Harmonic's Overture, as improvised by the author on his viola.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLSfgQzlndo

It was late summer in Canterlot when the gypsies from the far north arrived. Like most caravans, they would wander from place to place to eat, sleep, and earn a little money from wherever they could. The caravan, composed of thirty ponies as well as a small gryphon family, made its way into the city. The entire caravan agreed on two things; find a few quick odd jobs to fund their next trek, and meet back at the camp just outside of the city.

The last member who always followed behind the caravan was a pony of an amber coat and black mane, shot through with streaks of gray; a unicorn by appearance, he carried only two things on his back. One was a beaten and weathered violin case that looked like it survived a war, while the other was a haggard old cloak that was barely holding itself together.

The colt searched the city with his ears and tired brass eyes for somepony to hire him as a musician. But without any luck, he resorted to what he normally did: he sat at a bench, opened up his case to take out the violin, and began to play until he's earned enough.

Since his foalhood, he always improvised on the violin. His style, depending on his mood, could be slow and calm or be a dancing, fiery rhapsody. But in any case, like the countless times he played, he closed his eyes to play simply because it was easier to focus.

He played for at least a half-an-hour on that bench; most stuck-up ponies walked right by, while a few others put a bit or two in his case.

On the last song, as his tired hooves played, he heard a very small applause. He opened his eyes to find three other ponies there; all seemed very wealthy, and as he noticed, all of them were unicorns.

There was one stallion that was applauding. Over his white coat, he wore a clean black suit and a well-combed blue mane; he also had a mustache along with a monocle in his eye.

“Well done good sir,” he said. “That was delightful, wasn't it?” he asked the two other ponies, both of whom nodded in agreement.

“Uh, thank you?” The Violinist said.

“I don't think I've recalled the tune you played; may I ask what it was?”

“It- It doesn't have a name.”

“An original piece?”

The Violinist nodded.

“What's your name, young fellow?”

“Harmonic, sir.”

“A pleasure, my name is Fancy Pants." After the Violinist didn't respond for a moment, Fancy asked, "You’re not doing anything at around six are you?”

“Not really?”

“Splendid! I was wondering if I could hire you for the evening.” This got Harmonic's full attention. “One of the soloists was taken in ill I'm afraid, and just won't make it to the charity auction tonight. So I'm wondering if I can hire you as a replacement, that is if you don't have any objections to it.”

“Are you kidding? I was looking for one all day! But where is it?”

“I'll just give you a card.” Fancy's horn glowed and took out a card and a pen. He wrote down the address and gave it to Harmonic. But when the card was in Harmonic's hooves, he stared at it, frowning.

“Is something the matter?” Fancy asked.

“Sir… I can't read.”

This took Fancy completely by surprise as well as the other two ponies. “Oh. Well…” Fancy thought for a moment what to say next. “Since that is the case, how about you pack up your violin and just follow us until the charity starts.”

Thanking him, he packed up his violin and levitated it on his back. As they walked on, Fancy, along with the other ponies couldn't help but notice a few things about this colt. He seemed to be in his mid or late teens. He smelled as if he hadn't got the chance to bathe in his life. Fancy noted that his right eye had a ghost of a black eye. Both his mane and tail was a mess. And he seemed to be sweating underneath that ancient cloak of his.

“Forgive me for sounding a little rude,” Fancy Pants started.“But aren't you a little warm under that cloak?”

"I'm fine," was all Harmonic said.

“How old are you?” Fancy said, trying to strike up a conversation.

“Sixteen sir.”

“Oh. And how long have you've been playing the violin?”

“I think… Ten years, maybe.”

“Ah, I see. So are you from around here?”

“No, I just got here with a caravan.”

“Caravan?”

“I'm with the gypsies that just came here.”

“Ah yes. I see. Let me rephrase my question then; where are you from originally?”

“Way up north.”

“Vanhoover?”

“Uh, no. I mean far north of Equestria.”

“So in other words, you’re not from Equestria. But you have been traveling this whole time?”

“Well, for several years, yes.”

Fancy was quiet for a moment, being thoughtful, he said: “You know what; I think I should take you to my home to get you cleaned up.”

“Uh, no thanks. I don't think that would-”

“But I insist. You must at least look presentable at the auction tonight.”

Even against Harmonic's protests, he was still persuaded to go to his home. After calling for a cab, Fancy bid the ponies he was with farewell and whisked the Violinist down several blocks.

The cab pulled up to a building that had six windows facing the street with one door. It was two floors high with the bricks painted a royal blue. The window seals, steps to the door, and even tiles on the roof were made out of white marble.

Fancy stepped out of the cab and started to make his way to the building until he noticed that the colt wasn’t following him. He turned to find him on the sidewalk, hesitating to move and looking at the blue building before him.

“Aren’t you coming?” Fancy asked.

“What’s this place?” he asked.

“Home sweet home,” Fancy answered, “Now come along, we need to have you washed up.”

Harmonic’s jaw dropped, “This is your home? It can’t be.”

The wealthy pony raised an eyebrow, “May I ask why not?”

“I-I mean look at it,” Harmonic pointed at the building, “It looks more like a palace than a home.”

Fancy chuckled, stepping up to the front door, “Why thank you. While I like to think of it as a palace, this is rather one of the more modest homes in Canterlot. I know friends whose homes are more opulent than mine. If you think this is a palace, you should have seen Hoity Totty’s.” He opened the front door, “Now come inside, and let’s get you cleaned up.”

Harmonic blinked, “You mean… I’m going to go in there?” The Violinist looked down, pawing at the ground. “I don’t know sir, I’m not sure if I’m even welcomed in someplace like that.”

“Nonsense, I am inviting you in, now come along.” Fancy went in. Looking around, Harmonic stepped inside as well.

Harmonic never seen anything like it, from the different tiles that stretched into an endless mosaic on the floor, to the chandlers made out of cut crystal above. It was like stepping into another world.

“Ms. Kettle,” Fancy Pants called, “We have a guest who is in need of a bath, could you please run some water in the bath tub upstairs?”

“Right away sir,” a voice called back. While his host went about, Harmonic froze there in the center of the foyer. From where he was standing, it was like he was at the center of a tiny universe at work. He looked down hallways where servants in clean uniforms were busy working to make things pristine and making sure the home was running like a newly built machine. He spotted the use of gold leafing on the ceiling and the upper walls of the house. Hanging from the walls were paintings of ponies and places that looked like they were out of foreign fairytales.

“The bath is ready for you,” Fancy said stepping in, “Here, I’ll show you where.” Fancy lead him up the stairs and down the hall to a room that was easily big enough for a house to fit in with its high ceilings and spacious room. Off to the side was a bathtub that was easily big enough for eight ponies to swim in.

“Let me help you with that cloak,” Fancy offered his help while lighting up his horn.

“I-I think I can take care of myself from here,” Harmonic said quickly stepping into the bathroom and closing the door behind him.

The wealthy pony went up to the door, “Would you need anything else?” he inquired, “Any particular soap or-”

“I’m fine,” he interrupted.

A while later, after his first bath in years, he walked out of the room looking a good deal cleaner than when he entered. But even then, he still had the old cloak on him. Fancy suggested that maybe that he should get him some new cloths, but at the very mentioning of it, the Violinist took a step back, looking very nervous saying a quick, “No thank you.”

“But that cloak is falling apart.”

“I like to keep it on.”

“But you can't just go looking like that.”

“Then I won't play. I'm sorry, but either you let me keep wearing this, or I won't play.”

Fancy sighed but got an idea, “What if I were able to get you a new cloak? Would you still play if you wore a different cloak then the one you’re wearing?”

Harmonic looked down at his cloak in thought. “But, I don't have very much money on me.”

“Not to worry, I'll let you borrow one of mine. So would you?”

“Just as long as I have something on me, I will.”

After he gave Harmonic one of his fine silk cloaks and some lunch, Fancy's suspicions further rose after he said that he wanted to stay in his room until six. All of Fancy's questions rotated over and over in his head. Why was he still willing to stay here other than go to his family? Does he have one? Why doesn't he want to be seen without the cloak? Why did he react so nervously when asked about it? Why couldn't he read? And why was he out here on his own?

When the hour came, Harmonic was taken to the charity auction that was held at another pony's home by cab. The home itself was bigger than his host’s being a third story building, painted bright purple and even had painted golden vines that looked like they were climbing upward. Staying close to Fancy Pants while they entered, they were lead to the biggest room of the home. Above him was a copy of a Rococo style fresco of pegasi looking down at the guest below. The walls were white with gold molding; the floor was made up of black and white polished marble.

All around him, there were even more ponies that looked just as affluent as his host. Some of them, as Harmonic noted were exchanging cards, spoke softly and elegantly. The stallions were all in suits and ties while the mares were in dresses that showed off their physiques and their elaborated hairstyles. He also noticed that there were a few of the Equestrian guards in armor around, casually talking to the other ponies around them.

Harmonic tried to stay unnoticed by the large refreshment table in the corner. The colt did snack on the food, however, he didn’t eat all of it since they were served in tiny portions and some of entrees he didn’t recognized.

The ponies that came near him acted as if he wasn’t even there. They took sips of punch, talked about some kind of business that the Violinist wasn’t interested in listening. If anything, he was getting rather bored of it all, that is, until his host came up to him to tell him that it was time to play.

He went to the front of the room where all the ponies could see him now. He took out his violin, tightened and rosin up his bow. And began to play.

First he played with an image of the misty mountains of his frosty homeland. It was slow and light but kept a few low notes, just to keep his aristocratic audience's attention.

Then he played with a dance in mind. Using two strings at the same time to make it like the instrument was humming.

But before he could start playing a third song, he heard some guest in the crowd saying the words that nearly sent him over the edge: “That was boring.”

He opened up his eyes to focus in on where that snobby remark came from. He found that it came from a tall white unicorn with a blond mane. With the violin and bow in his aura, he went over to him and asked if there was a problem.

“Your music,” he said. “It's not that bad, but it just seems… Lifeless to me.”

Harmonic's response was to put his violin under his chin and then, he played in front of the snob, the very sound of his rage. With his eyes closed, the only thought he had, wasn't a thought at all; it was the color red.

With his eyes closed, he played up a storm. There were notes that went from high and low and back again at an incredible speed. Sharps, naturals, flats, on one string, two strings, hair on his bow breaking, he didn't bother, he was far too focused to care what was happening.

Did he hear his audience gasp? He couldn't tell from his fiery concentration; too far at the moment to even notice that his new cloak came undone.

After he ended his rage on a high note, he heard absolutely - nothing. He expected that there would be a reaction. Applause, booing, talking, something, anything, but all he heard was silence. He opened his eyes to see not just the pony in front of him who offended him, but everyone as well was staring at him. Eyes as wide open as their jaws. He wasn't even sure if anyone was even breathing.

“What?” Harmonic asked.

There was a reaction; it came from the pony who offended him. He still had that frozen look of shock on his face as he pointed a hoof at the Violinist. Harmonic looked down and, to his horror, realizes what they were staring at. They were looking at him with nothing to cover him. No cloak to shield him. Nothing to hide his pair of wings.

His eyes shifted from one pony to another. “I. I-I...” was all Harmonic said before he tried to run out of the room. Almost immediately, every single pony in the room tried to do what they could to make sure he doesn't leave the room. Guards blocked the doors from the panicked alicorn. Since there was so many around, the pony was backed into a corner of the room. His front limbs covered his head on the floor; shaking out of fear.

Fancy made his way over to the frightened pony in the corner. “Harmonic?!” he said with astonishment, “You’re an alicorn!”

“P-Please," he begged, "Don't hurt me!”

“Sir,” one of the guards approached, “Please calm yourself. Nopony said anything about hurting you.”

“Stay back!” Harmonic bolted upright, flattening his back against the corners of the wall. “Please! Stay back!” But the guards didn’t listen as they approached the terrified colt.

“Where do you hail from?” one of the pegasi guards questioned, still keeping to the air in case he flies out.

“Just let me go,” the alicorn begged, “Let me take my violin and I promise I’ll never come back to this city again.”

“Kid, listen,” a Solar unicorn Guard went up to him. Harmonic covered his face once more, “I promise, nopony in this city is going to harm you. So how about we take you somewhere that’s safe.”

“Safe? Y-You’re not going to protect me! You’re going to hurt me.”

“Nopony is going to do that, just come with us peacefully; we’ll take you to Princesses Celestia and Luna.”

“For what? They’re just going to harm me like all the others.”

“No they won’t, the Princesses are alicorns like you.”

“You’re lying! I’m the only alicorn around here!”

“Just come with us,” but when Harmonic refused, the unicorn lifted him in the air. The Alicorn frantically tried to get out of the guard’s magic to no avail. “Get the violin,” he told his fellow guards. Once they confiscated the violin and its case, the guards excused themselves from the auction before heading towards the palace, with one panicky alicorn in their custody.

_*_

There were only a few times a day when both of the royal sisters get to be together out of the public eye. A period of time when they can be themselves, and putting up a display isn't necessary.

Twice a day, the sisters have that chance to do so. For Celestia, it's dinner time, to her sister Luna, it's breakfast. It was during such times that the sisters were to remain undisturbed during their meals, unless something of extreme importance has come up. This only happens on rare occasions, but today however, was such an occasion.

The doors to the private dining room opened up to one of Celestia's guards, after entering the room; he bowed to the sisters and was bid to rise.

“Your Majesties,” the guard began. “I have brought news that I think you needed to hear.”

“Has something happened?” Celestia said with concern.

“It's not a security concern. Equestria is not in danger-”

“Then why are you here?” Luna asked.

“Your Majesties, I've come here to bear the news that an alicorn has been found here in Canterlot.”

“Is Twilight here?” Luna inquired, but the guard shook his head.

“Cadence?” asked Celestia.

“It is not of the princesses. He's an alicorn that we've never seen before.”

“He?” The sisters asked in unison. They stared at him, then to each other and back to the guard again. Luna spoke up, “We’re afraid that we don't quite follow. Who is 'he'? And where did he come from?”

“From what intelligence we could gather, he goes by the name of Harmonic. And he has been traveling with a group of gypsies from far north of Equestria. The reason why he's here was that he was looking for a quick bit to move on to the next town.”

“Where was he spotted?” Celestia asked.

“At a charity auction that Fancy Pants hired him as a last minute soloist with Prince Blueblood attending.”

“Soloist?”

“He plays the violin, milady. He's also sixteen years old. Oh, and he said that he's illiterate.”

“This is indeed curious,” Luna commented, “Where is he now?”

“Secured in the palace.”

“Secured?”

“When the cloak he was wearing to hide his wings came off, he tried to run. But when he was cornered, however, something interesting happened.”

“And that is?” Celestia ventured.

“He begged the ponies around him to spare his life.”

“What?” The Solar Diarch said in disbelief.

“I am just as confused as you are Princess. It seems somehow, for whatever reason, he’s ashamed to be an alicorn.”

“Luna, what do you think?”

“I think I can see why this news would come to us now.” Luna turned to the guard, “We wish to see him immediately.”

“As you wish, your Majesties. But there's something else I think both of you need to know. When he was told that your Highnesses are alicorns as well. He didn't believe us. At all. He thinks he's the only one.”

“Hmm. Bring him in anyway," said Celestia. "Oh, and has he eaten yet?”

“I’m not entirely sure. Although I doubt that he had much from the auction.”

“First, bring another chair as well as another set, then send him in.”

The guard bowed and left the room. A minute later, servants came in with a chair, a plate, a glass and silverware. It was placed right at the center of the table, between breakfast and dinner.

The pony in question walked in, looking like he was going to his death rather than going to dinner. His head drooped downwards, ears folded back, taking step after heavy regretful step. He still had on the silk cloak and the old violin case. Even when he entered the room, he didn't even look up to see the sisters.

“Are you a daytime pony or a nighttime pony?” Celestia questioned.

“Why would you ask?” he asked softly, still not looking up .

“Well, depending on you, we're offering dinner or breakfast.”

“Why-” He looked up this time, but he didn't bother finishing his question. When he saw them, he froze with wide eyes. He stood like that for some time to the point where it got both of the sisters worried.

“Are you alright?” Celestia asked.

“No,” Harmonic said softly, shaking his head. “No. This isn't real.”

“What is not real?” asked Luna.

“You! No, it- Neither of you! You can't be real!”

Both sisters were taken aback. Despite of this, Luna asked: “And yet you see us with your own eyes, do you not?”

“B-But how? No! This is not happening! This cannot be happening! I-I'm dreaming. Yes! That's the only explanation! I must be-” Harmonic got slapped by a napkin in a golden aura.

"Forgive me for doing that," said Celestia. “But I had to, if we were to bring you back to reality of course. Now, are you quite alright?”

He only stared at Celestia, holding a hoof over his cheek that he got slapped. “So... I'm not asleep, am I?”

“No. But please, come and sit with us.”

He put his case on the ground, and walked over to the table. Sitting in the chair, he saw more food spread out before him than he's ever seen in a month.

“Take off that cloak if you please,” said Celestia.

“Um...” He looked around the room. “Is it safe?”

"It's only us," said Luna with a raised eyebrow, and then added: “There is no need to wear a cloak at the table.”

Still feeling uneasy, he unfastened his new cloak and levitated over to his case. He got stares from the sisters at his wings at his sides, along with his chest showing a little bone.

“Art thou going to eat?” asked Luna.

“What?”

“Pardon, I mean, are you going to eat? This food is just much yours as it is ours.”

Harmonic looked at the wide spread. "Really?" he asked.

“By all means,” said Celestia, “If you’re hungry, please eat something.”

With his magic as well as throwing any rule of manors out the window, he grabbed whatever he saw and started eating. It was until Luna stopped him when he already got a pile of food, about the size of a hill on his plate.

“We said you can eat. We did not say about devouring the whole table.”

“Oh uh, sorry. It's just that everything looks so good compared to what I've been eating for years, so I just couldn't help it. Sorry uh... What were your names again?”

“I am Princess Celestia, co-ruler of Equestria, and raiser of the sun.”

“And I am Princess Luna, also co-ruler of Equestria, and raiser of the moon. And your name?”

“H-Harmonic – just Harmonic.”

“If I may ask,” said Luna. “why didn't you think we were real? Surely, you have already seen the flags and statues of us?”

“I thought they were symbols, I didn't know they were- well, you.”

“But why did you think we weren't real?”

Harmonic seemed to hesitate for a moment. "Uh, well...You see...where I come from," he said. "In the town called Cremona, alicorns were nothing but mythical creatures. Known to be tricksters really. Nopony believed in them since none of them have ever seen any. Until, I was born. The foals over there... they-they didn't like me very much. I've been called many names as long as I can remember. Like, 'Freak,' 'Abomination,' 'Monster,' 'Accident.'” Both of the sisters can see that he was trying to hold back tears. They couldn't blame him, for they couldn't believe what they were hearing themselves.

“You believed them? Did you?” Luna asked.

“Where you’re the only one to have both a horn and a pair of wings? How could I not?”

“And what of your parents?” Celestia questioned. “Who were they?”

“Well...” Harmonic cleared his throat, still trying to keep his tears back. “They were both unicorns. My father made countless instruments that he sold to the south. I learned a little on how to play the violin from him.”

“What happened?”

“I... I-I'm sorry. I just don't want to talk about it. Can we change the subject?”

Both of the sisters looked at each other, giving the exact same look, concern but suspicious. It was clear that there was something that Harmonic wasn't telling them. The real question of course, was what?

After giving a thoughtful hum, Celestia asked him, “How are you with magic?”

“I just levitate things, like any other unicorn.”

“And your wings, can you fly?”

“I know how to glide, but flying? No.”

“Since you’re a violinist, can you read music?”

Harmonic shook his head. “No. I can't read anything at all. I just know a few scales and some tricks. So not really.”

“I have a question for you Harmonic.” Luna spoke up, “What of the gypsies that we were told you were traveling with, wouldn't they be wondering where you are?”

“I may have been traveling with the caravan for years,” Harmonic said, his eyes shifting. “But I wasn't that close with them, since – you know, hiding the wings.”

“Have you've ever thought of settling somewhere?”

“I don't mind the travel, but I kinda wish I had someplace to call home. But I don't see that being realistic anytime soon. I mean, where would I go? Who would want me? And… I have a question for both of you.”

“Yes?” both sisters said in unison.

“Are there, you know... more of us?”

“There are,” Celestia nodded, “Not many, but a few.”

“Do you know how many?”

“Well, there is Princess Cadence from the Crystal Empire.” Said Luna, thinking aloud, “And Princess Twilight Sparkle.”

“So, four then?” Harmonic asked.

“Five actually,” Celestia corrected him with a smile.

“And they are all rulers?”

The sisters nodded. Celestia continued: “It's common knowledge in Equestria that alicorns are a sign of royalty.”

"Are you thinking that I'm royalty?" here, Harmonic laughed a little. “Me? Royalty? Ha. Do you have any idea how bad of a leader I would be? Ha-ha. I mean, I may be sixteen and not that smart, but I'm not that dumb either. Ha-ha-ha, I think I’d better stick with the violin.”

“Very well,” said Celestia, “If you want, I can provide a residence for you in one of our suites here in the palace.”

Both Luna and Harmonic stared at her.

“Princess, are you saying that you’re offering me a… a home?” Harmonic asked.

“I will provide you a place to sleep and eat, education, flight, magic, and music lessons, on one condition. Every evening from here on out, you must play us something on that violin of yours. Agree?”

“And, would you promise me that nopony would hurt me?”

“In Equestria, that would be considered treason.”

_*_

It was not long after dinner that Harmonic was shown to one of the palace's suites. Behind the double doors was an enormous room with a bed that could easily fit five ponies, a bathroom to the side, and a balcony that overlooked Canterlot. And a fireplace that was made up of decorative tiles.

Before he went to sleep, he performed a little ritual. Every night, he would play out a lullaby three times on a single string. This lullaby did not go unheard; because he left the door of the balcony opened for the night breeze to flow in, the music drifted out the door and into the night air, where a dark alicorn was listening.

Luna was waiting; she was waiting for the new alicorn to sleep, where she could find out more about this mysterious guest. As she waited, she listens in the Violinist’s lullaby, ‘Who is he playing for?’ she wondered. The lullaby itself sounds simple, almost childlike if it wasn’t for the sound of the melody was longing for something. Once Harmonic was finished with his violin and went back inside, Luna was ready to enter into the dreamscape.

Clearing her mind in the quiet of her realm, she opened up the door to enter into the land of dreams. Even though she had done this countless times before with countless of her subjects, even with her sister, it always surprised her what she can find out just by stepping into another's dream.

The night passed on and the sun rose above the horizon. By now, the celestial sisters were awake and eating their meals. Harmonic hasn't awoken; he was allowed to sleep in because Luna wanted to talk to her sister alone.

“So, how was your night?” Celestia asked, taking a bite out of a pancake.

“I have found out quite a bit from this Harmonic fellow.”

“Do tell, what did you find out?”

“When I was on the dreamscape, I found Harmonic's dream easily since he was so close by. But before I could enter, I could already tell he was having a nightmare.”

“Oh my! What happened?”

“The very first thing I noticed when I entered was that I found myself in a workshop that had many string instruments. Of course it was dark, for it took place during the night. It was all dark except for the light of an oil lamp. I saw Harmonic as a foal with what I suppose was the family cat. He turned around when, I think it was his father, called him to come to bed. That’s when the cat knocked the lamp over and onto the floor.”

At this point, Celestia stopped eating and begged her sister to go on.

“At the sound of the braking lamp, Harmonic tried to put the fire out by fanning it, but it only caused the flames to grow. He called out for help, and then two unicorns came down the stairs. They tried to put out the fire themselves, but it grew regardless of their efforts. Even I tried to put it out, but this fire was relentless. It spread through the workshop, burning the instruments all the while. I think it was his father who told his son to take his violin and get out. I followed Harmonic up the stairs, and into his room where he took the case and leaped out the window.”

Celestia didn't say anything, but Luna knew she wanted her to continue.

“He glided out of the burning building where a group of townsponies were around. He turned to see his home, where both he and I saw his family roasted like chestnuts on a fire. But that's not even the worst of the dream dear sister. Even when he was crying, I heard the ponies were blaming him for the fire.”

“That's... That's just plain awful.” Celestia said, putting a hoof over her muzzle in shock.

"It was quite unpleasant to watch, that I admit," said Luna. “And so, I put an end to the nightmare by changing the scene to something more peaceful. I replaced the harassing ponies with a calm night by a mountain side. I asked him if he was alright, at first he was confused as to how he got there. I explained to him that he was having a nightmare, and that I saved him from it… You know sister, I think it seems to be that he hasn't really gotten over his grief completely, or he doesn't quite know how to deal with these emotions.”

“And then what happened?”

“To tell you the truth, I hugged him out of sympathy; he was taken aback from this, but after I let go, I asked him if there was something that would make him feel better. He said that playing music helps him, so naturally I asked if he could play something for me. And you know what? That's exactly what he did, I didn't hear just his violin, but I heard orchestras playing an ode to glorify our night. Oh I wish you were there to hear it.”

“Something to give Horseshoepin or Beethooven a run for their money,” Celestia commented.

“Come to think of it...” Luna said thoughtfully, “I think I have heard the melody beforehoof. Yes! He was playing it before he fell asleep. Tell me Cel, do you recall any song that went-” Luna hummed the melody out to her elder sister. Celestia listens to it, trying to think back if any of the notes that her sister was humming was at all familiar. “Do you recognize it?” Luna asked.

“I can’t say that I have. Come to think of it, I think this is the first time I’ve heard it.”

“I see. Even with this insight to this fellow’s past, there’s something I’m still wondering over.”

“And that being?”

“I saw him step outside and playing that song three times before he went to bed. Why do you think he does that?”

Celestia put a hoof to her chin, “Not sure. From what we know, perhaps it’s a way of mourning. Although at this time, it’s a little too soon to te-”

Just then, there was a flash that appeared in front of Celestia. It was a letter from Twilight. After opening and quickly reading it though, she told her sister that Harmonic's teachers were here and waiting.

_*_

Harmonic was in a state where he’s between leaving a dream and entering consciousness. For a moment, all of reality was dark, warm and overall, comfortable. It was a state that the young alicorn decided that he wanted to remain forever in. Sleeping on a bed that wasn’t ancient, hard, or cold was the place that he didn’t want to leave from. For a moment, he wondered if this is what Heaven was like.

“Sir?” A gentle voice said in the darkness. “Sir, it’s time to get up.”

He didn’t want to open his eyes yet; his mind was still fuzzy from slowly waking up from a dream. But when the voice called to him again, he cracked an eye open, quickly wishing that he hadn’t.

There before him was the face of a mare that scared him awake.

“GAH!” Harmonic, still entangled in the sheets and blankets, fell over backwards, falling right out of the paradise of a bed. There was the sound of hooves rushing over to aid of the flailing alicorn. Eventually, Harmonic popped his head out to see a team of servants looking down on him, each offering a helping hoof to him.

With a hind-leg, he scooched himself away from the servants, “Who are you all?!” the alicorn asked in alarm.

Oddly, to Harmonic, all of them took a bow to him before the maid who awoke him said: “We’re here to wake you and to have you washed sir.”

“Celestia has sent us,” a butler added. “Here, let us help you up.”

“I’m fine!” Harmonic interjected, trying his best to keep himself covered. “I can still take care of myself.”

“Here, allow me,” a unicorn maid lit up her horn, taking the sheet that covered his wings.

Harmonic panicked once he was exposed, he quickly backed himself into a wall. The servants couldn’t imagine a more surreal sight than seeing an alicorn with nothing but terror in his eyes.

“Sir,” a young butler went up to him. “None of us are sent to harm you, but to see that you’re prepared for the day, nothing more.”

“Is it really?” the alicorn questioned. “How do you know that none of you are planning to drown me in a bathtub or anything?”

“Why would we do that dear?” a pegasus maid asked.

“Because I’m an alicorn, that’s why,” Harmonic answered. “It’s because I’m a freak that ought to be hunted down from ponies that don’t want me.”

The room became quiet until one of the maid spoke up, “Harmonic, for what reason do any of us have for hunting you down?”

Harmonic blinked, “Huh?”

“I said what reason do any of us have to hold a grudge against you? So let me make this as clear as I can, none of us, absolutely no one in Equestria wants to hurt you. We have no reason to hurt you. Our job here is to make sure you’re awake and prepared for the day as Celestia said.” The maid went over to him and put a hoof on his shoulder, “So come on now, you don’t have anything to be afraid here.”

“I… I don’t know,” Harmonic replied.

“Come along, let’s get ya washed up and have a bit of breakfast.”

The servants already started the step in bathtub by the time the nervous alicorn stepped into the bathroom. It took some more convincing for the alicorn to step into the bathtub that they weren’t going to drown him in it.

“What would you prefer for breakfast?” a butler asked as a couple of maids were busing scrubbing away. “We have Blue Nightingale tea with a cream cheese Danish on hoof.”

“Um… I guess I’ll have that?” Harmonic cautiously said.

As one of the butlers exited the room, the one maid that was scrubbing his foreleg asked, “How did you get that black eye?”

“What?”

“You have a bit of a black eye, had you hurt yourself?”

Harmonic turned to the maid in confusion, “Why are you talking to me like I’m a pony?”

“Because you are one,” she answered, levitating the brush to his other arm. “So, how did you get it?”

The alicorn hesitated for a moment before answering, “I got into a fight a while ago. It was over the last loaf of bread.”

“Really, you got a black eye for a loaf of bread?”

“And lost? Yes, that’s where I got it from…” Harmonic trailed off in thought for a moment until he said, “Why are they doing this for?”

“Who’s doing what?” another maid asked.

“All of this, why are those Princess’s taking care of me? I mean, they don’t have any reason to. I mean sure, the food and bed were generous on their part. But why are they letting me stay for, and offer to teach me?”

“Perhaps it’s out of kindness,” said a butler, “Have you known anypony that offered you this level of kindness?”

“As long they don’t know that I have wings,” the alicorn answered. “And yet, all of you know I have wings and a horn, and yet you’re treating me with respect? Why? What did I do to receive such treatment?”

“Well, why not?” the other maid scrubbing Harmonic asked, “Everypony, even an alicorn like yourself deserves some kindness, and by the looks of you, it looks like you hardly received any.”

“That’s because I don’t really,” he said. “I just find this really weird that all of you are treating me like royalty, a beggar no less. It starting to sound like a fairytale that I’m staring in.”

“Perhaps from all the things that made you so afraid, perhaps somepony like yourself should get a ‘happily ever after,’ no? Now then,” Suddenly, the maids who were scrubbing him stepped back. One of the butlers lit up his horn to pull the stop at the bottom of the tub.

The alicorn felt his hide tingle in another servant’s aura as he was lifted up from the tub. He shivered as the cool air of the bathroom came in contact with his skin. Harmonic saw all the servants present in the room quickly gathered around him with brushes, combs, and other tools he didn’t recognized. Yet frighteningly so was the look that the servants were giving him. It wasn’t the look of anger that Harmonic was familiar with. If anything, they wore grins and a hint of glee in their eyes at the shivering alicorn.

“W-What are you doing?” Harmonic squeaked, “What’s going on!?”

“Don’t be afraid,” one of the maids said, holding up a very thick brush, “This is the part where we get you ready to meet the day and your guests.”

“W-What guests?”

“Don’t you know?” one of the butlers asked, holding up a pair of tweezers. “Princess Celestia made it clear that she would send some teachers to meet you. Now please hold still, I promise we’ll make this quick.”

Harmonic’s eyes shifted at any kind of exit.

He found none.

_*_

In the throne room, there were three ponies waiting around. One was to teach Harmonic to fly, the other to teach him reading, writing and magic, and the last to help him further with his musical skills.

"Say," said a multicolored pegasus. "Weren't you at the Grand Galloping Gala once?”

“Yes, I was,” said the gray mare. “I didn't expect Princess Twilight nor the Element of Loyalty to be here as well.”

“Unexpected is the right word here. That I agree,” said Twilight. “But I just don’t understand. Why would Celestia want us three to teach one particular pony? Did she even mention who it would be to either of you?”

Both mares shook their heads.

“If I recall correctly, I wrote that it would be best if I explained it myself.” The three of them turned to the familiar voice of Celestia entering the throne room. Both the Pegasus and earth pony bowed, except for the purple alicorn.

“Princess Celestia!” Twilight greeted her old mentor. A quick nuzzle later, she enquired: “What’s this all about?”

“Have any of the three of you heard any rumor concerning what happened here in Canterlot?” The monarch of the sun asked.

“Other than that rumor about a new alicorn?" said the gray mare, then added: “Which I suspect to be quite unlikely.”

“On the contrary, Mrs. Octavia, that's precisely the reason why the three of you are here.”

The three ponies went silent for a moment, until Twilight spoke up: “There's a new alicorn! Why didn't you tell me this before?!”

“I thought it would be easier for you to see him for yourself.”

“Beg your pardon your highness,” said Octavia. “But why am I here? I could see why Rainbow Dash and Princess Twilight might be here, but what am I doing here?”

“Allow me to answer that,” said Celestia. She went on to explain what she knew. About him being illiterate and having a very limited education when it comes to magic, flight, and music despite for being a talented violinist. She asked the three to keep a few things in mind: such as he's an orphan for the last ten years, which during that time he's been traveling with a caravan of Gypsies. But the most important thing she emphasized is that he's ashamed that he's an alicorn since, apparently, he’s been bullied for it since he was born. So he always wore a cloak to hide his wings. "But other than educating him, he also needs to be taught how to accept himself. Do you understand?”

The three of them nodded in agreement. And with that, Harmonic was sent in. Once again, he had on his new cloak. “Excuse me Celestia,” he said, “Could we talk about your ‘wake-up call’ from this morning? I think I’m able to take care…”

He saw the purple alicorn in the room and stopped when he saw her. Turning to Celestia he said: “So, she's one of us – right?”

Celestia nodded.

“Can I trust them?”

“Oh absolutely,” said Celestia. For a brief moment, Harmonic hesitated about unraveling his cloak, but reasoned that if the other two ponies don't seem to mind about the other two alicorns in the room, why should he? And so, he undid it.

He took a step back as soon as he saw the wide-eyed expression on their faces. “Harmonic! It's alright, you can trust them.” Celestia assured him, “Please, allow me then to introduce you to your teachers. This purple one is Princess Twilight Sparkle. She’s a former pupil of mine. She will be teaching you the art of reading, writing, and magic.”

Twilight stepped forward and offered a hoof to him, “Nice to meet you.” Harmonic tenderly lifted a hoof to shake hers.

“Name's Rainbow Dash!” The pegasus flew up to him, “The fastest flier in all of Equestria, and I'll be the one to whip those wings into shape in no time flat!”

A few eye rolls later, Celestia introduced his last teacher: “And this is Octavia. Cellist, Violinist and Pianist to both the Royal Equestrian Orchestra, and the Canterlot Philharmonic Orchestra, she will be your music teacher.”

“How do you do?” She asked as she shook his hoof.

“So, if you all are my teachers,” Harmonic ventured. “When do my lessons start?”

The three teachers then arranged a plan for Harmonic. Twilight will teach him in the morning, Rainbow at noon and Octavia in the afternoon. The question of course, was how he was to get from Ponyville to Canterlot and back.

“Perhaps I could teach him simple teleportation,” Twilight suggested. “It would cut the amount of time for him to travel back and forth.” After talking with Celestia, she and Harmonic made their way to the castle’s gardens to practice.

“Teleportation requires three things,” she said as they stepped outside. “It requires focus, knowing where you’re going, and a bit of imagination. We’ll first try doing this at a short distance and work our way from there.”

“But how is it done?” Harmonic questioned.

“You know that when you levitate an object, you imagine lifting that said object without touching it?” He nodded, “It’s the same process when it comes to teleportation in a way. Only instead of objects you’re moving, you’ll be instantly carrying yourself from point A-” Twilight lit up her horn, and in a bright purple flash, she disappeared from being in front of him, to being behind the young alicorn.

“To point B,” Twilight finished. “All you need to do is to first picture yourself, then the world around you, and then move yourself in your mind in where you want to be. But be warned, the longer the distance that you want to teleport, the more energy it’ll take out of you.”

She then pointed to a statue of a mare holding up a flag. “I want you to teleport from here, over to that statue.”

Harmonic looked between the purple alicorn and the statue at a stone’s throw away. “I… I don’t know if I can do it.”

“Don’t worry too much if you mess up,” Twilight ensured him. “I have been trained by Celestia for years, and I have messed some things up plenty of times. So even if you do something wrong, I promise I’ll make sure you’ll be safe while doing it. Now come on, I’m sure that you can do it.”

Harmonic studied what was before him. The statue was some distance away, between him and the statue was grass still wet with dew and a reflective pond. Behind the statue was a dirt pathway and a well-trimmed hedge. He closed his eyes and replicated what he saw in his head. The pond, grass and statue with the flag, he saw himself in where he was, and then where he wants to be.

He felt his horn light up as he imagined it, and suddenly he felt the magic encompassing his entire body. Even through his eyelids, he saw the bright flash of his golden magic. Suddenly, he opened his eyes to see that he was in front of the statue. Turning around, not only did he see Twilight a ways back with a satisfied smile, but to his dread, so was his new cloak falling to the ground.

Without thinking twice, he galloped across that grassy lawn and shattered the reflective pond to put his cloak back on. Harmonic levitated the silky fabric off the ground to quickly cover himself, “Did anypony see me” he asked, checking to see if anyone did.

Twilight gave him a worried look, “Are you alright?”

Ignoring the question, Harmonic sighed in relief to find that no one was watching. “How come the cloak didn’t come with me?”

“Well, I guess you didn’t really picture yourself wearing it.”

“Could I try again?”

“Sure, of course.”

It took the whole day for Harmonic to get the hang of it since he's never really done anything other than levitation. But at the end of the day, Harmonic was almost worn out from the amount of practice as well as to know where to go.

He barely had the mental power to play for the sisters like they’d agreed, but since they saw that he was clearly tired, they excused him for the night. To which, he didn't do his ritual this time; he just slept as soon as he landed on the bed.

_*_

After breakfast a few weeks later, Harmonic put on his cloak and teleports his way over to the place where his teachers live; a small town called Ponyville. Even half way, he could always tell he was getting close by the crystal palace in the center of town that shines in the morning light.

However, the crystallized palace wasn't the place he's supposed to meet Twilight. Rather it was the town's library, or rather, it's new library. The original town’s library was destroyed during a battle; or at least, that's what Twilight told him. The new building tries to mimic the original library, but despite being made out of wood, stone and glass, one could always tell where the singed wood of the original tree ends and the new library begins.

Inside the library, the interior was a balance of light and books, hard wood with fragile stain glass that depicts the history of the Golden Oaks. From the hollowing out, to the line of Librarians, the destruction and reconstruction of the library, these arch windows helped illuminate the inside.

The part where the old library that still had it’s hollowed out bookshelves still held its collection of books, even though the shelves and the floor still had burned marks here and there. As to the newer part of the library, a stony staircase leads up to the second floor where below the stairs, there were more bookshelves.

Harmonic’s teacher taught on the second level where it was nothing more than a circular balcony that leaned inward. The floor, (or what Twilight called the non-fiction level) had each row of bookshelves dedicated to a particular subject from history to mathematics. His teacher would be at the table at the window of the Library’s growth before it was hollowed out with a chalkboard behind her. Twilight was always prepared to give the very basics of reading and writing to the colt.

“Today we'll start with the vowels of the alphabet and the sounds that they make," said Twilight. She went over with him for a few hours to get him to understand what each letter does and cite a few examples. But halfway through the day's lesson, a very pink pony came bouncing into the library. “Hi Twilight!” Then she stopped bouncing when she saw Harmonic. She gasped and then ran straight out of the library.

“Looks like we're going to have to cut our lessons short for today,” said Twilight.

“Why? Who was that?”

“That’s Pinkie Pie, and it looks like she's going to throw you a party.”

Harmonic was taken aback from this. He had an eyebrow raised and asked: “Why? I don't even know her.”

“She always throws a welcome party to anypony who comes to Ponyville.”

“She throws a party for strangers that she's never even met?”

“That's Pinkie for you. She always loves to meet new ponies when they come to town, and it looks like she wants to meet you too.”

“Suppose I say 'no'?”

Twilight shook her head, “Sorry Harmonic, when it comes to Pinkie and her parties, she doesn't really take 'no' as an answer.”

Harmonic sighed: “Where is it then?”

“I'll just take you to it,” At that, they exited the library. A few minutes of walking in the streets later, they came across the gingerbread-like shop.

“Is that made out of real gingerbread?” Harmonic inquired, pointed at the shop.

His teacher laughed a little and explained that “No, it's made to look like that.”

“It looks like something I've heard from a fairytale once, can't remember what it was about though.”

“At any rate, they’re waiting for us, let's go inside shall we?” Twilight entered the shop. Harmonic asked what his teacher meant by that, well, he was about to ask when he followed her into the darkened shop.

“Twilight.” Harmonic asked in alarm, “Why are all the lights out?”

His question was answered when the lights came on, all around him; there were ponies that he's never seen before shouting out the word: “Surprise!”

“Ambush!” Harmonic cried in alarm, and his wings opened on instinct even though they were still under the cloak. He tried to pull his teacher towards the door, away from the 'threat'.

“Harmonic! Calm down!” Twilight said as she refused to move. “It's just a surprise party.”

“Hi!” Harmonic turned to something pink in front of him, he jumped back in shock, but the pink one seemed to talk regardless. The mare talked so fast that it was almost impossible to understand what she was saying.

“Hi, I'm Pinkie Pie. What's your name? Ooh! You have wings and a horn! That's so cool. Of course, I'm just an earth pony who loves to throw parties and bake and make ponies smile and tell jokes and-” on and on and on she went. During this time, he looked around at the other ponies in the room, and their gazes weren't making him feel any better. They were staring at him in shock and awe.

“.... So you’re a musical?” The pink mare asked, this time it got his attention.

“What?”

“Your cutie mark. I mean the 'f' holes. Does this mean you play a musical instrument? I mean, do you play the strings like a violin or a viola or a cello or a bass? A double bass? But then how did you get yours? You still haven't told me your name was yet so what's your name?”

“I-It's I-I-It's,” Harmonic stumbled over his words, sweat starting to run down his head.

“His name is Harmonic,” Twilight stepped in.

“Nice to meet yo- a, ah, ah, ahchoo!” She interrupted herself when she sneezed. Three times. He saw her mane inflated like a balloon then went back to its normal size. And then, to add on top of the strangeness, she stood up on her hind legs and they did a really, really fast dance. So fast, her legs seemed to be a blur. Then, after she stopped, she smiled.

“Hey, everypony! Do you know what day it is?” she asked. Everyone shook their heads, but before anyone could answer, they found it was raining confetti and brightly colored balloons.

“IT'S HARMONIC'S BIRTHDAY!!!” Pinkie announced loudly.

Harmonic was stunned. “How could you possibly have known that?! I didn't tell anypony!”

“Well duh, I know through my Pinkie Sense.”

“You're what?”

“Well, I just had three sneezes, my mane inflated and my hind legs did the Highland fling, which means: that it's somepony's birthday. But whose? Nopony in town has a birthday today, except for somepony who just got here, and that pony is you. So happy birthday!”

Harmonic turned to his teacher. “Did you get anything that she just said?”

“Trust me, she knows what she's talking about,” said Twilight.

“I'm really really excited you've come down to Sugar Cube Corner!” Pinkie said, “We've got balloons and games and punch and sarsaparilla and cupcakes and-”

“What's a cupcake?” Harmonic asked innocently. Pinkie gasped at the very question she was asked: “You've never heard of cupcakes!?!”

“I-I know what cake is. But what are cupcakes? Are they a cake made out of cups or a cup made out of-”

“MR AND MRS CAKE!!! GET A CUPCAKE QUICK!!! THIS IS AN EMERGENCY!!!”

Before he could even so much as think about the question he was going to ask, he found something that was topped with yellow frosting in front of his muzzle. Pinkie explained that this was a cupcake and that he should try it.

“How do you eat it?”

“There's no right or wrong way of eating a cupcake silly, you just eat it.” Pinkie said as she popped one into her mouth while spitting out the rapper.

Assuming that the rapper has to come off, he peeled away from this tiny cake and just gives it a nibble. In his life, he had tasted some sweet things. Yet all the berries, honey, candies (if he could find any), even a few cakes that he could remember tasting, were bland compared to what he was eating. This, to Harmonic, was the Holy Grail of sweets.

Harmonic turned to Pinkie with pleading eyes and asked: “Please tell me there's more?”

“Well it’s your birthday, why wouldn't there be? BRING THEM OUT!!!” And with that, Mrs. Cake brought out a try on her back. And on that tray were seventeen different cupcakes, each one having a lit candle. Each had a different color as well as flavors.

“How did you know I was turning seventeen?”

“You’re turning seventeen?” Pinkie asked, but Harmonic just gave up and accepted the lit deserts before him.

After the song and blowing out the candles, he was first approached by his other teacher. It was Rainbow wishing him a happy birthday. “Hey, since you’re here, let me show you to the rest, my friends. You already know Twilight and Pinkie. This here is Applejack.”

He saw in front of him an orange mare with a blond mane wearing a brown hat. She simply nodded, “Howdy.”

Harmonic tilt his head in confusion and asked what “howdy” meant. “It's a way of sayin' hello,” she explained.

“This is Fluttershy,” said Rainbow as she pointed out a yellow mare with a very long pink mane and tail.

“Hi,” was all her quiet response, while most ponies would ask her twice of what she said, Harmonic heard it.

“Uh, hi yourself?”

“And this here’s Rarity,” Rainbow pointed out to a marshmallow white unicorn with a purple mane and tail that looks like it was made by an artisan.

“Why hello, your Majesty,” she said taking a bow to him.

Harmonic rolled his eyes. “Not to be rude or anything,” he said, “but do I even look like royalty to you?”

“Hmm. Nothing that a mane cut and some new cloths can't fix.”

“Hey, easy there Rares,” said Rainbow, “Mind giving the guy a chance to enjoy himself before you start redecorating him?”

“Oh very well,” she said, “But you simply must come to my boutique sometime. See you around darling.”

He spends the rest of the afternoon eating cupcakes

_*_

“You do know this is madness right?” Harmonic asked, trembling on the edge of a cloud. Below him, there was no cloud to catch him if he falls. For the only thing, he could see was a forest below and the questionably sane Rainbow Dash right next to him.

“Nah, don’t go tying your tail in a knot, trust me, this is necessary.” His teacher said, adding: “All you have to do is just jump, and start flapping your wings. Oh, and no gliding when you’re in the air.”

“Who did you learn this from again?”

“Just jump, I'm sure you'll be perfectly fine.”

Harmonic looked down once again, his heart racing, having the dreaded feeling that something is bound to go horribly wrong.

“One.” He counted to himself, “T-TwAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!” His teacher pushed him off the cloud. He was in a panic free fall as he tries to figure out which way was up. Wings flapping frantically, trying to keep steady, but this was rather difficult since there was little wind blowing.

He noticed that he was seeing more green than blue, which meant that he was upside down. His right-wing flapped harder than the other, which sends him right-side up. A few beats later, he was stable. He looked up at the cloud that his teacher pushed him off from.

“What are ya waiting for?” his teacher cried out, “You gonna come up here or what?”

Easier said than done; flying up to a cloud that was almost a mile off the ground was like climbing a mountain for his wings. Gliding was one thing, but trying to lift his own body weight at such a height was another.

Sweat running down; gasping for air, he managed to cling onto the cloud. "I can't," he gasps, "Help me!"

His teacher did pull him up and onto the cloud.

“Hey kid, you did really awesome back there.”

"You," he gasped once more, "Pushed me!"

“What? It worked didn't it?”

“Barely.”

“I'll just give ya a minute to catch your breath. I’ll admit, I’m impressed. You looked like you tried really hard back there.”

Harmonic nodded, and just breathed for a while when his teacher asked: “So, was that your first time doing that?”

“Huh? You mean, using my wings, other than gliding?” his teacher nodded, “Well... I have... just not like this.”

“Why? What happened?”

“Give me a minute.” A little while later, he got his breath back. “Remember when I said that I traveled with a caravan?”

“You mean those gypsy guys? Yeah, I remember something like that. Why?”

“Years ago one night, our caravan was attacked. And for me to escape, I had to, well, fly my way out. But as it turns out, I was spotted. It was from a gryphon lady, uh, Helga was it? Yes! It was actually, anyway, after the ambush, she came to me saying she knew that I'm a... you know. She told me that her silence was for sale, that unless I pay up, she'll tell the caravan about me. So what was I to do? I had to pay her now and then so that I wouldn't starve. I paid her off for years to keep my secret. But since I'm here, that's no longer an issue isn't it?”

“So I'm guessing you haven't really flown since then, huh?”

Harmonic shook his head.

“Look, kid, you've got nothin' to hide here. Here in Equestria, nopony really cares if you’re an earth pony, pegasus, unicorn or even an alicorn. If anything, it just makes you cooler. And since you’re here anyway, you've really got to use those wings more often, alright?”

“I... I suppose so.”

“Good, now let's go at it again shall we?”

About a few hours later, Harmonic teleported to Canterlot, picking up his violin before he teleported over to a very clean part of the city; he was on the street of his third teacher who lived on #34, Sunrise Ave. Trotting up to the building, he rang for apartment C-3 and waited a short moment until the door opened to the gray mare.

“Good afternoon Harmonic,” she said, letting him into the apartment and up the stairs to the third floor. Inside the apartment was like the rest of the building, white walls with some decorative molding here and there. She leads him into the largest room of the apartment, where there was a piano, a cello with a stool in a corner, a violin hanging up on the wall, and there was a huge stereo in another corner of the room. But it was one of those that had switches and buttons, something made for a DJ. Harmonic didn't question about the electronic equipment, he assumes that it might have been some quirk that his teacher had.

Apart from that, the furniture in the room consisted of a coffee table, a couch, and a few chairs. On the walls, other than a few paintings here and there, were pictures that were either hanging up or standing up. Some of them had pictures of his teacher with another mare, both smiling at the camera. The other mare was a white unicorn with purple sunglasses with a neon electric blue mane. Harmonic figured that it might be a good friend of his teacher's.

Octavia went over to the violin and picked it up from the hooks that it was hanging on, grabbed a bow that was nearby the cello and sat on the couch. Harmonic opened up his case to take out his instrument and sat down right across from his teacher.

“Now then,” said Octavia, “I'm not quite sure about what to teach you. But if you could just tell or show me what you know from what kind of scales and techniques you can play on your violin, perhaps it will give me a good idea where to start.”

Harmonic played to her what few scales that he knew as well as doing a little improvising, throwing what tricks he could throw in. While he showed off to his teacher in what he could do with his violin, with all its tricks of playing on two strings, changing keys, and the pure sound of the humming instrument, he saw his teacher’s ears standing up and an arching eyebrow. Even though he was somewhat enjoying himself in his gypsy theme, Octavia’s expression, as Harmonic noted, was a mixture of curiosity and trying to critically analyze the rich sound of his violin.

“That's quite the instrument you have there,” she said after he finished off everything that the alicorn knew about his violin. “May I see it?”

Harmonic levitated his violin over to his teacher. She inspected the instrument itself. It was worn but not too horribly. The varnish was fading but it still showed. The bridge, as well as the board, did show signs of heavy playing over the years. But then she looked into the “f” holes of the violin itself. Inside every string instrument, there's always a label that's always glued into it so that tells who, where, and when the instrument was made. She saw a name inside the violin that made her face gave a look of shock and dropped she the violin. Harmonic used his levitation to catch it before it hit the floor.

“Hey! Be careful!”

“Trotivarius!” she said, still have a look of shock on her face. “You, have – a real Trotivarius violin!”

“Uh, yes?” Harmonic said, absolutely confused.

“Where and how on this planet did you get your hooves on a Trotivarius!?!”

Harmonic rolled his eyes, “No, our last name is Trotivari. My father made this for me.”

“Father! Made!” Octavia said in total surprise. “Are you telling me, that Crescendo Trotivari is your father!?”

“Oh, you've heard of him?”

“Heard of him!?! His instruments are the most coveted musical instruments on the face of the entire planet!”

“No, you can't be serious,” Harmonic said, doubting what he was hearing. “I mean, sure, dad made some good instruments and all, but don't you think you’re over exaggerating?”

“Harmonic, I don't quite believe you fully understand. If the city of Canterlot alone found out that you’re carrying a Trotivarius violin, the richest of the rich will literally kill each other over it. Do you have any idea whatsoever how much your father's violins alone are even worth?”

“Let's see if I can remember...” Harmonic said, thinking hard. “Uh, are they worth three-hundred?”

Octavia shook her head.

“Five-hundred?”

She shook her head again.

“Seven-hundred?”

Same result.

“They can't be worth over a thousand,” he said, practically laughing at the very idea.

“The most amount of bits ever spent on a Trotivarius violin at auction was sold last year. And Harmonic, it sold for fifteen-point-nine-million bits for one violin. In other words, you've been holding a fortune in your hooves this whole time!”

Harmonic stayed silent, practically dumbstruck, he tried to process what he just heard. Looking back at his violin that his father made, he spoke aloud his thoughts: “Even so, I still wouldn't sell it. It's all I have left from my parents. Dad gave me this when I turned five. He told me that out of all the violins he's ever made, he considered this one to be his… masterpiece, and won't sell or give it to anypony except for me.”

Octavia noticed that tears were forming in Harmonic's eyes as he spoke. But he noticed this as well and wiped them out with a free hoof.

“Harmonic,” said Octavia, “if this violin means that much to you, then by all means, keep it as your own. For an extraordinary gift, from the master of violin makers himself to his son is something that goes beyond price.”

“Thank you.” He said softly, but then quickly changed his mood to something a little more cheerful: “Now then, since we've gotten that out of the way, let's begin the lessons shall we?”