The Return of Tambelon

by Henry101

Rating: teen
Tags: Princess Luna, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Flurry Heart, Comedy, King Sombra, Romance, Adventure, Princess Celestia, Alternate Universe, Main 6
Length: 6103

Celestia and Sombra decide to give the Mirror-Equestria a visit, only to find some unpleasant surprises waiting for them there.

Important: If you want to read this story without reading the prequel, just read this small blog post so you won't get confused.

Celestia and Sombra started a family and are living happily. But life never runs out of hardships. One day, they decide to visit their friends in the other Equestria, but when they arrive, they find some unpleasant surprises there that put them once again on a mission to save the world.

Rated T for: Intense action, mild blood and gore (nothing that requires a gore tag), some cursing, dirty humor, and some romantic scenes (nothing that requires a sex tag).

Cover art by Yula568 used with permission.
Edit by Zoetic Zebra.

Published 2016-09-17 22:10:02 UTC
Last updated 2016-11-29 22:25:44 UTC

Prologue: The Banishment of Tambelon (sometime in the past)

The buildings of Tambelon suffered with each blow the two overpowered beings gave to each other. On one side stood Grogar; a gargantuan goat with an azure coat and crimson eyes. . Around his neck he had fastened a bell, channeling deep arcana. On the other side, Tiara, the Princess of Tambelon; a white Alicorn with massive wings and a mane that shone with all the colors of the rainbow. She was also wearing a bell around her neck. Her coat was adorned with golden embellishment that resembled the veins of a plant.

The good thing, which was also a bad thing, was that the most of the Tambelonian ponies had left their houses once Grogar’s attack had started. There were too few innocent ponies that it was guaranteed there would be no casualties. However, at the same time Tambelon was empty and was about to be lost to Grogar and his feral companions.

Blow after blow, Tiara and Grogar appeared to be evenly matched, Grogar was slowly taking over, as Tiara was beginning to lose strength. He punched Tiara again, sending her shooting through a building then rolling on the ground.

The princess stood up, a fierce glare on her face. When Grogar lunged at her again, she flapped her massive wings in his direction with all her might, producing a shock wave so strong it threw Grogar away and created a wide, shallow trench on the ground. Before Grogar could stand up again, Tiara swooped at him and punched him in the face. Magic and brutality combined as Tiara sent a magical blast, keeping the invader immobilized.

“That’s enough, Grogar,” the princess said taut, trotting towards Grogar as the smoke around him began to fade. She did her best to keep her hooves as steady as possible under the pain of her injuries. “It doesn't have to end like this. You can stop it right now.”

Grogar stood up slowly,his breathing shallow. He spoke with a deep, dark voice, “I can, but I don’t want to.” A red, glowing ball of magic formed between his horns, then a beam of energy was released from it and towards Tiara.

The princess countered the attack with a beam of her own. The two beams met in the middle, producing a bright explosion and blocking Tiara’s vision.

Grogar took advantage and swooped at the princess, pinning her to the ground. He then punched her in the face twice, making her head sink in a small hole in the ground, before levitating her with his magic and slamming her on the ground several times. Grogar resumed by throwing her in the air and headbutting her, sending her flying into the roof of a building.

Tiara landed on the roof, the impact taking away a big portion of it. She wiped the blood off her nose then stood up with shaky steps.

“You left me no choice,” the princess said. “but this has to stop. I… assure you your death shall be painless. “

Tiara grabbed the bell around her neck and rang it, but nothing happened. She looked at the bell with confusion, ringing it again, but there was still no response. “No…” She fell to her knees, shutting her eyes tightly and gritting her teeth. “That’s what I was afraid of.”

Grogar jumped to the roof where Tiara was standing and pinned her down, looking down at her with a wicked smirk. “See, Tiara? You’re not fit to rule. You’ve always been. That’s why I must overthrow you.”

With her face hidden under her mane, Tiara started chuckling, but she quickly burst into audible laughter.

Grogar’s smirk disappeared. “What’s so funny?”

“You are!” Tiara replied, blowing her mane off her face. “I’m a terrible ruler? Then who’s the great, benevolent ruler that will replace me? You? Do you really think you can be better than me?” She placed her forelegs behind her head, the sarcastic smile never leaving her face. “I’d love to see you trying.”

Grogar brought his hoof down on her face, throwing her into the ground. Tiara’s impact with the ground created a small trench, before she could take her breath and stand up slowly, struggling against her injuries.

“Unfortunately, you won’t live long enough to see me trying.” Grogar started floating with his magic, then a massive ball of energy formed above his head.

Tiara flapped her wings slowly, levitating herself a couple of feet off the ground. She furrowed her eyes and gave a battlecry, before her body was surrounded with a golden aura, her horn blazing blindingly.

Grogar, still wearing an emotionless expression, sent the ball of energy towards Tiara.

Seeing the blast getting closer, Tiara released a powerful, continuous beam from her horn and into the ball of energy, stopping it mid air and even pushing it back slightly. The impact between the ball and the beam produced a shock wave that destroyed the windows of every house nearby.

A few seconds later, the ball started progressing towards Tiara again, beating her beam. She channeled more energy into the attack, but her body was too weak to last any longer. She landed on the ground, still struggling against Grogar’s attack, but her beam quickly gave away and the ball of energy hit her.

The resulting explosion was massive, taking away several houses in it’s way and creating a wide crater. Tiara was hurled back far away from where she was standing. Grogar jumped down from the house he was standing on and trotted towards the princess.

“I...I’m sorry, Tambelon,” Tiara whispered to herself, lying motionless on the ground. She coughed a sour crimson before talking again. “I have failed you.” With the strength she still had in her, she levitated the bell that was around her neck. “But... I won’t fail Equestria.” She whispered a few words to the bell, as if it could understand what she was saying, and then, the bell was shot outside of Tambelon like a shooting star, landing in the horizon.

“What the hell?” Groagar said to himself as he trotted towards Tiara.

Suddenly, a white circle of magic surrounded Tambelon, then a huge magical dome covered it from above.

Grogar widened his eyes and turned to Tiara. “What did you do?!” When he received no response, he teleported to where she was lying and pinned her down. “WHAT DID YOU DO?!”

Tiara’s coat was pale and her eyes had lost their glimmer. Still, she smirked. “I used all the magic that was left inside me. I won’t let you extend your harm to Equestria.”

“So you’re banishing all of Tambelon?!”

“If I can’t win this fight, then I won’t let you win, either.” She looked up at Grogar, her smirk even wider. “That’s an enough victory for me.”

Grogar gritted his teeth in anger, glaring fiercely at the princess who, despite being powerless, had managed to defeat him somehow. He pulled his foreleg back, then brought it down at Tiara with all his might, giving her the death blow.

The huge white dome that was containing Tambelon shrunk quickly into a small ball of light, then vanished into thin air, taking all of Tambelon with it.

Author's Note

Thanks to Zoetic Zebra for the edit.

Chapter 1: A Cheesy Dream Can't Ruin My Morning! (Present)

Celestia sat up quickly in her bed, gritting her teeth in annoyance. She knocked the blanket off her husband, Sombra, snapping him out of his slumber. That was the last straw. It wasn’t the first time he had dragged her into a cheesy, mindless dream about the Power Ponies. It made her wonder why had his interests suddenly shifted into superheros. It must be Spike. Thankfully, Luna had walked into the dream and woken her up to raise the sun, ending the whole thing.

“Three times, Sombra? Three times in a row?!” Celestia grabbed Sombra by his shoulders and shook him.

“I’m sorry, okay? Spike made me read a few issues of Power Ponies, and they were so interesting I couldn’t but dream about them!” Sombra defended himself, smiling meekly.

“You’re a king. Grow up!”

“Hey, comic books aren’t just for kids.”

“At least don’t pull me into those dreams!”

“I can’t help it! It happens unintentionally, remember?” Sombra scratched the back of his neck.

Celestia sighed. “I’ll ask Luna if she knows some spell to prevent me from sharing your dreams.”

“But sharing dreams can have benefits sometimes.” Sombra winked.

“I just don’t want to share you every single dream, okay?!” Celestia groaned.

“Celestia, the sun.”

Celestia brought her hoof to her forehead. “Oh, you’re right!”

“Wait, no morning kiss?”

“Not now,” Celestia said, rolling her eyes. She stepped off her bed and teleported to the balcony. She saw the moon diving in the dark horizon, and a few seconds later, as her annoyance began to subside, a smile made its way to her lips and she started humming a melody. She lit her horn, and the sun rose from the opposite to where the moon had dived.

“I see your mood changed so quickly,” Sombra said, approaching Celestia from behind as he adjusted his blue cape.

“You know raising the sun makes me happy, even after a cheesy, over-the-top dream.”

“Oh, great!” Sombra rolled his eyes. “Please don’t tell me you’ll keep mentioning the dream for the whole day.”

Celestia tapped on her chin, smirking. “Yes, probably.”

“You celestial-bodies-moving Alicorns are driving me crazy, and I only have two of you in my daily life! Maybe that’s why I’m having those weird dreams.”

“Look at the bright side, there could have been more of us,” Celestia giggled.

“Of course! Imagine if I had an Alicorn mother in law or something.” Sombra chuckled. “That would be a disaster!”

“What did you just say?!” Celestia grabbed Sombra by his neck and locked her nose with his, glaring fiercely. “How dare you mention my mother!”

“Um...uh…” Sombra gulped. For a moment, he was actually scared. But all his fear disappeared when Celestia smiled.

“Gotcha!” Celestia giggled, playfully punching Sombra’s shoulder.

That was scary, Sombra thought, letting out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding.

“Do you know what I feel like doing now?” Celestia trotted past Sombra, rubbing her tail against his face.

Sombra’s mind quickly started wandering far away upon taking a sniff from Celestia’s tail. “What?”

“Sssinging, of course!”

Sombra’s smile faded, snapping out of his thoughts. “You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

“Oh, before I start…” Celestia leaned closer and gave Sombra a quick kiss on the lips. “Good morning, dear.”

Sombra smiled. “If that’s so, then I’m okay with the song.”

Before Celestia could start singing, a little Unicorn colt galloped towards them, a wide smile plastered on his face. The colt's eyes were a noble violet, shining with youth and energy. His tousled mane was a deep blue which complimented his light-grey coat.

"Mom! Dad!" the little colt yelled excitedly, as he threw himself between the royal couple. "Look, between me and you, I really love when you sing together! So, could you please teach me how to sing? Please?!" The colt gave his best puppy eyes. “But don’t tell Flurry; she wouldn’t let me live it down.”

Celestia laughed, as she gently stroked her son's mane. "Don't worry, I'll teach you."

"Hooray!" The little Unicorn jumped and hugged his mother.

“Why are you up so early, Eclipse?” Sombra asked.

“Because…”

“You said you wanted to learn how to sing, huh?” Flurry said from behind, before trotting into the balcony. A young Alicorn filly with light-pink coat and a purple and blue mane.

An unamused expression replaced Eclipse’s smile, before he answered his father’s question, “Because I wanted to tell you that before she arrives.”

Flurry giggled. “Don’t worry, Eclipse. I won’t make fun of you. Most of ponies know how to sing. It’s almost as if we’re living in a musical. Have you ever wondered about that?”

“Looks like she’s been hanging around Pinkie too much lately,” Sombra whispered to Celestia.

Shortly later, Cadance trotted into the balcony.

“Hello, aunt Tia,” Cadance beamed.

“Welcome, Cadance.” Celestia approached her niece and gave her a short hug. “Good you came early in the morning. We can have breakfast together.”

“Yeah. Flurry woke up even before the sunrise and kept bugging me until we were here extra early.” Cadance scratched the back of her head. “We flew to here. Shining couldn’t come with us.”

“I see.”

“Aw, now that’s a bummer!” Sombra punched the air. “I was hoping for an Ogres and Oubliettes match with him.”

Celestia and Cadance giggled.

“Now come on, I’m sure you’re hungry.” Celestia started towards the balcony’s door.

“But mom, what about...ya know,” Eclipse lowered his voice. “Teaching me how to sing!”

“It’s okay, I’ll teach you instead,” Flurry spoke, placing a hoof on Eclipse’s shoulder.

Eclipse raised an eyebrow at her. “And what do you know about singing?”

“More than you, obviously,” Flurry closed her eyes and giggled, earning a groan from Eclipse.

“I’d rather beat you in some game instead!” Eclipse smirked.

“Yeah yeah.” Flurry waved her hoof. “But let’s eat something first.”

“Hey, how about we have breakfast at Sugarcube Corner?” Eclipse suggested, a sincere smile on his face.

“Oh, of course!” Flurry’s face lit up. “I miss aunt Pinkie. Plus, there’s nothing better than eating the best cupcakes in all of Equestria at breakfast!” Flurry’s smile then lessened in intensity, and she leaned over to whisper in Eclipse’s ear. “Don’t think for a second that I don’t know what’s your other goal from visiting Sugarcube Corner.” She punctuated her sentence with a wink.

Eclipse gulped, his cheeks flushing red. He then managed to frown at Flurry. “Keep her a secret, remember?!” He whispered back.

“Rest assured, I won’t tell anypony about you and her.” Flurry spread her big wings. “Now come on.”

Eclipse quickly sat on Flurry’s back. He was always amazed by how Flurry could fly with him on her back without even taking a rest. She’s an Alicorn, after all, he always told himself.

“Eclipse, Flurry, where are you going?” Celestia inquired. “Don’t you want to have breakfast?”

“Don’t worry, mom! We’re gonna have breakfast at Sugarcube Corner,” Eclipse answered, waving his foreleg.

Celestia looked slightly unamused. “Eclipse, what did I tell about eating healthy food at breakfast?”

“Mom, please! Aunt Pinkie’s cupcakes are healthy, I’m sure,” Eclipse pleaded.

“It’s okay, auntie.” Cadance placed a hoof on Celestia’s shoulder, a warm smile on her face. “Let them have some fun.”

“Fine,” Celestia sighed.

“Be careful, Flurry. And remember: no flying stunts!” Cadance instructed.

“Okay, mom!” Flurry rolled her eyes, before jumping off the balcony and flying towards Ponyville.

Celestia smiled warmly at the fading shapes of her son and Flurry.

“You know who your son is going to meet, right?” Cadance asked, her eyes half-closed.

Celestia chuckled, her warm smile shifting to a smirk. “Of course I know. He is my son, after all.”

“Personally, I ship it!” Cadance giggled.

Celestia stifled a small laugh. Yup, that’s the Princess of Love I know, she thought.

Celestia saw her sister trotting towards them. Once Celestia’s eyes fell on her, Luna faced the ground, ears folded back.

“Luna, I know you have been awake all night, but would you like to join us at breakfast?” Celestia offered.

“I...yes. Just a moment and I’ll be with you,” Luna answered, starting towards the balcony.

Knowing her sister well, Celestia knew there was something wrong with her.

Luna leaned against the railing of the balcony and rested her head on her forelegs. She sighed heavily and stared at the horizon. She felt sleepy, but sleep wasn’t on her mind at the moment.

“What’s the matter, sister?” Celestia asked, trotting towards Luna.

“Who told you that there was a ‘matter’?” Luna replied, still maintaining her position.

“I’m your big sister. I know everything.”

“If you know everything, then why are you asking me?”

Celestia deadpanned. “Luna, we aren’t going to pretend that there’s nothing, are we?”

“Yes, we are.”

“Now I’m sure there’s something wrong.” Celestia shortened the distance between her and Luna even more.

“Fine, I’ll tell you,” Luna sighed in defeat. “It’s just...looking at you and Cadance. You both have found your true love and married him. Even Eclipse now has his eyes on a filly! And I…” Luna closed her eyes hung her head down. “And I’m still alone.”

“You mean, because Big Mac left you for Marble Pie?”

Luna’s eyes twitched, her sister’s words falling on her like bricks. “Sister, just...why did you mention that?! We both know what happened! Why the hay did you mention it now?!”

“Duh, because the readers need to know it.” Celestia shrugged.

Luna stared at her sister in disbelief, before face hoofing again.

“Joking aside,” Celestia placed a hoof on Luna’s clean shoulder. “I know how you feel. But don’t worry too much, I’m sure you true love is waiting for you somewhere. Very soon, you’ll meet your very special somepony...or dragon, or griffon, or...whoever your heart beats for!” Celestia smiled softly.

Luna sighed. “You seem awfully optimistic about it.”

“I waited for my very special somepony for one thousand years, and you know all the things we went through, and how I believed I would never see him again. And look where I am now. That says something about optimism, doesn’t it?”

Luna let her sister’s words sink. For a moment, she scolded herself for whining about love. She hadn’t gone through one percent of what her sister had to endure, and she was giving up already?

“Still, not all ponies are the same, Tia,” Luna spoke, her ears folded back. “I am not you, and you are not me. You know that very well.”

“I know. I’m not saying that you should wait for a thousand years.” Celestia waved her foreleg. “What I wanted to say is, never lose hope. Because maybe, just maybe, everything will be better in the next morning.”

Luna gave a small smile, cheered by her sisters words. “I... I suppose you are right.” The princess nodded happily. “Thank you, Tia.”

Luna trotted past her sister. But once she was at the balcony’s door, she stopped and turned around. “Hey, Tia. Regarding Sombra’s dreams and why you get involved in them…” She paused for a moment to stifle a laugh. “I’ve been dragging you to them on purpose!”

Celestia’s eyes grew wide, a frown replacing her smile. “WHAT?!”

“It’s just a prank, sis. And I must say...you looked so cute in the costume of Captain Marvel!” Luna said, before quickly galloping down the hall.

“Come back here, you stupid filly!” Celestia quickly chased after her sister. “You will pay!”

“You have to catch me first!” Luna laughed. As she galloped through the hall, she found their servant, Kibitz, in her way. She quickly levitated him and placed him on the ground behind her in hopes that he would slow Celestia down.

“Hey! This is cheating!” Celestia used her magic to push Kibitz out of her way and continued her chase.

Kibitz sat on the ground, a deadpan on his face. “I’m too old for this,” he muttered.

As Sombra and Cadance sat around the table, waiting for Celestia to join them, a loud thud shook the door to the dining room, startling the two ponies. The door then swung open, revealing Celestia and Luna fighting each other on the floor. Celestia had one foreleg around Luna’s neck, holding her still, and the other foreleg rubbing on the top of her head.

“I’ll make you pay for every single…dream.” Once Celestia saw Sombra and Cadance staring at them, she stopped punishing Luna and grinned sheepishly at her husband. “Oh...hi! Go on. Start eating. Nothing to see here!”

Cadance face hoofed. “This is gonna be a long day!” she said, as Sombra burst into laughter.

Author's Note

Thanks to Zoetic Zebra for the edit.

If you wanna know what was the dream at the beginning of the chapter, you can read it over here. But I'm warning you, it's an unedited mess that has no purpose at all!

Chapter 2: Flurry And Eclipse Take On Ponyville

Flurry and Eclipse sat opposite to each other around a table in Sugarcube Corner, waiting for their cupcakes to be served. They were alone, mostly because it was still early in the morning. The Corner was usually crowded, so Eclipse and Flurry were lucky to find it empty.

All the while, Eclipse was tapping his forelegs nervously on the table. His behavior quickly got on Flurry’s nerves.

“Ugh, would you please stop?” Flurry finally spoke, slamming her forelegs on the table. “This is so annoying!”

“Fine!” Eclipse snapped back, folding his forelegs across his chest. “I always thought that having the daughter of the Princess of Love with me would help me in a situation like this, but turns out you’re useless.”

“Daughter of the Princess of Love. I’m not my mother. It’s not my fault that you had false expectations.”

They smiled as Pinkie popped up in front of them, bubbly as ever. “I’m so glad you two came to visit us!” She said, a wide smile on her face. “I’ve been wondering when you would show up again. You really should visit more often.”

“I keep telling myself the same thing!” Eclipse laughed sheepishly.

Suddenly, the sound of a baby crying came from upstairs.

“Oops, looks like Surprise woke up.” Pinkie started up the stairs. “Pumpkin Cake, please serve the cupcakes to Flurry and Eclipse instead of me.”

Upon hearing the name ‘Pumpkin’, Eclipse’s ears stood up and his eyes opened wide, gaining a giggle from Flurry.

“I’m on it, Pinkie,” a soft voice responded, before the tray of cupcakes floated in an aura of magic and a young unicorn filly emerged from behind the counter. The filly had a butter-yellow coat, an orange mane and deep blue eyes. She trotted toward the table and placed the tray on it.

On the side of the tray that faced Eclipse sat four cupcakes, while the side that faced Flurry had a small mountain of cupcakes on it.

“I hope you enjoy the cupcakes, I baked them myself this time,” Pumpkin said, flashing Eclipse a timid smile.

Eclipse just sat there, not saying anything. After a few seconds, Flurry finally spoke.

“Ahem, thank you so much, Pumpkin.” Flurry shot Eclipse a frown.

Eclipse shook his head and finally managed to speak. “Oh, um, yeah, thank you! I’m sure they will be delicious.”

Pinkie came back from upstairs, but with a baby on top of her head. It was a white pegasus filly with a golden mane, her magenta eyes bubbling with energy. Pinkie grinned as she saw Pumpkin and Eclipse staring at each other and blushing.

“Hehe, so cute!” Pinkie said to herself, then turned her gaze up to her daughter. “Don’t you agree, Surprise?”

Surprise cooed and nodded as if she understood what her mother had said.

“Enjoy.” With that, Pumpkin Cake trotted back toward the counter, but she kept staring back at Eclipse, which caused her to collide with a table.

Eclipse was lost in thought as he watched Pumpkin, but his musing was quickly interrupted with a loud munching sound that ended as fast as it started. He turned to Flurry and stared at her with shock, as he found that half the mountain of cupcakes that was in front of her had been eaten.

“Yum, that was delicious!” Flurry said, licking her lips.

“Delicious? How? You practically inhaled those cupcakes. How did you feel any flavor?!” Eclipse said sarcastically.

“Oh, please! I’m an Alicorn. I need more food than normal ponies.”

“More food is something, and eating like a black hole is something else.”

“Oh, somepony did his astronomy studies!” Flurry clapped her forelegs excitedly.

Eclipse simply face hoofed in response.

Pound Cake slowly poked his head out from behind the corner, his brown eyes fixated on Flurry Heart. When Flurry noticed him, she waved her hoof and smiled, getting the same response from the white colt but with a light blush.

“I have to say…,” Eclipse started, a smirk on his face. “For the daughter of the Princess of Love, you’ve been really good at hiding your crush on Pound from me, until now.”

Flurry chuckled. “No, I wasn’t good at hiding my crush, but you were too dumb to notice it.”

Eclipse slumped his head on the table in defeat. She always has a comeback ready to insult me, doesn’t she? he thought.

“I can tell from the aroma that my wife isn’t the one who baked the cupcakes this time, but they smell very similar,” an orange stallion with a brown, frizzy mane said as he entered the Sugarcube Corner, carrying a big bag over his shoulder.

“Uncle Cheese!” Flurry and Eclipse exclaimed in unison, standing up from their seats.

“Hey there, kids! Long time no see,” Cheese replied.

Flurry and Eclipse were about to leave their seats and give Cheese a hug, but Pinkie quickly glomped him before they could move.

“WELCOME HOME, CHEESY!” Pinkie cheered, before slamming her lips on Cheese’s in a short kiss.

“Blech!” Eclipse said, making a disgusted face.

“What’s wrong, Eclipse?” Flurry whispered, an evil smirk on her face. “Don’t you wish to do the same to Pumpkin?”

Eclipse flinched in shock, his cheeks as red as ever. “W-what?! There’s no way I would do such things to my Pumpkin...I mean Pumpkin!” He turned his gaze away and whispered to himself, “At least not in public!”

Flurry giggled, causing Eclipse’s blush to deepen.

“You’ve been gone for a whole week, Cheese! I get a little lonely in your absence,” Pinkie said, eyes half-closed.

“Alright, alright! I’ve been traveling a little too much lately,” Cheese admitted with a smile. “I promise I won’t do this again. From now on, I shall spend more time with you and Surprise.” He locked his nose with Pinkie’s, allowing Surprise to jump from her head to his.

“Flurry, I think we should leave them alone now,” Eclipse said, leaving his seat.

“But you haven’t eaten your cupcakes yet.”

“I’ll take them with me.” Eclipse scooped the four cupcakes in his magic. “Now let’s get out of here, for their sake as well as ours!” With that, he and Flurry started out of the Corner.

“Oh, wait, we didn’t pay for the cupcakes.” Flurry stopped at the Corner’s door.

“The cupcakes are on us this time,” Pinkie replied, not taking her eyes off of Cheese.

“Just let us get out of here!” Eclipse whispered to Flurry, before dragging her out of the Corner and made her trot in front of him.

“But you have to admit, Eclipse, that was pretty OOF!” Flurry’s statement was interrupted as she bumped into a blue unicorn mare with a silver mane. “I’m sorry, mis…” Flurry looked up and stared in awe at the mare in front of her.

“Well well well, if it isn’t Princess Flurry Heart and Prince Eclipse!” the mare said.

“Trixie!” Flurry wrapped her forelegs tightly around the blue unicorn. “I missed you so much!”

“Me too,” Eclipse added. “But I won’t be able to hug you as long as Flurry is glued to you like this.” He took a bite from one of his cupcakes.

“....and I won’t be able to breathe!” Trixie managed to say, causing Flurry to let go.

“Sorry!” Flurry said with a blush.

“It’s okay.” Trixie patted Flurry on the head, smiling warmly. “You’ve grown up so much, Young Princess. It feels like only yesterday I saved you from the changeling hive in the Metamorphosis incident!” Trixie held her nose high as she finished her statement.

“Great, here we go again!” Eclipse groaned.

Trixie looked at Eclipse from the corner of her eyes, letting out a sigh. “But of course, I didn’t do it alone.”

“But you sacrificed yourself to save us. I’m in your debt forever!” Flurry nuzzled Trixie’s foreleg. She then turned to Eclipse and whispered, “You’re just jealous that she didn’t save you too!”

“For the record, she, and the others, saved my mother, whom without I wouldn’t have existed!” Eclipse whispered back.

“Speaking of the ones who helped me save Equestria, has any of you seen Discord?” Trixie asked, putting forelegs together under the chin and staring dreamily into the space.

“Uh, I’m sorry, Trixie,” Eclipse spoke, scratching his neck. “I did ask my mom. She hasn’t heard anything about him, either. Not even aunt Fluttershy has seen him.”

“Oh, I see,” Trixie sighed at the ground, her ears folded back.

“Don’t worry, Trixie. He disappears for long periods, but he always comes back,” Flurry tried to cheer, floating close to Trixie and patting her on the back.

“The wait for me isn’t as easy as it is for you guys,” Trixie said, turning her gaze away.

Flurry landed and exchanged a sad look with Eclipse, the two trying to come up with something cheerful to say.

“Anyway, enough about The Great and Powerful Trixie’s emotional life!” Trixie faced the young royalty again, managing a cheerful, cocky smile on her face. “See ya later, my faithful friends!” We that, she threw a smoke bomb on the ground and ran away.

Flurry and Eclipse coughed for a few seconds, then Eclipse managed to speak.

“Did she really need to do that?!” Eclipse coughed again.

Flurry replied with a shrug. “I wish she told us the story of the Metamorphosis incident again before she left.”

“Oh, please! You know she twists many facts when telling that story. It’s better to ask Starlight to tell it instead.”

“I know Trixie twists a lot of facts. That’s why I like her story; it feels more like a fairytale.” Flurry grinned sheepishly.

Eclipse stared at Flurry in disbelief. “Ponies like you and Trixie are what convinces me that history books shouldn’t be trusted,” Eclipse coughed one last time. “Though, I kinda feel bad for her, ya know…”

“Yeah. She and Discord are a marefriend and a coltfriend...I mean Draconequus-friend?” Flurry shook her head. “You get my point.”

“I do. I hope Discord returns soon. Trixie isn’t the only pony missing him.”

After a moment of awkward silence, Flurry spoke.

“So, where do you wanna go now?” Flurry asked, before she remembered something. “Hey, I just remembered. Aunt Rarity is making a dress for me. Let’s pass by the Boutique and see if the dress is done.”

“Sure, why not.” Eclipse agreed, taking a bite from another cupcake. “That will give me an opportunity to see uncle Spike! Then we can pass by the Castle of Friendship. Aunt Twilight and Uncle Flash sure could use some company.”

With that, Flurry and Eclipse made their way across Ponyville, ponies from the town greeting the young princess and prince as they passed by.

-oOo-

Twilight sat around the table in the castle’s kitchen with Flash Sentry, eating her breakfast slowly. She pushed the food around with her spoon, staring at it with a blank expression. Eating grew harder for Flash with every passing second, as he watched his wife being completely lost in her thoughts and barely eating.

“Okay, Twilight, please tell me what’s wrong,” Flash said, placing his spoon aside.

“Nothing,” Twilight sighed, leaving her spoon sink in the dish.

“Is it about ‘it’?” Flash asked, getting no response. “Twilight, I told you to not worry about it so much.”

“You don’t understand,” Twilight finally spoke. “Not...not having a baby is just a part of the problem, but it’s a big part because it only rubs salt in the wound,” she turned her gaze down, ears folded back.

“Then what are the other parts of the problem?”

Twilight sighed again. “It’s just that I’ve been seeing my friends less and less lately, and each one of them now has their own families and....and foals. I, on the other hoof, don’t have foals. You get to go on missions and see your fellow guards, but I can’t do the same with my friends.” She covered her face with her forelegs. “I’m afraid those days are behind us.”

“Twilight, we are a family even without foals. I mean, look at Fluttershy. She doesn’t have foals but she’s living happily with Danny Changeling.”

“Fluttershy has dozens of animals in her cottage whom she treats as her own kids. But you and me are living completely alone in this huge castle ever since Starlight and Spike left! We only have books, books, books. If there’s one thing I learned ever since I came to Ponyville, it’s that books can never replace friends!” Twilight replied firmly, tears welling in her eyes.

“Hey, calm down now. It’s okay.” Flash trotted to Twilight’s side and wiped her tears, wrapping a wing around her. “If you really feel like you’re spending less and less time with your friends, we can deal with it. I’m sure we can arrange some event to gather you all again.” He lifted Twilight’s head up to meet his gaze, flashing a reassuring smile. “And it’s true we don’t have a foal, but we don’t have a foal yet.”

Even though her husband’s words helped a little, Twilight still had the big part of the problem. “We tried everything, Flash. You heard the doctor. There’s nothing wrong with me nor with you. Doesn’t that mean something?”

“It just means we need to try harder.”

Twilight chuckled, even though she tried to hold it back. “Was that supposed to be funny?”

“Well, you chuckled, so I guess it was funny.” Flash braced himself, fearing that his joke had made things worse.

Twilight chuckled again, giving Flash a light, friendly punch on the shoulder. But her grim expression returned quickly.

“Oh come on! What should I do to cheer you up?”

“You’re not the problem, Flash. I know you’re doing your best. And I’m sorry if I ever made you feel like you’re not enough. No, you’re always here by my side. I just wish...” Before Twilight could finish her sentence, a loud knock was heard on the castle’s doors.

Immediately, Twilight teleported in front of the door and opened it, getting greeted with a familiar couple of unicorns, one orange and the other purple.

“Starlight!” Twilight threw her forelegs around the purple unicorn, totally ignoring her husband, Sunburst.

“Ah...hi.” Sunburst waved his hoof, failing to get any response from Twilight.

“Don’t worry, Sunburst,” Flash said as he arrived at the door. “I’ll give you the greeting that my wife forgot to give you.” Flash then punched Sunburst in the shoulder, knocking him to the ground.

“Ouch! If that’s how she was going to greet me, then thank goodness she didn’t!” Sunburst exclaimed, as he stood up and fixed his glasses, rubbing his shoulder in pain.

“Hehe, sorry!” Flash grinned, waving his foreleg in defense. “I’m a royal guard. I’m used to greet my fellow guards like that.”

“Did I look like a royal guard to you?” The crystaller raised an eyebrow.

“Get over it, man! I’m just glad to see you.” Flash placed his foreleg around Sunburst’s shoulder.

Sunburst sighed, a little smile appearing on his face. “Good to see you too.”

“I haven’t seen you in ages, Starlight!” Twilight said, breaking the hug but keeping one foreleg on Starlight’s shoulder.

“Yeah, I’m terribly sorry,” Starlight replied, an apologetic smile on her face. “I know the letters aren’t as good as a visit. I promise to visit you more often.”

“Let’s take a walk outside. I’m getting really bored from the castle’s interior.” With that, Twilight and Starlight trotted in the garden around the castle, discussing all sorts of things in their way.

-oOo-

Celestia levitated her cup and sipped, but nothing intered her mouth. She looked down to find it empty. She had been so immersed in her conversation with Cadance and Luna that that was the third empty sip she took from the cup.

Sombra had always been fascinatedby how the three princesses could talk so much. Even though he rarely felt like a third (or fourth) wheel with them, but he still wished that Shining Armor was present, and it would’ve been better if Spike came along, too.

“I see Flurry and Eclipse are taking their time,” Celestia commented, pouring tea into her cup.

“Yes. Let them have fun,” Cadance replied, showing only a little bit of concern. “I just hope they don’t do something reckless.”

“Oh, I don’t think they would,” Celestia chuckled. “Would they?”