#and given that elena's powers (and magic in general) in the show are pretty inconsistent and vague

[notmoreflippingelves]

We don't get a definitive answer. I rewatched a few bits of "Spirit of a Wizard" just to double-check that I hadn't forgotten something.

When Ash tries to use the scepter, she is unsuccessful, and Elena claims that this is because the scepter only channels "good" magic. But is this actually the case or is Elena just assuming that it is? How does she know? Where is the proof? And furthermore, who defines what is "good"? Is it an objective measure or just whatever Elena has convinced herself at a given moment. If her self-righteousness is strong enough, could she continue to use it even in terrible ways, because her way is the "right way"?

It is worth noting that Elena does use "blaze" to kill Shuriki , permanently mutilate Orizaba's wings, and "shoot to kill" (even if she missed) Marimonda, Shuriki (pre-killing), Victor & Carla (if I am remembering correctly), Ash, and Esteban over time. While all the characters in question were villains (or villain adjacent) at the time, it's still pretty interesting that the scepter does not seem to have any qualms about attempted murder/mutilation of an opponent. Which seems pretty sus to be considered "good magic" even its used by a hero against villains.

The only person besides Elena that we see successfully use the scepter is post-redemption Esteban in "Coronation Day." A lot of people have extrapolated that he failed to use it in "Spirit of a Wizard" because he wasn't "good" at the time. But in actuality, he really didn't have much a chance to try? He only holds the scepter briefly for two moments before 1) Mateo tries to seize it back(only for Zopilote to grab it) and 2) Ash takes it out of his hands when Esteban briefly gets back.

The scepter admittedly does not glow in Esteban's hands when he first touches it, which is why a lot of people buy the "it only works for good people/good magic" explanation that Elena provides. But to be fair, it really only glows unprompted a few times in general even for Elena. So it not lighting up isn't necessarily a complete guarantee that it would not work for Esteban. He didn't have a proper chance to "try" it before its taken away.

So TLDR a few plausible explanations for how/why the scepter works the way it does that aren't simply "it only works for good magic"

You need to have been exposed to ancient magic--and possibly Maruvian magic in particular-- in order to properly use the scepter. This is why Elena (amulet + crystal well) and Esteban (crystal well) are the only ones who have used it successfully. This explains why "the scepter has powers" is BRAND NEW INFORMATION to the characters, as other "good" monarchs of recent memory (esp Elena's parents) should have been able to use it in the past but did not. It also explains why Ash isn't able to use the scepter. She just doesn't have the raw direct power that the other two have and her morality has nothing to do with it. (The scepter of Night does not seem to have this power limitation).

2. In addition to the above, you need to be "powerful" enough to use the scepter. As Elena soaked up the amulet's power for 41 years and then got more magic from the crystal well, her raw power is always going to exceed everyone else's. She simply has more magic within her even than Esteban. Not only that, but she has been training on how to use it for most of the past 4 years. Therefore, the scepter is going to be easier to use and work "better" for her than it would for anyone else. Personal morality is a non-issue. (And by the time we see Esteban use the scepter successfully, he has had much more time to train/familiarize himself with his own magic and therefore is better prepared).

3. In conjunction with both of the above, you also have to *want* to use the scepter and to be open to using it. In "Spirit of the Wizard," Esteban was very reluctant to take the scepter from Elena and would've been even more reluctant to use it against her. It's possible that the scepter picked up on his ambivalence and that this was the reason that it didn't work at the time. Esteban, while "worthy" of the scepter, isn't "all in" and therefore the scepter will ignore him.

My personal headcanon is that the scepter is almost "alive" in a sense with little "personality quirks" and a sense of agency in where/how and by whom it can be used. That's probably why it was acting up for a time after being used to defeat Shuriki. It needed a nice little nap and a trip to the doctor sunbird oracle. I think that at some level it can "choose" its bearer (not unlike wands in HP). It accepts Elena and Esteban (eventually) , while rejecting Ash and Zopilote outright--perhaps because of level/type of power or perhaps b/c certain "personalities" mesh better with the scepter's own.

A sort of compromise between "the scepter only works for objective good" and the "scepter only works for Elena's good" is to have the scepter continue to "work" but work slower, not as effectively, or in a different way than intended if Elena wants to use it for morally ambiguous things. (In one of my w.i.p.s, I have Dark-ish! (but temporarily and still ultimately good) Elena uses the some of the powers in morally questionable ways. The scepter does still cooperate for her, but it also manages to "register its disapproval" of Elena's methods by not quite working in the way that she wants/in the ways that it would've if her motives had been more pure.)

See, the thing about my Lydia the Bard-style villain song animatic script for Princess Sofia the First was that it would take extremely dire and specific cirumstances to make Sofia even morally grey. So I had a precise idea of the plot from the beginning of my process. But Elena has much more potential for a fall from grace. Her consistent major flaws include recklessness, single-mindedness, overconfidence and bitter vindictiveness. She experiences a vast amount of trauma and stress throughout her story and much focus is dedicated to her mental health as she learns healthy responses to it, non-linearly with plenty of self-destructive moments. Then she suddenly gets powerful magic controlled by her emotions that emphasizes this arc. I'm almost spoiled for choice on how to turn her evil! She's like the Anakin Skywalker of Disney Princesses. Except canon hasn’t given us Darth Vader.

Also, does anyone in the fandom have a definite answer on whether or not the Sceptre of Light only works in the hands of a good person or toward good? Because it vaguely says so on some wiki pages, but not others. And Elena attempts to directly use Blaze on Esteban several times in Season Three. Her final test by fate/the universe/whatever was to forgive him and she's acting out of unreasonable wrath at these points as he never tries to hurt her, but the laser is still fired. How immoral do you have to be for it not to work? An overall bad person or just currently having bad goals and/or motivations? Tell me what you think!

This is what I’m doing, by the way.