Archmage - Chapter 18 “Anger and Apathy”

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Twilight slept peacefully through the night, but her morning started out very stressful. She woke to the sound of hushed voices, speaking in whispers as if they were afraid of waking her. From the inflection of their voices and the sounds of pacing, she could guess that whoever was engaged in the hushed conversation was arguing. Her eyes flickered open and she looked at her surroundings, but couldn’t quite see everything. Luna was talking with somepony, she wasn’t sure who...

“Oh,” A soft gasp reached her ears as she sat up, rubbing a hoof into her eyes. “I didn’t mean to wake you, Twilight.” Blinking the sleep away, Twilight focused at last on the visitor to Luna’s personal chambers. It was Celestia, and she looked rather disgruntled.

“’S okay,” Twilight muttered with a soft yawn. “I should probably get an early start… What brings you here, Celestia?”

“Business, mostly.” Celestia blinked for a moment, but seemed to reprimand herself with a smile. “About what happened in the courtroom yesterday. We have a total of forty-seven ponies in custody, all of whom have sworn outright allegiance to the night, and are either confirmed or believed to be actively bringing it about… I was speaking with Luna about what we should do.” Twilight yawned and rolled out of bed, shaking her mane out as she walked over to the two princesses.

“I think we should launch an investigation immediately.” Twilight forced herself to consciousness, using her mind to burn through the fog of post-sleep grogginess. She was already clear-headed and ready to face the day. “I’d like to ask some of the ponies involved a few questions of my own… Provided you two have no issues with that?” She looked between them, noting their shocked expressions. “What?”

“Nothing, it’s just… Wow.” Celestia shook her head in disbelief. “You’re becoming the Archmage more and more each day…” Now it was Twilight’s turn to look shocked.

“Of course I am. It’s my job. My destiny, right?” She glanced over her shoulder at her cutie mark.

“Of course. I’m just surprised that you’re taking to it with such… Gusto. I mean, you haven’t even learned all of the schools of magic just yet.” Celestia gestured with a hoof out of the nearby window, at the slumbering Equestria. “You have yet to cover Hatred, Anger, Nature, or the elements. At least, not officially.” Twilight blinked and thought for a few moments. Celestia was right. She really hadn’t learned any new fields of magic aside from the night, shielding, friendship, and the day… While she was powerful, she still wasn’t knowledgeable. At least not yet.

“Well,” She straightened up, gnawing on her lower lip as she thought. “Nopony’s saying I can’t do both, right?” Luna and Celestia looked doubtful. “Oh, come on… At this rate, I’ll never cover all of my duties. I need to start somewhere, and with how skilled I am, I could probably pick all of those up in a few short weeks.” Twilight huffed slightly, gesturing with her hooves. “I’m smart, talented, and dedicated. I need to start learning, and I need to start right away. Without learning all of those schools of magic, there will a dozen members of the council still covering me.”

“Well… There’s nopony covering any form of hatred magic… Powerful as it is, it doesn’t have it’s place in the government… It’s more or less just a tool for you to use.” Luna cut Celestia off as she opened her mouth, stepping between her and Twilight.

“The only ones who can effectively use the magic of hatred are Celestia and myself. At least, that we know of… You’ll have to learn directly from us. If you think you can handle covering the committee meetings, learning new magic from us, and an investigation, then by all means, Twilight. We’ll help you out by any means necessary.”

“Thank you,” Twilight heaved a sigh, smiling warmly at Luna and Celestia. “I appreciate the help… But I’d like some input. Where do you think I should start?”

“Hmm… Well, we still have Harbinger in custody. Rumor has it he was the ringleader before his confrontation with you in the library. Why don’t you start by talking to him?” Twilight smiled and nodded.

“Sounds good.” She glanced at the clock, noting it was just before dawn. She had actually slept a fair amount. “It’s about that time… Should we move to the balcony?” Celestia and Luna followed her gaze to the clock before nodding themselves.

“Yes, I should think so… Though, Twilight… A word of caution.” Luna raised her hoof pointedly. “Harbinger owes his life to the night. Remember that before you approach him… Any bad talk of his sacred night, and he’s likely to become irrational.”

“I understand.” Twilight smiled softly, but made a serious mental note to be careful when addressing Harbinger.

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“Archmage.” The guard saluted as she approached the prison cell, and she nodded stoically at him.

“Is the prisoner doing okay?”

“He keeps screaming incoherently, though occasionally he’s lucid enough to rant about the night. Our doctors believe he’s taking the loss of his shadow magic too roughly. They speculate C.M.L.I.S.” Twilight started at that.

“Cutie mark loss insanity syndrome is a serious claim… Could it really have manifested so quickly?”

“Harbinger owed his life to the night. He devoted his own to it in return. To be abandoned…” The guard shivered visibly. “I can imagine no worse torture than that…” Twilight frowned with thought.

“Very well. I’m going in. Suppress him please.”

“Yes, Archmage.” The guard took his spot next to the door, his horn glowing brightly as he leaned into touch the frame. Twilight heard the scintillating sounds of powerful magic at work behind the door, followed by an almost painfully audible grunt. She grimaced slightly and nodded at the guard and pushed her way in.

Harbinger looked horrible. His eyes sported heavy dark bags, and they were red with either tears or many nights of lost sleep. His mane was ratty and hung about him in locks. He hadn’t been imprisoned for more than three days, but he already looked like he had been here for weeks. At least the smell wasn’t bad. Though the glare he shot Twilight stunk heavily of hatred and a desire for vengeance. Around each of his four legs was a bright band of glowing light, and another settled around the base of his horn. The spell on this cell was designed to suppress a unicorn’s powers completely, in case a visitor wanted to see them. When the spell itself wasn’t active, the cell was designed in such a way that no unicorn would be able to break out. The walls were enchanted to reflect the full force of a spell back on the user. Even if Harbinger were strong enough to cast spells on his own, they would simply rebound and hit him instead. Twilight hated that they even had these prison cells, though she took solace in the fact that they were almost never used.

Until yesterday… Now, they were almost full.

“Oh look,” Harbinger growled. “The Archmage has seen fit to grace the lowly traitor with her presence.” His tone dripped with vehemence, and there was no shortage of sarcasm to be had either. Twilight frowned at him.

“What happened to you, Harbinger? Just a few short weeks ago, you were assisting me with the shields. You seemed only all too glad to help. To be rid of my burden. Now, this? How long have you been hiding your true intentions?”

“What happened?” He scoffed, looking down and away. “Nothing happened. I and the ponies allied with me have been seeking a way to bring Nightmare Moon back for… Generations
now. My father, and his father before him, and all the way back a thousand years. They all worshipped the night. In secret of course… Did you know, Archmage…” Harbinger looked up at her. “After Celestia condemned her own sister to the moon, she passed laws forbidding open worship of the night?” Twilight blinked at him.

“There are no laws like that.”

“Not anymore there aren’t.” Harbinger grunted and nodded towards the door. “But Celestia couldn’t even stay resolute. She changed the laws just over two hundred years ago, before you or I ever drew breath…” Twilight lowered her eyes at him.

“I would have read about that. I’ve studied history extensively.”

“You don’t think she’d strike the records?” Harbinger’s defenses were up. He was getting more irritable. “You don’t think the dear, sweet, benevolent princess of the day wouldn’t hide her failure? She can’t even stand behind her own decisions. No, she gets her filthy Archmage to do it for her. Nocturnal Glow personally wiped all records of the law ever having existed.” Harbinger spat on the ground, but Twilight felt her hackles raise.

“Don’t you dare insult Princess Celestia. Or Nocturnal Glow.” Twilight growled.

“Or what?” Harbinger teased. “You’ll run to your precious mentor? The student, cowering behind her teacher’s legs, like a frightened filly on the schoolgrounds… You disgust me, Twilight Sparkle. I thought you had some promise when you were named Archmage. I thought you, of all ponies, would understand the tyranny and suppression Celestia is capable of.” He looked her up and down, spitting the next words. “I thought you had a brain inside that head of yours.”

“Watch yourself, Harbinger.” Twilight growled. “I’ll not hear you disrespect my princess in my company.” Harbinger continued on regardless.

“I thought you had some promise! The seemingly stuck-up student of Celestia actually started to show some individual thought. I figured you’d be able to see clear as crystal the differences between Luna’s sacred night and Celestia’s baleful day. I thought you’d want what was right for Equestria. I thought you’d want the same thing I wanted! That we wanted!” He spat on the ground again. “I was wrong. You’re a moron. An imbecile. The same as the damned princess you owe alliegance t- OOF!” Harbinger grunted as Twilight’s spell caught him full on the chest. Eyes wide with shock, he was flung back against the wall of the prison. He slid down the stone, slowly slumping onto the floor.

“QUIET!” Twilight roared at him, her eyes suddenly flaring. Her horn was wrapped in a dark glow, though this one was markedly different from the shadow magic she had used before. No, this was something else entirely. Harbinger looked at her with wide, fearful eyes.

“Wh… What are you-“

“I’ll not suffer through any more of your ignorance, Harbinger!” Twilight advanced on him, her horn glowing even as her eyes began to change. She felt a not unfamiliar sensation flooding into her body from her horn, wrapping itself around her heart. She caught the edge of her glow in her vision, noting the dark glow and the mysterious aura. She had seen this before. She had commanded it before… What’s worse, she knew exactly what it was. She forced herself to take a deep breath. The glow dimmed, but didn’t fade. She still felt the anger grip her heart, holding her rational thought process in its iron grip. She wanted to hurt Harbinger. She wanted to see him bleed.

“Haah! Woah!” Twilight gasped as the dark glow faded away suddenly, leaving behind fatigue. She felt weak in it’s absence. Shaky. But the magic hadn’t left without leaving it’s mark. In a small ring around her hooves, dark red crystals had begun to form. They were small, and crunched when she shuffled her hooves, but they hadn’t been there before. Twilight shuddered and backed out of the room, leaving Harbinger behind with a shocked expression on his face.

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“You did what?!” Celestia wheeled her head about, looking at Twilight instead of the stack of documents on her desk.

“I… I almost lost control. I was so scared, Princess, I… I don’t know what it was.”

“Tell me again,” Celestia pushed herself away from the desk, rising to her hooves and slowly walking towards Twilight. “Now that I’m not distracted with this cursed paperwork. What happened when you questioned Harbinger?” Twilight shared all of the details she remembered, mostly the part about her feelings slowly growing out of control. She remembered the way the anger gripped her heart, the oppressive feeling in her chest, and the way she acted so irrationally. But most importantly, the crystal formation.

“Did you bring any with you?” Twilight nodded and lifted the flap on her saddlebag, levitating a small glass phial out. Inside, three of the miniature red crystals clinked and rattled, though the sound was more akin to a sharp hoof being dragged across a chalkboard. Twilight shuddered as Celestia rattled them around once more. “There’s no doubt…” Celestia said quietly. “These are a product of the magic of hatred. Like it or not, Twilight, your emotions got the better of you in there. I can’t have you interviewing suspects when you can’t properly control your anger.” Twilight swallowed, feeling the anxiety well up in her chest.

“Does that mean I can’t run the investigation?”

“I can’t allow it, Twilight.” Celestia set the crystals on her desk, shaking her head. “For somepony who doesn’t know how to control their anger, it’s dangerous to be around those who can so easily incite it… If you’re going to be questioning the prisoners, they’re going to be angry with you. They’re going to try to make you angry in return. When ponies don’t know how to control their anger… Particularly ponies that are powerful like yourself…” Celestia’s gaze slowly turned towards the window, and Twilight followed it. She looked North, towards the crystal kingdom.

“Oh… Okay.”

“Sombra was not unlike you, Twilight. He was powerful, skilled, and had much promise… But he didn’t know how to control himself.” Celestia sighed and looked back at Twilight, frowning sadly. “I can’t stop you from leading the investigation, Twilight.” She said gently. “I want to leave that decision up to you. But I would appreciate it if you let the guard handle this one.” She gingerly reached out, taking Twilight’s chin in her hoof, lifting her eyes up. They locked gazes, staring deep into one another’s eyes. “Allow me and Luna to teach you the magic of hatred. In a controlled environment. Where you can be sure you won’t harm anypony.” Twilight weighed her options.

If she abandoned the investigation, it could be seen as weakness by the usurpers. To have the Archmage, who was so actively involved in the uprising’s demise, vanish to take lessons from the princesses would seem weak and cowardly. What’s more, Twilight would be out of touch with the investigation as a whole, and wouldn’t be able to help, should the guard require it. On the other end, though, she would be learning another branch of magic. Anger wasn’t incredibly important to learn for the Archmage, but she did need to learn how to control herself. She would by lying to herself if she said she knew how to control her own anger. Heaving a sigh, Twilight conceded.

“I understand. I will abandon the investigation in favor of learning the magic of Anger. When can we begin?”

“Tonight. Though, we do not want to risk collateral damage.” Celestia smiled warmly at her, releasing her chin. “We’ll give you your lessons on the same mountain you practiced shadow magic on. After all, no risk of damaging anything there.”

“Right…” Twilight chuckled nervously. “I suppose I could go tell Luna…?”

“That would be nice.” Celestia glanced over her shoulder at the waiting stack of paper. “I do have to wrap this up, after all… I’ll meet you tonight when we cycle. You may want to get some rest, Twilight… It’s bound to be a long night.”

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“Right then,” Both Celestia and Luna stood opposite Twilight, nodding at her with serious expressions. Luna cleared her throat before continuing. “The magic of anger and hatred are incredibly similar. There are those who argue that they are one and the same, but they are not. They go hand-in-hand, but there are key differences between the two.” Twilight furrowed her brow.

“I was told they were the same. How do they differ?”

“The difference is this,” Celestia went on to explain. “You can hate somepony, but not get angry at them. Instead, you might feel sadness, or remorse, or maybe even sympathy. Inversely, you can be angry at somepony, but not hate them. You can even be angry at unspecific things, like a specific situation or an inanimate object.” Twilight could definitely identify with the latter… She certainly felt angry at the entire uprising. Who would want to overthrow the day and let night reign eternal? Even just thinking about it made Twilight grumble unhappily.

“You yourself confronted Sombra just over five years ago in the Crystal Kingdom up north. While history says it was Spike who saved the kingdom, we both know it was you who orchestrated the entire event. We know you overthrew Sombra, and survived the full brunt of his magic. Twilight, you know the awesome power hatred and anger can command. You know that if you unleash your hold on those emotions, they could destroy many, many things.” Luna stepped closer and closer to her as she spoke. Twilight watched as Luna’s eyes began to seep a strange, dark aura…

“Anger is a destructive magic. It creates nothing. It has no benefits. It has no ulterior motive. It just wants to destroy. To watch things break under its power, to see the object of its torment destroyed completely. Hatred wants to watch things suffer. To inflict pain and see them miserable and downtrodden. It uses its power to suppress and overthrow, to dominate and harm.” Luna blinked twice, and the aura left her eyes. Twilight shuddered as a whisper of power passed over her, the fallout of Luna’s magic.

“If you utilize your magic properly, Twilight,” Luna looked down at her sadly. “You will be able to destroy your opposition, suppress your oppressor, overthrow any and all obstacle. But only if you control it. If you let it control you, just the opposite will happen. Your own magic will overthrow you. Will turn you into less of what you are.” She looked Twilight up and down pointedly. “You don’t want to go down the same path Sombra did.”

“Oh…” Twilight looked between Celestia and Luna, suddenly very concerned. “Have I… Already started?”

“You have, but certainly not to any harmful extent... Not yet, at least. You’re lucky Luna and I are here to help, Twilight. We are the only two that we know of who can properly control their anger; we have helped others with theirs before. If you tried to do this on your own, chances are you would fail.” Celestia smiled and gave her a reassuring nudge. “There’s a simple exercise to help you control yourself. We’ll be doing this until you can contain it properly.” Celestia and Luna both turned around, their horns glowing as their magic reached out around them. Twilight gasped as the princesses ripped a massive chunk of the earth out of the mountainside. Together, they hoisted a boulder roughly the size of a house onto the mountaintop.

“We want you to think of what makes you angry, Twilight.” Celestia said, nodding down at her. “Be it Harbinger, the uprising, the fact that you haven’t been laid in three weeks.”

“Hey!”

“Shush. Whatever it is that sets you off, Twilight. Think about it. Let it fill you up. Then let it go. Like opening yourself to the night, you let the power fill you, but instead of letting it take action, you push it out. Force it into existence. And you do it with conviction, Twilight.” Celestia glanced at the boulder. “Your goal is to channel all the anger you have into destroying that boulder. Obliterate it. Remove it from existence.”

Twilight swallowed as she listened to the words coming from Celestia’s mouth. This was unlike her mentor, and the things she was saying made Twilight shiver with fear. She had blasted Harbinger against the wall hard enough to crack the stone and break his ribs. That was without trying. Now, Celestia wanted her to let loose… To destroy this boulder entirely. Shivering slightly, Twilight stepped forward.

Twilight furrowed her brow and frowned at the boulder, focusing on it. Much to her surprise, she couldn’t get angry again. Her thoughts wandered to multiple things, and never really came to focus on the anger inside of her. What’s more, she couldn’t direct those thoughts at this boulder, this nondescript hunt of rock. With a soft sigh of effort, she tried to release the energy.

“Wow.” Celestia watched the single spark of magic drop off of the tip of Twilight’s horn, burning out before it ever even reached the ground. “That was... A first try. I suppose.”

“Try again, Twilight.” Luna laid a hoof on her side. “And try to picture somepony’s face on the boulder. Don’t think of it as a boulder, just think of it as Harbinger. Or somepony else. This is just the practice, so it’s natural if you can’t get angry properly.”

“Okay…” Much to her surprise, Twilight found that thoughts of what made her angry were ready to come to the surface when she pictured Harbinger in place of the boulder. Most prominently were thoughts of the uprising. As she thought on it, she realized how ridiculous and stupid the entire plan really was. They would imbalance so many things by making it permanently night time! Ecosystems would be destroyed without sunlight. Crops would suffer, markets would be a thing of the past, and worst of all, schedules would be shot! With no sun to tell them when it was daytime, the passing of seasons would fall by the wayside, and everypony’s psyche would suffer. Some ponies had to sleep during the night. Twilight was one of the rare few who could sleep satisfactorily during the daytime, when the sun was out and shining. Others couldn’t handle it. They required sleep during the night time, and could only be active during the day.

What’s more, Harbinger was a fool for ever thinking his plan could go over. What little she had gathered from other usurpers indicated some of them were forced into cooperation, under threat of physical harm, or worse, their families were threatened. While some were okay with the night and day reigning equal, it seemed Harbinger and his cronies had forced them to cooperate anyways.

Not to mention, it had been a long time since Twilight and Luna had made love! Every time she was in the mood, she would seek the princess out, but to no avail! Luna was almost always gone, or busy, or had some business to attend to, or simply couldn’t be found. Twilight hadn’t even taken the time to fix the problem on her own, but to her, going back to solitary stress relief seemed so… Tedious. She needed Luna to help her. Or at the very least, she felt like it… And who was Luna to say otherwise?

The boulder didn’t even stand a chance. With a rage-filled scream, Twilight’s horn erupted in a dark blast of pure energy. Her magic lanced through the air, cutting through the boulder in it’s entirety, and into the mountain beneath it. Growling and cursing everything that made her angry, Twilight’s magic crackled and screamed with it’s vicious intent, and didn’t stop until the boulder and the ground around it was reduced to nothing.

“Well, then…” Celestia and Luna both swooped inbetween Twilight and the boulder. “That’s enough.” Twilight stopped, her eyes snapping back to their original configuration. She blinked several times, but frowned at the two before her.

“Move.” She growled. “I’m not done.”

“The boulder’s gone, Twilight. There’s nothing more to destroy.”

“Bullshit! Move aside, I’m going to level this damn mountain!” Her horn glowed again, her own telekinetic grip intent on ripping another boulder from the mountain. Luna intervened, her horn glowing as the perfect counter to Twilight’s. She grunted and tried to force it, but for every ounce of pressure she put on the ground to rip it up, Luna put an equal amount down. Twilight gasped, her effort expended, though Luna hardly looked winded.

“Calm down, Twilight. That was just a test.” Celestia’s voice was soothing and low, and even though she didn’t want to, Twilight felt herself calming down. “Do you see what we mean now?” Celestia continued once the tension had left Twilight’s muscles. She panted through her open mouth, feeling winded and suddenly very weak. “Hatred and Anger can control you, turn you against your best friends or even your loved ones. That’s the other thing… You must train with Luna and I, because we believe nopony else could withstand the full brunt of your magic. Save for maybe Bastion, but he’s busy with the investigation… Twilight, you need to learn to control these emotions. See…” Celestia’s horn glowed, and Twilight felt the tingle of her magic close to her hooves. With a gasp, she jumped back, crunching crystals under her hooves.

“Wh-what?!” The dark red formations crumbled easily enough under her weight, but they resisted quite a bit more than they had previously. They were growing stronger. Celestia held in her magic a decent-sized chunk of crystal, the formation brittle and rough but still larger than before. It had to have been close to four inches long, and at least an inch wide. “Those are…”

“The same crystals that Sombra used to cover the Crystal Kingdom…” Celestia nodded. “They represent the excess hatred you use. Use too much of your magic, and these begin to form. The longer and more of your hatred and anger you pour into the object of your ire, the stronger and larger they become…” Celestia crushed the crystal between her hooves, frowning slightly as the shards left behind fell to the ground.

“I had no idea…” Twilight said softly. “I had so much hatred in me… I thought… I thought I had it under control.”

“Hey,” Luna stepped forward, pressing against Twilight’s neck gently. “That’s what the two of us are here for. To help you control it.” Twilight smiled despite the sudden fear inside of her, pressing closer against Luna’s warm form. “Our goal, as with teaching anypony else to control their anger, is to make it so you can use that magic and destroy your target, but without forming any crystals.”

“Okay.” Twilight nodded, though she couldn’t suppress the whimper that escaped. “I think I can do it…”

“Alright, then.” Luna pulled away just as her horn began to glow. Together, she and Celestia ripped another massive boulder from the ground, hoisting it into the air and setting it before her. “This time, Twilight, try to control it. Don’t be surprised if you fail, since this is your first attempt at controlling it. But try to destroy just this boulder. Nothing else.”

Twilight nodded once again, taking a deep breath as she focused her attention.

Just one mountain over in Canterlot, everypony could hear the echoing crack of power.

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“Hey,” Luna drew Twilight’s attention with a soft voice. She raised her weary head, casting a half-lidded gaze her way. “Do you have a moment?”

“I’m really tired…” Twilight said weakly. The practice session had gone on for hours, with Twilight destroying boulder after boulder, never once managing to cut down on the amount of crystals she produced. It was exhausting. Both princesses pushed her, urging her to do just one more, just one more. Finally, Twilight had collapsed. Luna herself had carried her on her back to the castle, and now Twilight was intent on reaching her bed.

“Just a moment is all,” Luna’s expression was pleading. Twilight couldn’t say no. She nodded and looked up at Luna expectantly, waiting for the princess. “Celestia mentioned when we began things that might make you angry… One of them was about, you know, us…” Twilight remembered. She blinked at Luna, nodding her head. “You’re not… Angry that we haven’t done anything, are you?” Twilight would be lying if she told herself the question didn’t take her by surprise. She opened her eyes the rest of the way, looking up at Luna’s worried expression seriously.

“Well… I mean, it’s annoying, yeah…” She felt the anger slowly surface once again, filling her weak muscles with just a little more strength. Enough to raise her head, at least. “But you know how after you have something so good, you can’t go back to what you had before… It’s kind of like that.” Luna’s frown deepened as she lowered her head, nodding sadly. “I just want another night with you is all, Luna… And this time, without having to wake up to an empty bed and a note.” Twilight managed to reach a hoof out, wrapping it loosely around Luna’s neck. “Is it too much to ask to make love to you one more time?”

Luna stepped forward into Twilight’s embrace, loosely wrapping her own foreleg around Twilight for a soft hug. It wasn’t anything sensual, or even meaningful… Twilight thought the hug could just as easily have been shared between her and one of her friends. But slowly, it turned into something more. Luna’s neck curled around her own, and she felt the princess inhale the scent of her mane. Twilight’s other leg looped around Luna’s neck, and she pressed herself tight enough that their chests were together now.

“I’m sorry, Twilight,” Luna whispered softly. “I don’t mean to push you away like that… I guess I’m still a little scared…”

“It’s okay, Luna.” Twilight said softly in return. “I just thought I’d let you know how I feel…”

“I understand.” Luna sniffed slightly, but when Twilight pulled away to look in her eyes, there were no tears. Just sadness. “Just… Give me a little more time? Okay?”

“Okay.” Twilight nodded, smiling bravely. It felt like the first smile she had given all day. “Take all the time you need, Luna… I just don’t want to lose you.”

“Nor I you, Twilight.” Luna pulled her close for another hug. “Please… Forgive me?”

“Of course,” Twilight breathed. The strength left her senses. If Luna hadn’t been there, Twilight would have collapsed. Her eyes closed against her will, and she slumped in Luna’s embrace. “I forgive you,” She managed to whisper before consciousness fled.

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“Very good, Twilight!” Celestia called out over the roaring blast. Shards of the destroyed boulder skipped across the ground, but the mountainside was more or less left intact after her most recent attempt at destruction. “That’s brilliant! And look, no crystals!” Twilight glanced down at her hooves, then over her shoulder, and even up to the tip of her horn. No crystals had formed. She was finally beginning to control herself.

“Progress on the second day. You never cease to amaze me, Twilight.” Luna said softly, smiling down at her. Despite the rage and emotion that had just flowed through Twilight’s veins, she smiled. She actually felt rather happy for the praise. “We’ve instructed a few in the past, and they always struggle to control themselves at first. Some of them see an increase in crystal production. But you’ve managed to rein it in effectively. Come, let’s do another.” The day had really only just begun. This was the fifth boulder that Twilight had destroyed, though it was the first time she had avoided any crystals.

“Okay. I’m ready.” With another horrendous crack and a glimmer of magic, the princesses prepared another chunk of rock for her, and this time, Twilight’s focus was impeccable. Hooves spread and eyes alight with the dark glow of energy, Twilight blasted the rock into oblivion. The energy was so precise and spot on that not even a pebble remained. No shards of rock had bounced away, not even any dust had sifted. Where a boulder had once been, it was now gone. Twilight relaxed with a grin, and looked down at the ground. No crystals.

“Fantastic, Twilight. You’ve passed the first portion of our lessons.” Celestia approached her with a satisfied smile. The kind of smile that Twilight had always strived to give her. “Now, we need to move on to controlling your rising anger.” Twilight sat down and nodded, indicating that she was ready to advance.

“When you’re here, thinking of the things that make you angry, you’re actively bringing these emotions about in yourself. By yourself. With no outside input. While that might be a relatively effective way to bring about results, these lessons aren’t to teach you how to destroy boulders. They’re to teach you the proper way to handle your anger and your hatred when somepony or something else is making you that way. Take Harbinger for instance.” Luna nodded back towards Canterlot. “During the interview, he angered you, and you reacted. We need to make it so that no matter how angry somepony else makes you, you can control your emotions.” Twilight felt a sense of dread slowly settle over her. She didn’t like where this conversation was going.

“Are you… Implying that you two are going to make me angry?”

“Any way we can, Twilight.” Celestia nodded in confirmation. “We may subject you to illusions of things that might make you angry, or tell you things directly. For the first step, we just want you to handle them without reacting. For the second step, you’re going to try and reason with us. Calmly. Without letting our counter-arguments anger you.” Twilight frowned.

“I don’t like this idea…”

“It’s the only way, Twilight. We’re the only ones who can handle you if you get out of control again.” Luna appeared conflicted herself, like she didn’t want to intentionally anger Twilight.

“Before we begin,” Celestia continued. “I’d like to just let you know that the things Luna and I say, or the way we act, it’s just that. An act. You know we wouldn’t act that way, or say those things to you. This is just for the exercise. Do you understand.” Twilight nodded stoically, but didn’t say anything. She was loathe to think what lengths the princesses would go to just to teach her how to control her anger. Now, it seemed, she was about to experience one of them.

“Very well,” Luna sighed. “Let’s begin.”

Twilight swallowed and steeled herself. Though it seemed nothing would be able to withstand the onslaught of insults the two princesses began volleying at her. One right after the other, both Celestia and Luna began to chide her about her magic, her studies, her love life, her hygiene, or even her appearance. None of them were important or major to start. But soon enough, Celestia was talking about how she regretted ever letting Nocturnal Glow pick her to become Archmage. Luna was spitting insults about the way she tasted down there. They were doubting her ability to handle the stress of her position. How they were upset with Twilight for acting so brashly during the uprising.

Through it all, Twilight didn’t give any outward indication of anger. Inside, though, she felt the worst. The things the two princesses were saying to her made her sad. Depressed, even. Her heart beat fast with each new wave of angry, frothing comments. She felt tears begin to well up within her. But the sadness quickly changed to anger. She was not angry at what they were saying. She knew well enough that nothing they were spitting at her was of any consequence. They were just saying it to try and provoke her, so they could teach her a lesson.

That wasn’t what Twilight was getting angry at. She was getting angry at the situation. At her incompetence. At the princesses for doing this at all. Each new comment they made on her skill made her teeth grit harder. Every time Luna chided her sexual performance, she wanted to blast the mountainside to oblivion. It felt as if the heat was radiating from her body in waves, sifting through the air as she emanated pure anger. But she didn’t give any outward indication of being angry. She hardly even blinked.

“Twilight.” Luna said. The sudden, gentle utterance of her name nearly took her by surprise. She blinked and looked at Luna, who was smiling faintly. “You pass. Congratulations.” There was something behind her tone of voice, something akin to anxiety or maybe even fear. But it was far outweighed by the sense of relief and pride coming from her. She let the tension leave her muscles, her shoulders dropping slightly.

“Is that it?” She breathed.

“Yes. Luna and I will no longer try to provoke you.” Celestia confirmed. “Congratulations, Twilight. You’ve mastered your anger. I’m so proud of you.”

-----------

“She picked that up quickly…” Celestia sighed as she and Luna sat opposite one another in the warm lounge. “Almost too quickly…”

“I’m frightened, Celestia…” Luna said quietly, looking down at the table. “She… She didn’t react to anything we said. At all.”

“That should be a good thing.”

“But she didn’t even react when I told her I didn’t love her…”

“Did you mean it?”

“Of course not!” Luna looked appalled. “I love her very much! Why would you ever-“

“Because Twilight knows you love her. She knows we weren’t being serious. But you saw it. The muscles in her jaw, the way her tail would flick now and then… We were angering her, Luna. Very, very much so. Twilight controlled herself to magnificently well…” Celestia shook her head slowly, as if she were amazed. In truth, she really was. Twilight never ceased to astound both of them. “In two short days, she did what would take an average unicorn three for four weeks to accomplish.”

“I don’t know, Celestia… I feel so dirty for the things I said to her…”

“So go apologize.” Celestia shrugged and poured them both a cup of tea. “Or take a shower. Whatever you need to do.”

“Do you think she’d accept it?” Again, Celestia shrugged at her.

“How do I know? Powerful as I am, I cannot read another’s mind, or feel their emotions. There’s one way you can do that, and that’s by talking to her. Go and ask her how she feels about the lessons. Heavens forbid you help her relieve the stress.” Luna flinched slightly and frowned down at the table. Celestia set her tea on it’s saucer with a painfully audible clink. “Oh come on! Don’t tell me you’re still afraid!”

“Can you blame me?” Luna whimpered fearfully, staring intently at the table as she felt the heat rush to her cheeks. “Yes, I know it wasn’t my fault. Yes, I know Nightshade did what he did because he was a horrible pony who shouldn’t be forgiven. I know I’m being irrational in my fear to love Twilight… But, after reading the book, and knowing what we know, I…”

“Luna.” Celestia calmed her just by speaking her name. She looked up at her bigger sister with wide, tearful eyes. “Twilight has chosen the path of free will. Our knowledge of the book notwithstanding, that has allowed us to act similarly. If you love Twilight, you’re free to explore that love. Aah!” She raised a hoof, cutting Luna off as she opened her mouth to speak. “With or without the knowledge of the book.”

“But… I just don’t-“

“Twilight isn’t acting according to her prophecy.” Celestia sighed as she started to explain again. “In doing so, she’s changed the course of the prophecy itself. Now, she doesn’t know what her own future holds for her. She’s forging her own way into her destiny on her own terms. Tell me you don’t want to be a part of that.”

“No, I do, it’s just-“

“So do it!” Celestia huffed, rolling her eyes as if she were dealing with a teenage filly. “Love her! And be loved in return! Forget what the book says, Luna. Ignore the knowledge we have. If we’re going to let Twilight make her own destiny, that’s what we have to do for this to work. At least, that’s the easiest way… If we want to act like we’re constantly walking on eggshells around Twilight, then go ahead and do that.” She shook her head slowly. “I know what I’m going to do. I’m going to let her do as she pleases, and I choose to remain ignorant of the knowledge of the book. If I stress over every decision she makes, I might end up impacting them.”

“Oh… Oh, I see…” Luna muttered softly.

“This isn’t the first time this has happened, either… Luna, there are times when we must intervene directly to make prophecy happen. Other times, we must let destiny run it’s course, free of our knowledgeable interference.” Celestia lifted a hoof and tapped the table. “This is one of those times. We have to act as if we know nothing of the prophecy. Of Twilight’s destiny.”

“I see.” Luna repeated, sighing softly. “I just don’t like it…”

“I don’t see why not…” Celestia sipped at her tea calmly. “This means you’re free to do as you please with her. Just, do me a favor? Don’t tie her up?”

“I’m over that phase.” Luna sighed. “Long, long ago…”

“Good… I hated checking on you in your quarters only to find Nightshade plastered to the sheets with his hooves stretched out…” Luna blushed despite the embarrassment, smiling in memory.

“Well, it was fun…”

“No.”

“But…”

“Don’t even consider it.”

“What if she-“

“Stop.” Celestia raised a hoof, though there was a ghost of a smile on her lips. “No more. I don’t want to know any more than I already do about your sexual exploits with my student.”

“Our.” Luna muttered into her own cup of tea. “Our student.”

“Ugh. Even worse.” The two princesses looked at each other for a long while before bursting into laughter.

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Twilight woke the morning after her last lesson feeling moderately sore, but for the most part refreshed and relaxed. Celestia and Luna had tried to evoke the worse sort of emotional response from her and failed. She could keep her cool, even with some of the most privileged, horrific knowledge being thrown back into her face. She sincerely doubted anypony would ever even think to say some of the things to her that the princesses had. She would be safe controlling her anger from here on out.

“Hmm… Ngh!” She stretched out happily, smiling to herself as she rolled out of bed. As she went about her morning routine, she smiled to herself, feeling the sense of fulfillment and satisfaction that had seemingly been absent for a long, long time. It was a sense of accomplishment. Of progress. Bit by bit, Twilight was becoming the Archmage. As it stood, the only schools of magic left for her to learn were nature and the elements. Twilight knew a fair bit about both of them already, so it was just a matter of covering the formalities.

With an hour until she was required to help with the cycle, Twilight did a little research. The castle’s head greenskeeper was a knowledgeable unicorn who had held the position for close to forty years. He would probably be the best candidate to teach her the magic of nature. There were plenty of reference books on the subject of elemental magic, so Twilight felt confident she could teach herself. Then a thought struck her. Twilight pulled a copy of ’Equestrian Magic: A Preliminary Study’ from her shelf and leafed through the sections, mumbling to herself.

“Let’s see… Friendship, Love, Day and Night, Hatred, Anger, Nature, and Elemental…” She ticked each one off in her head, and then was struck with a sudden realization.

I only have two more schools of magic to learn.