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Description
You remember the Autumn Festival like it was yesterday. From the joyful moments you shared with your friends to your unexpected transformation into an alicorn, it is a memory close to your heart.
A moon has passed since then. The days have grown cooler with the arrival of autumn, and ponies have been hard at work bringing the warmest tones out of the many deciduous shrubs and trees in Equestria. At night, scarves and saddles become a common sight, and the occasional puff of smoke swirls out of a cozy home’s chimney.
Yet the winds of change blow further than the coming of a new season. Far beyond the waves of the ocean, traders gather below the boughs of the Yggdrasil tree. The gate to the World Between Worlds and several air and sea landings welcome travellers from all realms and kingdoms, though High Earth remains absent as always.
The crescent island nearby becomes the Midgardian Republic, now under the rule of the people’s Knights Twelve. Following the events in Elysia, the citizenry votes to forbid magic and its research entirely. Among others, Clear Fountain, Novelty and Rocket Rush move to Solar Abbey, a newfound embassy on the western shore of Equestria.
Seadogs and harpies expand their trading routes inland thanks to the Trading Post Company. The first ever Harpy Hotel opens for business in the city of Vanhoover, and finds remarkable success.
Furia Storm and Queen Maelstrom begin their tour from coast to coast under their new band name Haytlantis Drifters. Most of the siren queen’s subjects are found, and while some return to the ocean, others choose to remain on land and study its music. Along with the news comes a gift from a friend.
You get 3 Haytlantis Drifters VIP Passes! You store them in your bedroom’s nightstand.
Apple Basket returns to Greenhoof Grove. The harvest season has only just begun, and promises to be one of the best in years — crops befitting the wish he made the night of the festival. The colt also pleads Moonflower to keep his dreams platonic until such time as he no longer shares a bed with his devilishly teasing cousin.
Word from Princess Twilight Sparkle assures you that while your ring has not yielded any breakthroughs, progress is steady. The highest level unicorns in Equestria are on the case, and countless more nights will be spent studying the enchantment. Word from Moondancer vaguely thanks you, and admits that you are good at what you do.
The mayors of Hoofington and Starfalls Town begin working together to rebuild the bat ponies’ homes on the other side of Sungrain Fields before the cold of winter. The cave ruins, now cleared of the old town’s rubble, serve the locals and the occasional traveller as a natural hot spring of therapeutic wonders.
Moonflower’s training under Princess Luna continues apace. With the Oracle’s guidance rarely needed, she stays at your place most days, growing a beautiful garden — a life befitting the wish she made the night of the festival. Your house gains the eternal fragrance of flowers, and the cellar is turned into an alchemist’s laboratory.
As for you, you still bear your wings and horn. Neither Twilight Sparkle nor Celestia seem to truly understand it, but one thing is clear: you have no ties to the Equestrian royal family, and thus, no responsibility as a prince or princess. You have not met Discord again, but according to the princesses, he feigns ignorance: don’t they know how alicorns come into being?
Thankfully, nopony really seems to mind. Save for a curious glance or question, none treat you any differently from before. Not that you meet all that many ponies, since you work most days on a new commissioned route through Whitetail Woods for Ponyville’s upcoming Running of the Leaves.
Otherwise, you spend some afternoons with Leaf Chaser. Having just had lessons from her own mother, the young pegasus teaches you how to use and care for your wings on a level you can intuitively understand. In exchange, you agree to model for her, and the filly is more than happy to study and capture every little detail of your princely figure.
Some nights, Moonflower invites Windcaller to a sleepover while you accompany Crystal Charm to her campsite. You help the unicorn mine gemstones by lamplight, and she teaches you the fundamentals of spellcasting in return. Then, after a relaxing bath in the woods, you share a most comfortable bedroll together — a reward for both of you.
You learn Telekinesis!
You practice your flight and magic on the field: soaring up and gliding down cliffs as you scout for flat terrain, and carefully tying ribbons on branches and rocks with your spells to mark your trails. You complete your contract by the end of the month, feeling confident in your new abilities — and a few bits richer besides.
And so, as you lie comfortably in bed next to your loving bat pony friend, you close your eyes, and await the next call to adventure…
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