In the month following Harry's first Summer Sun Celebration, many new adventures awaited him with his new friends. Adventures that didn't equate to certain death were surprisingly fun in hindsight. If Harry were to name the strangest part, he would say being the youngest of the group (not counting Spike) was odd. Harry was a little younger than the mane six (as Harry hadn't stopped calling them). Back at Hogwarts, upperclassmen didn't talk to younger students too often. But that was hardly a concern.
Harry's free time was normally occupied with a small list of things: learning and practicing magic, checking Discord's clock, helping his friends, and (secretly) researching Equestrian relics. Oh, and of course, messing with his new bracelet. Ever since it'd latched onto him and given Harry that vision, it had remained inert. He'd kept it on as a sort of good-luck charm. Between that and the mysterious chest, he and Twilight were completely stumped by the Tree of Harmony's actions.
But aside from those activities, there was one other thing Harry did frequently. Once every week or so, Harry traveled to the Crystal Empire to practice combative magic with Shining Armor. Those days were mostly Harry maintaining a shield while Shining Armor hit him with everything he had. The excess time on those days was dedicated to training on how much strain his magic could take. No surprise, Harry was in very poor shape. And when Harry wasn't up north, there were also the numerous adventures the gang got themselves into at random. Some days were mundane, such as when Harry sold his completed set of cloudball gear to Cloud Chaser, while some days were adventurous. A few of those adventures included:
Going to the castle in the Everfree Forest. After Twilight and Harry had read through every book in Ponyville for clues on the chest and bracelet, Twilight decided to ask for any clues in Canterlot's library but was directed to Celestia's old castle. Somehow the entire gang ended up in the Castle of the Two Sisters simultaneously for different reasons. Harry went with Twilight to perform personal research and spend time with her. Rarity and Fluttershy were looking for old tapestries. Rainbow Dash and Applejack were there on a dare. And Pinkie Pie, well, accidentally pranked everypony with an organ that operated every trapdoor in the castle. The group shared a good laugh over this "haunted" castle. That was worth the laughs, even if Harry didn't find anything in the library.
Another day, Rainbow Dash went hysterical because her favorite author was delaying her next book. After a lot of begging, the group went to find the author. That was the least fun part, Harry didn't think he had ever walked so far in his life. They did find the author, a mare named A. K. Yearling. (Something about that name sounded familiar to Harry.) After a stern telling-to by the author, the gang left the house, only to return when they realized that A. K. Yearling was Daring Do. That led to an entire adventure involving ancient ruins, gold, and whatever Daring Do's rival was. That was the most dangerous adventure Harry had since Discord's plunder seeds, but it was far from the worst thing he had experienced. It was the kind of adventure Harry could laugh at down the line, better than Hogwart's dangers.
Despite Daring Do's dangerous adventure, the "Power Ponies" incident was much stranger. Spike bought some super cursed comic book and it sucked all but Harry in. After a moment of panic, Harry realized the cause was the comic itself. Upon opening the comic, Harry found his friends had replaced the characters within. With no alternative, Harry was forced to read as his friends went through the comic. For being Harry's first comic book, the story wasn't half bad and the art was well drawn. His friends were all ponies with superpowers, which seemed a fun alternative to magic. After several minutes of reading, the girls and Spike were kicked out of the book. They agreed to never discuss these events with anypony.
Arguably, the most recent event was plenty bizarre. Thanks to Rarity, it became known as the "Flutterbat" accident. A cauldron of vampire fruit bats infested Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack wanted them gone, and Fluttershy thought they could be helpful. After debating via song, the gang was convinced to "evict" the bats using Fluttershy's stare and a spell. The bats left after that, to Applejack's relief. However, when the apple orchards kept getting sucked dry, Harry took part in the stakeout to find the culprit. It turned the spell out Fluttershy was a pony-bat hybrid! Twilight was able to reverse this, though Harry could've sworn he still saw hints of fangs in Fluttershy's mouth. It was another event they agreed to not mention outside of those present.
So, all in all, nothing too dramatic by Twilight's standards and thrilling by Harry's.
Knock, knock.
Harry looked up from his notes as somepony knocked on the door. He was reviewing his past letter with Twilight, looking for specific dates to compare. Leaving his notes, Harry walked to the front door of the Library. Twilight was out at Sweet Apple Acres for the day, helping Applejack with something, probably something that wandered from the Everfree. While she was away, Harry kept to himself whilst reviewing his notes and letters. Spike was cooking something in the kitchen, so he was busy. In short, Harry was left to tend to the library.
What was I doing again?
Knock, knock.
Right, the door! That was a new experience for Harry. The Dursleys never let Harry answer the door for anyone. He opened the door to see a unicorn royal guard, gold armor and all, standing outside.
A royal guard? Did I do something wrong? Does Celestia need Twilight's help?
Harry fumbled for words "Oh, uh, hello. Princess Twilight is out at the moment—"
The guard interrupted Harry. "I'm not here looking for Princess Twilight. I'm looking for Harry Potter."
"I'm Harry," Harry replied, a little shaky.
"I'm here with orders from Princess Celestia to escort you to the Island of the Returned," The guard said curtly."Your presence has been requested by several denizens and the princesses. The visit will be no longer than a day, but you may have time to pack accordingly."
"The Island of the Returned?" Harry asked.
The guard cleared his throat. "It's the placeholder name for a newly discovered island. Somepony forgot Fillypines and Gallopinghost were taken names. Princess Celestia awaits your arrival as soon as possible."
"I'll— uh— I'll be right out!" Harry said as he slammed the door. Harry paced across the floor.
Celestia asked for me specifically, and she wanted me to go to a new island. Why? The guard called it the 'Island of the Returned'. Maybe it's that island where Discord and Celestia dropped off everypony from Earth. But why am I needed?
Harry opened up a saddlebag and threw in a few base necessities for a one-day road trip. Harry was very nervous, he had never been on a trip by himself. Maybe Equestria was doing him more good than he thought. Harry shook his head.
Come on Harry, grow up. You're fifteen, you can leave the house for a day; just tell Spike, leave a note, and everything will be fine.
"Hey, Spike!" Harry called.
Spike leaned around a corner, a large chef hat atop his little head. "Yeah?"
"I need to go out for a bit. There's a guard from Celestia, so I'll be gone for a while. Can you manage things here?" Harry asked.
"I wouldn't be Twilight's number one assistant if I couldn't," Spike boasted. "But why is there a guard?"
"Celestia wants to see me for something," Harry explained.
"Well, good luck! I'll tell Twilight you're out."
"Thanks, Spike," Harry said. I should leave that note anyway, in case he forgets.
Harry quickly picked up a paper and scribbled a message down.
"Dear Twilight, Princess Celestia has summoned me to the Island of the Returned. I'll be back by the end of the day, so don't worry about me. See you later. With love, Harry," Harry mumbled as he wrote. "There, that should be good." Harry set the note down, checked his bags, and went back to the front door. The guard was still standing at the door when Harry exited. "Good to go."
"Then follow me to the station. It's a direct route to the coast, then a pegasus carriage to the island itself. The bridge will not be finished for a few weeks, so boats and pegasi are the only reliable method. I hope you're not prone to air or sea sickness."
"No, sir," Harry replied.
"Excellent," The guard said. The unicorn turned and marched toward the train station.
Harry tried not to hold his breath as he followed the guard. This was to be Harry's first "solo adventure" in Equestria. What could go wrong?
"What do you mean, the guards are sick?!"
The train ride to the coast was relatively calm and uneventful. Conversation with Harry's escort revealed more about the island itself. Celestia started a massive infrastructure project a few weeks prior, even going as far as to offer her and Luna's considerable magical talents to expedite the process. As things stood, the island's village was around the size of Ponyville. The only problem was the griffons and hippogriffs, who technically could be claimed as refugees by the griffon and hippogriff kingdoms at Equestria's borders. Thestrals, also known as bat ponies, were still under Equestria's jurisdiction. But among this wealth of information, the guard (named Solar Flare) was unable to tell Harry exactly why he was being summoned.
But that wasn't the most important detail when they arrived. What mattered was that when they got off the train, they were told by one of the guards stationed there that the pegasi who were going to fly them across the water had fallen ill that morning by a terrible stroke of misfortune. One pegasus guard remained when they arrived, a copper-colored stallion. The guard informed Solar Flare that he was not enough to fly Harry across as per regulations. Which meant that they would have to wait for the current guards to return from their patrols, or wait two hours for a ferry. Neither option was desirable to Harry.
"Celestia is goiong to have my coat for this!" Solar Flare panicked.
Harry thought to himself, I have to get across. Boats aren't an option, and they've only got one guard who can fly. I'm guessing locals are out of the question. So, I need to find a way to fly across the ocean... An idea came to Harry.
"I could fly myself," Harry said.
Solar Flare looked surprised. "You- what?"
"I know a spell that can give me wings, but it doesn't last long. Maybe I can fly myself over."
"Wait, unicorns can do that?" the pegasus asked.
Harry waved his hoof in a "so-so" manner. "Sort of. Princess Twilight taught me the spell. We've both practiced it, although I've yet to cast it on myself. It gives somepony magical wings for three days."
The pegasus guard seemed conflicted. "Well, if Princess Twilight taught you the spell, I suppose I could permit you to try," he decided. "You can only enter or leave if escorted by the local garrison, so I'll permit that."
Harry closed his eyes and envisioned the wing spell. Most of its complexity lay in the ability to cast it on others and be sustained for three full days. Hopefully, casting on himself for less than an hour would decrease the difficulty. Harry's horn glowed turquoise as he focused on the spell. Equestrian magic was more open-ended and prone to alterations. Perhaps shortening three days' worth of magic down would make it easier? Regardless, this was the most advanced Equestrian spell he had cast so far. But if Harry was half the unicorn Twilight insisted he was, he might as well try. Magic sparked around his horn as Harry kept pouring magic into the spell. Then, suddenly, it felt like something clicked.
"Oh my goodness," Solar Flare murmured.
Harry opened his eyes, observing his sides with elation. He had wings! Dragonfly wings, sure, but wings nonetheless! He did it! Harry buzzed about, feeling the freedom of flight. He glanced down at the guard.
"Unicorns can fly now," the pegasus said. "Well, now I've seen just about everything."
Harry couldn't resist a little chuckle. "Can we go now?" he asked.
The guard nodded and took off, Harry following close behind. They flew high above the ocean, up near the cloud layer. Harry waved a hoof through the clouds, smiling as he felt the misty clouds. His escorting guard chuckled amusingly at Harry's wonder. Harry almost missed when the guard yelled over his shoulder.
"So, I never caught your name," the guard said. The stallion slowed to keep pace with Harry and offered his hoof to shake. "Name's Copper Wings."
Harry shook the offered limb. "Harry Potter."
"Bit of an odd name, don'tcha think?"
"It's a common name where I was born," Harry responded.
"Probably nowhere I've ever been," Copper Wings remarked. "So, Harry, what's your story? It's not everyday somepony comes to this island, much less is requested by Celestia. You've gotta be something special to get an escort out here."
"Who, me?" Harry replied, incredulous. "I'm not— I'm just Harry. I don't know why Celestia asked for me. I mean, I knew some of them from before they came to the island, but that hardly seems to be the reason."
"Wait, you knew them?" Copper Wings asked.
"A few," Harry admitted. "From before they ended up on the island. We're from the same— uh— area."
"Maybe she wants you to mentor them?" Copper Wings guessed. "Everypony knows those foals need one. Most of the unicorns can't cast spells without blowing something up. You've got a good grasp on magic. And you seem qualified, what with being mentored by an alicorn and whatnot."
"I can't be that good," Harry protested. There were plenty of unicorns with years more experience in magic than him.
"Well, in any case, the princesses will be expecting you down below." Copper Wings gestured to the island below. "The princesses are at the town hall. It's straight beneath us."
Harry got his first look at the island beneath them. He hadn't even noticed they had flown over it! There were white sandy beaches, forests, and some plateaus. Near the center of the island, a little closer to the shore facing Equestria, was a small cluster of buildings. Harry was in awe, knowing that Discord of all people had built this on a whim. A whim that now put Harry in Discord's favor.
"Wow," Harry muttered.
"Welcome to the Island of the Returned!" Copper Wings shouted.
Copper Wings dived from the cloud layer. Harry followed behind as they flew down towards the island. Copper Wings took them down from the lower cloud layers. Harry beat his fake wings to slow his descent.
Abruptly, the magical dragonfly wings flickered. Harry came to the grim realization that he hadn't put enough magic into the spell when he'd cast it. Harry started to decline faster and faster, hoping to reach solid ground before the spell gave out. Harry targeted the mostly empty courtyard. But just before reaching the ground, his wings disappeared in a flash.
Harry stared at the ground in fright, momentarily frozen in midair. It wasn't far enough to kill, but it would hurt a lot. Strange, what haven't I started to—
Harry plummeted past Copper Wings as gravity kicked in.
—fall!