Daughters of Time

Princess Luna flew down the hall, trying not to alert the guards as she hurried to the throne room to find her sister. If this foal was a colt... Luna shuddered to think of the implications, both for herself and for those around her. Bursting into the throne room, Luna cantered to a stop before her sister. Looking around she saw several notable ponies sitting to the side of the hall, all with their eyes locked on her. "Celestia, we need to talk, in private," whispered Luna as she approached her regal sister.

"Is something the matter little sister?" asked Princess Celestia.

"Yes, something both wonderful and terrible has happened, but this isn't the place for it, we must go to your quarters to speak," Luna whispered, her eyes darting around to make sure the nearby ponies did not overhear. The Canterlot nobles whispered among themselves, wondering about the haphazard entrance and the whispered conversation.

Celestia looked around and saw the whispers. She nodded her head and said, "Yes, let's go to my chambers." Then, addressing the assembled ponies, Celestia said, "You're all dismissed, I have business to attend to with my sister."

The two royal alicorns exited the throne room and headed to the East Tower where Celestia's quarters were located. Upon arrival, Luna closed and locked the door before speaking. "I'm pregnant," she exclaimed as she paced around the room. "I'm pregnant and I don't know what to do. What if it's a colt? How will I tell Cloud? And what will we do when the rest of Equestria finds out?! There'll be rioting in the streets, ponies asking for my head on a pike!" Luna was working herself up into a frenzy and Celestia walked over and hugged her.

"It will be fine dear sister. The ponies of Equestria are a lot more accepting now than they were 1000 years ago," said Celestia. "There will still be those who are upset with it, but they will be in the minority. And besides, it may not even be a colt, it might be a filly. As for Sir Cloud Twist, he should know the truth, whether it's a filly or a colt. Because one day you will have a colt and you don't want him to find out after too long a time has passed."

"But what if it upsets him?" asked Luna with a worried frown. "The last one tried to kill me when he found out. I don't think I could take it if Cloud decided he wanted me dead."

"Luna, you need to stop worrying, we can handle this. Transponies have become a lot more common in modern times, and they're gaining support," consoled Celestia. "If they can gain support, then what makes you think it will be so hard for you? It's a brave new world, and there will be trouble, but not nearly as bad as you think it will be. I am sure Cloud can learn to accept you, he's not a bad pony."

Luna smiled at her sister. "Thank you Celest. You know, it's funny, not too long you wanted him rotting in a dungeon, now you're vouching for his moral character," laughed Luna.

"Yeah well, he kind of grows on you, but I don't need to tell you that," teased Celestia. "Now go, you're special somepony is waiting for you and you have something to tell him."

Back in her own chambers, Luna layed in bed next to Cloud. Feeling her climbing into bed, Cloud turned over and gave her a smile. "Is everything okay my princess?" he asked.

"Yes," she replied. "I mean no." Luna shook her head to clear her thoughts. "Cloud I have a couple things to tell you. One is really great news, but the other is a terrible secret. A secret so terrible, I'm worried that you might hate me when you find out."

"I could never hate you, my beloved," Cloud said tenderly, as he leaned forward to give Luna a kiss. "Now tell me, what is troubling you?"

Luna took a deep breath and let it out. "The first thing you need to know is that I'm pregnant." Luna held up a hoof to stop Cloud who had opened his mouth to say something. "Before you say anything you need to hear the rest of what I have to say. Because I am a pure-born alicorn, pregnancy comes with special complications. You see, I am what's known as a Daughter of Time. Alicorn stallions are born with a genetic defect. While alicorn mares are gifted with immortality, alicorn stallions are not."

"But what..." began Cloud before he was interrupted.

"Please, let me finish, while I still have the courage to tell you." Cloud nodded his head and Luna continued her story. "An alicorn stallion is only a stallion for 25 years at a time. Around the time of their 25th birthday, an alicorn stallion begins to change, their features softening, their voice changing, until eventually they are a completely different pony, and they've become an alicorn mare. This change lasts until they give birth to colt, and then they spend another 25 years as a stallion before changing back into a mare. The secret that I have kept hidden, a secret once known but long since lost to time, is that I was not born a mare, I was born an alicorn stallion."

The room went quiet as Luna finished speaking. The two ponies just sat there in silence, with Cloud lost in his thoughts over his loved ones revelation, and Luna fearing to break the silence.

Finally, after what seemed an eternity of silence, Cloud looked over at his beloved princess and he darted forward to kiss her. Luna's eyes widened in surprise before relaxing into the kiss. The kiss ended all too soon for Luna. Cloud pulled away before speaking. "Whatever the future holds, we'll face it together," He said. "I can't say this didn't surprise me, and I can't say things won't be different should we have a colt, but my love for you brought me through 1000 years frozen in time. I love you Luna, and nothing is going to change that."

With tears in her eyes, Luna wrapped Cloud in a hug and whispered in his ear, "Thank you."