//------------------------------// // A Talent And A Princess // Story: Soren the Alicorn Part 1: New Beginnings // by KingNyroc15 //------------------------------// Twilight Sparkle was staring at the scene before her. It was the morning following Soren's arrival in Ponyville. Twilight welcomed Soren to sleep in the library for the night. Now it was tomorrow, and Twilight Sparkle, Soren, and the princess were the only ponies in the library. Twilight watched the princess move around Soren, staring at him in almost every direction. All the while Soren was staring at Luna strangely. He started looking at the princess like that ever since she arrived at the library. Was he scared of her? Twilight pondered. Was he nervous? No. Curious? Or... As Twilight Sparkle became lost in her own thoughts, Soren kept staring at the most beautiful mare he has ever laid eyes on. He made sure his expression was decently hidden as the princess examined him. Finally, Princess Luna addressed Twilight, while still looking at Soren. "Tis strange that this pony, an alicorn no less, is trapped in a younger body. He is about your age, Twilight Sparkle; you and your friends. Tell me, young one, does thou remember how this happened?" Soren was so mesmerized by her accent that he almost didnt hear the question; he just kept staring...until Twilight nudged him. "Wait...what?" Soren stammered. "No, I can't remember much of anything at the moment." Luna stared at him for a moment before looking at the door. "Twilight Sparkle. We will need to ponder on this situation and think of a course of action. Do what you will until we return." With that said, Princess Luna left the library, leaving Soren and Twilight alone in the main room. "Well, Soren," Twilight started. "I think we might need our friends' help on this one. Who would you like to ask for help first?" Soren thought that was an interesting question. He gave an answer and they made their way towards Sweet Apple Acres. --------------------- Many Hours Later --------------------- Where are we going so wrong? Twilight thought to herself. First, he did some work at the apple orchard. Then, we met with Rarity, but Soren didn't find anything interesting. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were nowhere to be found until now. And now, Fluttershy is helping him with caring for animals, yet nothing is triggering a memory of his talent! As Twilight was lost in inner frustration, Fluttershy was instructing Soren on how to make scared animals come out of hiding. "If the poor things are too scared to come out, then all you need to do is sing to them." Fluttershy then proceeded to demonstrate her singing voice by vocalizing a few notes. A good amount of animals came out of hiding after hearing that. Much to Fluttershy's dismay, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie then decided to scare them again so Soren could try. "Now you," Fluttershy said. Soren wasn't very confident in this, but he was about to give it his all anyway. Soren stood still, focusing on the notes Fluttershy sang. He started softly but then built up pitch and volume. Twilight noticed that his horn started to softly glow. As Soren sang a few notes, animals slowly came out of hiding. The six mares stopped to stare at Soren and his singing voice. Soren stopped singing and looked around at the shocked expressions on his friends' faces. "Was I really that good?" Soren asked. Pinkie gave a huge smile and pointed to his flank. Soren, including his friends, looked at his flank to discover a cutie mark that resembled a 6-sided gem. The gem had pale-ish rainbow colors all over it. It was a wonderful sight. But why a gem if i can sing' Soren thought. "Wow!" Pinkie exclaimed. "It's so shiny! Hey, Soren, do you wanna try singing at the welcome party I'm throwing for you? Maybe you can sing alone and impress everypony, maybe even the princess." The second Pinkie Pie said 'princess,' Soren almost shouted 'Yes!' but he kept his cool. Pinkie said the party wasn't until later tonight, so that gave Soren enough time to think of what he could sing. ------------------------ Later That Night ------------------------ At the party in Sugarcube Corner, Soren was listening to a impressive DJ pony, called...well DJ Pon3. Her actual name was Vinyl Scratch. She was a very pale yellow-white coated unicorn with many blues in her spiky mane. Sometimes the DJ would team up with a cellist/violinist whom his friends said was Octavia. She was a grey earth pony with a long black mane. She was apparently very upper class and originally from Canterlot. After the two mares were done performing, Soren was supposed to go onstage and sing. Luckily for Soren, he managed to think of a song to sing. The song seemed familiar in a way but he shrugged off the feeling. Once the DJ and the cellist were done performing, Pinkie Pie hopped onto the makeshift stage that was on the right side of the main room and introduced Soren. A round of applause vibrated throughout the little shop as the little pony stepped in front of the crowd. Murmurs were already being heard by Soren, but he assumed it was because he was an alicorn. Shrugging off the crowd's conversations, Soren cleared his throat. He was nervous but calmed himself and sang. I know you've suffered, But I don't want you to hide, It's cold and loveless, I won't let you be denied Soothing, I'll make you feel pure, Trust me, You can be sure I want to reconcile the violence in your heart I want to recognize your beauty is not just a mask, I want to exorcise the demons from your past, I want to satisfy the undisclosed desires in your heart The next part amazed everypony, including Soren. His horn started glowing and his magical aura surrounded nearby instruments. The objects floated near him and started to play themselves. Soren was actually playing instruments with magic...while singing! As the song was being played and sung, Luna walked in mostly unnoticed. She saw that the little alicorn had actually grown in size a little, as if he was started to age. Soren noticed Luna as he continued singing and sensed something, but he didn't know what. You trick your lovers, That you're wicked and divine, You may be a sinner, But your innocence is mine Please me, Show me how it's done, Tease me, You are the one I want to reconcile the violence in your heart, I want to recognize your beauty is not just a mask, I want to exorcise the demons from your past, I want to satisfy the undisclosed desires in your heart Soren had a new passion as he sang, looking at Luna from time to time. The princess' eyes widened slightly as she heard the lyrics. Please me, Show me how it's done, Trust me, You are the one I want to reconcile the violence in your heart, I want to recognize your beauty is not just a mask, I want to exorcise the demons from your past, I want to satisfy the undisclosed desires in your heart The song ended. Some of the crowd stared, open-mouthed. Then everyone applauded. A little alicorn just sang one of the best songs they ever heard in a long time. When Soren was asked about the name of the song after he got offstage, he shrugged and said called it "Undisclosed Desires." Soren looked past the adoring crowd and saw Luna leaving out the front door. With his head starting to hurt from the large use of magic and the loud conversations around him, Soren also left, but he didnt look for Luna. He simply went into the hills at the edge of town and stared at the night sky. Eventually, Soren heard someone walk up to him. He turned his head and saw that it was Princess Luna. She sat down near Soren, also staring at her beautiful night sky. "Twas a great performance," Luna said. "We do not know the last time we heard such a great singer." Soren blushed, and since his coat was white, it was very noticable. "We admire any great musician or artist. It is refreshing to see yet another arise." Luna looked at Soren sincerely. "We still cannot help thee yet, Soren, but we are still trying." Luna stood up and stared at a nearby forest that was the Everfree Forest. "We shall take our leave to think of a solution. For now, Twilight and her friends seem to have this more under control than I. Till we meet again, Soren." After that, Luna flew off into the forest and Soren went back to the library, noticing on the way there that things were a little shorter than he last remembered. --------------- Soren arrived at the library a few minutes later and was surpised to see Twilight and Spike inside. They must have came back after I left the party, he guessed. Soren greeted them and they returned the greeting. "Soren! I'm glad your back. I just sent a letter to Princess Celestia explaining your amazing performance. I still can't believe you were able to use that much magic in your current form." She sounds like such a scholar, Soren chuckled to himself. A letter of response soon found its way into the library near midnight. Twilight didn't read this one out loud, so she summarized it for Soren and Spike. "Princess Celestia is coming tomorrow to see if she can help as well. She says she wants you, Luna, me, and all our friends here when she arrives." Realizing that Luna went into the Everfree Forest, Soren's expression changed to one of concern. Twilight noticed this change. "What is it Soren?" "After I left the party, I met up with Princess Luna. We spoke to me while we looked at the night sky. Afterwards, she went into the Everfree Forest. I dont know if she came out yet." Twilight's expression became scared after Soren's explanation. "What?! We have to go find her. I know she can probably handle herself, but the Everfree isn't safe for anypony! Spike, stay here in case Luna comes back. Send help into the forest if we aren't back within the hour." Spike saluted her, then Twilight and Soren ran out of the library. ----------------- After almost half an hour of searching the creepy forest, Soren and Twilight only became more nervous. When he was about to suggest heading back, Soren heard something. He immediately stopped and listened. There was a slight breeze, but if one listened beyond it, they could hear the faint sound of something else. All of a sudden, he broke into a run. Twilight chased after him. What's that noise? Soren thought. He got close to the sound after a minute of running. Singing! He found himself at a massive ravine between two parts of the forest; a small rickety bridge was connecting the two sides. He quickly but safely crossed the bridge and found a ancient, stone castle on the other side. It looked like it had seen better days. As Soren stood in the entrance, the singing became louder and sounded familiar to him. That's a beautiful voice. I wonder who it is. Twilight crossed the bridge just in time to see Soren run into the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters. She followed him without hesitation. How is he so fast? Twilight wondered. Soren ran into a big, open room in the center of the castle. The room was made entirely of stone and had no roof. One could see a tower in the distance just above the room's wall...and in the center of the room was a blue alicorn singing passionately. "Luna?" Soren asked. Luna quickly turned around, but soon relaxed when she saw who it was. "Why are you singing in this place? You have a beutiful voice by the way." Soren almost blushed from nervousness. He was talking to his crush after all. "Singing is a long lost passion of ours," Luna explained. "We continue this little hobby when we get the chance. Also, we thank thee for the compliment." Soren nodded, looked down, and started thinking. "What is on thou's mind?" Soren looked back up at the beautiful nighttime princess, her ethereal mane flowing in the air. "Would you...like to sing together...maybe?" Luna was slightly surprised at the idea but smiled and accepted nonetheless. They stood side-by-side and started singing. When Twilight ran into the room, she heard the beautiful duet Soren and Luna were singing. She saw the scene before her and could only smile. So it is true. Soren, how come I'm the only one who caught on to you? Twilight chuckled to herself. When they were done singing, Soren and Luna looked at each other and smiled. Very soon, Twilight walked up to Luna. "Luna, we need you back in Ponyville. Celestia is arriving tomorrow and we can't have you exploring the Everfree during her visit, can we?" Luna nodded and led them out of the ruined castle. Soren and Twilight followed behind just far enough away for her to whisper to Soren. "Why didn't you tell me you had a crush on Luna?" Soren quickly turned towards Twilight, surprised and blushing. Twilight only giggled as they followed Luna back to Ponyville. Soren found entertainment in seeing that he was slowly becoming as tall as Twilight.