"...Well buck, this is going to ruin things for a while," Veritas stated as her words ended the silence of the three ponies, prompting them to look upon the blue entity.
"Wait, you knew about this?" Luna exclaimed as a fury came upon her face. Veritas then simply rolled her eyes at her, which only made her even angrier.
"Yes and no. It's complicated because I'm complicated, but I will say that she shouldn't know about this. At least a gut feeling is telling me that," Veritas said as her form shifted, turning into what looked to be a unicorn covered with a cloak, surprising the two sisters. However, this gave Sapphire the time to collect her wits as she as looked upon Veritas. Veritas then jerked her head towards the mare, showing an eerie awareness like if she had hidden eyes on the back of her head.
"But... how? This doesn't make any sense! How could I have wings when I was a filly, but not now?" Sapphire croaked out.
Letting out a snort, Veritas replied, "Life never make much sense, you'll find out in time, though I preferred that you hadn't seen this yet. But, life rarely goes the way one wants it to. Still, things will end the way things should, so be happy with your soon to be miserable life. Anyways, we won't be seeing each other anytime soon since I have a job to take care of, so good luck with your terrible future," as she reached out with a hoof to poke Sapphire in the chest with it, just as Luna and Celestia were about to approach the entity. However, before they could get a word out, Veritas sneered as she reared the hoof she was using, causing Sapphire's eyes to widen just as Veritas slammed the hoof into her face.
"Gah!" Sapphire cried out as she sat up, her covers falling off her as she jerked her head around in shock while panting in surprise. Seeing nothing but the dark walls and furniture of the royal guest room that Celestia had provided for her, Sapphire placed a hoof against her chest as her breathing slowed down to a calm level. "Was... was that a dream?" Sapphire mused aloud to herself, only to be answered by the door slamming open, causing her to jump out of her covers in shock before falling onto the floor.
"Sapphire Rain, are you awake?!" Luna cried out in the Royal Canterlot Voice as she looked around, becoming confused at the used yet empty bed before her. Looking around the bed, Luna said, "Sapphire? Where ar—there you are," as she spotted Sapphire who was groaning as she was getting into a sitting position.
"Augh... Princess Luna... do you have to slam the door like that?" Sapphire moaned as she got onto her hooves. The mare soon paused as her eyes snapped wide open as she looked at Luna with a bit of fear. "Umm... sorry about that, I didn't me—"
Waving a hoof in a dismissive fashion, Luna stated, "Do not fret dear Sapphire, it is understandable that our action had frightened thee in such a way," before she frowned as she realized that she was reverting to her preferred style of speaking.
Just as Luna was about to say something to correct herself, Celestia strode into the room with some bags under her eyes. Flipping a switch on with her hoof, Celestia cocked an eyebrow at Luna as she said, "I don't think you need to announce your entrance to the entire castle, Luna." Turning her attention to Sapphire, who blinked owlishly at her, Celestia tilted her head as she began examining the mare, only to sigh as she declared, "No signs of any wings. Of course, this wouldn't be straightforward."
Before Sapphire could get a word out, she was suddenly lifted into the air with a blue aura, causing her to squeak as Luna brought her right before her face. Turning Sapphire around, Luna rubbed a hoof where she thought wings would be as she added, "Hmm... and I don't feel any signs of hidden wings or even a stump should they have been... removed."
Placing a hoof against her forehead, Celestia let out a groan of frustration as she said, "Luna, could you please put Sapphire down since there are more effective ways to figure this out beside a physical examination," causing Luna to blush as she set Sapphire back down on the ground.
"My apologies dear Sapphire. I was just overwhelmed by the revelations we had in your mind," Luna stated with a forced smile, which only made Sapphire blink in utter confusion. Turning her attention to Celestia, Luna asked, "So, what methods do you have to ascertain the mystery of Sapphire's memory?"
"It depends. If that memory was true or if it was altered by Veritas for some scheme of hers...I’m honestly not sure what it could mean. If only we had more time to ascertain what kind of... being she is," Celestia answered as she lit her horn up, engulfing Sapphire in a golden aura as she braced herself to be lifted into the air, only to be surprised that she wasn't moved at all.
Looking at herself in confusion, Sapphire asked, "What are you doing, Princess Celestia?"
"Just scanning for any spells that a hospital scan would never detect... aha!" Celestia stated as her horn brightened up as the golden aura around Sapphire brightened up as well before shifting in color, turning into an aquamarine aura.
"Wait... sister, doesn't that aura match Sapphire's own?" Luna asked as she pointed at Sapphire. The mare blinked at that question as she held a hoof out to examine it herself, only to start shaking her leg to see if she could shake the aura off herself.
"It does. This means that if I were to dispel whatever magical spell Sapphire has on herself, we might figure out the truth of that memory. However, I won't dispel it without Sapphire's express permission, since the magic is related to her after all," Celestia declared.
Looking back and forth between the two princesses, Sapphire asked, "Umm... is there any risks to you removing the magic from me?"
Rubbing a hoof against her chin, Celestia answered, "That, I am uncertain. It depends on if the memory is correct or not. Furthermore, it depends on what the purpose of the magic surrounds you, but I believe it's a spell of some kind. While I was able to detect it, I was unable to identify its nature, so I can't honestly give you an answer. In the end, it is up to you to make a blind leap of faith or not."
Frowning at the answer, Sapphire looked at her sides, staring at them for a while before returning her attention to Celestia. Taking a deep breath, Sapphire took on a somewhat steely resolve, though her appearance was of a mare trying to act serious that caused Luna to place a hoof over her mouth to suppress a chuckle. "Okay... if the magic isn't normal... then take it off. I want some answers to this as well."
Nodding, Celestia stated, "Then steel yourself Sapphire, and be ready to tell us if you suffer any pain. I will end my dispelling of the magic if that occurs," as she lowered her horn towards Sapphire, her magic glowing brighter as the magic around Sapphire started to warp. Moments later, the magical aura started to glow even brighter, engulfing Sapphire as Luna brought up a foreleg to shield her eyes as Celestia shut her own eye. Sapphire looked at herself in alarm as her body felt odd, like it was some kind of jello.
After a brief moment, the light faded away, allowing Sapphire to look at the princesses once more. However, she then noted that they were slightly shorter than they were earlier until she felt something shifting on her sides. As the two princesses looked at her with wide eyes as she shifted her head, only to see a pair of wings that weren’t there before. Gasping at the sight, Sapphire turned to look at the princesses, then her wings, and the princesses once more.
Luna was the first to break this moment of silence as she said, "Okay... it turned out that the memory wasn't fabricated after all... and that Equestria has another alicorn..." as she turned to look at Celestia, who kept on staring at the confused Sapphire who was standing a few inches taller than before. "But why would she be disguised as a unicorn? That is a ques—"
"A question that might be answered if one is observant enough," Celestia interrupted as she walked up to Sapphire while Luna gave her a confused look. "Do you not see where her coat is shorter?" Celestia pointed out as she directed with a hoof towards Sapphire's side, where Luna and Sapphire looked at it. Their eyes soon saw that her fur was indeed shorter in some spots, specifically in three lines running down her sides. "It looks like she suffered some wounds on her side, along on her left rear leg, and a gash on her chest as well. If my guess is correct, since Sapphire was injured when she was first found and based on the shortness of her coat at those places, she might have suffered deep wounds that forced her body to adopt a unicorn form. The form conserved her magic, as it was directed to hide the wounds while healing them," Celestia explained as Luna reached out and poked Sapphire's chest.
Feeling a jab of pain, Sapphire hopped back, saying, "Ow! Don't do that!" prompting Luna to widen her eyes as she pulled her hoof back as Celestia frowned.
"That only supports my theory, but this means that we should bring Sapphire to the castle infirmary to be examined. She may have been fine in her unicorn form, but we don't know how she is in her true form, so it's best to be cautious so we don't take any unnecessary risks," Celestia declared as she walked out of the room, causing Sapphire and Luna to look at each other before following her.
"Where are my pillows? I demanded the softest pillows made by tailors in Saddle Arabia two minutes ago, and I expect them to be here now!" cried the voice of Blueblood from the infirmary as the trio stood outside the doors to it. It didn't take long for the princesses and Sapphire to arrive at their destination, but for Sapphire, it was a bit grueling due to the fact that all the castle guards and staff simply gapped at her whenever they passed them. This caused her to feel extremely self-conscious as she started to regret her decision to let Celestia dispel the mysterious spell.
"Umm... maybe we can check in another day and I can simply return to my room?" Sapphire asked with a wide smile.
Letting out an amused snort, Celestia turned her attention towards Sapphire as she answered, "No dear, we must have you examined. Despite the presence of my nephew at the infirmary, which I remind you that you had a role in him being there," smiling as Sapphire let out a resigned sigh. Opening the doors with her magic, Celestia trotted into the infirmary wing, where they entered a small lobby that had a nurse on standby.
"Your Majesties? Is something the mat—" the nurse started to say until she spotted Sapphire behind the royal sisters, causing her eyes to bulge out as Sapphire reared her head back a bit at the reaction.
"My Aunties are here? Quick servant! Wheel me out so I can greet them! Now!" Blueblood's voice called out from the nearby hallway, to which Blueblood appeared in a wheelchair, bandages wrapped around his head and his right foreleg. A unicorn guard followed behind him, using his magic to push Blueblood along. "Ah! Aunties, I see that you came to see how your pre—what the buck‽" Blueblood started to say until he spotted Sapphire, along with the presence of wings on her. However, before either Luna or Celestia could get a word out, Blueblood pointed a hoof at Sapphire as he looked at them with a furious expression as he exclaimed, "Aunties! Why did you give the mare that punched me in the face wings instead of banishing her into Tartarus‽ I de—" until his mouth was snapped shut by a blue aura that surrounded his muzzle.
With her horn lit up with her magic, Luna ran a hoof down her face as she said, "Blueblood, I recommend that you choose your next words carefully since you are talking to what might be Equestria's newest princess," before giving Blueblood a glare. Sapphire's eyes widened before jerking her head towards Luna, her mouth opening to shout out the first thought that crossed her mind.
"Wait, what‽ I'm a princess‽”