//------------------------------// // Firefly // Story: My Dearest Students // by BubuJones //------------------------------// Chapter 2: Firefly   Luna could feel her sister’s composure return as her breathing steadied and their embrace begin to loosen. They at last came apart to face each other once again. Luna gave her sister a supportive, yet unsure smile, to which Celestia returned an almost-forced meager one. Luna’s smile was always able to lift Celestia’s spirits, even more so now that she had returned to her after a thousand years. “Feeling better?” Luna asked a bit solemnly, unsure if she had given her sister enough time to recover from whatever ailment afflicted her. “Yes, thank you,” Celestia replied with content at last returning to her regal voice. “That’s great!” Luna let out utterly relieved. The smile on her face grew exponentially; silly even. Celestia could only match her smile in return, but just barely. Luna subsequently took a quick glance back to the wall of portraits. Luna’s gaze strayed past Celestia’s first student, Starlight, and on to the next pony; a pegasus. Luna’s mind had to process a second longer to make sure she had just seen what she did. A pegasus pony was one of my sister’s students? How? Luna couldn’t help but look into it further.   “Tia, who is this?” She motioned to the portrait of the pegasus, trying not to sound too curious at the fact that the pony was indeed not a unicorn. “Hmm? Oh, you mean Firefly. And yes she was a pegasus pony, if that is what you are wondering.” This particular pegasus was a mare -an overly confidently-looking, almost smug one at that. She held a striking resemblance to one of the Elements of Harmony as a matter of fact. The only clear dissimilarity was in the coat and mane, which were a light pink and blue, respectively. Her attire was much simpler than the last pony,made purposely to avoid burdening her during flight. “But… how? I thought you only taught magic… and to unicorns.” “You’re forgetting that pegasi also possess a unique magical ability. It allows them-” “I’m well aware of their ability to control the weather, but that’s not the same as unicorn magic,” Luna intervened. “Indeed it is very different, but magic nonetheless. The extent of this magic is extremely varied between each pegasi, and cannot be measured as to how far it can be taken. Firefly was one such pony that pushed her magical abilities to its limits.”   ~*~*~*~   The crowed of pegasus ponies cheered with shich immense ferocity that Celestia could hear them from a great distance, long before she arrived at the stadium - and the noise only intensified once she did. She landed gracefully on her personal veranda overlooking the entire stadium, Two royal guards landing close by at her flanks. She waved and smiled, creating yet another wave of ovation in her direction. She sat on her haunches, her smile fading as she exhaled softly. The crowds focus was directed away from her as the announcers voice began to boom throughout the stadium. “Welcome, fillies and gentlecolts to the annual Best Young Flyers Competition! Everypony, please take your seats as the show is soon to begin!” More ponies cheered, rattling at Celestia’s mind, forcing her to subconsciously rub the bridge between her eyes to allow her head to clear up. She had been exceptionally busy that day, with much more work to finish awaiting her return. The whole competition had even been postponed due to her late arrival. She was not in particularly high spirits and hoped the show would be able to lift them, if only during its duration. It was her escape from the stresses that surrounded her, and she expected to enjoy every minute of it. She had attended the competition every year since its inception. She truly enjoyed watching the most skilled pegasi of Equestria exhibit their skills in speed, maneuverability, grace, and many other categories. Luna had also enjoyed the assignment of being royal judges for this competition, Celestia thought. At this, a sharp pain tore at her heart as she had brought upon herself memories she did not want to remember. Looking to her side at where her sister once sat, and where Starlight had once accompanied her as well, she strained to push back the tears, closing her eyes and steadying her breathing. She wanted to enjoy the show, and that’s what she was going to do. The announcer’s voice returned at its greatest volume yet, snapping Celestia back into focus. “Is everypony ready? I would like to first of all introduce our judges for today’s competition. We have in our presence, our grand and majestic leader, Princess Celestia!” At this, Celestia waved again, to the accompaniment of more cheering from everypony present. “Also present, we have the gems of the Royal Equestrian Air Force, the Wonderbolts!” Everypony let out another tremendous roar. “Now without further ado, let the competitions begin!” Pegasus ponies came and went as they dazzled and mesmerized the audience present. Many of them would show off their agility and speed, completing preset obstacle courses with ever-shorter lap times. Others would show more finesse and elegance, flying gracefully and carefully, as if in a choreographed dance. Then there were the stunt and risk takers, who would push their bravery and luck to their limits performing quick and agile turns and loops, swerving rapidly in seemingly uncoordinated directions and manipulating the weather around them to do their bidding. These were perhaps Celestia’s favorites to witness. The daring these ponies possessed was astounding. The competition was reaching its ending stages and the final competitors were coming up. The cheering had lessened, but still held strong as the competition carried on through the day. Celestia had once again enjoyed this year’s show as she had every year prior. “Thank you contestant number nineteen, Ace, for that astounding performance! Next up we have contestant number twenty, Firefly!” A pink blur flashed from the drapes that concealed the contestant waiting room seconds after the name was spoken. The pegasus barrel rolled rapidly and turned to head directly to the sky at the center of the stadium; there she hovered, still spinning. The surrounding clouds started to spin in unison around her, engulf her entire self as they created a tremendous white fluffy tornado. It twisted and jerked wildly as if under its own accord; but yet held tamed at the center of the stadium.  It began to slow, then suddenly burst in every direction, dissipating into a soft mist right before the awe struck audience. Hovering, still with her four limbs spread far outward, was the pony responsible for the astonishing feat. Hey head was hung low and her eyes closed shut in deep concentration. The mares coat was of a light pink, which contrasted softly with her light-blue, short-cut mane; her cutie mark a pair of sharp, blue lightning bolts. Lifting her head, She opened her eyes to reveal twin orbs of magenta that were almost a match for Celestia’s own, which were filled to the brim with a haughty confidence as she locked gazes with her monarch.  Celestia could only imagine wha ther own look revealed during the few seconds they watched each other, before the pink pony gave her a sly, cocky smile and back-flipped into a free fall. The crowd had been spellbound in stunned silence but quickly recovered to give another head rattling cheer as Firefly dived towards the obstacle course.  She pulled up near inches from the starting point cloud, flapping her wings vigorously and charging at the various cloud-made obstacles, her blistering speed unhindered.   Entering the course, her unusual choice of direction brought confusion upon the crowd. She did not tackle each obstacle in the common order, but flew around them at her own whim, slowly shaping them to her liking. The crowd quickly discovered her true intentions as the clouds that once shaped the course begin to come together into a single form. The finished product was that of a large pegasus pony of a near spitting image of its creator. The course was ruined for the sake of art, created in a time quicker than any other pegasi had overcome the actual obstacles. Leisurely flying back and wings pumping at a stronger but slower pace, she swerved elegantly through the sky; light, puffy clouds beginning to form around her frame. Collecting all that remained from her first demonstration, she creating a long trail in her wake that followed close by her tail. The more clouds she collected the darker and longer the trail became until it reached a substantial size. She ushered the massive storm cloud to the center and arranged it so one of it’s longer ends faced the princess directly. She flew to the opposite side and steadied herself, inhaling and exhaling coolly. She reared back and bucked the cloud with all her might. In seconds, she recovered and flew directly under the cloud as lightning flashed all around her throughout. She dodged and barrel rolled gracefully around the dangerous streaks of light. It took just mere seconds for her to traversed the length of the cloud, unharmed and unfazed. A deep roar of thunder followed and shook the cloud stadium to its core. Firefly hovered mere feet from Celestia’s perch, her face smug with a sense of accomplishment. Celestia knew she knew she had won the competition, without a doubt. Everypony in the stadium now knew who the best young flyer of Equestria was. The cheering was at its loudest of the day, as it was said to be heard throughout all of Equestria. Everypony that preceded Firefly dropped out swiftly and wordlessly; all that was left was to crown the winner. No discussion was needed between the judges as Celestia stepped up to announce the all too obvious victor. “My beloved ponies, I am happy to announce this year’s best young flyer of Equestria!” Her voice boomed with amplifying magic. “Your winner this year is a pony who excelled at grace, power, speed, and at all other fronts as well. Your winner is... Firefly!” The crowd erupted once again as Firefly shot out of the contestant’s area in the direction of the princess, stopping short of a near head on collision.   “Ha! Hahaha!” she laughed in a manner that could have even be taken mockingly. “I knew this test was going to be a piece of cake!” Celestia gave her a discerning look, as if asking if she was serious before turning to telekinetically grab the tiara and gently lay it upon Firefly’s head. Firefly looked up at the crown and gave another chortle of happiness. “This is the best day ever!” she cheered, spinning circles around the princess gleefully, agitating the guards that watched vigilantly. Celestia only returned the smile as she watched the filly bask in the glory of happiness and triumph. “There is another reward that comes with your victory,” Celestia said delicately, forcing Firefly to sharply halt to face the princess in giddy excitement. “You will have the pleasure of joining me at the castle tomorrow. You shall be escorted by the Royal Guard in the morning.” “Wow… thank you so much Princess!” she beamed delightedly.          ~*~*~*~ “Firefly was brave, confident, inspiring; a true leader among ponies. She had become famous for her remarkable feats in aerial acrobatics and even more renowned for her abilities at weather control. She was able to deal with storms that would normally require squads of pegasi, and eventually advance to greater weather manipulation with my aid. She became the pioneer pony in controlling lightning, an amazing feat by any standard.” ~*~*~*~ Another day meant another dreary meeting for Celestia. Her mind would constantly drift elsewhere while her advisers would babble away. She sat at the end of a long table covered in paperwork she knew nothing about. Always extremely organized with her own affairs, she loathed the way her advisers would handle and arrange the simple tasks she assigned them. She just let them argue away and deal with their own problems. She always had much more important matters to deal with. Then, when the dullness of the meeting was reaching its climax, a savior crashed into the room. “Princess!” came a cry from the other side of the doors before they burst open to allow Firefly to come crashing in. Sliding across the table, she scattered papers into the air, forcing the officials to scramble after them in desperate confusion. She came to a halt before Celestia and struck one of her customary poses with her wings fully outspread. Two unicorn guards stumbled in after her, trying to catch their breaths. “Princess, tell these two slowpokes that I have every right to be here and see you!” she fumed accusingly at the two guards, shooting them each a sharp glare. “You shall… not speak to the Princess… in such a manner!” one of the guards retorted between breaths. “Princess… this trespasser…” He was halted by Celestia’s raised hoof. The room went silent as the last of the papers fluttered to the floor. “It’s quite alright Commander. I would have thought word of my new student had reached most ponies in Equestria by now. It has been months since I took her on as such.” “But, but, Princess... she is a pegasus!” “And your point being?” Firefly intruded. “Just because I’m not a fancy pants unicorn like you, doesn’t mean I can’t be the Princess’ student. You may go now. My mentor has spoken.” She said smugly, waving the guards away with a hoof. All they could do was grumble in protest as they bowed before returning to their posts. She stuck her tongue out in a taunting manner as they departed, causing Celestia to laugh in delight. “Why must you always make such an entrance?” Celestia asked, still amused by the show. “You know me. I just gotta overdo things. I did make a bit of a mess though. Heehee, sorry everypony,” she said sheepishly to the disgruntled advisers, still cleaning up her mess. “So, Princess, can we do some flying? Please?” she pleaded enthusiastically. “Of course we can,” she replied before consoling her advisers. “We shall postpone this meeting. Or better yet, all of you may proceed without me. I will allow it.” She gave Firefly a sly smile and wink, who returned the signal with little to no subtlety. “We will be taking our leave now.” “Awesome!” Firefly flew off causing the newly organized papers, set anew on the table, to burst into the air again. Irritated groans filled the room as Celestia laughed and jauntily walked out of the room.   Out on the balcony, Celestia spread her majestic wings, allowing the cool breeze to flow through her feathers.   She flapped them slowly at first, letting loose the built up tension before she took off into the air. The wind through her mane and the warm sun on her coat made her feel great, made her feel free. Flying was another means of escape from the troubles of politics that would much too often anchor her to the firmament. Firefly came up from behind, circled her a few times, and finally settled at her side. “Are you ready my dear student?” Celestia asked. “Aw yeah! As ready as I’ll ever be Princess. Lay it on me!” “Now, are you sure about this? Last time you weren’t as successful as you had hoped…” she asked with concern. Firefly thought for a second before she gave another one of her signature cocky smiles. “Don’t sweat it. I’ll get it right this time. No worries.” “Are you sure?” Yes, yes I’m certain. Now let’s do this!” She flew a good distance in front of Celestia; both hovered in place, facing each other directly and both their glazes blazing with fierce confidence. Celestia pointed her horn up and gently rotated it, forming an enormous storm cloud above her, which slowly swirled in unison with her head movement. A low rumble emanated from its center as diminutive flashes could be seen within. Firefly was still unfazed by this growing adversary she was to face. Celestia’s horn suddenly sparked and was engulfed in intense, sharp, twitching light. She looked back to Firefly who gave a reassuring nod. Celestia directed her horn and released the pent up energy at Firefly. Less than a second would pass before the lightning hit its target. Firefly met the piercing light with an outstretched hoof  -it twisted around her forearm, then around her entire body. For those minute moments a sharp jolt reached every fraction of her body and her fur stood on end. She pointed her other hoof to the air directly above her as the light followed her guidance, escaping into the sky above and releasing her body. Firefly watched as it dissipated into the blue distance. “You did it!” Celestia cried with enthusiasm. Firefly hovered in shock, literally. It took her mind longer than usual to process what ‘it’ really was. “I-I did it…” she repeated to herself quietly, staring at her own two forehooves. “I redirected lightning! Ha! Hahaha!” She laughed almost maniacally, then charged towards Celestia at full velocity, catching her in a tight embrace. “Yes, you certainly did,” Celestia said tenderly, still held tightly by her student. “Thank you so much, Princess!”   ~*~*~*~   “Lightning?!” Luna asked in disbelief. As a princess she had never bothered to meddle in the affairs of weather control and had no idea such an exploit was possible. “Indeed, it was neat trick. She was able to redirect it, control it, and eventually manifest it at will. It was a magnificent sight to behold,” Celestia explained sanguinely. “She eventually became known to be somewhat of a hero. Tales of her courageous feats would reach the borders of Equestria and beyond.”   ~*~*~*~   A royal guard burst through the door of the dining room where Celestia and Firefly were having lunch and idle conversation. They were both startled by this uncalled-for interruption, but neither protested as the gravity of the situation was eminently felt. “Princess, Ms. Firefly, a fire has broken out in the farming district outside the city! It’s spreading to the farmhouses, and we don’t have enough weather pegasi to create storm clouds to contain it all!” he said hurriedly. Firefly wasted no time, sitting up and slamming her hooves on the table. “Tell me where,” she demanded with out-of-the-ordinary seriousness. She looked at the guard with her all-too-common intensity that flared almost violently in her eyes. The guard quickly pointed in the general direction. She bid Celestia a swift farewell and took off for the window. “Wait, I’m going too,” Celestia said before Firefly departed. “Princess, please, we cannot allow it. It is much too dangerous,” the guard quickly opposed. “He’s right, Princess. Don’t worry; I can take care of this. No problem. Danger is my middle name!” Firefly concurred. She flew out of the window before Celestia could utter another word.   The sheer scale of the blaze was remarkable for its horrifying size. Several hay fields had already been completely burnt and reduced to ash.  A few farm houses had met the same fate, and many more were in danger. Pegasi had scrambled in a less than orderly fashion, trying to contain the fire with little to no avail. This was a losing battle, but Celestia knew she had the ability to tip the scale back in the ponies’ favour. It had taken Celestia much longer than she had liked to finally convince all who had been opposed her to putting herself in this situation. However, it was her duty as Princess of Equestria to protect her ponies from whatever dangers threatened them. Celestia arrived with her own backup of water heavy storm clouds that she had collected on her way. They were quickly dispatched to where the fire was most intense, above houses and at the edges of scorched fields. It wasn’t long before she was reunited with Firefly. “Princess, what are you doing here? I said I could handle this!” Firefly complained. They flew side by side as they gathered more storm clouds before swooping in a tight arc to return to the conflagration. “There’s no time to argue! I’ll deal with the fires, you must help any pony in distress,” Celestia dictated in poised seriousness. Firefly opened her mouth to retort but withheld herself, only returning an affirmative nod. Firefly dived towards the remaining burning structures as Celestia watched her figure disappear into the toxic smoke.   Celestia would often watch Firefly working as quickly as her wings would propel her through the air, her magic manipulating huge swathes of water as she passed. She would fearlessly enter any situation to emerge with newly saved ponies, speeding through houses at a remarkable velocity and narrowly avoiding the surrounding dangers. Their efforts began to bear fruit, as many structures had been saved and the fires were beaten back and doused. But no matter how fast they flew or how much water they conveyed the damage had already been done. Many buildings were destroyed or still burning, left as, or to become a charred mess, but content was found in knowing that everypony was safe. At last Celestia allowed herself to hover and take a breath. She looked across the scorched fields in search of her student, unable to pinpoint her location through the complex scatter of ponies both above in the skies and below on the ground. She couldn’t see her, no matter how much she searched, she began to worry. She flew about, over the structures still standing ablaze. She flew low and slow, not wanting to miss any hint of movement or cry. Then she heard the dreaded call.   “Princess!” she heard emanate from a barn house completely engulfed; a lost cause that no amount of water could possibly save. A majority of the roof had already collapsed upon itself and no visible entrance or exit could be seen. Celestia decided instantly to create her own. She broke through the roof, flapping her powerful wings in an attempt to clear the blinding smoke. The barn began to groan as its foundation burned away. Charred lumber was beginning to tumble and break, causing singeing embers to swirl around her. There wasn’t much time.   “Firefly… Firefly!” she called to no reply. She used her magic for a last form of structural support to the crumbling building. She needed more time. At last she heard something deep within the ever thickening smoke. “Princess… Help…” Firefly pleaded between coughs. Celestia ran to her aid to find her leaned against a large wooden beam barricaded across a door. Strain was clearly seen, as she used her last ounces of energy to try to budge the beam to no avail. “We must… save that pony…” She strained to say, hinting at a limp pony trapped beneath debris in the other side. Celestia only nodded before she supplied more magic from her horn to help push. It wasn’t long before the beam would fall in a clout of dancing embers. The structure gave another painful groan, finally gave way as is it collapsed upon them. Celestia strained her magic to stop everything from smoke and burning debris from engulfing them. Firefly limped to the trapped pony’s aid. “I’m gonna get you outta here. Wake up!” She cried as she pushed away what lay atop the trapped pony. He didn’t respond. She kept at it, trying to nudge him awake. Her mind had become clouded, her breathing harsh, and her eyes began to tear. Hey entire body trembled and nausea began to ensue. “Wake up. Wake… up… Wake…” Firefly collapsed limply to the ground. With not a hint of hesitation, Celestia released the building, brought the other two ponies close and disappeared in a flash.   “Wake up!” Firefly cried, sitting up fully erect in the soft bed in a room she immediately recognized as the all too familiar castle infirmary. She looked about the room in confusion until she noticed Celestia at her side, a look of shock and bewilderment adorned her face that quickly shifted into one of glee. “Firefly, you’re awake!” “Wha… what’s going on…? Oh no the fire! I have to go!” She struggled to get out from under the sheets before a sudden jolt of pain to her head dropped her back down on the pillow. “Ugh, my head…” Her eyes shut tight. She rubbed her temple gently. “Firefly, calm down, you still need much rest.” Celestia insisted as a soft golden glow pulled the sheets over Firefly’s body.   “But… but the fire... I gotta… I gotta…” She struggled to form a sentence through the pounding in her head. The only sense her mind began to form where the sores that spread from the tips of her wings to the ends of her limbs. She didn’t want to move anymore, she really did need rest. “There is nothing to worry about. Everything is alright. Now please, you need your rest.” Firefly had no choice in the matter as she fell back into a deep slumber.   Celestia sat on her haunches by the window of the infirmary, looking up at the celestial bodies that were once possessed by her dear sister, Luna. She heard ruffling from behind as Firefly rose from bed and shakily sat by her side. “Are you feeling better? Are you sure you should be out of bed?” Celestia asked caringly, inspecting Firefly closely. Firefly stretched her wings and twisted her neck to a crack. “I’ve been better, but I’m alright now.” “That’s wonderful. I’m delighted to hear it.” She smiled, then returned her watchful gaze upon the stars. “Princess?” “Yes, my dear student?” “You think you could explain what happened? Everything is still a bit… hazy… I don’t remember much...” “Of course… You inhaled a large sum of smoke, which caused you to black out. You’ve been asleep for nearly two days now,” Celestia explained. “Two days?” She spat out a bit louder than expected. “But, but, it didn’t feel like that at all. I would think a two day snooze would do me wonders!” she exclaimed. “Oh, what happened to that pony? Is he alright? Did we… did we save him?” Celestia shook her head slowly. “By the time we reached him he had already inhaled too much smoke. There was nothing at all that could have been done,” she said unhappily. Firefly was left speechless. She didn’t know what to say. She had never before failed at protecting or helping another pony who was in need. The feeling was terrible. “I… I failed. I wasn’t able to save him… Somepony is dead because of me.” Her emotions churned as her eyes began to water. She looked to the ground, allowing tears to hit the floor. Celestia extended a wing around her, bringing her in tightly against her.     “You shouldn’t feel that way,” Celestia began, softly. “None of this was your fault. You did what you could, and that was enough. If it wasn’t for you-” “But it wasn’t enough! I couldn’t save him because I didn’t do enough. I let him down...” She cried into Celestia’s coat. “You will not be able to save everypony every time. You must come to accept that sacrifices will have to be made; I am sorry to say. But you must always remember that what you do, you do at the best of your abilities. You cannot blame yourself when things happen that are out of your control. You must adapt to what you cannot control, to what cannot prevent, and what you cannot make happen.” Celestia looked up to the moon; memories of Luna flooded her mind again. A surge of emotions boiled in Celestia. “I have experienced this many times. There are things that not even the power of an alicorn can prevent… But I have come to accept what has happened.” Firefly looked up at her mentor, tears still brimming in her eyes. Celestia returned the gaze, a few tears rolled down her cheeks. But she still held that comforting soft smile that could lift anypony’s spirits. They held each other tightly. “I understand… Thank you.” ~*~*~*~ “She prided herself in her abilities. It was difficult for her to face failure. But she quickly learned to accept it. She vowed to protect as many ponies as she possibly could. The more I think, the more I see how she really was a super hero.” Celestia gave another light smile. “But she too met an undeserving, too soon a fate. There was a storm, perhaps the largest recorded in equestrian history, headed directly towards Canterlot. Every weather pony had been recruited to aid in pushing back the horrifyingly astonishing storm. I was at the forefront of the charge, and Firefly was at my side. It wasn’t common for me to directly enter any sort of skirmish, only in situations such as that fateful day.” She paused, Luna did not dare interrupt. Celestia continued in a more somber tone. “The storm was ferocious as it was immense. Lightning crackled blindingly all around us and increased in intensity the deeper we penetrated the cloud. Many good ponies were lost on the way, but Firefly charged at my side as we waged war against an enemy that engulfed the sky. Slowly, but surely, the clouds began to part, the storm, tame. But my assurance of victory had come too soon, and at a price I could never repay. The storm had slowed but still held its forceful pace. Basking in the feeling of saving Canterlot, I had not seen the streak of lightning that came my way, I had no time to retract; neither did Firefly. She couldn’t redirect the bolt; only receive its full burden. I chased her falling limp figure through the sinister clouds and into the gloomy rain. I reached her before she struck the ground. I held her tight under the rain. I did not move until the sun once again show through the clouds.”