//------------------------------// // 01: Opportunity Awaits // Story: The Princess that Equestria Always Had // by rillegas08 //------------------------------// The throne room of Twilight’s crystalline castle was empty, save for the thrones, the table that hosted the map of Equestria in the center, and the magnificent chandelier made of the roots of the Golden Oak Library. The gems containing memories from before the library’s destruction glittered, the sunlight glinting off them in various directions, providing some extra light to the large room. The door opened, and Twilight and her friends filed into the throne room. Spike ran toward his throne, sized just for him next to Twilight’s throne, and slouched on it, stretching his claws. “Now this is what I’m talking about,” he said, closing his eyes with a smile. “I agree with Spike,” said Fluttershy, as timidly as always. “It’ll feel good to get off our hooves after that last adventure. Ooh, Rarity, why don’t we go to the spa?” “I was just about to suggest that, darling,” the white unicorn smiled. “Would anypony else like to join us in a relaxing hot tub? It’ll be the perfect way to ease our muscles.” “I ain’t usually one fer gettin’ all fancied up, but I guess I am a little sore. Shoot, I’ll join ya.” “I’m with AJ,” said Rainbow Dash. “My bed at home will feel so much better after a wing massage.” “Yay! Party at the spa!” Twilight's friends turned toward the door again, but Twilight stayed behind with Spike. Rainbow Dash turned to her. “Hey Twilight, you coming or what?” “I’ll join you girls later,” the purple alicorn replied. “I’ll do some light reading first and then meet you all at the spa.” Twilight followed her friends out of the throne room, and was about to close the door when she realized Starlight Glimmer wasn't following her friends. She heard a zap of magic, and the sound of the map being activated. She turned around, and saw her newest enemy-turned-friend with her hooves on the giant table in the center of the room. She walked over, standing beside the unicorn. Starlight's face was saddened, and her eyes were distant as she looked across the map of Equestria and its neighboring countries. Twilight looked at the map, following Starlight's gaze to the town where they'd met. "Starlight? Is everything all right?" The unicorn took her hooves off the map, standing upright. "I guess," she replied. "Sometimes I still get random feelings of guilt for what I've done." "I know what you mean. I may not know everything you've gone through, but I do know exactly how that feels." "You do?" "Mhm. The day before Nightmare Moon returned, I avoided going to a party held by somepony who used to be my friend. Her name is Moondancer. You might have seen her at my talk about cutie mark magic. She was sitting by Spike." Starlight put her hoof to her chin, trying to remember as Twilight continued. "Back then, I thought friends were nothing more than a distraction, and I didn't go because I was focused on stopping Nightmare Moon. It wasn't that long ago that I realized that avoiding that party was the deciding factor in turning Moondancer into a bitter recluse." Twilight put her hoof on Starlight's shoulder. "I would have understood if she never wanted to be my friend again as long as she didn't alienate others, but she forgave me, and I kept feeling guilt until I forgave myself. And that's what matters for you, too. My friends and I, and the ponies from the town we met you, have all forgiven you. You need to forgive yourself." Starlight wiped a tear from her eye and thanked the purple alicorn before leaving the throne room. Twilight followed her out, taking the first door on the left. Even though she had been in this library many times since she started living in the crystalline castle, she was sometimes still amazed at the size of it. The glass dome of the ceiling was nearly as high as the Canterlot library’s, and the shelves reached all the way to the edge of the glass, each shelf filled completely with books she’d all read before. It reminded her of the library – albeit a much smaller version – from Beauty and the Beast, which she’d watched once with her Canterlot High friends. Twilight browsed the shelves, searching for a book to pass the time. Sometimes light reading for the Princess of Friendship involved previously read historical books with plenty of facts; other times, she read a book of poems by Colt Witmane or her favorite author, Jade Singer. Usually, however, as was the case today, she craved adventure, picking up one of her Daring Do books, Daring Do and the Ring of Destiny. It was one of A.K. Yearling’s more recent novels, and one of Twilight’s favorites. Daring Do’s house had just been invaded by Dr. Caballeron and some of his minions when Spike came into her view. She looked up and noticed that he was holding a sealed scroll in his hand. “Hey, Twilight! Guess what just came!” “Let’s see, you’re holding a scroll... Is that the royal seal!?” “It sure is. It’s a letter from Princess Celestia!” Twilight set the book aside, excited. “I haven’t gotten a letter from Celestia since Dr. Mindwell came to town. What could this be about?” She broke the seal and started reading. “My dear Princess Twilight, my sister Luna and I have a unique study opportunity for you in Canterlot. It is an opportunity that Luna and I feel would be best appreciated by you. We understand you and your friends have only just returned from another place the map in your castle sent you, so we advise you take a day or two to relax from your adventure and to prepare for your journey to Canterlot before coming.” “A unique opportunity?” wondered Spike. “I wonder what kind of opportunity it could be.” Spike shrugged, and the two of them hurried toward the spa. Bulk Biceps opened the door after Twilight knocked. “Welcome back, Princess and little dragon!” “Thank you, Bulk. We’re here to join our friends.” “They’re in one of the hot tubs after their massages. Let’s go!” The three made their way into the room of the spa where the large hot tub was, surrounded by several lounge chairs. Sure enough, all six of her friends were relaxing in the tub, up to their necks in steaming mineral water. Twilight greeted her friends and Lotus Blossom gave her a quick mud facial and horn filing before Twilight joined them in the hot tub. “While I was reading, I got a letter from Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.” Her friends were understandably surprised and excited, asking what it was about. Barely able to contain her excitement as it grew, she continued. “Princess Celestia and Princess Luna have given me a special opportunity to study in Canterlot! I don’t know the details, but from their letter, it sounds exciting!” “Maybe exciting for an egghead like you, Twilight,” retorted Rainbow Dash. “What are you going to do while you’re in Canterlot and you need us, huh?” Twilight smiled, and Rarity caught a glint in her eye. “You want us to come with you, don’t you?” “Mm-hm!” The ponies cheered and congratulated Twilight, splashing water out of the hot tub. Pinkie jumped up and down, splashing farther than the others, and some water from her splashes landed on Spike and another spa patron walking by. "That's wonderful!" said Starlight Glimmer. "I haven't had any luck finding Sunburst yet, but I can try again at Celestia's school." “It would have to be temporary. Applejack and Rarity have thriving businesses here in Ponyville. Fluttershy’s animals will need feeding.” “And bedtime stories,” Fluttershy replied, and Twilight continued. “I don’t know how long my studies will take. This may take months, so I’d understand if you returned to Ponyville to keep things going.” “Nonsense, Twilight. We set up temporary supervisors whenever we go off on adventures that take more’n a few days, an’ Big Mac, Granny, an’ Apple Bloom are more than capable of handlin’ all the chores and business for a few weeks.” “Most of my income comes from big contracts with celebrities like Sapphire Shores, although I always love the business with the ponies of Ponyville. I’ll miss them more. And besides, it’s not like an occasional excursion to Canterlot is rare anymore; you haven’t forgotten about the Canterlot Carousel already, have you?” “How could I forget? Wearing the Princess Dress on opening day is part of the reason the Canterlot Carousel became so successful so quickly.” Twilight turned to Fluttershy. “What about the animals?” “I do what Rarity and Applejack do. Sometimes I invite Treehugger to take my place. There’s also a colt in Ponyville who just adores animals, and I’ve taken him under my wing lately. This would be a good opportunity for him to try taking care of them on his own. They’re both so good with the animals! Besides,” she continued, more to herself than anypony in particular, “I never really tried getting on good terms with the animals in the Canterlot gardens. We’ve always been so busy when we’ve been there.” “We’ll just have to keep in touch and return if something big comes up.” The seven ponies agreed to spend a full day making preparations, and meet at the train station the morning after for the first train to Canterlot. “Spike, take a letter.” Spike asked the spa ponies for some paper and a quill. Once he was ready, Twilight continued. “Dear Princess Celestia, I was so excited to receive your letter after so long! My friends and I will be leaving on the first train to Canterlot in two days’ time, giving us time to rest and pack. Your fellow Princess, Twilight Sparkle.” Spike sent the letter, and the mares all spent the next hour or so relaxing at the spa before going home to pack some luggage for their journey. Back at her castle, Twilight and Spike went to a storage closet near the entrance of the castle, opening the door. The door led to a decent-sized room, filled with clutter. Suddenly confetti burst straight up from the floor, and Twilight and Spike stepped back. “Looks like we found another one of the party cannons Pinkie Pie hid a while ago. Come on, let’s find my luggage.” They rummaged through the clutter, eventually finding a pair of saddlebags and a suitcase. “These should be more than enough to carry the parchment and quills I’ll need. Oh, and when we come back from Canterlot, remind me that we should organize this closet together.” “Are those the saddlebags you got from that world that you were never born?” “Sadly, those were destroyed soon after I returned when Tirek destroyed the Golden Oak Library. It’s too bad,” she sighed “They would have been a good memento to bring with me on more adventures.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The train from Ponyville pulled into the Canterlot station, where Princess Celestia and Princess Luna were waiting. The seven mares filed out, each taking a moment to bow to them. Twilight came last, Spike riding on her back. “Welcome, Princess Twilight,” said Luna as the nine started walking toward the castle. “You certainly arrived quickly.” “I really enjoy studying,” the purple alicorn replied, “and this unique opportunity you mentioned in your letter sounded too good to pass up. Also, I may have been a little over-excited when I got a letter from you after so long.” “A little?” Spike interjected Celestia smiled at Spike before turning her attention back to Twilight. “Indeed you do, Twilight. We hope you’ll have the patience to wait a few minutes longer.” “Oh. Why is that?” “This study is unlike any other, and we shouldn’t talk about it until we get to the library.” Spike and the eight ponies made their way through the streets toward the Canterlot library. They only met one small delay as they bumped into Coco Pommel, who was in Canterlot looking for inspiration and fabric for new designs. She and Rarity had a little chat, catching up with each other’s accomplishments in the Equestrian fashion industry. Rarity cut the meeting short, promising to meet up with her again soon after giving her the address of her Canterlot boutique. The Princesses listened to the tales of the ponies’ adventures as they turned the corner away from the main wing of the library. Pinkie Pie, Twilight, and Spike recognized the path they were taking; it was the same path they’d taken to the Star Swirl wing of the library after Twilight had gotten a message from her future self. With a nod from the princesses, the guards in front of the doors let them and their companions through. “Now we are free to talk about your assignment, Princess Twilight,” said Princess Celestia once the doors had closed. She lifted her horn and unlocked the giant metal gate. “My older sister and I have decided to let you study under Star Swirl the Bearded himself.” Eight jaws dropped as the young mares and Spike gasped.