Regala’s beautiful daughter

Twinkle Star saw the light in Togli’s eyes return.
“I know that name…” She whispered softly, and she kept staring at Regala. So Twinkle Star had been right all that time. And she knew where she had recognised Togli from. Those pure blue eyes… long ago, she had seen them. Togli had been nothing more than an infant back then, a little baby, but Twinkle Star had never forgotten those blue eyes.
“Togli… it is your name. The name you got at birth. Do you remember it?”
Togli didn’t move. “I know it… I don’t remember, but it feels so familiar…” Twinkle Star sighed. She had hoped Togli would remember.
“This lady here… do you recognise her?” Twinkle Star asked, and Togli stared at Regala, not answering Twinkle Star’s question. Regala stared back, but at some point she looked at Twinkle Star questioning. Why didn’t her daughter recognise her?

“Regala… Togli has lost her memory. She doesn’t know anything before the day she lost you in the mountains. Am I right?” Twinkle star said and she looked at Togli, who slowly shook her head.
“No, I don’t… but this doesn’t feel unfamiliar to me. This person… who is she?” “She is Regala, sister of queen Regina… and your mother, Togli.” Twinkle Star said softly, and Togli looked from Twinkle Star to Regala and back.
“My mother… I… I don’t remember… I only feel that I know this person, but I don’t remember… All I remember is the fire and the heat.” She paused for a moment. “What is that, my lady? You know it, don’t you?”

Twinkle Star nodded. She wasn’t sure if this was something Togli was supposed to hear now, but she didn’t want to deny her an answer.
“That fire is something we all remember. It is your memory of the volcano eruption, now more than sixteen years ago, that destroyed our home, the old Friendship Lands, and took your father, brother and sister, along with so many others, away from you.”
She told Togli, who looked at her in disbelief.
“But Twinkle Star…” Regala softly spoke, “Togli… she never remembered the eruption or the old lands. We used to talk about it in the past, and she was curious about it, but she never had an actual memory of it. How come she remembers now?” A good question. How could a memory she didn’t even had return to her?
“Well…” Twinkle Star said after some thinking, “She has lost all her memories, right? And sooner or later something was bound to come back to her, and that was her strongest memory, even though she didn’t know that she had it. And the memory of the eruption is strong. Ivy remembers it, and she was only a week old back then. I don’t think it’s that unusual for her to remember that now.”

“What is going on here?” A voice said, and the three ponies looked behind them. Regina was standing there, utterly confused by her daughter’s earlier actions and looking for answers.
“Mother… this pony here is Togli, Regala’s youngest daughter. She came to live here after she and Regala were separated near the old lands, two years ago. However… Togli doesn’t remember anything about her past. The only memory she has is that of the eruption.” Regina calmed down after she heard her daughter’s explanation.
“I see… It is nice to meet you, Togli. My name is Regina, and I am your aunt.”

Togli looked utterly confused by now. For someone who didn’t remember anything, this all sounded extremely confusing and weird.
“I… It is nice to meet you too, my queen. But I … it’s just, I….”
“It’s all a bit too much for you right now, isn’t it, Togli?” Regina asked, and Togli softly nodded. “Why don’t you come with me? You can rest a bit in my room where you have privacy, and when you feel like it, we can talk and I can explain some things to you. How does that sound?”
“But my lady…” Togli said softly, “I cannot accept that… How can I rest in your room? You are the queen, I am but a waitress, and…”
 But Regina shook her head. “You’re not just a waitress, Togli. You are my sister’s daughter, and I want you to feel okay. Please, accept my offer.”
Togli sighed. “I… well, I could use some rest, I…”
“Very well. Why don’t you follow me?” Regina said, and she turned around. Slowly Togli followed her. While they were gone, Twinkle Star didn’t really know what to do. She didn’t want to leave her aunt here alone in the hall, obviously in shock, but she didn’t know what to say, either. “Aunt Regala, are you… okay?” She asked, but Regala didn’t respond. She simple stared in the distance, not moving at all.
“Aunt Regala?” Slowly the door of Twinkle Star’s room opened, and Aline stepped outside.
“What is going on out here?” She asked, and Twinkle Star shrugged.
“I can’t tell you that now, Aline. However… can you maybe lead my aunt to my bed? She is in some kind of shock, and she needs rest. Will you take care of her?” Twinkle Star asked.
“Yeah, sure but what, I mean, how…”
“Please, Aline. Do as I say. I promise, I will explain to you later, but right now, I don’t understand that much either. It’s all a bit confusing, but I have to talk to my mother. Will you take care of Regala?”
Aline nodded. “I will. You go find your mother.” She said, and Twinkle Star smiled. She knew Aline understood, and she trusted her. Twinkle Star left her and her aunt behind, and walked towards her mother’s room.

Regina just walked out of the room when Twinkle Star wanted to knock on the door. “Oh, Twinkle Star! Where is Regala?” She asked, and Twinkle Star explained Aline was taking care of her.
 “Ah, that is good.” Regina answered.
“What about Togli, is she okay?”
Regina nodded. “Yes, yes she is fine. Will you come with me, Twinkle Star? I have to discuss this with you, before I go down to tell Katine. There are some things I don’t understand.”
 Twinkle Star nodded. She had already expected this, and she had things to discuss of her own, too.
“First,” Regina began, as they began to walk towards the archway. “Are you one hundred percent sure that this is Togli?”
“Yes, positive. Stanno told me where they found her, she has memories of the eruption, Regala recognised her… There is no doubt.”
“Hmmm…” Twinkle Star looked at her mother.
“What? Do you have doubts?” She asked.
“I… I don’t know, Twinkle Star. It I all very convincing, and I recognise Togli myself. You don’t forget those blue eyes, do you. However… haven’t you noticed?” “What?”
“Togli has no royal powers at all, Twinkle Star.”

Suddenly Twinkle Star realised her mother was right. She hadn’t felt any, none of the times she had met her the last two days.
“Couldn’t she have hid it? We all do it, don’t we. Hide royal powers so others can’t detect them.” She stated.
“Maybe… but I don’t think Togli’s powers would be strong enough for that. You know you have to have a certain amount of powers to be able to hide them, and I don’t think Togli would meet that.”
Twinkle Star sighed. This was true. Togli couldn’t have a lot of strong powers. Regala was Medina’s fifth child, and Togli was Regala’s third. Togli should be about as strong as Testi and Vesti, and they definitely weren’t able to hide their powers. It is what made her recognise those two in the first place.

“Is there a way she could have lost those powers? Like, when she had lost her memory, she lost her powers?” Twinkle Star asked her mother, as they walked down the stairs.
“Not that I know of. I never heard of anyone losing their powers. I don’t think it’s possible; they’re a part of you that you are given at birth. It is not something you gain during life, therefore, I don’t think it’s that easy to lose them, unless you might get physically hurt.”
“I don’t think she was hurt that much when she lost her mother. Stanno didn’t tell me anything about that. She was only confused and underfed.” Twinkle Star answered, and Regina sighed.
“It will be a mystery for a while, I am afraid.”
“Is there nothing we can do to help her regain her memory?” Twinkle Star asked. “Maybe. Stelline can, I think.”
“Stelline? Why?”
“There is a spell one can use, to see in someone’s mind. She can see if the memories are still there, or that they are gone forever. If they are there, we might be able to find out how she can reach them again. It is a powerful spell, though, and only one with a lot of royal powers and one who can handle them well can use them. Stelline’s unicorn abilities should make her able to do that. But Togli has to want it as well, of course. Stelline has to break in her mind, where she can see all her secrets and recent memories. Togli has to trust Stelline.”
Twinkle Star remembered the powerful mind lock Stelline had done on the creature in Karive desert, now two months ago. Yes, Stelline would be able to do it. She smiled. Maybe they could help Togli out after all.

“Listen, Twinkle Star… I have to consult queen Katine about this. She has the right to know the truth, and I want to discuss this matter with her. Could you please check on Togli for me?” Regina asked, and Twinkle Star nodded at her mother.
“I will. Take care, mom.”
Regina walked towards the throne room, and Twinkle Star walked back up the stairs. She softly knocked on the door of her mother’s room, and when there came no answer, she slowly stepped inside. It was a bit dark, her mother had closed the curtains. Togli lay on Regina’s large bed.
“Togli? Are you okay?” Twinkle star whispered.
“Who is there?” Togli asked softly.
“It’s me, Twinkle Star.”
Slowly Togli got up, and sat on the bed. “Hi… yes, I think I am okay. I’m a bit confused, I guess.”
Twinkle Star smiled as she sat down on the second bed. “Yes, I can imagine that. I… I hope you don’t feel I over rushed things.”
“Oh no, my lady, I don’t feel like that at all. I am glad you showed me. I feel confused, but I guess I feel happy as well. That person… Regala… I didn’t recognise her, as in I didn’t recall her from a memory, but she didn’t feel like a stranger, you know. This may sound a bit confusing…”
Twinkle Star shook her head. “No, I know what you mean. To be honest, I had the same thing since the first time we met. I knew I recognised you from something, I simply couldn’t recall the memory.”

“I wish I could… remember, you know. But there is so little I remember. I tried so hard the last years, but there was not much that came back to me.” Togli said with a soft voice, even softer than her voice usually was. Twinkle Star felt sorry for the girl. The poor pony… not being able to remember anything… Sometimes Twinkle Star wished that she could simply forget some of her memories, but deep in her heart she knew her memories, the things she’d been through, had made her what she was. Losing her memories would be like losing herself.

“You know, Togli, we might be able to get your memory back. My sister Stelline, the unicorn, can enter your mind, and see if your memories are still there. If they are, she might be able to tell you how to get them back. But of course, you must want this too, for she is also able to read your current thoughts and memories. You will have to thrust her.”
To Twinkle Star’s surprise, Togli looked up in shock. “I… I don’t know, my lady, if I would want such a thing. I want to remember, of course I want to, but there are some things I have to protect. I can’t risk it, I mean…”
Twinkle Star softly smiled at Togli. “It is okay, Togli, really, it is. If you don’t want it, we won’t do it. And if you do want it, well, we can do it at any time that suits you. Please, don’t worry about it.” “Thank you, Twinkle Star.”

For a while, they said nothing. They just sat there, not able to say anything. Twinkle Star wondered what it was that Togli had to protect, but she didn’t want to ask. She was sure Togli wouldn’t tell anyone, anyway. Twinkle Star would find out one time, if the time was right.
“Do you remember anything from the day you lost your mother, Togli?” Twinkle Star asked after a while, trying to change the topic a bit.
“I… no, not really. I remember wandering around, aimlessly, but that was after I lost my mother.”
“Do you know how you got lost?” Twinkle Star asked, and Togli shook her head. “No, I don’t. All I remember is darkness. Complete darkness, that I couldn’t escape.” Suddenly Togli looked up. Twinkle Star saw the shock in her eyes.
“What? Togli, what is it?” Twinkle Star asked.
“Rain…” She whispered.
“What? What do you mean?”
“The rain… I was rescued by the rain.”