Twilight woke on the mountainside, shivering in reaction. She had thought that the dream had left her long ago. Ever since their deaths, Twilight had dreamed of that fire. She had been so happy when she had been accepted, she had felt as though nothing could ruin that moment. And in the contrary nature of life, it had done its damnedest to prove the filly wrong. Her parents had died, immolated in their home, leaving their young daughter alone in the world.
She had been curled in a corner while the fire raged, forced to stay there. In a tight ball, burned and in agony, listening to the last moments of her parent’s lives. Their cries as the flames licked at their hides. Even more than their screams though, she remembered the smell. The scent of cooking flesh, almost wet under the rancid, bitter odor of burnt hair had almost made her mouth water, desperate for the sweet cool rush of water that the smell conjured from her memory.
It had taken her years before she could even be in a room with a fire, afraid that the wretched force would somehow take her Princess from her. The moment that she had set the courtyard alight, she had panicked. Damping fire, cutting off its source and draining its power, had been one of the first lessons she had learned under the tutelage of the Princess. Even now, a small smile broke onto the unicorn’s face at the memory.
“Now Twilight, you have to learn to take the power you use from something that doesn’t need it. Have you ever wondered how we stop fires? You know by now that fire burns magic as well as physical objects, and so using magic on it directly doesn’t work. Instead, unicorns use one of the most basic lessons, they drain the power of the fire, take the energy. When the fire has no more energy, then it simply dies, cooling so that you can touch the place a fire raged only a few moments before.” The memory spoke, looking down at the filly Twilight.
“But why didn’t my parents stop the fire? Why didn’t any of the other unicorns? Were they just not strong enough? Is, is that why they, why they-“
“Oh Twilight, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.” The Princess had said. Now though, Twilight could pick out details. When the Princess had spoken, she had not been looking at Twilight, but rather at a place off to her left, refusing to make eye contact. And now Twilight realized what she never had before. The Princess had intended to hurt her, to make her think about her parents. Maybe she thought that she was helping Twilight, helping her cope with the loss. Or maybe, just maybe, she had done it to try and force Twilight to try harder, and not sit around, crying about her dead parents.
That was why she had frozen when the fire had blossomed on the soft grass in front of her, the small stone ball glowing a molten red, setting all the grass near it aflame by simple heat. Magic had poured from the young mare, and with nowhere to go, it fed the fire, until what had been a small flame burst and grew into a firestorm. Every unicorn knew that magic was energy, and that any excess energy would manifest as heat and light. In her headlong rush to please the Princess, she had poured her heart into the small granite sphere. In her fear and regret, she had lost control.
The Princess had saved her, saved them both. Twilight knew that part of her fear had been the memory of her parents, but she now knew the rest. It was the fear that the flickering light would take away the last pony she had, the only friend, her only parent.
That fear had coursed through her, sending magic that she had not known she even possessed into the stone, until the small sphere exploded from the building heat. A shard of the half molten rock had cut a narrow path along her flank, scoring her side deeply, breaking her out of the trance, and at the same time, Celestia drained all the force of the blaze, focusing it into a healing spell, soothing Twilight’s burn.
She had been afraid the fire would take her Princess, and it nearly had. She had thrown herself on the ground, sobbing. She had ruined the Royal Courtyard, and put the Princess herself in danger. She would be lucky to escape prison, much less stay on as the student of the Princess. In her fear of loss, she had nearly lost the Princess, only Celestia’s laughter had calmed her beating heart.
Now though, it was not fire that had stolen from her, but ice. The cold dispassion, the singular lack of emotion that always made the Princess seem so serene, so logical, now showed the true face of the diarch, passionless, afraid of pain, and unwilling to risk her own feelings to return another mares heartfelt pleas for love. And nopony, not she, not even the Princesses could take from ice and make water. . There was no energy, no heart there to steal the power from. Not even the magic of Friendship and Love could change ice.
Twilight growled under her breath, grinding a hoof into the rocky soil that covered the peak. No. Anger won’t help anything. Anger leads to fury, and in fury, mistakes are made. I will show her. I will MAKE her acknowledge me, to accept me. But anger isn’t how to do it. I- I need to go and find my friends, she thought, calming herself as she had long since taught herself, forcing the feelings away by sheer force of will. Emotions wouldn’t help her right now, she needed to think. Her friends would be sympathetic, and would try to help.
A flash of memory sailed before her eyes, and she remembered her thoughts of the night before. Shame filled her, nearly bringing her to tears again. Her friends didn’t deserve that. It wasn’t just mean, it was cruel. Her friends loved her and supported her; they would never let her down. But she couldn’t tell them about what had happened. It was too fresh, she needed to heal first. Shaking her head to rid herself of the unworthy thoughts, a glint caught her eye.
She turned around, looking into the dragons cave. Deep within, something glittered in the light. Piles of gold, glittering in the dim morning light that filtered through the winter clouds. The dragon had left its entire hoard when it had flown off, and the treasure had lain undisturbed since, no pony willing to climb the dangerous path to the mountain peak, even with the allure of golden riches as enticement.
Twilight wandered into the cave looking at the piles. Most of the contents of a dragons hoard were coins, mostly golden bits. Dotted among the piles, occasionally another currency shown in varnished silver. Twilight dimly recalled the reason for the large quantities of coins being both vanity and metaphysical, as the bed of coins and jewels aided the dragons growth into adulthood. Form one pile she caught sight of the armor of one of the Palace Guards, sans pony, gleaming in the light.
To her left was a large pit, from which a truly foul smell emanated. The rotten corpses of half eaten creatures littered the bottom of the pit, along with the… byproducts of the dragons eating. Skirting the edge of the pit, Twilight saw a golden sword, blade buried deep in the pile of sapphires it stood vigil over. From near the hilt, all the way down, even coating some of the glorious gemstones, was a fine coating of blood, still gleaming with moisture, enchanted to show the blood of every creature the evil weapon had ever slain.
Nearly an hour later, Twilight left the cave, a small sack of gemstones for Spike around her neck. The cave was filled with treasure, but Twilight could almost smell the protective spells that covered every inch of the treasure. Woe betide anypony who actually tried to steal anything. It had taken her almost half an hour to remove the spells that protected just the small gemstones she had taken, and another few minutes to be sure there was nothing left active on them. She smiled, thinking of how happy her assistant would be when she gave him the present. She would have to remind him not to eat them all at once though. She shuddered remembering the last time that the baby dragon had attempted to eat a ruby and an emerald at once. It had taken a week to get the smell out of her coat.
With a quick thought, and a flash of magic, Twilight found herself at the door of her library. The light of the rising sun glinted off the door and windows, giving the young unicorn pause. Then she shook herself, and walked forward, into the door. Note to self, Open door first. She groaned softly, rubbing her head.
On her second attempt, she opened the door and walked through the entryway. The inside of the Library was dark, and quiet. Too dark, and far too quiet, usually when she got back, Spike came running over to greet her. There was a flurry of noise as she turned the lights on, and confetti began to rain. Even half expecting the surprise, Twilight still jumped, heart racing at the sudden assault. The words “TWILIGHT’S BACK!” were scrawled across the banner that hung from the ceiling, and all six of her friends stood there, huge smiles on their faces, Spike perched on Applejack’s back.
Twilight returned the smile, happy to see that her friends were there for her. She honestly didn’t know what she would do without them. Live at the Palace, and be close to Her. Not like that matters though, does it? The nagging voice returned, putting paid to the joy of the reunion. No. They are my friends, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. She thought, ferociously attacking the black tendrils of doubt that were working their way through her mind.
Twilight looked back up, scuffing a hoof on the floor. “Thank you, thank you all. But… can we celebrate later, please?” A sheepish smile made its way back to her face. “I, I need to unpack and stuff.”
“Oh, but of COURSE Darling. We should have known. We’ll all meet up later then? Maybe have another pet playdate?” Ever the socialite, Rarity jumped in to catch the proverbial ball. A quick glance from the azure eyes silenced the grumbling that issued out under the farmers breath.
“That sounds great Rarity. I’ll see you girls then, alright?”
A chorus of goodbyes and best wishes assailed her as the five mares walked, or in one case flew, out her door. Spiked hopped off AJ’s back as the orange mare left the room, and the small dragon walked over to his friend.
“Hey Twilight, you okay?” The little dragon had seen Twilight upset before. Not often, he had to admit, but he had seen it, and he knew what to look for. She was avoiding eye contact, and did an almost comical little dance, shifting from hoof to hoof, over and over again, flicking her bangs.
“Wha-Yeah. Yes Spike, I’m fine.” The smile was bright and cheerful, and to any mammalian eyes, it would have seemed as honest and open as Applejack. Her only tell was the tension in her spine, and the slight darkening of her eyes.
“Okay. But Twilight, you know you can talk to me about anything, right? Even stuff you don’t want to tell the girls. You’re more than a friend, you’re family.”
“I know Spike. Thank you. I, I just need some time to think first, okay? Hey, can I have a few pancakes? Please?”
“Sure thing, you need help with your stuff?” The dragon asked, gesturing at Twilights neck.
“Wha-Oh! Here, I found some stuff I thought you might like.” She tossed the small bag over to the dragon, spilling the contents on the table.
“Is that what I think it is?” The dragonet asked, eyes widening to a near comical state.
“Yep. A heart sapphire. You like the present?”
“But, how did you get it. These are one of the rarest gems! It must have cost a fortune.”
“I found it. I hope you enjoy it. But this time, don’t give it to Rarity, okay? She might make you wear it. Well, don’t you worry about that, just enjoy it. Nothing is too good for my number one assistant.” Twilight said, walking up the stairs, and into her room.
Spike looked up at the unicorn’s room, hearing the soft thump as she dropped onto her bed. She had to have worked hard to get those gems. Even Rarity hadn’t found them while she was out looking for them. He chuckled to himself, imagining the taste of the crunchy, sweet gemstone.
He walked over to the pantry and started mixing up the pancake batter. He wasn’t hungry anymore, so he only made enough for Twilight. Into the batter, he threw some daisy blossoms, a few stalks of grass, and, checking that the unicorn was still firmly ensconced in her room, opened a pantry, and took out a single rose bloom. Tearing off and sprinkling the petals of the delicate red flower into the batter, he stirred the concoction.
Ten minutes later, a stack of perfectly prepared pancakes stood, a bottle of syrup standing next to them in a clear glass bottle, the very top stoppered with an ornate glass pinecone. “Twilight!” Spike called up the stairs, somehow managing to sound affectionate, annoyed, and bored all at once. There are some mysteries in this world that none but the young can conceive of, and this sound was one such.
The mare appeared at the top of the stairs, salivating at the scent of the delicacies before her. She hurried down the stairs, and past the young dragon, who had positioned himself ever so casually against the banister, certainly without the intention of being praised for his effort.
“Wow Spike! These look great.” Twilight gushed, pouring syrup lightly over the stack, holding back a moan as she took a bite. Spike looked the other way, hoping that the goofy grin he couldn’t seem to get rid of had gone unnoticed. He needn’t have worried though. Nopony in Equestria could resist the siren’s call that was his pancakes.
As the young unicorn took a bite, she froze for an instant. There was something, off, about the pancakes. “Spike?” She asked, voice quiet, trying to remember what that taste was. It was sweet, very sweet, with a slightly bitter tang, set off wonderfully by the savory daisies. “Did you do something to these?”
“Huh?” he asked, slipping from his casual lean on the banister. Picking himself up from the floor, worry crossed his small face. “Yeah. I um, I added a rose. You really liked those when we were at the castle, and since you were so nice and stuff I thought… Do you not like them? I can make some more.” The worry had morphed into something more akin to alarm by the end of the question.
“No, no they taste wonderful. Thank you Spike.” And again, Twilight cast that sweet, almost cheery smile at her young friend. Then she turned her head back to the floral plate, and took another bite, the once adored taste now sitting heavy on her tongue, almost too sweet to swallow.