Start At The Top (Closed: Blue)

[Blueblood]

A... dork?  Amby had never actually heard that word before.  While Applejack had some colorful terminology for those ponies she didn't think quite measured up to a standard of common decency, she had lately taken efforts to watch her language around her kids.  And with her not yet having started regular schooling, the schoolyard insults hadn't yet wormed their way into her vocabulary.  "What's a dork?"  She asked, with tilted head, holding on to a half-eaten apple slice.

The books didn't spark much interest at first, not seeming to be any that mama read to her come bedtime, but hearing Twilight ask about them perked her right up.  "Uh-huh, about Celestia and Luna and Cadence and... you!  A lot about you!"

[SteelEagle]

 

Twilight thought for a second before responding. "A dork? A dork is somepony who is...eccentric, lovable, a bit quirky, and maybe a little bit silly," she said with a laugh. She wasn't sure that Ambrosia would understand all those words but the smile on Twilight's face would steal any negativity from that phrase. Maybe she wasn't the best at raising foals but she certainly knew that all the quirks and oddities her brother had, all the things that made him a dork, only ever made him special and the sort of stallion she was proud to have as a brother.

 

As Ambrosia verified her interest in Princess stories, Twilight allowed herself to feel a pinch of pride in her plan. She had spent considerable time and effort in developing new educational material for the fillies and colts of the land, and knew well that to entertain and excite in the action of teaching would go no small length in ensuring the lessons were well-heeled. To that end, she had been commissioning new copies of older books, as well as brand new stories for the foals of Equestria. Many of the tales were as old as time, but were rewritten in small ways to better appeal or to add new elements (while remaining generally as accurate as before). Many were also magically illustrated, but all of them came with questions and lessons for unicorns to ask themselves and learn. It was like sneaking spinach in mashed potatoes! "Well, I'm flattered. I actually have a brand new book- 'The Lost Tales of Solstice Heights'," Twilight said, leaving off the fact it was followed by, 'foal's first book edition!'.

 

She slid it over, the sparkling, magical cover detailing the beautiful heights while the Princesses of Equestria took their time popping up in one location or another, giving hints as to the stories inside. It was comical to some extent- Twilight had a magnifying close to her face, head down, following the tracks that were leading to a bored looking dragon. "I think you will enjoy it! Well, almost as much as you seem to like apples!"

[Blueblood]

True to Twilight's suspicions, Ambrosia understood slightly less than half of her definition.  There was one word, however, she latched onto.  "Zappers sure is a silly pony!  Hehehe, dork, dork!"  It was clear that she was liking the sound of that name, and that the next time she and her brother met, she'd call him that, regardless of how well that moniker was received.  Applejack may soon have reasons to have a few words with her friend...

 

Her verbal fascinations were soon eclipsed, however, when Twilight showed her the magical picture book.  Mama's books weren't so magical; she seemed to prefer older-fashioned illustrations, so this was the first time little Amby had seen anything like this.  "Whoaw.... is that magic too, Princess?"  While she was still at the age that she collected rather than pursued ambitions, 'Foal's book illustrator' had just been added to the set!

[SteelEagle]

 

"It sure is," Twilight said as she inched the book closer to the foal. "Magical in more ways than one. Not only are the illustrations animated and magical, but you'll love the stories. Plus, they will help you learn magic. Isn't that just...super cool?" Twilight asked, thinking herself, indeed, very super cool. Why, she just might be the coolest Princess who ever lived. Book Princess? A title used as a joke or a slight but one she would readily embrace. Maybe she was more the dork in the family. But as Princess, she could just deny that all day and night, though the Dork Princess also had a nice comedic ring to it.

 

As she allowed Ambrosia to play around with the book and give in to what seemed to be her innate curiosity, Twilight allowed herself to eat a little. A lot. She was an Alicorn and her appetites were as wide and deep as any other on the planet. But mostly she sat in thought. She had a lot of lessons in mind, but she would be the first to admit that it was hard trying to feel out a pony who was so new, who lived so differently to the majority of students she dealt with. She relished the challenge and loved the time she was spending, but the truth was much of this would have to be directed by Ambrosia's feelings. Twilight just hoped she was up to the task.

[Blueblood]

"Coooollll...."  There was no trace of irony in Ambrosia's affirmation.  She was a young filly at an age where everything a genuine Princess thought or did was cool by default.  If Princesses did books, then books were cool, QED.  She stared at the cover for a few minutes, dutifully finishing her apple slice and wiping her little hooves before beginning to turn the pages, looking at each page's pictures.  She was... just barely able to read at the most basic level.  At least she knew what letters were for, and how to sound them out.  But that took extreme concentration, and right now she was just focused on the magical illustrations.

 

"What's that?"  She pointed at something she didn't recognize, a tree that seemed to be made of crystal.  "It looks like a tree, but trees are made of wood!"

[SteelEagle]

 

She watched Ambrosia's eyes, aware that in some ways these books would need to be a constant companion of hers for the filly to truly start to take in the lessons as she learned to read. She was still young, and perhaps reading was a bit much for her. But with the wonderful illustrations it would leave an imprint, and as she started to read the books would only ever provide more for her to dive into her, more to entice her. It didn't hurt at all that the illustrations were top notch! And not just from the aspect of the magical elements to it. Even if you removed the magic they were amazing illustrations.

 

Some of them had to take creative liberties. Only a few ponies ever saw the Tree of Harmony and despite doing their best to relay the exact dimensions it would be impossible to get it right if you hadn't seen it. "That is the Tree of Harmony. I'm certain your mothers told you about it?" She asked hopefully, her eyes taking in the somewhat larger tree that existed in the illustrations. It was perhaps a quarter again as big as it was and the branches were somewhat longer, without the hanging foci that gave the tree a distinct character. Instead there appeared some crystalized leaves. It was a good replication otherwise, all things considered.

[Blueblood]

Ambrosia blinked, that phrase turning little gears in her head.  She screwed up her face and stuck out her tongue in effort of recollection, before her eyes lit up with remembrance.  "Oooohhhh!  That's the tree the Elements grew on, like apples!"  Of course that's how Applejack would explain it to her little filly.  Details of appearance weren't covered, so she wouldn't have noticed any discrepancy between her mama's tales and the illustration.  "But... didn't you find the elements in a Castle?  How are they growing on the tree?  You can't put an apple back on a tree after it's fallen off."

[SteelEagle]

 

"That's right. By the time we found them, the Elements of Harmony were stone, in the Castle of the Two Sisters. This story in particular is about the Tree of Harmony, where they first came to be. It was a very magical tree that came into being so very long ago, and the Elements are a reflection of the magic used to grow it. Magic that you have yourself- that we all have," Twilight said before stopping herself. She didn't want to get too lectury or excited about history just yet. There was much that Ambrosia would have to learn on her own or else her education would be stunted.

 

"Ambrosia, try to flip the pages using your magic," she said as she tried to focus on her task. It was hard to not want to go ahead and just allow this adorable filly to spend the time moseying on down the elongated paths of Twilight's memories, but she still had much to do. "The pages are enchanted and so they shouldn't rip or tear so you don't need to try to be too gentle, so feel free to try hard. Can you do it?"

[Blueblood]

Ambrosia tilted her head, as she tried to fit Twilight's lesson inside her developing brain.  So, magic in trees... is the magic of Equestria... that was inside all ponies?  That... made sense.  Apple trees were what gave her family their magic, right?  The fruits were certainly magically good, so everything made perfect sense, actually!  "Tree magic, yeah!"  She raised her hooves in the air, proud that she 'got it'!

 

That little burst of confidence fueled her to get back to practicing her magic, screwing up her face again to light her horn.  Focus, focus... pretty pictures... on the paper... hold, tug.... lift....  Slowly, the page began to move.  Not so very high up, but enough to shift to the left, little more, little more... it over balanced, revealing the new picture as Amby's concentration dissipated into a shower of sparks, reflected in her shining eyes.  "I... I did it Auntie Twilight!"

[SteelEagle]

 

Twilight watched the filly with growing excitement as she managed to finally turn the page, though it was nothing compared to the joy the filly gave off when it was done. It was one of the many thousands of activities that a unicorn learned to take for granted as they grew up and became more comfortable with the daily use of their magic. Once you started flipping pages or opening door with your magic, you never really stopped. It would become easy, then second nature, then completely unconscious- like breathing, really. The first time you did it, it was as if the hole world was opening up for you. And in a way, it was. "Yes you did! You did great, Ambrosia. I'm sure your mothers will be very proud," she said as a large sound punctuated the work that was ongoing above.

 

"Continue to read the book for a bit. It may give you some ideas on simple spells to try!" Twilight said excitedly, hoping the subconscious imprinting would start to work its magic. She got up. "I am going to speak with Applejack for a bit. Tell me what you've learned when I get back, okay?" She said after delivering a short head nuzzle, turning away after a second and trotting up the stairs- not seeing her tail nudge a book out of her saddlebag that was perhaps a bit much for the young reader...

[Blueblood]

Of course her mothers would be proud!  Orange-mama was always proud of her filly, since she was the cutest in the world, after all.  And blue-mama would think her new skills were 'Awesome!'  No higher praise could be imagined!  Besides the Princess of Magic saying she was doing great, of course.  Which she just did!  Huzzah!

 

"Alright!"  Amby called back to Twilight as she departed, too engrossed in the picture book now to notice any other.  Such pretty pictures, with princesses moving about, showing off what they could do.  Ooh, this one was lighting up a dark cave, full of crystals!  Could she do that?  Maybe she could...  

Ambrosia Apple sat back, face screwed up in concentration as she pulled her curls away from her horn.  Concentrating once more on summoning up the energy she felt inside, she drew it up to the tippy-top of her horn, picturing a ball of light.  It sparked, fizzling, then... took shape.  It was hard to see it in the daylight, but she was sure of it!  A glowing orb!  Giggling with delight, she dismissed it, feeling a rush of shivers down her spine as she did so.  Boy, what a rush... wait, what was that sticking out of Twilight's bag?

[SteelEagle]

The book that she would find was embossed in purple and gold lettering, called 'prospective lesson plans' with an apple on the cover. It was intended as a long-term guide for what she planned to do with Ambrosia, even if at the moment it was little more than random notes and ideas. Little of it had been given truly deep thought as she had not been able to truly spend time with Ambrosia and understand just where she was. Much of it, almost all of it, would be hard for her to understand even in a year or two. But there were a number of drawings and symbols, elements of basic magical runic language that allowed spells to be taught cross-cultures and language. Something she could mimic, if not fully understand.

 

Twilight was a gone for a full fifteen minutes. She had to talk about some rather important subjects- first off how cute and well behaved Ambrosi was. Perhaps the most important subject two mares could ever discuss, if Ambrosia had any input. Then it became dramatically more boring. Twilight hadn't the time lately to make small talk with her friends and as history wouyld detail she did love that small talk as her reign's demands increased. How the orchard was doing; how the marriage was going; Zap's problems and successes in school, and just when Applejack was planning to get her flank back into athletics. It was easy enough to get lost when you were talking to a friend and only a sound from the training room, muffled as it was, made Twilight's ears twitch. "I should get back to it. We'll talk soon, okay?" Twilight offered as she turned and walked back down into the training room.

 

"I'm back Ambrosia! Have you been enjoying the st-"

[Blueblood]

Ambrosia could indeed not understand much of what was written in Twilight's little lesson plan.  But some of those Runic symbols looked pretty!  Thinking back to when she had written her name up on the wall, the little filly decided to see if she could make the symbols she saw appear up on the wall.  Less familiar than normal letters, the illusion of writing looked clumsy upon the wall, but soon enough she was able to reproduce one, two, then three of the letters at once!  More or less chosen at random, so only Twilight knew what they were spelling.

 

And, well, she would know, actually, as by the time she got back, Amby had gotten up to six of them at once, in sparkly gel-pen colors too!  "Lookie Auntie Twilight!"  She said proudly, beaming as the alicorn entered.

[SteelEagle]

 

Twilight's eyes twitched as she had to fight the urge to laugh. There was something inherently awful and funny about a filly or colt unknowingly spelling something that was...somewhat coarse, lets say. It would only become a problem if you let on that it was something not to be said in polite company. "Wow! That's really good, Ambrosia. Really...good!" She said, trying to not let the smile seem to be anything more than proud. "How did you...oh, I see!" She said with a laugh, her lesson plan out and about. Must have fallen out of her saddlebag. Thank the Stars that she didn't understand it! Twilight took the book in her magic and tucked it away. "How did it feel? Do you feel any horn strain?" She asked as she got closer to the runes, wondering how to remove it without it coming across as rude to the filly.

 

"Howdy!" Applejack bellowed down into the room, her head poking in from the opened door. Twilight may not have been born and raised in a born like Applejack was, but only one of them had the manners to show it! Didn't that silly filly know that if you kept your doors opened that all sorts of critters could get your crops. And critters getting your crops was a sure way to get your hide tanned by your granny. "Shouldn't be leaving these doors wide open-" Applejack said as she trotted down before seeing the runic writing on the weall with a magical glow that sure as shine wasn't Twilight's! "Amby, was this you? Is this you? You did this?" She said, her smile and excitement growing. "What's it say?"

[Blueblood]

Ambrosia beamed at Twilight, her little filly brain totally disregarding any suspicion of duplicity or mixed emotions.  "Nuh-uh, I feel fine!"  This would be an early sign of what would become clear in later years; Ambrosia would never be able to summon all that much power at once, but would be able to sustain that amount of power indefinitely.  Probably came from taking after AJ's side of the family, for all that she was a unicorn.

 

Then, as if to make a proud moment even prouder, Applejack herself came in to admire her hornwork.  "Yup, I did it!"  Little Amby, of course, had no idea what the runes meant, but knew what sort of answer was likely to get the best response.  "It says... I love you!"  That was... not all that far from what it literally said.  Loving ponies did that sort of thing to each other.

[SteelEagle]

 

Twilight felt a little chagrined, having not even remembered the door in her excitement to get back to the time-tested value of education with a new student. As if to punish her cosmically, Applejack had entered and was one very proud mother. If she knew the vulgarity that was currently written on her walls in magical runes that would take time and dedication to remove then that outrageously large smile would vanish. More than that though, Twilight doubted that Ambrosia would even pause in reflection. She likely didn't know many vulgar words if any and would be proud nonetheless. It was more to save Applejack from embarrassment when Twilight decided to not fully reveal the contents of the message. "Very close to it, actually," Twilight laughed, not being too dishonest, "with a few small differences. Still, very impressive work! Something to be proud of, for sure," Twilight said as she started examining the words.

 

"Princess!" Came a voice from outside the room, followed by armored steps heading down. That door. That door was still open.
"Ah really should have closed that," Applejack whispered to her daughter playfully. "What was I, raised in a barn?"
"Your Majesty," the unicorn stallion guard said as he bowed, coming back up a moment later. "You are needed in- why does the wall have a obs-" he started before a magical piece of tape appeared over his mouth.
"I'm needed?" Twilight asked quickly, to get his mind on task and everyone's attention off of hints of wrongdoing, her eyes piercing him briefly until he got the message. The tape vanished.
He nodded and whispered to her. After a few moments, Twilight's eyes bugged out before a small frown formed. "Oh really? That's...interesting. I'll have to see this," she turned back to Ambrosia, abolishing the frown and replacing it with a smile.
"I'm sorry, but it appears as though I must go. Princess work never ends! Make sure to keep on practicing what I taught you and reading the book. I'll be back to train with you some more, okay?" She said as she magically ruffled the filly's mane. "Goodbye for now, Ambrosia! Applejack, I'll see you soon," Twilight said before she magically reorganized the room to be set for the filly and trotted up the stairs and away...for now.

[Blueblood]

"Okay, Bu-bye Auntie Twilight!  I'll practice hard!"  Ambrosia waved good-bye to her new teacher, feeling immensely pleased and proud to have taken her first steps on her journey of learning magic.  Did Zappers feel this good when Blue-mama took him flying for the first time?  Probably; every pony had something that made them special, and true happiness was felt in pursuing that to its fullest potential.  Lucky Ambrosia had two things like that, her magic and her cuteness!  She was going to be the most adorable little magician ever!

 

~***~

 

"Hnrrggghhhh...."

 

Two weeks later, Ambrosia was feeling neither cute, nor powerful.  Sweat wasn't cute at all, her ringlets were downright floppy now, but the rock was just so heavy!  

"Nghaaaaahhh...."

 

Why couldn't she just decorate it, make it all sparkly and pretty?  Then it might actually be worth holding up!

 

"Mmmmm-cha!"

 

With one final burst of effort, panting, Ambrosia was able to hold the weighted magic stone about two inches up in the air.  One half-inch higher than last week!  "Ha.... huh... how's that?"

[SteelEagle]

 

Twilight watched Ambrosia work herself hard once more, more than a little surprised even now about how far she was willing to push. She was by no small measure a departure from the normal Apple family values when it came to snout to ground work, but that didn't translate to magic it seemed. More than happy was this little filly to explore all that she could and comitt herself to training long past the point of comfort. Well, to some extent. She still didn't show any great desire to study the way Twilight had hoped, but that would come with time. Little fillies tended to adapt to that slowly. Beyond that, she had other elements to analyze.

 

Ambrosia was not going to become a magical powerhouse, that much was clear. While preliminary data was just that, it was rare for some of the fundamentals to be wrong and they told Twilight that the young Apple was possessed of somewhat below average magical power. Not anything that would really come back to harm her, of course. Fact was that unlike a pegasus whose flight capabilities could develop clear strengths and weaknesses that would be felt in day to day life, most unicorns rarely needed to use magic anywhere near their maximum. What she did show was a great aptitude at maintaining her levels. While certainly some of that was aided by her ring, it was an excellent sign for her future.

 

"That was very good, Ambrosia," Twilight said as she sketched some more in her notebook while sipping some tea. "You can relax. You're working ver hard! How do you feel?"

[Blueblood]

The Apple, as they said, never falls far from the tree.  "They" in this case being almost every single member of the Apple family that came before Ambrosia.  While she was no farmer, not by inclination, her bred-in work ethic had found its outlet at last!  Not that great wizardry was in her future, but greatness of some kind was sure to come to the determined and the beautiful!

 

Right now, though, Ambrosia was just happy to have lifted the rock.  Sighing with relief, she pulled a corner of the blanket draping her bed to wipe her brow, not with magic yet.  As much homework as she had done, it wasn't quite second nature to her to use magic for everything just yet... "Tired, but good!"  Ambrosia managed a smile, refreshed from the cooling of the sweat of her brow... along with the tea that had gone cold in her cup.  A refreshing sip and she was feeling right as rain!

 

 

Which was especially interesting, as she had seemingly neglected to put the rock *down*....

[SteelEagle]

 

It was easy to see that Ambrosia had worked very hard on maintaining what she could do. Once a young unicorn realized what they were capable of, it was easy enough to have them maintain a steady work ethic for some time. Early on, magic education came with easily identifiable benefits. You learned the basics quickly and saw immediate results in a variety of fields. The imagination could scarcely keep up with the reality for some time. Eventually there was a decided downturn in the ready results and most unicorns started moving onto other, more important daily tasks as magic became a part of their normal instead of a delightful intruder upon it.

 

Twilight was very excited to see just how Ambrosia would come to use magic in her daily life on a farm that so often seemed to work tirelessly on the merits of the old Earth pony ways. It was less a clash of cultures than it was an integration of ideals and skills, not that she expected much drama to come from it. Perhaps when she had first come to know Applejack this would have proven a decisively interesting question but as it stood Twilight understood better than many that very little would come between Applejack and seeing Ambrosia happy and successful, regardless of what that meant. "It sounds like it. Have you been reading your books?" Twilight said as she looked at the rock, which Ambrosia had not yet put down.

 

Interesting! Well, in the ways a rock could be interesting. Did she know she still had it up? Perhaps she had spent so much magical energy that the relatively small drain required to keep a light spell such as this going was not being noticed. Very exciting if she was already able to treat levitation like a light cast- that would be signs of rapid progress on the basics. Of course, there were problems as well- magical leaking could drain her if she was using magic unawares at this age. "Amby, it seems you have started to really improve your levitation!" She said, gesturing to the rock. And hopefully not setting herself up to be rocked in the face by it.

[Blueblood]

"Uh-huh!"  Ambrosia nodded eagerly at Twilight's question.  She had been reading the beautiful picture books that the Princess had left, sometimes even without mommy's help!  Though, that usually meant only understanding half the words to look at the pretty pictures, but that volume's place was now secure in the 'beloved foalhood possessions' category for her!

 

It was about then that her instructor called her attention back to the rock she was still levitating in her magic.  And, all at once, she seemed to realize that she was doing something that should take a lot of energy, and she felt it.  "Oh?  Oof!"  The rock wobbled in her grip, then clattered to the floor.  Interesting... it seemed her unconscious maintenance was more steady than her conscious maintenance.  A bit like how breathing and walking went better if you didn't think about it.  Made sense, given her heritage; a lot of her magical potential was still physical in its way, and would work more like the body than the brain.

[SteelEagle]

 

That was certainly interesting. Twilight was certain that the way everypony developed was unique in their own way and she knew for a fact beyond any doubt that ponies learned and used magically different. Indeed, this reminded her of how Rainbow Dash excelled when it came to learning. Her mind picked up environmental, background information in an amazingly efficient and aggressive manner that she could not do anywhere near as well consciously. Perhaps there as a similarity there? It wouldn't be a shock if her magic worked better unconsciously. That was how Earth Pony magi worked best, after all, and despite being a unicorn her blood ran as Apple as any other.

 

Still, it was fantastic progress. Twilight got up, stretching her legs and wings. "I'm proud of you! You're doing great," she said as she moved on from the falling rock. "I bet your family is excited for you. Have you teleported your brother into a lake yet?" She said, laughing as if remembering a wonderful memory. Which she was. "Well, I wouldn't do that. Unless he stinks. Does he stink?" She asked playfully before her horn lit up and the cellar door opened. "Do you want to go for a walk? It is a very nice day out there, isn't it?"

[Blueblood]

Ambrosia giggled at the idea of teleporting her brother into a lake.  Zappers could be a bit of a stinker at times, in more ways than one, so it would be nice to join mama among the ranks of ponies who could force him to take a bath.  "No, I haven't Auntie Twilight.  But he does stink sometimes!  Especially after his flight exercises, his wingpits are P.U.!"  No doubt Twilight could say a thing or two about stinky wingpits herself; not that Amby would ever even think of Princesses having stinky wingpits, but they happened, all the same.  Just one more of those things that made them ponies still at the end of the day.

 

"Going outside?  Let's go outside!"  The little unicorn popped up, excited to take a walk with the Princess.  As cool as it was to receive lessons from Twilight, she needed everypony to know she was receiving lessons from Twilight, which meant she needed to get out into public with her!

[SteelEagle]

 

Hygiene was always a complicated subject, especially when it concerned developing fillies and colts, as well as the myriad differences inherent in the various pony species. 'Wingpits' were known more academically speaking as the auxiliary joint, and it could indeed produce a foul smell after exertion. It was easy enough to control and manage as various small feathers could be preened to reduce any lingering odors. And baths. Spells too! Actually, the more she thought about it, the more it seemed there were too many methods of dealing with something so simple. Almost as if younger ponies cared a tremendous amount about...appearances...

 

She had to stifle her laugh as they breached the surface and started walking along the beautiful country trails of Sweet Apple Acres. It was often pleasant enough to visit the orchard just for the sweet sounds and smells of the Apple family at work. Tree bucking in the distance, the flap of wedded wings and the hearty laugh of loves well shared. A microcosm of the joy that friendship could bring, all of it enriched by the wonder and beauty of nature, and the cherished history that seemed driven on every blade of grass. "So Ambrosia, have you given any thought as to what you want to do when you grow up?" She said as she idly picked an apple off the dirt and dropped it in a basket with her magic.
 

[Blueblood]

Being the sort of pony she was, Ambrosia was likely to care about appearances far, far after she had ceased to be young.  Starting early, never stopping, much like her Auntie Rarity in a way.  Hopefully that would not be the cause of gossip concerning her ancestry later on down the line...

 

But for now, she trotted in the sun as happy as any apple, even using her magic to pick up an apple alongside Twilight Sparkle.  "Look, I can do that too!"  She beamed, able to lift the lighter and less-resistant fruit easier than the rock inside the basement.  The alicorn would note, however, the sigh of relief once she let it go, and the disinclination to pick up another.  Practice took a bit out of her, it seemed.  

"Uh..."  Amby stopped to consider the Princess' question.  What did she want to be when she grew up?  What sort of job entailed looking pretty, being admired, and wearing beautiful dresses?  She was almost ready to say a Princess, but the book momma had read to her was pretty clear that Princesses were also expected to don battle armor and vanquish the forces of evil on occasion, which was not her kind of style at all.  Thankfully, time enough at Carousel Boutique had cued her into the perfect alternative career path.  "A model for Auntie Rarity!  She makes the best dresses!"