"Oh, Celestia! They are adorable!"
Princess Luna cooed at the sight of the two infant foals curled up on a blanket in front of her. They were both unicorns, one purple and the other blue. Celestia smiled as she saw how pleased her sister was with them, it had taken a great effort to even create them in the first place.
Recently, Celestia had noticed her sister slipping back into the same depression that almost caused catastrophe a thousand years ago. When Celestia realized how lonely her sister was, she had given her sister a huge responsibility- running an orphanage. When the abandoned foals had taken to Luna so well, she had been so happy. The foals didn't judge her like some of the adult subjects did and both the foals and Luna benefitted from the attention.
However, now, things were a bit different. Luna had found out she could never have foals of her own, which was something she began to long for after she started taking care of them. She had adopted a foal from her orphanage, but things had gone poorly. The foal had been very sick and wasn't going to live very long. When she found out about it, Celestia could see her sister break down as her adopted colt grew sicker and sicker. When he did perish, Celestia was afraid the sister she knew as Luna was going to "perish" as well. However, Luna went about her duties, but retired from her position at the orphanage and hired somepony else to take her place. She had put on a happy face, but Celestia could tell it continued to bother her deeply. When Celestia saw all the same signs of depression all over again, she feared the darkness may take her sister completely. It wouldn't be the first time she'd seen a pony succumb to such powerful depression, primarily if you were especially magical.
But, then, she had an idea. With the help of many powerful unicorns, she put a mixture of her own DNA along with her sister's inside a surrogate. Everything went without a hitch, the mare gave birth to two healthy foals that were each a little part of both the royal sisters. Celestia was bringing them home for the first time and Luna couldn't have been more excited. In fact, she had been overly excited for months.
"Don't wake them, Luna! Come, let's put them to sleep,"
Celestia carried the little ones with magic up to the nursery. Luna had designed it herself, painting one half of it like the night sky and the other like a bright sunny day. When Celestia had tucked the two of them together in the same crib, the sisters sat for a moment to take in the sight before them. They were now mothers.
"Oh, Celestia, I'm so happy! Thank you, sister. This was a wonderful idea."
"I'm also extremely happy. It will be nice to have little ones around the castle."
The two royal sisters left the young foals to their nap and shut the door to the nursery. As they walked down the hallway, Luna began to wonder something.
"Sister?" She asked.
"Yes, Luna?"
"If those foals were made from just our DNA, why aren't they alicorns?"
"Actually," Celestia began.
"They aren't made from just our DNA, we needed a stallion's as well. You and I may have been born alicorns, but even if they were conceived naturally, the chances of them coming out that way as well is still very rare. Even though they are our daughters, they will still both need to earn their ascension into alicorns."
"I see. Well, this brings up another question..."
"Yes, Luna?"
"If they are both equally half of me and half of you-"
"And a unicorn stallion. Starswirl the eighth's great grandson."
"Ok, so they are- wait, seriously? Oh well- so they are half of me, half of you, and half Beard Dust's. Whatever, the question is, which will take after you and which will take after me? It isn't easy being a princess of the night and it takes a great heart to be the princess of the day."
"Well, I was thinking we could teach them the basics of both solar and lunar magic, then let them decide which path is best."
"You don't see any issues there?"
"Of course not, they are our children, after all. Besides, I'm sure it will be rather easy, one will obviously excel more in one area than the other. They couldn't possibly both be experts at the same thing!" Celestia chuckled.
"Well, that does make sense, I suppose. Alright, then."
The two rounded a corner and were only a few feet from the throne room, where a select few guests were waiting to congratulate them.
"Celestia, I have one more question."
"Yes, Luna?"
"What are we going to name them?"
"I was thinking...Twilight Sparkle and Trixie Lulamoon..."
A few years later.
The young purple foal known as Twilight was extremely nervous. Just because she was the daughter of the Princesses did not mean she could just go to Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. She still needed to pass two tests. Her sister, Trixie, was standing close by, also quivering. The two fillies looked at eachother and smiled, if only to try and show the other they weren't nervous.
Twilight had no problem passing the written exam. She had always loved to read and found she had a deep passion for learning. Trixie, on the other hoof, was easily distracted. She had the magical ability, but she seemed more interested in the limelight of being the daughter of the Princesses than anything else. She liked to be the center of attention and often performed her magical skills in a spectacular way. Much like she were entertaining rather than just showing off.
Twilight noticed her sister was having difficulty with the test when she saw a paper pegasus go flying around the room magically. Luckily, Twilight kicked Trixie in just enough time before the teacher overseeing the exam looked up.
"Hey!" Trixie whispered, annoyed.
Twilight rolled her eyes.
"I'm not going to be embarrassed by having my sister fail..." She mumbled to Trixie, and leaned over so she could see the answers.
"...Thanks, Twilight."
"I love you, Trixie." Twilight smiled.
"Love ya, too."
After the two had handed the written test in, they headed down for the next part of the test, showing off their skills in magic.
Outside, Celestia was walking by the school. She was also feeling a bit nervous, her two foals were growing up very differently. So far, Trixie was excelling in magical abilities, but she still couldn't control it right. Twilight, on the other hand, had everything Trixie did not in ability to focus and learn.
When the building began to surge with electrical magic and a dragon's head exploded from the ceiling, she smiled.
"Well, it looks like someone passed their test..."
When she approached the exam room, she was surprised to see Twilight in there. With the unfocused raw energy flying around, she had assumed it was Trixie. She walked over to her daughter to calm her down. When Twilight saw her mother, the magic stopped. The teachers were turned back to normal from potted plants and the dragon shrunk back down to size.
"Twilight!"
"Ah, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to-"
"I had no idea you had such power inside of you! I'm quite proud!"
"Huh?"
"But you need to learn to tame these abilities through focused study."
"Huh?"
"What I'm saying is, you not only pass, but you have also earned your position as my protege!"
"Really, Mom?"
"Really."
"YAAY!" Twilight jumped in the air, ecstatic that she had pleased her mother so much.
"Oh, and one more thing..."
"More?!"
Celestia pointed to her dughter's flank.
"My cutie mark? YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES!" She began jumping excitedly around in circles.
Celestia turned and walked out to her other daughter, that was now pouting outside, waiting her turn.
"What's wrong, Trixie? Now, it's your turn!"
"Oh, uh, y-yes mother." She said, trying to swallow her fear.
The teachers were holding their heads and trying to recover from what had just happened. Twilight broke from her happy bouncing when she saw her sister walk in.
"Oh, Trixie! LOOK! I got my cutie mark!"
Trixie hugged her sister and tried to look as happy for her sister as possible. But, in truth, she was boiling with jealousy. She had thought for sure she would out-do Twilight on this part of the test. Just where had she gotten all that raw power from, anyway? Just a few nights ago she could just barely turn a page in her book! And she got her cutie mark, too? On top of everything? Ugh!
Trixie watched as a new egg was pushed into the exam room and her sister went bouncing out of it. She sighed and stepped forward, readying herself.
"I do hope you don't try and out-do your sister, I'm not sure we can handle anything else like that." One of the teachers commented, seeing the determined look on Trixie's face.
But Trixie was too lost in thought, trying to figure out how to do exactly that. She needed to throw some intense power at this egg! She fired up her horn and concentrated, putting every ounce of magical energy she had into the egg. However, things didn't go at all like she planned.
The egg exploded into a giant blue omlette and the carriage that held the egg began to grow.
"Oh, no!" Trixie's eyes widened.
She quickly fired more magic at it, trying to fix the mistake she made. The cart shrunk back and the egg's insides flew back into it and it lay back on the straw, looking as if it had never been unharmed.
"Whew!" Trixie wiped her brow, thinking she had another shot to hatch the egg.
However, the teachers were at wits end and tried to end to exam for Trixie, right then and there.
"No, please! Please wait...watch this!"
She tried one more time, now no longer trying to outdo Twilight, she couldn't bear the thought of not getting in at all! She concentrated and hit the egg with her magic one more time, but less intense.
This time, the egg hatched a little blue and yellow dragon, just like the one Twilight had hatched. But, that was it, nothing spectacular like Twilight's had been.
It was enough to pass, but that was it. She left the exam room, feeling humiliated. She barely passed the section of the test that she was supposed to be good at! Twilight was waiting for her and frowned when she saw her sister, almost in tears.
"You didn't...fail, did you?"
Trixie shook her head and bit back tears.
"No, but I almost did! And...and I didn't get my cutie mark!" The blue filly burst out in tears as Twilight held her.
Now that the real reason Trixie was upset had come out, Twilight felt a little badly for being so excited.
"It's okay, Trixie. You'll get your mark real soon! I'll help you!"
"R-really?" She sniffled.
"Of course! I love you, Trixie! You're my sister!"
"I love you, too, Twilight."
"I hate you, Twilight!"
"Yeah? Well, I hate you, too!"
The two sisters were growling at each other, outside Twilight's bedroom. Trixie had been looking everywhere for her very favorite dress, it was a special occasion after all, only to find it missing. After carefully contemplating where it could've gone to, she ended up in her sister's room.
"You're a thief! How could you take this dress? Of all the dresses in my room, why this one?"
"I didn't realize this dress meant so much to you, I just blindly picked!"
"Liar! You are trying to sabotage me! You just love humiliating me, just like the day of the entrance exam!"
"Oh, Trixie, please don't bring this up again..."
"Trixie can and will bring up whatever she wants!"
"Okay, what is with the talking in third person? You've been doing that a lot recently."
"Silence! Just return Trixie's dress at once!"
"Fine! Here! But you said I could borrow a dress! I don't have one and this is an important day for me, too!"
"Fine! You can have a different dress..." Trixie used her magic to snatch her beloved dress back and give her sister one last scowl.
Twilight rolled her eyes, she found herself doing this constantly around Trixie these days. They had gotten along so well when they were foals, and they were still exceptionally close, but they bickered constantly. They may have been twins, but they couldn't have been different ponies. Trixie loved being the center of attention and would do anything to get it. She especially adored going out in public and making it known exactly who she was. The ponyrazzi followed her around everytime she left the castle, mostly because she would have one of her guards tell them exactly when and where she was going. Trixie didn't care much for her studies, but had gotten quite skilled in magic. Now, after all her schooling and practicing, Trixie could rival Twilight in sheer magic power. She was decent at solar magic, but she excelled mainly in lunar magic.
Twilight was rather different. She didn't like the attention she got from being who she was. She preferred to stay inside with a good book than to go out and pose for photos with her sister. She had loved school and spent every waking minute studying. Both types of magic came quite easy to her, but while lunar magic did interested her, it was solar magic she dominated. She also never cared about meeting friends or even getting dressed up. While Trixie had an entire closet filled with outfits and accessories, Twilight didn't have even one dress to wear today and it WAS an important day.
Both girls had reached the proper age to gain and use the title "princess". They still had a few bigger tests to pass before they could become alicorns, like their mothers, but becoming a princess was still a huge responsibility. Today they were also to pick what hoofsteps they would follow. Who would pursue solar magic and someday replace Celestia? Who would take Luna's place? Both girls had been so lost in thought, they hadn't said another word as they walked to Trixie's room. It was a big change coming for both of them and it also meant they were expected to act and behave a certain way from now on. Becoming an alicorn was something to be earned and if their mothers thought for one second they didn't deserve it, well, they wouldn't. Trixie's stomach began o twist into knots just thinking about losing the opportunity. She was the first to break the silence.
"Hey, Twilight?"
"Yeah?"
"I-I'm sorry, for accusing you. I know you didn't try and take my favorite dress on purpose."
"It's okay, Trixie. I know you didn't mean it." She nuzzled her sister's muzzle.
"We're still good, right? Right, Twily-Twi?" Trixie giggled.
"We won't be if you keep using that nickname!"
Both girls laughed as they reached their destination. As they walked into the room, Trixie gasped.
"I have just the dress for you, Twi!"
Trixie began digging in her closet. Various outfits came flying out, Twilight dodging left and right to avoid them all.
"Here it is!"
A light orange dress levitated out of the closet. It was sleeveless, but came with gloves that would cover her front legs. The dress ruffled slightly in the back and shimmered, as if the bottom part was covered in glitter. Twilight's grew wide when she saw it.
"Oh, Trixie! Thank you! It's even prettier than the one you're going to wear. Are you sure?"
Trixie nodded. In fact, it was Trixie's second favorite dress. A perfect choice for the sister she loved.
"Well, Trixie can't have her sister look like a peasant! It would be embarrassing!"
Twilight smiled, with Trixie that was just her way of showing love. She tried the dress on and looked at herself in the mirror. She couldn't believe how lovely she looked! Then, she bit her bottom lip, the feeling of anxiety returned. It was almost time!
"Quick, Trixie! Get dressed! We're going to be late!"
Trixie's pupils grew tiny at the idea of being late. She quickly kicked herself into over-drive to make herself presentable for her big day.
A few hours later, the throne room was full of ponies awaiting the unveiling of the new royal sisters. Celestia and Luna stood next to their neice, Princess Cadence. She had been a foal sitter for Twilight and Trixie when they were younger. Prince Bluebood sat on the other side of the sisters and Shining Armor, a stallion that Cadence had been dating, was standing at the lead of the royal guards.
"May I present to you, for the first time, my lovely daughters, Princess Trixie Lulamoon and Princess Twilight Sparkle!"
The room filled with applaud and cheering as Celestia announced the two girls. Trixie, always liking to make an entrance, burst through the doors first. She was standing on a large golden chariot being pulled by two stallions. The only problem was, the chariot had no wheels, making the stallions huff and puff, barely moving fast enough.
"Hurry up!" Trixie whispered to her servants.
"We're trying! This would be a lot easier if this had wheels!"
"Trixie does not trust wheels. Besides, they would make this grand contraption look tacky."
"It's a chariot..."
But Trixie had stopped listening. She was waving to the crowd and smiling, posing for photos and blowing kisses. She was loving every moment. Twilight was next to come in, although she wasn't as flashy. She was also standing on a chariot, although slightly smaller and with wheels. She decided, for once, to take a page from her sister's book and enjoy the attention. She mimicked Trixie and waved to all the ponies in the crowd.
When both girls were standing in front of their mothers, the cheering and hoofstamping ceased. Both girls remained silent as two stallions walked over to them. Each one had a pillow on their back holding a crown. As it was placed on each of the girls' heads, Celestia asked her daughters a question.
"Have you both figured out which path is best for you?"
Twilight and Trixie nodded, then smiled.
"See? And you thought there would be issues." Celestia whispered to her sister, smirking.
"Alright, well, let's hear it! Time to announce it to everypony! Trixie? Twilight? What is your choice?"
At almost the exact same time and in unison, they said,
"I want to raise the sun! ...huh? Wait, what did you say?"
The room went dead quiet. Trixie and Twilight were suddenly hit with the realization that they wanted the same position. Trixie began to stare daggers at her sister, while Twilight looked pensive, taking the situation in.
"And you thought there would be issues." Luna whispered to her sister, mockingly.
Celestia eyes twitched for a moment, before she regained herself. She closed her eyes.
"Now, girls, you can't both take my position. I find it hard to believe you two haven't discussed this with each other! One of you needs to rethink their decision."
"You heard mom, Twilight! Change your mind!"
"Wha...? ME? But, you're terrible at solar magic, how are you going to raise the sun?"
"What did you just say? Well, how on earth is a book worm that never sets hoof outside her room going to run a kingdom! You have no idea what ponies want!"
"Oh, and you do? You can't go a single day without referring to yourself in the third person!"
"So what! Trixie is perfectly capable of stopping anytime she wants!"
"Just like you stopped an Ursa Major from destroying a town?"
"THAT'S IT!"
Celestia and Luna watched in horror as their daughter lunged on top of the other one. A full out brawl broke out, the two of them damaging everything in their path. Besides physically hurting eachother, they began an unofficial magic duel, blasts of serious power were being shot in every direction in mere seconds.
Ponies began to cry out and run for their lives. Others decided to stay and take pictures, or just flat out enjoyed watching two royal princesses duke it out. Cadence was trying to hide her amusement, while Celestia and Luna frantically tried to stop the fighting.
"GIRLS! THAT IS ENOUGH!" Luna shouted, using her Canterlot voice.
But, the girls ignored their mother and continued dueling. Celestia's throne was ripped off the wall with magic and thrown at Twilight. A glass window shattered all over Trixie. Celestia put a hoof to her forehead.
"There is only one way to end this." She took a deep breath.
"YOU TWO ARE NO LONGER PRINCESSES. I AM REVOKING YOUR TITLES, EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY! OBVIOUSLY YOU BOTH ARE TOO IMMATURE TO HANDLE SUCH A LARGE RESPONSIBILITY!"
That did it. The two mares stopped dead in their tracks and looked at their mothers.
"What? You can't be serious!"
"I didn't start the fight, it was her!"
"I was only defending myself!"
"Please don't take away our titles!"
"It's too late!" She turned her back.
"There is only one way to gain your titles back, you're going to have to earn it. You are dismissed."
The girls looked at each other and then back to Celestia, who was walking away. Luna glared disappointedly at them before following her sister out of the throne room. Before she left, she shouted one last thing to her girls.
"You can clean this mess up, as well!"
Twilight looked around and gasped. She hadn't realized what a disaster they had caused! No wonder their mothers were angry with them. They had single hoofedly destryed the throne room and embarrassed their family.
"What are you looking at!"
The last two ponies still in the room had lifted a camera to take a few last shots of the girls cleaning up, but before he could Trixie had snapped at him. Seeing the anger in her eyes directed at him, he grabbed his partner, turned tail, and ran. He had seen what they had just done to eachother, he didn't want to see what she could do to him.
Trixie sneered at her sister, who had already started to clean up.
"This is all your fault, you know."
