Chapter 12: A Day Turned Sour
Dawn Light was more than a little impatient for the family picnic he’d asked for. It had been three weeks since he and his friends were privileged to ride in the airship of none other than Fancy Pants. Today, however, was the day it could finally happen. Blue Blood wasn’t too sure about whether or not he would enjoy this, but Dawn Light wouldn’t let him say no. So, albeit reluctantly, he agreed to it. Dawn Light was beaming with joy at the thought of spending time with his family. Today was the perfect day for it too, the sky was clear, the sun was shining bright, and it was a nice warm day for a picnic. Little did Dawn know that in addition to matching the schedules of the other family members, Celestia had also coordinated with the weather teams of Canterlot in order to provide what she would envision as the perfect picnic for Dawn. Dawn was skipping down the halls with Night Wing and Silver Spark close behind and Tooky flying alongside him. Dawn’s joy was proving infectious as the guards couldn’t help but smile as well.
“You are certainly excited about this, aren’t you your majesty?” Silver Spark asked.
Dawn stopped his hopping and looked to Silver Spark to answer. “You bet I am. This will be the first time my whole family has been together for something like this in ages.” It was then a thought suddenly crossed his mind. His smile quickly faded as he began to think through what he just said. He looked down and to the side. With everything that had been going on since his return, Dawn had completely forgotten about something important. He just couldn’t believe he had forgotten.
The two guards looked at Dawn with worry. “Sire, are you all right?” Night Wing asked.
Dawn quickly smiled again as he answered. “I’m fine.” He simply answered.
“Are you sure? You seemed a little down just now.” Silver pointed out.
“Really, I’m ok. Come on, let’s keep going.” Dawn said. He just walked the rest of the way to where he would meet up with his sisters. The Guards were concerned about his sudden change in attitude, but decided it’d be best left alone.
Dawn soon met up with them at the platform where the carriages were waiting and saw his big sisters waiting for him. “Hello sisters, I’m ready for our picnic.”
“Hello Dawn, I’d figured as much.” Celestia said with a smile. There was a large basket sitting next to her with a red and white checkered blanket covering the top.
“A pleasure to see you little brother.” Luna stated. The three shared a Brief hug then separated as dawn asked a question.
“So when are the other’s coming?” Dawn asked as Tooky perched on his back.
“I’m here, no need to be so impatient.” The sound of Blue Blood’s voice rang out as he approached.
“Hello nephew, it’s good to see you this morning.” Dawn greeted cheerfully.
Blue Blood just rolled his eyes at Dawn. “Whatever, I’m only coming along because you wouldn’t let me say no.” He faked a smile, as if he was being sarcastic, and though its hollow meaning was missed by Dawn, the Sisters saw right through it.
Celestia gave Blue Blood a stern look. “Blue Blood…” Celestia started.
Blue Blood cut her off. “I know auntie. I’ll behave.”
Celestia’s smile returned. “Good. The others should be arriving soon.”
No sooner had she said this then two open carriages pulled by pegasai flew over some nearby trees and into view. Cadence and Shining Armor were in one while Twilight and Spike were in another, and a third carriage trailed behind without any passengers. Dawn beamed happily upon seeing his family. As soon as they stepped out, Dawn rushed over and hugged Twilight and Spike. Tooky flew over with Dawn to greet them as well. “Hey Twilight, hey Spike, it’s so good to see you again.”
Twilight and Spike smiled as they hugged back. “It’s good to see you again too Dawn, how have you been?” Twilight asked.
“Yeah, have anything new going on?” Spike asked.
They broke their hug as Dawn answered. “I’ve been fine, though nothing new is going on.”
Tooky squawked to get their attention. Twilight giggled as she held out a foreleg for Tooky to perch on. “Hello Tooky, it’s good to see you too.” Tooky squawked in greeting.
Spike walked up to Twilight and gave Tooky a scratch on his chest. “Hey there little buddy.” Tooky closed his eyes in content and fluffed his feathers.
“There’s my favorite cousin, come here you.” Cadence said as she suddenly scooped Dawn up in a tight hug.
Dawn happily returned it. “Hey Cadence, it’s good to see you again.”
Shining armor then greeted after Cadence released Dawn. “Hey there kid. Good seeing you.”
Dawn wrapped his forelegs around Shining’s neck in a hug. “Hey Shining, I’m glad you and Cadence could make it.”
“Hey, no problem. Besides, this sounds like fun and we could use a bit of a break from ruling a kingdom.” Shining stated.
That was when Tooky flew over to greet them as well. Cadence held out a foreleg for Tooky to perch on. “Hello Tooky.” Tooky squawked a hello.
Luna had been speaking with the guards pulling the carriages up till now, at which time she rejoined the group. “Now that we are all here, shall we be on our way to the picnic spot?” She asked.
“You bet, let’s go!” Dawn cheered as he dashed to one of the carriages. “I call dibs riding with Blue Blood!” He shouted again.
“Excuse me?” Blue Blood stated.
“Come on Blue Blood, let’s go.” Dawn said as he jumped into one of the waiting carriages. Tooky flew after and perched on the front railing of the carriage.
“Go on Blue Blood, perhaps this will give you two the time to talk so you can work out your problems.” Celestia urged.
Blue Blood sighed with a roll of his eyes. “Fine, I suppose I can put up with him for a short ride.” Blue Blood walked over to the carriage and sat next to Dawn Light. Twilight and Spike re-boarded the carriage that brought them there, while Cadence and Shining did the same. Celestia and Luna boarded another carriage while Celestia held the basket in her magic. Once she and Luna were seated, Celestia placed the basked between them. The carriages then took off and flew into the sky.
During the flight, Dawn decided that it was time to try and see if he could patch things up with his nephew. “Blue Blood, you aren’t still mad at me for that prank me and Discord pulled are you? I said I was sorry and I meant it.”
Blue Blood grunted internally. “No, uncle, I am not still mad at you about that.”
Dawn smiled at the news, but frowned again. “Then, why don’t you like me?”
Blue Blood paused for a moment, gazing over the side of the carriage before he turned his nose up as he answered. “You fraternize with commoners.”
Dawn Light then cocked an eyebrow. “So? What’s wrong with that?”
Blue then looked down at Dawn. “You are a prince, yet you insist on mingling with common ponies. Most of whom aren’t even slightly wealthy.”
Dawn was still confused. “And what’s wrong with mingling with ponies that aren’t rich? They’re still ponies. Why can’t I just talk with them and meet them?”
“Why should I even bother explaining it? You don’t even have your cutie mark yet. How can you be a proper prince when you’re markless?”
Dawn shot a glare at Blue Blood. “What does having a cutie mark have to do with being a prince?”
“You haven’t found your special talent yet. You can’t be a proper prince if you don’t know what you’re special talent is. As far as I’m concerned, you are NOT a prince.” Blue Blood turned his nose up again and away from Dawn. “So in hindsight I guess its fine if you socialize with the common folk, considering you might as well be one of them.”
Dawn Light stared at Blue Blood for a moment with a frown. He then turned away and hung his head in sadness. The rest of the ride to the picnic would be spent in an uncomfortable silence for Dawn. He dared not say another word to Blue Blood, and instead just mulled his nephews words over and over in his head.
The carriages soon came to an open field at the edge of a wooded area, providing a nice open area for the picnic while also giving a nearby source of shade. Blue Blood was the first to get off the carriage. Dawn jumped down and walked over to where his sisters were, moping all the way. Tooky flew along next to Dawn, looking at him with worry. Tooky Squawked to get Dawn’s attention, but Dawn kept his head low and continued on.
Twilight was just getting off her carriage and was taking out a basket she brought, along with a bag when she saw Dawn walking past her hanging his head. “Dawn Light, are you ok?” She asked with concern.
Dawn stopped in his tracks and looked over to Twilight. He looked down again in front of him, shook his head and put on a smile. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure, you looked pretty down there for a moment.”
“Yes, I’m ok, I was just…..thinking about something.” Dawn lied; he didn’t want Twilight to worry about him. And, in hopes of at least trying to get along with Blue Blood, didn’t want to get him in trouble for what he had said on the ride over.
“Well, ok then. If you’re sure.” Twilight responded. She then smiled. “I brought a few games we can play while we’re here.”
“Neat, thanks Twilight.”
“You’re welcome.”
Once every pony was off the carriages, the pegasi took off again and headed back to the castle.
Dawn continued his way to his sisters where he offered to help them set things up. “That won’t be necessary Dawn, why don’t you and Spike go play while we get things ready.” Celestia responded.
“Ok, if you’re sure you don’t need my help.” Dawn said with a small smile.
Spike reached into the bag Twilight brought and pulled out a frisbee. “Come on Dawn, let’s go play some catch with this.”
“Sure…..wait…..what is that?” Dawn asked curiously as he eyed the strange flat disk in Spike’s claws.
Spike was stunned to hear Dawn say that. After a moment, he shook his head and responded. “It’s called a Frisbee. Haven’t you ever seen one before?” Spike asked.
“Um, no, we didn’t have those back when I was around.” Dawn answered.
Spike slumped in the wake of his forgetfulness. “Right, sorry. Ok, it’s real simple, I toss it and you try to catch it, then you toss it back and I try to catch it. Oh, and no using your magic to catch it.” Spike instructed.
“Why?”
“Cause it’ll be more fun that way. Trust me.”
“Well, ok, if you say so.” Dawn said with a smile, feeling better and managing to forget Blue Blood’s words. The two ran out into the field to play while Tooky perched himself on a branch in the tree nearest where the older ponies were preparing the picnic.
Cadence sat and watched Dawn play with Spike while Twilight and Shining Armor helped Celestia set up the picnic. She could hear his laughter as he enjoyed the game of catch with a Frisbee with Spike, regardless of how many times he tried to catch the Frisbee with the side of his face or his forehead. “Ah to be young again.” She said to herself as she giggled.
Luna came up next to her and sat on her haunches. “Dawn Light truly is a joy to be around. He is so eager to meet other ponies and try to bring joy everywhere he goes.”
“Maybe he can be the alicorn of happiness.” Cadence suggested with a small laugh.
Luna joined in the laugh as well. “Perhaps so, he does seem to have a talent for bringing joy to others.”
A few minutes later, the picnic was set up. Various kinds of Food were spread out across the blanket, ready to be eaten. Celestia Looked to Dawn and Spike; both were having fun, though Dawn was still struggling to get the hang of playing with a Frisbee. “Dawn, Spike, the food is ready!” Celestia called.
“Coming!” Dawn called back after tossing the Frisbee with his magic to Spike.
Spike managed to catch it and ran back with Dawn Light. “Oh boy, I’m hungry.”
Tooky squawked from his perch and flew after them.
Dawn took a seat between his sisters, Spike sat next to Twilight and Shining sat next to Cadence. Blue Blood sat at a spot Between Luna and Shining. Tooky landed in front of Dawn. “Dig in every pony.” Shining said happily. They all did so with smiles, except for Blue Blood who just had a straight muzzle. Every pony enjoyed their meal as they ate and chatted a bit, talking about various subjects.
Once the meal was over, Dawn had an idea for something he thought would be fun. “Hey every pony, I just had an idea for something fun.”
“Oh, what’s that Dawn?” Cadence asked.
“How about a race? A flying race.” Dawn cheered.
“Dawn, you do know not every pony here has wings right?” Spike pointed out.
“I know, I just thought it might be fun.” Blue Blood had remained relatively stiff and emotionless up to this point, yet the innocent ignorance of Dawn made him roll his eyes. He looked to Twilight. “What do you say Twilight, want to race?”
Twilight gave a light smile as she politely refused. “I think I’ll pass, races aren’t really my thing. Plus I don’t think I’m a good enough flyer to be in a race just yet.”
“Awe.” Dawn pouted. He then turned to Cadence. “Cadence, what about you, please.”
Cadence declined politely as well. “Sorry Dawn, I’m not much of a racer, especially after a big meal.”
Dawn was starting to lose hope in his idea. He turned to his sisters in the hopes they would accept. “Celly, Lulu, please. I just know it’ll be fun.”
Celestia smiled as Dawn gazed up at his sister with longing eyes and his lip jutting out in a pout. “Okay, okay, I just can’t say no to that face of yours.”
“I will participate as well. It does sound fun.” Luna said with a smile of her own.
Dawn was beaming now. “All right!”
“Where shall we race to?” Luna asked.
Dawn looked around the area a moment. “Oh, I know. See that tree over there?” Dawn pointed to a tree about two miles away and on a hill. “We’ll race to that tree and back. First one back wins.”
“As they say, YOU ARE SO ON!” Luna exclaimed with gusto.
“But don’t think you can go easy on me just because I’m your little brother.” Dawn said with a smirk, stretching his wings and trotting in place.
“All right, Just remember you asked for it.” Celestia said with a smile.
Twilight Sparkle giggled, thinking to herself about all the years she’d known Princess Celestia, and yet she’d never seen her act as casually as she did around Dawn.
Shining Armor volunteered to be the referee for the race. The three siblings lined up with Luna on one end, Dawn in the middle, and Celestia on the other end. They all stood in a ready position with their front low to the ground and their wings spread forward, ready to give an initial burst of speed. “All right, on my signal.” Shining said as he raised a hoof. Dawn sat as determined as anypony there had yet seen him; just as any foal would, he seemed to be taking this race much more seriously than his older sisters.
“On your mark,” Dawned Raised his flank and stretched his wings ever more forward.
“Get set,” His shoulder muscles tightened in preparation for his jump forward into what he believed would be a solid hold on first place.
“GO!”
Their muscles snapped and, in a burst of speed, the three siblings took off like a shot. Dawn managed to keep up with them for the first hundred meters or so, but soon realized he was starting to lag behind Luna, who at the time was roughly even with Celestia. “Come on Dawn, you can do this.” He thought to himself. He poured on more speed as he flew and managed to pass both Luna and Celestia. He managed to round the tree first with Celestia on his tail. “YEAH!” Dawn cheered, thinking with all confidence that he was now in the lead. His smile was a mile wide as he continued back to the picnic site. His victory was short-lived, as Celestia came up next to him with a smirk.
“See you at the finish line little brother!” Celestia called. Luna then passed by him as well.
Dawn was not pleased with this. Distant Memories of long-gone bullies began to surface as he slowly lagged into third place.
“He’s supposed to be a prince? Where is his cutie mark?” Dawn cringed as he tried to focus on the race.
“How can he be a proper prince? He can’t seem to do anything?” His brow furrowed in frustration as he tried harder, yet his sisters seemed only to get farther away.
“How are we supposed to accept him as a prince when he doesn’t even know what he’s good at? Is he even good at anything? He can’t run or fly fast, and he seems to fail at everything he tries.”
Dawn Light felt a pain grow in his heart. Then Blue Blood’s words echoed in his head as well. “How can you be a proper prince when you don’t even have your cutie mark?”
Dawn narrowed his eyes. “I am good at something, I’ll prove it.” Dawn said with confidence to himself. “I’ll prove it by winning this race!” Somehow, the race had changed without him realizing it from a fun activity, to a trial of self-vindication.
He poured on as much speed as he could to try and catch up to his sisters. Dawn closed his eyes and gritted his teeth to try as hard as he could. He gained on them, but with little time to spare.
Celestia was the first to reach the finish, followed by Luna who gave a smile at her sister. “Well raced sister.” Luna said between huffs of breath.
“Thank you Luna, you did well yourself.” Even Celestia was out of breath after the mad dash.
“YAAAAHHHHH!” Dawn suddenly rushed past in between his sisters and straight towards the nearby treeline. Dawn hadn’t thought about slowing down before the finish, and had also forgotten the proximity to trees. He dodged one, but his wing clipped another. This sent him spiraling into another tree before he finally hit the ground with a loud thump. The moment he made contact with the ground, a loud Crack emanated from him and resonated through the air and trees. The Spines of everypony shivered at the sound.
“DAWN!” Everypony cried out, except for Blue Blood, and rushed towards him.
“Dawn Light, are you ok?” Celestia asked with worry as she hovered over him.
Dawn light tried to stand, but gasped halfway off the ground. Celestia was the only one close enough to really see anything amiss. “I… I don’t know” Dawn Stammered. Celestia looked him over and immediately noticed several things wrong. He had a large Knot forming on the back of his head that was already bruising.
“Oh no, is he ok?” Luna asked as she looked at Dawn.
Celestia also Noticed an unnatural extra joint in his Right wing.
“Oh, poor Dawn.” Cadence said as she held a hoof to her chin.
Finally, Celestia noticed the obvious curvature of his left foreleg.
“Oh man, oh man, this is really bad.” Spike said in a panic.
“Aw geeze, this is not good.” Shining stated.
Celestia was in panic mode. Dawn was beginning to hyperventilate and a concussion was clearly clouding his judgement. Shock had already set in, which wasn’t helping anything. He couldn’t feel the fullness of pain, at least not yet. Celestia knew she had to act fast before his desperation and pain made him impossible to help without difficulty.
“Oh no, it looks like his wing is broken.” Twilight said.
Dawn wasn’t crying, but he was clearly on the brink of tears. “Dawn, please try to calm down.” Celestia said as she got down on the ground with Dawn. “Don’t stand up just yet.”
Dawn tried his best to hold back his growing pain so he could speak. He managed to do so but sobbed and hiccupped a bit. “C-c-celestia…”
Celestia placed a wing gently across Dawn’s back. She knew the answer already, but she was still mentally prepping a large scale teleportation spell. “Dawn Light, where does it hurt?”
“*sniff* e-e-every w-where.” Dawn said through his sobs and tears.
“Just hold on, I’m going to teleport us to the hospital.” Celestia stood back up and used her magic to gently lift Dawn Light, being careful not to move him. “Everyone, I am taking us all to the Canterlot hospital, gather around and we’ll be there quickly.”
They all did as told and gathered around Celestia. She lit up her horn and teleported away.
They reappeared in the waiting room of the hospital. “We need a doctor now!” Celestia called out.
An earth pony nurse approached the group. “Your majesty, what’s wrong?” The mare asked.
“Dawn Light is hurt, he needs attention now. Multiple Fractures, possible concussion.” Celestia stated.
“Right away.” The nurse ran off to retrieve a stretcher. She came back within seconds and rolled it up to Celestia. “Place him down and I’ll take him to the emergency room.”
The pain was beginning to mount and Dawn was on the edge of openly crying. Celestia gently placed Dawn on the stretcher. “S-sisters….p-p-please don’t leave me.” Dawn begged through his tears.
“Fear not little brother, we will be right with you the whole time.” Luna said.
The nurse pushed the stretcher into the hallway towards a room, while Celestia and Luna both gave one another a look that seemed to say, ‘and Today seemed to be going so well’.
Almost half the day had gone since Celestia and Luna brought their little brother to the hospital. After a doctor looked Dawn Light over, it was determined he had a Broken left wing, a broken left foreleg, and a concussion. A cast was placed on his foreleg and his wing wrapped up and set so it could heal. Dawn begged to go home but the doctors said he had to stay so they could monitor the spell they had used on him to accelerate healing. Before they had used magic regularly as a health booster and healing accelerator, fractures like this would take months to heal. Now that the Spells had been perfected by medical professionals, fractures only took a few weeks at most to heal.
Dawn really didn’t want to stay in the hospital, he begged and pleaded to go home with his sisters. After twenty minutes of his arguing with the nurse, Celestia stepped in and offered a solution. A nurse could stay at the castle and watch over Dawn during his recovery. The doctor reluctantly agreed and Dawn was moved to the castle. Twilight, Spike, Shining Armor, and Cadence all paid Dawn a visit before they had to leave and wished him a speedy recovery. The next Day, Dawn lay in his bed with his head hung low and feeling down. Dawn heard two knocks on his open door. “Knock knock” Skript said as he peeked into the room “hey little buddy, Mind if we come in?”
Dawn looked up and saw Skript and Discord standing at his doorway. He looked back down at himself as he answered. “Sure.”
As they entered the room, Skript heard Tooky Squawk from a nearby nightstand. “Hey Took” Skript said casually as he and discord walked up to Dawns Bedside.
The two entered and came to Dawn’s side. Discord took a seat at the foot of Dawn’s bed. “Hey there little fella, why the long face?” Discord asked as he stretched out his face to a ridiculous size in an attempt to get a laugh out of him.
Dawn Light just glanced up at Discord, then looked back down. Discord frowned himself and returned his face to normal. Skript put a hoof on Dawn’s bed. “Dawn, how did you end up like this?” He asked.
“I was trying to beat my sisters in a race at the picnic we were having.” Dawn answered sadly. “I thought if I could win, then I could prove I was actually good at something. Instead I crashed and made a big mess of a good day.”
“Dawn, why would you feel like you needed to do that?” Discord asked.
Dawn raised his head to answer. “Because I can’t be a prince if I don’t know what I’m good at.”
“Dawn Light, you’re a wonderful prince, you don’t have to prove you’re good at anything to be a good prince.” Skript said.
Dawn faced Skript. “Yes I do, I’m not good at anything. How am I supposed to be good royalty like my sisters if I don’t have a special talent or a cutie mark!? I’m just….” Dawn hung his head again. “I’m just markless.”
Discord narrowed his eyes. “Dawn Light, listen to me. You are a great prince and a wonderful friend. You don’t need a cutie mark to be a prince. You just need to be yourself. You’re fun, friendly, and really good at making others smile. You do everything a good prince should do and then some.”
Dawn raised his head again and looked to Discord. “But…..Blue Blood said….”
“Blue Blood?” Skript said interrupting Dawn. “Is Blue Blood the one who put those ideas in your head?”
“Well, kind of.”
Skript turned his head to the side, clenched his teeth and shut his eyes with a raised hoof in anger. “Why that little…” He stopped himself and looked back to Dawn. “Dawn Light, don’t listen to what Blue Blood says. He’s just an arrogant, snobbish, stuck up, no good, lousy, snooty…..” Skript was sounding angrier with each word. “*Ahem* What I mean is, you shouldn’t listen to him. I know you want to get along with every pony, but there are just some ponies you can’t get along with. And Blue Blood is one of them.”
“Skript is right Dawn, just ignore Blue Blood and be yourself. That’s what we like about you, that’s what every pony likes about you.” Discord informed with a smile.
Dawn allowed himself a small smile. “Really?”
“Really.” Skript answered.
Nopony had noticed, but a few moments earlier, two ponies had stopped in the doorway to watch these friends sit and talk. “Hello everypony.” Celestia said as she and Luna finally entered.
“Hello princess’, I take it you’re here to check up on Dawn?” Skript asked.
“We are.” Luna answered.
“We’ll leave you all alone then.” Discord said. “I have things to do anyway.” Discord looked to Dawn. “Just remember what we said Dawn. Get well soon.” The two then left the room so the sisters could speak with Dawn.
Once Discord and Skript were gone, Luna and Celestia walked up to Dawn’s side. “How are you feeling today little brother?” Luna asked with a smile.
“Ok I guess.” Dawn answered.
“Dawn, why did you push yourself so hard during the race?” Celestia asked.
“I thought if I could win, I would prove that I am good at something, then I could be a proper prince.”
“Dawn Light, where did you get such an idea?” Celestia asked again.
“Blue Blood.” Dawn simply answered. “He said that if I want to be a proper prince, I need to have my cutie mark and know what my special talent is.”
Celestia let out a sigh. Quietly she whispered to Luna “We’re going to have to have a serious chat with him later”
“Agreed.” Luna whispered back. “Dawn, you should know that….”
Dawn Light cut her off. “I know, I don’t need my cutie mark, or to know what my special talent is to be a proper prince.”
The two sisters looked at Dawn with a bit of shock.
Dawn noticed the expressions. “Discord and Skript told me that already.”
The sisters smiled. “It sounds like they know what they’re talking about, and I hope you listen to them.” Celestia said.
Dawn showed his sisters a smile. “Yeah, I think I will.” It was then the thought Dawn had yesterday morning crossed his mind as he frowned again. “Sisters?”
“Yes Dawn?” Celestia responded.
Dawn paused a moment before speaking. “Where are Mom and Dad? I miss them.”
The two were a little surprised by this, they softened their look and frowned. Of all things, how did they forget to tell him about their parents?
“We miss them too little brother.” Luna said.
“Where are they?” Dawn asked. “How come they weren’t here when I came back?”
“Well, a little more than a hundred years after you disappeared, the majority of the world managed to find peace with each other. In a grand council our parents were unanimously crowned King and Queen of this United world. As a result of this they are almost never here, though they stay whenever they can. In fact they left again not long before we found you in the gardens. They have to travel a lot to make sure things in the other countries are okay and everyone has their needs taken care of. I've already sent letters to them, but when they are travelling around the world like that it's really hard to reach them. Sometimes they won't get letters we sent them until they've come back and are almost ready to leave again.” Celestia answered.
Tears started to form in his eyes. “I really miss them.” Dawn said as he started to sob. “I miss mom and dad.”
Celestia reached her right wing up to Dawn’s cheek to wipe a tear away. “It’s all right little brother, you’ll see them again.”
Dawn smiled through his tears. “Really?”
“Of course.” Luna answered.
“I hope I’m all better before they show up.” Dawn said. “I don’t want mom to see me like this after having been gone for so long only to show up in casts.” Dawn joked.
Celestia and Luna laughed a little at his joke. “Dawn Light, don’t you ever change.” Celestia said to Dawn.
A full week had passed since Dawn’s injuries and so far he'd been healing well. Though he wasn't able to fly yet, he could walk around with the cast on his leg. One day, things around the castle were slow and Celestia found herself wandering the grounds of the castle in the later hours of the day. She looked and gazed at the sun in its descent to the horizon, knowing it wouldn't be more than an hour or two until Luna raised the moon.
Soon, she heard a familiar voice not too far away. She poked her head over some bushes to see her troublesome nephew Blue Blood Walking through the grounds with two other stallions. She could recognize them, but didn't know them by name. And to be honest she didn't particularly care to. These were the kind of pony that, sadly, were typical of Canterlot. Ponies who would do anything just to be associated with royalty, whatever that might be worth to them.
Setting aside her assumptions of the stallions, Celestia began to listen intently to the conversation they were having. She didn't have all the details and pretense of the conversation, but from what she heard, it was all too easy to tell that they were talking about somepony, and not positively. Phrases like "He's absolutely useless" and "he has no idea what he's doing."
Celestia felt pity for whoever it was they were talking about. Then she heard a name that she wished she hadn't. It stuck out so much that she stopped listening to the conversation entirely. Dawn. Realizing that Blue Blood had been talking about none other than her little brother, she was filled with a great deal of emotions. Anger, Frustration and Wrath were the first to boil, but being as old as she was she had learned a great deal of patience and self-control. She managed to push those feelings aside almost as quickly as they had surfaced.
Next she felt sadness, and more than anything else, dissapointment. Had her nephew forgotten the many trials of loneliness that he had suffered through as a child? Had he really simply cast aside his memories of youth in which he had dealt with so many problems? Celestia pondered this and many other things before deciding that it was high time she confronted Blue Blood about his attitude towards Dawn. Bracing herself for what she knew would be a stubborn argument, she emerged from the bushes and made Blue Blood jump when she called to him from across the small grassy area that lay between them.
"Good afternoon your Highness" the two other stallions said as they quickly fell to their knees. Celestia had always appreciated the respect and admiration the ponies gave her, but it bothered her that many of them seemed to border on what could only be Described as Worship. She wasn't immortal she just lived longer than most ponies do. It's in her bloodline. She's said that countless times yet despite this, many still considered her akin to a deity. But she had always decided to ignore it and deal with it as the situation arose. Now was not the time.
"Good afternoon to you too" she said with a smile. "Blue Blood, May I speak with you, Privately?" Blue Blood quickly decided that if his aunt Celestia wanted to speak with him, she would speak with him. He knew all too well that she could summon him like any of the commoners he looked down upon. In his mind she would seek him out to spare him such commonalities.
After not even a moment’s thought, he spoke to the two stallions that were with him, "I'll meet up with you two later on. I've some business to attend to with the Princess." The two stallions seemed confused, but quickly got up and walked away. It wasn't until they were out of earshot that Celestia broke the silence.
"Walk with me." She said simply as she turned and headed for the garden area of the castle grounds. From her tone of voice, Blue Blood knew that this might not be a pleasant conversation for him, yet he obediently followed like a dog that knew he might be punished. "Blue Blood you and I both know you're not one for many words so I'll get straight to my Point. It has become clear to me that you are having what could only be described as a rough relationship with Dawn Light, and that at its best." She turned to face him, "and judging from the conversation I just overheard, it's a lot more one-sided than I thought." She turned away. Meanwhile Blue Bloods ears drooped so low they might as well have fallen off his head, and his eyes were wide open. He now deeply regretted openly speaking of his personal disdain for his newfound 'uncle'.
"Blue Blood, do you understand that your words are what drove him to push himself so hard at the picnic? In a game?" He hadn't thought of that at all. His head was beginning to lower, but he tried to regain composure by straightening up before giving his rebuttal.
"T'was not my choice that he decided to hit a tree and break his limbs." He retorted.
"No it wasn't, but you influenced that outcome. Had your words been absent, or different, he may not have done what he did." Blue Blood had no response. He couldn't bring himself to make eye contact with her which, to Celestia, seemed to indicate she might be getting through to him.
"I know what you've said to him, about being a prince, about how he doesn't measure up, at least not according to you. I would like to remind you of something I fear you may have forgotten." Her horn and eyes lit up with a magical glow, and within moments, Blue Blood found his mind travelling away at great speed. In mere seconds, Blue Blood was in familiar colthood environments for him. He remembered his home, his friends, and suddenly, more vividly than anything else, he remembered his enemies. Bullies of many ages who teased and tormented him as a young colt, who seemed to want nothing more than to see him in tears, running away and torn about who he was. Many Unpleasant experiences from when he was younger came flooding into his mind, all of them seemed to focus around the central theme of "you'll never measure up."
After only a few seconds, Celestia ended the spell, releasing Blue Bloods mind. As she did so, she noticed a telltale sign that what she had done may have worked; a singular tear escaped his eye, revealing to all that he did indeed still have emotions despite his best efforts to hide them. As his eyes cleared he wiped the tear away. "So much for the benevolent leader, what was your point in making me relive things I'd rather have forgotten?"
Celestia's frustration was beginning to mount, she knew she'd gotten the message across and yet still Blue Blood was stubborn in admitting it. "Don't their words remind you of somepony? Have you not put Dawn in the same position you had been so heartlessly placed into?" Blue Blood Sat in silence, Celestia knew her words were finally sinking in. Finally, blue blood silently conceded, and his head drooped low to the ground. Celestia Pitied him, but knew that she had to remind him of those things if he was to fix things with Dawn. "I'll leave you to your thoughts." She said before walking back towards the castle.
A few weeks went by as Dawn finished recovering from his injuries. He was now fully healed, and stretching his wings for his first flight since the accident. Blue Blood had remained distant for a couple weeks, which dawn was curious about but had decided that maybe Discord and Skript were right, maybe he should just ignore Blue Blood.
One particular day the sisters were sitting in the throne room discussing the renovations that Twilight had been doing to their old castle in the Everfree Forest. Suddenly, the doors to the throne room burst open as one of the younger guards ran in yelling "Your Majesties!" Unfortunately for his dignity he got about 3 steps in the room before he tripped over himself and landed face first on the cold hard stone. Immediately the other guards in the room either had to try and stop from laughing or simply facehoofed, Luna was giggling and even Celestia was fighting a Chuckle as she asked "Are you alright?". The Guard Stood up and composed himself, obviously embarrassed he had wiped out in front of the princesses, before clearing his throat and announcing “Your Majesties, the king and queen have returned."
Luna and Celestia smiled at this news. “Thats Wonderful news, show them in please.” Celestia said.
“No need dear.” A mare’s voice said as two forms began to materialize out of thin air Just behind the guard who had brought the news. The princesses looked to see two alicorns finish materializing and standing there with all the grace one would expect. One was a mare with a white coat, a gold shimmering and flowing mane and tail, with yellow eyes. Her cutie mark was of a yellow six pointed star with a gold ring around it. The other was a stallion with a blue coat, a flowing mane and tail that seemed to be a window to a nebula, and blue eyes. His cutie mark was of a crescent moon next to a light blue six pointed star.
Princess Celestia leaned over to whisper to the guard to her left, "Calmly go get Dawn and tell him there is a surprise in the throne room."
The Guard simply nodded before discreetly leaving the throne room.
“Mother, father!” Luna cried as the two princesses rushed over to greet their parents.
“My dears, it’s so good to see you again.” The mare said as she hugged her daughters.
“Mother, it is so good to see you again. How was your trip?” Celestia asked after breaking their hug.
“Tiresome to be honest.” The stallion said.
“Now Solaris, let’s not start off our return with grouchiness.” The mare said.
“Sorry Cosma." He said with a hearty chuckle "It's good to be home.” Solaris stated.
“And we’re glad you are back.” Celestia said as she and Luna hugged their father.
“How are my girls doing?” Solaris said as he hugged them.
“We are doing fine thank you.” Luna answered.
Once the two broke their embrace, Celestia and Luna stood before them. “Mother, did you ever get any letters I sent you two?” Celestia asked.
“You sent us letters? I’m sorry dear, but you know how hard it is to get a hold of us through letters when we're continent jumping.” Cosma said. “Why? Did something happen?”
The two sisters smiled at each other before answering. Celestia was the first to respond. “As a matter of fact yes. We have wonderful news for you two.”
“Really, What?” Solaris asked.
“Mom, Dad?” A little voice asked from behind the two.
That voice triggered something in the minds of the alicorn king and queen. They had to pause a moment to register what they heard. That voice, even after about a thousand years, struck them like a hammer out of the blue with its familiarity, but they just couldn’t seem to believe what they heard. They both slowly turned around to see the source of the voice. “I don’t believe it.” Solaris said.
“It can’t be.” Cosma said.
“Mother?” Dawn took a step. “Father?” Dawn took another step. His eyes began to tear up in joy with a smile.
Cosma dropped to her knees in disbelief, a look of pure shock still plastered to her face. A tear fell from her eyes as she asked “Dawn Light? Is that….you?”
“MOM!” Dawn cried as he launched himself into the air and flew at Cosma. He slammed into her and wrapped his hooves around her neck. “Mom, I missed you so much!” Dawn cried as he buried his face in his mother’s neck.
Still a little shocked, she just wrapped her forelegs around him as well and hugged back. “My boy…….my baby boy.” She finally said as more tears flowed from her eyes. She hugged tighter and brought her chin down over him. “My son, you’re here!” She cried out. “I don’t believe it.”
“Dawn Light, how is this possible?” Solaris asked as he looked at his daughters.
Dawn looked up from his mother and to his father. “Dad!” Dawn cried as he leapt from his mother’s grasp and embraced his father. “I missed you both so much!” He cried as he then buried his muzzle in his father’s barrel.
Solaris held Dawn tight in his forelegs, thinking if he let go, this dream would come to an end. “My boy, my son! Your back, you’re finally home!” He said with a smile as tears formed in his eyes.
Cosma joined in the hug and held tight to Dawn. “My precious baby boy has come home!” She cried.
Celestia and Luna stayed back and watched the scene with a smile to let Dawn say hello to their parents for the first time in literally more than a thousand years.
After some time, they finally broke their group hug until just Cosma held her son in her forelegs, not wanting to let him go. “Oh my dear boy, you haven't aged a day! Where have you been? What happened to you? Have you eaten?” She asked.
“Oh mom, it was horrible, but it’s all over now. I’m home, and I’m with you now.” Dawn said with a smile, then added with a chuckle "and yes I have eaten".
Solaris approached Cosma and looked down at Dawn. “Dawn Light, son, please tell us what happened. We were so worried about you when you vanished. Do you have any idea what we went through when you just up and disappeared?”
“We hired the best trackers and magically talented unicorns we could find to try find you after you vanished.” Cosma informed. “They tried everything they could, we exhausted our magic to try and find you, but it was like you never existed. It was horrible. Please son, tell us what happened.”
Dawn jumped to the floor from his mother’s grasp and faced his parents. “Mom, dad, before I tell you, I want you to promise you won’t be mad at the one responsible.” He said seriously.
This confused the two. “Excuse me?” Cosma asked. “You want us not to be mad at the one that took our son away from us for a thousand years?”
“Why would you not want us to be mad at the one responsible? Besides that who could still be alive after all this time.” Solaris asked, He glanced at his daughters, but that thought was quickly put out of his mind. 'absurd' he thought to himself.
“Because, he apologized for it and we’re really good friends now. Please mom and dad, don’t be mad.”
“Son, no matter what, we will be angry at whoever it was.” Solaris explained, the pieces were already falling into place in his mind, and he was fairly certain he already knew who the perpetrator of his son’s disappearance was.
“The most we can do is promise not to act against him, but even that might not work.” Cosma said. “We were so upset when you disappeared. Then when your sister Luna became Nightmare Moon and had to be banished to the moon for a thousand years? Losing another child like that did not sit well with me.”
“All right, I’ll tell you then.” Dawn then retold his story of what happened to him, and how he had returned. “So Discord is the one who took me, or rather, sent me away. But he's changed, surely you had a chance to see that! He isn't like he was back then. He is good now and he and I have become good friends. Please understand, go easy on him.” Dawn begged.
Before either of them could say anything, Discord flashed into the room in front of the princess's. "Celestia I've just returned from...... Why are you looking at me like that?" He followed the gaze of the sisters and turned around to see the king and queen. “Oh! Your majesties," he said with a bow "how good to see you again. I trust you had a pleasant..." he suddenly realized that the king and queen didn't look happy, and that dawn was right between them. Remembering what had happened with Celestia and Luna with Dawn’s return, he gulped audibly before struggling to finish his sentence."...trip?” He didn't dare stand up in front of them now. Especially Dawn’s mother.
Cosma was the first to act. She glared at Discord as she walked up to him. “Discord, you have some explaining to do.” Her motherly instincts kicked in. “How DARE you take my son away!"
Discord became increasingly nervous at the irate mother before him, so much so that the normally calm and collected visage he wore was completely broken, even to the point that he began to stutter. “N-n-now, your majesty, keep in mind I was different at the time. I've been reformed since then.”
“You snake, I should have found some way to get rid of you myself.” She stated. Such was the state of the Queens mind that her horn and eyes began to glow with a vicious red aura.
Discord cowered low on the ground.
“Mom, please calm down, he’s my friend now remember?” Dawn asked as he flew in front of discord and looked at his mother pleadingly.
“Right, what he said.” Discord said with a nervous smile, pointing sheepishly at dawn. Discord was almost hiding behind his tail at this point.
Cosma took a breath and closed her eyes to try and calm herself, the aura faded and she seemed to relax. “Fine, but for your sake, not his.” She said as she looked at Dawn. She glared at Discord again, grabbed his goat beard with a foreleg and yanked his head up til their foreheads were pressed against each other. She glared into his eyes and spoke through gritted teeth. “But if you EVER do anything to hurt or upset my boy ever again, I swear by the heavens I will drag you down to the pits of Tartarus kicking and screaming as you beg for your life. Do I make myself perfectly clear?”
Discord gulped and nodded with a nervous smile and sweat coming down his face. “Clear as the crystal empire, your majesty.”
Cosma smiled. “Good.” She gave his beard one more tug before releasing it, allowing Discord’s head to spring back up.
Dawn looked at Discord concerned as he hovered next to him. “Are you ok?” He asked.
Discord stroked his beard with his lion paw to try and sooth the pain. “Hoo boy, your mother can be scary when she wants to be.”
“You should see my dad.” Dawn responded. Before he knew it, he was then enveloped in a yellow aura and pulled down to his mother’s waiting embrace. Discord just noticed that since he had appeared in the throne room, the king had yet to say a word.
“My son, I missed you so much. I still can’t believe you’re here, but I’m so glad you are.” Cosma stated. Dawn Smiled as he hugged back.
Solaris approached Discord with a fierce look. “Discord, I believe my wife said all that she needed to be said, and I have not much more to say. You have caused a lot of trouble in the past, but taking our son away…..you just thank your lucky stars he is willing to defend you.” He poked Discord in the chest. “I’ll be watching you.” He then turned and rejoined his wife in hugging their son.
The king had said so few words compared to the queen. Yet discord had already decided that he would MUCH prefer the queens anger to the kings, and prayed that he would never see the king angry. He then decided it might be best to lay low for a while and vanished into thin air.