//------------------------------//
// The Sixth Element 
// Story: The Sixth Element 
// by Lets Do This 
//------------------------------//

The next day, the official celebration got underway. Princess Celestia and the somewhat recovered Princess Luna arrived by Golden Chariot in the Town Square in Ponyville. Princess Luna was presented to the crowds, who readily cheered her return.

The Elements of Harmony were presented next, and quickly surrounded by happy throngs of ponies wanting to thank them and celebrate their accomplishment.

There was a proclamation by Princess Celestia that henceforth Twilight Sparkle would take up permanent residence as Librarian in Ponyville.

And then an impromptu photograph of them all was organized.

Standing in the midst of her friends, Twilight looked around for Derpy, but couldn't find her. She hadn't been seen anywhere around town for the past couple of days. And there was a good reason for that. It was necessary to figure out what exactly to do about Derpy, given the Proclamation made by Luna while she was Nightmare Moon. Though very irregular, it had technically been made by an uplifted Princess, which made it officially binding. And it effectively meant that Derpy Doo was herself a Princess -- in title at least -- and moreover was now the hereditary ruler of Ponyville and environs into the bargain.

In the end, it was decided it was best to just let the whole matter quietly slide. Derpy had shown neither inclination nor interest in pressing claim to her title, nor even much memory of the incident, aside from a great happiness at finally having her wishes answered.

Twilight shook her head and focused on the picture taking, not wanting to be caught with a vacant look in the photograph.

Then she noticed that her friends were all smiling and laughing even more so than they had been before. Right at that moment, the picture was taken.

Twilight Sparkle looked past the camera, and finally spotted Derpy. She was sitting on the ground beside her daughter, watching Dinky blowing soap bubbles with a small cup of soap and a wand. And the sight made Twilight smile as well: the sense of calm happiness in Derpy's face as she kept one eye on her daughter, and the other eye on the bubbles, watching them drift idly away.

And then Derpy looked at Twilight, and winked. First one eye, then the other. She swept Dinky up onto her back and trotted off happily...
... with a bubbly cutie-mark on her flank.

For she was the Element of Optimism, you see.




Dear Princess Celestia: Today I learned that you don't need a prophecy, gemstone, or magic to be one of the Elements of Harmony. You just have to be the kind of pony other ponies need you to be, when they need you to be it. And sometimes, the most important ponies are the ones who make the choice to stay behind.





The End




My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, its characters and indicia are the property of Hasbro.
No infringement is intended. This story is a work of fan fiction, written by fans for fans of the series.





Cover image is based on vector graphic generously made available by Bobbatron808 at DeviantArt.
(https://www.deviantart.com/bobbatron808/art/Derpy-and-Dinky-Hugging-and-Smiling-2-619216252)