Another Twilight

Chapters

A New Sunrise
Explorations and Explanations (Part 1)
Explorations and Explanations (part 3)
Assessment
Of cakes and holidays
Explorations and Explanations (part 2)

A New Sunrise

It was late into the night as guard came knocking up on my door. For a moment, I considered just ignoring him. Alas, I can’t do that, especially not given the situation. After all, even rookies knew not to disturb me after sunset unless something absolutely required my attention.

I groaned, rubbed my temples in vain hope of wishing the tiredness away and, resigning to my fate, slowly crawled out of the bed. I shuddered a bit looking into the mirror. No wonder that ‘Do not disturb Princess Celestia’s sleep’ is an unwritten law amongst the castle staff.

Willing my hair to untangle itself and start flowing like it usually did, I donned my regalia, piece by piece, several combs working through my fur at the same time.

Finally satisfied with my appearance - not looking like somepony who was dead for several days, that is - I trotted to the door, opening it with a flick of my magic. I was greet with a sight of a pegasus guard with a scroll under his wing.

The moment I opened the door he snapped to attention, “Your Highness!”

I gave him a curt nod, “What reason might there be so as to wake me in the middle of the night…” I had to pause for a second to find his name among the ocean of others that I knew, “Fast Wing?” My grumpiness upon waking probably doesn’t help matters at all I idly mused. Oh well, at least my memory serves me right, judging from how his posture seems a bit more rigid now.

“Princess Celestia, a missive from Fillydelphia just came via magical fire. The seal has three dark wings on it,” he said, presenting the scroll to me.

It was in my magic and in front of my eyes before he finished unfurling his wing; three dark wings were a bad sign. A very bad sign.

Seal of Dark Wing means a dark magic disturbance. Stamp with three wings means that the magnitude of it is at least town-wide. To take care of a magical user so strong, will either require a squad of battle mages or my personal attention. Seeing as it will take more than a day for them to get to the point of disturbance, the choice that magus Sunlight made was rather obvious.

I skimmed through the letter after breaking the seal. According to the report Sunlight received, the town of Hollow Shades was where the disturbance was happening. The reason wasn’t any of the greater scale dark magic spells as I expected. No, the town was merely subjected to an unrepressed aura of dark magic. So, either someone is doing this on purpose… No, that is stupid. There’s absolutely no reason for someone strong enough to do something like that. So, a controlled dark surge. Curious...

However, they were unable to identify the culprit without searching the town, which proved itself impossible; the unicorn of the group couldn’t keep a mental shield up for more than five minutes.

With a pulse of my magic, I teleported the scroll to the archives, “Sergeant,” he snapped to attention, “relay that I will take care of the matter. Also, pass down to my secretary that all my official business for tomorrow is canceled.” Beige Prose will have a few kind words for me, that is sure. But if my guess is right…

In a flash of magic I was gone, off on my way to Hollow Shades.

~~~

I reappeared from my last teleport well above the town, around a mile up in the air, I think. Even from up here, I could feel the sheer amounts of power exuded from one of the squares. After a quick look over from my vantage point, I went into a steep dive, as I closed my wings, deciding that teleportation may not be the best choice.

I flared my wings few dozens of meters or so of the ground, slowing my descent; landing with a dull thud, trotting instinctively along one of the streets to bleed off my momentum. There was nothing on the streets. No dead bodies. No destruction. No sounds. All this only served to reinforce my theory as to what happened.

I cantered up to the closest building, checking with my magic if the door was locked. It opened without any resistance, and so I strolled inside. There, I was met with the same eerie silence that permeated the whole town.

I checked the house, room by room, for its inhabitants. Finally, I found them in the bedroom; stallion and mare - both unicorns - lay peacefully in the bed as thought they were sleeping.

I cast the blanket aside with a golden glow of my magic; both of them lay motionless, without pulse. So, death in the sleep. Hm… I covered them again and left the house.

I went off into the town.

~~~

After coming up with the same results in about a dozen houses, I was as sure about what happened as I could be. Pausing for a moment to recall the layout of the town, I went purposefully for the square where my little prodigy resided. I stopped at the edge of the little plaza of sorts, looking for the reason of all this.

And here she was. Little lavender unicorn filly with a mane of dark indigo, shot through by two stripes, one pink and other purple. She sat there on her rump in her trance-like state, eyes unseeing and filled with darkness, a dark blue smoke flowing out of them.

No older than six years, and already mastered… Samatha, was the name of it, I think?

I took a tentative step towards her. Waited for reaction. When none came, I took another, and then one more. Soon, I was trotting towards her at a moderate pace. I crossed little square in a matter of seconds. Looking at her sternly, I fell to my haunches, thinking about the best way to go about this.

I sat in silence, contemplating my options.

So far, it doesn’t seem like her fault, but… I’ll have to hear the whole story from her.

In the end, I decided, all evidence provided, to go for broke.

I unfurled my wings, extended them towards the filly, and brought her in for a hug, “Shh, little one. It will all be okay. Everything will be okay,” I whispered, stroking her mane slowly, my body taking the brunt of the magic that filly continued to radiate. I lit my horn lightly to start cutting the flow of her magic out, one strand after another.

It continued on for a little while, with me clutching her to my chest and murmuring calming nothings into her ear. To my immense relief, she didn’t try to burn herself out at the intrusion, nor did her subconsciousness let the magical energy collapse in on itself, and as such, her presence started diminishing.

Eventually, I switched to humming a sad, peaceful tune instead of comforting her with words. The night slowly wane away, giving way to a new day, as I hummed my soon-to-be protégé to sleep.

Author's Note

I don't know what I'm gonna do with this. I had an idea, destination even, for this story. Than I gone and wrote this chapter all wrong. Well, in the end, I think it was for the better. ~~Just so you know, this was originally meant as an M-gore chapter~~ :facehoof:

I'm kind of at a loss right now, so a new chapter(hence it's marked incomplete for the time being), if there ever will be, may not come soon. Or my inspiration will hit me over the head with a spiked club and it will be out in a few days. ~~As if.~~

I would like to think that the tune Celestia is humming is His Theme by Toby Fox.

Explorations and Explanations (Part 1)

Everything was warm. I purred in content, snuggling deeper into a white, warm blanket that was draped over me. It was softer than anything I have ever felt before, and as such it was an anomaly. My sleepy mind, however, could not have been bothered by such petty details.

It also tickles me, somehow, I noted half-consciously, giggling.

I almost drifted off to sleep again, barely conscious as I was, when my blanket started moving. Trying to clutch it with my hooves brought no positive results.

My bed suddenly moved underneath me as well - which gave my mind a little start - and soon, my eyelids were assaulted by viscious rays of morning sunlight.

I tried to turn away from them, but something - or rather, someone, as the voice attested - held me fast, “It is time to wake up, little one.”

I flailed my hooves about a little bit, trying to get free from the magical hold that was subjecting me to an Evil Death Beam of Waking Up, but was met with little success… and a giggle from my cruel captor.

In the end, I opted to try my best pout on this villainous tormentor.

“Now, now filly,” the voice spoke to me in a mock haughtiness, “I have had to deal with many a foal before, and dare I say, I think I have worked up quite an immunity to the Pleading Pout of Doom,”

I giggled at the silliness, and - seeing no other options - opened my eyes. The pony that looked back at me was beauty incarnate.

Her pristine white fur seemed to shine in the sunlight that was pouring through the open window, framing her perfect body. Her hair, a variety of breathtaking pastel colors, was flowing behind her, caught in an elegant, never ending dance with the unseen winds. Her horn was straight and polished, filed into a fine point. Her majestic wings - I think I know what I used as a blanket now - grandiose in their size yet not intimidating at all, but inviting and comfortable-looking. And eyes! This eyes, filled with wisdom and knowledge and kindness… and with a little mischievous sparkle dancing inside them.

I think I sat there, mouth agape, staring at her for a few minutes. Once I started coming back to my senses, I felt some thought nagging me at the back of my mind. She has horn. And wings. Horn. Wings.

I didn’t think my jaw could’ve fallen further than when I got my first glance at her. I was gravely mistaken.

The moment my brain kicked back into gear, I hurriedly tried to bow, tripping over the bed sheets beneath me - I didn’t even notice when I was put on the bed, such was my fascination - tumbling head over hooves rather comically if I do say so myself.

I was rewarded with a giggle for my trouble, and one of the gargantuan wings stroking my mane with all the care one can imagine.

“No need for that my little pony,” she said gently as I struggled to my hooves, untangling myself from the sheets, “It seems you know me already, but I think I should introduce myself anyway,” she smirked at me, I swear! “I am Aurea Sol Celestia, crown Princess of Equestria, Rising Sun of Equus,” momentary pause, and there it was again, “You can just call me Celestia. Now, how about you tell me your name, little one?” she quirked an eyebrow at me, elegantly.

I just sat on the bed, lost to the world Prin... Celestia allowed me to call her by name I think I even drooled a bit. Admittedly, not my best moment.

Eventually, I felt Celestia poking me with a wing, still waiting for an answer.

“IamTwilight,” I blurted out, “I mean, my name is Twilight Sparkle, Pri… Celestia,” I stumbled a little on her title.

“Very well, Twilight,” she rose to her hooves, stepping off of the bed, ”We have a lot to discuss, but I believe that breakfast,” my tummy rumbled at the word, to which I pouted slightly, “is in order,”

Celestia stopped near the door for a moment, “I will be right back, Twilight. Feel free to entertain yourself,” and left with that. The moment she walked out of the room, I finally regained control of my own eyes and looked my current residence over.

I was in a spacious bedroom, sitting in the middle of a huge, four-poster bed which was positioned in one of the corners of the room. It also had three doors - including the one that Celestia walked out of - and an open balcony. This last tidbit surprised me a little, actually; there was no door there, no curtain, just an open entryway. I decided to ask Celestia about it later.

The room itself was nondescript - hardly suited for a Princess - its size aside, with barely any decorations or furniture: bed, desk - and a few Princess sized cushions, obviously - several bookshelves and a fireplace. Than again, Celestia was not known for being lavish, so the relative bareness of the room didn’t surprise me much.

In fact, there was only one account - which I remembered, anyway - in the known history of Celestia indulging herself in something… extravagant. Namely, the Creation of Celestial Tower nine hundred, eighty five years ago; the tower, around which the Canterlot city would be later built. It is said to have been raised from the ground up by Celestia herself within the span of one night.

The tower itself seems to have been built using only two materials - white and black marble. The two weave around and intertwine with each other, all the way to the top forming intricate and magnificent patterns. It stands proudly at the height which rivals that of the highest roof of the canterlot castle. Tower’s entrance is a grand, golden oak double door. It has neither windows nor balconies, and no one but Celestia herself have ever been inside to see what it is that is hidden there.

Once I was done with a casual look over, I quickly ran to the edge of the bed, hopped down, and walked up to the closest door. I tried opening it with my hooves, but, while valiant, the attempt was futile. I flared my magic, and, with little effort, pushed the door open.

I found myself in what I assumed to be Celestia’s personal bathroom. It was even bigger than the bedroom, too!

But then I noticed something that sent my mind for a loop. Namely, the fact that one of the walls was missing. Completely missing. Like, there was no wall to speak of. Instead of the wall, there was a panoramic view of Equestria. What in the buck is wrong with you, Celestia!

After a minute or two to calm down, I reasoned that there’s probably some spell installed, as well as in her bedroom. Calming myself like this, I decided to pay attention to the interior at last.

About two thirds of it were taken up by a bath - more like a miniature swimming pool, really - with rest of the space hosting a stack of towels and two closets; one of them was even magically warded.

After a minute of silent contemplation, my curiosity got better of me. I cast a magical sight spell on myself - shame I can’t just switch to it whenever I so wish yet, like wearing goggles - to take a peek at the wards. Before that, thought, I couldn’t help but cast a glance towards the ‘wall’.

No magical residue… My left eye started ticking. I hastily turned my attention towards the warded closet so as to prevent any outbursts - magical or otherwise - I may regret.

I’m not sure how long I was lost in the spell matrices laid upon the object of my attention - no longer than ten minutes if I had to guess - before I had to withdraw with absolutely unsatisfying result; the only thing I managed to comprehend of the jangled mess of spells was that the magical lock required some kind of bodily fluid. Alas, I didn’t know if it must be from Celestia herself or not. The fact that I couldn’t grasp what fluid exactly was needed didn’t help matters at all.

Frustrated, I turned my back on the closet and walked out of the bathroom, purposefully not looking in the direction of the wall.

Celestia haven’t returned yet, so I went for the second door. Pushing it open, I entered the room.

The sight beyond the door made me squee in glee like a filly. Okay, I am a filly, but still! Library! Thousands of books, all chosen personally by Celestia. After some bouncing, I managed to reign myself in and not dash off grabbing random books to read. After all, I haven’t received a confirmation of my guesses yet.

With that I, begrudgingly, strolled back into the bedroom, closing the door behind me.

~~~

It was not long before Celestia returned with a cart full of food. I was ready to launch a barrage of questions on her, but was interrupted by the divine smell of pancakes reaching my nostrils. Questions can wait.

Ten minutes, a bit of spilled jam and a stack of cupcakes later found me sipping some really good tea, having a mini staring contest with Celestia.

I broke the gaze first. In retaliation, I decided to try taking the initiation in the conversation. I opted to ask the most important one first.

“So, Prin… Celestia, if you don’t mind me asking, what is it with you and all the… missing surfaces?” My mind still skipped a kog or two at the thought of the nonexistent wall in the bathroom.

“You mean this?” Celestia asked, gesturing towards the balcony, “Or the one in bathroom?” she added with a giggle, “They are both enchanted, albeit in a different way,” knew it! Wait a second...

“But Princess, I didn’t notice any magical residue,” I said, pouting slightly, “I mean, Celestia.”

With an amused smile on her face, Celestia took a sip of her tea, “Of course you didn’t, Twilight. It wouldn’t do if anypony could just see enchantments placed in such an important place, now would it?”

I had to concede this point to Celestia, but... “So that warded closet isn’t as important?” Did she just almost choked on her tea?

“Have you opened it, Twilight?” Aha, so it doesn’t have to be from Celestia.

“No, I didn’t,” I pressed on, “What is in that closet, Prin… Celestia?” I’m not sure, but I think her tail twitched a tiniest bit.

“Let’s rather not talk about it.”

Awkward silence settled in over the room. After few more sips, I tentatively started, “Celestia?”

“Yes, Twilight?”

“Can you, please, explain to me exactly what happened?”

The mood dropped like a bird from the sky.

“Do you want to know, Twilight?”

“Yes please.”

“Your magic surged, but you know that yourself, I would assume,” I nodded to that, ”The catch there, is that you felt some very strong negative emotion at the time. Anger, hatred, grief, depression, something like that,” she refilled her cup and took another sip, “As a result, your surge was affected by it, and thus, all the energy emitted was in a negative spectrum.”

“W-why… Why can’t I feel anything about w-what happened? I-I mean, I... kille...”

“You didn’t kill anyone, Twilight. You weren’t - and aren’t - at fault for what happened,” Celestia said, levitating me to her side of the table and pulling me into a hug with her wing, effectively silencing me with a gentle strokes of her hoof afterwards.

After regaining some of my composure, I scooted out of her grasp and returned to my place opposite her

“Why?” I repeated myself, not going into details this time.

“It is a part of the meditation technique you used. It blocks all the emotions throughout the process, and all you felt in the twenty four hours before it.”

“I see,” this wasn’t mentioned in the book. Well than, time for a million bit question, “Princess,” she quirked an eyebrow at me intentionally using her title, “what am I doing there?”

Her serene smile stretched first into a smirk, and then into a full blown grin, “That, my little pony, is a very good question,” she shifted from her half laying position to sitting upright, “Twilight Sparkle, will you accept a position of my personal protégé?”

Author's Note

So... was this better than previous chapter? Worse perhaps? It honestly feels a teensy-weensy bit rushed to me, but I see nothing I can add that wouldn't be excessive. Also, what about dialog(meager as it is)? I can't help but be worried about it, because frankly, fear of writing the chars badly is what kept me from trying to write fiction before.

Explorations and Explanations (part 3)

I fidgeted back and forth a bit, trying to find a comfortable position atop Celestia’s back. A pitiful whiny escaped me once I realized that I have already chewed through the entirety of the perfection that was the hayburger Talon made for me.

Squashing my grief over the fact and finally settling in, I promptly found myself with nothing to do. So, I went with the most logical solution. What is it? Start bugging Celestia with questions, of course!

“So,” I dragged the ‘o’ out, “what is this all about?” I accompanied the question by poking Celestia with my hoof in the back of her neck.

“That is a secre~et,” Celestia practically sang her answer, which only made it that much more suspicious. Alas, I couldn’t do anything about it.

“Right… And where are we going?” but at that moment, the answer presented itself to me, as Celestia turned the corner and stopped.

We stood in front of a large, golden oak doors. Well, we would have, have they not been opened wide. Dozens of ponies were on the other side, in what could only be a throne room, looking at us. More specifically, at me. And from the looks of it, they all were nobles, or at least in an important position.

Celestia started moving again, towards dais and the metaphorical throne - a biggest and fluffiest cushion I have ever seen, that is - resting atop it, ponies parting before her, as murmurs and whispers rippled outwards throughout the crowd.

“...little, what, five years? Six, perhaps...”

“...lor scheme is just magnificent!”

“...ee why Celestia decided to take this filly up as her protégé…”

“...eady on friendly terms with Blueblood…”

I leaned in, and hissed into Celestia’s ear so that nobody besides her could hear, “This is the retribution for the morning, is it not?”

I could feel Celestia’s smile grow just a tiniest bit larger as she whispered back, “Oh, it is no such thing, Twilight. To think that you would accuse me of something like that, woe is me!”

If glares could kill, Celestia would have dropped dead then and there.

As we passed by noble after noble, one of them caught my eye. It was Blueblood’s father! I quickly dropped my gaze lower, to search for Bluey. Aha, here you are! Oh, this is just too good to pass up. I snickered inwardly, my mood raising slightly with the thought.

I pondered few possibilities - thankfully, Celestia was walking slowly - and decided to go with the easiest one. I pulled one of my forehooves from under myself, and waved it at Bluey, “ Heya, Bluey!~” I called out in the sweetest voice I could manage.

His face was just priceless, as were the reactions of ponies present - ranging from slightly puzzled, to a bit amused, to outright grinning - and I totally could feel Celestia holding back her laughter, sitting on her as I was.

As we climbed the dais, Celestia took me in her magic, and - handling me like a foal, which prompted a blush from me - sat me down on the much smaller cushion, evidently laid out for me, before settling into her own.

Celestia cleared her throat, and the room momentarily fell silent. She swept her gaze across the crowd inquisitively, and nodded, apparently satisfied, “Now, that everyone is in attendance, I believe I have an important announcement to make. As of today, I, Princess Celestia of Equestria, am taking on one Twilight Sparkle as my protégé,” I waved meekly.

A few seconds passed by without any serious reaction, and I could see Celestia’s smile curl upwards a little, “So it seems, the palace gossip mill has beat me yet again,” this elicited a number of chuckles from the gathered crowd.

As the laughter died down, Celestia tapped her hoof on the floor once, and started talking again, her voice taking on an authoritative tone, “Okay then, let us just skip the boring parts and get to what is important. The evening court session is terminated for an indeterminate period of time. As such, I would likely not be able to attend any events that are set in between eight to eleven pm as well, and would like to not receive invitations to them. All the meetings that require my personal attention will be rescheduled accordingly as well. This court session will last until six o’clock. Any immediate objections?” Nobody voiced any concerns, “Very well. Than, I declare this session of High Court open.”

White unicorn stepped to the front first. He was wearing a dark suit without any pants, “Your Highness,” he tipped his head in greeting.

“Ah, hello Fancy Pants,” I tried not to snicker, to not so much as smile at the irony, but I think small twitch of the corners of my muzzle gave me away, “What may your concern be?”

“I wish to inquire about the stipend of your protégé. You see, Princess, I did a little historical research about the position of your personal protégé some time ago, out of curiosity. Quick check with the Royal Treasury archives showed that the documented stipend of the position was always exactly zero bits, yet the last protégé you had, Astral Mark, was known for having, for lack of evidence otherwise, limitless pockets, so to say.”

Celestia hummed for a second, probably contemplating her answer. After a moment, she spoke up, “I can assure you on my word, Fancy Pants, that not one bit was or ever will be taken from the Royal Treasury to sustain the one in position of my protégé, so me taking on one would in no way affect neither economy, nor budget, if that is what your concern is,” she looked at him slyly, “and if you are interested in where exactly the money comes from… well, let us just say that I lived a very long life, and leave it at that. Anything else you wish to be addressed?”

“Nothing else, Princess,” he tipped his head again, and retreated back into the crowd.

Next came a unicorn mare, her coat light amber and mane and tail a mix of crimson with yellow, “Celestia,” she said curtly.

“Archmage Shimmer,” Celestia answered in kind, “if you are going to inquire about Hollow Shades incident - do not. I will personally discuss it with you tomorrow.”

Mare snorted, “If that is your wish. But we have another question, actually. She is already over five years age. What should we expect?”

“A-level magical hazards,” Celestia answered without so much as batting an eye.

I let loose a little whiny, “Only A-level? I would think you to have a better opinion of me, Celestia,” I whispered so that only she could hear me.

I was surprised when not only Celestia cracked a smile at that, but Shimmer as well. After that, the mare turned away and walked back into the crowd. I traced her with my gaze, to see her stopping near two other unicorn mares. Other archmages, I assume...

Suddenly, she whipped her head around, and looked me directly in the eyes. My instinctive reaction was to shrink back under her direct gaze, but I caught myself and met it full on.

I was forced to break our little staring contest first, as I had to answer a question from some noble.

~~~

The time went by fairly quickly. Only the first fifteen minutes or so were dedicated to me, as the ponies in attendance ran out of questions. After that, it was just Celestia taking care of what must be her usual routine during the High Court. Despite the lack of anything to do, I wasn’t bored out of my mind; some of the things brought to Celestia’s attention were fairly interesting to me as well, and I thought that learning who was who and how Celestia handled them might prove useful in future.

As the meeting finished, I found myself once again on Celestia’s back, as we trotted through the castle halls.

“So, how was your time with,” snicker, “Bluey, Twilight? Did you enjoy it?” Celestia asked me rather cheerfully. What could’ve brought her in such a good mood… I wondered, feeling the spring in her step.

“It was great, actually! Bluey,” another snicker from Celestia, “and I even seem to be on the same shelf right now, metaphorically saying, despite him being a bit weaker than me. It is so exciting, really,” I squealed a bit, “to have someone of my age who can keep up with me! I never had anyone to practice magic with me back at… home. Foals my age were barely able to, say, levitate something bigger than they were, and I was not really interested in anything besides magic, so... I never really had any friends” I finished dejectedly.

Celestia chuckled before responding, “But now you do have one, do you not, Twilight?” I nodded, than remembered that she can’t see me. It seemingly didn’t faze her as she added, “Knew you would take a liking to each other,” another chuckle. Few minutes after that passed in a comfortable silence.

“Now thought, Twilight,” Celestia said, all humour gone from her voice, kindness remaining thought, “Could you, please, tell me where you learned that technique you used to… minimize damage from your surge?”

I tensed up momentarily, “Shh, shh, Twilight. I do not ask you to talk about incident itself, or anything about your past you do not want to tell. Only how or where you learned to do it,” Celestia said in a soothing tone.

I could understand where Celestia was coming from; while it was by no means banned or repressed, it wasn’t something you would be taught in a small town’s school, or could find in a public library of said town. After all, if you didn’t surge, you didn’t need it. To even have a risk of surging, you will have to be exercising your magic day in and day out, pushing it to its limits, and if you happened to do that, you have also - very likely - already enrolled into a nearest magical school, where you will be taught how to do it in a special class. As such, for a filly that definitely never attended said school, to be able to perform the technique would be unlikely, so to say.

Even despite it all, I still felt reluctant about telling it to Celestia, “I… found a book, a week before The Incident. I went to my usual training place in the forest to work out my magic, and it was just laying there, as though waiting for me,” I shuffled on Celestia’s back, recounting the story from my memory, “I was wary at first. Even my love of books could not quite override my suspicion,” I giggled lightly, “So I ignored it, and just proceeded with my self-imposed training. In the end thought, when I was about done, I decided to maybe take a little peek inside it, and then be on my way. Needless to say, when it turned out to be a book about magic, titled 104 Things a Magus Should Know no less, I just could not stop myself. The technique was in that book, and first chapter was dedicated entirely to it, so I decided it must be important. It did not look overly hard either. I mean, it was always easy for me to concentrate on something, so the technique was not a big stretch. Took me two days to perfect it. As you can guess, it did not actually produce any results until I used it during my surge.”

“I see,” Celestia mused, “You seem to have not known about emotions dampening effect thought. Mind telling me what exactly was written in the book?”

I nodded eagerly. This was something far more enjoyable than where the topic would’ve led with the right questions, plus it was about magic, so I didn’t mind, “Of course, Celestia. It said that the technique allowed for a finer control of one's spells under stress, amplified accuracy and blocked any wild spells from escaping the caster via converting them back into pure energy which then is radiated outwards, through caster’s aura. I wasn’t sure what ‘wild spells’ part meant at the time...”

“Very well. As you can imagine, some information was missing,” Celestia said, “The first thing you can guess yourself. The second one, is that it was the reason your surge was affected by your emotions, and as such became a dark oriented one,” I gasped, ready to launch my question, but Celestia beat me to it, “No, Twilight, it would not have been better if you decided not to use the meditation. If you did not, you would be dead as well, and the entirety of Hollow Shades, large chunk of the forest included, would be gone from the face of Equus altogether.”

Celestia let the implications hang in the air. After a minute or two, she started talking again, “On the other note, I am very proud of you. It usually takes at least two weeks to master it for someone your real age, and you did it in two days. That is an impressive result, even for a talented unicorn.”

My cheeks lit up bright red at the praise, “Erm... thank you. What had you in such a raised mood when we left the throne room, thought?” I changed the topic rather blantly.

“Oh, it is nothing,” Celestia said in a sing-song voice after a giggle, “Just a little imagery.”

I didn’t expect her to elaborate on it, but was still disappointed when she didn’t.

“By the way, we are almost there, Twilight,” she said cheerfully.

I looked at the back of her head suspiciously, “There - where?”

“Where you will live from now on,” Celestia almost sang it as she rounded another corner, opened the door with her magic, and stepped inside, with me still on her back.

Once I got a good look at where we were, my jaw promptly hit the floor. From the curve of the walls, and a spiral staircase leading up, we were in a tower. A damn tower! The fact that as Celestia’s protégé I will be living in a personal tower somehow eluded me for the whole day.

I sputtered incoherently trying for the words. Celestia only laughed out loud in response, setting me down on the cushion beforehoof.

Once I more or less got a hold of myself, I shrieked, “A whole tower?”

Celestia chuckled a bit more, but her mirth was short lived as I pouted at her, “Yes Twilight. A whole tower, all to yourself. The first floor is open to servants, but all the others are privately yours, so plan accordingly; nobody except me can go there without your express permission,” Celestia let loose a chuckle or two more at my perplexment, “I think I will leave you to explore it for now. Would you care to join me for dinner later, or should I just send it there?” she asked, obviously teasing me.

“I would love to, Celestia,” I answered without hesitation.

“Great!” Celestia clapped her hooves, “See you in an hour than, in the personal royal kitchens, Twilight. Have fun.”

Author's Note

This is the end of the chapter, just so you know.

Since it was overdue for explanation of the meditation technique; here it is, right in this chapter. Originally, I was inspired by this art. After the fact, I remembered about Zecora actually meditating once or twice in the show, the Magic Duel episode, and, finally, Cadence's Royal Breathing Exercises. From here, the idea of pseudo-magical school of meditating techniques sprouted.

Number 104 instead of 101 is actually a joke from some other fic, but try as I might, I couldn't remember where it was from.

Archmage Sunset Shimmer was a spur of a moment thing, to be honest. I needed some plausible candidate for the position, so why not? She won't play any major role in the story, but she will make more cameos in future, now that she's here.

I still feel like this part is too much, too fast, but eh, it just didn't read right any other way I could come up with.

So, now that there's some basis to work with and I feel like I will stick with this for some time... I'm looking for a proofreader. Someone, who will read the chapter before it is posted, ask me why I added one thing or another, and then beat me over the head with a spiked club because my idea is dumb and unnecessary. Any volunteers?

On that note, bit for your thoughts, people? Something I should work on improving and pay a bit more attention to? Dialog, or description, or I don't know. Anything, really.

Assessment

It was early in the morning. The palace only just started to wake up, even though it was about an hour after sunrise.

I trotted purposefully towards the Tower of Magic, the actual name of the castle tower were the archmages of the crown reside. It has six floors, two floors per archmage, and a basement, common for all three of them.

As I came to the entrance to the tower, I lit my horn just a tiniest bit, then knocked on the door three times. A flash of light later, and I appeared on the fifth floor, in the foyer. I looked around; seeing no sign of Sunset, I walked over to the cushion sat near the bookshelf, and made myself comfortable. I looked over the books present on the shelf. Only adult novels… never change, Sunset, never change. I thought, letting loose a chuckle.

For lack of anything better to do, I levitated a random one to myself and started reading through it.

Some time later, just as the characters were getting to the interesting parts, I could hear Sunset descending the steps to the sixth floor. I didn’t acknowledge her presence beyond flicking an ear in her direction.

“Morning, Celestia,” she said as she walked past me and into the kitchen, “Tell me, was it really necessary to barge into my personal apartments at seven in the morning?” she paused, probably to look out of the kitchen doorway, “Agh, and you had to choose that one of all the ones that I keep there.”

“Oh?” I was now genuinely curious about the book, “Why would you dislike my choice of reading material in my free time?” I asked, teasingly, “Especially considering what a wide variety I had to choose from,” I snickered.

Sunset groaned from kitchen, “Oh, come on Celestia. You know full well what books you will find there if you come without warning,” I could hear her heating something up. Intensively, “Could’ve learned already to bring something to read with you,” she grumbled, “and as to why I don’t like your choice,” I finally lifted my head, to see Sunset walking out of the kitchen with her breakfast in tow. She took a bite out of her sandwich, munched on it, and then continued “It’s about me,” Sunset deadpanned.

I blinked a few times, and then it hit me like a train. I snickered. I snorted. I fell off the cushion and laughed until I could laugh no longer, remembering everything I read in the novel and having little trouble repainting the main character to fit Sunset’s color scheme. Every scene that played out in my mind only served to fuel my laughter.

My lungs hurt a tiny bit when I finally came down from my laughing fit, “A-all, huh, the more,” deep breath, “r-reasons to read the entirety of it,” I managed to choke out, before starting to laugh again. This time, though, my laughter was short-lived as my lungs reminded me of their existence, quite painfully so.

Sunset was scowling at me the whole time, but Luna knows, was it worth it. She also was actually almost finished with her meal when I regained a bit of my composure.

“Sho,” she mumbled finishing of her second sandwich, “to what do I owe a pleasure of seeing you there, Celestia?”

“Just a friendly visit?” I suggested innocently. She just raised an eyebrow at me. I sighed, “I actually wanted to talk to you about the Hollow Shades accident personally.”

Her eyebrow rose ever higher, “Oh? Why would you give me a chance to explain the situation to Moondancer and Lyra in whatever way I wish?”

I sighed again, “Because that is exactly what I need from you. They will hear my word, but they only know all about me. You on the other side, they have seen in action. If I were to explain it to them myself, they will heed what I say because, well, me. If you were to tell them, they will take it seriously because of the camaraderie and friendly bonds you three have.”

Sunset hummed for a few seconds, “Fair, I suppose. But that means it’s more serious then I would’ve liked. Yikes.”

I giggled at that, “Yes Sunset, yes it is.”

She rubbed her head with a forehoof, “Okay, okay. Let’s back down and start simple. Twilight Sparkle was the cause of it,” it was more a statement than a question. I nodded, “Right. She surged, while being agitated in some way,” another nod, “and she used a meditation technique she shouldn’t have known,” I confirmed this one as well, “so, what are we-” at my sly smile she sighed, “no, what am I missing to solve the puzzle?”

I chuckled, “Where she learned the technique. The answer is simple: book. Care to guess which one?” I asked teasingly.

Sunset just rolled her eyes. I pouted at her not even trying, but soon gave up, “It was yours,” I giggled at her puzzled stare, “The one you never published, and decided to keep in the Archives,” the look of dawning horror on her face was as good as I expected. Moments like this I wish i had a personal cam, I thought, laughing inwardly this time.

“That one?” I smiled coyly, and that was all the confirmation Sunset needed. She sunk into her cushion, hiding behind her hooves, “Oh Celestia, no.”

My smirk grew into a grin, “Oh, yes. And judging from what I know about her, she read it all. Maybe even several times, just to make sure she didn’t miss anything. And once she connects the dots between Sunset Shimmer and Archmage Shimmer…” my grin grew to an impossible proportions.

By the time I said that, Sunset was banging her head on the wall. Once she was apparently satisfied with her self-trauma, Sunset sat back down on the cushion. She rubbed her head, and spoke up “This is terrible. I will never hear the end of it from her..." Sunset sighed, "Okay. So, I guess, you want me to find whoever took it from Archives, brought it to the town of Hollow Shades and gave it to her?”

I gave a nod, “Essentially yes. Although, I suspect that whoever did it was not the one behind it. I have a good guess as to whose initiative it was, but I need a confirmation.”

“And who might that be?" at my nonchalant expression she groaned, "Someone you want to keep secret, bleh… Though, Moondancer will kill me for dumping my duties on her anyway, even if it will be only for a day, so I probably shouldn't worry about it.”

I chuckled, “That she will. But this is not the only reason I came here. You can guess that when I said ‘A-level’ yesterday in the court it wasn’t truth,” she nodded in affirmation, “you should be ready for up to S plus level.”

Sunset whistled at that, “Plus? Dammit, Celestia. I knew you had an eye for talented foals, but don’t you think that this is a bit overkill even for you?”

I giggled faintly, “No, not at all, especially considering the circumstances,” I am pretty sure that she picked up on there being a hidden meaning to my statement, but decided not to pry.

I stood up from my resting place, “I think that is all for now then, Sunset,” I gave her a cheery smile, “I probably should get going to do my job now. Mind if I borrow this,” I held in a snicker, “interesting piece of literature? I promise, I will return it the moment I finished reading,” words for the twelfth time, went unsaid, but they didn’t need to be. Bet she regrets telling me it was about her already, I snickered inwardly.

Sunset groaned in exasperation, “Sure, take your time with it. Have a nice day, Celestia.”

“You too, Sunset, you too. See you later.”

Author's Note

Thanks to charliemalte for proofreading this chapter.

Also, went over what was there already, made a number of edits. Two important ones are here. I also roughed up the first chapter/prologue a bit so that it isn't quite as :rainbowhuh: -inducing as it was and (hopefully) ties in better with the overall mood I'm setting for the story, but didn't think about making notes of what I changed at the time, so yeah...

Of cakes and holidays

I leaped out of the bed with sunrise. This day is going to be perfect. Flowers are blooming outside, birds are singing, and I will have my first lesson with Pri… Celestia!

I smiled brightly as i recalled the dinner with Celestia, Bluey and his father the day before, accompanied with a pleasant chatter.

Bluey’s father’s face when he heard the number of spells I knew was just hilarious. Celestia was impressed as well, but not quite to the same degree.

I stretched in the morning sun’s rays, and rushed to the bathroom across from my bed. I wonder, what kind of lesson will it be?

I bolted out of the bathroom after brushing my teeth, comb still working frantically through my tail, mane already done. I skidded to a halt to look at the clock before diving down the stairs.

Six thirty, lesson at four pm, Bluey is busy all day today… I have nine and a half hour to plunge into the library! If it was possible, there probably would have been stars in my eyes as I was racing down the stairs towards the first floor.

My stomach, however, decided that this was just the right time to remind me about its existence. I tried ignoring it, but after another loud protest, I had to, reluctantly, concede. Okay, okay, breakfast first.

I threw the door open with magic before it had a chance to stop me, and instead of turning to the left, towards the library, I ran off to the right.

Few minutes later, panting from the exercise I put myself through, I entered the kitchen.

The first thing to catch my eye was a cake. No. The Cake.

It was grandiose. No other word could do justice to its sheer size. It was at least meter and half tall at its highest point, and probably as wide in diameter, if not more. Its countless layers were covered in all manners of frosting, forming many a pattern upon it, with every third layer being different from the others.

I just stood there, gaping at it, my jaw hanging slack. I could - out of the corner of my eye - see Talon moving from behind the confectionery monstrosity, his beak twisted in what I can only assume to be a smirk.

“W-what is this?” I managed to squeak out finally.

“This,” Talon replied proudly, looking at his creation, “is Celestia’s morning cake,” He beat me to the next question, “Obviously, it is not quite as big everyday.”

I stammered for a second, but then next question popped up, “Why would she need a morning cake anyway?” I asked, kicking my brain back into motion.

Celestia’s love for cake was widely known, but this abomination? And in the morning?

“She becomes… unpredictable if she doesn’t get it.”

My eyebrow decided to get to know my mane better.

“Well...” Talon fidgeted nervously, considering whether to tell me or not. Finally, he seemingly made up his mind.

It was almost comical how the large gryphon glanced around sneakily and then tiptoed to the door to make sure Celestia wasn’t anywhere near. Once he was confident she would not overhear, he said, “Well, do you know the origin of the April Fools’ day?”

“Of course! Everyone knows it.”

Talon chuckled, “Well, humor the old gryph.”

I rolled my eyes halfheartedly, but proceeded nevertheless, “Three hundred and twenty seven years ago, on the first day of the second month of spring, Princess Celestia went on a pranking spree, which left no city, town or village unaffected.

“One of the most significant changes that was wrought upon Equestria is an indestructible and immovable replica of Celestia herself - ten times the original, and made entirely of chocolate - located in the Manehattan.

“Some think that Discord somehow managed to posses Celestia on that day, but official apology made by Celestia the next day clashes heavily with this theory.

“It never actually became an official holiday, but is recognized and celebrated throughout the Equestria and, in the last century, even beyond.

“However, despite it all, it was never explained as to why the accident happe…” Suddenly, something clicked.

My eyes grew to the size of dinner plates, and Talon’s beak drew up in a smile, “No… Noooo… Was it because..?”

He nodded grimly, “Yes, it was. I was there to see it myself, though not as a chef at the time. Now, I assume you didn't come here just to pray state secrets out of the plain old me, little one?”

“Oh, right. Can you make me two hayburgers and some milk?”

“Sure thing, little one. Give me a few minutes,” Talon said, turning around and going back behind the cake.

The moment Talon - carrying my breakfast - appeared in my line of sight, I snatched the hayburgers in my magic and attacked them in earnest.

Celestia entered the kitchen right when I was finishing off the first one.

“Good morning, Twilight.”

“Goow mowning…” I gulped down the hayburger, and took a sip of milk, turning around to look at her, “Celestia.”

She may have been talking to me, but her gaze was transfixed on the cake-o-monstrosity residing on the table. Celestia - half-crouched, as thought a predator stalking its prey - was prowling towards the cake - tail and mane flicking from side to side - step by careful step. It was a little disconcerting to see, that’s for sure.

As I watched the scene, my earlier curiosity returned to me.

“Celestia?”

“Yes, Twilight?” she said, tearing her gaze away from the cake.

“What will our lesson be about?” I asked hesitantly.

After a moment of silence, as I was about to take another bite, Celestia answered.

“I am not sure. Probably just test what you can and can not do?” A second passed, “Or maybe you have something other in mind?” Celestia asked, smiling wryly.

I felt my hayburger getting stuck in my throat from surprise, and reacted accordingly; coughing and spluttering, that is.

I looked up at Celestia in bewilderment after recovering from my coughing fit.

“What?” She just grinned at me, “Like, I can choose what I want to learn?”

Celestia nodded to my question, the smile still in place, “To an extent, yes,” her grin turned to a slightly guilty one, “I must admit, though, that I was teasing you a bit here. We will have to see just how strong you are anyway, so that will take up some part of the lesson for sure. However, if you have something in particular that you would like to try and learn, you need just say.”

“Hmm,” I hummed thoughtfully, trying to assume a serious expression in spite of my excitement. In the end, I failed miserably and just let the grin spread across my face, mind already abuzz with all the possibilities, “I have so many ideas!”

Celestia chuckled lightly, “Of that, I have no doubt. Now, excuse me Twilight, I fear I must hurry. It is unbecoming of me to be late, after all,” she paused momentarily, “Too often, anyways,” she added with a wink, and dove at the awaiting cake with gusto.

I giggled at that, and returned to my breakfast. However, as I was finishing the second burger, I couldn’t help but stare at Celestia consuming cake, awed. And probably a bit terrified.

Definitely terrified.

I shook myself out of stupor as the process was nearing its logical end, and snapped to attention as best I could - which, all things considered, probably wasn’t all that impressive. As I watched the demise of The Cake, I let a single tear slide down my face. Rest in peace, Captain Cake. Your sacrifice for the sake of Equestria will never be forgotten.

Seconds later I was already dashing out of the door - having said a hasty goodbye to Celestia - trying with all I had to stifle my laughter.

I honestly hoped she didn’t notice.

Author's Note

Ugh... so, this happened? I would've said I can't believe it was almost two months, but than, it is me we are talking about... eh. Thought this is, more or less, a filler, I hope to go more or less steady for some more chapters.

I probably should also clarify it a bit, in case someone got an impression of Celestia being not the best of rulers. Well, she kind of is, but it is justified: she can actually do nothing of her royal duties and Equestria will run itself well enough for her to not need to step in. Her still working full on is more of a symbol than an actual need. I plan to touch upon how exactly she achieved that(besides the obvious Physical God+The High Queen+100% Adoration Rating status).

Also, I'm thinking of changing description(but I'm stuck on whether I really should), and if I should change all the "face" to "muzzle" and such.

~~I'm awful, send help~~

Explorations and Explanations (part 2)

“Yes! Yesyesyesyesyesyesyes…” I chanted, bouncing round and around Celestia. At first, a rational part of me tried to reason that acting like this in the presence of the princess was not the best idea, but it immediately shut up after noticing Celestia’s clearly amused smile. Thus, I let go and channeled my inner filly full on for the first time in… gosh, the last time was over a week ago, when I found that book.

That is to say, I not only bounced around Celestia, but all over the room - defying physics few times, I’m pretty sure - and performing my celebratory dance at the end. Once done, I gracelessly flopped - muzzle first - into a little pile of lavender pony onto the bed, panting from exertion. Say what you want about foals and excessive energy, but I sure am tiring out fast with physical activities.

I raised my head to look Celestia in the eyes, and - as if on cue - she started talking, “I will take it you agree wholeheartedly to my proposition than,” she said, a chuckle escaping her lips.

“Yes! Yes, I do, Celestia!” I wanted to ask why would she snicker at that, but Celestia was faster.

“Sorry, just the way you worded it,” she snickered again, “is most peculiar. Now though, I should show you where you will live, do you not think so?” Celestia asked, her tone slightly teasing, “give you a little tour of the castle along the way, maybe… or would you rather explore it yourself later?” she said, sending a smirk my way.

I jumped off of the bed eagerly and cantered up to Celestia, “I would like the tour very much,” I said, holding my grin off to the best of my ability, “that is, if you know the castle well enough, princess,” and with that, grinning like a madmare, I took off towards the door - the one Celestia left through to fetch us some food earlier - at the fastest pace I could muster.

Swinging the door open and out of the way with my magic, I stopped in the doorway, turned to face Celestia - who was still stunned speechless - and blew her a raspberry.

I could hear her shouting as I slammed the door shut behind me, “Why, you little…”

I bolted down the corridor, not having time to admire the design and architecture, and, taking a sharp turn to the right, could just make out Celestia storming out of her suit; her mane and tail seemingly turned into fire, eyes blazing with the intensity of thousand suns, a full on, mischievous grin on her muzzle.

Never before in my short life have I ran with such speed.

Suddenly - after yet another corner - I collided with something. Or rather someone. The point is, we went tumbling head over hooves and ended up a tangled mess of limbs.

As I untangled myself from the victim of my mad rush, I could hear Celestia’s hoof steps approaching from around the corner. I looked at the unicorn colt - his coat as white as Celestia’s and his mane an off-yellow color - whom I have crushed into, and made a shushing gesture with my hoof, hurrying for the closest column; hiding behind it so that Celestia wouldn’t see me when she turned the corner.

I pressed up against it, praying to Celestia for the colt to not give me away.

Celestia’s hoof steps were closer and closer with each passing second. Soon enough, they stopped altogether. I awaited with bated breath for what would ensue.

“Oh, hello there Blueblood.”

“G-good morning, Celestia,” that actually called up a little twinge of jealousy, but I quickly squashed it down; if Celestia allowed him to call her by name, he must be special in some way.

“How was your day so far?” Celestia asked with what seemed to me to be genuine interest.

“Oh, it was great, actually. My father had to go to another one of those boring meetings he attends all the time, and I have no classes today. I have pretty much all day to myself,” I’m quite sure that if I could see his face at the moment, it will be beaming with a huge smile.

“Hmm, I see, lucky you,” there was some noise that I couldn’t quite identify, and then Celestia continued, “Say, you did not happen to see a little unicorn filly - about your age - with a lavender coat pass there? I’m pretty sure she ran off in this direction,” my heart started beating just a tiny bit faster.

After a short pause, Blueblood finally answered, “N-no, I did not,” I could feel him shuffling awkwardly on his hooves.

“Oh? Well, I guess I have lost her then,” she let out a sigh, as thought accepting the inevitable. I almost believed there for a second that I have truly fooled her. Almost, “How would I show her the personal tower in the library wing of the castle that she would be living in now?” The ensuing silence broke any and all pretence of a hope of her not knowing I was here in my mind. Still, she didn’t directly acknowledge it… I decided to not show myself for a time, “or the kitchen where she would be able to order almost anything she wishes at almost any time?” I must admit, the thought was tantalizing; alas for Celestia, I wouldn’t be so easily bribed into coming out of my hiding, “or the castle’s library that is overflowing with scrolls and manuscripts on all kinds of spells and magic techniques?” I almost gave in there, but managed to get myself together before making the fatal mistake.

After half-minute of tense silence, Celestia finally relented, “Very well then. I am terribly sorry Blueblood, but would you mind finding this little filly and showing her around the castle? I’m afraid I must attend to my duties now, and as such I can not seek her out myself.”

“O-of course. I will do that. Have a pleasant day, Celestia.”

“You too, Blueblood, you too.”

With this parting words, she slowly trotted away, back in the direction we originally came from. After a minute or two, Blueblood spoke up, “You can come out now; she is gone.”

I slowly, tentatively inched from behind the column. True to his word - and my hearing - Celestia wasn’t there. I sighed in relief, than turned back towards the colt.

“Hi, I am Twilight Sparkle. It is nice to meet you, Blueblood,” I said on one breath, “Thanks for covering me, by the way,” I beamed a genuine smile at him.

He raised an eyebrow at me, “You do realize she knew you were there all along, do you not?”

I stuck my lower lip out in a pout, “Never doubted it,” only after that did I notice that his mane was ruffled. I snickered, “Pffft. D-did she r-really give you a noogie?” I was barely able to hold in my laughter.

Bluey puffed out his reddened cheeks cutely, “So what?”

“N-nothing, o noble and brave prince,” I couldn’t keep it together any longer, and soon I was rolling around on the floor, laughing.

Soon - after some pouting - he joined me in my mirth, minus the rolling on the floor part.

Once our laughter died down, Bluey seems to have finally remembered the common etiquette, “The pleasure is all mine, Twilight Sparkle,” he said, “But, I think we should get going now. The castle will be bustling with activity soon enough, and it would be better if I show you around all the important places before that happens. Any places you would like to visit in particular?”

I bounced to his side, my giddiness taking hold of me, “Library! Show me the library Celestia was talking about!” I bounced in place until I noticed him staring at me. What might be the pro… “Oh. Is it about me calling her by name?” Bluey nodded mutely, “Well, you are not the only one,” I said, sticking my tongue out at him.

He stared at me for a moment longer, then just shook his head and chuckled to himself.

“Library it is then,” he said, taking the lead, trotting away from the direction in which Celestia’s chambers lay.

This time - since I wasn’t running away from Celestia - I had more than enough time to admire castles interior.

And admire I did. So much in fact, so that I didn’t notice Bluey talking to me until he started poking me with his forehoof, “Twilight Sparkle? Are you even listening?”

“Huh? Oh, sorry. I was lost in thought. You can call me Twilight, by the way,” I said, making my best imitation of Celestia’s serene smile.

“It is awful,”

I stuck out my lower lip in a pout promptly, than, discarding it, turned my nose to the sky, and quoted the ‘first rule’ for those who wanted to become a magus, “Practice makes perfection,” It was a shot in the sky, but it seems I was lucky; Bluey snickered at that just fine.

At that moment, we turned the corner. I fell back on my haunches.

The door that I beheld was the biggest library door I have ever seen. No, not the door. Gates. They were probably no smaller than the main entrance to the palace. Than again, I have yet to see said entrance…

Bluey chuckled behind me, “Impressive, is it not? Admittedly, I had the same reaction first time around. You get used to it quickly thought.”

The doors were made of some kind of dark wood that I didn’t recognise, and when I tried to touch them with my telekinesis, I just felt nothing. Magic-repellent wood? Now, this is interesting. Gotta look that up later. I tried for the handles. They subjected to my touch just fine, despite looking like they were made of the same material as the rest of the doors. Curious...

My magical experiments over - for now, that is - I started paying attention to all the exquisite carvings and reliefs on the door. In the middle, there was a large orb, cut in two. ‘Standing’ all around on it where the representatives of all the races known to ponykind - one of each; from zebra, to Alicorn, to minotaur, to dragon and even a changeling.

On one side of the door, there was a stylized sun - Celestia’s cutie mark, I came to a conclusion upon closer inspection; on the other - a crescent moon. The rest of the door was dedicated to depicting night sky; on both sides, strangely enough.

On either side of the entryway stood a gryphon statue. They were sculpted so realistically, almost as thought they were actual gryphons once. The thought sent a shiver down my spine; that was definitely within the realm of possibility, especially considering the Gryphon Wars.

I broke out of pondering the probability of those two being real gryphons turned stone, and turned around to look for Bluey. Thankfully, he was sitting there, waiting patiently for me. I wanted to apologize for zoning out on him like this, but his ear-to-ear grin made me rethink the sentiment. I could still feel my cheeks being a bit hotter than they should be thought.

I shook my head to banish the barely distinctable blush from my face, turned around and started trotting in the direction of the doors.

“Well, let us go, Blue! I sure want to see the insides of it,” I said not looking around. I could hear him coming up to my side thought as I drew near the doors. With one push from my magic - they were far easier to open than I expected, what with their size and all - they opened wide, allowing us entry.

Sweet merciful Celestia… What lay beyond took my breath away. Whereas Celestia’s personal library impressed because… well… because I knew that the books there were choosen by her own hoof, this… this knocked the air out of my lungs with its sheer size. Thousands upon thousands of bookshelves, all filled with manuscripts, scrolls, magazines, and who knows what else.

How did this even fit into the cas… I turned sharply to Bluey, “The space there is warped, is it not?” He only grinned in return, but that was confirmation enough for me. I looked at the library with redoubled awe; to warp such vast amounts of space was hard enough - to sustain it indeterminately, was a fit only unicorns of Grand Magus’ level could accomplish. Well, that, or a certain somepony with wings and horn.

“Hey, uh, Twilight?” Bluey’s voice broke me out of my reverie, “so, who are you, exactly?” he asked, looking at me curiously.

“I am Celestia’s protégé,” I answered cheerfully.

He chuckled, “Yeah, I figured as much. I meant, where are you from?”

And just like that, you killed the mood Bluey. Good going, “I… would rather not talk about it,” I shuddered.

“Oh…” awkward silence ensue.

Bluey shuffled his hooves, “So, uh, want to read something?” He asked hesitantly.

“Sure!” I chirped, perhaps a little too cheerfully. I skipped to the closest shelf to check it, than another, and another, “I think I even know how they are sorted!” a smile - genuine one this time - spread across my muzzle. I payed no mind to Bluey’s snickering, bouncing in the needed direction instead, “let us go; to the magical section!”

~~~

We spent several hours plowing through the magical books and scrolls, exchanging slash showing off knowledge, and just getting to know each other better.

Bluey was, unsurprisingly, quite adept in magic despite being only a year older than me; alas, he was also much weaker, so he weren’t quite able to keep up with me when it came to actually doing magic.

Once we more or less got over him asking about my past, I chanced the same question. He was eager to talk about his family. Apparently, he was an actual prince, just as his father.

“But… why?” I asked in bewilderment, looking at Bluey incredulously “No, not why. How?”

“Well it is an interesting story actually. It goes back to eight hundred years ago, the time of…”

“Great Depression?” I interrupted him without even realising it. I blushed a little at Blueys flat stare, and hastily apologised, “Sorry, sorry.”

He stared at me for a few more moments, then chuckled and continued his tale, “Yes, Great Depression. My grand-grand-grand-something mother - Aurora - was one of Celestia’s personal battle-mages at the time.

“Well, basically, she was a closest friend of Celestia’s at the time. She was powerful and knowledgeable, smart, creative and kind. She was all that Celestia aspired her ponies to be and a bit more.

“As the situation grew more and more desperate, Aurora eventually decided that enough was enough. She made sure they will not be disturbed and cornered Celestia in her personal suit; she asked and begged Celestia to confide in her. To tell her what Celestia’s problems were.

“Finally, Celestia conceded. She told Aurora all of her worries, doubts and dark thoughts that plagued her mind.

“She did not know what to expect after the confession, but she certainly was not ready for what happened.

“Aurora swore on her bloodline, magic and soul that she will be there for Celestia. She will catch Celestia if she fall, and offer a shoulder on which to cry if the need be. She will protect her from danger - ridiculous as that sentiment may be - and shelter her heart from pain.

“Celestia was in bewilderment. She did not know how to react to this, so she just followed her instincts - yes that is what the account tells - which resulted in her fusing a shard of her own soul with Aurora’s.

“Thus, Aurora’s already incredible magical power went ever higher. Soon, none could rival her except for Celestia herself, and all of her descendants ever since were extremely gifted with magic.

“It did not come without its downsides, thought. One of the most prominent once was that neither Aurora, nor any of her descendants could have more than one foal.

“In the week following the confrontation, the position of Princess’s Personal Advisor was founded, and promptly given to Aurora.

“Thirty years later, Celestia instituted a status of Lesser Royal and granted it to her as well.

“So, this is the history of my family. Well, how it is recorded, that is. There was no one who could give a clear picture of what happened except Aurora and Celestia themselves, and they were silent about it,” he breathed out, and looked expectantly at me.

“Wow,” was all I could say. Wow indeed.

Now that I think of it, I remember starting a history book dedicated to her before The Incident.

My thoughts were interrupted by loud rumbling.

“I think we should go get you something at the kitchens before lunch, or we will have to wait” said Bluey, snickering.

And it came from my tummy, no less. Traitor…

I shook my head and jumped to my hooves, ready to go, “Oh, okay. Lead the way, my prince,” I said, smirk on my muzzle.

Bluey just rolled his eyes and trotted off, out of the library with me in tow.

About ten minutes later, we walked into the kitchen. It was spotless. Not just spotless, it was so clean, all the white surfaces literally shined. The room was far smaller than I expected though, so I asked Bluey about it.

“Oh, those are not the main kitchens. This is the personal royal kitchen. It works at all times except breakfast, lunch and dinner.” As he explained it, a Gryphon - A real, alive gryphon! - entered the room through the doors to our left.

Upon noticing us, he made a sharp beeline towards us, “Ah, hello Blueblood, greetings lady Sparkle. How may I help you two?”

“I will have the usual, Soft Talon,” Bluey said.

The gryphon looked expectantly at me, as I was inspecting him. I shook my head a bit to clear away the thoughts of experimenting on him, “Just Twilight is fine, Talon. Oh, and I will try a hayburger.”

“Wery well then; I’ll get it done in a few minutes,” he said, walking away to prepare our meal.

Suddenly, the door behind us slammed open, making me and Bluey jump up, “Oh, there you are, Twilight,” a shudder ran down my spine at Celestia’s overly cheerful tone, as I turned around to look her in the eyes, “Come, we have something important to do,” Celestia turned her attention to Bluey, “Oh, by the way, your father is looking for you, Blueblood. So shoo, shoo, off you go.”

“But Cele-estia,” I practically whined, pouting, “we were just about to have lunch.”

She looked at me for a few seconds, then sighed theatrically, “Well, your surprise can wait then. What were you going to eat anyway, Twilight?” She asked, curious.

“Oh, a hayburger! I always wanted to try one, but… well…” I looked at Bluey briefly, “you can guess,” I finished my thought lamely.

“Really?” Celestia stared at me incredulously, “You asked for a hayburger? In royal kitchens, no less?” Suddenly, she throwed her hoof up, covering her eyes with it and arching her neck back, “The horror! The scandal!” Celestia cried out.

Me and Bluey stared at Celestia for a few seconds, and then let loose a chuckle simultaneously, and another, soon devolving into laughing out loud at the display. Celestia joined in soon enough.

Our collective laughing fit was interrupted by Soft Talon thought, as he brought us our food.

I grabbed the hayburger in my magic, and promptly took a bite out of it.

Stars exploded before my very eyes. Galaxies appeared and withered away, whole civilisations formed and then crumbled to dust in a matter of seconds. I witnessed the beginning and the end of the world as we know it. And then, the moment of enlightenment ended.

My legs were quivering a little. My mind - concentrated on hayburger directly in front of my muzzle - still managed to register and process the image of Celestia directly behind the burger, her posture stiff as can be and the irises of her eyes turned tiny pinpricks.

I let out another involuntary moan, and - realizing what I did - stuffed the entirety of the hayburger inside my muzzle, trying to prevent any other embarrassing noises from coming out.

The silence, save for my chewing, reigned over the room. Well, this is awkward…

Just as I thought this, Celestia finally regained her bearings, and, after a definite gulp, spoke up, “I think we should get going. See you both later, Blueblood, Talon.”

She scooped me up in her magic after saying this, perched me at the top of her back, near the neck, and trotted off.

Author's Note

No. NO. Don't even think about it. there will be no Bluelight. Much as I like Blueblood, I would never ship Twilight with him. So no, ain't gonna happen. I'm not sure, does this chapter grants him a tag of his own? I don't know yet how significant he will be, so I can't really decide whether this warrant the tag or not.

Writing without contractions is damn hard.

Well, this took more time than I anticipated. Thought, between this chapter being as long as the previous two put together, the circus that's my real life and some scenes being frustratingly hard to write(Description of the doors, kitchen sequence(it took me about two damn hours to get it the way I liked it)), I'm not really surprised.

The roller coaster that is the world building of this fic officially starts there :trollestia: