Apology
The comforting babble of chirping birds and the screaming of delighted foals reached Sunny’s ears as she trotted out onto the dirt path outside the common hall. The sun hung above the mare and warmed her coat quite pleasantly as she trotted down the path. She was quickly overtaken by the stampeding herd of foals that stopped just long enough to wave at Sunny before resuming their mad dash past the buildings that lined the village square.
The ponies of the village and the birds weren’t the only ones who had benefitted from the warmer weather. For the first time that Sunny could recall since being accepted by the hidden community, the trees and uncultivated fields showed far more vibrant green than brown. The temperatures had even improved to the point that torch duty on the fields had been disbanded, and the unicorns that had participated in it were able to pursue the careers of their choosing.
Clover had led the charge, taking to carpentry and woodworking like a stallion possessed. Over the past several weeks, he and several other unicorns had built several homes on the outskirts of the town. One of them had even been offered to Sunny, but she had politely declined for the time being.
On the opposite side of the spectrum, Starswirl’s role had remained largely the same from what Sunny knew. The majority of his time was spent with his research, followed closely by the time spent with Lulu and (preventing) her ‘adventures’. On occasion, Sunny had seen the elderly stallion speaking with Clover in hushed tones and with serious looks. Their conversations would end abruptly whenever she approached, and she didn’t feel it would be appropriate to pry.
“Ah, good morning Sunny!” an earth pony mare named Needlepoint greeted as Sunny stepped into her tailoring shop. She was an older pony with a fading blue coat and a sewing needle flank mark, and her smile was warm as she asked, “How can I help you today?”
“I am afraid I must impose upon you again,” Sunny explained as she looked over the various tools and materials lining the shelves. “I will require the use of your tools and some fabric, if you can spare it.”
“Oh, are you sure you want to try again? I know you really want to make something yourself, and I’m not the only one who’s glad that someone as young as you is so driven, but…” Needlepoint put a hoof over her mouth in some approximation of a filly trying to smother a giggle. “Are you certain that I can’t help you at all? You certainly put in a lot of effort with your magic, but the results might be less… embarrassing.”
The only sign of Sunny’s annoyance was a clenched jaw and a twitch of one eyebrow. Neither did anything to dim the good humor of the seamstress as she retrieved the necessary materials and tools before pushing them over the counter towards the unicorn. “There you go, dear. Try not to let your creations get out of control this time, okay?”
“Thank you for your advice, Needlepoint. I shall keep it in mind at all times,” Sunny said stiffly. She turned and departed from the tailor’s shop, and she pointedly didn’t look back as Needlepoint broke down into a fit of giggles.
When Sunny had first expressed an interest in creating an article of clothing, she had watched over the seamstress mare’s shoulders as she had worked on another article of clothing. After a single hour of observation, she was confident she could replicate the earth pony’s skills to create what she needed. The movements of thread and needle were automated into a spell that took the barest fraction of her concentration, which allowed her to continue planning the later stages of her project.
Because of this lapse of concentration on the task at hand, the needle and thread that was binding the fabric together had somehow migrated to her forehooves and tied them together. By the time Sunny had realised what was happening, the animated threads had already made it past her fetlocks. By the time she had stopped the spell, it had already crawled several more inches up her forelegs. Rather than potentially ruin the precious thread, Sunny had called out for Starswirl to help untangle herself. The elder stallion did help free the mare from her unintentional bindings… after taking several minutes to stop laughing. Starswirl had sworn an oath of secrecy about the events that had occurred, and the two parted ways.
Naturally, the entire town had learned about the mishap in less than a week.
I will not have my reputation besmirched without retribution, Starswirl! One day I’ll— Sunny grumbled to herself, but halted just as quickly. I burned his family to death and scarred the last of his line for the rest of her life. What punishment could I threaten that would surpass that?
Sunny’s short walk stopped in the shade of a tree that had apparently survived the long winter and was even now filling out with vibrant green leaves. She sat down abruptly and squeezed her eyes shut before giving her head a quick shake. Solaria would have thought of ways to punish Starswirl, but I will not make the same mistakes again. I spend ages as Solaria trying to create a perfect system of order… and for what? I don’t even remember why I was trying to create the system, or what that system was meant to accomplish. I don’t even remember who instructed me to do those things…
The mare slowly opened her eyes and arrayed the tailoring supplies neatly around her. The simple actions filled Sunny with a small but noticeable sense of purpose and enjoyment, two things that had been completely missing from the life that Solaria had led. Solaria would have scoffed at such things. She wouldn’t have seen the purpose of learning how to do this… she probably wouldn’t have even acknowledged the need for the result of this process. ‘It does not serve the system,’ she would think. Sunny’s self-deprecating thought process gave rise to a startling conclusion. I had always punished ponies who had strayed from the purpose of the system, to try and force them into being good little cogs in the machine. Did I ever take a moment and consider that I might have been a cog in somepony else’s machine?
She let out a sigh and pushed those thoughts aside. Solaria and her system failed. All she could do was destroy things that she didn’t like. As Sunny Sky, I can try and make things better. Any doubt that the mare felt was pushed aside as she found resolve in her task. I’m going to make Lulu the best cloak ever, no matter the cost!
The fabrics and other materials might have been considered crude, but that didn’t concern Sunny. Given the amount of abuse Lulu puts her current cloak through, ruggedness takes priority, she thought as she pulled the materials together with her magic. Once the basic garment is completed, I can see about adding some enhancements to it. If she’s going to be wearing this all the time, then temperature regulation will be a necessity. It shouldn’t be too hard to make it resistant to the rain and other environmental concerns. Perhaps I should-- FOCUS! Sunny gave herself a mental kick as her wandering thoughts had very nearly caused a repeat of her earlier embarrassment. She needed…
“She needed to keep all of her attention on the task before her. Though she had no proof of it, Sunny secretly suspected that the mundane needles and thread could smell her fear…”
“Good day, Lulu,” Sunny greeted while pointedly ignoring the narration that the filly had supplied. “Am I to assume that you’ve completed your penance and were released, or did you escape your jailor again?”
The scarred unicorn harrumphed dramatically. “I don’t see what the big deal is. I was just using one of Starswirl’s boring research books to play paddle ball! It’s not like a few hard whacks are going to hurt it or anything.” When Lulu grew silent, Solaria spared a moment to glance and saw her annoyance had been replaced with a thoughtful expression beneath her tattered hood. “Sunny, is reading fun?” she asked.
“Fun? I don’t know if I would consider it fun…” Sunny answered as she thought back to all of the texts that she had borrowed from Starswirl over the past few weeks. It’s the accumulation of knowledge that another pony has catalogued. I don’t think that--
“Really?” Lulu interrupted, and a large hardcover book landed with a heavy thump on Sunny’s tailoring supplies. She bounced from hoof to hoof as excitement apparently overpowered her capacity to stand still. “Double Check just finished writing this a week ago, and he was reading it to the other foals. They all seemed to have a lot of fun!”
Sunny arched an eyebrow as she shifted her attention from her now buried project to the book that had been dumped in front of her. The covers were newly crafted and crisp, as were the pages contained within them. She pulled open the cover and asked, “Did you have fun then, Lulu?”
The filly stopped bouncing, and she shrank back into the shadows of her cloak. “The others weren’t having much fun while I was there. So… I thought it might be fun if you read it to me!”
I don’t understand why my inclusion in the activity would increase the ‘fun’, but there are many things that this foal has taught me since arriving here, Sunny thought as she let out a sigh in surrender. Perhaps I will divine the underlying formula of ‘fun’ that she grasps so easily some day. “Very well then, Lulu. Why don’t--”
“You will? Yes!” the filly cheered as she bounced from hoof to hoof again as her previous excitement returned. She quickly settled down when the elder mare cleared her throat, though she continued to quiver from the apparently monumental effort necessary to sit still.
What followed was possibly the strangest book that Sunny had ever been exposed to. It followed the journeys of a young earth pony that lived an apparently mundane life in a world very much like their own, were it not for a series of unfortunate events that strained what might be considered believable. Disaster and tragedy struck, followed by renewed hope in the form of friends and family, and a journey across the width of the world to stop an unspeakable evil. Hours passed between the two as Sunny became just as enraptured in the story as the foal she was reading to, until the inevitable occurred.
“...where’s the rest of the story?” Sunny asked as she stared down at the blank last page of the book. She flipped the page to reveal the equally blank back cover, then back again. “Lulu, I demand that you take me to the pony who wrote this at once! I will not tolerate not knowing the ultimate fate of Somber Sea, or how the wendigo managed to slay her brother with impunity and escape!”
Lulu tilted her head and raised a hoof to scratch one of her ears. “That’s the end of this book, Sunny. I think Double Check plans on writing more, but that takes time--”
“Nonsense!” Sunny declared. “Come, Lulu! We will go to this Double Check and he will tell us what we wish to know or suffer the consequences!” She rose and began to trot in the direction of the town square, but stopped when Lulu’s giggling reached her ears. It was a sound she had learned to dread. “What is it, Lulu?” she asked as she turned to face the filly.
The scarred filly was grinning widely as she put a hoof on the book. “Silly Sunny! Half of the fun is the suspense and wondering what happens next. The other half is talking about it with friends!” Lulu explained quickly before drawing in a quick breath. “So what do you think? How do you think that the wendigo got away with it, or maybe her brother survived? Or maybe her brother was the wendigo! Remember, we didn’t see the body at the end!”
Sunny attempted to parse the flood of questions as they were launched by the filly, but she found herself hung up by what Lulu had explained at the start. She said it wasn’t as fun listening to the book with the other fillies, but it would be fun with me. She said that talking with a friend about the book was half the fun. She had told me months ago that the other foals don’t like her because of her scars and lack of sight. She wants to talk about the book with a friend… and she comes to me. She wouldn’t have to come to me if I hadn’t done this to her.
The conclusion was built on circumstantial evidence and off-the-hoof comments from conversations with the filly, but it all led up to the same dull ache in her heart that wouldn’t go away. Starswirl had called it ‘sympathy’, but the term didn’t seem to encompass the feeling that ate at her to varying degrees every waking moment that she spent with the filly. There was only one thing that Sunny could do to ease that ache, and she didn’t hesitate for a moment as she swept Lulu into a tight hug… or she tried to, at least.
Bam!
The sound of teleportation snapped Sunny out of her thoughts, and her eyes settled on the sour-faced Lulu who now sat a half-dozen body lengths away. “No no no, none of that! If you try that again I’ll just teleport to my secret hiding spot!” the filly protested as she looked away in protest. The defiant pose didn’t last long, and concern began to enter Lulu’s expression. “Why are you so grabby lately, Sunny? Right now, you’re worse than Starswirl and Cookie when I was younger.”
“I… I did something very mean to somepony, Lulu,” Sunny explained, and an inexplicable urge to tell her everything rose within her. “I didn’t know just how mean it was until just recently, and I don’t know how to make it better. I don’t know if I can make it better.”
“Have you tried apologizing? Starswirl makes me apologize whenever I do something wrong,” Lulu explained as she tapped her chin with a hoof. “I know you have some trouble warming up to ponies you’ve just met, so maybe somepony just got the wrong idea about you? I know you’re a nice pony, Sunny. You always make time to play with me! I’m sure if you apologize and tell whoever it is that you’ll do better, they’ll forgive you.”
The simple wisdom of the filly’s advice fought for supremacy with the dull pain in her heart that Lulu’s faith inspired. Just apologize and say you’ll do better? Is it really as simple as that? Is a simple apology enough to make up for what I did to her… to her family and to Starswirl? I want to do better… I will do better. The resolve to do just what the filly had advised made itself apparent, but her voice began to falter. “Lulu, I’m… I’m so so--”
“I figured I would find you two together,” a voice said from behind Sunny, which caused the mare to jump in surprise. A look over her shoulder confirmed that it belonged to Starswirl, who gave Sunny an amused look from beneath his wide-brimmed hat. “Don’t glare at me like that, child. I snuck up behind you with all the stealth of a gutshot dragon.”
“Swirly! Swirly! I can teleport!” Lulu declared triumphantly, and promptly suited words to action. Her little horn flared with energy and she appeared in front of Starswirl. “I was going to show you later, but I had to use it just now to escape Sunny! She was trying to molest me!”
“I wasn’t trying--” Sunny started to protest, indignance at the accusation apparent in her voice. A raised hoof from Starswirl gave her pause.
“Lulu, I don’t think that word means what you think it means,” the elderly stallion said as he brought his raised hoof up to cover his face.
“I know exactly what it means!” Lulu declared. “The word shows up in Double Check’s book! When I asked him about it, he said it was a hug that I should tell adults about if it happens!” Her expression scrunched up in confusion. “Come to think of it, Clover and Cookie molest each other all the time! Did they tell you about it yet?”
Midway through the explanation, Starswirl had begun to shake his head in apparent exasperation. Rather than tackle that powder keg, he chose to change the subject. “Lulu, I just came from Double Check’s home. Did you borrow his one-of-a-kind first draft of his book without asking?”
“Yes! But I’ll bring it back right now since we’re done! I’ll talk to you later, Sunny!” Lulu said, and both she and the book vanished in a flash of magic.
Starswirl let out a sigh and turned to Sunny. “Thank you for spending so much time with her. She certainly benefits from having somepony to look up to… so to speak.” He let out a small chuckle at his poor choice of words before giving Sunny a serious look. “I’m afraid that we have something serious to discuss, Sunny. Even with spells, I’m afraid this place is far too public. If you would follow me, please…”
Sunny nodded and fell into step behind the elder stallion. The pair was greeted at nearly every storefront by the business owner or one of the younger helpers that had been drafted to help with the work, but Starswirl didn’t tarry more than a moment at each. Sunny followed the stallion’s example by exchanging pleasantries with everypony. A small flicker of warmth had taken root in her after every conversation, and it took her a moment to realise that it had nothing to do with the sun.
This never happened to Solaria. Ponies cowered in fear at my approach. Now they seem happy when they see Sunny… when they see me, Sunny realised. I was a truly wretched creature… to have wanted to inspire such terror in my subjects. This… this is far better. She held onto the gentle warmth that the realisation had brought her, and Lulu’s kind words earlier added a bittersweet quality to it.
The sound of a door latch shook Sunny out of her thoughts, and she followed Starswirl into the common hall. Clover was already present and sitting by one of the far tables, and Smart Cookie closed and latched the lock behind the two new arrivals as soon as they passed through the door. The hall itself had developed something of a comforting quality to Sunny when filled with ponies making merry and talking. With just the four, though, it seemed ominous. The feeling only increased as the blinds were drawn and Starswirl cast spells to prevent any sound from leaving the room as well as block any scrying attempt.
“Sunny, I suspect you might have questions regarding this little meeting, and there will be plenty of time for those in just a bit. For now, though, I’m afraid I must apologize,” Starswirl said as he took his seat next to Clover. He took a deep breath and raised his head just enough for Sunny to lock eyes with the elder stallion.
“I know who and what you used to be, Sunny.”
Stats
Page generated in 0.025 seconds
Total duration
1,008 users online
1,573,349 hits today, 2,280,440 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
A wild Celestia chapter appears! I had originally intended to post this on Monday, but it came back from the first draft editors with relatively (for me) few errors.
Oh fuck you for that cliffhanger D:
A pleasure slave in Solaria's guard barracks.
god
DAMMIT
Solaria's appfentice? Solaria's child?! ... Solaria herself?!?! Aargghh!
And Starswirl be all like: ofmusingsandwonderings.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/you-keep-using-that-word1.jpg
And thus how the legend of "Molestia" was born!
*eye twitch* Oh you bastard...
You know, if it wasn't for the fact that this chapter has been in editing for a while (I suspect), I would swear you ripped that joke off of me ripping off that joke.
Of course, I keep using that phrase. It might not mean quite what I think it means.
6418516 6418582 6418636 6418723 And to think, I suggested to Arad to stop THERE instead of using the next paragraph he wondered if he should put in there or save it for the next chapter. How very....evil of me.
i.qkme.me/3qvi36.jpg
I should have waited before reading this...
Damn cliffhanger from hell
6418736
Ya bastard.
6418736
I had actually ridden the fence on ending it here or including several more paragraphs. Unfortunately, that would have gutted what I intend for the next chapter, so after some discussion with the editors I had to nix that idea.
I wonder if the Ethereals influenced Solaria in some way. Or maybe they've been influenced in the same way....
6418812
Now that is a good question. I know there's been a lot of drama in this chapter and the last, so it is very easy to miss some of the other things that are happening...
Pretty sure they're going to be close, but not quite on-target.
6418821
Well, going by this quote:
I'm heavily tempted to go with someone else doing the influencing.
6418879
Very interesting speculation!
Remember, Solaria could never recall just who or what gave her the directive that she followed for those hundreds/thousands of years...
6418804 I am one of the editors ;) *snicker* (ya might've quoted my post by mistake instead of someone else's lol).
media.giphy.com/media/OYgcKl4X7fvyM/giphy.gif
Damn Arad and your cliffhanger! I am with sunny! We should go to you and demand to know what is going to happen xD
Jokes aside, great chapter :)
God fucking damnit... I start reading this story today and THIS is the chapter it ends on so far?
Haha. Of course with that cliffhanger we don't even know if Starswirl is right in whatever he's guessed.
6418736 suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/26038126/images/1373943139929.gif
s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/45/42/cd/4542cd4c7033f07284efb53981eace21.jpg
s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/d8/da/5f/d8da5f602a92089c2fe71853e09bb855.jpg
Add another 'goddamnit Arad' to the pile.
Nicely done.
6418636
Maybe just an agent of Solaria, an infiltrator.
6418472
Now...to be absolutely clear...
...You're not about to bait and switch on us by totally misleading everyone into thinking he knows she's Solaria and then having him draw some dumb other conclusion just to make a bunch of fake drama...
...right?
6419208
What everyone choses to assume Starswirl means by his last statement is entirely out of my control. I'm not going to drop any hints or steer folks to specific spots in chapters. I'm going to let everyone speculate before the next chapter is posted.
...ha. Sunbutt appears to be having a touch of Disassociative Identity...
6418924 Oh, you just knew how this was going to turn out... Commander Bradford. You foresaw the result so you went and... Changed that. Now if you didn't have an unlocked save state...
Dammit, Lulu! Don't give her any ideas!
She's already transitioned from Tryantlestia to Cakelestia and flirted briefly with Trollestia (i.e. that teleport spell used on Luna). If she goes full-on Molestia the entire planet is doomed. No creature will be allowed to sleep until they've embraced the love of this reformed monster.
i874.photobucket.com/albums/ab302/Church0/Molestia%20-%20Dont%20go%20to%20bed_zpss312x2dj.png
Analysis later. Trying to sleep while the fear of this newly formed lust-demon parades through your mind is harder than it sounds.
How can thine selfishly torture entertainees with an Unbreath-yielding halt to such a plotline pleasant? Your's readers demand another compressed slice of the cake, the story! So enriched your words they burn through voice, yet you deprive ours hungry souls wanting to drink in the words our dear Arad has refused to lend its entertainees! Such crime should be punished by sent to the sky pearl of night eternal!
Translation: How, HOW CAN YOU END THIS IN A CLIFFHANGER?! WE WANT MOAAAAAAAAAAAAR
!!!
That's down right evil to stop there ...
6419237 Because people are being silly and are just voicing what they're thinking at their heads at you, if anything to alleviate some of the mental tension you've dropped on us. haha.
6419237
Uhh. "Entirely out of my control"?
We, as the reader, are lead to believe by our knowledge of the story, and the tone of the scene that he has discovered the obvious secret of hers we are privy to.
However, experience with overused tropes leads me to believe that this is actually a fake out meant to create a sense of a twist which is incredibly hollow.
It's annoying and I hate to see it. Now maybe I'm wrong, in fact I hope I am, but like I said this is depressingly common.
Thinking for herself seems to have done Solaria a world of good. Soon, she'll name herself something else.
6418736 That's good editing... and good editors are hated, either by the authors or the fans.
6418821
Indeed, I would presume there is an 'Order' spirit that is counterpart to Discord. It messed up the Ethereals which were implied to be Discord's creations and put Solaria on her path. This does make me curious how Discord's reign and the Elements of Harmony work into it all, though.
I doubt Starswirl actually knows or he wouldn't be this polite. He probably thinks she is Solaria's apprentice or mage or something. Then we'll get to see whether Celestia is willing to correct him or live with the lie.
6419703
I think you're right about the ponies' relative politeness toward Sunny; if they truly suspected her to be Solaria I think there would be greater obvious protections - exiting the town completely in case of mass incineration, and the like.
The final cliffhanger isn't what really bugs me about this chapter, in all honesty. Arad pulled the same old, very frustrating "I'm going to do something importan- *overly-well-timed interruption!!!!*"
If the two are actually related... ("Solaria, we know who you are, and please don't tell Luna 'cause it will break her.") I wouldn't be able to
hard enough.
I think Rainbow says it best my feelings for this cliffhanger.
The fact that Starswirl said
leads me to believe he's not quite onto the real truth. I can't wait to see what he
thinks heknows.That cliffhanger.
Okay! Now I have time for a more substantial reply block.
6419255
I had this [MOLESTIA INTENSIFIES] gif that I was going to share but I lost it.
6419985
Some more interesting speculation!
6419985
After the last chapter, someone had posited the theory that Starswirl knows much more than he lets on. This actually led me to a disturbing conclusion about his character. At the end of Regret, he could clearly tell that Sunny!Solaria was distressed by what had happened, and he had brought her down to the kitchen to get some comfort food. However, if he knew that Sunny was Solaria and saw how distressed she was about Lulu's injuries... sending her down to spend time with Lulu makes him a rather cruel sadist.
6419998
Already beat you to it. :P
6420040
I'm going to use this to respond to everyone's concerns regarding the cliffhanger:
I had debated including the reaction to Starswirl's declaration, but that would cut into what I have planned for the next chapter. Rather than have this chapter be longer than average and the next be shorter, I ran the idea by my editors. We decided that it would be best to end it here.
Now, I hope that wraps up any lingering questions!
6420083
At the same time, I could see why Starswirl dissuading Solaria from telling Luna might be a plot-centric point. Nightmare Moon could very well have been a product of Luna later finding out exactly how "Celestia" has impacted her life, and that "Celestia" hid it all from her for who knows how long. Even if true, the overly-cliche situation in this chapter would still be far too
-worthy.
6419337
Okay, I'm going to dedicate an entire comment to responding to you since there's three things I want to go over.
First things first, when I said that it's out of my control, you're illustrating exactly what I meant. I wrote the story, and people react to it. It was a lesson I learned writing here that I cannot write a story that everyone will like. I can only write the story I want to write, and hope that some folks like it. I cannot say any more without violating my promise not to breadcrumb plot hints or point things out. Now, if we get to the end of the story, then I can point things out.
Second; the term 'trope' gets a negative rap because they are used so often. I won't argue that some tropes may be overused (something I'll touch on in the next point), but having tropes in a story is like having words in a sentence. They're the building blocks of a story that are clearly codified for easy perusal. If you have problems with tropes appearing in stories, then you must not have fun reading any fiction ever. Heck, you must not enjoy FiM that much as well. Sibling rivalry and a fallen god figure? Redemption? The main character ascending to 'godhood'? THE SUN ORBITS THE EARTH?! The Bible's done all of that for thousands of years, yo. There is nothing new under the sun.
Third, I want to take an excerpt of your comment and revise it a little bit to illustrate my last point.
This is a pet peeve of mine. Asserting one's opinion as fact. If I ever levy criticism on another story, I always frame my statements with the disclaimer that it's just one person's opinion.
For example, in my opinion, The Matrix trilogy's Jesus allegory was a bit predictable, and it detracted from my enjoyment of it. In my opinion, the ending of Mass Effect 3 was so terrible that I can't help but think that the main writers all quit and it was finished by unpaid interns two weeks before the deadline.
Contrast this with the following paraphrased comment I've gotten many times in the past: You forgot to italicize these thoughts.
The former examples are opinions that are personally held by me based on my impressions of the media and formed by all of my experiences leading up to it. The latter is a statement of fact.
My tone may sound terse in this comment, and I'll admit that's primarily because of the pet peeve I have. I hope that can be corrected in the future.
6420133
Groan, I can't believe I didn't notice you used the EXACT same clip.
Oh well great minds think alike maybe?
6420083 Don't get me wrong, I love this cliffhanger, it is the best type of cliffhanger in my opinion, the fact that it could be so many different possiblitis only adds to the fact.
Alright, a good night's sleep and I'm ready to look into this chapter without fear of Molestia's sexy wrath. Let's do this!
1. Solaria's Redemption - I'll be honest; when Solaria's history was being established I was of the opinion that she did not deserve the forgiveness she sought for her past deeds. An honest attempt to make amends may be powerful, but it can only do so much to heal the wounds. And Solaria's history of callously enforcing her rule has left deep gashes in Equestria that go down to the bone.
Now, watching her make every earnest attempt to defy her past and create a better future for others, I think she deserves at least a chance to improve. Hell, if Luke Skywalker could reignite that spark of good in Darth Vader, who am I to denounce this former ice queen and her efforts to make amends?
That being said, Vader didn't deny and conceal the evil he helped perpetuate. Solaria's intentions, while good, are probably aimed at erasing that part of her life rather than owning up to it. You can move on from your past, but that doesn't change the fact that it happened.
2. Eldritch Pawns in a Game of Chess - Appropriate music for this next bit.
And now we learn Solaria's goal of creating a perfect orderly system wasn't her idea to begin with. Something gave her this directive, something that probably has more power than her or the Ethereals. The race Discord belongs to might be a good candidate, but I've got a feeling he's just as much a puppet in this cosmic entity's grand scheme. The only difference is he can see the strings that guide them. Are his chaotic actions part of the plan or attempts to sever these bonds to the master? And is Celestia doomed to fall under this entity's sway once more?
The Ethereal's war against Earth and Equestria seems like the crucible that will reveal this ancient force's intentions.
But that's a couple thousand years away. Right now we've got-
3, Sunny and Lulu: Reading Buddies for Life! - This scene brought back fond memories of listening to my mom read Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings to my brothers and I before bedtime. She'd spend at least an hour each night reading, even doing the appropriate character voices. When people say the movie adaptations are never as good as the source material, its because they have memories like this. If you're a parent or intend on becoming one, never pass up an opportunity to have story time. You'll form some of the best memories for your kids and yourself.
Fond memories aside, Sunny's indignation at reaching the story's end and Lulu wanting to speculate on what comes next was pretty meta. You know how to read your fans and take us for a ride at the same time.
Also, Lulu's tragic and adorable character is more potent than I thought. In addition to the Hanako elements (severe scarring, love of great stories and good company) I'm also seeing elements of Emi Ibarazaki.
i874.photobucket.com/albums/ab302/Church0/Emi%20and%20Scootaloo_zpsqmomgjwe.jpg
Energetic, playful, never one to back down from a chance to exercise and improve her powers. All this filly needs is to find a colt with a faulty heart and she'll have the perfect soul-mate. Until she outlives him, at least.
Oh, and Starswirl is setting up some ominous meeting with Sunny, true nature, cliffhanger, blah blah. I think we're at the point in these stories where suspenseful chapter endings are the norm. It's not a bad thing, but it is a pattern that could get old if not addressed. Although I doubt Starswirl knows exactly who Sunny skies really is.
P.S. - The upcoming Sweetie Chronicles crossover for Mente Materia got me interested enough to check it out. I'm now afraid what little free time I have will be occupied trying to catch up with all the story universes she hops around to. Thanks a lot, Arad.
6420219
I have to say I love your little chapter break down comments. :)
Solaria's Redemption -- The longest journey begins with a single step, and Solaria's just begun to take those steps. She probably doesn't yet realise the sheer scope of how much she needs to repent... right now she just sees the scarred filly that she's responsible for. That's the first step, I think. How things develop from here... would be spoilers!
The Game of Eldrich Gods and Monsters -- (At this point I'd like to point out how the coverart shares similarities to the Game of Thrones cover. Complete with WINTER IS COMING imagery!)
Also, love your speculation here. So much I want to spoil!
Reading Buddies! -- To be perfectly honest, I was actually using Sunny's reaction to channel the anticipated reaction to this chapter. >_>
I love writing Lulu as a character, since she's such a study in extremes. In her there is the indomitable good spirit of all children (and to an extent all Equestrians), which is offset by the crippling injuries and psychological problems that will likely haunt her for the rest of her life.
And regarding the cliffhanger, I'm seeing a lot of speculation on what Starswirl thinks is going on and so on, but I've yet to see anyone ask a very important question:
Why is Starswirl bringing this up now?
6420274
Because they're under attack.
Obviously.
6420083
Well, no. Sadists inflict pain for their own pleasure. If he was forcing her to spend time with Luna to reap satisfaction from her pain, that's sadism- but his other actions don't suggest that. He might be intentionally letting her feel guilt, discomfort, and regret on something she did/was a part of/ condoned to lead her to resolve never to do so again/feel empathy/sympathy- well, that's an effort to reform, which is largely inarguably a good thing.