Marking Time
Friendship is Magic: Growing up with Scales
By Winter Quill
--- Marking Time ---
Twilight was almost skipping as she made her way home, the trips of her claws tapping against the cobblestones with each step she took. There were only a few weeks left of school before summer break came. It wasn’t something she normally cared about, but the princess had just told her that they would have their private lessons four days a week during the break, which gave her something to look forward to while away from school.
Until then, there was still finals to look forward to. That only applied to some of her classes, but she was eager to start studying for them. There was always something exciting about finals, being able to put all she had learned during the past semester to the test, making sure she really did know and understand what she had learned, and pushing herself to do better than she had at the end of last semester.
Her goal was to finally be able to get a perfect score on every one of her finals, something she hadn’t been able to do just yet. There was always something she hadn’t quite understood, a fact that hadn’t made its way into her notes, or sometimes she had simply made a mistake in transcribing the spell arrays onto parchment. It added up to only a clawful of missed questions every year, but she had a good feeling about this time!
Cadence was waiting at the tower she got home, the teenage alicorn was laying on the grass under the oak tree that was partially grown over the old stone wall. She was half reading a book and half keeping an eye on Spike. The colt was busy playing in the short grass, chasing the bugs that were hiding among the blades. He still hadn’t quite mastered walking just yet, sometimes tripping over his hooves, but only occasionally falling.
“Hello, Cadence,” Twilight called out as she started up the path from the cobblestone street.
The mare looked up from her reading, smiling as she saw the young dragoness. Cadence was at that awkward stage between being a filly and being a mare, which left her all lanky in the legs and neck. “Hey Twilight, how was your session with Celestia?” she asked.
Twilight beamed as she walked over towards the tree, allowing her satchel to slip from her shoulders as she did. “She gave me a new spell to learn. It will let me send messages to her using my flame. She wants me to study it for the next few days, but not to try to cast it until our next lesson,” she said as she dropped down onto the grass.
A moment later Spike trundled up to her, making a sound that could have almost been her name. He was rushing towards being a year old, and was already showing himself to be smart as his siblings, already having a vocabulary of a few words. “Hey Spike, having fun?” she asked, reaching down to run the tips of her claws through his mane.
He gave a quick nod, then spotted something, his head snapping before he hurried off through the grass, bounding along as fast as his short legs could carry him.
“That sounds like a very interesting spell, why don’t you explain it to me?” Cadence asked, setting her book down and smiling at Twilight. While officially she was Spike’s foalsitter, she always made time for Twilight as well. Making sure she never felt left out, but at the same time giving her the space she needed for her school work, or just to have some time to herself.
Pulling her bag over, Twilight used her claws to undo the buckle and started to dig through it, searching for the scroll Celestia had given her. Of course, it had fallen all the way to the bottom, so she had to pull out her school books to reach it. They had been kept in pristine shape throughout the year—without even a single scuff or bent corner—which made the battered textbook stand out even more as she took it out of the bag.
She froze the moment she pulled out the book, then hurriedly tried to shove it back into her bag without Cadence seeing it. While it was a textbook for one of her classes, it wasn’t her book. Her copy of the book was sitting on the top of stack, looking just as well cared for as all her others. This book was from one of the other ponies from her class, probably Ruby Facet as he had been sitting next to her in the study hall. Somehow, without even thinking about it or even noticing what she had done, she had picked up his book along with her own.
It was easy to say that it was an accident, but accidents weren’t regular events, and this was something that just kept happening. It seemed like not a week would go past without her accidently taking home a book that didn’t belong to her. Most of the time it was school books, but twice she had discovered something from Celestia’s personal library that she had taken without even thinking about it. She would have to return it in the morning, no matter how much she didn’t want to.
So far, no pony had caught her doing it, usually she placed the school books back in the common area of the school, or back into the classroom. It was harder to slip the books back into the princess’s library, but she had managed to do so before. She knew that sooner or later though her sticky claws were going to get her in trouble, but she didn’t know what to do about it.
“Twilight?” Cadence asked, breaking the young dragoness out of her thoughts.
“Sorry, I was just thinking about something… about school,” she replied, pushing the stolen book back to the bottom of her bag and finally grabbing onto the scroll. She pulled it free and set her bag aside, offering out the scroll to the teenager. “Here’s the spell.”
The alicorn unfolded her wing, reaching out for it with her feathers, only to have Twilight pull it away. “Use your field,” she lightly scolded the mare.
Cadence pink cheeks turned flush as a flash of embarrassment crossed her face. “You’re not,” she mumbled.
It hadn’t been hard for Twilight to spot that Cadence had been reluctant to use her magic. She hadn’t thought much about it until she had accidentally overheard a conversation between her mentor and the young alicorn. It had been a shock to learn that Cadence had actually been born a pegasus, and had only become an alicorn a few months before Twilight had been turned into a dragon. Twilight had never expected to find anypony who had gone through the same thing she had, and it had quickly become a way for the two of them to bond. After that, she had decided she was going to help the alicorn master her own magic.
Allowing the magic to flow through her own twin horns, Twilight let go of the scroll, leaving it to float in the soft lavender glow of her field. Reluctantly, a soft blue glow started to collect around Cadence’s horn, which slowly reached out to grasp at the scroll. The edges of the field were uncertain, and were somewhat wispy, but it would be enough to hold something as light as a scroll.
As the blue glow wrapped around the scroll, Twilight pulled hers away until it was being held completely in Cadence’s field. It floated back towards the mare, slowly unrolling in front of her. Her eyes started to scan over the parchment, moving over the lines of text and the complex runes inscribed for the spell itself. As she did, the look on her face went from one of curiosity to confusion.
Leaving her bag, Twilight moved around to sit beside Cadence, where she could see the scroll herself. At the same moment Spike went rushing by the pair as fast as his short legs could carry him, chasing after some bug that was hopping through the grass. He was laughing happily and babbling at the same time.
“Tell me about it?” Cadence asked.
Smiling, she reached out the tip of one claw to point at the start of the runes on the parchment. “This part means that I would be casting the spell on myself, and the next will allow it to be self-powered if I want it to be,” she explained, noticing her brother out of the corner of her eye as he leapt out to try to catch the bug with his forehooves.
It was impossible to ignore the moment his hooves hit the ground, as the ground itself seemed to hit back. It rolled upwards under the colt and tossed him into the air as dirt and rocks were thrown across the lawn. The whole yard was undulating, the ground rolling like ripples in a pond even as the grass was torn asunder by the force. Even the tree they had been sitting under was starting to sway, making the leaves rustle and the stones of the fence creak in protest. The only other sound was a low rumbling that seemed to rise up from the ground itself.
Twilight moved in an instant, leaping forward to catch Spike before he could hit the ground, even as the ground seemed to fall out from under her. Pulling her little brother tightly against her chest, she tumbled forward towards the ground that seemed further away than it had any right to be. She twisted her body, putting herself between Spike and the ground. She braced herself for the impact only to feel hooves wrapping around her body as her fall suddenly stopped.
The rumbling lasted a few more moments before finally falling into silence, the whole thing having lasted only a few seconds. As gentle as a feather, Cadence lowered them back to the ground as Spike started to cry, pressing his face tightly up against Twilight's scales. Twilight tried to reassure him, stroking her palm along his back and rocking him gently in her arms. “It’s okay Spike, you’re okay.”
Finally, she looked up at the yard, shocked to see the state it was in. A large cone of dirt had erupted out from the grass, rising up as tall as a pony with a rock the size of Spike crowning the top of it. The previously flat grass was now frozen in waves radiating out from the pile, while other parts of the ground had been ripped open in narrow arches that seemed to be nearly as deep as she was tall.
“What happened?” Cadence asked, looking out over the damaged yard. Her wings fluffed out across her back, ears twitching and her tail flicking widely behind her. She was shifting her weight from hoof to hoof, like the ground was about to give way under her if she stayed in one place too long.
Twilight was still rocking her brother even as she realized that he needed to be changed. “He had a magic surge,” she explained. Spike was still whimpering against her, but the tears had already dried. Magical surges were something that all unicorns had to deal with when they were young, but she had never expected that an earth pony could have a surge, but Spike had quickly proved that wrong. It had been months since the last time he had one, and was stronger than any of the others had been.
Small rivulets of dirt were rolling down the huge pile, with the occasional rock following suit. The massive rock itself was sinking even as she watched, the dirt spreading out under it like dough. Cadence took a step forward, putting her hoof on the edge of the pile, sinking into the dirt up to her fetlocks.
“Go get Spike changed, I’ll take care of this,” Cadence ordered, moving to put herself between them and the pile.
Twilight nodded, and holding Spike close she hurried back into the tower. The ripples in the grass didn’t quite reach the base of the structure itself. As surprising as it was, it wasn’t as strong as an earthquake, it was just some displaced dirt. The tower was fine, not a stone or painting out of place.
She took her time to get Spike changed, making sure he was completely clean and dry before putting a fresh diaper on him. The combination of her field and claws made it easy for her, and kept her from touching anything unpleasant—though she still washed up when she was done.
After that was done, she carried Spike to the kitchen, filling one of the glasses with water and casting a small spell on it to keep it from spilling. Her little brother hooked his fetlock through the handle and pulled it to his lips, drinking it all as noisily as possible, followed by a belch and a grin.
She fluffed his mane with her claws as she put the cup away, then the pair of them headed back outside.
Cadence had her forehooves on the dirt pile, pushing down against it with all her might, wings fanned out and her hooves almost glowing through the dirt that covered them. The dirt itself was sinking back into the ground even as she watched. Even the ripples in the grass were slowly flattening out, returning to the way they had been before. It must have been taking all of the teenage alicorn’s strength, as a layer of lather was coating her breast and neck.
Then she reared back and slammed her hooves right onto the large rock, forcing it, and the last of the dirk pile, back into the earth. After that she stood in place, her eyes closed and chest heaving like she had run across the city and back.
Twilight set Spike down under the tree and tapped a claw on his nose. “Stay right here,” she said, then turned and rushed back into the tower. She filled a pitcher with ice water and grabbed a bath towel before heading back outside.
The mare was still standing where she had been, her breathing having slowed as she slowly pawed one hoof against the flattened dirt. Her wings were fanned out, the primaries flexing with each breath she took. Spike was pressed up against her hind legs, watching her with his large eyes.
“Cadence,” Twilight said.
Her purple eyes slowly opened, bags sitting heavily under them. They took a moment to focus on the small dragon before flicking down to the pitcher in her claws. “Thank you, Twilight,” she said, taking the pitcher with her magic and lifting it up to her lips, gulping down the water, draining the pitcher in a few moments. She then returned the pitcher to the dragoness and took the towel, holding it in her field almost effortlessly as she tried to dry herself.
Twilight sat down next to Spike, allowing the colt to snuggle up against her side, pressing his muzzle up under her arm. She wrapped her arm around his chest and pulled him close to her.
“That was more effort than I had expected,” Cadence said as she walked over to the pair, towel floating in her field, her hornshine almost invisible in the sunlight. She carefully sat down next to the pair, draping the towel across her shoulders, her wings still slightly fanned out. “I need more practice with earth pony magic,” she added.
“You did fine,” Twilight replied, running her claws through Spike’s mane as he started to drift off to sleep. She looked down at her little brother, watching his tail twitch against the grass. “Spike’s a strong pony,” she added a few moments later.
That made the mare laugh and nod her head. “He is,” she said, then fanned out her wing and draped it across the pair of them. The three of them sat like that for a few minutes, relaxing in the sun as Spike's ears twitched in his sleep. Twilight couldn’t help but smile at that, he might have been adopted, and he might have supposed to have been a dragon, but what he really was, was her brother.
Eventually Cadence stood up, only to stumble and nearly fall back to the ground, tripping over Twilight’s bag in the process. She didn’t even notice as the books spilled out over the grass. “Can you take Spike to bed?” she asked as she got her shaking legs under her. “I… I think I need to lay down.”
“Of course,” she said, gently scooping up Spike in her arms and carrying him back into the tower. By the time she was finished tucking him in and went back down stairs, Cadence was laying on the couch, chin resting on the arm as she was drifting off to sleep as well.
Twilight didn’t even question that her bag was sitting on the floor next to the couch, and she never noticed that the purloined book was now sitting at the very top of the bag, nor the hurriedly scribbled note that had been slipped between the pages.
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Well that was neat. See you all in another year's time!
New update yay
Ouch Twilight has an admirer I think. That or her hoarding instincts are kicking in. I hope all will go well over the next few years.
11102572
I'm thinking hoarding instincts, since it happens with Celestia's books, too. Maybe Cadance noticed, for that last bit with the note?
11102572
i dont think thats it...something stinks here...
11102583
Sorry, that was the tacos
Earth Pony surges are literally disaster movie fodder. If that was at all common it would lead to a fascinating set of problems for architecture as a whole.
11102603
not u, the situation! the hidden and hastily written note that was suddenly in that book that was suddenly at the top of Twis bag which was suddenly not where she left it...that reeks of a hidden communication being sent OUT not IN...logically, it would almost have to be Cadence communicating with some outside element, currently unknown, but i suspect Tia...
Hopefully you are doing ok, and I hope you have an amazing New Year's!
Really neat detail with the amount of material above ground level compensated for by open spaces now visible beneath ground level.
I think you meant "gentle as a feather" here. plus, the way the latter part is written, it makes it sound like Cadance is the one with the scales.
also, the way Cadance's introduction and explanation about her becoming an alicorn a few months before twilight became a dragon make it sound like cadance wasn't Twilight's foalsiter before, which we all know can't be true, since Twilight doesn't have a cutie mark in the flashback of Cadance as her foalsiter, so she would've been Twi's foalsiter before twi became a dragon in this timeline.
very interesting idea that Spike can have magical surges despite being an earth pony due to his origins. very clever and i look forward to seeing how it develops as a plotpoint.
Also, again, Celestia, you NEED to contact Torch as soon as possible. it's clear Twilight's going through the first stages of dragon puberty and, with no idea what's happening, things could get out of hand, hoof, claw, whatever, very fast, especially since twilight being a dragon that can use magic being more dangerous if she loses control to her dragon greed.
gasp
It returns! Good chapter, I enjoyed it :3
Great job on this latest chapter. Might have taken quite a while, but, well, quality over speed and this was definitely well worth the wait. Definitely appreciated the effort that went into the exchanges, characterizations, general wrap-up and future chapter set-up. Definitely liked the bit of foreshadowing to Dragon Twilight's book hoarding (so far, it's only been one additional book at a time, but it was still enough to alert Cadance), Earth pony baby Spike finally making a full appearance in this series and the show of Earth pony baby surges (wouldn't be surprised if the level of this surge were an indication that Spike might end up becoming stronger and tougher than normal Earth ponies his size and age later on), which Cadance and Twilight were able to handle, even if it was pretty tiring to do so. Also liked the bit about Twilight just starting to learn "message teleportation breath" at this point in time.
VERY definitely looking forward to more of this series. And Happy New Year to you and your family and friends.
I think you meant gentle as a feather, but honestly this works too and sounds way sweeter
Yay, an update! What a good way to wrap the year.
11102627
Thank you!
11102691
Yes, I did. I'll be getting that fixed :)
I honestly didn't remember that, though it's not the first time the story didn't line up with a flashback (like with Shining Armor being in the guard already). As a general rule I treat the flashbacks in the show as more allegorical then actual fact. Which helps explain a lot of weirdness between all of them.
In the show, it seems like while Celestia is good at domestic stuff, she's terrible at foreign policy. It seemed like until Twilight came in Equestria didn't have any sort of stable relationship with any of the other non-pony countries. That, and she's very set in her ways (something I've been touching on in one of my other stories). It's also clear she didn't contact Torch in the canon timeline even with Spike being a hatching and needed far more support then Twi does.
11102719
Thank you!
So happy to see this again!
11103004
To be fair it seems everyone in mlp had terrible foreign policy. The yacks where self oscillating. Griffin where going an economic collapse. The dragons seem bull headed and not listen in to any one. Changelings under crystal rule saw every one as food. Than we got to other races hiding from the world. With all the magical misshapen going on every other week I'm surprised that returns even a London for the ponies,
ah I missed this story. I really love the prequel.
I also noticed either another spelling error or a rough sounding wording but I cant recall where I saw it.
Was to caught up in the reading.
I would say this chapter feels more like a narrative than the previous ones, which did give off more of an anthology feel. You're doing fine, I'd say.
I love when Earth Ponies are given actual magic, by the way.
Bet you ten bits that the note Cadence placed will only cause a bigger problem than if she left it be.
Spike used Stone Edge!
Spike’s attack missed!
Glad to see this update, even if I took my sweet time to read it.
Lovely stuff. Always nice to see an earth surge. Looking forward to more.
Loving this story! Thanks for writing it!
Great story. Hope to see it return. Good work!
11149800
Indeed, land creatures getting +2/+2 is pretty great.
Earth Pony geomancy! It's nice to see that around.
11102610
Geomancy can be seriously intimidating if you have a good sense of drama. Stomp your hoof, and a semicircle of bedrock emerges abruptly to uppercut a whole gang of ponies who were closing in on you.
dead story?