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Pt. 1 - The Ordinary World of Witching Hour & Twilight Sparkle2,557 words
Pt. 2 - A Doctor's Reluctance2,936 words
Pt. 3 - A Princess' Sage Advice5,764 words
Pt. 4 - The Threshold of Memory4,545 words
Pt. 5 - A Royal Quandary1,875 words
Pt. 6 - Past and Present Family Reunion7,033 words
Pt. 7 - The Crystal Archive of Hope6,267 words
Pt. 8 - Home is Never the Same as When You Left6,176 words

Pt. 7 - The Crystal Archive of Hope

Witch rubs furiously at her eyes, bringing the foreign words of the journal back into focus on the aged paper before her. Sighing heavily, she pushes the book away and rests her chin on the desk. Despite herself, she mutters an invective at the book, wishing that she’d thought to ask Luna to teach her how to read the dead language of Equus. Seeing the book last night had given her a sense of familiarity, but no matter how hard she tried to make heads or tails of it, all she’d gotten from the memories of Crystal Hope were impressions of mood while writing, sitting at this very desk.

Even the few translations in the margins in the old dialect of Equestrian were of no help in reading the entries, only giving a general and extremely vague idea of how the language had transitioned from Equusese to Equestrian.

Heaving another sigh, Witch pulls over the notebook that had been completely blank at the start of her efforts but is now full of pages of individual characters with notes on the radicals used to hopefully give the words context, and untranslated passages of text with their translated counterparts in hopes of finding any grammatical correlation on top of which words were which.

Three quick taps on the door pull Witch from her flustered musings, and the door swings open quickly after the knocked warning, revealing Twilight. “Hey Witch… Are you ready to- Sweet Celestia have you even slept?”

“Tartarus… Is it morning already?” Witch asks, looking around and finally realizing how low the candles had burned and that the warm glow of the sunrise now supplements their meager light.

“Witch…” Twilight’s warning tone makes the unicorn flinch slightly.

“I know, I know… Go take my medicine and get breakfast…” Witch grumbles, closing her notebooks and then the journal to put them away. Her hoof lingers on the cover of the journal, tracing the gilded silver outline of the blue sigil of Hope. In the lower right corner is a smaller symbol of a large fluffy cloud with lines radiating from it as though a sun were hidden behind it, also in glimmering silver.

“Witch? What’s so important about that journal that you’re putting your health at risk, again, over it?” Twilight demands crossly, entering the room and joining Witch at the old desk.

Huffing with mild impatience, Witch puts the journal atop her own notebooks. “Twy… You know we’re supposed to find out how Equus fell, and what the words on my bracelets could mean. Both you and Cadance saw the fall yourselves, but neither of you know why, because you both saw it from the fallen princesses’ perspective. This would all be done now if I could get a clear recollection of what happened, but the memories are still all jumbled in my head and I don’t think they’ll get any clearer until I get a full grasp on these bracelets.” Frustrated, Witch puffs at a loose tress of her blue mane, blowing it out of her eyes as she puts the books in her spare bag.

“It won’t get any clearer if you get another headache,” Twilight warns, though she feels some sympathy for her unicorn friend.

“I know, Twilight,” Witch retorts irritably, easily draping the bag on her back. “I just lost track of time. It’s not the first time I’ve pulled an all-nighter and I doubt it’ll be the last…”

“You don’t work at the hospital anymore, and you didn’t have a concussion then!” Twilight protests, following Witch out of the room and towards the guest quarters she and Twilight had been given for their stay.

“Yes, mother… Stop worrying. You can scold me more after I take my medicine and get some tea in me…”

The once great city of Roan, formerly the shining jewel in the crown of the Istallion Peninsula, lays quiet and abandoned. Its once beautiful streets and magnificent fountains, silenced now for more than a thousand years, lay choked with weeds and trees. The city’s most prominent feature, the Palace that generations of Hopes had once occupied, fares worst of all as it had been the object that was given the most attention by she who had destroyed the city. Its windows lay darkened and shattered, and its walls blackened by fires now long since gone.

One window, however, glows with the dim, flickering light of a candle.

The window in question is situated in the hallway leading to the throne room, a grand gallery that once held priceless works of art and breathtaking murals of stained glass. Now, all that remains are banners, untouched by time, flame, or the elements, hanging side by side as fresh and spotless as the day they had first adorned the wall. Each banner has the sigil of the Virtue of Hope upon it, with the cutie mark of the Virtue who had held that office beneath it. The latest of these banners has the image of a silhouette flying across a golden moon beneath the sigil, and it is this image that the candle floats before, its owner staring at the newest banner, and the empty place beside it.

“I just do not understand, Elpidios,” an echoing voice hisses. “Why should this banner appear, after all this time? Why, why does it not fill its proper place?” Pulling the candle back to levitate beside him, the owner of the voice is revealed to be a large snake, his body made out of banded green stone. Letting out a hissing sigh, the construct looks to one side at his lone companion in the hallway. “Well, what do you say, Elpidios? Do you have any ideas?”

Chirping, Elpidios, since he is in fact a phoenix, ruffles his feathers in a shrug and looks up at the construct as if to say ‘My guess is as good as yours.’

Shaking its head, the construct looks back to the banner before him. “Perhaps I should leave Roan,” it looks to Elpidios. “Seek out this new Hope?” The phoenix shakes his head, trilling in its musical voice for a few seconds before looking to the construct and gesturing with one blue wing and chirping. “Yes, yes I know, I was ordered by Hope to guard the city, and I must remain here until I am told otherwise, but I cannot continue to ignore this.”

The candle beside the construct suddenly goes out, and causing the stone snake to growl and go to relight it with its magic. Before it can, however, a tendril of glowing golden magic reaches out and a flame springs into existence on the wick accompanied by a feminine giggle.

“Forgive me, Doctor, I did not think my arrival would do that,” an echoing voice speaks from behind Doctor. “We need to talk, though, so it can’t be helped.”

Turning around quickly, the snake’s jaw drops as he beholds the ghostly figure behind him. She is a beautiful alicorn mare of pure white, with a mane and tale of many different colors that flutter in a spectral breeze. Her most striking feature, however, is the warm motherly smile she wears.

Instantly, Doctor knows this to be Life.

“What have we to speak on, Mother?” Doctor asks, looking up at the apparition with wonder.

“She who that banner belongs to, dear child of mine,” the mare replies, her voice echoing throughout the gallery though she speaks in barely a whisper. “She is soon to open the tomb of the one you served before her, and uncover things that she will need help understanding.” She pauses, as if contemplating what to say next, before looking down at Doctor with a serious expression. “Her and Compassion both.”

Grimacing, Doctor hisses at Life, shaking his head. “Why should I aid Compassion?! It is because of she that we are in this situation! I have been in exile because of her!”

Life’s wings flare out as she suddenly glows brightly. “I expected better of you, my child! Pinning the guilt of those who came before upon the shoulders of those who exist now? Such is beneath you!” Her voice swells in volume, the ruins of the palace shaking around Doctor and Elpidios, the latter simply rolling his head from one side to the other as if to say ‘look what you did now!’. “Would you lay the attack of Fillyon upon my shoulders? The destruction of Tsuyoma upon my sister?”

“N-no, mother,” Doctor stammers, coiling in on himself slightly. “Simply, my memory is long. How do I know this Compassion is different?”

“She is a former student of mine,” Life replies, her voice lowering back to its echoing almost-whisper. “She is faithful, and puts the needs of others before herself. Always.” She sighs, an echoing sound akin to a distant breeze. “But, you need not fear, you shall not be meeting her, not yet at least.” She looks up at one of the empty windows for a few moments, then looks at Doctor again. “You, my son, must abide here a while longer. But not too much longer, I suspect. Hope will need you soon, as there will be trials she will face that will require your guidance.”

Doctor looks at Life, his glowing eyes staring at her as if thinking deeply. Beside him, Elpidios trills, and looks up at Life expectantly.

“Fear not, my fiery friend, I have not forgotten you,” Life giggles. “For you, I have a task most important. Hope and Compassion are about to discover the tomb of her predecessor, the last Hope who reigned in Roan. You, my dear Elpidios, must go there, and be within the tomb when it opens. Hope will need you, just as much as she will need Doctor.” She looks to Doctor, who looks almost affronted. She raises a hoof to placate the stone snake, before continuing. “Elpidios can shed the taint of this place faster than you can, my son. And will need to do so, for Hope must come into her inheritance soon. The world may very well depend on her attaining more of her true power sooner, rather than later.” Elpidios trills again, preening under the praise.

“Oh, rub it in, why don’t you,” Doctor sighs, shaking his head at the phoenix beside him before looking back at Life. “If this is what you feel is best, then I shall abide by it.”

“It is,” Life confirms, her smile once more warm and motherly. “And I shall abide here for a while myself, for I must speak of you more on Hope.” She then looks to Elpidios inclining her head. “But your companion here must depart now, if he is to make it to his destination in time.” The phoenix recoils slightly, a shocked look in his eyes, and then spreads his wings to leap airborne before vanishing in a burst of blue flame, Doctor and Life watching him as he goes. As the last motes of flame fade into ash, Life looks back to Doctor before turning and gesturing with a wing. “Come, my child, walk with me. It has been many an age since last I set hoof upon these stones. I would see what has become of this palace.” She pauses, allowing Doctor to fall in beside her, before she continues. “And, I wish to tell you about your new mistress. I believe you will like her.”

“Is that so, mother?” Doctor asks, looking up at Life as they walk.

“Yes, my son. Allow me to tell you of the doctor you now serve, and how her actions shall help shape the age that is to come…”

After breakfast, the three mares arrive in the courtyard under the palace, the crystal heart spinning idly in place. Immediately, Cadance heads to the north side of the courtyard, searching the tiles intently for any sign of the doors.

“I saw the doors open on her tomb around here…” Cadance comments, mostly to herself. “But I didn’t see how they - Ah-ha!” Cadance looks up, grinning triumphantly with her success. Twilight and Witch rush over and there, barely visible within a large triangle pointing towards the crystal mountains, is the outline of a tall trapezoid split down the middle along the ground.

“Well… There aren’t any visible handles. There has to be some mechanism for opening them,” Twilight replies, looking around at the plinths supporting the castle over the courtyard. “Hidden levers are usually something like torch sconces…”

“That doesn’t sound right…” Witch and Cadance mutter in unison, only barely loud enough to hear each other. Witch groans, pressing a hoof to the bridge of her nose. “That’s gonna get old really fast,” she adds on her own, garnering sympathetic smiles from her companions.

“I think it’s near by…” Cadance adds, looking to either side for likely hiding places for the door’s mechanism.

“Let’s look around,” Twilight suggests. “We can cover more ground if we split up. We’ll meet back here in ten minutes if we don’t find anything.”

“I’ll take the east side of the courtyard,” Cadance volunteers.

“I’ll double-back and check the south courtyard,” Witch adds. “Just in case we missed something.”

“Good idea,” agrees Twilight. “I’ll check the west side of the courtyard, then.”

The three mares wander off to search for anything that might resemble a trigger mechanism, and Witch sighs softly as she rounds a corner, out of sight of the two princesses. While Witch had come to enjoy being around Twilight, somepony she didn’t have to water down her explanations for, this whole experience is getting to be too much for her. At every turn, it seems, there’s yet another clue indicating that a spotlight is shining directly on her, and that she had a power equal to goddesses… The journal had at least distracted her from those thoughts, allowing Witch to forget those troubling prospects, even if only for a little while…

Witch dismisses the thoughts for now, attempting to refocus on the task at hoof. There would be time for worrying later. Right now, Witch has a job to do. The southern courtyard doesn’t really stand out from the surrounding area, and for a moment Witch is uncertain. She can see the rows and rows of houses beyond the courtyard, framed by well-tended crystal tiles and columns. Looking out at that, it seems impossible to imagine that not a single pony, even with the short amount of time the Crystal Empire had been back, could have missed such a trigger entirely.

Witch glances downward as she sighs in frustration, hitting a nearby column with her hoof. She stops as she sees something scratched on the surface of the column, not unlike the graffiti she’d seen in downtown Canterlot. It’s small and well-worn, but the distinctive sigils are unmistakeable. A violet heart, with five matching lines extending from it, encircles a trio of pale blue circles in a triangular formation with three more blue lines extending out the top. To any other pony, it would be just random graffiti. To Witch, it is exactly what she is seeking.

Peering with narrowed eyes at the combined sigils for Love and Hope, Witch reaches out to trace the raised etching…

Tears burn at her eyes as she presses the topmost ray of the symbol, watching the doors close as though her dearest student and friend would not be truly gone until the tomb was closed.

The soft jingling of bells comes from behind her, and a hoof at her shoulder pulls her into the waiting arms of another pony as the tears start to fall…

Witch presses her hoof to the ray extending straight up from the heart and triangle, and the edges of a button become visible as it sinks into the wall and a slight rumbling follows. Belatedly, she looks over her shoulder and calls out, “Clear the door!”

There is a loud groan as the ancient doors begin to move in a cloud of dust. Twilight and Cadance watch as the two halves of the door creak and rise from the ground, revealing steps leading into the dark tomb. Two by two, pairs of torches ignite on the wall, blue-white light crystals illuminating the stairs like miniature suns.

“Well, at least we don't have to light our own way,” Cadance comments as Witch trots over to peer down the steps. The three look to each other and nod, before heading down the steps. The trip down the steps is mostly uneventful, just the crystal torches lighting up at least ten steps ahead of them.

All too soon, the steps stop and they come to a landing, where a pair of statues greet them. The three quickly recognize who the statues are of; Hope and Little Love. Hope is standing with all four hooves firmly on the ground and her head hanging and angled slightly towards the smaller statue of Love next to her, her wings spread out slightly to the sky. Little Love’s, however, is standing on one hoof, arms spread to her side as she looks up, almost gazing at the taller statue to her side, with a small heart shaped gem made of amethyst on her horn tip.

Beyond the statues is a large room, mostly lit by the torches on the walls. In the center of the room lies a pair of large caskets, one has Hope’s symbol on it the other has Love’s symbol. A door lies at the center of the farthest wall from them, with the familiar conjoined image of the heart with eight rays of light shining off it encompassing the door. Off in the far left corner of the room lies a spiral staircase that appears to lead down.

Cadance glances between the statues before looking at Twilight, who has her eyes focused on the statue of Hope.

“You’re not going to run off again, are you?” Cadance asks, getting a wince as a response as Twilight looks back at her with a frown.

“N-no. I’m mostly over that for now.” Twilight looks back at the statue for a moment longer before starting into the large room. “We found the tomb, so we should explore it.”

Witch nods quietly as she had also been focused on the statue of Hope. She heads off in one direction, as Cadance looks between the pair, sighs a little, and heads into the main area between the statues. Witch and Cadance trot up to the caskets and look them over, before glancing at each other and silently agreeing to not open them.

Cadance looks over the caskets in greater detail, and she spots a closed trunk located at one end of the caskets as she makes her way around them. She sits and looks it over, making sure it’s not locked or booby trapped. She pokes at the locker first, and when nothing happens, she gently tries to open it, only able to raise the heavy lid a little bit before letting it fall back down.

“Need a hoof with that?” Witch asks as she comes up the other side of the caskets and stops by Cadance who nods in response. The pair brace themselves and manage to get it open together. The hinges don't creak or groan as they open it, and after fully lifting the lid, they both peer inside and see a set of small mirrors inside.

Witch grins softly as she floats one up in her magic, looking it over and seeing the image of a heart with eight rays on the back of it. She blinks and floats another up, glancing at its back to see Hope’s symbol on the back of that one. She floats up the third mirror and looks at its back to see a six-rayed star formed by two triangles overlapping each other on its back.

“What's that symbol?” Cadance asks as she glances over Witch’s shoulder at the back of the mirror. Witch grins as she sets the other two back in the chest and holds the last one closer to Cadance.

“It’s Compassion’s symbol,” Witch states as she starts to outline it with her hoof. “Almost like Twilight’s cutie mark, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it is. We should show this to her,” Cadance responds, turning to where she last saw Twilight, who had been over by the door behind the caskets, only to see her tail vanish through the doorway.

Sighing with a slight shrug, Witch puts the last mirror back into the chest. “I’m going to look for anything else interesting… Maybe you should go after Twilight? Just in case she’s having a hard time and putting us off again?”

Cadance nods. “I thought she seemed a bit off. Hopefully, it’s not too serious.” Witch smiles as she nods as well, turning as Cadance heads to the door behind them.

Witch heads towards the staircase and peers down, seeing the same light below as above, and from the angle she is at, she can spot a few books on shelves. She decides to head down, thinking that Twilight can join her after she explores up here. Upon stepping toward the area, an additional set of torches begins to ignite in sequence, forming a path for her to follow.

“Well, that’s not suspicious at all…” Witch mutters dryly to herself as she hesitantly makes her way down the steps.The torches, that she notes are hanging from the ceiling, light up further down this little library. This library pales in comparison to others that she’s seen, most notably is Life’s library.

As she passes by the books, she notes that each are very well taken care of and don't seem to have aged too badly. As she nears the end of the little aisle of books and the center pathway, the torches turn off and light up a single book sitting on a pedestal. That small voice in the back of her head tells her what book this is as she nears it.

With the tome glimmering in the light of her magical aura, Witch opens the book, scanning through it until it falls open to a page marked by an indigo ribbon. The script, flowing and dark indigo ink against the shimmering pages, is still indecipherable Equusese but despite that, Witch smiles softly, feeling the gentle comfort of a companion radiating from the words. A popping noise draws her attention towards the binding and her smile vanishes in a flash as a miniature figure of Discord pries himself up from the page and out from under the ribbon bookmark.

"My, my… I think your sister-in-law is rubbing off on you. Delving into deep, dark tombs and unearthing things better left untouched," Discord chides teasingly, looking stern as he wags one claw up at her.

Witch huffs irritably, batting at him to remove him from the book. Mini-Discord catches himself mid-air, floating upside-down, and pops up to full size as Witch closes the book. "You're just grumpy because the Princesses of Order are coming back into their own,” she snaps. “What do you want?"

He clucks his tongue at her, shaking his head. “Such manners, little Miss Witch… Lulu would be disappointed… And you’re just being grumpy because you are one of those Princesses. Why… You even have the tiara already…” He pauses, snapping his fingers, and a cool weight settles on Witch’s brow. Whipping around, she catches a glimpse of herself in a reflective crystalline surface and her eyes widen at the sight of the new circlet resting on her head. “Little bit of time and you could get the wings too!” Another snap of his fingers and a pair of fake wings appear on Witch’s back. Even in the poor reflection, Witch has to concede that they’re extremely realistic, and if not for the fact that they immediately flop down, hanging limply to either side and dark blue tips brushing the floor.

A quick full body shake removes the wing props, and Witch turns back to glare at the draconequus. “That’s not funny, Discord!” she declares, her voice shaking.

"I’m sorry. Did I give you the impression I was trying to be funny, little Witch?” Discord retorts, almost laughing with his mismatched fists on his hips. “Face it, Witching Hour, you're not just some doctor who can fade into the background anymore.” The embodiment of Chaos snaps his fingers as he sneers tauntingly, and several bright white spotlights shine down on Witch as Discord continues, dressed as a Bridleway director. Witch looks in horror to find that the wings have returned, attached by an interlacing net of zip ties wrapped around her arms and legs in such a way that any movement animates them. “By some twist of fate far crueler than even I could contrive, you've become the embodiment of Hope. Deny it all you want, but no matter how hard you try, you'll be stuck with it. The sooner you accept it, the sooner you'll be able to weather the coming storm."

Witch’s eyes go wide as her legs give out, forcing her to sit as she trembles under the weight of Discord’s words. Reeling, Witch tries to form a coherent response with no success, words lost in the tumult of her thoughts. “I don’t… I don’t want more…” she stammers, her voice quaking as she slowly crouches, curling in on herself.

"Let me clue you in, little Witch…” Discord leans in, a slight sneer on his face as his outfit shifts from a Bridleway director to that of a clown in a plum-colored suit. “Fate doesn't care one whit that you'd rather be working at the hospital, or raising that little orphan away from those who'd mock him." Discord pulls out a long balloon, and begins tying it in the shape of a pony before snapping his fingers. A flash of light blinds Witch briefly, and when her vision clears, a small plush figure of a very familiar colt sits where the balloon pony was.

“Why won’t you save me, Witch Doctor?” Discord whines in a squeaky voice, moving the plush doll as though it were speaking. “Aren’t you my mommy now?”

Witch reacts as though slapped, her tremors stopping abruptly, and she narrows her eyes at her unwelcome visitor as she gets back on her hooves. “… How dare you…” she hisses, shaking with fury.

“I’m sorry, but a thousand years as stone has done horrible things to my hearing,” Discord taunts, digging at his ear with one talon and pulling a bit-sized pebble out before flicking it away. “Would you mind speaking a little louder?”

“How dare you, you malformed piece of garbage!?” Witch screeches shrilly, firing multiple bolts of magic with each word, making Discord almost dance to avoid them. “What would you know about caring for others, or the sacrifice that entails?! All you want to do is cause as much confusion for unsuspecting ponies as possible and for what? A few laughs??? Some sort of sick joke?! I don’t care what the hay you say or what your precious Fate says! I will protect Tricks and everypony under my care with my last breath if I have to, and no misshapen excuse for a god is going to stand in my way!!!”

"There now, at least I've stoked the fire in your belly, little Witch.” Discord chuckles as he waves a few burnt matches. “Do remember what I've shown you here today, because you better be ready for Fate when it knocks… If not for your sake, then for your little dancing colt’s." He tosses the plush of Tricks into the air, and Witch instinctively catches it in her magic. She whips back around, intent on screaming more at the draconequus, only to find Discord gone, forcing her to swallow her anger and frustration.

Grumbling, Witch grabs the book in her magic again and heads back upstairs. At the foot of the steps, she glances up them just as she hears a scream. She dashes up the stairs with the book and stuffed toy in her magical grasp, and at the top, she looks around wild-eyed for the princesses. A bright gold flash erupts from the room that Twilight had gone into, giving Witch the information she needs.

Pausing only to set Compassion’s Archive and the Tricks doll atop the open chest with the mirrors, Witch runs over and looks in, just in time to see a statue of an alicorn made out of quartz kneel down towards a pile of ash. “Thank you, Elpidios. I’m sure Doctor was very grateful for your company.” The statue speaks in a timbre of voice that would make determining its gender difficult, the pitch being unusually high for a stallion or unusually low for a mare.

Witch watches the statue for a moment before looking around, spotting the princesses pressed against one of the walls as they stare at the animated alicorn statue before them. Witch looks back to the statue just as it straightens back up, allowing her to see the faintly glowing necklace and its green eyes lock onto her. A grin sweeps across its features as she gasps softly.

“Ah, Lady Hope! I am glad to see you finally returned to us,” it exclaims before it bows towards her.

“I, er, yes?” Witch stammers for a moment. “And you are?”

“Oh, forgive me for not introducing myself. I am Partner, companion construct to the Virtue of Love, and this pile of ashes here is Elpidios.” It gestures to the ashes as it speaks. Witch walks over to the princesses, keeping her eyes on Partner as she moves. “And who are your companions?”

Despite her trepidation about the statue talking about a pile of ashes as though it were alive, Witch sweeps a hoof towards Twilight, almost hitting the mare with a fake wing. “This is Twilight Sparkle.” Scowling at the fake wings, Witch lowers her hoof and simply nods towards Cadance. “And this is Princess Cadance, Princess of Love and the Crystal Empire.”

At Cadance’s introduction, Partner’s eyes focus quickly on the Crystal Empire’s Princess, widening to the size of saucers. “Oh thank the Cosmos! You’ve returned!” it almost cries, rushing forward and quickly scooping Cadance up in its arms to hug her tightly.

Cadance glances around, grinning uncomfortably as she awkwardly pats the statue on its shoulder. Twilight remains frozen in complete and total shock, her right eye twitching slightly as she stares at the statue’s revelry and celebration. Witch, while slightly confused as well, is more composed than Twilight, simply waiting in silence for the construct to finish celebrating its reunion with its mistress. After a few moments, Partner seems to become aware of its surroundings, gently setting Cadance back down and clearing its throat.

“My apologies, Lady Amore,” Partner begins, shifting awkwardly. “It has been long enough that I was beginning to worry about you since you ordered me in here. Pray tell, how did your confrontation with Sombra the Great go?”

At this, Witch is forced to look away, unable to meet the construct’s eyes. Twilight snaps out of her shocked state to glance at her hooves guiltily. Cadance clears her throat awkwardly, scuffing the floor with one hoof. Partner’s hopeful expression fades in moments as he glances around at the three mares, and something seems to finally click into place as it glances back at Witch.

“… Wait a moment. Lady Hope, you addressed Lady Amore as ‘Cadance’?” Partner asks, as though not wanting to believe it.

“… Yes, I did,” Witch finally admits, looking away.

Partner glances downward, his expression unreadable. Finally, after several long and uncomfortable moments, it finds its voice, hollow and broken. “… How long?” it asks without looking up.

“Please understand, this isn’t easy to-” Witch begins, attempting to soften the blow.

“How long?” the construct bellows, staring Witch down desperately, needing to hear the truth but fully aware of how unprepared it is to handle it.

“… It has been almost one thousand and six years since Queen Amore’s death at the hooves of Mad King Sombra,” Witch admits finally, her voice quiet as though volume alone would make the information painless.

Partner staggers, as though physically struck, reeling from the news. It falls to the floor, sitting in a fetal position with its head in its hooves. The three mares watch as the construct sits in complete silence, not even sobbing, for several long minutes. Finally, the construct breaks down into completely silent, body-shaking sobs. Cadance is the first to move toward the construct, placing a reassuring hoof on its shoulder.

“… I know that whatever I say now will seem hollow and insincere, but for whatever it’s worth, I am truly sorry for your loss,” Cadance begins. “I-”

“No, it is not hollow,” Partner interrupts, keeping its face hidden. “… Thank you. I… I think I needed to hear that, Lady Cadance.”

“Please, just call me ‘Cadance’,” Cadance reassures with a smile. “I’ve always hated titles and pompous-sounding names. Those sorts of things distance us from those that we care about most, and that’s the last thing that I want.”

At this, Partner stands and embraces Cadance, the ghost of a smile on its face. “… Thank you, Cadance.”

“For a brief moment there, I thought you were going to kiss me,” Cadance observes.

“I did not wish to presume,” Partner explains.

“Probably for the best, considering I’m married,” Cadance laughs.

At this, Partner’s demeanor changes entirely, lighting up like a foal on Hearth’s Warming Day. "You are married! I cannot wait to meet them! Is it a stallion? Or a mare?"

“Stallion,” Cadance replies. “He can be a bit of a dolt at times, but he’s my dolt, just as much as I’m his.”

Witch laughs lightly as she turns to glance back at the door. In doing so, her false wings nearly slap a still stunned Twilight in the face, causing the lavender mare to snap out of her stupor.

Tilting her head in confusion, Twilight regards Witch with a raised eyebrow. "Witch… Why do you have your tiara now? And why do you-"

"Don’t ask…” Witch replies in almost a growl as her expression flattens to one of severe annoyance. “But… How in Equestria does Fluttershy tolerate that… That…"

"Discord?" Twilight supplies flatly, her own voice conveying some sympathetic irritation.

Witch can only utter a frustrated and quiet scream of aggravation in response to the name. “Just help me get these damned things off…”

Chuckling a little at her friend’s frustration, and empathizing entirely, Twilight sets to cutting away the bindings holding the fake wings on Witch.

“I take it you aren’t in the mood to discuss what he did?” Twilight guesses, receiving another flustered growl in reply. “Honestly, he was even more unhelpful in the crisis following my ascension. Gave me a sceptre and a crown just to annoy me at one point. I really wouldn’t put too much stock in what Discord rambles about. Even though he’s reformed, he loves to cause as much trouble as he possibly can along the way.”

“And yet he still has delusions of actually being helpful?” Witch asks as she shakes the remnants of her fake wings free.

Twilight shrugs. “My best guess is he thinks he’s doing more good than bad overall, so he might as well have fun along the way.”

Witch growls in frustration and stomps over to scatter a nearby pile of ashes, but the pile gives a startled squeak as she approaches. A small blue and gold baby bird pokes its head out of the ash pile, blinking slowly at Witch before hopping on top of her head and staring at her with an upside-down quizzical gaze.

“Yes, Elpidios… That is Lady Hope,” Partner states firmly, its androgynous voice laced with chiding mirth. “And you should not stare at her so. T’is rude, as you should well know.”

The phoenix-chick blinks then, before looking up and chirping at the quartz construct, the tone giving Witch at least the impression that the little bird is sticking his tongue out at Partner.

Witch inhales slowly through her nose, closing her eyes as the small phoenix makes himself at home in her mane, and then releases the breath as she counts internally. “Okay… I have filled my quota for weird shit for around the next month… I’m done down here,” she states firmly.

“Well maybe you shouldn’t have stayed awake all night trying to translate that journal,” Twilight chides.

“Oh, like you’d be any better after a visit from… from… Diet Chaos!” Witch retorts, nearly upsetting the small phoenix from his perch in her mane as she waves her hooves around wildly.

“Witching Hour… You really should rest if you’ve not slept,” Cadance adds gently, making Witch sigh.

“Fine,” she grumbles before turning her attention to Partner. “I assume those mirrors by the coffins are for us to use?”

Partner nods slightly before stopping itself. “Well… One is supposed to be for Lady Compassion…” it temporizes, hesitatingly.

“That’s Twilight’s then… Same with the book,” Witch comments, Partner’s glowing eyes going wide in an expression of surprise. “Y’know… Your face is much more expressive than the Librarian’s…” she adds, completely off-topic. “I’m taking my mirror and going to bed before my mane becomes this bird’s permanent residence…” she continues, now back on her original topic. “Someone check on me if I don’t come down for breakfast tomorrow…”

As Witch leaves, she hears Twilight mutter, “Like that wasn’t going to happen anyway,” but Witch just shakes her head and starts up the stairs to exit the tomb.

“So many shades of done with today…” she grouses under her breath.

Author's Note:

Well... after as long as it's taken for me to write this (mercifully not another four months), I'm glad to say that I think I only really have one more chapter, despite my original plan for 9 chapters.

I must give a HUGE shout out to my Troll Squad. Without them, this chapter would've remained stuck for MUCH longer. Zoljen was a huge help getting the trio down into the tomb, and Jim and Syl helped me make the Discord scene appropriately chaotic and in line with the Wonderverse version of the character.

SO CLOSE TO DONE!!!
But wait... That means that my sequel following Calm Wind's Piercing the Heavens will start... Dear gods what have I gotten myself into...
**coughs** Happy reading!