"Are you ready, Twilight?"
No. No, she wasn't. The blue door in front of her, always a promise of comfort and warmth when she was young, was now the gate to uncertainty. Her parents were waiting behind it, and they had no idea what secret she was bringing to them. Their daughter was not going to hide who she was anymore.
She liked mares. She had always liked mares, and it was time for her family to know that. It wasn't like she was destroying the very foundations of their understanding of her life while simultaneously crushing their hope for any grandchildren she might give them someday. Unless she absolutely was doing those things.
Twilight snorted and dropped her eyes to the cobblestone street under her hooves. Isn't it times like this when you're supposed to be able to run to your family?
Rainbow Dash wrapped a wing around her shoulders. "You're terrified."
"I have no idea how they'll react."
"For you, that means you're terrified." She lowered her head next to Twilight's. "Kumquat."
Did she just...? "What?"
"Every second, Twilight," she whispered. "I promised to stay by you every second we were here. If you need to get out, all you gotta say is 'kumquat,' and I'll handle the rest."
That dogged determination was why she needed Rainbow Dash here. Twilight thought back to Rainbow's leadership of Cloudsdale's rainwater tornado. Her iron will and steady confidence had whipped all of Ponyville's pegasi into the best shape of their lives, and pushed every single one of them beyond their limits.
She'd found an admiration in her heart for Rainbow Dash that day. At the victory party, Rainbow took her hoof, thanking her for her help in preparing the team. Twilight smiled, and they'd continued talking as the party stretched from the afternoon and on into the evening after the celebration began to wind down.
And neither of them had let go.
Rainbow butted in to her reminiscence. "Do you want me to say it?"
"No, I-I need to be the one to tell them." Some things had to be done personally, but the knowledge that Rainbow's strength was there for her filled her with resolve. The door still stood there, undaunted by her words and thoughts. Her cheeks flushed. "You, um, you can knock if you want."
Rainbow didn't hesitate, knocking three times. She pulled her wing back and grinned at Twilight. "Sexy mare says 'What?'"
"What?"
"Exactly."
Twilight finally smiled, barely noticing the door opening.
"Twilight!" Her mother's shout was the only warning she had before two forelegs wrapped around her, pulling her face into a lavender-and-white striped mane. The familiar scent of vanilla filled her nose, the same scent from the same mane that fell around her face when she'd been kissed good night as a filly.
Even now, knowing what she had to say, Twilight welcomed the relief. She buried her face in that mane, losing herself in the feeling of the two hooves holding her in place. The simple touch, one hoof on the back of her head and the other pressed between her shoulders, carried memories of every prideful celebration, every welcome and farewell, and every comfort for every hurt.
On the count of three, it was over.
The hooves moved to the sides of her face and eased her away. A brilliant smile waited for her, set in a marble colored face that looked as stately as the stone it resembled. "You don't have to knock!"
Twilight smiled into the sparkling blue eyes in front of her. "Hi, Mom."
Those eyes flicked to the side. "And you! You can only be Rainbow Dash, yes?"
"Yes, ma'—" Rainbow's reply was cut off with hug of her own.
One. Two. Three.
Like clockwork, like she was any other member of the family, her mother pulled away from Rainbow Dash, laughing. "My name is Twilight Velvet, and you will never try to call me ma'am again."
Rainbow grinned. "Sure thing, Velvet."
"Oh, you'll fit right in." Velvet smiled and turned back to Twilight. "It's just the two of you, then? Your letter mentioned more of your friends might come."
"It's just the two of us," Twilight said after swallowing the lump in her throat. The letter, a simple notice that she would be in Canterlot today and would like to talk over lunch, was nothing but a convenient excuse to get her hoof in the door. While there was no doubt in Twilight's mind that her friends would have come to support her, they were never included in the plan.
Rainbow spared her from further questioning. "I'm here, at least. We never had a chance to talk at the wedding."
"And that, dear," Velvet said, "is why I was hoping you would make it. I swear, I even got a 'hello' out of Fluttershy! Twilight's letters tell us you're the brash one, and you pulled a vanishing act that night!"
Twilight hung her head, and Rainbow laughed along. Ever since their conversation on the hill, Twilight regretted not introducing Rainbow to her parents when she had the chance. She justified it to herself at the time because their relationship was still young. They'd always been friends, but their decision to start dating was only a month old prior to the wedding.
And then Rainbow Dash blew her away last week.
While Twilight was thankful Rainbow didn't push the issue of introducing her to the family, Rainbow’s suspicion that she'd never told them anything about her love life caught her off guard. But the suspicion was well-founded, and the truth had run deeper than Rainbow thought. Twilight opened herself up that day and told Rainbow Dash everything; all her years of embarrassment and isolation because of her attraction to mares, and the blow she'd taken to her face and heart when she tried to bed a stallion.
Rainbow Dash had listened, and when it was over she'd pulled Twilight into an embrace. She was the only pony that'd ever heard everything Twilight had to say, and she accepted it all with no reservation. That moment was why she was here now. It was time to close one chapter of her life and move on to the new one she was writing.
Velvet headed back inside. "Lunch should be ready soon. Come in, and I'll bring your father out."
Twilight lifted her head high and followed her mother into the house.
The entryway opened into the family sitting room, honestly nothing special for Canterlot. There were chairs and a sofa where Twilight had spent many an afternoon reading, but it was the bookshelves that dominated the otherwise sparsely furnished room. They stretched from the floor to the ceiling, nearly covering an entire wall and stuffed with books of every color, size and age. The only surviving section of wall lay above a second, much smaller, set of shelves.
"Whoa."
Twilight looked over her shoulder and smiled. "Welcome to casa de la egghead." While Velvet walked towards the hallway on the other side of the room, Twilight went over to the blue chair in one of the corners. There was a small stand next to it, holding a quill and some parchment. She lifted the parchment, and the ink shifted. Twilight set it back down to dry.
"Twelve," Rainbow said.
"Huh?"
"Twelve books so far that I don't even understand the title of." She walked along the wall of literature. "There-mod-y-what-now?"
"Thermodynamics, probably."
"Huh. Thirteen. Got anything on the Wonderbolts?"
"They might have got one while I was away."
Rainbow stopped. "While you were away? How would you know if they got one while you were away?"
"I wouldn't remember it being there." Twilight looked back at the blue chair and pointed a hoof at it. "Mom would sit there all the time, writing and reading. I'd join her every time I finished a book, and we'd talk about the characters, the themes. She loved novels more than anything. Sometimes I would even write her a report."
"You wrote your mother book reports? I... well, no, I'm really not surprised."
Twilight sat down on the chair. She could still feel her mother hovering over her, her stomach to Twilight's back and a foreleg holding her across the chest. The parchment would hover in front of them, and her mother's quill would be at the ready. Twilight once made the mistake of looking up while her mother was reading, and the keen look in her blue eyes was still etched in Twilight's mind.
Velvet walked back into the room, followed by a blue coated stallion. "Please, Rainbow, take down whatever looks interesting."
"Oh, no way. I can't believe any pony could read all of these!"
"And don't be fooled, the little set is for us!" Her father laughed and looked around until he spotted Twilight. "There you are!"
She smiled. "Here I am, Dad." She slipped from the chair and stood uncertainly for half a breath.
He walked over, his wavy mane and tail bouncing with each step, and swept her up in one foreleg when she met him halfway across the floor. "Welcome home, Sparkles."
Twilight's cheeks went hot. "Dad—"
"'Sparkles?'" Rainbow snorted. "Never heard that one before."
"Well I needed something different with two Twilights in the house." He let go of her and glanced over to Rainbow. "I'm Night Light, by the way. And you must be Rainbow... uh, Blitz, right?"
Twilight dropped her face to a hoof. Really?
Velvet laughed. "Dash, honey. Rainbow Dash."
Night Light smiled nearly as wide as his eyes. "Rainbow Dash. Sorry, just trying to make it sound cooler."
Rainbow spread her wings with a confident smirk. "Impossible."
Twilight's hoof fell to her chest, and she let out a sigh. Rainbow stepped aside with her father, both of them still chuckling, leaving her alone with Velvet. Everything was going better than she hoped.
"Oh Twilight, what are you so nervous about?" Velvet gave her hoof a quick squeeze. "She's a pleasure to have! I always said your friends were welcome anytime. I'm just surprised it took this long."
Twilight coughed. "So how about lunch? Do you need any help in the kitchen?"
"Trust me, I have plenty of help." Velvet slipped her a wink. "You can set the table if you'd like, but right now, you just stay here."
"Huh? If you need me to—"
"TWILY!"
The booming voice slammed into her like a shockwave, hitting her in the gut, knocking the wind out of her and resonating throughout her body. No! Not yet!
Shining Armor trotted into the room with a smirk. "What's the big idea only sending a letter to Mom and Dad? Your brother's not good enough for a get together?"
Rainbow Dash came to her side, materializing out of thin air for all Twilight knew, grinning at Shining Armor. "Hey Cap! Didn't know you were here!"
Shining hoof bumped her. "I guess that makes two of you, huh? What's that face for, Twily?"
It was for the evaporation of her plan. It was for the complication of what was supposed to be a simple step of a longer process. It was for the fact that her brother, the Captain of the Royal Guard—the very same group of ponies whose whispered insults behind their fellows' backs had not escaped a young filly's ears—was about to hear that she was what they hated.
And as her body faintly registered the feeling of a headlock and a rough hoof scratching her head, one final implication sank in.
Twilight Sparkle summoned every drop of magic she could feel and created the grandest illusion she would never see: a smile. "Is Cadance here, too?"
"I'm in the kitchen, Twilight! Be there in a second! And Velvet, the bread is almost done!"
No...
"Ah! That's my cue." Twilight Velvet trotted down the hallway.
Night Light followed her. "Come on back, Shining. Let's give the mares some time to catch up."
Shining gave her another smile. "You've got good timing, huh? You show up right when lunch is ready! It's great to see you again, sis."
She held her smile until he left the room. Cadance would take his place soon. Cadance... how in the world would she react? Love was her specialty. Her love was with a stallion. Twilight only saw her love spell used on mares and stallions.
Variables. Too many variables. Four ponies, four lives, four judgments. Two was bad. Four was worse. Love her. Hate her. Too many variables. Room shaking. Earthquake? Get down. Cover head. Done. No noise? No earthquake. Trembling. Unstoppable trembling.
"Twi—"
"Out! Out, out, out!" She gasped for air. What was it? "Kumquat! Kumquat!"
A wing fell over her shoulders. "Okay. We're going. Can you stand?"
"Y-Yeah." Twilight struggled back up and the trembling in her legs threatened to send her tumbling back down again. There was no time to lose. Cadance was coming. They had to get out. The wing across her back tugged her around.
Relief flooded her mind as they walked for the door. She could turn this to her advantage. She could send another letter to her parents, arrange another meeting. Maybe in Ponyville this time. They would be expecting something horrible after the disaster she was making, and the shock would be abated. Cadance and Shining Armor could hear it all later and she could breathe before having to face them.
Or she could tell them all now.
The presence of all four family members would let her get it over with in one go. It would be harder to do, but there was only one step in the process. Simplicity was the key; complicated, multiple-step machinations were what made plans fail.
That was it. She was almost out, but she couldn't leave now. The original plan still made too much sense.
Curse you, rationality.
Rainbow Dash cracked open the door, letting in a sliver of daylight and no more. "Is Cadance being here so bad?"
"No."
That put a smile on Rainbow's face. "You trust her, right?"
"Of course I do. She and Shining were my first friends."
Rainbow tilted her head. "So?"
Daylight beckoned to her from the tiny sliver of an opening in the door, and Rainbow wasn't moving to block it. All Twilight needed to do was push just a little more and she'd be free. Free from everything except her conscience. "They deserve to hear it. From me. We're staying."
"Good to hear." Rainbow dipped her head, leaning in for a kiss.
"Oh, am I interrupting something?"
Cadance! Twilight stepped away. "No, I just thought I heard a knock on the door."
Rainbow kept her head down, peering through the cracked door. "Colts running by." She shrugged and pulled the the door closed. "Must have kicked up a rock."
Princess Cadance smiled as she walked towards them. "Well, we should make this a habit. Welcome home, Twilight."
"Thanks." Twilight took a hesitant step forward. "D-did you come looking for me? Did my mother need something?"
Cadance looked at her oddly, then smiled. "It's time to work! Velvet wants us back in the kitchen. We're almost ready to eat."
"You need any help with the salad, Mom?" Shining Armor's voice came through the kitchen door.
And her mother's predictable reply: "No, Shining, keep slicing the bread. Help your father with the dessert if you're finished."
Twilight couldn't help but laugh when she overheard the exchange. "Shining, when has she ever let us help with the salad?"
Velvet looked up from the enormous mixing bowl in front of her, but the three pairs of tongs floating in the air continued their work. "Perfect timing, ladies!" She nodded to a stack of dishes and silverware. "If you three wouldn't mind."
Cadance levitated the stack of bowls and carried them towards the table. "Can you two get the rest?"
"Sure thing," Rainbow said. When Cadance was out of earshot, she leaned in and whispered, "Now."
Twilight stepped into the kitchen and tapped a hoof. "I have to tell you all something."
Velvet gasped. "No!"
"M-Mom, I haven't even—"
"Cadance come back! I forgot Rainbow's bowl!"
Rainbow blinked. "I have a bowl?"
"Of course you have a bowl," Velvet said, lighting her horn. An overhead cabinet opened, and a large silver bowl floated down. "It isn't often we have guests who can't levitate, but we are prepared! Please excuse me for nearly forgetting; I'm not usually this distracted. Cadance, dear?"
Twilight cleared her throat. "Moving on, I have something important—"
"The silverware, Twilight!" And Velvet was back to her salad.
Rainbow nudged her. "C'mon. Keep trying."
"And there you two go again, putting your heads together." Cadance lifted the silver bowl and grinned. "I'm starting to feel left out."
"Only because you are," Shining Armor called over his shoulder.
Rainbow opened her mouth to butt in, but Twilight stopped her. "Let's just get things set." She walked away before Rainbow could answer, carrying all of the plates and silverware in a levitation spell. It'd been silly to try and interrupt her mother in the middle of Preparation Mode.
There was a snort behind her. "So what do I do?"
Twilight lost herself in the routine of the table. Salad bowl in the center, bread plate on the top right. Knife on the left, fork on the right. One place was set. She moved onto the next and took note of the larger bowl sitting there. Rainbow's spot. She paused. That wasn't a reason to change the order. Plate, knife, fork, done. On to the next. Plate, knife, fork—
"Twi."
Rainbow's stern voice snapped her out of her reverie. Every eye in the room was turned to her. "W-What is it?"
Velvet smiled at her. "I asked if you remember our dinner with the Comet Tails. You were just a filly back then. I don't even think you had your cutie mark."
"No, I didn't. I remember they came over with their son, but I... huh," Twilight looked away, searching her memory. "I can't remember his name."
Night Light laughed. "I'm not surprised. You said three words to the poor boy. He just got his cutie mark that week, a comet, and he was trying to show it off to Shining and Sparkles. She looked up from her book, said 'That's an asteroid,' and just started reading again. Didn't even notice the glares he shot her the rest of the night."
Rainbow smiled while her family laughed. "Cold, Twilight. You really don't have good luck with the colts, do you?"
She chuckled. "No, I don't. As a matter of fact—"
Shining Armor drowned her out. "Speaking of colts, you should see the new batch of recruits we have now. One of them..."
Shining talked. Night Light laughed. Velvet scolded. Plate, knife, fork.
Plate.
Knife.
Fork.
Rainbow Dash brushed against her.
"Thank you. I thought that would work."
"We're gonna need to beat them over the head with it. Do you want me to say it?"
"No, it... I want to do this."
The remaining dishes were pulled out of her grasp. Princess Cadance set them down. "Twilight, is something wrong? You aren't acting like yourself."
Her mother saved her. "All done! Places, ladies." Twilight Velvet walked over while an enormous tray piled high with vegetables followed her to settle on the table. Rainbow's salad bowl floated in the air to replace it. "Guests first."
No matter how many times Twilight saw it, her mother's salad always amazed her. The colors of the green lettuce, the red cherry tomatoes, the orange carrots, and the purple of the dried cranberries combined into the same work of art she had seen time and time again. Even the white dressing seemed to be in the same pattern.
Her mother was at the center of the orchestra of colors, peeling off a piece of her work to place in Rainbow's dish. Away went the bowl, and another floated up. More salad was pulled off and throughout the entire piece, not a single leaf fell out of place.
Night Light carried in two baskets of bread, followed by Shining Armor with a pitcher of lemonade. More magic filled the air as cups and lemonade joined the dance of salad and bowls.
Rainbow Dash turned to her, rolling her eyes. "Show offs."
Twilight snorted and sat down at the end of the table. She pulled a slice of bread to her plate as Rainbow sat on her right. The organized chaos died down as Cadance and Shining Armor sat together on her left.
Her mother waited for Night Light to take his place at the other end before sitting down herself. She looked around the table, flashing her contented smile like a spotlight. "Well? What's everyone waiting for? Enjoy!"
"Oh momma, you don't have to tell me twice!" Rainbow Dash lifted her bowl to her muzzle and took half the salad in one bite. She froze like a lightning bolt struck her on the spot, and she rocked backed, chewing just enough to utter, "Whoa..."
Cadance laughed. "Velvet has a tendency to do that to a pony." She levitated her knife and spread butter across a piece of bread. "I swear, Aunt Celestia needs to buy this recipe of yours. You could teach the castle chefs a trick or two."
"Dear, I've eaten at that castle of yours and it was..."
Twilight speared some salad with her fork and tuned out the conversation. Food and castles weren’t why she came here. An opening. She just needed one opening.
"Applejack," Rainbow said. "Right Twilight? It was AJ and Sweet Apple Acres that cooked for the reception."
Velvet spoke before Twilight could answer. "Oh, that was a beautiful reception. All the years I've lived here, and I've never once seen the castle gardens at night. Under the stars, and decorated just so... they were magnificent!"
Shining Armor tossed his head back and groaned at the ceiling. "Those gardens are a nightmare. Do you have any idea how many fillies my boys have mysteriously 'found' there when I make the night rounds?"
"Now Shiny, I recall a hasty explanation to your commanding officer in our past." Cadance tapped her chin. "Something about my ordering you to follow me in case of intruders during one of my walks? In the middle of the night?"
Everyone laughed, save two. Twilight heard the hiss of Rainbow's sigh and glanced over to her. "Wedding," she whispered.
Rainbow nodded, and she raised her voice over the fading laughter. "You want to know something else funny? Twilight told me that some insane number of ponies came up to her at the wedding and asked when it would be her turn."
Night Light chuckled and looked across the table at Twilight. "You too? Sorry, that was probably my fault. After the first dozen times I heard that, I just started telling ponies to ask you directly."
Twilight steeled herself. "Well, there's something you need to hear about—"
"One of my lieutenants asked me that! Hail Storm, do you remember him from the school, Twily? He was stationed there for years."
Velvet grinned. "Was he the one with gray in his mane? He joked if you wanted him to take your place for the first dance, didn't he?"
"And I am never going to let him live that down."
How... is this... happening? Twilight hung her head. The conversation faded away, and she sagged into her cushion. Her eyes burned, and her vision of the table blurred. All these years holding onto this, and I can't find five seconds?
She watched a blue hoof wrap around hers and barely felt Rainbow's comforting squeeze. It was a waste of time. It was all just a waste of time. Rainbow Dash followed her all this way, and it was a waste of her time too. Nothing was changing.
Dash squeezed her hoof harder, snapping her out of her thoughts. Her grip tightened until Twilight looked up. Her face was set in stone, eyes burning through Twilight with the same fire she saw on the hill. The same dogged determination that she needed right now.
Twilight smiled, and Rainbow returned it.
Another hoof touched her, this one on her left elbow. A pink hoof. She looked up to see Princess Cadance look her in the eyes, then turn her gaze deliberately to another point in space. Twilight followed her eyes to the two entwined hooves.
Rainbow's smile grew, and she nodded in encouragement.
Twilight faced Cadance. Her foalsitter's eyes glittered as she waited for a response. Twilight nodded.
Cadance pulled her hoof back and flicked a glanced behind Twilight.
Twilight didn't look back. She knew Rainbow Dash would support her.
Cadance—friend, sister, and Princess of Love—smiled. "Everyone." She waited for silence, her smile never wavering and her eyes never leaving Twilight. "I think Twilight has something to tell us."
"I-I do." This was it. All eyes were on her. It was now or never. "It... it's about the wedding. I, um, it won't be me anytime soon, first of all."
Rainbow Dash slapped a hoof across her muzzle.
Night Light snorted. "Of course not! You need to find a good stallion first."
Twilight looked down. "Mares..."
"I know Ponyville is small, but there must be some there. Any of them caught your eye—"
"Mares, Dad!"
The table fell silent.
No. Not like that. Twilight took the opportunity to compose herself. "I love mares."
And there it was. Her secret was laid bare for them all. Irrevocable.
Twilight prayed no one saw what she did: a table—a family—divided. All because of her. She, Cadance, and Rainbow Dash, grinning like a lunatic, sat on one side. Shining Armor sat on another with his jaw set, glaring at Cadance. Their father sat across from her, eyes blank and his face an unreadable mask. Velvet rounded out the table with the ghost of a smile fading from her face.
Velvet was the first to break the silence. "Are... are you sure? No," she said before Twilight could respond. "Don't answer that." She covered her face with her hooves. "Of course you're sure."
Night Light just stared at her.
Velvet pulled her hooves down under her chin. "How long?"
"I-I've... I've never not been—" She shook her head. "I always knew."
Shining Armor grunted and looked away.
"Why," Velvet's voice cracked, and she coughed into a hoof. "Why didn't you tell us?"
"I—"
Shining Armor slammed his front hooves on the table, pulling himself up to his hind legs. "Why didn't you tell ME?"
"Shining!"
"No, Cadance, I want to hear this!" He cocked his head to the side. "'Always?' You always knew? Why didn't you tell me?" He shook his head. "You... didn't you trust me?"
"Of course I did!" Twilight swallowed. "Th-The guard... I didn't trust the Guard. I heard them say things. Insults. About each other." She looked away. "I didn't want you... I didn't want you to think—"
"The Guard? The Guard?" He sank back down to his seat. "I was your brother years before I was a guard! What did that change?"
Cadance stretched a leg across his chest. "Shining, that's enough."
Shining didn't look away from Twilight. "Is it?"
She only nodded. The force of his reaction trapped her voice until Rainbow Dash squeezed her hoof again. "Y-You’re right. I—" She sucked in a deep breath. "I should have told you."
"Yes." He bowed his head, holding it in his hooves. "You should have."
Cadance leaned over and kissed his neck. She listened to his whisper and replied in kind.
"One down," Rainbow whispered.
Velvet looked back and forth between her children. "I... Twilight, I hate to belabor the point, but are you sure about this? Have you dated a stallion?"
The memory of a hoof striking her face played in her mind. "I tried once. It didn't work at all."
"Really?" Velvet's eyes sparkled. "You could try again. I met this charming young stallion working at the quill store last week. He said he was studying the literature of the paleo-pony period at Canterlot University."
"She's taken!" A wing wrapped around Twilight's shoulders, and Rainbow pulled their hooves above the table, letting them all see their connection. "I like you Velvet, but if you try to push my mare to somepony else, we're gonna have it out."
Velvet's mouth hung open for the first time Twilight could remember, for the briefest of moments. Her eyes focused back on Rainbow Dash with a glint Twilight knew too well. Her critical eye burned again, but she had a stubborn target this time.
She squeezed Rainbow's hoof to keep her level. Velvet didn't know the story, and it wasn't fair to hold that against her. Twilight held back a sigh of relief when Rainbow squeezed back. Finally, her mother relented, gracing the pair with a smile and nod.
Two.
Night Light closed his eyes. His face stayed calm and still.
Nopony spoke.
Twilight lifted her glass of lemonade, shaking all the way to her mouth, to take a sip. The divided table she made was being mended. There was only one left to speak, but through it all, he was unreadable. "Dad—"
He stood and turned away. "I need a moment."
Twilight Sparkle watched her father walk away from her. She watched the empty place across the table, feeling her body go numb. The void felt real. She felt it in her heart. She felt it in her mind. She felt it in her life.
He left?
Shining Armor's voice crossed the distance in her head. "Dad..."
"A moment, Shining."
"Dear—"
"I said a moment!"
The table quaked under a pound, and Rainbow's scream ripped through the room. "Don't run away from her! She's your daughter! You call yourself her father?"
Night Light whirled around, his roar matching Rainbow's, and the air crackled with the sound of power gathering around his glowing horn.
Rainbow Dash leapt onto the table, her wings spread wide.
"No!" Twilight jumped up, wrapping her forelegs around Rainbow's barrel and pulling her down.
The light around her father's horn died. "I need a moment." He turned back to the hallway and left.
The silence cracked with the sound of Velvet's choked whimper. Her hooves lifted to her mouth. Tears began falling down her cheeks, and she leaned over the table to bury her face in her forelegs. Even with her covered face, she couldn't silence the sobs that escaped her throat, nor could she hide the heaving of her chest.
Shining Armor stumbled around the table. He grabbed Velvet's shoulders and pulled her into his chest. His face, stupefied with wide eyes and a slack jaw, fell with the sound of his mother's cries and her shaking in his hooves.
I did this...
"M-Mom... Shining... I'm sorry. I just—"
Rainbow Dash twisted her face around by the muzzle. "You didn't do this, Twilight! You have nothing to be sorry for."
"She's right," Velvet said. She steadied herself with Shining's help before wiping a hoof across her face. Her eyes were still red, but she still managed a small smile. "You told us the truth, Twilight. Don't ever apologize for that."
Twilight's tail twitched. She could have told the truth sooner, years ago maybe. She should have trusted Shining Armor, and the two of them could have sorted this out with their parents. It would have just been the four of them, without Cadance or Rainbow Dash to see this scene.
But she didn't do that.
"I'm going after him."
Cadance sucked in a quick breath. "He said he needed a moment. Just wait for him, Twilight. He'll come back after he cools off a little."
"I've waited long enough. No more."
Rainbow grinned. "Now you're talking. Let's go get him."
"No. You wait here." Twilight walked around the table, avoiding Rainbow’s face. "This was my fault," she said as she passed by Velvet. "I waited too long, and now I'm going to fix this."
Velvet chewed her bottom lip, but nodded. "He'll be on our bedroom balcony. That's his thinking spot."
The air whooshed overhead, and Rainbow Dash dropped beside her. "So let's go get him."
"Rainbow—"
"Every second, Twilight," she whispered. Rainbow locked eyes with her for a moment, then looked to the other three ponies. "All four of you have horns. What did he just do? Was he just angry or was he planning something?"
No pony answered her.
"That's what I thought."
Shining Armor stepped forward. "I'll go with her."
"No," Twilight said. "We can't provoke him like that. I'm going alone. If the worst—" She shook her head. "If the worst happens, I-I can handle him." She hung her head at the pronouncement, pretending to ignore her mother's fresh tears.
There was only one more detail, and its dogged determination was glaring right at her. "Cadance, Rainbow Dash will try to sneak out of the house and fly up to the roof. Will you keep her inside for me?"
Cadance looked at her pleadingly. "What if I want to join her on the roof?"
"Shining. Cadance and Rainbow will try to sneak out of the house and fly up to the roof. Please keep them inside for me. Mom, help him out."
Velvet nodded. "Tell him what you have to."
Rainbow kept glaring at her. "Why?"
She didn't answer. She stared at Rainbow—her mind a blur of shock. She wanted to say something. It was me. It was wrong. The wrong moment. It would have been a lie. Instead, she turned and followed her father's hoofsteps to the staircase.
Twilight pulled herself up the stairs one by one. The gravity of the moment bore down upon her more with her every step. She understood the shock that paralyzed both her mother and brother. No one in her home had ever used their horn for attack. Her parents were both teachers at heart. They were the yardstick by which she'd measured her time with Princess Celestia. Mistakes were to be corrected first and foremost, not punished.
But Twilight had felt the power of her father's magic before. As she climbed, she kept her eyes on the bane of her childhood that waited near the top: the squeaky stair. One misstep as a filly, and she would be swept up in that royal blue aura. Night Light would always smile as he carried her back to bed, shaking his head at her pleas to read one more chapter, then a page, then just a paragraph. While she'd lived there, her magic had never never been strong enough to break his grip.
The hated stair offered a choice to her in the present. Twilight climbed closer and closer to it, weighing her options. The noise would tip off her approach while silence would keep Night Light in the dark until she was ready.
Twilight shook her head, disgusted with herself. It was the same choice she made for years. Hiding would do nothing more than delay and give her a chance to back down. It was not the time to hide. She set a hoof on the stair, pressing all her weight onto it. The creaks echoed through the house. There's no turning back now.
She turned away from the dead end at the top of the staircase, leaving her and Shining's bedrooms behind. Pictures hung on the wall opposite the banister, and Twilight walked by without sparing them a glance. Her mind's eye showed each one. There was Shining as a foal sleeping in Velvet's embrace, and Shining again, this time leaning over a crib making a face at his newborn sister.
A third showed newborn Twilight with her eyes wide and focused, as if she were already trying to figure out just what that contraption looking at her was. The final picture, closest to her destination, was her parents' wedding photo. They were locked in the closing kiss, frozen forever in their climactic moment.
Twilight held her breath as she pushed the door open. Her parents' bed sat tidy and neat, with its sage green covers perfectly ordered. The large vanity, covered with small pictures and figurines and knick-knacks, looked undisturbed. The doors to the closet and master bath were open, and no sound came from either. If she hadn't known better, Twilight would have thought nopony was inside.
But she did know better. The scent of fresh air was unmistakable. Twilight let out her breath and stepped forward to follow the breeze coming from the side of the room.
Night Light waited for her on the balcony. He towered over the cityscape like a monument. The strands of his mane caught in the gentle wind were the only sign that he wasn't stone or plaster. His head didn't turn at the sound of her approach, or when she closed the sliding door. "I said I need a moment."
"You've had a moment. A moment is exactly one-and-a-half minutes. You've had at least three moments. We're going to talk about this. Now."
Night Light grunted.
She eyed his horn. "The others didn't want me to come alone. What happened down there?"
He didn't answer her.
"I-I know Rainbow Dash has a temper, but I've never seen you act like that."
He refused to react.
Twilight bowed her head. "Can you even look at me?"
Night Light sighed. "Of course I can." He immediately turned his head, and Twilight held back a gasp. His eyes were just as red as Velvet's had been. "I... Twilight, I never saw this coming."
She leaned forward, trying to meet him, but he turned away.
He waved his hoof over the city. "This is what I wanted for you. This view. The house. This life."
"Dad..."
"Shining was always going to be a guard. That was his dream. His life would be nothing but forts and castles and barracks. You... I didn't think you wanted something like that. Your mother and I are happy. There's joy in this life. A family life. I—"
"I know, Dad. I know you and Mom are happy." She looked over the city, her eyes landing on the castle in the distance. "I can't see the future, and I don't know what's coming for me. All I know is the past. I tried to change, Dad. I tried to ignore this, I tried to be normal, but it didn't work. It... it never helped me." She fought back tears, and her voice dropped to a whisper. "It hurt. It only hurt."
"Give me your hoof."
"What?"
He waved his foreleg towards himself. "Give me your hoof."
Twilight stretched out a hoof, and he took it.
Night Light leaned back, settling on his haunches. He held her hoof in one of his own, and stroked it with his other. "Who wrote the story Earth Plow and the Dragon?"
"I-It's a bedtime story. No one knows, but the earliest records of it appearing in Equestrian literature date back five hundred years."
He didn't look up from her hoof. "What are the diatomic elements?"
"The seven chemical elements that form homonuclear molecules. Hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, fluorine, chlorine—"
"What's the square root of seven hundred and twenty-nine?"
"Twenty-seven. Why are you—"
Night Light pinched the inside of her hoof, bending it over itself.
Twilight's shriek split the air. "Dad! Dad, let go!" She doubled over in laughter. "It tickles!"
"It always did, Twilight. Ever since you were a baby I could do that to make you stop crying." He finally smiled. "You wised up when you were a year old. You would pull back your hooves and put on this face, like, 'I'm going to pout, and there's nothing you can do to stop me!'" He let out a sigh. "You are still my daughter, aren't you?"
"Yes. I am."
His shoulders sagged, and his voice grew even rougher as he said: "I broke my promise, didn't I?"
Twilight leaned forward. "I don't think I heard you. What promise? I-I don't know what you mean."
He stroked her hoof again. "I remember the first time I held you in my hooves, you and Shining both. I promised both of you that you would love me. No matter what, I never wanted to see or even think that my children were afraid of me."
"I'm not afraid of you, Dad."
"You said 'always.' You always knew this. You were afraid to tell me the truth." He clenched his eyes shut. "And you were right! Look where we are! A daughter had to chase after her father, and the rest of the family thought he was going to turn violent. All because the old fool couldn't control his temper."
"You aren't a fool." Twilight wrapped a foreleg around his neck. "I do love you, Dad. And I know you love me. You had beautiful dreams for me, but—"
"You're building something real." His hooves held her close to him. "You're building a life for yourself. I should have seen that you had your own dreams."
"More than dreams, Dad. Hopes. Wishes. Fears, too." She buried her face in his shoulder. "A life. I am building a life. And don't you dare think you won't be a part of it."
He laughed. "I can’t wait to see it."
"You already are."
Three.
Twilight giggled at the thought. Three. It was over. Her giggles turned to laughter. She felt her father's body begin to shake as well. The void in her heart filled up second by second. She laughed until it hurt to laugh, squeezed as tightly as she was. Then they laughed together some more.
"Could you do me a favor?" Twilight kissed his cheek before whispering in his ear. "Never call me 'Sparkles' in front of Rainbow Dash again."
He chuckled and eased out of the embrace. His hooves worked their way through her mane, straightening it from the mess the wind had made of it. "It is a father's sacred duty to embarrass his daughter in front of any suitors. How else could I know some pony cares about you for you, not your looks or some other reason?"
Twilight smiled and brushed back his mane in return. "Loyalty is her strong suit, you know. She knew how nervous I was about today, and she would have forced you to stay and listen to me if I didn't stop her."
His brow furrowed. "Is that what you think happened?"
"She screamed at you, you screamed back, and then she jumped on the table to charge at you before I grabbed her. Yes, I think that's what happened."
One of his hooves nudged her temple. "Sparkles, I thought you were quick as a whip up here. What's the shortest distance between two points?"
"A straight line." A straight line. No pony knew that better than the speed demon known as Rainbow Dash. She would never waste time jumping side-to-side.
The light must have gone off in her eyes, because Night Light's face split into a wide grin. "I saw her face. There was no anger, just determination. She was protecting you."
Hot-blooded Rainbow Dash had shielded her. From her own father. Rainbow's glare came back to her. She'd stood her ground by Twilight's side, just like she promised.
And what did I do? Twilight rocked back, looking to the ground and rubbing her head. I told her—no, ordered her to stay back.
She bit her lip to hold back a sob. She’ll never forgive me!
Night Light's hoof tilted her chin back up. The grin was gone, but his bright eyes shone into hers. "She's a good mare. I always told Shining to find one and never let go of her. He found his, and I think you've found one too. Don't let her get away."
"I-I might have just pushed her away. Oh, I wasn’t thinking—"
"Hey, I thought loyalty was her strong suit? You’re giving up on her already?"
"No. I just need a good apology." She pulled to door open again with her magic. "A real good apology. Shall we?"
"I know a florist on Silver Street."
"Dad..." Twilight shook her head. "She’s not that kind of mare."
"She doesn't like a quick snack?"
Twilight watched the stars through the train window with her head nestled on Rainbow's shoulder. The night train to Ponyville was nearly empty, and they had one of the passenger cars all to themselves. It was easier for Twilight to enjoy the rhythmic rocking and muted steel-on-steel clatter and clank of the wheels on the tracks without a dozen other ponies sharing the hours-long ride back home.
She grinned as Rainbow stroked her hoof just like her father had. The smell of daffodils and lilies was still strong, even after the last of the tasty flowers had disappeared minutes before. She would have to thank her dad for the tip. The flowers had gone a long way towards repairing the crack in their relationship.
Rainbow had even offered to share.
The end of the last stem tickled Twilight's ear as Rainbow’s head shifted. “You already had the tickets back home booked. That's why you didn't want to stay overnight."
"I had four pairs of tickets home booked. This was the latest set. Today went better than I ever hoped."
Rainbow let out a hum and continued stroking her hoof.
Twilight looked up at her. "You still haven't asked."
"Asked what?"
"How things went with my dad."
She shrugged. "He stormed off, and you followed. You both came back smiling. What else do I need to know?"
"You could still ask. It's not a big secret or anything."
Rainbow continued to study her hoof. "Well, there is one thing I'd like to know. Was it like this?" She pinched Twilight's hoof and bent it over itself.
Twilight collapsed on the seat, her laughter filling the empty car.
“Oh, I'm gonna have fun with this." Rainbow’s triumphant smirk leered over her. She held on for another second before letting go.
“You... little... sneak!"
Rainbow blew the stem into her face. "I told Velvet about my promise. She's a little more understanding than you are, and she let me up to the roof."
"You were there the whole time? But you were at the table when we came down! How did you—"
Rainbow just flapped her wings.
Twilight shook her head. "We took that long to get back down?"
"Yeah. How long did you two laugh like that?”
“Hey, we just repaired a serious breach in the nucleus of our lives! Cut us some—” Wait a minute. "What do you mean?"
"What do you mean what do I mean? I took off after you said that ‘I love you’ bit, and I heard you laughing like crazy all the way down by the front door."
Twilight hid her smile with a hoof. "You missed the best part."
“I guess I could have stayed to hear the two of you lose your heads like that, but I’ve never heard of a punch thrown after an ‘I love you.’ Well, there was that one time in flight school, but that colt was just creepy, and—”
She reached up and patted Rainbow’s cheek. "You missed the best part."
Rainbow's smirk vanished. "What happened?"
Sitting up, Twilight stretched her back and grinned. “Oh, just a little of this, a little of—” she couldn’t bring herself to finish. Rainbow hadn’t even tried to twist her hoof again. Twilight sighed and started over: “We talked about you. You have the seal of approval from both parents.”
Rainbow's smirk returned. “There. Was that so hard? Why was that worth hiding?”
"I owed you that much." Twilight kissed her cheek. "I couldn't have done this alone."
"Yeah, you could. You just didn't know it."
"Because I never wanted to." Twilight took hold of Rainbow's muzzle with a spell and pulled her into a kiss. She squeaked—a small, short lived protest that faded out as Twilight pressed harder against her. Twilight let the kiss linger another moment before pulling away. "Thank you."
Rainbow Dash smiled and stretched out a wing. "You can thank me by meeting my parents. How long have I been pushin' to have you come to San Franciscolt to meet them?"
Twilight tucked herself into the offered wing. "Too long, Rainbow. Next week?"
"Deal. Maybe that'll keep them from buggin' me about you every week."
They held each other as the train carried them home. Twilight felt safe resting in the cozy embrace of Rainbow's wing; even with Rainbow's cheek—and her daffodil breath—resting atop her head.
