The Feathered Song
Sable Heartstrings stood at the top of the mountain, legs aching from the hike and breathing in the thin air with glee. Today was the day.
Ever since she was a little filly and had seen the wonderbolts soaring over her town, the pegasi casting streaks of lights behind them as they flew faster then she could have dreamt of, she knew what she wanted. More then anything.
Sable wanted to fly.
Looking over the edge of the mountain wasn't a good idea but the unicorn did it anyway, gingerly poking her head out over the cliff face. The forests and mountains stretched out below and looked beautiful, if utterly terrifying all at once. The sky was cloudless, the sun gleaming in a sea of brilliant blue. She laughed, the sound whipped away by the wind that blew at her face.
Finding a flat stone near the edge she sat down, trying to breath slowly. Taking a deep breath, the mare started to sing, her horn glowing softly as the wind seemed to die down, the mountains eager to listen.
She'd chased the silly idea of flying as a filly, trying out strange, wonderfully garish pink air balloons owned by the bakers assistant and begging the librarian to try out floating spells on a willing assistant. But none of it felt right. It was one thing to stand next to the sky, but to feel the wind rushing against your face, wings outstretched and the unique magic of a Pegasi coursing through your veins... That was something else, her winged friends had said.
But still she'd kept chasing the impossible until she gained her cutie mark. A single note emblazoned on her flank had sealed her fate. A musician... Just like her parents. And then it had all been decided, the schools, training and eventually the endless applause as she'd stood on countless stages and sang. The worst thing was that it had come so easily to her.
The singing became sad as Sable pondered, her horn lit brightly. Around her, streaks of white light began to dance and swirl in time to her chorus.
Family and music had been the only things she'd cared about. The smile and pride on her parents faces would be worth it when the stage and crowds seemed to much. The years rolled on and eventually she'd been forced to see that no magic in the world could fix old age. Or a broken heart. And when they'd gone, nothing had seemed to matter anymore.
The song grew thick with grief, the light waning as she cried, the sorrow that she'd never forgotten just under the surface and all too easily brought up.
She'd almost forgotten that desire to fly until she'd visited the Canterlot libraries and stumbled onto a book, small and forgotten, tucked away behind everything else. "The Feathered Song", it had said in handwriting that looked ancient.
Tirelessly, she'd read that book over and over again till she had come to a decision. It had taken years of study but today was the day. It had to be. It had to.
Key change. The music now soared, the light dancing and leaping as she continued her spell. The pieces were there, magic undreamed of at her hooftips. All she had to do was piece it all together. Eyes closed, the unicorn threw herself into the spell, letting the music hug her tightly.
The light roared and began to touch her back, making her shiver with pain. She continued to sing, pouring her heart into every note, tears streaming down her muzzle. The light coalesced, her cutie mark burning brightly as it slowly disappeared. Painfully, ever so slowly, the light began to form into wings, each feather prickling in the wind. She could feel the nerves wire themselves into her body as two sets of magic fought for control.
The book had been clear on one thing. The balance of Pegasi, Unicorn and Earth Pony was important. Alicorns were born once in a millennia and that kind of magic was far beyond her reach. But sometimes... Sometimes the universe could be kind. Giving up everything wasn't easy, but if you had nothing to lose, what did it matter?
The high note. The music reached its peak as Sable stood up, walking over to the edge. The song never faltered, never swayed. Her horn was almost invisible behind the searing white light that enveloped it. Wild, unrestrained magic raced along her body, every hair standing on end.
She'd never wanted to be a unicorn. Up here on the mountains with the sky almost within reach, the freezing winds buffeting at her mane... She'd never felt so free.
And then, with joy and grief all mixed into music that could make Celestia herself weep, all at once the song ended. Silence.
Slowly, not quite believing what had happened, Sable reached upwards and touched her head, smiling, then laughing at the space where the horn had been. The wind howled, the mountains giving their best attempt at a standing ovation. On her flank was a cutie mark, a pair of wings intertwining around a single note.
Stretching her wings, the Pegasus jumped off the edge with a final laugh.
Today was the day. Today Sable Heartstring flew.
Far away, in a castle with far too many rooms, Celestia looked out a passing window. Far off in the distance the mountains climbed upwards into the sky. She could feel magic shifting, the universe coming together in a single beautiful moment.
An Alicorn couldn't do everything, despite what her subjects thought. Sometimes though, someone just needed the smallest push to start anew. If she could have talked to Starswirl, she knew he would have been against the whole idea. "Leave a book with that kind of information for a simple unicorn to discover? But what if they can't handle the incantation?" He would have said with a tug on that silvery beard of his.
But as Celestia felt the music, the perfect harmony of the notes imprint onto the fabric of reality, she smiled. Sometimes it was worth taking a risk.