A Miraculous Miracle
The two regal sisters of Equestria relaxed peacefully in the royal study. Both enjoyed the glowing fire keeping them warm from the fall temperatures of Canterlot. Princess Luna sipped her tea quietly as she read a new book sent to her from Twilight while her sister continued to stare down at the snowy town of Ponyville. Both were so wrapped up in their thoughts that neither noticed the other's actions. At least, until Celestia cleared her throat loudly in six quick successions.
Luna rolled her eyes, but looked up to see Celestia still gazing out of the window. "Is there something you require, Celestia?"
"I believe enough time has passed", she simply stated.
"I'm afraid you must be more specific."
"The time has finally come to lift a spell…"
D
"Whaaaaaaa!"
Ploom!
Twilight and Rainbow Dash cringed. Dream's landing might have been cushioned by snow, but it still looked like it hurt. He quickly clambered out of the three-foot hole. The library's balcony was a long way back up, and he really didn't feel like making the climb again. He took a deep breath and a seat next to Twilight on the bench they moved close by for her to watch from the ground. She would have caught him with her magic, but he refused to let her, explaining that it wasn't helping him to stop him from falling while still in the air. The only thing she could do was keep piling snow in his landing area for some kind of cushion.
"Ready to call it a day", she asked.
He nodded slowly. Helplessly, Twilight watched him writhe in depression, just like he did every week during his flight training. It had been another few days since he started the lessons again, and just like the first session after his near-death experience, he failed once again. Little did she know that he only became depressed whenever she came out to watch. Only one good thing ever came out of the frequent failures. Twilight had made a tradition of taking him out to Sugarcube Corner for a treat to cheer him up. She looked up to Rainbow Dash and shook her head, signaling the Pegasus to call the quits and fly off to do whatever it was she had planned after they had finished.
The two remaining ponies outside waited in silence for the colt to come back from the cold depths of sadness. When Dream Runner closed his eyes, Twilight decided to put a hoof around him and pull him into a hug like she did everytime he felt bad. The gesture always got a smile, and this time was no different, especially since this time she decided to tickle him.
"Haha! Twilight! Stop! Heheh, you know I have sensitive sides!" It took some work, but he squirmed out of her grip. He smiled gratefully while he brought his giggles under control. "Thanks."
"You're welcome, Dream", she replied brightly.
Taking his smile as a signal to get up, Twilight stood to leave. When she didn't hear his hooves crunching in the snow too, she turned to find him still sitting on the bench. He was watching the clouds move along with the wind, only vaguely aware that Twilight had almost left him there.
"Dream, aren't you coming?" She tilted her head to the side in confusion.
He shook his head. "You can go to Sugarcube Corner without me, Twilight. I want to relax here for a few minutes. I'll catch up later, okay?"
The cold made it incredibly difficult for her to refuse to leave, no matter how stubborn her want to stay with him was. "Okay, Dream, just don't take forever."
He gave her his best grin. "I won't, Twilight."
She giggled silently before trotting away to the warm inside of the Corner. Dream closed his eyes again and listened for her sounds of departure to disappear. He snuck a peak when he could no longer hear anything. To his relief she was gone. He hopped up from the bench, and trudged through the deep snow to the door of the library.
He couldn't tell how much warmer it was on the inside while wearing his scarf, but it didn't matter since he was already on his way back out. He brought with him to the balcony a book that was sent to him anonymously. He had kept it from Twilight as per the instructions on the note that came with it. He could have sworn he knew the hoofwriting, but after hurting himself trying to place a name on the writer, he gave up. Now he decided to read the final chapter of the book titled, The Ten Steps to Flying.
It was kind of scary to have somepony he didn't know send him a book containing instructions to solving the second largest problem in his life, but that didn't keep him from reading it, especially since his confidence could only take so many more hits. Dream opened the book and shielded the pages from the breeze. He skimmed back over the pages his eyes had already scoured tirelessly, wondering if there was something he wasn't getting from the text. "I read the first nine chapters over and over, but…I still can't even glide…"
The words in the book didn't change no matter how many times he flipped the pages. He wanted to believe that whoever had sent it was a pony just trying to help out with vain results, but something about the text in the book told him there was something more to the strange tome. "You don't become one of the most successful treasure hunters you know without a sixth sense…What are your secrets?"
After undergoing various tests that would have broken the spirit of any lesser book, it remained intact without so much as a creased page. No pony would have gone through the trouble of placing strong protection enchantments on it if there wasn't something important in it. "Maybe…I should just read the last chapter…It can't be cursed…I hope…"
He turned to the suspicious last page of the book that bore the title "Chapter Ten". He took the weight of his hoof from it to allow the wind to flip it for him. He took a deep breath. "Although the previous nine chapters have outlined the basis for taking flight, there is one last important thing that must be considered by every Pegasus Pony: the Spirit of Flight. This is something not taught in any flying school. The reason is because that it is learned throughout the life of the Pegasus from the time they are born to the second they are ready to get in the air. However, there are those ponies who have been cheated out of learning what their Spirit of Flight is…"
Dream wasn't sure that this was going anywhere. There was just one small paragraph at the bottom of the page, and it could hardly be enough room to provided him with the information he needed. However, his curiosity had been peaked, so he read on, "For these ponies, there is a simple way to quickly find out. You must simply look into the deepest regions of your heart and find the thing that is most important to you. When you have it and are sure that it is most important to you, hold onto that thought. That is what you will be flying for."
The text stopped there, but Dream knew exactly what it meant. He smiled, unsure at first, then in realization. "Of course", he chuckled. He stepped up to the banister. "I fly for Twilight." For Twilight, he echoed in his head. He pictured her in his mind. "For you." In one quick movement, he jumped over the edge.
D
"I wonder what's taking Dream so long", Twilight pondered to herself. "It shouldn't be taking him this long just to walk here." Another sip of her hot chocolate did little to calm her steadily fraying nerves. The darkening clouds outside gave her plenty of reason to worry about him. She forgot to get the weather report from Rainbow Dash, so she didn't know if there was a scheduled blizzard or not. Asking Pinkie Pie was out of the question. Sugarcube Corner was so crowded with ponies that she and the cakes couldn't stand still long enough to blink their eyes. Twilight even had to wait for a table! She continued to watch the path she took from the library, hoping to see the Pegasus following the tracks her hooves made. It wasn't much longer before somepony sat across from her.
"Twilight, what are you doing her so alone?" Fluttershy asked.
"Dream's supposed to be here with me, but he hasn't gotten here yet…"
Something seemed wrong with the situation, so Fluttershy asked, "Are you okay, Twilight? You look worried."
"Fluttershy, is there supposed to be a blizzard today?"
She thought back to what Rainbow Dash said at the last Pegasus meeting. She shook her head. "No. That's tomorrow afternoon. The weather teams are just getting ready today."
Twilight sighed heavily with relief. "Oh, good. That means he won't get caught in it. That scarf of his can't possibly keep him warm under six feet of snow."
"Here ya go Fluttershy!" announced Pinkie Pie, firmly planting a plate of chocolate brownies down on the table along with a large mug of hot chocolate for the two.
"Is your shift almost over?" Fluttershy asked, to which Pinkie nodded vigorously.
She slipped a large pair of black glasses over her eyes. "I'll be back", she said slowly.
Twilight laughed with Fluttershy at Pinkie's silliness. The mares made idle chat over the sweets while they waited for Pinkie to return from work. Twilight occasionally turned her glance to the scenery outside of the corner to find that there were still no signs of Dream. Fighting the paranoia with another brownie, she answered Fluttershy. "No", she sighed, "He still can't fly…"
The yellow mare couldn't find something to say that she thought was appropriate and fell into silence, with the only noise coming from her being the sound of quiet chewing. The interlude didn't last for long.
"I'm back!" Pinkie declared, sliding in next to Twilight. "Did you miss me!? Pfft haha, of course you did!"
"Did you have a teaspoon of sugar on your way back from the kitchen", Twilight asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah, why?" Pinkie bounced up and down with enough energy to cause any fizzy drink to explode.
"Because I can feel the rush from here", Twilight chortled.
"Hey, where's Dream?"
"I don't know, Pinkie. He probably fell asleep on the bench back at the library." The thought set her mind further at ease. The night before was a long one for the two librarians. It was the night they scheduled to move every piece of Twilight's science equipment from the basement to the attic to make room for the bookshelves they had to order to hold the hundreds of books that came in from the Canterlot Archives. They were too heavy for her to lift with her magic without hurting herself, so of course Dream helped. Together, the duo took five hours to get everything moved. "I'm going to check on him."
Pinkie Pie stood up to let the unicorn go find her Pegasus. The cold air and ground made her flinch with a shiver. The cold shot right through her boots and into her hooves. She adjusted rather quickly then made off in a moderate trot back to the library. The wind outside blew much harder than it did when she got to Sugarcube corner, further lowering the temperatures.
D
Dream once again ended up with a mouthful of snow as his body hit the ground for the third time since he decided to give flying another try for the day. He shook his head free from the fuzziness filling his vision. He shakily pushed himself up from the powder. "One more time", he gasped, "Lucky number four. Then I'll stop."
And so he climbed the stairs yet again, hoping that his trust in his favorite number wouldn't betray him. His hooves were still sore from the second, almost bone-shattering fall, but a healing potion on the way back up fixed that problem easy. While the tingly feeling repairing the damaged cells in his hooves fought off the pain, he focused his mind on Twilight again. His daring side took him out on a limb. "If I don't fly this time", he said before he caught himself, "then Twilight and I are not meant to be."
His breathing stopped. He had practically just doomed any chance of a love life he had with the unicorn of his dreams. Dream stepped up to the banister for what would most likely be the final time. "I can do this…I have to. For Twilight. For Twilight." His fears melted away when he pushed all scenarios of failure out of his mind. Complete confidence engulfed him with a shot of adrenaline. He felt much more capable than he ever felt in his life. He filled his lungs to their maximum capacity. He leapt over the edge with only the picture of Twilight in his head to keep his confidence thriving.
The ground came a lot faster than he last remembered. Dream's wings flapped frantically in every desperate attempt to keep him from landing face first. The ground got dangerously close to his nose, and he shut his eyes in fear that he just jinxed his whole life. This is it. Twilight and I will forever be just friends, and I'll be the most pathetic, flightless…wait…where is the pain? He slowly opened his eyes to find that he was gently hovering over the snow covered ground of Ponyville. His heart stood still, making it hard for his brain to process what was happening.
Dream Runner cautiously stretched out a hoof just above the snow and waved it back and forth. He turned his head to see that his wings were flapping in unison and were actually keeping him up. "I-I'm doing it! I'm flying!" He cautiously gave his wings a little more energy. He rose so slowly back up to the balcony. By shifting his weight forward, Dream found that he moved in that direction. "How am I—it doesn't even matter! I'm flying!" He gave himself a quick review in moving, hovering, and gliding from the books that Rainbow Dash had given him from flight school. Everything worked!
He didn't even think about trying to do anything but fly around. Tricks could wait until later. He circled the top of the library a few times, laughing and giggling at his greatest accomplishment outside exploring. He spotted Twilight coming up the path toward the library. A great idea hit, making him fly higher behind a cloud.
The unicorn trotted along, but didn't see Dream on the bench as she had suspected. She quickened her trot to a light gallop, hoping that he just fell into deep snow. She didn't find him anywhere near the snow. She did find several trails of hoofprints leading to the library. She followed them until and was just to the door when something grabbed her from the side and rolled with her in the snow. When she recovered, she realized Dream was looking her right in the face. Upon a second look, she saw that he wasn't touching the ground.
"I did it Twilight! I'm flying! I did it!" he announced to all of Ponyville.
She smiled in amazement. "You sure did, Dream", she breathed.
D
"For he's a jolly good flyer! For he's a jolly good flyer!" everypony invited to the party devoted to his first flight chanted. The Elements of Harmony gently put him back down on the floor. It took Pinkie Pie only ten minutes to set the celebration up, and three minutes to get her friends to the library.
Dream looked around at the six ponies who worked hardest to help him fly. They all smiled back at him, waiting for him to say something. Grabbing Twilight first, he pulled them all into the biggest hug he could ever give them. The girls didn't know it, but Dream was secretly celebrating something else too. Flying was the exact thing he needed to see that his life had become nearly complete. It signified the true start of his new life. He reflected back to how it all happened. At one point or another, they were always there.
"I can't thank you all enough", he said when the hooves around him eased, "You all gave me a new life, and I can't be happier for that." He paused to let the "aaawwwsss" pass, then continued. "A month and a half ago I was the most pathetic pony in Equestria…" His reminiscing caused tears to form. He blinked as many back as he could away before continuing. "I-I wouldn't be happy with my life if it wasn't for you…thank you. Thank you all so much for turning my life around."
Silence ensued with the second hug. Dream sniffed. "I…I want to give you all something to show how much I appreciate you."
"Dream Runner, ya don' hafta do nothin' like that", Applejack replied for the group.
"I know, Applejack. But I'm going to anyway." He motioned for everypony to form a circle around him. When Pinkie Pie stopped bouncing in place, he reached into his satchel and withdrew six small cases.
Twilight's eyes grew the second she realized what he was placing on the floor in front of them. "Dream, you—" His hoof shot to her mouth to hush her.
When all cases were distributed, he spoke up in the voice that he used when explaining his artifacts. "On the floor in front of you are six of the nine most precious treasures to me. I have worked hard my whole life collecting them. They are Emotion Orbs, containing the very essence of emotions within them. I give them to you because everything you have given and done for me is by far more valuable and precious than anything I have ever pulled out of cave." He turned to Pinkie Pie. "For showing me why it's important to smile, I give Pinkie Pie the Orb of Happiness." Within the case was a glowing sphere with a gold aura swirling around inside.
"It's so pretty! Thank you, Dreamy!"
He turned around to face Fluttershy. "Fluttershy, you have taught me that it's okay to be scared, and that there's no fear that I can't overcome. I give you the Orb of Serenity." This orb's glow was fainter, and its aura dull blue.
"Thank you…" she said meekly.
"You've taught me that I can like myself as well as others, Rainbow Dash. I give to you the Orb of Joy." Rainbow's orb held an unstable-looking yellow mist.
"This is so awesome!"
"Rarity, you've shown me that friends are anything but a burden, and that I shouldn't hesitate to ask for help. You may have the Orb of Bliss."
"I adore it! It's simply beautiful!" She held the green orb to her closely.
"Applejack. The best way through life is to be able to make fun out of everything life throws at you. Thank for the lesson, you may have the Orb of Compassion." The orange in the orb was the same shade as the mare's coat.
"Thank ya, kindly, Dream."
The Pegasus didn't immediately say anything when he stopped on Twilight. He only smiled down at her before sighing. "Twilight Sparkle. For being with me before I even opened my eyes for the first time in Ponyville, and for showing me that the world is much nicer than I had come to believe, and also for caring about me in a way that no pony else ever has, I give you the Orb of Love."
Twilight only stared at him in disbelief. She couldn't wrap her mind around the fact that he had just given her his favorite Emotion Orb. He nodded in acknowledgement to her "are you sure?" expression. "Thank you, Dream."
"The six of you are my closest friends, and I couldn't imagine it any other way."
They all shared one last hug before Pinkie Pie kicked on the music. An intense party followed after, leading all the way into the early hours of morning. There was nothing planned for them to do exactly, so the suggested activities stopped the second Dream was too tired to fly anymore. He and Twilight walked their friends to the door, before turning in.
He smiled up at the ceiling in his bed. Perfect, he thought, My life is almost perfect. He looked up to see that Twilight was already asleep. And tomorrow, I tell Twilight I love her…