Karsap takes a deep breath.

Karsap: Okay. I think I should get started.

?: Hey! What's this?!

Karsap: Huh? Who's there?

?: Hi there, author! I'm—

Karsap turns to the unknown individual.

Karsap : Hey! I haven't introduced you yet! Get outta here!

Karsap sighs as unknown individual leaves.

Karsap : Already, the fourth wall's breaking. And for the disclaimer.

Disclaimer: I own only the following: Charles d'Artagnan , and anything that doesn't happen in the show proper.

Also, here are some notes on the text format of this fic:

'word' - action is being pulled off either figuratively or by telekinesis

word - title or name of a literary work

Karsap : Now let's get started!

Chapter 1: Mare In The Moon

Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria, there were two regal sisters who ruled together and created harmony for all the land. To do this, the eldest used her unicorn powers to raise the sun at dawn. The younger brought out the moon to begin the night. Thus, the two sisters maintained balance for their kingdom and their subjects—all the different types of ponies.

But as time went on, the younger sister became resentful. The ponies relished and played in the day her elder sister brought forth, but shunned and slept through her beautiful night. One fateful day, the younger unicorn refused to lower the moon to make way for the dawn. The elder sister tried to reason with her, but the bitterness in the young one's heart had transformed her into a wicked mare of darkness: Nightmare Moon! She vowed that she would shroud the land in eternal night.

Reluctantly, the elder sister harnessed the most powerful magic known to ponydom: The Elements of Harmony! Using the magic of the Elements of Harmony, she defeated her younger sister and banished her permanty in the moon. The elder sister took on responsibility for both sun and moon, and harmony has been maintained in Equestria for generations since.

Daytime in the unicorn city of Canterlot…

"Hmmm…"

Two ponies were reading what looked like an ornate hardback book. One of the readers was a unicorn pony with an orange coat, curved horn, brown eyes, two-toned yellow-and-red hair a large feathery mane and a feathered-like tail, black markings on the hooves, a curved muzzle, and on the haunch was a "cutie mark" which is the Fleur-de-lis. While one would assume this pony was a female, this pony was actually a male. This was Charles d'Artagnan an Musketeer pony currently on a break.

Next to him was another unicorn, a for-sure mare. She had a light purple coat, a dark indigo mane and tail both with a magenta and purple streak (and seemed to be properly brushed), dark violet eyes, and "cutie mark" consisting of a six-pointed pink star overlaid on a white one with five small white stars surrounding the two. This was his charge, Twilight Sparkle. While her bodyguard only showed casual interest, she on the other hoof took this rather seriously.

"Elements of Harmony…", mused Twilight, her voice marking her as a serious-minded thinker. "I know I've heard of those before. But where?"

A short while later…

Twilight and Charles were walking down a road, the former with the book they were reading in a pair of saddlebags slung on her back. Just then, they encountered three unicorns. Each of them had presents on their back.

"There you are, Twilight, Charles.", one of them said, a white mare with a pink mane, blue eyes, and three stars as her cutie mark.

"Twinkle.", greeted Charles in a casual, near-childlike tenor voice, then turned to the other two. "Minuette." A light blue mare with a two-tone mane of dark blue-and-white, blue eyes, and an hourglass cutie mark. "Lemon Hearts." A yellow mare with a cyan mane, dark blue eyes, and three hearts (two blue, one green) as her cutie mark. "What brings you to meet us on the road?"

"Moondancer is having a little get-together in the west castle courtyard.", explained Twinkle. "You want to come?"

"Would I?!" Charles seemed to be eager to come, then turned to his charge. "But I can only do so if she comes too."

Twilight recoiled a bit, and then said, "Oh, sorry, girls. I got a lot of studying to catch up on."

Charles then turned back to the trio in disappointment. "Well, considering her answer, guess I can't. Again."

Twilight then gave the trio a big grin and galloped off. Charles begrudgingly followed.

Twinkle sighed in disgust. "Does that pony do anything except study? I think she's more interested in books than friends." The three of them then went on their way.

"I know I've heard of the Elements of Harmony.", Twilight said to herself as she ran. As she and Charles crossed a bridge, they encountered two unicorn mares. One had a turquoise coat, gold-colored eyes, grayish cyan hair with white highlights, and a lyre cutie mark. The other had a pink coat, purple hair with a streak of a lighter shade, purple eyes, three brilliant-cut diamonds as a cutie mark, and was holding a small shopping bag in her mouth.

While Twilight bypassed the two without so much as an acknowledgement even as the turquoise mare raised a hoof in greeting, Charles greet them fast. "Hey there, Heartstrings, Amethyst Star." He then went on his way as he catch up with his charge towards an ivory-colored spire, climbing the staircase that spiraled around it. They made it to a pair of double doors. She slammed through them, knocking back someone on the other side, whom Charles saw. It was a light purple dragon. The spiny plates running from head to tail are green, his underbelly is a pale yellow-green, and he has darker yellow-green ears shaped as tiny bat wings.

"Spike! Spiiiike!", Twilight called before she noticed the dragon. "Spike?" The dragon, whose name was Spike, got up from what just happened to him, his green eyes spinning. "There you are."

"Don't slam through the door next time!", Charles scolded Twilight as he slowed to a stop next to the dragon. They were inside a library, with various scientific instruments—including a large hourglass—arrayed near the floor-to-ceiling windows on one side. Twilight ran ahead of them and was on the "main floor" of the library. As she searched, Charles and Spike walked up the small staircase that led from the entrance to the "main floor". Just then, Charles noticed a red gift box impaled on Spike's tail.

"Quick!", said Twilight as she looked around. "Find me that old copy of Predictions and Prophecies." She then turned to her companions with a puzzled look on her face. "What's that for, Spike?" Spike pulled the box loose from his tail.

"Well, it was a gift for Moondancer, but…" The bottom of the box fell out, dumping a damaged teddy bear that squeaked when it hit the floor. He was somewhat younger than the unicorns, but considering he was a dragon…

"Oh, Spike…" She proceeded to knock some books off a stack with her head. "…you know we don't have time for that sort of thing."

"But we're on a break!" Spike proceeded to go to one of the ladders in the library and climbed it.

"Yeah.", agreed Charles as he followed Spike. "As much as I like to read at times, to stay cooped up with you with no one else but Spike for days on end can drive even me nuts."

Spike turned to the orange unicorn. "Well, your orders with her is coming to an end soon, so you don't have to worry for much longer."

"Well, I'm still concerned for her, even if it's not exactly in my job description." Meanwhile, Twilight was telekinetically moving books around, her horn glowing brightly, looking for the Predictions and Prophecies book. "To be a reclusive shut-in won't do her much good."

"No…no…no…no, no, no!", Twilight groaned in spite of the many books she now has surrounding her. "Spike!"

"It's over here!", the dragon called as he held out a book. He was promptly dragged by the book as it was 'pulled' by Twilight. Before he could fall to the floor, Charles 'caught' him in time and 'set' him down safely on his back.

"Ah!" Twilight dropped the rest of the books and trotted off, levitating the one she got from Spike alongside.

"You should be more careful, Twilight.", said Charles as he 'picked up' the other books left behind and set them into a couple of neat piles, with Spike picking up one of those to sort in the library. As usual, his charge ignored him as she 'walked through' the book as it was propped on a table. "Yeesh. This library could really use a card catalog."

"Elements, Elements, E, E, E…aha!", Twilight proceeded to read the book. "'Elements of Harmony'. See 'Mare in the Moon'?"

Spike was now on a ladder, replacing books on a shelf. "Mare in the Moon?", he remarked. "But that's just an old ponies' tale."

Twilight just flipped more pages. "Mare, Mare…aha! The Mare in the Moon. Myth from olden pony times. A powerful pony who wanted to rule Equestria. Defeated by the Elements of Harmony and imprisoned in the moon." Meanwhile, Spike was slowly losing his balance on the ladder as Charles 'moved' the rest of the dropped books back in their places. "Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about nighttime eternal." Twilight straightened with a gasp. "Spike, Charles, do you know what this means?"

"No.", said the dragon.

"Can't say I do.", admitted her bodyguard. Just then, Spike lost balance and fell down with a yell. Charles quickly moved to catch him as the dragon landed on his back. He also 'caught' the books Spike had and set them on the floor. Twilight came over and 'passed' a scroll and quill pen to Spike.

"Take a note, please.", she said as Spike got off of Charles. "To the Princess."

"Okey-dokey."

Twilight then paced across the room as he wrote what she dictated, "My dearest teacher: My continuing studies of pony magic have led me to discover that we are on the precipice of disaster."

"Hold on. Preci…preci…" Clearly, Spike was not familiar with the word.

"Let me spell it out for you.", said Charles as he went over to Spike. "P-R-E-C-I-P-I-C-E." As Spike wrote.

"For you see, the mythical Mare in the Moon is in fact Nightmare Moon, and she is about to return to Equestria and bring with her eternal night." Twilight continued to dictate. As she paced about, Charles thought he could see something strange in the hourglass. He walked up to it and when he lined himself up so that opposite him was a stone unicorn head in the room. As he did, he saw something that wasn't the stone unicorn head. It was something…sinister. Like a bad omen. He couldn't describe it, but catlike pupils were its most prominent feature. "Something must be done to make sure this terrible prophecy does not come true. I await your quick response. Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle."

"Twi-light…Spar-kle.", Spike finished writing. "Got it!" This shook Charles off his senses as he shook his head.

"Great! Send it." When Charles looked back to see the stone unicorn head through the hourglass, all he could see was just that. Sighing, he walked over to his charge.

"Now?"

"Of course!"

"Uh…I don't know, Twilight. Princess Celestia's a little busy getting ready for the Summer Sun Celebration, and it's, like, the day after tomorrow." Twilight came over to Spike and went face-to-face with him.

"That's just it, Spike." She then straightened up, looking to the sun. "The day after tomorrow is the thousandth year of the Summer Sun Celebration. It's imperative that the Princess is told right away!"

"Impera…impera…"

"Important.", Charles and Twilight answered and end up throwing him off his feet.

"Okay, okay!" Spike took a deep breath, held the rolled parchment in front of his mouth, and blew a burst of green fire over it. The message burnt away, leaving only a tendril of sparkling pink smoke that snaked out a high window. "There! It's on its way. But I wouldn't hold your breath."

"Oh, I'm not worried, Spike.", Twilight replied in a smug tone. "The Princess trusts me completely. In all the years she's been my mentor, she's never once doubted me."

"There's a first for everything, you know.", commented Charles.

Suddenly, Spike's cheeks bulged as if he was about to vomit; instead, he belched up a burst of green fire that formed into a sealed scroll, which dropped to the floor.

"I knew she would want to take immediate action.", said Twilight as Charles decided to 'pick up' the scroll and open it.

"My dearest, most faithful student Twilight…", Charles read the scroll. "You know that I value your diligence, and that I trust you completely."

"Mmm-hmm."

"But you simply must stop reading those dusty old books!" Twilight gasped as that sentence seemed to hit her hard.

The next day…

Twilight, Charles, and Spike were now riding a pegasus-drawn, flying gold chariot that soared above the clouds and the landscape of Equestria. The two pegasi pulling it were white stallions in gold livery and shoes. They had two-tone blue tails and matching crests on their helmets, similar to those worn by soldiers in ancient Rome.

"My dear Twilight: There is more to a young pony's life than studying.", Spike now read the letter. "So I'm sending you to supervise the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration in this year's location, Ponyville." The chariot passed through some clouds as the three passengers looked on. Ahead was a pleasant-looking small town of wood-frame, thatched-roof buildings bordered by a stream and mountain. To one side was a fenced fruit orchard.

While Spike continued to read the letter, Charles felt relieved that he was gonna have a change of scenery. However, Twilight was clearly not enthused over this job. "And I have an even more essential task for you to complete—make some friends." The purple unicorn hung her head over the side with a soft moan as Spike turned to her. "Look on the bright side, Twilight. The Princess arranged for you to stay in a library. Doesn't that make you happy?"

There was a long pause. Finally, she brightened suddenly. "Yes. Yes, it does. You know why? Because I'm right. I'll check on the preparations as fast as I can, then get to the library to find some proof of Nightmare Moon's return."

"Then when will you make friends like the Princess said?" The chariot began to descend as some of the populace watched them land.

"She said to check on preparations. I am her student, and I'll do my royal duty, but the fate of Equestria does not rest on me making friends."

"But that task is even more essential, according to the Princess.", said Charles as the chariot touched down. "Being an antisocial shut-in isn't gonna do you any good." Twilight ignored her bodyguard as the two pegasi whinnied.

"Thank you, sirs.", Twilight said to them as she, Charles, and Spike jumped off. As the pegasi smiled and huffed in response, the three gathered together as they noticed a pink earth pony (no wings or horns) walk their way. Her coat was cotton candy pink, her hot pink mane fluffy and curly, her eyes were cyan, and her cutie mark consisted of a trio of party balloons (two blue and one yellow).

"Maybe the ponies in Ponyville have interesting things to talk about!", commented Spike as the pony stopped in front of the trio and regarded them with narrowed, medium blue eyes and a smile. "Come on, Twilight, just try."

With uncertainly, Twilight managed to speak up. "Uh…hello?" The pink one responded with a massive gasp of pure surprise, a leap that left her briefly suspended in midair, and then she suddenly dashed off mid-air, nearly blowing the two unicorns' manes and tails off. "Well, that was interesting, all right."

A few minutes later…

The three walked down a road across the orchard they had seen upon arrival to Ponyville.

"Summer Sun Celebration Official Overseer's Checklist", Spike read the scroll Charles had pulled out. They reached an open fence gate leading into a farm: well, barns, barrels, hay bales, and so forth. Above the gate hung a wooden board with an apple-shaped cutout. "Number one. Banquet preparations—Sweet Apple Acres."

Just then, they heard what Charles recognized to be a Southern-accented female voice. The three stopped short and turned to their right. "Yee-haa!"

They saw a honey-orange pony who had her blonde mane and tail tied into a ponytail at the end with two red bands, white freckles on her face, green eyes, a brown stetson (cowboy) hat atop her head, and a cutie mark depicting a trio of apples. She raced up to one apple tree, which had several empty wooden tubs set around its base, then fetched its trunk a solid kick (or "buck") with her hind legs. The strike shook enough apples loose to fill the tubs in seconds. She lifted her head proudly and crossed one foreleg over the other.

Twilight just hung her head with a sigh and trudged forward. "Let's get this over with." Spike and Charles followed as she lifted her head and approached the earth pony with a polite smile. "Good afternoon.", she introduced herself. "My name is Twilight Sparkle."

Just then, her face contorted in sudden pain as the earth pony grabbed one of her front hooves and shook it vigorously. "Well, howdy do, Miss Twilight.", she replied. "A pleasure makin' your acquaintance. I'm Applejack. We here at Sweet Apple Acres sure do like makin' new friends."

"Friends?", Twilight's voice vibrated. "Actually, I—"

"So, what can I do you for?" Applejack let go and gave a wink.

Not realizing that her hoof had been released, Twilight was still unconsciously working it up and down. Spike finally stopped its motion and laughed as she gives him a dirty look. Charles merely rolled his eyes.

Twilight cleared her throat and gave a smile. "Well, I am in fact here to supervise preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration. And you're in charge of the food?"

"We sure as sugar are.", Applejack answered. "Would you care to sample some?"

"Well, as long as it doesn't take too long." Applejack zipped away to an iron triangle hanging on a rope. And she was ringing it.

"Soup's on, everypony!"

Before they knew it, Twilight, Charles, and Spike were are quickly swept up in a stampede of earth ponies, which shortly cleared to leave them dazed and seated at a table surrounded by some trees that had some awnings over them.

Suddenly, Applejack popped up next to them. "Now, why don't I introduce y'all to the Apple family?" Around them were the earth ponies that swept them up earlier.

"Thanks, but I really need to hurry." She was ignored as a piece of dessert was thrust in front of her, held by one of the family members.

"This here's Apple Fritter, Apple Bumpkin, Red Gala, Red Delicious…" As Applejack began to reel off names in an increasing tempo, one after another, each of the family members zipped to the table and deposited an apple-based food item before rushing off. "…Golden Delicious, Caramel Apple, Apple Strudel, Apple Tart…" The stack eventually grew until it towered so tall that they had to climb up to see over it. "…Baked Apples, Apple Brioche, Apple Cinnamon Crisp…" Applejack popped up again and took a huge breath before continuing.

"Big Macintosh…" A large red stallion, a horse collar around his neck, a shaggy orange mane and tail, dark green eyes, white freckles on his face, visible yellow 'hooves', and half of a green apple as a cutie mark. He was balancing a cupcake on one hoof.

"Apple Bloom…" A yellow filly with amber eyes, a large pink ribbon on her rose-colored mane, and no cutie mark. A three-layer cake was balanced on her back, just behind her ribbon.

"…aaaaand…" Applejack stuffed an apple in Twilight's mouth before zipping off. "…Granny Smith." A lime green mare whose hair was white with age and are each tied in a bun. She wore an orange apple-spotted laced neckerchief, had an apple pie cutie mark, and was snoozing in a rocking chair. "Up and at 'em, Granny Smith! We got guests!"

Granny Smith woke up with a snort, opening her red-orange eyes. "Wha—?", she said as she shambled over, mumbling. "Soup's on…I'm a—here I come, I'm comin'…" Her joints creaked audibly as she moved to the table. Twilight still had her mouth full from the fruit Applejack shoved into it.

"Why, I'd say they're already part of the family.", Applejack said as she patted Twilight's back.

One mighty spit sent the chewed-up apple flying so Twilight can voice an uneasy giggle. "Okay, well, I can see the food situation is handled, so we'll be on our way." There was a collective sigh from the others.

"Aren't you gonna stay for brunch?", Apple Bloom asked as she gave Twilight the big sad soulful eyes.

"Sorry, but we have an awful lot to do. "

"Awww…", the entire Apple family sighed once again. Just then, Charles' stomach rumbled loudly.

"Could we please stay for a bite to eat?", he asked. "I kinda skipped breakfast and I'm so darn hungry."

Twilight gave a sigh and grumbled, "Fine." This earned her cheers from the family.

After brunch with the Apple family…

Spike came up a hill with the checklist. "Food's all taken care of.", he said. "Next is weather." Looking back, he saw Twilight trailing by several steps, her gut badly distended and her head nearly touching the ground. Charles wasn't nearly as full, but his pace had slowed as he walked behind her.

"I ate too much pie.", Twilight groaned in discomfort.

"Mmm-mmm.", Charles said in satisfaction. "That was the best meal I ever had. I think I can skip dinner today."

"Hmmm…there's supposed to be a pegasus pony named Rainbow Dash clearing the clouds.", Spike said as the three looked up to see several clouds.

"Well, she's not doing a very good job, is she?", said Twilight.

Suddenly, a multicolored blur flashed right in front of Charles and plowed his charge away. Charles turned to his right to see they have landed on a mud puddle. On top of Twilight was a cyan pegasus mare whose unruly mane and tail were both striped with all the colors of the rainbow (colors 'horizontally lined', warm ones closer to the head, and the cool ones 'outward' in the tail). She had magenta eyes and a cutie mark of a red/yellow/blue-striped lightning bolt issuing from a cloud.

Twilight groaned softly, muffled slightly by the mud, before the pegasus got upright with a big goofy grin. "Uh…'scuse me?", she laughed sheepishly as she leaned over Twilight, her voice raspy and tomboyish.

"Weren't you supposed to protect me from stuff like this?", Twilight grumbled to her bodyguard.

"Sorry, but normally I wouldn't have a full stomach.", Charles apologized as he patted it. "Also, I knew she didn't have any intention of hurting you anyway."

The blue pegasus laughed as she hovered a few feet up and Twilight groaned again. "Let me help you." And off she went, with Twilight having barely enough time to stand up before she pushed a gray cloud into position above the puddle. A few stomps on its top produced a quick shower that left Twilight clean, but also soaked from head to tail. "Oops. I—I guess I overdid it. Um… uh…how about this?" The pegasus then swooped down to fly in a tight circle around Twilight, creating a striped whirlwind that sucked all the mud out of the puddle. "My very own patented…Rainblow-Dry!" The pegasus then dropped to the ground. "No, no, don't thank me. You're quite welcome."

"Oh, really?", Charles snarked as they all looked to see the finished product: Twilight's mane and tail were a frizzed-out mess, not unlike those of the pink pony who bugged out on them earlier. She was clearly not amused and neither was Charles. Spike and the pegasus, on the other hoof, stifled a laugh and then gave it full voice, falling over in the process. The orange unicorn walked over and said, "Let me guess. You're Rainbow Dash?"

The pegasus bolted upright, pitching Spike away (who had fallen on her back as they laughed). "The one and only!" She got up and hovered to his face. "Why? You heard of me?"

"I heard you're supposed to be keeping the sky clear. The name's Charles." He then gestured to his companion with the frizzed-out mane. "This is my charge Twilight Sparkle. We and Spike there…" He gestured to the dragon. "…were sent by the Princess to check on the weather."

At that point, Rainbow was lounging on a cloud. "Yeah, yeah, that'll be a snap. I'll do it in a jiffy. Just as soon as I'm done practicing."

"Practicing?", Twilight asked. "For what?"

"The Wonderbolts!" Rainbow Dash pointed to a poster pasted on a far-off wall. Silhouettes of four pegasi streaked across its starry sky, while three more—two mares and a stallion—stood proudly in the foreground. All three of these wore goggles and blue-green jumpsuits, and their manes were electric blue. Three lightning bolts were displayed at the bottom, the center one having a pair of wings. "They're gonna perform at the Celebration tomorrow." Rainbow did a loop and landed on another cloud. "And I'm gonna show 'em my stuff."

Twilight smiled shrewdly, "The Wonderbolts?"

"Yep."

"The most talented flyers in all of Equestria?"

"That's them."

"Pffft! Please. They'd never accept a pegasus who can't even keep the sky clear for one measly day."

Rainbow got up and turned to glare at Twilight. "Hey. I could clear the sky in ten seconds flat."

"Prove it.", Twilight dared.

Rainbow Dash regarded the unicorns below her from beneath lowered eyebrows for another moment, sprung into action. Quickly she proceeded to kick apart one cloud after another. The wake of her movements blew Twilight's fluffed-up mane and tail back and forth as she, Charles, and Spike watched.

"Loop-the-loop around, and wham!"

After one last hit, the sky above Ponyville was left without a cloud in it.

"What'd I say?", said Rainbow Dash as she dropped onto the bridge over the stream. "Ten seconds flat. I'd never leave Ponyville hanging."

The jaws of Spike and Twilight hung wide open at this acrobatic display.

"You should see the look on your face!", Rainbow flew around and went up to Twilight. "You're a laugh, Twilight Sparkle. I can't wait to hang out some more." Before anyone could say anything else, she zipped away.

"Wow…she's amazing!", remarked Spike as he turned to the purple unicorn, then toyed with her mane and smothered a guffaw. She gave him a disapproving little groan and stalked away toward the pavilion. "Wait! It's kinda pretty once you get used to it!"

Inside the Town Hall…

Spike was checking the list again. Behind him and his companions, banners and flowers have been hung on the walls. "Decorations." Inside the pavilion was a single circular room. There were plenty of elaborate hangings as well as a plethora of adornments for the balcony railings. "Beautiful.", he breathlessly commented.

"Yes. The décor is coming along nicely.", said Twilight as they walked forward. This oughta be quick. I'll be at the library in no time. Beautiful, indeed."

Ahead, Charles could see a unicorn mare standing on a small dais at the back of the room. She had a white coat with a very faint gray tinge, a violet mane and tail done in loose elegant curls, sapphire blue eyes, and three blue, rhombus-shaped (like playing card-diamonds) jewels as a cutie mark. Her appearance and bearing marked her as the sophisticated type.

"Not the décor…her!", Spike replied, pointing to the unicorn, who was levitating a few ribbon samples for a closer look.

"No…no…no…oh!...goodness, no…hmmm…", she was saying to herself, her voice as classy as one would expect.

Charles turned to see Spike's irises replaced with hearts; he was obviously charmed. The dragon then groomed himself as hearts floated up, "How are my spines? Are they straight?", he asked.

Twilight just gave him a funny look before approaching the dais. "Good afternoon.", she greeted.

The white unicorn glanced briefly toward her before turning back to her work. "Just a moment, please. I'm in the zone, as it were. Ah, yes!" She tightened a glittering red bow on a post. "Sparkle always does the trick, does it not? Why, Rarity, you are a talent. Now, um, how can I help you—" The white unicorn turned around to see who she was talking to and trailed off into a cry of horror upon getting her first good look at Twilight's poofed-up wreck of a hairstyle. "Oh, my stars, darling! Whatever happened to your coiffure?"

"Oh, you mean my mane? Well, it's a long story. I'm just here to check on the decorations, and then I'll be out of your hair."

"Out of my hair?", Rarity replied. "What about your hair?" She then started to gently bulldoze Twilight along.

"Wait! Where are we going? Help!"

The lovestruck dragon floated after the pair, using the end of his tail as a propeller. Charles just grumbled and followed.

Later…

Rarity had taken the three (well, just Twilight, but Spike and Charles followed) to an ornately decorated two-story building that bore a striking resemblance to an antique carousel (to Charles, that is), including the horses attached to the small upper story's support posts and the one painted on a sign above the front door. This was the Carousel Boutique, whose front door was split halfway up its height into two sections, each with its own knob. Charles noted that nearly every house in Ponyville shared the same design in doors. In the fields behind the building were several tall tents.

Everyone was in the showroom in the ground floor of the shop. The large showroom had several mirrors, a changing room, and a low platform for customers to stand on so they could see their reflection. Currently, Twilight was that "customer".

"No…no…uh-uh." Rarity was saying as she 'used' Twilight as a mannequin for a couple of dresses.

"Too green." A rather put-out Twilight was dressed as a four-legged Statue of Liberty .

"Too yellow." As a proper "Southern" lady.

"Too poofy." A Spanish dancer.

"Not poofy enough." Apparently, Equestria's equivalent of a 1950s teenager.

"Too frilly." A French noblewoman, complete with big white wig.

"Too…shiny." An…aerobics instructor? Charles was getting bewildered. Being a guy, fashion wasn't something he knew too well. All of the outfits had incorporated a saddle in its design, and Twilight's mane was done in an appropriate style, with her tail back to its usual shape.

"Now go on, my dear.", said Rarity approvingly as Twilight now wore a saddle bedecked with small jewels and a necklace bearing a large emerald, and its straps floated loose behind her with unicorn magic. The latter's mane was back to its normal straight style as well. "You were telling me where you're from."

Rarity grabbed the straps in her teeth and pulled. Twilight had risen to her hind legs, exposing a bracelet on a front hoof as part of the outfit as Rarity stood on her croup for support.

Twilight struggled to speak as she was strangled by the tightening of the straps. "I've…been…sent…from…Canterlot…to—"

Rarity let go in surprise. "Huh?" The two unicorn mares went in opposite directions; Rarity was first to get up. "Canterlot?! She rushed over to Twilight, who now had a still-drooling Spike and an neutral Charles behind her. "Oh, I am so envious! The glamour, the sophistication! I have always dreamed of living there! I can't wait to hear all about it." She then leaned close to Twilight, who backed up. "We're gonna be the best of friends, you and I." All of a sudden, her happy reverie broke when she took a good look at Twilight's new duds. "Emeralds?! What was I thinking? Let me get you some rubies!" Rarity then dashed off.

Twilight did the same thing, but in the opposite direction. "Quick! Before she decides to dye my coat a new color!" Charles grumbled before 'lifting' a still-lovestruck Spike onto his back and followed.

Afterwards…

Twilight had discarded the fancy saddle. Spike was no longer on his back, having been 'taken' by his charge so that he was now riding her instead of him.

"Wasn't she wonderful?", Spike said dreamily, Rarity still in his mind.

"Focus, Casanova.", said Twilight. "What's next on the list?"

Charles took out the list, then said, "Music. It's the last one."

The two unicorns stopped short upon hearing a fanfare being whistled somewhere up ahead; the three hid in some bushes (for some reason) and poked their heads out to watch. They could see several birds perched in a tree, with a light yellow pegasus hovering in front of them and facing away from them. She had long, straight pink hair that curled gently upward at the ends, and a cutie mark of three pink butterflies. Charles noted that one of the birds was singing out of time. Apparently, the pegasus noticed it too and spoke up with a soft, gentle, and timid voice.

"Oh, my.", she said. This got Charles slightly aroused as he gave out a "Wolf Whistle", which Twilight noticed as she gave another funny look. "Um, stop, please, everyone." There was silence as she flew up to the bad singer. "Um, excuse me, sir. I mean no offense, but your rhythm is just a teeny tiny bit off." She then resumed her position and so did the rest of the birds. "Now, follow me, please. A-one, a-two, a-one, two, three."

"Hello!", Twilight called, not only ending up startling the conductor, but scaring her entire vocal ensemble out of the tree.

"Oh!", the pegasus cried out as she turned to see Twilight and Charles, now out of the bushes.

"Oh, my. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to frighten your birds. I'm just here to check up on the music, and it's sounding beautiful." The yellow pegasus touched down, looking at Twilight sidelong or not at all, and fidgeted one hoof against the ground without saying anything. The purple unicorn stitched a big grin across her face and let her eyes flick nervously back and forth for a moment before breaking the silence. "I'm Twilight Sparkle." The pegasus still avoided eye contact. "What's your name?" The pegasus mumbled, but neither unicorn could hear her words. "I'm sorry, what was that?" Even softer the pegasus spoke. "Didn't quite catch that."

Charles made a low whistle from just how well his charge was doing. "Allow me.", he offered as he pushed Twilight aside and walked up to the pegasus and held up her face so that she was looking at him eye-to-eye. "I'm terribly sorry for my charge here. She doesn't know how to socialize. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Charles d'Artagnan. Would you please be kind enough to say your name?" He stared straight into her beautiful eyes somewhat dreamily (but not as much as Spike with Rarity) as if trying to charm her or something. Unfortunately, he barely got a whisper from her before she reeled back and squeaked, looking at him and Twilight sidelong, as if trying to disappear behind the hoof-length curtain of her mane. However, he managed to get his answer. "So…your name is Fluttershy, huh?" The pegasus nodded in affirmation as the birds returned to the tree.

"Well, um, it looks like your birds are back.", Twilight cut in as she looked up to the tree. "So I guess everything's in order. Keep up the good work." There was another tiny squeak from Fluttershy and the purple unicorn backed off slowly. "Oo-kay."

"Again, I'm sorry for Twilight here, Fluttershy." Charles called as he watched Fluttershy just stand there, eyes downcast and one of them hidden behind her mane. As Charles turned around, she finally peeked toward him and Twilight, as well as Spike, who had at last emerged from the bushes.

"Well, that was easy.", the purple unicorn said to the dragon. All of a sudden, Fluttershy came to life with a gasp and a flutter of wings that scared off some of the birds.

"A baby dragon!", the pegasus gasped with some lung power behind her voice. She then zipped over to Spike, knocking Charles slightly to her right, and Twilight right over the dragon. "Oh, I've never seen a baby dragon before! He's so cute!"

Spike turned to the sprawled-out Twilight and said, "Well, well, well!" He then turned back to Fluttershy with a smug look on his face as he folded his arms and raised his head with his eyes closed.

"Oh, my. He talks. I didn't know dragons could talk. That's just so incredibly wonderful, I…" She hovered into the air. "…I just don't even know what to say!"

Suddenly, Spike suddenly found himself 'grabbed' by Twilight's magic and hoisted onto her back. "Well, in that case, we better be going.", the unicorn said as she trotted past Fluttershy and Charles, and both of them followed her

"Wait! Wait! What's his name?"

"I'm Spike.", answered the dragon.

"Hi, Spike. I'm Fluttershy. Wow, a talking dragon! And what do dragons talk about?" As Charles reeled back a bit so that he was both beside and in between the pegasus and his charge, the conversation grating on Twilight's nerves.

"Well, what do you want to know?"

"Absolutely everything." At this line, Twilight's eyes popped in surprise and she groaned loudly as the four went down the road.

"Well, I started out as a cute little purple-and-green egg…"

Hours later…

Spike was still talking as they walked through Ponyville proper. It was now late in the afternoon, and while Twilight impatiently glared ahead, even Charles was getting bored.

"…and that's the story of my whole entire life!", he finished. "Well, up until today. Do you want to hear about today?"

Oh, brother., Charles mentally grumbled.

"Oh, yes, please!", Fluttershy answered.

Just then, Twilight did a quick 180 and stopped in the same motion to face Fluttershy, prompting a yell from her passenger.

"I am so sorry.", she said. "How did we get here so fast?" Charles turned his face to see that they have arrived at a large, gnarled tree whose trunk and foliage were set with many windows, one of which had a hanging lantern. A balcony was visible halfway up, the front door displayed a picture of a lit candle, and a sign outside depicted an open book. In addition, a beehive hung from one branch.

"This is where I'm staying while in Ponyville, and my poor baby dragon needs his sleep."

"No, I don't!", Spike protested, who was bucked off with a big phony grin.

The purple unicorn leaned to him and baby-talked, "Aw, wookit that. He's so sweepy, he can't even keep his wittle bawance."

The "sweepy" dragon glared at her stupidly grinning face before being swept up by Fluttershy. "Poor thing.", the pegasus said as she flew inside. "You simply must get him to bed."

Realizing that things are getting out of hoof, Twilight dashed in and quickly ejected her. "Yes, yes. We'll get right on that. Well, good night!" With that, she slammed the door, leaving a very befuddled Fluttershy on the step with Charles.

"…So…", Charles spoke up as Fluttershy turned to face him. "Uhh…would you like to…like to…" He didn't know what to say to a shy pony like her.

"Umm…well…", was all Fluttershy could say when Twilight opened the door and 'took' Charles by the tail.

"Sorry about this, but Charles' my bodyguard, so I need him with me.", she said.

"Come on! Other than the beehive, the library's perfectly sa—hey!"

Before he knew it, he was 'pulled' inside the library, which was currently pitch-black as the door was slammed closed again. Both he and Spike were rather put out at having their conversations broken off so abruptly. Their eyes gleamed in the darkness.

"Huh. Rude much?", Spike said.

"Sorry, Spike, but I have to convince the Princess that Nightmare Moon is coming, and we're running out of time. I just need to be alone so I can study without a bunch of crazy ponies trying to make friends all the time."

"If you ask me, you're trying to make us reclusive shut-ins like you.", Charles argued. "Do you really hate making friends? Did you really have to pull me in so harshly?"

"Do you even know what being a bodyguard is actually about?", his charge retorted. "You're supposed to be planning routes, researching on my contacts, pre-searching places I'm supposed to visit, searching anything I'll be riding for threats, and attentively escorting me on my day-to-day activities. During your time with me, you haven't done all of these as frequently as a real one should."

"Since when did you decide you should read up on bodyguards?"

"That's not important right now. Where's the light?"

"Like I know where it is."

Twilight's question was answered when it suddenly came on, revealing a large circular room whose walls were lined with bookshelves; other volumes were scattered around lofts set into the walls above them. And this reading room is filled with ponies, many of whom blew on noisemakers in their mouths, and at least five Charles recognized from Canterlot. Streamers hung from the upper reaches.

"SURPRISE!", they all cried out.

Confetti rained down over the group, and a party favor was blown out in front of one thoroughly confused, grumpy-looking violet unicorn who moaned wearily.

The surprise party was in full swing. Just then, popping out from nowhere was the pink pony who had ran out on the three earlier.

"Surprise!", she yelled in a cheerful, energetic, and slightly hyperactive-sounding tone. "Hi. I'm Pinkie Pie, and I threw this party just for you!" She began to hop around. "Were you surprised? Were you, were you? Huh? Huh? Huh?"

"Very surprised.", Twilight answered. "Libraries are supposed to be quiet."

Pinkie giggled as she leaned on Twilight, who shook her head. "That's silly. What kind of welcome party would this be if it were quiet? I mean, duh! Booooring!"

"Well, parties should not take place in libraries, then.", Charles said as he then looked around.

"You see, I saw you when you first got here, remember? You were all, "Hello," and I was all—" Pinkie gasped. "Remember?" . "You see, I never saw you before, and if I never saw you before, that means you're new. Cause I know everypony, and I mean everypony, in Ponyville."

Charles and Twilight made it to a refreshment table, with Spike having gotten lost in the crowd. As Pinkie kept going at top speed, poking her head into/out of view from all angles, his harge took a red bottle in her teeth and poured its contents into a waiting glass. There were other bottles on the table that were colored green.

"And if you're new, it meant you hadn't met anyone yet, and if you haven't met anyone yet, you must not have any friends, And if you don't have any friends, then you must be lonely, and that made me so sad.", Pinkie rambled on as he noticed that everypony was now looking at them. And that the grey pegasus's eyes were now 'crossed', making her look silly. "And I had an idea, and that's why I went—" Pinkie gasped again as Twilight put a straw into her glass and started to sip.

"I should throw a great big, ginormous, super-duper spectacular welcome party and invite everyone in Ponyville!" At that statement, the four ponies Twilight, Charles, and Spike visited earlier that day quickly gathered around Pinkie. "See? And now you have lots and lots of friends!"

Just then, Twilight's eyes popped as big as dinner plates and she turned to face the group, her face suddenly beet-red with bulging cheeks and streaming eyes, probably due to the effects of her drink. Spike had now managed to join her.

"Are you all right, sugarcube?", Applejack asked. She was answered with the unicorn jumping up with steam whistling from her ears, her mane and tail briefly turning to flames, and zipping off at top speed. Pinkie's next words got a round of puzzled looks.

"Aww, she's so happy she's crying!", the pink earth pony said as they watched Twilight go upstairs.

"Actually, she could care less about making any friends at all.", voiced Charles, which got him a shocked look from Pinkie. "I should know." Pinkie returned to her usual expression a second later.

At the table, Spike picked up the bottle Twilight used earlier and regarded its label. "Hot sauce." Pinkie tipped over the bottle so that its contents dribbles over one of the cupcakes on the table.

"Mmmm…", she said as she then picked up the snack and ate it in one bite, earning her confused looks from Applejack and the others. "What? It's good!" As they smiled again at the sheer silliness of her appetite.

Charles went over to the stairs Twilight took when she left the party, Spike accompanying him with a lampshade on his head. They made it to the door and the former 'opened' it. He first looked up at the loft in the dim-lit room, which had been outfitted as a bedroom. There were bookshelves lining one wall, but the rest of the space had been cleared to make room for a bed, a house plant, a small floor mat, and a table by the window with a bust of a unicorn on it. Two overlapping horseshoes and a cuckoo clock had been hung on the wall, and a telescope stood at the window. The floor-level section of the room (which Twilight's companions) had more bookshelves, a desk, and a staircase connecting it and the loft. He could see his charge on the bed, huddled on top of the blankets with a pillow on her head.

"Hey, Twilight!", called Spike. "Pinkie Pie's starting Pin the Tail on the Pony! Wanna play?"

"No!", the purple unicorn shouted. "All the ponies in this town are crazy! Do you know what time it is?"

"It's the eve of the Summer Sun Celebration. Everypony has to stay up, or they'll miss the Princess raise the sun. You really should lighten up, Twilight. It's a party!" With a tilt of the shade, he sauntered out to rejoin it. As Charles' charge mimicked Spike's tone of voice with gibberish as he closed the door.

"Now how can you say that all the ponies in Ponyville are crazy, Twilight?! That's a very hasty generalization!", Charles cried out as he walked up the steps. "Sure, Pinkie and the four 'managers' we met are a bit off in their own ways, but the majority of Ponyville are pretty average, just merely of a lower class than Canterlot."

Twilight just ignored him as she lay down, holding the pillow over herself, and groaned. "Here I thought I'd have time to learn more about the Elements of Harmony. But, silly me, all this ridiculous friend-making has kept me from it!"

"Hey! You sound like you practically hate friendship! Don't you know that's one of the many factors that has built society?!" Charles was ignored again as his charge turned away from him. He then decided to walk up to the window so he could see what she was seeing. He looked up to see the full moon, whose craters and darkened surfaces form the silhouette of a mare's head…the Mare in the Moon. Twilight got up from bed, with the book they read much earlier that day close by. Just then, noticed that four stars seemed to be slowly drifting toward the moon.

"Legend has it that on the longest day of the thousandth year, the stars will aid in her escape, and she will bring about everlasting night.", Twilight quoted.

"Don't you mean 'nighttime eternal'?", Charles corrected, but was ignored (yet again).

"Oh, I hope the Princess was right. I hope it really is just an old pony tale."

Just then, the moment was interrupted by Spike, who still wore the lampshade. "Come on, guys! It's time to watch the sunrise!"

Later, at Town Hall…

Everypony was gathered in silence, either at the main floor, the balconies above, or in the air in the case of the pegasi. The dais on which Rarity had worked on earlier today stood empty, as did the balcony directly above. A curtained archway was behind the balcony railing. As Twilight and Charles stood somewhere in the center, with Spike on the former's back, the profound silence was suddenly shattered when Pinkie Pie zipped up to them.

"Isn't this exciting?", she asked. "Are you excited? 'Cause I'm excited, I've never been so excited, well, except for the time that I saw you walking into town and I went—" She gasped once again. "But I mean, really, who can top that?"

Pinkie was cut off as the birds Fluttershy rehearsed with earlier performed a short fanfare, and a spotlight picked out the vacant balcony. It then descended to the dais, where a khaki-colored earth pony mare stood. She wore gold-framed half-moon glasses, and a white shirt collar secured with a green ribbon tie. Her waved mane and tail were two light shades of gray, her eyes were bright blue, and her cutie mark was a scroll tied with a blue ribbon. Charles noted that this was the mayor.

"Fillies and gentle-colts!", she called, her voice with a tone of dignity that came with age and experience in office. "As Mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!" There were short cheers from all save for Twilight and her companions. "In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the sunrise and celebrate this, the longest day of the year!"

As the mayor spoke, Twilight glanced up to the moon and Charles followed her gaze. "And now, it is my great honor to introduce to you the ruler of our land…" To their surprise and shock, the four drifting stars disappeared into its perimeter and—at the same time—the dark unicorn-head shape vanished from the surface. "…the very pony who gives us the sun and the moon each and every day…the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria…" Nearly everypony on the main floor were feeling jubilant throng; the pegasi were flying about, the unicorns and earth ponies were shaking in anticipation…and he saw Heartstrings jumping in excitement.

At the balcony where the birds were, Fluttershy turned to them. "Ready?"

"…Princess Celestia!"

At the balcony, Rarity grabbed a nearby rope in her teeth and hauled on it. The curtains parted as a spotlight hit the balcony and another fanfare plays. However, there was no one and nothing in it. "Huh?" Following were general confused murmurs.

"This can't be good.", murmured Charles

"Remain calm, everypony.", the Mayor tried to console the populace as Rarity went past the curtains to find the Princess. "There must be a reasonable explanation."

Pinkie jumped in place and said, "Ooh, ooh! I love guessing games! Is she hiding?"

Rarity finished looking and turned to the audience with an answer, "She's gone!" There was a gargantuan gasp from all present.

"Ooh, she's good.", Pinkie said to her "friends". Just then, her good cheer went bye-bye in a split second as she voiced a panicked cry while glancing up toward the balcony. Twinkling clouds of deep blue-violet vapor have begun to envelop the balcony as another gasp came from everypony.

"Oh, no.", Twilight gasped softly as the the thickening clouds were swept away, revealing the blue-armored, winged unicorn (alicorn) figure of Nightmare Moon behind them. Her mane and tail were made of the same blue-violet vapor, and her coat was actually an even darker blue-black hue than in the picture from the book Twilight and Charles read. The edge of her helmet framed scornful, light blue-green eyes with catlike pupils, and her towering size was accentuated by the spread of her wings. Her hooves were protected by blue shoes that reached up to cover the front of her forelegs. A white crescent moon appeared both on her chest armor plate, and against a dark purple background as her cutie mark. "Nightmare Moon!"

Spike moaned in shock and fainted, toppling off Twilight's back. Nightmare's voice broadcast an unsettling mixture of suavity, contempt, and barely concealed menace in roughly equal parts. "Oh, my beloved subjects. It's been so long since I've seen your precious little sun-loving faces." Charles looked around to see the terror-stricken crowd.

"What did you do with our Princess?!", Rainbow Dash demanded, boiling-mad as she started into a flying charge, only to be held back by Applejack, who grabbed her tail with her teeth.

"Whoa there, nelly!", the earth pony said.

Nightmare chuckled richly, "Why, am I not royal enough for you? Don't you know who I am?"

Pinkie jumped cheerfully, somehow now next to Applejack. "Ooh, ooh! More guessing games! Um…Hokey Smokes! How about…Queen Meanie? No…Black Snooty! Black Snooty!" Her next guess was muffled by a cupcake from Applejack.

Nightmare then leaned over Fluttershy, scaring her and scattering the birds. "Does my crown no longer count, now that I have been imprisoned for a thousand years?" Next, she got into Rarity's face, cradling it in a lock of her intangible mane. "Did you not recall the legend? Did you not see the signs?"

"I did!", Twilight declared, catching Nightmare's attention. Spike was still laid out on the floor. "And I know who you are! You're the Mare in the Moon!"

"Nightmare Moon!", Charles finished for his charge, and the whole crowd gasped.

"Well, well, well.", snickered Nightmare. "Somepony who remembers me. Then you also know why I'm here."

Twilight lost her nerve as she then said, "You're here to…to…" She then swallowed hard.

Nightmare let out a growing chuckle. "Remember this day, little ponies, for it was your last. From this moment forth, the night will last forever!" Lightning then cracked through the upper reaches of the pavilion and the material of her mane and tail billowed over the entire room as she laughed exultantly. Below, Twilight gritted her teeth out of nervous fear, and Charles made a serious face, lowering his body as if ready to fight.

To be continued…

Next Chapter: Chapter 2: Elements of Harmony Estimated time remaining: 14 Hours, 39 Minutes