//------------------------------//
// Ancient Ascendant (Part 1) 
// Story: Malefic Bonds 
// by Razalon The Lizardman 
//------------------------------//

	"Your highness!" Summer Scape called out to Celestia from within one of the castle's many hallways. "Where are you!?"

No response came. The earth pony mare sighed. There were times that she went to check on Princess Celestia only to find her room empty with no trace of the white alicorn. Summer Scape never panicked, though, as she knew Celestia would sometimes wake up extra early to raise the sun and take some time to stroll around the castle afterwards. It slightly irritated Summer Scape but she never brought it up to Celestia, being afraid to lose her job as lead hoofmaiden.

She called again. "Your highness! Where are you!?"

This time, an audible popping sound came from behind her, to which Summer quickly spun around to find the solar alicorn smiling coyly down upon her.

"Shouting is not necessary, Lady Scape," Celestia said. "Indeed, thou runnst the risk of waking everypony doing so."

Summer Scape bowed before her in a show of respect. "Apologies, your highness; I shall keep my voice to a minimum." She stood up and gestured down the hallway. "Your bath awaits, princess."

Celestia nodded. "Lead the way, Lady Scape."

Summer Scape nodded, and began heading down the corridor to which Celestia followed the butterscotch mare.

They walked in silence for most of the trip to the baths. As it was still early morning, aside from the occasional whisper of wind sounding from outside whenever they passed a window the only sounds that could be heard were the clip clops of their hooves against the hallways' stone floor. Aside from the two mares, and possibly still Luna, nopony else was awake which meant Celestia and Summer Scape were alone for the time being. Neither took advantage of this fact at first, however; only once they reached the utility wing of the castle did conversation spark between the two.

"Summer?" Celestia said as they rounded a corner.

The butterscotch earth pony gazed up at her ruler. "Yes, your highness?"

Celestia took a moment to carefully select her words before replying. "Was it hard leaving thy family to work here?"

Summer Scape's eyes widened in surprise briefly before she returned her gaze straight ahead. She took a moment to select a reply. "W-well," she stuttered, "it was not so hard for me as it was for my family." She looked up in thought. "I remember my husband was particularly distraught, though he understood we dearly needed the bits." She looked back up to Celestia with a smile. "I could never adequately express my thanks for accepting me as your lead hoofmaiden, your highness."

Celestia chuckled. "Well, thou wert the most suited to the job amongst every applicant."

"And I shall express my thanks once again," Summer replied. "Thank you, your highness."

Celestia rolled her eyes with a smile. For the hundredth time.

After a few more minutes of walking, they found themselves outside the bathroom. Summer Scape held open the door for Celestia, who entered and approached the tub of water set in the room's center, immediately setting to work cleaning herself. Using her magic, she levitated a glob of water out of the tub and brought it over to her. Being ever so careful with her movements, she gradually let her ethereal mane soak in the fresh water, to which it ceased free-flowing and hang loose around her head.

"If I may ask, princess," Summer Scape said, trotting into the room, "why did you ask your earlier question?"

Celestia halted for a moment in surprise before resuming with the water. "We suppose . . . We are afraid."

Summer quirked an eyebrow. "Afraid? Of what?"

"Of what shall happen when Solis comes of age in a few years." She ceased soaking her mane and moved to her coat. Summer Scape grabbed a cloth hanging from a nearby rack and began wringing Celestia's mane dry as she continued. "We have raised him to help Us in ruling Equestria, which he hath already proven to have the capacity for doing." She sighed. "But he may not want to do so for life, and once he turns eighteen Solis may wish to leave and start a life all his own." She turned to Summer Scape with eyes filled with worry. "We are afraid to bear the pain of letting him go should he choose this path."

Summer Scape processed all of what Celestia told her while wringing the solar alicorn's mane. Once finished, she giggled and replied, "Such a fear is quite common, your highness."

Celestia quirked an eyebrow herself. "Truly?"

Summer Scape nodded. "Indeed, princess. There comes a time in every parent's life when they are faced with the challenge of letting their child 'grow up', as it were, and I suppose the same holds true even for adoptive parents." She smiled coyly. "But the key difference between you two and other parent-child pairs is most parents are not royalty. I can all but guarantee that Solis would not trade away his current status for a simpler life to himself, especially considering his insecurities."

Celestia mulled over this for a moment before replying. "We suppose such is true." She levitated another glob of water out of the tub and began washing her tail with it. "Perhaps We have been spoiling him, then."

"Ah, let him be spoiled, your highness," Summer replied while she switched from wringing Celestia's mane to drying her coat. "Solis is fairly modest, and does not demand unreasonable favors from the castle staff. If anything, he doth deserve a little more, especially since today he turns fifteen."

Celestia smiled. "Perhaps." She ceased washing her tail, which Summer took as incentive to begin drying it next. "What will help Us bear the pain of letting Solis go should he choose to leave?"

Summer Scape thought it over while she finished drying the solar princess. When she formed an answer, she said it with a soft tone of complete sincerity. "In all honesty, your highness, there is no proper method of bearing such pain."

Celestia turned to look at her with a bemused expression. "Why so?"

"Because 'tis a natural reaction to have when one is forced to let a loved one go." She began making way toward the rack. "To be truthful, your highness, anypony who doth not feel it is a heartless monster."

"Indeed," Celestia agreed, "but we wish to know how best to bear this pain if he does indeed leave." Her mane and tail began billowing in their natural ethereal breeze as she continued. "How dost thou cope with having left thy family?"

"Well," Summer Scape said as she threw the cloth over the rack, "I remind myself every day that my family loves me, and that I hold a special place in their hearts which can never be replaced." She turned back around with a wistful smile. "Such gives me the strength I need to overcome the pain of not being there for them myself, and that I can aid them indirectly by serving under you and Luna."

Celestia looked slightly crestfallen. "We are not sure if Solis hath reserved such a place for Us in his heart."

"I hath no doubt that he has, your highness," Summer Scape said. "After all you have done for him, 'twould be ghastly for him not to."

". . . Thank thee, Lady Scape," Celestia said, perking up a bit. "We feel much better now."

"Of course, all of your fears hinge on the notion that Solis would rather live amongst the populace than in the luxury afforded to him by living here." Summer Scape continued with a hint of cheekiness in her tone. "Although, if you are still worried, I imagine a spoiled colt is also a complacent colt."

Celestia struggled to hold back a snort of laughter in response. "Do not tempt me, Lady Scape; there is a limit to everypony's sense of modesty."

"Not Solis'," Summer Scape countered.

Both mares devolved into a fit of giggles as they made way toward the door.





Summer Scape and Celestia spent the next ten minutes making sure everything was adequately prepared for Solis' fifteenth birthday celebration.

The previous night was spent decorating the dining room to be as elegantly festive as possible. Glittering tapestries created specifically for such occasions hung from the walls, embedded with gems of various types and sizes in stark contrast to the drab, grey bricks which they covered. From the ceiling was hung a solid gold chandelier that sparkled during the hour of time in which the sun's light shined through the appropriate window, bathing the room in a shining luminescence that would leave normal ponyfolk breathless to the sight of, but was nothing special to the castle's inhabitants.

A large banquet heralding all of Solis' favorite foods was spread out from one end of the dining table to the other prepared by the chefs the night before, now sleeping in as a result of their night-long cooking crusade. As such, Celestia was forced to cook Solis' breakfast herself, though with a little help from Summer Scape. It was a rather crude breakfast made up of just a few boiled potatoe slices and a glass of milk, but they knew it would suffice for the rest of the day until the celebration, whereupon everypony would gorge to their heart's content. For now, though, all that mattered was keeping Solis out of the dining room so as to keep the celebration a surprise.

"Remember Lady Scape," Celestia said as they exited the kitchens, the solar alicorn levitating Solis' breakfast in her magic grip while they walked, "nopony is to enter the dining room until We give the signal, whereupon thou must gather the castle staff and usher them in. We shall then fetch Solis and guide him there so everypony can surprise him."

Summer Scape tilted her head. "Surely he is privy to surprise celebrations by now, your highness." They entered the utility wing's main corridor and headed toward the inner courtyard. "After all, you have thrown surprise birthday celebrations for him over the past few years."

Celestia smiled wryly. "Perhaps, but there is more satisfaction to be had in throwing a surprise celebration, is there not?"

"Only for the thrower," Summer replied with a laugh.

The two mares reached the inner courtyard soon after. A couple of birds had entered through the outer archway and were perched upon the horns of Discord's statue. The inner courtyard held an aura of serene tranquility in spite of its permanent occupant, and it never ceased to calm Celestia whenever she felt agitated or enraged. Now, however, she felt neither and was instead filled with budding excitement at getting to congratulate her son on turning fifteen.

"Well, I shall be off then," Summer Scape said, turning down the stone walkway toward the castle's entrance.

Celestia watched until the butterscotch mare disappeared around the corner before continuing forward through an archway leading to the guest wing. After walking for about three minutes she reached the guest wing. She approached Solis' room and, keeping his breakfast aloft in her magic, lightly knocked on the door once.

No answer came.

She tried again. Still nothing.

Celestia smiled. Always one to sleep in, art thou?

Carefully, Celestia pushed in the doorlock and ever so gently opened the door. Peeking her head inside, she spotted the lumpy form of her son underneath the bed sheets, which rose and fell slowly with each of his breaths. Celestia's ears twitched as she heard a soft snoring sound emanating from the bed, and she giggled quietly before fully opening the door and stepping inside.

Shutting the door behind her just as quietly, Celestia took a moment to examine her son's room. Over the last five years, Solis' room had changed quite drastically. Whereas before all the room heralded was some plain furniture and drab walls, now there was a room better fit for the son of royalty. Tapestries hung from the walls between the room's windows, each one depicting either a scene of sunrise over the horizon or a dragon flying amongst the clouds. A fully stocked bookcase stood against one wall, filled with various tomes and scrolls either purchased by Celestia as gifts to her son or, as was the case for a scant few, acquired by Solis prior to being adopted by the solar alicorn.

Alongside the wall directly opposite the bed was a desk that contained parchments, glass beakers, various chemicals that Celestia would pop a blood vessel attempting to remember the names of, and star charts. Next to the desk was a telescope that looked out the window to the vast cosmos above. It was where Solis conducted research pertaining to his various side-interests, including his 'tuning spell' as he called it.

Perhaps it is time Solis received a proper room rather than an intended guest room, Celestia thought as she made way toward the bed where her son still laid fast asleep.

Upon reaching it, she set the potatoe slices and milk onto the nightstand, freeing her magic so she could lift the blanket partway off of Solis. The young stallion reacted unconsciously by attempting to grab it back and cover himself again, which Celestia could not help but smile at the cuteness of. Looking down at Solis, she found it amazing that the little colt she had adopted five years ago was already so far grown. Gone was his chubby little coltish figure and in its place was the slender, well-toned form of a maturing earth pony stallion. His crimson coat was well-groomed and sleek-looking in her sun's light, and despite having just slept in bed his short, dark gray mane bore no signs of having been subjected to tossing and turning, staying relatively straight all throughout the night. His face was pointed upwards, affording Celestia a clear view of his maturing stallion muzzle which let loose a snore with each outtake of breath.

Keeping her smile, Celestia sat on the bed and began gently stroking Solis' face with a wingtip. "Wake up, little sun," she said in a calm, soothing tone only she could manage.

Solis stirred slightly, but did not wake up. Celestia giggled and began stroking slightly harder. "Rise and shine, Solis," she said a bit louder.

This time Solis woke up. He slowly lifted his eyelids and let his vision focus before turning to Celestia with a small smile. "Oh, hello mother," he said. He took a moment to let out a yawn before continuing. "Why are you here?"

Celestia adopted an expression of mock offense. "Surely We are allowed to personally deliver Our son breakfast in bed on his fifteenth birthday," she said while pointing to the food and milk on the nightstand, "or are We not?"

Solis' smile grew slightly larger and he rolled his eyes. "You lay down the law and govern the land, mother; my opinion accounts for little, if anything at all."

". . . Yes, of course."

Solis raised a brow. "Is something the matter, mother?"

Celestia looked downcast briefly before looking back up to Solis with a hardened gaze. "Solis," she said, "what dost thou wish to achieve in life?"

Solis stared blankly for a moment before replying. "What do you mean to say?"

"What We mean is thou art coming of age, and wilt soon be expected to make thy own choices." She took a moment to scratch her fore leg before continuing. "We were wondering what those choices might entail."

Solis could only raise his other brow in confusion. "I am afraid I still do not understand."

"Subtlety never did work with thee," she replied with a laugh. "When thou comest of age in a few years, wilt thou wish to remain with Us here in Everfree Castle helping to rule over Equestria, or wilt thou choose to start a new life amongst the populace?"

Solis appeared to continue to stare blankly at Celestia, but the solar alicorn knew that he was processing her question in his mind and trying to come up with an answer that would please her, which he was having trouble with. Eventually, Solis seemed to shrink into the bed, a clear sign that he was uncomfortable with the question. Celestia sighed and shook her head upon realizing she was putting too much pressure on her son.

"Forget We said anything," she said, and levitated a potatoe slice over to her son.

Solis rose up and grabbed the starch stick in his mouth. Using his hooves to grasp it, he took a bite. Celestia watched as Solis chewed and swallowed, making sure to keep his mouth closed the whole time, before he looked up to her with another small smile.

"'Tis delicious," he remarked, then took another bite.

"We are glad thou findst it satisfactory," Celestia replied, her smile returned. "We made it Ourself."

Solis' eyes widened a bit as he chewed and swallowed the second bite. "Truly?" he asked.

"Indeed," Celestia answered with a nod. "Though, with a little help from Lady Scape."

Solis nodded in turn, then proceeded to take another bite out of his breakfast. A look of realization suddenly crossed his face, to which Solis reached over to the nightstand and pushed the plate a bit closer to Celestia. The solar alicorn merely tilted her head in confusion and it was not until Solis gestured to the potatoe slices with his hoof that she realized he was inviting her to take one for herself. Smiling kindly at him, Celestia used her magic to take one and brought it up to her mouth before daintily nibbling it.

Indeed, it is delicious, she thought while she chewed.

The two sat in silence for a while afterward, continuing to whittle away the number of potatoe slices the plate heralded as well as the milk contained within the glass. All the while they ate, Celestia let herself get lost deep in thought over the stallion in front of her.

Lady Scape doth have a strong argument; Solis is quite the modest one in spite of all his accomplishments. It is thanks to him that Equestria hath repaired its relations with the Gryphon Nation and its allies. For a young stallion such as he to accomplish such a feat, and with naught but a few well-placed assessments, it is something even We could never hath done Ourselves. Not only that, but to challenge the words of royalty such as Ziz and Cretan, and stand up for Us and Our actions when imprisoning Discord . . . Solis is something special indeed. Our-no, my son is truly one of a kind. Perhaps he doth deserve something more significant than merely a new bedroom . . .

Once they finished, Celestia sat up off the bed and stretched her wings before speaking. "Now that we are full, let us get thee cleaned up so we can enjoy this most special day properly."

"Certainly, mother," Solis replied, "but can I show you something first?"

"Of course, my son," Celestia replied back with a smile. "What is it?"

Solis pointed to the nightstand drawer. "It is in there," he said, adorning a smile that put all others he had worn over the years to shame.

Whatever it is, Solis must love it very dearly, Celestia thought as she used her magic to open the drawer. Looking inside, she saw nothing but a single rolled-up parchment scroll which lacked any kind of proper sealing or binding. Celestia raised a curious brow as she once again used her magic to levitate the scroll in front of her and unfurl it.

Her eyes widened briefly in response to seeing a series of diagrams and equations clearly illustrating a spell on the parchment, but one of such complexity that Celestia found herself confused as to its purpose at first. Only after a few minutes of careful study did Celestia realize what she was holding.

"Is this thy 'tuning spell', Solis?" she asked, looking down at him in surprise.

Solis nodded. "Indeed it is," he replied, never letting his smile fade even a bit. "I was inspired to create it the first time I laid eyes on Discord's statue. I looked at him and thought to myself, 'what if animal hybrids could be made to serve a noble cause?' Unfortunately, my research failed to yield a successful method for creating living hybrids, but for inanimate objects it did."

Solis got out of bed and pointed at a specific equation on the scroll. "It is here where the entire key to this spell lies. Simply put, by enchanting two objects in contact with each other to form a chemical bond between common substances in both, the caster can effectively polymerize both objects into a single object of equal combined atomic mass." Solis looked up to see Celestia's eyes glazed over, to which he chuckled. "Art thou confused, mother?"

Celestia snapped out of her stupor and looked at Solis blankly for a moment before returning her attention to the parchment. Looking upon the various diagrams and equations it heralded with a much more critical eye, Celestia gradually came to the realization that the spell it described was entirely genuine. While neither she nor Luna were masters of spell design, the two sisters were knowledgeable enough of its practice that Celestia knew the spell design she held before her was the work of somepony well-versed in its application.

This . . . might actually work, she thought.

"Is it sound, mother?" Solis asked, breaking the solar alicorn from her thoughts.

Celestia looked over the spell one last time before smiling wistfully and returning her gaze to Solis. "It is time We made a confession, son," she said.

Solis tilted his head. "A confession? To what?" he asked, tone bursting with curiosity.

Celestia wrapped a wing around the crimson colt and had him sit back down onto the bed, to which she sat beside him and began lightly stroking his backside with her wing's feathers. "Truth be told, Solis, when thou first told Us of your intention to create this 'tuning spell' despite not possessing the means to test it out for thyself, We chalked up your goal as little more than foal's ambition."

"Wait, what!?"

Before Solis could erupt into a fit of rage, Celestia held up a hoof to silence him. "Let Us finish," she commanded.

Solis huffed and gestured for her to continue, which she did.

"But while We believed setting such a goal for thyself was foalish, We were proud of you for thy desire to prove your ill-givers wrong and showcase your raw talent in the absence of a Soul to do such for you." She smiled warmly. "Thou art truly a gifted colt, Solis; possibly the most gifted We have ever known, second only to Star Swirl the Bearded himself."

Solis managed to break out of his ill tidings enough to chuckle heartily in response. "Nopony shall ever surpass him, I suppose?"

Celestia shook her head. "We sincerely doubt it."

"I suppose second best is nothing to sneeze at, then," Solis replied with a wistful smile and furrowed brows.

Celestia chuckled herself. "Indeed it is not," she replied. Her expression changed from one of playfulness to one of solemn joy. A tear rolled down her cheek as she continued. "But even as gifted as thou art, We thought something such as this," she gestured to the parchment in her magic, "was beyond the reach of non-unicorns. We wert sure that the prospect of designing a spell in itself, much less one as well-articulated and fleshed out as this one clearly is, was impossible without access to unicorn magic itself for testing purposes." She set the scroll down on the nightstand and looked down at her son, all the while continuing to stroke his backside. "We must ask, how didst thou manage to finish the spell without any way of field-testing it?"

Solis shook his head. "I will admit it was not easy; even now I am not certain that the current iteration of the spell will yield successful results. Without any way to test each step, I had to resort to careful analysis of each equation, matrix, and diagram before making an educated guess on the results of their implementation and whether those results would ruin the entire spell." He looked up at Celestia with a face happier than Celestia would have ever thought possible to see from him. "But I finished it regardless, because working on it gave me a sense of purpose I had not felt before in life. The satisfaction I felt from taking all I had learned and making something new and useful from it was above and beyond anything I had ever experienced, even greater than when you first revealed to me your intention to adopt me."

A few more tears stained Celestia's face as she pulled Solis into a warm, motherly hug. "Words cannot describe how proud We are of thee, my son," she said.

Solis returned her hug in kind. "Actions speak louder than words, mother; perhaps you can do me a favor?"

"And what is that?" Celestia asked, sure she already knew what it was.

Solis looked up at her with a pleading smile so soft it practically melted the solar alicorn's heart. "Could you perform the spell yourself, to see if it works properly?" he asked, never once letting his smile falter.

And We are correct once again, Celestia mused to herself before answering.

"Indeed We shall, my son." She nuzzled him affectionately. "But first, a bathing is in order for the birthday colt." She smiled. "After thou art done washing thyself thoroughly, meet Us in front of the castle and we shalt put thy spell to the test."

Solis tilted his head at Celestia's odd emphasis on 'thoroughly' before realization struck and he sniffed his left fore leg, only to recoil slightly in disgust.

Celestia giggled. "Another long night of studying, We presume?"

Solis' blush was hidden by the already crimson color of his coat. "Err . . ." He finally deflated. "Yes, mother."

Celestia giggled again, a tad louder this time. She broke their hug and gently pushed Solis toward the door with a wing. "To the baths, my little sun."

Solis nodded and made way toward the door. He had just reached a hoof up and pushed in the doorlock partway when he stopped. "Mother?" he said.

"Yes?" Celestia replied, still sitting on the bed.

Solis turned his head to look at her, a wistful smile adorning his muzzle. "I forgive you," he said.

Celestia looked confused. "Forgive Us for what, pray tell?"

"For dismissing my ambition of crafting that tuning spell as foalish." He turned his gaze upward and the wistful smile changed to an exasperated one. "I suppose it only made sense to dismiss it as such, given its scope and complexity, as well as my amateurism in spell crafting."

Celestia stared blankly for a moment before nodding. "Tis only natural." She made a shooing gesture with her wing. "But less talking is in order, rather more bathing."

Solis nodded, and finished opening the door before slipping into the hall. Celestia listened as the clopping of his hoofsteps against the stone floor faded away until she could no longer hear them, then looked at the parchment upon the nightstand and the spell design it heralded once again. She smiled and shook her head.

"Clearly, 'twas Us who was the foal."





Prior to the royal sisters' rule, the Everfree Forest was rarely one to host travelers. As there were no settlements to be found throughout the land beyond its borders, ponies never had reason to travel through it. That, and for the secondary reason that Discord had turned it into his dumping ground for, what he considered, 'boring old news'. The ponies were not sure of what he meant by 'old news', but the fact that certain chaotic machinations of his would disappear without a trace only to be replaced by new ones gave them a good idea of what the phrase referred to.

With the home of Equestria's new rulers lying within the dark forest, however, ponies now had a reason to enter and travel it. One such pair of ponies was the mother-daughter pair of Melody and Emerald Wind of Canterlot, both musical talents with Souls to match: a large, elegantly carved flute for Melody and an extra long, thin flute for Emerald. The two made their way along the path which lead to the royal sister's castle, a cart loaded with two day's worth of supplies hitched to Melody while Emerald trotted alongside her, taking in the forest's sights around them.

"What dost thou wish thy new name to be?" Melody asked at one point, drawing her daughter's attention.

"Pardon, mother?" Emerald responded.

Melody gave her daughter an eager smile that slightly unnerved the younger mare, causing her to shrink back a bit. "I want to know what name thou hast decided to give thyself following our meeting with their highnesses, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna."

Emerald gave her mother a wry frown. "Is it not too soon to believe their highnesses shalt agree with your proposal, mother?" she asked. She took a moment to give her mother a little more space between them before continuing. "As for your own question, I have yet to decide on a new name for myself."

"Tsk tsk." Melody shook her head. "Thou art such a silly filly." She playfully bopped her daughter on the head, causing Emerald to blush in agitation. "'Twould be beyond foalish for their highnesses to dismiss our proposal, as there undoubtedly exist many a foal given names unbefitting of their Souls or statures." Melody turned away from her daughter and stared straight ahead with a resolute look. "The simple option to change one's name is a necessity to remedy this problem."

Emerald stared blankly at her mother for a few seconds before following her gaze forward. "Should it matter, though?"

Melody stopped walking in response, causing the cart to come to a sudden halt and sending various utilities sliding forward, scratching the wood in the process and chipping a few plates which came in contact with the front wall. Emerald stopped alongside her mother and turned to face her, only to be confused by the crestfallen expression on her face.

"Thou asked if it should matter whether a ponies' name and Soul compliment each other," Melody looked up to Emerald, causing the younger mare to once again shrink back as her mother's expression changed to one of disappointment, "correct?"

Emerald instinctually took a couple of steps backward. "Y-yes," she stammered, her tone laced with trepidation in response to her mother's sudden shift in mood.

Melody sighed heavily. "I thought so," she said with a disappointment that matched her expression. She took a moment to unhitch herself from the cart before turning back to Emerald. "Understand this, dear, having an appropriate name that compliments one's Soul is vital to a maturing pony's stature." She used her magic to levitate out from the cart a cloth-wrapped flute identical in appearance to the one which adorned Emerald's flank. After removing the cloth and stowing it back in the cart, she presented the flute to Emerald. "To a pony who knows not of you or thy talents, the name 'Emerald' would convince them that thou art a lowly gem miner, which thou art not," she gestured to the flute Soul on Emerald's flank, "and as such, it is necessary that a decree be enacted that allows ponies to change their names so as to avoid confusion."

Emerald stared blankly for a few moments before slowly nodding. "That makes sense, I suppose," she replied just as slowly before taking the flute in her own magic. "But why then did you and father bestow upon me such an 'inappropriate' name if our family ancestry is revered for its music talents?"

Melody seemed to hesitate for a moment in response to her daughter's question, pursing her lips and shying her gaze away from Emerald, all the while maintaining an expression of stern-forthrightness.

"Such knowledge is not needed as of now," she finally replied, perfectly composed and neutral in tone.

Before Emerald could offer a reply, Melody's nose twitched and she took in a sudden, involuntary breath. She quickly retrieved another, much dirtier and dried mucus-stained cloth from the cart, which she held up to her muzzle and let out a mighty, prolonged sneeze. A few moments later and the cloth was covered in another layer of mucus which would eventually dry up like the rest, further adding to the old dish rag's deteriorated condition. After wiping off some stray snot from her muzzle, Melody returned the cloth to the cart.

"Ugh," she groaned, and took a deep breath before exhaling slowly. "We had best move quickly so as to reach the castle with plenty of time for a Court session to be held today." She re-hitched the cart to herself and resumed trotting forward along the dirt path. "Have a new name selected by the time we arrive, Emerald."

The smaller unicorn groaned in exasperation and followed after her mother. "Yes, mother," she said with obvious distaste.

Melody briefly turned back to glare at her daughter. "Do not use such a tone of voice when talking to me, young lady."

Emerald did not respond, instead merely rolling her eyes as she followed after the older mare.

The mother-daughter duo continued their journey in silence after that. Every once in awhile Melody would stop to unhitch herself from the cart and take a quick rest while Emerald wandered off a ways to admire various plant life native only to the forest. In between breaks, Emerald would occasionally briefly ponder a possible replacement name for herself that befitted a flute player. Several names came to mind over the course of their journey, such as Whistling and Breezy. She also considered more abstract names like Fipple and Resonate that, while having relation to flutes didn't quite compliment the Wind family name.

The sun's position indicated the time was around mid-morning when the duo exited the Everfree in front of the bridge leading to the sisters' castle. Melody took a moment to stretch before she unhitched the cart again and tied it to one of the bridge's posts.

"Now then," she said once confident the cart was secure, "let us proceed to the castle." She stepped onto the bridge and began crossing it.

Emerald stepped up to the bridge, flute still in her magic grip, and peered down. A seemingly bottomless abyss stared back up at her. She recoiled in fear at the sight, instinctually shuffling backward a few steps and began breathing heavily in and out.

"What holds you up, Emerald!?"

The younger mare looked across the bridge to see Melody had finished crossing it, and was now staring intently back at her while tapping her hoof impatiently.

Emerald took a few more deep breaths before finally recomposing herself and replying with, "My apologies mother! I am coming!"

"Yes, please hurry hither!" Melody replied back. "Time is of utmost importance, for Celestia's sun shall not hang forever in the sky!"

With a nervous nod of agreement, Emerald stepped up to the bridge and stared across. Sweat formed on her brow and quickly began trickling down her muzzle, dropping to the ground around her hooves. Her legs began trembling as well, and for a moment Emerald was afraid they would snap in half with how vibrant they were becoming. She closed her eyes to keep from having to peer down at the gorge below, though that raised the question of how she would keep herself aligned with the bridge so as to avoid stepping off and fall to her doom.

"Emerald!" Melody yelled, growing increasingly frustrated. "Come hither now!"

Not wanting to further anger her mother, Emerald took a hesitant step onto the bridge with a still-trembling hoof. She cracked one eye open and looked ahead to see that she was perfectly aligned with the bridge. She took another step forward, her sweat still trickling and falling around her hooves on the bridge's planks. Then she took a third step. Then a fourth. A fifth. With each step she took her fear of falling lessened a bit, and by the time she was halfway across the bridge she had relaxed enough to let her gaze wander to the beautiful landscape on her left.

After taking another few steps, Emerald remembered the need to stay aligned with the bridge and she returned her gaze forward, only to let it fall down to the gorge below her momentarily as she did so. The sight of the deep drop below made her concentration falter for a moment, and the next step she took ended in her tripping over a loose plank. Emerald fell barrel-down onto the bridge hard and the magic grip on her flute vanished, to which the instrument fell down onto the bridge and, after a bounce, slid across the wood and plummeted into the gorge.

"Emerald!" Melody cried out in fear. "Art thou hurt!?"

"I am fine, mother!" Emerald called to her. She took a moment to get up on her hooves and rub her barrel, which ached a little bit from the fall. "My flute, however, did not fare as well."

"Worry not about it!" Melody replied back. "Merely focus on crossing the bridge unharmed."

Nodding, Emerald returned her gaze forward and kept it there as she continued traversing the bridge. She went at a slower speed now, however, as she took longer with each step due to being more careful so as to not trip over any more loose planks. Slowly but surely, she made her way across and, upon reaching the last plank, jumped onto the grass just beyond and took in a shuddering breath at having finally crossed. Her eyes let loose a few tears which she wiped away with a hoof as she felt another on her shoulder.

"Art thou sure thou art unhurt?" she heard Melody ask.

Emerald exhaled slowly and took in another shuddering breath before letting that one out as well and looking up at her mother's face. "I am sure, mother," she confirmed. "Shaken, yes, but otherwise unharmed."

Melody smiled. "That is good to hear." She turned toward the gorge and frowned heavily. "'Tis a shame thy flute is lost, though."

"We must disagree with thee on that assertion," said a kind, soothing voice from behind her.

Both Melody and Emerald jumped in alarm and spun around to face their eavesdropper. There before them was Princess Celestia, fully adorned in her royal regalia and smiling kindly down at them.

"Your highness!" Melody practically shouted. She quickly bowed before the solar alicorn, to which Emerald did the same.

Celestia nodded in acceptance and replied with, "Thou mayst rise, Melody Wind." She then turned to Emerald. "Thou as well, Emerald Wind."

Both mares quickly complied. While Emerald began trembling all over again due to being in Celestia's presence, Melody managed to keep herself somewhat calm as she spoke to the solar alicorn.

"Forgive me if I may ask, your highness," she said, smiling nervously, "but how much did you bear witness to?"

"We only just arrived," Celestia confirmed, gesturing to the castle's front door. "Wouldst thou care to enlighten Us of the motivation behind this second visit to Our castle, Melody Wind?" She tilted her head curiously. "Was the theatre not satisfactory?"

"No! No! Not at all your highness," Melody replied hastily. "'Tis very satisfactory indeed."

"Then what is the purpose behind this second visit?" Celestia asked.

For the next few minutes, Melody explained all the details behind their visit and what they hoped to achieve. All the while she talked and Celestia listened, never paying Emerald any mind, Melody's daughter never let up in her nervous trembling from being in the solar alicorn's presence. The amount of sweat she produced while trying to cross the bridge paled severely in comparison to the amount she produced now, and by the time Celestia and Melody were finished the ground around Emerald's hooves had dampened from all the accumulated sweat which dropped from her face all throughout the exchange.

"'Tis a genuine concern, indeed," Celestia finished off. She tapped her chin in thought for a moment before returning Melody's gaze. "Well, nothing canst be done without a Court session, so We invite both thee and Emerald to stay the night."

"Oh, thank you, your highness," Melody said, giving a small bow.

Celestia then turned to Emerald and smiled again for her. "Thou hast grown much since We last saw thee, Emerald Wind."

Emerald let out a small squeak in response to being addressed directly. Celestia's smile fell into a frown at this.

Odd, I remember her being more . . . brazen, than this.

"Well, as We hinted at earlier," she continued, turning back to Melody so as to put Emerald more at ease, "thy daughter's flute is not lost forever." She spread her wings to their full length. "We shalt return momentarily."

The solar alicorn took to the air and hovered over the gorge, quickly diving down into its depths. Almost immediately, Melody's ear twitched in response to something from behind her. Turning around, she furrowed her brows a tad at the sight of Solis stepping through the wooden castle door, not wearing his mask. The princess' son took a moment to inhale a breath of fresh morning air before starting down the stairs, only to flinch in surprise upon seeing Melody and rush back inside. The older unicorn scoffed and turned back to the gorge.

Perhaps her highness hath instilled some proper discipline into her adopted son since last time? she thought sarcastically.

After little more than a minute of waiting, the always-majestic form of Princess Celestia emerged from the gorge carrying something in her golden magic aura. Or rather, two things from what Melody could see. As Celestia flew closer she could gradually better make out what the princess was carrying, and upon realizing what they were Melody's heart sank.

Celestia landed upon the ground just in front of Emerald, who had taken to counting the blades of grass around her in an attempt to calm down, only to shoot to attention upon seeing the solar alicorn's hooves fill up half her vision. She looked up into the neutral face of Princess Celestia and, while she no longer trembled from being in her highness' presence, the young unicorn mare still shed a few sweat droplets which fell to the still damp patch of grass below.

Celestia noticed this, but paid it no mind as she levitated the broken flute to its owner. "We are sorry," she said with a grimace. "It must have cracked upon impact with the bottom, for the flute fell apart as We retrieved it."

Emerald gave no response as her brain attempted to make sense of all that was happening between the princess' casual behavior, her broken flute, and what little trauma she still harbored after crossing the bridge. It was enough to make her dizzy, and she would have collapsed to the ground had Celestia not wrapped a wing around Emerald to keep her upright.

"Art thou okay?" she asked the young mare, concern plainly evident on her face.

Emerald stared blankly ahead for a few moments before giving her head a rigorous shake for clarity. "Y-yes, I am okay," she stuttered. She then took the flute pieces in her own magic while Celestia unwrapped her wing. Emerald stared at the broken flute for a moment before letting out a long-winded sigh. "'Tis a shame to lose it, but a replacement shall suffice, I suppose."

Celestia gave a small smile and nodded. "We are glad to see thee taking this loss well," she said, then her smile turned wry. "Wert thou planning to sing to Us like thy mother did during her previous visit? We would advise against this, as my son harbors a deep resentment of sung lyrics."

"Nay, your highness, we bring our instruments everywhere with us," Melody stated, stepping up to them. She reigned in her previous displeasure and continued. "Speaking of your son, princess, he came through the castle's door whilst you were searching for my daughter's lost flute but made a hasty retreat back inside upon sight of me."

"Did he now?" Celestia asked, turning to Melody. "Was he wearing his mask?"

Melody shook her head.

"That explains why he retreated back inside, then," Celestia said. She leaned closer to Melody and whispered in her ear, "My son has taken to wearing that mask whenever he must meet with somepony not living in Our castle."

Melody raised a confused brow. "Why?" she asked.

"Insecurities over his appearance," Celestia answered, to which Melody still looked confused before eventually giving a faux smile of understanding.

Then both mare's ears flicked in response to something. As one they turned toward the castle's front door to behold the sight of Solis, now wearing his mask, descending the steps.

"Solis!" Celestia exclaimed. "Thou hath arrived at long last!"

The masked earth pony appeared to regard her, though as his eyes were hidden it was impossible to know for sure, and replied with, "I was unaware we were playing hosts to Miss Wind and," he turned his head toward Emerald, who had tuned out of the conversation and was currently cloud gazing with her broken flute on the ground next to her, "whom I assume is her daughter, if the striking similarities between them is any indication."

"Very good, my son," Celestia said with a nod. She turned back to Melody. "Perhaps introductions are in order between our children?"

"Of course, your highness," Melody replied with no hesitation. She looked to her daughter and said, "Emerald, come and introduce thyself to her highness' son!"

The younger mare ceased her cloud gazing and turned to regard her mother before shifting her attention to Solis. The sight of the masked stallion caught her by surprise and she instantly shot to her hooves before bowing low to him.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, your highness," she stammered. "I am Emerald of the Wind House in Canterlot."

Solis nodded and stepped up to Celestia's side, who regarded her son with a small smile as he replied with, "And I am Solis, adoptive son of her highness Princess Celestia of Equestria." He regarded both Melody and Emerald with curiosity, though it could not be seen behind his mask. "Now what, pray tell, is the purpose of your visit?"

Melody just rolled her eyes in annoyance while her daughter kept her mouth silent, afraid to say something out of line. Seeing how their visitors would not answer, Celestia answered for them.

"Miss Wind and her daughter have come here for a Court session wherein they wish to propose a new law," she said. Celestia took a moment to regard Emerald before continuing. "Said law would grant ponies the privilege of changing their birth name to one they better approve of."

"And it is imperative that my daughter's name is changed to one better suiting a flute playing prodigy such as herself," Melody spoke up, drawing everypony's attention. She looked to Princess Celestia with an anxious gaze. "So, your highness, may we conduct a Court session immediately?"

"Not immediately, but we can later," Celestia replied, wrapping a wing around Solis. "My son's fifteenth birthday is today, and as part of his birthday celebration We have promised to test a new spell which he designed by his lonesome."

Both Melody and Emerald's eyes widened in surprise. "He . . . designed a spell?" Emerald stammered.

Celestia nodded while she cherished the befuddled expressions on their faces. "And a powerful one at that, if it works as intended." She took a moment to nuzzle her son affectionately, to which the crimson stallion looked embarrassed behind his mask. "Truly, he is a genius."

"Heh heh," Solis chuckled embarrassingly, gently nudging away his mother's muzzle, "thank you for the praise, mother."

"Thou hast earned it," Celestia replied coyly, to which Solis smiled a genuine smile behind his mask.

"So," Melody said, drawing their attention, "what doth this new spell accomplish?"

"Well, it-" Solis cut himself off upon eyeing the broken flute still laying on the ground. A smile spread across his muzzle behind his mask, and he continued with, "Perhaps it would be better to show the spell's purpose firsthoof."

The two mares only stared blankly at him, to which Solis pointed at the broken flute. "May I see thy flute, Emerald?" he asked the unicorn mare.

Emerald frowned confusedly instead of replying. It was only when her mother nudged her did Emerald comply with the request. "Okay," she said, levitating the two pieces of the broken flute to Solis. "What do you plan to do, your highness?"

From behind his mask, Solis smirked. "I intend to fix it, of course," he announced.

"What?" Emerald dumbly asked. Her mother raised a skeptical brow at his declaration, but said nothing herself.

Solis ignored both mares and turned to Celestia. "Mother, you remember the spell's design, correct?" he asked her.

Celestia responded by charging up her horn and summoning the scroll which contained Solis' tuning spell. After a few moments of studying it she returned the scroll to Solis' room. The masked stallion could only roll his eyes at his mother's cheating, but let it go out of excitement for finally getting to see his spell in action.

"Indeed We are, my son," Celestia said. She enveloped both pieces of Emerald's flute in her magic and levitated them to her. "And I must say, this is definitely a fitting test subject for such a revolutionary spell."

"Well, so long as it is fixed," Melody said, uncertainty clear in her tone.

"Believe me when I say it will," Solis replied confidently. He then turned back to Celestia. "Whenever you are ready, mother."

Nodding, Celestia set the two pieces down on the ground so they just barely touched each other while Solis stepped beside Emerald and Melody to give his mother space. The younger unicorn glanced to the stallion for a moment before asking, "How did you craft a spell without any access to unicorn magic yourself?"

Solis looked to her and, though she could not see it, the stallion regarded her with a soft smile. "I have worked on this spell for the past five years of my life, beginning from the very day Celestia adopted me until mere days ago. Every minute of it was grueling, arduous, and there were a number of times where I considered abandoning my research because of its difficulty. But," he turned back to Celestia, who had just finished focusing her magic and would cast the spell in a few moments, "if the spell works, then it will have been worth all the effort."

Emerald raised a curious brow. "What exactly was the purpose behind crafting this spell?" she asked.

Solis sighed. "I would rather not say why."

Emerald was only more curious after such a statement, but she did not press for further answers and instead returned her attention to Celestia.

The solar alicorn gathered all the required magic for the spell into her horn. Solis had been very specific in his instructions on how much magic to cast and how to distribute it between both objects. Too much magic on one side would cause the object's atoms to fall apart from each other thus rendering the object irreparable, whereas too much magic overall would cause the objects to spontaneously combust.

Celestia made sure to keep her magical output at a reasonable pace before pointing her horn down at the flute pieces. She let the magic pour from her horn, which sailed through the air and down to right between the flute pieces. Immediately a magical bridge formed between them which began closing up on itself, leaving unblemished black paint in its wake. In a few moments the gap closed up entirely, to which Celestia ceased her output of magic and sat down on her haunches, panting heavily.

I did not think that would take so much out of me, she mused to herself.

Emerald cautiously approached her flute as if afraid it would suddenly burst into flames. She then levitated it in her magic and brought it over to her, inspecting it for a moment before bringing it up to her lips and playing a single note.

"Unbelievable," Melody muttered, utterly spellbound.

"Oh, thank you so much, Solis!" Emerald exclaimed with joy. She ran over to the stallion and threw her hooves around him in an affectionate bear hug, knocking his mask out of alignment a bit in doing so.

Solis chuckled. "Thou art very welcome, Emerald," he replied, patting her on the back.

"Emerald!" Melody practically screeched. The older mare used her magic to pry her daughter off of Solis, who proceeded to re-adjust his mask.

"I am terribly, terribly sorry, your highness!" Melody said while bowing before Solis. "Please forgive my daughter's foalishness."

Solis regarded the panicked mare in front of him before turning to look at Celestia with a look of confusion behind his mask. Knowing what her son was thinking, Celestia nodded her head and made a rising gesture with her hoof. Solis nodded in understanding and looked down at Melody.

"She is forgiven, Miss Wind," he said. "Thou mayst rise."

"Thank you for your mercy, Solis," Melody replied, getting to her hooves. "And thank you for repairing my daughter's flute as well."

Solis merely nodded his head in reply. Melody and Emerald then proceeded to talk with Princess Celestia about when their Court session should take place while Solis used a hoof to lift up the back end of his cloak.

Surely I received a Soul for accomplishing such a feat? he wondered.

Craning his neck over his shoulder, Solis glanced at his right flank.

There was nothing.

No, how could I not . . .? He glanced to his other flank.

Nothing.

It was at that moment that Solis' mind caved in on itself and he slumped to his haunches. Then, muffled behind his mask so the three mares nearby could not hear him, Solis began to cry.