//------------------------------//
// All about Magic 
// Story: The Bonds of Family 
// by KidatHeart5 
//------------------------------//

	In her elegant bedroom, Skyla trotted up gracefully to her vanity as practice for walking amongst the crowds and other royalty. When she sat down softly, she took a few deep breaths before beginning to apply makeup on herself.
She thought, I am Princess Skyla of the Crystal Empire. I come from a noble line of royals who look out for the welfare of others, so thus I follow in their hoofsteps. I, Princess Skyla, am humble, kind, gentle, honest, intelligent, and above all –
Flurry Heart burst through the door, shouting, “Hey, Skyla!”
The sudden action caused the lipstick to smear across Skyla’s face. She turned and scolded her younger sister, “Flurry, a proper princess never bursts in unannounced. She must knock and state her business first.”
Flurry said, “I know that, but we’re in the privacy of our own home. We can just go wherever we like without being regal and proper. Just ask Cotton.”
“Does the privacy of one’s home entitle them to barge in someone else’s room just like that?”
The alicorn blushed and rubbed the back of her neck as she said, “Point taken.”
Skyla sighed, “Look, I’m sorry. I’m just trying to practice being queen for when I’m coronated someday.”
Flurry nodded, “I get it, it’s a huge responsibility. It must be stressful to constantly prepare for such a big job.”
Her sister chuckled, “More than you realize.” 
A maid then knocked on the open door and said, “Miladies, it’s time for your magic lesson with Professor Sunburst.”
Flurry said, “We’re coming.”
When the sisters followed the maid, Skyla whispered to Flurry, “See? She knows to knock first.”
The corner of the younger sister’s mouth deepened in annoyance.
When they reached the classroom, Sunburst and two other students were there. One of the students was Blaze, who the sisters were glad could come by this week. Blaze was the unicorn son of Princess Sunset Shimmer and Timber Spruce. He had an amber coat like his mom did, green eyes that he inherited from his father, and a mixture of manestyles from both parents. However, the main color in his mane was a dark shade of moderate raspberry, which made up a majority of his aunt Gloriosa Daisy’s mane. The two mane colors he did inherit from his parents, brilliant amaranth and dark aquamarine, were arranged in two small stripes like the stripes in his aunt Twilight Sparkle’s mane were. 
Long ago, Sunset had met her husband in Splendor Woods and was able to break the curse on him and his sister. After Blaze was born, he, his parents, and their friends settled down in the manor given to them as a wedding gift by Sunset’s former guardian, Starlight Glimmer. Sunset and Starlight had a history, which was admittedly mixed. However, they were on good terms ever since Sunset learned about her guardian’s history and helped her reunite with her one true love. Starlight and Sunburst were now happily married and living in the Crystal Empire with their daughter, Nova Rose.
Nova Rose’s coat was a lighter version of her mother’s, her eyes were regular blue, and her orange-and-purple mane was slightly frizzy but with a smooth bang that almost hung over her left eye. She also inherited one spot from her father, but it was dark blue, shaped like a four-pointed star, and laid just above the nosepiece of her rose-framed glasses. Like both parents, she was a unicorn and so the other student in the room with her father.
Blaze and Nova Rose were both thirteen years old and shared a lean body shape that most ponies had just before they reached adolescence. Flurry Heart had this figure as well, but she was slightly taller than her cousin and friend and her chest was becoming prominent at her age. Both Blaze and Nova were eager to prove they were the best when it came to magic. 
Sunburst turned to his daughter, “Nova, would you get Primrose the Prescient’s Protections and Prophecies and Silverdust’s Guide to Mystic Histories out?”
“Of course, Daddy.”
“Remember, Nova. It’s ‘Professor’ while we’re in class.”
“Right. Sorry, Professor.” She magically got the books, but as she was about to walk over to her father, she tripped.
“Oops. My bad.”
She looked up and glared at the colt that tripped her. “Sly Blaze.”
“Dumb Rose,” he smirked back.
She made a humph and moved on while magically picking up the books. She gave them to her father before taking her seat next to Flurry.
Flurry leaned in towards her and whispered slyly, “I think he likes you…”
Nova scoffed, “He does not. He sees me as a threat because I’m better at magic than him.”
Skyla was sitting next to Blaze and whispered, “Why are you so mean to Nova?”
“Because she’s a dumb filly.”
Skyla gave a dubious look, “You’re kidding, right? Last month, she beat you in that magic duel. I wouldn’t call that dumb.”
“She’s dumb because she’s naïve about becoming a great sorceress when her dad’s just milking it for her. Meanwhile, I have to study hard and practice my magic on my own without tutors. Sure, Mom helped me out whenever she could, but she gave me more hooves-on experiences.”
“But that doesn’t explain why you pick on her so much.”
He would have responded if Sunburst wasn’t starting the lesson now.
“Today, we’ll be working on the Magical Mindscape Manifestation Spell. Flurry Heart, Nova, why don’t you come up and demonstrate for us?”
The two got up and faced each other. Flurry smiled as she lit up her horn, “Ready, Nova?”
Nova smiled back, “You know I am.”
In a very light yellow flash, Flurry Heart was gone. Sunburst asked his daughter, “Is Flurry inside your mind right now?”
Nova nodded, “Um-hmm.”
“All right. Tell her to come out now.”
After several moments, Flurry Heart reappeared again. She remarked to Nova, “Wow, Nova! Who knew you had such a creative and beautiful mind?”
Nova smiled, “Thanks, Flurry.”
Blaze muttered to himself, “I probably could’ve told her that.” When Skyla looked at him, he corrected quickly, “If I was in her mind, I mean! Yeah!”
Nova said to Flurry, “Now let’s see if I can get into your mind.”
The alicorn stood tall as she said with a smile, “Fire away.”
When Nova lit up her horn, she disappeared in a dark cornflower blue flash. Sunburst then asked his student, “Well, Flurry, is Nova in your mind?”
Flurry nodded, “She is, Professor.”
“Okay. Tell her to come out.”
Flurry said in her thought, You can come out now, Nova.
Surprisingly, Nova said in Flurry’s head, Give me a minute. I think I see something.
In concern, Flurry thought, What is it?
Sunburst asked, “Flurry, what’s going on in there?”
She answered, “Nova thinks she sees something in my mind. From the tone in her voice, it could be important.”
“Important? How?”
Just then, Nova reappeared in the classroom. She had a look on her face that was a mix of confusion and worry. She turned to Sunburst and asked, “Dad – I mean, Professor, may I talk to you for a bit?”
Sunburst answered with a concerned nod, “Yes, Nova.” He faced the rest of his students and said, “Why don’t you all practice the Triple M spell in the meantime?” While his apprentices were practicing the spell, he whispered to Nova, “What exactly did you see in Flurry’s mind?”
Nova said, “Well, the ground in her mind was like regular ground, but in the middle, there was a bright glowing spot beneath it. It was huge and yellow like Flurry’s magic.”
This gave Sunburst some concern. When he told his students to proceed practicing other spells, he silently pondered on the possibilities that were linked to what Nova saw in Flurry’s mind. The most prominent of those likelihoods was that the alicorn’s magic was ready to come out. 
A voice broke his trance, “Hey, everyone.”
Surprised, Sunburst turned to see Cadance and Shining Armor standing by the door. The students saw the royals and said, “Hi!”
Cadance asked Sunburst, “So how goes the magic lessons?”
As much as he was unsettled by Nova’s news, he gathered as much calm as possible and said, “Things are going along fine, Your Highnesses. Say, let’s have the students perform levitation to show you.” He asked the young apprentices, “What do you say, kids?”
All of them replied, “Yeah!”
Blaze went first and he managed to levitate all of the free objects in the room.
Sunburst praised, “Excellent, Blaze! Now, Nova.”
Nova Rose levitated the same things Blaze did, which made him grumble, “Show-off.”
Her father smiled, “Great job, Nova! Skyla.”
Skyla, being older than her peers, naturally lifted everything the first two did, but this time, she also levitated the slightly-heavier stuff.
Cadance smiled in amazement as Shining Armor chuckled, “That’s impressive, Skyla! We’re so proud of you!”
His wife then said, “Flurry, why don’t you give it a go?”
Flurry Heart took a deep breath and said, “Okay.”
With deep concentration, she lifted everything her sister had lifted before. However, before anypony could say anything, the heaviest objects in the room suddenly became enveloped in a yellow aura. The ponies became shocked by the development.
Nova Rose said, “Um, Flurry…?”
Blaze said, “You can stop now.” Just then, he, Nova, Sunburst, and Skyla were suddenly levitated into the air.
Skyla shot off, “Stop showing off!”
Flurry said worriedly, “I’m not showing off! I don’t know how to stop this!” At that moment, her hooves left the ground and a very bright ball of magic started accumulating on her horn.
Shining Armor said in concern, “Um, Sunburst? Did the Fledgling’s Forbearance…?”
Sunburst confirmed uneasily, “Yep. I think the spell wore off.”
In a massive flash of yellow light, the Crystal Palace jumped into the air before landing – thankfully, intact – on the crystalline ground very roughly. Crashes could be heard throughout the castle and in nearby homes. Inside the palace, crystals had broken off the walls and pillars, and pieces of furniture were thrown from the original places. Fortunately, nopony got seriously injured, but their manes were certainly frizzy and they had shaken expressions. Inside the classroom, everything was a wreck and some ponies were buried in the debris.
Blaze emerged from a pile of books and coughed, “Wow. I think we have our new Wonder Mare!”
Skyla said as she levitated a bare bookshelf off of her, “That’s not even funny.”
Nova took Flurry Heart’s hoof and pulled her from the rubble, asking her, “Are you okay?”
Flurry said as she brushed her fur off, “Yeah. I’ve seen better days.”
At that moment, rushed hoofsteps were heard down the hallway until Sunset, Timber Spruce, and Starlight stopped at the doorway with worried looks on their faces. 
Starlight asked anxiously, “Is everypony all right?!”
Timber added, “We saw this huge blast and then the palace came crashing down from the sky!”
Sunset asked, “What was that?”
Feeling quite ashamed, Flurry Heart pointed to herself and explained, “Me. I don’t know what happened. I was trying to levitate the objects in the room, but then…my magic got out of control.” She hung her head sadly and said, “I’m sorry.”
Cadance and Shining Armor looked at each other with solemn expressions and nodded as if in agreement with something. When they faced Flurry again, Cadance said, “Sweetheart, I think it’s time your father and I told you something.” She gestured for her youngest daughter to come forth and follow them. 
Before the three of them went somewhere private, Shining Armor turned to Skyla and said, “Why don’t you check to see if everypony’s okay, Skyla? They need to see somepony like you right now.”
Skyla nodded, “Yes, Father.”





When Flurry and her parents reached her bedroom, she sat down on her bed while her mom and dad stood up.
Shining Armor sighed as he put his hoof behind his head, “Look, kiddo, this isn’t exactly an easy thing to say, but since this happened, we need to tell you.”
Flurry Heart grew worried as she asked, “What is it? Why is my magic so strong now? It wasn’t this strong before.”
Cadance calmed her daughter, “We know, we know. Back when you were just born, you had powerful magic that could cut holes through several floors of the castle. Your magic was so strong that when you cried, it…shattered the Crystal Heart.”
Flurry put her hooves to her mouth as her eyes shrunk in shock of the revelation. She breathed, “You mean…I broke the Crystal Heart before my crystalling?” Her heart dropped just from saying that. 
Shining Armor tried to reassure her, “It was an accident, Flurry. It wasn’t your fault.”
Flurry asked with growing disdain in her voice, “Is that why you named me ‘Flurry Heart’ in the first place? To remind yourselves of the disaster I nearly caused to the Crystal Empire?” Tears then welled in her eyes.
Cadance wrapped her hooves around her daughter to comfort her and said, “It’s not like that, Flurry. The reason we gave you that name was because we wanted to remember your crystalling as something special.”
Shining Armor joked, “Yeah. We couldn’t just name you ‘Crystal’ or anything like that. Too many things around here that have ‘crystal’ in their names. You stand out.”
Flurry scoffed, “Do I stand out by almost wiping out the Empire with a snowstorm? Or how about today, when I made the palace shoot into the sky and crash down onto the earth? My magic has always been dangerous, hasn’t it? That’s why you mentioned ‘Fledgling’s Forbearance’ in the classroom, because you used it to control my magic.”
Her parents were surprised that she could’ve caught the name of the spell like that. 
Cadance explained, “It was until you were old enough to control it by yourself, and I think now’s that time.”
Flurry asked, “What should I do?”
Shining Armor said, “We thought that when the time came, you would also be tutored by your Uncle Discord and Grandma Luna.”
Cadance said, “They’re very powerful magic wielders, Flurry, so you’ll be in good hooves…and hands.”
Flurry was feeling a bit hopeful after being told that. She asked again, “So when do I start my training?”
Shining Armor said with a smile, “After the Crystal Gala. We promise.”





Skyla had checked all floors of the palace and the homes closest to the square. To her relief, everypony was all right, albeit frazzled. She was glad that Flurry’s magic didn’t harm anyone or cause extensive damage, but she worried that her sister would take advantage of her now-stronger magic and…
No. She couldn’t think like that. This was her younger sister here. Flurry Heart was too kind-hearted for such things. As talented and powerful as she was, she never wanted to hurt anypony. It was then that Skyla remembered all of the rumors the Crystal Ponies had spread amongst themselves. If today’s ginormous feat of magic - albeit accidental - only confirmed that Flurry was indeed more powerful than her sister, then they’d turn to her to protect them. 
At that moment, a terrible worry began to plague Skyla: what if they wanted Flurry to be queen instead of her?