//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: Unknown // Story: The Y of Twilight // by AdamThePony //------------------------------// The Y of Twilight A bittersweet tale of loss and rebirth by Adam J. Nelon and Robert Stewart Chapter 1: Unknown It all started on an evening much like any other. In our time together, Twilight and I had grown closer than I had any pony I'd known in generations. She was wise beyond her years, forgiving in ways even I could not be, bold and determined and the bearer of a sharpened mind. All of these factors led me to set her the task I did. Perhaps one day you can forgive me for that. In my time teaching her, as we grew ever more intimate than mere student and teacher, I was led away from my ivory towers, and into the confined comfort of her domicile. It was a tree of age almost equal to, if not greater than, mine own. Books carefully aligned in some areas, whilst strewn in controlled chaos in others. Twilight loved reading in ways that some ponies would call romantic. She was, after all, enchanted with the idea of knowledge. It was this reason, then, that I sent her a book on her idol, Starswirl the Bearded. An innocent action, simple and innocuous. So too was a confrontation between sisters over jealousy and suffering, and the end result was much the same. I underestimated her, you see, and I did not imagine the potency of her spell weaving. I did not expect her to repair Starswirl's spell, nor did I know the results. It was some light reading between lovers. Of course, as is often the case with such innocence, there comes times wherein inevitable, unavoidable chaos likes to muddy the calm waters. "Coming!" Twilight pranced to the door with an inexplicable glee. Some unseen force had lifted her spirits to the point of singing and dancing in the streets this morning, and she was still riding the emotional high. For some reason, she had a feeling that everything was going to be just fine. This feeling was complicated, though not removed by any stretch of the imagination, by the sight of her on the other side of the doorway. Her Royal Majesty, Regent of the Sun, most beautiful, wonderful creature in the world, Princess Celestia. "I see you're quite eager to see me, Twilight," the princess chuckled, a hoof across her muzzle hiding her curt smile. Twilight flushed. "...I...heh. When am I not?" Twilight cracked a wry, self-deprecating smile. "Is that a trick question?" Celestia said as she gingerly poked her prized student in the chest. "The day you grow tired of me will be the day I go supernova." Twilight only giggled at this, nuzzling into her mentor with an easy smile. "Was it an easy trip from Canterlot?" "We ran into some turbulence on the way," Celestia replied, wrapping a foreleg around Twilight's neck. "Nothing that my prized fliers couldn't handle, however." Twilight only answered this with a nuzzle. "I don't, err, mean to be rude, but...Usually you only come to visit me this early for a reason. Is something wrong? Is Luna alright? Did the report go over well with the magistrate? Did my last friendship report meet your standards?" Twilight's lip folded with worry. "Nothing of the sort, my dear student!" Celestia happily balked. "I was only wishing to see you in person for once. Perhaps check on your progress." "Oh! Well, okay. What about court, though?" Twilight ignored the voice in the back of her head screaming at her to shut up and accept the chance for free cuddles. "I've postponed it to later in the afternoon," the princess replied matter-of-factly. "The issues that were to be brought up are not exactly pressing." "Oh. Well, okay." Twilight naturally didn't believe she was worth canceling court over, but she was able to rest easier knowing nothing pressing was weighing on the Princess, and, despite her reservations, she knew that Celestia valued her presence, and that some time together would do them both good. "Shall we go inside?" Celestia offered. "Or are we to stand out here and soak in the morning sun?" "Mmm, you know I like to soak in your work. I don't know why, but I feel sunny for some reason today. Maybe we could go onto the balcony?" Twilight offered, knowing Celestia would almost certainly agree. "I don't see why not," the princess replied, smiling. "Shall I bring you up with me, or are you fine going by yourself?" Twilight drew closer to the Princess. "I'd say both are true. Bring me up with you?" She offered, smile equal parts easy and hopeful. The princess nuzzled her student, lifting her onto her back with her magic. "As you wish." With this, Celestia carried Twilight gingerly up with her wings, taking a short series of heavy flaps upwards to the balcony. In times past, the princess was oft to use this extension of the library as an impromptu landing pad in previous altercations. Today would not be a day for a hard landing, however. At least, not yet. As her hooves met the wooden surface, she gracefully closed her wings, lowering her head to allow Twilight to disembark. Twilight easily stepped off Celestia, blushing at the thoughts of other, less chaste thoughts of doing just this she had had. It was only then that she noticed Celestia's saddlebag. "What do you have there, Princess?" She motioned her head towards the brown bag for emphasis. "Oh these?" Celestia teased, beginning to slide out some books from her bag. "I thought I'd bring you a present for being such a wonderful student." "M-me...?" Twilight blushed, looking pointedly away from Celestia with a blush. "Of course, silly!" the princess giggled. "Plus, I brought something particularly special for you." Twilight attempted to regain her composure. "Really? What's that, ehe..." The princess pursed her lips teasingly as she presented a rather aged black book to Twilight. The cover depicted an ancient unicorn symbol, and looked slightly worn. The pages were something of a tan color now, but the text was still perfectly legible. Twilight's eyes shone, her inhibitions lowered by the chance to pursue knowledge in any form. She immediately gripped the book, unintentionally clasping her hooves around Celestia's as she did, so studying the cover with a curious squint. "What is it, Princess?" "Only the personal journal of your idol," the princess teased in a singsong voice. "Wh-what?!" Twilight immediately wrenched it from Celestia's hooves, opening it and flipping through the pages. "Wait! No...I can't just rush through this. This should be savoured." Twilight ran a tender hoof down the cover of the book. "This is...beautiful. But...but it's so damaged!" Twilight looked down at the worn pages and the wrinkled cover with a motherly frown. The princess chuckled as she watched her student critique the book like a jeweler would a diamond. Truly, Twilight had an eye for books that most ponies wouldn't even notice. Every bit of age, wear and tear seemed to be clear as day to her. "Shhh...it's okay. Mommy's got you now. Nopony can hurt you." Twilight cradled the book protectively, tenderly shielding it from the world with her body. "I was hoping you could restore it," Celestia stated simply. "The last few pages appear incomplete, but if you are able to somehow complete it..." "Me? I could never...never write in such a priceless historical artifact! This should be in a museum, not a collection. But...uh...I'd love to study it, if you'd like." Twilight looked down at the book, still concerned over the appearance. "Please do, Twilight." the sun mare said with a smile. "I'd love to see just what you might come up with." "Heh. Well...I...okay. But, uh, until then, do you want to catch up?" Twilight's eyes shone hopefully. "Of course," Celestia replied with a smile. y_Y_y The sky exploded in a purple star over Ponyville, the glare visible even from Canterlot. It was a blast of such radiance and magnitude that even Princess Celestia was stirred from her slumber. As quick as her body would allow her, she raced out of bed, haphazardly donning her regalia before taking flight. "Could it be time already?" she thought aloud as she glided down the mountainside. Something was wrong. Twilight's presence didn't register on the plane of magic she normally would. Celestia's heart hammered in her chest, her gaze constricting slightly. Her wings took her to where the star was descending. The Everfree Forest. The Castle Of The Royal Sisters. An ancient relic of a bygone era, engulfed by the possibly sentient forest in which it was nestled. Celestia's breath caught in her throat. Equal parts nostalgia and fear came to her mind as she strode inside, her eyes scanning every corner they could in search of her student. She regained her breath as she found a familiar frame, and her smile became overjoyed when she saw the wings nestled on Twilight's back, flapping uncertainly. Twilight's eyes stared at the wings with wonder, the childlike innocence Celestia so loved writ large across her face. She gave one an experimental flap, not noticing Celestia's presence. "Twilight!" Celestia called out, her wings flapping gleefully as she pranced to her student. Twilight's eyes widened, and her lips pursed in a whimper. Hooves pinwheeling, she backpedaled as fast as her hooves could take her, stumbling and writhing along the floor. "No, Twilight, it's me!" Celestia said in a softer tone. "Princess Celestia, remember?" Twilight flinched at the words, terror in her eyes. It was then that she tripped on a hoof, scattering her body across the floor. She screamed at the sudden sensation of hitting the ground, hooves covering her head as she whimpered. "Twilight?" the Princess asked, slowly approaching her with worry, her eyes softening. "Do you recognize me?" Twilight blinked up at her, uncertainty in her eyes. Celestia gulped as she heard deafening silence from her student. Something was very clearly wrong. She had planned for Twilight to ascend her status as a student and become a princess like herself, but she did not anticipate that Twilight would end up here, much less not even recognize her. "You don't remember... Anything?" Celestia asked, her aloof facade slowly breaking away as the voice changed from fear to begging. "Ce...Ce?" Twilight looked at the creature before her, uncertain of the expression it showed. "Celestia," the princess completed. "Suh-less-tee-uh." "Ce...les...ti...ah?"