With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Thread Fourteen)

Mquz · Mar 17, 2020

I just assume that Hogwarts is a research institution and that teachers aren't hired for their ability to teach, but to make people money for the school via research. They don't teach, they do. Hooch is likely a qualified coach and referee. She's not a gym teacher or junior league. If this was America, she'd be making millions of dollars. She probably has some sort of connections in the professional Quiditch world. Hogwarts kind of makes more sense as a top tier private school (or public school in Britain) or a University that starts early.

Mr Zoat · Mar 17, 2020

Equestria
Afternoon

I trot down the palace corridor, fun sized ponies stepping out of my way. But it's more in wary deference than outright fear, and that's good. Both because it suggests that they're not stupid and because I… Don't really want tiny equinoids to be afraid of me.

"…resonance effect from having thousands of thaumically active individuals believing the same thing!"

Sounds like Sunset's made a… Person whom she tolerates?

"But that doesn't explain why they believe that in the first place!"

Twilight's awake, then. Not sure why she came here…

I knock on the door.

"Yes!" / "Yes!"

I push the door open and then trot inside. Celestia's current and previous students are standing in front of a blackboard covered in… Um, even more Atlantean thaumaturgical notation several levels more advanced than I can understand and what appears to be the far more primitive pony equivalents.

Though the meaning of 'F ≠ M' is clear enough, especially with Sunset's chalk floating next to it.

"Sunset, I need your help."

She glares at the blackboard, then at Twilight, then turns to me. "Well I'm not making any progress here."

"Am I attractive?"

"Ah." She blinks. "What?"

I shake my head. "I don't know anything about pony standards of beauty, do I?"

"I-." A mildly disturbed look on her face, Sunset gives my front arc the once-over. "Why.. do you even want to know?"

"I had that whole dream thing with Luna, but I don't know if she's just humouring me or if there's actually any potential there."

Sunset fixes me with a level gaze. "Grayven, I'm.. glad that you're enjoying yourself, but-." I do my best to look innocent. She doesn't buy it. "Grayven, this is my home. I lived here for most of my life, and I do not want you treating this as a booty call."

"I'm not. I like her."

"And… What about Kara?"

"Is constantly on guard to thwart my villainy. That's not a good basis for a healthy relationship. I don't want to have to constantly blackmail someone into spending time with me."

"Can we.. please.. focus?"

"Alright. How's it going?"

"Ah…" Twilight looks uncertain. "I'm still not sure this is going to work."

"Jgh!" Sunset gestures to the board. "I literally just finished explaining it to you. You know it makes sense. You're not that indoctrinated. You'd have to be some sort of total Starswirl fanfilly-."

"Wh-? What?" Twilight grins unconvincingly. "Pf! Nooo. I'm sure there's a perfectly good explanation why your math seems to make more sense than Starswirl's Grand Thaumatic Theory."

Sunset rolls her eyes. "Looks like Celestia got to you early."

"Do you suddenly not want to study the magics that turned me into an alicorn?"

"Mmmm…" Sunset hesitates. "No..?"

"Nooooo..?"

"No, I would like to study the magical links between you and your friends please."

"Okay. So. I think-."

"Are you allowed to help me?"

Twilight looks at her and frowns. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because I'm pretty sure Celestia banned Cadenza from talking to me about her ascension, and I never got given Starswirl's spell book."

"Caden-? Cadance?" Twilight smiles, this time less disturbingly. "You know Cadance?"

"Yeah, I was Celestia's student when she started living here." Sunset closes her eyes, takes a deep breath and exhales to expunge her irritation. I can hardly believe that Celestia didn't realise how Sunset would feel about there being another alicorn around, particularly after what Starswirl's mirror showed her. "Where is she, anyway?"

"She's coming here! She and Shining Armor are taking the sleeper down from the Crystal Empire-."

"The Crystal what?"

"Ah…" Twilight looks around, her eyes alighting on a scroll. "The Crystal Empire." The scroll glows in the colour of her magic as it rises off a bookshelf and unrolls itself. "It reappeared when the spells-" Sunset trots closer and peers at it. "-Princess Celestia and Princess Luna used to keep King Sombra bound wore off."

Sunset narrows her eyes as she looks at the map's scale. "Looks more like a city. Why would you call a city an empire?"

"Tradition, mostly. It used to have a lot more territory, but when Sombra went to war with Equestria they got pushed back further and further, until they only held the capital city. When that vanished, the rest of their territory was annexed by Equestria."

I frown. "I've been thinking. Wouldn't using the Elements of Harmony have made more sense than rooting around for the Crystal Heart? I mean… That's basically what you use them for, isn't it? 'See unfriendly villain, rainbow cannon to the face'?"

"No, we didn't bring them with us."

I blink, then shake my head in bewilderment. "Why not? I would have thought that they would be the perfect counter."

Sunset rolls her eyes. "Because Celestia didn't tell her to."

"That's not why. The Crystal Heart powers the spells keeping the city warm. Without it, all the crystal ponies would have frozen. And if I hadn't had to find it then I'd have never confronted and overcome my worst fears."

I raise my eyebrows. "What was that, anyway?"

"Having Celestia rejec.. t… Me." She glances awkwardly at Sunset, who rolls her eyes. "Um."

There's a knock at the door, and Twilight sighs in relief before giving us another extremely fake grin.

"Let me just get that."

Twilight trots over to the door and opens i-.

"Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake!"

"Ah. Cadance? I didn't think you were getting here until-?"

"Clap your hooves-" Twilight grimaces back at us as she sits on her haunches and plays a brief game of pat-a-cake with her former foalsitter. "-and do a little shake."

Sunset has gone very still.

"I didn't think you were getting here until later."

"I heard a ru-mour about you and Aunt Celestia." There's a momentary pause. "Twilight, are you hiding something?"

"Ah. No?"

"Is there somepony in there you don't want me to see?"

There's a definite eagerness in her voice. If she hadn't popped into existence with no build-up for the purpose of the series two finale, I'd be curious as to how exactly her charge ended up as socially isolated as she did. And how Twilight remained a bachelorette even after discovering the magic of friendship. But as it is-

"No, of course-."

-I just see a feed line.

I grin. "Yes!"

AidanMorgan · Mar 17, 2020

Grayven why.

Just.

First the "Alicornism is an STD" thing, now making someone believe you're Twilight's booty call.

Why are you such a dick to ponies?

Razorfloss · Mar 17, 2020

AidanMorgan said:
Grayven why.

Just.

First the "Alicornism is an STD" thing, now making someone believe you're Twilight's booty call.

Why are you such a dick to ponies?

Because he finds it hilarious and it true

AidanMorgan · Mar 17, 2020

Razorfloss said:
Because he finds it hilarious and it true

It is hilarious but neither of these things are true.

Handlewithcare · Mar 17, 2020

They must have been wrong beforehoof. His cutie mark is clearly a troll doll.

RichardWhereat · Mar 17, 2020

Razorfloss said:
Because he finds it hilarious...

I find this is the reason for a lot of situations where someone's being a dick. Hopefully he's not also standing proud, but I doubt that since they all appear to be adorable little people.

Still, Sunset never answered whether or not he's attractive.

Ganurath · Mar 17, 2020

AidanMorgan said:
Grayven why.

Just.

First the "Alicornism is an STD" thing, now making someone believe you're Twilight's booty call.

Why are you such a dick to ponies?

Out of respect for the Wild Stallions, Bill and Ted, who were played by Alex Winter and Tom Cruise.

RichardWhereat · Mar 17, 2020

Mr Zoat said:
"I heard a ru-mour about you and Aunt Celestia." There's a momentary pause.

Wouldn't the rumour be about her as well, since she also seems to have contracted Alicornism.

Ganurath said:
Out of respect for the Wild Stallions, Bill and Ted, who were played by Alex Winter and Tom Cruise.

Well shit. That's a hell of a call back.

Chojin Patriarch · Mar 17, 2020

Mr Zoat said:
Equestria
Afternoon

I trot down the palace corridor, fun sized ponies stepping out of my way. But it's more in wary deference than outright fear, and that's good. Both because it suggests that they're not stupid and because I… Don't really want tiny equinoids to be afraid of me.

Honestly, Corpsman, if you weren't so good at making the ones you do want scared afraid of you, I'd have sought out a better user...

"…resonance effect from having thousands of thaumically active individuals believing the same thing!"

Sounds like Sunset's made a… Person whom she tolerates?

Eh, sounds about right for her...

"But that doesn't explain why they believe that in the first place!"

Twilight's awake, then. Not sure why she came here…

Maybe she wants to convince Twilight of Celestia's misdeeds and unsuitability to be any kind of mentor?

I knock on the door.

"Yes!" / "Yes!"

I push the door open and then trot inside. Celestia's current and previous students are standing in front of a blackboard covered in… Um, even more Atlantean thaumaturgical notation several levels more advanced than I can understand and what appears to be the far more primitive pony equivalents.

Looks like she's been showing Twilight some things...

Though the meaning of 'F ≠ M' is clear enough, especially with Sunset's chalk floating next to it.

"Sunset, I need your help."

She glares at the blackboard, then at Twilight, then turns to me. "Well I'm not making any progress here."

Wow, I know you're in a bad mood, but bitchy much?

"Am I attractive?"

"Ah." She blinks. "What?"

Sunset.exe has encountered a fatal error, rebooting.

I shake my head. "I don't know anything about pony standards of beauty, do I?"

"I-." A mildly disturbed look on her face, Sunset gives my front arc the once-over. "Why.. do you even want to know?"

Yes, please do elaborate.

"I had that whole dream thing with Luna, but I don't know if she's just humouring me or if there's actually any potential there."

Sunset fixes me with a level gaze. "Grayven, I'm.. glad that you're enjoying yourself, but-." I do my best to look innocent. She doesn't buy it. "Grayven, this is my home. I lived here for most of my life, and I do not want you treating this as a booty call."

Pfft... Well, a man has needs, and as an Orange Lantern, he's especially aware of that...

"I'm not. I like her."

"And… What about Kara?"

"Is constantly on guard to thwart my villainy. That's not a good basis for a healthy relationship. I don't want to have to constantly blackmail someone into spending time with me."

That's more a loose friendship based on him trolling her...

"Can we.. please.. focus?"

"Alright. How's it going?"

"Ah…" Twilight looks uncertain. "I'm still not sure this is going to work."

I'm guessing Twilight is more of an instinctive Magic talent, not a theoretical Thaumaturgist, despite all her studies...

"Jgh!" Sunset gestures to the board. "I literally just finished explaining it to you. You know it makes sense. You're not that indoctrinated. You'd have to be some sort of total Starswirl fanfilly-."

"Wh-? What?" Twilight grins unconvincingly. "Pf! Nooo. I'm sure there's a perfectly good explanation why your math seems to make more sense that Starswirl's Grand Thaumatic Theory."

She's not convincing anyone with that.

Sunset rolls her eyes. "Looks like Celestia got to you early."

"Do you suddenly not want to study the magics that turned me into an alicorn?"

Ah, that's why she went to Twilight. Examining a recently-ascended alicorn's magical physiognomy.

"Mmmm…" Sunset hesitates. "No..?"

"Nooooo..?"

"No, I would like to study the magical links between you and your friends please."

I'm impressed she didn't say that through gritted teeth. Progress!

"Okay. So. I think-."

"Are you allowed to help me?"

That's a good point, though I doubt Celestia's talked to her yet.

Twilight looks at her and frowns. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because I'm pretty sure Celestia banned Cadenza from talking to me about her ascension, and I never got given Starswirl's spell book."

"Caden-? Cadance?" Twilight smiles, this time less disturbingly. "You know Cadance?"

Oh, god... Cadance is on her way, isn't she? Because of course she'd hear the rumours. A good rumour can be halfway around the world before the truth even has its boots on...

"Yeah, I was Celestia's student when she started living here." Sunset closes her eyes, takes a deep breath and exhales to expunge her irritation. I can hardly believe that Celestia didn't realise how Sunset would feel about there being another alicorn around, particularly after what the Starswirl's mirror showed her. "Where is she, anyway?"

"She's coming here! She and Shining Armor are taking the sleeper down from the Crystal Empire-."

Ah, something else Sunset has never heard of.

"The Crystal what?"

"Ah…" Twilight looks around, her eyes alighting on a scroll. "The Crystal Empire." The scroll glows in the colour of her magic as it rises off bookshelf three and unrolls itself. "It reappeared when the spells-" Sunset trots closer and peers at it. "-Princess Celestia and Princess Luna used to keep King Sombra bound wore off."

And Sunset is all "wat."

Sunset narrows her eyes as she looks at the map's scale. "Looks more like a city. Why would you call a city an empire?"

"Tradition, mostly. It used to have a lot more territory, but when Sombra went to war with Equestria they got pushed back further and further, until they only held the capital city. When that vanished, the rest of their territory was annexed by Equestria."

Good explanation. I expect they'll start shifting local territory back to the Crystal Empress, since lots of it is unoccupied anyway...

I frown. "I've been thinking. Wouldn't using the Elements of Harmony have made more sense than rooting around for the Crystal Heart? I mean… That's basically what you use them for, isn't it? 'See unfriendly villain, rainbow cannon to the face'?"

"No, we didn't bring them with us."

She says it with a straight face... Why would you not have your Harmonic super-weapon with you at all times in unknown territory?

I blink, then shake my head in bewilderment. "Why not? I would have thought that they would be the perfect counter."

Sunset rolls her eyes. "Because Celestia didn't tell her to."

"That's not why. The Crystal Heart powers the spells keeping the city warm. Without it, all the crystal ponies would have frozen. And if I hadn't had to find it then I'd have never confronted and overcome my worst fears."

And Sombra would likely have corrupted the Elements, I suppose? Excuses excuses...

I raise my eyebrows. "What was that, anyway?"

"Having Celestia rejec.. t… Me." She glances awkwardly at Sunset, who rolls her eyes. "Um."

Awkaaaaaard.

There's a knock at the door, and Twilight signs in relief before giving us another extremely fake grin.

"Let me just get that."

"Please let it be Pinkie with a distraction..."

Twilight trots over to the door and opens i-.

"Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake!"

Muhahahhahahaaa, let the teasing begin!

"Ah. Cadance? I didn't think you were getting here until-?"

"Clap your hooves-" Twilight grimaces back at us as she sits on her haunches and plays a brief game of pat-a-cake with her former foalsitter. "-and do a little shake."

Grayven is smiling inside at the cuteness...

Sunset has gone very still.

"I didn't think you were getting here until later."

"I heard a ru-mour about you and Aunt Celestia." There's a momentary pause. "Twilight, are you hiding something?"

I expect she's a little put out Twlight didn't tell her about it.

"Ah. No?"

"Is there somepony in there you don't want me to see?"

Grin widening...

I think Grayven will get on well with her...

There's a definite eagerness in her voice. If she hadn't popped into existence with no build-up for the purpose of the series two finale, I'd be curious as to how exactly her charge ended up as socially isolated as she did. And how Twilight remained a bachelorette even after discovering the magic of friendship. But as it is-

Yes, honestly, a little mention of her throughout earlier episodes, just a little "My babysitter once told me..." and maybe it wouldn't have seemed so sudden.

"No, of course-."

-I just see a feed line.

I grin. "Yes!"

By your trolling combined...

Oh, god. Sunset and Twilight are going to be suffering, aren't they? Heheheh, bring on the trolling.

Correction:

...after what the Starswirl's mirror showed her.

Unnecessary 'the'.

Mr Zoat · Mar 17, 2020

Chojin Patriarch said:
Correction: Unnecessary 'the'.

Thank you, corrected.

Doccer · Mar 17, 2020

Grayven never told Luna about the seven other ponies still recovering in the hospital did he?

Stsword · Mar 17, 2020

Chojin Patriarch said:
I'm guessing Twilight is more of an instinctive Magic talent, not a theoretical Thaumaturgist, despite all her studies...

Considering part of her magic is, as tvtropes would call it, enlightenment superpowers, yes, her magic is more instinctive than Sunset's, who lacks the emotional evolution to undergo the same.

I think the problem is psychological dissonance, Equestrian and Atlantean thaumatology have incompatible base assumptions.

So I see this rather like Einstein's "God does not play dice with the universe" response to quantum physics.

Sunset, lacking the emotional wherewithal to grok friendship is magic to begin with, would not have that problem.

Sockmonkey · Mar 17, 2020

Maxx Crowley said:
Not give vague, riddle wrapped hints designed solely to piss someone off because "They've got to figure it out themselves."

I dont' know a single discipline that is taught by you "figuring it out yourself."

That's not training.

That's why Yoda pisses me off. As the saying goes, communicating in a convoluted way that's hard to understand isn't clever or wise.
Now, Celestia is about as bad when it comes to being vague, BUT I can understand her reasons for emphasizing friendship in that if someone is trying to achieve godhood, you reeeeeally want them to be emotionally healthy and well-adjusted. She flubbed it because she's been old too damn long to understand young people. Ironically, Celestia is just as much in need of having regular friends because there's so much social distance between her and everyone else that her subjects may as well be pets.

w34v3r · Mar 17, 2020

.... She's their immortal god-princess, they are pets.

Pinklestia · Mar 17, 2020

AidanMorgan said:
Grayven why.

Just.

First the "Alicornism is an STD" thing, now making someone believe you're Twilight's booty call.

Why are you such a dick to ponies?

Sunset is already there.

So I think he is actually shipping Twi and Sunset.

ForeverShogo · Mar 17, 2020

Nah. Twilight likes . . . Oh. Wait. Yeah. This universe never gave Twilight the chance to develop her human fetish. But between pony Twilight and human Twilight, I think she'd prefer to take a dick. And I think Cadance would know this through whatever love magic bullshit she has. So Grayven is probably using himself as bait for the misunderstanding.

As for how Twilight was so isolated growing up . . . She did have some friends, but was also pretty quick to brush them off. To the point she basically forgot they even existed judging by the Moondancer episode.

So I figure it was her own anti-social behavior coupled with what I'm pretty sure would be a lot of Canterlot ponies assuming the personal student of the immortal god-princess was effectively unapproachable.

AngelicKnight. · Mar 17, 2020

ForeverShogo said:
Nah. Twilight likes . . . Oh. Wait. Yeah. This universe never gave Twilight the chance to develop her human fetish. But between pony Twilight and human Twilight, I think she'd prefer to take a dick. And I think Cadance would know this through whatever love magic bullshit she has. So Grayven is probably using himself as bait for the misunderstanding.

As for how Twilight was so isolated growing up . . . She did have some friends, but was also pretty quick to brush them off. To the point she basically forgot they even existed judging by the Moondancer episode.

So I figure it was her own anti-social behavior coupled with what I'm pretty sure would be a lot of Canterlot ponies assuming the personal student of the immortal god-princess was effectively unapproachable.

She has a human fetish?

w34v3r · Mar 17, 2020

I think that's a reference to how important Flash sentry is in the 'human' world, but such a non entity outside it.

RichardWhereat · Mar 17, 2020

Sockmonkey said:
That's why Yoda pisses me off. As the saying goes, communicating in a convoluted way that's hard to understand isn't clever or wise.

It's called the socratic method. Making someone figure shit out on their own (while being there to answer further questions) is a hell of a better method than just telling them information. You tell children information, you ask adults questions to make them think through the questions and come to their answers themselves. It makes people wiser.

Yoda has never been hard to understand, or all that convoluted. Nor has Albus Dumbledore.

Darko · Mar 17, 2020

The socratic method may work somewhat, but it is still an incredibly risky method to use, especially when it concerns such a big act as trying to become a god.

RichardWhereat · Mar 17, 2020

Darko said:
The socratic method may work somewhat, but it is still an incredibly risky method to use, especially when it concerns such a big act as trying to become a god.

Not really. Maybe if the person is trying to become a god, and they can't learn through the socratic method, they shouldn't be trying to become a god.

theaceoffire · Mar 17, 2020

AidanMorgan said:
It is hilarious but neither of these things are true.

We need testing to prove it!

More being a dick to ponies!

GamingPizza1998 · Mar 17, 2020

AidanMorgan said:
Why are you such a dick to ponies?

Cause he wants to dick ponies.

FeepingCreature · Mar 17, 2020

Mr Zoat said:
I push the door open ~~and~~ then trot inside. Celestia's current and previous students are standing in front of a blackboard covered in… Um, even more Atlantean thaumaturgical notation several levels more advanced than I can understand and what appears to be the far more primitive pony equivalents.

Though the meaning of 'F ≠ M' is clear enough, especially with Sunset's chalk floating next to it.

Well! Glad we got that sorted.

Apparently this is the episode where Twilight encounters the replication crisis.

Ace Dreamer · Mar 17, 2020

Mr Zoat said:
Twilight signs in relief

'sighs'?

Mr Zoat said:
make more sense that Starswirl's

'than'?

Mr Zoat said:
rises off bookshelf three and unrolls itself

This confused me, a bit, as bookcases weren't previously mentioned, nor the number of them. Would 'rises off a bookshelf and unrolls itself' read better?

Glad to see Sunset doing practical interaction, though I do wonder if she can come up with a simple magical experiment which Atlantean theory predicts a different result from Equestrian... Maybe an observation of the world? Einstein's Relativity predicting the location of Mercury giving different results to Newtonian Mechanics is the RW science one that comes to mind... Using becoming an alicorn, succeed/fail, as your test seems... unwise.

Does Equestria have any theoretical thaumaturgists? Is that was what being taught in the lecture theatre? One that's also a rock star would be good.

RichardWhereat · Mar 17, 2020

Ace Dreamer said:
Does Equestria have any theoretical thaumaturgists? Is that was what being taught in the lecture theatre? One that's also a rock star would be good.

You mean Brian Hay? I think he's kicking around a bit. Used to be in a rock group called Princess.

Coda · Mar 17, 2020

Don't forget Ninja Brian. That's three PhD rock stars named Brian.

Chaoswind · Mar 17, 2020

FeepingCreature said:
Well! Glad we got that sorted.

Apparently this is the episode where Twilight encounters the replication crisis.

The what?

Coda · Mar 17, 2020

Chaoswind said:
The what?

The problem where scientific papers are reviewed and published, but then other researchers can't replicate the results.

With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Thread Fourteen)

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