Sunburst to the Rescue

by David Silver

35 - Study Buddies

Sunburst sat beside Twilight. They were in their favorite room, where the study had begun. Before them was the book that has started them down the path that had led to their different trails becoming one.

"She's arguing that chemical bleachers may be effective," noted Sunburst from his side of the book.

"But would almost certainly cause damage." She tapped at her side of the book. "Unless an extreme amount of care and precision were brought to bear, it would harm delicate magic organs."

"Replacing one source of magic impotence with another," sighed out Sunburst. "This seems like a dead end of an idea, but I can see why she thought of it."

---

Princess Platinum wandered away from the castle. She wanted to see what the new age had brought to Equestria, and everypony else of importance was busy. She was a grown mare, so she saw no reason to bother them. She just wandered off.

She could feel the line, the tether that led back to the crown still on Sunburst's head. Magic flowed through it, keeping her form stable and vigorous. Of course, it also flowed out of Sunburst, but he needed a little practice to get his spellcasting better.

Platinum enjoyed the sensations of movement. Each clopping stride brought her closer to the other people of the age, and it was new and novel, at least for the moment. She had never been properly alive. She knew what it was, logically, and she had felt indirectly though the two pony heads she had ridden.

Having her own body was a nice change of pace. Passing into the town, ponies seemed to take casual notice of her, as well they should. She was a lovely mare with dazzling eyes. She was a princess, even if she couldn't act in the role.

"Darling?" A pony that looked like she could easily be Platinum's sister stopped in her tracks, peering at Platinum curiously. "It's like looking into a distorted but still lovely mirror. Nice to meet you, dear. Are you new in town?"

Platinum gave the slightest of nod. "I am newly arrived. A pleasure to meet you, Miss...?"

"Rarity." She gestured to herself and dipped down a little. "And to whom do I owe the pleasure of speaking with?" Her almost-double had a soft pink mane and tail, though cared for just as lovingly as Rarity's purple mane. They had soft curls, as opposed to Rarity's specific appearance.

"Princess Platinum," she announced with great pride. A thought struck at her. "Are you a descendant of mine? That would explain it nicely."

Rarity's cheeks lit up and she tittered, covering her mouth with a hoof. "Oh, me? Pfft, I... would like that, but I don't think it is the case." She thought of her parents, and trying to envision them as distant descendants of the Princess Platinum... "Wait..." She tilted her head slowly, looking over the pony before her. "Did you say the Princess Platinum?"

Platinum gently waved a hoof at herself. "That is my name, dear subject. Could you--"

Rarity gasped loudly, cutting off Platinum. "I had no idea! I'm so... how are you here? Were you caught in a time vortex with the others? I would have thought I would notice such a thing..."

"Not exactly." She raised a fine brow at Rarity. "Others?"

"The Pillars of Equestria," said Rarity in an educating tone. "They walk Equestria, quite out of time. Much like you, I should think. Poor thing! If you need any help at all, you just ask Rarity." She put a hoof on her chest. "I'll do my best to put things right."

"We appreciate your willingness to serve your princess." She looked Rarity over, wondering... "Tell me, do you know Princess Twilight Sparkle?"

"Twilight? Well, of course. We're best friends, just the best." She nodded softly, looking happy to speak about Twilight. "Well, besides the other girls. I really shouldn't rank them. That's unseemly at best. Oh dear, listen to me ramble on. What about her?"

Princess Platinum smiled gently. This pony would be an information source, if nothing else. "How does she strike you, as a ruler?"

---

Twilight set the bookmark down carefully in the book and closed it with equal reservation, lest she damage the massive tome. "You've been very focused today. I thought the crown distracted you?"

Sunburst looked up awkwardly at the crown. "She's been quiet the entire time. Maybe we've reached a new level of cooperation?"

Twilight tilted her head left and right slowly as she peered at it. "Perhaps. She didn't seem like the kind of pony that would just... go silent. Well, let's not look a gift horse in the mouth." She coughed softly into a hoof. "I suggest some practical work after that theoretical sparring match."

"What do you have in mind?" He stood up onto his hooves, eager to do something with Twilight.

She pointed up at his altered horn. "You cast one spell, but it was with her actively interfering, or possibly assisting. We don't know which is which. Time to perform some magic on your own and see what happens." With a pop, a new, much more slender, book appeared and dropped to the table.

Her magic flipped open to a particular spell. "Try this one."

"Al'Dofar's confetti blast? Don't tell Pinkie this exists." He chuckled softly as he ran his vision over the spell, soaking it up eagerly. "Alright."

"You read quickly." Twilight perked an ear at him.

"Reading is easy. Memorizing is easy. It's the casting where I trip up." He looked up at his altered horn and focused on the magic. A strange sensation came almost immediately. Magic wasn't flowing the way it normally did. It was smooth and unimpeded, that he felt certain of, but it wasn't... his?

Twilight seemed to notice his strange expression. "What's wrong?"

He tapped at the alien horn, releasing his hold on the unformed magic. It spread out in a little puff of useless arcane energy. "I... have a theory. Can you map my horn again?"

"Certainly." She drew out a new piece of parchment and got to work, focusing intently on his horn. "Does it hurt?"

"No, not at all, just... please."

"Of course. This is... uncanny..."

She soon had a drawing produced, and pulled out a second parchment to put beside it, her own. The two were identical, except one was shorter. "She really did copy my horn, down to the smallest detail."

He tapped at the new drawing. "Exactly as I had feared. She took... Imagine you had a flute your entire life. It was banged up and warped but it was what you practiced with day after day after day. Then somepony comes along, takes it, and replaces it with a new one that's a different size and has holes in different places but it's all shiny and new. Will you play better or worse?"

Twilight frowned at the mental image of her horn somehow also being a flute. "I could see how that would go... poorly at first, but... with practice? You could learn to use the new horn, possibly much better than you could the old one." She rolled a hoof. "If you want, or...?"

He crooked a little smile. "It's kind of... nice, having a matching horn with my special somepony. Do you... think it looks good on me?"

She blinked at the question. "It looks fine, but so did your original one. It's more important that it's attached to you, Sunburst." She rolled her eyes. "Fizzlepop may explode with joy if she knew a horn transplant was a possibility."

"Who?"

"The pony I butted heads with and eventually befriended? Storm King?" She rolled a hoof. "She's out on a personal quest right now anyway, so moving along. You have a point there. If we did replace a broken horn after the pony who had it was so used to using it, they would be entirely incapable of magic use for a time. There would need to be rehabilitation with the new horn."

"Yeah..." He looked up at his horn curiously. "Would you... be willing to do that? I mean... I trust you, Twilight. Can you help me learn how to use your flute?"

She burst into laughter. "I will not! But I will help you with my horn, which is not a flute." She leaned forward in a quick dart, pecking his cheek. "Silly Stallion."

He sent a little power up into his horn, trying to feel around, though it was hard to focus inside one's own horn. "I want to give it a chance. It's a lovely horn, even if it is so much prettier on your head."

She blushed a little. "Stop that... A horn is a horn."

"Until it is on your head. I could write a thesis on the matter if you prefer." He nodded with certainty.

She rolled her eyes at that, laughing softly. "I don't doubt you would if I asked for it. Let's save our literary power for the book." She gestured at the grand tome that had brought them together. "As you said, even if we do get you using this... properly, this is not a feasible solution--"

"--for countless foals," he finished. "We need something we can put in the hooves of a random physician and they can use to diagnose and treat this in any unicorn foal that they examine."

"Right." She tapped at his horn. "We also need to send you back."

"Back?" He blinked softly. "Throwing me out?"

"Nope, worse." She grinned a little maliciously. "You, my fine stallion, are being sent back to Magic Kindergarten." She clopped her forehooves together and rubbed them. "I'll be your school matron, of course. Prepare to learn."

He laughed gently, having never learned to associate that with a panic response. "Sounds great, especially if you're the teacher. I'm ready to learn at your hooves." He dipped his head towards her a moment before standing up. "I suppose I should start with light production."

"An excellent idea." She clopped her hooves once more before standing with him. "Just get the magic moving, which should make light. That's a fine start. While you're working on that, I'll get some educational books." She vanished with a puff of sparkles.

He rolled his eyes softly. Of course she would search for the right book for the problem. It was her thing. He wasn't opposed to the notion either. For the moment, he focused on getting magic moving through his horn. He had never realized that a horn had a 'feeling' until one was replaced with another. He could feel the magic bouncing around through Twilight's delicate and dazzlingly complex passages.

It was a subtle sensation at best, one easily forgotten about if one experienced it day after day. But that wasn't the case. He was working with a new horn after a lifetime with another one, and each time the magic bounced off of something, he could feel it.

It didn't help that he was focused on it, working his way towards the end. He would have to learn.

Then forget. The forgetting felt really important. If he had to concentrate on his horn instead of the magic he was trying to form, he'd be no better off than where he was with a broken horn.

Sticking out a tongue a little, he pushed onwards until a little spritz of magic emerged from the tip of his new horn. It wasn't much, and it couldn't be called a glow, but it was a start. "Next step, see last step." He let the magic fade, then started from the bottom.

There was a lot of work to do.

Author's Note:

Phew, early morning words before work! Off I go to work, ringing the bell.

In the Bay Area? Stop by 12th street BART after 7am to 1'sh pm to spot me beside the red kettle.

Comments

[Mythic Night]

She clopped her forehooves together and rubbed them. "I'll be your school matron, of course. Prepare to learn."

Giggity.

[Tech_Priest]

The ammount of gossip those 2 will share...

[Dan]

His new horn isn't purple is it? That would clash horribly.

[David Silver]

9306352
It is not.

[Daremo]

He dipped his head towards her a moment before standing up. "I suppose I should start with light production."

[smash cut to outside of castle as a beam of light lances through a wall and up into the sky]

[cut back to inside]

TS: [eyes wide and blinking <xylophone sound effect>

SB:[hoof behind head and with a pained/embarrassed expression] Ah... heh... your magic really flows without pushing, doesn't it?

[ridingonapony]

The ‘help me learn how to use your flute’ line was great! 😂

[Emtu]

I trust you, Twilight. Can you help me learn how to use your flute?

twee-whernk!

[Booster Spice]

That was lucky, nearly did a Flurry Heart there.

[David Silver]

9306680
Headcanon accepted as a possibility.