CHAPTER 4: A Promise for Change
It was morning in the Royal Wing the next day as Percy and Penny stood in front of the stained glass window to meet their old friend Accord. He could not be seen anywhere but they knew very well where he was hiding. They looked directly at one stained glass window that showed an image of Accord. The window next to him, which was previously blank, was now filled with the still image of Celestia and Luna battling large slimy monsters on the edge of the shoreline. Accord was getting ready to tell one of his stories.
“Accord?” Penny asked, “Is that you?”
“Oh that’s gotta be him!” Percy said excited.
“Percy, Penny…” said his voice echoing through the room. “I’m glad you two are here…”
Suddenly a burst of light came from the stained glass window, and the image of Accord came to life.
“Have I got a story to tell you!” he told them happily.
“Is it how you helped Celestia and Luna down at the shore?!” Penny said sitting down.
“Oh those mouthy little ponies…” he jested, “I hope they didn’t spoil everything for you. But yes, I did indeed help them, and here’s how I did it…”
Accord’s stained glass form then leaped from his window to the one with Celestia and Luna which he had created with his magic. He began telling them his story.
“I was flying around the cliffs nearby and noticed the moon coming up faster than usual. I sensed a great power. That power must have belonged to an alicorn, and I knew right away that it must have been one of the royals. Princess Luna had earned her cutie mark at last; I could feel it. I looked down to the shore to spot the princesses there, but they were in trouble…”
The monsters in the window then became animated and Celestia and Luna began shooting magic beams at them. One by one each monster burst into light and then became a pile of seaweed on the ground. Accord continued narrating.
“They warded off all the monsters to my surprise, but the monsters had one last trick up their sleeve: Those foul beasts merged their powers to form an even bigger one!”
Penny gasped at the sight the larger beast and moved closer to her brother who didn’t seem too happy either.
“I could not let my little royal companions become the wastes of these hideous monsters; action was called for! So do you two know what I did?”
With wide eyes, the dragons shook their heads back and forth.
“Well I did exactly what I do best…”
Accord then flew down behind the monster and gored it with his horn till it stuck out of the beast’s chest on the other side. There was then a burst of light that caused the dragons to close their eyes and look away. When they opened them back up to look at the window, the monster was gone and Celestia and Luna were gathered around Accord jumping up and down for joy.
“And that, my friends, is how I saved the princesses.”
There was another burst of light coming from the ground right in front of the dragons and Accord appeared before them in his true physical form.
“ACCORD!” shouted Percy and Penny as they both rushed over to hug him.
“We thought we’d never see you again!” Penny said wrapping her arms tightly around his leg.
“Yeah, we were worried you would never come back!” Percy added.
“Don’t you two worry; I’m not going anywhere.” Accord said warmly. “I needed a break but I am back to do my sworn duty and today will mark the beginning of a new era; just you wait…”
A guard then entered the room to speak to Accord.
“Senator, the audience has gathered for your address. They await you on the main balcony.” said the guard.
“So be it. Is there a multitude as I requested?” Accord asked.
“Most definitely. Nearly all of the citizens of Everfree have heard of your return and are out there to listen.”
“Thank you, guard. You are dismissed.”
The guard bowed and then went back to his post as Accord walked out of the Royal Wing with Percy and Penny following close behind.
“Are you going to let everyone know you’re back, Accord?” Percy asked.
“Oh they already know that I’m back, Percy. What they need to know is that I am here to stay and that I have plans for the betterment of ponykind.” Accord said.
“It’s good to have you back Accord.” Penny said respectfully as Accord turned and smiled at them.
“And I am very happy to be back here Penny.”
He then turned and opened the door with magic and was escorted by two guards to take him to the balcony.
“Penny, let’s go to the tower to see him give his speech!” Percy said grabbing his little sister by the hand.
The dragons ran off towards one of the back entrances that led to the tower to go watch him. Meanwhile, Celestia and Luna were already in the tower sitting on pillows and staring in amazement at the large crowd that had gathered to listen to Accord.
“So what will Accord be telling them, Tia?” Luna asked her sister.
“Father says Accord will make amends by renewing the city.” Celestia replied. “I’m not entirely sure what he means by that but it sounds like he wants to help out more than he ever has.”
“Whatever he does, he’ll do something very good.” Luna responded happily. “Accord always does what is right.”
“Did he start yet?! Did we miss anything?!” Percy said coming in panting a little with Penny.
“Not yet, Percy. Sit down with us and watch.” Celestia said using her magic to bring in two other pillows for them.
“I’m excited to see what he’ll say to the crowd!” said Penny sitting next to Luna.
“So your parents think you guys are ready to start learning how to lead?” Percy asked Celestia.
“They sure do.” Celestia told him. “Father says we can start our lessons today. Right Luna?”
“Right! And I can’t wait to start!” Luna said tapping her hooves together in excitement.
“That’s awesome! Are you and Celestia going to get your crowns soon?” Penny asked Luna.
“Not sure… but Father said we’ll have a long time before we can actually lead.” Luna replied.
“Shhhh, everyone, Accord’s coming out!” Celestia said as the other three sat still without saying a word.
Back down at the main balcony, guards were surrounding the edge and the crowd was murmuring loudly. Accord could not yet be seen but he was entering as one of the guards stepped forward to introduce him.
“Citizens of the castle town of Everfree, Senator Accord of Equestria has returned from a holiday and requests an audience. He will speak to you now.”
The crowd roared with applause as Accord stepped out of the shadow created by the walls of the balcony entrance and into the light. He put his hoof up and waved to them smiling delightfully.
“Thank you! Thank you all!” he called to them and then gestured for them to quiet down. The applause stopped and Accord cleared his throat to speak to his people in the Royal Everfree Voice.
“Our dearest friends, earth, pegasus, unicorn, and alicorn ponies alike, we cometh to thou this day seeking thy forgiveness for our absence. We hath been apart from thee for far too long. In our solitude, we hath experienced such anguish and sorrow over leaving thy good ponies of Everfree. So much loneliness we hath endured during our holiday; we know we hath made a grave mistake in leaving the palace…”
Accord paused for a moment and looked down. He thought heavily about what he needed to tell everyone; the reason why he was here speaking to them now.
“We left because our thoughts were in a mighty conundrum … saddened for a reason we cannot explain. We felt there was a lack of progress; a lack of responsibility we felt we needed to have. But we, your loving and kind senator and wise alicorn, hath returned and knoweth now what we must do. The ponies of Everfree need to know that they are very much thought of and cared for.”
With both eyebrows lowered and a solemn but just face, Accord turned again to his people and spoke.
“From this day forth, we shall see to it that thine citizens of Everfree…no, all of Equestria, shall be taken care of. The poor shall not be ignored. The village shall be renovated. The market shall flourish. We shall see to it that this strong country will never fall and continue to thrive in beauty and sustenance. If we shall have to even sacrifice our own earnings to do it, then so be it. We are forever in your service and here to enrich thy lives and we shall see to it that all goes according to plan.”
The ponies in the crowd stomped their hooves and shouted “Huzzah” loudly for the senator they loved. Accord’s face then went from solemn to sympathetic. He placed his hoof in the air to quiet the crowd down to speak one last time to them.
“If I may…” he said reverting back to casual speak “I would like to now speak to you all without using the traditional speak…”
The audience quieted down and listened. Whenever Accord needed to talk regularly, he was about to say something important and deep.
“I just would like to let you all know that I am very happy to see you all once again. I’ve been very foolish lately. Honestly, I have. Leaving you all like this? It is my duty to watch after you all and that is what I plan on doing. Now your dear and faithful princesses, Celestia and Luna, are both ready to begin learning what must be done to lead this country next, but I shall help them along the way. Equestria will soon change for the better and I promise to do all in my power to give you all what you need. Mares and gentlecolts…it is a pleasure to be back.”
The ponies once again cheered loudly for Accord as he turned and walked back into the palace where the monarchs and other members of the parliament were waiting for him.
Meanwhile in the tower above, the princesses and the dragons were busy cheering for their friend as well.
“That is our friend Accord!” said Luna stomping joyfully on the ground.
“He’s such a great speaker!” shouted Penny.
“You have no idea…” Celestia said happily looking down at the massive crowd of ponies that were still stomping their hooves on the ground in applause. A few moments later they ceased and started to make their way back to their homes. Some of the ponies in the crowd appeared to be homeless or in poverty. Celestia could only think of how even the needy and downtrodden citizens loved Accord so much. He promised he would help them all out and he was good at keeping his promises. Accord was known for being very selfless and charitable so there was no doubt in the young princess’s mind that he would keep true to his word and help the ponies.
For the first time ever, Celestia envied Accord. She wished she could be as wise and powerful as him. It almost seemed unfair how good of a leader he was and she still had a lot to learn. It was odd how she and her sister were the heirs to the throne and not Accord. Although she supported her parents’ decision to hand over leadership to them, she thought of how much easier it would be if Accord were in her position. He may be a better choice but he could still teach her to be just as wise one day. She let the thought of his superiority keep her going so that she and Luna may learn from him.
“Sister?” Luna asked putting her hoof on Celestia’s hoof. “What ails you?”
“Oh, it’s nothing Luna.” Celestia said trying to shrug off her thoughtfulness. “Just happy to have him back I suppose. Well, anyways, you and I have a lot to get done…” Celestia said stepping off of her pillow.
“Oh yes, how could I forget that the lessons begin today?!”
“Well, then what are we waiting for? We best go see mother and father right now and start our work!”
Celestia and Luna both took off flying from their tower and towards the Main Court where their parents were waiting for them.
“And we have some errands to run today Penny.” Percy told his sister.
“Oh right!” Penny said jumping off of her pillow to stand back on the ground. “Tia and Luna have a lot of papers they’ll be getting and we gotta bring them in for the professors and stuff!”
“Right, so let’s hop to it!”
Percy and Penny then ran down the spiral staircase to go see the professors where they would instruct them on today’s errands.
Meanwhile, Solmidas and Chernalia were speaking with Accord in the Main Court before the princesses arrived to begin lessons.
“Accord, I’m proud of you for the speech you gave to our people today.” the king said to his old friend. “You give them hope as always and it is very generous of you to set aside some of your own wages to help them out.” Solmidas said.
“Well my wages are as great as any senator in your courts my king, and poverty still exists so I hope I can balance things out. It’s better to be generous and poor than to be selfish and rich.”
“Do you really think poverty is a tremendous problem in this city Accord?” the queen asked a bit worriedly.
“Oh no, not a tremendous one; not at all, my queen. You are both doing a good job of keeping things in order and the economy stable, but I want every pony to feel equally treated. Plus, I don’t think it’s poverty that is the problem here…”
The king and queen glanced at each other somewhat puzzled by Accord’s words. What did Accord mean when he said that he didn’t think poverty was the problem? Was there something that they had both neglected doing that only he could see?
“It’s a long story…” Accord continued, “…but fear not, I will take care of everything once the courts are in session in a few moments.”
Celestia and Luna then entered the main court through a side door. With Celestia saying “AHEM.” the three alicorns turned their heads to see both of them smiling and ready to begin their studies.
“Well, I’ve done my part, but you two have more important matters to attend to so I’ll leave you to your daughters now. Teach them well.” Accord said gladly stepping aside.
“Thank you, senator.” the queen replied.
“Mother, Father, is it time?” said Luna walking in with her sister.
“It is time, Luna.” the king said to her.
“Are you girls ready then to begin your lessons?” the queen asked her daughters.
Celestia and Luna then both looked at one another with confidence and gave nods of approval.
“We are ready.” they said in unison.
The king and queen then walked towards a door that lead to the educational center of the palace where they would begin training.
“Then follow us.” said the king. “We’ll show you the learning quarters over in the educational center and the instructors you will be seeing.”
“Can you believe it sister?!” Luna said to Celestia. “There are some rooms back here that we have never been in before!”
Celestia giggled.
“Ah, or maybe some rooms that YOU haven’t been in but I have, little sister…” she teased.
“HEY!”
Accord stood proudly next to Starswirl watching the royals make their way to the educational center.
“Do you think their studies will go well Starswirl?” Accord asked the unicorn wizard.
“It will take some time but they will get there, my friend.” Starswirl replied. “In all the years I’ve trained them, they haven’t let me down and they have always been able to get through the toughest of situations I’ve seen.”
“I just hope they are prepared for the challenge, they are still quite young.”
“True……but the King seems to think they are ready though. Besides, it will be a while before they can actually lead. Lessons do come first after all.”
“Yes……I can still remember when Sol was asked to lead. It was different with him though; he had been around for a couple thousand years and knew enough about politics and diplomacy to do it.”
“You will be there for the princesses as you were there for the king in your youth, Accord. You can help them. I meanwhile will do my best to help them.” Starswirl said.
Accord turned to Starswirl to speak.
“You’re right. I will always be here to teach them. I just hope I have the time to. These next few months may be rather busy for me and I hope I can persuade the other delegates with my plans.”
“You’ve been a good help to the royal family, Accord.” Starswirl told him. “I’m glad you are back here and are ready to help the kingdom.”
“Thank you Starswirl. Now if you’ll excuse me, there is an entire courtroom of senators waiting for me to get back to work…” Accord said walking off to see some of the other senator ponies who started entering the Main Court.
“Good luck, old friend.” Starswirl told him.
Starswirl watched as the wise old senator started greeting some of the other senators. They were all very glad to meet him and were even happier about the speech he had just given.
He could tell that there was a big change in Accord. The last time he had spoken with him, he seemed very saddened by something but he appeared to have come back to his senses now. It was a somewhat sudden change, but at least he was himself once again. In all the years Starswirl had known him and taught him powerful magic, he had no doubt Accord was still a pony of his word and would live up to his name.
Besides the good news of Accord returning, Starswirl was more eager for the princesses. They were growing up so fast and already starting lessons on diplomacy, history, and more. It seemed time had passed so quickly since Celestia was born. The thought of the two precious daughters of Solmidas and Chernalia moving on with their lives caused a warm feeling to come over his heart.
Starswirl turned back to the corridor and took a small pan flute out from underneath his robe. He began playing an ancient melody of the time in which Equestria was founded: a magical melody from a song they wrote one Hearth’s Warming Day but was usually played all year long in Everfree. It was a song of joy that the ponies would sing during very happy and successful times and Starswirl found this day to be the perfect day to be playing it. The halls quietly resounded with the music from his flute as he continued walking through the castle.
TO BE CONTINUED...