Stargazers

Chapters

Prelude - Letter (Rewrite)
Ch I - Warming (Rewrite)
Interlude 1 - New Moon
Ch II - Releasing (Rewrite)
Interlude II - Hearth's Warming Eve
Ch III - Becoming (Rewrite)
Ch IV - Explaining (Rewrite)
Ch V - Entangling
Ch VI - Surprising
Ch VII - Wondering
Ch VIII - Understanding
Ch IX - Visiting
Ch X - Bearing

Prelude - Letter (Rewrite)

Stargazers

Prelude - Letter

Summer had come. Ponies all over Equestria joyfully went outside to frolic and play in the sunlight that gently warmed their coats and hearts. Truly, wherever you wished to look, you would stumble upon families, friends and acquaintances spreading the magic of Harmony.

In Canterlot, the shining pearl of Equestrian society, this manifested itself as increased hoof traffic outside and many nobles were mixing with the more common populace of the town with a tiny bit of disdain. Yet even their perceived slights did nothing to lower the joyous merriment that befell the seat of the Royal Pony Sisters.

However, there was one pony, who unlike her fellow ponies, did not enjoy the beautiful day outside. She did not do so because of two reasons: she did not wish to alienate herself accidentally by committing a social faux pas, which was also tied to the second reason. The mare promised her sister that she would study the books provided by the Royal Archives in order to acquaint herself with the modern equish society.

Nevertheless, Princess Luna was bored out of her mind. It had been just a few short months since she came back from her thousand-year banishment in the moon. Compared to the mindless task before her, the banishment was not so bad in terms of activity. Sadly, the company she was in had been poor and there was absolutely nothing to do. Therefore, Luna planned. She pondered. She invented. It was a whir of intellectual activity, where unveiling the future with thought had been the one thing keeping her sane. Well, that and the thought of coming back to her beloved sister, Tia.

Celestia was overjoyed when her biggest wish was fulfilled and her student – accompanied by her friends – brought back her sister. Together, the group of ponies did what Celestia had failed to do, and banished the Nightmare from Luna’s mind. It was later that day that both alicorns broke down, crying tears of happiness of finally having back the one pony that could truly understand the unique position of an immortal.

Yet Luna had noticed many changes in her sister. She no longer had that authoritarian aura around her that inspired thousands to fall for her. No, it was replaced by a constant feeling of motherly love. Truly, Celestia became very overprotective of her child, Equestria.

That over-protectiveness bothered Luna currently. Despite her protests of being able to get back into the swing of ruling an entire nation, Luna was denied any duties by Celestia - who quoted that she could take care of Equestria on her own for some time - more as a reason to keep her little sister from returning to the throne. She did return to Luna her title, however, that of The Princess of the Moon.

It was completely and utterly unbelievable to the Moon Princess. Yes, she might have looked at that moment as a foal, but her powers would slowly return over time. It might have set off the nobles, if a foal were to take the throne. Yet it was Luna who set up more than half of the laws, which were still governing Equestria. She did not spend uncountable years bickering with sycophantic nobles to consolidate and centralize Equestria’s government, just to be pushed aside!

The books that she had read so far indicated the past thousand years were a time of peace. Acquiescing to her sister’s wishes, Luna studied the changes that had swept over Equestria. Moreover, if the younger sister was to be truthful, she was not impressed with the achievements of the pony race during her absence.

During the early days, there was talk of rebellion, pushed by the power-hungry and always discontented nobles. When Celestia got over the pain of losing her sister, she quickly rooted out the malcontents and Equestria was peaceful once again. Clearly, Celestia was not as subtle as she believed herself to be.

The same happened when the gryphon nation attacked. They sent their armies, parading ranks near the borders of Equestria after raiding several of the nearby villages, waiting for what they thought would be an easy hunt for pray in the form of the Equestrian army. Celestia did not bother to send any soldiers. She used her control over the sun to demonstrate her power and scared away all of the gryphons. After that, there were no significant threats to Equestria.

The remaining time spent in peace meant that progress had stalled. Luna knew that war lead to the discovery of new technologies and spells. Yet, here she was, looking at a very slight improvement in technology and, if such a thing was possible, deterioration in spell casting. With the exception of the lavender unicorn who freed her and the captain of Celestia’s guard (whom she later learned was related to the lavender mare), there were truly no awe-inspiring mages. Even the much-coveted position of Archmage of Canterlot fell into the hooves of a bumbling buffoon, whose power could be contained in a teaspoon!

Like everything stagnant, Equestrians became content and lazy in their peaceful and easy life. The true wonders of the magic of ages long past became just a myth or legend. It was annoying as Luna considered herself a patron of arts and sciences. She decided there and then that she would stir up the hive and bring back the glory of ancient magic.

Luna shut the dusty tome, putting it away on a stack near her desk. She gazed upon the piles of books she had yet to read. It had not diminished since she began her study months before. She could swear Celestia snuck in when Luna was asleep and put more and more books onto the pile.

The urge to get out and do something was unbearable now. The sounds of the busy city, floating from beyond her window and beyond the wall of the palace were too distracting. Finally, Luna decided. She would go to see her sister. Perhaps Tia would humor her this time and they could spend a nice, quiet evening together, just like in times long past.

The blue alicorn got up and stretched to remove the strain of sitting too long in one position. She walked to the double doors to the study, gave one last look at the dusty room and with a frown on her muzzle, closed the doors. It was time to hunt down a sister.

Luna walked around the castle, still unused to the size and opulence of this new home. The Everfree Castle had been smaller, more defensive and not so… shiny. She really needed to talk to Celestia about adding some more blue and black to the design.

She passed many guards and uncountable doors on her way to the main floor of the palace. Many of the guards still gawked at her presence but they quickly schooled their faces into the customary dull expressions that were expected – at least once they saw her looking. She giggled at a guard whose eyes literally bulged out at the sight of her.

Luck seemed to be at her side as the next door opened and from within, the regal co-ruler of Equestria stepped out. She was levitating a scroll in her golden magic, smiling gently at the words contained within. Was it truly good news, to set off her sister like that? Luna remembered Celestia’s hate for paperwork.

“Tia!” – Luna enthusiastically exclaimed. – “I had enough of that dusty room. Would you mind spending some time with me?” – She added. – “And what’s the great news, to have you beaming at parchment like that?”

Celestia looked momentarily startled at being addressed so suddenly. Once she realized that the voice belonged to her beloved sister, she smiled affectionately.

“Oh good evening Lulu.” – Celestia said, gently nuzzling her younger sister. – “I will always find time for you, even at the cost of my own free time. I owe you that and much more. As for this, it is not a document per se… it is a friendship report from my student. Would you care to join me for a walk?’ – She finished, setting a leisurely pace, which Luna - not being back to her usual height – was grateful for.

The two sisters walked side by side through the palace’s long corridors, the younger still taking in as many sights as she could in order to better know her new home, while the elder penned a response to the letter she received from her student. When Celestia looked like she completed writing and sent the letter in a green wisp of smoke, Luna decided to break the silence.

“Your student, the lavender unicorn? The one that lead the element bearers to combat the Nightmare? I must take some time in the future to express my thanks. I am truly grateful for what she had done for me.” – She said. – “Yet I can’t get over the feeling that I somehow know her. She reminds me of somepony from long, long ago…”

Celestia smiled internally. She had also noticed the similarities between her student and the pony Luna mentioned. She decided to give her sister more information.

“If I were to take a guess, I would say that she reminds you of Clover. I am not surprised you noticed the similarities. After all, you and Clover were inseparable as friends. Let me tell you that these mares do not only share the coat and mane colors. Here, take her letter and tell me: What do you think?’ – Celestia explained, handing the letter into Luna’s magic.

The younger sister lowered the letter to her eyesight, giving it a quick but thorough read. Her eyes widened with each word as she progressed down the scroll. Once she finished reading, she gaped for a short while, before realizing what she was doing and handed over the letter back to her sister.

“It is… almost eerie how similar their thought processes are. This letter is verbatim to how Clover would write it. If I did not test most of the laws of magic myself, I would say that your student was a reincarnation of Clover. But that is impossible…” – Luna trailed off, lost in thought.

The alicorn sisters were outside in the gardens now, walking through the statue section, slowly approaching an aged and slightly cracked statue of a peculiar draconequus.

“Twilight is her descendant, as far as I am aware. You know from your studies that magic has a certain habit of doing the impossible…” – Celestia trailed off, sighing wearily at the sight of Discord. It pained her every time, as it brought back so many mixed memories. Luna noticed the sudden drop in her sister’s mood and decided to change the topic tactfully to something safer.

“This letter… It implies that it is one amongst many others. Is there perhaps a way that I could gain access and read through the rest of the correspondence? Or do you consider it private?” – The younger sister asked.

Celestia was thankful for the distraction. The idea of letting her sister benefit from her student’s studies had merit. It would certainly stop Luna from brooding so much.

“Perhaps.” She answered aloud. – “They are not too private and would serve as a nice distraction from the tomes you need to read. In addition, I have to think that you would benefit from a fellow scholar’s observations. There would have to be one promise though.”

“Anything sis! Well, at least within reason. I have a good memory and I still remember our banana split bet. It was messy and my ribs will never heal from the laughter we indulged ourselves in back then.” – Both sisters chuckled at this.

“These letters are very precious to me. I would ask you to be very careful in their handling. I plan on hanging them on the walls in my rooms, once my student graduates.”

Luna thought for a second, looking at their surroundings. They were on a small hill in the gardens proper with a single tree standing vigil over a small pond next to it.

“Of course I will! You can count on me, Tia.”

“Excellent. If it is not too much to ask… would you be willing to raise the moon tonight?” – Celestia asked gently, judging her sister’s reactions. Luna lowered her head in shame and the elder alicorn could swear she saw the glimmer of a tear. However, her sister, as expressive as she was, considered herself too strong to show weakness like that. Even to her own sister. It was this, which Celestia believed, led to her becoming so distant with her younger sister.

“I… I am sorry, sis. I… am not ready for that yet.” – Luna choked out, trying to sound neutral, but failing. – “Could… Could you please wait for me a little longer?” – She asked, a tear finally appearing in her eye.

Celestia pulled Luna into a tight embrace, using her wings to form a protective cocoon around her sister in her fragile moment. She knew she could not rush Luna into this. Wounds take time to heal, after all.

“Of course, Lulu. As much time as you need. I will be there and wait for you. Always and forever.”

Luna tightened the embrace as the floodgates opened and she let her tears flow freely.

“I know you will.” – She whispered softly.

Author's Note

Rewritten because I have higher standards now. Contains more flow and feels.

Ch I - Warming (Rewrite)

Stargazers

Chapter I - Warming

Daytime was slowly changing into nighttime over the magical land of Equestria. Far way on the distant horizon, the beautiful summer sky changed gradually into the darker hues of the twilight. All over Equestria, streets emptied as ponies returned to their homes to prepare supper.

A shrill cry of panic broke the silence in Ponyville. The last remaining ponies dotting the small town’s streets turned to the source of the scream. But once their eyes landed upon the building that the loud cry had originated from, they shrugged with indifference and went their way. Ponyville was already used to the librarian’s oddities.

The aforementioned library in itself was a sight to see. A massive living tree, hollowed out to house the Books and Branches library of Ponyville. Inside, shelves made mostly from the tree’s wood pulp sagged under the combined weight of many tomes of knowledge. Since the new librarian moved in, the library was always neatly organized, with books lined up perfectly on the shelves according to the library’s main catalogue. Pamphlets and magazines lay on their dedicated racks deeper within the main chamber of the building.

Yet, there was something different about the library this evening. Every spot was polished to a sparkle, and not a single mote of dust could be seen. The library smelled of fresh pine. The building was also filled with a sense of nervous expectation. The reason for this atmosphere was the librarian herself, a lavender colored mare with a dark blue mane and tail; two highlights in her mane, perfectly divided by her horn. The unicorn also sported a starburst Cutie Mark, indicating her deep connection with magic.

Twilight Sparkle - for that was the name of the unicorn - paced nervously on the topmost balcony of the library. The balcony itself was accessible through the mare’s private apartment on the top floor of the tree. The mare stopped occasionally to check the various items gathered for tonight’s stargazing session.

Normally Twilight would not bother so much with the library’s state while she was indulging in her favorite nighttime activity of observing the heavenly bodies. But this time she was expecting a visitor. None other than Princess Luna, the recently returned co-ruler of Equestria, had invited herself to exchange notes and observations on the topic of the night sky.

One might ask how the princess got wind of the activity. Apparently Princess Celestia, Twilight’s mentor and sister to Princess Luna, had been letting her sister read the correspondence exchanged between student and teacher. Twilight didn’t mind that fact.

What irked the lavender unicorn was the fact that there was little to no warning about the visit. The letter detailing the incoming visit had only arrived two hours ago! Twilight spent the time desperately cleaning the building from basement to attic with the help of her draconic assistant, Spike.

After taking inventory of the items on the balcony for the hundredth time, Twilight trotted inside of the building and prepared herself to holler at the top of her lungs.

“Spiiiikeeeee! Did you find the telescope? I could have sworn it was in the top floor storage room!” – She yelled into the building.

Almost immediately, the baby dragon ran into the room, carrying the aforementioned apparatus. The draconic assistant was looking a bit miffed for being yelled at, but quickly composed himself.

“Yes, yes, Twilight. Here you go. It was in the…” – He stopped when a purple aura of magic took the telescope from his grasp, accidentally pulling and effectively tripping him. He unsteadily got back to his feet, dusted himself off – even though the floor was clean and reflective as a mirror – and looked upon his slightly crazy surrogate sister with a smug smirk.

Twilight barely acknowledged her assistant as her magic quickly and precisely re-assembled the telescope. Turning back to him she paused for a second and addressed him.

“I hope you can forgive me for brushing you off like that Spike, but in order for this to work I need to have no distractions. If it helps, I organized for you to sleep over at Rarity’s. Make sure you grab your gems and basket on the way out!” – She quickly told Spike, whose eyes widened at the explanation.

“Whoa, that’s wicked! You got me to stay with Rarity! You’re like the best ever, Twilight!”

“Yes, well, tell me that AFTER you come back and reshelf and dust off the library tomorrow. Now off you go!”

With that, the purple dragon quickly ran out of the room, grabbing his necessities on the way. Finally, Twilight was left alone with her thoughts. Considering her vast intellect and slight obsession, her thoughts quickly went through normal thoughts and went to analyzing her incoming visitor.

Unlike Princess Celestia, who radiated some kind of aura of being untouchable, her younger sister was a bit easier to approach. The lavender unicorn considered it might have been a combination of Luna’s shy personality combined with her lack of knowledge of the modern equish culture. This made it easier for Twilight to relate to the younger alicorn princess, after all, she was also taking her first awkward steps on the social scene and study of friendship.

Twilight noted the sun slowly start on the last stretch before the night and went back to thinking. The move to Ponyville was unwelcome at first, what with all the unpleasantness of the events of that Summer Sun Celebration. Back then when night fell over Ponyville – her second night in her new home – she noticed the magnificent view offered from the balcony. There were no bright lanterns and the sky was mostly unobstructed. This made it perfect for stargazing, even though one third of the sky was hidden from the view by the tree’s corona.

Twilight’s musings were interrupted by soft knocking upon the doors. She muttered something about it being a public library under her breath and went down the stairs, quickly throwing her gaze upon everything on her way, assessing the state of the library. The knock repeated once more and the lavender pony opened the door wide.

On the other side of the door, there stood the younger princess of Equestria, in all her glory. Well, as much as a pony Twilight’s size, shifting nervously from hoof to hoof could be. The lack of light outside prevented Twilight from making more observations as her own body blocked the cone of light coming from indoors. Noticing the awkward silence, she decided to, as they say, break the ice.

“Hello Princess Luna! It’s a pleasure to see you again. Please, do come in.” – she said to the blue alicorn.

Luna shifted nervously once more and, gathering herself, entered the library. The inside lighting allowed Twilight to continue her observations of the visiting pony. Luna’s azure blue coat and lighter blue mane – which unlike her sister’s mane did not sway in an ethereal wind – were ruffled as if she flew against the wind for too long. Her larger than normal wings twitched nervously on her side and a black splotch of night sky with a moon on it adorned her posterior. A scarf decorated with astrological signs was wrapped around the mare’s neck.

Summing up, Twilight compared Luna to a vision of mysterious beauty. It was in that moment that the lavender mare felt her longtime crush (which bordered on unhealthy obsession) on her mentor shifting to the younger alicorn. The unicorn decided that she wanted to know more about the moon princess.

“Hail, Twilight Sparkle.” – Luna exclaimed with mixed uncertainty and authority. – “I am deeply sorry that I arrived earlier than indicated in our correspondence, but my sister convinced me to … raise the moon this evening. It would be my first moonrise since… a very long time…” – She trailed off, looking to Twilight in order to judge the unicorn’s reaction.

“Oh wow, that would be so wonderful, Princess Luna! I’ve always been fascinated by the celestial mechanics of raising the sun. I look forward to seeing you perform such an important act!’

“It is… not as glorious as my sister’s performance may be. My approach is more… subtle than hers is.” – The alicorn deflated, thinking about Twilight’s possible reaction. She still didn’t want to be compared to her sister.

“Oh, there’s no worry, Princess! I love all kinds of magic. My special talent is Magic, after all.” – Twilight assured Luna with a gentle smile.

The mares slowly walked through the library, the alicorn looking around with curiosity while the librarian once again took note of the state of her library. Upon seeing the entire balcony filled with books, star charts and a telescope, Luna cheered up a lot.

“Has the world changed so much? Did ponies really write so much about the wonderful night sky?” – The blue alicorn questioned the librarian enthusiastically.

“Yes. Ever since Princess Celestia scared all of the monsters into the Everfree Forest, ponykind stopped fearing the dark and the night. It’s not as active as the day perhaps, but ponies study the sky in search for the distant past. Some see it as a time of mystery and romance. It’s a shame it took us so long to learn to appreciate yo… the night.”

If Luna noticed the other pony’s slip up, she didn’t give any outward sign. She approached the railing, closing her eyes. Her horn lit up as the last rays of the sun touched her face. Standing like that, Twilight once more compared the alicorn to a vision of beauty.

“Now, watch, Twilight Sparkle. This is a duty I perform only because of my sister and because I feel that you will understand it.” – Luna said as her eyes opened to reveal white orbs of white light.

The librarian stood transfixed on the spot as the celestial spectacle begun, her mouth wide open with wonder. Motes of light shone from Luna’s horn and slowly stars started to light the darkening sky. Once the sun hid beyond the horizon, the moon revealed itself in its glory from beyond the mountains. Luna slowly shut her eyes as her horn extinguished. She turned slowly to examine the unicorn’s reaction.

Twilight stumbled out of her stupor. She closed her mouth and a wide, excited smile appeared on her face. Also, a sparkle ignited in her eyes.

“That… that was different. Both from how it felt when Princess Celestia handled the sun but also how the night… feels. When my teacher raises her sun, it’s full of pomp and enormous amounts of raw power. I’ve always studied to be at the peak of my power, but this… so much precision, such perfect control! And it feels like the night is more… energetic and it’s...” – The unicorn looked at Luna. – “…it’s welcoming you back!”

Luna was shocked. She expected something different from a student of Celestia. They were usually stuck up and constantly sung praise at her sister’s sun. This mare, however, not only gave Luna respect equal to her sister but more than that… she understood the night! It was invigorating and much unexpected, very unusual for a normal unicorn.

“I… thank you Twilight Sparkle.” – She said in a quiet but grateful tone. The passion in the unicorn’s voice made her blush.

“No, Princess, don’t thank me. I should be the one thanking you for that amazing demonstration. And please, call me by my first name. When ponies use my full name I expect I’m in trouble again for reading past my bedtime or rearranging Canterlot Library books into a book fort…” – Now it was Twilight’s time to blush as she realized what she had revealed. Luna chuckled at the images.

“Well then, Twilight, it should only be fair you drop my title and use my name. And do not worry, you find yourself in the company of a fellow scholar. I have also overindulged myself in good books from time to time.”

“If that’s your wish, Pri… Luna.” – The lavender pony replied, testing the name without the honorific. It felt… right. – “Now, Luna, would you care to see what ponies have figured out about the night sky during your absence?”

“That would be most wonderful, thank you.” – The alicorn replied as both mares approached the telescope and star charts.

The two ponies spent hours and hours discussing the beautiful night sky without even scratching the surface of all the knowledge gathered around. As the night got darker it also got colder, and the mares shifted subconsciously closer to each other, until they finally bumped sides together.

Both jumped back, surprised by the sudden closeness and locked hesitant eyes. After moments of deliberation, they sat back together and Luna put a wing around Twilight. The alicorn noticed that the lavender pony was still shivering. She took her scarf in her magic and offered half of it to her companion, so they could share it.

Twilight accepted the scarf and a smile slowly spread on her face as she looked up at the sky. She felt safe sitting next to Luna, who somehow made her feel more complete and at peace with herself than she had ever felt. Seeing the unicorn so enthralled by her night, Luna decided to give Twilight a gift.

“Look to the northern parts of the sky, Twilight” – The alicorn said with a small smile and slowly lit her horn.

Without warning, pinpricks of light appeared on the night, slowly changing to lines as they started to streak across the sky. After a second, Twilight realized what the mysterious objects were.

“Falling stars…” – The lavender mare whispered with awe and reverence in her voice.

Yes. Now, make a wish, my dearest friend.” – Luna whispered back.

“I wish we could stay like this forever.”

Author's Note

Once again, rewritten to achieve a better flow.

Interlude 1 - New Moon

Stargazers

Interlude I - New Moon

a.k.a. Why Luna speaks Middle Equish in one episode.

Discord, Knight of Disorder, Lord of Entropy, King of Confusion and God of Chaos was free. After over a thousand years of being trapped in stone, he was finally free! It was thanks to three random fillies and the weakening of the seal that was placed over him by the Elements! So random! So… chaotic!

The draconequus stretched his entire body, twisting it in a way that would make most creatures with a spine cringe in pain. With satisfaction, he snapped his clawed fingers. A soft, velvety couch appeared right behind him and he jumped onto it. It was time to plan for revenge.

Celestia would know very soon. He could feel her wards unraveling from the assault of his magic. In a few minutes they would dissolve and he would be free to go wherever he wished again. Now what to do…

He would need to disable the Elements. He could feel that they no longer responded to Celestia and her… sister! Aha! There was his target. If Luna kept to her previous schedule, she would be asleep now. Perfect time to strike!

Discord vanished his couch, turned himself invisible and floated into the palace, stepping through the doors as if they weren’t even there. To him they weren’t, of course. Reality bent in his wake as he floated through the almost empty corridors, inflicting minor pranks upon the guards and putting suggestions of chaotic acts into the minds of servants and maids.

One thing surprised him. There were portraits, sculptures and murals of Celestia everywhere… But where were Luna’s? The younger alicorn always considered herself a patron of the arts, so the lack of any kind of creations depicting her was unsettling. Ah. Perhaps she hoarded art in her rooms just like Celly hoarded sweets in her bedside hidey-hole.

Arriving at the moon-adorned double doors of Luna’s rooms, he snapped his claws again, bending the wards placed by the Moon Princess. He entered silently, with his tuba prepared to sound- No! Bad mind! He needed to stay quiet! The tuba vanished as he willed it away.

Now, what to do with little Lu? Turn her into stone? Nah. That would be unoriginal, albeit very ironic. Change her into an earth pony? Or perhaps a different creature altogether? A human perhaps? He decided against that action too, considering it would fuel fantasies for the readers…

After a few minutes of thinking in silence, while around him bubbles with random effects popped in and out, Discord had an epiphany. What was Luna’s greatest fear? The lack of communication and understanding between her, her sister and her ponies.

Perfect! With that, the draconequus snapped his fingers once again, changing Luna’s thought processes so she would speak and think in Middle Equish, not in the Late Equish language that the world has been using for the past two thousand years. He also restored her normal appearance, since for some reason she looked like a small filly. Perhaps he was ruining Celestia’s prank on her sister? ‘Excellent’ Discord thought as he rubbed his paws together. This would cause some major chaos.

Now, he only needed to hide those pesky Elements and twist the bearers and the world would be his playground again! The draconequus vanished, not leaving a trace after himself.

Unseen by him, Luna’s eyes snapped open, her normal irises replaced by dragon-like slits. Two kinds of laughter mixed in the castle. The insane chortle of a mad draconequus and the sinister laugh of a newly awakened Nightmare.

Author's Note

A bit of a perspective change.

If you are wondering why Luna didn't speak Modern Equish again after Discord was resealed.
Well, she did, but the chaos magic lingered for a bit, long enough for Luna to relearn it from Twilight.
Mind you that Luna didn't know anything about modern practices, no matter which language she spoke.

As to why her appearance hadn't reverted when he was defeated. Well, in this case this was a positive change for Luna and the Elements only got rid of unharmonious effects.

Ch II - Releasing (Rewrite)

Stargazers

Chapter II - Releasing

The next year passed in a blur of activity. Between the various catastrophes that befell both Ponyville and Equestria and the constant influx of new and additional duties that Luna seemed to be given, her visits to Twilight were shorter and shorter with each secret meeting. Yet, the relationship between the blue alicorn and the lavender unicorn was growing steadily and soon Twilight considered Luna to be one of her best female friends.

With the passing time, Twilight noticed something new about Luna. She was becoming fidgety and unfocused. The Moon Princess seemed to have problems with her own attention and sometimes acted as if Twilight wasn’t there. There was genuine surprise on her face sometimes when the unicorn spoke up after a long period of quiet and she would jump suddenly when touched.

When Twilight mentioned this weird behavior in one of her letters to Princess Celestia, her mentor tried her best to help her sister and her student. Yet there was not much she could do, aside from giving various tips about Luna. She also advised Twilight that Luna’s behavior might be influenced by the phases of the moon.

Twilight, as it was in her inquisitive nature, proceeded to make observations and spent days drawing various charts, graphs and diagrams. After all, proper prior preparation and precautionary planning prevent poor performance! Finally, she came to the only possible conclusion - there was no relation between the phases and Luna’s moods. What was going on with her friend, then?

There was one other method that Twilight could use to ascertain what was happening with the alicorn. She could magically scan the other mare. The problem with this method was that it was considered rude when performed without permission. There was no other way, though and the lavender unicorn had grown too close to Luna to simply give up.

So during one of the visits she discreetly cast the spell and waited for results. But Luna felt the intrusion and before it could finish completely, she just stood up and left. Twilight was distracted with the acquired data, so she didn’t take notice of the Moon Princess’s abrupt departure. The unicorn rushed to her basement.

There, the various machines used preciously to scan Pinkie Pie were easily reconfigured to analyze the spell composition from the data Twilight received from her scan. The results were quite clear and with the exception of Twilight’s magic there was only one spell active on Luna.

‘This equation makes no sense! Spells with such formulae were only used in the past by… Huh… This can’t be the case. The effect is magnified a thousand fold! This would make the spell… Oh no… I have to quickly find Luna!’ – Twilight thought, reading the results.

But the Moon Princess already left. The unicorn uneasily decided to postpone the confrontation until the next visit. When the date of the meeting came and Luna didn’t arrive, Twilight began to worry.

‘Did I offend Luna so much? Does she hate me now? Will she tell everything to Princess Celestia? Will she be disappointed in me?’ – Twilight’s thoughts took a turn into the worse as she stumbled backwards into a shelf, hyperventilating.

Luckily the collision caused a book to fall on Twilight’s head and knock her out. She was later found out cold by her friends. They took the time to listen about a mysterious friend, whom Twilight apparently offended. Most agreed that Twilight should simply give her friend some time and then try to apologize.

So time went on and there were no news from Luna. However, Twilight waited patiently, believing in her friends’ advice.

Everything changed that Nightmare Night. After a crazy two weeks of Discord and Twilight’s mental breakdown, Luna came to Ponyville. Unlike her previous visits though, Luna looked and acted completely different. She didn’t acknowledge Twilight, she spoke in an unusual way and her new looks confused the unicorn. The Moon Princess looked her part now – her mane was blowing in an ethereal wind with stars shining in it. Her coat was a darker color. She also stood taller than most ponies, with the exception of Big Macintosh or Twilight’s brother, Shining Armor.

After all the events of the night, Twilight cornered Luna in an enclosed clearing in the Everfree Forest and tried to explain things to her. At first, the princess appeared confused and didn’t seem to remember any meetings with Twilight. But suddenly a spark appeared in her eyes and Luna embraced the smaller mare.

“We remember! We art sorry for Our oversight, dearest Twilight. ‘Tis as if a veil was lifted from Our eyes! We… I mean, I… have been neglecting thou!” – She apologized, crestfallen.

“It’s okay, Luna. At first I thought that you needed some time away from me, but I recently looked over the results of my spell probe and figured out what the problem is with your… erratic behavior.” – Twilight said and the alicorn raised an eyebrow.

“We remember thine spell. It was not very polite of thou to cast it without Our permission. Pray tell, what could this problem be?”

“Do you know the practice of unicorn mothers of old, that consisted of casting a protection spell over young foals, to prevent them from being forced into unwanted… well, coupling?” – Twilight asked with a blush.

“Indeed. We… I remember Our… my mother casting the spell on me… It was such a long time ago.” – Luna replied with a thoughtful frown on her face.

“You see… according to my probe from our last meeting, there is only one spell active on you. It’s… the protection spell.”

“But… from what We… I know of the spell, it should have worn off a long time ago, with my passing into marehood.”

“Normally that would be the case… but according to the probe, you had it cast on you about a year and a half ago.” – Twilight explained, avoiding Luna’s eyes.

“A year and a half? But why would… Ah. Our… my return!” – exclaimed the Moon Princess with sudden fierceness. – “If this is Tia’s idea of a prank then…” – She trailed off.

“No, Luna. It seems like the spell has been… Well… Princess Celestia made… a mistake. It looks like she cast the spell not only upon your return, but once in the past as well. According to my research and calculations, she did not take into account her power and basically… made the spell a thousand times more potent than it should ever be.”

The mares sat in complete silence for a while, Luna absorbing what has been said and Twilight shifting nervously opposite her. Finally, Luna’s eyes widened as realization struck.

“You mean to tell me that…! All of that time alone, friendless and bottling all my growing feelings was a result of… a mistake? Because my sister overpowered a SIMPLE SPELL?” – The alicorn asked, confused and angry.

“Yes. And it seems that it’s happening again. The spell is powered by your own magic now, so the more you return into your element, the more it binds you and the further you lose interest in all relations with ponies. But on full moons, when your power peaks, your nature slightly overpowers the barrier. That’s when you try to befriend ponies.”

“That is troublesome. Is there a way to remove the spell?” – Luna asked. – “I would ask my sister but I sense it would be very awkward for the both of us.”

“You’re in luck Luna! Of all the ponies in Equestria, only three ponies have the power and knowledge to perform such magic. As your sister’s student, I have the highest chance of achieving success. Well… other than the original caster, Princess Celestia herself.”

Luna thought for a second, her mind working out the pros and cons and of course the first were more numerable than the latter. She needed to be free.

“Do it.” – She said with determination, approaching the lavender unicorn.

Twilight nodded in response and used her magic to clear a patch of land around Luna. She then carved various paths and symbols inside of a crude circle. Finally, looking at Luna, she lit her horn and made a stabbing motion in the direction of the alicorn. Sweat started to fall from Twilight’s brow as she concentrated on supplying power to the unbinding spell. There was a sound like a rope snapping and Luna visibly relaxed.

Now that the barrier was gone, their shared feelings, preciously strong enough to seep through the barrier, returned magnified. Both Luna and Twilight suddenly understood what the feeling was. It was as if they could finally see each other clearly.

Both mares approached each other carefully, slowly, as if testing the ground. Neither of them broke eye contact as the distance between them reduced to mere inches. With a soft sound, their muzzles connected in a first, tentative kiss as their eyes closed.

The kiss was nothing epic, just a simple peck, but for both of the ponies it was glorious. Twilight decided to kiss Luna once more, just to feel that feeling again. This time, however, Luna opened her mouth and pushed her tongue out, deepening the kiss. This new sensation proved to be too much for both as they felt lost for an eternity.

Both mares emerged from the deep kiss, requiring air. They gently embraced each other and sat in the clearing, watching the stars winking at them from the beautiful night sky above. An hour later, they retired to the library.

Before dawn, Luna woke up in Twilight’s bed. Still sweaty from the passionate night she shivered in the predawn cold air. She placed the quilt over the lavender mare, hugged Twilight and kissed her on the forehead. With a last look at her newfound love, the alicorn flew out through the balcony door, heading for Canterlot.

Arriving in Canterlot, Luna quickly navigated the palace, approaching the giant double door to her sister’s chambers. The two Guards, stationed on both sides, scampered away as the entrance was thrown open with the dark blue alicorn’s magic.

Inside, bathed in a dim, false sunlight, were her sister’s rooms. In Luna’s opinion they were much too opulent compared to the previous accommodations in the Everfree Castle. Several hoof-crafted pieces of white wood furniture stood here and there. A majestic desk stood to one side, covered in several documents and scrolls. Half a dozen bookcases filled with romance, of all the things, stood against the main wall. In the middle of the room, there lay a giant velvet pillow, on which her elder sister currently slept. With a mischievous smirk, Luna silently approached the white alicorn and with a giant intake of air, unleashed the power of the Royal Canterlot Voice.

“Wake up dearest Tia! You have some explaining to do!” – Luna exclaimed and the voice shook the entire palace. She could hear glass breaking in the distance.

Celestia stood up with a start, her sleepy eyes filled with panic as her messy bedmane tangled around her. She did a double take as her eyes fell upon her sister and she relaxed, slipping her peaceful mask back on. She graced Luna with an irritated smile.

“Lulu, dearest sister! How many times have I told you? Do not wake me before I need to raise the sun, unless there is an emergency? And I told you, nobody uses the Royal Canterlot Voice anymore.” – She chided, regaining her patience.

Now that Celestia looked at her own sister properly, there was something different about her. She wasn’t furious but looked irked, just like she did in the past when a prank backfired and Celestia caught her in a counter-prank. This was new.

“’Tis… I mean… It is true. But you have to explain yourself. Then, after I feel you understand what happened, you will join me in scouring the Royal Archives. There’s a need for Starswirl’s book.”

Celestia perked up, hearing that. If Luna mentioned his book, things were going to get interesting in Ponyville soon.

“Are you saying my student is ready for the next level?” – She asked to clarify. – “Did she achieve another impossible thing? You know she needs to understand the magic of friendship to pass the final test.”

“Nay, she is not ready. But from what I know of her, it will be soon, very soon. She has shown me her true power by breaking your enchantment. Besides, it will take a long time to find the blasted book, you never remember when you put away your things…” – Luna trailed off, seeing as Celestia had perked up even more.

“I’m proud of her, although I have to admit, I am confused right now. What enchantment? And don’t tell me she got the ward over Ponyville. It took me ages to set that up!” – The white alicorn complained.

“She broke the maternal protection spell over me.” – Luna replied, with an angry blush.

Celestia was once again confused and pondered the answer for a second, frowning.

“Why would she need to break that? It shouldn’t be there as it was meant to dissolve on its own a long time ago. I cast it so it would last only half a month to protect you from some of the… advances you might have received.”

“Yes, yes, I know your overprotectiveness. Sadly, you forgot to take your power into account, as usual. If it wasn’t for Twilight’s intervention it would have vanished on its own, aye, but only after six hundred years!” – Luna ended with an angry exclamation. – “Just. Like. Before!”

The implications of the last sentence which was said between her younger sister’s teeth made Celestia balk. She quickly ran to the blue alicorn, trying to embrace her in an apologetic hug. Luna reluctantly returned the embrace.

“I’m sorry! I’m so, so sorry, little sister. It seems that because of my good intentions, I have made even more mistakes than I realized…. I thought I was protecting you! Instead I have driven everypony away from you! Will you find it in your heart to forgive me once more?” – Celestia asked, tearing up.

Luna looked at her sister. There was no dishonesty in her sister’s expression. She was genuinely regretting the past mistakes. Deciding to lay that part of her past to rest, she finally decided.

“Of course I do.” – She replied softly. – “Just as you have forgiven my transgressions, so I will put our past faults where they belong – in the past. If we are to survive eternity together, there has to be no animosity between us.”

Celestia’s tears slowly dried up as the sisters sat embracing each other, taking comfort in the knowledge that they had someone that would support them no matter what happened. Finally, a thought occurred to the white alicorn and a smirk graced her muzzle.

“Now, what happened after Twilight broke the spell, hmm? You’re awfully ruffled!” – Celestia exclaimed.

“TIA!”

Author's Note

Another rewrite!

To clarify: Luna looks like her S1 self until Discord happens.
So Twilight would see the new Luna for the first time on Nightmare Night.

Interlude II - Hearth's Warming Eve

Stargazers

Interlude II - Hearth's Warming Eve

A chill lingered in the air that even the warm sun shining in the sky couldn’t dissipate. The pegasi of the weather teams, tasked with controlling the climate of Equestria, blessed their brethren with clear conditions. But even they could not fend off the winter cold. The grand capital of Canterlot, nested high on the slope of Mount Canterhorn, was colder still. Normally, such an icy day would warrant that the ponies would stay inside, warming themselves in front of the hearth with a warm drink nearby. Instead, many ponies were outside, wrapped snugly in warm scarves and with heavy winter boots on their hooves. Today was a special day, after all: Hearth’s Warming Eve. To mark the occasion, a special pageant re-enacting the founding of Equestria – starring none other than the current bearers of the fabled Elements of Harmony no less! – was to be held in the Royal Canterlot Theatre.

In the theatre, hidden from the audience in a private viewing box, two special guests were seated: their Royal Majesties, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. The elder – distinctly the more calm and dignified of the two – patiently sat and waited for the act to begin. She had played a hoof in setting up the play and was looking forward to seeing the results. Of course, she wanted to surprise the younger – the self-proclaimed patron and enthusiast of arts and sciences – who was shifting restlessly with anticipation and anxiety, eager for the performance to begin.

The curtains opened and lights dimmed, signaling the start of the play. A young drake appeared in one of the spotlights, beginning the narration.

“Once upon a time, long before the peaceful rule of Celestia, and before ponies discovered the beautiful land of Equestria, ponies did not know harmony.” – Spike narrated, clearly enjoying the attention. – “It was a strange and dark time, a time when ponies were torn apart by hatred!”

“Is that Spike?” – Luna asked her sister. – “Isn’t he Twilight’s assistant? Does this mean Twilight is here?” – She continued asking. – “Also, why is only your rule mentioned?”

“Yes, that is Spike.” – Celestia replied. – “You will soon see where Twilight is. And I'm sorry to say that out of my eagerness to present this play I simply forgot to edit you in. Don’t worry, you will be featured in the next version.”

“I know she has to nearby. She rarely leaves him alone.” – Luna said, subconsciously scanning the room for the lavender pony.

This behavior did not go unnoticed by Celestia, who chuckled.

“Very well, I've held in long enough. My student is indeed nearby. As a matter of fact, she’s participating in the play as well.”
The white alicorn knew that information would get Luna’s attention. The younger sister tried to hide it, but Celestia knew how strong the feelings harbored by her sister were. It was impossible to ignore the clues hidden in the letters from her student. After that, it was just a simple puzzle to solve and Celestia finally understood that Twilight and Luna were secretly dating.

“She is in the play as well?!” – Luna exclaimed excitedly.

“Yes. To do something special for this year’s celebrations, I asked Twilight and her friends to star in the play.”

“What is the play about?”

“You will see very soon.”

Looking forward to seeing her secret marefriend’s performance, Luna calmed herself down and begun to pay attention to the play. Her change of behavior was witnessed by Celestia, who smiled and joined her sister in silent observation.

Rainbow Dash, playing the role of Commander Hurricane, had come onto the stage. “All I want to know is why the earth ponies are hogging all the food!” – she called out angrily.

“I don’t remember Hurricane being a mare. I think somepony forgot an important detail there.” – Luna teased her sibling.

“Shh!” – shushed Celestia. Luna poked her tongue out at her sister, who responded in kind. The mares giggled softly. It was not often they had time to be themselves. With their royal duties, they were expected to be dignified and stoic at all time and so they relished the opportunity to be silly with each other in the privacy of their booth.

“You’re not the boss of me, your royal snootiness!” – Rainbow was clearly enjoying her role.

“He was always impulsive and brash, was he not?” – Luna asked. – “He knew a lot, but never really stopped to think.”

“Yes, there was no denying he had a brilliant mind and I enjoyed his spontaneity.” – Celestia replied sadly. – “But in the end, it cost him everything.”

“Umm… Tia, I was talking about Hurricane.”

“Oh, sorry. I must have zoned out for a moment.”

Luna nuzzled her sister affectionately.

“Cheer up, sis. We are here to enjoy the play!”

“Clover the Clever! I need you!” – Rarity, playing Princess Platinum, called out.
“Yes, your majesty? Did the other pony tribes see reason as I predicted?” – Twilight Sparkle, playing the part of Clover the Clever, entered the stage.

“By the stars!” – Luna gasped with a sudden intake of breathe. – “The resemblance… it’s unbelievable… Is that… Is that her travelling cloak?”

“No. I do not know what became of Clover's belongings.” – Celestia told her sister. – “They were probably lost to the ages. This is a replica, created by the palace tailors to my specifications.”

“I see.” – Luna said, and her ears drooped a little.

By now, Twilight was carrying Rarity on her back with a makeshift saddle and rein…

Neither sister remembered this happening in the past, but they weren't sure Rarity would have agreed to perform on a dirty stage otherwise.

“You really cared for her, didn't you?”

“She was my best friend. Given a little more time… we may even… have…” – Luna sighed, steeling herself to ask a question she had been dreading since she was freed. – “What… what happened to Clover… after I… left?” – Luna asked, fearing the answer.

This time, it was Celestia whose head and ears drooped.

“I… I do not know. She came to me distraught, not long after… you had to leave. We had an argument; she accused me of not caring for you enough and said that if I had been a better sister, you would still be there.”

“’Tis a lie!” – Luna suddenly interjected. – “You are the best sister anypony could ever ask for! It was not your fault – it was the Nightmare…” – She stopped suddenly as Celestia held a hoof up.

“Unicornia!” – Rarity called out from the stage. Clearly Rainbow wasn't the only one having a great time.

“Neither of us were in the right state of mind. I retorted, and told her that if she had been a better friend, I‘d still have my sister” – Celestia sighed, continuing wearily. – “Then she told me that I hurt anypony that gets close to me and doom befalls those who love me. Friends, family, Sombra, Discord, Luna… I tried to silence her with a spell, to stop her from saying any more hurtful things, but she beat me to it. She had cast a spell and it hit me, sending me flying across the room.”

“She didn't! She couldn't! She wouldn't!” – Luna was genuinely shocked, that a gentle soul like Clover would harm another pony, let alone one of the rulers of the Everfree Castle.

Clover the Clever! Throw that brute into the dungeon!” – Rarity levitated Twilight in front of Rainbow. She was yelling her lines again. Just as a past magician would not stand a chance against a commander of the pegasi, there was no hope of Twilight throwing her friend Rainbow anywhere…

Luna had one eye and ear focused on the theatrics and one on her sister.

“The guards didn't try to stop her as she left. If she could throw me like that, they knew they would not stand a chance. I instructed them to not pursue her and to leave her be. I never saw her again after that day. Those events, combined with your… absence, shattered my resolve and I left Equestria to fend for itself for ten years. When I came back, Clover was long gone… I later learned that she continued her studies, becoming a powerful mage and inventing a great many new spells. Everypony knew the name of Clover the Clever.”

“How is she related to Twilight, then?”

“After you… err… left us, Clover found comfort and solace in the hooves of a stallion. He was an intellectual, just like her. By the reports, the two had a long and happy marriage. They had two foals together, first a colt and then a filly. Their family vanished into the pages of history, though. I always suspected the Sparkle family was the main line of Clover’s descendants. When Twilight first came to my school and I witnessed her magical display, my suspicions were confirmed. I asked the Sparkles about their lineage. Twilight is descended from Clover’s second foal, the filly. It seems those descended from Clover are always blessed with a filly as their second foal. Twilight Sparkle was the second to be born of her mother, Twilight Velvet, who in turn was the second to be born to her mother, and so on.”

Satisfied with her sister’s explanation, but still hurting for her lost friend, Luna fully directed her attention back to the play to distract herself from her thoughts. On stage, Pinkie, Rainbow and Rarity argued, keeping to their roles.

“Wait a minute… where’d all this snow come from, anyway?” – Pinkie wondered aloud, portraying Chancellor Puddinghead.

As the ponies continued to argue, the stage frosted over, courtesy of unicorn magic. Pegasi above were shaking snowflakes onto the stage. The curtains closed, indicating the end of an act.

“Everypony was forced to seek shelter. They searched high and low, but the only shelter for miles was a cold and desolate cave.” – Spike narrated.

When the curtains opened, the argument had shifted into an icy cavern. With nowhere else to move to, the three continued yelling at and insulting each other. As the arguments grew more heated, the stage grew colder. Some ponies in the front rows started to shiver, the cold air spilling over them.

“Look everypony! The entrance!” – Twilight was pointing to the cave door.

Ice then started to creep inward, eventually covering the leaders of the pony tribes. Pinkie, Rarity and Rainbow – playing the leaders of the three tribes – were temporarily frozen inside. Everypony knew it was just a spell and they were perfectly fine, but the effect was very believable.

A quiet sniffle interrupted Luna’s concentration. She looked to the side, finding her sister at the floor, her eyes glistening.

“You really miss him, don’t you?” – She gently asked her sibling.

“Yes.” – Celestia replied quietly. – “It’s just… I can’t stand to think about anypony being encased like that. I know it’s just an act and they’ll be fine, but… I'm sorry, I'm being silly. Please go back to enjoying the play.”

Luna put a leg around her sister to console her. Even after a millennium had passed, Celestia was still clearly upset about what had transpired.

The ice continued to creep inward, eventually consuming Fluttershy, then Applejack and finally, Twilight. Just as she was about to be fully encased, Twilight activated her own magic, creating a large, flaming heart. The spell simultaneously melted the ice, gradually freeing her friends, and illuminating the audience in a warm pink glow.

“You really care for her, don’t you?” – Celestia asked, noticing Luna’s fixation on Twilight.

“I care very deeply for Twilight.” – The younger sister agreed. – “She has done so much for me. When I am with her, I feel different. I feel… happy. Like it’s just her and me, and nothing else in the world matters.”

“It sounds like you love her?” – The elder sister asked, a warm smile on her face, in stark contrast to her still glistening eyes.

“I… don’t know. How can you tell? She wished upon a falling star that things between us could never change. What if she doesn't love me? What if she’s only with me because the night granted her wish?”

Celestia patiently waited for Luna to finish her questions. Then Luna asked the question that Celestia had been expecting and new the answer for certain.

“What if she dies? Is it ever possible to move on and love another? Do you regret the time you had with… him?”

“Never.” – Celestia stated firmly, ending her sister’s questions. “I would trade those times for nothing!”

“The three leaders agreed to share the beautiful land and live in harmony forever afterwards. And together, they named their new land...” – Spike trailed off, prompting the others to finish.

“Equestria!” – everypony on the stage called out.

Satisfied with the answer and remembering the joy they had so long ago, the two alicorns smiled and hugged each other. Then they joined in singing the play’s finale – a song both of them knew very well, for it was a song they had written a long time ago.

“The fire of friendship;
“Lives in our hearts.
“As long as it burns;
“We cannot drift apart.
“Though quarrels arise;
“Their numbers are few.
“Laughter and singing;
“Will see us through.
“We are a circle of pony friends;
“A circle of friends we'll be to the very end!”

Wild applause started as the play concluded and the stars and crew bowed to their audience. The two sisters joined in, stomping their approval and cheering wildly. If anypony could see them, they’d probably be horrified of the lack of decorum the two were displaying. But neither cared. For despite the sad conversations they had that night, they were truly happy again. They felt closer together after enjoying the play. It was not long before they were laughing at the good times they had in the past with their old friends and discussing their favourite sections of the performance.

The Hearth’s Warming Eve play was over. Ponies poured en masse from every exit of the theatre into the still-busy streets of Canterlot. The sun was setting. Unseen by the gatherings, the two alicorns stood on a high balcony and watched the crowd intently. Not wanting to cause a fuss, they remained out of sight to perform their twice-daily duties.

Not only that, each of the sisters was anxious to hear how the play was received – Celestia because she had written the play (this fact still unknown to Luna) and Luna because she wanted to see if Equestria still appreciated the art of performance. So far, their ears had caught only praise for the pageant, pleasing both of them.

Watching the crowd, Celestia recognized some, but not all, of the ponies. The guards were doing an admirable job directing the large crowd and helping those unfamiliar with Canterlot to the train station or to hotels where they could spend the night.
She could hear the whistle of the train as it arrived. She vowed to take Luna on a train ride one day – she knew without doubt that Luna would love to see the inner workings of the train and view the countryside. Not to mention the company! The pegasi pulling their chariots were often too focused on flying to engage in conversation, but aboard a train, fellow passengers were always happy to talk. Of course, Luna was more likely to be interested in the technology of the train than those who were on it, but Celestia knew her sister couldn't avoid society forever.

Glancing to her side, she saw that Luna had flown off and hovered next to an open window, through which Celestia could hear Twilight and her friends. The younger alicorn clearly looked distracted by the byplay inside of the rooms. Celestia saw this as a perfect opportunity to play a joke on her sister and at the same time, confirm her sister’s feelings. She silently flew to join Luna.
“Do you love her because she’s Twilight Sparkle? Or do you love her because she reminds you of Clover?” – Celestia asked, taking advantage of Luna’s preoccupation.

“I love her because she’s Twilight Sparkle.” – Luna replied without thinking.

Suddenly realizing she was no longer alone, Luna gasped loudly and landed near the back entrance. She realized what exactly she had just said.

“Then go to her.” – Celestia told her sister with a smile, landing next to her. – “Be with my student and be happy. Love her in the time that you have together.”

“Thank you, Tia. It means a lot to me that we have your blessing.”

With a hug for goodbye, Luna entered through the back entrance. She went up the stairs and stood in front of the doors, hesitantly raising her hoof to knock.

‘Get yourself together, Luna. You are the Sovereign of the Night, the Dreamwalker. If Twilight’s wish is to be with you, then you should gladly grant her wish – with all your heart!’ – She thought as she rapped on the doors twice. The entrance opened, revealing Twilight, who immediately jumped to hug Luna.

Celestia returned to the balcony, smiling that her subjects – including Twilight and Luna – were so happy. She took flight, intending to return to the Canterlot Palace to get some sleep.

With Celestia at peace with the past and Luna confident in her love for Twilight – unknown to both sisters – they both then thought the same thing:

“It will happen soon.”

Author's Note

A chapter, this time co-authored with 90Sigma.

Happy Easter!

Ch III - Becoming (Rewrite)

Stargazers

Chapter III - Becoming

Days passed by as Luna and Twilight grew closer and closer together as they spent the rare free moments on exchanging knowledge. The lavender unicorn taught the blue princess about the advancements of ponykind in the fields of astronomy, astrology and quantum physics. Luna reciprocated by passing on her knowledge of the arcane, often prompting Twilight on mad research sprees. Both mares appreciated their meetings and looked forward to each following one, as the alicorn often has duties in Canterlot. Even Twilight had her assigned duties of studying the magic of friendship. Between reports, she often indulged herself in experimenting on what she learned on previous visits from her marefriend. It was one of these testing sessions that quite explosively accelerated Twilight’s destiny.

The sun had just set for the day and Luna’s beautiful moon and twinkling stars welcomed the last stragglers of Ponyville in the embrace of the night. In the dusty basement of the town’s library a lavender unicorn was gently tipping one test tube over another, professionally assessing the amount of liquid that dripped down.

The mare’s eyes were bloodshot and her mane unkempt. Sweat rolled of her brow as she concentrated on the task in front of her. This was the third day in a row she hadn’t slept, but she just had to finish this experiment! It was the culmination of a long research, combining new techniques with ancient arcane knowledge. She knew this would result in a great discovery, which would change the way ponies perceived magic. She could feel it!

But fate is always fickle and she had other plans for the unicorn. The moment when Twilight had to stop the liquid from flowing, she dozed off, closing her eyes as weariness overcame her. The mare’s eyes flew wide open as the realized the mistake she had made. She just destabilized the blend. And if her research was correct, that would result in a fatal meltdown and end in an explosion.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as the drop travelled the small distance between the two tubes, mocking Twilight for her mistake. In response, the unicorn’s mind worked on overdrive as it calculated each possible outcome and possible ways of escape. Few unicorns could boast about being able to move fluids using their magic, but Twilight was one of them. Yet, the fluid was highly susceptible to magic and would only hasten the reaction. There was a possibility of teleporting herself or the vials away, but the force of the explosion would still travel along with her. She could also run out, but her lack of physical fitness and the fact that Spike slept upstairs stopped her.

There was one other way, the only way left. She could use her brother’s speciality and try to shield herself or contain the explosion within a ward. Such methods were frowned upon by the Royal Canterlot Academy of Sciences, as explosions tended to bloat the structure of the spell, causing it to puncture and release the force in one direction. Usually there was no way of controlling which way the explosion would expand, but Twilight was confident in her magical prowess. The shield would keep her from fatal harm and the ward would help her direct the massive amounts of expanding energy into the empty fields behind her library.

As she lit her horn, Twilight’s thoughts turned towards the library. It would suffer greatly, even with the many flame-resistant spells she had woven into every single book in order to protect them from Spike’s flame. With a last weary sight, she collected the required magic and cast the necessary spells. Time resumed its course as a shimmering magenta ward popped into existence around the two tubes.

Then, the library became bedlam.

In the majestic capital of Canterlot, Luna had just begun her Night Court, when her senses were assaulted by an alarm that sounded in her head. She immediately recognized the source as the anti-harm ward erected over Ponyville by Celestia, back when Twilight was first sent to Ponyville. Casting a quick look over at the meager amount of supplicants (a whooping two ponies!), she decided upon her next course of action.

“It has come to Our attention that there is an emergency that requires Our immediate departure. Court shall be adjourned until the problem will be resolved. You are hereby dismissed!” – Luna exclaimed loudly, addressing the entire gathering at once. As Luna carefully selected her own personnel, there was no murmuring amongst her servants as they quickly and orderly left the throne room.

The alicorn wasted no time as she stormed through a side entrance, nodding to two Night Guard to accompany her. She exited the palace through the nearest exit and immediately took to the air. Her guards followed, as always silent as shadows. The flight to Ponyville was quick and uneventful. Luna dived the remaining distance to the small town, surveying it midflight like a hawk and identifying the source of alarm at once. The town’s library was on fire.

Landing hastily in front of the gathered crowd, the alicorn took over command with no opposition.

“Gather all able unicorns, have them contain the fire. Pass on to weather team members I’m allowing the creation of a class-V rain cloud to douse the fire. Every earth pony available should proceed to dig a ditch around the outskirts of Ponyville to stop the fire from spreading. Now go!” – Luna quickly barked out the orders. – “Now, can anypony tell me what happened here? And where is the librarian?” – She addressed the remaining ponies.

A mare stepped forward and nervously readied herself. The Princess could clearly see that the ponies in this town no longer feared her but her visage still demanded utmost respect.

“A little while ago Spike, the juvenile drake, stumbled out of the library. He quickly ran around town, informing everypony of the explosion and the fire that followed. Due to his innate resistance to fire, he was able to re-enter the tree and check the situation inside. It seems the librarian, Miss Twilight Sparkle, is trapped inside the basement.” – The pony said and Luna finally placed a name, Mayor Mare.

The alicorn’s face hardened as she turned to face the burning building. Her horn lit up in a teal aura and a quick succession of spells was cast. The remaining unicorns marveled at the power that was displayed in front of them. They finally remembered why the alicorn sisters were hailed as goddesses.

A dense teal shield appeared around the alicorn as she approached the tree. Luna was visibly straining against something as sweat started to pour from her brow. Suddenly a loud, resounding crack reverberated throughout Ponyville and the entire library rose majestically in the air and flew a few yards down the road. The onlookers watched in awe as their Princess flared her wings and rose over the place where the tree once stood. Massive piles of debris lit with a teal glow and flew away to reveal the badly burnt floor of the basement. In the middle of the still blazing inferno, Twilight Sparkle lay, singed but still holding a flickering shield over herself.

Luna’s heart clenched at the sight of the battered body of her marefriend. She gently levitated Twilight, scanning her for damage. Her coat was burnt away and her mane and tail were singed, otherwise she didn’t show outside damage. Internal scans revealed fractured ribs and a broken front leg bone, nothing magic and proper healthcare couldn’t help with. Finally, to be sure of the magical examination’s result, the alicorn checked Twilight’s pulse. Her heart was still beating but it was getting weaker and weaker. Gathering magic in her horn, Luna tried to stimulate the organ so it would pick up its pace, but this only caused the shield around the injured to flicker back to life. It seemed the battered unicorn was subconsciously protecting herself from invasion. Clearly, this was a sign of the smaller mare’s magical potential.

Deciding to trust in olden earth pony ways, she gently laid the unicorn on a flat surface of nearby grass, careful not to agitate any injuries. It was high time, as Twilight’s heart gave up and the shield around her faded out of existence. Luna started a heart massage. After a few pushes, she inhaled deeply and lowered herself to push air into her marefriend’s lungs. The onlookers were once more dazed, as it looked like the princess was kissing the town’s librarian. Luckily, the earth ponies in the crowd quickly explained the process.

Finally, the alicorn leaned in to listen for Twilight’s heartbeat. It was back now and getting steadier now ad her chest raised and lowered with each breath. Luna shifted and kissed the lavender unicorn on the lips. Twilight awoke to a massive amount of pain and immediately wished she didn’t. Yet, a very pleasurable sensation on her lips kept her from passing out again. She instinctively raised her hooves and weakly embraced Luna, pushing out her tongue to explore the alicorn’s mouth. Pain was immediately forgotten as the two mares lost themselves in the moment. Reluctantly, Luna broke the kiss, fearing not the crowd’s reaction, but Twilight’s fragile health. She looked down to the unicorn lovingly.

“Let us get you to the hospital so they can patch you up. As much as I’d love to heal you with kisses, I am afraid that such method would not be too effective.” – Luna said quietly. – “But I promise you, once you get out of there, I am not letting you go!” – She half-joked.

The only response from Twilight was a slow nod. The alicorn turned back to the crowd, lifting Twilight once more in her magic. The gathered townsfolk were stupefied – that wasn't first aid, the two mares just downright kissed! A cheer started in the back rows and quickly the gathering took up a chant, stomping both for the librarian’s survival and in approval for the newly discovered relationship. Luna quickly covered the distance between the library and the hospital in a few flaps of her wings, passing the injured unicorn into the safety of the already waiting medical team.

The alicorn walked back to where the library stood and once more lit her horn. The tree lifted in the air again and she rooted it down back where it belonged. Rearing suddenly, she brought down her front hooves onto the charred bark of the tree, straining with the fading magic of the living building. Her earth magic flared to life and slowly, but surely, the tree begun to restore to its previous state. The bark begun to repair itself and the leaves took on a healthy luster. Luckily, all the books stored inside the library survived with the help of the anti-fire enchantments. Luna quickly addressed the remaining crowd and took to air, eager to get back to Canterlot.

The guards already knew to step away if they saw Princess Luna approach, especially if the night alicorn galloped at full speed from her landing on the nearest balcony. Luna mercilessly busted the door open and unceremoniously approached her sister’s bed. Celestia was once again awakened by her sister’s masterful use of the Royal Canterlot Voice and swore to herself to take away Luna’s voice for a day if she ever used it again.

“Yes, Lulu, what is it this time?” – The elder sister asked groggily, still half-asleep.

“Tia, Tia! You have to send the book to Twilight soon!” – Luna begged, tearing up and hugging her sister. – “That mare is so reckless and prone to accidents! If it weren't for that ward, Faust only knows if she’d live to see tomorrow! I couldn't live without her now that I accepted these feelings!”

Celestia was startled at the emotions emanating from her distraught sister and the news that the mare that she considered almost her own daughter nearly died only made her falter. She steeled her pounding heart.

“But… is she okay, Lulu? Was she badly hurt? What happened?” – She asked.

“Twilight should be fine now, I left her in the tender care of the best ponies the Ponyville Hospital has to offer. At least I hope so…” – She trailed off, wiping tears from her muzzle and picked up immediately. – “She was singed all over and had a few broken bones. It seems one of her experiments got out of hoof and there was a giant explosion. When I uncovered her body, her heart had stopped from shock. I… Tia… I’ve never felt so scared before!” – She broke out in sobs again.

Celestia hugged her sister tightly and tried to stop herself from following Luna into emotions. It was an unsuccessful attempt. Both sisters wept openly for the fragility of their beloved ponies and especially the quirky lavender mare, which wormed herself into both of their hearts. After a long and supportive embrace, they parted, the elder with a determined look on her muzzle.

“The book will be sent to her as soon as she’s released from the hospital. We don’t want her to try to overexert herself by casting the spell in her current state. It could prove to be disastrous.” – Celestia said, with a sad look of remembrance in her eyes. – “Soon, this will be just a sad memory and we will drown it out in happy, positive new ones!”

A month later, the book was sent. The sisters impatiently waited for results, both hoping for the best as Ponyville descended into chaos. It seemed that all hope was lost when Twilight gave up, but then on the last hours of the day, both Luna and Celestia felt the harmonic energies converging in Ponyville. The alicorns rejoiced, for they knew that the lavender pony had succeeded and she would soon join their little family.

“Would you like to greet her in the astral plane, Lulu?” – Celestia asked her little sister. – “I know how much she means to you.”

“Neigh, Tia. As much as I would love to see her and as much as she would rejoice at my sight, she will probably feel safer with you at her side. She always looks for your approval. Go, welcome her to our family.”

“Of course, sister.”

“And for the love of Harmony, please don’t speak in limericks this time!”

“Perhaps I shall sing. It’s been a long time since Twilight last heard my singing voice. Why, she was just a cute little filly back then!” – Celestia replied, laughing merrily.

Soon after, ponies all over Equestria heard the news. A new Princess has ascended and was ready to take her place at the side of Celestia, Luna and Cadence. A coronation was scheduled and ponies assembled from all over the kingdom. There was some murmuring among the nobles about a commoner ascending to the throne, but Celestia gave the malcontent's hard looks and revealed Twilight’s heritage. The news of Twilight’s relation to Clover the Clever rid her of any opposition.

The ceremony was grand, filled with pomp as the most elite of Equestria witnessed the birth of a new power. Unicorns magically projected the proceedings to the ponies gathered outside and when Princess Twilight Sparkle exited the balcony to address her new subjects, she was met with overwhelming applause of acceptance. Soon after all the ponies gathered for festivities in the palace’s gardens. The festivities were joyful and dozens of ponies approached the newly-crowned mare to offer their congratulations. A “historical” play by Pinkie Pie was very well received by the foals and even a few of the gathered adults chuckled at the hidden puns. But soon, like everything, the celebrations came to an end.

Twilight’s friends had to return to Ponyville and the lavender alicorn was to join them in a few days, which she planned to spend very busily in Canterlot. Twilight met Luna in the blue alicorn’s chambers. They sat on the round midnight blue bed, cuddled together, always hungry for the attentions of each other. Luna broke free of the embrace and looked into Twilight’s eyes.

“So, you are a princess now. How does if feel?” – She asked the lavender alicorn.

Twilight looked back at her marefriend, thinking over her own answer. So far, except from some bowing and scraping of other ponies she didn't feel any different.

“I have yet to see a difference from when I was just Pri… Celestia’s student.” – She replied, flapping her wings awkwardly. – “Although these new appendages seem to have a mind on their own. They keep straightening up whenever I’m near you!” – She teased.

The two mares shared a laugh and Luna decided to help Twilight by preening her.

“I’m going to have so much fun with you now that you have wings, just like this.” – The blue mare demonstrated by pulling out a loose feather. Twilight moaned slightly, but decided to continue explaining her feelings.

“That felt nice. As for the changes. I guess it hasn't hit me fully yet. Give me a few days and I will probably be panicking. Just be sure to be there to calm me down.”

“Of course! I’ll always be there for you. And believe me, when an alicorn says always, she does mean it literally.” – Luna said, switching position to lean in and peck Twilight, who deepened the kiss passionately. Like always, the act left them breathless. Luna decided to alleviate some of her own fears.

“Now that you are royalty, you could have any mare you wanted. Or colt, if you wished. Why me? Am I really your first love?” – She asked.
Twilight looked at her marefriend incredulously. ‘Is Luna still insecure?’ – She thought, delicately poking the blue alicorn’s nose. – ‘Well, it’s time to boost her confidence.’

“Of course you are my first love. I don’t count in crushes, which happen all the time and pass almost immediately. I was once awestruck with your sister, you know. I was a little filly back then and I loudly proclaimed I would marry her when I grew up. She always chuckled and told me that love works in mysterious ways and I shouldn't jump to conclusions too fast. I guess she was right. I even had a slight crush on my foalsitter and was jealous when she was around my brother instead of me. She noticed my behavior and explained more about love. In hindsight, she was probably already seeing my brother. It was soon after you came back when I realized I feel very close to alicorns. Now that I am what I am, I understand it more. But it was you who I felt very connected from the start. We both share a passion for the night, we’re both very studious and now we’re both alicorns!” – Twilight joked.

“Really? What about err… normal ponies? I had the impression your cyan friend, Rainbow Dash, had a thing for you. Wouldn't you like her more…” – Luna trailed off.

“Dash? She’s very confused. She recently realized her own bisexuality and isn’t sure what to do about it. Besides, the only thing we have in common is the Daring Doo book series (remind me to show it to you, you might enjoy it) and now, wings, I guess. I think that she would love to go out with one of the Wonderbolts, though. They’re her idols.”

“I see… What about, umm, that school teacher, Cheerilee?”

“Are you trying to talk me into something? Because you’re not making great progress. You know I love you unconditionally. But I could tell you my reasons, why not? Well, first of all, I just can’t.”

“Why? She’s a teacher, a good one from what I hear. And you are ever the student.”

“As true as that is I just… I can’t stand teachers other than your sister, Luna. Did I ever tell you what my worst nightmare is?”

“Aye. And I even walked in on one of them accidentally. I’m glad I have the power to fend of nightmares.”

“Well, then you know how I fear Magical Kindergarten. The whole phobia started because I had a teacher that did everything in her power to humiliate me and a few other foals in my class. She probably still does.”

“Nay, she was caught in act a few years ago and fired.”

“That’s good to hear. Anyway, that is why I can’t stand teachers, as much as I value Cheerilee’s friendship. Now. I see something wrong about this picture.”

“How do you mean?”

“Well, we’re sitting alone, in your bed, and you keep drilling me about other ponies?” – She asked incredulously. – “I think there are better activities to be had in bed. And no, I don’t mean sleeping. Really, for all your experiences you act so clueless sometimes, my Moon.” – Twilight finished, pulling Luna into a kiss and toppling over into the bed.

All was well.

Author's Note

Edited and rewritten on 21st of April 2014.

Ch IV - Explaining (Rewrite)

Stargazers

Chapter IV - Explaining

Luna and Twilight were sitting on a cloud high above Canterlot, recounting the past month, which consisted of the visit to the Crystal Empire and the lavender alicorn’s adventures there.

“So, you’re telling me that Sunset Shimmer, Tia’s previous student really tried to steal the Element of Magic? From what I gathered it was just a rumour.” – Luna asked when Twilight explained that part.

Yes, and let me tell you, if there is one thing certain about Celestia, it is the fact that she can train her students well. Sunset Shimmer matched almost all of my sills. I was chasing her though the entire Crystal Palace, trading spell fire constantly. I was about to sap her with a binding spell, when she pushed some ancient looking mirror onto me. The mirror hit me – let me tell you, that thing weights too much for its own good – and I lost consciousness, but not before my spell finished and hit her.” – Twilight explained.

“I remember checking upon you from time to time. You were out cold for a really long time and I could not enter your dreams…” – Luna said with a frown. – “Quite unusual, considering the fact that we meet a lot through dreams quite often, is it not?”

“I had the weirdest kind of dream, though; perhaps I’d even call it a nightmare? It started quite normally – with the exception of the entire changing of species thing, not that there are not spells that do that, anyway – but it quickly spiralled out into madness. There was a wild dance in some kind of school, I saw an alternate version of you –and I liked what I saw, too – and then it got quite crazy. I am glad that it turned out to be just a dream and I was simply out of it the entire time. From what I had heard later - I do not know if you knew this - Sunset Shimmer ended up staying in the room in which I have been knocked out.”

“I heard there were some problems with moving her because of your bindings.”

“Exactly! Apparently after I passed out, nopony was able to dispel the bindings from my spell that held her and they were forced to keep her there…” – Twilight trailed off.

“Really? There was nopony in the entire Crystal Empire that was able to get rid of the binds?”

“Yes, even our Equestrian Archmage, who was visiting the Empire at that time, told them that when he came back home he was going to resign because he had shamed himself by being unable to overpower my magic. Then, when I came back yesterday, he forced your sister to re-evaluate my magical potential. The results certainly explained a lot.”

“How so? If I recall correctly, you had an intense magic flare during your fillyhood and Tia had to teach you how to build limiters on your own power.”

“That’s right. When I first went out to Ponyville, I had around fifty limiters set up but I have been building up since. The whole incident with the Ursa forced me to drop at least five of them. But yesterday…”

“Just how powerful are you now, love?”

“Well, I lost count of my limiters at around thousand limiters and yet I am still a hundred times powerful than the next top powerful unicorn. Which is apparently my brother. Anyway, after I dropped all of my limiters yesterday… pure magical pressure overwhelmed Celestia and the Archmage simply fainted. There was so much magic pouring out of me that the air around me crackled with electricity. Heck, even my aura became solid.”

“Wow. I guess that the Element of Magic could not have chosen a better bearer.” – Luna said, kissing Twilight’s forehead.

“Well, about that…” – the lavender alicorn trailed off, smiling sheepishly. – “It seems that we have all been mistaken. I am not the bearer of the Element. I AM the Element of Magic.”

Luna stared at Twilight, thinking about what she had just heard. It all made sense in a way. She finally decided to reveal the entire story to her lavender marefriend later that night. The two alicorns lay on the cloud, resting from the chaos of everyday life, warming each other with wing embraces.

“So, did anything else happen during the trip from your point of view? I heard rumors of some new crush. And your recent dream confirmed it…” – Luna broke the silence, teasing Twilight.

“Well… my dreams are not as interesting as yours are. I am grateful that you have taught me how to dream-walk. It is a very rare talent. Also, you and Celestia were so cute back when you were foals!” – Twilight exclaimed, laughing gently. – “To answer your question… Yes, my friends teased me about it. A guard seemed to have gotten the idea that Cadance delegated him – for all I know she did so to prank me – to be my personal guard. He had been following me the entire stay – at least when I was awake – and I constantly bumped into him in the hallways. I attempted to talk to him more but when I tried, he always run off telling me he was on duty. I think the poor dear was just scared to befriend an alicorn.”

“Ah yes, ponies tend to act with varying levels of panic whenever one of us appears. Moreover, I just have to remember my first official visit to Ponyville. I have to admit, it was not one of my best performances.”

“Well, I cannot blame you, though. You were under a spell back then. In addition, the entire Nightmare impression rather quickly got out of hoof. Me, I do not have an excuse. I was a social recluse before I arrived in Ponyville.”

“Yes, it seems we have that in common. To be honest, there is something different in that town, because it changes ponies. It changes both our lives. I have to give credit to your friends – they taught you how to be a great friend and you passed those skills onto me.”

Twilight giggled and bumped Luna’s nose with the tip of her forehoof.

“It was the least I could do in exchange for all the arcane knowledge you have taught me.” – She said. – “At this rate, I will have to find a new way of paying you back, if you keep showing me more and more wonders about magic.”

“It’s been a pleasure for me. Just like me, you soak in knowledge like a sponge. I guess that’s another reason why we get along so well.”

“Aww, are you sure we do not get together, say, because we like each other’s flanks so much?”

“That is a given. I saw an orange pegasus with a blue mane ogling your flank yesterday.” – Luna said, puffin her cheeks and pouting adorably. – “I will let you know that I was quite jealous!”

“That must have been Flash Sentry, the guard I’ve told you about. I cornered him yesterday and got the truth out of our feathered friend - he got an idea in his mind that we are a couple, just because the Alicorn of Love said so! I have gently explained to the poor misguided soul that I was with somepony already. And even if I was not, I would not be able to bear to be with a mortal, simply because of this ‘outliving everypony’ thing…” – Twilight explained, her mood darkening. – “Yes, Celestia told me I might end up being immortal like you and her… It still pains me to think about the fact that my friends will die and I will live on forever.”

The dark blue alicorn put a wing over the smaller one, hugging her closely. They sat like that for a while, until Twilight relaxed again.

“I will not bother with saying the same hollow things you probably heard a thousand times from Tia by now, but you have to remember two things; your friends will live on inside your heart and you will have me by your side.” – Luna said to cheer up her gloomy marefriend. – “And think of all the books you will be able to read and all the research you will be able to do!”

“Yes, yes, I know. It is just that…. It is so sad. Some beings are more fortunate than others are. I know this is how the world works but it does not mean I have to like it. I am glad I can count on you and that I will be able to dedicate myself to help those in need.”

“That’s an admirable goal. Anyway, there was one other reason I have invited you here. As of yesterday, when you dropped your limiters, you might have felt… a change in yourself and the surrounding world.” – Luna explained.

“Now that you mention it... I do feel kind of….” – Twilight trailed off, looking for a proper word. – “…split.”

“Let me explain to you the mystery of alicorns. My sister did not want to be the one to do this, so I will be the one to, figuratively, bring you in. You see, the ascension of the alicorn consists of three distinct stages. Stage one is a magical flare, which signals the beginning of the process.” – Luna said, looking at Twilight expectantly.

The smaller alicorn pondered for a second before a look of understanding closed her face.

“You mean to tell me I have been ready since… back then?” – She asked.

“Exactly. The entire first stage can last as long as the entire life of a pony. Tia took you in, both because of your potential but also because you were one of the few candidates for ascension. Sadly, Tia accidentally held you back and you were unable to proceed to the next step under her. The second step pertains of gaining an aspect. Tia is the embodiment of selfless love. Your sister-in-law, Cadenza, embodies the romantic love for another. You now embody the platonic love for friends…” – Luna stopped explaining, but saw the clear question in Twilight’s eyes. – “…while I… I embody the love for oneself. Until you and your friends reminded me about it, I forgot what it meant. I needed to love myself in order to love others.”

Twilight used her forehoof to wipe away the single tear that appeared on Luna’s muzzle and once more embraced the bigger mare. Both mares used mutual love between them to heal any doubts and wounds remaining in their hearts. Finally, Luna was ready to continue.

“Once you understood friendship completely, you were able to proceed to the next step. At this step, all alicorns gain their immortality as they pair with a domain. Once again, Tia’s domain is the sun, my domain is the moon, and your foalsitter has yet to find her domain. You… you connected with your domain yesterday. Can you reach out and feel what it is?”

Twilight looked at Luna, thinking about the question and trying to find the entity, which brushed against her consciousness from time to time. She could feel something, something she knew and loved…

“It is… something familiar. When I reach out, I can feel something like you, yet more… spread out. It is dark, but not evil… yet it also feels light.” – Twilight broke off as she reached both deep inside her and far outside. Beads of sweat appeared on her forehead as she concentrated on catching the elusive feeling. Finally, something…. Gave and Twilight’s senses were overwhelmed by information and she understood what her charge was. – “Oh my gosh! It is the stars! I control the stars! How? Are they not supposed to be yours?”

The smaller alicorn started hyperventilating, thinking she stole something from her lover. Luna quickly cast a calming spell and embraced Twilight.

“Shh, my love. They were never mine. I told you already – my domain is the moon, remember? I have been able to paint the night sky with stars simply because there was no actual Alicorn of Stars. Now you finally have the entire picture of why we get along so well and why we feel complete when we are together. We were literally meant to be with each other.” – Luna explained, kissing and nuzzling Twilight.

Finally, the smaller alicorn relaxed and they could continue their discussion.

“I have got just one more question and it is crucial I ask you before that stress reliever spell fades.” – Twilight said with a determined face.
“Yes, what is it?”

“Will you marry me?” – Twilight asked, suddenly flashing Luna a giant grin.

In Canterlot below them, a certain white alicorn smiled broadly in her sleep as her sister’s enthusiasm and happiness leaked into the dream realm, completely dissolving every single nightmare in all of Equestria.

Author's Note

Edited and rewritten on 21st of April 2014.

Ch V - Entangling

Stargazers

Chapter V - Entangling

Twilight was pacing nervously in one of the side rooms of the Canterlot Palace. It was one of the things she was great at doing, after all, and as illogical as it might sound, it calmed her down. Yes, panicking was something she dealt with on many occasions. It was routine to her. She panicked when she was late, she panicked when something was not going as she predicted and recently, when she woke up alone in bed.

Yet this panic was the worst sort. She was having pre-wedding jitters. Her mind went through all possible outcomes, with all the variations and permutations of things that might happen or not. The wedding might get attacked, Luna might be a changeling in disguise or some sort of dark cult might try to bring back Nightmare Moon. Somepony might hire an assassin, after all, four royal princesses gathered in one place are a tempting target. Then, Twilight's mind supplicated the worst outcome.

She saw Luna, standing opposite her, denying her the love and affection that they came to grow into, saying that she failed and can't be with her. The lavender alicorn started hyperventilating, her heartbeat accelerating as her pace went up a notch. She was covered in sweat now, her dress soaking with it.

Ah, yes, her beautiful dress – a gift from Rarity - woven of the best midnight silk, tracing her form gently and accenting her curves. All over it, little stars twinkled, a cheap imitation of the heavenly bodies she now commanded. The dress that saved her from bolting from her own wedding.

Twilight got caught up in the dress and stumbled, falling face-first into the floor. That was enough to snap her out of her daze. She quickly composed herself, doing the breathing exercise Cadance has taught her not so long ago. Finally as calm as she'd be on her big day, she used her magic to fix her muzzle, which was bloodied from the meeting with the hard marble floors of the room. Then, she cleansed herself of sweat and dried her dress, straightening out any wrinkles. Finally, she inspected her mane in the room's mirror and fixed any loose hairs.

There was a loud knock on the doors, and Spike's voice came in through the crack under the entrance.

“Twilight, everything's ready. They're only waiting for you!” - Spike informed her. - “Are you okay?”

“Yes, Spike, I'm leaving in a second!” - Twilight replied, composing herself again.

She trotted out, seeing Spike vanishing behind two massive doors to the gathering hall. Twilight adopted a cheerful smile, counted to ten and with a small sigh pushed the entrance open with her magic. For a moment she was blinded by the moonlight coming through the windows.

When her vision cleared, the first thing she noticed was - of course - Luna. Her beauty was indescribable; her flowing hair gathered in a neat mane style that Twilight thought was very pretty on her fiancée. The lavender alicorn’s eyes took in the rest of the moon goddess’s form. She certainly looked her part, in a flowing lavender dress adorned with moons. She was accented by the soft light from a full moon, falling in through the windows behind her, bathing her in an ethereal glow.

The rest of the room looked almost the same as it did during her brother’s and Cadance's wedding. The only difference was the decorations, which were moon and star themed. 'Pinkie's work' she assumed. There were fewer ponies attending, as the wedding was hosted at an unusual time, at night. She luckily saw that her friends were there, as were some of her other acquaintances from Ponyville. Her family stood in the front, her father looking at her proudly with a smirk and her mother drying tears of happiness with a hoofkerchief, her brother beaming at her and Cadance looking at her with understanding.

But Twilight soon tuned that out as Celestia begun her speech. Then all she remembered was a blur. Saying the vows, exchanging horn rings and feathers, that oh-so-wonderful kiss with her beautiful partner and the cheers and stomping that erupted during the blissful union of lips. All of that mattered little to Twilight as she finally was bound with her beloved, having eyes only for her.

“So, my love.” - Luna started next to her. - “Are you ready for the honeymoon? Because with me, it will be a literal honey moon.” - She ended with a smirk.

“Gosh, my moon. You make it sound as if you were impatient to get to me or something. We still need to have the reception. Although, I guess I understand you... I want to experiment on your... moon.”

They shared a quick kiss and laugh and went off to the royal gardens to mingle with the guests, to receive various words of congratulations and to generally have some fun. Finally, just after midnight, they left to the moon, leaving the party-goers gaping at their sudden disappearance.

Appearing on the moon, they quickly embraced and started kissing in a desperate make-out session. Suddenly Luna pushed Twilight away.

“Relax, my love, as much as I'd like to take you here and now, I'd like to show you something.” - The blue alicorn said to her new partner.

Twilight looked very disappointed and huffed at Luna. Her expression changed to amazement when she saw what the moon goddess was pointing at. There, at some distance stood an enormous dome, filled with lush vegetation. Twilight's mind tried to wrap around the concept of having plant life on the surface of the moon.

“This was where I spent my time away from Equestria. It's here where I felt at peace, laying on the soft grass, looking at the stars. I guess I've loved the stars back then as much as I do love you now. So, just like you gained entrance into my heart, I invite you to the heart of my sanctuary.” - Luna explained while the two lovers approached the moon gardens.

She led Twilight through a massive chamber that held the atmosphere inside and finally into the gardens proper. The lavender alicorn listened as Luna told her the story of how hard it was to bring proper soil samples and to accommodate plants that could finally produce the oxygen needed to survive in the place. Of course, both Twilight and Luna - being goddesses - didn't need air to survive, yet it was a pain to communicate without the oxygen to carry the sound waves.

In the middle of the garden, on a small island stood a small wooden cottage, a vision of simplicity and peace. Luna led Twilight through various rooms and into a bedroom with a bed that would hold the both of them, and playfully shoved the lavender alicorn onto it.

“There will be much time to study the dome later. Now, let us get to those promised experiments on each other!” - Luna exclaimed, pouncing at Twilight's laying form.

The moon shone brighter for the better of a few hours, while the stars twinkled merrily.

Twilight and Luna were laying on their backs on a cloud that the latter pony created for them in the dome. They were looking up at the stars, whispering stories about times long since passed.

Finally, with some reluctance, Luna turned to Twilight and regarded the smaller alicorn. Noticing her partner’s silence, Twilight also turned her head. The two sat in silence, looking into each other’s eyes for what seemed like an eternity, yet was actually less than a minute. Luna cleared her throat.

“My love. I've thought about this for a while. I want to do something special with you. Have you ever heard of soul mates?” - Luna asked.

“Yes, it's been written that throughout history there were certain pairs that got together no matter what circumstances they were in, sometimes traveling half the world. Are you saying that we are soul mates?” - Twilight answered after a bit of thinking.

“Yes and no. We share so much in common that it's almost uncanny. But no, the legend began because of an old alicorn... let's call it a ritual. It caused two partners to... entangle their souls forever. Some could communicate without a telepathic spell, some had a boost to their magic, but all of them understood each other perfectly. I don't want any secrets and lies between us. I wish to bare my soul before you.” - Luna said passionately, pouring her love for the other pony into words.

Twilight was taken aback. The love which she felt from Luna was almost tangible. She swore that she would change into a changeling at this rate. Yet, here was an occasion to truly become one with the alicorn she loved so much.

“Let's do it!” - Twilight exclaimed enthusiastically.

The ritual basically consisted of entering the astral plane, in which all alicorns were in their true forms. Then, they embraced together and mixed their beings, entangling their souls. During the process, Twilight finally understood everything about Luna. Her motivations, her emotions, her pain and suffering and the darker side that lurked deep inside Luna.

The blue alicorn on the other hoof experienced Twilight's life, her though processes, her deep bonds of friendship and the love she felt for all life. In the end, they both felt each other’s love, now strengthened through the ritual.

Finally, the moon and stars were together again, this time forever and more.

Ch VI - Surprising

Stargazers

Chapter VI - Surprising

The plan started with a simple idea for a prank, proposed by Luna. It was a small thing, at least as far as alicorns were concerned. Twilight was supposed to cast a geas on every single subject of Equestria, so that everypony would think of Twilight as the Princess of the Sun and of Celestia as her faithful student.

But that’s not what happened. Twilight, considering the incoming Summer Sun Celebration, remembered a fact that most ponies forgot because it coincided with the aforementioned holiday. The day of the event was also the day of Celestia’s birthday.

With a bit of convincing, mostly through kisses and promises of later… fun, Luna acquiesced to the new plan. Twilight would cast several high-end spells in rapid succession in order to make sure Celestia would have the perfect birthday.

First, the geas would be placed. Then Twilight would use something she discovered recently – she was able to block an alicorn’s connection not only with their domain, but also their aspect, thus returning them to their pre-ascension shape. The last spell would ensure that nothing bad would happen to the sun and Celestia while she was in her vulnerable form.

Then, on the day of the celebration, the plan was enacted.

Celestia woke with a start. Something was off. She quickly rose to her hooves and proceeded to fall flat on her face. She shakily got up, looked around for what tripped her and not seeing a thing, proceeded to the bedside table to gather her regalia. She reached for the crown and put it on her head. It fell through immediately, pulling her pink hair.

Then, realization came. Celestia quickly trotted to the bedroom mirror, looking at it as if it was lying. Staring at her from the reflection was a white unicorn mare, with pink curly hair and rose eyes, full of surprise.

“What… is this?” – She started, surprised by her young voice – “I haven’t seen this form since… a long time ago. I swear, if this is another one of Luna’s pranks… I am so going to get back at her…” – she finished, her competitive streak showing.

She quickly started brushing her mane, something she didn't do for the last couple of millennia, when suddenly she had another realization. She couldn't sense the sun. That started a panic in her that rose from minute to minute. How could she not feel the sun? It was an integral part of her, just like her current body. If she couldn't sense it that meant that someone stole it from her. Even worse, she couldn't feel her aspect, the ever present love for her subjects.

That would mean that currently she was… a simple unicorn. The fact hit her like a horseshoe. It was something that she didn’t feel since times long past. She felt free. Yet, the panic didn't settle. Celestia felt the sudden urge to prepare a checklist. Why would she need a checklist? She didn't need a checklist before, what with her perfect alicorn memory… Ah.

Nevertheless, a few centuries of ruling deeply ingrained a need for a schedule in her. She quickly considered the morning sky, with the sun already present and breathed with relief. At least that was okay. Deciding to skip clothing, she quickly trotted outside of her rooms.

The guards on both sides of her door didn't bow. They didn't scrape before her. They just nodded their heads and the left one greeted her with a simple ‘Mornin’, miss!’ That made her feel good. In recent years she tried to get rid of the need for decorum, but it was deeply ingrained into the minds of ponies. This new, free yet polite attitude was refreshing.

Trotting through the castle merrily, she decided to take a quick snack in the kitchen. Perhaps the cooks still had an emergency cake. Upon arrival, she was greeted by the head cook.

“Hello Sunny! How are you today?” – He greeted her. “Would you like the usual?”

“Hi there, Chief. Do you have any cake? I could kill for a piece of cake” – She replied.

They both shared a laugh at the joke and the cook guided her to a small table, where she immediately sat. She was quickly brought the cake and started drooling at the sight of it. Chief Hooves chuckled at the sight of her.

“Oh, Sunny, you and your obsession with cake. If it weren't for Princess Twilight’s deep coffers, you would have us poor because of your appetite.”

“What can I say, Chief. Cake and I... We go way back!”

Time quickly passed in the company of good cake and the cook, and it was soon time for Celestia to be on her way. She licked her muzzle clean from the remains of the delicious treat and started on her way to the throne room.

In the throne room, Twilight and Luna were waiting impatiently for the arrival of Luna’s sister. Twilight, as usual, was having second thoughts.

“Are you sure she will be okay? Won’t she demand her powers back? Won’t she then banish me? Or worse, imprison me in the place she banishes me?” – Twilight complained, pacing nervously.

Luna, for the third time that day, took her under her wing and tried to calm the mare down. She couldn't fathom, how she was not be bothered by Twilight’s constant bouts of emotions. She guessed that the ritual they went through not so long ago gave her a new perspective on the panicking.

“Relax, my love. As long as you stick to your role, we should be perfectly fine. And if not, we can always explain it to my sister. You know she would never do anything to you. Didn't you learn that time you were… tardy?” – Luna said.

“Easy for you to say, my moon. You’re not the one sticking her neck out, impersonating Sol Invicta, the Alicorn of the Sun. Speaking of the sun, that thing is heavy. What has been she feeding to it, cake? Gah, I feel Celestia, she’s just behind the doors. Quick, look casual.”

Luna tried to look casual, which with her equaled not moving a muscle.

There was a knock on the doors and one wing was enveloped in a pink aura. An aura that made Luna feel a pang of nostalgia. Then, the doors opened and lo and behold, there was Celestia, or rather, Sunny Skies, in all her unicorn glory. Twilight took on a smile she had seen Celestia use many times with her.

“Ah, Sunny Skies. My faithful student, it’s good to see you’re up!”

“Princess! I heard from the cook that you asked for me. Why didn't you have me woken up” – Celestia said with a sideways look at Luna. Luna remained perfectly still.

“Yes. I have a task for you, Sunny. As you know, tomorrow is the Summer Sun Celebration. This year it’s hosted in Ponyville again. I need you to go there and oversee the preparations.” – Twilight explained, hoping that her façade didn't crack.

Celestia was taken by surprise, but decided against revealing the plot. She felt free and spending some time in Ponyville sounded nice.

“Should I take the train then?” – She asked.

“No, I have a chariot prepared for you. You should leave immediately to have time to put everything together.” – Twilight shook her head as she replied. – “Also, I have one more request, this one unofficial” – She added.

“Yes?” – Celestia asked.

“Make some friends!”

In Ponyville it quickly appeared that the preparations were more than ready. Yet Celestia spent a wonderful day with each of the ponies involved.

With Applejack, she ate many apple-themed sweets, noting that even after generations of analyzing, her own cooks were unable to solve the mystery of why the apple desserts were so much better than their own works.

With Rainbow Dash, she watched the rainbow mare prepare tricks she was going to show on the next Wonderbolt practice. The fact that Celestia was unable to fly or even feel simple air currents tainted the experience for her, yet she cheered enthusiastically for the young flier.

With Rarity, she spent a day in the spa, talking about the recent gossip in Canterlot, learning more about her subjects that way, than if she simply went out. She also mentioned her favorite designer from about fifty years or so, which the unicorn took as a challenge.

With Fluttershy, she partook in a walk through the Everfree borders, both mares engrossed in the discussion about pets. When Celestia mentioned she saw Philomena, Fluttershy squeaked adorably and squeezed Celestia for being the bearer of good news.

Then, when the sun was ready to go down, the yellow pegasus took Celestia to the town library. Unknowingly retracing Twilight’s steps from a few years ago, she walked into the dark library, where sudden light blinded her.

When she opened her eyes, she noticed the main room of the library was packed to the brim with ponies, all with cheery faces. ‘Happy Birthday Sunny Skies’ announced the big banner hanging from the ceiling. The slogan was quickly taken up by the amassed ponies and soon she was surrounded by ponies shouting for her good birthday.

Wiping out a tear, she turned to face the perpetrators of the event, Twilight, Luna and Pinkie Pie. She quickly hugged the three.

“You three. This is a wonderful surprise. It’s almost the best birthday I could ever ask for”

Pinkie Pie gasped at the admission.

“Almost? We can’t have that. What can we do to make it the best?” – She said.

Celestia turned to face Luna.

“She’s been already given back to me”

The party lasted for a long time, until it was time to move to the Town Hall for the actual rising of the sun. Ponies quickly gathered near the platform and Celestia found a good place for herself, near Twilight’s friends.

Then, upon the triumphant song of Fluttershy’s birds, the curtains opened. From behind it, two forms quickly rose, in a heavenly dance. While Luna gracefully lowered the moon, Twilight pushed the sun up.

As the sun cleared the horizon, a cheer arose. Celestia quickly joined in the hoof stomping, losing herself in the primal instincts of a herd. She felt safe, she felt a part of something greater. This feeling eluded her for so long. Now she knew, and it pained her because she knew she had to go back to being the untouchable sun come tomorrow.

She was suddenly embraced by a lavender wing.

“You know, you don’t need to come back. I can hold it till you experience all that normal life has to offer.” – Twilight said, beaming at Celestia. – “I plan for us to take turns in this. Call it a vacation. It certainly would have helped Luna and surely will help you.”

Celestia couldn't believe her ears. Did Twilight just give her a gift she didn't dare think of? Was she allowed rest, after over twenty centuries of silent vigil over ponykind?

“What about friends? You recently had doubts about your ascension because you’d outlive everypony. Wouldn't the same happen to me?” – She voiced her concern.

“A wise mare once told me ‘The space in your heart is not finite. You will lose friends, but gain many more...’ and I believe that it applies to your situation too. Besides, it’s not like you won’t die. The spell I cast will allow you to be reborn after death. This way you truly experience what life is.” – Twilight explained.

Celestia pulled Twilight into a tight hug, crying her eyes out. From the sidelines, Luna watched with a broad smile. Things were looking up for them.

‘Look at that. She succeeded where I failed. She got rid of Celestia, while I couldn't. She would be a most powerful servant. She will join me or die.’ – a dark voice exclaimed.

The Nightmare shifted deep inside of Luna without the moon princess noticing.

Author's Note

Le gasp! What's this? Actual plot? And the plot thickens!
Especially black alicorn plot.

Chapter dedicated to Twilestia fans. Can you beat Twilight's gift for Tia?

Ch VII - Wondering

Stargazers

Chapter VII - Wondering

A dark wisp of smoke flew through the night sky above Canterlot, observing the city below and probing at the minds of sleeping ponies. Wherever it found a weakness, it struck, sowing a seed that would later mature into a fully grown nightmare.

Sinister laughter reverberated through the desolate night sky as Nightmare Moon built her power slowly, but surely, retreating each sunrise to safety deep within the unknowing Princess of the Night.

Luna woke with a start, breathing labored breaths and perspiring heavily. ‘It was just a nightmare, get a hold of yourself. You've seen far more putrid things throughout your life.’ - She admonished herself – ‘How can you protect your ponies if you’re having problems keeping your own nightmares at bay… Great, and now you’re speaking to yourself again!’

Her train of thought was broken as a soft lavender wing covered her side and suddenly the nightmare didn't seem scary at all. Twilight’s presence had a calming effect on her, even back when she had just returned from her banishment, and ever since they shared their souls the bond between them proved to be very beneficial. Recently they even started finishing each other’s sentences without knowing!

Luna gently moved the wing back, intent on taking a quick shower to rid herself of the remnants of the nightmare and more importantly, of sweat. She trotted to the on suite bathroom, turned on the shower and stood underneath.

The steady flow of hot water washed away the blue alicorn’s worries. Additionally, the increasing heat made her turn toward more pleasant thoughts. Ever since she got together with Twilight, the smaller lavender alicorn had been teaching her about everything and anything. Luna especially liked the lessons they had in bed. At this point, Twilight certainly knew Luna’s body better than the blue alicorn herself.

For Luna this was a very interesting fact, as her physical construct wasn't always her first priority since she first connected with the moon. Sure, she pampered her mane and brushed her coat regularly, but the things Twilight could to her… Luna shivered pleasantly at the thought.

She slowly got out of the shower, planning for a quick “lesson” with Twilight, when the younger pony woke. Stepping through the doors back to her bedroom, she didn't notice the vines creeping from behind her. She also didn't notice the knock-out gas flower until it was too late and unconsciousness took her away.

A few hours later Twilight woke alone in bed. Her immediate thoughts of waking alone again roused her panic, which were quickly squashed by feeling the bond. Wherever Luna was, she wasn't in any immediate danger.

The lavender alicorn rose from bed, levitated her regalia next to herself and approached the mirror on the far side of the room. She quickly used a spell to wash away any impurities from her mane and coat and brushed her mane into perfection.

Turning back to the bed she noticed Luna’s crown and necklace were still on the side table on the blue alicorn’s side of the bed. That was weird, as Luna always dressed when going out. Perhaps she was just visiting Celestia in disguise again; that would explain why she left her regalia behind.

Satisfied with her reasoning, Twilight walked out onto the balcony, feeling for some fresh air. When she swung the curtains open, the bizarre sight hit her immediately. Up in the sky, the sun and moon shone together, both near zenith.

That worried Twilight. It was one thing for Luna to not dress when going out, but today was her turn to move the moon and sun! What was this, then? The lack of any order in the celestial mechanics was so unlike Luna.

Sighing wearily, the lavender alicorn pulled on her magic in order to set the sun and moon into motion. The process didn't look inspiring for the casual onlooker, but in the astral realm vast quantities of magic poured from Twilight out into the world, cascading in streams of blindingly white light. Slowly, the field enveloped the entire sky and with a pull from the bright white dot that was the purple alicorn’s essence, the sky shifted.

Opening her eyes back into the normal world, Twilight regarded the sky. The moon was down below the horizon, resting to come out another day, while the sun shone brightly in its correct position.

Suddenly, Twilight’s thoughts were interrupted as a green wisp of fire flew to the balcony from Ponyville’s direction and coalesced into a scroll in front of the alicorn’s face.

Unfurling the scroll with her magic, Twilight spared it one quick look before hastily galloping out. Back in the room, the scroll fell down unfurled to the ground. An observer would quickly notice the hastily written words on it.

Twi,

Trouble. Come quick.

Spike

Arriving in the middle of Ponyville in a blindingly white flash of teleport, Twilight quickly took in the chaos that had descended upon the small rural town. Everywhere, she saw weird vines, creeping slowly from the direction of the Everfree Forest. Ponies run around in panic, trying all kinds of methods to get rid of the overgrowth and were failing miserably.

Twilight noticed Applejack running into the library and decided to follow. Upon entrance, Twilight regarded her best friends. Most of them had very somber faces with the usual exception of Pinkie Pie, who was grinning madly, as expected from her.

“Finally! We've been waiting for ages for you! Where have you been, Twilight?” – Rainbow Dash got in her face, demanding answers.

“Gosh, Dash. Haven’t you heard of personal space? I would've expected this from Pinkie, not from you.” – Twilight replied defensively. – “As to where I was, I had some business to deal with in Canterlot before I could arrive here.”

“Oh, oh! Did you have to repel an invasion of Parasprites? Or did you have to send somebody to the moon? Oh! I know! Did the author lack a way of transitioning from the last scene and decided to use me as a plot device? I love when it happens!” – Pinkie Pie released a stream of words at Twilight, giggling after the last sentence.

Her friends decided to ignore the oddity of Pinkie as the author breathed a sigh of relief with the passing of his first “fourth wall” break. Twilight rubbed her temple with a hoof as she felt a headache incoming.

“No, Pinkie. I had to assure at least about three quarters of the population of Canterlot that, no, this was not another crisis and, yes, they can go back to their daily lives. Plus Luna vanished and I had to sign like a dozen documents before I could even get out of the palace! Speaking of my moon, is she here, visiting Sunny? Where is Sunny anyway?” – Twilight replied.

“I’m very sorry, darling, I was first here and I didn't see her. Although it took me some time to arrive as these dreadful, awful vines kept getting in my way!” – Rarity replied.

“Yea, sugarcube, wha’ in tarnation are those? Th’ damned things keep stranglin’ mah trees and Ah don’t like that at all!” – Applejack added.

“That’s what I want to know too! The only thing I know is that Spike sent me a letter about trouble and I just arrived.” – Twilight defended herself. – “I find it very disturbing that both Sunny and Luna vanished at the same time as that unexpected sky show happened. I’m glad I can move both the sun and the moon, otherwise the panic would be more widespread. Even now I fear that there will be tons of nobles complaining about that in court tomorrow!”

“Um… I might know what happened” – Fluttershy admitted. – “You see… Yesterday I heard Discord laughing and when I asked him… he told me that his prank was finally coming to fruition tomorrow.”

Everypony that was gathered facehooved at the thought. Although Discord was seemingly reformed, he was a massive pain in the flank to be near. With a quick thought, Twilight decided on something.

“I know what to do, girls. If this is chaotic magic… well, let’s just say I have an ace in my sleeve!” – She said.

“But Twilight, you don’t have sleeves!” – Spike reminded.

The group exited the building and followed Twilight to the Town Square. Standing in front of the fountain, Twilight channeled massive amounts of magic, so much in fact, that it entered the visible spectrum. Slowly the gathered magic changed shape and coalesced into a dome above the group. Pushing more and more into the spell, Twilight made the dome bigger and bigger. Whenever the shield touched a vine, it vanished in a flash, leaving behind no evidence of its earlier existence.

Finally, the entirety of Ponyvile and Sweet Apple Acres was enveloped by the purifying orderly magic. Dozens of ponies stopped what they were doing and surrounded the group in the center of town, gawking at the amazing display of magic. When the shield was done, they all looked to the fourth Princess of Equestria and as if on cue, bowed deeply.

Twilight facehooved and decided to address the crowd.

“Please, everypony. Do not bow and scrape before me. I am still the same Twilight Sparkle that lived in the library not so long ago. If it makes you feel better, I still have my flaws!”

A few ponies in the crowd blanched at the thoughts of a neurotic with the ability to move the sun and moon, but wisely decided to say nothing. Slowly, but surely, ponies got back to their hooves and a whisper broke out.

“We know that, Princess Twilight. But you have saved our town enough times that this is the least we can do to honor you.” – Mayor Mare explained.

“Sigh. Very well. But please, my little ponies, you can go back to your regular schedules as I deal with the culprit of this… mess.” – Twilight said with resignation.

Ponies started to leave the Town Square by one or in groups and soon only a small number of them remained, possibly ones that didn't have better things to do.

Satisfied with the lack of a big audience, Twilight once again gathered her magic and summoned Discord. The draconequus appeared in a bed, covered with a quilt with Fluttershy’s outlines on it and wearing pajamas and a night cap also adorned with the yellow pony.

Discord ostensibly yawned and looked around. He snapped his claws, getting rid of the bed and his pajamas.

“Why, if it isn't a bunch of my favorite ponies!” – He exclaimed, conjuring a book for Twilight, a magnificent bouquet of flowers for Rarity, an apple for Applejack, party streamers for Pinkie Pie, a Wonderbolt plush for Rainbow Dash and a koala for Fluttershy.

Reluctantly, the ponies accepted the gifts, which suddenly changed into glasses of chocolate milk. Twilight decided that enough is enough.

“That’s it Discord. Thank you for the present and the refreshment but I didn't summon you here to partake in an exchange of pleasantries. Now, if you’re done horsing around, can you please tell me why in Tartarus did you conjure these vines? And where is Celestia and Luna?” – Twilight demanded.

“Ah, ah, ah. That would be telling. Now, do you wish the longer version where you can learn some history… or do you want to ruin this story and just skip to the end?”

“As much as I’d love to learn something, can you please just skip it?”

“I’m afraid that would give the author too much negative feedback. If you want to get an explanation, you should ask your zebra friend, Zecora.” – Discord said. – “In fact, here she comes!”

And indeed, right that moment, Zecora exited the forest, pulling a cart filled with all her belongings in tow. The group quickly trotted to the newly arrived zebra, asking if she was okay and if she needed help.

It quickly turned out that Zecora did, in fact, have a potion that could show the past to a pony. She explained that in order for the potion to work, it had to be charged with alicorn magic.

Intrigued by the prospect of time-traveling again, Twilight agreed and charged her magic at the potion. Unseen by all, Discord snapped his fingers and some of his magic entered the potion.

Twilight drunk the white potion and with a flash, vanished. The bottle with the potion fell down on the ground, suddenly no longer white, but gold. All around, Discord’s cackling could be heard.

Twilight awoke in a cave with a massive headache. Stumbling to her legs, she noticed that something was different about her. She was taller and her mane swayed in an ethereal wind of pure magic. That was new. Taking a look around the cave, she noticed a weird glowing tree, with several colorful gems embedded in it. The tree felt familiar.

A soft gasp drew her gaze from the tree to the entrance of the cave. There, in all their splendor, stood younger Celestia and Luna, gawking at Twilight with wonder.

“Who art thou?” – asked both sisters.

Author's Note

Plot, plot everywhere!

Wow! Wow!
Such intrigue!
Much surprise!
Wow!

Disclaimer: No fourth walls were harmed (much) during the writing of this chapter.

Ch VIII - Understanding

Stargazers

Chapter VIII - Understanding

In the small cavern beneath the Everfree Forest two alicorns stood and watched the third, waiting for an answer to the question of who she was. Twilight’s mind was going overdrive. Not only did she change, she was somehow seen by ponies in the past. But Zecora told her that would not happen!

What if Twilight made a mistake and said something that would change the future? Her last experience with a time paradox was still fresh in her mind and she didn't want a repeat here. She decided to do what she thought best and act as if everything was as it should be. It helped that her future bond with Luna somehow existed, and even now she could feel the confusion emanating from this younger version of her future beloved.

Twilight slowly turned away from the alicorn sisters and faced the tree which confused her so much. It felt familiar, as if her friends were right there, waiting for her to join them. The lavender alicorn found herself being drawn to the tree and step after step she approached, until her muzzle touched the bark of the tree.

In that moment, time stopped as Twilight sat down on the ground beneath the tree, her wings drooping and her eyes filling with ethereal power. Her mind was assaulted by ghosts of the past and visions of possible futures. She was struggling to comprehend everything even with her superior intellect. After uncountable minutes, Twilight understood.

Breaking away from the tree with a tear in her eye, Twilight spun around to face the sisters and with an almost inaudible ‘pop’, vanished.

Left alone in the cave, the two remaining alicorns watched the spot where the other alicorn just stood with bewilderment, awaiting her possible return. But after fifteen minutes passed with no sign of her, Luna gave up.

“Who do you think that was, sister?” – She asked.

“Whoever may she be, I think that she is somepony very significant.” – Celestia replied, looking up at the tree.

The tree was in full bloom.

Twilight appeared elsewhere, but knowing how she was looking and being prepared this time, she cast an invisibility spell. She watched as the sisters approached Discord, sitting in his insane throne, throwing seeds everywhere. And she understood.

When the sisters tried to activate the Elements of Harmony, Twilight felt a new connection between her and the artefacts. The Elements were asking her if they should activate. Almost instantly, she agreed.

As much as she wanted to step in and congratulate the sisters of successfully deposing the self-appointed Lord of Chaos in a slab of stone, she now had a purpose. Without another sound, she vanished again.

Unseen by her, Luna turned to the direction where Twilight once stood, feeling the fading affection from the link.

Twilight’s knowledge didn’t prepare her for the assault of negative emotions coming from Luna’s direction as her beloved finally lost grips on her sanity, eclipsing the sun with the moon and in the process releasing the Nightmare. The last feeling that came through the closing link as the Nightmare forcefully possessed Luna was confusion and overwhelming fear. A tear dropped from Twilight’s eye as the link died completely and she forced herself to watch the ensuing battle between the two sisters.

Twilight vowed to herself that she would ease Luna’s pain even more after she returned. A pony should never be forced to feel such feelings.

Finally, the decisive moment came and she felt the Elements asking her for permission to activate. Knowing full well what she was about to do, Twilight agreed and watched as the rainbow washed upon the monster that was possessing her beloved moon.

Having seen enough, she turned away and once again vanished into the time stream, the Elements turning to stone as according to her wishes.

Twilight watched silently as her past self fruitlessly tried to activate the Elements. She watched as Nightmare broke the shells that the elements became after she left them the last time. She watched as her friends galloped back to help her and in that moment, she touched her horn to her past selves horn. A spark passed between them.

Fully knowing what happened next, Twilight turned once again and vanished.

Twilight watched as Discord once again was turned into stone. She vanished again and observed her past self her friends using the Elements to release Discord in order to reform him.

With the last ‘pop’, Twilight appeared once again in the clearing near the Everfree Forest from where her journey started. Her friends gathered around her, asking what happened.

“What the hay happened to you, Twi. You have these huge wings now! How will you keep up with me if they keep slowing you down?” – Rainbow Dash asked.
“Well Ah'll be, those there be some of the biggest muscles Ah’ve seen on anypony! With dem legs you could buck mah entire orchard bare in a day!” – AJ remarked.
“How was your trip through time, Twilight? Did you see me, did you, did you?” – Pinkie inquired.

Twilight looked to her friends, smiling sheepishly. Now that she knew who these ponies really were, she appreciated them even more. She opened her wings completely and scooped all her friends into a group hug.

“It was just a little while, but I missed you girls so much. I know what we have to do now and how to save Luna and Sunny.” – Twilight replied – “We will have much more time for questions later. But first…” - Twilight turned to Discord.

“…it’s time to take out the trash” – She finished. Discord looked at her with disinterest.
“Why would you call me names, Twilight? I thought we were friends now that I am reformed!” – He floated to Fluttershy – “Isn't that right, dear Fluttershy?” But Twilight wasn't fooled.
“Oh, yes, you are reformed. But your magic isn't. And it’s time I took it back from you.” – Twilight explained, charging her horn.

Discord looked at her with a bit of annoyance, snapped his fingers and… nothing happened. He kept trying and trying but nothing was happening. Finally, Twilight was ready and released her spell. It hit the draconequus and a glowing orb formed around him. It swirled around a few times and returned back into Twilight’s horn.

Standing where Discord was floating a second before was a slightly confused pony with a goatee and a magic swirl for his cutie mark. Twilight’s friends looked confused at this turn of events.

“Who is that stallion with the dashing beard, darling?” – Rarity asked. – “He couldn't possibly be that brute, Discord, could he?”
“Umm, Twilight… what did you do to my friend… if you don’t mind me asking?” – Fluttershy asked nonetheless.

“I introduce to you – Starswirl the Bearded, first archmage of Equestria, mentor to Clover the Clever and inventor of the omnimorphic spell. A spell, which allows the caster to change his or her shape to anything he or she wishes. Rings any bells, girls?” – Twilight said while her friends showed different levels of understanding. – “He was Princess Celestia’s first student and he failed the spell which I succeeded in completing.”
“You mean to tell us that guy was Discord all along?” – Dash finally understood.
“Yes and no. He failed the spell and the resulting clash between the harmonic field of Equestria and the chaotic matrix of the spell caused him to… well, let’s say go looney. But now that I’ve taken back the magic, he should be himself again.”
“An astute observation, young mage. If you like stating the obvious. Now what year is it and where can I find Celestia? I still owe her a report from this failure.” – Starswirl said. – “And, as a matter of fact, who in the blazes are you? I remember there being only two alicorns…”
“Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship, Alicorn of Magic and Stars, Celestia’s 375th and latest student. Oh, and not to forget, Luna’s wife. As for the year – it’s 1004 PNMM, but that won’t tell you much, so in the old calendar it would be 1574 AU.”
“It’s been over a millennium since I last saw Princess Celestia, then. And that’s a lot of titles for a pony your age. Unless you always looked like this and I'm making a fool of myself. Nevertheless, lead me to Princess Celestia, Princess Twilight.”
“Very well. And please, my friends call me Twilight.”

Twilight gathered her friends together and led them through the forest. It was a safe and quick trek as anything with half a brain avoided the powerhouse that was the lavender alicorn while she used her magic to destroy the chaotic vines. There was a small incident involving a Cragadile but Twilight simply teleported the beast away.

Finally, the group arrived at the cave underneath the Castle of the Royal Pony Sisters and inside they found the root of all of the vines, along with the Tree of Harmony. Twilight used her magic to clear away a path to the tree, while her friends batted away at the smaller vines.

At the base of the tree, two cocoons split under the lavender alicorn’s assault and from within two ponies emerged; Luna and Celestia, the latter still in her Sunny Skies disguise.

"Luna!" - Twilight exclaimed as the vines began to unravel.
"Twilight! Is that you?" - Luna asked in wonder. Twilight began to run to Luna as she opened her arms to embrace her marefriend. But she hadn't counted on Twilight's enthusiasm. Taking a flying leap, Twilight launched herself in Luna's waiting arms, knocking them both to the ground.
"I. Was. So. Worried. About. You!" - Twilight said, between kisses. She was perched rather awkwardly atop her marefriend, not that she noticed - or cared - in their moment of passion.
"What took you so long? I swear, if I didn't play solitaire in my head, I'd be bored out of my life right now." - Luna's complaining was cut short by Twilight planting her lips on Luna's. Reciprocating the gesture, the two shared a deep and passionate kiss. Even if it had only been a short time, each had been very worried about the other.
The two broke the kiss and stared into each other's eyes for a few moments. Then Luna took notice of the lavender alicorn's new appearance.

"Ooh, this new mane you have is very pretty!" - Luna said, admiring Twilight's flowing, multi-colored locks. "And you have bigger wings now!" Luna stretched one of them out. 'She's as big as I am now.' - She mentally corrected herself. - 'I am going to have so much fun with those wings!'
"And you have a long flowing tail too..." - she trailed off. Looking past Twilight's tail, she saw somepony she hadn't seen for a millennium. "Ewww, where did you find him? I thought I'd seen the last of him during that Discord fiasco."

Twilight looked behind herself and noticed Starswirl kissing with Celestia. Suddenly aware of the rather compromising position she and Luna were in, she blushed and stood aside, allowing Luna to come to her hooves.
"Well, it's quite obvious to me that you don't like Starswirl. Why the animosity?" - Twilight asked.
“She walked in on us while we were engaged in… research…” – Celestia said. – “The old castle needed new windows after that shout.”
“It’s not my fault! I thought he was assaulting you!” – Luna defended herself with a pout that Twilight thought was adorable.
“Oh yes, his assaults were quite… vigorous… considering his age.” – Celestia teased.
“TIA! I still haven’t got the old images out of my head and you’re trying to drive them back in!”
“Oh shush you, stop being so easy to rile up. It’s not like I complain about what you do with my student! Speaking of which... Twilight, are you the one I have to thank for having my beau back?” – Celestia turned to the lavender alicorn, this time having to look up. – “Oh my, it seems you hit a growth spur- Wait. I recognize you now. It was over a thousand years ago, right in this place! You charged the Tree of Harmony!”

Twilight beamed down at Celestia.

“It was accidental that time. But this time, I must do it on purpose. Now that all of the bearers are assembled, it should be quite a bit more powerful. Now, girls, formation.”

Twilight’s friends gathered around her and the group floated up. This time Twilight heard all of the girls in the spell and when the question came from the Elements, all of them answered. The rainbow coalesced and charged into the bark of the tree, invigorating it. It also had a side effect of temporarily washing away Twilight's spells from Celestia. Finally, after the magic subsided, the necklaces and tiara floated away from the group, the jewelry vanishing, while the gems set back into the tree.

“How will we defend Equestria now, without the Elements? I'm ready to kick major flank by myself, but what about bad guys like Discord?” – Rainbow Dash asked.
“It’s simple. Applejack, tell me – what do you feel when you touch the tree? As a matter of fact, you all can touch it and tell me what you feel.”

The group of friends touched the tree one by one and each of them understood. Their bond was what gave life to the Elements, they didn't need any jewelry to use the magic of friendship.
The entire group left the cave, Twilight leaning into Luna, enjoying their shared height and thinking how things were going to change now. Following them, Celestia was back in her Sunny form, leaning into Starswirl. Surrounding them all of the ponies cheered for another successful adventure.

Back in the cave, unseen by anypony, the tree produced a box. It fell down and rolled under one of the roots, to lay there forgotten.

Author's Note

I don't like this chapter. I don't like it at all. Feels rather pointless.
But alas, this is how the story decides to express itself.

I hope you don't mind me using this particular bit of headcanon.
Or two. Or all of these headcanons.

We will resume with Nightmare in the next chapter, I think.
This story surprises even me...

Ch IX - Visiting

Stargazers

Chapter IX - Visiting

The chariot ride to Ponyville was quite uneventful, yet Twilight couldn't help but notice the growing unrest in Luna. It started early in the morning, with her lunar lover snapping at servants for the smallest of mistakes. Now? The blue alicorn was gnawing her lower lips nervousness. Finally Twilight couldn't take it anymore.

"What's going on, love? You've been getting worse and worse. The closer we get to our destination, the more you've been fretting over something."

Despite the howling winds her companion heard her clearly.

"It's about the news. You have to understand, alicorns are not supposed to fall to simple sickness. Yes, you muted her connection with the sun and made her mortal, but unless she expended all of her stored magic, she still retains some of the perks. One of them being an immunity to all illnesses. To hear that Tia has fainting spells is... disconcerting, at the least."

Twilight frowned as she recalled the short notice from Starswirl, which arrived unexpectedly in the wee hours of the morning. It was rushed an was the reason for this unscheduled visit to Ponyville. Not that Twilight had anything against visits to the little town, which she came to see as her second home. It was not long since Twilight last saw her friends, but the longing never went away. Realizing she was getting off-track, the lavender alicorn focused back on Luna's words.

"Well, this is why we're going, no? To check if we can be of use. You know I hold Celestia in high regard and as her friend I would do anything to help her. So don't drive yourself crazy with worry."

“Hah, look who's talking, little miss worrywart… If I remember correctly you also panicked! If it weren't for that little trick our niece taught you, you'd still be hyperventilating somewhere in our chambers. Also, this is also bad news for us. If Celestia can get sick, then so can we!”

Twilight blushed and smiled sheepishly at the remark about her panicking tendencies but then turned serious as Luna finished.

“Well, we would have to test that. I can always maintain a health bubble to protect one or both of us from whatever is wrong with Celestia. It's a nifty little spell I've found in the public archives.”

“Ah, yes, I remember the spell. Out mother tended to use it - whenever she was giving us food - when we were foals. Back then, Tia and I loved to play with food and it usually ended on whomever was the closest.”

“That's… an adorable image you've just put in my head.”

“Those were happier times, when all we did was to play and never worry about anything. Anyway, does that mean that you like foals? Is there something you'd like to share with me, love?”

The lavender alicorn blushed once again at the teasing words from her wife. Images of little fillies and colts running around them and playing little games came to the forefront of her mind and Twilight couldn't stop herself from smiling fondly.

“I… IthinkIwouldlikethat...” she mumbled out too fast for Luna to catch.

“What was that, my star? I couldn't hear you clearly.”

“I said… I… I would like that… someday.”

“Well, well, it seems that you do have motherly instincts… Though I shouldn't be surprised, considering you helped raise Spike. He's growing up to be a perfect gentledrake.”

“T-thank you! I tried my best but both Celestia and my mother had a hoof in his upbringing, so I can't take all the credit. But, to be honest, I'm not happy with how I acted back then. Some ponies thought he was my pet!”

“I would say he's more of a servant than pet, but it's because of how you lived. Didn't he end up cooking and cleaning for you? He's like the perfect little housewife. Hay, if it wouldn't impose on our privacy and his new responsibilities, I would consider keeping him with us.”

“Well, we have an abundance of staff in the palace anyway, so it's not like we're really desperate for help. Spike became like that mostly because otherwise he'd get bored and start getting into trouble. I had to keep him busy. From recent correspondence, he's satisfied where he is. And oh, we should prepare, I can see Ponyville. We're about to land.”

When the chariot landed near the library, a small gathering of ponies greeted them, but used to the visits, they quickly returned to whatever they were doing before. A few who knew Twilight and Luna personally waved cheerfully to the pair. Turning to the chariot fliers, she addressed them.

“Thank you gentlecolts. Please go back to the palace. We shall use a teleport to come back.”

Both alicorns approached the library, and the blue alicorn knocked on the door. While they were waiting for a response, Twilight started to look around, reminiscing about the events from not so long ago. The library was almost struck down by that brute, Tirek. If it wasn't for that shield spell she personally placed over important buildings, the tree, along with some other structures, would have been destroyed by magical fire. After all, casualties in buildings often occurred when two alicorns and the villain did battle. It would probably be worse if Starswirl hadn't reminded her of a solution to their centaur problem.

Finally, the door opened and a frazzled-looking Starswirl greeted them.

“Ah, you're here, good. Now stop standing like foals out there and get in. You need to talk some sense into her.” Starswirl said shortly and urged the pair in. They were used to his unique and no-nonsense way of speaking so the rude greeting didn't affect them.

In the main room of the library, they encountered Celestia, still in the unicorn form. She was looking a bit tired, but Twilight thought that she herself looked worse after some all-nighters. Of course, as agreed before, she cast the shield over herself and discreetly scanned her old mentor. What she found was astonishing, but she decided to leave it a surprise for later. Knowing that it wasn't anything bad, she relaxed slightly and let the shield subtly fade.

Celestia turned to face them and her face lit up as she took in the sight of them.

“Ah, Lulu, Twilight, it's good to see you! Come in, sit, make yourself -” here she giggled while looking at Twilight. “- at home! After all, it's not like you haven't lived here before, right?”

“Sister, what have you done this time, that had Starswirl in such a panic. He's usually so stoic, so whatever it is, must be serious.” Luna started as they sat on the couches.

“Ah that worrywart. I told him it's nothing. I feel fine!” At this, the stallion in question came back and scoffed at her. “Nothing, she says. Yet she keeps faining at times and this morning I found her in the bathroom, regurgitating yesterday's supper!”

“Oh shush, Swirly, dearest. It might be just because I overworked myself. Between all the parties recently and all the studying – speaking of which, Twilight, we have to discuss these sometimes, they're fascinating! - I might have went past my limits. There's also the possibility of alcohol poisoning. There was a lot of hard cider at Applejack's party recently.”

Twilgiht decided to alleviate some of the worry.

“Well, from my scans she's in perfect health, so it can't be anything too serious. Did you two confer with the local hospital yet? Also, if you don't want these to be public in Ponyville, I could always lend you the court physician. It's not like he has a lot to do these days.”

“Well, no. Like I've said, it's nothing serious. I don't need to make it worse by having somepony see me in the hospital and rumors going out that I'm sick. You know how this community loves to gossip. News travel way too fast. I read a lot about symptoms like these and I'm pretty sure it's just me being overworked. Now, let's make use of this sudden visit and catch up on everything.”

They spent a few hours talking about events from both Ponyville and Canterlot and beyond and it became late as dusk slowly started to set. Twilight decided they had to go back to the palace.

“Well, as pleasant as this visit has been, we have to get back. Court is still waiting and we have to set the sun and raise the moon soon, and you know how we prefer to do it from home.”

“Off with you two, then. And do remember to write, Twilight. It's not fair when I'm the only one initiation our correspondence. I can still give you advice, you know. After all, I did rule this nation for a long time before you.”

“And you taught me everything you know. Well, except the things you preferred to hide, but I understand why you did it. I hadn't considered myself ready until recently. From my side, I'd like if you wrote me if you got more news about your… sickness.”

“Will do. Now come, sister, Twilight, give this old mare a hug!” Celestia said jokingly.

After a short embrace, the alicorn pair started to leave. Once the door closed behind them, the lavender alicorn turned to her companion.

“Did you notice?” she asked.

“Notice what, love?”

“Celestia's sickness. It's not an ilness at all! When I checked her with mage sight, I found she has a second wellspring!”

“But that's impossible! Nopony can have two wellsprings, it's not scientifically possible!”

“Oh, you'd be surprised why. You see...” here Twilight paused dramatically to build Luna's anticipation as they prepared their teleport spells. “… Celestia is pregnant!”

With a big smile on her face, the lavender alicorn turned ahead and let the spell take her. She felt a pang of emotion from her wife, but thought it was surprise and joy. Mid-teleport, she couldn't see the ugly scowl of jealousy and rage, as once again, Luna's eyes flashed into slit pupils momentarily and faded back to normal.

Author's Note

Well, this was a long break. I won't give you excused but I will say I'm sorry.
This chapter brings you a taste of what is to come, if you look closely.
Might edit it later to fill in some in-betweens but otherwise it's sound.

Ch X - Bearing

Stargazers

Chapter X - Bearing

Waking up in the middle of the night was not unusual for Twilight Sparkle. After all, a princess needs to be available to make “important decisions” twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. Not even national holidays were free for a princess of Equestria. So yes, the lavender alicorn was not surprised by the unholy hour she was awoken at.

What surprised her was the reason she woke up in the first place – the cold edge of the knife held against her neck in somepony's magical aura. Her first reaction would have been panic, but then she remembered that not only was she currently immortal but also that she could easily remove this pony's magic and subdue them. Hence her second reaction – curiosity. She remembered Celestia telling stories about assassins sent after her life many times and yet none of them succeeded. Hay, some of them even were swayed and joined the now-nonexistent Guild of Assassins of Equestria.

Taking a second look at her assailant, she was surprised to recognize the unmistakable shape of an alicorn. But why would…? She decided to sate her curiosity.

“So… I know we've been quite busy lately, but now's not the best time to get kinky, Luna. Knives are a dangerous item to bring to bed. Somepony could get… inconvenienced.”

“Silence foal! Know that your life is at the mercy of Nightmare Moon! I shall subdue you and nothing shall stand in my way to total domination!”

“Really, love? Roleplay? And promises of bondage? Are you really that desperate? I should have paid more attention to which books you are reading lately...”

“We said, be SILENT, whelp!”

Scrunching her brow in a frown, Twilight cast a subtle detection spell. This wasn't a magical disguise that her fellow alicorn liked to use to scare foals on Nighmare Night. No, this was the real deal. It seemed like parasite was back to feeding on Luna's darker emotions. But that brought forth the question of why? As far as Twilight was aware, her wife was content with her life nowadays. She had everything she ever wanted. Her ponies respected her night and thanks to the lavender alicorn's efforts the popularity of her lover grew in leaps and bounds. Their relationship gave both of them an outlet, both in crativity and in emotions. Eveyrhing was going well. So why?

“Well, Mrs. Nightmare… Could you at least tell me how and why have you appeared again? Before you “subdue” me?” Twilight asked cheekily, knowing well that she was safe.

“Do you take me for a fool? Trying to distract me, while you think of a way out of this situation?”

“No, no. I'm genuinly curious. Please, do indulge me this once. It's not like we had a chance to speak clearly on our previous meeting.”

“Hmpf. Very well. But know this – one wrong move and the blade shall cut you cleanly. You may be immortal but you're not invincible. Reforming a body takes a long time.”

The Nightmare approached a set of cushions, sitting and trying to get comfortable. The knife, of course, remained unmoving where it was. Finally, the dark alicorn cleared her throat and started speaking.

“It wasn't easy, you know. Before the Elements hit, I had a small window of opportunity to do something. A spell would just be swept away by the harmonic wave from the blast. So I had to improvise. Using the connection I had with precious little Luna, I dug myself in deep in the recesses of her subconscious, where even the Elements could not find me. There I waited, slumbering, for even the slightest tingle of negativity. I waited and waited, biding my time until I could once again feed on Luna's emotions. And then – not really long after my withdrawal – that oaf draconequus came. And he started playing with his powers like he usually does. In his great ignorance, what a mule, he restored my host to her prime. What he didn't know, is that he was also restoring me! Of course, that was a small drop in the ocean of what I needed. Yet here I was, once more active, taking every ounce of negativity from Luna that I could. And I planned! Recently my greatest plan came to fruition – the creature of nightmares that she “created” to punish herself. Did you not find it suspicious that the Tantibus – which, by the way, means Nightmare in Old Equish – is a creature of nightmares? It was my tool, my greatest creation to gather negativity for me! And if it weren't for you, your friends and that pitiful town, I would have been back faster. But that doesn't matter, because in the end, Luna got the last push recently, and I was able to get back in control! And now, I have you at my mercy!”

“Wow, even if I can't agree with your methods and reasoning, I have to applaud your planning.”

“Hah! I had a thousand years on the moon, with nothing to do but to plan for revenge and for any contingencies! There was no way I was going to fail in my pursuits!”

“And yet here you are, threatening me with a knife of all things…”

“Ah, thank you for reminding me...” Nighmare levitated something in front of Twilight and she had to gasp as she recognized the item.

“An inhibitor ring! But… these work on unicorns only!”

“That is of no concern. As long as it blocks the parts of your magic that come from the unicorn base, it shall also disrupt your other magics.”

The ring was lowered down onto Twilight's horn and as soon as it was secure, it started to work. Many unicorns describe the feeling as closing the shutters on a window and blocking out the sun. But for the lavender alicorn, who was connected to all living magic, this was much much worse. Suddenly, a presence that was always there, unnoticed, vanished. The thrum of power that was a constant reminder of her domain, left, leaving behind a silence that made Twilight's ears pop. She started to hyperventilate.

Nightmare looked in fascination as the other mare fell to the ground, breathing hard. The knife which was now useless, tumbled to the floor with a clatter. She approached the suddenly writhing pony and to her surprise, a pang in her heart made her stop.

Meanwhile, Twilight suddenly could breathe again. Her powers were still gone, but a small connection with something was suddenly there, and… wait no, it was always there, but now she could feel it in it's entirety! Waves of reassurance, confidence and love passed through the link that existed since she tangled with Luna. And after that, it was as if a dam broke. All of Twilight's powers came back.

Before Nightmare could react, there was a great flash of light and suddenly there was a cage around her, stopping any magic from being cast by her. The lavender alicorn, which just seconds before was nearly catatonic, was now standing in front of her, eyes narrowed, mane billowing in an ethereal wind.

“Now, parasite. You've been very, very naughty. It's time for punishment...” Twilight said in a quiet voice, that made the Nightmare shudder.

Twilight gathered an orb of magic, and with a thought, sent it straight into the dark alicorn's chest. In that moment, several different kinds of magic fought for dominance. Harmony, chaos, friendship and love, guided with thoughts and wishes, touched the Nightmare. There was a sudden flash, a pop and then when Twilight opened her eyes again, Luna was standing there, untouched, smiling softly at her beloved.

“I knew you'd defeat her. Unlike what she said, she didn't have enough power to do what she wanted to do. I'm glad that you were able to fight through the block...”

“I wouldn't be able to do that if it weren't for you. The love and support you gave me was the push I needed to rip that ring apart. Thank you!”

The pair of them embraced and were about to kiss, but were interrupted by a sudden sound. Turning to the source of the racket, the two were shocked beyond belief.

“Well, I hope this is what you had in mind when you said you wanted children. I'm definitely not looking forward to raising that one...” Twilight mumbled to the blue alicorn ads they looked at the surprising sight before them.

Sitting there, with a look of wonder on her face, was a small filly, combining the colors and characteristics from Nightmare, Twilight and Luna.

Author's Note

Not entirely satisfied with this one either, but eh...

The latest episode with Luna enabled me to finally wrap this thread.

I'm sorry if it's not epic enough and didn't match the anticipation I've set up, but I'd rather write and make progress with this story than not.

And yes, the title is related to child-bearing. Had to do something with -ing, and birthing not only does sound awkward but also spoils the events a bit...