My Little Pony: Through Space and Time

by Magic Step

A Worse Cure

"What have you done with the princess?" Rainbow Dash demanded.

You seem to believe that I am not the princess. Were you listening to a word I said?

"Yeah, right!" said Diane Pie. "Sparkie would never do something like this!"

"...Diane?" said Captain Dash. "How did you get here?"

"I flew her here," said Princess Rarity. "We're friends. We face our problems together."

Captain Dash smiled weakly. "Sure, whatever." She turned back to the creature that used to be Twilight Sparkle.

I wish you wouldn't try to stop me, captain. I, too, want you to share in this glorious perfection that is ShadowFire. Only let me help you.

Purple black flames shot towards Captain Dash.

Captain Dash launched herself up into the air, but the flames didn't follow her. They just continued straight into the group on the tower.

All the ponies from the past scattered, screaming. Princess Rarity stood before them, spreading her wings like a barrier, her horn glowing with brilliant blue light that materialized in front of her as a wall of blue flame. The dark purple flames hesitated when they reached it.

"No, Rarity," said Diane Pie. "All of you, get down the stairs. Now. I will hold them off."

"What?" said Captain Dash.

"I mean it. Go find Fluttershy and Applejack. Make everything right. Or else Twilight will be lost to us."

"How do you know?" asked Rarity.

Diane Pie smiled. It wasn't one of her usual bitter smiles; it was real, true, bright and beautiful. "Pinkie Pie has reminded me of many things these devils would have me forget."

She advanced towards the shadowy flames. She stretched out one hoof, and the flames stayed a few inches from her hoof, forming a kind of bubble.

"You cannot touch me!" she shouted. Then she looked over her shoulder at her friends. "Hey, guys, remember I said something about flying, you fools?"

Princess Rarity shook herself, then turned to the other ponies. "Down the stairs now, come on, it will be fine."

"We aren't foals," Rainbow Dash grumbled as they started down the tower stairs. Behind them they heard Diane Pie shouting.

"By the power given me, the power to make light where once only darkness reigned..."

The trapdoor slammed shut behind them.

"Where's Fluttershy?" Princess Rarity asked.

"Here," Fluttershy whispered.

"Other Fluttershy," said Princess Rarity.

"Oh! I'm sorry," Fluttershy said hastily.

"Don't stress over it, dearie," said Princess Rarity.

"I don't know where Other Fluttershy is," said Captain Dash. "I think Twilight- Other Twilight- put her in the royal garden."

"How dare she?" demanded Princess Rarity. "I can't believe I let that... that monster go unchecked for so long!" She paused. "Maybe that... black flaming thing outside wasn't lying. Perhaps that is just Twilight Sparkle... It wouldn't be hard for me to believe that, to be honest..."

"What?" said Captain Dash. "How can you say that?"

"Guys," said Rainbow Dash, "Stay friends at least until you find Fluttershy, okay?"

The two ponies were silent.

"Let's just go out the window," said Captain Dash.

"That monster is still out there, captain," said Princess Rarity. "And there are ponies with us who can't fly."

"Whatever! Twilight needs our help!" Captain Dash crashed out the window. A moment later she crashed back in through another window holding a statue of Fluttershy. "There. Now turn her back, Rarity!"

"I'm not that powerful, you idiot!" Princess Rarity snapped.

"Why not?" said Captain Dash. "You've conned most of the ponies in Equestria into loving you!"

"I didn't con them!" said Princess Rarity.

"You have Twilight take bits by the truckload from taxpayers, i.e. everypony, and then give them their own money right back and pretend you're being generous. Sheesh. That's like Fluttershy beating up animals and then curing them and pretending she's being kind."

"Should we even be turning Fluttershy back right now?" Diane Pie shouted. "Seems like you can't even have the power of friendship when it's just the two of you!"

"Diane?" Captain Dash and Princess Rarity said at the same time.

"That's what I do," said Diane Pie. "Random reappearances. The ShadowFires have exited the immediate premises. So has Sparkie. No thanks to you."

"I'm trying my hardest!" Captain Dash snapped.

"Girls?" said Twilight.

Everypony stared at her.

Twilight had no idea what she was going to say. She just felt she ought to say something inspiring at this point. Something that would fix everything.

"Look, um, friendship is magic," she started lamely. "But magic doesn't just work right every time. Sometimes you have to practice a spell even when you don't want to. So I know that none of you like each other much, but that doesn't mean you have to snap at each other."

"Hay, no," said Applejack. "Ah may dislike Rarity a lot of times, but Ah still know when to shut my mouth and work with her for the greater good."

"Well, some of the time," said Rarity.

"Friendship can't just be based on feelings," Twilight said, "because feelings shift and change. It has to be based on... well... you know, a belief that good times can come again, and..."

"A sense of duty," Fluttershy piped up.

"Right," Pinkie Pie said. "Because you're friends have helped you through some perfectly awful times, and you owe them a favor."

"That's why you need Loyalty for friendship," Rainbow Dash said. "I mean, when I was a filly I would flit from friend to friend, depending on who was cool... but then I just ended up with no friends at all. If you are willing to abandon your friends at the first sight of tension, then your friendship must not mean much."

The six friends from the past smiled expectantly at Captain Dash, Princess Rarity, and Diane Pie.

Diane smirked. "Nice job, girls. Now, maybe we can't free Fluttershy right now, but surely we can spring Applejack out of jail. Right?"

"Yeah, of course," said Captain Dash. "I know the jail like the back of my hoof."

"Then let's go," Princess Rarity said.

The crowd of ponies raced off. Captain Dash lead them down several sets of stairs, past a couple of guards.

"Is it still dangerous?" one of them asked nervously.

"I think it's secure," said Captain Dash, yanking the door open.

The corridor was covered with purple flames.

"You only signaled to lock the compound down from non-magic invasion, dummy," said Diane Pie. "You let that ShadowFire fill the corridor with flames before he left."

"Okay, seriously, Diane?" Captain Dash said. "Do you think you could at least try to get along with me?"

The flames swirled around, behaving more like waves. Several curled up to meet the approaching Pegasus.

"Oh no you don't!" Captain Dash screamed as she streaked in between the flames.

"Diane, dearie, can't you do that... thing... you did earlier?" Princess Rarity asked.

"Sorry, kid. Had too much suppressant." Diane Pie sighed heavily.

"I can't believe you would-" Princess Rarity started.

Diane Pie burst into tears. They gushed out of her eyes in a heavy stream, putting out any flames nearby and soaking all the ponies.

Princess Rarity grabbed Diane and pulled her into a hug. "I'm sorry, sweetie, I'm so sorry, you were just doing what you thought was best, I've never been there to help you, I'm so sorry..."

Diane Pie sniffed a bit and wiped her eyes. She was still crying, but this time it was a more normal amount of tears. "I... I f-forgive you. I j-just..." She pressed her face into Princess Rarity's shoulder and sobbed softly.

Captain Dash flew into the room with Aunt Jackie in her hooves.

"Jackie?" Applejack said.

"Put me down!" Aunt Jackie was saying, kicking her vigorously. "This is all you're fault! You're trying to burn us all alive!"

"I didn't send that monster in there!" Captain Dash shouted.

"Please," Princess Rarity cried. "We need your help to save Sparkie."

"Sparkie?" Aunt Jackie said. "Who the hay is Sparkie? Ah thought all you had was your beloved Princess Twilight Sparkle."

"And now she's lost to us," Princess Rarity said.

"She's been taken over," Twilight Sparkle said. "By the same kind of monster that set the dungeon on fire. They're called... ShadowFires."

"They're trying to take over Equestria!" Rainbow Dash shouted.

"Right!" Captain Dash said. "And they'll hurt the foals, and we know how much you hate that."

"You should hate it, too!" Aunt Jackie shouted back, kicking Captain Dash hard in the stomach. "You child-killer!"

"Scootaloo wasn't a child," Diane Pie said. "That isn't fair."

Aunt Jackie glared at Captain Dash. "You burn my home down, arrest what family members haven't already died, take away all my children, and now you expect me to make up in one second because Equestria needs us to be friends again? You should have thought of that sooner!"

"Aunt Jackie!" Applejack shouted. "Stop yer thrashing and listen. Maybe you've had good reasons to dislike these ponies, but now something is threatening Equestria that's bigger than all of us. And the only chance you have to stop them may be to reconnect with yer old friends. Understand?"

Aunt Jackie scowled at everypony in the room. "Do Ah have a choice?"

"Applejack," Diane Pie said. "Please. I know you are the element of Honesty, but please... please... just. Trust. Us."

Aunt Jackie sighed. "Ah'm just... so... tired..."

Applejack put her hoof around Aunt Jackie's shoulders. "You know what Ah think you need?" She whispered in Aunt Jackie's ear. "Help."

"Perhaps if you'd stuck around," Captain Dash growled softly, "and been a little more loyal, then I wouldn't... I wouldn't..."

Her lower lip trembled, and then she started screaming.

"You were the first friend I ever had! And when you got fed up with me and left, how could I expect my other friends to stick with me any longer? Maybe I do what I do because I can't stand to lose my friends again." Tears appeared in Captain Dash's eyes. "I couldn't do it. Not... after... the first time..."

She swiped her hoof at her eyes angrily.

Fluttershy whispered to Rainbow Dash, "I thought I was your friend... first..."

"Yeah," Rainbow Dash whispered back. "Well, kinda."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Rarity whispered harshly.

Rainbow Dash flailed her hoof around. "I can't explain, okay? I like you, Fluttershy."

"I like you too," Fluttershy whispered back, blushing.

"Speaking of liking Fluttershy," Twilight Sparkle said, "We still have a small problem. What about Dame Fluttershy?"

The ponies paused for a moment.

"Can't you fix her?" Aunt Jackie asked. "Ah mean, duh. You did it, you can undo it."

"I'm not that powerful!" Twilight Sparkle said.

"Yeah, right," said Captain Dash. "Did you see your power levels when you ran on that treadmill?"

"Well, I assumed machine error or a fluke of luck..." Twilight Sparkle said.

"Twilight," Spike whined. He was draped across Twilight's back and clinging to her neck.

Twilight craned her neck and nuzzled Spike comfortingly. "Oh, Spike..."

"You have to try, Twilight," he whispered. "Everypony knows that you're extra-special but you."

Tears shimmered in Twilight's eyes. "Okay." She turned back to Captain Dash. "Where did we leave Fluttershy's statue?"

---

"I have no idea what I'm doing..." Twilight sighed, staring at Dame Fluttershy's horrified, petrified face. It was making her lose concentration.

"It's just like you always tell me, dear," Princess Rarity said. "First, analyze the spell, then find its weakness, then unravel it."

"Twilight taught me counter spells?" Rarity asked. "I-I mean, in the future?"

"Out of necessity..." Princess Rarity said.

"I'm going to dislike that," Rarity muttered.

"Can I have some quiet?" Twilight demanded.

The ponies trotted off shamefully.

Spike wrapped his claws around Twilight's hair. He whispered something too soft for Twilight to understand.

"Spike, stop talking," Twilight said, trying not to cry. "Save your strength." And please please don't die.

She closed her eyes and began analyzing the spell. It was like turning on a sixth sense, her magic sense. She could see (or feel, it was like a combination of both) how the spell around Dame Fluttershy was structured. It was like a piece of cloth- threads of magic woven into a tight net. Twilight tugged on a few threads of the spell with her own magic. All that did was make the energy bunch up somewhere else. Princess Twilight was clearly an expert at spell formation- regular unicorns would have left gaps or snarls in the web that she could work with, but this was one smooth piece. If only she had a piece of lead; that would cut through the spell like scissors. As it was, she would have to make do.

Using a small bit of energy, she nudged the threads aside as best as she could until she made a small hole. Now came the hard bit. She telekinetically grabbed all the edges of the hole and yanked them away from each other, magic pouring from her horn. In theory, any spell could be countered; all you had to do was use more energy to undo the spell than had been used to cast the spell.

Twilight's head began pounding as she stretched the hole bigger. Rips appeared in the fabric of the spell even as sweat poured down her forehead.

Spike continued running his claws through Twilight's mane, soothing her and giving her something else to think about. Spike was used to helping her when she was taxing her horn like this; he'd done it several times during her studies with Princess Celestia.

The hole was getting bigger, and the spell was beginning to collapse on itself. Twilight started to feel like her head was slammed in an oven door, and she just wanted it to stop. But she told herself it was only for a little while longer. Equestria, and her future self, needed her.

With a snap and flash of light, the spell exploded, and Dame Fluttershy collapsed to the floor, once more flesh and blood.

Twilight collapsed on the floor too. Spike rolled off into a corner, and Twilight tried to apologize, but it came out as an incoherent cross between a whine and a groan.

"Can we come back in the room?" Captain Dash asked, peeking around a corner.

Dame Fluttershy gasped dramatically and swooped down on Spike, cradling him in her forelegs. "You poor, poor, poor creature. I'm so very sorry about this. This shouldn't have had to happen. I am so sorry. You poor thing."

"Fluttershy?" Princess Rarity said, coming around the corner. "Are you okay?"

Dame Fluttershy looked up, tears in her eyes. "N-nothing is okay." She clutched Spike to her chest and sobbed dramatically.

"Is it that... bad?" Captain Dash asked.

"He was so young..." Dame Fluttershy whispered.

Twilight got to her hooves at once. "'Was'?"

"No!" Princess Rarity said. "No, I cannot believe it! Fellow equines, the time has come to pool our resources! You may not love me, but we all love Spike, and maybe that shall be enough! Join with me!" She launched herself into the air and hovered with her shiny white wings, her horn glowing a brilliant blue.

Captain Dash, Dame Fluttershy, Diane Pie and Aunt Jackie all nodded, and closed their eyes. Bright pink beams shot up from their chests to join with Princess Rarity's blue aura.

Twilight took a deep breath and remembered everything Spike had ever meant to her. How he'd always been her faithful assistant and often knew what Twilight needed before she knew herself. How he stayed loyal to her even when other ponies tried to attract his attention or even take him away. How he would comfort her any time her studies got too much, or other ponies had hurt her feelings. How she would do anything to help him now.

A pink beam shot from her and joined Princess Rarity's blue aura, and a brilliant purple beam shot towards Spike, enveloping him in a purple cocoon of light. When it slowly unwound...

Twilight gasped. Spike was worse than ever. His entire body was gray.

"We're sorry, Twilight..." Diane Pie said.

Twilight ran over and scooped up the cold hard body of the little dragon.

Wrong texture.

Spike wasn't dead. He was turned to stone.

Diane Pie rested her hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "At least he is alive."

"It's all that we can do," Captain Dash said. "Princess Twilight was trying to find a cure, b-but..."

"But Spike was already infected," Twilight finished. "We don't even know..." Tears filled her eyes.

Nopony said anything for a moment.

"Well, hay, you're going back to your own timeline, right?" Aunt Jackie said, trying to smile. "There were plenty of dragons around in those days. Maybe one of them could help you out."

"Wait," Rainbow Dash said. "You mean to tell me that there aren't plenty of dragons around now? What the hay happened to them?"

The future ponies looked at each other awkwardly.

"Illness?" Twilight Sparkle said bitterly.

"Well... well..." Captain Dash said.

"Nope," Aunt Jackie said. "That's all Ah want to say on the matter."

"Well," Captain Dash said tentatively, "I think we have everypony. Now..." she sighed heavily. "Sparkie."