Two weeks.

Two weeks since the tragic event in which Autumn Breeze lost her life. To Twilight's surprise, Ruby had recovered quickly from the events, so Twilight decided now would be the time to propose the idea of training to Ruby. Twilight didn't want Ruby to be trained to fight, but this Argon character seemed to want Ruby for his own underhooved reasons, so Ruby would need to know how to defend herself.

"Ruby!" Twilight called.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Ruby was lying on her bed, her wings outstretched, and looking through the window when she heard her name.

"Ruby!"

"Hmmm?" Ruby muttered as she picked herself up off of her bed. "I wonder what Mom wants."

"Yes, Mom?" Ruby called, looking for her mother.

"Over here, Ruby." Came a voice from Ruby's right.

Ruby turned towards the source of the voice. Her eyes fell on not only her mother, but Shining Armour, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Celesita, Luna, and Cadence.

"What're you all doing?" Ruby inquired.

Twilight heaved a sigh. "Ruby... We need to talk to you."

"What about?" Ruby asked, cocking her head.

"Ruby... You've been through a lot," Twilight began, watching her daughter with a nervous expression on her face. "and due to recent events, we feel the need to offer you this."

"Offer me what?" Ruby asked again, quickly becoming nervous.

"We wish to train you in the art of combat!" Luna stated abruptly.

Ruby took a step back in shock. Train? In battle?

"Why?" Ruby squeaked. Her voice no louder than Fluttershy's.

"Ruby..." Cadence began as she walked over to Ruby, and wrapped her hoof around her. "Listen. We don't know who this Argon character is or what his motives are. So please. Do this for us."

Ruby held her breath, and slowly nodded her head. "Fine..." She relented, exhaling as she did so. "So how will the training work?" She inquired.

Shining Armour stepped towards Ruby, a smile on his face. "Twily will help you first. Then Rainbow Dash."

"Okay, then." Ruby muttered, still nervous about the prospect of training.

"Then let us proceed to the training grounds!" Luna exclaimed loudly.

"Here we go again." Celestia sighed. "Luna's always had a soft spot for combat."

...

"So, Ruby." Twilight began as she took out a book. "I want to keep combat to a minimum right now. Okay?"

"Okay." Ruby replied.

"Good. So right now I want to find out more about your magic."

"By magic you mean..." Ruby inquired, looking to her wings as she gave them a little flap.

Twilight giggled at the sight of her daughter looking at her wings. "Yes, Ruby. Your deity magic. Now according to this book..." Twilight trailed off as she opened her book and started skimming through it, muttering to herself all the while.

"Mom? What's that book about?" Ruby asked her mother.

"This?" Twilight asked, levitating the book to show Ruby. "Scale of Magic by Starswirl the Bearded. He had a deity, just like you."

"Really?" Ruby inquired, still looking at the front cover of the book. "But wasn't Starswirl a unicorn?"

"Yes he was, but the Deity of Magic allowed him to cycle to between an earth pony and a unicorn."

Weird. Ruby thought to herself as her mother turned her attention back to her book.I wonder what he has on the other deities... If he has anything at all on them.

As if on cue, Twilight spoke up, bringing Ruby back to reality. "Ah! The Crystal Deity!"

"Wait." Ruby interrupted. "How does Starswirl have information on the Crystal Deity when I've never met him?"

"Well I would assume that Starswirl upon his departure from Canterlot went to track down the other vessels and attempt to learn more about them before they... Passed on." Celestia answered.

"So you're saying that there was a pony that held the Crystal Deity before me?" Ruby inquired.

"I should think so." Came the reply.

Ruby nodded her head. "I suppose that makes sense." Ruby turned to her mother. "So mom. What does that book have on the Crystal Deity?"

"Hmm? Oh! Yes." Twilight muttered, snapping out of her thoughts, "Well it says here that your wings should function like Pegasi wings, and that they should work on your first try, because the deity itself holds all the flight knowledge, not you."

"I guess that makes sense." Ruby said, more to herself than to her mother.

"It also says that your wings can also function like a unicorn's horn, but quite differently." Twilight carried on, her eyes never leaving her book. "Ruby, can you feel some magic inside of you?"

Ruby concentrated, scoping herself for any feeling of magic. After a few seconds she came across her 'magic reserves' as her mother called them. To her surprise, they were brimming with magic, just waiting to be used.

"Yes, Mom." She replied.

"Good." Twilight said, smiling at her daughter, "Now I want you to take some of your magic, and send it to your wings."

Ruby did as she was told, and pushed a healthy amount of Magic to her wings. All of a sudden, they were enveloped in a red aura that Ruby was all too familiar with. The fibers of magic pulsing through her wings, as if they had a life of their own. The sight of the energy dancing on Ruby's wings was breath taking. Everypony gasped at the sight. Once Twilight recovered, she turned back to her book.

"Okay, so the book says that you can use your magic in a number of different ways, Ruby. However, today we'll be focusing on combat. So what I want you to do is something basic, flap your wings at me."

Ruby did so and gave her wings a strong flap in her mothers direction. The energy flew out of her wings hard and fast. Twilight only just managed to put up a shield to block her daughters attack. The energy collided with the shield and dissipated, the shield shaking in the process.

"Good, Ruby." Twilight complimented. "Now I want you to hold your wings out in front of you, and concentrate on a point between them.

Ruby did as she was told, and held her wings out in front of her. Concentrating directly between her wings, a small red glow began to form.

"Now channel your energy into your fixed point" Twilight administrated.

Ruby took some of her magic, and channeled it into the red glow. Slowly, it began to grow, until it touched both of Ruby's wings.

Twilight looked around for a suitable target, eventually her eyes landed on a lone tree. Twilight looked at it more carefully. It was dead, and it seemed like a suitable target.

"Attack that tree." She instructed her daughter.

Ruby sent her energy ball hurtling at the tree. When the ball struck, it blew up, engulfing the whole tree in a red glow, too bright to look at. When the glow had subsided, there was no hint that a tree even stood there. There was just a big crater the size of a fully grown dragon's head.

"I think that's too powerful for you to practice again at this time, Ruby." Celestia commented.

"Yeah." Ruby half-conciously responded.

"Ruby," Twilight called to her daughter. "I want you to try some defensive magic."

Ruby diverted her attention back to her mother, waiting for her next set of instructions.

"I want you to focus on a point in front of you."

Ruby knew what her mother was asking her to do, and poured her energy into the point, creating a sphere of energy again.

"Good, Ruby." Twilight complimented, looking quite happy. "Now I want you to take hold of the sphere mentally and shape it into a shield."

Ruby did as she was told and pictured the sphere changing shape. To her surprise, the energy ball did just as she wanted it to. Grinning at this fact, Ruby quickly shaped it into a shield.

"Good, Ruby. Now I'm going to fire a spell at you, are you ready?"

"Yes." Ruby said confidently. Ready to see how strong her shield would hold against her mothers attack.

Twilight charged up a spell and sent it at Ruby. Ruby however was ready. Ready for the lavender bolt that was hurtling towards her shield, but as she watched it come closer she became ensconced by it. She didn't know why, but something about the bolt seemed beautiful to her. She unconsciously dropped her shield, allowing the bolt to plant a firm hit on her chest.

"Oof!" Ruby groaned as she staggered back a few steps.

"Ruby!" Twilight screamed as she rushed over towards her daughter, wrapping her in a firm embrace. "I'm so sorry! Are you okay?!"

"I'm fine, Mom." Ruby groaned. "Although it would be easier if I could breathe."

"Oh, sorry, Ruby." Twilight said, releasing her daughter from her embrace.

Celestia giggled at the sight, earning her the attention of her sister.

"Sister? Whatever do you find so funny?" Luna inquired, giving her sister a confused look.

"Hmmm? Oh, pardon me, Luna. I was merely looking at Twilight and Ruby and noticing the sweet, loving relationship those two share. I rarely see it anymore." Celestia explained quickly.

"I see." Luna said, looking back at Twilight and Ruby. "We're so busy with our usual duties we rarely get to see the bonds of family, aside from our own. I wish we were in happier times, sister."

"So do I, Luna." Celestia said, wrapping her sister in a hug.

So do I.

Author's Note

I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I know it's been ages since I last updated! I've had a million ideas coursing through my head, and one of my friends is staying at my place for a month. He likes my iPad. O_O So chapter updates will be a bit distant from one another.

P.S. I'm writing a chapter of a new series. The idea was screaming at me 'Put me on paper, please!' So it'll be out... Then I'll divert my attention back to this series.

P.P.S. Like I might have not stated before? I don't know, but as always, I'm open to criticism!