//------------------------------//
// Elements of Love Part 1 
// Story: Friendship, Love, and Harmony 
// by LovelyFlowerBloom 
//------------------------------//

Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria. There were 3 Alicorn Rulers, who brought about Harmony to all the land. To do this, Princess Celestia would raise the sun at dawn. Princess Luna brought out the moon to begin the night. And the final one, Prince Terranus, used his magic to fertilize the ground and allow crops to be grown by the earth ponies below.

    These 3, maintained the delicate balance for years and brought about happiness to all the little ponies of Equestria. However, as the years went by. One of them, Prince Terranus, became resentful and selfish. He believed that he was superior to the two Princesses. Using his charm, he planted insecurity and doubt into the mind of Princess Luna. Princess Luna slowly began to view only herself as worthy of the land of Equestria.

    One fateful night, Princess Luna refused to lower the moon to make way for the dawn. Though Princess Celestia tried to reason with the young Princess, the darkness within her had grown far too much. She became Nightmare Moon. She vowed that she would shroud the land in eternal night. However, her older sister, Princess Celestia, harnessed the Magic of the Elements of Harmony to defeat her younger sister and banish her into the moon. 

    With one less Princess out of his way, Prince Terranus devised a plan to rid Equestria of Princess Celestia. Under the nose of the Princess, he stole the Elements of Harmony, hiding them where Princess Celestia could not find them. Then, he enacted his plan to take over all of Equestria. However, he failed to account for one thing…the Elements of Love. Princess Celestia harnessed the power of these little known artifacts and defeated Prince Terranus, banishing him within the stars in the sky. 

    Princess Celestia took on responsibility for the Sun, Moon, and Earth. And love and Harmony has been maintained in Equestria ever since. 

    Aurora Shimmer looked at the book she was reading closely, "The Elements of Love? I've heard of the Elements of Harmony, but never of the Elements of Love. How peculiar," Aurora stood up from her lying position. Using magic from her horn, she picked up her book, placing it into her saddle bag before placing the saddle bag onto her back. She carefully pushes her black glasses up and begins her trot back to the house, which is an extension of Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns.

    Aurora Shimmer, being in the School for Gifted Unicorns, is a very magical unicorn. She typically keeps to herself, but does make time for friends. She has a lemon yellow coat. A somewhat curled, yet wavy mane and tail that's reddish-orange with tawny colored streaks. On her face sits Black Wayfare shaped glasses that nearly take away from her electric blue eyes. Her cutie mark is that of a sunrise on the ocean horizon surrounded by 5 dimly lit stars and 2 much more distant stars. 

    Aurora finally makes it to her residence and opens the door carefully. She peaks her head in quietly and observes around the room. After a while, she smiles and walks in, closing the door behind her, "Dusky! Wake up! I have a surprise for you!" Aurora waits, to no response. She leaves her saddle bag on the ground and slowly walks to a small birdhouse-like structure poking out of the wall, "Dusky, wake up. It's already past noon."
    Some shuffling is heard from inside the small house. The small, round door opens to reveal a little Breezie. The Breezie is blue with long, wavy, magenta hair that covers one of the Breezie's eyes. The Breezie lifts its little front leg to wipe the tired out of its eyes and looks up at Aurora, "Hvorfor alt oppstyret?" 
    Aurora chuckles, "Come on, you can't be sleeping in like this." Aurora walks away from the little house.
    Dusky flies out of the little house, still rubbing their eyes, "I had a rough night." Dusky has remnants of their Breezie accent, but since they were raised by Aurora, it's not as pronounced.
    Aurora pulls a cucumber out from her saddle bag and sets it on her desk, "Got you a little something." 
    Dusky's eyes land on the cucumber and immediately light up. Dusky flies as quickly as their little wings can go and lands onto the cucumber, "For me? You shouldn't have, Aurora."
    Aurora smirks, "That perked you up. Once you're finished, I need you to find me that book on Predictions and Prophecies."
    Dusky sighs, "Fine!" Dusky immediately begins chomping on the cucumber.
    Aurora unloads her books from her saddlebag, placing them on the ground next to her desk, aside from the book she was reading, which she sets on the desk. She starts flipping through the pages before stopping, "Hmmmmm, Elements of Love. I wonder if they have any connection to the Elements of Harmony."
    Dusky burps as they finish their cucumber and quickly fly up to the hundreds of shelved books. Dusky finally spots the book they're looking for and grabs it, flying it to Aurora. 
    Aurora smiles as the book is set in front of her. She turns to Dusky and pats their little head, "Thank you, Dusky!" 
    Dusky smiles back.

    Aurora begins flipping through the pages, "Hmmmmm. E, E, Elementals, Elements of Harmony, Aha! Elements of Love! Powerful Artifacts that have been used by Princess Celestia to defeat the evil Prince of the Earth. See Prince Terranus." Aurora flips through the book, "Prince Terranus. An ancient Pony who wanted to Rule all of Equestria. Defeated by the Elements of Love and banished into the stars. It is said that 1000 years after the banishment of Nightmare Moon, he will use the stars to aid in the escape of the Mare in the Moon. After 3 months, he himself will use the escape he created for Nightmare Moon to return himself." Aurora goes wide-eyed, "3 Months?! But that would be…the day after tomorrow!" 
    "The day after tomorrow?" Dusky asks
    "Apparently so. Princess Celestia may not be aware of his return. And since the Mare in the Moon turned out to be true, that's gotta mean that this is true as well." Aurora says, standing up. She used telekinesis to grab a pen and paper, "I must inform the Princess at once. Prince Terranus must not be allowed to return!" 
    "It's probably fine. If the Mare in the Moon turned out to be true, then surely the Princess would have taken into account the fact that Prince Terranus would return." Dusky says. 
    "Maybe, but I can't take the chance." Aurora says as she finishes writing the letter. She rolls it up and uses her magic to send it to Princess Celestia, "Now we just wait for a response."

    Aurora waits a few minutes until finally, a beam shoots out from Aurora's horn, creating a roll of paper, "Aha, there it is. Quick reply as always." Aurora unrolls it to begin reading. 

    My Dear Student, Aurora. 
I value your studiousness and willingness to learn. Since the departure of my prized student, you have proven that you are the most capable student I have. 

However, I must say. You're reading much too into it. 

    "Wh-What?!" Aurora says in surprise, shaking her head in shock.

Your studies leave no time for a personal life. While I have observed that you make friends and interact with other ponies, you never choose to be more personal with anypony.

    Aurora sighs, "Guess I was wrong after all. And now it looks like I just got myself a lecture and a new assignment."
    "Well…what is it?" Dusky asks, landing on Aurora's back.
    Aurora looks up from the scroll, "I have to learn about the value of Love." 

In two days, I will be visiting the small town of Ponyville. There is to be a large festival celebrating the founding of the town. I would like you to check on the preparations. 

    Aurora sighs, "Oh great."




    As per Princess Celestia's request, Aurora and Dusky traveled to the small town of Ponyville. As they landed into the center of the town, Aurora immediately pulled out her scroll. She cleared her throat in preparation for reading, "I'm sure you're wondering why I've assigned this task for you. While I cannot go into exact specifics, I can tell you that one of the reasons was so that you can meet my former student, Twilight Sparkle." Aurora rolls her eyes, "Great, just what I need. Something to distract me from my studies. I'll check on the preparations as quickly as possible. Then I'll head to the library to research more about the Elements of Love."
    Dusky, who's been riding in Aurora's mane, looks up at Aurora, "And what about that Twilight girl?" 
    "Yes yes, I'll worry about her later. Firstly though, I have to visit a few places. Firstly is…Galabella Acres." Aurora says. 
    "Galabella Acres? What's that?" Dusky asks
    "It's an Apple Orchard. They're in charge of preparing food." Aurora says as she begins her trot west.
    "I thought the Apple Orchard in Ponyville was Sweet Apple Acres." Dusky says, rubbing their Antennae.
    "Yes, but they're quite busy. Not to mention they prepared food during the Summer Sun Celebration. However, there's another orchard just west of Ponyville, near the White Tail Woods. It's quite a ways away, but they're in charge of the food in this event." Aurora says. 


    Aurora and Dusky proceeded to the White Tail Woods, where they came up to Galabella Acres. A single small barn is seen in the distance with under a hundred apple trees surrounding it, making up the entirety of the orchard. It's quite small compared to Sweet Apple Acres. Aurora looks around for a while before her eyes land on a single pony. The pony quickly bucks the tree behind her, knocking all the apples on it into the buckets below. 

    Aurora slowly walks up to the pony, "Um…excuse me. You wouldn't happen to be Ruby Frost, would you?"
    The pony turns her head and looks blankly into the direction of Aurora. She's an Earth Pony with a red coat, her hair is pastel green and in twin braids, her eyes are a pale mint, and she has a dark brown cattleman hat that sits atop her head. Her cutie mark is that of an apple that's cut open. There are two bite marks on the side of it and 5 seeds in the center. On the left, some of the skin is still visible and has a star mark on it. 

    The pony smiles and nods, "Yes indeed, the name's Ruby Frost. What can I do ya for?" The pony has a somewhat high pitched voice with a country accent that somewhat blends into it.
    Aurora smiles, "My name is Aurora Shimmer. I'm a student of Princess Celestia and she sent me to check on the preparations for the Earth Festival. It's my understanding that you're running the food operation?"
    "You're darn tootin'. If you're wondering about our progress, we're all ready with the goods. Simply need to deliver em to Ponyville and we'll be set." Ruby Frost says, "You wouldn't mind givin' me a hand, would ya? Ever since ma pa passed away, progress on deliveries has always been slow. My little sister ain't big enough to pull a wagon. It'll be hard for just me, my mother, and cousin Macintosh."
    "Well it's on the way back, so it wouldn't be too much trouble." Aurora says. 
    "Thank ya kindly. We were actually about to go when you showed up." Ruby Frost says as she loads the buckets on the ground onto her back, "Just needed two more buckets of apples." 
     
    The two ponies walk over to the barn, where an older mare, large work pony, and small filly are all waiting. Ruby Frost turns to Aurora, "Allow me to introduce you to my family. There's Snow sweet, my little sister. Wild Crisp, my mother. And Big Macintosh, my cousin."
    Wild Crisp smiles, "Um…Ruby? Big Macintosh began his delivery not too long ago." 
    Ruby Frost blushes and turns in Aurora's direction, "Uh, sorry. I'm sorta blind, so I just assumed everyone was all here."
    Aurora goes wide-eyed, "You're blind?!"
    "Yeah, it's sort of hard for folk to notice. I do a good job in hiding it as I'm able to figure out my surroundings by memory and sound." Ruby Frost says.
    Aurora looks at Ruby Frost in admiration, "That's quite amazing of you. Being able to do all this work without being able to see. It must be hard."
    "Eh, a bit. But I've gotten used to it." Ruby Frost says
    Wild Crisp attaches the cart to herself and smirks at Ruby Frost, "Finally makin' some friends, Ruby?"
    "I didn't come to make friends, just here on business." Aurora says. 
    Ruby Frost attaches a cart to herself, "We'll see how you feel after our little journey." 
    "Is it finally time to go to Ponyville?" Snowsweet asks. 
    "Indeed it is." Ruby Frost says
    The little filly jumps up and down with excitement, "Yay! I get to see Applebloom!" 
    Ruby Frost chuckles, "Alright y'all, let's get goin'. Aurora, yer cart's just behind mine." 

    Aurora attached the cart onto her back and the 5 proceeded to make their way to Ponyville. "Can't thank you enough for the help, Aurora. Y'know, once the festival is finished, I'll be moving permanently into Ponyville in order to open up a shop for my Orchard. I'd love for you stop by. If you plan on spending any time in Ponyville." Ruby Frost says
    "I doubt I will be. Once my duties here are complete, I plan to return to Canterlot and continue my studies." Aurora says. 
    Ruby Frost frowns, "Well that's too bad. It was nice meetin' you, Aurora Shimmer. I hope our paths cross again soon. If you ever see me, please say hi. I won't be able to see you in order to say it to you." Ruby Frost winks. 
    "It was nice meeting you too. Goodbye." Aurora says, turning around and walking away. She unfurls her scroll and reads over it, "Alright, Dusky. Time for our next destination." Aurora says silent for a moment before taking her eyes off her scroll and lifting her hoof to feel her mane, "Dusky?" As she feels her mane, she realizes Dusky isn't there. Aurora goes wide-eyed and frantically looks around, "Dusky?! DUSKY?!" 

    Aurora's eyes land on a flower shop, she calms down as she realizes that must be where Dusky is. Aurora walks over to the flower shop, opening the door. As she walks in, she bumps into another pony, causing the pony to drop all the flowers in her basket. The pony quickly shakes her head, "Hey! Watch where you're going, four eyes!" 
    "O-Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bump into you. I wasn't paying attention, I'm sorry." Aurora says, backing up. 
    "Likely story. Are you trying to swindle me? Make me drop all my flowers so you can swipe them for yourself?" Accuses the pony.
    Aurora frantically shakes her head as she backs up, "N-No, I was just looking for-"
    "-your next victim? Nice try, but I ain't falling for-" The pony says before being cut off by another pony walking into the room from the back room. 
    "Blossom Night! What have I told you about scaring away customers?" The other pony says. She has a very soft and comforting voice. She's an Earth Pony with an aquamarine coat, she has an apricot colored mane and tail with two amaranth streaks and one canary yellow streak, her eyes glisten a teal color that reflects an innocent demeanor. Her cutie make is that of a branch with 5 Blooming flowers and 2 hazel leaves. On the end of the left of the branch is a fully bloomed flower.
    Blossom Night backs away from Aurora and turns to the other pony, "I'm being swindled, Hazel Bloom. I was just calling them out." Blossom Night is a unicorn, with a dark violet coat, she has an English violet mane and tail, and her eyes are electric indigo. Her cutie mark is a berry bush with 5 Blossoming berries on it. To the upper right of  the berry bush is a Waxing Crescent moon with 2 pony heads that are shaped from the craters.
    Hazel Bloom walks up to Aurora, "Blossom, please clean this up."
    Blossom goes wide-eyed in surprise, "W-Wha?! B-But I-" 
    Hazel Bloom turns calmly to Blossom Night, "Please?" 
    Blossom Night stares at Hazel Bloom for a moment before sighing, "Alright." Blossom Night immediately begins cleaning up all the flowers.

    Hazel Bloom smiles at Aurora, "I'm sorry for all the commotion. My name's Hazel Bloom. How can I help you?" 
    Aurora's eyes go wide as she quickly unfurls her scroll and glances at it, "Oh! Hazel Bloom! You're just the pony I needed to see. But that can wait. I'm here because I think my pet Breezie came in here." 
    "Oh? So it's YOUR Breezie? I was wondering what one was doing all on its own. Yes, it's here. They're in the back, I'll go get them for you." Hazel Bloom says as she walks to the backroom. 
    Aurora looks at Blossom Night, who's using her horn to pick up groups of flowers to put in her baskets, "Do you need any help."
    Blossom Night looks up at Aurora with a scowl, then looks away as her face softens, "Uh…yeah."
    Aurora begins using her own magic to pick up flowers and place them in the basket. 
    "I'm sorry we got off on the wrong hoof. I have a bad habit of assuming the worst of ponies." Blossom Night says, scratching the back of her head.
    Aurora smiles, "It's alright. If a pony had bumped into me and caused me to drop all my stuff, I'd be on edge too." 
    Blossom Night curves a smile, "Name's Blossom Night. It's nice to meet you." 
    "Likewise, my name's Aurora Shimmer." Aurora says as she picks up the last of the flowers and places them in Blossom Night's basket.
    Blossom Night looks at her full baskets, "Thanks for the help. Hope to see you again soon." Blossom Night walks out of the shop.

    Hazel Bloom finally returns with Dusky in hoof, "There we are. They were quite hesitant to come along." 
    "So many delicious flowers! I've never seen flowers that healthy in my life." Dusky says, flies up in glee before landing on Aurora's head. 
    Aurora smiles at Dusky before setting her eyes on Hazel Bloom, So you're Hazel Bloom? My name's Aurora Shimmer. I'm checking on preparations for the festival on behalf of Princess Celestia. You're supposed to be in charge of the decorations, correct?" 
    "Why yes I am. And as you've heard from your darling little Breezie. No shop is better for flowers than mine is." Hazel Bloom says with a smile.
    "Indeed. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to please this little one. They're very picky when it comes to flowers." Aurora says, looking up at Dusky. 
    "Hmph!" Dusky pouts while crossing their arms.
    
    Hazel Bloom giggles, "All the flowers and plants are ready. I'd suggest you also visit Amber Gem. Her and Rarity are also handling decorations." 
    Aurora takes a look at her scroll again, "It doesn't say anything here about an Amber Gem or Rarity here." 
    "That's probably because they just started working yesterday. There was too much for me and Blossom Night to do, so we split it with Amber and Rarity. You'll find them at Rarity's Boutique." Hazel Bloom says
    Aurora nods, "Alright then, I'll go visit them. I'm proud of your progress." Aurora makes her way out of the flower shop. 
    Hazel Bloom waves, "It was nice meeting you, Aurora Shimmer!"

    Aurora made her way to Rarity's Boutique. She looked upon it with an eyebrow raised, "Hard to believe a Boutique this fancy can be found in Ponyville." Aurora proceeds to enter the Boutique, "Hello?"
    A pony walks out from the backroom, "Hello there, welcome to my Boutique! My name's Rarity, how can I help you?" 
    "Hello, my name is Aurora Shimmer. I'm here on behalf of Princess Celestia to check on the preparations for the Earth Festival. I understand you and somepony named Amber Gem are helping with the decorations." Aurora says
    "Oh! Of course! Amber went to get some gems for the decorations. Look, there she is now." Rarity says
    Aurora turns to see a pony walking through the door of the Boutique with two buckets filled with gems. She's a Unicorn with a Diamond White coat, Ruby Red Messy Bob with Fishtail Braid mane, a Ruby Red tail, and Sapphire Blue eyes. Her cutie mark is an opened rock with 5 small gems inside of it and one larger diamond in the center. Surrounding the rock on the left and right are two smaller rocks. "We have quite the stock to go through, Rarity. I have Diamonds, Emeralds, Rubies, and Rose Quartz." Amber's eyes fall on Aurora, "Oh, hello!" 
    "Hi, I'm Aurora Shimmer. I'm here on behalf of...ah, forget it. I'm here to check the preparations for the Festival. I'd like to know how the progress is going with Decorations." Aurora says
    "Oh! Of course. We almost have everything finished here. We just need to decorate a few more banners. It'll surely be completed by the time the festival comes up." Amber says, puting the buckets on the ground using magic from her horn.
    "That's good news. Everything has been going smoothly so far." Aurora says as she makes her way to the exit. She unfurls her scroll and looks upon it, "Almost done. Sooner I get this done. The sooner I can get to my research." 
    "You're leaving so soon?" Amber asks. 
    Aurora turns to Amber and puts away her scroll, "Well, yeah. As a student of Princess Celestia, I have a lot of studying to do." 
    "Mmm, that's too bad. I was hoping we could get to know you since you're new here. You are quite the looker." Amber Gem says with a wink. 
    Aurora blushes, "U-Um…I'm sorry…but uh….bye!" Aurora quickly darts out of the Boutique as quickly as her legs can run. 
    
    "Why are you in such a hurry? She seemed really nice." Dusky says, looking back at the Boutique.
    Aurora slows her pace as she continues down Ponyville, "Nuh uh, I know what she was doing. Flirting! I'm not getting roped into any romantic mumbo jumbo." 
    "Didn't Princess Celestia say that you should get to know Somepony on a personal level?" Dusky asks
    "Princess Celestia sent me to oversee the preparations for the festival. After that, I'm gonna go to the library and continue my studies. I don't have time to 'get to know somepony on a personal level'. I'm too busy for that nonsense. Anyway, we're getting side tracked. We're onto the last task of the day, Weather. Led by two Pegasus Ponies. Their names are Rainbow Dash and Star Dream." Aurora says. 
    "I heard my name?" A pony says, flying from behind Aurora. 
    
    Aurora falls forward with a scream. 
    The pony chuckles, "Oops, sorry. Didn't mean to scare ya."
    Aurora calms down as she looks at the pony, "Rainbow mane. You must be Rainbow Dash."
    Rainbow Dash smirks, "The one and only! Why? You heard of me?"
    "Yes, apparently you and a pony named Star Dream are in charge of Weather management. I was sent by Princess Celestia to oversee progress on the Earth Festival. Where's this Star Dream?" Aurora says, looking around. 
    "Pft, don't worry about her. I'm the only one who clears the sky around here. All she does is stand on the ground ordering everypony around." Rainbow Dash says. 
    "Rainbow Dash!" Yells a pony. 
    Aurora turns to see a Pegasus pony standing behind her. 
    
    The pony has a Navy Blue coat, a large scar on her chest, Prussian blue side swept mane with golden speckled spots all over, and cerulean blue eyes that spectrum into yellow. Her cutie mark is a galaxy with a bright yellow center. The spiral Galaxy has 5 individual arms and two stars that shine brighter than the rest on the upper left and lower right of the Galaxy.

    "You know dang well why I don't fly, jerk. Is that seriously how you talk about me behind my back?" The pony shouts
    "S-Sorry, Star. I didn't mean anything by it." Rainbow Dash says. 
    The pony rolls her eyes and looks at Aurora, "Sorry about her. You needed me?" 
    Aurora nods, "If you're Star Dream." 
    "Yeah, that's me. What did you need?" Star Dream asks
    "My name's Aurora Shimmer. Princess Celestia sent me to check on the preparations for the Earth Festival. I'm here to see the progress with the Weather." Aurora says
    "We have everything we need for the weather. I have Rainbow Dash and 3 other Pegasai to keep the skies cleared for the festival. We have everything under control." Star Dream says
    "That's great to hear. With that, all my obligations are complete. Finally!" Aurora says. 
    "I hear ya. I have a lot on my plate too. Being unable to fly has left me to always plan everything. Gets stressful." Star Dream says
    "Tell me about it. Anyway, I should get going." Aurora says. 
    "Nice to meet you, Aurora Shimmer. I can tell you're a studious pony." Star Dream says. 
    Aurora smiles at Star Dream one last time before she continues on her way. 


    Aurora breathes one huge sigh of relief as she walks away, "Finally! Now I can get to studying. The library should be just up ahead."
    "Aw man. We never get to do anything fun. All you do is study. You should hang out with those ponies who were nice to you." Dusky says. 
    "I would…uh…like to, but I still want to learn more about the Elements of Love. And if I'm to figure out what they are, I can't be hanging out with friends." Aurora says. 
    "Typical." Dusky says, rolling their eyes. 

    Aurora makes her way to the Golden Oak Library, eager to study some more. As she approaches it, she takes a gander at the design. It's essentially a large tree, "Hmm, quite the design." Aurora says as she opens the door and steps in. 

    Aurora looks around in awe at the neatly built library. She looks down to see a baby dragon organizing some of the books. Aurora clears her throat, "Um…hello?"
    "Huh?" The baby dragon utters as he looks to see Aurora, "Oh hey. What can I do for you?" 
    "Um…do you run this place?" Aurora asks in confusion.
    "Me? No, that honor goes to Twilight." The baby dragon says.
    "Is she here? I need to find a specific book." Aurora says. 
    The baby dragon nods, "Yeah, I'll go get her for you." The baby dragon walks upstairs into another room. 

    Aurora waits for a while before the baby dragon comes back down. From up the stairs, descends a purple pony with a smile. Aurora goes wide-eyed as her face goes red. The purple pony walks up to Aurora, "Hi, my name's Twilight Sparkle. What can I help you with?" 
    Aurora is left speechless, staring at Twilight with a flushed face.
    Twilight looks at Aurora, concerned, "Is…everything alright?" 
    Aurora shakes her head rapidly, snapping her out of it, "U-Uh, yeah. Um…I'm looking for a book on the Elements of Love." 
    Twilight places her hoov on her chin, "Elements of Love? I'm not familiar with that. Do you mean the Elements of Harmony?" 
    Aurora shakes her head, "No, I mean the Elements of Love. I'm wondering if there's any book on the subject." 
    Twilight walks over to a certain part of the library and uses her magic to pull a group of books off the shelf. She rapidly flips through the books one after another, "I think I have something."
    Aurora walks closer, "You do?"
    Twilight looks at the book in confusion, "Elements of Love: A Reference Guide." Twilight looks up, "How strange, I've never heard of these." 
    "I thought the same thing. What does it say?" Aurora asks. 
    Twilight shifts the book to give Aurora a better view, "There are 6 Elements of Love. They are also known as the Elements of Tranquility. Commitment, Truth, Compassion, Passion, and Communication. The sixth is a complete mystery. They're…just like the Elements of Harmony. What could this mean?"