Crystal Note - The Crystal Faire

by TalkingToMyself

Finale

Author's Note:

The lyrics in this chapter belong to Emile Sandé from the song Read all about it.

Chapter 7: Finale

Princess Cadance’ speech was met with cheers and applause from her audience. Crystal Note heard words of gratitude for everypony who contributed to the faire. The princess expressed her hope that future faires would be as successful as this one.
Most of the words flew past Crystal Note though. Behind her, Clear Skies gave her a sign with her wing and signalled she was ready. Octavia nodded from the side of the stage.

The Princess kept talking for a while. As it was tradition, she finished her speech by humbly addressing her subjects and asking the crystal ponies to share the love and light of the Empire with the crystal heart.
Her plea finished with a deep bow from the Princess and every single crystal pony bowed in return. The visitors from Equestria watched in awe as the alicorn bowed deeply and spread her wings, until her head and the tip of her pinions touched the floor. She stayed in this position until she noticed the first signs from her subjects.

The crystal ponies had gathered up during the speech while the visitors formed a loose circle around them. As they bowed, a soft light came from their midst. Some of the crystal ponies sparkled and shined in the soft light of the stars, some even glowed in inner light and the crowd of outsiders let out 'Aahs' and 'Ohhs' in amazement as delicate strands of this light arched towards the crystal heart in the distance.
However, not all of them found the light inside them. Princess Cadance and many others noticed that the light didn’t reach everypony and barely anything made it to the heart. The crystal heart reacted to the few ponies who embraced it anyways, but it was nowhere close to what they’d seen before.

Princess Cadance was about to address her subjects again, when her ears perked up. From behind the stage, the sound of a piano made it to the plaza. It was very soft at first, just enough to be noticed by the crystal ponies in the crowd as well. Then, the piano grew louder when somepony turned on the speakers on stage as well.

The visitors from outside smiled and cheered as the expected an encore from the band, but they quickly fell silent when they saw the expressions from the crystal ponies. Most of them seemed to recognize the melody that was played, but couldn’t place it. One by one, their heads turned towards the crystal heart. The ancient relic now glowed more brightly than before and spun softly on its pedestal. The heart recognized the melody and a wave of understanding ran through the crystal ponies.

Then the curtain rose and drew everypony's attention back to the stage. In the back, Clear Skies sat in front of the piano, using her hooves and her wings to play the melody she had learned from Crystal Note.

The crystal unicorn walked up to the centre of the stage with slow but confident steps. Like the other crystal ponies, she had gone too long hiding away the light inside her. Like them, she was afraid at times, overwhelmed by this new world, ashamed and scared of the things that happened in the past. Unlike them though, she had found friendship in this new world and through that, encouragement, trust and acceptance.
Now it was time to give some of it back to her own.

The music filled her mind with happy memories and events from her time in Ponyville, with her friends and with the ensemble. She went further and found the same in her past within the Crystal Empire.
She felt words rising up from within her, and she embraced them. Her voice blended into the piano music as the light inside her gifted her with a song and sparkles danced over her coat as she shared it with the ponies around her.

You’ve got the words to change a nation
But you’re biting your tongue
You spent a lifetime stuck in silence
Afraid you say something wrong
If no one ever hears it
How we gonna learn your song?

So come on, come on
Come on, come on!

Crystal Note sang with her eyes closed, so she didn’t see that every pony was watching her. She also didn’t see the crystal ponies as the stepped closer towards the stage. However, she did feel the sparks of light that flickered up within the other crystal ponies

You’ve got a heart as loud as lions
So why let your voice be tamed?
Maybe we’re a little different
There’s no need to feel ashamed
You’ve got the lights to fight the shadow
So stop hiding it away!

Come on, come on
Come on, come on!

The crystal ponies stared. At the pony with a horn who was so different from them but felt the same doubts they did. At the pony who had ran off into a new world, not to leave her home behind, but the carry out word of it into this new world.
They stared as Crystal Note, the crystal unicorn, embraced the light inside her and sang with all her heart

I wanna sing!
I wanna shout!
I wanna scream ‘til the words dry out!
So put it in books and on papers
I’m not afraid!
They can hear all about it
Read all about it!

Crystal Note's voice followed the melody of the piano without words, but just as much emotion. As she did, the light grew stronger around her, almost like a small halo in the beginning darkness of the night. Her eyes opened and as she took in the sight before her, her body shimmered and sparkled even more. Within the crowd, some crystal ponies had the same halo surrounding them. In the distance, the crystal heart glowed brighter.

Her eye sparkled like gemstones and almost glowed like the stars in the night sky as she watched more and more of the crystal ponies find and embrace the light inside them, a light that was always there, even if it was hard to reach sometimes.
Crystal Note's smile almost spread all over her face when her wordless vocals turned into lyrics again. She sang for the crystal ponies with confidence and joy

At night we're waking up the neighbours
As we sing away our blues
Making sure that we're remembered
Because we all matter too!
If the truth has been forbidden
Let's start breaking all those rules!

So come on, come on
Come on, come on!

Let's get the ponies of Equestria
all sing our tune again!
It's 'bout time we got some airplay
Of our version of events
You don't have to be afraid
I will sing with you my friend!

So come one, come on
Come on come on!

I wanna sing!
I wanna shout!
I wanna scream 'til the words dry out!
So put it in books and on papers
We're not afraid!
Let them hear all about it
Read all about it

Crystal Note beamed when she heard the lyrics picked up and repeated by some more voices from the crowd of crystal ponies. Along with their voices, their lights flared up brightly as they sang and embraced their magic as one. Everypony could feel the change going through the community of crystal ponies.

The melody of the piano slipped into a new tune and as Clear Skies added to the song, Crystal Note found new words of confidence and encouragement to share with her people

Yeah we're all wonderful, wonderful ponies
So when did we all get so fearful?
Now we're finally finding our voices
So take a chance, come help me sing this!

Oh we're all wonderful, wonderful ponies
So why did we all get so fearful?
And now we're finally finding out voices
Just take a chance, come help me sing this!

Quicker than before, the tune and the chorus was picked up by many voices. Soon all the crystal ponies sang or hummed along, each of them finding the courage and the confidence to reach out for the light and love inside them.

Yeah we're all wonderful, wonderful ponies
So when did we all get so fearful?
Now we're finally finding our voices
So take a chance, come help me sing this!

Oh we're all wonderful, wonderful ponies
So why did we all get so fearful?
And now we're finally finding out voices
Just take a chance, come help me sing this!

In a wave of bright light, the small halos of each individual pony blended together into a colourful beacon as the sang together.
Crystal Note's eyes perked up when a new voice joined into the song from beside her. Princess Cadance had taken the spot next to her on the stage and now raised her voice with the crystal ponies as the chorus was repeated once more.

The crystal unicorn smiled and bowed before her Princess. She quickly found the way down from the stage and into the crowd. The crystal ponies cleared a path for her, not out of fear, but to welcome her among them. She returned the smiles as she walked slowly, her voice blending into the chorus of voices. She found her sister in the crowd and took the spot next to her.
Now, with everypony in place, the crystal ponies returned their attention to the Princess of the Empire.

The Princess smiled to her subjects, her friends, surrounded by a crowd of ponies from all over Equestria who watched in awe and joined the song, humbly and almost reverent in soft voices. She watched the beautiful display of colours and light as she addressed the crystal ponies once more
“My little ponies, thank you for showing the light and love inside you. With your help, the Crystal Empire, our home, will be safe and prosper into a bright future.
But even more, I need to thank you for sharing this light, not only with me but with everypony around you. Hopefully, tonight will be the first of many times we see this. Tonight, everypony can see that the greatest treasure of the Empire doesn’t lie it its gems or crystals, but in the wonderful ponies who live here. Please, let your light shine and drive away any shadow of a doubt.”

The tall alicorn spread her wings and bowed like before. The crystal unicorns followed almost in unison and as they did, a bright wave of light spread out from the plaza through every street and every corner of the city. Every pony was bathed in this light and when the brightness faded, the magic of the Empire had been shared with them. Like the crystal ponies, their bodies shimmered and gleamed in the light of the crystal heart.

Princess Cadance spread her wings wide, but all her attempts to thank her ponies were drowned out by cheers from her subjects and more than one surprised squeal from the visitors. The Princess took it in stride and simply bowed her head before she joined the cheering ponies who quickly changed into a celebration that lasted long into the next morning.

Comments

[EchoWing]

Happy to provide the help.

[TalkingToMyself]

8946929
Thanks so much!