Generations-Chapter 3

Sweetsong barely touched her dinner. She was so excited to see more of what was in the chest that she couldn't eat. But she still had to be polite and wait for everyone else to finish eating before she left, and who knows how long that would be? What if she just excused herself to use the restroom and didn't come back? No one would notice. But if they did that would be embarrassing. Maybe she could come up with some other excuse...

Wysteria laughed. "We were just talking about that today, right Sweetsong?"

Sweetsong shook her head, "I'm sorry, what was that?" Wysteria raised her eyebrows at her and went back to her conversation. Sweetsong blushed. That was not the first time that had happened this evening. She began to eat, even though the food was cold now. If she had to wait for everyone to finish, she may as well get some nourishment from it.

As the party dissembled for the evening, she overheard Amberlocks talking to Royal Ribbon about the chest.

"Really? I never knew anything about that! Who knew this castle had secrets like that."

"Yeah. Too bad there was just a bunch of old junk in that chest. It could have been much more exciting and secretive than that."

"Still, I should look into it and examine the contents. I'll have to sort everything out, what to keep and dispose of, as if I didn't already have enough to do..."

Sweetsong knew this was her chance. "Royal Ribbon? I'd be happy to look though the contents for you. In fact, I've been rather excited to see what was in there."

Royal Ribbon was a little surprised. She'd never heard this quiet pony say so many words in a row. "Well, sure...if you'd like."

Sweetsong gave a little jump of glee, "Really? I'd love to! Oh thank you!" She impulsively gave Royal Ribbon a hug, then let go quickly. She didn't know her all that well, after all. "Do you think I can stay the night tonight in the castle? I'd like to get started right away."

"Right now?" Royal Ribbon was stunned by her enthusiasm, but just shrugged. "Make yourself comfortable."

Sweetsong dashed out of the room. Royal Ribbon looked at Amberlocks in wonder. Amberlocks just shrugged.
 

Sweetsong knelt by the chest and looked it over. She took a deep breath and opened it.

Laying on top was the wedding dress. She picked it up slowly and held it up to herself. She would die to have a wedding dress like this. It was made of the smoothest satin she had ever felt. It had intricate beading and embellishments around the collar and at the edge of the sleeves. The matching shoes and veil were just as ornate. The dress was a little musty smelling, but in perfect condition. She wondered if it had ever been worn...

She shook her head. She wouldn't let her imagination carry her away tonight. This was all business. She hung up the dress to air it out. She picked up the books next, but then thought better of it and set them aside. It would take her too long to read those and she wanted to see what else was in there.

There was a pencil drawn portrait of a stallion. He looked very handsome: tall and muscular. He had a very commanding presence about him. He eyes were deep and meaningful, even in pencil. Too bad it wasn't in color. There were several papers in the ancient text, then a small portrait of a husband and wife outside their home.

The stallion was pale purple with pink hair and a cloud for his symbol. He wasn't the stallion from the pencil drawing though, he wasn't nearly so stately. His wife was a pink pegasus with purple hair and a compass and star for her symbol. She seemed to have a soft fuzziness to her skin. Sweetsong had never seen anything like that before, but perhaps it was just the paint. She smiled; they looked like a very happy couple. As she looked closer, she noticed that the wife was carrying a tiny infant: pale purple with pale pink hair. She couldn't see the symbol because the baby was wrapped in a blanket.

She continued digging though some other items, and at the bottom of the chest was a very heavy framed portrait. It was an oil painting, obviously by a professional. It was of a young female pegasus. She was pale purple with pale pink hair. She wore a small white tiara with a single tear-drop shaped pearl dangling on her forehead. Her symbol was a candle, and she also appeared to have the same fuzziness. Sweetsong shrugged, it must have been a genetic trait that died out over time. Hmm, genetic? She examined the portrait once more, then picked up that of the family. The baby had a tiny portion of a wing sticking out of the blanket. Sweetsong deduced that the baby and young pegasus were one and the same, the husband and wife were her parents. So the soft skin was genetic after all.

Sweetsong now noticed a small mahogany box she had overlooked. She opened it, and it contained the tiara: the exact one from the oil. It was beautiful, far more so than in the painting. Although it had been done by a master, he had failed to capture the brilliance of the pearl or the intricacies of the embellishments. Obviously this family was wealthy, but this may have been the only family heirloom they had. Or it could have been a gift, perhaps a wedding gift? She glanced at the dress.

She shook her head again. No fantasies tonight. She picked up the first book. Embroidered on the front was 'Twilight'. She opened the book to the first page. It was a diary! She knew instantly that it belonged to the young pegasus. Obviously, this was her personal trunk. But why was it in the library of the castle? Perhaps the diary would tell.

Dear Diary, I'm not sure what to write. I've never had a diary before. It was given to me by the priest at the funeral today; I suppose it's to help me cope with my grief. To be honest, I'm relieved. Father has been sick for so many months, I couldn't stand to see him in pain anymore. These last few days were especially hard, with the cancer consuming his body... But I don't want to write about that. I'll tell you about positive things. I've had a great number of people come up to me and offer their condolences. Many I knew as some of Father's customers. They’ve all encouraged me to keep the shop open, and I think I will. I need some sort of activity to keep my mind off of things. Speaking of activities, I spoke with the scholar, Prof. Sparkler, today. He's the tutor to all the children of the nobility, even the prince himself, and he worked closely with Father. He heard that I've continued Father's studies in the ancient language the past few months while he was ill, and he offer to tutor me with an independent study. Father would be so proud of me; and I think my Mother would too. Father once told me that she believed education was the best thing women could do for themselves. She refused to follow tradition in that sense. I wish I remembered more of her. I only have a few happy memories and a picture. But at least Father can be with her again. I know he truly loved her, and missed her terribly all these years. Now, I miss both of them...

 

Sweetsong involuntarily got choked up. Such a young pony to have lost both her parents! And what a happy family they seemed to be in that picture.

She collected herself once more, and continued reading the next entry.

I just got back from my tutorial with Prof. Sparkler. I had to write immediately, Diary, because I'm so excited. As part of my on-going study of the ancient language, he has set up a year-long project for me. This project could make me go down in history! I am to make something he called a Rosetta Stone. I'm not sure why it's called that, but basically, I have to write a book translating the ancient language symbols into today's language. It's a daunting task, but I'm thrilled about it. In the future, when no one teaches the ancient language, they will have this book to translate everything! And they will have me to thank for it. But it gets better. Since the library at the castle has the world's largest collection of ancient language books, I have his personal permission to go there any time, day or night, to study and work on the Rosetta. Can you believe it! I'll get to go to the castle! And it works out perfectly because I can still keep my dad's shop here in town, and go study afterwards. I'm very excited, but I've got to calm down and go to sleep. I've got a big day ahead of me. Goodnight Diary.

 

Sweetsong's eyes got very wide. She slowly closed the diary and picked up the other book. Her heart was pounding. The book was entitled 'Rosetta, by Twilight'

She gasped. She stared at the cover a moment, then quickly flipped the book open. It was true: an ancient symbol, followed by a word meaning. She flipped to another part of the book: there it explained the syntax of the ancient language. She covered her mouth, still in shock.

She stood up and looked around the library. Thousands of books called to her. Her world got a little bigger that night.
 

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The pencil sketch from the chest.