The Requirements of Love : Redemption

“I never asked you to do that momma... It's... my fault.”

Spectrum Sky sat at her desk, looking over the days homework.  “Hmm.... mythical beasts... check... fundamentals of the space time continuum... check... magical remedies and utilization... check... hmm... everything seems to be in order.”  She stood up, taking a moment to stretch her legs.  “Maybe... I'll go for a walk.”

The castle corridors were exceptionally quiet at night.  As she walked, she was met with the familiar glow of the candles that lit her path.  As she walked, she took interests in the paintings that decorated the walls, as she did every night.  She loved art, especially the paintings in the castle: they allowed her glimpses into the worlds of the past, worlds she couldn't imagine.  However, throughout the castle, there is one particular piece of work, that she admires the most.  In Princess Celestia's studies, stood a stained glass window.  This window... depicted a blue Pegasus, and an orange Earth pony... her mothers.

“Spectrum?  Is that you?”

She turned around to see her sister, Pacific Rose, flying over to her.  “Hey sis, what are you doing up?”

“Oh... well... I couldn't sleep.”  Rose replied, landing next to her sister.  “Whatcha looking at?”

Spectrum turned to face the painting she was just admiring.  “I was looking at this painting, the one auntie Luna bought last week.  The guards finally put it up, and... well... I was just admiring it, is all.”

Rose nodded, staring at the picture.  “I don't get what's so fascinating about it... it just looks like a regular old forest to me.”

Spectrum nodded.  “That's, WHY I was admiring it.  Look around at all these other pictures Rose” she asked, pointing her hoof and trailing along the walls.  “Ever picture here has something spectacular going on in it... but this one... is just like you said... just a regular old forest.”

“You have a test tomorrow dontcha sis?” Rose asked, catching her sister off guard.

“Y... yes I do.  My defense against dark magic test, it should be easy.  You have a test tomorrow as well, right?”  She asked, looking at her sister who drooped her head to the ground.

“Y... yeah but... I'm gonna fail it, I just know it.  I'm no good at flying.  I can float around places, but that's about all I’m good for... SOME Pegasus I am huh?  I doubt momma Rainbow would take any pride in me if she was here.  She was the best flier in all of Equestria, and what am I?” Tears began to form from Rose's eyes as she spoke to her sister.  “I'm... I'm gonna drop out of flight school sis.”

“You will do no such thing.” Spectrum said.  “Think about how sad Grandma Tia would be if you dropped out?”

“She wouldn't be happy I'm sure... neither would Auntie Luna.” Rose said.  “But...”

“Girls?”

“Hey auntie.” Spectrum said.

“Sweetheart, are you OK?” Luna said, wiping the tears from Rose's eyes.

“Yeah... I guess... but...” Rose cried, causing Luna to pull her into a hug.

“Shh... you're going to do fine tomorrow... you think you're not good at flying, but you really are...  You're gonna wow them tomorrow, but... if you think it would be best to drop out... you have my support my niece.  It can't be easy, being a Pegasus living in a castle of Unicorns.  So... I cannot judge you for quitting your flying school, and neither can my sister.” Luna whispered, pulling her niece firmly into her chest.  “Do you girls want to get a late night snack?”

They both nodded.

“Great!” Luna exclaimed.  “To tell you the truth I was going to go eat regardless of what your answer was.”  she said with a laugh.

In the dining room, Luna retrieved an angel food cake from the refrigerator, and sat it down in front of her along with 3 plates and 3 sets of utensils.  “Let us... refrain from mentioning this to Tia?  She wouldn't be too thrilled if she found out your auntie was giving you sweets at 2 in the morning” Luna said with a smile.

“Won't the chef be upset when he finds tomorrow's dessert half eaten?” Spectrum asked.

“Not if eat it all.” Luna said with a wink.

“Auntie?”

“Yush Roze?” Luna said, crumbs spilling from her mouth as she tried desperately to talk and swallow at the same time.

“Would... would momma Rainbow be proud of me?”

Luna swallowed her cake, and wrapped her wing around Rose, drawing her closer.  “Sweetie, Rainbow would most definitely be proud of you.  When... when she was laying in that hospital bed.” Luna said, tearing up.  “The first thing she did... was... ask to hold you.  She was then... given a choice...”

“I know auntie... she chose to give her life up, to let my sister live.” Rose said.

Nodding, Luna continued.  “She would be proud of you Rose, and I'm sure she's watching you right now, as you eat that cake, and I'm sure she's smiling, knowing that you and Spectrum are safe, and loved, her and Applejack too.”

“But auntie... it's my fault our momma Rainbow died.”  Spectrum cried.

“Spectrum,” Luna said, using her other wing to pull her close.  “Your mom never thought twice about her decision.  She made that decision out of unconditional love for both of you.  She knew... that if she lived, she would be targeted once again, yet... because she chose to let YOU live, you and your sister have each other, you will never be alone like she was.”

“Why didn't Grandma Tia save them?  I already learned in class that it's possible, that only Grandma Tia can do it... so why didn't she save them?”

“Spectrum, sweetie...” Luna said, “Tia made a tough decision not to.  She knew that if she had saved them, then like I said before, they would be targeted once again, and more innocent ponies could potentially get hurt, or even killed from it.  Tia... had to make that decision... as a ruler, and not as a... a mother.”

“I understand.”

“Spectrum are you OK?” Luna asked, as Spectrum excused herself from the table.

“I am” she replied, nodding.  “Come Rose, let's go to bed.”

“OK sis.”  Rose replied.  “Auntie, thank you so much for cheering me up, and for the cake as well.”  She said to Luna.

“Oh well you are most welcome little ones.  Now hurry up to bed before Tia fi-”

“Luna!” called a voice voice from down the hall.

“Tia?!?” she replied in a panic, as her sister ran into the room.  She quickly glanced back and forth between her sister and the two fillies who were making their way out of the room.

“I swear I gave it to them with good intentions..”  Luna cried.

“Never mind that, come to my room Luna... SHE has been spotted.”

Luna's eyes snapped open in surprise.  Surely her sister could not be mentioning the pony who she thought she was... there could be no possible way.  Quickly the two galloped down the main corridor with Spectrum and Rose following closely behind, making sure they were out of sight.

“Hurry Luna” Celestia said, impatiently waiting to close the door to her study.

Luna stopped just outside of the study.  She looked over her back to see the two fillies attempting to hide behind a lone flower pot.  “Tia... is it true?  Has she really come out of hiding now?”  Luna asked dumbfounded.

“Save it Luna, follow me to my study.”  Celestia said, before noticing her two grandchildren.  “You two off to bed now, it's way past your bedtime.”

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Luna walked in and took a seat next to Celestia at the table.  “Tia... is it true?  Has she really come out of hiding now?”  Luna asked dumbfounded.

An orange Pegasus in gold armor walked over from behind a desk.  He had a short blue mane, and piercing ocean blue eyes.

“Flash Sentry...” Luna whispered.  “We... ahem... I... thought you were on Vacation with Twilight, and your daughter?”

“Princess Luna!” Flash announced, raising a hoof to his forehead in salute.  “You are correct, Twilight, and Myself, along with our daughter Daisy, were visiting the Crystal Empire.  However, on the return trip I saw a most peculiar sight when our train was passing through the Galloping Gorge.”

“Shh... keep quiet Rose.”  Spectrum whispered, as they placed their ears up to the door, attempting to eavesdrop.

“The Galloping Gorge?” Luna asked.  “But... why would she be hiding there?  Was there anypony else with her?”

“I don't know... we were just on the train and we were passing through but... my eyes did not deceive me.  It was her... I dare not speak her name.  And...” Flash said.  “There appeared to be a small cottage in the background, but I’m not entirely sure. If... she is there, then it is imperative that we take her into custody!”

“Flash...” Celestia began.  “I appreciate your findings, and your opinion.  But... you know how many years it has been.  The one you saw may in fact not even be the pony we are looking for but... don't get me wrong.  I will immediately dispatch a few of our elite guards to survey the area, and keep close tabs on her.  For now... why not take a few more days off to be with your wife?”

“Thank you very much princess!” Flash replied appreciatively.

“Oh and one more thing Flash... when you arrive home, one... ask Twilight to come visit me soon, and two... tell your daughter good luck on her magic test tomorrow” Celestia stated.  “Actually... I have an idea... why not have little Daisy come over next weekend, and I'll see what I can do about getting Cadence to send little Shimmer Crystal down as well... I'm sure Spectrum and Rose would love to have a slumber party.  Plus it will.... ahem... give you and Twilight some alone time...  Good day Flash.”

Flash saluted, “Thank you for your concern princess.  I'm sure Daisy will be thrilled to spend time with your granddaughters.  I will be sure to let Twilight know of this as soon as I return home.”

Flash saluted once more before turning to face the door.

“Spectrum hurry!  Before he comes and catches us.”  Rose pleaded, pulling on her sisters foreleg signaling that it was time to run.

“OK OK” Spectrum said, while charging magic in her horn.  It glowed a faint tint of blue, before devouring both sisters in a blue orb.  Meanwhile upstairs, the two were ejected from a blue flash, tumbling across the floor until they crashed into the foot of their bed.

“We just disapparated right?” Rose asked, feeling a a bit woozy from the new experience.

“Yeah...” Spectrum said, shaking her head.  “That was my first time doing that... normally I would just teleport us... but Grandma would notice that... disapparating doesn't cause any form of magical disturbance... so it's virtually undetectable.”

“It's..... a weird feeling.” Rose laughed, swaying back and forth trying to regain her composure.

“So...” Spectrum said, putting her hoof to her head and rubbing it slowly.  “What the hay just happened?”

“Well.... the guard captain said he saw somepony in something called the Galloping Gorge.”  Rose relied, following suit with her hoof.  “And... apparently no pony has seen this one in awhile, because Grandma Tia was surprised and is going to send guards to basically spy.... on that pony... isn't spying bad tho?”

“Well... not if he or she is wanted for a crime... but still... usually Grandma Tia would issue a warrant before ordering somepony to go spy on another pony... it doesn't make sense...” Spectrum wondered.. pacing in circles.

“I'm not sure sis... this... is all weird... we didn't even hear a name... I wonder who it is?”   Rose spoke, placing herself deep within her mind, trying to recall if there was some hidden piece of information we skipped over.

Spectrum continued her pacing, stopping every few seconds to walk in the opposite direction.  “Hey... Rose... you don't think it's the pony that.... you know....”

Rose's heart skipped a beat, instantly she was sweating bullets at the possibility of this.  “Wait... sis... it... it can't be.... can it?  Surely Grandma Tia would order and immediate arrest if it was her.... Shooting Star... could it had been her?”

Spectrum took a seat on the edge of her bed, and stared at her hind hooves as she lightly kicked the floor.  “Sis... I'm... I'm kind of scared.”

Rose floated over and took a seat next to her sister and wrapped her hoofs around her in a loving embrace.  “I don't think you should be scared sis... Grandma Tia and Auntie Luna will keep us safe... plus we're surrounded by royal guards... nothing bad is going to happen.”

“I know sis but...” Spectrum whispered.  “She... Shooting Star that is... needs to be punished...I'm scared that she's going to get away.”

“She's not going to” Rose stated.  “Grandma Tia would never allow it... now... we should really go to sleep... we have to wake up in 4 hours for school...”

Spectrum sighed as she looked at the pendulum clock on the wall.  “We're gonna hate ourselves in the morning...” she moaned, watching as the minute hand just landed straight up signaling that it was 3 in the morning.

Rose nodded, as she pulled the comforter and sheets down halfway on the bed, so that she and her sister could climb in.  Once they were both situated, Spectrum used her magic to extinguish the flames from the few candles that littered her walls.

Moments passed as they both stared through the glass ceiling and into the night sky.

“Sis?”  Spectrum whispered.

“Yeah Spectrum?”  Rose replied, turning so that her muzzle was inches from her sister's.

“Do you... do you honestly think it's her.... you know... Shooting Star?”  She asked, shaking nervously.

“I don't know what I think honestly.  We don't know any details... we should keep listening around the castle for the next week or so and collect information, then we can decide on what to think” Rose replied.

Spectrum nodded, reaching out to hold her sister.  “We have each other sis... We always will right?”

Rose nodded, slowly drifting off into sleep.

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The next day was quite eventful.  Final exams were taking place at every school all across Canterlot.  Loud explosions and crackling noises could be heard all throughout Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns.

“Sparkle... Daisy Sparkle, you're up” spoke the instructor.  A silver stallion, with a short greasy black mane, and small beady black eyes.

“Yes Professor Neighpe” spoke a soft, yet confident voice.

From the back of the class walked the daughter of Twilight Sparkle.  A young pink filly, sporting a pin straight white mane, with a single yellow streak and striking pink eyes.

“OK then, just like with the last filly, you're going to put up a reflective shield and I'm slowly going to attempt to penetrate it with a mid level destructive magic.”  He instructed, in a slow monotonous voice.

“Yes professor” she replied, taking a defensive stance in front of Professor Neighpe.  She lowered her head slightly and slowly her horn began to emanate a soft pink glow, which formed into a pink bubble that surrounded Daisy.

“Very... good... Ms... Sparkle” spoke Professor Neighpe.  He didn't move a muscle as his horn quickly glowed a bright blue, which soon instantly took the shape of a thundering lightning bolt which impacted Daisy's shield.  “I'm... going... to... start off.... easy....”

Seeing the magic intensify, Daisy increased the strength of her shield to compensate for the difference.  As the strength increased, so did the size of her shield.  She slowly pushed back his attack, which ultimately resulted in the Professor increasing the strength of his spell as well.  With a flick of his horn, the lightning bolt lost it's blue glow and was replaced with a fiery red appearance which effortlessly broke through Daisy's shield, sending her flying across the room, into a padded backing material.

“Very.... impressive” He spoke, softly clapping his hooves.

After picking herself up, Daisy smiled and nodded to the professor, and took her place in the back next to Spectrum Sky.

“Hey you did great!” Spectrum cheered.

“Thanks, but you're gonna do better.  You're the best in the class!” Daisy stated.

“Spectrum... Sky!” Shouted Professor Neighpe.

“Well I'm up.” Spectrum whispered.

“You'll do great!  Do that trick you showed me the other night!  Show him a lesson... this IS our finals after all.” Daisy suggested, watching as Spectrum put her hoof in the air before trotting down to the testing area.

Spectrum took her place in front of the Professor.  She stared into his piercing black eyes as he shot her down from across the hall.

“No defense?” the professor asked.

“Not needed” Spectrum calmly replied.

“Cocky little....... TERRAEMOTUS!” he shouted, sending a chunk of the wall flying towards Spectrum.  Daisy shrieked from the back of the class as the wall made contact with Spectrum.

To Professor Neighpe, that moment felt like an eternity.  He watched as Spectrum's eyes emitted a white glow, sending the wall barreling back towards him.  Professor Neighpe had only a fraction of a second to muster up a weak shield, which still resulted in him being thrown through the wall behind him.

The class stomped their hooves in applause as Spectrum Sky walked away unscathed.  Daisy ran up and wrapped her hooves around her in a friendly embrace.  “That was so awesome!  I knew without a doubt!  You're the best!”

“Yeah well...” Spectrum chuckled.  “Grandma Tia doesn't raise wimps.”

Daisy laughed, erupting a few snorts as she released her hold on Spectrum.  “Hey Rose's test is is next period.  I bet we could make it to her flight school to watch her.”

Spectrum smiled and nodded.  “We're gonna miss Crystal's test tho, she's closer to the beginning of the alphabet.”

“Aww don't worry she's gonna do fine, I'm worried about Rose tho, she gets WAY too nervous for her own good.”  Daisy spoke, watching Professor Neighpe slowly make his way out of the rubble in the adjacent room.  “On that note... I think it's time to run!”

Spectrum and Daisy took off in a full gallop out of the hallway before Professor Neighpe could give chase.  Once they were in the clear, they turned down one more hallway before coming to a stop.  Spectrum's horn glowed slightly before teleporting Daisy and herself to the Canterlot Flight School.

“Calm down Rose, you're going to give yourself a heart attack.”

“Easy for you to say Crystal.” Rose replied.  “You're like the best flier here.”

Crystal smiled gently at Rose, running her hoof through her curly pink and red mane.  “Well... momma Cadance did teach me a lot about flying, and Twilight did too” Crystal replied.

Rose stared into Crystals blood red eyes, seeing nothing but love spewing forth.  “Yeah well...” Rose said, turning away to face the obstacle course.

“It's easy Rose, watch and follow along with me.” Crystal said, extending her hoof to point towards the first obstacle.  “First... you have to slalom through those 10 hoops, then a quick nose dive through the final hoop.  Next... you're gonna reverse back and fly straight through those 12 clouds... make sure they dissipate.  Finally, you're going to do a high speed back flip and go in for a corkscrew nose dive landing gently on the X at the far end of the field” Crystal explained.

“Pacific Rose!”

Rose jumped in surprise when the instructor called her name.  “Um.... yes?” She squeaked.

“Your turn!” the instructor stated.

“Oh um... O....K” Pacific replied, blushing as she nervously flew to the starting grid.  She looked over her shoulder to see Crystal waving and cheering her on.  Pacific smiled and waved back before lowering her flight goggles over her eyes.

“Begin.”

Rose extended her wings and slowly took flight.  She flew through the air towards the first obstacle.  As she approached the rings, she began to tuck her wings back to help maintain control through the slalom.  She watched as the rings appeared to distance themselves from her.  She sped up, squinting her eyes to the point she was seeing double, yet miraculously made it through the slalom with no problems, that is... until she pulled up.  As she exited the last ring, she fully extended her wings to slow herself down, but she was going much to fast for what her wings were used to.  As she forced them open, the wind pressure immediately snapped them back.  She clamped her eyes shut as she fell into a death spiral, howling from the pain throbbing through her wings.

Seconds passed and she no longer felt the wind rushing by her.  Rose opened her eyes to see she was being suspended in mid air with magic... her sister's magic.

“S..Sis?” Rose whispered, before passing out from the pain.

Spectrum gently placed Rose on the ground in front of her, gently caressing her broken wing.  With a glow of her horn, she quickly mended the broken bones, and repaired her feathers.

“Rose!” Crystal cried.

Spectrum smiled at Crystal as she flew full speed towards them.

Once she reached them, Crystal gently caressed the back of Rose's head before turning to meet Spectrum.

“Is she going to be OK?” Crystal asked.

Nodding, Spectrum replied.  “Yes, she will be fine.  Just a few broken bones, but I mended them.  She'll be good as new as soon as she wakes up.”

“What should we do now?”  asked Crystal.  “The instructor looks mad.”

Without a moments hesitation, Spectrum teleported to the instructor who at this point had his clipboard thrown against the wall as he stomped angrily back and forth in place.

“When she wakes up you tell her she failed!” He screamed.  “She is a disgrace to her royal name!”

“You're being unfair!  She broke her wing, you can't fail her for that, it's.... unjust!” Spectrum shouted.

“I can and I just did!” The instructor said.  “She is by far THE worse flier I have ever laid eyes on, and she has no business calling herself a Pegasus!”  He snatched the clipboard off the ground and angrily scribbled a note on her evaluation paper.  “I could care less if your grandmother is the Princess, rules are rules: she didn't complete the course... she failed!”

Spectrum held her head low, disgusted that the instructor would talk that way about her sister.  Sadly she teleported back, not from fear of him snapping at her, but out of fear of her doing something to him that not even her Grandmother would overlook.

“Well?”  Crystal asked, as Spectrum took a seat next to her unconscious sister.

“She failed... she failed her final...” Spectrum whispered.  She gently ran her hoof through her sister's mane, as she lay motionless.  “He's.... a plot... A ROYAL plot.”

“Oh no” Daisy cried.

“It's OK Daisy” Spectrum replied.  “I'm going to bring her home... Hopefully Grandma Tia doesn't take the news bad.”

Daisy nodded as the two sisters teleported back to the castle.  No sooner than they had arrived were they flooded by guards, a medical crew, and Princess Luna, who walked quickly over to the two fillies.

“Is she alright Spectrum?”  Luna asked, placing her hoof on Rose's forehead.

Spectrum finally allowed her tears to come forth, as she held her sister, limp in her arms.  “She's... OK.  I fixed her broken bones but... but....”

Luna levitated Rose and placed her on the medical team's stretcher, who securely fastened her to it before flying down the hall carrying her to the medical wing.

“Come with me Sweetie” Luna said, giving a soft nudge against Spectrum's shoulder.  The two walked in silence into Luna's chamber where they each took a seat in the corner near a glass cabinet.  Luna removed two wine glasses and a half empty bottle of 'Chateau de Mare' and filled both glasses half way.  With a flick of her horn, she placed one in front of her niece who looked at it curiously.

“Auntie... you know I'm not old enough.”  Spectrum stated, staring at her Aunt: perplexed as to why she would give her alcohol.

“Nonsense Spectrum”  Luna replied.  “Sometimes... we do things we shouldn't... but I'm sure by the end of this day you'll agree that this helps.”

Spectrum nodded, taking the glass and sipping a little.  She gagged as the bitter flavor flowed into her mouth, but was contempt to swallow it: Auntie wouldn't give it to her if it wouldn't help.

“Now then,” Luna began, taking a sip of her own wine.  “So what exactly happened today?”

Spectrum stared at the floor while she took a moment to gather her thoughts.  “Well... I had just finished up my exam, so Daisy suggested we go and watch Rose... and be there for support...  So... we teleported there but... as soon as I arrived she was falling from the sky... I caught her with my magic... and... and...”  by now she was sobbing incoherently.

Luna levitated the bottle over and filled Spectrum's glass up once more, this time to the top.  “Drink sweetie...” She whispered.  Spectrum nodded and downed the glass without thinking.  Once again Luna filled it half way, tho this time it was left untouched.  “So... what happened next Spectrum?”

Drying her tears, Spectrum continued.  “Well... her wing was broken... and her feathers were all torn... I fixed her wing... I'm pretty sure I did... then... I confronted the instructor.  He was angry... he called her a disgrace to all Pegasi and to our Royal name, I've... never been this upset at an instructor before.  Then... then he failed her... because her wing had broken... It's not right! That's so unfair!”

Luna scooted herself next to her niece and pulled her into a loving embrace.  “Everything will be alright little one.”  She held her close for the next few minutes until a knocking at the door interrupted their moment.  Seconds later it opened, revealing a nurse and Pacific Rose.

“Princess... pardon my intrusion but... your niece checked out alright and wanted to join you and her sister.”  she said.

Luna nodded and thanked the nurse, who in return bowed and shut the door.

Rose took a seat next to her sister, and gently hugged her.  “Auntie... today... I...”

“Shh”

“But!” Rose interjected, only to be met wit a hoof running softly through her mane.

“I know what happened dear” Luna replied.

“I'm... well I thought about this before leaving the medical room Auntie” Rose said, as Luna softly nodded.  “I'm... quitting flight school... it's not my thing” she said through sobs.

Spectrum wrapped her hoofs around her sister, still sobbing: now into her sisters coat.

Luna nodded, she wrapped her hoofs around both of the crying fillies.  “Like I said before little one, I'll support your decision.  Now... how about some chocolate to go with that wine?  Oh!”  Luna said, bringing over another glass.  She filled it and placed it in front of Rose, who took it graciously, unlike her sister who had questioned her Aunt's motives.

“Chocolate sounds nice right about now.” Rose said, taking a sip from her glass and sitting it down.

Luna whisked a small box from her bed and levitated it just in front of the three of them.  Opening it revealed many small chocolates.  All different shapes and sizes, and shades of brown too.  “It was a gift from the new king of Saddle Arabia... he just knew I loved gourmet chocolates.”  She placed a few in front of each of the fillies, before placing two in front of herself.

The next few hours were those of laughter and joy.  Soon, Rose and Spectrum had just about forgotten the day's events.  But as the night progressed, it was inevitable that bedtime would arrive for two very drunk fillies.

The next morning, Luna awoke to multiple wine bottles scattering her chamber, along with her two nieces sleeping in a ball against the wall.  Nopony seemed to have the ability to make it into a bed last night.  She looked in the mirror, and hardly recognized herself under the mess she dared call a mane.  After a quick brush she exited the room and joined her sister for the morning meeting albeit, quite hungover.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

“Good morning sister, you are looking rather elated this morning.” Luna said, chuckling slightly as she took her place next to Celestia at the meting table.

“And good morning to yourself my dear little sister... although you are looking a bit hungover?  I hope the prior days events had not troubled you too much.” Celestia replied.

“Well actually” Luna began, “I spent the evening with the girls.  I don't remember much of what happened, and they probably won't either.”

“LUNA!” Celestia shouted.  “You gave them your wine?”

Luna threw herself back in her seat, realizing what she had just disclosed.  “Well... you see umm...”

“Save it for later sister, I'm sure you had your reasons.”  Celestia replied, as Shining Armor approached.

“Good morning Shining” Luna greeted.

“Good morning Shining Armor.  I see you have returned from the Galloping Gorge... how was the information?” Celestia asked.

Shining Armor nodded.  He placed his hoof to his muzzle, and after clearing his throat he began.

“I arrived at the disclosed location at 4:32 yesterday morning.  As you had believed, she is indeed residing in the Gorge.  It would seem that she has taking up residence, and is accompanied by no less than 2 other Alicorns.” Shining reported, being interrupted by Celestia.

“She's been busy I see.” Celetia replied, receiving a nod from Shining Armor.

“At approximately 17:40 yesterday evening, she was approached by an Orange Alicorn, who stayed only for a few moments then took off in the direction of the Smokey Mountain.” Shining said.

“So... Shooting Star went to see her mother... peculiar... I would think once she obtained the Lexicon she would have abandoned that pony...” Celestia added.

“Her mother?” Shining asked.

“Yes... I originally thought that it was she who had broken into the castle years ago and stole the Lexicon... at least I had before it was revealed to be Shooting Star instead... So...” Celestia said, standing up and walking over to a book shelf.

“So... what?”  Shining asked, as Celestia regained her seat, and placed a book in front of her.

“Shining Armor... what I'm about to tell you... must never leave your lips... it is imperative that I disclose this to you yet... I cannot permit you to utter this to another single pony, do you understand?” Celestia asked sternly.

“I understand princess, I vow to never release this information, even in the face of death.” Shining announced, placing a hoof to his chest in a salute.

Nodding she began.  “This started about 140 years ago.  I had given birth to my first child, yet... due to certain complications... these records were never released to the public...  Well... she was a very gifted Unicorn, if I had to compare her... I would say she was my equal by the time she was 21 but... I would never let her know that... nor would I ever divulge the extent of my power... but any-who as time grew on, she distanced herself from me, and began wandering the castle corridors at night.  About 40 years ago, something inside of my daughter snapped, and she went on a rampage.  In a single night she had destroyed most of Canterlot, and taken out a fraction of Fillydelphia before I could catch up with her... but by that time she was gone yet again... this time... she returned to the castle, and stole the Lexicon from my chambers... destroying the castle in the process.”

Shining nodded as the story was told.  Luna sat by idly, having heard this story in the past quite a few times.

“Well...” Celestia continued.  “She knew that the Lexicon had not yet been activated... all those times she shut herself away in her room, she had been researching the details of the Lexicon.  It was only a matter of time before she learned that she must use it to steal an Alicorn's powers before she could transfer them to herself, so... thus began her mission... and successful she was, as she indeed stole an Alicorn's power... resulting in him reverting to his prior form as a Pegasus.”

Shining Armor cleared his throat once Celestia had finished.  “Princess, indeed that is a moving story, and of very great importance to the history of Equestria but... if I may ask... what bearing has it on our current situation?”

“Shining Armor, you are wise beyond your years but... it is no  surprise that you didn't realize this sooner...  My daughter... her name was Starshine... the very Starshine that gave birth to Shooting Star.  Shooting Star... is my granddaughter.”