//------------------------------// // Missing Days // Story: Sweetie Belle and the School of Shadows // by Blackdrag-rose //------------------------------// -Six days earlier in the Changeling Hive- Chrysalis sat on her throne, rereading the letter that she received from Princess Luna yesterday evening. She still wondered how the mailmare had found her way to the Changeling Hive and delivered the letter. They were located in the middle of what seemed like a desert and there were barely any landmarks for anypony to use. It wasn’t like the mare could have walked up to a fancy palace and dropped off the letter, but she had somehow found her way to the Hive. Naturally Chrysalis wanted to blame the pink coated mare called Pinkie Pie for everything, but she couldn’t this time. That mare was lucky, she eventually decided, lucky enough to find my Hive. I should have turned that Derpy Hooves when I had the chance. Chrysalis sighed and returned to the letter floating in her magical grasp, still wondering what the Princess of the Night was up to. According to the letter Princess Luna was inviting her own daughter to attend the first year of a school called the School of Shadows. She had also mentioned that the old Shadow of Thrack, Sweetie Belle, would be attending so she could control whatever powers she still had. And Chrysalis didn’t like the fact that her daughter might be going to the same school as the monster that broke her horn and nearly made her lose her magical touch. She was glad that the doctors in the Canterlot Hospital managed to repair the damage before it had been too late. Though it was clear that Princess Luna wasn’t completely sure of what Chrysalis would choose for her daughter and sent along the acceptance letter. Chrysalis sighed and lowered the first letter, keeping the second one suspended while she thought everything through. On one hoof if her daughter befriended Sweetie Belle and she turned into Thrack she could likely break the monsters hold on her. On the other hoof if that happened then the monster might turn on her daughter and hurt her. Chrysalis didn’t know which was she supposed to choose; deny her daughter the chance to meet new friends and learn about the other species or allow her to go and hope she wasn’t harmed. “Guards,” she finally shouted, the doors to her throne room opening and two Changeling guards flew in before landing at the base of her throne, “Go find my daughter and bring her to me. She keeps shutting me out.” “As you command,” the two said, quickly bowing before they left the throne room. Chrysalis sighed yet again. It was time to see if she should send her daughter to this new school or not. -The Changeling Hive, the Royal Library- The two guards opened the doors to the Royal Library, where all sorts of books were located for the Queen and her daughter to read. It seemed that the Princess was keeping her mother out of her mind and that in turn prevented her from knowing where she was. It was dangerous for the Princess to be doing that, but she couldn’t block the thousands of Changelings just like that. Besides, the Princess had two or three personal guards that could tell where she was at all times. The two knew she was safe and inside the library, but had to follow their Queen’s orders and bring the Princess to her. “Princess,” the one on the right called, “We know you’re in here. The Queen has ordered us to find you and bring you to the throne room. Please do not make us use force.” A slight humming sound came out from behind the shelves as several books were put back in their places. A few more flew across the room to other shelves, fitting in where they used to belong. A moment later a filly sized Changeling emerged from an aisle of books, looking quite pleased with the book she now carried in her magical grasp. A small black crown with tiny neon green bubbles sat at the top of her head, which allowed the other species to know who she was. “Oh, it’s you two again,” the Princess said, looking up from her book long enough to see who wanted to see her, “Of course mother sends the only two guards that I allow to know the exact location of where I am to find me. One of these days I’m going to have to remove that tiny detail from my life. Very well then…” Her once light green eyes turned red as she finished her sentence. “…take me to Mother.” -The Changeling Hive, the Royal Throne Room- “You used the same technique on them again,” Chrysalis said once her guards returned with her daughter and she noticed the change in eye color, “Mea darling, how many times must I tell you that making our guards face their own fears will eventually destroy them? I can’t just fix every single one of them that you decide to use that bucking power on.” “It wasn’t the same this time mother,” the Princess, Mea, replied, “I was allowing them to enjoy the one thing that they couldn’t get in life, which was new for me to use. And you know I like going by Stardust.” “You are the Changeling Princess, Heir to my Hive,” Chrysalis said, nearly shouting at her daughter, “and as such you should go by your formal royal name, not the one you designed for when you want to personally obtain love on your own. Seriously, where did you even come up with a name like Stardust?” “I just thought of it and like the way it sounded,” Mea said, shaking her head, “besides, I was reading up on that monster you had the privilege to fight. I think I might have discovered a prophecy that relates to her.” “Mea, you have to stop being so obsessed over Thrack,” Chrysalis said, resisting the urge to facehoof in front of her daughter, “She was destroyed once by tasting Celestia’s blood, which contained the undiluted essence of the Sun and burned her alive. Then when she returned with the Shadows three months later she was slain by Princess Darkstar. The monster that Equestria knew as Thrack is dead and there is no reason to bother looking for prophecies related to or involving her.” “Oh really?” Mea said, pointing at the letters her mother kept close to her, “I recall you thinking about a letter that came from Princess Luna not too long ago that mentioned Thrack’s shadow was still alive. Yes mother, I know all about the one called Sweetie Belle and the fact that she contains the vast powers of the monster. You fear that if I was to attend the same school and she lost control that I might end up hurt in the process, but you’re forgetting what my magic is like.” Chrysalis sighed and said, “You are right, I have forgotten what your personal magic feels like when it’s used against those you target. You can force those you target to face their own fears, experience the one thing they can never hope to achieve, or their descent into utter madness. You can calm the fiercest of foes and toughen the weakest of allies.” She tossed the second letter to her daughter, who caught it in her own magical grasp. Chrysalis was sure that allowing her daughter to attend the school might very well be a mistake she couldn’t afford, but if Mea wanted to go then she would go. “Take a look,” she said, “and give this as much thought as you would the monster Thrack. Tell me where you truly believe is the best place to be and learn all about magic.” Mea unrolled the letter and scanned over it, the words sinking into her head. Princess Luna was basically trying to establish good relations with the Changelings by allowing Chrysalis to admit her child into the new school. She would personally take the chance to go to the new school to learn about the Shadows and their abilities, but it was more than that. If she could do so much to her fellow Changelings then maybe, just maybe, Mea could stop a rampaging Thrack. “Sign me up,” Mea said, passing the letter back to her mother, “I think I have the power to stop the Shadow of Thrack from rampaging if she were to ever lose control of herself.” “Fine then,” Chrysalis said, sighing as she picked up and signed the place on the letter, “I just hope that we don’t have to…” Mea wondered why her mother abruptly stopped talking when she felt the exact same thing. The two of them could feel the energy of Thrack, the monster herself, awaken from within the filly that was her Shadow. Mea could tell that only a God, or in this case Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, could stop the monster from destroying whatever she was attacking. And then she felt the presence of another Godly creature, one that wasn’t the Princesses or their Shadows. From the story her mother told her Mea could tell that it had to be none other than Reginald, the stallion who defeated Darkstar in the Shadow Realm. “If you think you can still stop Thrack,” Chrysalis said, turning to face her daughter, “then you had best get started practicing the higher levels of magic. And the only place where you can learn at a quick pace is in the School of Shadows, learning from Twilight Sparkle herself.” -The following morning- Mea yawned and climbed out of her bed, shaking herself awake before moving to the door. Her mother had sent a letter to Princess Celestia and had asked if her daughter could learn from her student. Mea had been up for five hours straight as the two conversed by magical magic, something that she and Luna didn’t have yet. At first Celestia had been surprised by the fact that Chrysalis had a child and was sending her to the newly established School of Schadows. She had reminded Chrysalis that due to her invading Canterlot she had half a mind not to allow her daughter to attend regardless what Luna said. She hadn’t even included the fact that she had tried to stop Thrack and helped fight the Shadows at all. They had to wait one long hour while Celestia confronted her sister about including the child of the Changeling Queen in the list of students for the new school. -The argument- “What is wrong with you Luna?” Celestia asked, sitting in her sister’s room and staring at her tired sister, “I have been conversing with the Changeling Queen for the last hour and I have found out that you invited her daughter to the School of Shadows.” “Yeah,” Luna asked, yawning slightly, “so?” “She invaded Canterlot and took over a year ago,” Celestia shouted, “and even after her defeat you decide to go behind my back and invite the daughter of one of my rivals to attend the same school as my precious ponies. No doubt to rile them up and get them all to rebel against me.” “Calm yourself sister,” Luna said, interrupting her angry sister, “I, too, have conversed with Chrysalis before I made the official offer for young Mea to join the rest of the students. Chrysalis insisted that her daughter learn from your student, young Twilight Sparkle, and Equestria’s best young flier, Rainbow Dash. She said that her daughter is skilled in both the art of flying and the art of magic.” “I cannot simply allow the daughter of the Changeling Queen to attend the School of Shadows,” Celestia shouted, getting up in her sister’s face, “I trusted you to build a school with our counterparts and to make a list of all the fillies that would be attending. I did not say that you could invite an enemy to the very place you were building. Take her off the list Luna.” “You cannot tell me who I can and cannot allow at the school,” Luna said, stomping her hoof on the carpet, “I am your sister, the Princess of the Night, and I would think that you would trust my judgment. Princess Mea has done nothing wrong and deserves a chance. You can’t ask me to deny her that.” “Take. Her. Off. The. List.” Celestia said, deliberately saying the sentence in parts. “I will not,” Luna said, standing her ground in front of her sister. “Fine then,” Celestia said, locking the doors to her sister’s room and closing the blinds, “We’ll do this the hard way.” -The Hive- According to the letter that Mea and her mother received after a very long hour wait Celestia had challenged Luna to a game of normal chess and had her flank kicked. Seems she had thought that a thousand years on the moon and barely five years back would leave Luna in defeat and settle their argument. What she didn’t take into account was the fact that Luna had spent every day and night learning the newest games that the fillies liked to play. And as such she was a master at chess and defeated Celestia. Since Celestia lost to her sister that meant that she couldn’t force Luna to take anypony off the student list, no matter how much she wanted too. And that meant that Princess Mea would be welcomed to the School of Shadows. She then learned that the train would be leaving for the Realm Between Worlds within a couple of days, just a week after all the letters had been sent out. So, after learning that she would be expected to arrive in Canterlot in six days, Mea almost ran back to her room and began packing. “That silly filly,” Chrysalis said, laughing to herself, “she doesn’t know what she’s getting herself into. But if it’s her desire to learn from the Elements of Harmony themselves than who am I to say that she should stay here? I’m sure that whoever they get to guard the students will make sure no harm comes to any of them…” The Changeling Queen shook her head and called over a guard, who ran up to her and kneeled before the throne. “I asked the Princesses if they would allow me to send one guard to watch over my daughter,” Chrysalis said, “and you, my dear Silver, will make sure she is safe. I have no doubt that you will do whatever you can to make sure that she is unharmed.” “Of course my Queen,” the Changeling, Silver, said, “I will guard the Princess with my life. No harm will come to her during her studies.” “You are dismissed then,” Chrysalis said, allowing the guard to vanish into a silver mist and disappear from view. Not an hour later Mea was walking out of the Changeling Hive with a bag of supplies that would last her till she reached Ponyville. She could have sworn that her mother had been sad to see her go, but with the Changeling Queen emotions were hard to read. But she had been supportive and gave her a hug before she had left. Now Mea stood in a sandy desert region, the entrance of the Hive disappearing in the sand behind her. She sighed and started walking south, completely aware that one of the royal guards was behind her. -Three days later, The Everfree Forest- Mea was running with a pack of timberwolves, heading for the tree line of the Everfree Forest so she could get into Ponyville. She had encountered the wolves not three hours ago near what looked like a cemetery hidden in the side of a mountain. They were intending to eat her, but with a look from her red eyes she had managed to tame the three wolves. Then they had set off towards Ponyville, acting as if she was actually just another timberwolf in their pack. They had made some stops along the way, but now it seemed like they were approaching the edge of the trees. When they emerged from the trees they finally slowed to a stop and took a break, thought Mea’s eyes keep watch for the ponies who would be waiting for her arrival. And sure enough she noticed a certain lavender mare with a star shaped cutie mark and a small dragon assistant approaching the pack. The timberwolves, true to their nature, growled at the approaching figures, but Mea stopped that with a quick glance. And before they did anything else towards the two Mea sent them back into the woods, where they would soon be released from her magic and return to their natural state. “Princess Mea?” the lavender mare, Twilight Sparkle, asked the young filly, receiving a slight nod, “I am so glad you arrived safely. As you have no doubt assumed I am Twilight Sparkle and this is my assistant Spike.” “Hi,” Spike said, waving a clawed hand at the young filly. “Hello Twilight Sparkle,” Mea said, shaking the leaves out of her coat before relaxing, “and Spike. I know of your reputation and hope that you and I can get along. Plus I have heard that you know quite a lot about the monster Thrack and how she was defeated. Maybe I can help you understand her more.” “Please Princess Mea,” Twilight said, “I have no wish to understand the monster Thrack, but I do want to help her Shadow learn to use her powers without succumbing to the inner beast.” “I don’t wish to be called a Princess in front of the others,” Mea said, “So, um, could you please call me Mea instead?” Twilight laughed and said, “Sure Mea, whatever you like. Come along then.” Mea smiled and followed after Twilight as she was led back into Ponyville, which was quite since it was night out. “My bed is currently occupied by Sweetie Belle,” Twilight said, “who was Thrack’s Shadow and I’ve been sleeping downstairs ever since. I guess I could always use the spare bed down in the basement and let you sleep downstairs. We can talk in the morning about Thrack and whatever else you want before I start teaching you magic.” -The current day- While everypony was out searching for Sweetie Belle, who now wore the silver chains that trapped Thrack deep within her, Mea stood on the balcony of the library, staring out into the night. Lying next to her on a bookstand was the book she had found back in the Changeling Library. The one book, likely the only book in existence, that contained a prophecy on the monster Thrack. Even now the book was open to the page that contained the prophecy that was disturbing her. The prophecy foretold the war that Thrack would wage against all of Equestria to destroy Celestia and make Nightmare Moon the ruler of everything. The first time Thrack went to war she’d lose to Celestia’s Sun Energy The second time Thrack went to war she’d lose to Celestia’s Shadow, Darkstar The third time Thrack went to war she’d bring about an army so terrible that not even the combined forces of the Light and Darkness could defeat her And the world as everypony knew it would no longer belong to the living, but to the dead Mea thought back to the hidden cemetery that she had found a few days ago and wondered if it had anything to do with Thrack. What she did know was that the world was in trouble if Thrack even gained control of her Shadow and went to war once more.