Idle chatter filled the coffee shop, ponies walking to and fro as they grabbed their drinks and found a spot to sit either alone or with their friends. Irradiance enjoyed pony-watching while he sipped his latte, purple magic bringing the mug to his lips. Observing the crowd, he caught a glimpse of two ponies he had grown so fond of.

“Irradiance!” Hibiscus cheered, quickly walking over to embrace her fellow Unicorn in a tight hug. “I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages!” The pink pony was always such a cheerful character. Irradiance had been cooped up in his study for so long; he’d missed the light she brought!

“I know, I know. I only really talk to Leviathan these days– and that’s not even in person,” The purple stallion recalled the crystal ball he’d snatched from his partner, now using it to communicate with each other when they had some free time.

“How’s he doing, by the way?” Marigold, the yellow Earth Pony, emerged from behind Hibiscus and spoke up. Her hair was just as wild as ever, placed in a pretty bun atop her head. She looked tired, probably from the potion lessons she’d been giving so many Equestrians.

Irradiance thought about how to respond for a minute, “He’s doing okay. It’s a bug adjustment going from enemies to partners with one pony and then becoming king of an entire civilization. He’s needed time away and some of his citizens still aren’t totally on board with the reformation thing.”

“They don’t want to be prettier?” Hibiscus scoffed, “No offense, but holes in the legs are kind of icky.”

There were sudden cheers within the coffee shop (mostly mares) and Irradiance looked over his friends’ shoulders to see a blue Pegasus waltzing into the room, head held high and still in uniform.

“Irradiance!” Cobalt called, ignoring his adoring fans and walking over to the thin stallion, giving him a tight hug before greeting the other two mares present. “Sorry, I was late. Training ran long.”

Irradiance just shook his head, waving with a hoof in dismissal, “Don’t worry about it. There’s no rush to get here, just friends hanging out. My exams are coming up in a couple of months and I wanted to see you guys before I end up stuck at home all the time again!”

“We do rarely see you these days… are you sure Princess Twilight is taking good care of you? Do we need to defeat another royal leader?” Hibiscus teased, leaning forward and earning a laugh from Irradiance.

“No, no! It’s just a lot of, like, friendship lessons and stuff. Since I’ve already got friends, Twilight wants me to start honing my magic and being just like Starswirl the Bearded, or whoever her idol was,” Irradiance explained, thinking back to all he’d been doing this last year.

After the defeat of Queen Lilith, all the ponies and creatures involved had gone their separate ways for a while but still managed to meet up as often as they could. Apart from Amber and Leviathan, of course, since they both had their own kingdoms to rule. The pair of leaders kept in touch with each other though, and Leviathan most often spoke with Irradiance, leading to a string of messages always making it through the group eventually.

Within the last three months, however, Irradiance’s training under Princess Twilight as her next student was getting stressful. He was trying to work toward becoming the next great sorcerer of Equestria (whether that involved getting wings or not, Irradiance wasn’t sure) and he was having to jump through hundreds of hoops to get there. This meant being locked away in libraries for hours, even days at a time!

“As long as you’re not too overwhelmed,” Marigold chimed in again. “I have plenty of herbal remedies for stress. And for focus. Canterlot has tons of great resources for shops like mine! You really need to come by, Irradiance!”

“I will, I promise!” It was not at all a guarantee that he’d actually make it by; Irradiance was always iffy when it came to “natural remedies.” But as long as Marigold was finally out of the forest and feeling welcome in town, he’d try to indulge her new interests. “I haven’t even gotten to talk to you about this!” Irradiance gestured to Cobalt, still dressed in his Wonderbolt uniform. The blue Pegasus reddened for a moment before responding.

“They made me an honorary member and stuff, but I still haven’t finished the formal training,” He pointed to the badge on his chest that signified “in training,” though Irradiance was sure he was already at the point of near-mastery. “So I’m working double time compared to the other recruits! They just really want me in, so I have to work for it.”

“Wonderbolts don’t play with favoritism I guess,” Hibiscus shrugged before her eyes shot wide open and she gasped, “I forgot to tell you! Guess who enrolled in the Friendship University?” Irradiance had nearly forgotten Hibiscus was working as a professor there!

“Who?” He asked, head tilted in question.

“Abbadon!”

Irradiance’s mouth fell open, as did Cobalt’s and Marigold’s. “You’re kidding!” The purple stallion managed, composing himself, “I thought Leviathan said he was still in denial of the death of Queen Lilith?” Hibiscus shrugged once more, eyes closing as she did for a moment, curly pink mane bouncing.

“He’s on the journey to reformation! It’s not like he can feed off of the other students, though. Leviathan assigned him a guard at all times to ensure he isn’t causing harm in the school. You really scored in the boyfriend category,” Hibiscus winked at the purple stallion, causing him to flush and awkwardly laugh in response.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever. We barely knew each other when that started out.”

“Are you saying you aren’t working out now?” Cobalt questioned.

“No! I’m just saying we’ve changed! Long distance is weird. I guess not all the news he tells me is the most recent.”

Marigold put a hoof on top of Irradiance’s, sensing a bit of doubt coming from the stallion, “It’ll work out, don’t worry.”

Together again, irradiance relished in the company of his friends, glad to have met him and more grateful still that they stuck with him after the journey was over! Defeating a Changeling Queen and then sticking by his side while he was comatose for a day? That’s hardcore friend stuff! Twilight would have to let him pass whatever exams she had coming his way!

“I need to get back to the shop,” Marigold excused herself, standing up after about an hour of talking and catching up with the other ponies, “Can’t be closed all day. The favor I asked of my neighbors’ is kind of reliant on the fact that I come back eventually.”

Irradiance nodded in understanding. He was living rent-free at the Canterlot Castle, but he understood that Marigold was now renting, something she hadn’t been used to doing before moving to Canterlot with everyone else. “Well, it was great seeing you!” He gave her a quick hug, waving as she walked out of the coffee shop and back toward her own place. Hibiscus and Cobalt, close friends as they were, decided to leave next with each other.

“I should get going, too,” Hibiscus spoke, looking at the blue Pegasus and then to Irradiance. “Students at the university are approaching that time of the year when our exams are coming up. I’ve got advising to oversee and extra credit to start thinking about!” She seemed happy being a teacher. Irradiance was glad to see it.

“I’ll head out with Hibiscus,” Cobalt nodded toward his friend. “She and I have barely spoken at all! Now that we have a minute, we’re going to catch up. I can show you what I’ve been learning with the Wonderbolts!” In a lower pitch, the Pegasus added, “Without the crazy fanmares…”

Irradiance laughed at the joke, nodding for his friends to get going. With a series of simple purple flashes, the stallion cleared off his table, moving his mug and napkin away, setting his chair back beneath the table it was at, and walking alongside his friends out of the small building. “Well, it was great seeing you all. I’m sure we’ll be in touch again soon. Leviathan said he plans to visit sometime this month!” Irradiance grinned toward the end, obviously ecstatic to see his partner once more. Hibiscus and Cobalt shared a knowing look.

“Don’t rush to invite us,” Hibiscus teased. “You two can enjoy all the time you want together…”

“Yeah,” Cobalt made a face of almost disgust, “I don’t want to get in the middle of… that. Are we still sure Leviathan’s kingdom doesn’t feed off of love?” Irradiance felt his cheeks get hot, “Because, with you, I mean jeez!”

“Cobalt!” Hibiscus hissed, smacking her friend with a pink hoof. “Sorry about him! We’ll get going. See you soon, Irradiance!” The blue and pink pair faded as they made their way down the road of Canterlot, off to Hibiscus’ apartment (since Cobalt was off living in Cloudsdale now that he was training to be a Wonderbolt). Irradiance was alone once more.

Deciding not to dwell on it, Irradiance decided he’d head back toward the castle and stay in his room, getting a head start on studying for his exams. Princess Twilight would be testing him on all things friendship and magic! As he walked out of the coffee shop in the opposite direction of his friends, Irradiance waved to plenty of passers-by.

After his return from the forest, Irradiance was a bit of a celebrity… for a while, anyways. His memorial at the school remained intact, now with some additions of Hibiscus’ achievements alongside his. There were discounts in his honor, a day still remained as his remembrance day for most of the Unicorn population, and his name was known by ponies he’d never even met! Irradiance was fabled to be the next popular foal name!

It was a lot to take in. It was a year down the line, though, and Irradiance was pleasantly used to all the fame and greetings by now, knowing most of the names of the ponies and shopkeepers that lived nearest to his own residence. Cobalt, Hibiscus, and Marigold were all known names, too, though they were admittedly lesser known than the missing student from Celestia’s Magic Academy.

Walking up the hill and making his way onto the path into the castle’s front doors, the guards outside swiftly stepped aside, “Irradiance! Welcome back!” They spoke in unison, both Pegasi standing straight, wings pressed to their bodies. This was admittedly hard to get used to. He wasn’t royalty, and for all Irradiance knew, Twilight’s previous students were not treated this way! Not even Luster Dawn!

“Hey, Spearhead, Canon Ball,” The purple stallion nodded at both guards. “Has Twilight been in?”

Spearhead, the guard to the left, perked up. “Yeah, actually! She mentioned wanting to speak with you, so good timing getting back so soon!”

Canon Ball nodded along as his fellow Pegasus spoke, “She’s in the throne room right now. I don’t think any of your friends are there… oh! Except–” Spearhead held out a white wing, silencing his fellow guard.

“Except no one! He just met all of his friends down at the cafe in the city!” There was a very dramatic wink that followed, and Irradiance watched, almost irritated with confusion, as he watched Canon Ball very slowly start to nod along after widening his eyes.

“Yes! There is no one in there! Except Twilight!” The stallion screwed his face up in confusion, finally pressing past the white Pegasus guards and walking into the castle.

“You guys are weird. Talk to you later!”

“Bye, Irradiance!” Both guards said in unison once more, the wide doors swishing open and then slamming shut as the Unicorn made his way inside, greeting his teacher.

“Hello, Twilight!” The princess was sitting in her throne, beautiful as ever, looking down with grace at her pupil. “Spearhead and Canon Ball said you were about to summon me. Is something wrong?” At the mention of his summons, Twilight’s face scrunched up, brows furrowed as she looked to her left.

“As a matter of fact… yes, something is wrong,” Oh no. Was he fired from being a student? Irradiance felt his heart rate speed up in anxiety. “It’s the Everfree Forest…”

“What?” Eyes blown wide, Irradiance felt his heart rate stop! He’d managed to get out of there and have friends and a place in society once more. What was pulling him back toward his old place of exile?

Twilight just nodded, looking nervous. Her mane billowed even though no wind was present and it was enchanting despite the anxiety present in the room, “There’s some history that wound up buried during my rule as princess of Equestria. It’s been nearly a thousand years since my coronation and I was supposed to announce an heir, or at the very least, a partner in my rule!”

“Like Princess Celestia and her sister, Luna?” Irradiance asked, to which Twilight nodded.

“Precisely. It’s a tradition for rulers of kingdoms to come in pairs as of recently, which isn’t a rule, but it lessens the load. Cadence and Shining, and now Flurry Heart with Cadence in the background, and myself and Luster Dawn were supposed to be the next rulers of Equestria. She was an excellent student!” Irradiance sensed a “but” coming along.

“...But,” Twilight began again after a short pause. Irradiance called it. “She got greedy with power once it was granted. She couldn’t be reasoned with! And like Nightmare Moon…”

“You banished her?” Irradiance finished, connecting the dots. “Where? To the moon?” Twilight shook her head.

“To an Element Tree in the Everfree Forest. She was supposed to stay there for a millennium before she was released. Citizens that witnessed her banishment have all since passed, and the news was kept so quiet that newer generations no longer know of the legend of the Tree Mare,” Twilight let out a sigh, golden crown shimmering against her sparkling mane. She did seem lonely, with none of the original Elements by her side or any other princesses to rule with her.

“So what’s wrong?” Irradiance backtracked, wondering where he fit into in all of this. “Why did you bring me here? Why are you telling me this?” He took a couple of steps forward, crystal hooves clacking on the stone floor of the palace.

Twilight steadied herself, looking at Irradiance with a stern look, “Your awakening of the Element Tree– the one that granted you those powers?” Twilight gestured to the stallion’s hooves and horn. His curse. “That was the tree Luster Dawn was in. After you removed the magic from the tree that Lilith had been feeding on–”

“Queen Lilith was feeding on Alicorn magic?” Irradiance gawked. This was incredible! No wonder the magic source made him so powerful! He’d nearly soaked up all of the actual Alicorn magic! Not that it could even be depleted, not alongside the magic already present in the Element Tree! Twilight nodded once more. She was nodding a lot. Was her neck hurting, Irradiance wondered.

“What I’m saying, Irradiance, is that after Queen Liltih’s defeat, the Element Tree was stirring. Luster Dawn is breaking free and I worry she will try to take over once she’s out.”

Author's Note

swag just like princess luna in the first eps of FiM, i am using a similar plot for this one!! but its different bc i wrote it and i invented a whole new character for luster dawn. but idk what to call it. Breaking Dawn? but I'm pretty sure that's a twilight book... idk well see where this goes.