//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: Bright Beginnings // Story: Hearts of Harmony // by Legrio //------------------------------// Hearts of Harmony A My Little Pony and Kingdom Hearts fanfic Twilight Sparkle eyed the orbs of light dancing about, gritting her teeth around the handle of her keyblade, the Star Seeker. She stood like that for a moment, patterns and calculations running through her mind. Then, with a toss of her head, she burst into action, throwing her weapon into the air. A soft glow emanated from her horn as matching purple light wrapped around the handle of her keyblade, directing it into the path of each and every orb. The mystical weapon lazily arced back towards its master as the orbs burst into shards of light, coming to a stop just before the unicorn as she caught it with ease in her magical field. Letting out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding, the mare let her keyblade vanish in a flash of light. “Wow, that was great, Twilight!” Spike shouted from the sidelines, clapping with his tiny claws. The mare blushed lightly at the praise and waved her hoof dismissively. “Nah, that was nothing Spike, you should have seen me earlAAAAH!” She suddenly screeched as a small bolt of electricity zapped her flank. Growling in anger, she quickly banished the offending light orb with an vicious slash of her keyblade. “My faithful student, you should be more vigilant,” the mistress of the sun, Princess Celestia said, her face stern as she entered the training hall. Twilight looked down shamefully, as her master continued, “I created that last orb after you struck down the others to teach you a valuable lesson, just because you have defeated all of the foes you can see does not mean you have vanquished them all. If that had been a Heartless, you would now be joining their numbers.” If anything, Twilight’s gaze seemed to drop lower. Light laughter brought her eyes back up. “Still, you did very well,” the alicorn said, a smile gracing her face. “Thank you, Princess Celestia,” Twilight said, happy for any praise from her mentor. The princess gracefully nodded in acknowledgement. “Now, that’s enough practice for today. Come along, my faithful student.” The purple coated mare shouted, “Come on, Spike!” “Coming!” he yelled back, running as fast as his little legs could carry him. The three of them walked along the halls of the ancient Canterlot castle, passing stoic guards and reverent councilors. “How have you been doing, Twilight? Have you made any new friends lately?” the princess asked. “Er, I...” Twilight stammered, unsure how to proceed. She knew she hadn’t, even though the princess insisted that she needed to have a life outside of study and training. Luckily, or perhaps unluckily, her ever eager assistant spoke up, “No, she’s spent all morning in the library, then went out to train all afternoon after lunch.” “Spike!” The purple mare hissed. The little dragon apologetically shrugged back. As the apprentice and her assistant began to bicker, the master frowned inwardly. “It isn’t good for her to spend all day cooped up with books and training, especially as a growing wielder of the keyblade. Her heart is strong, and I do not wish to see it darkened by loneliness and resentment. There must be something I can do...” She thought for a moment. “Ah, I know! The Summer Sun Celebration in Ponyville!” Clearing her throat, she cut through the growing argument between Twilight and Spike. “Twilight Sparkle, I have a new assignment for you...” ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ A sigh escaped her lips as Twilight packed away her belongings, mostly books. Behind her, Spike strained to pack more gems into an already overstuffed suitcase. Why in Equestria was the princess sending her out to some little town to preside over their Summer Sun Celebration? Weren’t her magical studies and training more important? After all, besides Princess Celestia she was the only person in the world who could use a keyblade! Maybe... maybe she wasn’t doing good enough anymore? But she’d worked so hard! She didn’t want to be sent away! “Hey Twilight, how are you doing?” She looked up to see one of her favorite ponies in the world. “Big brother!” she exclaimed, jumping up to give Shining Armor a hug. “It’s great to see you! But what are you doing here? I thought you were busy up north?” The armor clad stallion gave a chuckle at his little sister’s overenthusiastic greeting. “It’s great to see you too.” “Hey, a little help here!” Spike called, still wrestling with his pack. Violet magic enveloped the suitcase just as it burst open, catching the various flying gems and setting them neatly inside before closing it. “Thanks, Shining! Wish I had magic like that sometimes,” “I’m sure you’ll grow into your own strengths, Spike,” the stallion said, “It just takes time. And yes, Twilight, we are getting a little busy up north, but I can take a few moments to wish my favorite little little sister good luck on her first assignment outside of Canterlot.” “Favorite? I’m your only little sister!” The purple unicorn exclaimed, making her brother laugh. She sobered quickly though. “But, is it true that there’s been more Heartless appearing lately?” “What?!” the older unicorn shouted, “How’d you find out about that?” Twilight looked down guiltily, “Well, I was looking through some reports for Princess Celestia in the records office one day and there was this red envelope, and well, I kinda opened it up and read it.” The Captain of the Royal Guard sighed. “Look, just keep it to yourself, alright? Yes, there have been more Heartless attacks lately. They’ve been running the Guard ragged trying to keep up. And it’s not just Shadows, we’ve seen some of the larger ones too. But the princess doesn’t seem to be worried, so we’ve been trying to keep it quiet. We don’t want to start a panic.” The stallion placed a hoof on his sister’s shoulder. “Look, don’t worry about it. There haven't been any attacks near Ponyville, so you should be safe. I’m sure it’ll all turn out fine. You just keep your mind on your assignment. ” “Thanks, Shining,” Twilight murmured, enveloping her brother in a hug once more. A few moments later, she let go. Grabbing her and her assistant’s bags, she called, “Come on Spike, we don’t want to be late!” The little dragon rolled his eyes. “Yeah, because I’m the one who spent all morning talking with her brother,” he grumbled. Twilight pretended not to hear. They briskly trotted down the hall towards the awaiting carriage, politely greeting the few early morning attendants and maids working in the castle as they passed. Eventually they walked outside, where the carriage awaited with two armored pegasi already harnessed and ready to go. “Captain Shining Armor, sir!” they said, sharply saluting. “At ease,” the white coated stallion said, as the pegasi relaxed slightly. “Now, you two are going to make sure my little sister gets to Ponyville safely, right?” “Yes, sir!” The duo responded, saluting once more. “Shining!” Twilight exclaimed, “I can take care of myself, you don’t have to keep me safe all the time!” “I know, but hey, that’s what older brothers do,” he responded with a smirk. “You stay safe, alright?” “You too,” Twilight replied. She stepped up into the carriage, her bags floating up after her. Spike scrambled up the steps and closed the door. The two pegasi spread their wings and leapt up into the air, dragging the carriage behind them. Twilight stuck her head out of the window and yelled, “Bye, Shining! See you later!” “Good-bye!” The white unicorn shouted back. Soon, the carriage was but a speck in the distance. “And good luck,” he whispered, before going back inside. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- “I’m just saying, some of these ponies could be really interesting!” Twilight rolled her eyes at Spike’s insistence. “I’ll believe that when I see it,” she replied, looking down at the land passing by far below. Spike sighed in exasperation. “You really should try to make some friends, Twilight. The princess worries about you, you know, alone all day training and studying?” Twilight scowled. She didn’t know why everyone seemed to think she needed friends all of a sudden. She was just fine the way she was! Besides, she had Spike, who was more like a little brother, Shining Armor and her parents, who she didn’t see very often, and Princess Celestia, who was really strict with her... okay, maybe they had a point. Still, she didn’t like being forced into it! The purple mare opened her mouth for a caustic response, but one of the pegasi drivers interrupted. “Miss Sparkle, we’re coming up to Ponyville now.” “Oh, ok!” The unicorn said, grabbing her few bags. Moments later, Twilight and her assistant stepped out of the golden carriage. “Thank you for the smooth flight.” The stallion who spoke earlier said, “It was no trouble at all, miss. Good luck on your assignment!” before taking off once more, leaving the unicorn and the dragon standing alone on the street. “Well, the library the princess set us up at should be this way,” Spike said, looking at a small map before stuffing it back into a side pocket of his suitcase. “Good, we can drop off our stuff and start working on the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration,” Twilight said, already trotting off in the direction indicated. “Look, there’s a pony coming this way!” Spike pointed at the only other figure out at the early hour, an earth pony with a bright pink coat and a cutie mark of three balloons bouncing towards them. “Come on, just try Twilight, please?” Turning to angrily tell him him no, the unicorn faltered under the full power blast of the dragon’s puppy dog eyes. “Ugh, fine!” she grumbled after a moment. With a smile pasted on her face, Twilight turned and greeted the bouncing pink pony. “Hi-” she barely managed to get out before the pink mare let out the largest gasp Twilight had ever heard, then ran off. “Well,” she dryly said, “That was interesting. Come on, let’s get our stuff stowed away at the library.” The duo continued on without further interruption, finally coming to their destination. “Wow,” Spike gasped. Even Twilight had to grudgingly admit that the Golden Oaks Library, built into a huge tree, was rather impressive. Going inside, Twilight admired the neatly ordered shelves before going upstairs to find a bedroom set up suspiciously similar to the one she had back at Canterlot Castle, including a little bed for Spike! “Did the princess...?” she muttered to herself. “What was that?” Spike asked, setting down his suitcase. He popped it open, spilling a few gems which he happily gobbled up. “Oh, nothing!” Twilight quickly replied. She set about putting her books away on a convenient shelf, then trotted back outside, her assistant walking beside her. “So, what’s next on the list?” Unfolding a scrap of paper, Spike answered, “Well, it says here we need to check on the Apple family at Sweet Apple Acres. They’re supposed to be supplying the food for the Celebration. Wait, Apple family of Sweet Apple Acres?” Spike repeated, then burst into laughter. “Real imaginative, aren’t they?” “Spike!” Twilight scolded, even though it was kinda funny. “It’s not nice to make fun of somepony like that, especially when they aren’t around.” “Alright, alright, sorry,” the little dragon apologized as they began walking down the street. Soon, they stood under a sign that read, ‘Sweet Apple Acres’. “Well, let’s get this over with,” Twilight grumbled as they began trotting up the dirt path, passing trees laden with bright red apples. Soon faint sounds began to reach their ears. “Hey Twilight, is that...?” Spike trailed off from atop Twilight’s back. With a flash of light, the unicorn’s keyblade appeared, the handle glowing purple with magic. She knew what that sound was. Screams.