Harry Potter and the Equestrian Elegy

by Maelaeran

Chapter 2 - Gaze Into The Abyss

AN: To those who were worrying about the last chapter, Harry IS present in this chapter and he does not have a good time. There are also two characters that make an appearance near the end of the chapter and I'd like to ask people who comment on the story and use their names to please put them in Spoiler Tags. I'd like it to be a surprise for readers who stumble onto this story!

'Right. I'm leaving. No way I'm staying here.' Harry took a couple of still magically silent steps backwards just in case one of the creatures decided to get closer.

Too much was happening.

Too much had happened.

Harry needed time to...not to think or dwell...but just...

He needed to get away from everything.

Just for a bit.

Even if the ghosts weren't screaming at their possible killer, Harry would still have chosen discretion for more than just an opportunity to catch his breath. Something about this Celestia was filling him with an uneasy feeling that he didn't get from any of the other talking horses...ponies.

'...Still better than talking spiders.' considered Harry even as he ran through potential spells in his mind that might work in driving them off if, or more likely when, a fight broke out.

He could only really make out the four armored ponies and the pink winged unicorn ('Pegacorn?') as they weren't obscured by the writhing mass of enraged spirits that surrounded Celestia. Despite their transparency, the ghostly ponies had aggregated in such large numbers that they were partially covering the majority of Celestia's features. Only those mysterious numbers that were floating above everyone's heads could be clearly seen through this spectral shroud.

The fact that they were having no noticeable effect on her only seemed to infuriate them further, partially drowning out any conversation the ponies might be having with each other. The one with blue hair looked down the hallway where Harry was hidden underneath his cloak again and he froze on instinct as the others in his entourage did the same.

'...I'm pretty sure they know something is here.'

“-most likely – phantasmal sound – ... – Captain?” said Celestia as a particularly vengeful shriek that he recognized as belonging to Periwinkle drowned her out.

“Auntie?” asked the pink pony. So she was the niece of this Celestia person?

Harry missed Celestia's reply but it had the pink one biting her lower lip slightly and looking in Harry's direction before turning towards the direction of the big hall. With equal amounts of worry and relief, Harry watched the odd troupe walked past his hiding spot and-

'You have got to be kidding me.'

They had barely moved forward a couple of steps before stopping, hovering around the area where Harry had first come to consciousness in this weird world. Although luckily, he didn't seem to leave any footprints, or hoofprints now, technically, on the stone floor due to a surprising lack of dust in the area. Though considering there was a bunch of holes in the roof that left the ruins exposed to the elements, perhaps that wasn't so surprising.

“-has been closed. Cad-?” began Celestia which caused the pink one to respond.

“I don't...really sense anything, Auntie.” replied the pink pony, who shook her head in the negative with a pained look.

“-kay, Cadance. It is some – when – older.” Whatever Celestia had said seemed to cheer up the pink pony who Harry thought was called Cadance. It was as good a temporary name as any.

Pinkie seemed like it would fit, thought it also felt kinda wrong for some odd reason.

“Auntie...did somepony...?” she trailed off leadingly and then frowned at whatever non-verbal response Celestia gave her. “Then, what should we do from here?”

“Shall we check further inside, your majesties?” One of the two guard ponies who had not spoken asked a question suddenly and directing Harry's attention towards him.

“Snrk-!” Harry stifled an incredulous snort, with a real smile threatening to break out on his lips for the first time in what felt like ages. The pony who had spoken up had an honest-to-Merlin van-dyke beard with a mustache that resembled his Uncle Vernon's one-time attempt at such a style, but one that was far more well-kempt.

On a talking unicorn of all things.

'Shut up, shut up, shut up!'

It shouldn't have been funny, but Harry was finding it increasingly difficult to contain himself as mirth bubbled through his frame. The cloak was doing a good job in concealing his ill-timed snorts though and by the time he had calmed himself, the group of magical ponies had already moved further inside the ruins. Taking a couple of deep and slow breaths, Harry cautiously moved forwards and peeked around the corner to make sure the coast was clear.

Based on the screaming, the ghosts still hadn't let up on their rather ineffectual assault, though it did sound more distant. His auditory findings were confirmed as he saw all six ponies carefully poking around the large hall that Harry had found those strange stone spheres in. Seeing them from the backside also caused him to finally notice that all of them had tattoos of some kind stamped on their hindquarters.

'...Maybe it's a cultural thing?'

It wasn't a mystery he was going to solve anytime soon he thought and it was rather minor, all things considered. It was weird enough hearing the ponies speaking and sounding like Americans, no less.

Shaking his head free of the odd tangent his thoughts had decided to meander through, Harry carefully proceeded towards the exit of the ruins, while throwing a glance behind him every now and then to make sure the group wouldn't double back anytime soon. While his steps were still muffled, Harry felt an immediate difference with his surprisingly sensitive hooves when they touched down on dirt rather than stone steps.

“Almost there, Harry...” he whispered to himself and then frowned, “Wherever here even is, anyway...”

Harry felt a little bit lighter outside of the ghost-infested ruins, even if he was in what appeared to be an alien-version of the Forbidden Forest. Straight ahead of him was a single rickety-looking wooden bridge overlaying a chasm that was pouring out fog. His body was moving automatically towards the bridge, but he didn't really know where to go after that.

'Say I go into the forest...maybe even find a town or something. Then what? What would even be the point?'

Harry stopped and trotted to the edge of the gap, away from the foot of the bridge, peering down into the misty depths as if it might have the answers he would seek. An incredibly morbid solution for his problems came to mind immediately that he dismissed just as quickly.

Taking...that option would be spitting on everyone who had protected him.

“But...then what should I do?” muttered Harry.

Perhaps he could figure out how to turn back into a human. Maybe find out if there are any other humans on this world.

He might even find a way back to his own world.

'Would I even want to, though?'

In the end, after all the pain and terror and death that was his life to end Voldemort's reign of terror once and for all, what did Harry Potter even have left?

Harry's ruminations were cut short when he glanced back at the castle just in time to see a blinding and all-powerful light erupted from within it's depths and poured out of the castle. What sounded like hundreds of spine-chilling screams rang out in the silence as the searing light washed over him. Harry felt...something...inside him recoil at the light which seemed to be comprised of–

-Warmth, Power, Li-

It was a feeling that brought to mind images of hot summer days ('Relaxing by the lake after exams...'), expansive greenery ('A dirty, pudgy Neville beaming in Herbology...') and jubilant expecting mothers ('Tonks!').

They were truly bittersweet sensations, things that he knew were good but which felt slightly uncomfortable to him for more than just the associations that they triggered within him. Harry felt something over his body being peeled away and his eyes widened as his hoof came back into visibility.

All of these conflicting alien feelings caused him to stumble in place and cry out as his hooves stepped too close to the edge and sent him careening downwards into the foggy abyss.

'“Come on, Tia! Hurry up!”

“Coming...ah...Lulu.”

Celestia stifled a yawn as she followed her giddy little sister through the darkened boughs of the Everfree. She had been about to retire for the day when Luna had popped into her chambers and somehow convinced her to sneak away from the castle for a midnight jaunt. Luna had been jittery about something all day and Celestia had been unable to discern the reason for it, save that it was something that made her precious sibling smile.

For a smile that was becoming increasingly rare nowadays, that was worth all the lost sleep in the world.

“I had a most wondrous idea, Sister. Something that would brighten up the night, so that all of our subjects would be stricken with awe!” squealed Luna.

“That sounds truly amazing, Luna.” Celestia gave her little sister a mischievous grin that set Luna's hackles up with immediate suspicion, “I must confess that I am most curious as to what occupied your mind so today, that thine eyes didst not even wander once to Captain Glass' posterior.”

“TIA!” squawked Luna with a fierce blush.

Away from the suffocating decorum demanded in the Royal Court, Celestia was treated to the nostalgic experience of her little sister tackling her to the ground.

She and Luna had already been well into their first century of life before they had finally managed to defeat Discord and by then the Guards had not truly been a necessity for their safety. Their strengths continued to grow with every passing year and the need for a guard detail became more and more irrelevant. But the ponies were ever so grateful to the sisters and were so earnest that neither Celestia and Luna had the heart to turn them away and the two simply hoped that their passionate fervor would soon die out.

Celestia supposed that one didn't need to be young to be naive.

Since that particular idea didn't quite pan out, the Royal Guard now served the dual purpose of protecting the rest of Equestria and, in this moment, being most excellent blackmail material.

“Oh, how his eyes doth shine with the passion of a raging fire, but his voice only speaketh tender words that carry promises of velvet embraces-mpph!” Celestia's teasing was cut off as Luna clamped her hooves around her muzzle.

Luna's head quested rapidly from side to side, hoping that the object of her current amorous affections was not anywhere near. Capitalizing on her inattention, Celestia heaved her body, pushing off with one wing from the ground so that their positions were now reversed.

Removing Luna's hooves from her mouth in a manner befitting her position as the older and more mature sister was a simple matter of extending her tongue and licking their underside.

“EEERGH! SISTER! THAT IS MOST IMPROPER!” Luna recoiled in disgust, wiping her hooves on the grass in an attempt to wipe off Celestia's slobber from them.

“One wouldst think that as the Primary Wielder of the Element of Laughter, you wouldst approve of such methods.” stated Celestia primly.

“Nay, Sister. Mine own methods are not nearly so crass and wouldst involve something more akin to this!” Luna gave a cocky smile as her horn lit up and quickly faded.

No matter what others may have said, and despite Celestia beating her sister out in raw power and wielding Magic, Luna had always eclipsed her in terms of finesse. Thus, Celestia's reflective actions of projecting a shield around her in preparation for whatever was coming her way, did not prepare her for Luna's delayed spell from going off.

“Heehee! Hoohaha! Ah, what did you dOOoo, LulUUu, haHAHAH! Staahhhp!” The bits of grass that clung to Celestia's body stuck fast to her fur and started to move in wriggling, writhing motions that tickled her into a fit of helpless laughter.

Luna's smug smile quickly faded when Celestia kept a firm giggling hold on her sister as she unfurled her wings and used them to start tickling Luna right back.

“TiaAAhahahHAH!” whined Luna through breathless laughter.

“Y-Yield, heehee!, little sister!” demanded Celestia.

“You-You hahah! Firs-first!” Luna's horn glowed once more and the grass upped their assault on Celestia's ticklish barrel.

“HAHAHA! Ahahah! N-No you first!”

“No, you! Heeheeheehee!”

The playfight went on for several minutes until both sisters were lying side by side on the grass with exhilarated smiles. Their hooves were slightly stretched out until they were touching the other's with a tranquil, but comfortable, silence coming into being.

“I missed this.” sighed Luna quietly. She gently tapped Celestia's hoof and giggled like a schoolfilly when Celestia bounced hers right back.

Clip. Clop. Clip. Clop.

“As did I.” replied Celestia, smiling softly at Luna. This playful, goofier side of Luna was one that she had sorely missed and it warmed her heart to see a bit of light return into her sister's eyes.

How long had it been since she had properly interacted with her little sister like this? Something more than just a short greeting as each went about their day?

Days?

Weeks?

Surely it can't have been longer than that...

...Right?

Celestia wondered if she should ask Luna, but was afraid of what her answer might be.

So she didn't.

It felt like only a short time had passed when Luna tentatively released her grasp from Celestia's hoof and spoke again, “Well...before we must return to our duties, shall we proceed to the main event of tonight?”

Celestia gave a small chuckle, “Come, sister. Let mine own eyes see what new miracle thou hast wrought.”

Luna's eyes positively sparkled at the comment as she leapt to her hooves and dragged Celestia to hers with a quick burst of magic. While Celestia could have easily pulled herself out of Luna's telekinetic grip...

“...and then I had the thought that if I were to simply aggregate the mana around mine wings with a streamlined focus – dost thou remember Starswirl's conjecture on the nature of...?”

...she didn't want to interrupt the exuberant babbling streaming out of her little sister's widely grinning mouth. While the technical explanation was a bit hard for Celestia to follow, Luna's excitement was infectious enough to keep her interested until they had reached a particularly nice clearing in the forest. The opening in the dense canopy offered a perfect view of Luna's gorgeous night sky; stars twinkling like little cosmic jewels with the moon being the brightest gem of all.

“Beautiful...” whispered Celestia with wide eyes.

“Is it not exquisite? I have to re-position my moon justso every night to get everything to look...perfect.” stated Luna proudly.

Her heart flared with pain looking at her sister's smile. When was the last time she had even gazed upon the night sky? Paid her sister a compliment?

“It's wonderful...” Celestia looked at Luna with a loving smile, “You are wonderful, Lulu.”

“...Thank you, Tia. I only wish that our subjects would...” murmured Luna in a voice so quiet that it seemed like it would disappear at any moment. She shook her head sadly, “No...It doth not matter.”

“Luna-”

“So! As I mentioned, this is less a spell and more a...highly specialized movement technique. One that I believe with time and effort may not just be limited to the sole purview of alicorns!” Luna frowned and then tilted her head thoughtfully, “Perhaps a pony with just the right build, mana network, positioning, at a specific height of course and...hmm....”

Celestia accepted the change of subject with good grace, seeing that Luna was clearly in no mood to discuss it further. But her words still stirred loose a nugget of caution.

“Luna...” began Celestia carefully, not quite sure how to phrase her thoughts in a delicate manner, “This...technique...it is not dangerous to observers and passerby, correct?”

A few years ago, Luna had created an incredibly powerful single-person teleportation spell that she had named 'Shooting Star' as an improvement to the more mana-intensive 'Displacement' spell. Using her nature as a being of magic, Luna cast her being into the aether and harmonized it with the magic of the planet rather than forcibly displacing the material components in her targeted area.

Unfortunately, in her haste to show off this new untested spell of hers, Luna had forgotten to take into account her own strength as an alicorn and used the same amount of power that she would for the older Displacement spell. The end result was a crowd of ponies being at ground zero for the quite literally explosive entry of their Princess, causing more than a few injuries. Luna's reputation, which already wasn't too good in the public eye, plummeted even further while her horrified sister locked herself away in the castle, refusing to come out for several days in her grief.

Luna froze at Celestia's inquiry, no doubt remember the same series of events as a quick series of fear, sorrow and shame played across her face. “No...Tia. I...I learned my...lesson. But, I will admit that I did have some doubts which is why I asked, no, needed you-”

Celestia cut Luna off with a gentle, but tight hug. “Whatever you need, Lulu.”

“...I know, Tia.” came her sister's muffled reply.

Celestia nuzzled Luna before pulling back slightly and asked, “The night grows late, dearest one. I implore thee to demonstrate thy latest magical advancement.”

Luna giggled and gave a queer reply instead, “Well then, sister mine. Wouldst thou like to have thine eyes feast upon a rainbow?”

“Auntie?” Cadance's soothing voice gently stirred Celestia out of her reverie and prompted her to properly take in her present surroundings.

“Do you know, my little ponies? This little patch of forest right here,” Celestia tapped her hoof down on the dense vegetation of the Everfree for emphasis, “This spot was where the world's first Sonic Rainboom occurred.”

Where there once was a clearing a millennia ago, now was overtaken by the voracious plantlife of the Everfree. It looked so different from how it used to be and yet...

'BOOM!

Celestia gaped as Luna broke the sound barrier with the most carefree laughter that she not heard in for so, so long.'

...in Celestia's eyes she could still see a truly awe-inspiring rainbow trailing behind her little sister, painting the night sky.

Celestia smiled as both her niece and the Guards started to re-evaluate the location that she had targeted in the Everfree with new eyes. Even the ever-stoic Sharp Petals had a look of keen interest as he examined the otherwise unremarkable surroundings. The pulses of Alicorn magic had long since faded and it allowed Celestia another excuse to delay their journey to her former home.

It was a cowardly indulgence.

Celestia suddenly felt the soft touch of a hoof on her withers in the midst of her self-recriminations. While the trials of the day had served to form cracks in her usual mask, Celestia knew that the Heart was not something so easily concealed from one such as her niece. Cadance smiled reassuringly at her and gently rubbed her hoof back and forth on her withers.

“Princess...Auntie...Luna was the creator, right, Auntie?” asked Cadance softly, attracting the attention of the others who gave Celestia looks of undeserved sympathy.

As far as the rest of the world knew, Luna had been killed by a third alicorn known as Nightmare Moon whom Celestia had succeeded in banishing. Nopony and noone had survived that terrible night and knew the awful reality of what had occurred.

Of what she had allowed to occur.

“...Yes, she was truly brilliant, my Luna...” Celestia stared up at her sister's visage in the sky plastered on the moon's surface.

“Did you know that many ponies had thought that I was the first user of the Sonic Rainboom?” she chuckled and shook her head self-depreciatingly, “I was always the blunt hammer of the two of us when it came to magic. But Luna? Oh...”

Celestia caught Shining's eye and smiled at him, “She was much like your sister, Captain Armor. There was so much artistry woven into each and every one of her spells. Luna was as elegant as the night sky she ruled over and which she painted a magnificent canvas for all the world to enjoy and delight in.”

The confused look on Shining's face turned into an extremely proud smile, “I hope you told my sister that already, Princess.”

Celestia chuckled, “I'll send you the pictures I took of her face.”

Cadance snorted suddenly and slapped Shining's shoulder playfully, “Dork.”

'I wonder if one of his Inner Voices said something just now? I know Luna would have loved a mystery like Shining Armor's case.'

“As much as I might wish to tarry longer here, we should set out for the Castle now.” Celestia took the lead and deftly led her party through the thick brush. “While I am capable of transporting us to the castle directly, I felt it would be better to approach it from a distance so as to better prepare you all.”

“Dark Magic, Auntie?” hazarded Cadance with a guess.

Celestia nodded approvingly at her, “Of a sorts. It is nothing active, but more of a lingering taint. Normally it would not persist for so long, but considering the source...”

“Alicorn Magic.” harrumphed Goldenheart. Celestia knew the old Captain was worried, but chose to not show it for the benefit of his younger fellows.

“Precisely.” affirmed Celestia quietly. “It will only take a few minutes for us to reach the site, but you will all most likely start to feel the effects of the environment soon enough. You may have noticed already that the sounds associated with the forest have already begun to dim.”

Indeed, the many nocturnal insects and fauna that roamed the Everfree, no matter how dangerous they may be, took care to not wander too close to the ruins. The chirping of crickets and occasional howls were becoming more and more distant the further they progressed.

“For sapient species, the castle will dredge up the darker emotions of the Heart. Hatred. Fear. Greed. Envy. Spite. All of these and more will continue to build up the longer we stay within the vicinity. I can ward it off with my own Alicorn magic, but doing so in this case would wipe away any traces of what Cadance and I hope to find.” continued Celestia patiently.

“...What...can we do to s-stop this, P-Princess?” asked Gloria tremulously.

Gloria squeaked and glanced at her bashfully when Celestia gently stroked her mane with a partially unfurled wing. Celestia stopped, turned and addressed her attentive audience: “By being informed of the dangers you are all already somewhat protected.” began Celestia, waiting for the information to sink in before proceeding, “But there is an additional measure you can all take-”

'Only you though. Not me. Not here.'

“-by focusing on positive memories. Memories featuring kindness, laughter, generosity, honesty and loyalty. Feelings of hope and friendship and family and love! Hold onto those! Focus on them! Let their light...act as your shield against the darkness.”

Goldenheart, Gloria and Sharp all closed their eyes and focused, their expressions softening and faint smiles appearing on their lips. Shining and Cadance, as expected, simply drew closer to one another and drew their strength from each other. A few moments passed until they had finished steeling themselves and looked towards Celestia.

“Well done.” praised Celestia softly, “Come, let us move on.”

'Before I delay us any longer.'

Conversation dimmed as their group proceeded through the short stretch of the forest as all the sounds of the environment faded out entirely leaving only an eerie silence and an increasingly hostile feeling in the air. Celestia's little ponies drew closer to one another, eyes scanning their unmoving surroundings with an unnerring vigilance that persisted even as the treeline thinned and their destination came into sight. A thick roiling fog pouring out of the gorge in front of them served to be a darkly appropriate accompaniment for the crumbling ruins that was Celestia and Luna's former home.

'The venue that the spirit lounged in was annoyingly beautiful, mused Celestia. It had strange and impossibly vibrant flowers blooming out of a lush royal-purple carpet that rippled like water with every breeze. Six pillars with intricately, and yet oddly familiar, carvings supported a crystalline roof whose many facets were showing moving images of places in Equestria and possibly the world beyond.

It was this kind of magic that had people favourably inclined towards the chimeric being when he had first shown up. His true nature was something that was easily revealed, however.

A closer inspection of the crystal roof would show that in every single image being projected displayed people of all races, known and unknown, in states of abject misery that the horrid Spirit took great delight. With every display of chaos, every trial and tribulation, every tear shed, the spirit hooted and hollered with sickening glee.

“DISCORD!”

Celestia winced as Luna shouted towards the hateful being relaxing on a bejeweled throne outside of his castle. While she shared her sister's disdain for Discord, she only wished that Luna could perhaps be a bit more aware of how loud she could be.

The mad Chaos spirit simply giggled and waved cheerfully to her sister, which only seemed to enrage poor Luna further.

“Well, well, well! If it isn't my two favourite pieces of entertainment!” Celestia gritted her teeth at the insult. “Lulu, it's a shame to see that you still haven't learned the difference screaming and talking! Chin up! I'm sure a smart little filly like you will get it in a few centuries!”

Luna growled and Celestia placed a wing on her sister's withers to calm her before looking at Discord. “It is over Discord! Thy reign-”

“-of terror has come to an end and so forth and so forth.” finished Discord with a bored yawn. “Honestly, Celly, you could at least try and change this tired old spiel every now and then.”

“This time is different thou most contemptuous mongrel!” spat out Luna.

“Alas! T'would seem that we are doing this old spiel again.” mused Discord. Before either she or Luna could get another word in, Discord snapped his fingers and the two were frozen in place. No matter how hard they struggled, the best they could manage was a few flaps of their wings to which Discord had the typical gall to look surprised at.

It was so incredibly frustrating that with every encounter they had had with the accursed spirit over the past four decades, that he would always...ALWAYS show them just how much he outclassed them.

Discord hummed thoughtfully while grinning at them, “...Well, before you two unveil your latest trick, let me just set us up with a proper audience.”

Discord waved his right hand towards the roof, causing it to unravel like one of Luna's latest attempts at knitting. The reflective surfaces filled up with a polychromatic ink that washed away the previous images that had previously played across it as they arranged themselves in the sky to surround the area. Knowing what was to come filled Celestia with a sense of dread, despite feeling that she and Luna had what was possibly their best shot at finally defeating the Mad King. The panes of rainbow-stained glass all had a number appear in their centres that started to slowly count down in time with Discord's words.

“And in five...four...three!” Discord mouthed out the last two numbers as the panels became more and more transparent until on the last count they fully blended in with their surroundings.

With grim frowns, both Celestia and Luna looked up towards the sky to see a giant projection of their surroundings. All across the world, Discord had woven a spell so that the people could once again see their latest attempts at toppling Discord off of his ill-begotten throne.

“Now, since you did forget yourself last time we tussled, Lulu-” Luna growled at Discord, but otherwise held her tongue, “I will remind thee that we have impressionable young minds watching, so thou may wish to keep thine lurid obscenities of my person to a schoolfilly level, hm?”

Discord waved his hoof and the two sisters were once again free to move, they looked at each other and nodded solemnly before making their way to what would hopefully be their final confrontation with Discord. The knowledge of what was contained within Celestia's saddlebag emboldened Celestia as much as it frightened her with the knowledge that this may not work. As Discord began to monologue to himself as the two sisters approached, Celestia and Luna took the opportunity to steady their hearts.

“Truthfully, this whole King-ship thing was becoming dull anyway. Every new challenger always has the same old strategies that the last ones tried. It's so boring!” sighed Discord.

“But you two!” Discord giggled like a foal and gazed at them with a disturbingly hungry gleam, “You don't age! You keep getting stronger! Keep trying new things!”

Discord sighed with such inordinate fondness that both Celestia and her sister looked at him with absolute revulsion, “Truly, you two are the gifts that keep on giving!”

“Cease your attempts to anger us further, worm! Otherwise thine end may not be so swift!” hissed Luna venomously, thankfully at a more normal volume this time.

“Aww...but thou art so much FUN when thine art particularly livid, Lulu! Pray tell, dost thou recall that time when thou lost control and flooded a village? And that 'twas I who was the one who saved all those poor, widdle ponies from dwowning?” cackled Discord.

Discord's form shimmered and was replaced with that of a white and brown spotted Earth pony foal that directed eyes glimmering with tears towards Luna, “W-W-Why d-did y-you break our h-house, Miss? D-didn't y-you s-say you w-would p-protect us?”

Luna recoiled in horror, but Celestia was quick to steady her sister with an extended wing. Luna looked up at her thankfully before steadying herself with a large shaky breath.

“...T'is true that mine anger for thee has hurt many innocents. And that it is both due to luck and thee that no lives were lost...” began Luna quietly, before she glared at Discord. “But know this, foul Spirit! I will not let you make me make that mistake again!”

“Really? Not even were I to do something like this?” the Mad King floated up from his throne, splaying his arms out to the side like a streeet performer about to unveil his latest trick. It burned Celestia for her to let Discord go about this, but they might only have one shot at this and she knew from past experiences that Discord would be arrogant enough to let them have at least one free strike.

So long as they played along.

But neither she nor Luna had to fake a gasp when each of the stone pillars started to partly crumble away and reveal what lay inside their cores. Locked in a state of wide-eyed frozen terror were the forms of Rockhoof, Somnambula, Flash Magnus, Mage Meadowbrook, Mistmane and...

““TEACHER!”” shouted both Celestia and Luna at once when they beheld the disturbingly blank-faced visage of their teacher Star Swirl. Both sisters leapt forwards, beating their mighty wings with powerful strokes, only to be repelled from reaching any of their comrades by an invisible barrier.

Discord tutted at them disapprovingly, a pair of spectacles forming over his eyes, “Now, now. I believe thy teacher taught thee better than that. What say thee, Star Swirl?”

In response, Star Swirl slowly blinked, his head questing back and forth between a stricken Celestia and Luna and a grinning Discord without any real sense of alarm.

“Star...Swirl...? Yes...that is my name...” he said slowly.

“T-Teacher?” whispered Luna.

Star Swirl looked at Celestia without any glimmer of recognition but when he looked at Luna there was a brief spark of something taking form. He opened his lips to speak-

“A-Aahhh...” Star Swirl groaned, his eyes rolling backwards in their sockets slightly as a pink glow bloomed from behind him.

“Oooh, whoops. I completely forgot about this little thing.” chuckled Discord nervously. A clawed hand reached behind Star Swirl and pulled free a wriggling insect that was squirming futilely in the spirit's clutches. “One Arvaxian beetle, several hundred barrels of Taurian wine, a dash of Chaos and a smile for the road certainly makes for an interesting product.”

Discord chuckled and shook his head as the beetle continued to struggle, “I must confess that I am rather unsure as to what the little bug even does-”

There were no words that came from Luna's mouth, only a primal scream of absolute fury that her sparking horn and frothing mane only showed the barest depths of. Her eyes were filled with an eldritch energy as her Alicorn Magic suffused the air, marking its presence upon the world far more distinctly than mere mana ever did or could. The hatred radiating from Luna that would be the foundation for Dark Magic in any other being had no purchase on the strange force that Celestia and her sister could now call upon.

Even after all of these years, Alicorn Magic still frightened her, to be honest.

But against someone like Discord, Luna could not stand by herself.

The image of a sun – no, her Sun – came into being within the confines of her mind. It was a simple memetic tool for Celestia to be able to properly call upon her Alicorn Magic and she focused on thoughts of gentle Warmth, revealing Light and terrible Power. Just as Luna's Alicorn Magic was associated with more than just her Moon, more than a reflection, so too was Celestia's more than just a source of heat and light.

The initial burst of power from Luna shattered Discord's simple barrier and the draconequus blocked the rest of the attack from her sister that came in the form of a coruscating beam of violet energy. Discord yelped and tossed away the beetle in his hand and just barely caught the attack in time before it impacted his body. As Celestia brought her own power to the fray, Luna's Alicorn Magic responded and grew greater in it's presence.

The powers of the Moon. Of Transitions and Change.

The powers of the Sun. Of Expansion and Life.

The conceptual powers of Celestia and Luna came together to do battle with the Lord of Disorder and Chaos.

“'Tis good to see that you two have improved!” called out Discord with a relaxed smile.

And yet...for all their strength...they were still young to their powers and Discord was most certainly their senior.

The space between the violet laser that was cupped between Discord's palms contorted into an impossible geometry that generated a ripple and which was sent cascading down the beam's length and back to its origin.

““AHHHH!”” Celestia and Luna both screamed as an explosion blasted the both of them off of their hooves and sent them tumbling across the ground at such a high velocity that they carved a deep trench through the Earth and through something surprisingly soft, flaky and...sweet?

Klang!

Their journey came to an abrupt end as they both passed through a blueberry-scented soft and squishy barrier and hit a metallic wall that briefly had Celestia's head ringing. Woozily, Celestia got to her hooves as the ringing quickly passed only for Discord's riotous laughter to take it's place. The sweet taste of blueberry filling was on her lips and the normally delicious treat now had a very sour aftertaste as she quickly realized what Discord had just sent the two sisters crashing through. A quick look at a furious Luna who was drenched in filling and flaky bits of pastry only confirmed her suspicions.

“I h-hope you two like pie!” guffawed Discord as the two sisters dragged themselves out of the holes in the giant blueberry pie tin that Discord had generated. Her own bedraggled appearance was made all too apparent by the giant reflection of herself still high in the sky.

Celestia didn't think she would enjoy pie so much anymore.

“Alright, alright. Well, I believe we should start with the main meal first. Such naughty little fillies you two are, having thine dessert so early.” tutted Discord with a disapproving wag of his finger.

Luna caught her eye and Celestia nodded back at her, valiantly ignoring the taunt as their moment arrived. The two sisters slowly started moving forwards once again towards the expectant spirit. They had had no practice runs with the artifacts they found for fear of early discovery, only that they were...amplifiers of some kind.

Items...fruits...elements...that bloomed on a very special tree that had a strangely similar feel to their Alicorn Magic, but which felt more...pure.

Three gems floated gently out of Celestia's saddlebag that felt like physical embodiments of Kindness, Generosity and Magic. These were the ones that resonated most strongly with Celestia, even though she felt that the last should have gone to her sister. Luna had laughed it off by saying that obviously the bigger gem would resonate with the sister that had the bigger flanks.

An inaudible tune sang through Celestia's mind as Luna's own gems came out of their confines, the jewels glowing brighter as they started to circle around the two sisters. The plan that she and Luna had hashed out involved Luna locking down Discord, with Celestia providing the power to do so and yet...

“My, my, my...” breathed out Discord with genuine wonder in his voice, “What have you two unearthed?”

...much like when they had first called upon their Alicorn Magic or when they moved their respective celestial bodies, higher thinking was tossed aside in favor of something more instinctual. Memories of the precious moments she shared with Luna, good and bad, flowed through Celestia as their sisterly bond formed an invisible, peerless linkage between the jewels that seemingly glowed even brighter than her Sun.

“Unearthed?” repeated Luna, seemingly halfway in a trance, “This is something that has always been present, Discord.”

The two did not know what to call the gems other than things like Fruits or Embodiments of Power or Hope and other such things. Nothing seemed to fit quite right until this moment when they faced their greatest challenge.

“'Tis a power forged from the bonds between others, one that will overcome all adversity!”

A name arose unbidden in their minds, as if it were there all along, simply waiting for its moment to announce itself to the whole world.

A name that felt right.

They shouted in unison as the Elements unleashed their awesome power towards Discord who welcomed it with wide open arms and a deranged smile.

BOOM!

A self-contained explosion centered on Discord rapidly expanded outwards from his body before reeling back in on itself and locking the spirit within a bubble of Alicorn-tinged energy. Discord experimentally let loose a blast of Chaos magic that shot out from his eye and impacted harmlessly upon his magical prison. Celestia's spirits soared and she could feel Luna's giddiness too through the Elements as an even stronger burst of Chaos failed to break Discord out of his cage.

It shouldn't have been as surprising as it was, but even the knowledge of Discord's character, lacklustre as it was, did not make it any less profoundly unsettling when Discord reacted as he did to the Elements' power.

A single eyebrow was raised in interest as the Elements of Harmony's power took effect and his body slowly started to turn to stone from the bottom. Discord gave his now petrified hoof an experimental shake, paying no mind to the fact that he was held within the grip of the powerful magical artifacts. His eyebrow continued to rise higher on his brow and his lips curled upwards with interest as a blast of his odd magic did nothing to abate the petrification. Discord's eyebrow had gone past his forehead and left his body entirely as it rose above his head, before meeting the outer edge of the bubble he was encased in and snapping back onto his face.

“Heh.” A startled snort burst out as a puff of flame from the draconequus' snout. His skin split as his smile grew and began to separate his jaws into equal halves as he literally threw back his head and began laughing in earnest.

A fanged grin that was impossibly wide split his face in two aa Discord roared with a laughter that was so unhinged and so demented that it chilled Celestia to her core. Snatches of words could just barely be heard ringing with the mad Spirit's laughter, words that were so heavily laden with a desire and lust for wanton chaos that it caused a burst of euphoria to spring into being within Celestia. She turned a pair of horrified eyes to Luna who was starting to sport a mad grin of her own.

The light from the Elements dimmed ever so slightly.

“L-Luna! Stay st-trong!”

The Pillars of Equestria began giggling uncontrollably with tears streaking down their faces. Even the now apathetic Star Swirl was giving off dry, rasping laughs.

Discord's laughter suddenly stopped, along with all remaining sound within the area, possibly the whole world for all Celestia knew with how still everything seemed. As the last part of his body was about to turn to stone, Discord smiled at her and Luna and giggled his final parting words.

Even as Celestia's mind drifted into recollections of the past, she was still coherent enough to guide her little ponies safely across the old bridge that hung over the yawning chasm separating the rest of the world from the castle. A concerted application of telekinesis from all of their casters made sure that the old wood would hold under their weight.

Instinctively, they all gathered around her, seeking gladly provided shelter in the form of her wings. It was as if they had passed a barrier that the full darkness of the place finally sought purchase upon them all. Illusory screams of anger and fear could just be barely be heard from a source that seemed to emanate from all around her and muddled both her physical and magical senses. From the way the Guards were reacting, based on subtle twitches of their ears and eye movements, they were experiencing something similar.

“Take this moment to adjust yourselves everypony. It will be worse inside.” she advised them quietly.

Interestingly, after her niece of course, Shining Armor was the first to rally himself with a deep inhalation. “I would like to request that both Lieutenant Sunrise and myself enter in first, Princess.”

Celestia grinned faintly, as his tone made it sound like anything but a request and responded in kind.

“Both you and the lieutenant will remain within my wingspan's reach at all times.” She met Shining and Gloria's deadpan expressions evenly until they both sighed and acquiesced.

It was a small enough distance that Celestia was confident she could throw herself in front of anything that would seek to harm her ponies while also not straying too far from the ones behind her either. While she could not sense any Alicorn Magic through the dark miasma that overlayed the ruins, that did not mean that there was no hidden danger.

'Still...why did it have to be here of all places?'

With no further words and careful steps, they proceeded onwards and into the castle. Celestia tensed as her ponies passed over the threshold and caught the sound of something resembling a hiss. Cadance stiffened, whether from hearing the sound or the way that Shining's head suddenly snapped towards the supposed source.

“Something wrong, Captain?” asked Gloria.

His reply was slow in coming and carefully measured: “I thought I heard something...”

'Yet, Gloria did not?' Earth Pony senses were acute and Celestia knew that Gloria was no slouch in terms of physical prowess.

Celestia looked at Sharp and Goldenheart with a raised brow and they shook their heads in the negative, unlike Cadance who gave a slow and hesitant nod.

'So only the Alicorns heard it along with Shining Armor, hm...'

“Is there a problem, Captain Armor?” asked Celestia as calmly as she could through the growing sense of hostility enveloping the area.

'It's faster than usual...is it because there's more ponies here?'

Shining straightened up slightly at her voice and answered crisply, “It appears not, ma'am.”

Despite that, Shining was thorough in his duties as point-guard as his horn lit up with a pink glow. The detection spell, a rather high-level one based on what she could sense, was unleashed from Shining's horn in short order and flooded the area he was interested in.

“...At least nothing I can detect.” announced Shining, relaxing slightly and turning back to Celestia. She noted that Gloria was still remaining watchful for anything that would take advantage of Shining's seeming dismissal and was pleased to note that nothing occurred.

Still, Celestia did not want to take any chances and joined up with the two Guard ponies.

“Always so thorough, Captain Armor.” giggled Cadance, sticking close by to Shining, but admirably maintaining a carefree smile.

“The safety of the Princesses is paramount to the safety of Equestria. To do any less would disrespect you and the nation we serve.” replied Shining seriously.

“Do not discount your own importance so readily, my little pony. All life is precious and everyone matters.” admonished Celestia.

'Would you still think so highly of me, Shining Armor? If you knew what I had done to my own sister? Would any of you?'

Shining Armor frowned, but otherwise dipped his head in acknowledgement to her words, glancing once more down the suspicious hallway. If something or someone was hidden and watching them, she was unsure as to whether their intentions may be for the group.

“...As I mentioned before my little ponies, this place has been tainted by magics most foul. Most likely, any odd sensations were similar to a phantasmal sound.” mused Celestia, before dropping her voice slightly, “I believe that the solution I proposed before would dispel these things, so let us finish our investigation before we need to do that. If you would, Captain?”

“Auntie?” interjected Cadance before Shining could reply. She had a worried look on her face, possibly based on something she had heard from Shining's Inner Voices.

“Two alicorns can overcome anything, if they work together...right, Cadance?” smiled Celestia softly.

Cadance gave a little smile back as her own words were returned to her and nodded slightly. The group hadn't proceeded more than a few steps through the corridor before Celestia suddenly froze at a certain spot just before entering the throne room. It was so faint, an ethereal sensation that touched upon the deepest depths of her soul and whispered that she stood at the fading entrance to something truly vast.

Shining and Gloria had only gone a few paces more when they realized Celestia and Cadance had stopped. Though a glance towards her niece showed that the younger alicorn didn't exactly know why she had even stopped in the first place and was turning around in place with a frown.

“The Realm was opened, but now has been closed. Cadance, can you feel it?” stated Celestia with closed eyes, feeling the lingering remnants of eldritch energy permeating the air. It was more experience than any one thing that Celestia could point to that let her know that this was not the result of an Alicorn-level artifact or even something opening up a passage into the Realm of Wishes.

An Ascension had occurred.

'As expected...But where did the new alicorn go? Or...are they still here?'

“I don't...really sense anything, Auntie.” answered Cadance apologetically.

Celestia delicately cupped her downturned chin and raised it with her hoof, “It is okay, Cadance. It is something that I am sure you will be much better at when you are older.” Celestia released and her hold as Cadance's troubled expression cleared slightly.

“Auntie...did somepony...?” Celestia nodded and put a hoof to her own lips, giving Cadance a significant look. “Then, what should we do from here?”

Understanding the byplay between her and Cadance faster than any other pony, Celestia was not particularly surprised when Goldenheart suddenly piped up.

“Shall we check further inside, your majesties?” Celestia turned and met the grim stare of the aged Captain.

“Yes...I don't believe anything is here.” said Celestia carefully, putting a slight emphasis on a single word that elicited a flash of understanding in Goldenheart's eyes.

“Right then, let's not stay here any longer than we have to in this foul place.” groused Goldenheart and fixed Celestia with a mock-aggrieved look, “You need to stop dragging me to these kinds of places, Celestia.”

“As I recall, you were the one who requested me to bring you out of retirement, Goldie.” giggled Celestia, delighting in the bemused twinkle in Sharp's eyes and the scowl on Goldenheart's.

The atmosphere eased slightly as Celestia bantered with Goldenheart, though their guards did not relax even as they stepped into the throne room. The lighthearted barbs and ripostes quietly faded and the mood became more sombre when the ponies beheld the ruined hall. It was easily the most damaged of the areas within the castle and the place where Luna – Nightmare Moon – had finally been banished.

'Celestia was more injured than she had ever been in her entire life. Bruised and battered, she had her back against the open display holding the Elements of Harmony, staring fearfully at what Luna's deep-seated resentment, fears and insecurities had turned her into.

“Luna-” began Celestia, only to be cut off by a black beam of pure mana. It wasn't tainted Alicorn Magic, only meant as a warning, rather than to cause any harm.

She still flinched badly as it dissipated harmlessly against her fur.

“Nightmare Moon, Tia. Do keep up.” corrected Luna with a deranged smile. She landed daintily on the ruined throne room, folding her wings against her sides as she nonchalantly strolled towards Celestia who had tears leaking from her eyes.

Luna, no, Nightmare Moon, paid no mind to the bodies of the ponies that had stood against her. Even poor Azure Star, the Captain of the Night Guard, was cut down when she refused to overthrow Celestia in a horrific display of violence and pained betrayal. The scream of anguish that Nightmare Moon had let out when she had committed that awful deed had made Celestia think that she could still be brought back.

Instead her hesitation had led to the deaths of dozens of other ponies who had rose against Nightmare.

Her continued refusal to fight against the mare that she had practically raised from fillyhood by herself resulted in dozens more dying as she fought to contain her sister.

“How does it feel, Celestia? To know that soon the world wilt no longer be a herd of repulsive Sun-lovers?” cackled Nightmare.

How...how had things gone so wrong?

“That all of thine pathetic attempts to deny mine rightful place as ruler of Equestria have come to naught?” a real hint of anger was beginning to overshadow her mocking tone.

Had it really been so awful for Luna?

“Dost thou still revel in thine supposed superiority?!” snarled Nightmare Moon, firing a concussive blast of force that tore massive pieces out of the floor as it raced towards Celestia.

Were things really so bad that her sister had resorted to combining Dark Magic and Alicorn Magic that had turned her into this...this...monstrosity?

“LAUGHING AT ME LIKE ALL THE REST!” she screamed as her previous spell was just barely stopped by Celestia's last-second shield before shattering, which only incensed Nightmare Moon even more.

All in an effort to surpass her supposed superiority?

“I NEVER THOUGHT THAT, LUNA!” shrieked Celestia, stopping the other alicorn in her tracks, her horn fading to a dim glow.

“I...never thought I was better than you, Luna. And I am so, so, SO sorry if I ever made you feel that way.” choked out Celestia. “But you have to stop, Luna. Please! So many have been hurt already and more people will be hurt if there is no sunlight-”

It was the wrong thing to say as a bolt of sickly-colored purple lightning erupted from Nightmare's horn and struck Celestia.

It wasn't supposed to be like this.

“AHHHHH!” Celestia let loose a blood-curdling scream as the Dark Alicorn Magic-empowered spell ripped past her natural defences with terrifying ease.

They were supposed to endure eternity together.

As sisters.

As family.

“Mine magic is great enough that foodstuffs will be aplenty in the moonlight, Celestia. As for those who continue to reject my glorious Moon...!” began Nightmare Moon coldly.

Celestia's sight flashed white as her body was wracked with excruciating pain, just barely managing to hold onto the Elements' power, but still unwilling to take that final step.

“WILL!” Celestia's screams doubled in intensity as Nightmare increased the power on her lightning spell even further.

Visions of a great seal binding a shattered Moon danced through Celestia's mind and the passage of a thousand winters showed the cracks slowly healing until the seal faded entirely.

“ALL!” The stone crackled and melted all around her as an odd smell permeated Celestia's senses.

Celestia did not know if this was a true vision like the one that had guided her and Luna so long ago to the Tree of Harmony. Or if it was merely a cruel delusion borne from her own selfishness and cowardice.

But the possibility of a future with a restored Luna was so enticing that she wanted to make that gamble.

“PERISH!” The spell that was rising in crescendo culminated with a massive explosion that blew off the remainder of what was left of the roof and left Celestia a horribly, disfigured twitching mess on the ground.

Even if the pain of harming her Luna was more terrible than any spell...

“L...una...” croaked out Celestia, gaining the contemptuous attention of Nightmare.

“I...love...you.”

...Celestia still yearned for those happier days with all of her heart.

Nightmare Moon recoiled in shock as the Elements of Harmony activated and only managed one final parting cry filled with unending rage:

“CELESTIAAAAAAA!!!”'

Celestia, somewhat distantly noted that she had somehow arrived in front of the dormant Elements, a hoof already placed on one of their moss-ridden surfaces. The powerful artifacts were wholly unique within the world and Celestia had in all her centuries not come across anything their equal.

'No matter how desperately I searched.'

“...Still, you continue to slumber.” whispered Celestia.

“Auntie?”

“A part of me expected there to be some reaction from the Elements, Cadance. I suppose that was a foalish hope.”

The pink alicorn's eyes slightly widened as she re-evaluated the seemingly innocuous stones. “Then...these are the Elements of Harmony? I thought those were just a myth!”

“Once upon a time they were quite real and they were the key to solving many threats to Equestria. They became inactive when I had used their power to banish Nightmare Moon and have slumbered ever since...”

“Loyalty. Kindness. Generosity. Honesty. Laughter. Magic.”

Celestia named each of the Elements and while there was no outward reaction from the stones, the darkness seemed to have abated slightly more with each utterance, allowing the briefest of respites before it pressed downwards on them all again.

“So why not move them, Auntie? Perhaps to Canterlot?” asked Cadance in the silence that followed.

Celestia stroked the unresponsive sphere with a hoof and an unmoving gaze, “...Because there is meaning in symbolism, dear niece. If the Elements are to return, they will do so in the place where they were last used and when they are most needed.”

Celestia sighed and let her hoof drop from the sphere to turn around and face her Guards, who had evidently given Cadance and her some privacy...

“Well, there is still more of the castle to explore, shall we cont-?”

...or so she thought.

“Nnnot realll. Didd We f-fail a WIS check or sumthin?” slurred Shining Armor, looking like he was having trouble on focusing on something in front of him that only he could see.

'This is too fast! Is it because somepony Ascended here?!'

“Shiny...?” asked a very concerned Cadance before giving a small gasp as she beheld the state of the other three ponies.

“I...won't leave you, Scarlet! Please, please believe me! I did not write that letter!” shouted a distraught Sharp Petals towards a piece of rubble, looking utterly heartbroken.

“I'm, I'm not a m-m-monster! I'm not!” whimpered Gloria, huddling in on herself.

By her side, but not really seeing his distressed lieutenant, Goldenheart was silently mouthing the names of his deceased family members.

“Auntie, what is going-?!”

“Illusions triggered by staying in this place. We're out of time, Cadance.”

Without further ado, Celestia swiftly called upon her Alicorn Magic and unleashed it in the next breath as an all-encompassing light.

Despite being locked in a free-fall to what was probably an extremely painful and lethal landing, Harry's mind had felt much clearer now that he was away from the magical light. The fact that this wasn't even the third time that he found himself falling from a dangerous height only served to calm him further as he realized that he was no longer dependent on a broomstick anymore.

Instinctively, Harry's new wings spread out and caught his descent and transitioned it into a high-speed glide. A nostalgic and familiar exhilaration arose within Harry, a freedom that had felt denied to him for far too long. The wind rushed past his face, yet his eyes did not water and remained as clear-sighted as ever – no, even sharper than what they had previously been in his true form.

Unfortunately, the same ease through which he had managed to walk properly on four legs and ride a broomstick ran into a hitch when he attempted to flap his wings and get some proper height. He still needed some time to familiarize himself with the still alien muscles controlling his wings.

But as his high-velocity glide carried him deeper into the foggy gorge whose walls were getting closer; time was something that was not on his side.

“Bloody stupid wings!” cursed Harry as he opted for heaving his body to the right to force his still rigid wings to follow and narrowly avoid a sharp edge of the cliff that was jutting out in his flight path.

Harry twitched a set of muscles on his right side that rewarded him with a couple of flaps of the wing and sent him spiraling out of control, bouncing hard off the wall until he managed to re-right himself and open up his wings. His shaky glide was restored, but now at a much lower height, which let him appreciate just how deep the gorge was as he still couldn't see the bottom.

What Harry could see was the rather abrupt end of the trench he was gliding through and a rather painful looking wall of stone that had a few holes dotting it's surface. Since he still hadn't managed to figure out the trick to flying just yet, Harry angled his body as best he could towards the closest opening on the rapidly approaching wall and slipped on through into the dimly lit cave.

However, even with his enhanced eyesight, Harry would be hard pressed to do much coordinated gliding in what was becoming increasingly a dark void.

“Lumos Solem!” A bright beam of light shot out from his horn and gave Harry just enough warning that he was about to plow into the rocky wall of a fork within the cave.

There was no sudden slowing of the world, but Harry still found enough time to breathe out slowly as he twitched another muscle that caused his left wing to flap a slight amount and help smoothly transition his entry into the right fork. The cavernous system he was in, or perhaps just the tunnel Harry had chosen, was quite large as he sped through the darkened passage. As he sped through the network, Harry's eyes espied numerous side passages leading ever deeper into the rock and caught the occasional flash and skittering movement of creatures that called this dark place their home. The fanged maws, sharp claws and occasional snapping towards him definitely gave Harry the impression that this wasn't the best place for him to be in.

Still, he didn't feel any real sense of danger, exulting on the feeling of flight as he quickly picked up the trick to moving his wings and started to flap them even faster. Harry felt a small grin tug on his lips as the rest of the cave and it's inhabitants zoomed by him, increasing the intensity on his light spell so that it would be able to keep up with his new speed.

The cave was a damp, dark, weirdly-smelling place and no doubt full of things that would enjoy making a meal out of Harry and yet he felt somewhat detached from it all. His mind was clear of any distractions and was just focused on navigating through the subterranean world with his more and more familiar-feeling wings.

No doubts.

No fears.

Just...something...that was not quite peace nor apathy.

The only light came from his horn or the odd bits of slightly luminescent moss plastered on the walls, giving no real reference for how much time may have already passed. His breaths came out in measured spurts, even as he kept a steady pace with his new wings, automatically making minor adjustments to his flight path without really having to think about it.

Thus it was more than a little jarring when Harry shot out into fresh air suddenly and reared up in mid-air like a horse ('That's never going to stop sounding weird.'), using the change in his body position to flap his wings hard and stop himself from plowing into an opposing cliff face.

“Close...call” puffed Harry, his heart rate slowly returning back to normal after narrowly avoiding a forceful termination of his flight.

SKREEEEEEEEE!

KRRRSSSSSHHHH!

“OH, WHAT NOW?!” demanded Harry, head swiveling towards the direction of where the loud sound had come fro-

'You have GOT to be kidding me!'

Harry was shakily hovering in place for a brief moment in a large gorge of some kind before he shot off like a rocket towards what appeared to be a large red train of all things coming off of the railroad tracks that spanned the expanse of the gorge. The conductor's car and the next two after it were already pointing straight down into the gorge with the rest of the train not too far behind it.

Shrill screams of terror pierced the air and Harry could see numerous equine faces in the windows of the cars all bearing a familiar triplet set of glowing red numbers above them that Harry could clearly see even from this distance.

All of which...

...were now...

...rapidly decreasing as the train continued it's descent into the gorge.

'I think I'm starting to get what those numbers mean now!'

Harry wasn't thinking of how much the train probably weighed.

He didn't think about how his magic felt so much stronger.

All Harry felt was a grim determination to save as many people as he could and the second he felt he was within range of the falling locomotive, he cast the strongest Slowing Spell he could muster.

“ARRESTO MOMENTUM!”

SCREEEEEEEEEEeeeeee!

There was a horrific shrieking sound of metal grinding on metal as the train was slowed down by Harry's magic until it halted completely-

'“Technically an object in motion that is affected by the 'Slowing Spell' doesn't actually lose all of it's velocity.” happily explained Hermione to a slightly glassy-eyed Harry and Ron, “It's still moving, but just in very, very small amounts!”'

-Harry gasped both at the sudden memory and the fact that he lost control of the spell slightly caused the train to shudder hard as it regained it's speed and then lost it an instant later. The movement was apparently hard enough for one pony in the cars hanging out over the void to fall through their car's window.

“BUTTERCUP!” screamed a masculine voice.

A plain looking pony without wings or a horn let out a bloodcurdling scream as she fell. The numbers above her head were growing steadily darker as they decreased exponentially until there was a very distant sound akin to a glass shattering as the numerals morphed into ominously glowing black numbers:

Harry didn't ponder the mystery any further as he reflexively stretched out a hoof towards the falling pony and hastily incanted a Summoning Spell.

“ACCIO BUTTERCUP!”

As if tugged on by an invisible fishing line, the falling tan-colored pony was dragged through the air flailing (and still screaming) right into Harry's outstretched arms.

“Oof!” Harry caught the still freaking-out pony whose swinging hoof inadvertently buckled a joint on his wing, that caused him to sharply drop. The pony – Buttercup, he assumed – did not take this very well and there was a brief moment of renewed screaming until-

“Oi! Calm down! You're safe, Buttercup!” Maybe it was his tone or the usage of her name, but the pony choked down her next scream and settled for hyperventilating and clutching onto Harry's neck with a death grip.

She wasn't particularly heavy, but Harry had to do a tricky bit of rotation with his wings to hover closer to the train that he was still maintaining his spell on, getting a better look at the occupants of the off-rail cars. What greeted him were a lot of scared-looking ponies behind partially reflective glass.

It seemed that only Buttercup's car was unfortunate to have had their window rolled down at the time. An extremely relieved looking yellow pony with red hair in her car stared at the two of them with tear-filled eyes.

“Buttercup...! You're okay! I thought...I thought...!” choked out the...stallion?

“Mac!” yelled out Buttercup, having gotten her breathing under control, but sounding no less joyous to see her companion.

“Hold onto something...Mac? Was it? I'm going to tell everyone else in the train to do so too while I pull it back onto the tracks.” interrupted Harry.

'I mean...I can stop this train in it's tracks, right? What's so different about lifting it with a levitation spell?'

“Sonorus Tria.” Harry applied a triple numerical modifier to the Voice Amplification spell so that everyone would hear his words without deafening them that a 'Maxima' modifier might. “Everyone stay calm! I've stopped the train from moving any further and I am going to lift the train back onto the tracks with a spell. I need everyone to hold onto something right now!”

The familiarity of being in a crisis helped to calm any doubts that Harry had about lifting a multi-ton vehicle. Willpower was a huge component to spells in his own experience and he'd rather not gamble on his enhanced magical power being only a temporary blessing.

“Wingardium...Leviosa!” After giving a bit of time for the passengers to hear and hopefully comply with his orders, Harry started the laborious task of lifting the train cars.

Harry went slowly, making sure not to jostle the train with any sudden movements with surprising ease. Granted, it felt as if he was lifting a great weight, but one that went past his comfort zone rather than a weight that was flat-out impossible.

'Don't question it, Potter! That luck won't last too soon, enjoy it while you can!' thought Harry with gritted teeth.

The majority of the train that was still on the tracks, rolled backwards as Harry levitated the parts that were hanging off back on and he continued to push the train backwards until it was off of the bridge and firmly back on the other side of the ground before he released the spell. Through it all, he made sure to narrate what he was doing for the benefit of the train's occupants, remembering with a wince of how a similar technique worked for the more nervous members of the DA back in his Fifth Year.

Once his task was accomplished, a veritable rainbow of ponies began shakily making their way out of the train as Harry gently set Buttercup down onto the ground. She took off like a shot to meet Mac halfway through and the two embraced each other fiercely with tears streaking down their faces. Harry sighed with relief and noted that what was quickly becoming an unsurprising phenomenon, the numbers above their heads had changed yet again.

The first set of numbers, now once more a bright red, belonged to Buttercup while the second belonged to her...brother?

The two ponies shared a passionate kiss with one another and Harry hastily re-evaluated his analysis of their relationship, burying his mistake deep within his mind. A young excitable looking orange pegasus with long purple hair decorated with pink ribbons bounded up to Harry and started happily whinnying incomprehensible babble to him. Harry figured that the filly who was half his height, must have been too young to know the language yet or she was speaking in some odd horse dialect.

“Um...hello to you...too?” Thus Harry could only smile unsurely at the little girl whose face scrunched up in confusion at his words.

“Summer! Don't bother our hero too much, now! Lifting a train can't have been easy!” chuckled a tired voice and drawing the attention of the little pony.

Harry's eyes fell upon the source who was a dark orange pony with cropped dark blue hair. Harry blinked as the girl babbled something incomprehensible back to her possible father, but nonetheless acquiesced with a pout, though not before giving a very surprised Harry a hug. It was a fleeting, warm sensation that had Harry's heart horribly aching at the familiarity of it and because of how soon it ended.

“Excuse me? Sir?” a polite voice that reminded Harry of the cowboys he had seen on the Dursley's telly, broke him out of his morbid state.

“I just wanted to thank you for saving my Buttercup, 'fer saving all of us!” a beaming Mac and Buttercup looked at Harry with incredible amounts of gratitude in their eyes.

That opened the floodgates for the rest of the ponies who had somehow surrounded Harry without him really noticing, all of them showering their praise and appreciation for him.

“Thank you so much for saving us!” cried one pony.

“THANK YOU, THANK YOU!” blubbered another.

“You're a hero!” chimed in the blue-haired orange pony with the pegasus filly.

'“Harry Potter will save us!” assured a confident sounding First Year Gryffindor to his scared classmates.'

“No, I'm really not-” Harry tried to correct that false assumption before others repeated the other pony's cry.

“And he's so strong! He lifted the entire train by himself!” purred a purple pegasus.

'“With the Chosen One on our side, Voldemort and his followers will NEVER win!” boasted Scrimgeour.'

“You're amazing!”

“No! I just-!” Harry's heart started beating faster as the undeserved praises kept coming from the crowd.

“A hero! A real hero!”

'“Even if Dumbledore's gone, you'll beat him, Potter. You always do.” scoffed Draco.'”

“Hey, now, don't crowd him-!” began Buttercup.

“I bet he's saved tons of other ponies!” said one pony knowingly, something that was heartily confirmed by multiple other ponies and drowning out Buttercup.

'“You're a really powerful wizard, Harry. You know that, right?” chuckled Hermione.'”

“STOP!” shouted Harry, his magic instinctively reacting to his distress and pushing back the crowd several metres. As if it were an automatic defensive maneuver that was hardwired into his new body, Harry's wings expanded to their full extent, ready to take flight at a moment's notice.

There was a series of gasps from the surrounding ponies that were sharply cut off in the stifling atmosphere that had erupted from his knee-jerk display. Everyone was silent and stared at him with ears that flicked back and forth and very human-like expressions of worry, hurt...and fear.

“I-I-I'm sorry, I didn't-didn't mean to!” hastily explained Harry, getting up slowly from the half-crouch he was in and reaching out a hoof towards the crowd.

He stopped when the majority of them flinched at the motion.

'I need to leave!'

Harry's wings flared out and he took off into the sky, ignoring a few cries for him to stay. He didn't know where he was going, all he knew is that he just needed to be anywhere that was not here.

'“Oh, come on!” groused Harry as his Queen was neatly beheaded by Ron's Knight.

“Gotta stop leaving those openings, mate.” chuckled Ron, overlooking the chess board with undisguised glee.

“I'll beat you next time!” vowed Harry.

“Pfft, in your dreams.”'

Harry felt like his heart was in his throat.

'“Mornin', Harry! Up for helping me out a bit before class? Feelin' just a bit nervous is all...” confided Hagrid.

“No problem, Hagrid!” Harry would always make time for one of his first friends after all.'

It was so warm. This stupid, bloody fur covering his body was too hot!

'“I love you.” whispered Hermione'

“Grk...!” Harry dry heaved in the sky, feeling a powerful wave of nausea overtake him.

Guilt and shame rocked his body in such powerful waves that he fell from the sky in a drunken spiral. Harry barely noticed crashing through the treeline and impacting the ground with a crash as the deluge of memories dulled any sense of pain from coming through.

'A horror-stricken Harry sank to his knees at the sight of the mangled body of Luna Lovegood.'

He stumbled to his feet...hooves – 'Whatever!', swaying unsteadily as he took a few shaky steps forward. Harry was breathing faster but he didn't feel like he was getting any oxygen into his body.

'Can't...I can't...breathe!'

“Grrrr...” a low dangerous growl somewhat attracted Harry's attention to a large creature that looked like a lion with a scorpion tail making it's way towards him with a hungry gleam in it's eye.

More and more dead friends that he had failed to save. That had died because of him raced through his mind even as he raised a hoof towards the beast.

“P-Protego!” The flimsy looking shield that had been constructed in his distraught state surprisingly managed to ward off the blow from the beast who swiped a paw towards him.

“GRRRRR!” Harry somewhat distantly noted that it reminded him of a manticore.

“Go...go away!” shouted Harry to which the manticore snarled in response and hit his shield again.

He couldn't deal with this.

Something inside of him rustled at this thought, different from his magic.

“Bugger off!” he shouted again. The scorpion tail shot out from the manticore with a shocking speed and managed to penetrate his shield.

He didn't want to deal with this.

There was an incomprehensibly deep well of power that he had never known had existed within him and seemed to stare back at him.

Almost as if it were waiting for permission.

“Just. LEAVE. ME!” The manticore ripped his tail out of the shield and shattered Harry's protection completely.

“ALONE!”

The manticore died mid-leap with an almost...sapient light of terror in it's eyes. Harry watched in open-mouthed horror as the beast's flesh was peeled back like an onion straight down to the bone while not even halfway through it's travel through the air. What was left was a rapidly disintegrating skeleton that splashed over Harry's frozen form-

“Gah!”

'It's in my mouth!'

Bile bubbled up Harry's throat and met the remains of the quickly disappearing...dust...still stuck in his body. Tears stained his vision as he felt the grass losing it's soft texture, while attempting to hack up the remains of the manticore, and he could just barely make out a wide swathe of destruction spreading out from him as the epicentre.

Crack!

The trees withered and decayed into lifeless husks, with the closest snapping at the trunk and smashing to the ground. What were once vibrant and thick foliage covering the trees rapidly rotted away before Harry's quickly clearing vision. The taste of vomit still on his tongue and the lingering memories of ash.

Even the very air seemed to lose the magic that was present in it, leaving behind an empty void in the glade where nothing lived.

Where nothing could live. His paradoxical heaving gasps for oxygen did little to dissuade him of this sudden, awful certainty.

It was all of this and-NothingEscapesItUsMe-more...that had Harry snap back to his quickly fraying senses and desperately try and reel back in whatever-Finality-was pouring out of his body. Thus, Harry was startled when the terrible-Natural-power that he had unleashed quickly acceded to his demands and settled down, halting the spread of...

...Death...that had started to spread outwards from him.

“What...what is happening to me?” whispered Harry in the awful stillness, a tear falling down his cheek and dropping down onto the dessicated ground. “Why...WHY...!”

'I don't know what's going on! I need...!'

Harry felt his wings fluttering.

“Dumbledore, he would know what to do for sure.” muttered Harry.

The muscles controlling his wings gave an odd twitch and caused them to flap once.

“He could tell me what was...what I did wrong...!”

Another flap of his wings occurred and Harry couldn't muster the energy to try and stop the spasms.

“I wish...you could...tell me what to do.” croaked Harry.

A third flap of his wings and Harry felt his fur standing on end. An odd sensation in the alien well of power had him terrified that he was about to lose control again until he heard an impossible voice.

“Hello, Harry.”

“...Professor?”