The first and only chapter.
Late at night, within the Canterlot library, a very unorthodox visitor is staying up late, boringly brushing through the pages of a large book before her.
"Hmm... The trait for having wings can pass on through all families with pegasi in their history... blah blah blah...."
"The ability to fly shows itself in young fillies and colts during their first few months, and passes shortly after... yeah, yeah, I KNOW that...."
"The need to preen is a trait shared with birds... GAAAH! I know all of this! "
She pushes the book away angrily.
"But WHY is my family the ONLY one with a rainbow mane?!"
she didn't know it, but she was not alone in this library. A second pony walked amongst these shelves, one that was not invited to it, but was there anyway and looking over the many titles, on the other side of the library seeing if there was anything there that was of importance. Hearing the loud cry of the cyan mare, the blue unicorn with a navy blue mane silently made his way over to her. Not speaking directly, because he in fact didn't have any vocal cords, his horn glowed softly as a deep voice entered her mind.
"Excuse me, are you alright? You seem distressed." He tapped her shoulder to let her know that she wasn't just hearing voices.
Rainbow's eyes dilated as the voice filled her head, causing her to fall backwards in surprise, knocking a few books off the shelf. She spins around, her eyes locking on the unicorn.
"WHOA WHOA WHOA! I've got a-"
She calms down, realizing he is alone
"Uh... I mean... Hiya hehe. Name's Rainbow Dash. Was that voice thingy... you?"
The unicorn grunts a little, one of Rainbows back hooves having collided with his chest when she fell backwards.
"Owww....Yes, this is me speaking to you. I do not have the ability to speak, so I learned a spell to speak with ponies through their minds. I did not mean to startle you, I apologize." He says bowing his head.
"My name is Moonstar. I heard you shouting and wanted to make sure you were okay. Is everything alright?"
She can see that he is genuinely concerned, even though he has never met her before. Still with a wary look on her face, the pegasus lowers herself back to the ground.
"Uh... yeeeeah, I'm good. Sorry about kicking you in the chest... Moonstar, was it? Yeah, sorry heh..."
"That's a pretty rad spell, though!"
Having heard that her friend was still here, Twilight walks into the library as quietly as she can. She hears the voices, and trots towards them. Finally she peers around a bookshelf and sees her friend talking to somepony, surrounded by a pile of books that would normally be something her cyan friend would make fun of her for.
She quickly stifles a giggle.
Moonstar bows his head at the apology and smiles at her comment. "It is indeed, made for me by a very special pony. I'm not sure many others are even capable of it since he is the only one who could teach it. "
He looks around where she was sitting, noting that all of the books were on pegasi development and old family histories and lineages. "Might I ask, if you are not in danger, why were you shouting?"
Rainbow, unaware of Twilight's presence, relaxes.
"It's still pretty rad. And sorry about the yelling haha... I'm Just... frustrated. Can't find a single colt-danged thing in a single one of these books..."
Wanting to make her presence known, Twilight clears her throat softly but clearly.
"Maybe I can help. I'm pretty good with books, I own a...extensive library myself." Moonstar states before he takes a closer look at each book.
"I am going to guess, judging by your small collection of books and their subjects, that you are either trying to learn about Pegasi anatomy...or you are trying to figure out something about your own personal family's history." He taps the genealogy books, indicating what he was basing his guess off of. When he hears Twilight, his head turns towards her and he then bows. "Good evening Princess."
"Ya think so? Thanks to- GAH!"
Surprised by Twilight's appearance, Rainbow kicks a nearby chair.
Into Moonstars chest.
Again.
Moonstar’s head fell and he collapsed, as both mares hear a very loud grunt come from him.
Twilight blinks at the voice in her head. Her expression sharpens in concern with the potential intrusion into her mind.
"Oh. Hello?"
Pinkie pie pops out of a bookshelf.
"Is everything all right, Dashie?"
"Gah, why is EVERYPONY sneakin' up on me tonight..."
She collects herself, then gives Twilight and Pinkie a quick smile before turning to help Moonstar up.
Slowly rising Moonstar said "Thank you, Miss Dash."
"Everything's cool Pinkie." "Hows it hangin', Twi?" "My new friend here was gonna help me with some... book stuff."
She motions to her open book with a hoof.
"What are you doing here, pinkie?"
Twilight Sparkle was still wary of the voice in her mind.
"Oh! I heard you say 'GAK..' so here I am!"
Rainbow nods to both of them, sighing as her gaze drifts back over the book
"Twi I think this book is broken. I can't find ANYTHING about the reasons behind rainbow manes. This SUCKS..."
Moonstar looks at Rainbow Dash and then at her mane.
"Oh so it is. Very fascinating. I suppose this is why you are searching, looking for an explanation or to see if there are others." He chuckles a little in his throat as he looks over the many books of the library. Reminds me of a story I heard once when I was young. About the Wielder of All Colors.
Twilight Sparkle eyes Void somewhat carefully.
"Erm, who's your friend, Rainbow Dash?" Moonstar asks looking in Twilight's direction.
"Spark- er... PRINCESS Twilight Sparkle."
"Twi? This is Moonstar. He can't really talk, but his mind-voice-speaky thing is super cool!" "Now.." Rainbow turns to the blue unicorn, her head cocked. "Wielder of All Colors? " Rainbow Dash asks.
Moonstar bows to the Princess again.
"My apologies for not introducing myself when we met." He looks at Rainbow Dash and gives her a small nod.
"Yes, it was a legend that I was told when I was just a foal. It told of a pony that had gathered all of the colors of the world. Would you like to hear it? It may not give you the exact answers you want, but you might find something, for they say all legends are based on truth."
Twilight still eyes Void suspiciously.
"Mind spells are dangerous... What's going on here?" She asks Moonstar.
"I'm sorry if my way of speech appears invasive to the privacy of your own mind, but be assured that I can not read your thoughts or see into your mind. This spell merely amplifies my own brainwaves through my magic so that others can hear what I am thinking. It's much easier than having to write out messages all the time. So I must apologize again." He slowly bows his head to her.
Twilight nods and a small look of relief washes across her face. not like she had anything to hide......right?
Rainbow waves a hoof dismissively.
"Yeah, yeah, mind spells, dangerous, blah, blah, blah. Tell me the legend! "
"Say, where did that pink mare with the cotton candy mane go?" Moonshine asks Rainbow.
"Oh its just Pinkie Pie she'll reappear when you least expect it, don't worry about her. Now, tell the story already!"
Moonstar smiles and nods. He takes a seat as he watches Rainbow Dash.
In need to check up on Rainbow Dash, due to night boredom, Pinkie trots into the library, back from ... wherever she went to, and finds Rainbow Dash, and Twilight all sitting in a almost circle with Moonstar. She smiles wider and trots over, sitting next to Rainbow.
"Be weary as-" Moonstar cuts himself off as he sees pinkie.
"Let me guess, you want to hear the story too?" Moonstar asks Pinkie.
Pinkie smiles and nods her head up and down furiously. "Yep!" she answers.
"very well then,"
"Be wary, as a legend there are parts of the story that will seem strange. But once upon a time, in the beginning of time in fact, at the Great Division, where Harmony and Chaos were born from the nothingness that had once been, all of the things we know today were scrambled and out of order for they did not yet know their proper place in the world. And when Chaos fell from power, Harmony was finally able to begin rebuilding itself. And all the colors of the world began to bicker amongst themselves. Every color believed that they were better than the others."
Twilight regards Moonstar, listening quietly, as Rainbow Dash listens intently and pinkie just sits there seemingly staring into Moonstar’s soul.
Moonstar chuckles at Rainbow Dash, seeing her actions like that of a little filly wanting to hear the most wondrous story.
"These colors continued to shout and yell at each other, preaching their own superiority." His horn takes on a layer of magic as a small spheres of all colors floated around. Green energy floated in the air and Green stepped forward first, looking very proud and mighty and said to the others in a calm voice,
"Clearly I am the most important. I am the sign of life and of hope. I was chosen for grass, leaves, and trees! Why, without me...all animals would die. Look out over the countryside and you will see that I am in the majority." Next a large water droplet appeared out of the blue sphere and moved beside the green energy. Blue scoffed and then interrupted, "You only think about the Earth, but consider the sky and sea. It is the water that is the basis of life and drawn up by the clouds from the deep sea. The sky gives space and peace and serenity. Without my peace, you would all be nothing." And Blue smiled at the others believing that she was right."
Twilight's mind was racing trying to remember if she had ever come across a story like this.
"Then the others began to voice their opinions. Three more objects appears a little yellow sun, an orange, and then a red heart. All three float over to the green and blue objects. Yellow chuckled at Green and Blue,
"You are all so serious. But I am the one that brings laughter, gaiety, and warmth to the world. The sun is yellow, the moon is yellow, the stars are yellow. Every time you look at a sunflower, the whole world starts to smile. Without me, there would be no fun." Orange then pushed Yellow aside and yelled,
"I am the color of health and strength. I may be scarce but I am precious for I serve the needs of pony life. I carry the most important vitamins. Think of carrots, pumpkins, oranges, mangoes, and pawpaws. I don't hang around all the time, but when I fill the sky at sunrise or sunset, my beauty is so striking that no one gives another thought to any of you." Then Red, whose passion and anger were the greatest so far, shouted louder than the rest,
"I am the ruler of all of you. I am blood! Life's blood. I am the color of danger and of bravery. I am willing to fight for a cause. I bring fire to the blood! I am the color of passion and of love, the red rose, the poppy and the poinsettia. Without me, the earth would be as empty as the moon!"
"I like Red! I mean... Orange! Green? Blue! Yellow? Where's Purple? I love 'em all!" Rainbow said as she waits for him to say the next part.
He smiles at her as two more objects appear: a piece of purple cloth hanging like a banner and a little cloud of indigo mist. Purple then stepped forward, standing very tall and majestic as he yelled over the others, "I am the color of royalty and power. Kings, chiefs, and bishops have always chosen me for I am a sign of authority and wisdom. Ponies do not question me. They obey." Then small little Indigo came up behind Purple and spoke to the others, but even though she was the smallest and quietest, she was still able to make her voice heard with as much strength and determination as any of the others. "Think of me. I am the color of silence. You hardly notice me, but without me, you all become superficial. I represent thought and reflection, twilight and deep water. You need me for balance and contrast, for prayer and inner peace."
Twilight focuses, her mind in overdrive, considering meanings and metaphors.
Rainbow sat, her mind racing as she compared the legend to the history she already knew. She runs a hoof through her mane, though not in an attempt to smooth it out; Oh no, that ship sailed long ago, and messy was how she liked it. But she ran her hoof through it anyways, feeling each hair, trying to notice any difference between the varying color's touch.
"Is there more, moonstar?" Rainbow sat, her mind racing as she compared the legend to the history she already knew. "My history says Commander Hurricane was always known for his biiiig use of different colors... Hmm..."she mumbled, sure that her friends hadn't heard her she looked back to Moonstar.
"Of course, you can't end a legend with fighting." He chuckled as he watched all the ponies staring at him. "So as the colors continued to argue, fighting for dominance over the others, the world began to lose its own color. The green plants began to fade to grey, the sky turned dark, and all of the ponies began to lose hope and joy as the beautiful shades and tints of these colors were lost. And so, one stallion decided to fix it. All the other ponies were too frightened to go near the Colors, but this stallion was braver than the rest and he went to face them. "
Another layer of magic covers his horn as a new little image appears, a little black pegasus. It starts to walk towards the colors that were bouncing around and hitting each other. "His first attempt to talk to them failed, for they were too loud and could not hear him. When he tried to fly in front of them to get their attention, he realized they had no eyes to see him. So he went up into the sky and gathered all the dark clouds that had begun to form, and he put them over the Colors. He stomped on them until it started raining heavily on all of the colors, and the water made them all splash to the ground." The little pegasus did the same as in his story and the images of the colors splashed to the ground like liquid.
Twilight, despite her attempts to remain impartial, is really enjoying the story along with how Moonstar is doing something like a puppet show with magic.
Moonstar smiles.
The different colors splashed back up from the floor
Moonstar continued, "The little black pegasus was now standing on a little cloud and looking down at the puddles of different colors. This pegasus stared down at them in anger, but when he spoke his voice was calm and radiated wisdom that the Colors had never heard before. He cried down to them as the rain and thunder poured and rang out, "You foalish Colors, fighting amongst yourselves, each trying to dominate the rest. Don't you know you were each made for a special purpose, unique and different? Look at yourselves now, you are able to mix together perfectly, you do not repulse each other but blend, and you still retain your own color and shine. Now your anger has stolen that color from the world and left it grey and hollow, and it must end. You must join your hooves now and return back to the world with me."
The colors gathered together, lining up Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Purple, but they did not move. "The colors then cried back in fear, "We can not go with you. The rain pushes us down into the ground, and the thunder frightens us."
The image of the black pegasus flies down to the puddles. "As the pegasus flew down to the ground he walked over to the puddles and told them "Get on my wings, and I will fly you through the sky. I will take you away from the storms and into the air so you can release your colors back onto the world." So the colors swiftly jumped onto the stallion's wings. "
The puddles rose and rested on the wings, still hanging onto each other as the stallion lifted off, creating a rainbow behind him.
"And so the stallion flew up into the air, flying past the rain, braving against the lightning as he raced towards the clouds. The Colors were very frightened, wanting to let go so that they wouldn't get closer, but the pegasus told them to be brave. And soon they broke through the clouds. And as the Colors soared through the air, they released their magic and returned all the color back to the world. And all of the ponies were filled with joy. That black stallion flew across the world with the Colors on his back, returning their magic to all the creatures. And as he flew, their magic seeped into him as well. The black pegasus soon changed his color to the purest white as his tail and mane began to change colors, turning into rainbows, and soon it looked like HE was the one producing the rainbow right out of his tail."
"And so it was believed, that whenever it rained, the water and thunder scared the colors out of all the things in the world, but when the rainbow appeared, those colors were returned to give the world its beauty again."
Moonstar smiled. He turned to Rainbow Dash. "You must have heard this story before, because you said that pegasi's name....When he braved the storm to take the Colors to the sky, he was given his name....Hurricane."
Twilight's ears perk up in surprise as she hears the name she was sure she read of in Rainbows family history.
"No way! commander Hurricane is like the oldest member in my family history, we don't even remember a few of my family members who came after him, it was so long ago!"
"Huh! so that's where your colors came from!" Pinkie says with a big smile on her face.
"And he gained the title of "Commander" when he performed the create task of making the FIRST Sonic Rainboom, unlocking the magic of the Colors that he had absorbed without needing the rain to make it.
"HURRICANE invented the Sonic Rainboom?! I thought I was the first to do one!"
"Hold on, hold on... If Commander Hurricane was the first pegasus with a rainbow mane... and hair color is a family trait...
That means..."
"Oh my." Moonstar says. he chuckles. "It looks like I am standing in the presence of TWO royal legendary ponies."
Although she enjoyed the story, Twilight is still a little skeptical.
"That was a great story, but are there any historical records of it? That also doesn't explain how Rainbow's mother AND father had rainbow manes..."
Moonstar looks at Rainbow Dash. "Hmmmm ... I have two theories. The first, this story is a legend, and as I said, certain detail might be taken out for the sake of making a good story. So it may not be that there was only one direct bloodline of the rainbow mane. My second theory is simply that the gene for it has spread farther than you believe." his magic picks up one of the genealogy books and turns to a page with a family tree. Rainbow and Twilight see that at the very top are just two names, as most trees start, but after dozens of levels of generations, the bottom-most row is not even capable of holding all of the names.
"Now we are talking about a stallion that lived, at a minimum, over 1000 years ago or more. That would mean that he has become the ancestor of MORE generations than are shown here, and that means that this gene that gives this mane style has spread just as far." Moonstar sets the book down and looks at Rainbow Dash.
"This gene is very rare, I will admit that, and it could be that the reason your direct blood line has shown it the most is because those that have it are drawn to each other by it. This unique quality brings them closer together. So it is not that it is not that only your family has it, but that your family is the gathering of those offspring of this single blood line that comes together to ensure that the trait of this rainbow mane will survive." He realizes that he might have overwhelmed them with his long speech. Of course...not even I was far enough back to know.."
"What was that, Moonstar?" Rainbow asks.
"Uhm... nothing."
"Anyway, both are certainly possible, but I don't think there's a way to find out for sure, I guess we'll never know." Twilight said, yawning.
"Hey, Pinkie? Why have you been so quiet?" Rainbow turns toward pinkie only to see a knowing smile on her face.
"Oh, I'm just waiting..." pinkie answers.
"What exactly are you waiting for, Pinkie?" Rainbow says, a curious look on her face.
"you'll see!"
"Oh. Uhm ok then." Rainbow notices Pinkie and Moonstar making eye contact, Moonstar with a disbelieving, wild and surprised look on his face all at once. "Don't mind her, Moonstar. That's just pinkie being pinkie." Rainbow turns her head to see Twilight fell asleep on the floor.
"How... uh, never mind. So that's how you got your mane Rainbow.. I must return, its almost midnight." Moonstar said, standing up.
"Return, what?" Rainbow said, confused.
"BYE MOONSTAR TELL RAINBOWS MOTHER I SAID HI!!!!" pinkie says energetically.
"My mother?... what?"
"Oh. well you see, Rainbow. I was married to one of your relatives a little over 100 years ago. I was never really here. but, I'll never know how that pink earth pony can speak in my mind.. she scares me. Goodbye, Rainbow. This trip went exactly as planned. Moonstar says, slowly fading away becoming almost transparent before he says, "I almost forgot, your mother says she loves you." Moonstar said, evaporating as the clock hits 12:00.
Pinkie slowly moves her hoof to close Rainbows mouth, her jaw unhinged after Moonstar’s first sentence.
"Come on Rainbow, lets take Twilight up to her room and go to bed! It's already twelve you know!" Pinkie said, looking at her friend.
"Wh- what just happened.....? "
"You just got a visit from one of your ancestors, silly! come on, lets take Twilight to bed and hit the hay!"
Rainbow Dash helped Pinkie take twilight upstairs and went to bed. The next morning when she awoke, the events of the previous night seemed like a dream. But when she looked in the mirror she ended up staring at the many colors of her mane, she knew last night was too real, it was in fact, not a dream. She was proud to be Rainbow Dash.
Author's Note
THE END. I hope you liked it. IT'S MAGIC I DON'T GOTTA EXPLAIN SHIT.
Leave a comment, say what you like/dislike about it, feel free to point out any mistakes, thanks!
