Catching Starlight

Dear Twilight,

I hope that you can come back to the Dragon Lands soon. It’s not fun here without you. Not a lot has been going on that I can write about. I’ve been told that next year is my “coming of age”. It’s a dragon tradition. Whenever a dragon turns eighteen, it’s important that they find a mate to spawn the next generation of younglings and keep the dragon race abundant.

Since I’m a prince, I have to follow the dragon royalty laws which seem unjust to me. The mother of a prince or princess chooses the dragon’s future mate. This way, the dragon that the prince or princess marry is a worthy future ruler to be the Dragon Lord’s consort. I never knew my Dad, but I wish I could talk to him about my feelings. Maybe, he was just as upset when Ember’s father chose him to marry her.

But enough about the Dragon Lands. It’s all tradition and order over here. I want to hear more about Ponyville. The way you describe it makes it sound so exotic and carefree. It sounds a lot more upbeat than the situation over here in the volcanoes.

Awaiting your response,

Spike

Twilight sighed as she repeatedly skimmed over the letter, taking in all of the information multiple times. Anger broiled up inside of her as she realized Spike had no choice in who he was married off to. The lack of freedoms in the Dragon Lands was irritating Twilight more every time she visited.

Narrowing her eyes in determination, she picked up the quill with her magic and scribbled a note down on the scroll swiftly:

Spike,

I’m coming.

Twilight

As soon as her letter was whisked away in the burst of magic, she arose from her throne, threw open the gates to the front of her castle, and took flight into the night.

Scootaloo let her eyes wander around her bedroom. The boredom she felt was starting to push her over the brink. As usual, her parents were at practice, leaving Scootaloo home alone.

Scootaloo picked up Bouncy and dropped him a few times in an attempt to create mild entertainment for herself. After finding out that Bouncy didn’t actually bounce, Scootaloo tossed him aside and sprawled out onto her bed, letting out a soft moan of discontent.

She rolled over to catch sight of the journal Twilight had given her for her fifth birthday thirteen years ago. She leaned over to grab the journal off of the nightstand. She quickly flipped through the gift and it was exactly how it was when she had first opened it. Every page was blank.

Scootaloo set it back on the nightstand and crossed her arms defiantly. She wasn't going to let her boredom get the best of her. Scootaloo disliked writing and Twilight's gift had gone unused for years. Scootaloo kept it merely because she liked Twilight's note.

Scootaloo sat up and began to pace the floor. Something needed to be done to release her pent-up energy. She finally settled on going for a ride on her scooter. She knew that an autumn chill was starting to appear in the air, but Scootaloo didn't mind. Scootaloo liked the feeling of frigid wind hitting her face.

Scootaloo started towards the front door for her scooter, but she spotted her Mom’s sleepy pet tortoise, Tank. He hibernated each winter and she surmised that he was preparing. Scootaloo decided to fill Tank’s food bowl before leaving. Fluttershy had told her that animals needed to eat a lot before their hibernation.

Scootaloo opened the door and grabbed her helmet off of the handles of her scooter. She fastened her helmet onto her head before heading down the ramp.

As she felt herself gaining momentum, she let out a whoop. She leapt off of the ramp and soared through the air for a few seconds before hitting the ground.

Scootaloo took in her blurry surroundings. Just for that moment, she felt like the fastest pony in existence. Like everything else was going in slow motion. Scootaloo inhaled the autumn air. She was free.

Scootaloo finally came to a gradual stop in Town Square. Ponies trotted by and gave her friendly smiles and waves. Scootaloo waved back.

“Nice moves!” a nearby voice exclaimed.

Scootaloo felt her muzzle grow warm as she turned to see Rumble sitting on a bench just a few feet away. “Thanks,” she replied.

Rumble scooted over and patted the spot on the bench right next to him. Scootaloo removed her helmet and placed it back on the handles of her scooter before taking a seat by Rumble.

“What are you doing out here?” Rumble wondered. “You just going for a ride in Town Square?”

Scootaloo nodded. “Yes.”

“Me too,” Rumble said. “My Dad's at practice again and Mom’s at work.”

“She's only a few blocks away,” a confused Scootaloo claimed.

Rumble sighed with embarrassment. “Well… I’m not over there.”

“Is everything alright between you and your Mom?” Scootaloo inquired.

Rumble turned to her with a small smile. “Yeah, everything's fine. I’d just… rather not see her have a nervous breakdown. She has them a lot less when Dad comes home.”

“Understandable,” Scootaloo said. “But if I were you, I'd cherish every moment I got to spend with my Mom. Because… my Mom is always busy. So is my Dad for that matter.”

Rumble didn't say anything. Rumble and Scootaloo just shared that moment of silence, lost in thought.

Twilight’s eyes fluttered open as she was greeted by the morning sun. “Oh my Celestia! How long was I asleep for?!”

Twilight stood up from the cloud she had camped out on. The journey to the Dragon Lands was an overnight trip and there weren't any trains at Ponyville Station that led directly to the Dragon Lands. She always had to take the journey herself. Every time a letter from Spike protesting her arrival came shooting out in front of her, she’d ignore it. She needed to get to Spike right away. He was her best friend and she wasn't about to let him be married off to a random dragon like he was an object.

Judging by the position of her shadow, Twilight assumed that it was noon or at least close to noon. Sweet Celestia, I must have been exhausted last night, she thought.

Twilight stretched her wings in and out a few times to get the blood pumping through them. Afterwards, she took off in flight once more scanning the ground for the Dragon Lands.

The journey was, overall, a pleasant one from the sky. She could fly above every location and she loved her view. However, sometimes she’d have to fly through extreme weather conditions and only the Wonderbolts were experienced with that. Twilight was tossed and thrown in all directions by high winds and snow.

After getting through every obstacle and landmark, the Dragon Lands finally caught her eye from below.

A smile spread across Twilight's lips. It was time to set the record straight.