//------------------------------//
// More Than Just Magic 
// Story: More than Just Magic 
// by twilightsparkle3562 
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"Here's the deal, ladies, I need your magic."

That was the request I had made when I first arrived in Canterlot on orders of my superior, the Storm King. The deal was the princesses' magic in exchange for the restoration of my broken horn. Of course, it was all for nothing and rather than being promised the return of my horn, I ended up being betrayed and stabbed in the back.

Now, having been seen the error of my ways by Princess Twilight, I couldn't help but feel extremely guilty of my actions. After the Storm King was killed and I was turned back to normal, I had a choice in front of me:

Use the Staff of Sarconas to restore my horn or restore Twilight's fellow princesses to normal.

Having been given a second chance, there was no denying of what I needed to do.

"Now," I said in a soft voice, smiling at the pony who had saved my life and gave me her friendship. "We fix everything."

It was then that I knew for the first time, I began to show a sense of appreciation for the princesses themselves. Breaking the staff, all of the magic that he had taken from them returned Princesses Celestia, Luna and Cadence to normal.

"Twilight!" Celestia cried out upon being turned to normal, her face filled with overjoy.

"Princesses!" Twilight cried back walking over to Princess Celestia and the four alicorns all hugged together. Seeing them all embrace one another, well, it spoke to me a lot louder than words.

"All this time," I thought to myself. "I viewed these four alicorn ponies for nothing more than their magic. The bond they share…it's unlike anything I have ever seen before. Almost as if it reminds of me and my family…before my encounter with the Ursa Minor."

It was at this point I began to realize of how strong this bond of four princesses were. It was a very powerful bond, a bond that couldn't be broken not even by magic. How could I let the Storm King hurt these four special ponies? They are just that…ponies, like me. So what if they are alicorns and they have magic?

…

This was the question I continued to ask myself over and over again as I began my sentence for my crimes. To my surprise and bewilderment, they chose to not execute me or even throw me into Tartarus. Instead, I was sentenced to help other ponies recover from the mess that I had made.

Still, I couldn't help but think of how strong their bond was and I decided to approach Twilight about it one day during my time at her castle.

"Twilight," I asked as I walked into her office as she was sitting at her desk doing paperwork. "Can I ask you a question?"

"What is it, Tempest?"

"Something has been at my mind," I answered. "I can't help but think of the bond that you and your fellow princesses have with one another. Ever since I saw all four of you embrace one another, it won't leave my mind. Why do you four have such a strong bond?"

This made Twilight drop what she was doing and turn her attention over to me.

"Well, it's funny you should ask that, Tempest," she said, walking over to show Tempest several pictures on her mirror. "You see, me and my fellow princesses do have just that…a strong bond. Princess Celestia has been my mentor since I was a filly and has guided and helped me through many struggles and challenges. Princess Luna, well she used to be Nightmare Moon and my friends and I brought her back after 1,000 years as well as trying to help her overcome her personal demons. As for Princess Cadence, she was my foalsitter and later my sister-in-law when my brother married her."

"No wonder he struck me," I remarked, rubbing the side of my face where he struck. "His love for her is strong."

"Yes, it is strong and Cadence has a young daughter named Flurry Heart," Twilight continued showing me a picture of a baby alicorn. "Of which I am an aunt to. You might think that we are viewed for nothing more than just our power and magic, Tempest, but that's not who we should be viewed as."

With each word that Twilight spoke, I couldn't help but feel nothing but respect for her and her fellow princesses. It almost made wonder why I even bothered to come here in the first place, given the fact that I had been ordered to for a promise that would never be fulfilled.

"If there is anything that I am grateful for, Tempest Shadow," Twilight said as she walked back over to her desk. "Is that my relationship with my fellow princesses is just as strong as my relationship with my friends. We may never have done the kind of adventures my friends and I have done, but there was always that thought in the back of my mind of whether I would never get to see them again. Seeing them turned to stone…that's a vision that is going to stick around with me for a very long time."

All I could feel at that moment was nothing more than remorse and regret. I really couldn't blame Princess Twilight for being so upset at me for what I did to the three other princesses. Sure, the rest of the Storm Creatures terrorized the citizens of Canterlot, but I was the one who terrorized the Princesses directly.

"Twilight," I said, lowering my head in shame. "I can't erase the past, but I want you to know that I have developed a renewed respect for you and the other princesses. Rather than kill or imprison me for what I did, you have given me a second chance and that is something I will never forget."

With those words, I turned around and left Princess Twilight to do whatever duties she needed to get done. But, no matter what happens going forward, the respect I developed for the Princesses was going to get more and more bigger as the days would move forward in my continued journey to redeeming myself in the eyes of Equestria.

…

THE END