Princess Twilight Sparkle Part 1

Night's POV

Night, Twilight, and his friends were in Canterlot where the Summer Sunset Celebration was happening this year. For Night, it was the third year anniversary of his return to his home. Currently, Night and Rainbow were helping Twilight learn how to fly, which she was really struggling with.

Twilight was slightly off balance and struggled to remain airborne at times. "You gotta really flap 'em hard," Rainbow advised.

"But not so hard that you-" Night started, but Twilight had flapped her wings too hard too quickly and lost control before hitting a tree. "Do that," he finished.

Twilight tried again but her wing flaps were uneven and she fell to the ground. "Lookin' good up there, Princess Twilight," Applejack encouraged.

"Applejack, you know you don't have to call me that," Twilight pointed out.

"Why do you protest so? You've already given up wearing your crown all the time. The least you can do is embrace your new title," Rarity stated.

"Um, hello? Another royal member right here," Night said, pointing to himself. "You don't call me 'Prince Night' ever. So why does Twilight get the special treatment?" Night asked.

"Look, if other ponies want to address me that way, I suppose it's fine, but... not my friends. It just doesn't feel right," Twilight started before sighing. "And neither does all this flying business. The Summer Sun Celebration is only two days away, and I'm never gonna be ready to perform my part."

"Not if you spend all your time down here, you won't! Now get up there and show everypony the big finish!" Rainbow encouraged.

Twilight spread her wings and took off and was flying quite well. That ended quickly when she hit several clouds before tumbling to the ground. Night quickly grabbed her before she could hit the ground.

"Maybe you can show me how to slow down next?" Twilight asked as Night set her on the ground.

"That might be a good idea," Night thought aloud.

"Wow! That was a big finish!" Pinkie said cheerfully.

After Twilight was done with flying for the day, the eight found themselves looking at a stain-glass window that showed Twilight's coronation.

"You look amazing, darling. They've really captured your regality," Rarity commented. Twilight looked uncomfortable at the statement while Night felt mad. Night certainly didn't get a stain-glass window when he returned to Equestria, so Twilight getting one for just becoming a princess felt like a big slap in the face.

"I suppose," Twilight said.

"Oh, don't be so modest. It's everypony's dream to someday wear a crown and have their coronation ceremony preserved in stained glass for all to see," Rarity said dreamily.

"No, it isn't," Night said bluntly.

"Most of my dreams are about frosting!" Pinkie said before licking her lips.

"We'd better get going. We don't want to miss our train," Fluttershy pointed out. Night then remembered that only he and Twilight were a part of the Canterlot celebration: Spike was being a loyal assistant. The others were needed at Ponyville.

"Fluttershy's right. Don't know about y'all, but I've still got bushels to do to get ready. The official celebration may be here in Canterlot, but hoo-wee, has the Mayor put us in charge of one heck of a party back home," Applejack stated before seeing Twilight's look of disappointment. "Aw, don't look like that, sugarcube. You get to be right there with the other Princesses and Night when Celestia raises the sun," she said to reassure Twilight.

"And I'm honored. Really, I am. It's just that the Summer Sun Celebration is what first brought us all together. It just doesn't feel right not getting to spend such a special day with my Ponyville friends," Twilight said.

"It doesn't feel right to us either, darling. If the Mayor wasn't so desperate for our assistance, we'd most certainly stay here in Canterlot. And of course, we do understand that your royal duties must come first," Rarity said.

"For those of us who have royal duties," Night muttered.

"The Summer Sun Celebration may have brought us together, but it's something much bigger that'll always keep us connected," Applejack said before walking up to one of the windows. "Exhibit A: The seven of us are united by the Elements of Harmony. No amount of royal duties is gonna change that. Right, everypony?" Applejack asked them. Four of the five other ponies nodded. "Right Pinkie Pie?" Applejack asked. Pinkie was still dreaming about frosting.

"You should take that as a yes," Fluttershy said. Night rolled his eyes in amusement.

They then noticed the time and headed to the train station. "We're gonna write to you two and give you so many details, it'll be like you're both in Ponyville with us! Right, girls?" Pinkie asked them.

"Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye," they swore.

"And you will be with us right after the Celebration. We already have an appointment on the books to discuss the royal upgrades to your loft decor," Rarity said to Twilight.

The train whistle then blew and the conductor shouted, "All aboard for Ponyville!"

The girls boarded the train before it departed from the station to head down the mountains Canterlot was in. "I can't help it. They've only been gone a minute, and I already feel like I'm missing something," Twilight said sadly.

A messenger pony then flew up and gave a letter to Spike. Dear Twilight, you aren't missing anything. Your friend, Pinkie Pie. Spike read.

"That's me!" Pinkie shouted in the distance.

"How she does that is beyond me," Night commented.

"But I am. I just know it," Twilight said, ignoring Night's comment.

The three headed to their room and managed to get a few things done while Twilight practiced her flying for a bit. "Check, check, check, check, and... check! Huh, whaddya know? We're way ahead of schedule! I credit your extremely competent assistant," Spike started as Twilight landed a bit awkwardly onto the ground.

"So do I," Twilight agreed.

"The Celebration isn't until the day after tomorrow. We could still fit in a quick trip to Ponyville and be back in plenty of time to finish off these last few things before the main event!" Spike suggested.

"I'd be down for that. Heck, with my abilities we can be in and out in no time," Night said.

"No no no no," Twilight started quickly. "We are not using your Lightning Travel. I have to try not to hurl just thinking about it. Though it would be nice. But what if something else came up while we were gone? What if we were delayed getting back and I wasn't able to finish everything on that list? What if we lost the list on the way to Ponyville and then couldn't remember which things we'd done and which things we hadn't done, and then spent so much time trying to figure out what we hadn't done and what we had done, and we ruined the entire Celebration by not doing the one really important thing that we were supposed to do?!" As she ranted, Twilight slowly started flying up to the roof and smacked her head on it before plummeting to the ground.

"I take that's a 'no' then?" Night asked.

"These are the first royal duties Princess Celestia has given me. I can't risk letting her down!" Twilight continued.

"And I'm sure you won't," Celestia said as she entered the room.

"Your highness!" Spike said as he bowed. Twilight started to, but Celestia stopped her.

"No need for that now, Princess Twilight," she told her.

"Sorry," Twilight apologized.

"No need to apologize," Celestia stated.

"Sorry!" Twilight repeated.

"I must admit that it is wonderful to actually be looking forward to the Summer Sun Celebration," Celestia said as she walked over to one of the windows where Luna was raising the moon.

"What's that meant to mean?" Night asked.

"For my subjects, it has always been a celebration of my defeat of Nightmare Moon. But for me…" Celestia started before sighing. "It was just a terrible reminder that I'd had to banish my own sister."

"I guess I never really thought about it that way," Twilight acknowledged.

"But now I see it in a different light, and I hope others will see it as well after my announcement at the sun rising. The return of my family, both as Princess Luna, and Prince Night," Celestia said happily. "I am so pleased that you will be playing a role in the festivities. I know it must have been difficult to see your friends return to Ponyville without you," she added to Twilight.

"Maybe a little," Twilight admitted.

"You may no longer be my student, Princess Twilight, but I hope you know that I will always be here if you need me. Just as I hope that you will always be there when I need you," Celestia told her.

Night coughed and got Celestia's attention. "And I hope you can always come to me as well Night," Celestia added, but Night felt it was forced.

Spike then cleared his throat and pointed to a messenger pony. "I think this guy needs you," he added.

"Uh, a message for Princess Twilight," he said and gave Twilight the letter.

When she opened it, a party popper went off and confetti flew out from the letter. "A letter from Ponyville, I presume?" Celestia asked.

"Never mind. It's not important," Twilight said before turning to Spike. "Spike, where were we?" she asked him.

"About to call it a night?" Spike asked hopefully.

"We should probably go over the checklist one more time," Twilight advised.

Night laughed at Twilight's response and what Spike said after was the icing on the cake. "I knew you were gonna say that…" he muttered as he pulled out the list.

"I'll leave you two to it," Celestia said as she left the room.

When morning came around, Night awoke to find himself in bed while Twilight had fallen asleep on the desk by one of the windows, still having the blanket Night put on her when he saw where she had dropped out.

"Come on Twilight, up and at-" Night started as he shook Twilight a bit when he saw something odd outside the window.

"Mmm. Morning Night," Twilight said softly as she woke up before seeing what was outside the window. "What in Equestria?" Twilight questioned, now fully awake.

The sky seemed to be having an identity crisis as half of it was day with the sun up, while the other half was night with the moon up.

"Spike!" Twilight called out.

"Check-check-check-check-check-check…" Spike muttered in his sleep. Night lifted the dragon's head with his hoof and let it fall, walking Spike up. "Ungh... What time is it?" Spike asked.

"It's either the middle of the night, or noon," Night answered. Spike looked confused 'til he looked out the window.

"Whoa. That is weird," he commented.

"Come on, we have to find out what's going on," Twilight said and the three headed outside.

"Princess Twilight and Prince Night will know!" a pony shouted when they exited the tower they were in. The three were immediately swarmed by ponies all wanting answers.

"Your Highnesses, you must come with us," a royal guard to Night and Twilight after pushing through the crowd. More guards showed up and managed to keep the crowd at bay.

"What's going on?" Night asked when they entered another part of the castle and the doors were closed behind them.

"It's Princess Luna and Princess Celestia…" the guard that brought them over started.

"They're gone!" another one finished.

"What?!" Night shouted as Twilight and Spike gasped.

"But I don't understand! Where are they?" Twilight asked.

"We don't know. It seems that Princess Celestia and Princess Luna have simply... vanished," the first guard answered.

"Any idea on how long they've been gone?" Night asked, keeping his voice under control.

"We think it was sometime during the night," the second guard answered.

"This is why we came to you two," the first guard said and the two bowed.

"We await your command," the second guard said.

"My command?" Twilight asked in surprise.

"They're royal guards, Twilight. They take orders from us and as the last to royal members in the area, it falls to us," Night explained.

"What would you have us do?" the second guard asked.

"I want you to continue the search for Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. We have to find out what happened to them before ponies start to panic. There must be some clue that can tell us what's happened to them. If you find something, anything, let us know immediately," Twilight ordered. The two guards saluted them and went outside.

Night then brought over a guard that was standing nearby. "Do we have any other guard posts across Equestria?" Night asked.

"I believe so. Minor outposts along the borders and a few key bases," the guard answered.

"Send word to the commanders about what's happening. We're going to search all of Equestria for them. And send word to Princess Cadance as well," Night ordered. He saluted as well before leaving.

"Way to take charge," Spike commented.

A guard suddenly burst through the door, panting heavily. "Your… highnesses…" she started.

"Hey, calm down," Night told the guard. She took a few deep breaths before standing back up.

"We just got a message from the Mayor of Ponyville, the Everfree Forest seems to be invading," she reported.

"Have you sent scouts to confirm this?" Night asked.

"I sent two Pegasus Recon Wings and they confirmed it," she answered.

"Alright then, we'll take care of it. Who's the highest-ranking officer?" Night asked.

"That would be Captain Strong Horn," she answered.

"Find him and notify him that he's in charge of keeping Canterlot stable until we return. I get the feeling that this is all connected," Night told her. She saluted before running off.

Night, Twilight, and Spike then headed outside managing to avoid the crowds demanding answers. "So, where are we going?" Spike asked.

"The Everfree Forest is... invading. Whatever is going on, I'm sure we're going to need our friends and the Elements of Harmony to stop it! I just hope we haven't missed the train…" Twilight answered as she and Night put their crowns on.

"We don't need the train Twilight, we can fly, remember?" Night told her.

Twilight immediately stopped and Spike ran into her. "Oh. Right," she muttered. Spike got on her back and the two Alicorns took to the sky, Twilight somewhat unsteady in her take-off, but stabilized quickly.

As the two flew to Ponyville, Spike wasn't liking Twilight's flying while avoiding black, spiked clouds that were in the sky. "I'm starting to wish... we'd taken the train!" Spike commented.

"Almost there! Come on, Spike, we need to get the Elements of Harmony and find the others!" Twilight told him as the Golden Oak Library came into view.

"Uh, Twilight, you might want to start braking," Night warned as she dive-bombed towards the library and wasn't able to stop in time. Twilight's response was to teleport and Night grabbed Spike before he hit one of the windows.

The two then entered the library where Night saw the girls going through all the books and Twilight in a pile. "I'm going to be honest, I prefer you're flying to Twilight's," Spike told Night.

"Okay, I get it! I need to work on my flying!" Twilight complained.

"You'll get the hang of it," Night said, helping her out of the pile she was in.

"I dunno if you've noticed, but the Everfree Forest is just a teeny-tiny bit out of control," Pinkie said when her Pinkie sense went off and one of the thorn vines Night had seen coming into Ponyville smacked into Rarity.

"Guess it turned out you were missin' something here in Ponyville after all," Applejack said as she closed the window the vine came through.

"But perhaps you already know what's causing all of this calamity. Has Princess Celestia sent you to dispel it posthaste?" Rarity asked after she recovered.

"Not exactly. You see, Princess Celestia is, well... she and Princess Luna are both…" Twilight started, sounding like she didn't know how to word it.

Luckily, she didn't have to. "They're missing!" Spike shouted, causing the others to gasp.

"I don't know who has taken them, but I've got a hunch we're going to need the Elements of Harmony to get them back," Twilight said as she gave the others their elements.

"Oh, yeah, just like old times," Rainbow said excitedly.

"A-boo-yah!" Pinkie said as she hoofed bumped Twilight.

"Are you okay Night?" Applejack asked.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't worried. But whoever, or whatever, has done this, they're gonna pay," Night said as his body sparked lightning.

"So then let's find who to aim these bad boys at so we can get Celestia and Luna back and keep the rest of Equestria from becoming plant food! Any ideas?" Applejack asked Twilight.

"I haven't found squat in any of the books I've been looking through!" Pinkie answered. "Oopsies! Missed a spot!" she added as she finished the coloring book she was looking at.

"Half day, half night... strange weather patterns... out of control plants. I think I'm starting to get a pretty good idea of who we're up against," Twilight stated.

"Yeah, there's only one thing in Equestria capable of doing all of this," Night added, seeing where Twilight was going.

The eight then walked towards another part of town and the Element users stood in a circle. Night and Twilight then activated their elements and they brought Discord to them, who was taking a bath at the time.

"Winter Wrap Up, Winter Wrap-ooh!" Discord sang when he saw where he was. Night wouldn't be able to unsee that now. "Now, Twilight, you know Princess Celestia said that you were to give me a heads up before you summon me with that little spell she gave you. In case you haven't noticed, I was in the middle of a particularly invigorating shower," Discord told her, ignoring the glares from everypony except Fluttershy.

"E-nough! Release Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, and stop the Everfree Forest from invading!" Twilight demanded.

Discord wrapped himself around Twilight. "Why, whatever are you talking about?" he asked her.

"Oh, so you're telling us that all of this has nothing to do with you?" Night asked, pointing around Ponyville.

"We know you're the one behind all of this!" Applejack added.

"Don't get me wrong. I absolutely love what you've done with the place, but I couldn't possibly take responsibility. I'm reformed, don't you remember?" Discord reminded them.

"Yeah, right! This has got your cloven hoofprints all over it!" Rainbow declared.

"And just because you didn't do this now, doesn't mean you set this all up in the past," Night added.

"Whatever would make you think that?" Discord asked the Storm Prince.

"Call it a hunch," Night answered.

"And here I thought we were all friends," Discord said, giving them all the puppy eyes.

"Drop the act, buster! We're onto you!" Pinkie said, her usual cheerful voice turning cold.

"Oh come on, I'm innocent. Would I lie to you?" Discord asked.

"Yes!" everypony but Fluttershy shouted.

"Um, maybe," she answered.

"Well then, it seems we've reached an impasse. I'm telling the truth, but you think I'm lying. What do friends like us do in a situation like this, Princess Twilight?" Discord asked her, taping her crown. "Congrats, by the way, on the promotion. You totally deserve it, even if Celestia is having to sideline Night to do it," he added.

"Hold on, what was that last bit?" Rainbow asked the Draconequus.

"Oh? He hasn't told you," Discord said, looking at Night.

"It's a family matter Discord, it doesn't concern them," Night told Discord coldly.

"I see. So you don't want them all to know that Celestia is basically grooming Twilight to be her successor while bypassing the real heir to Equestria," Discord replied.

"What?!" the girls and Spike asked in shock.

"You know what? Enough of your lies Discord, I say we blast him back to stone!" Rainbow shouted.

"Works for me!" Applejack added.

"Hear, hear!" Rarity agreed.

"Hey! We can't do that! What if he really is telling the truth about everything?" Fluttershy asked them, getting between the other elements and Discord.

"Well, finally! Somepony willing to give me the benefit of the doubt. The rest of you could learn a lot about friendship from my dear friend Shutterfly here," Discord said, wrapping his arm around Rainbow who looked really uncomfortable.

"Um, it's Fluttershy," she corrected.

"Oh, right, whatever," Discord said, wrapping Fluttershy in his other arm and pushing Rainbow away.

"If you're not the one responsible, then help us figure out who is!" Twilight demanded.

"I suppose I could, but after all the hoof pointing and besmirching of my good name, I just don't know if I'm up to it," Discord answered as he started knitting with the vines. "Why don't you ask your zebra friend if she knows anything?" Discord then suggested as the vines made an arrow that pointed to Zecora with all her stuff on a cart trying to get out of the forest.

"Zecora!" Twilight called out as she ran up to her.

"From my home, I have had to flee! The forest has grown too wild, even for me!" Zecora told them.

"Any idea why all this is happenin'?" Applejack asked.

"I'm afraid it is a mystery to me as well, but I may have something that, if combined with a spell…" Zecora started as she pulled out a bottle that had purple liquid in it. "I do not dare to use it myself, the results would be tragic. It only responds to Alicorn magic," the zebra explained, looking at both Night and Twilight. "Princess Twilight, Prince Night, you can turn the potion from purple to white. After a sip, you may see why the sky is day and night," Zecora explained.

"Let's do it then," Night said. The two Alicorns then combined their magic and shot it at the potion, turning the purple liquid white.

"Oooh!" Pinkie awed.

Twilight then levitated the potion up to her and took a drink. "Doesn't seem to be worki-" Twilight started when her eyes suddenly glowed white and a white beam hit Night in the face.

When Night opened his eyes, he found himself in a castle that he didn't recognize. Looking around, he figured out this was the throne room due to the two thrones sitting by one wall. One was gold, the other was blue, and each had a banner above them. "Is this another castle my sisters have?" Night wondered.

The door on the other side of the room then opened and Night was surprised by what he saw. The mare looked like Celestia, but her normal multicolor mane was a bright pink and wasn't flowing and she was smaller than Night remembered her. "Luna? Are you here?" Celestia asked.

"Not… another step," Luna's voice answered coldly as she stepped out from behind the blue throne. Unlike Celestia, Luna didn't look as different when Night last saw her. She was still the same size and her mane was still the same color but it wasn't flowing either. "Did you really expect me to sit idly by while they all basked in your precious light?" Luna asked Celestia coldly.

"Luna, what is going on?" Celestia asked, looking confused on what was happening.

"There will only be one princess in Equestria now. And that princess... will be me!" Luna shouted, slamming her hoof into the ground and destroying a stain-glass window that sat above the thrones, letting the sunlight in. Luna then rose the moon up to the sun, causing a solar eclipse.

Dark magic then emanated from the moon and onto Luna, surrounding her body. When the magic cleared, Luna had turned into Nightmare Moon once again. "Well shit," Night muttered.