A Moment of Contemplation
A unicorn filly sat quietly at a long oaken table stacked with several piles of books. She sat alone, separated from the rest of the library by golden gates and two guards who stood outside, guarding her silently while other visitors to the library went about their way and chores.
The only sound the little unicorn made was the soft, swishing sound pages made when turned. She didn't move much: her horn was aglow with a soft, lavender aura that gently enveloped the books she was looking through with unusual focus in one so young.
It was said that the magic unicorns used to write permeated not only the quill as they levitated it, but also the words, ink and the paper itself. It was said that intent would flow into the concepts and ideas, the thoughts and meaning behind the words. Thus, reading something written magically by a unicorn—none of that mass-produced crap—would touch the reader's mind, soul and even their emotions… if read properly.
There were many books written by princesses and scholars. Scrolls of spells. A thesis on complex magical concepts that were enhanced by the magical signature behind the intent of the author.
How many unsaid things had been lost to ignorance of this fact across the ages? Declared failures or inconsequential by the lack of understanding of the hidden messages between lines?
Twilight Sparkle shuddered at the thought of all that had been lost to time and lack of knowledge, her little body almost shaking entirely at the concept itself. Princess Celestia had told her many times that she took herself and her studies too seriously, but Twilight had the nagging feeling that the Princess was a little out of touch with reality.
Not every pony lived an eternal life like that of the princess. The Princess could remember what she had for breakfast a thousand years ago, that day, that morning. She could remember the names of all her students across centuries of teaching. She remembered every spell, every law, every pony that had met her.
In the face of such perfect memory and life, how would any creature living it understand what the life of mere mortals was like? Where a single forgotten idea could take lifetimes to rediscover?
No, Princess Celestia would never really understand. What she wrote today she could rewrite tomorrow; what she said today, the world could forget within a decade, but she would remember it.
It would never be lost.
As she flipped the pages of works written by previous students forgotten in time, she had come across a journal with no name on it. Although she would never dismiss any book, Twilight had been tempted to ignore it, but for the fact that it was relatively new, and that it was stored within the library section reserved for students of the Princess.
No other books, scrolls, journals or annotations of any sort were to be stored there. This space was for those chosen… and they only taught those who followed. No matter what each pony here had done, what their ultimate fate had been, their words and their stories were to be found here.
The Princess had told her that each word and space and period and comma would tell her much more once she was properly attuned to reading somepony else's personal work. That was one of the reasons Twilight had looked longingly at the much older volumes before deciding that a more recent work would be safer from an accidental mishap.
Opening the journal, Twilight found the careful, practiced writing of a young mare. She could feel the words of the pony that had written this.
The Princess brought me to Canterlot Castle today. I will leave behind everything that I was before, and start a new life. I was chosen out of many other orphans… what makes me special? Who am I going to be once my studies are over and I am my own mare, off to face the world, armed with the knowledge that the Princess will impart on me? How far will I go before I leave my mark for all Equestria to remember me? Will they?
There was joy and apprehension in those words. Twilight could feel the happiness of being essentially adopted by the Princess, and the fear of failing to be somepony that would make others proud.
Twilight had never considered this. Not really. Who she was in contrast to who she would be in the future. Who—what kind of pony thought that far ahead at her age, really? Was it because they had led different early years? This mysterious student in an orphanage, while Twilight grew up with her parents and brother?
Could nurture really change not just the perceptions of the present, but the expectations of the future for someone that young? Twilight had just been tremendously happy about being chosen by Celestia herself to study under her.
This pony who had come before her had been happy. But also afraid. The emotional connection between the residual magic and Twilight's intent to understand got across very strong feelings of personal doubt and fear of abandonment.
'Is this how I should feel too?' Twilight thought, a small pout adorning her face as she considered how less seriously she was taking her future in comparison to this other mare. 'Am I too conceited to think that I have a future where I will change Equestria, while this other student didn't even leave a name behind to remember her by?'
"Of all the places I thought I would find you in this library, I was not expecting to see you here, my faithful student."
Twilight blinked, shaking her head and releasing the magical connection to the journal. "Princess!" she said, eyes wide and a smile growing in her face, then she grimaced and repeated herself in a loud whisper. "Princess Celestia! Is Court done already? Is it time to study already?"
The Princess chuckled and her horn lit up with a radiant, white light. Twilight recognized the spell that formed a dome around the private area of the library, allowing them to speak at a normal volume.
Being still too inexperienced for casting that spell herself, Twilight hadn't even thought to try to do it yet… although she was so used to being in the library that she still spoke softly, even if it was unnecessary now. "Sorry."
"No need to apologize, Twilight," Celestia replied, walking around her student to sit to her left. "I see you are looking at your predecessor's work."
"I am!" Twilight said, smiling ruefully. "I hadn't realized how… childish I must seem in comparison to your previous students." She waved a hoof at the stack of books.
The Princess' smile didn't waver, but she did tilt her head a little, her mane waving gently behind her. "Oh, I don't think so, Twilight, you are just a young filly. Asking too many questions about the future when you are just beginning to understand your present is not going to lead you anywhere right now."
"Oh." Twilight looked down at the journal. "It's just… this student…"
Celestia looked down at the journal and… she froze. Just like she had been learning to understand the aura left behind by those that wrote their thoughts before, she could—to some extent—sense the trepidation and surprise in Celestia's magical aura.
"Princess?" Twilight asked.
"Why was this…" Celestia gently lifted the journal and flipped through the pages. "I did not know this was here."
"This pony was scared," Twilight said. "She was happy and scared, a bit like I was when you took me as your student. I just got started on my journal but I never thought about my future or what I would leave behind like she did."
Celestia took a deep breath. "Of all the students you could have picked, my dear student, this is not one you should use as a guide on who or what you should be." She chuckled, although oddly enough Twilight could swear it was tinged with sadness. "This one student… she had very high hopes for herself, and ended up hurting those she loved before she… went away."
"Oh." Twilight looked sadly at the journal. "There was so much hope there…"
Celestia took a sharp, quick breath, then relaxed. Levitating the journal away from Twilight, she put it on top of the others. "Twilight, although the words and thoughts of all my students are important and worthy of reading and remembering, there is something you should be careful about."
Twilight leaned closer, paying attention to her teacher.
"Each pony… every griffon, zebra, or diamond dog… everycreature out there brings within themselves the possibility of change; the chance of shaping the world and being remembered, like Clover the Clever, or even nearly worshiped, like Starswirl the Bearded."
Celestia paused and waited for Twilight to nod, indicating she was following along with her words. Seeing that her student was still paying attention, she continued.
"We all want to mean something to others, but the greatest folly anycreature can force on themselves is the expectation of greatness without the understanding that everything we do has value in some way or another."
"Is… that what happened to her?" Twilight asked, her eyes drifting to the journal Celestia had put aside.
"There comes a time in life, whether it's as short as a mortals or as long as eternity, when we all question what we are, who we are… and from there what we are due, what we deserve—or not, and whether we are actually worthy of taking our place in shaping the future."
"What do you mean, Princess?" the young filly asked, eyes wide as she struggled to understand what her beloved teacher was getting at.
"A farmer in Ponyville might have started a small carrot farm and dedicated her life and the life of her family to making that farm grow into an integral part of the entire community, even Equestria as a whole, while a gardener in the same town might simply have concentrated on roses and had no greater dreams than a single shop." Celestia looked at Twilight with a smile. "Which one is more deserving of leaving their mark in history?"
"Well…" Twilight frowned. "The farmer?"
"But what if the farmer became simply a cog in the farm's success, simply a conceited rich pony that cared not for others? Ponies recognizing the farm, but not the ponies there?" Celestia countered. "And what if… when a pony died in town, the gardener would bring the most beautiful flowers she had at the time and present them for free to the grieving family? Who should be remembered?"
Twilight shook her head, giving her a slightly annoyed look. "I don't like it when you twist things like that."
Celestia laughed. "The thing to remember, my little pony… is the lesson my beloved daughter never learned before she left: No matter how important you feel, what you do in life not only to gain repute, but in the manner that you affect others, is where your legacy is built. Creatures all over the world will remember your actions and your name." She extended a wing to caress the surface of the journal ever so gently. "None care to remember her. Even after just a couple of years. But I do... and all I remember is regret." She looked at Twilight and smiled. "What will you become, I wonder?"
Twilight cleared her throat. "I'll be the best mage ever to live... and I will make Equestria a better place for everypony."
Celestia's smile grew, the sadness leaving replaced by a little bit of mischief. "And you expect to do that in a library, surrounded by old books?"
Twilight nodded firmly. "It's the best place in the world to be!"
"And how will you reach Equestria and make it better if you're inside these four walls?"
"I—" Twilight hesitated. "I'm sure there's a book here somewhere that will teach me how."
Shaking her head, Celestia stood and levitated Twilight onto her back. The little filly fitted between her wings just right. "Perhaps, but for now, I think some fresh air will help clear the dust and old memories for both of us."
Defeated, Twilight allowed Celestia to carry her out of the library. Then a thought occurred to her. "Do you really think your um... daughter is completely gone? Will we never find out what her legacy was?"
Celestia shook her head, but didn't look back. "One day I hope to find how she changed the world, wherever she went. But for now... we'll concentrate on your tomorrow. And maybe one day... we'll find hers."
Author's Note
I actually didn't know I was going to Ciderfest until it happened. But once I was there, I couldn't help myself and went in to participate in Iron Author.
There was some stiff competition there, let me tell you!
I want to congratulate everyone else that participated as well: writing under pressure for 90 mins straight is not easy at all! Well done, and congrats to the winners of the 1st and 3rd place: Pandaponyum and Overlord Pony respectively!
