactly a request, your highness.”

Luna’s eyes slighted.

“Tis not a humble request? Pray, hast thou forgotten that we are peers and colleagues? I share thine regret, but do not let thyself become brash and bull-minded,” Luna lectured. “I iterate simply, my hooves are bound.”

“You’re telling me that in all your magic, there is nothing you can do?” She made a grand gesture. “You can raise the moon and the heavens, but you can’t figure out a way to help Twilight?”

Luna turned around, the fire shadowing her face. She spoke quickly and angrily. “Thou accuses me of being helpless in thine’s doing? Dost thou rememberest not whom sealed her?” she retorted. “I can conjure further spellwork, but I shall not commit thy folly. Is not the loss of a single friend enough for thou or dost thou hunger for further tragedy?” She raised her chin at and spoke down her nose at Cadance. “Pardon my manners for not salting your appetite for recklessness.”

Cadance gawked at her, barely resisting the urge to yell.

“So, you can do more, but refuse to. Fine. Great! So she’s stuck without any other help.” Cadance tossed her hooves in the air. “I guess I can also assume that you’re no hero and won’t endangering yourself to save her any time soon?”

Luna blinked. “Thou truly darest such words...?” She spoke so quietly, Cadance strained to hear. “Do not take me for some merciless tyrant. My duty is to all of Equestria’s ponies, not just one. Need I remind you of your own duty too, your highness?”

Cadance was silent, but she met Luna’s intense eyes head on, refusing to back down an inch.

“Tis only a guess that my own sealing left me distant from the hearts and minds of ponies, but assume not that there is one moment where this gives me reprieve. Twilight Sparkle’s fate is regrettable, but she is strong. Twas there ever a way home, she will findeth it.”

“Regrettable?! Is that all you have to say?!” Cadance had deteriorated to shouting. Luna opened her mouth to protest, but Cadance cut her off, walking to the door. “Maybe you’ve given up on her, but I won’! If I don’t come back at least I won’t spend the rest of my life wondering what could have happened!”

Cadance left, slamming the door behind her.

“Take thine recess from sanity and good riddance!” Luna called out after her, stamping her hoof.

Her words bounced off a closed door.

Left alone, the stoic princess went back to watching the fire dance in front of her. Her peer’s words replayed endlessly in her head. If Celestia woke up one morning to find a crown princess and valued magical scholar sealed away for eternity, Luna wouldn’t be able to explain herself. She’d regret having to tell her sister that she did nothing to help.

And eternity was a long time to regret something.

*

Rosetta laid flat on her back staring blankly up at the endless mirror column while Twilight read the diary. She watched the tiny stars of light float about quizzically. She tried to swat at one, but her hoof just passed through. She swatted at it again for the effect. Unsurprisingly, that effect held constant for the eight time as well as the forty-fifth. The Angel watched her, almost drunkenly, swaying slightly in mid-air. It offered a bit of its cloak for comfort.

Rosetta kicked the cloak away. “I’m not even sleepy!”

“Who is Orion—?” Twilight mumbled quietly to herself. “And why is he dusting off the road? And why is she writing about it...?”

Rosetta perked her ear up and looked upside down at Twilight. “Have you found any deep, dark secrets yet...?”

Twilight’s face twisted and curled over the hidden meanings. At first, Rosetta could barely contain her excitement to read the diary, saying something about ‘finding where she hides the scones’, but that quickly wore off. It was thick reading and after seeing the phrase, “pervasive economy,” she gave up, opting to do absolutely nothing in the meantime.

“This is either some sort of genius way over my head or some old mare’s rantings. I can’t even tell anymore...”

The diary was nothing Twilight had expected. To be honest, she hadn’t even known what to expect, but there were things she definitely considered out of the question in terms of content. Perhaps a story or notes on magic or something not completely beyond sanity, like this book. So far she had encountered subpar, surreal, fantasy description and a love story between an eraser and a pencil. There were diary entries, but ones from the perspectives of a doctor, a homeless pony, three foals at once and a timed explosive set to go off in a few hours. Admittedly, those latter entries were pretty interesting and well written, if not completely irrelevant.

“She’s just—” Twilight scrutinized the text further. “Like... writing random stuff!”

Rosetta had switched to kicking at the light with her rear legs. “Like what?”

“Like, ‘I leave her station. Through space I am propelled by plastic tubing affixed to my back, the rotors pushing thoughtlessly against the vacuum. Hundreds of trees are my companions and guides, parting in front of me as I make my way back to shop.”

Twilight squinted. “And then she starts listing how many flavours of tea are in the shop and which ones can be burnt as incense.” She paused, nodding her head. “This is ridiculous. Why in the hoof would she even write this?!” she said, slapping the book.

Twilight turned it over and examined the cover.

“This is her diary... I mean, the first entry was the same, but right after it, it just derailed into this nonsense.” She shook her head. “I’m afraid there is nothing I can do with this...”

She noticed the Angel reading over her shoulder.

“Do you know anything about this?”

The Angel was expressionless as always. Twilight looked suspiciously at it, stroking her chin. It returned her interest, it mirrored her movements. Together they moved in perfect unison, turning around each other playfully. After almost a minute of the nonsense she gave up and went back to her book.

Then it hit her.

“Wait a second...” she muttered. She looked back at the Angel. “I’m just gonna go out on a limb here and guess that I probably need to wear your face to read this. I base that conclusion on absolutely nothing tangible. Sort of like this silly book.”

It refused.

“No, seriously. Give me your face,” she demanded. “And you might as well let me wear the robe too while you’re at it, because it’s very soft and I like it.” She held her arms out to it, hooves up. “Also, if you have any food hidden, gimme.”

For the first time ever, the mask looked scared. Twilight didn’t think it was possible, but this usually terrifying creature was now shrinking away from her. It inched away from her grabby hooves and flew under its cloak, peeking out from its hiding spot.

“Look I was just kidding about the cloak, but I do need your face.” She folded her arms and waited. “Come on Angel, I don’t have all day...”

Twilight reached in the cloak for the mask, fumbling around for it. The shroud came to life and covered Twilight’s head. She screamed and flailed as it bagged her. The mask gently drifted out from under its own cloak and watched her struggle. Rosetta merely glanced over at her friend and went back to swatting lights. Twilight finally ripped the cloak off her head and glared at the mask.

“Angel! Give me your face! This is very important!”

“Lyley, that’s not very nice. You should say ‘please’ when asking to borrow something,” Rosetta lectured. ”Now say you’re sorry.”

Twilight’s cheeks grew bright red and glared at Rosetta. Never before had she regretted teaching the foal manners.

“Go on, say you’re sorry, Lyley.” Rosetta’s face lit up, vaguely amused. The mask looked at Twilight expectantly, folding a pair of claws.

“I’m sorry Angel...” she spat while grinding her teeth. “May I please borrow your face to read this diary?”

The Angel looked to Rosetta. After receiving a nod from the princess, the mask turned around and presented itself to the unicorn. The back of it was lined with purple felt and was unusually damp. Twilight gently grabbed it and fit it to her face. She looked around and found herself somewhere else entirely. She watched the scene play out in front of her through another’s eyes.

*

In a hallway a marble-coloured stallion waited in a chair. The stallion had been silently crying the entire time, a grimace over his face. Bags hung beneath his eyes; he wasn’t groomed and he clearly hadn’t slept well in a few weeks. A dark blue stallion left a nearby room. He gently closed the door behind him and approached the sitting stallion. The marble pony looked up to the doctor, but he wouldn’t meet his eyes. The doctor just flipped through paper after paper of his clipboard. Twilight watched them from behind a corner at the far end of the hallway, stealthily hidden.

“How is she?” asked the marble one quietly, making sure to keep his voice from the pony just inside the door.

“You know, you ask me that every time...” The doctor nervously tapped his clipboard with his pen. “Always the first thing you ask...” His face fell grave thereafter. “We still don’t have any idea what’s afflicted her. We only know it’s magical and because of that we can’t prescribe a treatment. Because of the sensitive nature of magic, if we tried anything and it went wrong, there’s a good chance it would kill her. She’s deteriorating fast and at this rate she won’t last too much longer.”

The marble stallion just nodded his head reluctantly, adorning a painfully forced smile. The doctor made contact with those desperate eyes. He knew that this pony needed something more, something promising, but giving false hope never helped anypony. Still, he forced out the only answer he could stomach.

“I mean.She could recover by herself. It’s always possible...”

The marble stallion nodded some more, listening intently.

“Yeah? Ok, so if you were to give me the probabilities of that, what would they be?” He sat forward at attention, absorbing the doctor’s every word.

“I...” The doctor sighed. “If I were you, and it was my wife, I’d spend as much time with her as possible. Just in case she doesn’t have a lot of time left, I’d want to make sure that her last moments are filled with family. Nopony wants to die alone.”

The marble stallion’s face wrinkled up in pain, yet he kept nodding and smiling. He fought the tears welling up in his eyes. The doctor saw enough heartache in this one pony to last him the better part of a week. He looked back down to his clipboard, still aware of the broken gaze upon him.

“Just fair warning. The condition’s worsening,” he added distantly. “You may be startled when you see her. It may not seem like she notices you, but I’m sure she’ll be glad to see you.” He patted the stallion on the shoulder. “You can go in whenever you like, but don’t keep her waiting too long. She doesn’t have much time left...”

The blue stallion left down the hall opposite of Twilight. The marble stallion spent a few moments sniffling hard before taking a deep breath to compose himself. He walked in the direction of Twilight.

“Rosy?” He called out with a faint crack in his voice. “Lala wants you to come see her.”

The short body that Twilight seemed to be attached to backed around the corner out of view and walked around it a second later. Twilight recognized the voice and immediately knew whose eyes she saw through.

“Hey daddy! Look daddy! I got the part in the play I wanted!” Rosetta hopped about.

Her dad’s face hadn’t changed since the doctor first spoke with him, he still forced that smile.

“Oh did you?!” he replied, straining his smile. “Hey, look at you, is that your costume?”

“Mhhmm! Pretty neat huh?” Rosetta showed off her cape and mask.

“Very neat! I like the pink feathers a lot. I want you to tell Lala all about it, ok?”

Rosetta’s face fell at the mention of the name. She stared down at her hooves, a scowl on her face.

“Hey, don’t be like that. Lala doesn’t need any of your bad attitude,” he scolded.

“Lala doesn’t play with me anymore...

“I know sweetie, but she’s very sick right now. Even if she doesn’t show it, she likes to hear about you...”

Rosetta exhaled sharply and looked away. His good will was already wearing thin and an ounce of cooperation would have gone a long way.

“Look, when you were sick, Lala took care of and spent time with you. You owe it to her to do the same.”

Rosetta crossed her arms and sat on her rump. He almost snapped. Every second he wasted arguing with his daughter was another second his wife would be alone.

“Fine, you know what? I’m not really in the mood for this. I’ll buy you ice cream if you spend five minutes talking to her, but it has to be five whole minutes, ok?”

“Promise?” Rosetta raised a brow at him.

“I promise. And you have to show her your great costume,” he said crossing his heart.

A small smile came over Rosetta’s face.

They walked into the small room together. There was a simple bed, a nightstand next to it, and a desk in the corner. On the desk was just one, small bouquet of flowers. Above the nightstand was a four pane, sliding window.

Outside were grey, cloudy skies. Rain was in the forecast, but had shied away until just now. A few drops speckled the window.

Her father gasped and Rosetta’s eyes grew wide.

Before them, a sickly, flat rose unicorn with a violet mane laid lifeless in a hospital bed. Her eyes were bloodshot and glazed over, her mouth hung open and drool covered her entire chin. The colour had nearly drained from her face, leaving her ghostly white. Her dead eyes were glued to the book on the table next to her. A quill she levitated quickly wrote line after line. Besides the quill, the mare in front of them may as well be dead.

Yet, that had all become regular since she contracted the ‘Writing Disease’.

The doctors had no idea what it was, but every so often, she went into a trance-like state. For days on end, she would write senselessly into the diary, ignoring everything else. She seldom spoke or reacted to outside stimuli. After each writing spell was over, she’d return to normal and go about her life. At first it only seemed like she had found a new hobby. Soon after it became something of a manageable condition and eventually, a debilitating, chronic disease. That was a year ago.

Now, she was a shell of her former self. As time went on, even when she wasn’t writing, the mare had died little by little on the inside. She stopped caring about her family, life and even the diary. Most days she’d wake up only to shuffle from one room of the house to another and back again. The glimmer in her eyes had been reduced to the vibrancy of ash and she was permanently exhausted. If they were lucky she’d speak enough words to technically make a conversation in a given day.

This most recent outbreak had been going on for almost two weeks now and the signs shows. She was skin and bones, the bags under her eyes had grown inflamed and puffy, and she was sweating profusely despite being ice cold to the touch. She also carried a heavy mustiness about her.

However, they both entered the room knowing they’d see a slightly skinnier version of the pony they saw yesterday.

What wasn’t expected were the tendrils of soft, rainbow light that slowly snaked their way out of her mouth and eyes. With each passing second, she grew paler and the light grew brighter.The magic auras swirled into the quill, illuminating each word she wrote.  

The stallion’s lip trembled. He had anticipated something much different when the doctor said ‘she was getting worse’. Something tangible, something he could relate to or at the very least, understand. Seeing her now brought him to question just how much of her was left inside that corpse. Nothing remained of the mare he knew and loved.

It was hard to think that this was even a pony anymore.

“H-hey there sweetheart,” he said weakly. “Guess who got the part she wanted in the school play!”

Rosetta looked up at him, lip trembling. She refused to ignore the obvious truth.

“Daddy! What’s wrong with Lala?! Make those lights go away, they’re sucking her soul out!” she cried.

The stallion gawked at his daughter, horrified. Words escaped him. He quickly looked from one spot of the floor to another, fear still holding him. The facade-shattering outburst of his daughter only added to the surrealness. He told himself that she had to come out of this and that this wasn’t happening. The mare he fell in love with, built a family with, couldn’t just waste away like this. He took a stumbling step backwards in shock.

Rosetta didn’t hesitate. She ran towards the book and quill and raised her hoof to slap it away.

“Don’t...” Stella whispered.

Rosetta stopped and looked longingly at her mother. It had been a week since she last spoke. Just hearing the voice of her mother made her quiver with anticipation.

“I’m almost done...”

Rosetta looked back and forth between the quill and her mother. Her face scrunched up.

“Lala! Please, stop writing!”Rosetta cried. “It’s not even fun! Nopony likes writing!”

Stella set the quill down. Her eyes finally moved to meet her daughter’s.

“Lala...?” the foal choked in disbelief.

Stella had acknowledged her. Rarely did Stella speak during an outbreak. It was a good sign though, she only looked away from her writing right before she came back. Rosetta almost afforded a smile.

“You... what’s your name...?” Stella said meekly.

“Wh-what?”

“That’s the last part to my story... your name... I can’t seem to remember it.” Stella’s eyes were far and distant.

“Rosetta! I’m Rosetta! Don’t you remember Lala?!”

“Is it...?” She ran her hoof through the pink feathers of rosetta’s mask. “No... You’re my angel... Here to take me away to Paradise.”

The very last of the light had left Stella, infusing into the quill. She went to levitate it again, but before she had a chance to write, her magic died. The quill fell lifelessly to the open face of the book. Rosetta trembled as her mother forced out one last breath. The stallion went to grab Rosetta, but it was too late. She had picked the quill back up and written her name into the diary.

“I’ll finish your story Lala!” Rosetta fatefully declared.

After drawing her line through the adjacent T’s of her name, rainbow light flashed in Rosetta’s mouth and eyes. Instantly, she fell limp to the floor, now grey and silver. By the time the stallion had his hooves around his daughter, she no longer drew breath and was instantly cold to the touch.

*

Twilight thrashed across the floor trying to find the mask and rip it from her face. After chucking it at the wall, it floated back upright and shook itself. She gasped for air and her heart pounded. She patted her face and body, making sure she didn’t have wings and she wasn’t a filly. After sitting up to see Rosetta boredly swatting at the stars, she flopped back down and let out a heavy sigh.

Living through the eyes of a dying pony have been scarring to say the least.

She closed her eyes and swallowed hard. “Rosetta...” she panted lightly.

“So, didja find out any secrets?” Rosetta said rather flatly.

“Is Stella your mom?”

“No, she’s my Lala...”

“But is she your mother?”

“I dunno.”

“What do you mean? Either she is or she isn’t.”

“Do ya think we can do something fun today? I’m sooo bored...”

“Rosetta, focus! This is very important! Do you remember writing your name in a diary?”

“No, Lala says writing words is bad...”

“Have you ever tried?”

“Yeah...”

“What happened?”

“Words came out and I had to run away, duh.”

Twilight ran her hoof through her mane in exasperation. Rosetta was no help at all. She stared up into the void of the endless ceiling. She was convinced that somewhere in the memory she had found the answer she was looking for. It wasn’t an unlikely conclusion that this magical disease that Stella caught was the culprit for this dream, but it was Rosetta’s last action that was puzzling.

Twilight picked the diary up and flipped to the last page. She looked to the bottom and read the last sentence.

As I go, I know where my sands will fall, for she will be my lady, my ruler in Paradise,

It wasn’t complete. Despite looking like it was, the last marking was clearly a comma and not a period. More was meant to be written. Specifically, Rosetta’s name. Twilight thought back to the memory.

“When she wrote in it, she died... This version of the diary doesn’t have that...” Twilight inferred. “... That means... She’s a trapped...”

Twilight’s eyes grew to the size of dish plates. A moment of realization became a moment of celebration. Twilight stood up confidently, a massive toothy grin coming over her face.

She had read of this exact curse in a book and she was prepared for it.

“Yes, YES!” she jumped around excitedly. “YESYESYESYESYESYES!”

Rosetta smiled in reflection of Twilight’s sudden outburst. Her eyes grew bright and alive. Twilight continued jumping about and was soon followed by Rosetta who jumped in her trademark cheer behind her.

“YESYESYESYESYES!”

“What!? What happened Lyley?!” she exclaimed.

Twilight stopped hopping around and blinked. Rosetta rammed into Twilight’s posterior and was knocked to the floor. Twilight picked up the dizzy filly and hugged her tightly, spinning around with her.

“I’ve got a wonderful surprise for you Rosy!”

“Really?! What is it?!”

Twilight put the filly down, trotted in place and giggled. She forced herself to calm down though and take a few deep breaths. This was a moment three months in the making. “A home... and friends...” she said warmly.

Months of diligent study were finally realized. Not only would she bring back enough magical knowledge to push Equestria into a golden age, but she’d also bring back something far more precious.

She stood proudly, formally raising her horn and igniting it with purple light. Dipping her head, she touched the filly with it.. A spell circle materialized beneath them, runes and magical markings glowing white with lavender hues. As the spell began Twilight raised her horn and smiled at Rosetta. She hugged the unknowing filly as brilliant purple light surrounded them.

This was last spell she’d ever cast in Paradisium.

*

When the spell finished the column had disappeared. The light of the dissipating spell revealed a sore sight, the gleaming streets of Paradisium. Twilight blinked and rubbed her eyes with a hoof. She looked skyward and saw the blackened keep looming over her like a dark moon. On the ground in front of her was the red demon, Stella.

She blinked. “What...? That should have worked...”

“Lyley...?” Rosetta squeaked.

Stella leaped up from her resting spot on the ground and rushed Twilight’s face. Twilight took a step back as the star circled her. “Finally! You’re done! Do you know how long I’ve been waiting for you?!” she scolded.

“Quiet, you murderer. I’m trying to think...” Twilight brushed her off and backed away from her. Remnants of her anger from before had returned.

“Yeah, you murderer!” Rosetta parroted meanly. “Lyley is tryin’ to think!”

Stella chased after her but stopped as soon as she heard Rosetta.

“Rosy! Don’t speak to your Lala like that!”

“You’re a big meany face! You made Pete dead! Now, we’re gonna go somewhere else! Just me and Lyley and you can’t come!”

“Is that so?” Stella turned to the unicorn. “Is that true Twilight? Are you going to foalnap Rosetta from me?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know...”

“Why would you take Rosy away from me?!” the star demanded. “Take her away from a loving home and family!? Is that what this is all about?”

“You’re a murderer, you lie, you ignore her, you won’t give her a single friend to play with...” Twilight wore a smug face. “Need I go on? Actually, I’m not going to bother. You’re not worth my time.”

Stella snarled. “I open my home to you, teach you everything I know and this is how you repay me? By taking away Rosy?!”

Twilight ignored her. “Come on, Rosetta. Let’s go. We’ll get you out of here one way or another.”

“My, my. You’re a very rude unicorn...” Stella flew up to Twilight’s ear. “Good luck getting her back...” the star whispered menacingly.

Twilight backed away from Stella suddenly as though she had just yelled in her ear. The star lit up red with magic. Twilight sensed a hostile spell being cast on her, but it came in too fast to resist. She lost control of her body, her mind left trapped inside.

“What? Lyley’s not rude!” Rosetta asserted.

Twilight was forced to whisper something into Stella’s ear. Stella faked a gasp.

“Twilight! You should be ashamed!” she feigned. “She just told me that she doesn’t want to be your friend anymore Rosy. She doesn’t even like you.”

Rosetta almost burst out into laughter. “Pfft! Nuh uh! Lyley’s my bestest friend! Isn’t that right Lyley?” The filly smiled up at Twilight expectantly.

Something heinous forced terrible words from Twilight’s mouth.

”I’m not your friend... I hate you, you devilish monstrosity...” she said bitterly.

Twilight tried to cover her mouth, but she couldn’t lift a hoof. Stella was controlling her every movement. Upon realizing this, Twilight began desperately dismantling the curse.

“Wh-what...? Lyley—y-you said we’d be friends forever—” stuttered the filly. “Wh-why do you hate me?”

”Why wouldn’t I?”

Then Twilight cracked the filly across the cheek hard, sending her rolling back.

”Get out of here! You’re worthless! I can’t believe I was ever friends with you!”

Rosetta sat up, rubbing her cheek and looking longingly at her best friend. Her innocence couldn’t comprehend the shock of Twilight’s actions. Her silence soon gave way to whimpering and streams of real tears that fell down her cheeks. Her best friend wasn’t her best friend anymore.

She lost her warm hue and fell to the silvery white of the moon.

Twilight shouted over and over again in her mind, calling out to Rosetta and cursing the star. She pounded away at Stella’s spell, utilizing every technique she could. A deep, black and violet bruise formed on across her friend’s face. When Twilight saw it, she was only driven harder to destroy the spell holding her.

Twilight took a menacing step forward. Rosetta fearfully scooted back and scrambled to her hooves.

“L-lyley!!! Why’d you do that?! Now, I don’t have any friends!” Tears streamed down her face.

Rosetta turned tail and flew off, wailing. Only after she was out of earshot did Twilight break Stella’s hold. Desperately she called after the foal.

“ROSETTA!” Twilight bellowed. “ROSETTA! I’M SORRY!”

Stella floated about lazily, laughing.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk... That’s some strong mouth you have Twilight,” Stella mocked. “And a strong hoof...”

Twilight still felt Rosetta’s soft cheek against her hoof. Immediately, her horn flared with magic and she took an offensive stance.

“What is your problem?!” Her eyes watered, but she blinked it away.

“Oh, Twilight... What were you hoping to accomplish here?” she smirked, winding down from her chuckle.

“No, you shut up! You shut up before I make you regret every second of your miserable existence, you monster! Why did you do that?!”

“Don’t talk to me like that,” she snapped.

“I’m gonna talk to you however I want! Now, give me five reasons why I shouldn’t incinerate you right here, right now!”

“Are you ill? You’re going to kill me because I’m not letting you just take her away from me?” Stella’s voice dripped with sarcasm. “Darling, you can go ahead and try incinerating me whenever you’re ready,” she gloated.

Twilight stared down the star and growled. A head to head to duel with Stella wouldn’t end well for Twilight, but she didn’t care. On the verge of trying her luck against the greatest magician she knew of, she reconsidered. She looked down at the Angel and saw the diary just under the corner of the the cloak. She quickly picked it up.

“How about this? You care about this?!” Twilight snapped a flame to life under the book.

It edges began to singe and catch fire.

“Get your grimy, filthy hooves off that this instant!” Stella ignited with magic, but Twilight caught on and dispersed the appropriate counter spells. They both knew if Twilight fought defensively, a dual between them could last hours.

Satisfied by her position, Twilight lowered the flame and extinguished the lit book. Glowing red embers lent an unreal density and durability to the diary.

“If you want your stupid diary, you’re going to do two things for me, got it? You know I can incinerate this whole book in a second, so don’t test me.”

Stella scowled at the unicorn, listening intently.

“First, I want you to tell me everything you know about the essence of Rosetta, magically speaking. You’re going to tell me exactly how to get her back to Equestria.”

Stella cocked her head in a half-scowl, half-confused look.

“Twilight, darling, perhaps you should tell me where that is first.” She continued to pile on the sarcasm, batting a wing at her. “I might be more inclined to answer if I actually knew at least one detail of this wretched place.”

“Don’t lie, just tell me what I want to know or the book is toast!”

“I’m not lying. I don’t know where that is, how am I supposed to tell you anything about it?” Stella seethed quietly. “Here’s an idea, why don’t you just teleport her?”

Stella held her wing up to her mouth in a fake gasp. “ Oh, dearest me! Did I just unveil the great solution to your miserable errand of foalnapping?”

Twilight flashed the flame about the entire book, chalking it black, but leaving it intact. The flare pushed Stella forward.

“Less attitude, more you-tell-me-what-she-is-before-I-get-angry-enough-to-murder-a-book.”

“What do you think she is?” Stella sneered.

Twilight promptly enlarged the flame again. The cover actually caught fire before Twilight blew it out.

“Ok! Ok! I’m sorry! We don’t need to be wholly uncivil! Let’s just calm down and take a deep breath.” Stella took in and let out a great breath. Twilight remained rigid, eyes glaring at Stella. “Excellent, I’m glad we both are being sensible... Just promise you won’t tell her what I’m about to tell you.”

Twilight loosened up a bit. “I’m listening...”

Stella took a deep breath and sighed. “She’s a word...”

“What...?! What does that even mean?!” she protested.

“For goodness sake, calm down Twilight. Yes. She’s a word. Just like the others. She just happens to be the first one I ever wrote. Honestly, I’m surprised you didn’t figure that out earlier...”

Twilight stood there blinking dumbly. Stella sighed again.

“That’s why Angel here hunts her down so mercilessly. Angel eats words and keeps them on the outer rings, so the inner city stays safe.” Stella motioned to the cloak and mask. “Look at her, she could care less about you. She only chases Rosetta.”

Twilight looked down to the rather docile creature of nightmares. It picked its nose with a claw and pulled out a small bit of dirt. It flicked it off and went straight back to picking.

“The only reason she isn’t chasing Rosetta is because she’s so darn full. She did just eat all the words on the ring.”

Twilight’s head spun with questions. Suddenly this was a lot to take in.

“Wait... Rosetta. Princess Rosetta. Rosy... She’s a word? Did I hear that right?”

“Yes, she’s a word. Just a very old and very tame one.”

The memory of her first day in Paradisium flashed through her mind. She had seen Stella write down Rosetta’s name after which, the small filly had come bursting through the door. She supposed that mystery was solved.

“And the Angel eats words to keep the inner city safe? Didn’t you want her dead a bit earlier?” Twilight asked.

Stella leveled with the unicorn. “Well... she did destroy my entire library. I might forgive her though...”

Twilight’s mind snapped over these new revelations. She didn’t care about the Angel, but Rosetta being a word had thrown her for a loop. The spell before she used was a powerful, transdimensional spell had failed without reason. She read it in one of Stella’s book and most of her plans had involved that spell during one step or another. It was the one key spell she needed, and worked diligently to make sure it could affect every type of life she could imagine. She was baffled earlier when she wound up back in Paradisum and not Equestria, but now she knew why.

Rosetta was a word and something about being a word had interfered with her spell. Unfortunately, without that spell, taking Rosetta back to Equestria wasn’t possible.

Quickly, she reassessed every single spell in her arsenal and all their possible combinations. She made a mental list of every relevant spell, but it was a hopeless effort. There were only a  few basic spells she knew of that worked on Rosett. There was the idea of running experiments on her to find a new solution but that didn’t seem all that appealing.

Rosetta had just flown off crying because of her and that heartbreak was stifling her will to go on. The last thing she wanted to do was subject Rosetta or herself to any more pain. That meant she was out of options.

“But... if she’s a word... Then she can’t leave...”

Again, she felt the softness of Rosetta’s cheek against her hoof, only now it felt like she truly hit her.

“I tried to tell you, dear.”

“I see that now...”

In a moment of silence, Twilight sunk down to her rump as a realization slowly came over her. She had spent months studying for this moment. Almost like a final exam, she imagined herself demonstrating all of her knowledge in this one great finale, this one last test. Yet, this wasn’t just a test.

She had also spent months living for this moment, growing beside a filly and making memories with her that they both hoped to keep forever. Twilight led her on a journey for true friendship that she aimed to make last a lifetime, not just three months.

Now, their journey was over and there was only one thing left to do.

“I’m... I’m going to go home now...” The unicorn sniffled quietly. She tried her hardest to silence herself, but failed miserably. Every breath forced out a long, mournful squeal.

“Didn’t you have something else you wanted?”

“Just... Just t-tell R-rosetta that I’ll m-miss her...” Twilight replied tearfully.

Twilight looked from one spot on the ground to another, each one somehow reminding her of another memory of Rosetta. Suddenly, all at once, memories flooded in and she lost control.

“Oh... g-g-goodness...” Twilight squeaked out before breaking down and crying deeply into her hooves.

The floodgates had unleashed and in them, Twilight drowned in her own sorrow. Memory after memory forced its way into her mind. In every single memory she had, she remembered Rosetta being so happy, happy to be with her and happy to be alive. Rosetta would go on for hours about how great of a friend Twilight was. The unicorn would smile along with her and think, ‘You haven’t seen anything yet.’

That dream had been crushed.

The Angel diligently wiped the tears from her eyes and blanketed her. She grabbed at the cloak and childishly rubbed it against her cheek.

Stella watched the unicorn cry for almost a minute. She had watched Rosetta cry hundreds of times and it never bothered her before, but seeing Twilight was different. There was something almost painful about just how hard she was crying. The primal wailing, the steady stream of tears, if this was all over Rosetta, she had grossly underestimated their relationship.

Guilt hit her like a train.

“You silly, pathetic unicorn! Go tell her yourself! It’s only proper!” Stella nearly cried herself.

Twilight ignored her, weeping in self-pity. Stella searched for a solution, thinking of anything to get this pony to stop crying. After a moment of inspiration she conjured an ink and quill. With them she scribbled a few words onto marble pavement. Satisfied she looked up desperately to the unicorn and back at the words.

Princess Rosetta

The words peeled up from the street, writhing and squirming. The Angel immediately loomed up over it, but Stella hit it with a spell. The words turned to shimmering technicolour hue before poofing out of existence.

“There. She’s here,” Stella said finally. “You see that door over there?”

Stella tapped the unicorn on the shoulder, but Twilight didn’t move. She sighed.

“I’m sorry Twilight. It was horrible of me to make you say those things and I feel horrible, but it was also horrible of you to try and take Rosetta from me.”

Twilight snorted loudly and looked up.

“That said, I don’t want you or Rosetta to end on hard feelings, ok?”

Twilight nodded, wiping her eyes clumsily.

“You see that door over there?” she said, pointing to a nearby door that lead into a small, marble house. “She’s waiting inside. Go on in when you’re ready dear.”

Twilight got up and tossed the diary aimlessly at Stella. A trail of starry tears followed her as she turned from bright lavender to a flat, royal purple.

*

Through the door Twilight found the beach from the first day. The filly was crying at the edge of the water, the mirror ocean.  She was silver and her mane radiated a suffocating sadness. Her real teardrops sent tiny ripples gliding across the smooth water, each one going on forever. Twilight steeled herself, despite knowing she was the cause of those tears.

“What do you want?!” Rosetta shouted crossly after hearing the unicorn enter.

Twilight didn’t waste a second. Rosetta heard galloping footsteps across sand and before she could even turn around, Twilight had already grabbed her, almost tackling her over. They came sliding to a rest with Rosetta held tightly in the unicorn arms. She rocked the filly lovingly in her embrace.

“Hey! Hey... Stop it! Don’t cry Lyley...” she whimpered. “What’re you even cryin’ about?! Dumb Lyley!”

“I-i’m s-so sorry Rosy...” she sobbed. “I didn’t mean anything I said... You’re my best friend in the whole wide world...”

“Yeah, well I don’t care! You’re mean!” she protested. “Get offa me! Go away!”

Rosetta hit her friend hard, kicking and cutting her with her hooves, trying to get her off. Twilight winced with each hit, but held onto her friend, letting her strike her. For a few moments they struggled against each other. The filly tried her hardest to beat Twilight away, leaving some nasty bruises and cuts behind, but Twilight held on, taking the punishment. Each of them gave it everything they had, but eventually Rosetta won. She finally balled up and kicked Twilight square in the jaw, sending her sliding across the sand.

Beaten and bruised Twilight laid there. She tried to lift herself back up, but was too weak. Still, she desperately tried to get up but each push off the ground left her weaker and weaker. Finally she gave up. She slowly rolled up in a ball and cried hysterically. Her body ached all over and her heart was broken.

Rosetta huffed and puffed angrily, tears streaming from her eyes. She scratched at the sand, ready to charge, but then she came to her senses. Seeing her friend crying, unable to even lift herself, turned her to regretful mush. She fell to her rump as she surveyed the damage. Across Twilight’s side were scrapes, welts, bruises and one small gash across her cutie mark from Rosetta’s hoof.

“Lyley, why are you so dumb?” Rosetta said choking her own sobs back. “Why’d you let me hit you so hard?!”

“B-because I wanted to give you a hug...” she replied weakly.

Rosetta hesitated. Twilight’s terrible words were still fresh in her mind, but now she couldn’t ignore what she just did. Blood was oozing from the gash, her friend was crying like a foal and it was all her fault.

“Y-you can have a hug Lyley... you d-don’t hafta ask...”

She slowly walked over to Twilight and lifted her arm up. Finding her usual spot at the unicorn’s side, she slid in and nuzzled her apologetically. Twilight instinctively closed her arms around her friend like she had done so many nights before, and buried her nose in her mane. She shakily kissed the filly on the forehead, sobs still sounding through her attempts to remain silent.

In the distance, the sun grew brighter, white light flooding the sky.

“I-i’m sorry Rosy...”

“It’s ok Lyley... I hit you too.”

“...”

“I love you Rosy...”

“I love you too Lyley...”

“I just want to let you know... You’re the most wonderful, most special little filly in the whole world...”

“You’re the bestest unicorn ever too Lyley...”

After a few moments of comfortable silence the glare from the sun grew brighter. It was beginning to sheen out the rest of the world. Twilight could feel herself being pulled from the dream. She tensed up and held the filly tighter. Tears threatened to make another appearance.

“Rosetta, listen, there isn’t a lot of time. I need to tell you something.”

“Why? What is it?!”

“I’m going to leave soon. I have to go home...”

“What?! Nuh uh! You’re my Lyley! You can’t go! Not unless you take me with you!” Rosetta chimed happily.

“N-no I can’t take with me...”

“Wh-what? Why not...?

“I just can’t... I tried really, really hard, but I can’t...”

“But you said you would...!” she cried. “A-and what about the friends?!”

“I know I did... but I can’t... I’m sorry. I’m so sorry Rosy.”

“B-but, I wanted you to be my Lala and play with all your friends...”

Twilight was left speechless by those words. Only now did she realize what Rosetta had become to her, a daughter.

“P-please don’t make me go back to my old Lala! She’ll be mean to me now!”

“I’m sorry sweetheart... I’m so sorry I did this to you...”

Around them, the sand and ocean slowly burned up to blinding whiteness. They tried to be quiet and composed, but whiteness scared them. Slowly they began to lose feeling of each other. They clenched as tightly as they could, digging into each other’s sides. Their hearts raced and they began panting in anticipation.

“Don’t leave me Lala...! I don’t want to be alone again! Take me with you!”

“I can’t, but look at me.” Through the whiteness, Twilight found Rosetta’s face and held it up to her’s. The foal’s fading green eyes met her own. “Can you hear me?” Rosetta nodded her head quickly.

“I love you, okay? You’re my best friend and nothing’s going to change that. Not Stella, not Angel, not anypony. Even after I leave, it’ll be like I never even left!”

“B-b-but... Can’t you stay one more day...? Please...? I p-promise to let you have the last apple scone!”

“I’m so sorry Rosetta!”

“Please Lala! Just please stay! I’m so scared I can’t even breathe!”

Twilight couldn’t bare the thought spending one last day with Rosetta, knowing it would be her last. The final departure would only be that much harder. Yet, even if it hurt, she should do it. Nothing could mean more than giving her one last day of friendship and happiness. One last memory to hold on to all of eternity with.

The end was almost upon her. The white noise had suddenly grown loud, ringing in Twilight’s ears.

“Please! Just stay right here with me! Wait with me until the end!” Twilight cried, hoping Rosetta would hear.

Her last moments with Rosetta were spent clenching her tightly, feeling her terrified trembling and knowing she’d never be able to make her stop. The world had become a searing, white void.

The uncomfortable burning of whitest snow filled her nose and lungs and exhilarated her.

*

Twilight somberly awoke in her own bed. Her pillow was damp and as she wiped a few tears from her eyes, she knew why. The moon was still risen and her library was silent and still in the darkness. Spike’s peaceful form rose and fell in the little basket next to her. Twilight didn’t bother looking to see where she was, she already knew.

She was back in Equestria and even though she was back for the first time in months, her mind was entirely on Rosetta.

The feeling of her small body against her own was fading fast. Twilight held perfectly still, pretending the princess was still there. She tried to commit the exact feeling to memory, knowing it would be the last time she’d feel it.

It faded all too fast and soon Twilight was alone.

She lowered her arms to the bed, passing through the emptiness that Rosetta once filled. She replayed memory after memory of Rosetta in her mind, trying to keeping them fresh. A bittersweet smile came over her face as she recalled each one. They were fuzzy, but she felt an undeniable happiness from them. She remembered her time at the beach, her time on the train, Cadance, and something about a hospital room.

She remembered being scared sometimes as well. Many times she thought she wouldn’t wake up, but somehow, Cadance, and Luna had helped her escape. She never knew more than that, but she felt closer to both of them because of it.

Soon, she remembered the magical knowledge and the many tomes of Stella’s library. Already, she couldn’t remember some details she once knew. Her duty to save that knowledge came before reminiscing; there would be time for that later.

Twilight crawled out of bed and rummaged around for an ink and quill. Despite having organized her library on a bi-daily basis, it had been a while since she’d seen her library. She tore drawers open and made a commotion, but the baby dragon stayed soundly asleep.

Eventually she found her writing instruments, but only about fives rolls of parchment to write on.

“Darn it, Lawn Chairs and Parchment won’t be open at this hour,” Twilight cursed quietly to herself.

Then she remembered something. She looked back to her bed, where the blank diary was. She thought about writing in that. The idea came across her as almost fateful. She had entered the diary to learn its secrets, but now she’d write those secrets in it.

As her memory of the dream rapidly evaporated from her mind, she was forced to juggle all the important parts to keep them fresh, but it was futile. Soon she realized her dilemma.

Three months was a lot to remember, especially in a dream. There were just too many things to keep in her active memory and not enough time to commit them to long term memory. She was rapidly forgetting both the magical knowledge and her memories of Rosetta. There wouldn’t be enough time to write both and focusing on one would leave the other forgotten.

Rosetta or the magic, she could only pick one.

She took a deep, painful breath as she made her decision.

She quietly trotted back to her bed and peeled away the covers. There the diary laid. Twilight picked up the warm book and recollected the first book, Enchanting the Masses. She dabbed her quill in the ink and pushed Rosetta from her mind.

The only thing she committed to memory was the feeling of Rosetta’s warmth against her side and the tiny rise and and fall of the foal’s breathing. She vowed to keep that feeling the whole time she wrote.

She opened the book. On the inside, hardcover of the book was writing and it looked familiar.

This diary is the property of

Twilight Sparkle

“What the...?”

On the opposite side was an old folded up letter. Twilight trembled as she lightly held the page up to her horn’s light.

Dear Lyley,

Remember that one time when I told you the best day of my life was when you came and played with me? I remember It. I remember how surprised you were when I said that. I’m sure you must have thought that there had to be another day, but there wasn’t. Before you, I never had another friend and even though I was a weird, little filly, you didn’t care and told me we were best friends. For that, I want to say thank you.

You then told me that no matter what, as long as you had a best friend, you’re never alone. I remember how sad you were when you had to leave. I cried for a long time after that, but I noticed every single time I did, the bed next to me would be warm. I think it was you.

I never knew, but I think what made you saddest was thinking I’d be alone after you left or that our time together wouldn’t be enough. Even in that one day on the beach, I had so much fun. Enough fun to last me a lifetime. Then I asked you to stay just one more day and you gave me a hundred. I remember them, I remember every single day.

I love you Lyley.

Your best friend,

P.S. I found your diary and thought I’d send it to you.

P.P.S Yes, I read it and now know your deep, dark secrets.

Twilight turned the page and was met with a firsthand account of her magical, first day in Paradisium. Her hooves trembled as she ran them over her own writing.

Chills ran up her spine as she relived her time with the foal she came to know as more than the filly she foal sat. The way she wrote, it stayed true to her feeling that Rosetta had become her daughter.

She tearfully read through her playful bath time with Rosetta, the messes they made eating s’mores and falling asleep, whispering things all night long. She read their adventures and how they’d explored every part of the world, her Rosy always leading the way. Even the daily account of cuddling next to the fire was there in every entry.

This book of memories broke Twilight’s heart. The second she pushed Rosetta out, she instantly regretted it. No amount of academic magic was worth losing a friend and she should have known that. Losing the filly was a painful, but inevitable, yet the guilt from knowing she picked magic over friendship tore into her.

She spent the next two hours reading and rereading some of her favourite entries until finally she came to the last page. On it was a picture of them sleeping by the hearth.

A real, physical picture of the two of them together. They were bundled up in their blanket and while Twilight slept peacefully, Rosetta was strawn out all across the floor, her mouth wide open and drooling. Twilight hugged it to her chest, crying deeply.

As she hugged it, she went back and reread the letter over and over again until she could recite it from heart. She noticed it was incomplete. It could have been signed as just ‘Your best friend,’ but the presence of the comma alluded to the need for a signature.

She picked up her quill to complete it herself and noticed a single, starry tear floating in front of her. It was Cadance’s gift.

She stopped crying and smiled weakly. She waved the quill over the light, letting it infuse into the feather. It glowed brightly, but rapidly dulled thereafter. Twilight quickly finished the letter.

Your best friend,

Rosy

She set the quill down and closed the diary. She held it to her chest and slowly the warmth disappeared. She closed her eyes and awaited the morning.

*

Twilight woke up. She fluttered her eyes as the smell of Spike’s cooking filled her nose. She yawned and stretched, still groggy from the restless night. She followed the aroma hungrily to the kitchen. The baby dragon was whistling cheerfully. Twilight went to sit at the table and poured herself a cup of tea.

“Good morning Twi! Got some fresh apple scones for ya.”

“Good morning Spike!” Twilight chimed cheerfully. She sniffed the air. “Mmm, smells great. Good thing too, I’m gonna need a big breakfast today. Rarity has some crazy shopping trip planned for me and you know how demanding that can be.”

“I wish Rarity would plan long, demanding shopping trips with me...” Spike mumbled.

“I’m sorry? I didn’t quite catch that,” Twilight said, snapping a newspaper open.

“Oh, nothing. Just don’t go and buy something crazy.”

“Like I would go out and buy something like that...”

They shared the solitary tune of Spike’s whistling for a few minutes before he remembered something of questionable importance.

“Yo Twi, I should probably let you know that somepony broke in last night,” Spike said nonchalantly, pulling the treats out of the oven.

Twilight took a sip of tea.

“Like in the library that is...”

“WHAT?!” Twilight blurted out, tearing her face cleanly through the newspaper and spraying Spike with tea.

Spike wiped his unamused face with his apron.

“Yeah, this little kid broke in...  have no idea how she got in. I found her trying to sneak out of your bed this morning. Super weird if you ask me, but she seemed nice enough.”

“Did she take anything?! Is she still here?!” Twilight slammed the table, the newspaper hanging loosely around her neck. “Why didn’t you wake me up and tell me?!”

“Relax, she’s outside rolling around on the ground. Didn’t seem like a big deal. Said she just wanted to talk to a ‘Lyley’,” Spike shoveled the scones onto a serving plate. “I’m guessing that’s you.”

“Yeah ok!” Twilight said, pulling the paper off neck with a blush. She folded it, set it on the table slowly and got up. “I guess...! I guess I’ll go see what she wants...”

Outside, a summery white, pegasus filly, with an auburn mane and tail played. She was busy smashing her face in the ground and somersaulting through the grass. Next Chapter: Epilogue: The Warm Diary of Twilight Sparkle Estimated time remaining: 2 Minutes