My Little Pony · Chat

In the library of Canterlot, a candle flame flickered across the parchment. Twilight Sparkle stood before an open ancient book, her quill hovering just above the paper, a drop of ink trembling on the verge of falling. Spike was dozing at her feet, his tail curled around a cup of cold tea. On the page, an ancient symbol glowed faintly. She closed the book and stuffed it into her saddlebag. Her hooves clattered quickly through the corridors, and before the palace guards could even ask, she had already spread her wings. "To Ponyville," she said to Spike. Sunlight poured through the clouds, painting the edge of the Everfree Forest in gold. A rainbow-colored trail dashed past her left, so fast it felt like the sky itself was breathing. Further away, a flash of pink mane vanished in the direction of the town. When Twilight Sparkle landed in the Ponyville plaza, the scent of apples was the first thing to hit her nose. An orange earth pony was unloading the last basket of apples from a cart, her green eyes sweeping over her, as if confirming something. "You must be Twilight Sparkle?" "Yes, I—" A yellow pegasus drifted by, her mane obscuring half her face, cradling an injured rabbit in her arms and whispering softly to it. As she passed Twilight, she tilted her head slightly, her teal eyes like a quiet stream. A bit further away, a white unicorn stood at the entrance of the Carousel Boutique, her purple curls lifted by the wind, using magic to adjust the gems in the display window, aligning each one to a precise angle. A pink pony appeared in front of Twilight out of nowhere, her spring-like mane nearly bopping Twilight's nose. "You're new! I know every pony in Ponyville, but I've never seen you before, so you must be—" "Pinkie," Applejack interrupted her. The pink pony blinked and smiled, as if just hearing her name called was a party in itself. Twilight looked around. Four ponies surrounded her, while the rainbow-colored trail in the sky was looping back in their direction. And for now, the moon still hung peacefully in the night sky, not yet stained with the colors of a nightmare.