A/N I was actually trying to write more of Everypony Loves and watching the premiere episode of the third season when I came up with this. I only have one more chapter planned, TWO max. Unless this is really well received and after the ending people really want more I might consider it unless I can't think of a coherent way to continue it. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy it. I Loooove comments so let me know what you think. Also I'm sorry that Pinkie Pie's part wasn't as good, I'm not very good at writing for her, but I'm trying to improve! (yay)

                            Vacation in the Crystal Empire.

                            Chapter 1: Vacation gone wrong?

It had been a couple weeks already since Twilight and her friends had saved the Crystal Empire along with the help of Shining Armor and his wife Princess Cadence. Soon Twilight would be starting the next level of her studies under Princess Celestia and apparently Princess Luna would be helping as well. It was both frightening and exciting at the same time. She still had a week before beginning and it was the perfect time for a vacation. What better way to prepare for a new intense study regimen than by relaxing? It was convenient as Twilight Sparkle and her friends had just gotten an invitation to stay at the crystal empire free of charge!

So now Twilight was running around the library packing like a madmare. Books flew around her head depositing themselves near Spike. Spike would then take the books and pack them. Twilight made sure Spike packed things neatly and organized and although she was extremely efficient something was bothering Spike.

"You do realize we're going on vacation right?"

"Of course Spike. We're going to be gone a whole week that's why I have to make sure I've packed everything I need."

"You shouldn't need anything Twilight. It's a vacation not a work trip."

Twilight ignored Spike. He wasn't going to convince her to change her ways and she wasn't going to make him change his. It was better when both of them accepted each other for who they were anyway. Twilight's checklist floated below her as she checked each book and item she had wanted to pack and checking it off as she came across the packed item. When she was satisfied that they were ready to leave both her and Spike left the library to join the rest of their friends in front of Sugarcube Corner where a carriage would be waiting for them.

**

"Hey everyone." Twilight called cheerily.

It seemed like a pretty standard day. Applejack and Rarity were arguing. Applejack was irritated at the amount of luggage that Rarity had brought whereas Rarity was upset that Applejack still couldn't seem the grasp the idea of looking nice for the sake of looking nice. They bickered a lot but they were still the best of friends, it was nothing to worry about. Pinkie Pie bounced happily she was definitely excited to visit the Crystal Empire again. She was munching on a cupcake that had far too much frosting for any other pony to manage but Pinkie Pie swallowed it without even cringing at how sweet Twilight imagined it was. Fluttershy was a few paces away from the other three and she seemed uncomfortable with the arguing going on between Applejack and Rarity as well as seeming to want to tell Pinkie Pie how unhealthy eating the way she did was. She would never actually say anything though, but that was okay. Fluttershy could be tough when she had to, like when a dragon was threatening her friends. Twilight smiled at that particular memory. And the last friend of their group was on her back with her eyes firmly shut. She wasn't asleep, simply relaxing on a cloud above everyone else.  Everyone turned to Twilight and said their own hello's and Rainbow Dash came down from her cloud to greet Twilight as well.

As Twilight looked over her friends she was swept with a sense of warmth and pride. Warmth that these were her friends and pride in the fact that not that long ago she didn't have any friends. Now she had a lot and she would do anything to keep all of them safe as she'd already proven multiple times already.

"This is going to be so great!" Pinkie Pie called happily still bouncing on the spot.

"It is sure to be a fantastic vacation. I hope we get crystallized again." Rarity said as she remembered the way her mane sparkled the last time she'd been in the Crystal Empire.

"'Ya would wouldn't 'ya?" Applejack snickered.

"Why I-"

"Enough girls. This is going to be a lot of fun so let's try to not ruin it with useless bantering. I'm looking forward to seeing all of you over the next week. We haven't had a lot of time to all spend together over the last little while so this is going to be special. We're all going to be together without the fate of Equestria hanging in the balance." Twilight was the voice of reason, as always and Fluttershy nodded her approval in the background. She would approve of anything so long as it reduced conflict.

Applejack and Rarity looked at each other then quickly away each mumbling their own apologies. The six friends talked amongst themselves until the carriage finally arrived. They could see it in the distance in the sky being pulled by two crystal pegasi. Even from a distance the sun reflected off of their fur and mane making them look like diamonds lighting up the sky. They went straight down and as they hit the ground kept running. They slowed down only as they approached the six friends and came to a complete stop before them. They didn't speak a single word but nodded their heads and together the friends threw their luggage into the back of the carriage and climbed in together. Each of them had smiled on their faces and they kept their smiles the entire way and when they landed into the Crystal Empire their smiles only grew. They all had a feeling they were in for a great vacation.

**

It hadn't been the shortest of trips but they were all glad to have finally arrived. The carriage landed in front of the palace and the six friends (and Spike!) stepped out and looked around in awe. It was so different than the last time they had visited. This time instead of ponies being trapped in their houses and unwilling to come out the Crystal Empire was bustling with activity. The sparkling Crystal ponies trotted everywhere. All around them there were happy faces or stands set up with ponies selling various wares or even home cooking. Everyone was tempted to run off and go explore right away but they realized they had a few things to deal with first. Like their luggage. They pulled it out from the back of the carriage and thanked the two pegasi who had brought them here. The carriage-pullers nodded their hands and flew off with the carriage. Presumably to return it. That was when a crystal pony made their way towards them and cleared her throat.

"Welcome, my friends, to the Crystal Empire. My name is Krystal and I'll-" She was interrupted by Pinkie Pie who burst out laughing. She fell to the ground with her forehead on one arm while the she banged her other hoof on the ground. She took deep breaths as she was having trouble breathing due to her excessive laughing.

"Your name...Krystal....Your...Crystal pony!" Pinkie managed to choke out.

Twilight kicked Pinkie gently in the side before whispering in her direction. "You can stop now Pinkie..."

Krystal simply rolled her eyes. It wasn't as though she'd never heard any comments like that before. "As I was saying my name is Krystal." Pinkie snickered. " And while you are staying here if you need anything at all I'll be here to help you. I'll escort you to your rooms now. There are three rooms. Two ponies per room. Let me just..." She trailed off as from a saddle at her side she retrieved a scroll which she unfurled. "Ah. Twilight Sparkle you will be staying with Fluttershy."

Twilight turned towards Fluttershy and offered her a kind smile. Fluttershy returned it but inside was worrying about whether or not she'd be a bother to Twilight during the visit.

"Rainbow Dash will be sharing a room with Pinkie Pie."

Pinkie Pie giggled. "We're gonna have tons of fun Dash."

Dash grumbled. "Why me?"

"And that leaves..."

"Ah heck no!" Applejack yelled.

"Come now, Applejack. Is staying with me really so awful?" Rarity almost sounded a little hurt.

"Well, no...Ahm sorry Rarity."

"It's quite alright, dear."

"Wait where am I staying!?" Spike called out as he jumped up and down from where he stood.

"Well Sir Spike you get your own suite."

"Why does he get his own suite!?" Rainbow Dash sounded absolutely insulted.

"Are you the one who brought us the crystal heart?"

"No..."

"There's your answer then.

"Hmph.."

"Now if you'll please I'll bring you all to your rooms. Your luggage will be taken care of."

As they were escorted to their rooms Spike gave Rainbow Dash a grin and stuck his tongue out whilst Rainbow Dash shot him the meanest glare she could manage.

**

Twilight hopped onto the bed she would be sleeping on, the one on the left. Using her magic she neatly stacked all her books against the wall on the side that wasn't beside Fluttershy's bed. She didn't want to take up any of Fluttershy's space after all.
Fluttershy had come with only a small bag and she unpacked everything in the drawers. Once she had finished she lay on the bed and watched Twilight hard at work. When Twilight noticed she tilted her head.

"Is something on your mind Fluttershy?"

"Oh no. I just don't want to disturb you when you're unpacking. I hope you don't mind sharing a room with me."

"Not at all Fluttershy. I'm sure you'll be going to see all the plants and animals right?"

"Yes."

"I'll be spending most of my time here reading and studying so it's no problem."

"Are you sure that's what you want to do on your vacation Twilight?"

"Yes. I have a lot to do before I start studying with Princess Celestia again."

"Oh okay but..." Fluttershy's words started trailing off at this point. "You could come with me to see the unique Crystal Empire animals. If you wanted to get out of this room that is...Not that I expect you to...Or anything."

Twilight didn't really think she had any intention of going but was grateful for the invitation none-the-less. "Thank you Fluttershy. I'll keep that in mind."

**

Pinkie Pie was already bouncing on her bed. "Oh, oh what do you want to do first Dashie? Do you want to go see what kind of sweets the crystal ponies make? Or maybe just go sightseeing? Or we coul-"

"Relax Pinkie. I want to relax. Alone..." Rainbow Dash wasn't trying to be mean she just wanted her vacation to feel like, well, a vacation.

"Oh that's okay then. I'll catch you later alright Dashie?"

But before the cyan pony could reply Pinkie Pie was already out the door on her way to explore.

I hope I didn't hurt her feelings. Dash thought to herself as soon as Pinkie Pie had left.

**

"Ahm still mighty sorry how rude I was Rarity."

"Oh I've already told you Applejack it's quite alright."

"You sure?'

"For the final time yes! Instead tell me what you plan on doing with your time Applejack?"

"Well ahm not sure exactly..." Applejack hadn't thought of what she wanted to do while on this vacation. She wasn't used to getting much time off. She spent most of her time working at Sweet Apple Acres.

"I for one plan to enjoy the spas here followed by some shopping for the most smashing Crystal Empire fashions. I want to enjoy a nice fancy dinner at a lovely restaurant while I am here. Do you maybe want to accompany me sometime?"

"That there spa and shopping stuff ain't exactly my style if 'ya catch my drift but I wouldn't mind grabbin' some grub then."

"I will come fetch you tonight and we can 'grab some grub'." Rarity giggled at her use of Applejack's dialect. It made her feel so...bad but in a good way. Rarity threw on her fanciest hat as well as her loveliest scarf and quickly left the room in a hurry, excited to enjoy everything the Crystal Empire had to offer.

Rarity really ain't that bad.

**

Spike's room was on a completely different scale than his friends. He was in a completely different part of the castle on a higher floor and the moment he walked into his suite he could tell he was going to have a good time. There were bowls of every gemstone he could ever possibly want on a large buffet type table in the middle of his room. There was a huge bathroom, a nice view of the entire empire from the window and on the table by the gemstones maps and recommendations of everything he could and should visit while staying there.

Spike grabbed a large shining red ruby and plopped himself onto his bed which was several times larger than he was and exhaled happily with a huge grin on his face.

This is going to be a great vacation.

**

Fluttershy navigated her way through the streets of the Crystal Empire until she was on the outermost edge where there luscious green fields. It had taken her quite a while to make her way out here. She should have waited and come tomorrow. It had taken them the better part of the day to reach the Crystal Empire and a couple more hours to find this spot and now she was worried she wouldn't make it back to the suite by nightfall not to mention her worry that Twilight would get lonely. She felt bad leaving one of her best friends behind.

Fluttershy eventually came to a place where although she couldn't see the animals her sixth sense when it came to such things told her that there were animals nearby. Oh! She couldn't wait to meet all the adorable creatures and critters that inhabited the empire.
It took some time but eventually some of the sheep like creature called Ewes that inhabited the empire came out. They were several different colors. Some were green others pink and other Blue. Those weren't the only colors of course. Fluttershy nuzzled the adorable animals and soon enough she encountered a species she never had before.

She heard it first. High above her a bird covered in crystal like the ponies of this kingdom was perched on a branch. The whistling coming from its beak was beautiful. Almost trance inducing. It was different than any other bird Fluttershy had ever heard. The bird itself was more beautiful than any Fluttershy had ever seen. Fluttershy's eyes widened in wonder and delight as she began to gently flap her wings to make her way up to it. Little did Fluttershy know that there were two other ponies watching both native to this kingdom.
As Fluttershy got closer to the bird stared at her for a few moments before simply flying away. Both of the ponies watching began to laugh. This alerted the shy mare to their presence and she fell to the ground with a thud. She picked herself up and turned to face the newcomers.

"You're obviously not from around here." The shining pink unicorn mare said with an obnoxious sneer.

"Obviously. Because anypony from around here knows how to get a Crystaljay to come to them. " This shining sky blue earth stallion sounded just as obnoxious as his friend.
"Oh I'm sorry. My name is Fluttershy and I'm not from ar-"

"Trust me we know." The mare took a breath before going on. "From your uncrystalized coat to the way you couldn't even handle a simply Crystaljay. Pfft."

Fluttershy couldn't understand why these crystal ponies were being so mean to her. She hoped she hadn't done something wrong. Maybe she'd done something to offend her? She couldn't think how she possibly could have. She knew Rainbow Dash would tell her to assert herself and she considered it. Instead all that came out was. "I'm sorry." She made sure to quickly hide her face with her mane after.

"We return and all of a sudden you outsider ponies think you can come in here and harass us all the time." The stallion scoffed. "You come in here jealous of everything we have and bother us to find out our secrets. Want to know all about our empire!"

"I'm sorry..."

"Why don't you just go home? Here we're all special. You tourists will never be as special as we are got it?"

"Okay..."

Fluttershy's eyes teared up and she took off running back towards the city. The tears stained her fur along her cheeks where they fell and as she ran she could hear the two Crystal ponies behind her laughing.

**

After a couple hours of searching Rarity found what appeared to be the most happening boutique in town. She was practically bubbling with excitement as she entered it. Everything was so shiny and the styles were so different. Many of the pieces were glimmering obviously to complement the unique appearance of the Crystal Ponies. Not all was well however.

It became quickly apparent that some of the Crystal Ponies in the boutique were snickering at her. It could be because of her appearance could it? She was wearing the most lovely accessories, in fact she had made these herself. One mare who worked in the boutique bumped into Rarity while walking by and Rarity heard a sarcastic "Nice scarf." At this point Rarity was rather insulted. She made herself to the pony who seemed to be the manager and slammed her hoof onto the counter. The manager gave her a chuckle before addressing her.

"How can I help you today, miss?"

"You, sir, have the rudest employee I have ever met!"

"May I ask what said employee has done to offend you?"

"You may. Not only did she bump into me but she also insulted this lovely scarf I am wearing. I came in here thinking of buying some lovely designs since we can't get anything like these in Ponyville but I have never been more insulted in my life."

"Maybe if you knew a thing or two about fashion you would understand."

This was going too far now. "How dare you?" Rarity was boiling now. "I'll have you know I am quite a famous boutique owner out in Ponyville! And I'll have you know I won't be spending a single bit in your shop."

"Oh that's fine madam. Our pieces wouldn't suit you anyway." Another snicker.

"What..Whatever is that supposed to mean?"

"Someone as...Plain as yourself ma'am. Well I just don't think our pieces are for you."

Rarity had heard enough. She turned around and fled the boutique feeling as though she were going to cry. She didn't need the crystal ponies' clothes anyway; after all she was pretty too right?

**

Pinkie Pie had found the best thing she could have possibly ever found during her time in the Crystal Empire. A cupcake making competition! Pinkie Pie wasn't interested in winning. She was only interested in having fun like she always was. She bounced excitedly as the judges went around to try everyone's cupcakes. Hers had lots of pink frosting on top, but not enough to make ponies who weren't her not like them. They had pretty sprinkles too!

When the judge reached Pinkie Pie's booth he tilted his head. His monocle almost falling to the ground as he observed her cupcake. The whole time pink mare had a humongous grin on her face. The judge looked down at her. "And what is this?"

"It's a cupcake!"

"Yes, well...It hardly looks like one. "

"Well that's not very nice."

The stallion shook his head from side to side. "In fact yours looks nothing like the others.

"That's good because that means mine are unique." Pinkie snapped.

"It also means I am deducting points simply from the way it looks."

"That's not fair."

The judge ignore her as he took one of her cupcakes and swallowed it whole. The next thing he said was one of the meanest things anyone could have ever said to Pinkie.

"Do you even know how to make cupcakes where you're from? This has got to be the worst cupcake I've ever eaten!"

Pinkie's emotion were a mix between rage and sadness and before she either burst into tears or started yelling she ran back towards the hotel room.

He was even meaner than Discord Pinkie couldn't help but think to herself.