Tromping down the halls, hooves silently falling on thick carpet, Lucky Forest walked with trepidation towards the Royal Hall. His hardened and calloused hooves felt tickled at the unusually soft ground beneath them, but that didn't matter to him now. No, what mattered now was that he was hoofsteps away from one of the most important ponies in all of Equestria! His skin tingled beneath his coat, his mind wandered in every direction, every possibility roved in his mind. Beside him, nobles and royals shifted, but no doubt out of shock of his closeness; these ponies had no reason to be nervous.
Forest had barely laid his haunches down on one of the cushion-y surfaces placed out for them when a Royal Guard stomped her hoof and called for the Waiting Hall to empty into the Royal Hall. Forest was among the first, eagerly pushing passed the nobles, of whom grumbled at him and his pushy behavior, into the room. Once in the Royal Hall, Forest nearly keeled over; never having been in such a large room before, he was immediately awed at the scene before him. Tiled flooring as far as the eye could see, drapes with colorful emblems on them, stained glass depicting colorful scenes of history, and to top it off, an elegant red carpet leading to two Princesses that were seated at the front of the room.
The newest Princess, Princess Twilight, was no doubt shadowing her former mentor, as she appeared to be doing her best to match the regal mare's stance, just as Forest was trying to mirror the stature of the noble next to him. Glancing to make sure he had it right, he watched as the silver-coated red-maned Unicorn uncomfortably moved away from him, shooting Forest a disgusted look as he did so. Ah well, Forest thought to himself. He was used to it, but soon he wouldn't have to be!
Giddiness returning, Forest could hardly stand still as the mares dealt with each and every pony before them. The Day Court the the second most busy of the courts, falling second to the newly established Crystal, or Love Court. Maybe he'd visit that one next...
The line stretched, with enough ponies to reach double-digits waiting for their chance, not including the ponies that had no doubt taken up the Waiting Hall Forest and the others had just left. With at least twenty ponies in front of him, Forest took the time to look around some more. He had seen pictures of this place in the paper, but no picture in any paper could do this place justice.
Four emblems took up the room, and on the right side of Princess Celestia was her Sun, and on the left of Princess Twilight was her Magic Star. The deep lavender complemented the pink star, just as the regal white flattered the light orange and yellow sun. The line moved forward, and Forest focused on another part of the room. The embroidery was no match for the glasswork which became more and more noticeable as the sun rose, causing colors to spill across the ground. He admired them for a moment before taking another step forward.
His left hind leg twitched as he inched forward ever so slowly. To keep himself under control, he sat down for a moment, nipping at the whitish fur covering his forehoof. Time seemed to drag on for hours, and while Forest didn't want to think that his request was more important than any demands of the other ponies here, he couldn't help but sigh when he heard noble after noble request for the same thing: Oh, Princess Celestia, can you please help my business by blessing it for the unth-ieth time?
His thoughts jumbled and twisted as he gazed with increasing excitement at each piece of artwork. His sister, Loving Memory, would jump with elation if she could witness what he was seeing now! His own wonder was indescribably large, and hers would no doubt overload her system. A hoofstep forward, and then another, and another as he thought about his family. He kept thinking about them, it made time go faster. Would they be happy for him? Forest grinned, of course they'd be!
Two ponies in front of him, now. Luckily for him, they went up together. Forest watched with leg-twitching fear and mane-knotting exhilaration as his time before the Princesses came near. It had taken years to mull up enough courage to book a visit with the Princess, and now was no time to back down! He had dreamed of this request becoming a reality since he was just a foal, and while he was proud of his Earth pony origins, it was time for him to follow his dreams. A loud bang interrupted his thoughts as the door hundreds of feet behind him shut, letting in dozens more ponies and guards. With that, he was coaxed forward by an Earth Pony guard. "The Princesses will see you, now," The gruff, although feminine, voice ordered.
It only took a few seconds, but it felt like years had weathered him and stolen his youthful bounce before he was in front of both of the Princesses' gazes. Forest basked in the keen smile of Princess Celestia, and the enthusiastic one of Princess Twilight; he dipped to a bow, looking at the floor momentarily until Princess Celestia asked him to rise. "Hello," Her voice was unreal. He had heard it heightened by microphones and voice recordings, but nothing compared to the beautiful noise hitting his ears now. "What is your name?" He smiled, took a deep breath, and opened his mouth.
"Ah'm Lucky Forest, Princess!" Forest cursed his accent momentarily, hoping she understood that he meant to say I'm, not Um. She seemed to understand, as she smiled and nodded, greeting him using his name this time before asking why he was in the Royal Hall today. His hooves became jittery, his hind legs feeling like goo; Forest had to fight to stay standing, fearing that he would seem uncivilized or unsophisticated, or, Celestia forbid, disrespectful in front of the Princesses.
Lucky Forest was stricken with something akin to fear in that moment. He took a second to cough lightly, waving away the concern drooling over Princess Twilight's features, chalking it down to nervousness. How would Celestia take his request? Would she outright deny it, tell him to leave her Hall? Banish him? No, she wasn't so unkind. She might even ask him why he wanted this. Surely she was understanding! And maybe he wasn't even the first pony to request this. Without further thinking, something he regretted later, he blurted to both Princesses, as well as the entire population in the Royal Hall, "Ah want'a be a Un'a'corn!"
Shock filtered through the room, but not silence. Princess Celestia stared at him with slightly wider eyes, and Princess Twilight's threatened to bug out of her skull. While those two were silent, the nobles and other subjects, both who would see the Princesses after him and who had already seen them, whispered not-so-quietly amongst themselves. His thoughts that she wouldn't understand him through his thick accent evaporated, everyone else clearly had.
Lucky Forest stirred uneasily as their vocalized thoughts hit his ears, forcing him to flick them against his skull. Most of their words were downright unkind, some awed at his courage, but all questioning his intelligence. While he couldn't hear any joining in on the questioning, Forest felt the gazes of the Royal Guards graze him with uncertain irritation. Did they think he was wasting her time with a joke? It was an honest request! To further his point, he was going to begin to tell her why, but only managed a "Celestia, please!" before gawking at himself in silence. His liquid courage became just that, his only saving grace was that he had not slumped to the ground like the heap of garbage the nobles were describing.
His eyes darted around the room, the beauty of it draining to become a room containing what he didn't know was his worst fear. The artworks seemed to leer mockingly at him, the threadwork peering ominously at him as though they wanted to reach out and strangle him. He looked for some comfort desperately, but froze when his eyes locked onto that of another stallion. The guard looked beyond furious, and Forest knew why. That guard's brother had just made a fool of himself, and likely his whole family if the press had anything to say about it, in front of two Princesses.
Wanting to block out his brother's anger, Forest redirected his gaze back to the Princesses in front of him. Princess Celestia's warm smile had fallen to a slightly open-mouthed scowl. Forest moved to Twilight, whose brows had furrowed in conjecture. Neither of their eyes left the shamed Earth Pony before them, not even when Princess Celestia had announced that the Day Court would resume in one-half hour.
The Day Court resumed when the time limit constructed by Princess Celestia was up, however it was now completely run by Twilight, much to the discomfort of the Nobles who had returned. Princess Celestia was seated at the left side of her most trusted Guard, Shining Armor. Across from her was a rather livid Luna, on her right side was hers, a Batpony Unicorn stallion who went by the name Crescent Dreams, although Luna had confided into her once that that name was just an alias. Celestia turned towards Shining, preparing to dismiss him, when Luna's loud voice interjected, "This is all thou fault, Tia."
Surprise resonated through Celestia, and upon looking, the same shock had taken over Shining's usually stoic face. She turned back towards her sister, and Luna continued, the Council Room booming with accusations, "Thy ponies were not yet used to a second Princess, and thou added a third, and then a fourth! One of which thou used magic to elevate her not only to that status, but to gift her wings she did not need! We warned you, We told you of what would happen; Our ponies were traditional, and would do anything to keep it that way! We knew that thy ponies, even if a millennium has passed, were the same. Twilight Sparkle is unfavorable, just as Princess Cadenza is in any court but her own." Celestia raised a hoof to half this tirade of accusations against her, but Luna paid her no mind, "Thou have ruined countless lives in the past, Tia. When will thy stop doing so, Tia? Thy are well aware that We had to send several ponies to ensure the safety of the one with the request that shifted today's outlook. We cannot grant that same safety to all subject to protect them from Thou!"
Celestia brought her hoof to her muzzle, rubbing at her cheek in an old nervous habit she had thought she lost centuries ago. Her eyes shut, her head tilted so that if her eyes were to open, they would immediately look upon the table. "Lulu, please," she whispered softly, her voice becoming ragged and quiet in comparison to Luna's shouting anger. Luna was standing now, the stars in her mane becoming brighter, the air around her becoming as cold as the night sky.
"Do not use that name with Us to get Us to calm down, Tia." Her hoof slammed on the table, and Celestia was forced to look up. While Luna's stare was still angry, there were tears in her dark eyes. "That pony knew how thou elevated Twilight Sparkle to where she stands now. Thou did it for her, why not for him? This is thou fault, Tia. This is all thou fault. If thou wanted to move ponies out of their traditional way, thou should have done it slowly. Thou actions have stirred uncertainty and hope in subjects that will be disappointed, and thou have brought forth anger and wrath in subjects who want nothing more than to live their lives as they always have. The next generation will grow under four Princesses until Twilight Sparkle dies, and then there will be three, or wilt thou bring forth another mage to take her place? Nopony is safe from thou when thou has their mind set on something, or someone, and you do; thou want to change the lives of ponies who have existed in harmony for hundreds of years without thou interference! Say it, Tia, speak the truth so that We may know how lost thou art in thine own perfection!"
Celestia sat in the room, her wing wrapped protectively over Shining just in case Luna should turn her wrath towards the brother of the newest Princess. For hours this continued, the sun lowering itself beyond the horizon until it was time for the Night Court to begin. Luna had placed Celestia under a strong glare, quickly shutting her mouth as Twilight came into the room to tell them of the shift in powers. Luna thanked her briefly, assuring her that she would send a representative soon. Celestia cringed; Luna was not done with her. Looking at the pony to her sister's right, she saw the Guard was as stoic as Shining Armor was, the latter regaining his professionalism soon after it had broken. He had clearly heard all of this before.
Luna's anger fizzled and was brought to a physical form as her ethereal mane lifted above her head, her tail following. Luna flew above the Council table, her pupils disappearing as a moonlit glow took over her eyes. Celestia suspected that while her sister's rage was based on recent events, something more was festering beneath those glowering eyes. Her thoughts were confirmed as a beam of light shot directly into Celestia's cranium, her sister's voice entering her skull. Celestia barely had the strength to lift her hoof, letting Shining know that she wasn't being hurt.
"Sister," Luna did not use her regal voice, likely to protect Celestia. "Thou knows what thou must do. That pony pleaded for thou to assist him in his endeavors, it is only just that thou answer his calls." Celestia picked up on the desperation in her sister's voice, one that hadn't been there in hundreds of years. "Thou must tell him that it is not right, that thou cannot merely change the race of another pony. Thou must come up with an excuse for Twilight Sparkle, thou did that on thou's own discretion. If thou must, thou must strike down Twilight Sparkle. We know that thou do not have the knowledge of the spell that can turn an Alicorn into another race. Thou can cast an illusion spell, but thou knowest that will work temporarily. Or, thou have the choice of granting his wish."
"Luna, please, listen to me," For the first time in hours, Luna was silent. Celestia used this to her advantage, speaking on her behalf, "I cannot do such a thing! Listen to me when I say that I would like to, but it is as you said: Our ponies live by tradition, this would surely cause an uproar!" She felt her physical form back up slightly as Luna let out a growl, her volume escalating.
"Is it because he is not your ever faithful student?" Celestia's eyes shot open to stare up at the pony currently in her mind. The light still leaving Luna's horn would have been blinding if Celestia was not used to staring at the sun for long periods of time. She tried to shake her head, her lips stuttering, but found herself unable to move. In her own mind, Celestia was forced to be silent. Clearly her time to speak was over. "We agreed together as both sisters, and co-rulers of Equestria: We will not alter the species of another pony should their life not be in danger, or have thou forgotten? To Our knowledge, We have performed such an alteration on three ponies, two Unicorns of whom would have died if their horns were not removed, and a Pegasus mare whose wings were damaged beyond repair and who had asked thou personally to remove them. We have never made an Earth Pony into a Pegasus or a Unicorn, nor have We changed a Pegasi to a Unicorn, and vice versa. And We have never changed anypony to an Alicorn." While her eyes did not move, Celestia felt the heat of her sister's glare intensify. "Or have thou done it in Our absence? We know that thou was more than eager to do so for Twilight Sparkle. We think that mayhaps thou hath done some more experimenting with thou beloved subjects than We know."
The glow faded, and Celestia was dropped to the floor she didn't know she had left. Her head ached and stung with the pressure of Luna being in it, and Celestia had to fight to keep her head held upright. It had been a long time since she had used the Shared Mind spell, and an even longer time since she had done it with Luna. The mare in question had turned to her right-hoof stallion, instructing him to take over the matters of her night for her. The stallion did so without question, and the room went from four to three.
Looking out the window to her far left, Celestia noticed that during their conversation, Luna had not only brought forth her moon, but dusted the sky with brilliant stars and constellations. She fought tears; Twilight Sparkle had deserved to become an Alicorn, but so had many ponies before her. The difference was that Twilight Sparkle was Celestia's own personal student, and she had seen that talent and birthright firsthoof. How many other ponies had such talent, and had just been overlooked? Celestia lost herself in her thoughts for many hours, her ethereal mane fading to it's fillyhood glory, the cotton-pink drooping around her shoulders. As the time passed, Celestia rose from her seat, of her own volition this time, and wandered over to the window. Placing her hooves on the windowsill, she gazed beyond the glass. Luna was wrong about one thing: She had not made anypony other than Twilight Sparkle an Alicorn, however, she was right in assuming that Celestia did not have the power to remove wings or horns from Alicorns, nor had she been wrong in guessing that Celestia had tampered with biological magic more than the history books alluded to.
Behind her, Luna, too, had risen. She trotted to the door across from Celestia, stopping only to speak to her distraught sister, "We are not asking, there will be no please: We demand that thou think about what We have said, and thou would find it best to find the solution before long, Celestia." The door shut behind her, and the room was empty of all Night-ponies.
