Twilight stood atop the alabaster stairs beside her Princess. They were looking out over a banquet. A long, linen covered table in the center of the room had been laden with foods of every variety. There were roasted daisy sandwiches, fancy shrimps set upon a bed of garnish, a scrumptious looking arrangement of carrots, celery and radishes. Rows of crystal chandeliers had been lit. Flickering candles cast shadows on the walls. Other lamps which were powered with magic were studded into the walls. They cast light over the room, though they were invisible to the naked eye.
Talking and laughter filled the room along with hooves tapping out a rhythm on the dance floor. A full symphony played a medley of waltzes and powerful, booming classical pieces with the clash of cymbals and the call of trumpets. They were just finishing up a lively, Romantic-period piece that Twilight couldn't help but hum along to. She leaned against her Princess and received a nuzzle in turn. None of her friends had wanted to come this year, not after the disaster of the last gala. This wasn't a gala though. Hearty laughter rang out from their guests as the caribou bucks mingled with the smaller ponies. Some of the larger ones took pains not to allow their silver-ringed antlers to scrape the ceiling. They stood at least a foot taller than their equine kin and their antlers added at least another two feet.
If not for their gentle nature and impeccable manners, the muscled caribou bucks would have been an imposing sight. This "friendship banquet" celebrated the tricentennial of the Pony-Caribou alliance. The High King of the Caribou, Dainn Peacefulheart, lounged against a wall nibbling on a grass sandwich. He gave a warning look to one of his warriors who was flirting with a pegasus mare that had shown her disinterest quite vocally. The chastening glance from the king and his hoof moving towards his ceremonial dagger was enough for the buck to move on.
Dainn returned to nibbling on his sandwich.
Celestia had still had to greet all the guests, but luckily their hadn't been quite as many guests at this banquet. It had only taken an hour. Twilight hadn't minded. In fact, she hadn't been able to get the silly grin off of her face as Celestia had shown her affection for her new consort by keeping a wing over her withers. Twilight had just nuzzled against her.
Yes, this was so much better than the gala. The last guest had shaken Celestia's hoof. Now they were just standing next to each other, Twilight leaning against her beloved and Celestia leaning against her.
This was perfect. This moment was perfect. A thin, ethereal strand of Celestia's mane tickled Twilight's back. Twilight giggled.
Celestia removed her wing and Twilight suppressed a whimper as the warmth was removed. "Shall we go on the dance floor?"
Twilight shook her head. "Oh no, you know I can't dance. I mean I can dance, but not with somepony. I-I've never done it before."
A soft tug of golden magic tweaked Twilight's ear, scratching in that one place Twilight enjoyed and only a few ponies knew about. "Come on, I'll be right there with you. It'll be fun."
That did make Twilight feel better. She smiled. "Alright, but you lead."
Celestia extended a hoof, that gentle smile upon her face. That gentle smile was one of the reasons Twilight had fallen in love with Celestia. Twilight had a list of all those reasons stashed away in a notebook. She extended her hoof and placed it in Celestia's own, letting the Solar Sovereign take her on to the grey and white checkered dance floor.
Twilight wrapped her hooves around Celestia's barrel and Celestia did the same to Twilight. Twilight allowed Celestia to take her through the steps of the waltz. Celestia twirled Twilight and Twilight took hold of her hoof, catching it as Celestia wrapped a hoof around her back and held her close. Twilight panted and the pair continued their dance. They swayed gently as the music turned to another slower waltz.
It was a perfect excuse for them to snuggle up close under the guise of dancing. Wrapped in each other's hooves they swayed and pranced across the floor.
Twilight put her mouth close to Celestia's ear. "You were right. This was a good idea."
"When am I not right, my faithful lover?" Celestia whispered back.
Twilight giggled, taking in the minty scent that was Celestia. At first, she had been somewhat embarrassed by Celestia's playful, flirtatious demeanor. Getting publicly snuggled or playful swats on the rear were par for the course with dating Celestia. Twilight had sat down with Celestia and explained that those things made her uncomfortable.
Celestia had apologized and stopped immediately.
Twilight had missed it and regretted asking her to stop immediately.
Now, they were building up to a point where a public hug or wing-snuggle didn't bother Twilight. In fact, she liked it. She liked it very much. Twilight leaned her head on Celestia's shoulder as the music continued. A harpist strummed out a solo. Twilight had decided to read up on the language of love. The language Celestia used was affection. Twilight understood that her affectionate nature was how Celestia expressed love in the same way that Twilight expressed love by spending time with her.
They didn't have to do anything special. Just sitting over tea with Celestia was enough for Twilight.
I've learned so much. I've grown so much. Twilight thought. My friendships. My relationship with the Princess. I never thought I'd have all this.
The music changed again. This music was faster. A minuet by Beehooften if she wasn't mistaken. Twilight and Celestia began to sway together at a faster pace, matching the quick pace of the music.
The other couples twirled and pranced around them, the mare's fancy dresses fluttering as they danced. Twilight had on her gala dress as did Celestia. The pink fabric clung to Celestia, hugging her figure in a very flattering way. Twilight couldn't help but notice that. Their dance continued as the minuet continued at its quick but even rhythm.
The caribou weren't used to this form of dancing in the same way the ponies weren't used to the caribou dance music of earlier, but a few of the bucks had found mares that were willing to teach them. Dainn danced with his mate, a cow by the name of Rudolphine. Dainn glanced over at Celestia as the couples neared each other.
Dainn nodded to Twilight. "Might I cut in, Miss Twilight? Me and your Princess have not spoken in quite some time."
Twilight hesitated. Celestia smiled at her. "It'll be all right. Dainn and I have known each other for...twenty-nine years now?"
Dainn nodded. "Many times have my antlers shed since I have had the honor of knowing you." He lifted her hoof, kissing it.
Twilight breathed deeply. That was just politeness, an act of fealty as Celestia was Dainn's elder. Rudolphine also had a strange look upon her face at the scene, but it passed quickly.
The cow turned her attention to Twilight. "Will you give me the honor of a dance?"
Twilight hesitated again before deciding that refusing would be impolite. She extended her hoof and took the extended forehoof of the cow. "Can you lead?"
The cow nodded and placed one foreleg around Twilight, drawing her close. Being this close to another female that wasn't Celestia felt wrong. Like a betrayal. She tried to maintain a certain distance, not allowing her dress to even touch the silver dress the cow was wearing. The cow was surprisingly graceful. They swayed and twirled all over the dance floor.
The tempo of the music changed again, growing faster. The steady pounding of a drum joined the lively tune of a flute. The two instruments played in perfect harmony. Twilight recognized it as a musette by the great Germain composer Bayoch.
Twilight tried not to look at Celestia whom she trusted implicitly. Rudolphine was not quite as discreet as she kept taking glances at her husband and the Sun Princess.
Dainn and Celestia had their hooves wrapped around each other, swaying back and forth to the music. Celestia whispered something to Dainn who giggled while he tilted her back.
Twilight tried not to look at the scene. She trusted Celestia. She continued to remind herself of that as Dainn and Celestia twirled away from each other and then grabbed hold of one another's hooves, twirling back to each other.
Rudolphine turned her attention back to her partner. "They certainly are close aren't they?"
Twilight chuckled. "I'm certain they're just old friends."
"As am I. That doesn't stop the green eyed monster."
Twilight blinked. "A Haykespeare quote. I'm impressed."
Rudolphine gave her a flat look. "Did you not think we read Haykespeare in the north?"
Twilight blushed. "What? No, of course not! I-I mean of course you can read, but the North is home to it's own tradition of great literature. Why, I was just reading a book of Northern poems this week in preparation for this meeting!"
Rudolphine chuckled and drew her close. "I was just teasing you." The tempo of the music slowed. The drum ceased its pounding and trumpets joined the flutes and cellos as the orchestra began to play another classical piece. This one was slow and melodious and always reminded her of water flowing over pebbles. She closed her eyes. This was her favorite piece.
As if the universe was playing a trick on her it was by that great Northern composer Tchaihoofsky, who happened to be a caribou.
"Of course we do have an impressive tradition, but its no less impressive than that of you Southerners. What you have is something special, three tribes united in harmony and friendship. A stirring example for us all."
Twilight smiled. "You too have had a number of accomplishments. The fact that you have managed to carve out a civilization in a frozen wilderness is rather impressive."
Rudolphine looked as if she were about to respond, but then she looked back over at Celestia and Dainn. The two had stopped dancing and had gone over to a quiet corner. Celestia held a glass of punch in her golden aura and was listening to Dainn who seemed to be in the middle of telling a story.
It must have been an interesting story from how intently Celestia was listening to it. She finished the cup of punch and let Dainn escort her back on to the dance floor.
Rudoplhine leaned close to Twilight. "What do you suppose they were talking about?"
Twilight shrugged. She was getting rather bored with the cow's company. Rudolphine seemed like a friendly sort and under different circumstances Twilight would enjoy going out for a drink or two with her.
But she had come here with Celestia specifically so she could spend time with her beloved. Was that too much to ask? Why was it that every time she wanted to spend time with Celestia something like this came up?
There was that disaster of the gala. There was that time Celestia had to cancel a date because an emergency session of Parliament had opened. In fact, that had happened more than once.
Twilight had begun to hate politics.
Dainn dipped Celestia again. Celestia wrapped her hooves around his neck before letting go. She smiled over at Twilight who gave a tentative smile back to her. The two couples danced closer to each other, preparing to once more switch back to their own partner.
Before Twilight could take Celestia back into her hooves-the place that Twilight felt that she belonged, the one place she felt safe from her anxieties- Dainn gave Celestia a hearty slap on the back. "Well, Miss Twilight, the old nag is all yours again."
The temperature in the room dropped several degrees. Several guests who had overheard the comment audibly gasped. Twilight grit her teeth together as she let go of Rudolphine.
Rudolphine returned to her husband's side, jealously wrapping a foreleg up around him. "Shall we go on the dance floor?"
Dainn nodded. "I had a great time dancing, old nag."
A vein in Twilight's head throbbed. She could almost feel a blood vessel snapping. Suddenly, she galloped up between Celestia and Dainn and pushed him. He shouted as he nearly tripped.
"Twilight!" Celestia shouted.
"That old nag is my Princess, the Ruler of the Sun, the Dawn Bringer, the rightful ruler of all Ponykind and she is my beloved, my one and only!" She stomped a hoof, feeling a sharp pain run up her leg as her hoof slammed against the tile. "How dare you call her such-such a degrading title! How dare you flirt with her!"
Celestia laid a firm hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "Twilight, you are being ridiculous! Dainn was not flirting with me!"
"He still insulted you!" Twilight jerked from beneath Celestia's touch. "W-why are you taking his side?!"
"Because he is my friend and an ally of this nation! Now apologize to him!"
Twilight gaped at her marefriend. "You want ME to apologize after HE treated you like that? After he...he insulted you Princess!"
Celestia glared at her. "It's a pet name, nothing more!"
"A pet name! Why does he even have a pet name for you?"
"We have known each other a very long time as I have just told you."
Twilight's eyes filled with tears. "Fine! That's just fine! You can dance with each other the rest of the night!" She rushed from the room, nearly slamming into several guests. She ran, not caring where she was going. Her eyes were blurred with tears. All she knew is that she wanted to get away.
Old insecurities gnawed at her heart. She knew she wasn't good enough for a princess, being a mere librarian. Dainn was a High King who ruled the twenty-seven kingdoms of the Caribou Alliance. He was plenty good enough for her.
Maybe Celestia only wanted her around as a sort of plaything. The thought drew a strangled sob from Twilight as she ran through the night. By now, she was in the gardens. A patch of moonflowers had their white petals unfurled. Twilight sat down by them, sniffling.
Then she remembered that she had just physically struck an allied monarch. Would Celestia be angry enough at her to banish her in order to appease Dainn's offended honor?
She won't have to. Twilight stood. The train station wasn't far away. She could seek sanctuary in the Crystal Empire where her brother and sister-in-law ruled. Or perhaps Griffhalla. Maybe even the Zebran Kingdoms or Dream Valley from where her ancient ancestors had come. It was technically part of Equestria, but exiles had a right to go there.
The more she thought about it the more just travelling the world sounded good to her. In her mind, she started to plan an itinerary. Of course, she couldn't leave Spike by himself. Perhaps, they could take a pilgrimage to see the Dragon Lands. Twilight knew that, despite the bad experience he had had with dragons, he was still interested in his heritage.
Twilight, for her part, was interested in travelling to the Republic of Unicornia. She had a few relatives living there.
She looked back at the castle and took one great shuddering breath. The life of an exile would be hard, but perhaps one day Celestia's anger would cool and she could return.
A tear slid down Twilight's muzzle. The life of an exile was a hard and lonely one. Surely, she would miss her family, her friends, her homeland. She would even miss Celestia even if she was currently mad at her.
Slowly, her ears folded back and, tail nearly dragging on the ground, she took the path that led away from the castle. She paused as she heard something with wings land behind her. She heard the whoosh of wings and the rustling of feathers.
"Twilight? Where are you going?"
Twilight did not even look around. "I don't know yet. The Crystal Empire, Unicornia, Griffhalla...don't worry. I won't put you in the position of having to preside over my trial. I'll go into exile quietly."
Celestia blinked. "Twilight. What on Equestria are you talking about? Your trial?"
Twilight turned. "I struck High King Dainn."
Celestia took a step closer to her. "You shoved him because you thought he'd insulted me."
Twilight drew back. "He DID insult you. He called you a nag. Twice!""
"Yes, it was only a pet name. I still feel that you should apologize."
Twilight felt anger surge in her again. "Why DOES he have a pet name for you?"
"I was his foal sitter."
"What?"
"I was High King Dainn's foal sitter. As is custom he was sent to a foreign land, Equestria, to study at age seven. I've known the Caribou royal family from the time they were only tribal chieftains. I took him under my wing. That's all. I was always, well, nagging him over his studies. So he started calling me old nag and none of the reprimands in the world could get him to stop calling me that. So, I tolerated it. It stuck."
Twilight deflated. "Oh. Well...well, why didn't you just tell me that?!"
"I tried. You were too busy yelling."
"You ordered me." Twilight muttered.
Celestia's ear perked up. "What was that?"
Twilight spoke up. "You ordered me to apologize. Like a subject and...and I AM your subject. And your marefriend. You and Dainn are equals. I'm not."
Celestia raised an eyebrow. "I've known him since he was seven."
"You've known me since I was nine."
"What are you suggesting?"
Twilight turned her head away from Celestia's gaze. Celestia trotted closer and lifted Twilight's face with her hoof. "Do you really have such little faith in me? In yourself?"
"Remember that game we used to play? Which one of these is not like other? I'm a librarian. You're a princess. He's a high king. Which one of these is not like the other?"
Celestia dropped her hoof. "You saved my sister from her own demons. You returned my sister to me. You have defended my Kingdom. The only reason I haven't made you my regent is because the post hasn't opened up yet."
Twilight's eyes filled anew with tears. "You'd actually do that? You'd trust me as your Right Hoof, your regent?"
Celestia wiped away a tear falling down Twilight's cheek with a wing. "Absolutely I would. There is nopony I would trust more save for my sister. I just wish you'd give me the same level of trust."
Twilight shook her head. "He kissed your hoof. He was dancing with you for a really long time. If I did something like that wouldn't you get a little jealous? And then what if my dance partner insulted me?"
Celestia sighed. "Alright. When you put it like that, I understand. But I've heard Rainbow Dash call you egghead. That quite annoyed me the first time I heard it."
"Yeah. She means it affectionately."
"As does Dainn with his pet names. But if you were unfamiliar, yes I could see how that could be misinterpreted." Her ears drooped as she realized something else. "I did order you, spoke to you as if you were a servant. That was wrong of me and I'm sorry."
Twilight leaned into her. "I forgive you."
Celestia nuzzled her and Twilight found herself wrapped up in a feathery cocoon of love and warmth as Celestia wrapped her up in her wings. Twilight nuzzled her, placing her horn on hers, the most intimate act possible between two unicorns. "I forgive you as well, Twilight. I know you meant well."
Twilight nuzzled against her, wrapping both hooves around her neck. "I'll apologize to King Dainn. But can we stay like this for a little while?"
Celestia kissed the tip of her nose, eliciting a giggle. "Of course we can."
After several more minutes of cuddling and reconnecting after the storm of the fight, they decided to go back inside the castle, Celestia and Twilight still leaning against each other. Twilight spotted Dainn who was still dancing with his wife who was rather tightly holding onto him. She looked back at Celestia.
Celestia walked with her as they trotted up to Dainn, though she kept a few inches behind Twilight.
Dainn stopped dancing when he saw them. "Yes, Miss Sparkle?"
Twilight knelt her head. "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry. I shouldn't have reacted the way I did."
Dain smiled and gave her a good natured swat on her withers. "It's alright. My wife here was just chewing me out for using that 'ridiculous nickname' in public. I suppose that it would sound that I was being disrespectful. You see, we Caribou tend to not be quite as formal as you ponies."
"Some of us are." Rudolohine muttered.
Celestia gave her warm, diplomatic smile. "I'm glad that's all settled."
Dainn held out his hoof and Celestia took it. "It was nice speaking with you again, Celestia."
"It was nice to speak with you as well, Dainn." Celestia wrapped a hoof around Twilight. "But I think me and my beloved should start dancing again if we're going to hang out on the dance floor."
"Have fun." Dainn knelt his antlers to Twilight and Celestia in a gesture of respect before he and his wife began swaying once more to the music.
Celestia took Twilight's hoof and Twilight wrapped her hooves around Celestia's barrel. The music had slowed to an easy rhythm with a soft melody. Twilight laid her head on Celestia's chest as they moved over the floor, swaying their hips and moving to the music. Celestia twirled Twilight and caught her, dipping her down. Twilight couldn't resist reaching up and planting a kiss on Celestia's lips.
Celestia kissed back. The banquet ended, the guests began to trickle off and the last notes of the orchestra died away. A small army of maids appeared from who knew where. As was her custom, Celestia helped move the tables. Twilight joined her. Celestia felt that occasionally helping with her cleaning staff helped keep her in touch with the common pony.
After that was done, the pair left the hall and went towards Celestia's personal chambers. Twilight had decided to stay the night. Celestia used her magic to open the ornate, golden door and then she pushed Twilight onto the white sheets of the bed, pushing her lips to Twilight's lips. The bed always smelled like perfume to Twilight. Celestia rolled off of her, resting at her side. Twilight snuggled up against the Sun Princess who wrapped her up in a wing.
"'Tia?"
"Hmm? Yes, my faithful lover?"
"I learned something today."
"What?"
Twilight sat up on the bed. "It's easy to misinterpret other's actions, especially if blinded by jealousy."
Celestia sat up. "Or love."
"That too."
Celestia yawned. "I learned something too. I learned that one should always try to explain things, not just yell and demand. I may need to rethink my interactions with the nobles."
Twilight giggled then took Celestia's hoof. "I love you."
"I love you too.This is a journey we're on. There's bound to be potholes."
Twilight stretched out. "We'll get through them."
Celestia pulled up the blanket around both of them. "We always do, my love. We always do."
With a flick of magic she turned off the lights and lay with her beloved.
Author's Note
(I want to rehabilitate the caribou because reindeer are awesome. Deer of all stripes, in fact. Yes, Bambi was my favorite movie.)
How do horses dance?
