To Save our Legacy

“Ponies of Maretime Bay! I have some alarming news…” Sunny, standing proud over the podium in the middle of Mane Square’s gazebo, addressed the mass of ponies to whom she had earnestly called for an emergency town meeting like a bellmare, but on roller skates. From my place amongst the crowd, I saw that she was wearing my old pendant, the one I had gifted to her on her birthday. We noticed then the string was too old and ragged, always threatening to snap under the tiniest effort, so she sent it to the local jewelry store to have the necklace strengthened. From the moment she had it back in her hooves, it hadn’t left her neck.

Our usual group of friends stood amongst the multitude, having returned from our little advertising campaign, passing flyers to the passersby to help our friend, who was dead set on helping improve this town in any way she could fathom. However, knowing beforehand what today’s speech was about, the expectant ponies were in for some bad news.

“We eat too much junk food!” Sunny cried as if calling for the end of times. Instead of surprised gasps and panicked screams, the ponies answered with tired groans and mutters, already familiar with Sunny’s antics in search of a better community.

“You’re just saying that to get us to come to your smoothie cart! Hmph!” Dahlia, who stood near our group of friends in the crowd, indignantly protested.

“What? No!” Sunny bellowed. “But it is something we need to talk about! Why constantly eat junk food full of... well, junk... when we have amazing new earth pony magic that we could be using to create fresh fruits and veggies of our own? Imagine the possibilities!” She motioned towards a few of the remnants from the rampaging vines incidents over the street planters, the few that the townsponies had decided to preserve since something actually useful came out of their chaotic casting. Overgrown fruits and veggies, created from random mix-ups from pre-existing ones. Some worked, while others… not so much. “We could magically combine plants to make them more delicious. Oh! Or, or even invent new flavors of fruits. We can grow as ponies by growing our own food!” She concluded with a thrilled hop.

“Wouldn't forcefully mixing the different species by use of magic end up altering the allelic proportions without a balanced polyallelic order to the point where the offspring may present unbalanced chromosomal dosages and acquire a sterile phenotype?”

Fifty or so ponies slowly gyrated their collective heads towards me, giving me looks akin to the ones I would receive if I had spontaneously grown a second head. Silence reigned in the square as their attention stiffly returned to the earth pony orator, the poor mare completely lost for words.

My raised eyebrow spurred her on. “Um… N-No?” She hesitantly offered with a nervous twitch of her tail to my completely rational and accurate scientific explanation.

“… Oh, nothing to worry about then.” I nonchalantly conceded with a thumbs up, electing a relieved sigh from Sunny and even more bemused looks from the attendants, my friends included.

After recomposing herself, Sunny passionately delved into the wonders of earth pony magic and how, by working together, such efforts could lead to a new and healthier diet in which the earth ponies’ newfound powers would become the main protagonists. She gave it her all, like the true pillar of the community she was, but no amount of passion seemed enough to convince the townsponies who, one by one, began their slow trot away from the plaza to resume their daily activities, unconvinced by another of, citing textually, ‘Sunny’s lost causes.’ Years of trying and failing to change her fellow townsponies’ minds regarding the other tribes had gained her a reputation that proved seemingly impossible to get rid of. To put it bluntly: her reputation preceded her.

Flyers printed for the occasion ended up decorating the floor all over the square. Only our little group of friends remained with a defeated Sunny who, with ears and head low, trotted down from the podium, defeated.

“Nopony in town even took one, did they?” She dejectedly asked when noticing our hooves slash hands full of the fliers we were asked to spread around town.

“To be fair,” Zipp flipped one of the fliers depicting a bunch of appetizing fruits and vegetables to show the opposite side. “These flyers do have a giant ‘NO sign across a picture of Prench fries.”

“I’m all for the movement, Sunny.” I sympathetically added. “But… some things are just sacred.”

‘Prench’ fries were a hundred times better than hayfries. I wasn’t going to renounce one of the few true delicacies that the ponies’ strict vegetarian diet could offer. My intestinal flora may have become conditioned to fit the nutritional requirements in the absence of meat, but my taste buds still disagreed with most of their regular food.

“Ugh! There's so many things that need to be changed!” Sunny heatedly stomped the worn cobblestones. “How can I make the world a better place if nopony is willing to listen?! There’s so much potential wasted!” She raged and paced in front of us.

“Here it comes…” I announced in a low tone, my sixth sense tingling at the magic building around my orange-furred friend.

“I want to help! That’s the only thing I’ve ever wanted to d-” Her rant was drowned by the telltale whoosh that preceded her transformation. A blinding light engulfed the surrounding area, a translucent set of wings and accompanying horn once again attached to her body.

“Flashy as always, Sunny girl.” Pipp congratulated as she blinked the white spots from her eyes.

Sunny’s transformation didn’t go unnoticed among the few ponies still loitering around the plaza, slowly returning to the previous meeting point as their eyes widened at the sight of Sunny’s alicorn form.

“Pay close attention now, Zipp,” I said, giving the pegasus princess a heads-up.

Following my lead, Zipp’s eyes narrowed in concentration, taking in the crowd’s newfound interest in whatever Sunny’s proposition was, and not a minute after referring to said proposition as nonsense.

Sunny, brimming with renewed motivation, led the amassed group towards her smoothie stand where she would explain her goals as well as serve them a few smoothies made from those very same fruits and veggies she sold as the best option to the crowd. The ponies, ears strained to catch her every word, followed her like moths to a light.

Her tilted head and slight frown told me that she was catching on to the unusual behavior the ponies were showing. “It’s instinctual.” I dispelled her confusion.

“Huh?”

“It’s part of your innate herd instincts. Ponies will unconsciously gravitate towards a figure of power, seeking strong leadership.” I explained in more detail. “And, alicorns have always filled that role, way before Equestria became a nation, to the point that their image alone is enough to trigger their… I mean, your base instincts. In this case, it makes them more willing to listen to her since she’s manifesting that image of power, even if none of them have ever seen a true alicorn in their lives.”

Zipp’s look of shock was worth being captured in a picture. “…. Are you being serious?” She demanded with disbelief.

I only had to point towards Sunny’s smoothie stand, which now sported a noticeable line of eager customers, soaking up Sunny’s rant as they waited for their turn to order.

“Wow…” Was the last thing that came from Zipp’s muzzle as we too made our way toward her and the rest of our friends. Pipp stood near the counter, looking somewhat bothered by something. Izzy and Hitch played ball with Sparky near the common-use tables for those who would prefer to enjoy their meals from the food district sitting down.

“Whoo!” Sunny cheered as she waved at us from her place behind the counter. “I am over the Luna moon! The response in town went from zero to a hundred in seconds! What gives, right?!”

“Um…” Zipp only had to point to her forehead and extend her wings. Catching her meaning, Sunny checked her translucent new assets with disdain.

“Ugh! It was an accident! Why does this keep happening…?” She flopped over the counter in an aura of desperation.

“I mean, it’s kinda obvious at this point,” I commented, resting my back against the smoothie stand opposite from Pipp and her sister.

Sunny’s pleading eyes sought to get an answer for me. “Sorry, Tangerine. You gotta figure it out for yourself. It won’t work properly otherwise.” I offered an apologetic smile.

“Why do you call her that?” Asked and intrigued Pipp.

“‘Cause she’s orange and small.”

I stood firm against the weight of their collective flat looks, absentmindedly checking my nails while pretending to ignore them.

“So, what would that make me?”

“A marshmallow, Zipp. I told you already.”

Tiredly rolling her eyes, we all stood aside to allow the growing line of ponies to resume their ordering, bursting with excitement at the prospect of an alicorn being the one preparing their snacks.

“Well look at you, Sunny girl.” Pipp congratulated our earth pony friend. “You’ve got a line full of eager ponies who want to listen to you! Am I jealous about that?” She continued out of nowhere. “No, no, never. Because I'm secure in myself. And I have thousands of followers on multiple platforms validating my every move… Uh, not that that matters, hehe.” No matter of nervous laughing could mask her uneasiness.

“It doesn't.” She finished sharply against her sister’s knowing look, more for herself than for the rest.

As the line of ponies continued to grow, Sunny finally took notice of the particular way everypony was regarding her, completely ignoring Pipp’s antics and the rest of us. “Um, why are they all looking at me like that?”

“Becaaaause…” Having recovered from her little insecurity attack, Pipp flapped up to the counter, lying over it on her side. “Well, look at you! You're an alicorn! Soon, everypony will be watching your every move while breathing down your neck at every move you make while shouting, ‘Su-nny! Su-nny! Su-nny!’ Aaaah! We love youuuuu!’” She imitated the sound of clamoring fans, which only worked to scare Sunny even more.

“That is…” she trailed off with a large gulp. “... a lot. I-I’m not used to all this attention. I, uh… I need some space!”

Dropping on her belly, Sunny sought to escape the inquisitive looks of her newfound fans under the cover of her trusty stand. Panicked breathing could be heard from where I was resting my back.

‘Sigh, well, it’s not like I wasn’t expecting it to happen eventually…’

Signaling Zipp to distract the line of ponies for a moment, I reached for the entrance to the stand, forced to duck my head since the compartment was obviously pony-sized.

I found a hyperventilating Sunny pressed against the floor, covering her head with her forelegs as if a bomb were about to explode nearby. Taking care to not bump against anything, I kneeled in front of her and called out to her with my most soothing voice.

“Sunny, remember what we talked about.”

“I-I don’t want to be an alicorn right now! I can’t take it with a-all those ponies out there!” She panickedly pleaded.

“And to achieve that, you first need to calm down and breeeeath. Focus, just like we practiced.” I tenderly stroked her mane, avoiding her translucent horn so as not to induce a jolt from the mare. Unicorn horns are very sensitive and her’s, I suspected, was no exception. “Just like we practiced Sunny. You command your power, not the other way around, okay?”

I took her a great deal of effort, but the trembling mare soon began to calm down, shakily regaining her breath and extracting her head from under her forelegs. With eyes closed in concentration, she murmured over and over her wish to cease being an alicorn for the time being. A few tries were needed, but when she had completely relaxed, clarity reached her thoughts and her alicorn powers followed her command, disappearing in a less flashy way than they had appeared.

Checking herself using her compact mirror, courtesy of a certain petite pink pegasus, Sunny allowed herself a relieved sigh when she found no trace of her wings and horn illuminating the small compartment.

“Better?”

A thankful smile was my reward. Sunny recomposed herself, shaking her uneasiness away and readying herself to tackle the gigantic line of ponies with renewed confidence.

Seeing my thumbs-up gesture from outside the stand, Zipp nodded and stood aside, allowing the first in line to approach her for their order. With my work done, I left Sunny to do what she did best and went over to Hitch, Jazz, who had only just joined us, and Pipp, who was still where she had previously been playing with Sparky. Izzy had left the group to go wait in line for her own smoothie.

“Well, crisis adv-”

“WHAT DOES THE MONKEY MEAN?!!!”

I recoiled at the pegasus princess socialite suddenly invading my personal space with a jump, leaving me completely flabbergasted at her harsh breathing and widened eyes.

“... Are you trying to make a racist joke?” I uttered the only reasonable explanation my confused mind could come up with.

“What?” Understanding lit her features. “No! NO! That's not… ugh!” She flopped against the table in a similar fashion Sunny had done over the counter only a minute ago.

I sought answers from Hitch, currently sitting at her side with his own smoothie and a smaller one for Sparky. The sheriff only returned a sympathetic shrug.

“She means from the comments on her post.” Jazz thankfully clarified for me, lending me her phone so I could see Pipp’s most recent uploads for myself. Judging from her previous ones, these seemed to have amassed a worryingly low amount of view and ‘hooftaps’. And, of course, there was a single monkey emoji under her most recent singing clip.

“Ah, I see…”

“Then what does it mean?!” Pipp desperately implored once again.

“It possesses many meanings, Pipp. You must search inside yourself to find enlightenment.” I revealed in a secretive manner, which only served to further drive Pipp up a proverbial wall. Grabbing her cheeks and pulling in frustration, she returned to glare daggers at her feed.

“I've been trying everything lately! Singing loudly, singing softly, singing in general...” A look of realization made its way up her features. “Oh, my hoofness! What if I've been…*GASP* Shadowbanished?!”

“….You mean ‘shadowbanned’?”

“I don't know what that means, but it sounds ominous.” Jazz added her two bits.

“Thank you, Jazz!” Pipp appreciated her coworker’s support. “Shadowbanishing is when your content gets blocked to viewers but your account isn’t actually banned. I mean, it has to be that, right? There can't be any other explanation!”

“Is that a thing here?” I asked, surprised at finding out about the existence of such a concept, a mirror of the feature from Earth’s social media.

“It is the ONLY possible explanation.” She repeated again, stronger this time, accompanied by her hoof slamming over the table.

“You’re overreacting… again.” I tiredly laid back and instead focused my sights on the sunny skies above me.

“NEVER!!”

Her defiant mood was utterly trashed by the sound of Hitch laughing, the sheriff having distracted himself from our conversation to check something on his phone, with that something eliciting an amused chuckle from him.

Unknowingly, the sheriff had placed himself on the receiving end of Pipp’s annoyed leer, making Jazz flinch a bit.

“Why are you laughing? This is serious!”

Hitch paused the video to address Jazz's question. “Oh, sorry. It's just this video of Sparky. You gotta see it.”

Flipping the phone on his hooves, we were rewarded with a silly video of the little dragon displaying the amazing transmutation properties his fire breath seemed to possess to transform random objects from Hitch’s office.

Both mares ‘awwed’ at the sight of the baby dragon and his silliness. However, Pipp paid close attention to the sheer amount of views and hooftaps that the video had managed to collect since it had been uploaded that morning.

I could almost hear the gears tuning in her head.

'Oh, boy…’

‘You’re doing great, Misty! Keep this up and nopony will notice a thing! This time, I’ll make her proud!’

After observing the ponies for a few more days after my last failed attempt, and taking careful notice of my reports, Opaline had come up with a new plan. It was simple, yet efficient: infiltrate Maretime Bay once again, get alicorn Sunny in a vulnerable position of insecurity so Opaline could use the enchanted mirror to speak to her and convince her to embrace her alicorn powers and join our cause. Two alicorns working together? We would be unstoppable!

But the question was, how to get Sunny in a vulnerable position? Every time I had seen her on my forays to the coastal town, she always seemed full of energy and confidence, eager to help and provide for her fellow townsponies. Not to mention that she was surrounded by her friends to help her in any way she needed.

I busted my brain in thought on my way from Opaline’s castle, coming up with several strategies that would minimize my exposure, which was still my number one, uh… directive?

It clicked for me as I caught sight of the town over the grassy hills that bordered it. I had noticed the townsponies’ behavior towards her whenever she was in her alicorn form, and I had also talked to some of them, per Opaline’s orders, to gather information. When I brought this up with her, she confirmed my assumptions, claiming that in the presence of a being such as an alicorn, the ponies’ admiration was just 'inevitable’.

“Hmm, perhaps I can use that to my advantage…”

Since it was mid-morning by the time I’d reached the arch of the southern entrance, it would have been difficult to sneak between the narrow alleys unseen, as I did not wish to reveal my presence just yet. However, it seemed like a big congregation was happening over the town’s main square, if the ruckus reaching my ears was any indication. At least the number of ponies I might accidentally bump into would be diminished for the time being.

I searched for my target and, funnily enough, I found her being the reason for such an agglomeration of ponies, and I also saw her transformation happen again. As she was giving her speech, her wings and horn were nowhere to be found, and the ponies didn’t seem too keen on listening to whatever she was proposing. But the moment her alicorn assets manifested in a blinding light, it was as if a switch had been flipped! The way they were looking at her, hanging on to her very words, almost hypnotized…

“Yes… yes, this could work!”

Her alicorn form was key to the citizens paying her the attention she needed. And yet, from the small tidbits we had managed to acquire from the few occasions she’d used the mirror outside of the brighthouse, she wasn’t too keen on staying in that form for long, not that she could hold it that long the first place. Opaline had no knowledge of how her transformation worked, nor how it came to be in the first place. In that regard, we were still blind.

But the effect it had on other ponies was plain as day, and I could use that to my advantage. What was the term Opaline had used… reverse psychology? I’m not sure if that’s a fitting term, but the goal was clear either way. I needed to make her see that, without her alicorn powers, she was nothing. That way, Opaline could convince her of the special societal place that alicorns are meant to be in. Sunny would understand Opaline’s goal, and she would understand why it was so important she that succeeded.

Extracting the phone I had… acquired a few weeks prior, I contacted the group of mares I had been hanging out with for some time now. I had met them by chance on one of my runs around town. They were a very influential group of ponies from Maretime Bay, and surely knew a lot of ponies in return. That was the reasoning that drove me to ask for acceptance into their little club.

It took barely any effort. The girls said something about ‘counterbalancing their image’ and I don't know what about ‘winning the support of the unicorn community’. I didn’t give it much thought either way; I only cared for the things I could learn if I stuck with them, while also helping to build my character beyond that of ‘random tourist’. That charade would only work for so long.

11:46 Girls, something big is happening over at Mane Square!! Come ASAP!!

11:48 On our way, Micky!

I could only roll my eyes at their recurrent inability to properly say my name but decided not to comment on it, lest I end up upsetting them. Not wanting to waste precious time, I took out my trusty binoculars and resumed my espionage work.

I patiently waited for the girls to arrive, taking notice of everything happening around Sunny. With her speech meeting a satisfying result, the mass of ponies along with her usual group of friends accompanied her to her smoothie stand. I recalled at that moment the jicama smoothie I had ordered from her coworker that day. A shame Opaline hadn’t allowed me to finish it, it tasted a solid OK in my opinion. I took a mental reminder to get another one soon if I later had the chance; perhaps I would try one of the new ones with the weird new fruits the earth ponies had been coming up with.

Taking in everything that was happening over the square from my hiding place behind a couple of empty boxes stacked within a nearby alley, I did my best to analyze the behavior of the ponies who, one by one, lengthened the line to the point it almost went all the way around the plaza.

It took them well over an hour to arrive but, fortunately, as I was on the brink of losing my patience, the glowing form of the three other members of the renamed ‘Filly Four’ after my integration appeared around the corner of one of the side streets. The sheer amount of glitter the girls were wearing on their manes, cheeks, hooves, and tails made them easily distinguishable against the backdrop of the crowd, which had eased considerably due to most of them already having left with a grin on their muzzles and a smoothie in their hooves. Their gaudy attention to glitz and glam was a bit too much if you ask me. Although I was heavily encouraged to wear some, I wasn’t forced to if I didn’t want to, thank hoofness.

Sunny’s friends had each left to do their own things after a while, and the mare in question seemingly had run out of fresh produce for her treats, such was the sheer number of customers she’d had to attend to. I caught her on her way to leave the stand, encouraged by a trio of little fillies disguised as alicorns themselves who looked eager to show her something.

Sunny, after having lost her translucent wings and horn while apparently suffering a small nervous crisis and regaining them shortly after, followed the bouncing fillies toward the other end of the plaza.

This was my chance. With her friends gone for the time being and the fillies distracting her, I rushed from my hiding spot to catch up with my teammates, calling them as I approached them from the rear.

“Girls! Over here!”

The flashy trio twisted their necks to address me, making sure to flaunt their sparkling manes for the world to see.

“You called, and here we are, Mercy. Where’s that big thing you mentioned? Seems pretty empty to me.” Sugar Moon, supermodel and influencer extraordinaire ran her foreleg over the now considerably emptier plaza. And got my name wrong. Again.

“The Alicorn was giving a BIG speech! Almost everypony in town was attending! She’s over there now!”

The girls followed the direction of my stretched foreleg to find Sunny admiring the fillies’ work over one of the remaining street planters used by the earth ponies to practice their magic on.

“Hmm.” The gears started to turn under Sugar’s sparkling head. “Thanks, Misky. We’ll take it from here. Girls!” She called to her… our teammates. “Let’s get us some views.”

Falling in formation behind Sugar, the trio began their march in their mandatory exaggerated gate, leaving me behind to ponder my next move. If everything went accordingly, those mares were gonna chew her until nothing was left behind.

“And that’s where Opaline comes in. I just gotta make sure she doesn’t return to the brighthouse. The connection will fail otherwise.”

Falling in tow behind them and trying my best to mirror their particular step, I reached for my saddlebag and extracted my matching sunglasses. They would provide a smidge more of a cover for me anyway.

“This is it, Misty. Don’t mess it up now.”

“Hey girls, what are you growing over there? Are those… um… grapefruits? No, wait. Um, zucchini?”

“It's a grape-chini! A combination of grapefruit and zucchini!” Seashell stood proudly in front of the street planter where the infamous trio had dragged me to show me their newest creation. A considerable amount of progress was on display compared to those weird vine trees they had found themselves hanging from during the ‘flora incident’ that struck the town earlier.

Looming above the four of us, Maretime Bay’s newest wonky combination of fruit and vegetable stood proudly. Its fruits resembled what the fillies had described, yet their raw size was far superior from what a zucchini might achieve on its own, much less a grapefruit!

“Mmm, very interesting, girls. Why don’t you send one of these to my stand later? I’ll see if I can whip something up with it!” I offered my proudest smile to the trio of bouncing fillies.

“We made the Alicorn happy! Eeeeeee!” Peach Fizz could barely contain her enthusiasm, enthusiasm that soon infected her teammates as they all began to excitedly jump in a foalish bout of energy.

I was beyond myself with the ponies’ newfound reception to my ideas for improving our town. Everypony seemed so eager and enthusiastic since my morning speech. Who would have guessed that it only required a couple of wings and a horn to get their attention? Even if the attention ended up being a bit too much for me, I could deal with that. I just needed to remain true to myself!

After years of being laughed at for my stupid ideas and propositions, I could finally hold my head up high and begin changing this town from its roots, helping everypony be their best self, and living their best life!

Ooooh, there was just SO much work to be done! I almost started jumping in excitement with the fillies.

“Neigh way…”

Suddenly, Glory’s attention drastically shifted from their latest creation to something happening behind me. Her two friends followed her line of sight and also gasped in surprise, their little eyes almost popping out of their sockets.

“The Filly Four!!” The three chanted in unison.

Checking behind me to locate what had gotten the fillies in an uproar, I was met with that very same quartet of mares who had been rocking the Canternet recently. They were already popular since the reunification of the three tribes, but since the addition of that fourth unicorn member, they had totally been blowing up on social media.

My friend Pipp was NOT happy with it.

“Sunny,” Sugar Moonlight, who stood in the lead place of the group, addressed me in a friendly tone. “We've been looking for you everywhere. It's so nice to finally meet you.”

I could only tilt my head in bewilderment. “Um, we went to school together, Sugar. I sat next to you in…”

“I’m Sugar.” She cut me off, pointing at herself and her teammates. “This is Rosedust, Lily, and, uh... what's that new unicorn's name?”

“Uh, Minty, I think…?” Rosedust answered without sounding convinced. By the dejected sigh from the unicorn mare, it was likely she hadn’t got it right.

‘Hmm, she has a nice mane.’ I mulled to myself after a closer look at whatever could be discerned of her from her place behind the other three influencers.

“We were just about to go shopping. Wanna join us?” Sugar offered me, looking over her sunglasses.

Her offer took me by surprise. “Oh, I don't need to go shopping right now, but…”

“But if you come with us, everypony is going to see us together, and we're super influential.” Lily, exuberantly flaunting her two-toned purple and silver mane, sought to bribe me further.

“Yeah.” The unicorn integrant finally spoke. “Imagine what you could do with all that power…”

“Exactly, Marcy.”

“Misty.” The unicorn, whose correct name I now knew, corrected her team leader.

“Whatever. All you have to do is hang out with us. And stay an alicorn, of course.”

I swallowed the nervous lump in my throat. “R-right, hehe…” I couldn’t come up with a straight answer. This was just too much, too fast! I needed a professional second opinion. “Uh... one sec. I just, uh… need to freshen up.” I quickly searched my surroundings for an ideal place, a nearby side street being the only fitting place I could find. “Over there!”

“Freshen up? Behind a hardware store?” Sugar gave me a puzzled look. “Weird, but okay.” After which they all returned their attention to their phones.

Taking the chance, I pumped my translucent wings and reached the appropriate distance in a second. Hurriedly extracting my phone from my saddle bag, I dialed the only pony who could help me.

*Yas?* Pipp’s voice asked over the phone.

“Pipp! The Filly Four want me to hang out with them! What should I do?!”

*The Filly Four?! They're the ones eclipsing me on social media! They're, like, super famous right now!*

“I guess…?”

*Yeah! You need to do ALL you can to get them on your side.* I could almost feel her thrill from all the way here. *Ah, your school days are coming full circle, Sunny. You're going from misfit to popular pony!*

This time, I did jump in enthusiasm. “Okay! I'm gonna do it then!”

Hanging up, I mentally prepared myself for what would be a huge boost in popularity, which was just what I needed for my projects to reach new heights.

And yet, a shadow of my previous panic attack darkened my resolve, making me second guess my choice. Almost as if it could feel my hesitation, my alicorn magic fizzled and dispersed, taking the wings and horn with it.

“Oh, no, no, not now!”

Try as I might, I was unable to summon them back. No amount of pacing, pleading, or demanding got the shimmering appendages to return, making me almost fall into another nervous crisis. However, just as it was about to happen, a strange voice echoed through the narrow street.

“Sunnyyy.” Bringing me out of my panic, I twisted my body to check every single corner, but I couldn’t pinpoint its origin. “Suuuunny.” On and on it went calling for me. It sounded close and somewhat familiar…

“Sunny!” Now in a firmer tone, I was finally able to assess its origin. Surprisingly, it was coming from my trusty side bag.

‘Huh? Did I just dial somepony accidentally?’

It wasn’t coming from my phone, as it remained in standby mode. My hoof mirror, the one Pipp had gotten me for my birthday, that’s where the voice was coming from.

Deeply puzzled, I opened it and was only met by my reflection, as I expected.

And yet, my very same reflection started talking to me. “Hey there, Sunny.”

“U-um...” I answered with the only explanation I could come up with. “Is this... me?”

“Yeees.” My reflection replied with a smug grin. “Hello, me. Hello, you.”

“Wow!” I couldn’t believe what was happening in front of my eyes. “I need to share this with Zipp and Alex right away!”

“Wait!” The mirror’s sharp rebuttal halted my steps so abruptly that I ended up tripping over the stony path, dropping the mirror. Thankfully, it fell upright in front of my muzzle, unscathed. “This magic mirror is only for alicorns, Sunny. Haven’t you noticed the decoration?” My reflection referred to the alicorn-themed engraving on its lid.

“Um, yes?” I meekly replied.

“This mirror is enchanted. I’m your inner voice! I’m here to guide you, Sunny. If any other type of pony uses it, it will lose its enchantment. Because alicorns are special. You are special. Haven't you noticed?”

Of course, I had noticed. “Well, it’s true that I feel kinda… different?”

“Not different, Sunny. Special.” My inner voice made sure to accentuate that last statement. “Better, even. Why be a basic, boring earth pony when you can be... an alicorn?” The reflection spread her translucent wings and struck a pose in emphasis.

I carefully reached for the mirror and grabbed it with both hooves, recomposing myself on my haunches. “Then how... how do I stay an alicorn?” I asked, praying for the answer to the question that had plagued me since I had first discovered my new abilities. It had been a couple of months already, and I still was struggling to find the trigger and prevent them from randomly appearing. It was driving me crazy!

My reflection was clear with her answer. “Find the source of your power and harness it. Then all your wildest dreams can come true!” She spoke with confidence.

“Even the community garden?!” That last bit escaped my muzzle unintentionally, but I just couldn’t help it.

“… That's your wildest dream?... We'll work on that, but yes!”

I continued rambling to myself. “I've been drafting my garden dream board at the brighthouse! Oh, I really want it to become a place where I can help other ponies use their magic! A place where everypony can…”

“Yes, that’s it! Look!” My reflection ushered me to look at myself. I hadn’t even noticed it that time, but my wings and horn had returned to their rightful places.

‘YES! Thank hoofness!’ I mentally celebrated.

“Go, Sunny. Go take what is rightfully yours…”

But I was barely listening by that point. “Hah! Thank you so much... me? Mirror me? Sunny squared? Eh, I'll come up with a better name soon.”

Missing the flat look my reflection was sporting, I closed the mirror and returned it to my side bag.

“Okay, Sunny. Deep breaths, focus.”

I mentally prepared myself, diverting all my energy into preserving my alicorn form. Now would have been the worst moment to lose it again. I had to remain in my best self.

A healthy dose of mental preparation later, I scampered out of the side street and was relieved to see the Filly Four remained absorbed in their phones, patiently waiting for me to finish ‘freshening up’ myself. The unicorn one was giving me a somewhat inquisitive look, but I thought none of it, there were more pressing manners at hoof.

“All right! Feeling much better! Let’s do it!” I gave them my most confident grin.

“Perf! Let's get shopping.” Sugar motioned her fellow teammates to follow her back to the plaza.

“Actually!” With a powerful flap, I soared above them and landed in front of the marching group. “I have another idea. I'm going to make another announcement about this huge project I've been working on.” I had only managed to state part of my message that morning. I needed all the ponies involved if I wanted my plan to move forward. “And I want to get everypony involved!... Only if they want to get involved, though…” I sheepishly averted my gaze from the inquisitive mares.

The trio of Pippsqueaks, who had been tailing us in an adorable but not quite successful attempt to remain unseen, jumped at the chance of helping me, assaulting me with pleading eyes and eager smiles.

“Yes! We do! Pleeeeease!” Seashell pleaded for the three of them.

Noticing the fillies’ enthusiasm, Sugar eventually relented after a silent discussion with the other members. “The Filly Four would love to help. We'll rally all the ponies in town to hear the news. We're here for you. But first,” She suddenly pressed herself against my side “Smiiiile!” I did my best to comply on such short notice. Blinking away the spots from the camera's flash, I saw the ponies leave for their tasks.

“That is so going viral.” Sugar nonchalantly celebrated as the Filly Four went to rally the townsponies. While the adult ponies left, the little ones remained close to my side, bouncing energetically as they guided me back to the gazebo where I would deliver my second speech of that day, hay, of that very same morning!

“Come on, girls, there's a lot to do if we wanna please the alicorn!” Glory ushered her friends once we had arrived. Not leaving room for me to protest, the fillies scampered away to get everything ready, rallying the help of anypony who passed nearby. I required nothing more than the pony’s attention to deliver my speech, but also didn’t wish to trump their enthusiasm, so I resigned myself to waiting for them to finish.

And yet, the way they kept calling me ‘the alicorn’ instead of my actual name… I should be happy to finally have caught their undivided attention, but…

‘Come on, Sunny! You ARE an alicorn. Start acting like one!’

It took the ponies only a few minutes to get everything ready. I admired their dedication to my cause, but the changes made to the gazebo… not so much.

But, just as before, I was left with no room to protest as the Pippsqueaks practically shoved me onto the impromptu throne that now adorned the center of the structure.

And then, the three fillies proclaimed themselves as my personal servants. “Would the alicorn like to be fanned with an earth pony-grown branch?” Glory asked for my side, beginning to fan me with a leafy branch she had pulled out from somewhere.

“Uuuh…”

“Or maybe she would like to try one of these fresh earth pony-grown grapes? Made by me!” Seashell offered from the other side, holding a bunch of grapes on her forehead.

“Um… okay? Thanks…”

My hoof was swatted away as I sought to take one. Startled, the unicorn Misty of the Filly Four suddenly got in my face. “No, no! You mustn't lift even one perfect alicorn hoof of yours! You deserve to be treated like the alicorn royalty that you are, all the time, forever!” She demanded with a tiny bow. The rest of the squad were making their way up the gazebo as she spoke, their messages sent and their socials burning with expectation. In a steady trickle, the plaza once again began to fill with ponies.

‘R-R-Royalty?!! What’s she talking about?!’

The more they doted on me, the more uncomfortable I became, to the point where I couldn’t stand it anymore when my eyes caught sight of a group of ponies who had just recently arrived. They were carrying banners. Alicorn-themed banners. And they called for ‘the alicorn’, over and over again.

In all the time I’d spent under their overexcited sight, not once was my name ever mentioned.

“Ah!” I jumped from my seat with an unrestrained yelp, startling my self-proclaimed servants and the Filly Four. I had to find a way out; I needed a way out. “I, uh, suddenly remembered there’s some ali-stuff I need to do. Um, that's, uh, the ‘ali’ part of being an ali-corn. So... yeah.”

I was never good at making excuses, but I decided to crown that one as my worst excuse ever. But, of course, not wanting to make the alicorn unhappy, they let me go without a complaint, staying put and awaiting my return.

“Anything for the alicorn!” The Pippsqueaks’ cries faded in my ears as I sped out of there, making a sharp turn for the same narrow street I had used to freshen myself before.

“What should I do…?” I asked the only person that could help me at the moment. Taking my hoof mirror out of the side bag, I once again implored my reflection for an answer. “I feel so lost...”

The image shuddered for a moment, my reflection coming to life once again afterward. “Continue on your path to glory.” She proudly stated. “You are an alicorn. You should be praised, admired, feared…”

I didn’t care for that smirk she was giving me. “But I don't want that!”

“Do you remember how horrible it was before? Hmm? How nopony would listen to you? Do you not recall how small you felt?”

Her reminder jabbed a cold dagger into my heart, the memories of one too many humiliations rushing into my mind. How horrible I felt that day at Canterlogic’s Annual Presentation, where everypony was booing me, and when Hitch had to drag me away before I could embarrass myself further… as if that was even possible by that point.

“Yes… I do.” I meekly agreed.

Dread made way over my looming sadness when the fizzling sounds once again filled the street. “No! Come back! Come back!!!” Just as before, no amount of pleading persuaded my alicorn assets to continue brightening the shadowy street.

I was left as I had started. Without them, nopony would listen to me.

“I don't need to be an alicorn for ponies to like me, right?” A sob left my muzzle. “R-Right?”

I carefully read over the document in my hands, checking for any mistakes or misleads I might have overlooked. Phyllis stood patiently in front of me, her own signature already in the appropriate place.

I had come to her to secure the land Sunny would require for her community garden. She still had to get the town under her hooves before moving to the next step, but knowing her, that was only a matter of time. I wanted to surprise her.

The portion of land I had secured stood just downhill from the brighthouse, right at the dusty road’s side, easily accessible for anypony wanting to give it a try. In different circumstances, it would have cost me a fortune to acquire this land at such short notice, but Phyllis was more than willing to grant me a considerable discount. She felt she owed it to Sunny for her son’s, and by extension, her destruction of Sunny’s old lighthouse, and for all the trouble she had put her and her dad through every time they sought to change the ponies’ minds.

“Everything seems in order. Thank you again, Phyllis.” I finished checking over the contract and offered her my most thankful smile.

“Think nothing of it, darling. It’s the least I can do. And seeing all that noise that young mare’s been making recently, I ought to say it’s going to be a complete success!”

“I’m sure of it too.” I carefully folded it and secured it in my pocket. “The workponies will pass this afternoon to delimit the area and seal it?” I asked the businessmare.

“Sure thing, sugarcube. I’ll get a word with the construction company. They’ll be able to start as soon as tomorrow if it comes from me.” She answered with a coy, somewhat smug grin.

“Ah, the ever-influential Phyllis.” I chuckled at her unwillingness to mask the nature of her position within the town’s Council. “Very well. If that’s all, I’ll leave you to your work.”

“I’ll see you around, darling. Give my best to your friends!”

Leaving the busy mare to her work, I left the town hall and stepped into the surprisingly empty street, enjoying the fresh mid-day air. It could get a bit stuffy down in the lab, and the perpetual synthetic smell of lab equipment didn’t help either.

A healthy amount of ruckus could be discerned from where I stood, and already familiarized with the town’s layout, I discerned that it seemed to be coming from Mane Square.

Furrowing my brow, I decided to head that way and check it out, perhaps grab something to eat, too. Zipp had spoken wonders of some food truck down by the docks that prepared a ‘mind numbing, amazitastic’ chowder on Tuesdays. Today wasn’t a Tuesday, but I had no problem trying something else. It was on my way past the square either way.

The clamoring of cheering ponies grew louder with every corner I turned until reaching my destination. The undefined mass of voices soon morphed into a veritable cry the moment I set foot in the overcrowded meeting point. Even more ponies had rallied around than that morning’s numbers. And all of them chanted in unison for the orange-furred mare standing within the gazebo.

“A-li-corn! A-li-corn! A-li-corn!”

But no alicorn stood to address the masses. Only my friend Sunny, who panickedly talked with some other ponies who shared the gazebo with her. Her eyes kept drifting back and forth from the chorus of clamoring ponies to her companions.

“Oh, crap…”

I tried my best to maneuver through the crowd, but my progress was rendered null since, with one last dejected look to the crowd, Sunny jumped down from the gazebo and bolted out of the plaza, head low and eyes tightly closed. I didn't need a pegasus’ sight to know she was crying.

“Faust, dammit. It can never be too easy, can it?”

That morning’s events had already lit the torch of concern I held for her and the treatment the ponies would eventually give her. It was just as I had told Zipp: for them, it’s almost instinctual, ponies always seem to rally around the figure of an alicorn, who had been the leading figures of Equestria since time immemorial. They knew no better back then, and even now, after hundreds of years without one, they still held on to their old customs. For somepony like Celestia or Luna, it was a burden they were prepared to bear out of love for their little ponies, and bear it gladly did they.

But Sunny was not ready for such a burden. She should never be. If there was one creature still alive who knew about how heavy such a task can weigh on somepony, it was me.

Confused and somewhat bothered, the ponies began to murmur amongst themselves. “What’s wrong with her…?” “Such a waste of time…” “I only wanted to see the alicorn…”

A conscious effort was required to bite my tongue to keep myself from exploding there and then. None of those idiots could understand the pressure she was being subjected to. In a more aggressive demeanor this time, I left behind the congregation of ponies and followed the crying mare, who had made her way back to our home at the brighthouse.

I could audibly hear the worried pleadings of Pipp and Zipp from the hallway even before I’d entered the building. Climbing up the ramp, I found both of them in front of the closed doors of their shared bedroom.

“Sunny, please.” Zipp implored, receiving a sharp yell in return.

“Go away!”

Pipp’s ears flicked at the sound of my hurried steps. Tapping her sister’s shoulder, both were made aware of my presence, forlorn looks darkening their features.

“She won’t talk to us…” Pipp’s sad voice filled the now silent hallway, only broken by the faint sound of sobbing coming from inside the bedroom.

“I’ll take it from here, girls. Could you please give us both some space for a bit?”

Reluctantly, the pegasi sisters nodded and stepped aside, giving me free passage to their sleeping quarters, flapping away once I’d entered without bothering to knock first.

“I said, GO! AWAY!”

Sunny’s furious demands didn’t deter me in the slightest. Stepping past Pipp and Izzy’s beds, I found a lump of sheets and blankets hiding the wailing mare on hers, trembling with each strained sob that escaped her muzzle. You didn’t need to be an expert to hear the pain behind those sobs, and that pain only served to make me angrier inside.

Reaching for the opposite side of the bed since she was facing away from the door, I kneeled in front of her lying form, taking a deep breath to calm my anger and focus on my friend, who was in desperate need of succor. Only the tip of her orange muzzle could be seen from under the colorful sheets, but her poor attempt to hide wasn’t going to dissuade me from my duty. Without uttering a word, I reached down with both arms and gently grabbed the sobbing pony, pulling her closer toward me and pressing her against my chest. Sunny didn’t complain this time, instead seeking refuge under me as she allowed the tears to flow in her achingly painful distress.

Tenderly petting her over the blankets, I waited until she could get it all out, brushing my hand from the top of her scalp to the tip of her tail and back again. Long minutes passed until I felt her calm down, her sobbing giving way to loud sniffing as she tried to regain her breathing.

Gently tugging the sheets over her head, I was met with two beautiful aqua-green orbs matted with lingering tears, bloodshot from all her crying.

“Sniff, N-Nopony actually cares about m-my causes…. They o-only cared about me b-being an alicorn…” she pined, audibly sniffling in her attempt to regain her composure.

Another bout of tears escaped her leaky eyes, ones that I gently wiped away with my thumb as I lovingly scratched over her cheeks and behind her ears, trying to bring some semblance of comfort to the struggling mare.

“Without them I’m… Sniff… I’m just a useless nopony... I’m nothing…”

“Are you?”

My sharp inquiry surprised Sunny, momentarily bringing her out of her stupor. “W-What?”

“Because I find it hard to believe a useless nopony was the one who brought the three tribes together after hundreds of years of separation, something neither the Elements, nor the Pillars, nor the Students, nor the Princesses, nor even ME could do.”

Her eyes left mine to focus on the matted blankets below us, silently mulling over my words.

“A useless nopony would not have been able to bring friendship and unity to everypony in Equestria, fighting with her friends every single day to prove the wonders of coexistence, pledging her life to the betterment of her fellow ponies.”

Sunny remained pensive. I had managed at least to cease the waterworks, but the conflict was still pinning her down under its clutches.

“But you don’t need to hear it from me. I always give the same speech, after all.”

Now deeply puzzled, Sunny recomposed herself to better discern my meaning, a moment I used to sneak both of my arms under her and lift her up against my chest, securing her with one arm under her rump and another on her back.

“A-Alex!” She called, surprised. “Where are we going?!”

“To consult with the expert, of course.” I answered nonchalantly as I made for the doors.

A few uncertain moments passed until I felt her returning the gesture, surrounding me with both forelegs and pressing her barrel against me. Her wet muzzle gently nuzzled my neck as we went down the ramp and into the hall.

Straining my ears, I could faintly hear sounds of a certain unicorn making a mess of her workshop which, in her line of work, meant she was actually getting some work done.

Just as I had hoped, the rowdy unicorn was hooves-deep in the process of smashing a series of porcelain mugs, using the broken pieces as the foundation for a new sculpture… I think.

I tapped twice on the nearby wall to gain her attention. “Excuse me, I’m looking for one Izzy Moonbow, 15155 Cliffside Road?”

Sunny could only tilt her head in bewilderment at my totally-made-up name of her actual address. Well, it wasn’t entirely invented, but they would never get the reference.

Removing her working glasses, Izzy twirled around with a jump to address the voice behind her. “Ooooh! Is it the new ‘One Hundred Color Glitter Extravaganza Set’ I ordered?! I’ve been waiting for… uuh…”

The energy evaporated as she caught sight of our particular arrangements. “Um, noooo.” I looked down at my stretched forearm as if I was holding a script. “It says here that whenever this pony I’m carrying is feeling down and woozy, I must deliver her to one Doctor Izzy Moonbow, specialist in ‘Things of the Head’ for her treatment. This is her address, is it not?”

If she wasn’t before, Sunny was now completely lost, but her grip on me didn’t lessen one iota. Thankfully, Izzy was quick to catch up.

“Oh! Yes! Yes!” Clearing her throat, she went into a more professional mode. “Please, if you would be so kind as to accompany me to my office.” She motioned us towards the other side of her workshop, where a pair of puffs were hastily arranged via her levitation magic.

Izzy plopped her rump into the one nearest to the window, while I plopped Sunny into the other one; I then sought to go looking for a chair for me, but the snuggling mare would not let go of me. After a few failed tries and her whinnies of protest, I relented and fell into the puff with her still occupying a space on my chest, twisting her body to fully face Izzy.

“Ahem. Doctor Izzy is in the house, and she’ll fix you right up. Tell me, uh…” She pretended to look over some files. “Sunny. Tell Izzy all that's troubling you.”

And so she did, retelling everything that had happened that morning when we all attended her speech, and later when she got caught up with the Filly Four and the tight spot they had put her in.

“A-And then, Rosedust said how none of the ponies really cared for my silly causes. They said that nopony even liked me before. They just wanted to make ‘the alicorn’ happy…”

Finishing her retelling, Sunny buried her head back into my chest. As my hand scratched over her scalp, I could see by Izzy’s hardening visage how she was about to blow up.

“Why those no-good lying… I ought to chew them up like gummy bears!” Any semblance of professionalism promptly evaporated under her scorching rage.

“That is a matter for another time, Izzy.” I raised my hand to ease the raging unicorn. “Right now, she needs to hear it from you.”

Understanding me, Izzy got up from her seat and approached Sunny from the right, sitting back down on her haunches.

“Sunny, being an alicorn doesn’t change a thing. Wings and horn or not, you’ll always be the one who united us, who inspired all of us to be better ponies. That,” She placed a comforting hoof over Sunny’s fluffy chest. “Is your true power. And if those numbskulls don’t wanna see it? Well, buck ‘em.”

A bright smile slowly broke over her muzzle, chasing away the lingering sorrow. “Thank you, Izzy. I guess I…” she trailed off with a heavy sighthat belied her internal torment.”

“It’s okay, Sunny,” I placed a comforting hand over Izzy's hoof. “Nopony said it was going to be easy. I believe everypony will eventually see, but it’ll take time. Don’t shy away from being who you are. Alicorn powers or not, you’ll always be our Sunny. That’s all we can ask of you… like I’ve said before.” I lovingly nuzzled my nose against her snout, a gesture that always brought a grin out of her, and did so again.

With the orange mare now feeling better, I used the moment to deliver my little surprise. “And that brings me to this.”

Gently pushing her backward a bit, I reached for my pocket and extracted the folded contract, handing it to her.

“Hmm? What’s this?” Sunny wondered as she carefully unfolded the sheet of paper.

“Deeds for a plot of land downhill from our home, and permission from the town hall to build the community garden.”

I felt Sunny’s body become rigid, her eyes now two pinpricks as she scanned the document in front of her. Izzy respectfully stood aside with a knowing grin.

“I’ve already covered the payment for it. The workponies should arrive any minute to assess the terrain and start d- MMMPH!!”

Sunny cut me off in a most particular way: by smashing her lips into mine, strong enough to push us back into the puff to the point I almost rolled over it and into the ground. With labored breathing, she held the kiss for a few fleeting moments before energetically pushing back, barely giving me a chance to taste her lips on mine. Not a second later she was bolting out of the room with an overjoyed cry, on her speedy way to meet the workponies down the hill.

Me? I remained still, screeching gears slowly resuming their turning as my brain processed what had just happened.

“Mmm.” Izzy purred, her grin only widening as she lowered herself on the puff at my side. “Cunning…” She playfully teased.

“Oh, gimme a break, Izzy.” I swatted her smug muzzle away. “Not everything’s a convoluted plan.”

“I’m suuuure it wasn’t.” She teased me further with a tail slap on my shins. “So, aaaare you gonna do something about it?” She wiggled her eyebrows in emphasis.

“Of course I am.” I replied with confidence. “You think I’d spend my last month's salary on a brand-new telescope out of the kindness of my heart? I got it all figured out.” I tapped my head twice with my own smug little smile.

“You’re SO evil.” Izzy playfully jabbed my ribs. “If that’s the case, then I’m sure I don’t need to tell you what will happen to you if you ever break her heart. ‘Cause you know I love you very much, but I’ll grind your hairless flank into dust if…”

“Izzy.” I placed a hand on her muzzle to cease her threatening. “My little sister was nineteen by the time I left Earth. And she had gone through a total of four boyfriends to that day. Each of them was the one, and each of them dined with our family at least once. So, just as I told Shining Armor back then, I don’t need you to deliver that speech. I practically invented that speech. I know it better than my doctoral thesis, and that’s saying something.”

“Hmph, you better.” She conceded with a threatening frown.

“You know I’d never harm any of you, Izzy.” I rubbed under her chin, successfully erasing her scowl. “But I want to talk to her first. I think it’s for the best to clear the mist before committing to anything serious.”

For the briefest moment, I saw what I thought was a conflict in her eyes, changing immediately to a harsh and resolute determination. It only lasted a second but it was enough to rekindle another of my concerns.

‘Yeah, that’s another thing I’m gonna have to deal with.’

“Hey, guys!” Zipp's head appeared from around the corner. “What’s going on downhill? There’s a crew of workponies talking to Sunny. Is she feeling better now?” She asked with concern about our friend.

“She’s feeling much better now.” I reassured her. “Better if we join her, we’ll all be a part of it after all.”

“‘Kay.” With that, she bolted out of the room in search of her sister. I got up on my feet and assured Izzy I would join them shortly; I just needed a moment to grab something first.

That something was my twinblade. I intended to use it to show Sunny something that I hoped would help her understand what it truly meant to be an alicorn. But first things first, I joined Izzy and the pegasi sisters on our way down the bay’s edge, where around halfway down the road a group of ponies appropriately dressed in high-vis jackets stood flabbergasted as Sunny made for a cute show of delimiting the area the garden would occupy by pacing around the desired perimeter with long steps, counting them loudly to provide a rough measurement.

On the phone, Hitch assured us he would arrive shortly with Sparky, so we decided to wait for him and amuse ourselves watching Sunny drag the chief pony around and bombarding him with her ideas for designs and the overall shape of the plot. The poor stallion did his best to jot down the mare’s hurried annotations while I stuck my sword into the ground and enjoyed the show.

Once Hitch had joined us, we spent the better part of the afternoon discussing among ourselves how we would manage the garden, devising the best strategy to get the most out of it for everypony to practice and enjoy. Sunny could barely contain herself, being the most participative one, proposing and discarding several ideas in quick succession until the perfect draft could be devised.

Since I had taken care of the land and the permits required, the ponies offered to divide the costs of the construction amongst themselves, not allowing me to put another bit into the effort. Begrudgingly, I complied, albeit taking a note to try and bribe Phyllis further to see if I could get her to lend us some of the abandoned equipment from her old factory.

“Uff!” Once the final draft was completed, a very satisfied Sunny tackled me to the grassy ground, thanking me over and over again in a breathless streak, seemingly unaware of what had transpired between us before.

I placed a tiny kiss behind her ear and snuggled her against my chest. “You’re very welcome, Sunny girl.”

My gesture lit an adorable blush on her cheeks, one I had grown to adore. But, as much as it pained me, I had to cut our tender moment short and address her more seriously.

“Sunny, there’s something I need to ask you.”

Noticing my change in demeanor, Sunny stood up and granted me some space, inquisitive eyes waiting patiently.

“It has to do with today’s… um, ‘little problem’ with you being an alicorn.”

The rest of the gang surrounded us in a semi-circle. “Mhm?” Sunny prompted me to continue.

“I see how you strain yourself to become one, how you push yourself every time we train, and how you grow desperate every time you fail to do so. I admire your dedication, I truly do, but I fear you might be misunderstanding what it means to be an alicorn.”

“What do you mean?”

I wetted my lips. “Alicorns have always held a particular sense of meaning amongst ponykind. Zipp knows what I’m referring to.” Her look told me she recalled our previous conversation. “But the important thing I need you to understand is… how do I say it… becoming an alicorn is something nopony could ever accomplish by themselves. It’s a state of power and influence only a few selected ponies are ever granted, no matter if they ascend, or if they’re trueborn alicorns. Sunny,” I directed my entire attention to her. “Do you feel you need to prove yourself as an alicorn to us?”

She swallowed a nervous lump but feverishly nodded after a few moments.

“Do you feel you need to reach the same standard that the alicorns of old set?”

Again, another tiny nod. “If I am to protect everypony, to make the best out of my powers, then yes, I believe I do need to reach that standard.”

Biting my lower lip, I considered her answer. “If that is the case, allow me to show you your final test.”

Standing up, I cracked my knuckles and neck. The ponies mirrored my movements, unsure as to what I had just mentioned.

“F-Final test? W-What are you talking ab-”

“Accio.”

Obeying my command, my twinblade soared through the air until reaching my outstretched palm. Now addressing the positively puzzled Sunny, I turned on my heels and walked to the cliff's edge, from where I could glimpse the calm sea reflecting the sunset’s colors with a shimmering mixture of oranges and blue hues. The ponies silently followed my steps, allowing a respectful distance between us, with Sunny taking a place a bit ahead of the rest.

“What’s he gonna do?”

“I don’t know, Izzy. It sounded serious.”

More whispers were exchanged between the expectant ponies, but I paid no heed to them. Instead, I focused and readied myself for one of the most, if not the most complex spell my human physiology could muster. A spell I absolutely needed my blades for, since they would take the brunt of the casting, preventing my fragile body from literally bursting into cinders. A particular type of magic was required for this one.

“Dies dat noctem.”

In one swift movement, I switched my stance to stand sideways from the cliff’s side, the twinblade now levitating in front of me.

“Nox dat diem.”

The runes in each of the blades began to hum with power, shining with their respective golden and bluish hues. My hands made a circular motion, which the blades followed without hesitation; two concentric circles began to be drawn until their completion. Runes shimmered inside them, the ones in the innermost circle differing from the outermost’s. An expert eye would have noticed that they resembled the marks of a sextant, for that was their purpose.

“Dux firmamenti.”

Power continued gathering in the tips of my blades, a strong breeze in the bay now becoming quite noticeable as a result. The ponies remained mesmerized before my demonstration of one of the most powerful magic spells this world had ever known.

“Ostende eis viam!”

In another sharp movement, my hand guided the tips further on their path; the solar tip was now pointed toward the setting sun behind the mountains, while the lunar one was now poised toward the horizon beyond the sea.

Now came the hard part. Closing my fists in the air as if I was about to grab something, I began directing the blades on a new path; the blade pointed towards the sea slowly began to rise while the opposite blade started to fall in tandem. The innermost circle spun following their movements, while the outermost did so in the opposite direction.

Five muzzles opened in astonishment as slowly, painfully slowly, the moon began climbing from the horizon, just as the sun completely disappeared behind the tall peaks beyond the bay.

Clenching my teeth in supreme effort, I continued guiding the celestial bodies until they had reached their appropriate places in the firmament. That the swords took the brunt of the magic didn’t mean my body was exempt from damage. Fortunately, that damage only manifested in the form of extreme fatigue as I let go of the spell, falling to my knees and reaching with my hands to prevent myself from eating grass.

The magic circles fizzled out of existence the moment I let go, my twinblade falling to the ground with a muffled THUD, cushioned only by the grass and flowers beneath our feet… or, hooves.

Mist formed in front of me as a consequence of my labored breathing and the now chilling temperatures. Summer would soon be over. Using my knees as leverage, I struggled to get back on my feet, succeeding on the third attempt. Another summoning spell brought the blades back into my reach. The ponies were still too dumbstruck to notice me retracing my steps back towards them.

“If you wish to prove yourself a true alicorn,” I stood before Sunny. “Next time,” I pointed my blade at her. “It’ll be you doing it.”

Sunny’s eyes met mine, but not a word was uttered from her muzzle. Satisfied with her ‘answer’, I proceeded on my way back to the brighthouse, looking forward to the long, hot bath I deserved after pulling that stunt.

“How’s that for a safety mechanism?” I addressed Zipp as I passed by her side with a playful wink.

The ponies remained stunned for a while, eyes bored into the bright full moon painting the bay in its milky colors. One by one, their scrambled brains regained their respective grips on reality, and silently followed my steps back into our home, too shocked to say anything.

It was an impossible task for her. I was well aware of that. I hoped that perhaps it would serve as inspiration for her, something for her to look up to. But, most importantly, I prayed it would help her understand.

I didn't need her to be an alicorn like the Princesses had been. I didn’t want her to become one. I hoped my training would be enough to prepare her to fight the incoming darkness alongside us, to teach her to make responsible use of her unique abilities for the betterment of ponykind.

But, the time of the alicorns had now passed. Their hold over the world had withered and ultimately shattered. It was time for something new, something better.

‘The ponies don’t need them anymore… forgive me, Twilight.’