The Melody of The Heart
Prologue
Written by Star Origin
Following the changeling invasion in Canterlot two weeks ago, the security around Canterlot had been fortified by a lot. The Royal Guard even went as far as to recruit soldiers from the surrounding towns of Equestria. They were picky about who they chose, though. They mostly went after ponies that were already formed at maintaining peace such as security management in clubs or museum guards.
Among those ponies was Star Blaze, a white unicorn that used to be in charge of security at a laboratory located in Manehattan. He was never the best magician and he was a bit messy too. His orange mane messed up and strands of orange hair stuck on his fur after the day he spent in Canterlot patrolling in search of any kind of anomaly. It didn't matter what their nature was, they just needed to confirm if it was an anomaly or not and apprehend it if it was one.
The only issue with that was that if foals decided to pull a prank on him, he would technically have to chase said foals until he caught up to them. Normally, he would catch the troublemakers but after a while the original trio had told other foals about him and since then his days were even more hectic than before.
His blue eyes stared absentmindedly at the landscape in front of him while waiting for the train that would take him back to Manehattan. The numerous bags under his eyes were proof enough that the last few nights he had weren't exactly the best nights of his life.
That aside, while his facial expression reeked of fatigue and depression, his musculature wasn't all that bad. He doubted he would ever be qualified to star in some mature magazines sold across Equestria but his physical attributes weren't that bad when compared to some ponies also waiting for a train.
To be fair, he was built a lot more physically than most ponies around him. Of course, having been trained as a guard since he left high school had helped him a lot and ever since the death of his parents when he was still in high school, he had needed to pick some jobs to keep himself alive and to pay his educational bills.
That alone had given him a strong and firm personality but also strengthened his social abilities in the sense that he needed to adapt to them in order to survive in the world they lived in. Many other races thought that Equestria was a haven compared to the other kingdoms around the globe but in fact it was just as cruel economically to any pony as it was to a griffon for example. The only difference ponies had over some others was that they had the princesses to keep wars and internal conflicts at bay.
Star Blaze's was slowly directed at the ground of the train station platform he was on. The floor, made up of bricks like most of Canterlot was, was coloured with a monotonous white. It wouldn't have been that bad if only the floor was like this but the entire train station was built that way; all the walls were white and in only two weeks, Star Blaze had already gotten annoyed by the monotony of the capital.
It was a majestic city in his opinion. The main complain about Canterlot he had was the it was too monotonous for his own tastes and even after he had gotten used to Canterlot, the color scheme of the town still made him cringe a bit on the inside.
While the white stallion was lost in his thoughts, he had completely ignored the stallion that had just called him from afar. His ears had perked up but he ignored them and continued on his train of thoughts. The other stallion had to tap on Star's shoulder in order for him to notice him.
Star Blaze jumped a bit and took a few steps backwards instinctively and looked up to find who or what had startled him. He was not a bit surprised when he saw a stallion with a golden coat and a dark blue mane. The pegasus in front of him snickered and put a hoof over his mouth in an attempt to remain respectful towards the white unicorn but it failed.
"Oh you should see the look on your face right now, Blazey!" the pegasus exclaimed through several bursts of laughter. "It's priceless!"
Star Blaze snorted, glaring at the pegasus. "Shut it, Flash. I'm not in the mood. I had to chase down kids again today and I'm not exactly amused by how they constantly keep doing this every single day. Plus, my body feels sore and I'm so tired right now. The last thing I know is an annoying pest shadowing me all the time."
"Don't be like that, Blazey," 'Flash' replied. The coldness contained in Star's voice had managed to make the pegasus pout. "I was just kidding around."
The unicorn just continued on glaring at Flash. "Not in the mood, Flash Sentry. Unless you have a question of some kind of importance, please leave me be for the moment."
"I've always wondered what your cutie mark meant. Can you tellme exactly what it represents?" Flash Sentry asked with a grin on his lips.
"Why do you suddenly care?" Star replied emotionlessly.
"Isn't it what friends normally do to get to know their friends?
Star Blaze groaned at his reply and then let out a long sigh. He took a deep breath and said, "If you must know, I used to be proficient with fire magic before the death of parents and since then, I've been unable to summon my fire magic. According to one of the scientists in Manehattan, it could be due to a posttraumatic stress disorder after my parents' death.
"I can't be sure myself but I do know I've lost the proficiency I once had with fire magic so this cutie mark isn't representative of my special talent anymore."
"Well that's no fun. I would've liked to see you use some kind of fire magic," Flash Sentry replied with the same pout he had a few minutes ago.
"If I could use my old magic, you'd be the first one on whom I'd test it. Trust me on that one," Star said with a grin, letting out a snicker after he finished talking.
"Seriously?!" Flash let out in an overreacting manner as if he was actually hurt. "I thought I meant more to you than just as a target!"
"Don't worry, you are. You're not a regular target, friend. You're a moving target and I do love a moving target every once in a while."
"You're so mean!"
Star Blaze shrugged and continued his conversation with Flash Sentry. They talked about this and that while Star was waiting for his train. Since the two ponies were Royal Guards, the were still both wearing their armor but now that they were done with their day, they had taken off their helmets. The bulge in their saddlebags showed that much to the other.
Soon enough, Star Blaze bid Flash Sentry goodbye as he saw his train enter the station. He wasted no time in boarding the train once it had stopped at the platform and showing his ticket to the train conductor. Once he had been given the green light, he moved in his usual spot within the main passenger wagon and peacefully sit down and looked out the window while waiting for the train to finish boarding operations and depart for Manehattan.
He was eager to come back home for the night. After all, who wouldn't want to enjoy their only weekend off in the month? He could also count himself lucky they never asked him for night shifts on top of all the hours he did per week on his daily shift. Some guards didn't have his luck. He had a lot of catching up to do once he would get home.
Once the train had finally stopped at its destination, Star Blaze took his belongings and walked out of the train and onto the boarding platform of the Manehattan. He looked up at the clock in the station and saw the time. It was six in the evening. His eyes widened and the realization hit him with full force.
He was late!
Without wasting a second, he bolted off, climbed the stairs and ran as fast as his legs could carry him through the streets of Manehattan. How had he been able to arrive late in Manehattan? Oh right. I was asked to do an extra shift today, Star mentally reminded himself.
Ten minutes had passed once he reached his second destination and Star Blaze was heavily panting. His throat was sore from all the running he had done and trails of sweat stained his fur around his face. He took a few minutes to calm himself and to regain his stature before he entered the building in front of him. The name of the building? Manehattan Elementary School.
The white stallion walked to where the secretariat was and placed himself in front of the secretary there. The secretary, a red unicorn with an orange mane, never raised her head but her ears perked up upon hearing the sound of Star's hooves on the ceramic floor. The sound his armor produced each time he took a step didn't really help his cause at being silent.
"Sorry but whatever business you have right now will have to wait until tomorrow."
"That's not going to be an issue, ma'am. I just came here to pick up Melody," Star replied with a warm smile, hoping he could get the mare's attention.
As if on cue, the secretary looked up at Star Blaze with a surprised look on her face. "Thank goodness! I was beginning to wonder what I'd do with the poor thing. She was constantly saying that her brother would come and pick her up on time. Couldn't you have asked your parents to pick her up instead?" When Star had not given her an answer other than glare at her, she was confused as to what the matter was. "Did I say something that could have upset you, sir?"
"Are you new to this post? I don't seem to recognize you?" Star Blaze asked in a harsh voice the mare and she answered by nodding softly. If anything, she was afraid of what the stallion in front of her would do. "Our parents are dead. They died in a magical incident at the main research academy in town. I'm the only immediate family Melody has right now and I've been raising her ever since she was a foal."
The mare brought a hoof at her mouth and muffled a gasp. She just looked at him in the eyes and said, "I'm so sorry I brought it up. I didn't know about that. I began working here earlier this week. I really didn't mean to—" the mare wanted to continue but she was stopped in her tracks when Star Blazed pressed his hoof against his lips and just stared at her.
"It's in the past," he softly told the mare with next to little coldness in his voice as it has before. "Now, can you tell me where my sister is so I can take her home?"
"Certainly!" The secretary quickly answered.
The mare led Star Blaze to the back of her office and quickly found a white filly with a green mane and tail asleep in what seemed to be a lounge. Probably the lounge for the secretaries when they take breaks, Star Blaze thought.
The stallion wasted no time in igniting his horn and grabbing the filly in his telekinetic hold. After he had made sure she was comfortable and secured on his back, the unicorn thanked the secretary and made his way out of the school and began walking the way back home from there.
The road back home wasn't long or difficult. Although he lived on the western outskirts whereas the elemental school was located near the eastern outskirts, there were little to no obstacles in-between the two. Besides, the streets were starting to get empty as time went by and by the time Star Blaze had gotten home, the night was beginning to settle in and the streets had emptied themselves as per usual.
He unlocked the door using the key he always kept in his saddlebags when he left for Canterlot in the morning. Once he had closed the door behind him, he flicked the lights open with his magic and walked upstairs with the filly still on his back. Despite the fact he constantly said it was just a typical house most of the time, Star Blaze couldn't deny that mahogany cost a lot to buy.
His economical situation wasn't the best with the house he lived in and when Melody was still just a foal, it was common for him to be left without any sort of spending money after paying his bills. Nowadays, with the salary he earned, he was able to keep up with the taxes and all the other bills he had to take care of but he was far from considering himself to be rich.
He opened the lights upstairs and the stallion was welcomed by the green walls of the second floor. Only the main room of the second floor bore that color. Melody's room had also been painted green but for reasons other than the coloration or her mane and tail. Oddly enough, she requested for her room to be painted green because of changelings.
Instead of being afraid of changelings and the rumors running around them since their failed invasion two weeks ago, Melody was a big fan of them. She had even called them cute and awesome in her class. Following that, they had summoned Star Blaze at the school to discuss her behavior and their family background in case they could have been changelings living in exile not annexed to Chrysalis' hive.
After those events, she had asked her brother if they could paint her room green make it themed around the changelings in general. Truly, Star Blaze was jealous of his sister's innocence. He tucked her in bed and headed to his own room, ready to call it a night himself. The day had been rough on him and all he wished for was a good night's rest. He entered his own room without turning the lights on and unfastened his armor's straps with his magic. With that out of the way, he grabbed his armor and put it on the mannequin he had been provided with when he joined the Royal Guard.
Once that was done, he headed over to where his bed was instinctively and found his way under the blankets. It did not take long for him to fall prey to slumber once he laid his head on his pillow.
The next morning, Star was roused from his sleep by the joyful laughter of his sister who was currently jumping all around his bed with the biggest go smiles on her face.
"Melody…?" Star asked while still half-asleep, his eyes not fully open yet. "What are you doing? I'm trying to sleep here."
"You've had enough sleep for this morning, big bro!" Melody exclaimed defiantly. "You promise you'd come and play with me in the Hollow Shades today."
"Augh. Give me a few minutes and I'll be out of bed, Melody."
"Yay!" Melody's happy shout alongside the hug she gave her brother made his heart melt.
Melody Swiftsong, or simply Melody, could barely keep her eagerness and joy to herself. The jumps she did were ecstatic and anticipation. She hummed a soft tune as she jumped around the living room downstairs while Star Blaze was getting out of bed.
It was only after a cup of coffee that he had remembered the promise he made to his sister the week before. Now fully awake, Star began packing the necessary food for their trip to the Hollow Shades and asked Melody if she had decided on what she wanted to eat for the day while they would be gone.
She answered by saying that she would be fine with whatever he was going to eat and gave her brother a big smile. Her golden eyes didn't help his case in finding her demeanor adorable. She simply continued to jump around the living room as Star was preparing the last of their supplies.
Star Blaze made a mental list of what he was to bring while he looked that the content that lay inside the basket. There were two daisy sandwiches, a few apples, and two bottles of fresh apple juice still sealed tight along with some cheese. The stallion closed the lid of the basket when he confirmed he had everything he wanted to bring.
He ignited his horn, grabbed the basket's handle with his telekinetic hold and moved it behind his head to gently place it on his back. After that was done, the stallion grabbed two pieces of rope and steadied the basket on his back so it wouldn't fall when making his way to the Hollow Shades
"Melody!" The stallion called out to be sure the filly could her him. She had that nasty habit of being oblivious to everypony around her when she was really excited.
"Yes, big bro?" Melody replied back in a sweet chime. A few seconds later, her head appeared in the framing of the hallway leading to the front door. "Are we ready to go now?"
"Indeed we are, little one," Star Blaze told her with a soft smile on.
"Yay! We're going on an adventure!" The little filly ran through the hallway and stopped right next to her brother before giving him another grin.
That filly loves to make my heart melt from all this cuteness," Star told himself as he opened the door.
To Be Continued