Life is Beautiful

Twilight sat quietly in the window seat of a small, private passenger car, staring out the window as the countryside rolled by far below. They were still high in the mountains, but they were on a clear stretch of track before the next tunnel. It felt so long since she had ridden in a train car and seen this view; it just looked so perfect and beautiful from way up high, she had never taken the time to properly appreciate it before.

Pinkie Pie an Applejack were amusing themselves with playing cards, while Rarity and Spike were settled on another broad seat at the other end of the car, with Spike curled up around Rarity, an rarity resting her head on top of the purple dragon’s head, they made a cute couple. Rainbow Dash was acting like a five year old foal for her part, chasing Gerald and Glorious Dawn up and down the aisle. A little high pitched squeal came from Dawn as Rainbow Dash caught her, shouting out, “Gotcha!” when she did. The sound of it brought a smile to Twilight’s face, and a soft contented sigh.

The sound of a door opening was followed by a startled, “Oops Hey watch it! Tea and Sandwiches coming through!” in a deeper voice, the sound of which made Twilight look over and smile even wider as she saw Shadow pushing a cart into the cabin. Shadow had doffed his armor, was it was mostly for show, and he felt better without it. Underneath that armor he was sporting quite a number of wounds in various stages of healing. Twilight had fussed over those wounds when she had first seen them, wanting to complain about his punishment being too brutal, that was until he laughed it off, and reminded her he could have been hung instead.

Twilight looked to her own shoulder for a minute while Shadow was passing out some plates with sandwiches, and glasses of tea, as well as a few juice boxes to the kids. The massive bandage that Twilight had worn down her shoulder and side were off, and the stitches removed, but it had scarred rather badly; there were four deep gouges that ran from her shoulder down to just below her ribs, starting to grow out with a deep purple fur that matched her mane and tail more than the rest of her coat. Thankfully the rest of the injuries that Twilight had suffered had healed without any major scarring, or discoloration of her hide, just leaving her with that single distinctive reminder of the day she had nearly died.

“And for you miss?” Shadow asked, drawing Twilight’s attention towards him.

Twilight let out a soft giggle, drawing a grin from the ebon stallion, “Whatever everyone else is having, or whatever you are having. Join me, please? And just call me Twilight.”

Shadow chuckled, and nodded, “Very well,” his horn glowing black and carrying two plates off of the cart that held sandwiches, as well as two cups of tea, placing one set in front of Twilight, while he moved onto the window seat facing Twilight, “You look lost in thought,” he said softly.

Twilight nodded, “I am. I was in that city for so long. I used to love Canterlot when I was a child… but now it seems like it became a prison to me… or maybe my tomb. I almost died there, several times. Now I am going back to Ponyville… I just seem so… I’m excited, and I’m afraid. Everything has to be different now.”

“Why does everything have to be different? Not everything changes,” Shadow said, sipping at his tea a bit.

Twilight sighed, “I know… but it feels like it should be. It’s my home, but I haven’t seen it for two years. And everyone is going to be looking at me, wanting to know what happened… and I cannot hide this,” she said, looking to her shoulder, before she shook her head with an aggravated groan, looking away. “Now I feel like I am being shallow, vain, and insecure.”

Shadow chuckled, and reached his head out, gently touching Twilight’s cheek with his nose, which made her start slightly, and blush in surprise as she looked back to Shadow. Shadow lifted his head with a smile to her, “I know you are worried about how you look, and what they’ll know, and what they’ll think, but in the end, it only matters if they are your friend. And if they are your friend, they will understand, and they will be there for you, just like the rest of your friends have.”

Twilight furrowed her brow as she considered Shadow’s words, before her ears lifted, and she smiled, nodding her head, “You are right! If they are my friends, they will understand. I just hope they are still my friends after all of this.”

“I am sure they will be. And besides, I know how you got those scars, but really, I think they look spectacular on you, beautiful in fact, if I am allowed to say that,” Shadow said with a soft smile.

Twilight blinked in surprise, “R-really? You think they look beautiful on me?” looking to Shadow to see if he was pulling her tail, before looking back to her shoulder and side again, and then back to Shadow.

Shadow chuckled softly, and nodded, his smile widening a bit as he laid on a little charm a bit thicker, “I would say its just as beautiful as the rest of you, and you are a beautiful mare.”

Twilight looked back at Shadow, her eyes widening as her cheeks started to color, looking a bit flustered for a moment as she lowered her head, scuffing her hoof on the seat as she studied her meal intently for a few moments. After what felt like an eternity to her, she spoke awkwardly, “You… you are trying to flirt with me, aren’t you? I’m not… sure what to say, flirting and um… courtship were never really part of my studies or um, research.” Twilight shook her head a moment, Stupid stupid! Now I am sounding like Fluttershy! Wait, she did get married, didn’t she? Oh Celestia what if he wants to..! No! No! Breathe Twilight, breathe! Twilight finally remembered to breathe, taking a gasp suddenly of air, and then promptly ducking her head, embarrassed.

Shadow chuckled softly at Twilight’s reaction when she started to breathe again, having gotten worried there for a moment when she had stopped. “You really have not had much… romantic interaction have you? What did you used to do before everything happened?”

Twilight looked away sheepishly, her cheeks burning with embarrassment, “Well, honestly, I spent a lot of my free time in research. I was one of the brightest up and coming magical unicorns in all of Equestria. Princess Celestia had me doing research on the magic of friendship, but I did a lot of research into other kinds of magic, and I had written several research papers in both topics. I was planning a master thesis on the interplay between the realms of traditional magic, and the magic of friendship in an attempt to explore the properties of the Elements of Harmony… but I never got around to it.”

Shadow blinked at all of that, watching as Twilight seemed to forget her embarrassment as she got involved about talking with her projects, and a smile slipped onto his face as he nodded, trying to grasp all of that, “You seem like you enjoyed your work. I never had that powerful of an aptitude for magic beyond some invisibility and shadow melding spells, perhaps you could teach me?”

Twilight brightened up at that prospect, her ears lifting, “Oh I would love to! Really! I had always wanted to teach my own children in time,” her ears deflating a bit, “But… well…” she shook her head after a moment, “It doesn’t matter. I love Dawn, I wouldn’t trade her for anything,” she said firmly.

Shadow nodded, glancing to where the children were settling on a seat with full stomachs, watching out the window, before he looked back to Twilight, “Maybe I could teach you some of my tricks, and sword play too, if you want to get into that.”

Twilight perked up a bit, and nodded, “I am… well I was always looking for new tricks and talents to learn, I would love to. I’m not so sure about the sword play, but I could give it a try, if you go easy on me.”

Shadow chuckled softly, and nodded, “I will. I guess I wanted to know more about what you did for fun as well. I understand you enjoy your research, but you had to unwind some, right?”

Twilight considered and nodded, “Well, yes. All the girls and I had a weekly get together to let our pets play… I wonder if Owluicious is still there, I bet Spike took care of him. And Rarity loved to invite me to go to the spa with her. I often went to a poker game some weeknights between Applejack and Rainbow Dash, though I was never very good at it.”

Shadow chuckled at that in amusement, earning a bit of a frown from Twilight. Shadow raised his hoof a bit defensively, “I just find it hard to believe you weren’t good at something, you seem to throw yourself into things.”

Twilight looked a bit sheepish, nodding as she looked down, “Well, yeah, why not? If I was going to do something, why not try to be good at it? I was never that good at bluffing however, it’s like they always knew what I had in my hand.” Twilight shrugged, “It’s not like we ever played for money, but it was fun. There was always a lot to do around town.”

Shadow nodded, “So you’ve never been on a date or anything?” he asked, watching her reaction.

Twilight blinked, realizing they were back on that subject again, looking away a little embarrassed, “No… nopony ever asked me, and no colt ever really… y’know.”

Shadow grinned a bit, which just made Twilight’s cheeks coior more, “Good, so how about tonight, after we survive Pinkie Pie’s parade party? You can show me around town some, and I can take you out to dinner?”

Twilight looked back at Shadow, suddenly nervous AND blushing, shuffling a little nervously in her seat as she tried to keep herself breathing again, “You… you are asking me out on a date? Like a date date?”

Shadow nodded, his expression more serious, “Like a date date. You are a wonderful pony, Twilight, and I like you. Heck, I put my life on the line for you. You are one of the few ponies that has ever been my friend. The Gang was just a place to hang out, and keep a low profile in… but it was you that made me realize I was throwing my life away there.”

“Even… even as I was throwing away my own life?” Twilight asked as her ears laid back.

“Even as you were… I saw so much good in you, and all I wish is that I had done something sooner, something, anything to let you know that you were a good pony, one of the best, but I didn’t know what to say to you. It took me realizing you were about to die to do something. I want to make that up to you, and I want to show you how special of a pony you are, and how special you are to me.”

Twilight just stared at Shadow for a minute, her ears shifting slowly up, before splaying, her lip starting to tremble, and Shadow wondered if he had said something wrong. As a tear started to roll down Twilight’s cheeks, Shadow opened his mouth to say something, only to have utter darkness close in around them as they entered a tunnel.

Before Shadow knew what happened, he suddenly had a pair of trembling lips pressed against his in the darkness as Twilight suddenly kissed him full on the lips, taking his breath away. The kiss only lasted a moment, before Twilight broke it, and he felt the lavender mare start to draw back. Shadow reached out a hoof to Twilight’s shoulder, gently stopping her, “Is… that a yes?” he asked softly in the darkness.

Twilight’s trembling, breathless voice came a few moments later, “That’s a yes.”

By the time the light came back as they left the tunnel, Twilight had slid in close to Shadow again, and was resting her head against his chest, overwhelmed, and Shadow was resting his head along the back of Twilight’s neck, a smile of happiness on his face.

***

The train pulled into the Ponyville central station as the horn let out a blast, announcing its arrival. The passengers all disembarking while Twilight held back, nervously, her hooves shifting nervously as she looked at the door, panicking on the inside. What if they hate me? What if nopony likes me? What if they start throwing things at me? I should just stay in here, maybe I can take a later train and sneak out in the middle of the night! Yeah, that’s a good idea! Twilight decided, nodding to herself as she took a step back.

Shadow looked back at Twilight with a bit of a concerned look, seeing the look of panic on her face. He sighed, and walked over to her, “It’s going to be fine Twilight, you’ll see. Dawn and Gerald are already out there, eveypony is waiting for you. Besides, what are you going to do staying here? Ride the train for the rest of your life?”

Twilight looked up at Shadow with wide panicky eyes, and nodded, “y-Yeah, I was thinking about doing that,” looking for the door again, she fretted, scuffing her hoof on the ground, realizing she couldn’t just leave Dawn and Gerald out there, no matter how sound her plan was.

Shadow chuckled, and nudged her shoulder, “Look, I will be right there for you, and if things are as bad as you fear, I’ll kick everypony’s tail that looks at you funny. These are your friends, it will be fine, trust me, I’ll be right besides you.”

Twilight let out a slow breath, and nodded, “Alright… let’s get this over with,” she said, finally starting to walk forwards on trembling hooves as Shadow moved to walk besides her. Twilight took the opportunity to lean on the ebon stallion, steadying herself, and taking comfort in him being there.

As the two finally stepped off of the train, there was a loud yell, “There she is! Hit it!” just before fireworks launched into the air at the ends of the train platform, exploding in the air and raining down glittering sparkles of flame that winked out right above the heads of the ponies there, and causing Twilight to cringe for a moment, before looking around rather bewildered.

Pinkie Pie had outdone herself this time, and Twilight tried to figure out just HOW she did it! As she hadn’t seen the pink earth pony leave more than a few minutes before her off of the train. There was a huge banner stretching over the exit to the train station that read ‘Welcome Home Twilight Sparkle!’ in big colorful letters, with Twilight’s cutie mark plastered on either end.

There seemed to be a bit of a party started right there, an elaborate cake, and a big bowl of punch, and a wide variety of snacks and treats. Dawn and Gerald were already there pigging out on some of the sweets, and making a mess. It almost seemed like half of the ponies she knew from Ponyville were there in a semicircle, stomping their hooves and cheering as Twilight emerged.

Twilight blushed and stammered at all of the attention, shifting uncomfortably as Pinkie Pie trotted up to Twilight, and gave her a big hug, “I almost thought you were going to be late to your own party parade celebration! Its Twilight Sparkle day in Ponyville!”

Twilight just stared at Pinkie Pie a moment, “Pinkie, how in Equestria did you manage to put together a party like this? Wait, you did say parade, didn’t you?” glancing out past the banner that welcomed her back, and her jaw just dropped. There looked like there was a marching band, a few floats that looked to be ponydrawn, and one that looked like it was set up to have ponies ride on it. And lining the streets looked like there was every pony that Twilight didn’t know from Ponyville, and the rest that she DID know, all laughing and having a good time even though the parade hadn’t even started yet.

“Silly, aren’t you paying attention? I did say parade!” Pinkie replied, beaming at Twilight.

Rainbow Dash laughed as she walked over, “You really think Pinkie Pie would leave this to chance? By the time I got back to Ponyville after I left the Wonderbolts, Pinkie Pie was already starting to plan your party. She has had plans in the work for this for -years- for you, I think it was the only way she kept sane.”

“She had everything written down in letters, she asked me to find and deliver them when I had time after coming home,” Fluttershy said as she stepped forwards, no longer pregnant. Big Macintosh stepped up besides her, a new foal resting in a sling hanging from his broad neck.

Big Mac nodded with his traditional, “Eeyup,” that he added in.

Twilight let out a laugh, and trotted away from Shadow, wrapping a hoof around Fluttershy and giving her a hug, “I missed you Fluttershy, I really needed you there for a few days there, but I understand why you had to go.”

Fluttershy smiled and nuzzled into Twilight’s neck, returning the hug happily, “I heard what happened, I am so sorry I couldn’t be there for you, I’m glad you made it through.”

Twilight smiled, “I’m glad everything went alright with you,” releasing Fluttershy from the hug, and trotting over to see Big Mac, giving him a little kiss on the cheek which drew a blush from the large pony.

“Nice to see you too Twilight,” Big Mac drawled, “Come to see little Apple Seed?”

Twilight nodded with a smile, lowering her head, “Awww, he’s adorable! Apple Seed! Hes so cute!” Twilight fussed over the baby, making faces and drawing coos of delight from the little foal.

“Hey come on everypony! There’s food and cake! Come have some Twilight!” Pinkie Pie hollered from the tables.

Twilight looked over with a laugh, and turned to trot over for them, “Alright Pinkie, what have you got?” She looked over the cake, which was an elaborate triple layer cake dressed up in purple icing, and white chocolate stars, and pink little candy stars, and a single purple candy horn topping the cake. Taking it all in, Twilight just laughed, “It’s beautiful Pinkie.”

“Come on! Cut the cake! Cut the cake!” Pinkie chanted, and the chant was quickly taken up by the ponies gathered around.

Twilight just shook her head as she laughed, using her magic to pick up the cake knife, and started cutting the cake, serving out a few slices of it on large plates, taking one for herself, and giving the one with the candy horn to Shadow.

Shadow grinned as he was offered the plate, a bit of a mischievous twinkle in his eye as he took the plate in his own magic, and lifted up the candy horn from it, “Come Twilight, I can’t eat this all by myself, how about we share it, you take one half, and I’ll take the rest.”

Twilight was busy picking up other pieces of food to fill her plate with as she looked over to Shadow, curious, but she nodded after a moment, “Alright,” leaning over to take a bite of one half. Shadow however leaned over to take the other half in his mouth, though he didn’t bite it, leaning forwards until he was kissing Twilight around the candy horn.

A loud collective “Ooooooo!!!!” rose up around them as Twilight blinked, a bit startled, before she started blushing hotly, but she returned the kiss for a few moments, relishing it for a few moments before they finally bit through the candy horn, Twilight lowering her head as she continued to blush.

Shadow for his part just chuckled softly, and slipped forwards to nuzzle Twilight’s cheek gently, slowly munching on his own half of the horn. Twilight nursed on hers for a moment, continuing to blush, before she reared up, her hoof hitting Shadow lightly in the shoulder, “Ass,” she accused with a teasing smile, drawing a collective laugh from the other ponies.

Shadow just grinned as he filled his plate, glancing to Pinkie, “This is a wonderful party, I’d say you outdid yourself, but I haven’t even seen the rest of it yet,” he chuckled.

Twlight looked up, still blushing, “Oh no, give Pinkie Pie a few years to plan the biggest party ever? This is about what I expected; you haven’t seen Pinkie’s usual parties.”

Pinkie Pie let out a laugh and smiled happily, “Thanks Twilight! And it is all for you. If you have all the food you want, you can take it on the float with you. You are the guest of honor to this, come on!”

Cheerilee stepped forwards, looking over the children, “If you want Twilight, I could take the kids off your hands for a bit, I’m not sure they would want to be part of a parade so much, but I can introduce them to the rest of the school kids, and let them make some new friends. We haven’t had the privilege of having a griffon at our school yet.”

Twilight looked up, and smiled brightly, levitating her plate as she stepped over, “Cheerilee! That sounds great!” lifting a hoof to give the smiling mare a hug, “It’s great to see you.”

“We’ll have lots of time to talk, go enjoy yourself,” Cheerilee said, returning the hug.

Twilight nodded with a smile, and drew back, looking to Shadow, before turning to trot after Pinkie Pie, who started leading the way. Cheerilee trotted over to introduce herself to the children, while Shadow turned to head after Twilight, bringing his plate of food, and after a moment’s thought, two glasses of punch.

Pinkie Pie led the way to the flat topped float, and up the ramp where there was a low table, and a number of pillows around it. Twilight carried her plate up, and placed it on the table, settling down on a pile of pillows, looking around, while Shadow settled himself across the table from her, placing his plate down, and putting the glasses on the table, one in front of Twilight. Twilight looked up at the glass, then smiled over to Shadow, “Oh thanks! I forgot all about the punch!”

Shadow was about to reply, when Pinkie Pie spoke up into a microphone, “Ladies and Gentlemen! I would like to introduce you to everypony’s favorite and returning librarian, Twilight Sparkle! She has returned from a long vacation in Canterlot, and I for one would like everypony to show her how much we missed her!” Pinkie Pie held the microphone up in the air as the ponies in range and view of the float started stomping their hooves and cheering, more than a few of them waving and shouting greetings to Twilight.

Twilight for her part looked around rather overwhelmed, and slowly picked herself up off of the pillows, standing as she looked around at all the ponies, tears shining in her eyes as she smiled, and started waving her hooves to those she recognized, calling out greetings in return, all of this a bit much for her, but it filled her with joy to see so many welcoming her so happily.

Shadow watched Twilight for a moment, and rose, walking over to her, standing by her and offering her some support, both physical and emotional. As he stood up however, Pinkie Pie called into the microphone again, “And let us all give a big welcome to one of our newest residents in Ponyville, hailing from the special agents of the Equestrian Military, our brave and courageous friend of our librarian, Special Operative Shadow Hoof!”

The stomping of hooves was just as loud for Twilight Sparkle, as were the cheers and shouts of greeting, and Shadow just let out a laugh, and waved a hoof, yelling back some greetings of his own over all of the roaring of the crowd. Pinkie glanced back, and grinned, before calling into the microphone again, “Alright everypony! Let’s get this parade started!”

With that, the band started up, as a number of ponies got themselves hooked into the harnesses to lead the floats, and before long, everything started moving. As their float lurched to movement, Twilight stumbled, falling down to her belly with a bit of a yelp, frowning a little, but Shadow was there, putting a hoof around her gently, and helping her back to her feet.

Twilight smiled up at Shadow, and struggled a bit back to her feet, “I think I need to settle back down,” leaning heavily against the ebon stallion, though her voice was lost over the sound of the marching band’s blaring music.

Shadow tilted his head and frowned, yelling over the racket, “WHAT?”

Twilight frowned, and tried yelling a bit, but then gave up, and shook her head, motioning to the pillows, before turning and walking over to settle on them.

Shadow let out a soft ‘oh’ as she settled down, shaking his head before he followed, settling down across from her, drawing a bit of power into his horn, and a black dome flickered around them for a moment before seeming to face out, but the roar of the sound died down to a dull roar, “Are you alright Twilight?”

Twilight nodded, looking over to Shadow with a bit of a weak smile, “Yeah, I’m just a bit overwhelmed, this is a lot to take in and handle. I spent so long hiding and running… now Pinkie has thrust me out in the front of everything… and everyone just seems so happy to see me. I never realized how wrong I was in running away. I want to say that everything I ever needed was right here… but it wasn’t. I have you now, and I have Dawn and Gerald, I lost so much, but I gained so much more. It is just… so strange to be back home.”

Shadow smiled at Twilight, and nodded, glancing around, “I am not sure I have seen such a welcoming town before. It looks like everyone has turned out just to welcome you home.”

Twilight giggled, “That’s Pinkie Pie’s special talent at work, she is friends with everypony, she makes sure of it. She greets every new pony to town, plays with the kids, throws parties, and everything, though she really outdid herself with this,” she said as she looked around at all the ponies as they rolled slowly past, waving a hoof to some she recognized.

“So how far is it to your house from here?”

“Oh, it’s about a mile, it’s that big tree there near the center of town,” Twilight said, pointing.

Shadow nodded, peering towards the tree curiously, “hmm, I don’t exactly have lodgings, do you have any inn that I could stay in until I figure something out?”

Twilight looked back to Shadow and blinked, “I never even thought about that… but I don’t think I’d feel right making you sleep in an inn. Spike’s old basket should still be up in my room, the kids can share that until I can get something set up for them. I should clean out the equipment in the basement, and I can decorate part of that as a room for them. As for you, I could let you take my bed for the night, there should be a reading couch in the library somewhere that I could sleep on.”

Shadow shook his head, “I’m not taking your bed, it’s yours, I’ll take the couch until we figure out other arrangements,” he replied with a smile.

Twilight frowned a little, “Are you sure? I guess if you are sure,” she said as Shadow nodded, “I’d really like having you staying close… I’ve got to reorganize everything!” she said, shaking her head, and looking around, “I wish I had my quills and ink to start making a list, but I am going to need to get some new of those too!”

Shadow smiled and chuckled softly, “We’ll get it all figured out Twilight, just relax, and have something to eat, we’ll be at your tree soon, and you can show me around.”

Twilight nodded, and looked around, realizing that they actually were almost all the way there, and took a minute to eat some of the cake, and other snacks on her plate, and sipping at her punch, hoping that Pinkie hadn’t spiked it.

It wasn’t more than a few minutes before their float arrived in front of Twilight’s tree. Pinkie Pie was already hopping down, and the rest of their friends were apparently riding in a wagon behind, all transportation provided. Twilight slowly rose, all of the excitement catching up to her, but the stress that had plagued her on the train was gone right out the window of the train when she had left it. She slowly stepped down the ramp off of the float, with Shadow at her side giving her some support, and offering her a hoof down. Twilight smiled at Shadow, and looked up to the tree with some nostalgia and trepidation on her face.

Pinkie Pie was already trotting to the door, opening it up, “Come on in Twilight! We left it just the way you did. Well, we picked up a little really.”

Twilight let out a bit of a chuckle, and walked to the door, stepping through slowly, and looking around. Shadow waited right behind Twilight as she stepped in, following her in before moving to stand besides her again. Twilight for her part seemed lost in the place, looking around at all the books, all of the furniture and knickknacks of the tables and shelves. Everything had been perfectly maintained, all the books in order.

Twilight walked in, moving to the shelves, and started to look through them ticking off titles from memory, totally lost for a few minutes as the rest of her friends filed in, and stood around watching her.

Twilight finally remembered the others, and turned towards them, a smile slipping onto her face, an expression of happiness, and something of peace on her features, “It’s just perfect. It’s just the way I remembered it, just the way I dreamed it would be.”

Rarity smiled, “We did the best to keep it just as it was, and keep it running. This old place might have been under our care for so long, but this place is yours, you were always in everything here, it was one of our links to you, let us remember you while you were gone.”

Twilight sniffled, and took a few uneasy steps forwards before stumbling. The other ponies rushed forwards to catch her before she fell to the ground all the way, supporting her and fussing over her. Twilight just cried, hugging her friends. Shadow stepped away, letting the girls have a bit of time together, though when he looked back, the sobbing had stopped, and Twilight’s eyes were closed, her head resting between Applejack and Fluttershy, sound asleep with a smile on her face.

Pinkie tilted her head at Twilight, looking a bit sheepish, “I guess I did go too overboard on all this for Twilight.”

The other ponies laughed and nodded, Applejack speaking up, “Let’s get her up to bed, she’s had a mighty big day.”

Together, the ponies picked Twilight up gently, and carried her up to her room.

***

Shadow was sitting on a couch in the main level of the library, it was a few hours after sun set, and a few of the lamps around the room were lit, giving the place a soft, warm glow. There was a lamp lit on the table besides the ebon stallion as he read a book, and there were a number of paper bags on the table, casting odd shaped shadows throughout the room.

The city bell was tolling nine o’clock when the sudden light clop of hooves on the stairs brought Shadow’s head up, smiling as he saw Twilight slowly making her way down the stairs. Shadow spoke softly, “I was hoping you would be up soon, you slept through the rest of the day.”

Twilight let out a soft groan, nodding as she made her way down the stairs to the floor, “I feel like that cake of Pinkie’s fell on top of me and squished me. Where are Dawn and Gerald?” she asked with some worry.

“Don’t worry yourself, Fluttershy and Big Mac offered to take them in for the night. Dawn gave you a kiss goodnight a few hours ago, and I asked Pinkie Pie to bring us some dinner. I was hoping you would wake up soon, so I waited for you.”

Twilight smiled as she made her way over to the table, sniffing at the bags a moment, before slipping to the side of the couch, “I guess this isn’t the date I promised to let you take me on, but thank you for waiting.”

Shadow smiled as he watched Twilight, seeming like a piece of the night even with the lamp flickering nearby, “You know, I think I prefer having dinner with you like this a great deal more, it is more personal, and it is in your home.”

Twilight smiled, and brought her nose to Shadow’s cheek, “You are really rather sweet, you know that?”

Shadow nodded, “Only with ponies that I like, and trust like I do you.”

“Oh? Have there been others?” Twilight teased, her magic wrapping around a nearby couch, and pulling it over, placing it close to Shadow’s, right in front of his actually, and climbed into it, settling down with a soft groan.

Shadow chuckled at that, but shook his head, “No, not that I can think of, now that I am thinking of it.” Shadow used his magic to bring the table a bit closer, placing it down between them as he opened up the bags, and started dividing the food a bit.

Twilight giggled softly to herself, and nodded, picking out items she wanted from the bags, “good, now I won’t have to do research on how to be jealous properly.”

Shadow let a laugh at that, “You used to do research on everything, didn’t you? I bet if things had turned out differently, you would have done research on how to date, or have a first kiss.”

Twilight blushed in the soft glow of the lantern, ducking her nose a bit, before clearing her throat, “I um… I was actually planning on trying to find some books on that before our date tonight, I just never had time, I was just too overwhelmed.”

Shadow let out a good laugh at that, shaking his head, “You have got to be the biggest bookworm I know.”

Twilight giggled sheepishly, “I used to be, I have so much more in my life now… and my friends… I don’t think I will be spending quite as much time on research or managing things here, though I will still do some, just because I like to.”

Shadow nodded, “I would be surprised if you did give up on it, I would like to see you getting into it, but don’t dive in too fast, take some time to relax, and get used to things.”

Twilight nodded, “I will,” she said softly.

Shadow glanced over Twilight in the dim, flickering light of the lantern, “How is it, to be back here after so long? To see your friends? Your home? The town again?”

Twilight looked down as she thought of that question, taking a few minutes before she replied, “It is… strange, I feel like I have know this place all my life, but it is brand new to me, and comfortingly familiar. I think it will take me a few days to get used to everything, maybe longer. I don’t feel like the same pony who trotted out those doors… er, well, jumped out the second story window all those years ago… I think that pony died somewhere…”

Twilight paused a moment, looking to Shadow, “I think… Rarity and Rainbow Dash, and the others… I think they felt it too. The way they spoke, it was like I had died. It was like this library was a monument to my life,” Twilight’s voice tightened, starting to get choked up. “It was like they were maintaining it, keeping it just to remember me, the pony that was there friend. I am still their friend… but I died there, in Canterlot,” her voice lowering to a whisper, a hoof rising to feel over where the hidden scar was on her neck, invisible, not even touchable, but she knew it was there.

Shadow frowned, but nodded slowly, “I think I understand what you mean, and you did die. Dawn had a really hard time talking about it, but she did one night… she told me what Grasson did… she told me of the shining white angel of light who swooped down,” a sad smile on Shadow’s lips. “From the way she described it, you did die for a few minutes there, until Celestia brought you back.”

Twilight lowered her head, studying the food and the table before her, silent for several minutes as she turned this over in her head. She had died, and her friends had believed her to be dead, and she did not feel like the same pony, there was only one thing that felt right.

“I think we should have a funeral,” Twilight said finally, softly.

Shadow blinked, “A funeral?” the thought startling him.

“Not a real one, a symbolic one, one with my friends, you, and the children. The pony I was didn’t come back from Canterlot. I died there. I think I need to have a funeral to bury that part of me, that innocence that died, that part of me that lays there, that needs to be put to rest. I don’t want it to be just a sad affair… but I think I need to do this.”

Shadow nodded slowly as he considered what Twilight said, before he finally spoke, “If that is what you think you need to do. I will help with it, and I am sure all your friends will too. They seem quite devoted to you.”

Twilight nodded and smiled, “They are the best friends in the world. And you are one of them now,” she smiled to Shadow, her mood brightening.

Shadow smiled in return, “I am looking forwards to getting a chance to work with them and get to know them better. Come, eat, the food is going to wilt before you get to eat it.”

Twilight giggled and nodded, levitating up a fork, and taking some of the packaged salad to eat, thinking to herself, her mind already working over the details.

She had a funeral to plan. Her funeral.

Author's Notes

I am getting slower with updating this story. I guess it is getting down near the end, and my drive for it is flagging. But never fear, i am determined to finish this! This is the final major chapter that i am planning, however i still have the epilogue to write, i have plans for that, though i do not anticipate it will add much to the story overall.

This is the story i wanted to tell. It was a story of loss, of pain, and of how that pain can twist us, and make us forget ourselves, and lose ourselves. This is also a story of what can come from the worst pain, how even in the darkest of nights, there is a shimmering that will become the most Glorious of Dawns.

We each find and face our challenges in our own way, maybe none of us will ever face a night so black as this, or a dawn so bright, but we each face our nights that are darker than we are used to, and we will all find our dawns that are brighter than those before.

I think in the end, this is a story of hope. Hope is that light inside all of us that helps us find that morning before us. I hope that for all of my readers who like this story, that we can all take away some of that hope in our hearts, and remember that it has always been there, and it always will be.

I dedicate this story to those i love that have faced these most black of nights, when they were younger than they should have ever been to face such darkness in their lives. All i can hope, is that for even one of them, i was the Glorious Dawn that pulled them from their darkness, and helped show them that there was still good in the world.

Thank you all for joining me in this incredible journey, and supporting me while i wrote this, and put my heart and soul into my work.