//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 // Story: To rekindle the flame // by Sky Trotter //------------------------------// “Dear Obsidian, First of it is still really weird that you had been hiding who you were the entire time, and secondly, where did you disappear to? You just zipped off without an explanation. I mean one second we were having a friendly chat and the next you jumped off and flew away. Did I say something to offend you? Please contact me and let me know that you are ok. I know that I am still new to this whole friendship thing, but I am scared that I screwed something up. So again please contact me. Your Friend, Ember” Ember looked over the short letter again to see if she might be able to improve it in some way. “I guess that this is going to be a good as it gets,” she said to herself. Rolling the letter up and placing it in the scroll tube she screwed the cap on and pressed the gem in the lid that caused it to teleport away to wherever Obsidian was receiving the letters. “I guess that all I can do at this point is wait for the reply.” Frustrated she returned to the work of governing the Dragon lands. ____The previous night in the field outside of Canterlot._____ “Obsidian” Celestia paused and considered what she was going to task to him. “Obsidian as you may or may not know, there is a young dragon that lives peacefully in the small village of Ponyville” Looking back at her Obsidian nodded to show that he was following what she said. “I believe that the key to getting back into Luna’s good graces would be to show her that you are still a caring creature. To show her that you are not the selfish dragon, that you have up till now, shown yourself to be. What I will ask you to do is to go to Ponyville and become the instructor for the young dragon by the name of Spike.” “You mean the young one who turned over the ownership of the Bloodstone scepter to Ember?” “Yes, the very same. Spike has been raised by ponies all his life, and I am afraid that he has never had a full education on what it means to be a dragon. From what I understand his interactions with other dragons have been limited to Ember and a few juveniles that were not a very good indication of what a dragon can, or should be. To my knowledge, he has never shown a propensity towards magical other than an incident when he succumbed to a greed growth.” Obsidian looked back at Celestia and blinked, Greed growth, that wasn’t that uncommon a thing for a dragon to succumb to, however he wanted to clarify “If you don’t mind me asking, how large did this greed growth cause him to end up?” Celestia looked back at him with curiosity in her eyes “Well if I had to estimate it from reports...I would have to say that he would have been about ¼ the size of Canterlot Castle.” Obsidian balked at the news “You mean to tell me that a wormling barely one decade out of his shell grew to be around ¼ the size of a castle with a greed growth? You sit there and say that he has never shown a spark of magic and then drop that on me.” Celestia smiled and replied “Why? Is that unusual for that much growth to happen?” “I would say that is unusual. Your average dragon with your average levels of magic might grow to twice their normal size when they succumb to greed, some might even grow to three times their size. But to grow to the size that you describe, the dragon in question would have to have access to an immense amount of magic. A dragons magic is directly linked to their size. A worming should not have been capable of this.” “Well, he is not your average dragon. His egg had been in the treasury of my castle for over 400 years. We had been using it as a way to test young unicorns to see how they dealt with failure. We presented them the test that they were supposed to try to hatch the egg. We were under the assumption that there would never be an issue with it. After all, without a dragoness, the egg was nothing more than a pretty stone. At the time of Twilight Sparkles test, she had an intense magical surge. During the course of which, she not only hatched his egg but also managed to turn her parents as well as her testers into potted plants. High-level transmutation, and at this point she had had no formal training." Narrowing his eyes, Obsidian fixed his gaze on the Princesse "You do realize what it is that you are implying. You are one of the few beings outside of the clans that knows the details of how a hatching is brought to life. If what you say is true..." Celestia nodded "I know what it means, for the both of them. That was part of the reason that guided her toward ascension so that she can be there for him." Obsidian paused to think to himself. ‘If this is what it will take for Luna to allow me back into her life then I am willing to do it’ Turning back to Celestia. “I will train the worming; I only hope that this will show that I am dedicated to the good of Equestria. I know that up until now I have been selfish. I honestly thought that I would never get to see her again. I am deeply sorry that I have failed you, and more than that, I am deeply sorry that I failed Luna further by disappearing. When do you want me to go to the young one?” Celestia looked back at her old friends and sighed. “Thank you Obsidian. I really am glad that you have returned. I will send a letter to my former student about the situation in the morning. She is still new to her Alicorn status and will likely want to sit in on the lessons. If convenient, would you be able to be there by tomorrow afternoon?” Looking back at Celestia Obsidian replied with as much respect as he could muster for the Ruler. “Of course your Highness. It will be my utmost pleasure to provide lessons to the young dragon and his companion, my only hope is that I am able to work my way back into your good graces.” Celestia looked at Obsidian with a confused look. “Why has your demeanor changed? I have been wondering why you suddenly changed to such a formal attitude?” Grimacing Obsidian replied “To speak to you informally is something that should be reserved for close friends. I have shamed myself and must earn my way back to that position of honor. I only hope that I can do so. My behavior has been highly unfitting for one my age and of my breeding. I humbly ask for your forgiveness, however, at the same time I know that I must earn it first.” Obsidian then did something that he had not done for more than a millennium. He bowed. Celestia looked shocked at his action. Bowing was something that Dragons never did. At least not willingly. “Oh my. I guess you really are disappointed with your behavior?” Looking down Obsidian muttered, “you have no idea how much I hate myself for failing her.” “What was that Obsidian. I didn’t quite catch it.” Looking back at the Alicorn Obsidian replied “It was nothing. I will take up the position that you have offered and will fulfill it to my utmost. I thank you for the opportunity to redeem myself in your eyes. However, I feel I must let you adjourn to your home. I will make myself known to the young princess tomorrow at midday tomorrow. I thank you for the opportunity that you have presented to me.” Bowing Obsidian turned to take his leave. “I wish you a good night princess, may you sleep well.” Celestia looked up at her once good friend and sighed speaking to herself “I truly hope that you are able to return to the happy being that I once knew.” She watched as he spread his wings, just before he took off she added: “Where will you go for now?” Turning to Celestia Obsidian replied “For now I will return to the forest, but by the morn, I will meet with your student. For tonight I must bid you adieu. I fear that Ember may have been a bit surprised with my sudden disappearance.” as he finished his sentence he took off into the night, a single thought on his mind “Maybe I can finally redeem myself in her eyes, after so many years’.