//------------------------------//
// Chapter 26 - Moving On 
// Story: Further Tales From Day Court 
// by Blade Star 
//------------------------------//

It was about a week later that I heard anything more about the Tree. I’d found myself back in Canterlot gardens and, much to my chagrin, sworn to secrecy on the Tree’s survival. I couldn’t even tell Celestia. I hated keeping a secret like that from her, but as I’ve said before, I learned to trust the strange being, even if it only communicates rarely and is enigmatic at best. Better to stick to its script than deal with something else.  

The Everfree Forest was more or less under control, courtesy of Starswirl. As the one who first planted the Tree, he was familiar with various previously lost forms of magic that could help control the forest’s wild nature and keep it in check, lest it overrun Ponyville and surrounding countryside. And while it was apparent that Twilight and the others could still save the day, even without the Elements, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of unease, knowing that we were without our ultimate defence.  

Still, as it turned out, I was taking the whole thing a damn sight better than Bones was. I didn’t learn it until later, but he too had had an encounter with the Tree of Harmony, a little after Twilight and her friends went on a camping trip to the Everfree. He was going on about something to do with strange magic signatures or something like that and went charging off into the forest. There he had met the Tree, who had calmed him down about whatever he was worrying about. Like me, he was alarmed at the destruction of the Elements. But unlike me, he didn’t have the luxury of knowing that the Tree was still kicking.  

I was working in my office one Saturday afternoon when Margaret got back from the market. I heard the front door open and close, following by Charlie’s excited barking at her return.  

“I’m back!” she called out from the hallway.

“I’m in the study!” I called back. I heard a few bags being sent down in the kitchen, and a moment later, the memsahib poked her head in.  

“Everything alright?” she asked curiously. It was a little odd for me to be working on the weekend after all.  

“Yeah,” I replied, swivelling around in my office chair. “Just finishing up my write up about Blueblood’s latest cock up.” Margaret rolled her eyes.  

“What’s he done this time?” she asked with a grin. Like most people, she isn’t exactly a fan of Prince Blueblood.  

“Insulted the Yakyakistan ambassador,” I replied. “It took four guards to bail him out, plus Celestia and Luna to convince the ambassador not to stamp on his head.”

“I swear, that idiot never learns,” she said, shaking her head. “I can’t believe Celestia lets him slide so much. I know family is family and all, but they aren’t even really related.”

“Better to have an idiot at the head of the nobility though,” I offered. “Instead of somepony who might actually have half a brain or any kind of political nous. Blueblood acts as a bulwark against any kind of power play by the nobles. You know they didn’t exactly take news of Celestia’s abdication lying down.”

“No, I read the newspapers. There’s still all sorts of rumours flying about. Still, Celestia will get them in line; she always does.”  

Closing the file on my desk, I got up, leaving my work for later.  

“Enough about work,” I said kindly, pulling her into a hug and gently kissing her. “Tell me about you, darling. You see anypony we know at the market?” Margaret chuckled.

“Come on, Roger,” she chided. “A little town like this; everypony knows everypony. You’re better off asking me if I saw anypony I didn’t know. On that front though, I saw Applejack today when I stopped by to pick up some cooking apples for tonight. We got to chatting about Bones. It sounds like he’s in a right state.”

That got me to perk up my ears. The two of us headed back into the kitchen, where Margaret had already put the kettle on to make a brew. I leaned back against the worktop.  

“What’s up with him?” I asked.  

“It’s that Tree thingamabob,” she said. “According to Applejack and Big Mac, ever since it was destroyed, he’s been holed up in his room trying to figure out some way to repair or restore it. He’s gone the full Twilight Sparkle; he’s been working up there for three days straight and Applejack’s starting to get worried. Don’t get me wrong, I know he gets caught up in a project from time to time, but this has turned into an obsession.”

Yeah that sounded like Bones alright. If you give him a problem, he’ll devote all his time trying to find a way to fix it. I remember back when he was little, the power went out during a storm, and spent the whole blackout trying to find some way to get the power back on so he could watch TV. Only in this case, there was a whole lot of emotion flying about. He knew what the Tree was, so I suppose he was taking it like a death of a friend. And Bones is like Celestia in that regard; he doesn’t take it well, but grieves very privately.  

“Well, I suppose I could drop by and see him; see if I can talk him round,” I offered. 





And so, a few hours later, I set out for Sweet Apple Acres. The town was still fairly busy with the market, but all in all, it was just your average day in Ponyville. It was hard to believe that psychopath had been running rampant not so long ago.  

Heading through the town, I passed Town Hall and the post office, Quills and Sofas, a business model I still can’t believe works, and that infernal Barnyard Bargains; Ponyville’s answer to Asda. Crossing over the river that ran through town, I soon found myself on the outskirts and saw the landscape slowly change from open countryside to row upon row of apple trees. It had been a while since I last went to Sweet Apple Acres, in fact I think it was last cider season when Margaret gave me the job of queuing on her behalf. The place sure is a sight and as quaint as Ponyville is, I always feel like I’ve gone back in time when I visit. I can see why Bones fell in love with the place, amongst other things; we can all appreciate the idea of a simple life.  

Heading along the dirt track, I eventually found my way up to the barn/farmhouse. The place seemed pretty quiet at the moment. I figured Big Mac and Applejack would be out in the fields, but Granny Smith ought to be about. As I headed up to the house though, a certain little filly crossed into my path. This being the weekend, Apple Bloom wasn’t at school.  

Let me set the scene for you. Imagine yourself on Sweet Apple Acres, you come along the path and into the open farmyard. You get your first look at this seemingly harmless cute little filly as you move away from the tree line. She moves a bit like a bird; lightly, bobbing her head a bit, and you keep still because you think her visual acuity is based on movement, and that she’ll lose track of you if you don’t move. But no, not a filly, and certainly not a Cutie Mark Crusader. You stare at her, and she stares back. And that’s when the attack comes, not from the front, but from the sides; from the other two fillies you didn’t even know were there.  

The CMC you see are pack hunters; they use coordinated attack patterns, and they are out in force today. And they leap at you to hug each and every one of your limbs, knocking you down and pinning you to the ground. They don’t bother jumping up at you like Winona might, they just pull you down instead. And the point is, you are alive when they start to hug you to death.  

“Clever girl,” I muttered. And with that, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo did indeed leap at me and hug me along with Apple Bloom.  

Okay, so maybe I’m being a bit melodramatic, but I swear, those fillies are damn dangerous. The three of them did indeed leap out and jumped up to hug me. Since I’m Margaret’s husband and Bones’ dad, they seem to just like me by default, even if it is utterly terrifying for me to be jumped on like that.   

“Alright, alright, you three; you got me!” I exclaimed as they finally relented.  

“Hey, Mr. Owen,” Apple Bloom said as I got back to my feet. “What brings y’all to Sweet Apples Acres?”

“Margaret told me that Bones was having a bit of a hard time,” I explained to the three of them as I dusted myself off.  

“Yeah, he’s been really upset about the Tree of Harmony,” Scootaloo agreed. “The guy’s barely left his room all this week. He hasn’t even come out to help us do the repairs to our clubhouse.”

“Well, hopefully I can talk him round for you,” I said reassuringly as I set off again for the house, the three fillies following at my heels.  

“It must be hard for him,” Apple Bloom mused. “He spent months studyin’ that thing, tryin’ to learn about it. It’s almost like he’s lost a friend.”  

She didn’t know how right she was.  

Coming up to the farmhouse, Apple Bloom pushed open the door and led me inside, past Granny Smith, who was peacefully sleeping in her rocking chair. I did my best to avoid the squeaky floorboards, following Apple Bloom’s steps.  

“He’s still upstairs in his room,” she said, keeping her voice low so as to not wake her grandmother. I nodded.  

“Alright, thanks kids,” I said. “Why don’t you go head out to your clubhouse and play for a bit while I talk with Bones?”

The three foals promptly left, leaving me all but alone in the house. Heading upstairs I slowly made my way along the hall. I passed Big Mac’s room on the left and Granny Smith’s on the right. Then on one side was Applejack’s room, and on the other, with his cutie mark emblazoned on the door, was Bones’ room. I gently rapped on the wooden door with a knuckle. From within, I heard somepony start, and then there were hoofsteps on the wooden floor. A moment later, I heard the lock turn and the door opened. Bones poked his head out.

He looked tired. Margaret was definitely right when she said he was getting obsessed. From the looks of things, he hadn’t slept in a good while. His eyes had bags under them, his mane was a mess, and a thin layer of dark blue stubble was starting to appear through his grey coat. He needed a wash, a shave and some kip, in that order. He seemed a little annoyed as he peered out into the hall.

“Applejack, Ah told ya...” he began before realising it was me. Blinking owlishly a couple of times, he continued. “Oh, sorry Dad. Didn’t realise it was you.”

There’s only one way to snap him out of a rut like this, and gentle persuasion wasn’t it.  

“Your mother’s worried about you, son,” I said sternly. “She heard from Applejack that you’d holed yourself up in your room, but I didn’t realise you were this far gone.” Bones rolled his eyes.

“Dad, Ah’m fine,” he replied, pausing for a moment to yawn. “Ah think Ah’m on to something now anyhow. Just give me another day or so, and Ah should be ready to try and undo what that stupid crystal obsessed snake did to the Tree.”

Peering over him, I took a look at his room through the open door. The place matched him. Books, tomes and scrolls littered the floor and desk he was working at. The curtains were drawn letting only minimal sunlight in, and the place needed a good clean. The only thing that was anything close to neat was his bed, which clearly hadn’t been slept in.

“Bones,” I tried again. “I know how important that Tree was. But Twilight, Celestia, even Starswirl, who knows more about that thing than anypony, says its gone. You can’t bring it back.” Bones scowled.  

“We need that thing,” he replied crossly. “And we need the Elements of Harmony. Sombra might have been the first round, but Ah’ll bet ya anythin’ we’re in for somethin’ far worse soon.”

He didn’t know how right he was I thought to myself. I once again cursed the fact that I was bound to keep silent. The lad was tearing himself up over something, or someone, who wasn’t actually dead.

“We don’t need it,” I replied. “You heard from Discord what happened with Twilight and the others. They were able to use the magic of friendship even without them. The elements worked, just without the necklaces and that crown thingamabob.”

But Bones was having none of it. He was determined to bring back the Tree one way or another. It was easier for other ponies to let go. To them, it was just an ancient artifact. They didn’t know that it was sentient, alive even. I tried one more time, this time taking a more personal approach. Ushering Bones back inside his room, I sat down on his bed and prompted him to join me. He hung his head as he sat, Lyra style, on the edge of the bed.

“Dad, ya don’t understand,” he said. “Ah’m not tryin’ to bring back the Tree just because of the Elements. It was alive! At some point, it went from being a magical artifact, to a living, sentient lifeform. Listen, remember when Twilight and the others went on that camping trip to the old castle?”

“Sure I do. The whole campsite was knocked about when they got there if I remember rightly.”

“Right,” he replied. “And after that, Ah went down there to try and figure out what happened. There was somethin’ real strange. Right at the foot of the Tree were these little coloured logs. And just as I was tryin to figure out what it all meant, the Tree started to...power up Ah guess. Anyway, out from behind it steps Princess Luna. Only it wasn’t Luna, it was the Tree, usin’ her form to talk to me. That’s why Ah’m tryin’ to bring it back. It’s a living creature, and Ah’m tryin to resuscitate it.”

I didn’t say anything for a moment, instead, I took a look around the room we were in. I don’t wholeheartedly believing in profiling, but I say you can learn a lot about someone based on their possessions and the way they live. Even if I didn’t know him as well as I do, looking around, I could tell you Bones was a pony firmly entrenched in the past. He looks back, has a strong belief in tradition and is extremely resistant to change.  

I mean, here we were, sitting on an old wooden bed with hand, or rather hoof sewn blankets. On the bedside table was an old fashioned wind up alarm clock, complete with a bell on top. The bookcases nearby was filled with old texts ranging from magical theory, to farming, to classic fiction. On the wall, mounted above his desk was an ancient Lunar Guard sabre; a gift from Luna. The old oak desk was covered in parchment paper with quills and ink pots, despite ballpoint pens being readily available. Everything about this room told me the pony living here looked to the past. He likes living here, in this simple life, because it offers a comfortable routine. Major incidents aside, his life is quite calm and peaceful. When that life is disrupted, he doesn’t take it well.  

Take for example the other time a tree got destroyed. When Tirek blew up Twilight’s library, he spent the better part of a month, trying to find a spell to restore it. He even considered tinkering with time travel magic until that whole matter with Starlight came to a head. He’d spent many months in that library learning all he could about magic, and its loss was painful to him. But rather than face up to and deal with that loss, he tries to remedy it.  

Luna once said to me over lunch that she told him that not everything is within his power. And while he takes that on board and accepts it, he still struggles with change. And in particular, death is something he does not deal well with at all.  

“Bones, you are many things,” I said at length. “A gifted unicorn is one of them. But not even Celestia can bring back the Tree. We barely understood how it worked in the first place.”

“And that’s why Ah’m studyin’ it,” Bones shot back.  

“Look, I know you don’t deal with death well, son,” I tried in a little more gentle tone. “And I understand your grief. But you have to let go, like you did with your Uncle George.”  

Bones snorted at that. He was trying to put on a mask of anger, but I could see him struggling to hold back tears. His great uncle is where all this stems from really. Back when he was little, he and his great uncle, my uncle that is, were quite close. He was a grumpy old man with a fondness for whiskey, but nice enough. Then one night, when Bones was around eight, and Lizzie was six, I went to go and check on him.  

He thought I was a burglar. He didn’t believe me when I told him who I was. In the end, we had to call the police and an ambulance. In hindsight, I should have seen the signs. He’d been forgetting little things for a few months, maybe even a year. That incident just marked the crisis point. The doctors were quick to confirm Alzheimer's. Bones once said that his great uncle died when he was eight, but it took his body another decade to die. The long drawn out process of watching his old friend wither away made the loss even more painful. And as a result, he’s always found loss hard to cope with. He ended up not even coming to the funeral, and shut himself away for weeks, bottling all his emotions up inside. Ever since, death has always been something he struggles with. I honestly worry how he’ll cope when me and Margaret are called.  

“It just isn’t fair,” he said softly. “We’d only just discovered that the Tree was alive and then, poof, it’s gone forever.”

I sighed to myself. The Tree had told me not to say anything. But I’ll bet it had said the same thing to Bones about his own meeting with it. We were both in on the same secret, I figured he ought to know what I knew. He certainly didn’t need to be tearing himself up inside like this.  

“I know about the Tree,” I replied simply, catching my son off guard. “I’ve met it too, lad. For me it took on the form of Twilight. I met it in the castle gardens a couple days ago.” Bones started.

“A couple days ago?!” he exclaimed. “It’s been over a week since Sombra destroyed it.”

Getting up off the bed, he began to pace like a certain lavender alicorn I know. I knew the symptoms well, he’d got an idea into his head and had a breakthrough. The melancholy of a few moments before was forgotten. He had a plan, he could see some way to remedy the situation. And while it wouldn’t do much for helping him improve the way he deals with loss, it did help us in other ways.

“But if was able to do that,” he said, mainly to himself. “That that would suggest either there’s some latent magic in whatever is left or…or it isn’t really dead! Dad, do you know what this means?”  

Bones was smiling now. He seemed to return to his normal jovial self in an instant. In fact, he was grinning like Pinkie Pie at this point.  

“Erm...that the Tree of Harmony hasn’t been completely destroyed?” I offered. Bones shook his head.  

“More than that!” he replied. “It’s still alive, which means there is some way it can restore itself! I knew it! It was too smart to let Sombra destroy it like that. It’s all part of its plan. The Tree knew what would happen because of the way it perceives time. It knew what Sombra would do and took countermeasures, ensuring that Twilight and the others could manifest harmony magic without the Elements themselves.”

He was running hither and thither like a madman now, running through notes and old books, the better part of a dozen quills dancing in his magic, jotting down notes and formulating theories.  

“Okay, so how?” I asked, thinking back to the Tree’s parting words to me. “How do we get the Tree back?” Bones grabbed a pair of saddlebags and stuffed a few sheets of parchment in.

“Ah’ve got a few ideas,” he said. “But Ah’ll need to look at what’s left of the Tree to be sure. If Ah’m right, a sufficiently powerful charge of positive energy, namely the magic of friendship, should be enough to kickstart the regeneration process. Come on! We need to get to the Castle of the Two Sisters.”

And with that, he bolted out of the door, the light from the hallway streaming in. It took me a moment to register the sudden emotional turnaround, and a few more before I considered that it might be a good idea to follow him. I was quickly hurrying down the stairs, shouting out a quick apology to a now thoroughly confused Granny Smith.





Once upon a time, my son was not exactly what you’d call athletic. He was smart, sure, but he spent most of his free time upstairs in his room on his computer, or playing video games, or watching TV. He wasn’t overweight or anything, in fact, he was quite the opposite, being the closest thing to a human stick insect despite his diet and lack of exercise. He never did particularly well at sports, not that he ever had much interest in them to begin with.

But since coming to Equestria, he’s undergone quite the change. His pony body was quite similar to his old human one when we first arrived here, but over the last few years working on Sweet Apple Acres, he’s changed into quite the specimen. He’s got a lot more stamina and strength now, although I’m sure he’s still a far cry from being in his marefriend’s league. And of course, four legs rather than two does give him something of a speed boost compared to his old self.  

Needless to say, he was more than a match for me. By the time I was making my way out the door, he was already halfway across the farmyard running at a full gallop. He even jumped the fence at the edge of the property as he made for the Everfree, leaving me to do my best to follow. Bones might have improved his physique, but I’m a solicitor getting on for sixty. I’m not exactly a marathon runner.

“Bones!” I called horsely after the rapidly disappearing unicorn. “Wait for me!”

Luckily he heard me and he checked his headlong excitement, as well as his gallop to give me a chance to catch up.

“Come on, Dad!” he said encouragingly as I rejoined him. “We’ve gotta get to the Tree!” I was already out of breath.  

“I’m not a young buck any more, Bones,” I replied. “Give me a minute.”

Luckily for me, Bones slowed his headlong charge down a touch, to the point where he was eventually happy with just a brief trot. He resolved that if the Tree had been able to communicate with me as recently as it had, then there was little danger of it running out of energy, assuming that it was in any kind of danger to begin with. As such, Bones decided that there was no need to rush.  

Of course, had he done so, we would have run right into some of the students from Twilight’s school who, unbeknownst to either me or Bones, had also found themselves summoned to the site of the destroyed tree. And like Bones, they were also struggling with the loss. Although in their case, they were looking to memorialise rather than restore, with each of them having their own views on the subject.  

We meanwhile now entered the foreboding Everfree Forest. I have to admit, I was lot more cautious going in here than I normally would be. As dangerous as the Everfree was, it had always been kept in check by the Tree. Based on what had happened, that control had been disrupted, to the point that it took Starswirl and both Celestia and Luna to get the forest’s growth back under control. Starswirl claimed to have set up some powerful magic to help stop the forest from overrunning everything. After all, he’d been the one who did it back before the Tree was created. Still, I was a little uneasy going in here, knowing that we didn’t have the usual safety net. Even with the Tree, this forest could be dodgy at the best of time. There were timberwolves, cockatrices, and don’t get me started on that bloody great Ursa Major and its cub.  

Bones however, if he was unsettled, didn’t outwardly show it. As I said before, he has something of a one track mind when it comes to accomplishing his goals. Right now, his goal was to restore the Tree of Harmony, and all other concerns were secondary. It’s a character flaw that’s put him in harm’s way more than once, and also served to hurt his friendships. The upside was that when he was done, he would come back down and do his best to make amends for shutting everything else off. 

It was quite a hike to the Tree. The strange magical being resided within the dried up moat of the castle, which lay at the heart of the forest. It’s even deeper in than Zecora’s hut. I remember I asked Celestia once why on Earth she chose such a place as her home back when she and Luna first ruled Equestria. She replied that they wanted solitude, or at least to be away from other ponies, particularly the nobles, who were just as bad, if not worse, than they are now. The castle’s location also offered them a degree of protection against any would be attacker, since it was dangerous to go through, or fly over the forest. Still, it seemed safe enough for the moment.  

With little else to do, I struck up a conversation with Bones. Like I said before, he’s an expert on this world, to a degree. He knows all there is to know about the show that it is based on. I wondered if he might know something about this Grogar that Sombra had warned me about. I’d gone through all the historical archives and hadn’t come up with anything. Unsurprising I suppose, since the guy supposedly pre-dated even the likes of Starswirl. But Bones might be able to throw me a bone, if you’ll pardon the pun.  

“Say Bones, can I asked you something?” I asked as we cut our way through the dense brush.

“Ya just did,” Bones called back with a grin. I rolled my eyes. “But sure, go ahead.”

“Does the name Grogar mean anything to you?” Bones let out a low whistle at that.

“Wow, now there’s a name Ah ain’t heard in a while.” Ah, he did know something! I quickly pressed him for more information.  

“You know about him?” Bones nodded as he used his magic to blast away another stray vine.  

“Sure,” he replied. “Old school G1 bad guy.” I resisted the urge to let out a sigh.

“Remember I’m not part of your weird pony cult,” I added, prompting Bones to laugh.  

“G1; Generation 1,” he explained. “The first version of the My Little Pony cartoon from back in the eighties. Grogar was an antagonist for a multi part episode. A goat who had access to powerful magic; more powerful than any unicorn. Coming from the city of Tambelon, he tried to conquer Ponyland, what this world, G4, calls Equestria, about five hundred years ago. He was defeated and banished to the realm of darkness. He later fashioned a magical bell that allowed him and the city to return and begin attacking the ponies. He tried, and almost succeeded, in sending Ponyland into the realm of darkness, but was stopped when his bell, the source of his power, was destroyed.”  

“What about this version then?” I asked. “G4 as you call it.” Bones shrugged.

“From what Ah can make out, he’s just a foal’s story here. Ah did some checkin’ around for old villains after that business with Tirek, and the Smooze too. The way the story goes here, is that Grogar used to rule a big chunk of Equestria some time after the first Hearth’s Warming Eve. But he was defeated by a pony named Gusty the Great. She took his bell, the source of his power, and hid it somewhere. Why do you ask anyway?”

Dammit, I wanted to tell him. He certainly deserved to know. But the Tree had been very clear; I was to tell no one about either Sombra or Grogar. It was to stay a secret for now, in order that events could transpire in the way they were supposed to. And I can’t see the future in the way it can. So, as much as it sucked, I lied.

“Oh just a name I came across,” I replied. “Had some fruit loop in Day Court a while back threaten that Grogar would return and spread darkness across the land.” Bones let out a laugh.  

“Figured it wouldn’t hurt to know who I was up against,” I added with a little more meaning.  

Bones actually had been helpful. At least now I knew who I was looking for. And given the similarities between Tirek and his old school counterpart, those few titbits on Grogar might prove useful. The point about the bell certainly seemed to be key in both versions. Maybe once I got back to Canterlot I could go trawling through the archives.  

We were now getting close to the castle. It couldn’t be more than another quarter mile or so. I’m certainly glad Bones decided to not gallop all the way. I’d probably have packed it in after the first hundred yards just trying to keep up with a galloping pony. The denizens of the Everfree hadn’t troubled us for the most part. Bones had pointed out a pack of timberwolves watching, and most likely stalking us at one point, but a couple of blasts from his horn was more than enough to scare them away. We’d seen no sign of cockatrices, cragadiles, ursas major or minor, or even that bugbear that Bon Bon had been tracking. 

I’ll be honest, it wasn’t really that scary when you got right down to it. To the ponies it might be  a strange place that doesn’t follow the laws of nature. But to me, it’s just another forest, apart from the terrifying animals that try to eat you. If it weren’t for the dark and foreboding atmosphere, I’d have figured we were somewhere in the Brecon Beacons.

However, not long after, the apparent calm was shattered by two sudden shocks that came one after the other. First, there was a strong burst of magical energy. It came like a wave; white light whipped through the trees and quickly engulfed us before passing on harmlessly. What was far less harmless though was the earthquake that followed. Bones Bones and I struggled to keep our footing, with me almost falling on my rear end from the tremors. It only lasted about ten seconds, but it was definitely up there in terms of severity. I’d say certainly somewhere between four and five on the Richter scale. After the shaking stopped, we took a moment to get our bearings.  

“What the hay was that?” I exclaimed in shock. Bones too was equally caught off guard. But as a unicorn, he could tell a bit more about the situation than me, thanks to his connection to magic.  

“No idea,” he replied, looking about in bewilderment. “But whatever that wave was, it was charged with mighty powerful magic. Ah’ll bet ya anythin’ it has somethin’ to do with the Tree. Come on!”

And with that, he set off at a gallop again. I was just glad that we were now only a stone’s throw away from the castle and the Tree. The path was much clearer too, so I no longer had to duck to avoid low branches and vines. I put on a burst of speed and did my best to keep up with him.    





It wasn’t too long before we came out of the treeline and saw just what was going on. The ancient ruin of Celestia’s old home has certainly seen better days. The roof had long since fallen in, although many of the lower levels were still intact. Now though, it seemed to have gained quite the new addition. Protruding through the old structure was something quite unusual. It was a huge crystalline tree. But unlike the Tree of Harmony I was familiar with, this tree looked a lot more like an actual tree, with pink and purple foliage growing from its aqua branches, in sharp contrast to the jagged form of before. It was much larger too, dwarfing a good section of the castle and towering over the forest canopy. It certainly explained the earthquake. The ground must have damn near split open to let that thing grow through.  

Bones was, of course, overjoyed to see all this. It was clear that the Tree had indeed not been destroyed, and it had kept its promise to me to return. He wasn’t the only one though. As I later learned, the six students from Twilight’s school had been trying to do something to honour the Tree, and their efforts seemed to have somehow triggered this resurrection, much to their own surprise and delight. Twilight too, along with Spike, quickly arrived on the scene, having felt to disturbance in the Force, if you will. She too concluded that the Tree was indeed somehow still alive, although how this would affect it was unknown.  

Bones however, didn’t really seem to mind. He was just glad to have the entity back. This new form, instead of being just a means to hold the Elements of Harmony, now seemed to be a building of some sort. Twilight later explained that the kids had been trying to turn the Tree’s remains into a treehouse as a place for them all to meet up. It seemed to have now pulled the same trick that it did with that box, and had given them a huge clubhouse to play with.  

We came on the scene just as they all headed inside to explore. As the door closed, there was a small flash of light, and the Tree’s avatar again appeared in the form of Twilight. Now, my son isn’t usually that emotional, but this happy reunion seemed to have caused quite a stir in his usually unflappable self, as shown by what he did next. Walking over to the Tree’s avatar he said;

“And he cried in a loud voice; ‘Lazarus, come forth!’”

The Tree smiled. I’m not sure if it was aware of the significance of that verse, but it seemed glad to see the both of us nonetheless. It didn’t even seem to mind when Bones hugged its ethereal form. I joined the pair, being a little more subdued than my son.  

“You kept your word,” I said, smiling at the fascinating being that stood before me. “What will you do now?”

“I shall do what is needed,” the Tree replied. “No more, no less.”  

Enigmatic as ever. And with that, the Tree’s avatar again vanished. The two of us headed inside and ran into Twilight and her students, and spent the next hour or so exploring the place. It had been a good day today. And tomorrow was looking to be even better, thanks to a very unlikely ally.