//------------------------------// // A Destiny Revealed // Story: The Rise of an Alicorn's Destiny // by HMXTaylorLee //------------------------------// Twilight inhaled deeply several times as she stood in front of her master bathroom mirror, ever so glad to be out of that embarrassing situation. She thought it was really very sweet of Reveille to write a song about her... but she didn't quite know how to reply when the words "I love you" were among the first mentioned. Then again, the song also mentioned that those weren't the words that he wanted to hear, so... "GAH!" Twilight splashed her face with water, hoping to wash away some of the confusion. Surprisingly, the warm water was more relaxing than she thought. Inspired, she decided to relax even more with a nice warm bath. As she heard the cold rain patter against her bedroom's bay window, she was even more convinced. Using her magic to let loose a stream of warm water from the faucet, she added a liberal amount of bubble bath (a castlewarming gift from Pinkie Pie) to the growing pool of water. She used her wings to gently float into the tub, grateful that she no longer need to clamber into it like she had prior to becoming a princess. Twilight lay in the tub, and when the foamy cotton candy scented bubbles reached her muzzle, she cut the water off and let the warm water and relative silence wash over her. She could faintly hear the pitter-patter of rain, and that was it. After around thirty minutes, when the water started cooling, Twilight decided that she was sufficiently relaxed. She had almost fallen asleep several times at the end, and that was indication enough. She stepped on a purple towel, drying herself as the water drained from the tub. Contented after several minutes of rubbing herself dry with said towel, she threw it in the nearby hamper and walked back into her bedroom. "I should do that more often," she mused aloud, looking around her room. It was much bigger than her bedroom at the library, but it was organized much the same way. Desk over here, personal favorite books on this shelf, plant in this corner, a lamp on the nightstand by her bed, and so on and so forth. Twilight would usually read before going to sleep, but she'd had enough storytelling for that day. The alicorn flipped the light switch, and using her horn as a night light, she climbed onto her mattress from the right side of the bed. She happily burrowed into the new blanket (hoof sewn from the Apple family) and sprawled out into the soft bedding. She was not expecting to come into contact with another warm, breathing entity in the bed with her. "What in Equestria?" Her horn flared even brighter, the lights in the room turning on to reveal Reveille laying in her bed on the opposite pillow, red eyes gazing at her longingly. "You smell really, really nice," he commented. "AAAAAAAHHHH!" Twilight tumbled out of her bed, landing on her back without a shred of grace on the plush carpeted floor. "Owww..." She massaged her head, opening her eyes to see Reveille sitting up in her bed looking down at her. He was not wearing his satchel or Element. "What- what are you doing here?" "I came to bid you good night, my princess," he explained simply. "My princess?" Twilight's eyes widened, and she quickly jumped to her hooves. "This is my room!" "Yes, it is. Thank goodness, I thought you might have been confused after that fall." "And - and you're in my bed!" "And it's a very nice bed." Twilight was flustered, not knowing what to say or do to react in this situation, her brain flooded with the initial fear of discovering the stallion in her bed, and then trying to process why he was in her bed. So, she asked again. "What are you doing here?" Reveille smiled at her, but didn't move from her bed. "I thought my feelings were clear after my song, dearest Twilight. Though, you didn't hear the rest of it." Twilight blushed. So her embarrassment was not entirely unfounded. Somehow, in the six hours they had spent together, Reveille had grown feelings for Twilight. Twilight however, did not reciprocate, and certainly did not approve of this method of "expressing" feelings. While Reveille cleared his throat, Twilight stammered out the cavalcade of words that were spinning around in her head. "Look, expressing your feelings through song is one thing, but crawling into my bed is just - it's just..." Par for the course, Reveille did not wait for her to finish. "If you only knew How easy it would be to show me how you feel More than words is all you have to do to make it real Then you wouldn't have to say that you love me 'cause I'd already know" "...extreme," Twilight finished her sentence after the lengthy interruption. Reveille didn't seem too happy about her sentiment. "What?" He looked crestfallen. "No, no, no I wrote that! You said it was very nice, remember?" "I did, but-" Twilight started, cursing her awkward politeness. Reveille put his hoof in the air, the gesture serving to silence her. "Just... allow me to explain, Twilight." "Yes, please!" Twilight sputtered. "I think I speak for both of us when I say that we're ready to take our relationship to the next level," Reveille said with an air of utmost certainty. "...What?" "We can consummate our love together, blissfully surrendering to each other's ministrations in the throes of deepest passion," he continued. "...You're not making any sense." "I wasn't going to charge you, my dear." "What are you talking about?" Twilight cried frantically. "Sex, Twilight," Reveille spoke with finality. Twilight's face could not have burned any hotter unless she cast a spell to set fire to it. Where in the world did this come from? "Sex?" she squeaked. "Listen, I'm uh - I'm flattered that you feel this way about me, but... no. Just no." "No?" Reveille hopped down from the bed, but his advance towards her was not threatening. "I... I don't understand. After all of the time we spent together-" "-Six hours," Twilight reminded him, inching away from him in a way that she hoped he wouldn't notice. "I feel as though I've lived my entire life with you-" "-Because you told me your entire life's story. Twice!" "Twilight, we've shared so much together." His lower lip quivered. "I thought after going through so much, and being alone for so long that you would be able to understand... that you would care enough about me..." In these situations, Twilight wouldn't think twice to offer a shoulder to cry on for a friend in need. However, she didn't want to give him any ideas. "Listen, please. It's not that I don't care, but I just don't see you that way," she told him slowly, taking care not to outright instigate or offend him. "It matters not how we see each other, Princess Twilight," Reveille told her calmly. "Because love is blind." Twilight reconsidered outright instigation if it meant that he got the hint. "Love? Where did this come from? I thought we might have been friends, barely, and you're talking about sex and love? I never even had an inkling about your feelings until you sang that song!" Twilight explained, "Which I wrote, just so we're clear," the stallion reiterated. "Well, let me be clear to you now." He bowed down before the princess, looking up at her with a hopeful expression. "I love you, Princess Twilight Sporkle!" Twilight blinked at him. Then again. And again. "...Sporkle?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. "...Yes," Reveille answered nervously, coming out of his bow with a slight grin. "That is your name, is it not?" "No," Twilight huffed. "My name is Princess Twilight Sparkle, which you said you knew when read my mind." "Yes, well..." Reveille scratched the back of his head. "I never went to school, so reading wasn't my strong suit..." "That's the first time you ever said anything remotely negative about yourself! Well, let me make this clear to you." Twilight didn't care that she was talking to the son of Nightmare Moon, the Bearer of the Element of Infinity, or the time-travelling savior of all equinekind - confessing your unrequited love for somepony when you didn't even know their name was definitely a social interaction she was willing to correct. Reveille's eyes darted back and forth, his mind clearly searching for something to say. "The whole concept of proclaiming your love to sleep with somepony whose name you don't even know might be foreign-" "I want to know what love is I want you to show me. I want to feel what love is I know you can show me." Twilight's eyes were wide, and her ears folded from the impromptu song that Reveille had just belted out to her face. After recovering, she very slowly continued. "be... foreign...er-" Reveille's slap to her face didn't hurt, but that didn't leave Twilight any less stunned at the reaction. "NO!" he shouted. "I wrote that! ME!" Twilight didn't know what he was on about, and she didn't particularly care. "...You hit me," she whispered. "Sometimes I think before I act. Sometimes," Reveille said coolly, looking dismissively at his hoof. "The least you could do is apologize!" Twilight cried angrily, rubbing her cheek. "Love means never having to say you're sorry. Never." "You wouldn't need to apologize if you didn't hit me!" "You always hurt the ones you love. Always," the stallion continued with his expounding of cliched quotes. "Sometimes, never, always, what in Equestria are you talking about?" Twilight shouted at him, frustrated by the fine demonstration for how obtuse a pony could actually be. "Probability," Reveille answered smartly. "What are the odds that I know more about probability than Princess Twilight Sporkle?" "Zero to one!" Twilight snarled, not even bothering to correct her mispronounced name. "Twenty one?" Reveille laughed. "You might want to check your math, your highness." If there was a vertical meter on Twilight Sparkle that measured her temper, she had had it up to here. "Get out," she said through gritted teeth, pointing a hoof at the magically opened door to her bedroom. "I don't care that it's raining. I don't care that you are the Element of Infinity, I want you to leave." She flinched as the stallion raised a hoof and started towards her, but he didn't touch her. "Wait! There is one other thing - something you need to hear!" he pleaded. Twilight glared at him, hoping that the one raised eyebrow would be sufficient to communicate her intent. She wouldn't blame Reveille if it didn't, because Twilight herself didn't quite know if she wanted him to continue or not. "There was a prophecy!" Reveille exclaimed desperately, "It goes like this; The one claiming birth, from Nightmare Moon Alone holds the key that will save us from doom When his age reaches that of a two and a one If he's still a virgin, all life will be done." Twilight was utterly lost. She had absolutely no idea how to reply to something so asinine and completely ludicrous. "That's the prophecy?" was all that she could muster. "Mhm." The black alicorn nodded. Twilight had lowered her eyebrow when he started reciting it, but it promptly jumped back up. "Who wrote this prophecy, if I may?" "I did." Reveille scratched his chin. "You did." "Yes, it's a 'self fulfilling' prophecy," he explained. "Two and a one... twenty one," Twilight thought aloud. "How old are you?" "Twenty." "And let me guess..." "I turn twenty one in eighty eight minutes," Reveille said casually. "Of course you do," Twilight rolled her eyes. "I told you it was my destiny to be here," Reveille reminder her. "I did not come here by chance." Twilight silently wondered why he kept emphasizing those choice words... which happened to be the same ones she heard whispered in the hall before they met. "You were the one whispering those words in the main hallway, weren't you?" Twilight accused to the unflinching pony before her. "Of course not. I was outside when you heard them, and I would never resort to cheap smoke and mirrors to make my appearance seem more mysterious." That he knew precisely when she heard those words and had his alibi already in place was an answer enough for Twilight. "Because you would never do something like that," she said sarcastically. "Get your things, and get out of here." Her magic lifted his opened satchel that he had placed at the foot of the bed towards him briskly. It fell to the floor, it's contents spilling about all over the place. "I've never seen such desperation-" "-if you'd kindly leave my mother out of it," he said as he nervously swept the numerous books and envelopes into the bag. "What are you even - stop!" Twilight commanded as she watched him go about the packing, one of the items catching her eye. Like a foal with it's hoof in the cookie jar, Reveille backed away slowly, a red flush creeping across his face. Twilight trotted to the satchel and the item that caught her attention. It was a catalog for a dress shop based in Canterlot, black and white, with splashes of blue on the cover. The only reason she recognized this at all was because of the way they addressed it to her. It didn't seem like something that an alicorn like Reveille would normally peruse. She turned the catalog over to see whom it was addressed to. Twilight Sporkle The princess spilled the rest of the items out, and among a large book and the Element of Infinity were several more envelopes and parcels. One large one already torn open, was from Canterlot Comics Inc and addressed to The Dragon, Spike. "This is our mail... you didn't read our minds at all," Twilight whispered. "No it isn't." Reveille answered adamantly. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN IT ISN'T? I CAN SEE IT RIGHT HERE WITH MY OWN TWO EYES!" Twilight yelled furiously, brandishing one of the envelopes in the stallion's face. "Who are you going to believe; me, or your own two eyes?" Many things happened next. Twilight's horn lit up a vivid shade of purple, and her beautiful bedsheets came undone, floating in the air above them. They magically twisted themselves together into a long, thin bundle of cloth, which promptly ensnared the also-levitating Reveille, binding him in a way that was not dissimilar to the method he had described in his story about the maitre d. In the frame of Twilight's open door, Spike popped his head in, looking confused at the scene before him. "Twilight? What's going on? I heard shouting and-" "Spike!" Twilight answered, content with the makeshift rope that was holding Reveille in place. "Send a letter to the police station, tell them to get here right away!" Spike knew enough of Twilight's tone of voice to not ask questions. He scampered away from the door to compose his letter, leaving Twilight alone with Reveille and the contents of his satchel. She sifted through, finding the entire days' mail within it and separated it from his belongings. "Mmmmmf!" "I'm sure you are offended that I'm going through your things," Twilight imagined what the muffled protest was actually about. "That whole violation of privacy thing." Her hooves grasped the golden chain of the Element of Infinity, and she finally got to examine it closely, to see the one item that had been erased from history. The first thing she noticed was that the golden lemniscate was not actually a golden lemniscate - it was a brass sideways 'eight', likely ripped from somepony's mailbox. The two brilliant gemstones inside of the eight were reduced to one - the other's glue had come undone, and the cheap plastic imitation gem landed upon a wooden box with a sliding cover. On top of that, the back of the necklace had a white sticker proclaiming that it was a product of "Ponyville Arts & Crafts." Twilight remembered that she had seen their booth when she was out and about in town earlier that day. "You can't read minds, and your Element of Infinity is the production of various craft stores," Twilight told the squirming stallion before her. "I wonder what else you made up?" She pulled away the cloth from his mouth to allow him a chance to defend himself, but he remained silent. She had already seen the contents of the sliding wooden box before, so she gave that only the minor look over. Then, there was an opened pack of fruit flavored gum. Next, there were a pair of tickets - flight tickets from Monteneighgro to Ponyville. "Now, why would a pony with the ability to fly like lightning need tickets to fly here? Or if you could simply time travel fourth dimensionally, or however it was that you put it?" Reveille sputtered a bit before he answered. "My wings weren't capable of flying such a distance with luggage in tow, but I did time travel - I flew across at least three time zones before landing." Twilight wasted no time in shoving the bedsheets back into his mouth, shaking her head in disbelief whilst doing so. The last thing he carried in his satchel was a large book. She pulled it towards him despite the increasingly loud muffled protests from her captive, and read the title aloud. Book of Revel Aceans by Blank Slate "Revel Aceans... Revelations?" Twilight sounded aloud, as Reveille shook his head adamantly. "Oh right, the 's' is silent," she corrected herself mockingly, gaining an approving nod from the bound alicorn. "What a pretentious name - I'm guessing that Blank Slate is your real one?" When Reveille didn't answer, she opened the book to the first pages, the text headlining the top of the page reading My One Wish. The princess continued to read down the page, her jaw dropping progressively more and more as the passage resumed. I wish I could say I was satisfied with my lot in life, but that would be a lie. No, I rather despise being an earth pony of such little consequence - a failed author and ex-banker whose only income comes in the form of alimony payments from a self-proclaimed "miserable wreck of desperation and irritation" of a divorced wife. I won't deny that my existence is a boring one, but that is through no fault of my own. This is precisely why I wrote my original story "The Element of Infinity." To inspire and to entertain the audience to the notion that somepony, anypony could be the hero. Even a loveless and lifeless nopony like myself. The critics, if they can even be called that, can cite my magnum opus as "uninspired, pretentious, unrealistic, and unappealing to anyone but the author, who clearly sees his work as nothing short of a revelation." That's because it is a revelation. It's a wake-up call, if only for myself alone, to chase your dreams, and to be the change you want to see. That's exactly what I did. The following is a comprehensive look at the story of the greatest savior of our time; Revel Aceans, or Reveille per his shorthoof. The pony who saved all of Equestria several times over, only to be spat on and shunned by those who wouldn't exist were it not for his trials and tribulations. The unsung hero, a martyr in every sense of the definition. Taking the ideals of modern day celebrities and heroes, I've created a perfect storm of traits and tales to fulfill my greatest desire, my one wish. I am Reveille, and I will be adored. Twilight flipped through the rest of the book in a flurry, absorbing the highlights and emboldened texts as she could. ...Alicorn race implies power and rarity. Empathize with mysterious birth. Body/mane coloration in line with theme (black = dark/shadows, mane = red? Will finalize later)... ...Needs to be an orphan - raised by single father mother = single mothers are statistically more common thus more relatable... ...Loss of parental figure at early age (death or abandonment???) Both - abandonment = pity, death with no reconciliation = emotions, plus possible connection with audience through mutual loss... ...Mysterious and detached = a must!!! Reinforce circumstances, harshness is acceptable. Statistics show that mares gravitate more towards aggression... ...Make him powerful! Fear of reprisal and respect for strength... ...Find a traveling partner. A physical presence will help to lend authenticity to the scenario. (NOTE: For future reference, find a pony that won't disclose unnecessary information!!!) ...Explain lack of historical context. Retcon methods? Invisibility, mind control, time travel?... The rest of the pages revealed, almost verbatim, the "story" that Reveille had told. Fashioned like a screenplay, there were branches off of conversations, possible questions and answers. An entire chapter was devoted to the "art" of mind reading, with scripted responses matching to the initial reaction to claims of mind-reading, measuring facial expressions and body language. As Twilight skimmed to one of the last pages, she was horrified to see the following section. Romantic Pursuits Ponies are naturally drawn to those with power and influence. Romantic partners must be figureheads or in positions of power. Possible options include - Princess Celestia - Involved knowledge of presented historical inaccuracies. Princess Luna - Same as above, plus implied "incest". Princess Cadenza, Mi Amore - Crystal Empire princess, existing marriage likely a deterrent. Princess Twilight - Ponyville princess, Bearer of Element of Magic. Likeliest candidate. Will investigate other Elements of Harmony failing the above. After hearing of exploits/power, infatuation is highly probable, regardless of time/relationship together. If not, romantic gestures (i.e. songs and poems), statements of trust, and assertive stance likely to ensure copulative outcome. Twilight closed the book softly, setting it beside the other trinkets of Reveille's false identity. Reveille was glaring at her with rage, but Twilight just looked back with a mix of pity and shock. "All of this... the story, your powers, trying to sleep with me... Was all of it just some bizarre wish fulfillment?" Twilight asked him shakily, his eyes glaring at her underneath his mane and horn. "It said you were an earth pony, so this..." She tugged at Reveille's horn, already noticing that it wasn't fixed and steady like it should have been. With a solid pull, she ripped the false horn from his head, eliciting a muffled yowl of pain from the stallion, and revealing a light brown fur underneath. "I would love to see you explain your way out of this one," she told him, removing the cloth from his mouth once again. "What do you have to say for yourself?" "This... this isn't my fault," he gasped. "I don't understand - where did I go wrong? The elements were all there, I did everything right, why wouldn't you just accept it? Why wouldn't you let me love you?" "Because I don't love you, Reveille or whatever-" Twilight's cry was interrupted by a bugle outside of her closed window. In a purple flash, the window opened, revealing a soaked white pegasus with a purple mane floating outside, a bugle in his hooves. "I knew I wasn't hearing things! Who are you?" The pegasus looked around nervously, back and forth from the seething princess and Reveille tied up on the floor. Still, he didn't say anything. "Right, you can't talk, of course..." Twilight's horn glowed again, and a shred of parchment and a long orange quill floated in front of the frightened pegasus, underneath the outcropping to shield it from the rain. "Start writing." After several minutes of the quill scrabbling against the parchment, he gave Twilight the note, his head hung in shame. The note read; Princess, My name is Windy Whisper. This pony, Blank Slate, hired me out of Monteneighgro to act as a sort of follower. Being a pony that could not speak, work was difficult to come by, and I gladly accepted his generous pay and simple job - play three notes on a bugle whenever somepony mentioned the word 'Reveille.' When we arrived in Ponyville, he instructed me to follow him around from the outside of the castle to resume my playing after knocking on the front door, and to gather enough rain clouds to cover the castle. He claimed it was a costume party, and I was to answer to the name 'Seasons Yore'. I had my misgivings, but had I known his intentions, I would never have agreed to indulge him. I deeply apologize for the trouble this has caused you. Windy Whisper "It's alright, Windy," Twilight reassured the shivering pegasus. "Come in and dry off. You can stick around until after he's carted off," Twilight gestured to the growling Reveille behind her. "I'll make sure you get back home." Windy bowed his head gratefully, floating inside and sitting down on the carpeted floor, using one of the sheets that was sent flying from Twilight's spell to warm himself. "Do you know why your plan didn't work, Blank Slate?" Twilight asked the pony formally known as Reveille, standing over him. "Because you're too smart for your own good?" he snarled back. "No," she answered simply. "It's because no matter what you do, or how powerful you are or think you are, or how prestigious you seem to be... nopony will like you if you act like it. In the last seven years, I can't think of anyone who was as egocentric, self-pitying, self-absorbed, self-indulgent, or downright irritating as you were in the last seven hours. Maybe if you just acted like a normal pony, treating others with respect and showing some humility, you would have better luck getting ponies to befriend you." "That doesn't work!" Blank Slate cried. "When I was nice, everypony thought that I was boring and inconsequential. Now, I'm the most interesting and important pony there is!" "Just... try it my way," Twilight insisted. "As Blank Slate, pretend I never met you. No preconceived notions. Tell me something interesting about yourself." Blank Slate's face screwed up, and he bit his lip as if in deep thought. "I had a preconceived notion once," he started slowly. "But it turned out to be something I already thought of." Twilight just shook her head sadly. "This is why I love you, Princess Twilight," the stallion said. "You challenge me. You make me think about things in ways I never did before. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, so you can teach me how to be better." Twilight scooted back away from him. "That makes one of us." Even with his diaphragm being contorted from his tied up position, he still had it in him to sing one last song to her. "Every breath you take Every move you make Every bond you break Every step you take, I'll be watching you." Through the pouring rain, Twilight's twitching ears could hear the approaching siren of Ponyville's law enforcement. "That sounds like the police," she told him. She didn't understand why he got so, so angry.