You Hold The Only Key To My Heart

Chapters

Snow Is Falling...
Reunion Of Treasured Friends
What In Tarnations?

Snow Is Falling...

The sharp sound of an alarm clock pierced the air, bouncing animatedly on the dark wooden bedside table as it twittered. Sighing, the bundled duvet on the bed twitched before opening up to reveal a young, female alicorn. Using her magenta magic she pulled the covers off and stood from where she had been sitting. Turning, she quickly made her bed and tidied her room up with a swish of her magic, grabbing a brush as she went and trotting to her vanity desk.

“I do hope that I won't be late for my booking at the cafe, I must hurry if I wish to meet my Aunt's beloved pupil for the first time.” She worried, the sound of her voice awakening the small fox on the plush pillow. Its coat gleamed like saffron, two brilliant sea foam eyes watching the alicorn sleepily. Reaching down to stroke her fox, she smiled before turning to her vanity. "Go back to sleep my little fox." She cooed sweetly, her heart panging with love as Kai yawned and curled up tightly again.

Her bedroom, painted a pale silvery colour, glimmered in the warm light coming in through the window, the dust particles dancing in the air slowly as though to a secret rhythm. Soul Symphony – the young alicorn – stared at her reflection as she ran the brush through her silky mane – a rich blue with streaks of a silvery white running through it. It seemed to glow in the morning light, catching the light occasionally. Shining with youth and energy, her large eyes were a cobalt hue with flecks of azure. Once she had finishing grooming her hair, she set to polishing her messy coat; it was a pale cerulean with splashes of white.

‘I may be pretty, but I am no way near as regal as my sisters, Celestia and Luna are impossible to compare to…’ Soul Symphony thought with a pang of homesickness. Frowning as she pulled her silver bracelets on, it melted away as she admired the sapphires embedded in the front of the intricately patterned bands. Princess Celestia had given them to her in congratulations for getting her cutie mark, an elegant pink heart on her rump with a keyhole in the middle. Smiling proudly, Soul Symphony thought back to the day when she had discovered her true talent…

A warm, summer breeze brushed through Princess Luna’s mane, whispering sweet nothings to her as she listened to it peacefully. She sat on a bench, admiring the view in Canterlot’s finest public garden - it wasn't often that she sat back and humbly appreciated her sister's daytime. Birds twittered around her, singing love songs and competing against each other in the jewel coloured flowerbeds. Sighing, the Princess relaxed into the lush, soft green grass, just about to fall asleep when she was rudely disturbed. A small filly stumbled past; wide, blue eyes full of fear as she stumbled through the garden. Two colts were laughing and jeering at her, eyes full of malice as they cornered her by the fountain. The poor filly was young Soul Symphony, her body dirty with grime and her mane knotted to the point where it would terrify any pony to try running a comb through it. Her body was trembling - from fear or something else, Princess Luna couldn’t tell – but in that instant she knew what to do. Part of her was shocked, she hadn't been in this situation before, she'd have to follow her instincts.

Standing up, she called out in the equestrian voice, “Excuse me, I don't know who you think you are, bullying a filly like that.” before trotting over. At the sound of her voice, the two colts froze and turned to face her. Immediately their expressions of disgust were exchanged for looks of fear as she came to stand between them and the filly. Giving them a scolding look, Princess Luna moved to look at the shivering filly as the colts dashed back from where they had come from. The poor thing looked terrified; her body covered in scrapes from the mean colts. “What is your name filly?” She asked in a tender voice, taking off her cloak and placing it around the filly’s shoulders. Princess Luna had never been in the position to help a filly, she might as well try. “I have no name.” She stuttered shly, only to be shocked when Luna awkwardly wrapped her wings around her in a hug. “Never fear what cannot harm you.” That was when Symphony figured out what she wanted to do.

She wanted to love every pony who needed it, and support those in need like Princess Luna had done for her that very day. However, she had yet to realize what the keyhole meant...

Reunion Of Treasured Friends

Soul Symphony’s Point Of View

Not only did I gain my cutie mark that day, I also became a part of a family for the first time in a long while. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna adopted me into the family as a sister, although I do not have an important task like either of them. I was simply there to take care of the broken hearts, timid fillies, hateful rivals, and to be a friend to Celestia and Luna. A pony who preferred to work behind the curtains, out of sight, but still there, helpful as ever. I can't remember how I became an alicorn though, every time I would try to remember I'd get a migraine, and neither Princess Celestia or Princess Luna would answer my relentless questions. So, I left it, it must be too complicated or strange for me to remember as a young filly.

Brushing away my deep thoughts, I turned toward the doorway of my bedroom and trotted out, finding my way downstairs and out into the fresh air. My wings fluttered on my back, desperate to be unfurled so that I could soar through the sky. Pausing, I turned to examine them, the magenta jewels swirling with magic that I had stored in them from a young age. Blinking, the surface of the gems bent and twisted my eye at odd angles, making a giggle rise in my throat at how ridiculous it looked.

Wait.

Was that...?

Looking out of the window, I suddenly realized what else had changed out of the usual today. Eyes as wide as the moon, I gaped at the thick blanket of snow coating the world like icing on a cake, sparkling as though each snowflake was made of diamond. Sighing in awe, I stood in the blissful silence, before trotting back inside to grab my fluffy cloak. Rushing upstairs, I threw the doors to my cupboard open and I grabbed my winter outfit. A long, thick, soft silver white cloak lined with a fluffy, dazzling white fur that had been studded with small blue and cherry gems. A matching set of snow boots designed to fit under my bracelets snugly clung to my hooves, warming them splendidly. I had asked a young designer by the name of Rarity to create something comfortable, but suitable for a royal. Laughing, I recalled how excited she had sounded in the letter I had received back.

I must stop getting so distracted, I thought in mild annoyance, before I left for the second time that day. This time, I will be ready for anything! I thought with delight, excited to face the fresh winter day. Oh? I haven’t explained to you what I meant by that? Well, today is my first day living in Pony Ville, a community of ponies in which Twilight Sparkle resides. Smiling fondly at the thought of making my first friend, I remembered the reason why I was here. I was here to take a break from the royal life, Princess Luna had told her, before 'banishing' me to Pony Ville. 'It's not as though you can send some pony away to somewhere that is quaint and peaceful. It's too...nice' I snorted in laughter, my heart feeling lighter already.

With a sigh, I decided to quit stalling and leave already. Sitting on the edge of Pony Ville, my house was close enough for a five minutes’ walk but far enough for some decent peace and quiet. The snow crunched softly beneath my boots, and snowflake’s caught on my eyelashes, fluttering to the ground when I blinked hurriedly. Twittering madly, a few birds swooped to the safety of their warm homes, nestled deep in the trees’ canopies. Rabbits darting into burrows, I wished I had brought Tamara with me, she would have loved this. However, it is winter, and she’d enjoy nothing more than to sleep beside the blazing fireplace. “I’m just glad that I vaguely know somepony here…” I whispered shyly, afraid to be ambushed by some strange ponies.

Shaking my head frantically, I buried myself deep into thought and stared at the ground, my wings held tightly to my body and my tail swishing nervously as I spotted a few buildings come into view. Picking my head up, I made the most of this first impression and forced myself to be confident, although butterflies soared around in my stomach like dragons in the sky. Eyeing the buildings, I looked for the library, hoping to see the mare I could just remember from my filly hood. There. She stood by an apple stall, talking happily to a soft tan pony with a blonde mane and bright emerald eyes.

Beaming, I could feel my horn glow happily as I approached, unable to hold in my excitement. I hadn't seen her in such a long time that it took me a while to recognize her. Pausing, I focused on sending my magic flowing through my mane and tail, a very weak wind waving it slightly. If you are a royal, you must be sure to at least show your heritage, Princess Luna had reprimanded me when I was reluctant to learn the flashy move. Twilight must have felt my surge of magic, because she immediately turned and smiled politely, bowing as though it were one of the Day and Night Princesses. I rolled my eyes, "I will have none of that, Twilight Sparkle, I have no crown upon my head, I am just another pony for now." I joked, hoping to break the ice with her.

Luckily it worked, and this time she lightly smiled in amusement, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Princess Soul Symphony."

What In Tarnations?

Twilight Sparkle seemed to blush in embarrassment as I frowned, "Please, do not call me Princess. As flattered as any pony would be, I prefer to be treated like any other regular pony. I am not used to being treated like a princess." I explained to her, rushing into my next sentence in order to prevent her from apologizing as I saw her begin to form the words, "I heard that Pony Ville is quite the place to visit? I would love to know all about it, and to meet your friends." I politely regarded, watching her eyes light up as she heard my comment. "Really? That's great, I can show you the library; where Spike and I live - we have so many books full of information it's amazing. Then we have the Sugar cube corner; you can buy all sorts of treats there-" I watched Twilight chatter excitedly about her home, keen to tell me more. However, her friend shoved a hoof in her mouth and smiled awkwardly. "Um, sorry to interrupt, Twi', but I'm sure she can hear all about Pony Ville later," her soft southern accent drew my attention away from Twilight's rather strange expression, and I sighed with relief as Twilight calmed down.

"I'm Applejack, a friend of Twilight's. I live and work in Apple Acres, it's mighty fine to meet ya." She gave me her hoof to shake, smiling in a friendly manner as I took it and shook firmly. "I heard that one of the Princesses was coming down, but I was expecting some pony like Celestia, or Luna." Applejack truthfully told me. I nodded understandingly, I would have thought of the two Princesses too if I heard a royal was visiting. "It was nice to meet ya, princess, but I must be leavin'. Apple trees to buck, I haven't got another minute to spare. Bye Twilight." With that, Applejack was gone, the sound of her hooves fading as she pulled her apple cart away. I stared at the spot where she stood, feeling very strange.

"Wow, you won't have a problem with my other friends if you got along well with Applejack." Twilight piped in, having been silent for a while with a very thoughtful face. "I'd love to show you my other friends, but I do believe that we'd be very late for our lunch at the cafe." Twilight continued, turning to walk further into town and towards a small cafe on the corner. Startled, I trotted after her, having forgotten we had even arranged the booking at all. "Oh yes, thank you for reminding me. Afterwards, I think I would quite like to see your library, books always fascinated me when I was a young filly." I softly spoke, my thoughts drifting back to that feeling I'd felt. Oblivious to my distraction, Twilight spoke animatedly about a new spell she'd been learning, whilst I sipped at my Chamomile tea and nodded along to the conversation. "This spell is perfect when...." Twilight launched into more detailed explanations of some other spell that apparently increased the amount of time a pony could go without sleep.

To make Twilight Sparkle know that I was paying some attention, I decided to state my opinion, "That would be very useful, almost like having some coffee in the mornings." I joked, cracking a smile from both myself and Twilight as she agreed.
"I used to use the spell often when I was in the Magic Academy, I've got a terrible habit of staying up late reading." Twilight confessed, and part of me tingled in happiness that she was possibly warming up to me. If it felt that nice meeting a new pony, I wonder what it would feel like to make a true friend? What about a lover? Would it feel different? I couldn't stop thinking about it, this whole 'social' experience was new and strange, and felt foreign. I was so engrossed in my thoughts that I didn't realize Twilight was calling my name until she was right in my face.

"Soul Symphony? Princess? Soul? Symphony?!" She had a worried expression, and I wasn't surprised. Who wouldn't be worried if you had a Princess staring blankly at you as though she was a living statue. Shaking my head to dispel my previous thoughts, my cheeks were stained red with my guilty blush. "I'm sorry for not paying attention - as interesting as your ideas and thoughts are on spell making, I have been distracted all lunch with this feeling I have been getting recently. It's really bothering me, but I have never been able to rid myself of it..." I trailed off, the royal side of me yelling at me for telling a pony that I have troubles, and that I should keep them to myself. However, I was persuaded by the gentle, filly in me that reminded me that there are ponies you can trust. "Princess, if there is anything bothering you, that Celestia or Luna cannot understand, I'd be happy to try help you?" Twilight Sparkle softly urged, amethyst eyes full of overwhelming concern.

"Oh Twilight, I do not wish to burden you with my problem," I broke off, looking away uncomfortably as I fought to regain control over my emotions. Desperation, curiosity, and hope filled me. "I..I..." I stuttered, watching Twilight lean forward to catch my words. "I...I'm sorry Twilight." I panicked and backed out last minute, putting a few gold coins on the table and rushing my goodbyes before galloping back to my home.

The cold air stung my lungs with each breath, my heart thumping wildly in my chest as I galloped through the thick snow and along the road back to my house. Fluttering nervously, my wings shifted uncomfortably beneath my cloak, yearning to spread through the air and fly me away somewhere else. However, I kept at it, relentless pushing my legs to go faster until my house came into view. I opened the door with my magic and stumbled in, tripping on the doorstep and tumbling until I hit the wall. A snowstorm was growing outside, the wind blowing a torrent of snow in through my door. With a buck, I had slammed the door shut, leaning against it as I breathed heavily.

That was close...too close...